The Pickup (Imperfect Love Book 1)

by Nikki Ash

While in the kitchen, I read through the documents once more just to make sure what I’m looking at is correct. Unfortunately, it is.

  After grabbing a bottle of water, I head back out to the living room to find Victoria is still standing where I left her, texting on her cell phone. When she hears me enter, she puts her phone away and looks up.

  “So, to what do I owe this pleasure?” I ask.

  “I’ll cut right to the chase,” she says. “Convince Nicholas to keep his contract with LA, and I will make sure you’re taken care of.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “This home you’re living in runs roughly three million dollars. If you want to continue to live a life of luxury, convince Nicholas to keep the contract with LA. I’ll make sure your home is paid off, and on top of whatever child support he’s agreed to pay, I’ll double it so you’re living more than comfortably.”

  I stare at this woman for several seconds. I can’t believe she raised Nick. But then I remember, she didn’t. His nanny did.

  “You are really something else—” But before I can say anything more, there’s a knock on my door. I open it, and Nick saunters in.

  “You’re just in time. Your mom was just offering to pay off my home.” I laugh humorlessly. “Which by the way”—I turn back toward Victoria—“is actually worth four-point-two million. You underpriced it. If you’re going to be so generous and offer to pay off someone’s loan, you should at least look it up, so you know how much to offer.”

  Her eyes are wide as saucers as she looks between Nick and me, knowing she’s been caught.

  “You know how I know that? I own it,” I tell her. “And if you did your research, you would know that too.”

  “You offered to pay her off like you did to Fiona?” Nick eyes his mother incredulously. “What the hell is wrong with you? First of all, Olivia is worth millions more than I am!” His mom gasps in shock. “And second of all, didn’t you learn your lesson from paying off Fiona?”

  “Oh, it gets better…or I should say worse.” I grab the papers from the table and hand them to Nick. “Your mom not only used your charity to pay off Fiona, but she’s been siphoning money from the account to pay your parents’ bills.”

  “I was going to put it all back!” she screeches. “Mind your own business!”

  “What the fuck.” Nick takes the papers from me and scans through them.

  “I contacted the accountant directly when Victoria refused to let me have access to anything. I thought something might be up when you mentioned she pushed you away from being actively involved. Since you gave him the go ahead, he sent these over to me. She paid off Fiona through the charity funds, and she’s been using the funds to pay several of their bills, including their mortgage and car payments, claiming them as business expenses directly related to your charity.”

  “Nicholas,” his mom pleads. “A few of the investments your father made didn’t pan out. We were upside down and just needed a little bit of help to get through. With your new contract, we’ll be able to pay you back.”

  “I’m done.” Nick throws the papers onto the table. “You and dad are dead to me. I’ve already told him he’s going to fix my contract or I’ll sue him. Get out of this house and out of my life.”

  “You don’t mean that!” Victoria cries.

  “Yeah, I do. You are so far gone, there’s no saving you. You aren’t my family, and you have no idea what it means to love someone. Now get out.” He swings the door open.

  With tears streaming down her face, Victoria walks out. Once she’s gone, Nick closes the door and comes over to me. He pulls me into him, his arms enveloping me. “Thank you for not running, Liv,” he murmurs into my ear.

  We have a seat on the sofa, and Nick takes my hands in his. “Remember when Celeste was at my place and I told you that was the part of the book where the evil witch had to be beaten?”

  I try to hide my smile, but I can’t contain it. He’s just too fucking adorable. “Yes.”

  “I guess it was actually my mom who was the evil witch. Talk about a plot twist.”

  “I’m sorry, Nick.” I know he’s trying to turn this into a joke, but it’s only because he’s attempting to cover his hurt.

  “It’s her loss. I never really had a mom to begin with. Unfortunately, though, this part of the story isn’t over yet. We still need to defeat the villain…like in Sleeping Beauty.”

  “What happened?”

  “Apparently, my mom wasn’t the only one fucking me over. My dad came by to see me before we took off on vacation and had me sign some papers. I didn’t look at them. I was busy with Reed, and I trusted him. Turns out he was having me sign a contract to play for Los Angeles for five years.”

  My hands come up to my mouth. “Oh my God. You didn’t know?” That’s what his mom meant by convincing Nick to keep the contract as-is.

  “Nope.” He shakes his head. “New York could only offer me half of what LA was offering, and my dad knew I would choose New York, which would mean less money in his pocket. He’s so money hungry, Liv. It’s insane. He can’t see anything besides the potential dollar bills in his pockets. But now it makes sense. If they spent too much money, they needed the percentage my contract would bring in to pull them back up.”

  “How much was the offer for?”

  “One hundred and sixty million.”

  “Damn, that’s a lot of money.”

  “I don’t give a fuck about the money. I meant it when I said we’re in this together. I’m not going anywhere without you.” His lips meet mine for a kiss, but before it can go any further, his cell phone rings. “Speak of the villain.” He answers the phone. I try to move off him, but his fingers grip my hips, silently telling me not to go anywhere.

  “Dad, I’m assuming you’re calling to tell me you fixed the mix-up.” He pauses for a long moment while he listens to whatever his dad is saying. “That’s good for you, since you’re going to need to keep your license to make more money to get yourself out of the hole you created. All the money Mom stole from me, you two will be repaying.”

  I don’t hear what his dad says on the other line, but Nick shakes his head. “You know, Dad, you spent so much time chasing all the wrong things in life: money, respect, success. And while you were so busy chasing those things, you didn’t even realize you were leaving your son behind. I kept chasing you, trying to catch up, but you never once stopped for me. So, now you have not only lost all of your money, but you’ve lost me, and let’s be real, you barely even have mom now that you’re broke. I hope it was all worth it. The one thing I’ve learned is all of those things you were chasing aren’t worth a damn if you don’t have anyone to share them with. Good luck in life, Dad.”

  He ends the phone call and drops it onto the couch cushion, his head falling against my chest. My fingers run through his hair while I wait for him to gather himself together. I can’t even imagine what’s going through his head right now. He’s disowned both of his parents in a matter of minutes.

  “He got me out of the contract. I’m a free agent. LA said the offer is still on the table, though, if I want it. I have twenty-four hours to decide what I want to do, but there are a few other teams who have made offers as well.”

  “And what is it you want to do?”

  “I need to know something…before we go any further.” He moves me off his lap and sets me on the sofa next to him. Then he pulls something out of his pocket…a box…a ring box! He kneels in front of me on the floor, his bright green eyes sparkling as he smiles nervously up at me. “If I have to move, whether it’s to California or Texas or…I don’t know…Florida. Will you go with me? Will you continue writing this book with me as my wife? Because Liv, I’m not ready for our story to end yet. Olivia Harper, will you marry me and keep our story going no matter where it takes us?”

  He opens the box, which holds a beautiful diamond ring, and his eyes lock with mine as he waits for my answer. My brain tries to think logically—rationally—weighing the pros an
d cons to determine the right decision. But my heart speaks louder, winning over. The fact is I would follow this man anywhere he goes because I love him. He’s buried himself deep into the valves of my heart, and it can’t beat without him. He makes me want to fight.

  “My happily-ever-after is wherever you are. If it means we move then Reed and I will be right there beside you. Yes, I’ll marry you.” I throw myself into his arms, and he kisses me hard.

  Then he pulls back and puts the ring on my finger. “Good because we’re moving to Montana.”

  “Montana?” I question. “They don’t even have a football team.”

  Nick’s shoulders shake with laughter. “I’m glad you know your football. I’m just kidding. We’re staying right here in New York. But I should warn you…money is going to be a bit tight. New York could only do a five year, eighty-million-dollar contract.”

  I sigh. “However will we live off that? It’s a good thing your soon-to-be wife is loaded. Don’t worry, baby, I’ll be your sugar mama.” I give him an over exaggerated wink, and he throws his head back in laughter.

  “I’ve never had a sugar mama before. What do I have to do in return?” Nick pulls me down onto the floor with him, my legs straddling his lap.

  “In return?”

  “You know…in exchange for you taking care of me. What do you want?” His lips move to my neck, and I tilt my head slightly to give him access.

  “Hmm…sex. Whenever I want.”

  “Mmm…I like the sound of that.” He continues kissing upward, landing on the sensitive flesh behind my ear. “What else?”

  “I want a house. A big one with at least five bedrooms.”

  “Oh, really? Do we get to fill this bigger house with more babies?”

  “Umm…” I try to focus, but his lips wrap around my earlobe, and it’s hard to think. “Yes,” I moan out. “Yes, more babies.”

  “What else?” he asks, his tongue circling the inner part of my ear, eliciting a chill down my spine. “What else do you want, Liv?”

  “I want to get married soon and for the three of us to have the same last name.” Nick stops his assault on my body momentarily and looks at me.

  “That can definitely be arranged.” His lips touch mine, and his tongue sweeps into my mouth before he pulls back. “What else?”

  “I don’t know. I can’t think with your mouth all over me.” He chuckles. “Let’s just start with number one. Sex now.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Nick picks me up and carries me to the bedroom where he proceeds to make good on my first demand of being his sugar mama.

  Epilogue

  Nick

  One Year Later

  “Do you realize how this looks?” Olivia laughs as we look down at the home pregnancy test.

  I know where she’s going with this, but it’s her own fault. I’ve brought up getting married several times, but she keeps saying, “Soon.” Right after I proposed, she accepted a job at the local art museum as an Art Educator Coordinator. She organizes and teaches art classes to children a couple days a week. Between her working part-time, my playing football, and us raising our now one-year-old son, we haven’t done anything we said we were going to do…well, except for the have sex part. So now here we are. Expecting our second baby and still not husband and wife, and still living in separate places.

  “Like there are two lines indicating I got my fiancée pregnant?” I answer her question jokingly, earning me a slap to my chest.

  “No! Like you keep knocking me up out of wedlock!” She giggles and throws the test into the trash.

  “It’s not my fault my super sperm overpowers any birth control.”

  She snorts, rolling her eyes. “Now we really do need to get married…and buy a house!”

  I chuckle because she’s said this too many times to count. I’ve finally gotten her to agree on a date to get married. Now we just need to buy a home. “Whatever you want, my beautiful brown-eyed girl.” I pull her into my embrace. We’re standing in the bathroom, and Reed is sleeping. “But right now, I think we need to shower together.” She nods emphatically, liking my idea, so I turn the water on to hot.

  We both undress at the same time, our clothes flying to the floor. I open the shower door then shut it behind us. We’re at her place, and the shower has an extremely convenient bench running along the back. Sitting down on the bench, Olivia straddles my lap, her warm cunt rubbing friction against my semi-hard cock. Her lips press against mine and her tongue pushes through. Her hands entwine in my hair as she moans into my mouth.

  “I need you inside me,” she pleads. She rains kisses all over my face then moves to my neck, sucking on my flesh. She lifts slightly, and I guide my dick into her until she’s filled completely.

  “Oh God, Nick.” She doesn’t move for a second, her body adjusting to my size. Then slowly, she begins to rock her hips up and down and side to side. The feeling of being inside my woman, this closeness we share, is fucking unbelievable. Her ass moves as she rides me faster and faster, taking what she wants—what she needs—from me.

  I bend my head to snag a nipple between my teeth, and she thrashes against me. “Oh shit! They’re so sensitive.” I still, afraid I’ve hurt her. “Don’t stop!” she commands, her voice wild, out of control. I bring her nipple back up to my lips, licking and sucking on it before giving the other one equal attention.

  My other hand rests on her ass, making sure she doesn’t fall as she continues to ride me, bouncing up and down on my cock. Her clit is rubbing against my front. I feel her muscles tighten and know she’s close but not quite there.

  Lifting her off me, I turn us around. “Hands against the wall, now,” I demand. Her delicate hands slap the wall and her ass juts out on display. I separate her thighs and watch the water drip down her perfect round ass. I give it a good slap, and she lets out a soft moan, her ass squirming with need. She turns her head slightly, about to say something, but before she can say a word, I grip her hips and thrust into her from behind.

  She lets out a loud groan as her head falls forward. Gripping her hip with one hand, I pump into her over and over again. My other hand skirting around to her clit, massaging the swollen nub as Olivia meets me thrust for thrust.

  “Oh God! Harder, please.” I’ve never seen her this starved for sex, this needy, but her every wish is my command. My fingers dig harder, holding onto her tighter as I move in and out of her tight pussy—my fingers stroking her clit simultaneously. She’s so close I can feel her tight cunt squeezing around my cock.

  “Come on, baby. Come for me.”

  She’s panting and moaning. I press my thumb down harder on her clit as I push into her from behind, hitting her G-spot over and over again, building her up until she can’t take it anymore. And then she’s falling. Her body trembles. Her legs shake. She whimpers loudly as she comes all over my cock. My orgasm follows right behind. I pull out of her, and she releases a shiver.

  “Come here.” I pull her into me, so she’s under the hot water. “What was that?”

  She smiles sheepishly. “I think that was a very horny pregnant woman.”

  * * *

  Extended Epilogue

  Olivia

  I’m sitting at the table feeding Reed some sweet potatoes and fish when Giselle makes her presence known, slamming the door behind her. She’s been acting strange lately, and she won’t talk to me about anything. I know she has a lot going on, but she won’t let me in, and as her best friend, it hurts my heart.

  “That motherfucker!”

  “Who?” I ask, feeding Reed another bite.

  She notices Reed is now staring at her. “Shit…I mean, shoot! I didn’t mean to curse.” She gives Reed a kiss on the top of his head. “Hey, handsome.”

  “Who were you cursing about?” I ask again.

  “It doesn’t even matter. I was just having a bad moment.” She shrugs. Her phone dings, and she glances down at it. “I need to get going. I just came home to change.”

 
“Another date?” I ask, concerned. Ever since Giselle found out Christian cheated on her and broke things off with him, she’s gone from zero to one hundred. Whereas before Christian, she rarely dated at all, post-Christian, she’s going on dates several nights a week, none of which she ever brings home or introduces me to. And the weirdest date of all was when she showed up with Killian to our charity fundraiser we hosted to announce the expansion of Touchdown for Reading, which is now Touchdown for Reading and the Arts.

  “Yep!” She doesn’t say anything else before she disappears into her room.

  Reed slams his hand down wanting another bite, and I turn my attention back to him. A few minutes later, I hear Nick come in from outside on the terrace. “Hey, babe.” He presses a kiss to my temple. “There’s something you need to know about Giselle.”

  My hand freezes in place. “Okay.”

  “Killian said he paid—”

  “Don’t you dare finish that sentence!” Giselle yells, cutting him off just as Killian walks through the front door. “This is none of your business.” She glares from Nick to Killian.

  “Somebody tell me what’s going on, please,” I demand.

  “Either you tell her, or I will,” Killian threatens.

  “I hate you!” Giselle shouts, and I notice tears are now streaming down her face.

  “No, you don’t, but if you continue this you’re going to hate yourself,” Killian says to her.

  “I already do,” she whispers before she runs out, slamming the door behind her.

  The story of Giselle and Killian releases April 13th in Going Deep: The Imperfect Love series book two.

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