Three Strikes: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (MMF Menage Romance)

by Paige Parker

  Things only got worse from there for Michael and soon his head was spinning so fast it felt like it was about to explode. He hadn’t been able to hear his cell phone go off at the crowded pool hall but when he went to go plug it into his charger; he noticed several missed calls and texts from his father. All of the messages were exactly the same and sounded very short and to the point. “Party’s over.” Michael knew his father was beyond pissed at him, probably too much for Michael to even be able to repair. The coach had called his parent’s house looking for him after he had missed practice today, but first he had checked with Michael’s professors to see if he had been in class and was perhaps sick or something like that. When the coach found out that he had skipped class too, he had made the decision that Michael would be benched for the remainder of the season and possibly be kicked off the team pending his grades. When the coach hadn’t been able to reach Michael and had gotten his dad instead, he told his dad everything. Michael knew with out a doubt that his dad would follow through on his threats to pull his tuition and cut him off financially. In just a few short days Michael had lost everything he cared about, his baseball career, his best friend and his chance to play in the major leagues.

  All of his pent of emotions came flooding back to Michael and he thought of when all of his troubles had really begun. While he cared for Brandy deeply, he felt as if she was somehow the root of all of his problems. After all everything had been going really good for him until he met her. She was just a distraction, as was love and relationships. In his rage he thought that maybe Brandy and James were working together to sabotage him, and maybe she had just been playing him this entire time. He woke them both up in the middle of the night without explanation and told them both that they were leaving. Brandy tried calming Michael down and asking what was the matter but he just snapped at her. “We’re leaving because I said it’s time to go, I don’t have to explain myself to you. I don’t have to explain myself to any of you!” Confused but worried, James and Brandy packed all of their stuff into the car but whenever they tried to question Michael about what was up, he just ignored them completely.

  He drove back to the college in record speed, dropping the both of them off at the campus which was completely deserted in the middle of the night and sped off again. He packed up all of his belongings at the frat house which didn’t consist of much more than a few bags of clothes. He had no desire to keep anything else he had acquired while at school or any of his memories from there. He even went as far as to chuck his cell phone out of the window of his moving car as he drove off back to his hometown and his parent’s house. There was no point in lingering here when he had nothing left. Michael wasn’t sure who he could trust, even Brandy and it was almost as if he had suddenly forgotten the special moments and the bond that they had shared all together.

  Conclusion

  It took a few weeks of being back at his parent’s house and wallowing in his own misery for the full effect of what he had done to sink in. Michael had blown everything and he hadn’t realized until too late that he only really had himself to blame for it. James hadn’t forced him to party with him; in fact it was actually Michael that had gotten the pair into that type of lifestyle and habits in the first place. Michael had never really grown up since high school, despite his age and he had always been known to take things too far when it came to drinking and getting wild. Instead of being angry at his best friend for feeling bitter about not playing on the team, he should have realized that it hurt James just as much as it had hurt Michael when he found out that he had messed up his shot to play on a real big league baseball team.

  Brandy was another story all together and what he had done to her was cruel and undeserved. Since tossing out his cell phone Michael had no contact with her at all, he didn’t even have her number written down anywhere. She had trusted him and loved him, flaws and all. Brandy had truly given all of herself to Michael, no questions asked and he had just thrown it all away and hurt her. She was probably sitting back at the bar thinking that Michael was no better than any other rich, spoiled frat boy she had met and that broke his heart. He had never been in love before and Michael still didn’t know how he knew it, but he loved Brandy a lot.

  His parent’s were too disappointed in him for even words. Normally his father would lecture him for hours about straightening out his life, but it was almost as if his family had given up on him too. Like they all realized he was no good and had no real future. Michael felt as if they looked down on their grown son as nothing more than a burden that they would have to bare for the rest of their lives. He felt like a disappointment and Michael knew it was much more than just a feeling. He really had let everyone down including James, Brandy, his family, his team, his couch and mostly himself.

  Michael took off out of his parent’s house and jumped in his car. There was only one solution to this and that was for him to grow up and face his problems head on. He would find a way to pay for college, even if he had to get a crappy job to do it. He would make his father proud by letting baseball fall to the sidelines and focusing his attention on a career and a future for himself. Michael knew that deep down James would forgive him, this wasn’t their first fight and they were like brothers to each other. What Michael cared about the most was fixing things between him and Brandy. With out her, nothing else in this world mattered to him. He had no real plan in mind so he decided upon just showing up at the bar, but would she even want to talk to him? Or had he broken her heart and let her down to the point she would never forgive him? Michael had a million thoughts racing through his mind. He wondered if he was really mature enough to accomplish the goals he set out for himself, and if he was really able to turn his life around. Michael knew only one thing for certain, only time could tell what would happen and where he would wind up.

  Bonus Book 1

  Loving Again

  Paige Parker

  ©2016

  © Copyright 2016 by FamiMK Media & Publishing, LLC - All rights reserved.

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

>   Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 1

  Julia closed her eyes and let the chocolate melt over her tongue. “This cake is perfect,” she said.

  Evan grinned and offered her another forkful. “I’m glad. I was a little nervous about trying out a new recipe.”

  “Mmm,” Julia said as her lips closed over the fork. “It was all delicious. The chicken, the wine, the cake. You are the perfect boyfriend.” She leaned over the table to kiss him, leaving his lips covered in chocolate frosting.

  He licked his lips and chuckled. “I try.”

  Julia stared into his eyes, watching the flicker of candlelight reflect over the dark brown of his irises and make golden highlights in his hair. After almost one year with Evan, things couldn’t be better. She hoped that, with the anniversary of their first date nearing, he’d propose. They had discussed marriage and their future on a few occasions. They would buy a big house in the suburbs, have at least two kids—Lucas for a boy and Amelia for a girl—and they’d live the dream life. She’d secured her first job a few months ago as a nurse at the local hospital, and he’d just been promoted to manager at the car dealership where he worked through college. They were relatively debt free, in their late twenties, financially stable, and in love. All that was missing was the ring on her finger. But that would come in time, she knew.

  “What are you thinking about?” Evan asked. “You’re grinning like a two-year-old with a handful of cookies.”

  “Just picturing our beautiful future.” She laughed and kissed him again, drawing it out until the text message alerts on her phone became too frequent to ignore. “Grr. Hang on.”

  She pulled her phone from her pocket and looked at the texts to see who was being so impatient. Six texts, all from Alyssa.

  “Everything okay?” Evan asked.

  “My sister sent me six texts.” She scrolled through them, Alyssa’s desperation clearly increasing in each message:

  “What are you doing right now?”

  “Can you call me?”

  “It’s super important.”

  “I need to talk to you!”

  “Please call me now!!”

  “JULIA CALL MEEEE!!!!”

  Julia sighed. “I better call her real quick.” She tapped on the image of her sister’s face and in less than two rings, Alyssa answered.

  “Finally!”

  “Are you okay?” Julia asked. “What’s going on?”

  “I—we—have a situation. It involves our house.”

  “What? Is everything okay? Did something happen?”

  “Well…” Alyssa let out a deep breath. “Something happened, yeah, but not necessarily to the house, more like, to those who live in it.”

  “Alyssa. What is going on?”

  “Remember my friend Melanie who died last year?”

  “Of course.” Julia had stood with Alyssa at the funeral, holding onto her as she sobbed for her best friend who’d died in a car accident.

  “Well, her husband—or ex, or widow, or whatever you’d call him—”

  “Widower.”

  “Yeah, that. Well Dylan kinda lost his job. It was this super sad thing where he just couldn’t make it to work because he was all grief stricken, and I felt really bad and you know Kylee was like a niece to me, and well, they need a place to stay—just for a little while! And I kinda told them they could live with us.”

  It took a minute for the words to sink in. Alyssa had decided, all on her own, that this man and his daughter could move into the house they shared. The not-so-incredibly-huge house they shared near the city.

  Alyssa and Melanie had been close since they were kids. Julia was friends with Melanie, too. They were both at the wedding when Melanie married Dylan, and they were both at Kylee’s first birthday party a few years ago. The situation was sad all around and she couldn’t see saying no, especially since Alyssa had already told them they could move in.

  “Jules? You still there?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Still here. Isn’t there anyone else they can stay with? Other friends or family?”

  “No, there’s really not.”

  She sighed. “When are they moving in?”

  “Oh, thank you! I knew you’d understand!”

  “Hey Alyssa?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Maybe next time we can talk about something like this first?”

  “I am so sorry. I was talking to Dylan and he was so sad and it just kinda came out before I even thought about it, and I figured you wouldn’t really mind, and like I said, it’s only temporary, so I just—”

  “Okay, okay. I get it. It’s fine. Where are they going to sleep, though?”

  “Well…”

  The house only had two bedrooms and another smaller room that they used as an office.

  “I thought we’d put them in the office?” Alyssa said.

  “You think it’s big enough?”

  “It’s going to have to be.”

  Julia sighed again, the stress building up in her forehead. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Why don’t you just move into my room with me and let them stay in your room?”

  “Are you sure? I mean, that would be much better. They’d have a lot more room and there are two of them.”

  “It’s fine.” Julia glanced over the table at Evan, who appeared visibly concerned. “I’m going to finish my date now.”

  “Yes, sorry to interrupt! I love you!”

  “Love you, too.” Julia ended the call and recounted the missing bits of conversation to Evan so he’d have the full picture.

  “How temporary is temporary?” Evan asked.

  “No idea. I guess until he can find a new job and get on his feet again?”

  Evan got up, cleared the table, and massaged Julia’s shoulders. “I think this calls for more wine.” He opened another bottle and poured a fresh glass for each of them. “To…”

  “New adventures in roommates?” Julia finished.

  Evan chuckled. “New adventures in roommates.” They clinked glasses and Julia downed the whole glassful in one long gulp.

  Chapter 2

  A loud crash woke Julia. She sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. As she listened, a commotion of sound came from downstairs. Voices, footsteps, and banging. She sighed and heaved herself out of bed. Today was moving day.

  Julia pulled on jeans and a t-shirt and made her way downstairs to a scene of chaos. Boxes were stacked on one side of the living room; a scattering of furniture took over the dining room. Alyssa had said Dylan was getting a storage unit for their furniture, but there it was, invading her house. People were traipsing in and out through the front door, carrying boxes and other objects. A small girl sat on a displaced chair, clutching a worn pink teddy bear.

  Dylan carried a box into the room and set it on the growing stack. Julia was shocked at first. Though he’d never been overweight, he’d lost a few pounds in the last months, and he looked better than ever, despite the hardship he’d faced recently. He turned to head back out the door and saw Julia watching.

  “Oh, hi,” he said.

  “Happy moving day,” she said.

  He gave her a quick hug. “Thank you so much for doing this. We will try to keep out of your way as much as possible.”

  “It’s okay,” she said as Alyssa walked in, balancing a lamp on top of a small table. “The more the merrier.”

  They exchanged awkward smiles and he headed back out the door.

  “Alyssa,” she hissed and motioned to her sister. “Come here.”

  Alyssa followed her into the kitchen and took a fresh bottle of water from the refrigerator.

  Julia leaned against the counter and kept her voice a low hiss. “I thought you said they were getting a storage unit for their furniture.”

  “Oh yeah,” Alyssa took a long gulp of water and screwed the cap on the bottle. “It’s not ready yet. They’ll move the furniture out next week.”

 
“And how are we supposed to use the dining room in the meantime?”

  “Umm, I guess we won’t? It’s only a week, Jules.”

  “Right. Except Evan’s parents were supposed to come over for dinner next Thursday. Will it be out by then? This already isn’t working.”

  Alyssa looked to the doorway. “Hey Dylan.”

  Julia spun and faced him. He was sweaty and breathing heavy, a smudge of dirt on his chin. His red hat sat backwards on his blonde hair, and he looked incredibly attractive standing there with his hands on Kylee’s shoulders. The expression on his face said that clearly, he had overheard her.

  “I’m really sorry if we’re in the way,” he said. “I’ll make sure all our stuff is out of here before Thursday.”

  “Oh…” Julia said, her face growing warm. “No, it’s fine. We can make do.”