HazardsDare
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“You’re safe. Redman and Grainger can’t hurt anyone again,” Hazard whispered. “That’s a miracle.”
“How did you know where I was?”
“Redman and Grainger hacked your computer. Phalen hacked theirs and found you. Alex, Doc and I were pounding on doors looking for you when Phalen came to warn us. Along with a sick obsession with Alex, the evidence the PI discovered will put Redman away. No minimum security for him, hardcore prison time.”
“He said he’d been spying…on us. We’d thought our settings were private.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. Phalen made sure that Redman can’t hurt you or obsess over Alex again.”
“I’ve never seen anything like what Doc just did for Alexander. I was sure he’d kill John.”
“He would have if Alex hadn’t stopped him. Your brother’s a remarkable man.”
Avery agreed. “He’s a hero.”
“Any way I can separate the two of you long enough to hug Avery?” Alexander asked, standing right next to the bed.
Her brother didn’t focus on the ropes or the cameras or the gaudy bed. His eyes were intent on her face before sweeping up and down to be sure she wasn’t injured.
“He didn’t hurt me, Alexander.”
“Doesn’t matter what Redman didn’t do. His intent was clear.” Alexander waited until Hazard shifted away.
“Not once did I think that you and Hazard wouldn’t find me,” she admitted the moment her brother bear-hugged her.
“Did you hear that, Phalen?” Ethan complained. “Not one bit of credit for our part in this.”
“Not to mention your wife’s,” Hazard added.
“That’s right. My partner should be here any second. Once I’m given the all-clear, I’m outta here. Morgan needs her baby daddy.” Ethan’s Bostonian accent made that sound corny as hell.
“You love being married to Morgan,” Phalen reminded his brother.
“I love her,” Ethan admitted. “Marriage is an adventure I’ll gladly do for the rest of our lives. Best thing? She loves me too.”
“Go care for your wife. We’ve got this,” Ryan ordered. “Tell her to call me when she’s feeling better.”
Ryan remained with Mrs. Albright. He’d managed to find a roll of paper towels and pressed a handful against the back of her head. He spoke softly to her, gentling her when she started upon the arrival of the EMTs.
Sam Riley came in, leading a handful of Danvers police officers, who promptly took command of the scene. Ethan left soon after.
It seemed as if hours went by before Avery made her statement and an EMT gave her the clearance to return to her own apartment. The best news came just before she was told she could leave. A patrolman reported he’d found her Honda in perfect condition. It would be processed for clues and returned in a few days.
Hazard didn’t bother to wait much longer than that to pick her right off her feet and carry her out of the wretched basement apartment and to her own. She refused to measure the distance between her building and the one residing directly across the parking lot.
Trusting the police and her brother to handle the legalities, Avery was relieved to discover that her place was relatively untouched. Not a candle had been displaced or a chair had been moved. Her MacBook resided on the coffee table.
“Hazard, you can put me on my feet. I won’t collapse.”
“I’d rather carry you.”
Hazard kicked the apartment door closed, staying there to look around. “Ethan must have taken Morgan home. She passed out cold, scared the hell out of me. Had it been you, I’d have been on my knees.”
“He’s learned how to deal with Morgan’s headaches. I’ll call her tomorrow to see if she’s feeling up to talking.”
“How about we put aside everything that’s happened and go to bed? I need to hold you and remind myself that you’re safe.”
“I need the same thing. There was a big football game today that we need to celebrate.”
“Let’s put football aside until Monday.”
Hazard didn’t put her down until they were in the bedroom. Carefully, he sat her on the edge of the bed, immediately going to his knees before her and gathered her hands in his, lifting them.
“They didn’t touch you?” he asked, kissing her palms.
“Only long enough to tie the ropes. It was as if I was an afterthought. All John wanted from me was for some sort of revenge against Alexander, whom he blamed for all that was wrong in his life.”
“All that equipment in their place was there for a purpose. I can’t even think of what they intended.”
“We can’t think about what might have happened. You’re here for me and Ryan championed my brother.”
“That’s something I wouldn’t mind seeing again.”
“It was kind of like watching a MMA fight live, with a lot of wrestling moves thrown in.”
Hazard kissed her knuckles one at a time, then cupped her face in his big hands. “I love you. If it wouldn’t be too much to ask, may I make love to you? If you’re not up to it or you need me to sleep on the sofa, I’ll do it.”
“If you slept anywhere other than beside me tonight, I’d be heartbroken. If you don’t make love to me, I’ll jump you right there on the floor.”
“We do have a special affinity for the floor.”
“Something tells me we’ll have years to fuck on the floor, on the bed, in the shower and maybe outside. Have I told you I have this fantasy about being zipped up with you in a sleeping bag on a Sierra Nevada mountain?”
Hazard grinned broadly. “Why don’t you tell me about it?”
“Mind you, there must be a tent. I’m all for outdoorsy fun, but I don’t want pine needles poking my ass or any place only your cock should be.”
“Tent’s fine,” Hazard agreed, clearly distracted as he stood up and stripped out of the very stylish business suit he’d been wearing.
Before she could compliment him on how fine he looked, he began stripping her. Avery didn’t resist. The second they were naked, they shimmied beneath the freshly cleaned sheets and took each other in their arms, kissing as if there was no tomorrow.
“I do love you, Trevor,” she said, staring into his lion-like eyes and running her hand down the mane of his gorgeous hair. “Thank you for coming to my rescue.”
“It’s you who rescued me. If you hadn’t walked into the Truth or Dare Club wearing that red dress and daring me to take you on, I might have remained obtuse.”
“Obtuse? Wouldn’t say you were obtuse. I’d say you were locked in the past. All I did was turn to my crush on you into love.”
“In that case, kiss me and don’t stop until morning.”
“And so it shall be,” she granted, touching her mouth to his and kissing him like there was no tomorrow.
Fortunately, there would be plenty of tomorrows to come.
Chapter Fifteen
Three Weeks Later—Houston, Texas
On a Sunday night featuring gridiron excellence, Avery watched the Alexandria Griffins become the Professional Football League World Champions.
Their magic was nothing short of breathtaking because the Griffins beat their biggest rival and nemesis, the Malibu Sharks. While the Sharks did manage to score two TDs over the course of four quarters, the Griffins’ offense pulverized the competition with a dual-MVP performance by quarterback Ricky Weathers and wide receiver Dallas McKay.
The Griffins’ defense stopped the Sharks’ running game and forced two turnovers in the fourth quarter. Hazard put a hit on the Sharks’ QB that forced the second fumble in the last three minutes of the game.
It was the greatest game Avery had ever witnessed. Watching her boyfriend celebrate with his teammates by hoisting up the championship trophy while streamers, confetti and rockets were fired in victory made the occasion even more extraordinary.
As fortune would have it, Avery had been allowed to fly to BWI with Hazard the Monday after Redman and Grainger were arrested. Ry
an had commanded she recover with the man she loved and it’d been the best prescription a doctor could suggest.
According to Ethan Maddox, Billy Grainger’s bullet wounds were superficial and he was taken into custody. John Redman was arraigned on a variety of charges. Due to his prior conviction, the likelihood that John would get out of serving major prison time was slim to none.
It was a relief, mainly for Alexander. Phalen had done his homework after John was taken into custody, discovering John Redman had purposefully moved to wherever Alexander was living, first in Louisville, then in Alexandria, where his intentions of ruining her brother were put on hold because he’d been jailed.
It wasn’t until John Redman was free to leave Virginia that he made plans to move to Danvers. Apparently, he didn’t fly to Kentucky at all. It’d been a matter of buying the aid of a fellow porn star to use his credit card and rent an apartment in Redman’s name.
And now here she was, witnessing Hazard’s big night and grateful to know she’d been part of it. Their relationship was still new, still growing and still getting stronger.
Yet the lover she’d found when she least expected to find him became the man she wanted to spend her life with. It wasn’t that they didn’t argue. It wasn’t that they were perfect that made their relationship work.
It worked because they wanted it to. Being with him when he wasn’t at mandatory practice and having Alexander arrange a private jet to fly her out to Houston a few days before their friends arrived had been especially rewarding because her brother flew with her.
Fortunately, Alexander agreed to be less bossy. While he’d always do what was necessary to keep her or anyone in their family safe, he gave her the benefit of the doubt regarding Hazard.
“Want to go down on the field with the players?” Alexander asked her, waving a hand in front of her face.
“Can we do that?”
“We can.” Alexander said something to Doc and the two of them flanked her.
The rest, including Ethan and Phalen, their wives, Remy and Eve, Sam Riley and Taran Maddox, remained in the luxury skybox. Her parents and Charlotte hadn’t been able to come to the game, but her dad rented out a pub in Louisville to watch the big game with friends and family back in Kentucky.
Alexander had also contacted Hazard’s friends in Dare, inviting them all to the championship game on his dime. All but Gabriel and Jaxon had been able to join them. Gabriel had gone to Vegas to reopen his magic show. Jaxon was secluded in the mountains, but he’d sent an invitation to Remy and Eve to visit Dare for a ghost hunt.
“Come on, Avery, keep up,” Alexander teased, noticing she lagged behind as she thought about the last couple of weeks.
“I’m coming.” She followed Alexander and Ryan out of the skybox, through a few hallways and down some escalators. Her brother flashed his credentials when asked by security, then pointed to the field passes hanging around her and Ryan’s necks.
Out on the football field, the party continued. Alexander wasn’t the tallest man on the crowd, but no one thought to stand in his way. He exuded power and influence, maintaining a level of professionalism as he slapped shoulders and shook hands.
This was her brother at his finest. She let him do his thing. By the time they reached the players still gathered on the podium, Alexander didn’t have to signal Hazard’s attention.
Hazard vaulted off the platform, rushed across the field and straight into her arms.
“Congratulations, world-champion linebacker,” she said, getting engulfed and hefted right off her feet.
“Thanks, still taking it all in. Know what I’m going to do in the off-season?”
“What’s that?”
“Visit my doctor to see if I can’t correct that big mistake I made,” he revealed.
“If it doesn’t work or can’t be done, it changes nothing. I love you, Trevor Hazard Osbourne.”
“We’ll see what he says and go from there. How would you feel if I moved up to Massachusetts during the off-season?”
“I would love it. What about Dare?”
“We’ll always have Dare, baby. There will be plenty of times when we’ll need the escape. We can look into renting out my condo for vacationers when we’re not going to be using it. I’d also like to perform at the Truth or Dare Club whenever we’re in Nevada.”
“And football?”
“When practice resumes next summer, we’ll go to Virginia. That is, if Doc doesn’t mind.”
“I’ll work something out with my boss. He’s a good man, you know.”
“Yes, I do. I’ll need some help finding a place to live. Any suggestions?”
Avery nodded, smiling. “You can stay with me in Danvers until we find something we like better.”
“Avery Grant, are you suggesting that we live together?”
“It’s not a suggestion. It’s an open invitation.”
“An invitation I accept. I love you.”
“Then kiss me, Hazard, and don’t let go of me for a while.”
“How does a lifetime sound?”
“Like music to my ears,” she answered, happier than she’d ever been in her whole life.
Hazard crushed her to him, kissing her deeply, passionately, and not caring one little bit that the world was watching as confetti rained down and fireworks crackled the sky in celebration.
About Frances Stockton
My love for storytelling began when I created my first fictional characters in kindergarten, convincing my family and friends that Red Henry and Green Henry were identical twin brothers in my school. They were mischievous, rarely did their homework, and even had girlfriends! Years later, I started to write, completing my first manuscript in middle school. I confess the heroine was a cross between a contemporary Laura Ingalls Wilder and Nancy Drew, who’d been dating one of the Hardy Boys, but when I wrote “the end” I’d known I had more stories to tell. Of course, life intervened, but whether I was in high school, working as a Veterinary Technician, earning a degree in history and secondary education, or teaching, I was always writing and reading romances.
Finally, I met and married my hero and moved to New England. Shortly after, I joined RWA and the New England Chapter and have been writing faithfully ever since. Now I am proud to be an author with Ellora’s Cave Publishing.
Frances welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Hazard’s Dare
ISBN 9781419944796
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Hazard’s Dare Copyright © 2013 Frances Stockton
Edited by Briana St. James
Photography and cover design by Syneca
Model: Ryan
Additional Photos: Maxim Ahner and Baloncici/Shutterstock.com
Electronic book publication March 2013
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Table of Contents
Blurb
Tile Page
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three