Flirt With Me by Kristen Proby

Chapter 17

~Hunter~

“Icould have brought Rach to you,” I say as Dad and I walk behind the house, along the cliffs. It’s become a favorite spot for all of us these past few months.

Especially during the past month since I accepted Danny’s challenge. I’ve trained harder in the past thirty days than I ever have in my life. I’m in excellent condition.

I won’t lose.

“You know your mother and I don’t mind coming over here,” he says and shoves his hands into his pockets. “We close on our place in a couple of weeks. We’re eager to be here full time. It’ll be easier all around, and your mother will stop complaining that her babies are too far away.”

“You love it here,” I say with a grin. “Don’t deny it.”

“You know I do.” Dad’s smile isn’t the least bit shy. “Maeve found us the perfect place, right on the water. You didn’t have to buy it for us. We could have done it with the money from the sale of the Seattle house.”

“I did need to buy it,” I reply. “The money is nothing to me, Dad. You know that. I can never repay you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“We’re your family,” he reminds me. “You don’t have to repay us for a damn thing. We did what anyone would do. Rachel is a delight, and the light of our lives.”

“You took us both in, when Rachel was born, without even blinking an eye.”

“Of course, we did. If Rachel came to you in a similar situation, are you telling me you’d turn her away? Tell her to figure it out for herself?”

“Hell, no.” I shove my hand through my hair. “I would do the same thing you did. But, Dad, you won’t ever pay for anything again in your lifetime. Not if I can help it.”

“We have plenty of money. You don’t have to pay for every damn thing.”

I shake my head and look out to the sea. It’s churning with a dark mood that matches mine.

“It’s already done. No takebacks.” I laugh and then shrug a shoulder. “Maeve and I should be back in a few days.”

“Are you sure about this?” he asks.

“Yeah. I’m sure.”

“And if you get hit in the head again?”

I shake my head. “He won’t get even one hit in. I’ll have him knocked out in less than ten seconds. He’s an idiot for starting this. Everyone knows it. The odds in Vegas are ten to one in my favor.”

Dad nods. “We’ll be at the pub to watch the fight with the O’Callaghans.”

“I figured.”

“Boys!” We turn at the sound of Mom’s voice. “Dinner’s ready!”

“You always choose the fanciest hotels,”Maeve says as we walk into the suite the next day.

“This one is comped by the resort,” I reply with a satisfied smile. “Fighting in Vegas means we get some fun perks.”

“Wow, I guess so.”

Maeve sits on a couch and crosses her legs, watches me as I open a bottle of water and take a long sip.

“I’m worried about you,” she admits.

“Why is that?”

“You’ve been…different this last month. I’ve chalked it up to seeing the professional fighter side of you for the first time because you were already retired when I met you.”

“How am I different?”

“Stoic. Serious. Focused, yet distant. Do you realize that aside from sex, you’ve hardly touched me in weeks?”

I stare at her, stunned. “That’s not true.”

“Oh, it is. And I’m not complaining because I know this fight is important, and you need to be focused. If you’re not, you could get seriously hurt, and I can’t have that. Is this how it always was when you fought? Before? I asked Rachel and she said no, but maybe she just didn’t realize it.”

I frown and sit next to her, thinking it over. Was I always like that?

“I don’t think so. I think it’s just this fight. And I’m sorry if I’ve been distant. I don’t mean to be. I don’t want to forget anything. I need to keep my head in the game. I can’t fuck this up.”

She slides over and straddles my lap. My hands immediately rest on the globes of her perfect ass under the soft material of her dress.

“You’re not going to fuck it up.” Her voice is strong and sure. I love the confidence I hear from her. I can’t even begin to tell her how much her support has meant to me over the past several weeks. “You’re going to kick this dude’s ass, and then we’re going to get on with our lives.”

“Carla really did file a lawsuit. She’s trying to get custody of Rachel. I can’t believe she pulled that shit, and it only makes me want to beat Danny’s ass even more.”

“The attorneys all laughed at the suit. It’ll get thrown out. I feel awful because it seems this is all my fault.”

“How in the hell could it be your fault?”

“You said it yourself.” She threads her fingers through my hair in that way that both soothes and turns me on. “She’s jealous of us. Of me. And I think that if I weren’t part of the picture, she wouldn’t have come around in the first place.”

“Whether that’s true or not, it doesn’t matter. Because you being in the picture is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Well, besides Rachel, of course. That could be a tie.”

She smiles and reaches between us to unzip my pants, unleashing my cock before sliding herself right over me.

“God, you fit like a damn glove,” I murmur against her lips. She rides me at a steady, quick pace, her hands braced on the back of the sofa.

She’s a fucking goddess. I can’t believe I made her feel anything less than important and cherished while I trained for this fight.

I sit up so I can cover her mouth with mine. Our tongues tangle, and she moans, pushing down on me to ride out her orgasm.

“God, I love you,” I groan and follow her over the edge.

She rests her forehead on my shoulder and fights to catch her breath.

“Marry me.”

Her head pops up, and she stares at me with gorgeous, wide, green eyes. “What?”

“Marry me. Right now. In Vegas.”

“Right now?” She laughs, but the smile fades when she sees that I’m perfectly serious. “Hunter.”

“Maeve, I am so in love with you, I can’t see straight. I want you, forever. And I want you now. But if you need all of the fancy wedding stuff with your family, I can wait. Not long, but I can.”

She’s shaking her head slowly.

“Is that a ‘No, I won’t marry you?’ Or a ‘No, I won’t marry you in Vegas?’”

She climbs off my lap and hurries into the bathroom.

“Way to fuck that up, Meyers,” I mutter and clean myself up. I hear the toilet flush, and then Maeve returns to the sitting area.

“Look, you can forget it for now. We can revisit—”

“It’s funny,” she interrupts, “because you always hear about the girls who have been planning their wedding in their heads for their whole lives. The flowers, the white dress, all the frills. My brothers all had gorgeous weddings. And it was nice, don’t get me wrong. But that was never me. I don’t need all the trappings.”

She paces and then grins at me.

“You know our families will insist that we still have a big party to celebrate.”

“Of course.”

“My dad…” She turns to me with worried eyes. “He’d want—”

“I already talked to him,” I assure her. “He gave me his blessing without hesitation.”

She runs at me and launches herself into my arms. “Holy shit, we’re getting married!”

“Is that a yes?”

She kisses me long and hard, and then giggles. “That’s a hell yes! But your fight is tomorrow night. Do you want to do it before or after?”

“Before.” I set her on her feet. “I want to do it right now.”

She blinks at me again. “We don’t even have rings.”

“Then we’d better go shopping.”

Four hours later,I cross the threshold of the suite, this time with my bride in my arms.

“You’re so old-fashioned,” she says with a grin.

“That’s me.” I kick the door shut with my foot and carry Maeve straight back to the bedroom. But when I toss her on the bed and get ready to join her, she laughs and puts her hand up, stopping me.

The rock I bought her at Cartier sparkles in the sunlight.

“Wait. Before we do anything else, we have to call our families. Especially Rachel.”

“You’re right. Okay, Mrs. Meyers, let’s call our girl.”

I sit next to her on the bed as Maeve FaceTimes Rachel, who answers quickly.

“Hi, guys! Are you having fun? Is it hot there? Have you seen any famous people?”

“I hate to break it to you, but I’m famous people,” I remind her and watch with humor as she rolls her eyes.

“Real famous people.”

“You’re grounded for that.”

Rachel laughs, knowing full well that I’m kidding.

“How’s work?” Maeve asks.

“It’s good. Grandda says he’s going to teach me to play chess sometime. And the baby is finally sleeping better for Izzy.”

“Rach.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “We haven’t been gone that long.”

“What? She asked. Anyway, I have tonight off, so I’m going to Charity’s house for dinner and a movie. But I’ll be home at a decent hour.”

I’m glad that she found a new best friend, one who’s sweet and isn’t obsessed with sex and finding beer.

It’s been a nice change.

“We have news,” Maeve says with a smile as she holds up her left hand.

“Oh, my God! He asked!”

“That’s not all.” I hold up my left hand, as well. “We went ahead and sealed the deal. Elvis performed the ceremony.”

“Who’s Elvis?” she asks. “Never mind. Yay! I’m so excited! Please tell me we can have a big party to celebrate. I can totally help with it.”

“We definitely need a party,” Maeve agrees.

“Awesome.” Rach is running through the house, making me seasick. “Grams! Gramps! Dad and Maeve got married!”

We spend the next hour on the phone, calling all of the family and telling the story over and over again. No one is mad about us eloping. I thought maybe Maggie would be sad about it because she and Maeve are so close, but she was only excited, just like the others.

“Okay, that’s done.” I push Maeve back onto the bed after she tosses her phone aside. “Now, it’s time for me to make love to my wife.”

“Wow, I’m your wife.” She grins and cups my face. “You’re my husband. I’d rather not call you my hubby, if that’s okay with you.”

“Honey, you can call me whatever you want.” I nip at her bottom lip just as the room phone rings. “Damn it, will I ever get you naked?”

“It could be something important,” she points out and crawls to the side of the bed, retrieving the phone. “Hello, Mrs. Meyers speaking.”

She winks at me, and I grin like a loon.

“Oh, sure. Okay, I’ll let him know. Can it wait, or—? I see. Thanks.”

She places the phone back in its cradle and sighs.

“They have something for you at the front desk. She said you’re supposed to come down and get it.”

“Why can’t they just send it up?”

Maeve shrugs. “I don’t know, I’m not psychic. She said that it’s important, and you have to go down right away.”

“That’s weird. Since when does that even happen?”

“Maybe it’s perishable,” Maeve suggests. “Maybe someone sent food or flowers. That’s probably it. I bet my parents—or yours—sent something over in celebration.”

“You’re right.” I rub my hand over my face and then stare at my gorgeous bride for a minute. “You’re stunning.”

“I’m not even in a wedding dress,” she says with a laugh. “I guess jeans and a white blouse is the new wedding wear of the season. So chic.”

“I think you look great.” I crawl over and kiss her squarely on the mouth. “I’ll be back in five minutes. When I get here, I want you naked and ready for me.”

“That’s not how wedding night sex works,” she informs me. “Haven’t you seen movies?”

I laugh and walk toward the door. “I’ll see you in just a few.”

I shut the door behind me, then walk down the hallway, whistling. My life is as good as it gets. Sexy wife, great kid, awesome home. I don’t know why I’ve been so intent on this fight. On proving something to myself and the rest of the world.

Maybe it’s because Danny basically called me a pussy on national television.

Of course, we all know that I’m no pussy.

But the image of Danny with his hands on my daughter just played over and over in my head, and I know that I can’t let him get away with that.

I turn a corner toward the elevator and am suddenly struck on the back of the head, falling to the floor.

I’m in and out of consciousness as a blurry face stands over me, a bat in his hands.

“Fuck you,” he growls and hits me across the shoulders, kicks me in the stomach, and then strikes my head once more.

Everything goes black.