Ryker (The Powers That Be Book 4) (17 page)

He stared at me for a long moment as if trying to find the right thing to say. And when he finally said it and it came out just fine.

“I love you, Francesca.”

~*~*~*~

Ryker ended up not losing a match until he got to the National Championship where he eventually lost by one point in the semi-finals to the imminent champion.

The tournament was held in North Dakota and his family and I flew out to watch him. When he’d lost, I swear, I and everyone in his family had sucked in a breath, so worried about how he’d handle it.

But Ryker had gone to the winner and graciously shaken his hand then turned and looked up in the stands finding us and nodding as if to let us know he was okay.

Before he left the mat, he looked around for a moment knowing that would be his last time to ever be there. I teared up at that then started quietly crying watching as he then looked up to the ceiling where he raised his hand and pointed two fingers before leaving the floor.

Epilogue

When I was little, I used to be afraid of the dark. Yeah, so not proud of that now. Anyway, when I’d wake up and be scared, my mom would come in and sing the same song to me until I fell back to sleep. A line from the song always stuck with me, something about love not being love until you give it away.

I never knew what that line met until I met a more than beautiful, strong-willed, feisty woman who for some reason had decided I was her dream man. I still have to laugh at that but I’m so damned grateful that she picked me out of all the others out there.

Being with her has taught me that no matter how much you care about someone, if you’re not willing to give them your heart, then it’s all lights out, motherfucker, because that’s not love at all.

Oh, I screwed around and almost lost her because I’d very fucking well done that at the beginning, being so full of myself thinking she should feel lucky that I was even giving her the time of day. When she turned the tables on me, well, that’s when I got smart and did some serious thinking.

She tells me every day that she loves me and she’s proud of me and all I can do is stare back at her in awe that she actually wants to be in my life. Seriously blows my fucking mind. I’m so not worthy of her it’s ridiculous, but as long as she thinks I am, it works for me.

Looking back at how we ended up together, I think I may be able to pinpoint the exact moment I fell in love with her. I could say it was when she caught my dumbass making out with a girl who owned a pink VW Bug and she acted like she’d stopped by to have a look at it.

Or I could say it was when she was in her Treatment of Athletic Injuries class and I basically forced her to take me as her “patient” and she told me she hated me. That was pretty cute.

But no, in the end, I think the very moment I fell for her (I just didn’t realize it at the time) was after I pretty much blackmailed her into going to O’Leary’s with me after her class (man, I’m a dick). I’d pissed her off countless times over the course of the evening and she was getting ready to walk out on my sorry ass. And this next part right here, my friends, is the moment I fell hard for a brown-eyed Italian girl with the biggest heart of anyone I know.

She’d threatened to leave and I’d gotten up and blocked her in the booth not letting her get by. But that’s not it. It’s when I realized she be leaving and I didn’t want her to go. I wanted her to be with me and it killed me to think she’d go and I might not get to see her again.

So yeah, the moment I fell was when I asked her to stay.

And she did.

Acknowledgments

To my lovely beta readers, Franca, Mel & Sam, I say it every time but you guys are too good to me. Thank you for all the last-minute stuff you take from me, and I mean ALL. You’re the best ever! Your support means the world to me <3

To Stevie & the Hellbenders, you guys rock my world! Thank you for all the support and love you give me on the daily ;) You’re the best! <3

Anne Mercier, I love you, woman! You always make time for me & I appreciate it so much, because I know you’re either face first in your computer writing some sexy love scene or you’re drooling over M. Shadows. Either way, thank you for always stepping away from the hotness for me!

TC Matson, Thank you for your friendship & never-ending support. I know I can come to you for the truth even though you think you’ll upset me lol One of these days we’re gonna do a Zak attack then die laughing at the little girl screams :P Lobe you!

Dawn Stanton, Thank you for pimping the hell out of my books. And while doing it, you, oh, you know, wrote a book lol  You’re amazing! Thank you for everything! You’re a true friend & those are hard to find! #BeachHouse 2016 ;)

Amy Dunlap, Thank you for all you’ve done with the Hellbenders. Without you, that’d be the most boring place ever lol One of these days we’ll hop on a plane, grab a hot cover model & knock back a few. Of course, you’ll need to step over my trashed ass on your way out of the plane but know that my intentions were good (the road to hell & all, yeah, yeah) Love ya!

Erin Spencer, Thank you for always hooking me up at the last minute. I’m thinking you’re starting to figure out my MO now so I’m past the shocking you stage. Thank you for being supportive with your sweet voice on my messenger : ) Love you tons!

To the many bloggers who’ve spread the word about my books, thank you x a zillion. Know that you are appreciated GOBS!

And to the readers, this is all for you. Thank you <3

About the author:

USA Today Best Selling author Harper Bentley writes about hot alpha males who love hard. She’s taught high school English for 23 years, and although she’s managed to maintain her sanity regardless of her career choice, jumping into the world of publishing her own books goes to show that she might be closer to the ledge than was previously thought.

After traveling the nation in her younger years as a military brat, having lived in Alaska, Washington State and California, she now resides in Oklahoma with her teenage daughter, two dogs and one cat, happily writing stories that she hopes her readers will enjoy.

You can contact her at
[email protected]
, at harperbentleywrites.com, on Facebook or on Twitter @HarperBentley