Hurt: A Bad Boy MMA Romantic Suspense Novel (23 page)

“Okay then. Anything I can get you?”

I slowly reached back and found his stomach. My fingers bounced over the muscles of his stomach and my hand went right back into his jeans. I gripped him tight and tugged.

I found something I wanted and needed… right now…

53.

(Noah)

I washed the blood off my hands and then touched my right eye. The fucker got me good. He had a hell of a right, but that was all he had. My comeback tour was officially in swing. Which meant a lot of work and a lot of damn money. Benito was spreading the fights out though to keep the buzz high.

I didn’t give a shit. I just needed him to tell me where to be and who to fight.

I showered, changed into fresh clothes, and then met Benito, Dante, Ashlynn, and Jude.

“I can get him fitted,” Benito said to Ashlynn. “He would look great in a suit. And look at his hair coming in. It’s pretty dark. You sure he’s not full blood Italian, Ashlynn?” Benito winked at me. “I mean, if he is, he can be a member of the family.”

“No way,” I said. “That boy has Irish in his blood. It’s what’s going to keep him alive.”

Benito laughed. “Well, you’re here for your paycheck, right?”

“Normally I don’t care,” I said. “But I have something I have to do.”

“Your debt?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

Benito nodded. He opened his suit jacket and took out a wad of cash. He handed it to me. Then he grabbed me and kissed my cheek. He leaned down and kissed Jude’s head. He then kissed Ashlynn’s cheek. She stood up and Benito put a hand to her stomach.

“What about this one? Italian?” he asked.

“No,” Ashlynn said. “I have a thing for Irish fighters.”

“Just one Irish fighter,” I said. I moved Benito’s hand from Ashlynn’s belly and put my hand there. “This little boy is going to be a fighter too.”

“Might be a girl,” Ashlynn said.

She was just starting to show. Her belly was getting hard pressing out. I was beyond excited that she got pregnant again. Turns out she had been missing some of her pills with all the craziness going on. And we had been going at it so much, nothing could have stopped it from happening. That was good though. We were a family and we were going to be a bigger family. It was a little crazy to imagine, but nothing could have made me happier.

I took my son from Ashlynn and held her hand as we left the building.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

I had one personal debt to settle.
“To settle up with Bo.”

~ ~ ~

I expected to get slapped, not hugged.

Sandra threw her arms around me and squealed. She was a big woman and I could see her with Bo. Like they fit together. It actually hurt to see her though.

Two boys then appeared. One kid looked like Bo. The other not so much.

“Little Bo and Benny,” I said.

“How the hell do you know us?” Little Bo said in tough kid voice.

“Bo!” Sandra yelled. “We don’t speak like that in this family. You apologize to Mr. Noah.”

“I’m sorry,” Little Bo said.

I crouched down and offered my fist. “Come on, kid. Give it up.”

Little Bo hit my fist.

I fell back and yelled. “Dang, kid. You’re strong.”

“My turn!” Benny yelled.

“Okay,” I said. “Just don’t hurt me.”

I put my fist out and winced. Benny wound up and smacked my fist. I flew back again and yelled again.

“Ouch,” I said.

Little Bo and Benny laughed.

“He’s weak, man,” Little Bo said to Benny. “Come on, bro, let’s go do something.”

I was grinning as I stood back up. Then I felt tears hit me. Christ, was I going to cry in front of Bo’s woman?

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “He was such a good man.”

“I know,” Sandra said. “I haven’t told the boys yet. I don’t know how. Sometimes it’s easier to pretend. And I know they’ll be afraid. Daddy protected his boys…”

“Hey,” I said and touched her shoulder. “You’ll always have protection. You need anything, you call me. I’ll make sure of it.”

“Thank you, Noah.”

“I can’t bring him back. I feel responsible…”

“Don’t you dare,” Sandra said. “He’d get mad at you for saying that. He loved you, Noah. He told us that. He found a white boy he loves.” She laughed. “I looked at him like,
‘what the hell did you just say to me?’
and he laughed. He respected you. Trusted you. You shared everything with him.”

“And I’m not done yet,” I said. I reached into my back pocket. I put the stack of money into Sandra’s hand and squeezed. “This isn’t blood money. This isn’t to make up for his death. This is what he earned. What he wanted you to have for your boys. So you can get the hell out of here and do something. Whatever your dream has been, go do it. Get those boys in sports. Or instruments. Or books. Whatever they want. I never forget who I owe. I owe Bo my life.”

Sandra started to cry. “I can’t…”

“You’re not taking it, you’re getting it. This was Bo’s and it’s passed down to you now.”

I took my hand away and the money was now Sandra’s. Yeah, it would never bring Bo back. And I’m sure Sandra would trade any money and everything she had to bring Bo back. That’s what love did to people. I understood it.

“Remember,” I said. “You need anything, you call me.”

I left the apartment and went outside to my family.

My debts were paid… except the one I owed to Ashlynn, which was my life.

53.

(Ashlynn)

My mother died on a Tuesday, peacefully. I wasn’t there when it happened. It was right after I felt the baby kick for the first time. I hurried to grab Noah’s hand and I held it to my stomach. He couldn’t feel it though. Only I could. Like my baby and I were sharing a secret. Even still, Noah kept his hand on my stomach for over an hour, waiting.

The hospital called and gave me the news.

It took me a little while to cry, just because of everything we’d gone through.

My job then was to clean out her bedroom.

I thought all she left me was a mess and some anger… but then I found a box with some old pictures and magazines in it…
she left me something else…

54.

(Noah)

I sat with Jude between my legs. My feet touched Ashlynn’s as she sat across from me.

“I had to do that,” I said. “But from now on we’ll manage the money better. We’ll get a life set up for ourselves. You should think about going back to school, too. Chase your dream.”

Ashlynn nodded. She blushed and grinned.

“What?” I asked.

“You don’t have to worry about money anymore.”

“Why not?”

Ashlynn reached behind her and then showed me something dangling from her finger.

“What…”

“I found it,” she said. “The jewel.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“And that’s worth…”

“A couple million.”

“You’d sell it?”

“I have no history to care about,” she said. “Only the present and the future. We’re rich, Noah.”

I lifted Jude and inched toward Ashlynn. I touched her face. “No, sweetheart, we’ve always been rich. You, me, Jude, and the new one in your belly. That’s being rich.”

“But money is nice.”

“Sure, it’s nice.”

I kissed Ashlynn. We both then started to laugh.

Yeah, okay, it was kind of fun to think about being rich…

“Does it all still hurt?” she asked me.

“What?”

“Do you hurt still?”

“Oh, sweetheart, of course I hurt. It hurts to love you as much as I do. It hurts to care about Jude the way I do. It hurts to think about the new baby. If he - or she - will be healthy. How everything will happen in life. It all hurts…”

“Me too,” she whispered.

I wiped my thumb at the corner of her eye, catching a tear. “But the thing is… it’s okay to hurt. It means we feel. And trust me, I feel. You’re worth everything, Ashlynn. The fight, the hurt, the everything.”

I gently brushed my lips to hers. Jude smacked me in the face and made a gibberish sound. If you asked me, I swore he spoke his first word. And no, it wasn’t a swear word.

It was Da-da.

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(Note: all the books are stand alone novels and do not have to be read in order!)

Novels

OUTLAW REVENGE

CRASH & BURN

DARK FALL

SECRET MAYHEM

TWISTED PIECES

STEEL TEMPTATION

SAVAGE LOVE

VIPER’S KISS

RUTHLESS HOLD

AN OUTLAW MONSTER

OWNED & UNTAMED

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Novellas

RIDING DARKNESS

WILD BLAZE

EMPTY SECRETS

BROKEN ROAD

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This book is a work of fiction.
 
 Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously.
 
 Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author
’
s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

First electronic edition July 2016

Copyright 
©
 2015 by Karolyn James, London Casey, Ana W. Fawkes

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part of any form.