Awakened (The Fighter Series Book 3) Read online

  TC Matson

  Copyright © 2016 TC Matson

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permissions of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the author, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at [email protected].

  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to people, whether living or deceased is purely coincidental. Names, places, and characters are figments of the author’s imagination, or, if real, used fictitiously. The author recognizes the trademarks and copyrights of all registered products and works mentioned within this work.

  Acknowledgements

  Harper Bentley—Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your inspiration, the nudges and pushes I need, all the support, and your friendship means so much to me. You push me to be my best and not allow me to falter far from who I am. I’m forever grateful. Who knows where I’ll be without you. Lobe you gobs!!

  Teabag—Yet again, you’re my biggest cheerleader. Thank you for letting me rant, run ideas past you, and just be you. You’re my soul sister!! Love ya!

  To my betas—I whole-heartedly thank you for your hard work.

  Amy Donnelly—You’re my jack of all trades and the best southern sounding goofball ever! Thank you for saving me at the last seconds all the time and pulling me out of situations.

  Fran Gray—Thank goodness we’ve found each other because the world needed us two crazies to meet.

  Special Thanks to:

  To all my readers/fans: You continue to floor me with the amount of love and support. The two words “Thank You” doesn’t quite express the gratitude, the appreciation I have, but are the only words that I know to say. Thank you…without you, I wouldn’t be here. Without you, my bad days wouldn’t get flipped to great days. Without you, I wouldn’t have these fantastic messages that continue to push me forward. I adore you. <3

  To all the supporting bloggers: THANK YOU ROCKSTARS!!! All the hard work you put into me and all the other authors does not go unnoticed. Your endless support is entirely out of this world. Thank you! <3

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  More Fighter Series!

  About the Author

  Hot Reads!

  Chapter 1

  “So what do you think?” Emily, my co-worker and really good friend asks, batting her eyes and knowing good and damn well she was right.

  She and Sarah, my neighbor and also good friend, declared tonight to be a girl’s night out and decided to bring me to a club just outside of town. I got dragged right into it. Of course, they didn’t really have to twist my arm. I wasn’t doing anything spectacular. If I’m not out with them, I’m at home drowning myself in work. Seems like one or the other is all my life consists of since leaving Nick and fleeing to this town.

  Nick is my soon-to-be ex-husband—if only I could get him to sign the divorce papers. He’s refuting everything and dragging this out in hopes he will find a way to win me back or make me pay for everything. Either way, he’s lost his damn mind. We married young, and unfortunately, it took me five years to come to my senses. Before we married, we were fun loving, outgoing and madly in love. And then our “I dos” happened.

  Our marriage became a one-way street and I was stuck in a dead-end alley. After our vows, he became mentally abusive, enjoying the cheap thrill of bullying his wife. Not too long after that started, he began staying out late with his “friends.” I believed him for a while and never questioned it, thinking that our marriage had just hit a slump. That was until I found out his “friends” were other women. I pulled my big girl panties up, packed my shit, and headed out the door.

  I deserve better than him. I stuck true to our vows for way too long, dealing with way too much—all this talking about him was plenty enough time wasting my breath on him. I’m here to move forward and have some fun.

  “I like it,” I tell her. “It’s uppity.”

  “Uppity? Is that your way of saying it’s fun? Hip? Dope?” Sarah nudges my shoulder playfully.

  “The views are spectacular.” Emily wags her eyebrows at the good-looking men.

  I chuckle. “Yeah. This place is hype with all the hotties.”

  I’m way out of my element here. The last time I was in a club this big, I had a fake ID, heels that tried breaking my neck, and a curfew. Now, my ID bears my real age, I’ve tamed my heels, and my curfew is when I choose.

  “Come on. Let’s dance!” Emily grabs my hand pulling me from the booth.

  Just as we reach the outskirts of the busy dance floor, the song changes and the place lights up in a roar. Both Sarah and Emily scream their excitement and push us into the middle of the throngs of people. We begin moving our bodies to the fast rhythm, allowing the music to take over. It vibrates the floor and air around me, forcing the beat into my bones. I rock my hips, running my hands through my hair and down my body.

  I feel invigorated. I feel alive.

  The music continues and my heart races as I break a sweat, bouncing to the beat. We’re quickly surrounded by different bodies dancing around us, some even trying to join, but all with one goal in common—to have a great time. I’m okay with it as long as they keep their hands to themselves.

  After a few moments, while I’m lost in a musical muse, the song ends and I twist around, ending my dance with a pretty good looking, black haired guy only to see my wonderful friends deserted me. I puff a laugh under my breath and head back toward them.

  “Abandoning me? Thanks,” I say a little peeved dropping into the booth across from Sarah.

  “Not necessarily abandonment. You looked good, lost in your own little fun world. Why bother you?”

  “Besides, you needed it,” Emily adds sitting beside Sarah. “We wanted to boost your ego.” She takes a sip of her peach colored drink.

  I squint, trying to find the path her mind just took. “How is dancing alone going to boost my ego?”

  “All eyes were on you.” Emily winks.

  “Because I looked like a twitching cockroach,” I joke.

  “I think this was a good idea. We need to try doing this weekly,” Sarah says, leaning back in the booth and pushing her long, straight black hair off her shoulder.

  “I don’t know about weekly,” I say.

  “Of course, you’d say that,” Emily says. “You’re always at home. What single, gorgeous woman in her twenties enjoys taking work home and making it her Friday and Saturday night date other than you?”

  “I have nothing better to do. Besides, I real
ly enjoy my job.”

  “Says every crazy cat woman ever.” Sarah rolls her eyes cracking up.

  “Hello, ladies.” A deep, overpowering voice fills our ears.

  At the same time, we all look up to one breath-taking sight. Short, shaggy light brown hair tops his head, pulling off the best bed-head look in the place. Intense brown eyes, glinting from the strobe lights, set their gaze on me. He smiles widely displaying the sharp lines of his square jaw. He’s buff with a slightly large chest and mighty arms tucked into the fabric of his gray t-shirt. He towers above us looking absurdly sexy.

  Emily tosses her long brown hair over her shoulder. “Hi,” she says in her much-practiced seductive tone.

  Sarah leans her elbow on the table and rests her chin on her hand. “Hey,” she breathes out dreamily.

  He nods at both of them and then shifts his eyes back to me. I smile. “Hey.” I’m more coherent than my friends, not affected by his fantastically tasty good looks.

  “I’m Emily. This is Sarah and Kelsie.” She takes over the conversation, pointing as she introduces us.

  A smirk spreads over his perfect lips. “I’m Adam.”

  Gah…

  Sarah points to the empty spot beside me. “Take a seat.”

  And if possible, his smile just grew wider. I scoot over to give him room, and as he sits, the scent of his cologne hits me. Fresh, powerful, and…romantic? Is that a smell?

  “How are you?” He looks to me.

  “I’m good,” Emily answers. “You’re pretty hot.”

  Sarah slaps Emily’s arm with widened eyes, silently telling her to behave.

  “What?” Emily says. “I’m only stating the truth. Not like he doesn’t already know it.”

  Adam grins. “Thank you.”

  “So, Adam, what brings you here?” Sarah chokes realizing her mistake.

  Quickly, I avert my eyes to the ice in my glass, pulling it to my lips and trying to hide my laughter. I’m not good at keeping a straight face when I get too tickled. My toothy, laughing smile causes my cheeks to bunch up and I duck my face under my hand.

  Adam chuckles too and places his elbow on the table leaning toward Sarah. “Well, this is a club and it’s where you meet people.”

  Point for Adam.

  “Do you dance?” Emily asks him.

  “Eh.” He shrugs. “I’m not the worst like some of these dickwads.” He points to a guy on the dance floor doing a bad interpretation of a scarecrow on a windy day. His arms are flailing, legs sporadically bouncing…I could lose the crown for the worst dancer right now.

  “Care to dance?” Both girls ask simultaneously, jumping at the opportunity.

  He turns to me. “Actually, I was wondering if you’d like to?” His tone is straightforward with a sexy ring to it.

  “Me?” I point to myself, surprised. Normally, I’m the odd man out. The general rule for most guys is the scantily clad with the bubbly personalities get the attention first. I don’t dress as daringly as my friends, and I’m classified as the quiet one.

  He nods, affirming me.

  “Sure.” I shrug.

  He stands holding out a hand. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

  I look up at him. And miss an opportunity to feel his body against mine? Pfft…he’s lost his mind.

  I place my hand in his and he squeezes with enough pressure to tickle my toes. “Come on. Let’s dance.”

  He switches my hand into his other and leads me onto the dance floor by the small of my back. We make our way deeper into the crowd, and then he twirls me. I laugh and immediately we’re moving together, letting the song vibrate through our bodies and minds. His brown eyes ardently watch me and all my movements.

  He leans to my ear. “You’re beautiful,” he whisper-yells over the music like he was reading the insecurities written on the pages in my mind.

  He pulls me into his chest, molding our bodies together. My breath hitches when I slam against his hard, sturdy chest. He’s looking down at me with a slight smile and begins moving again. I’ve never been good at dancing with someone. They throw off my rhythm. But he feels good…really good.

  “Let’s go chat somewhere,” he says, clenching my hand and tugging me into his side.

  We walk off the dance floor in the opposite direction of my friends, toward the back, and in the dark. It isn’t as busy here—much more private. He slides a stool out for me and then takes the seat beside me. Sweat is beading across his forehead, and his scent is still superior. His breathing is pretty leveled compared to mine. I’m way out of breath.

  “So, Kelsie. Tell me about yourself.”

  I crack up, surprised at his bluntness. “What? No cheesy pickup lines?”

  His left brow jumps high as amusement flickers in his eyes. “You’re as gorgeous as the sunset on a tropical island. Better?”

  I laugh again. “It must’ve hurt when you fell from the heavens,” I add my two cents into the cheesiness.

  He chuckles under his breath, shaking his head. “Are you a magician? Because while I’m talking to you, everyone else disappears.”

  “That was a good one!” I tell him.

  “Can I take your picture to prove to all my friend’s angels do exist?” he spits another out.

  I tilt my head, playfully narrowing my eyes and pursing my lips. “You’re full of them. Just how many women actually fall for them?”

  He licks his lips and showcases a sexy grin. “You’d be amazed at the answer.”

  I roll my eyes. “I’m sure.”

  “Do you have a boyfriend?” he asks.

  I shake my head. “No.”

  “Live around here?”

  “Yeah. You?”

  “About twenty minutes away,” he says. “Can I buy you a drink?”

  I hold up a finger. “Is this how guys do it nowadays? Speed interviewing?”

  “It’s how I do it. Doesn’t waste time.”

  “Quite interesting,” I say.

  “Gets the awkwardness out of the way.”

  He might not be experiencing the awkwardness, but I feel like a piece of meat dangling in front of this gorgeous god who’s only interested in getting between my legs.

  “I’m sure Emily and Sarah are looking for me.” I throw my thumb over my shoulder toward their direction. “I’m going to get back to them.”

  He watches me as I slide off the stool. “Do I make you that uncomfortable?”

  I smile tenderly. “No. But they did take the time to drag me out here.”

  “You realize you’re the third wheel,” he states flippantly.

  “Can’t be the third wheel if we’re all here together,” I say. “Thanks for the dance.”

  Emily and Sarah are on the dance floor when I reach our table. Sarah’s dance partner is very good looking and has good moves, but poor Emily is stuck with a guy who can’t dance. The disappointed and disgusted look on her face tells the whole story.

  Sarah hasn’t had a boyfriend in several months. It’s not because she doesn’t have what they want but because she’s taking time for herself. She just got out of a long-term relationship about six months ago after finding out her boyfriend wasn’t really who she had fallen in love with. He acted one way but ended up being something else. His three other girlfriends confirmed that. Sarah was crushed. In her mind, she was going to marry him. But in the end, he didn’t have the same intentions. Being with him for three years only to find out he was a piece of shit took a toll on her.

  And then there’s Emily. She’s more vibrant than the both of us. I work with her in the finance department at a large electrical distribution company. She has two personalities—professional and wild. She holds herself well at work, skillful and sharp, very intelligent. You wouldn’t ever think by the way she acts during the day that at night she bulldozes through men. I have no idea what she does with them after she’s chewed them up and spit them out. I don’t know a lot about her story except that she was burnt extremely bad in college and
now refuses relationships.

  Why is it we’re all burnt?

  “Still don’t believe you’re the third wheel?” Adam says sliding into the booth beside me.

  “They’re having fun.” I nod toward the girls dancing and letting loose.

  “So let’s go have our own.” His tone carries hidden intentions.

  My lips curl up offering a tight smile. “I was, am, and have been.”

  His brows furrow.

  “Did I just confuse you?” I smirk.

  He drops his head and shakes it before returning his gaze back to mine. “Are you always this standoffish?” he asks with annoyance in his tone.

  I blink back the sting of his words. “You think I’m standoffish?”

  “Either I have putrid body odor or you’re not into me. Which one is it?”

  “Oh no, you smell fabulous.”

  “You’re fucking beautiful, Kelsie,” he says gravelly.

  I almost choke mid-swallow at his boldness.

  He tilts his head. “You don’t hear that often?”

  I clear my throat. “Not exactly put like that.”

  His eyes grip me, holding me still. He’s so handsome and smooth talking, and it sends a cold, nervous excitement through my body.

  “You should—”

  “It is time to go!” Emily unintentionally interrupts him. “Mr. McDrunken is way too much for me. Plus, the bar’s about to close.”

  Adam’s brown eyes harden before slightly softening, seemingly surrendering to the fact our night has just been cut short. He stands and sticks his hand out to help me out of the booth.

  “I was just getting to the second layer of Kelsie,” he states to Emily.

  I smile up at him. “I had a great time, thanks to you. I hope you have a great rest of the night.”

  He frowns. “Can I get your number?”

  My heart clogs my throat and I rock my ankle. “I’m not interested in dating.”

  He pushes his tongue into his cheek. A challenge-accepted smile slides across his lips. “Are you sure about that?”