by Nikki Ash
“Mmm… Morning… Merry Christmas.” Ashley gives me a kiss that makes my cock twitch. But before I can get her under me, there’s a knock on the door.
“Mom! Dad! Santa came.” While I’m pretty sure the girls no longer believe in Santa, since there are so many kids among our group of friends, it’s an unwritten rule that it’s always Santa who delivers the presents.
“Coming!” Ashley yells back to them.
“I wish,” I mumble.
“Oh stop!” She smacks me in my chest and gets out of bed. I follow her out the door and down the stairs. We are opening presents from Santa as a family then everyone will be meeting at Bentley and Kayla’s place to open presents together and have dinner.
The girls begin tearing through their gifts. Because they’re younger, they have tons of shit. Coloring books, makeup, clothes, some board games.
Ashley grabs a thin box from the corner where we keep a small fake tree, which gets pulled out of the closet when we don’t have time to get a real one. “Here’s one of your gifts, sweetie.” She hands the box to Tristan. “It’s for you and Mason.” Mason looks shocked. We don’t know much about him or his past other than him not seeming to have any family. He won’t discuss his past and we’ve accepted that.
“Here Mason, you open it,” Tristan insists.
Mason takes the gift and unwraps it slowly. “Two tickets to New York?”
Tristan grabs them then looks in the box, pulling out a piece of paper. “A week in New York? Are you serious?” He looks back and forth between Ashley and me.
“Hell yeah!” Mason and Tristan fist bump. “When is it for?”
“It’s for spring break. Bella is getting a ticket as well. We know you guys were talking about going to California to find an apartment but Cooper and I can find a place without going over there. We want you guys to enjoy your last spring break before you start college.”
“Thanks, guys.” Tristan and Mason both reach over and give Ashley and me a hug.
The girls open the rest of their gifts in record speed. Mason, of course, messes with the girls, telling them he’s stealing their makeup. Tristan smiles but stays silent. I have a feeling he’s thinking about the same thing I was earlier. This is his last Christmas before he moves out.
“You okay?” I bump him with my shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m going to miss them.”
“You aren’t moving across the world. And you know anytime you want to come home, you can. Speaking of which. Here’s one of your other gifts. It’s not really a gift so to speak, but well…”
I hand him a small box.
“It’s from your mother and me.”
Tristan opens the box and inside is a credit card and a pair of keys. He lifts the card and looks at me confused.
“The card is linked to the money we set up for you for college. We want you to go to college and focus on school. If you want to fly home, you purchase the flight. Whatever you need, this card will work. And if for whatever reason you don’t feel California is working for you, you can always come home. The key is to your new Ford Raptor. I know you like your truck, but we want you to have something reliable.” I get choked up on the last word.
Tristan looks me in my eyes. “I love you, Dad. Thank you.”
One would think he’s thanking me for the card and keys, but I know it’s more than that. I might not be his father biologically, but Tristan is my damn kid just as much as his sisters are.
“No.” I shake my head. “Thank you.”
This kid has given me so much more than I could ever give him.
Marco
“Merry Christmas.” A soft, feminine voice wakes me from my sleep. Afraid to open my eyes, I lie still and pray this is a dream. It won’t be the first time I’ve dreamt of her. Then I feel a delicate hand come up and run down my middle toward my dick and I know it’s not a dream.
Grabbing the hand before it touches me, I count to three then open my eyes.
Yep… I’m fucked.
Bella
It’s Christmas night and everyone is together at Kayla and Bentley’s house for dinner. Well, everyone except for Marco. He made up some ridiculous excuse and took off back to California. Caleb begged him to stay and fly out tomorrow, but he insisted he had to fly out today.
I look around me and feel so blessed. I was only four years old when I met my dad so I don’t really remember it, but what I do remember is with him came an entire family. First it was the guys then came the women and kids. Over the years, it went from my mom, Aunt Kay, and me to an entire swarm of family.
I’ve never felt alone. I never had the opportunity to feel alone. Between my aunts and uncles, my siblings and pseudo cousins, and my best friend, Tristan, there’s always someone around. But even with all these people here, surrounding me with their love—and there’s got to be like twenty-five people here—for the first time I feel lonely. Like a piece of me is missing.
I can’t explain it. It’s like a hole in my heart… a rock in my stomach. It hurts and aches and it feels like even with all the love and laughter emitting off everyone in this room, it’s still not enough.
But instead of dwelling on this weird feeling, I push it to the side. Like I said, I’m blessed. I don’t have a right to complain and I sure as hell can’t make someone want to be a part of my life.
I spot Tristan on the other side of the room and he shoots me a smile. It’s crazy to think about the fact that in five months I’ll be in San Diego at the University of California, and shortly after, Tristan will be joining me. While I’m not thrilled about going to college, I’m excited to start this new chapter of my life. I’m excited to kick up my UFC goals a notch. In two months, I’ll be eighteen and I have every intention of making a name for myself in the UFC. I’m also looking forward to going to New York with Tristan and Mason. That trip will be epic.
“Penny for your thoughts?” I glance over and Tristan is now sitting next to me.
“We have the best family.”
“Hell yeah, we do.” He hands me a wrapped present. “Merry Christmas, Bella.”
I take it from him. It’s small, but thick and solid. I try to shake it, but it’s heavy.
“Just open it.” Tristan laughs.
I tear the wrapping paper off, finding a book inside. “Open it,” Tristan encourages.
I open the thick cover and what I find inside knocks the breath out of me. It’s a photo album. The first image is of my mom, Aunt Kay, and me when I was little. One in front of our old house, of my dad and me holding the Maleficent doll he bought me. Then there’s one of Tristan and me on our first day of MMA classes with our toothy grins. There’s one of the day my dad’s name was added to my birth certificate and I had my last name changed to Cooper. I keep flipping the pages as hot tears begin to fall. There are so many pictures and they’re in chronological order. Tristan and me at tournaments, ones of Marco and me sparring, at the aquarium when we were younger. Me holding Nathan when he was a baby. Lilly and me baking our dad a cake for his birthday.
The tears are coming down so heavily, I have to blink them away so I can see the photos.
“Tristan, this is beautiful.”
“Your mom helped me make it. We’ve been through a lot together, Bella. But this isn’t the end.”
I look up at him and he gives me a soft smile.
“It’s just the beginning.”
THE END
I hope you enjoyed Fighting series! If you would like to read Bella’s story, click to purchase Tapping Out.
Other Books by Nikki Ash
The Fighting Series
Fighting for a Second Chance (Secret baby)
Fighting with Faith (Secret baby)
Fighting for Your Touch
Fighting for Your Love (Single mom)
Fighting ‘round the Christmas Tree: A Fighting Series Novel
Fighting Love Series
Tapping Out (Secret baby)
Clinched (Single dad)
Takedown (Single mom)
Imperfect Love Series
The Pickup (Secret baby)
Going Deep (Enemies to Lovers)
On the Surface (Second chance, single dad)
Stand-alone Novels
Bordello (Mob romance)
Knocked Down (Single dad)
Unbroken Promises (Friends to lovers)
Through His Eyes (Single mom, age gap)
Clutch Player
Fool Me Once
Co-written novels
Heath (Modern telling)
Hidden Truths (Romantic suspense)
Stolen Lies (Romantic suspense)
About the Author
Nikki Ash resides in South Florida where she is an English teacher by day and a writer by night. When she’s not writing, you can find her with a book in her hand. From the Boxcar Children, to Wuthering Heights, to the latest single parent romance, she has lived and breathed every type of book. While reading and writing are her passions, her two children are her entire world. You can probably find them at a Disney park before you would find them at home on the weekends!
Reading is like breathing in, writing is like breathing out.– Pam Allyn
Contact Nikki Ash
Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Goodreads
Amazon * Website * Nikki Ash’s reader group
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