“Okay Mom, looking forward to seeing you. Drive safe and have fun.”
“We will. I love you, Dax.”
“I love you too, Mom.”
I ended the call and packed up the trash from my lunch just as my next appointment arrived. This guy wanted a Gecko on his arm…there was no accounting for taste.
“Hey Frank, how are things at the pharmacy today?”
“Busy, busy,” he said. “How about you Dax, how’s business?”
“It’s great,” I told him, honestly. It really was.
Chapter Thirteen
Olivia
I loved my job, but what I loved even more was quitting time. It was my week to close the clinic. Our last patient of the day ran late and everyone else had already been gone for a while. I shared the office with two other nurse practitioners and a doctor. We were all equal partners. That day was actually my first day working as a partner rather than just an employee. It was a day I had hoped for but I had been afraid would never come. I finished making sure all of the lights were off and then I finished locking all the doors. It was just after five. I would get to the day care in plenty of time.
I got into my jeep and drove the ten minutes over to the school where they had a little area for the day care. There were only about twenty kids under the age of four on any given day. I remembered the first time they told me that and the number overwhelmed me. I thought it was an outrageous amount of kids. I supposed it was because the thought of the love of my life not being given one on one attention was disturbing to me at first. I found out that when you’re a new mother there are a lot of things that are disturbing.
As I approached the playground, Little Joey saw me. I could never get enough of the way his little face lit up when he looks at me. I thought I knew a long time ago what unconditional love was. I didn’t think anyone truly knew that until they had a child.
“Mama!”
“Joey!” As soon as I stepped through the gates he was on me. His chubby little arms wrapped tight around my neck. I kissed his face and carried him inside to sign him out and get his backpack.
The lady that stepped in behind me said, “Oh what a beautiful boy.”
I smiled, I never got tired of hearing that, and I heard it a lot. He was a lot more than beautiful, but it was the first thing everyone noticed about him.
“Thank you,” I told her. “His mama thinks so, that’s for sure.”
“How old is he?”
“How old are you Joey, tell the lady.”
“I’m free,” he said, holding up three fingers.
“Wow, what a big boy,” the lady said. She wasn’t kidding. He was a big guy.
I loaded Joey into his car seat and strapped him down tight in the back seat and he talked non-stop on the drive to his Daddy’s shop. I loved the sound of his babble. It was like music to my ears after I’ve missed him all day.
“Here we are kiddo,” I told him as we pulled up in front. I unstrapped him and helped him out.
As soon as I got him out, he wanted down too. I sat him down on his feet and he took off. I wasn’t worried because he was on the sidewalk and I knew he couldn’t open the door. The knob was too high.
“Mama, come on!” he yelled at me over his shoulder.
“I’m here, Mr. Impatient.” I pulled open the door and Joey ran straight to the back. That door was too high for him to open too but he knew here he could press his little face into the partition and see inside.
That was what he was doing when Dax looked over the top of it and said, “There’s my hot wife, but where’s my boy?”
Joe was giggling and pressed up against the corner of the partition. He thought that Dax couldn’t see him there.
“Oh my goodness, I have no idea. Where’s Joey? He was just here.” More giggling and then at last Dax reached over and grabbed him into his arms.
“There he is!” he shouted before tickling him all over. Sometimes when I watched the two of them together my heart felt like it was going to explode. They looked just alike. I had two Dax’s to love. I was the luckiest woman in the world.
I let myself into the back through the door. Dax gave Joey some new stickers he’d gotten for him and while he was putting them all over the chair he’d almost completely covered with stickers Dax said, “So, how was your first day?”
I laughed. “Well, since it wasn’t technically my first day it was surprisingly easy.”
“You know what I mean. How did it feel to walk in there this morning and know that you own a piece of the place?”
“It felt awesome,” I told him. “I stared at my new business card every chance I got today.”
He hugged me and said, “Olivia Turner, Registered Nurse Practitioner, and now a partner in the Joshua Tree Clinic. I’m so damn proud of you.”
“Thank you, baby. I’m so happy.”
“Me too. You ready to fix that tattoo?”
I shrugged out of my top shirt. I was wearing a camisole with spaghetti straps underneath it. Dax said he could get to it from there. I checked on Joey and he was playing blocks. I turned on his little tune box that made music for him so the tattoo gun noise didn’t bother him and I went back and sat down on the table.
Dax was grinning at me.
“What?”
“Nothing, just you,” he said.
“Well now you have to tell me.”
“It’s just that what I’m doing to the tattoo will not even take as long as all of that took you. I think you’re stalling.”
“I am not,” I said. He was right, I was.
“You don’t want our initials in your heart?”
“I do, I just don’t want it to hurt.”
“I’m magic, remember?”
“Yeah, but it’s been a long time since we started this. I think I was tougher back then.”
He kissed me and said, “I have never met a tougher and more capable woman than you are at this very moment.” That did it. Now I had to let him work on the tattoo.
“Okay,” I said, taking a deep breath. “Let’s do this.”
Dax had everything ready. He turned on the gun and he put D.T. in the left corner, O.T. in the right corner and J.T. right in the middle. The heart was solid red and the initials were white. He made them pop out and I loved it.
“I really like it,” I told him.
He kissed me and said, “Good, I love you, Olivia Turner.”
“I love you, Dax Turner.”
“I love you both!” Joey asked from behind Dax’s legs. We hadn’t even realized he was there.
Dax and I laughed and Dax reached down and picked him up and we all three hugged. Little Joey was going to have a good life. His daddy and I were always going to make him and each other a priority. We had finally made it to happy.
The End
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BUCKED
THE COMPLETE SERIES
By Alycia Taylor
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, 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 persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.
BUCKED #1
Chapter One
Laci
There’s no better feeling in the world than standing center stage as a torrent of applause roars through the crowd. Kind of like my last night on stage as a high school senior. I’ve been acting for as long as I can remember, and I’ve been lucky enough to be cast in the lead role more often than not. This particular play g
ave me the chance to be a feisty little Latina who brought a hell storm of drama down all around her. I flashed my biggest smile and bowed deeply as I drank in the ovation. Like I said…no better feeling.
The company stepped up to join me and my co-lead, then we all joined hands and took one final bow before the curtains slid closed in front of us. Reveling in the success of a great run—and the relief that it was finished—the hugs and high-fives immediately began. But, much to our surprise, the curtains started to creep open again and a voice came over the sound system. We all turned to face the audience, no one quite sure what to do, but all prepared to bow once more.
“Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of East High, we’d like to thank you for coming out tonight, but we aren’t finished just yet. As many of you likely know, our very own Laci Daniels has made quite a name for herself on the local theater scene.” The ovation returned, and I waved a hand, stepping forward with a little bow and a grin, not having any idea where this was going.
“Here to make a special announcement regarding that name she’s made for herself is Laci’s father, Bradley Daniels. Give him a warm welcome!” Just then, good old Dad came strolling onstage with a huge bouquet of roses in one hand and a cordless mic in the other. Make no mistake, I’m a huge Daddy’s girl. So him bringing me flowers for my last high school hoorah isn’t a major surprise. My dad’s my world, and he just so happens to also be my agent. Go figure, huh? And, maybe I’m biased, but I think he’s the best in the business. Of course, there are a few A-List celebrities who would agree with me.
Dad walked over and handed me the flowers, then threw an arm around my shoulders, squeezing tightly before he planted a kiss on my forehead. He did a fake sputter and wiped his mic hand across his mouth before he started to speak. “I guess it’s not the brightest idea to kiss a forehead caked in stage makeup and sweat, huh?” he joked and gave me a wink. I stuck my tongue out in return and waited for him to continue. “First of all, I think this cast deserves another round of applause; what do you say?” he encouraged the audience. They applauded once more. “I know you’re all wondering why I’m up here.” He turned to me. “My daughter especially.” I nodded my head, now very curious as to what was going on.
“Well, little Miss Laci here loves to act.” I gasped in faux surprise and the audience laughed. “I know, shocker. Anyway, she’s been a natural on the stage ever since she could walk, and obviously, she’s developed her skills pretty well.” Apparently, the audience agreed because they let out another round of applause, which brought about more of a blush than someone in the spotlight is supposed to have.
When the clapping died down, I had to say something to break it all up. “Alright, Dad, enough with the compliments, get to it.” Yet another chuckle from the audience.
Dad smiled and pulled me to his side. “Getting to the point, I have a little surprise for my daughter. Thanks to her hard work and countless hours of honing her skills, the lovely Laci Daniels you see standing before you have landed a role co-starring in a feature length film to be directed by Bill Condon!”
I’m fairly certain I heard my jaw hit the when he uttered the words “feature film” and the name “Bill Condon” because Dad pushed my chin back up before continuing. “That’s right, you’ll get to see this stunner,” he squeezed my shoulders, “on the silver screen!”
That’s when the applause became somewhat ridiculous—even for someone who loves nothing more. People stood and my ears filled with the sounds of clapping, whistles, hoots, and even a “Go, Laci!” or two. Dad pushed me forward, urging me to take a bow and stop looking like a deer in headlights, but what else was I supposed to do? I mean, for crying out loud, I was just told that I would be in an actual big budget movie! Not many aspiring actors can say they have that opportunity by the age of twenty-five, let alone eighteen. So, I stood there before my peers and friends and did what any trained actress would do: I bowed gracefully and basked in the moment.
***
Half an hour later, after hanging up my costume and scrubbing off my stage makeup—along with probably three layers of skin—I wandered into the lobby of the auditorium where members of the crowd always milled about to congratulate the cast after shows. Mom ran up as soon as she saw me and let out an ear-splitting squeal as she wrapped her arms around me.
“Aaah, my baby!” She squeezed me to her chest and shook me back and forth like she was mixing one of those protein shakes she loves so much. “You have no idea how hard it was to keep the secret! Can you believe it? You’re gonna be a star!”
“She already is, Lisa.” Dad stepped up again and pried Mom off me, reminding her that other people wanted to congratulate me, too. “I’ll have to have a talk with the producers, though.”
I frowned. “What do you mean? Is something wrong with the contract?”
“Well, they mentioned a possible start for filming next month. That’s two months before you’re officially graduated. I’m going to try to talk them into moving the table read back to August since you graduate in June. That way, you’ll have time to be a high school graduate and go party at the beach for the summer, or whatever high school graduates do. I’m not going to have you so close to being salutatorian to just throw it away for a movie.”
“Dad, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime. If the movie is even remotely popular, it won’t matter if I have my diploma. You know better than anyone that people look for talent in this industry, not education.”
“Yeah, but what kind of dad would I be if I just let ‘em stop my little girl from finishing her education?” He made a fist and nudged my cheek. That’s the thing about my dad—he’s always been the “scout’s honor-I’m-the-world’s-most-righteous-dad” type. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it can get in the way of what I want to do sometimes. Like this time.
“I can’t expect the whole world to drop their plans for me, Dad. Delaying filming is gonna cost them time, and as we’re all well aware, time is money,” I contested. “Not to mention I could easily switch to online high school.” That’s when he gave me the “nice-try-but-it’s-not-happening” look.
I threw a sassy look right back before I continued, “Take Mark, for example. You know he switched to online school halfway through sophomore year, and he’s already graduated. He’s even started on college classes. Call him, call his parents. I can easily handle that. I won’t be filming nonstop, so I can do schoolwork during my downtime on set. Mark does it all the time.” Mark Hannon and I practically grew up together. Our parents met when Mark and I had acting classes together at the ripe old age of seven. We’ve been friends ever since. Dad even represents him. Next to Emily, Mark’s probably my closest friend, even though I hardly ever get to see him these days aside from a video chat here and there. He’s been super busy becoming the next big heartthrob for my generation and rightfully so. Mark is a talented actor, a super sweet guy, and better looking than the Hemsworth brothers.
I was about to continue my protest when Mom broke in. “Honey, with it being your first movie, you’ll be too busy trying to take in the sights to focus on any kind of schoolwork. It’s best to let your father at least try to postpone filming until you graduate.”
“Just trust me, Laci Bug.” He gave me a smooch on the forehead and ruffled my hair.
God, that man has always had a way of disarming me, even when he’d treat me like I was five. Maybe it’s because I’m an only child—a “rainbow baby” after four miscarriages—but they have always been very protective of me, and they’ve tried their hardest to make sure I never missed out on the things I wanted. Some people might say I’m spoiled, but I’ve never thought so. At least, not with material things. When I was little, before Dad’s career really took off, they busted their butts to send me to dance classes, voice lessons, every theater camp imaginable, and even piano lessons. All because I wanted to do those things.
So, maybe in that way, I was a little spoiled, but that doesn’t mean my parents always let me have anything I wan
ted. I had to save my money and buy my own first car. When I wanted a six-hundred-dollar dress for junior prom, my parents laughed and told me they’d give me one hundred dollars for a dress and not a penny more. I had to work weekends at the horse ranch thirty minutes away to earn the extra money for the dress I wanted.
Not that it was really what I considered work. Thanks to my mom, I love horses. I have to admit, one of my favorite things from growing up was horseback riding. Mom grew up on a ranch, and even though she moved to the city with my dad, she still loved horses and taught me to love them, too. She took me riding when we had the spare time, which only amounted to at least a couple of times a month. I always looked forward to driving out to the small ranch.
Not many people know that about me, and it would likely make them think I’m spoiled even more. Nope, those things don’t count as material, they count as life experiences. Mix those life experiences with the endless love of my parents and, well, I had a pretty amazing childhood.
Even through my terrible teens and now that I’m technically an adult, things are still pretty good, and my relationship with my parents is even more important to me. I love my mom to no end, and I’m probably more of a Daddy’s girl at eighteen than I was as a toddler. My guess is you can chalk that up to the fact that he’s been my agent since I was two. He’s helped me focus on what I love and even make a bit of money doing it. Dad has always kept me grounded. From the time I was little, he has reminded me that I’m never going to be the best. There will always be someone who can do what I do, I just have to work harder. Right now, I’m just a big fish in a small pond. Out in the real world, a forty-minute ride on the express into New York City, I’m Nemo—a tiny fish in an enormous ocean.
Because of that, I try to be a realist. There’s nothing wrong with dreaming big, as long as you don’t keep your head in the clouds so much that your feet leave the ground.
Dirty SEAL (A Navy SEAL Romance) (The Maxwell Family) Page 97