Turning onto her street, I see a car parked out in front of her parents. Her dad’s truck is in the drive way. I don’t see any lights on except maybe a lamp. I step on the porch and knock.
Nothing.
I knock again. “Chelsea, open up! I know you’re here, I see your truck.”
Nothing.
Moments later, Mack pulls up. I step off the porch to meet him. “She’s not answering the door. The truck is here, I don’t know whose car that is.” I point to the sedan next to the curb.
He steps up on the porch and knocks hard on the door. “Chelsea, it’s Mack! Open up!”
Nothing.
I look over at Mack, “I’m gonna kick it in.”
“You can’t do that Huck.” Just then we hear something crash inside.
He steps aside and I kick the front door open. We both charge into the house and look off the foyer to find Chelsea tied to a chair with a fear in her eyes, tears running down her face and a gun to her head. I can tell she’s fought with him, her hair is a wreck, her face is red, her nose is bloody and her make-up is smeared. I’m gonna kill him, but I don’t want him to hurt Chels.
“Well if it isn’t the cage fighter and the cop. Wow, what a duo,” Pavel snaps.
Mack steps forward, gun leveled at Pavel. “Mr. Volkov, put the gun down.”
“I don’t think so, detective. See, I have plans for myself and they do not include you two,” he says way too calmly.
Mack takes another step. “You need to back away from Chelsea and put the gun down. We can talk about this.”
Pavel begins shaking his head, “NO! She’s coming with me. She’s taken everything from me and now I’m going to take it all from her.” I see her visibly shaking. “I’m losing all of my money because of her.”
I need to get his attention away from her. “No, you’re losing your money because you’re a greedy son of a bitch. You’re losing your money because you’ve fucked around on your wife and kids. Chelsea was hurt because of some guy you were too greedy to pay after he did your dirty work.”
His face is turning red. “You know nothing!” He points the gun at us and shakes it, yelling. I’m not really paying attention to what he’s saying, parts of it are in Russian, I’m looking at Chelsea and him. Studying him like I do an opponent in the cage, I find the opportunity to rush him. Luckily before he can get a shot off, he and I are on the ground. A blur of emotions fly through me. I’m just swinging my fists and that’s all I know.
It feels like hours later Mack is pulling me off of him and Chelsea is yelling at me. I know in reality it’s only been seconds probably.
Looking down, I see that I’ve pummeled him. Mack has my arms, “Son, you can stop. He’s down now, backup is on the way, go ahead, take Chelsea outside.”
I nod, breathing heavy. I pull her into my side and walk her outside. I snatch her in front of me by the top of her arms and look into her terrified eyes. “Baby, are you okay?” I see her busted lip and her face is red in some spots. “Walking in that room, seeing you at his mercy…”
Sobbing, she falls into my chest. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
We stand there as the street and front lawn fill with patrol cars and sirens.
~*~*~
I walk into one of the training rooms where Chelsea is kickboxing with the bag. “Hey, I just heard from Mack,” I say, stepping closer to her.
She stops, breathing heavy and taking a sip of her water. “Yeah? What did he say?”
“He said they’ve of course added more charges and he’s being held without bail this time.” I just hope his wife has locked up his damn money so tight that he can’t hire someone to hurt her.
“Good,” she says, wiping her face with a towel.
I step over toward her. “So you look really hot right now.”
“Well, I’m sweating my ass off,” she fires back.
I wink. “You know what I mean. Those yoga pants are perfect on your ass.”
She snaps the towel at me. “Hush.”
I snatch the towel. “Oh you wanna play, huh?”
She squeals. “No! Please don’t.”
“Hey kids, no grab ass in here,” Lox says, walking in the room.
We both laugh at him and Chelsea asks. “Hey, how’s it going for Sloan?”
Lox nods. “Going great, she’s thirteen weeks today. Morning sickness isn’t as bad anymore, so that’s a good thing.”
I laugh. “Yeah, Kara always got pissed and called it all day sickness. She said whoever came up with the name was obviously a man because he had no clue what the fuck was actually going on.”
Lox shakes his head. “Well, I’m just glad we were able to keep it hidden for almost the entire first trimester.” He laughs, “Anyway, I did come in here to give you some news. Marco needs all of us in a meeting in thirty.”
“Okay, cool. I’ll be in there in a few minutes.” I step over and wrap my arms around Chelsea’s waist, pulling her to face me.
“So you gonna go to my place when you leave here?” I ask, kissing her neck.
She leans her head to the side, giving me more access. “Yeah, I was going to order pizza. Gia is coming over tonight for me to help her with something for school.”
I kiss her again. “Great, Eli is coming to work out with me in a little bit. I’ll get him to come home with me, so order double what you planned. That kid can pack away the groceries.”
She smiles and steps out of my grasp. “Okay. I’ll see you in a little bit. I’m gonna pack up now and head to your place.”
I kiss her again. “Okay, see you soon.”
I playfully smack her ass on the way out.
A couple of hours later, I finally make it home with Eli. I can’t wait to share what Marco’s meeting was about.
Walking into the living room, I see Gia and Chels on the couch watching something and talking over wine.
I lean over and kiss my woman. “Hey, babe. Contributing to the delinquency of a minor?”
She laughs. “Not really. It’s just one glass of wine, no big deal. We just went over a huge paper she was doing for this pain in the ass professor so we’re celebrating.”
“So I have some big news. I even waited to tell Eli until we got here.”
Both of the girls turn to face me. Eli leans against the wall. “What’s up, man?” he says.
“Bellator has entered us into a huge match in Vegas. It’s in June, so we’ve got a few months to work toward it, but Sly and I have already talked it over and we want all of you there with us.”
Chelsea screams and jumps up, running around the couch and kissing my neck and face. “Oh my God, this is huge. This could really promote your career.”
I squeeze her tight. “I love you.” Oh crap, did I just blurt that out?
She leans back and smiles taking it all in. I’m terrified she doesn’t feel the same way. Then she speaks. “I love you, too.”
I get a congratulations and of course they want to come from Gia and Eli.
After pizza and cokes with the kids, they go back to campus. Getting out of the shower, I walk in the bedroom. Chelsea is laying across my bed on her stomach in a naughty nurse’s outfit. Stockings, corset, garters and high heels.
Holy mother of God. My dick instantly goes hard, pushing the towel wrapped around my waist away from my body.
I smile once I get over to her. “You are fucking hot, babe.”
She rolls over on her ass, propping up like a pin up model. “So, what do you wanna do?”
I crawl on top of her. “Oh what I wanna do is--.” I pull the string on the front of her corset. “So, so naughty.”
She giggles. “Congrats on Vegas, babe.”
I look into her eyes. “Move in with me.”
She stops and looks at me seriously. “Move in with you?”
I nod. “Yeah, babe. You’re here all the time anyway and I want you to sleep in my bed every night. I want to wake up with you every morning.”
“Are
you sure? I mean we haven’t been together for very long.”
I kiss down her now exposed stomach. Pushing her panties to the side, I slide my fingers through her wetness. “Chelsea, baby, we’ve both put life on hold for stupid shit. It’s time for us to live now.”
She nods, breathlessly. “Yes.”
I move up and kiss her hard, slipping the towel off of me and sliding inside of her. She moans as I enter her.
Tonight, I want to take it slow, I want to feel her all night.
Once we’ve finished, she smiles. “Huckleberry Webb, you are the sweetest man I’ve ever known.”
I pull her into my chest. “Babe, you’ve got me. You’ve got my whole heart. You hold it in the palm of your hands. If I’m being honest, you always have.”
EPILOGUE
CHELSEA
JUNE…
I’ve always heard people talk about the craziness of Vegas, but nothing compares to seeing it in person. The lights alone are intoxicating.
Right now, all of the women are at the spa. Marco and Eli have Krista and Slick so the boys can get ready for tonight and Kara gets a break.
“Oh God, this massage feels so good,” Sloan groans out. She truly deserves it considering a couple of months ago she gave birth to a ten pound little boy.
Kara laughs from her table. “I told you this would make you feel so much better.”
“It does but I still miss Lincoln. I’m glad my parents could keep him for me to come though. I wouldn’t want to miss this,” Sloan says sadly.
Liz laughs, “The massage or Vegas?”
Sloan laughs. “Everything.”
Elaine comes in the room from her pedicure. “Well, Sloan, has your brother talked anymore about moving closer?”
I hear happiness in Sloan’s voice. “Yes, ma’am. One of his friends is starting up a new construction company and already has some big jobs lined up around Gainesville at the campus. He wants Jacob to come be a foreman for him. It would put him a little closer to move where we live. Plus, he’d like something new, you know?”
Elaine laughs, “I’m sure Slick is happy.”
“Oh yeah, all the Uncle Jacob time one little boy can handle,” Sloan says, laughing a little.
The rest of the day at the spa flies by and we have a great time. The spa fed us lunch along with fruit and wine in the afternoon.
By the time we’re getting ready for the fight, I’ve been waxed, buffed and polished all over.
I slip into the emerald green halter style dress and silver high heels. I look at myself one last time in the floor length mirror in our hotel bathroom. I think back over the last few months, how my life has changed.
I’m with someone who truly loves me. We’re living together and talking about a future. Pavel is in prison for at least thirty years. His wife took everything from him before he went to prison. She also gifted me a brand new car to replace the one that I put in the dealership the day we confronted him.
A tapping on the bathroom door catches my attention. “You ready, babe? We gotta get going.”
I fix my lipstick and smile. “Yes.”
I spin around and follow him to the door of our room. He grabs my hand and kisses my neck. “You’re very sexy in this dress and I can’t wait to get you out of it tonight.”
I laugh as we step in the elevator to go down and meet everyone else. “If you’re lucky,” I say, winking.
~*~*~
“COME ON BABY!!!! DON’T LET HIM GET THE DROP ON YOU!”
Huck wraps his opponent up. They drop to the mat. Shit shit shit…
Huck comes out of it and pins him. “Take him, baby!!!”
The last bell of the match rings. I jump up and down. The official holds Huck’s hand up in the air, declaring him the winner.
I’m screaming and crying with joy when Huck takes the microphone. This isn’t unusual since they’ve gotten comments from all of the match winners tonight.
“Thank you everyone for all of the support tonight. I have to thank one lady especially.” He looks out and grins at me. “Chelsea, baby, can you stand up?”
I stand up and the cameras all pan to me and I’m suddenly on the Jumbo Tron. I feel my face getting red so I do the only geeky thing I can do…wave.
“When I was in high school, I wasn’t a great student. One of my teachers set me up with a tutor. Little did I know that I would fall in love with that girl not once, but twice in my life. Chelsea, I love you with everything that’s inside of me. You have been holding my heart, every damn part of it, in your hands since we were kids. Will you marry me?”
My hands cover my mouth as Huck leaves the cage and runs over to me, picking me up and spinning around.
The cameras are still on us and the crowd starts to chant. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”
Huck looks at me in the eyes. “Sooooo?”
I nod, choking on tears. “Yes. Yes.”
“SHE SAID YES!!!!”
The crowd around us is deafening with cheers, but I can’t even begin to notice. It’s like we’re in a bubble. It’s like when I moved from home, I put my life on hold for six years. Six years, with a man I had absolutely no possibility of a future with, only to move home and find the man who holds my heart. Huck was my first, I want him to be my last and my only.
Keep reading for a preview of
Chelsea Camaron’s One Ride.
Acknowledgments
Thank you to my readers. Without you, I would not be having this awesome adventure. You have helped make my dreams come true and for that, I’m truly blessed and grateful. I never would’ve dreamed Lox would take off like it did and that people would love Sly just as much. I hope everyone loves Huck just as much.
To my family, thank you for being supportive. Special Thanks to my mom who listens to the endless ramblings about my characters.
I need to give a big Thank You to Chelly Peeler. She’s not only my editor but my friend. She always listens to my random crazy thoughts. She loves my characters and understands my craziness. Thank you again.
To my bestie, Chelsea Camaron, thank you for being my sounding board. Thank you for giving me those little bits of advice, for helping me think three books ahead. Not thinking my random late night texts are crazy or annoying. #commentbubblinbitch
Kimberley Foster Holm for treating my books like Where’s Waldo and helping me find those little things that I’ve read over a hundred times. #warnagirl
A special thanks to Michael Swearingen, my cover model, for being not only Sly, but Huck. You captured everything I was looking for and you met the challenge. You have been a wonderful representation of my character and I could not ask for more You’ve been awesome and inspirational.
Shelly Sale, my photographer, you’re awesome. You know the image I’m looking for before I do sometimes.
Donna Dull/Elizabeth Sharp with Sharp Designs, thank you so much for your wonderful covers. They make me squeal every time.
To Former Pro Boxer James Spider Webb, a World Ranked Pro, NABC US Champion, US Olympic Alt and Armed Forces Champion. Thank you for giving me some insight into this world.
Thanks to all of the book bloggers out there who spend so much time helping us promote books and everyone who leaves a review, you are all awesome.
To my street team Donaldson’s Dirty Debutantes you guys are just awesome. I don’t know what I would do without you.
To my Author friends, thank you for being supportive and inspirational all at the same time.
About the Author
S.M. Donaldson is a born and raised Southern girl. She grew up in a small rural town on Florida’s Gulf Coast, the kind of place where everyone knows your business before you do, especially when your Daddy is a cop and your Mom works for the school system. She married one of her best friends at the age of 20 and has one son. She is a proud military wife, has always had a soft spot for a good story, and is known to have a potty mouth. At the age of 31, she decided there was no time like the present to attempt her first book. Sam’
s Choice was born and she hasn’t stopped since. If you are looking for a good, steamy, Southern set romance with true Southern dialect, she’s your girl.
My Links:
www.smdonaldson.com
www.facebook.com/s.m.donaldson.author
www.goodreads.com/AuthorSMDonaldson
Twitter: @SMDonaldson1
Instagram: SMDONALDSON1981
Other titles by S.M. Donaldson
The Sam Series
Sam’s Choice
Sam’s Fight for Freedom
The Temptation Series
Lying with Temptation
Acting on Temptation
Fighting Temptation
The Secrets of Savannah Series
Secrets Behind Those Eyes
Secrets in The Lyrics
Secrets in Battle
Novellas
Just the Other Sister Series
(E-book only)
Seasons of Change Novella Series
Summer of Forgiveness
Falling for Autumn
Holiday with Holli
Camellia In Bloom
Marco’s MMA Boys
LETTING LOX IN
IN SLY’S EYES
HOLDING HUCK’S HEART
GAINING GIBBS
A PREVIEW OF
CHELSEA CAMARON’S
ONE RIDE
Copyright © Chelsea Camaron 2013
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of Chelsea Camaron, except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976.
1st Edition Published: December 2013
Cover Design by: Jessie Lane
Cover Photo by Vicki Jones of Vicki’s Portraiture
Cover Models: Jared Caldwell and Pantara Lynne
Editing by: Asli Fratarcangeli
Holding Huck's Heart (Marco's MMA Boys #3) Page 16