Can't Buy My Love: Billionaire and Virgin Romance Collection
Page 174
I’d kind of always been a bit of a daredevil. I just couldn’t “keep my booty still,” as my old great-aunt Birdie diagnosed at my fifteenth birthday party. (It was a great time—we were jumping off the roof into a kiddie pool filled high with shredded foam from a mattress I’d ripped up by hand.) I didn’t like trouble, you see, I just had a nose for action—a thrill for the outdoors, that sort of thing.
So when I discovered that I had this natural bent for fixing things, I was so excited. I was also relieved—my brain could be the one making me a living, not my brawn or bravado. I mean, sure, being a mechanic involved using my hands and muscles, too, but working on planes also involved figuring out problems and thinking about the best way to fix things.
This new direction of mine was a major step up for my family. It meant I might live to see old age, unlike practically every male in my bloodline.
Plus, none of us had ever served our country in the Armed Forces. Me joining up was an even bigger step forward for us. For me personally, joining up meant my freewheeling, garage experiment antics might have a constructive, positive outlet while I learned more skills and grew in my abilities.
More, I completely relished the traveling part of Air Force life. Mercy, the world had never seemed so big. Or beautiful, honestly.
Obviously, combat was what it was. But as things changed in all those long years, I found newer and cooler methods to indulge my thrill-seeking ways. When I was a kid, I never would’ve imagined rock climbing in the Swiss Alps would be just one of the many adventures life brought me.
But most of all, I loved the culture of performance. Of excellence. Oh, of course, there were jerks, wimps and assholes, as there are in all aspects of life, but I had the best of luck in all my deployments. The people around me inspired like nobody’s business. And so, that was my world, a world where I had a place, a duty and a status no one could take away from me.
That world all came crashing down, though, when I got into an accident that forced me to retire.
Chapter 2 - Bradley
To this day, I could still smell the diesel fuel burning from my seat in the cockpit. That day, everything felt wrong. I remember telling everyone that I felt like I had woken up on the wrong side of the bed. They just laughed and told me to shake it off, thinking that maybe the thought of going up in the air that day was starting to get to me. That wasn't it, but at the same time, I couldn't quite say what it was that was bothering me.
When the shots rang out and I heard the metal pings of the plane being shot, I knew that that was what that feeling had been. A sick dread filled me as I watched everything seem to move in slow motion.
“Mayday! Mayday!” called the pilot, sweat covering his brow and his shirt collar.
I felt the impact as the plane hit the ground like a meteor and I was the hurtling hunk of space rock. I didn't think that I would make it out alive.
But, I did.
I had been hurt. Fucking badly. Initially, I blacked out and when I woke up, it was in a hospital bed. I couldn't move. But I could hear voices around me.
“What do you think, Doc?” asked a woman's voice.
“Can't be sure,” said a man's voice. “I can say, though, that he's stable for now. And considering that many of the people who were on the flight with him sustained very serious injuries, I would say that he's in a really good position.”
“Will he walk again, if he does pull through?” asked the woman.
“Only time will tell,” he said. “I just hope that he wakes up soon. That will be the deciding factor in all of this. That and his will to live.”
Apparently, I faded in and out of consciousness for a few days.
Then, one day, I opened my eyes. I remember staring at the ceiling and seeing a brown spot on one of the tiles. I just stared at it, trying to figure out where I was and process what I could remember.
A nurse walked in and saw that my eyes were open and gasped.
“Doctor, he's awake!” she yelled, running back out of the room. The doctor rushed in and looked at me.
“How do you feel?” he asked, careful and gentle like his voice would knock me back into unconsciousness.
I tried to move and felt a lot of pain all over.
“Hurt,” I managed to say. The word came out more like a grunt, though.
“It's okay. You're alright. You've sustained a few injuries, but you'll live. With some therapy, you will slowly start to improve.”
The doctor explained to me what had happened. The plane crashed, but we made it to friendly territory before the enemy could finish the job. We were then taken to a hospital where we received care right away.
“You broke your hip and leg. We were able to set them and put them in a cast. That’s why you can't move very much. There was some skin scraped on your face, neck, and chest, but those are minor cosmetic issues, which can be addressed later. For now, we just want to make sure that we keep you stable and that you don't develop an infection.”
I was in a lot of pain, but the biggest blow came two weeks later when, after being visited by the doctor, my commanding officer, James Stratton, came into my room. He held his hat in his hand and wore a sad look on his face. He looked like he was coming to give me news that I was dying. It turned out that he fucking might as well have been.
“How you holding up there, champ?” he asked me, trying to force a smile.
“I'm pretty good,” I said weakly, giving my best attempt at a smile.
He took a deep breath and then blew it out.
“There's really no easy to way to say this,” he said, staring at the floor, fidgeting his hat in his hands. “I know that you must be going through a lot right now, trying to recover from your injuries and all. That's why I tried to wait until the last minute possible to come down here and have to talk to you about this. But, given your injuries and the extent of the work that you do for the Air Force, we regret to have to inform you that your service will no longer be needed. As soon as you are well enough, you will be going back home. You will be honorably discharged, of course. The United States Air Force thanks you for your service. “
He stood up and saluted. I tried to salute back, but could barely get my hand up to my head. He hesitated for a moment before he spoke again.
“And on a more personal note, I'm going to miss you, Brad. If you ever need anything and I can help, don't hesitate to ask.”
I nodded, telling him that I would.
He spun on his heels and walked away. I listened as his heels clicked down the hall until they faded away, just like all my dreams and goals. It was as if he was taking them all with him as he walked away from me after delivering such depressing news.
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I wasn't supposed to touch her.
But I put a baby in her.
I'm Mariah's boss, and I'm quite a bit older than her.
There are strict rules against us being together.
But f*ck the rules. I take what I want.
I can't resist her curvy body and feisty personality.
And I have to have her for her very first time.
Then as many times as I can get my hands on her after that.
But word's getting out and people are gossiping.
She says she doesn't want to risk either of our careers.
That since we couldn't keep this hidden, it needs to end.
Yet I think she's hiding something else from me.
And I plan to show her our love story is just beginning.
I'll claim what's mine, no matter the cost.
But can I get her to see she's tamed this bad boy's wild ways?
Tell Me No Secrets is a huge collection of billionaire and virgin secret baby romance books! The 16 standalone books included are: My Father's Best Friend's Secret Baby, My Dad's Rival's Secret Baby, My Professor's Secret Baby, Single Mom's Secret Baby, My Father's Rich Friend's Secret Baby, My Doctor's Secret Baby, My
Brother's Best Friend's Secret Baby, My Fake Fiancé's Secret Baby, My Ex-Boyfriend's Secret Baby, My Client's Secret Baby, My Best Friend's Brother's Secret Baby, My Billionaire Ex's Secret Baby, My Brother-in-Law's Secret Baby, My Mentor's Secret Baby, My Best Friend's Secret Baby, and My Bad Boy Boss's Secret Baby.
Jamie Knight promises to always bring you a happily ever after filled with plenty of heat. And never any cheating or cliffhangers!
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Click here to see all the collections in the Bad Boys and Billionaires Romance Collection series!
Click here to see all my books in my entire catalogue!
Jamie Knight –
Your Dirty Little Secret Romance Author
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