Title: Uncovering Love: The Wedding
Series: Uncovering Love Book 4
Author: Kacey Shea
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Novella
Release Date: June 30, 2017 Cover Designer: Perfect Pear Creative Photographer: Wander Aguiar Cover Model: Steven Dehler
Eleven months ago, Evelyn Harper went undercover to investigate Tate Reynolds as a viable love interest and potential boyfriend for a wealthy client. What began as a temporary job transformed into an exciting new career and more significantly, the love of her life.
Now the two are planning their own walk down the aisle. Except their path is crowded with a few bumps along the way. The urgent investigation of a family matter. A sexy new client. Pregnant bridesmaids, an ex, and a sprinkle of cold feet leaves the couple stumbling toward their big day.
Forever is a long time, but Evie and Tate are determined to get hitched no matter what life throws their way. Will they make it to the wedding or uncover more challenges than a young couple in love can handle?
This novella is the forth book in the Uncovering Love series, and while it can be read as a standalone, it contains major spoilers.
“So, want to confide in your best friend why the most relaxed bride in all of history has suddenly developed a case of jitters?”
“What?” Am I that obvious? Kate’s glare tells me I am. “Fine. I’m nervous. That’s normal.”
“But you’re not an average bride. What gives?”
“I just had this picture in my mind of how the day would go, you know? And it’s not about good weather, though that would be nice, or how extravagant my dress is, even though it’s really the most beautiful thing I’ve ever worn, or if my hair looks perfect, though a good hair day gives a girl confidence to take on the world—”
“Evie.”
“It’s . . . I didn’t expect my sister to be sad on my wedding day. But now, with everything going on with Drew, I don’t see how this ends any differently.”
“Oh, Evie.” Kate frowns.
“I know. It’s completely selfish. But it’s an important day, and I wanted those celebrating around us to be happy. You have Jon. Carly has Derek. I’ve always thought my sister and Drew had the perfect marriage. They’re the example of what I’ve always wanted. And now . . .”
“See. This is why weddings are stupid,” Kate offers helpfully.
“What?” I straighten my spine.
“Evie. Your wedding day is just another day.”
It’s all I can do to not roll my eyes. “Tell me how you really feel.”
“I will. It’s a day. It’s an important moment, yes, but it’s only a moment. You and Tate have your entire lives ahead of you. Enjoy your wedding, sure, but don’t stack expectations all around it, because life is out of your control. What’s happening with your sister sucks, but we don’t know the entire story. And even if we never do, it’s out of your control.”
I pick at the edge of my paper napkin. “God, this is so stressful. We should’ve eloped.”
“Don’t you dare!” Kate glares. “I won’t miss my best friend’s wedding. Also, I have to witness you voluntarily wearing heels.”
“About that . . . I’m not.” I cringe because I know her too well.
“What?” she almost screams.
“I bought white Chucks. I’m good.” I shrug, hoping she’ll let my choice of footwear go.
She shakes her head but holds her tongue as Joe returns with a plate of fried appetizers and two giant glasses of soda. As soon as he leaves she pins me with a hard glare. “Now that’s the most upsetting thing you’ve said all night.”
I push the mozzarella closer to her, fried cheese a balm for all things upsetting.
“Kate, it’ll be fine.” I take a bite, chew, and swallow with a grin. “It’s out of your control.”
She picks up a fried zucchini slice and dips it in ranch dressing. “Remember that at your bachelorette party next week. You know what they say about payback.” Her eyes dance with amusement as she fills her mouth with food.
I smile sweetly and pull the plate of food closer to my side of the table. “Is it too late to pick a new maid of honor?” I joke, but I’m thankful to have a friend like Kate. Someone I’ve known more than half my life, and who gets me enough to know a night like this is just what I need. We spend the rest of dinner going through my to-do list. She puts most of my fears to rest, and volunteers to help assemble wedding favors the next day. But even her ever positive, no shit attitude can’t shake the ominous feeling toward my impending nuptials. I don’t have control over what happens with Melissa and Drew, but hell if I won’t do everything I can to uncover the mess of it all.
Kacey Shea is a mom of three, wife, and indie author who resides in sunny Arizona. She enjoys reading and writing romance novels as much as her son loves unicorns, which is a lot.
When she's not writing you will find her playing taxi cab to her children while belting out her favorite tunes, meeting friends or family for food and to share some laughs, or sweating it out in the gym. Kacey finds that picking up heavy weights repeatedly is good for her mental health as much as it is for the physical.
She has an unhealthy obsession with firefighters. It could be the pants. It could be the fire. It's just hot. On occasion she has been known to include them, without their knowledge, in her selfies outside the grocery store.
Kacey one day aspires to be a woman hand model in a sexy photo shoot. You know, the woman's hand raking across the muscular back or six pack stomach of the male fitness model. Yep, that hand.
Until that day comes she will continue writing sexy, flirty romance novels in hopes to bring others joy!
Kacey enjoys interacting with her fans so please feel free to stalk her on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
0 Comments
Title: For The Love of Beard
Series: The Dixie Warden Rejects #7
Author: Lani Lynn Vale
Genre: MC Romance
Release Date: August 25, 2017
Photographer: Golden @Furious Fotog
Model: Golden Czermak
Tobias knows that women are a lot of trouble, and one in particular is more trouble than most. Yet even with the knowledge that she’s a pain in the ass, he doesn’t stop himself from doing the one thing he knows that he shouldn’t do—fall in love with her.
It’s supposed to be simple. Get in, get the girl, and get out.
What Tobias isn’t supposed to do is fall for the woman he’s supposed to rescue. But he can’t help being intrigued–and amused–by the defiance rolling off Audrey every time he so much as speaks to her. This fascination only intensifies with every single word from her delectable mouth.
***
It’s been six years since her assault, yet it feels like it happened just yesterday. Audrey’s sick and tired of feeling so useless. She’s had enough of being scared, she’s doesn’t want to be all alone for the rest of her life. All of that boils down to a woman who’s had enough of not doing anything to reclaim her life.
She’s at a loss as to how to move on, and every attempt she makes results in failure. Just when she’s ready to quit, a sexy biker is there to push her out of her comfort zone.
Under Tobias’ patient guidance, Audrey slowly makes her way back to herself. She lands a job that she adores, and she thinks she’s finally found her place in this world. Most surprisingly, though, she finds herself falling in love with a man that honestly scares her to death.
Just when she vows to take that final step that’ll put her past in her past forever, the life she wants to live is yanked away. Leaving her with nothing to pick up the pieces.
Title: Lucky
Series: No Prisoners MC Romance
Author: Lilly Atlas
Genre: MC Romance
Release Date: July 31, 2017
After six painful months caring for her terminally ill mother, Kori learns the identity of her father. Desperate to connect with the only family she has left, Kori sets out to meet the man responsible for half of her DNA. There’s just one problem: he’s the President of the No Prisoners MC, Las Vegas chapter.
Raised as the step-daughter of an MC member, Kori has one rule when it comes to dating: no bikers. But following that rule becomes a real challenge when she meets Lucky, a member of her father’s club. He's handsome, he's sexy, and he makes her feel special.
Lucky has his own rule for dating: don’t do it. With a revolving door to his bedroom, he has no interest in a relationship. But what begins as harmless flirting with his Pres's daughter heats up, until he can’t get Kori out of his mind. She's enough to make him give up being single.
But Lucky is holding onto a dark secret. He's learned the Pres and VP are involved in activities that could bring down their chapter. He was nearly ready to act when Kori arrived. Now he must decide: move swiftly against his club's leaders, or wait to give his relationship more time to develop? Either way, can he save her from getting caught in the crossfire?
Lilly Atlas is a contemporary romance author, proud Navy wife, and mother of two spunky girls. By day she works as a physical therapist for a hospital in Virginia. Lilly is an avid romance reader, and expects her Kindle to beg for mercy every time she downloads a new eBook. Thankfully, it hasn’t happened yet, and she can often be found absorbed in a good book.
Title: Flutter
Author: L.A. Corvill
Genre: NA Romance
We were the classic fairy tale.
William and Sophia.
Wilphia.
Love at first sight, high school sweethearts,
married in college, constructing our empire one building at a time.
He was the love of my life... until, he was gone.
Until the sound of my heart breaking into a million pieces was the last sound I heard
Now I have to build my future...alone.
Or so I thought.
Finding a new life was not part of the plan.
Finding love was was not part of the plan.
But my heart could not resist him.
I, could not resist THEM.
Leli and Aimee are Texas-Natives who reside in the Rio Grande Valley. Their love love for books helped them decide to pursue their dream of writing. They teamed up to create stories with happily ever after’s.
Title: Mated In Treason
Author: Christa Paige
Genre: Paranormal Romance
When the kraliyet bodyguard ended up in her hospital bed after an explosion left him in critical condition, Nadia tried to warn herself not to fall in love with him. After all, she's no vampire Cinderella, and happily-ever-afters didn't happen to low-born females of the Kan Asma. But, her heart wouldn't listen and, soon, she wanted to claim Gunnar as her forever mate, even if it meant taking him the only way possible, as a husband in a disgraceful human ceremony.
Gunnar fell in love with his nurse the moment he saw her smile. He yearned to claim her as his but the Council would never allow him to mingle his powerful blood with a female from a poor family. The penalty for an unsanctioned mating is a death sentence. He doesn’t care about the threats and possible consequences of making her his. Though, due to the high probability of genetic incompatibility, he can't complete their blood-bond without knowing if it might take her life. Losing her would be worse than torture.
Their only hope lies with the treasonous Faction hell-bent on destroying the very people Gunnar calls family. Determined to find a way to be mated, Gunnar seeks out the leader of this hidden uprising. Together, Nadia and Gunnar must break every law and rite of their vampire culture to become bonded for life. Gunnar will play a deadly game of subversion or pay a blood price that would sever him from their people and put a bounty on his head. They must survive a dangerous infiltration of the Faction, because they’ll do anything to be together, even if it means being mated in treason.
Strict professor by day. Romance author by night. Lover of all things alpha-male twenty-four hours a day. Christa Paige is a multi-published author in several genres. Her passion for love stories spans many tropes. She writes sensual, romantic tales and sweet love stories. In her free time, Christa, likes knitting/crochet and has a yarn stash that keeps growing. (Especially if it is bamboo.) She has a love/hate relationship with running but can’t turn down a themed 5k race. Her beagle babies are her running partners. She never tires of watching a Star Wars marathon or rereading Lord of the Rings. There’s a special place in her heart for the Regency Romance. Mr. Darcy is her favorite Regency hero, especially when he is wearing Hessians and a cravat.
Christa's series The Blood-Vine published by Liquid Silver Publishing, Kissin' Cops published by Liquid Silver Publishing, Women Who Serve (Book 1 Coming soon), and the Kan Asma Vampires published by Hartwood Publishing
Title: Blue Velvet
Series: UltraViolence Book Two
Author: Natalie Bennett
Genre: Dark Erotic Romance
Blue Velvet
Noun-Slang
-An illicit drug taken by vein.
Secrets.
Deceit.
Lust.
And bloodshed.
This is their happily ever after.
*A/N*
Blue Velvet is book two of two in the UltraViolence duet. This is a full-length novel.
->Trigger warning(s)<-
Gore, dub/non-consent, violence, lots of sex, lots of F-bombs, and death.
This will have a non-traditional HEA. ;)
Natalie Bennett has always been an avid fan of all things dark and twisted, so it only made sense for her to write what she loves. She brings to life unapologetic antiheroes you love to hate and strong heroines who refuse to be broken. Natalie writes Dark and Twisty Erotica with romantic elements. She doesn't censor her writing and let's her stories tell themselves. If you pick up one of her books expecting a typical HEA, you won't find one.
Title: Love Wasted
Author: Shirl Rickman
Genre: NA Romance
She loves him. She loves him not.
When Cassandra Porter was seven years old, she fell in love with her next door neighbor and her best friends brother. Cass loved that boy every single day…until he broke her heart and all that remained were the pieces.
Ten years and what feels like a lifetime apart, that boy—now a grown and sexy, warm blooded man—is thrust back into her life. He might make her temper flair and blood boil, but a few unresolved feelings are no match for the way her heart races when he is near…
She drives him the good kind of crazy.
Paxton Luke led his life with one thing on his mind: success. Friends and family come first, with no room for emotional attachments—not even with the neighbor girl, who's turned into a complete knockout. His sister's best friend. Emotions only lead to love, and love was trouble.
They’re determined to fight this undeniable attraction to the bitter end. It’s too damn bad their hearts are about to get love drunk-- wasted on love.
“Damn it, stop trying to avoid this conversation. Admit it; you’ve been avoiding me since New Year’s Eve.” I take another step in his direction, putting less space between us.
“Fine, maybe I have been, but I’m not now,” he admits, still a harshness to his voice. Unemotional.
Shaking my head, I think about laughing, but I really don’t feel like laughing. “Well, that’s nice for you, but I want to talk. I want us to talk about that night. I want to explain.” I keep my voice even although I feel like I’m about to fall off the edge of a cliff.
The hardness shows a little of itself again in his eyes. “What is there to talk about? I think you made it pretty clear how you felt that night and I’m just trying to remember you’re Cass. Cass who’s my sisters best friend. Cassandra Porter the girl next door. The girl, who’s parents are best friends with mine. The Cass I spent my entire youth trying to avoid while still trying to protect. The Cass who was at every holiday or vacation for most of my life. Because that all means something. I’m trying to remember everything I should so I can forget the one thing I shouldn’t. The one thing that means nothing.” He sounds like he’s out of breath when he steps to me, we’re now toe to toe. I realize I’m breathing hard too.
The last words to leave his mouth are my breaking point, that old feeling of frustrated disappointment washes over me like a tidal. So unexpected although, it happened to me before, on another day and what feels like another lifetime. “Don’t you dare say that!” I shout, and without thinking, I put my hands on his chest and try to shove him with all the anger and hurt inside of me. But, he’s too fast. Too strong, and he grabs both of my wrists, holding them against his chest. I try fighting him for my freedom, but he doesn’t let go. He just holds them.
Then we’re back there again, it’s as if the countdown started all over, and we’re holding the other in the same intense gaze as we did that night. A war between desire and fear. His head lowers, and I go up on my tiptoes, our mouths touch lightly. We don’t move; we only press our lips together in tenderness. And, just when we both decide to relinquish a little control, the door bell rings. We freeze, our bodies still united by the mere connection of our lips. The air that was once heavy around us begins to dissipate with every chime of the bell.
Then we hear his voice. The one person holding us back. The person who isn’t really between us, but there still.
Shirl Rickman is a writer, a dreamer, and an optimist. A small town Texas girl currently residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, Shirl adores her husband, daughter, and two crazy dogs. When she's not dreaming up new love stories, Shirl can be found reading, drinking her favorite coffee, Kona Blend with coconut milk. She loves kindness, laughing and meeting her readers.
Title: Rock My Body (A Mondez Novel, 2)
Author: Lee Piper
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 3, 2017 Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Twenty-two year old Riley Sears promises herself never to fall in love unless it is with a guy who is long-term boyfriend material. She is not crazy, her psychologist reassures her of that, but when faced with situations she cannot control… Well. Her anxiety skyrockets. Enter Dominic Mondez, the hottest creature ever to grace pecs and abs. The notorious playboy propositions Riley with the best sex of her life—his words. However, after learning he never sleeps with the same woman twice, Riley’s decision becomes remarkably simple. No. Way. In. Hell. Sadly, traversing the murky waters of friends without benefits is far from simple, especially since Dominic is the lead guitarist of local rock band, Mondez. He is also tempestuous, a womanizer, and—even worse—inexplicably jealous. Dominic is bad for Riley in every possible way. Bad, bad, bad. If only her body would listen.
Lee Piper is a lover of books. She often juggles reading seven novels at a time for the sheer joy of it. At the grand old age of five, Lee Piper decided to become an author, however found a limited market for her unicorn stories. So, high school English teacher it was.
At thirty-two, and grieving the loss of her second miscarriage, Lee Piper turned to novels—Kylie Scott to be precise—to escape the pain. This then inspired her to write Rock My World, the first in a four part contemporary romance series. Her debut novel not only reached the second round of the 2016 Emerald Award, but also became an Evernight Publishing bestseller within the first two weeks of publication.
Lee Piper lives in Adelaide, South Australia with her drummer husband, cheeky daughters, and one very crazy dog.
Title: Cody
Series: Southside Skulls Motorcycle Club
Author: Jessie Cooke
Genre: MC Romance
Cody Miller has just been released from serving 8 years in prison for avenging the death of his brother. His only family are those at the Southside Skulls Outlaw Biker Club, where the girl he loves lives, but he hasn’t heard from her since his incarceration and no one is telling him what he wants to hear… that she still loves him. Macy Linden awaits anxiously for Cody’s return, and how he will react when he learns of her life now. No longer the boy she last saw, Cody is now six foot two and two hundred and thirty pounds of solid muscle, driven by the need to complete some unfinished business. Macy has something else she has been hiding. A big secret that will threaten to drive them apart. Can they still find the love they once had after all their secrets are revealed? This is the second book in the Southside Skulls MC Series. This is a Standalone Romance Novel but is intended to be read after book one - DAX - where characters in that novel are main players in this story too. HEA and No cliffhangers. Intended for Mature Readers.
“Hey, kid, do me a favor and find Jesus, okay?” Dax watched as a slow smile spread across the young man’s face. The burly property officer looked like he was suppressing a smile of his own. He finished putting the possessions in the little cardboard box out onto the counter and slid an invoice over for the kid to sign. He was signing for all his worldly possessions, and they all fit in that box. Cody Miller was twenty-four years old and he was walking out of prison six years older than he’d walked in. The first two years of his incarceration were spent in the Worcester juvenile center and on the day of his eighteenth birthday he was transferred to the medium security Men’s Correctional Institute in Concord. Dax had felt terrible the whole time the kid was in prison, since he knew he hadn’t had any visitors. He wrote to him often and sent him, or had one of the girls send him, a care package every month. He also kept money on his books. Dax and the club were all the kid had.
Cody’s mother took off for parts unknown not long after he was born. Cody’s father was…still classified as missing, and his older brother was dead. The girl that he’d been in love with since he was thirteen years old was now dating his then best friend. Dax hadn’t had the heart to tell him, but since neither of them had showed up to see him, he thought Cody probably figured it out himself. As he stood in the release center waiting for Cody to finish signing out, he was sure of two things: This wasn’t the same kid that went in, either physically or emotionally, and he was probably going to need as much help as he did at fourteen, or he’d be right back. Dax hoped that he was up to the challenge. So far he hadn’t had much luck with any of the young ones that were getting left behind because of their parents’ lifestyles. He’d been working on how to handle that problem, since it was getting out of hand. So far, he hadn’t come up with any solutions.
“Jesus ain’t gonna be waiting around for a guy like me to find him,” Cody told the officer. The old man gave him a serious look and said:
“Son, Jesus don’t wait around for no man. If you want to find him, you’re going to have to look way down deep.” Cody looked like he had a retort on his tongue, but he let it pass. Dax was happy to see that the boy at least had some self-control these days. When he’d gone in, he hadn’t had any, but that was because he hadn’t had anyone that cared enough about him to teach him what self-control was all about and how important it was for a man to have it. Dax thought he might like that property officer. He had never liked correctional officers, any more than he had cops. But after meeting Angel and her family, his opinion of cops was slowly beginning to evolve. Correctional officers like this one just might help change his opinions of them as well. The old man put his hand on Cody’s arm and Dax saw the kid flinch. It was understandable that he’d have a problem with touch, but he handled that well too. He stood stock still as the officer said, “You don’t have to find Jesus to stay on the right path, son, but you do have to find something you believe in.” Cody nodded. Dax had only recently found what he believed in. He hoped that it didn’t take Cody so long.
“I’ll look for something, Lopez.”
The officer smiled again and used the hand he’d been resting on Cody’s arm to pat the kid on the back. “I have faith that you’ll find it.” He looked at Dax then and said, “Take care of him. He’s one of the rare ones that I see potential in.”
Dax gave the officer a small smile and a nod. Then he looked at Cody, who looked at him for the first time. Dax could see the difference in the kid’s eyes. He was always a wild one, but before he went in, his eyes were full of life. Now they were cold and hard, and Dax wondered what Cody had seen in there. He knew from his own experience that whatever it was would probably haunt Cody for the rest of his days. And Dax also knew that the kid would probably never talk about any of it. He had a feeling that before things got better for Cody Miller, they were going to get worse, and that would mean trouble for the club. Despite knowing that, Dax couldn’t turn his back on him. The club had taken the kid in on the ranch at the age of fourteen. He was family and now they were the only family he had.
“You ready?” Dax asked him.
Cody picked up the pitiful little box of belongings and nodded. Dax gave Officer Lopez another nod, and he and Cody headed for the door in silence. They stepped out into the bright sunlight and Dax slipped his sunglasses down off his head and over his eyes. He pulled a leather case out of his wallet and held it out to Cody.
“What’s this?”
“Sunglasses.”
Cody looked surprised, but he took the case. He stopped and sat the box down and slid the glasses out into his hand. He looked at them for a long time. Dax suddenly wondered if he’d done a bad thing. When Cody looked up at him his hazel eyes glistened with the tears Dax knew he’d never let fall in front of him. “They’re Keller’s.”
Dax nodded. “He kept them in the saddlebags of his bike. I got the bike back from the P.D. It’s at the ranch. It hasn’t been ridden, but Tool starts it every so often and keeps the fluids in check. I figured you’d want it.”
He looked touched and like he didn’t know what to say. Finally, he slid on the Ray-Bans and said, “Thanks, Dax, for everything.”
Dax only nodded and the two men walked in silence to where Dax had parked Angel’s car. Cody was lost in his own thoughts and Dax was thinking about how much the kid looked like his father…the piece of shit.
Keller and Cody’s father, Brandt, had ridden with Doc, Dax’s father, for a lot of years. After Doc died and Dax took over the club, Brandt continued to ride with him. The boys had grown up in a trailer park not far from the ranch, but they’d spent a lot of time with the club. Cody wanted to be a Southside Skull since he was five years old. Keller wanted nothing to do with club life. He’d grown up around it like Dax had and it had the opposite effect on him. Keller was always the good kid. He had gotten good grades in school, followed all the rules, didn’t steal or cheat or lie or get into fights. He’d worked hard to become the exact opposite of the man his father was.
When Keller was sixteen and Cody thirteen, Dax found out that their old man had been beating them for years. Somehow the boys had hidden it from everyone, or the old fucker knew how to hit them where it wouldn’t show. Dax happened to show up at the rundown trailer they lived in one morning, looking for their father, and instead he found an unconscious, bruised, bloody and broken Keller. Dax found out later that when their father came home drunk the night before, Keller had run Cody off and taken the beating he knew their father was looking to give to someone. The kid was half-dead; after he loaded him on his bike and took him to the hospital, Dax came back to look for Brandt. He found him still passed out in the back bedroom. His knuckles and the t-shirt he was wearing were covered in his son’s blood. After Dax doused him in ice from the freezer and woke him up, the old drunk tried to tell him, tearfully, no less, that he didn’t remember beating Keller. Dax had drunk plenty in his life and although he’d been drunk enough to lose his inhibitions, he’d never lost his memory. He thought the asshole was full of shit, and he made an executive decision as president of the club that Brandt wasn’t the type of man they wanted. Then, strangely enough, the man had disappeared off the face of the earth—and even years later, no one had heard from him. Dax was one of only a handful of people on earth that knew Brandt Miller was dead.
Keller did his best, after the loss of their only parent, to take control of Cody. But the willful teen was too much for his brother to handle and when Cody turned fourteen, Dax took over. Things were going fairly well until Keller ended up dead. It turned out that he was an even better human being than Dax had thought he was. They found out that he’d been paying off some of their father’s old gambling debts…but not fast enough for the loan sharks’ taste. They beat him, probably accidentally, to death. That was when things went all bad for Cody, who found the body. He took off one night and by the time Dax and the guys found him, he was already in a set of cuffs and under arrest for murder.
Cody had killed one of the men who’d killed Keller and put the other one who was with him in the hospital. The kid stood there in cuffs, covered in their blood still, and right in front of the cops said he was on his way to kill the loan shark when they caught him. He was charged with second-degree murder and assault with intent to kill. The club’s attorney, Nathan, defended him and presented a case of a kid that had shit for a life, with no one to care about him other than his older brother; that day Cody had just stumbled upon the people who killed his brother and he’d lost it. No, he shouldn’t have had a gun on him, but if he hadn’t, he’d probably be dead too, right? That was the way Nathan had told the story to the jury, and they had looked at the skinny teenager with the big, innocent, hazel eyes and they’d bought it. He was sentenced to fifteen years instead of life and he’d been paroled after eight for good behavior. Dax looked at him now and thought there was no way a jury would take pity on him these days. He’d added over fifty pounds of muscle and shaved his head while he was in prison. Tattoos colored his neck and visible arms, and Dax had a feeling that most of the rest of his body was covered as well. Even in a suit and tie, the sight of Cody would cause the average juror to walk down the other side of the street now.
Dax led Cody over to Angel’s car. The prison was two hours from the ranch and Dax wasn’t sure Cody would be up to that ride on the back of his bike after all this time. When Dax slid the key into the door lock Cody said:
“Want me to drive?”
Cody never had a driver’s license before he was locked up. Some of the guys had been teaching him how to ride before he got locked up, but Dax wasn’t sure he’d ever done that on his own either. “Not ready to die today,” Dax told him with a laugh. “Get your felon ass in the car.”
Cody grinned and opened the door. After tossing his box over the seat he got in. “The old lady’s car?” he asked Dax when Dax got in the other side.
“Yeah. Her name is Angel.”
“Hard to imagine the woman that tied you down…especially if everything I heard about her was true.”
“You’ll like her,” was all Dax said. He wasn’t surprised Cody had heard about Angel. His father used to say that the prison grapevine was “faster than a bored housewife on speed.”
Once Dax got them out of the prison gates and onto the road, the two men drove in silence for miles. Cody broke the silence first, and Dax almost cringed as the kid asked:
“So, have you seen Macy?”
Dax knew this moment was coming. He’d let himself believe that Cody had put two and two together…but even if he suspected, he was obviously still in denial. When the kid asked about her in his letters to Dax, he had “conveniently” forgotten to answer that question. Now, there was no getting out of it.
“Yeah, she’s…around.” Macy was the daughter of Tank, one of the club members that had been around since Dax’s father’s days. He wasn’t that old—Dax figured maybe forty-five—but he had C.O.P.D. and thanks to all the trouble he had breathing, he didn’t ride much anymore. He still lived on the ranch and he was still an active member of the club. He did handyman and mechanic work around the ranch now, and up until about six months ago Macy had still lived with him. She worked in the bakery owned by one of the club girls in town and she was taking classes at the community college. As far as Dax knew, she was always a pretty good kid. He knew for a long time that she was hanging out with Jimmy Kearns, Cody’s lifelong best friend, but he'd assumed it was just to support each other…that is, until she moved in with him right after he became a prospect. Dax thought about kicking the kid out, but he hadn’t done anything other than fuck Cody’s girlfriend, and that went on in droves around the ranch. Instead, he just hoped that Cody would be over Macy by the time he came home. Obviously, that wasn’t the case.
Cody raised an eyebrow and said, “Well, I have to give her credit for standing by her promise that she was finished with me if I ever went back to jail. I only talked to her once in eight years. I called her the day they transferred me out of the youth authority…on my eighteenth birthday. I was surprised when she took the call. I guess she felt sorry for me or something. She didn’t say too much, just that she hoped I’d be okay. That was it. I’m glad she’s still around, not that she’d ever want to be with me now. I’m a convicted felon, and that will be with me always. She had big plans for her life. Did she go to college?”
“Maybe you can talk to her about all that when you see her,” Dax said. Cody raised another eyebrow. Dax could tell by the look in his eyes that the thought of seeing her both thrilled and terrified the kid. Dax hated the thought of how crushed he’d be when he found out about her and Jimmy. Especially when Cody surprised him by going on to say:
“You know, she was my first…my only…everything. When I first got locked up all I did was think about her and wonder how she was doing and if she was thinking of me. I drove myself crazy wondering what she was doing and who she was with. I’ve loved that girl since I was thirteen years old. I guess even if she never wants to see me again, I’ll probably keep right on loving her.”
It was in those words that Dax heard how truly young Cody still was. Not just physically; Dax had known many men who went inside as adolescents, came out as legal adults, but somewhere along the way, their development had gotten arrested. Cody was still sixteen years old emotionally, and Dax was afraid of what he’d do when his heart was ripped out of his chest. “How’s her dad?” Cody asked, desperately reaching for something about Macy to talk about, Dax thought.
“Tank’s good. He’s as ornery as ever. Pissed at the world that he can’t ride anymore. He stays busy fixing things on the ranch.”
Cody was quiet for a few minutes and then he said, “I met a guy from a club out in Cali while I was inside.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. They’re called Cen Cal Commies. You ever heard of them?”
It was Dax’s turn to raise an eyebrow. That club’s reputation stretched all the way back east. They were the kind of hard-core that old Hawk had been trying to make his club, the Sinners. The kind of hard-core that Dax had been trying to get the Skulls away from. They dealt in anything and everything that would turn a profit, and last Dax heard, they’d expanded their territory from the Central Valley all the way up north above Sacramento. “Yeah, I’ve heard of them. What’s the guy in for?”
“He was in for trafficking and weapons charges, and he assaulted a couple of police officers when they arrested him.”
“What was he doing in prison in Massachusetts?”
“He was picked up just outside of Boston. He was only seventeen at the time. He did eight years and got out a couple months before I did. He’s kept in touch. Cool guy.”
“He’s not the kind of guy I’d recommend you associate with if you’re planning on staying out of prison.”
Cody chuckled. “Thanks, Dad, I’ll remember that.” Dax shot him a sideways glance. This kid was definitely going to cause him some trouble. He’d been kind of enjoying the peace and quiet the past six months or so since the war with the Sinners ended and he’d been concentrating on legitimizing their businesses, and on Angel. He gave Cody another glance. The kid was staring out the window now and Dax couldn’t help but notice how young he looked. He was still young enough that this didn’t have to destroy his future. The problem was going to be convincing the kid he wanted one…outside of the club.
Title: My Dirty Boss
Author: Elaine May
Genre: Romance
Once upon a time.
Really?
This is no fairy tale.
This is more like a dirty tale.
A dirty tale with my new boss as the ring leader.
He's hot.
He's sexy as hell and he's one dirty SOB.
I'm a moth to his fiery world but the deeper I go the more I love it.
The more I want more.
He's my boss in the toy store we both work in.
The only games we should be interested in revolve around princesses and pirates, but the only games he wants to play are dirty.
I want to tell you my dirty story.
I want to tell you all about My Dirty Boss.
Elaine May is my Author name. I live in the South West of England with my two beautiful daughters and yummy hubby. I love reading dark and twisted tales that mess with your head. I love to travel and spending time with my family. My dream is for people to like what I've written and hopefully get to go to a book signing event as an author.
|