The Bravest Hero (A Curvy Girls Club Novel Book 2)

by Twyla Turner

  Well, if it does burst through my chest, this is the perfect place for it to happen.

  It was two days after the accident. That’s how long it took Royal to finally get up the nerve to come see McKennon.

  She’d wanted to get him something, but hadn’t been sure what. She doubted he’d want flowers. So, she stopped and got him a succulent because they’re beautiful, tough, and resilient; which she figured was pretty symbolic. She also got him a plush pillow. The one time she’d been in the hospital to get her appendix removed that’s what she’d wanted. A soft pillow. She’d also wanted some good food. The hospital food left a lot to be desired. So, her last stop had been her favorite burger spot in the city.

  Royal stopped at the nurses’ station with her arms filled with goodies. An older woman who looked busy and out of patience glanced up at her.

  “I’m here to see McKennon Carter.”

  “Are you family?”

  “No, but-”

  “Only family are allowed to see him,” she cut her off.

  “I’m the one who stayed with him on the side of the road.”

  Royal didn’t know if that information would help any, but she figured it was worth a shot.

  The woman actually stopped what she was doing and looked up at Royal. Like really looked at her. She smiled and nodded.

  “We heard about you, young lady. What you did was so thoughtful. Go on up. And tell them Mary said it was okay if anyone asks.”

  “How do I get there?”

  “Go down the hall, make a left. On your right will be the elevators. Take that up to the 4th floor. He’s in room 404.”

  “Thank you so much, Mary.”

  “You’re welcome, sweetie.”

  On wobbly legs, Royal followed the nurse’s directions. When she got upstairs, she stopped at the 4th floor’s nurses’ station. She told them who she was and that Mary said it was okay. The way they lit up when she said who she was, Royal was pretty sure she didn’t need Mary’s recommendation. Everyone seemed to think she was a hero or something.

  I only did what anyone else would’ve done in the same situation.

  Royal fidgeted as she followed a nurse to his room. The nurse knocked lightly at his door and then peeked her head inside.

  “I have someone here who wants to see you.”

  Royal heard the rumble of a deep voice, but couldn’t hear his exact words.

  The nurse stepped back to give Royal room to pass.

  “He’s all yours.”

  Royal smiled and blew out a nervous breath. She stepped inside.

  Her eyes connected with the ones she’d focused so hard on the night of the accident. Green eyes that had been filled with so much fear and pain.

  He wore a close-cropped buzzcut. He had a crazy square jawline that had a light dusting of stubble from the last two days of not shaving. His lips were unusually full for a white guy. His shoulders were broad and the muscles there, in his chest, and abs, looked like they were chiseled from granite. Even lying in a hospital bed, she could tell that he was a tall, formidable man. Definitely the type of man she’d want running into a burning building to save her.

  Royal hadn’t expected him to be shirtless. His gorgeous body made her mouth go completely dry. Blankets were pulled up to his hips, but she was pretty sure he wore nothing under them either.

  Simply put, the man was a gorgeous work of art. Even with the empty space below his right thigh where the rest of his leg should be.

  The moment their eyes connected; Royal saw recognition cross his face. His whole demeanor changed. His entire face lit up like the city at night.

  “Hey.”

  ~~~

  “Hi,” she replied awkwardly.

  Mack hadn’t been able to remember what his angel looked like. He just knew she had warm brown skin, kind brown eyes, and a shock of color in her hair.

  As he stared at her now, he knew he hadn’t been far off. But she was better than he’d expected.

  Her skin was luminous. Cocoa mixed with cinnamon and sprinkled with gold. Her eyes were kind. And her hair did have an underlayer of rainbow colors on one side.

  But her face as a whole was stunning. And when she smiled, a set of dimples appeared that squeezed his heart for a beat before it went back to its regular rhythm.

  Her hair was cut close on one side and came slightly past her chin on the other. She wore a cropped Metallica t-shirt, black ripped high-waisted skinny jeans, burgundy combat boots, and a black leather jacket. Her eyes were lined with black and her full pouty lips were painted a deep burgundy to match her boots.

  Mack hadn’t remembered seeing the rest of her. He looked now. She was a lot shorter than he’d thought. She had to be only five feet tops. And she was plump like a ripe red grape ready to be picked.

  Her curvy and rocker chick vibe catapulted Mack back to high school. When he was the quarterback of the state champion football team and most popular guy in school, who was being tutored by his crush, Mariah. A curvy, goth girl who all the guys ignored.

  Mack had preferred her body over the slender cheerleaders. He adored that she didn’t want to be like anyone else and didn’t care what others thought, during a time when everyone wanted to fit in. It’s what he’d wanted to do. To shed the skin of the person everyone thought he was and wanted him to be, and become the guy who didn’t care what anyone thought.

  One day when Mariah’s parents weren’t home and after they’d finished studying, Mack had lost his virginity to Mariah as he took hers on the couch in her family room. He’d loved it. Loved her plump body. Loved her.

  But when he told his best friend, Sean about it, he’d told Mack that it would be social suicide to be seen with her in public. His father hadn’t approved either. And instead of thinking for himself, he did what everyone wanted him to do.

  He didn’t ask Mariah to the Junior Prom. Instead, he asked Naomi, the captain of the cheerleading squad who looked like Gabrielle Union in Bring It On. And Mariah had been crushed.

  She didn’t speak to him again until his parents died, nearly a year later. Mack was pretty sure the day of the funeral, she’d only had sex with him again because she felt sorry for him. But when he’d reached out to her in sorrow and desperation seeking comfort, she’d let him. She was there for him when his other friends didn’t know what to say. But then they graduated and she disappeared from his life.

  Mack had blocked out thoughts of her for over a decade. But seeing Royal brought it all back. She was stunning, and the type of woman he’d always been drawn to. Yet here he was, once again with the type of woman everyone expected him to be with and over a million followers on social media who were rooting for them… The “perfect” couple.

  All the guys wanted Ainsley and wanted to be McKennon ‘The Mack’ Carter. All the women wanted Mack and wanted to be Ainsley Prescott. Even Mack had to admit it was sickening. But it was his own fault. He’d let it happen. Like he was the passenger to his own life.

  Since he couldn’t be who he wanted to be, he let others take the reins of his life to tell him who he should be.

  Royal stepped closer to the foot of the bed and fidgeted with the items in her hand, bringing Mack back to the here and now.

  “Royal, right?” Mack finally spoke.

  She expelled a relieved breath and smiled brightly, deepening her dimples.

  “Yeah. McKennon?” She said with the raspy voice he remembered and had dreamed about when he could actually sleep.

  “That’s me. But all my friends call me Mack. And after what you did, I’d certainly call you a friend. Or maybe my angel.”

  Royal flushed. “Oh, I’m no angel.”

  “I wouldn’t bet on that. But it’s nice to officially meet you, Royal.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Mack.”

  That night her voice had been a lifeline. Now, it was soothing and sexy as hell.

  “I…uh…brought you some gifts,” she said holding up her goodies.

  “You didn’t
have to do that. You’ve done more than anyone has ever done for me,” Mack said.

  “Well, I still wanted to do something to cheer you up.”

  “Alright. Then I’ll gladly accept them.”

  Royal walked to the right side of his bed where the table was. It brought her much closer to him. She nervously looked away and busied herself with pulling out the gifts.

  “I figured you wouldn’t want flowers, so I got you a succulent. They’re tough, like you.” She placed the plant on the side table.

  “It’s pretty,” Mack smiled.

  “I also got you a soft pillow. I’ve been in the hospital only once and it was only for like a day and half. I hated how hard the pillows were. So, I figured you’d appreciate this.”

  “Absolutely! This thing feels like a rock in my back,” Mack joked.

  “Right?!”

  “Do you mind?” Mack asked while gently sitting forward. He tried not to grimace.

  Royal squeezed the pillow as she hesitated.

  “Are…are you sure?”

  “Yeah. You won’t hurt me.”

  She stepped closer and bent forward, putting her face only inches from his. She placed the pillow behind his back and Mack breathed in deeply, taking in her scent. She smelled amazing.

  Royal pulled back and looked at everything but him. Her avoidance was different than Ainsley’s. His fiancée hadn’t wanted to acknowledge his injuries. Royal seemed to be feeling bashful because like him, Mack was sure she felt the invisible pull that was between them. It felt like two magnets, when you bring them close together. You can’t see the force pulling them together, but you could feel it.

  “The last thing you brought certainly smells great,” Mack coaxed.

  “Oh! Sorry. Yeah, I brought you a burger and fries from Burger Joint. My favorite burger place in the city.”

  “Mine too.” Mack said as his mouth began to water.

  It was the first time he’d been really hungry since the accident. It was also the first time he hadn’t thought about the accident or his injuries.

  Royal laid out the food on the food tray, and then rolled it up closer to him. She looked at him and smiled.

  “I’ve got only one problem,” Mack said and tried not to smile.

  “What’s that?” Royal looked at him seriously.

  “I need help eating it.” Mack held up his injured arms.

  “Oh my God!” Royal exclaimed as she smacked her face with her hand.

  “It’s not a big deal. But if you wouldn’t mind, I’d be grateful.”

  “Uh…sure.” Royal’s hand hovered over the food trying to decide something. “I have a very important question to ask first.”

  “Shoot,” Mack said curiously.

  “Are you a ‘bite of burger, bite of fries’ kind of guy? Or are you an ‘all the fries first, and save the burger for last’ guy?” She asked as she pressed her lips together to keep from laughing.

  “That’s a very good question. I’m a ‘little of this, little of that’ kind of guy.”

  “Well, alright then.”

  Royal picked up the burger and brought it to his mouth. Mack took a big bite. He chewed and swallowed, and waited a few beats. He wanted to make sure he could hold down the greasy food.

  “Are you good?” Royal asked after a few moments had passed.

  “Yeah, I’m good.”

  “Ready for some fries?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Royal grinned. She picked up a few fries and fed them to him. The act of a virtual stranger feeding him was incredibly intimate. The nurses had done it, but it didn’t feel the same.

  “So, which are you?” Mack asked after chewing his fries.

  “I’m an ‘all the fries first and then burger’ kind of girl.”

  “I wonder what that says about us as people?”

  Royal stopped and thought for a moment.

  “Hmm…I never thought about that.”

  “Maybe it means you want all the good stuff up front. And I like the good stuff sprinkled throughout.”

  “That’s probably a pretty good guess. Or maybe it just means that I love my fries on their own. Their greatness unchallenged.”

  They grinned at each other.

  “So…” Mack began.

  “Yeah?” Royal held up the hamburger for him to take another bite.

  “I really wanted to thank you for saving my life.” Mack said after chewing his food.

  “It was nothing.”

  “Don’t do that.” Mack looked at her and she glanced away. “I’m a firefighter. I see accidents almost every day. I know how horrific they can be. My first accident where someone was already dead when we arrived at the scene, I puked when we got back to the station. And I know what you saw had to be traumatic and gruesome.”

  Royal looked down and nodded slightly.

  “So, you stopping, calling 911, and staying with me means the world to me. Thank you, Royal.”

  “You’re welcome, Mack. I couldn’t leave you alone on that freeway. I ride a motorcycle too.”

  Mack’s eyes widened.

  “I wouldn’t have wanted the person who witnessed my accident to just drive off if it had of been me in your position.”

  “That’s awesome that you ride too.”

  “Yeah, but I’m not so sure I’ll be riding anytime soon after seeing what I did.”

  “Don’t stop riding because of me. There’s nothing like it. You know that. Maybe one day when I’m all healed up, we can go riding together. Maybe we can give each other the courage to get on them again.”

  “Maybe.”

  “So, what were you doing out so late that night? I was on my way back from working on the Sonoma wildfire.”

  A pained expression crossed Royal’s face.

  “What? Was it something bad?”

  “You could say that.”

  “What was it? You can tell me.” Mack urged, wanting to know everything about her.

  “It’s embarrassing.”

  “You watched me get run off the road, flip like a ragdoll, and lose my leg. I think we’ve skipped over introductions and the awkward stages of friendship.”

  Royal laughed a little before nodding.

  “You’ve got a point.”

  “So, what was it then?”

  “My boss, who I was ‘seeing,’” she made quotations, “was actually engaged. But I didn’t find out about it until that night when she walked in while I was…naked and fast asleep…in his bed.”

  Mack cringed, “Oh, that’s bad.”

  “Yeah. Understatement of the year.”

  “So, I rushed out of there and was heading home.”

  “And on an already shitty night, you had to witness my tragedy. God, I’m so sorry, Royal.”

  “It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault.”

  “Well, I hope you dumped his ass.”

  “Technically, I don’t have much of a choice.”

  “Well then, I hope you kneed him in the nuts.”

  “Ha! I should have.”

  “Since he’s your boss, what do you plan on doing job-wise? Will you stay?”

  “That’s probably not a good idea. It might be time for me to quit.”

  “Yeah, it looks that way.”

  Mack didn’t know why, but he wanted her to quit. He didn’t want her anywhere near this unknown man. The thought of him seeing her, touching her, trying to convince her to take him back made Mack’s blood boil.

  “You deserve better.”

  “How do you know?”

  Mack gave her a look and then looked down at his residual leg, as the medical staff called it.

  “Hey, you never know. I could be a superhero, but a shitty girlfriend,” she smiled.

  “Hmm…doubtful. You brought me a plant to brighten my room, a pillow to make me more comfortable, and food. To which, you fed me, a virtual stranger.”

  “I thought we were beyond strangers.”

  “This is true,” Mack smiled.r />
  They stayed silent for a moment. Probably to lighten the mood, Royal asked him a question.

  “So, what about you? Do you have anyone special in your life? Preferably better than mine?”

  “Eh…nothing to write home about.”

  The words slipped from Mack’s lips before he could stop them. He had no idea why he didn’t tell her that he had a fiancée.

  Mack internally cringed. Jesus! I’m no better than her boss.

  But even now, when he could easily say, “I don’t know why I said that. I actually have a fiancée. I just think I’m upset because she hasn’t been here for me like I thought she would,” he didn’t. He couldn’t part his lips to tell the truth. And it was because of the beautiful smile that crossed her face when he said he had no one. It was the look of attraction she had instead of pity. It was because she was exactly the type of woman he really wanted, and not what society said he should be with.

  So, he remained silent.

  A pain radiated up Mack’s injured leg. It felt like it started in his foot, traveled up his calf, and up through his thigh. Except he didn’t have a foot or calf anymore.

  Phantom leg, he thought to himself.

  The doctor had warned him that he’d probably experience it. And that if it got too bad to let them know.

  “Are you okay?” Royal asked, her voice filled with worry.

  “Yeah, I’m alright.” Mack gritted out.

  He felt Royal’s hand on his shoulder. She squeezed lightly. Tingles spread across his body at her touch on his bare skin. He focused on that in stead of the pain. Eventually it subsided.

  “Is it bad?” Royal asked after his face relaxed.

  She wasn’t pretending the enormous elephant in the room wasn’t there.

  “It hasn’t been too terrible yet.” Mack’s body finally relaxed. “I’m pretty doped up. And speaking of, I better ask for more.”

  Mack pressed the call button. A nurse flew in only moments later.

  “Hurting?”

  “Yeah. And in the leg that’s no longer there.”

  She nodded, “That’ll happen. Let us know if it becomes unbearable.”

  The nurse opened up the morphine drip connected to his IV.

  “He’s gonna get sleepy here in just a moment. You might want to come back later.” The nurse informed Royal.