by Zoey Parker
He’ll wake up soon, I told myself, and it was true.
I had to wait another hour, but finally, he stirred. He made a groaning, grunting noise, then his eyelids flickered. I held my breath until his eyes fully opened.
“Where am I?” were the first words out of his mouth, followed close by a surprised, “Abby?” when he caught sight of me.
I smiled at him, relief bringing me to the verge of tears. “Oh, Kade, thank god! I was so worried!” Then I threw myself at him, hugging him with everything that I was worth.
He winced, and I started to pull back, but he held me against him all the same.
When he finally let me go, his hand clutching mine to make sure I didn’t disappear on him, he asked me, “What happened?”
I shook my head and took a deep breath, recounting the events. His insistence that I get out of there, my refusal to leave without him, and James searching for me while Kade was in the house. Most of them he seemed to remember, but it got a little fuzzy after the gunshot. “If Caleb hadn’t gotten there…” I shook my head, offering him a half smile. “Well, we’d probably both be dead.”
At that, he sat up suddenly, grabbing me by the shoulders despite his injured shoulder. “Damnit, Abby! You could have been killed! Next time, you leave me, damnit. You leave me!”
I stared at him, my chest tight at the emotion shining in his eyes, clear in his expression. I had realized as soon as he took that bullet for me, no, even before that, when he came into that room and pulled James off of me, that the things he’d told me before were lies. I didn’t have all the details, but the guilt on Uncle Caleb’s face spoke volumes.
I had the feeling that it was never Kade’s choice to begin with to break up with me and the only reason I wasn’t strangling Caleb’s neck just then was because he’d saved our lives in the end.
“You should know that I can’t do that,” I whispered in answer to Kade. “I can’t leave you when something awful like that happens. Not even if my life’s in danger.”
He looked pissed and fully ready to argue. Probably to tell me what an idiot I was, but I wasn’t going to let him. I placed a single finger on his lips, stalling his next argument, and leaned forward. When my mouth was poised just above his, I smiled sweetly at him.
“No, never,” I whispered, then closed that final distance between our lips. I pressed mine to his fiercely, lingering even when it was probably a good idea to pull away. It felt like we hadn’t kissed in forever.
When I pulled away, he looked just as affected as I was. He swallowed and whispered, “Abby,” pain in his voice. But the pain didn’t seem to be coming from his shoulder or his bruised jaw. It was an inside kind of pain, the sort of thing that wounded the heart, not the body.
He looked ready to tell me something awful, maybe break up with me a second time, and I wasn’t ready to hear it. I wouldn’t accept it this time.
“No,” I told him sternly. “Not this time. I’m not letting you go, no matter what you say. I love you, Kade Johnson, and I won’t ever let you go. You’ve saved my life, in more ways than you can possibly imagine.”
He sucked in a breath and looked like I’d just given him a precious gift. He reached for me, pulled me closer to him, until I was leaning my forehead against his. “Abby Woodard, you’re the bossiest, stubbornest pain-in-the-ass woman I’ve ever met. And I’m so in love with you that it hurts sometimes. And, baby, I know I don’t deserve you.”
I kissed him before he could say more, wondering how in the world he could possibly think he didn’t deserve me. When we broke the kiss, both breathing heavily, I said to him, “You don’t know anything. I belong with you, and anyone who can’t see that is crazy.”
***
Kade had to stay in the hospital for a week, much to his dismay. But I made it a more enjoyable experience by spending most of every day there with him. I would cuddle with him on the bed he was mostly stuck in and tell him about what was going on, keeping him updated.
Caleb and I had discussed the police in length after James’s death. Ultimately, we decided that we had to call them. It would look really bad if we didn’t call them and they found the body. Which, eventually they would. They’d realize he’d been shot and then it would only be a matter of time before Caleb was put on the chopping block.
He had money now, as did I, but there wasn’t enough money in the world at this point to get him off the hook for murder.
Probably.
Instead, we called the police and told them that I had killed him in self-defense. That he’d kidnapped me and had been stalking me. Thankfully I had plenty of evidence to support my claim and now that he was dead, April was happy to help corroborate my story.
“Glad that’s all tidied up,” Kade commented. He was slipping on the fresh clothes that I’d brought him, relieved to be finally getting out of the hospital. I couldn’t blame him and looked forward to spending some quality time nursing him back to health. Or dressing up like a nurse, either way. “Did you tell them about me?”
I nodded. “Yes. I told them that you were my bodyguard and that you’d gotten shot protecting me which was why I had to pull the trigger. It explained your blood and why you didn’t shoot him. Fewer questions that way.”
He agreed. There was a comfortable silence between us as he finished getting dressed. When he came out of the bathroom looking gorgeous, clean, and dressed in jeans that made me want to do naughty things to him, he smiled at me.
“You ready to get out of here?”
“Am I ever,” I said agreeably.
We were headed out the door when it opened before we could open it. I was surprised to find Uncle Caleb standing in the doorway. He cleared his throat.
“I wanted to talk to you for a minute before you take off.”
I felt Kade tense beside me and sensed that there was something going on here. Worry flooded me as I wondered if this was something that was going to turn out badly. Surely Caleb has nothing against Kade! He saved my life!
But before I could step between them or tell Caleb off for the bad thoughts I wasn’t sure he was having, Caleb spoke again.
“I wanted to commend you for your bravery,” he said seriously, like a military leader praising his troops. “What you did for Abby…” He shook his head, offering a half smile. “I don’t know of anyone who would have done that for her.”
“You, sir,” Kade pointed out.
Caleb laughed at that, a sound I always loved to hear. “Fair point. And here’s mine: I was wrong to try to keep you two apart.”
Anger surged through me swiftly and mercilessly. So it had been Caleb’s doing! I wanted to yell at him, but Caleb continued before I got the chance, though I was seriously thinking about interrupting him. In the end, I was glad that I didn’t.
“I told you that you were beneath her, that Abby deserved better, and in a way I stand by that.” He held up his hand when it looked like I was about to chew his ass for being a jerk. “Because there is no one in this world who will ever be good enough for my niece. But you’re the only man who has ever come close.”
He offered his hand to Kade, who shook it firmly.
“It would be my honor to have you date my niece. There’s no one I would trust more with her.”
Kade seemed to lighten at that and he turned me in his arms. Eyes burning with passion and something else, he leaned down and pressed a searing kiss to my lips. When we broke, I felt dazed, my whole body buzzing with electricity. “I love you, Abby Woodard, and I will do anything to hold on to you.”
THE END
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Books by Zoey Parker
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BOUGHT BY THE BAD BOY: A Dark Mafia Romance
By Zoey Parker
ANYTHING IN THIS WORLD CAN BE BOUGHT – EVEN AN ANGEL LIKE HER.
My life is about control.
I control myself: my body, my emotions, my little slice of the criminal underworld.
But when I saw my little kitten on that stage, I lost all control.
I knew one thing only: I had to have her, no matter the cost.
I’m only here because I owe a man my life.
He saved me from death’s door years ago.
In return, I do what needs to be done for him.
This gig ain’t for the lighthearted.
Good thing I’m the farthest thing from that.
I’m darkness, inside and out.
This is just a job for me.
At least, that’s what I used to think.
Until she took the stage.
I don’t know what brought her here.
Frankly, I don’t give a damn.
Her past doesn’t matter anymore.
Neither does mine.
All that matters is that I have her.
All to my g*ddamn self.
STARSTRUCK: A Dark Bad Boy Romance (The Destroyers MC)
By Zoey Parker
She thinks she’s an angel. But I’m gonna make her my horny little devil.
I’m from the gutter. She was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.
But when I decide I want something, no obstacle can stop me.
As Abby Woodard’s new bodyguard, her body is literally my responsibility.
And I plan on being very… hands on.
It’s like she’s playing a game:
How far can I push him?
She should know better.
I’m not a man who likes being provoked.
But that isn’t stopping her.
The back sass, the disobedience…
It’s all becoming too much.
Time to do what I’ve wanted to do since the moment I ended up in this stupid job:
Bend the little princess over my knee and spank her until she learns her lesson.
What happens after that is… complicated.
Explosive.
Unexpected.
And it crosses every damn line in existence.
Maybe I shouldn’t have f**ked her.
But now that I have, there’s not a man on earth who will keep me away from what’s mine.
HIS POSSESSION: A Dark Bad Boy Baby Romance (Vicious Thrills MC)
BOTH SHE AND HER UNBORN BABY ARE NOW IN MY POSSESSION.
This wasn’t the place for a girl like her.
Pregnant and desperate – I’d seen it before.
I should’ve turned her away – but I couldn’t say no to a body like that.
My kindness comes with a price, though. And if she wants my protection, she’d better be ready to pay.
I don’t care that she’s pregnant, that she’s desperate, that she’s poor.
If I had a nickel for every time I’d heard that story, I’d be off screwing blond bimbos in the Bahamas, not running a strip club in the seedy part of town.
But instead, I’m here.
I needed new dancers, and in walks Lucy, with a sob story to make a man cry…
And a body to make a man hard.
I should’ve done what I always do in this kind of situation:
Shut the door in her face.
But this one was different.
Something special happened when she touched that pole.
The lights on her skin, the sway of her hips…
I wanted to take her right then and there.
But I’m a man of self-control.
And besides…the anticipation is the best part.
As the seconds passed, my desire swelled.
I knew I couldn’t let this one go.
She wasn’t like the others.
She was mine and mine alone.
And I was going to own her…
Whether or not she liked it.
HIS PLAYTHING: A Dark Bad Boy Baby Romance (Voodoo Devils MC)
I USED HER AS MY TOY UNTIL SHE WAS TOO BROKEN TO FIX.
My little plaything does one thing only: whatever the f*ck I tell her to do.
I want her naked? Done. I want her moaning? Done.
I want her filled with my baby?
I just say the word, and she’ll be bent, wet, and ready.
Rules never meant much to me.
I take what I want, and dare other men to stop me.
And when it’s a woman I desire…
Well, they know better than to try resisting a man like me.
I’m too much to stop.
Too powerful to defy.
Too rugged and tattooed to ignore.
When an old friend calls with a plea for help, I decide to lend my aid.
Men to kill, money to steal, and a hot mafia princess to f*ck senseless?
It was an easy sell.
But this “simple fix” turns out to be a goddamn mess.
Before I know it, I’m up to my balls in drugs, betrayal, and a sea of dead bodies.
There’s only one thing keeping me going:
I’m not leaving until I’ve got the princess on her knees.
She’s too untouched, too virginal for me to let her go.
There’s a beast in me that needs to lay its claim on her…
And in her.
I’m gonna kill all the men around her.
Then I’m gonna sling her over my shoulder and teach her how to properly obey a man.
It won’t be easy.
It won’t be pretty.
But one way or another, I’m gonna turn her into my newest toy.
HIS PROPERTY: Iron Bandits MC (A Bad Boy Baby Romance)
I f*cked her like she’s my property – because she is.
She showed up on my doorstep, desperate and alone.
My dead brother’s girl – with their baby in her arms.
I’ll take them in…under one condition.
As long as they’re here, I’m gonna f*ck her from dusk ‘til dawn.
I’m not a babysitter, not a saint.
Hell, I’m not even a nice guy.
I’m a motherf*cking biker.
I fight hard and f*ck harder.
I ride fast and drink faster.
I don’t ask forgiveness or permission – I just take what I want and crush anyone who tries to stop me.
But Ellie is an obstacle of a whole ‘nother type.
I didn’t ask to be the guardian of my dead brother’s family…
And yet, here they are.
But it’s more than just a babysitting gig.
She needs something from me.
A fake marriage.
Well, shit.
I’ll do what I have to do – for my brother’s sake.
But if Ellie’s gonna be my wife, she better be prepared to perform all her wifely duties.
This wedding may be fake, but her moans sure as hell won’t be.
Bend over, sweetheart.
You belong to me now.
UNCHAINED: Metal Monsters MC
I made her my hostage, my f*ck toy… and now, my wife.
She crossed a line and almost got me killed.
There’s a price to pay for that.
And she’ll be paying it for a long, long time.
I’ll make her see – from the handprint on her a** to the ring on her finger – that all of her belongs to me now.
Billie thought she was tough.
A bartender in a rough part of town – she’d seen it all, right?
Wrong.
She’s never seen nothin’ like me before.
I’m all muscle and ink.
I take what I want and f*ck it ‘til I’m finished.
And my eyes just landed on her.
The stupid broad almost got me and my crew arrested or, worse, killed.
Who shows up to a bank robbery like it’s a spectator event?
She needs to be taught a lesson.
And I need to tie up this loose end.
Against the wishes of my crew, I take her with me.
They thought I should have killed her.
But I have a better punishment in mind.
I’m going to make Billie taste me.