Finding Perseverance (The Unexpected Love Series Book 3)

by T. E. Black

  Leigh has been staring out the windows in the apartment for two hours now. She’s determined to watch over her bar from up here while chaos ensues on the streets around us.

  “Leigh, come here.” My voice is soft and coaxing, but if she doesn’t listen, I’ll pick her up and carry her away from that damn window.

  She looks at me, and it’s as if I’m repeating a moment from ten years ago. One that has haunted my dreams.

  “No. I need to make sure those savages don’t burn down my bar.” Standing her guard, she crosses her arms over her chest.

  I tilt my head to the side, staring into her beautiful eyes. Her usually bright, vibrant irises are clouded with sadness and fear. It breaks my heart.

  “I said come here. You don’t need to see that shit out there,” I repeat.

  She looks away, finding something to focus on besides me. When she glances over her shoulder again, I’m still staring into her soul.

  She sighs the same way she’s been since Susan left yesterday. It tells me she’s thinking about everything that’s happened in the past twenty-four hours, which has been a lot to handle for both of us.

  Ever since Susan brought up the subject of my leaving, Leigh’s walls have slowly rebuilt themselves. They’re not as high as they were in the beginning, but they are still high enough to keep me out of places I was a day ago.

  “I want to watch my bar,” she says, walking closer.

  “I understand. But watching those assholes outside isn’t going to change the fact their there.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I don’t want them laying a finger on my building. The only way I can make sure it doesn’t happen is by keeping an eye on them.”

  She says she wants to watch them, but as she speaks, she moves closer to me. I can’t ignore the urge to feel her skin on mine. Not in a sexual way, but in a comforting way.

  I need to know she’s still here with me after what I’m putting her through—that she isn’t a figment of my imagination.

  “I love you,” I whisper, flexing my fingers to relieve the tension.

  “I love you, too,” she replies, but it seems half-hearted.

  It doesn’t sound the same as it did yesterday morning. It’s a sad exhale of breath.

  “You know she is wrong about us, about me, right?” I question, wishing I could be inside her head.

  “Who? Susan?”

  “Yeah. She is wrong.” I really need her to hear what I’m saying behind the words.

  Leigh pulls away for a moment, and I’m left supporting the weight of our problems myself.

  “What if she isn’t?” she asks. “What if she was spot-on when she said you weren’t going to stay here with me? What if she sees it, even when we don’t? What if we’re blinded by feelings for each other and everyone else sees this”—she motions between us—“for what it is: temporary.”

  Walls aren’t my only obstacle anymore. Now, I not only have to get her to let me back into her heart but also convince her that I won’t hurt her again. I won’t.

  Three months ago, I thought I was in love with Lauren. Now, I see how wrong I was. It was a shallow imitation of what I feel for the woman standing in front of me. I love Leigh. I think I have from the moment I saw her step out of that car when we were twelve.

  “Leigh, do you remember the first time I woke you up in the middle of the night to go sledding?”

  Her smile is brilliant by the time I finish asking the question. “Of course I remember. I thought you were crazy, but you told me it was your ‘tradition’ for the first snowfall of the year. What a bullshitter you were, even back then.”

  “Hey, you were the one who believed me.” I smile back at her and pull her closer so she’s standing between my legs. “You argued the entire way up that hill. God, you were so worried your mom would find out we were gone and freak out. But then I sat you down on that shitty red sled and gave you a running push. I can remember the way you laughed as you flew down that hill. It was the first time since you came to live with us that you really laughed. It is still the most amazing sound I think I have ever heard—even better than the first time I walked out of the tunnel and the crowds went wild for me.” I’m watching her, but I don’t think she realizes it. Her eyes have this far off quality to them, as if she’s reliving the memory as I feed it to her. “When you reached the bottom, you turned to me and smiled. Leigh, I can close my eyes and still see you there. I can see your hair a wild mess from the wind and the way your nose and cheeks were pink from the cold, and do you know what?” I ask. This time I wait for her to come back to me before continuing, “That is the exact moment I knew I loved you.”

  “Rook—”

  “No, let me finish. I have loved you for so long, and now that I have you back in my life, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to keep you here. I made a mistake when I left you to go to California. I didn’t realize it then, and I can’t take back the hurt I caused you. I wish I could. I would give away every penny in my account if it meant I could take back that one choice, but I can’t. What I can do is be here now. We have this second chance. I won’t waste it.”

  “Rook, I love you. I love you so much I have spent the last ten years trying not to love you, but I don’t want to do that anymore. What happens if they come back and want you to fight again. Ten years ago, that was your dream. I wouldn’t hold you back from it then, and I won’t hold you back this time either. I have to protect myself against that hurt.”

  “Even if they did ask me to fight again, which is very unlikely, I would turn them down. I would turn down my sponsors, and I would turn down Luke. It’s not my dream anymore. You are. You always have been.”

  Tears stream from her eyes, and the undeniable urge to lick them away fills every void I have in me. I want to protect her from everything—sadness, remorse, guilt, worry. But more importantly, I want to protect her from herself.

  Grabbing her hips, I pull her body into mine and she gives herself to me. Without a second thought, my fingers are sliding under her shirt and dancing up her smooth skin until I reach her breasts.

  Leigh tears my T-shirt over my head, forcing me to let go of her for only a second. Then her hands are on me, and she crawls on to my lap, straddling me and linking her heels behind my back.

  Even though she’s still clothed, I feel her hardened nipples brushing against my chest through the fabric of her T-shirt. It sends lust and desire through every vein in my body—tingling, heated, unquestionable urges to be inside her.

  “Jesus Christ,” I mumble, my lips finding the side of her neck.

  I cradle her head with one hand while the other holds her waist. The feeling of her curves under my grasp forces a groan to slip from my lips.

  “Fuck,” she moans, tilting her head to one side so I can continue to kiss and nip at the sensitive skin.

  Her hand slips into my hair where she tugs, using it as a guide to set our pace together.

  She pulls, I slow down.

  She moans, I move faster.

  “I want you inside me. I need you inside me,” she pleads.

  Panting, she moves off my lap, and I watch, wrapped at attention as she slips out of her tight, black shorts and panties. As she slides out of her T-shirt and bra, my mouth waters with desire.

  She’s stunning—a total knockout.

  And she’s mine.

  I stand from the bed, moving quickly to her. Making her follow my steps backward, I shed the rest of my clothes one pieces at a time. All the while, her eyes burn with lust and want.

  I keep walking her toward the other side of the room until her back hits the wall next to the dresser. With only a few inches between us, I lick my lips before clearing the top of the piece of furniture with one swipe.

  “Climb up, baby.”

  She does as she’s told, and I skim my hand over the swell of my breasts, pinching each of her nipples lightly with each pass.

  “You’re beautiful.”

  She blushes at my compliment before I
smash my mouth into hers. As we kiss, she pulls me closer, spreading her legs farther apart to make room for me.

  Leigh reaches between us, grabbing my hardened cock with her hand and guiding it to her entrance. The moment I feel the tip of myself touching her bare pussy, I stop.

  “Condom, baby,” I pant against her lips.

  “Are you clean?”

  “Yes. Are you?”

  “Yes,” she mumbles against my lips. “So, make love to me without one.”

  “Are you sure?” I ask.

  Leigh looks me in the eyes and nods. “This is second chance, Rook. Yes. I’m sure.”

  I search her eyes for doubt or uncertainty, but I don’t see either.

  She wants this.

  She wants me, bare.

  And I want her anyway she’ll give it.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Ryleigh

  Rook and I didn’t fuck.

  We made love—sweet, beautiful, passionate love.

  He took all my doubts about us and turned them upside down, shaking out all the fear and worry over what the future holds for us. He showed me how much he loved me with every touch and taste.

  He saved me from myself.

  I believe, without a doubt, he is telling me the truth about not hurting me again. I’m not sure why I believe him now when I didn’t before, but there was something in his voice as he whispered promises to me that told me they were truth.

  “Hey, sweetheart. You’re finally up.” Rook walks toward the bed holding plates.

  “Hey.” I smile.

  Rook in just a tight pair of black boxer briefs is a sight I will never get bored of seeing. His body is hard from years of fighting, but there’s still a certain part of the little boy I once knew lingering inside of him.

  “I hope you’re hungry.”

  Rook hands over the plates holding our breakfast while he climbs into bed.

  “I’m starving.” I eye the bulge in his boxers.

  He notices where my gaze is centered and lets out a deep laugh, which makes me ache between my legs.

  Rook leans over and places a lingering kiss on my lips, almost making me drop the plates.

  “Eat first, pretty girl. We have the rest of our lives to fuck like rabbits, but if you don’t eat something, there’s going to be nothing left for me to sink myself into.” He smirks, staring pointed at my exposed breasts. “Plus, I don’t want you to lose an inch of those sexy curves you’ve got going on.”

  I still don’t understand how he can do this—make me fall apart with only his voice. I’ve never been affected by anyone this way, except for Rook Wallace. It’s almost as if he’s the only one for me, and I’m the only one for him. Not that I’m complaining, but it’s almost as if this … us … the attraction … has never been under our control.

  “Fine,” I agree, handing over his plate. “But after we eat, we fuck. Fair enough?”

  “Fair enough.”

  Settling under the comforter, Rook and I dig into our breakfasts. The food he made is almost as mouthwatering as he is. Eggs, bacon, hash browns, and toast—my favorite foods.

  I didn’t expect anything less. Rook knows everything about me, and what I like and what I don’t like hasn’t changed much.

  Before I can blink, Rook reaches out and plucks a strip of bacon off my plate.

  “Do you want to die?” I glare his way.

  “What? I gave you all the good pieces.”

  “The good pieces?”

  “Of bacon.”

  “Why? What’s wrong with yours?”

  As soon as I look at his plate, I have the answer. There is a pile of black strips, which may have been bacon at one point, piled next to his eggs. Good God. The poor man burned half the bacon, yet instead of splitting the good pieces between the two of us, he gave me all the normally cooked ones.

  “You’re such an ass.” I laugh as I pick up half my bacon and put it on his plate. “Why didn’t you take some of the good pieces?”

  “I know you like them.”

  As Rook speaks, my heart thuds in my chest quicker than I’ve ever felt it move before. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say I’m beginning to love him more and more every minute of every day.

  “I love you,” I blurt.

  “I love you too, sweetheart.”

  I’m about to say screw it and toss both our plates onto the floor, but his phone ringing saves his breakfast.

  “You better get that,” I mumble, diving into my toast.

  He sighs and searches for his phone on the nightstand before answering it.

  “Hello?” he says into the phone. “Why? What’s going on?” … “What are you talking about?” … “How the hell did that happen?”

  Pausing for a moment while the other person talks, he answers, “Okay. I’ll send her down.”

  I watch intently as he hangs up and blows out a frustrated breath.

  “I need you to go to the back door and let Josie up.”

  “Why’s she here?”

  “It’s a long story. She’ll explain when she gets up here. Can you let her in, please?”

  “Yeah. Let me get dressed.”

  I set my plate aside and get out of bed. Hurrying, I find my clothes on the floor from the night before, slipping them on.

  I’m still pulling my shirt over my head as I move down the stairs and to the door.

  “Come in,” I say, opening the door just enough for her to pass before I slam it shut again. I didn’t see any reporters, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t out there.

  “Where’s Rook?”

  “In the apartment. What’s going on?”

  “I’ll tell you both once I get a stiff drink in me. My nerves are shot,” she answers.

  “I keep a pretty good selection of hard liquor in the apartment. I’ll make you a drink, then you tell us what’s going on. Deal?”

  “Deal,” she agrees, following up the steps and into the apartment over the bar.

  “Tell me what’s going on.” Rook says, stepping out of the bathroom already dressed as I move to the kitchen area. “Tell me what’s so important you had to interrupt my breakfast in bed with my girl.”

  I swoon a little in my mind when he says “my girl” but quickly defend my promise to Josie.

  “I promised her a stiff drink first. Josie, is this okay?” I ask as I hold up an almost full bottle of Jonny Walker Blue. The job does have some perks after all.

  “Perfect, thanks.”

  “Welcome,” I answer as I drop some ice into the glass and then pour a healthy amount of liquor into it before handing it to her.

  “So, now that you have your drink, tell us, Josie.” Rook is tense, I can hear it in his voice, and I know she can too.

  She looks nervous as her eyes flick between me and Rook. “There’s no easy way to say this, but there’s a shit storm out there.” She focuses on me. “The media knows who you are.” She turns to Rook. “And, they know about Trent. They know about your mom. They know about all your friends. They know everything. It’s all over the media.”

  Josie’s words hit me like a ton of bricks straight into the gut. They know everything—Trent, Shay, Abby, Cynthia, Mac, Callie, Sierra, Evan. I knew they knew Rook was staying with me. I knew they knew at least a little bit about our past. I guess I should have expected them to dig.

  But still …

  Fuck.

  I dive for the remote that’s sitting on the coffee table before anyone can stop me. Once it’s in my hand, I turn to the television and flip through the channels until I land on the celebrity news station where all the gossip is.

  ‘“Childhood sweethearts Ryleigh O’Donnell and Rook Wallace were inseparable as teenagers,’ our source says.

  These sweethearts broke up when Rook Wallace joined the MMA just ten years ago. Our source goes on to tell us that Miss O’Donnell and Mr. Wallace have stayed in touch over the past ten years but have kept it hidden from their friends and family.”

  They
show a picture of Rook, Trent, and me from when we were kids.

  “Trent Wallace, Rook Wallace’s only sibling, is the owner of a popular tattoo studio in Boston called Etched, and it was confirmed earlier today that he hasn’t spoken to his brother since their mother passed away in the spring.” She pauses. “Our source has also confirmed Trent Wallace has recently been released from an inpatient rehab facility in Massachusetts, where he went to recover from a cocaine addiction.”

  “Turn it off,” Rook snaps from behind me, but I barely hear him. This. This is exactly what I wanted to avoid all those years ago. The media. The prying. The anger at what is happening is slow to rise as I watch Trent’s face, Rook’s face, and … my face all flash across the screen.

  I tear my eyes away in complete disgust, and I glare at him with all my might. This is his fault. Yes, I let him through the door. Yes, I have helped hide him all these months. But he knew … he knew that when he walked away he was trading a quiet life for one in the spotlight. I never asked for this.

  “Why? I would think you would be used to the attention, Rook. This is what you wanted, right? Why you left here to be a fighter? You wanted to be in the public eye, and now you are—now we all are!” I throw the remote at his feet.

  His eyes go wide at my sudden change of attitude, but I don’t care. He needs to realize this is never what I wanted.

  “Leigh,” he pleads.

  “No. Don’t think that stupid nickname is going to make this all go away! This is your fault, Rook!”

  I’m livid.

  “Calm down, Rook wasn’t the one to leak all this to the media. If my sources are correct, it was your ex? Wasn’t it?” Josie says in a pissy tone.

  My head swings to her as the rage takes over every ounce of my body, mind, and soul. Who the hell does she think she is?

  “Fuck you, Josie! You have no right. It’s my life and my friend’s lives that are plastered all over a gossip show—not yours, and not Rook’s!”

  Josie wisely remains silent, but when Rook steps toward me with hands raised in defeat, I panic. I am so angry right now. So very, very angry. Yet, when my eyes meet his, and I see the sadness there, all I want to do is give in to him.