Cathy was so shocked, she didn’t know what to say. Crank held her from behind, one hand across her waist, the other over her chest, and she just stared in awe at its magnificence. After a couple of minutes, Cathy stated the obvious, pointing to it.
“Crank, it’s a treehouse.”
“Yeah, babe, it’s a treehouse, your treehouse. Do you remember what you told me about when you were a little girl?”
Cathy did; her mother didn’t believe in girls getting dirty or playing in the woods. She had always wanted a treehouse or a fort where she could go and hide and just be herself, but her parents would never have ever allowed it. She even remembered the day she’d told him; it was a couple of years ago. They’d been watching a show where a guy built custom treehouses, and she had told him she always wanted one and why. She hadn’t thought anything of it, didn’t even really think he’d paid much attention to her. It was a fleeting moment as far as she was concerned, but he had listened to her, and it looked like Crank had built her one, and it blew her away. This sweet, special man had given her a dream she never thought she would have, in more ways than one.
Crank moved a little, taking something out of his pocket. Cathy was so caught up in the treehouse, she wasn’t paying any attention to him, but all of a sudden, twinkling lights lit up the whole area. She brought her hand up to her open mouth, starting to cry. It was stunning, his thoughtfulness and care blew her away. Crank turned her in his arms.
“None of that, now. This is a good thing, at least I hope it is.” The vulnerability in his eyes broke her a little, and she cried harder, nodding her head on his chest. “Come on, then, dry those tears, baby, there's more to see.”
Cathy did just that, laughing a little. This was a side of Crank she didn’t often see, the playful side, and she loved it. Grabbing his hand this time, she dragged him, half running, toward the ladder. Dying to get a look at the inside, she started climbing the ladder, Crank right behind her, smacking her butt, telling her to hurry up. Cathy kept laughing. When they finally got on the landing—which was like a mini porch built for two, complete with a swing—Crank stopped her, picking her up like a bride, opening the door, and walking her over the threshold.
The inside was unlike anything she’d ever seen before. It was a small room, but on the floor were hundreds of pillows. The ceiling had twinkly lights dripping down, hanging there like the stars in the sky. Crank set her down, and Cathy walked around the room, touching everything, loving every little touch. A big pillow sat by the window with a small shelf filled with books. The opposite window held a vase with fresh flowers and a pair of binoculars. She laughed at that; she did like to look at birds. The curtains were in her favorite color of purple. All the pillows complemented them. Every touch, even the horseshoe over the door, was made with her in mind. The walls were knotty pine, and there were even skylights. She wondered how he had done all this without her knowing.
Crank was still standing by the door, when he said, “I wanted this to be perfect, so I asked Addy and Carri to come over and clean everything up. I haven’t been back here since that night. I couldn’t come here again without you, but I couldn’t let you sell the place before you saw it.”
Cathy ran to him, well, flung herself at him because the room wasn’t that big, and started peppering his face with kisses.
“I love it Crank, I love it so much, and I love you, thank you for this. Thank you for listening and being the best Old Man a woman could ask for.” She continued kissing him, so excited by what he’d done until he pulled away.
“That’s the other thing, babe, I had something else planned,” and right before her eyes, Crank went down on his knee. Cathy started to cry, overwhelmed by what was about to happen. Crank cleared his throat a couple of times before he spoke, then he held up a small jeweler’s box.
“I wanted to give you this on our twentieth anniversary, all of this. I wanted to tell you that you were already my Old Lady, but I wanted you to be my wife. I still want that, Cathy. I love you more today than I did the day we met, and I didn’t think that was possible. You still take my breath away. You’re the only woman who will ever hold my heart. I gave it to you all those years ago, and you kept it safe; now, I want to be the one to hold yours safe. To give you what you need, what you never knew you wanted, and what we both need. Cathy, I love you. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Cathy fell to her knees, falling into Crank, kissing him again, this time slow and sweet, her every touch showing him how much this meant to her.
“Does that mean yes?”
“You bet your ass that’s a yes. I love you, Collin ‘Crank’ McGinnis, and I would be honored to be your wife as well as your Old Lady.”
Hoots and hollers could be heard from outside, and Cathy and Crank started to laugh, the moment broken.
“You told your brothers?”
Crank shook his head, “It had to have been Addy and Carri, they knew I was going to bring you out here. I think we should just let them stay down there while we make better use of all these pillows. What do you say?”
Cathy laughed, shaking her head when she heard Cinny’s voice calling to them, telling them they brought food and to get their asses down there, so she could finally see the damn ring.
It wasn’t perfect or even what he’d planned. Crank would have loved nothing more than to spend the next couple of hours showing Cathy exactly how much he loved her with every touch, but this was his life. The RBMC and this woman together.
Chapter 25
Crank was standing back, next to the bonfire the boys had put together for him, watching as Cathy took the next woman up to her treehouse. She was smiling so wide, it made him feel about ten feet tall. Tuck came up to him, his own beer in hand.
“You know, it’s not over. Things are about to get pretty rough around here,” Tuck said, effectively popping his happy bubble.
“Yeah man, I know, but I don’t want any of that shit interrupting today. She deserves that, hell, they all do. Look at them, Tuck.” Crank pointed to Link and Carri dancing to their own music by the bonfire, then Addy and Whiskey as they shared a moment alone together, sitting by a tree, both their hands rubbing her distended belly.
Tank was chasing Reagan around, acting like he couldn’t catch her, making her laugh. Brass was talking with Blade and Crash probably telling them some story about quality pussy, making the Brothers shake their heads, but there were smiles on all their faces. Jinx and Cinny were at the grill talking, but even that grumpy ass was being pleasant tonight. All his family gathered in one spot, happy; it was a sight for sore eyes. At this moment, he didn’t want anything to change that.
Talon walked up, helping a shy looking Kayla carry some bags and a cooler. It was a day he would always remember. But he knew Tuck was right.
“Tell me.”
“Kayla identified the man pulling all the strings.” Crank didn’t turn, keeping his eyes on Cathy through the windows of the treehouse as she showed Suzie around.
“How did she do that?”
“Haslet, he mentioned a Bryant Jeffers. That was the information he was looking for, the guys who Cathy could identify. Turns out, he’s some trust fund brat who likes to play on the dirtier side of things. Daddy is a Senator in Tennessee, old money, lots of ties, good and bad. Knows exactly who we are, has the clout to make things difficult.”
Crank had only one question. “Are they going to come after her again?”
“Not if we let the little prick stew for a while.”
“He raped her, Tuck, I don’t know if I can let that happen.”
“I get that, Brother, and that’s your decision to make. Lots of things can happen to boys like that one that doesn't lead back to us. But Daddy is bad news, we need to mind where we’re stepping.”
“What about the Vultures?”
“Creed’s working on it, giving good intel. We should know soon what our next step is with them, but I’m not making anything official. This isn’t going th
rough anyone but us. If Jeffers is coming after us, and he’s the one funding them, we don’t want to tip off anyone.”
“How long?”
“Don’t know, a couple of months out, at least. Tal’s been looking into Matthew Jeffers, and right now, the prick is coming out squeaky clean.”
“Well, you know what they say; if a person is too clean, then there are skeletons hidden in their closets. We just need to find them,” Crank said.
“Yep,” Tuck replied, “and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
Crank watched as Cathy started running toward them. Opening his arms, she jumped right at him, kissing him again.
“Hello, future hubby.”
“Hey, baby,” Crank said, giving her a kiss, setting her down. Tuck grabbed her up as soon as her feet hit the ground, hugging her tight. When he started twirling her around, Cathy laughed for all she was worth. Crank had to give it to his Prez, he might be a prick on a good day, but the man had a heart of gold when it came to the women.
“Okay, okay,” Crank said, stopping them, taking Cathy from Tuck’s arms. “Enough of that now. Get your own woman, this one’s taken.”
“But I like her, she doesn’t fight with me or call me names,” Tuck said just as Carri and Link walked up, and Carri said, “Hey asshole, how are you today?”, laughing because she knew exactly what Tuck had been saying. Tuck faked hurt, putting his hand on his chest, then reaching for Cathy again. “See what I mean?
Crank pulled Cathy further away. “Oh, I know exactly what you mean. I think the answer to all your problems just walked in. Why don’t you go twirl her around a little?”
Tuck looked to where Crank was looking, said, “Hell no,” and walked off in the other direction, causing the four of them to bust up laughing. Link was the first one to stop.
“Do you think he’ll ever get his head out of his ass and actually go for what he wants?” Crank watched Tuck go up behind Cinny, kissing her neck.
“Nah, man, I think it’s going to take a baseball bat and a building to fall on his head before that shit happens.” Carri and Cathy were both nodding, agreeing with them. Damn the man was stubborn. Link held out his hand, and Crank shook it.
“We just wanted to come over and say congratulations, but we're heading out for the night.” Carri and Cathy hugged and when they left, Crank pulled Cathy closer, moving back so they were in the shelter of the trees.
“I’ve been wanting to get you alone for what seems like forever.”
“Thank you thank you for all this—the tree house, the ring, your family—all of it.”
“Babe, they’re your family too. Any one of those boys would have my nuts for you in a heartbeat.”
“Yeah,” she smiled, “I know they would, but then you wouldn’t be able to give me what I really want.”
“Oh, and what’s that?”
Cathy smiled, pulling him a little further away from everyone else.
“Your dick, babe,” Cathy laughed, running a little head of him.
“Hey, wait, where are you going?”
“Your bike, future hubby. I decided,” Cathy said with a cheeky smile, “that you’re going to take me for a ride, more than one, actually. You up for it, old man?”
“You bet your ass, baby, you bet your ass. Free and wild, just the way we like it.”
“Yep, free and wild,” Cathy said as she came closer, brushing her lips against his, “free and wild.”
The End – For now! The RBMC will be back with Creed’s story in the Spring of 2018.
Turn the page for a look at my Paranormal Romance, NAC & The Holly Group.
Jackson
Alpha Team
NAC & The Holly Group
Author: Chelsea Handcock
www.chelseahandcock.com
Copyright © 2017, Chelsea Handcock
First electronic publication: January 2017
All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted works is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the author’s permission.
Note from the Author:
This is a work of fiction. Names, character, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to person, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental. The author does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third party websites or their content.
Published in the United States of America.
Jackson Thorp believes in tangible facts, military precision and having a good time. Never forming attachments to females and never letting them attach themselves to him. His policy is love em’ and leave em’. It works and he wouldn’t have it any other way. At least that was what the thought. The fates seem to have a different plan and one little red head seems to have blasted the top off his world. He starts to questions everything his sanity, his history and the legends of the past. Could she really be the answer?
Ryleigh Quinn has her life all planned out: work, work and more work. Save as many lives as possible and fill her heart with the good she helped come into the world. She has never been normal and doesn’t even want to be. When a mission brings up memories from her childhood she if forced to confront the one man she thought would never lie to her. The events that follow also forced her to realize that maybe all work and no play isn’t what she really wants out of life. Fate has a way of making a person change their minds. Her fate just happens to come in the form of a delicious, infuriating, dominating bear shifter. Who would have thought?
**Content Warning: Explicit love scenes, naughty language, and lots of sexy secrets. Intended for mature audiences.
Chapter 1
Declan “Senior” Quinn sat at his desk looking at his daughter, Ryleigh, standing in front of his corner window looking out into the New York City skyline like it held all the answers. She was chewing her thumbnail, a habit he hadn’t seen her do since she was a child. He regretted the choices of his past which made her feel so apprehensive today. Unfortunately, even if he had the choice, he wouldn’t change anything. Too much was at stake.
She was his greatest treasure, pure at heart and strong. He could still see her face when she came to him several weeks ago, distrusting and confused. He had promised to never hurt her, and although he kept his promise to the best of his ability, he had still withheld crucial information, not entirely lying, yet not explaining everything. At least that was how he justified it to himself.
Her distrust hurt the most, he never wanted to see that look on her face again. Declan hadn’t wanted to keep such important things from her but for the greater good he’d had to make a choice and that choice was to keep his daughter in the dark. Whether he liked it or not, there was more at stake than just his discomfort over his daughter’s feelings. An entire race depended upon keeping secrets. He never once thought his two worlds would collide the way they had such a short time ago.
Help her forget the atrocities of the past and move on, that had been his first goal, and until today, he had thought he had done that. He wanted her to continue believing his motives for helping her as a child were altruistic and loving. However, in reality they weren’t. He was tasked with getting the child and keeping her creation under wraps. That didn’t change his feelings for her, but in the beginning, she was simply a job. The shame would haunt him until his dying days.
All his hard work was for naught. In reality, her memories surfaced and she started to put the puzzle pieces together with the help of her team. It only took one little piece of information to undo years of work. Never before had Declan wished he hadn’t encouraged her to follow in his footsteps. If she had stayed with one of the many
career fields that she had chosen over the years, then neither of them would be in the position that they were in today. But that wasn’t the case. He had to make some very hard decisions, revealing parts of himself and her past, while keeping his real motives of the past safely hidden away. He hoped his choices never backfired on him again.
Finding Ryleigh 15 years ago, changed him and what he wanted out of life. Before that day, he was sure that he would spend the rest of his days serving his country until his last breath, following orders and working toward someone else’s greater good. Ryleigh gave him back his humanity, not to mention humility. That was something his military career had basically drained from his soul. Declan laughed to himself. Raising a child had a way of humbling a person. Ryleigh didn’t care who he was to the outside world or even who his teams knew him as. To her he was just a dad and at times he cherished that, but others times he hated it.
He was still manipulating her and that wasn’t going to stop anytime soon. He didn’t have a choice because some things needed to be hidden. He wanted to be a good parent to her, not someone to be feared or even someone to obey and follow like he was to the men that worked for him. His team might call him Senior, but Ryleigh called him Dad. That one word was enough to squeeze his battered heart. His work life or early career rarely interfered with his and Ryleigh’s relationship. However, they were now going to collide like two freight trains during the night. The explosion would either bring them together or tear them apart. He hoped for the former and feared the latter.
Declan’s goal since finding Ryleigh all those years ago, was to maintain her safety and keep the ugliness of his world and everything else away from her. She had suffered greatly and he didn’t want her to endure a second of pain again, but he’d failed on both accounts. His girl was tenacious and dove right in where she needed to stay away. She now knew things weren’t as they seemed, and the nightmares that he had hoped were gone from her childhood were rearing their ugly heads once again. This time he couldn’t keep them away like he had done when she was a child. She was a grown woman, and although he was very proud, he had moments that he wished that she was one of those flighty entitled brats who his teams were consistently getting called in to save from their own stupidity. But that wasn’t his girl, not even close. She was smart, observant, vigilant, and had proved herself within his circles of the of the Security, Search, and Rescue community. Her own team had already made a name for themselves in a very short time and were quickly rivaling NAC for cases. All that didn’t matter now because everything was going to change. His daughter’s life would never be the same after this meeting.
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