Town of Chance: Believing in Love [The Dare Series 7] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)
The Dare Series 7
Town of Chance: Believing in Love
Eliza Grace is fighting a fear from her past. She can’t let go of the insecure feelings after escaping a viscous attack in college. Her self-confidence is slowly building when it comes to her career and going after what she wants. Except for when it comes to the men she desires.
Parker, Burker, Lynch and Taser, are older men, Special Ops and more than willing to teach her a thing or two about love and how perfect she actually is. Her determination to succeed and be independent sends her into a danger she isn’t prepared to fight alone. When they all fall for a scam and Eliza Grace is the victim at the hands of a monster, believing in love may be her only way of surviving.
Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Romantic Suspense
Length: 56,111 words
TOWN OF CHANCE: BELIEVING IN LOVE
The Dare Series 7
Dixie Lynn Dwyer
MENAGE EVERLASTING
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting
TOWN OF CHANCE: BELIEVING IN LOVE
Copyright © 2016 by Dixie Lynn Dwyer
E-book ISBN: 978-1-68295-083-8
First E-book Publication: March 2016
Cover design by Les Byerley
All art and logo copyright © 2016 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
Dear Readers,
If you have purchased this copy of Town of Chance: Believing in Love by Dixie Lynn Dwyer from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.
Regarding E-book Piracy
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The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment.
This is Dixie Lynn Dwyer’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Dixie Lynn Dwyer’s right to earn a living from her work.
Amanda Hilton, Publisher
www.SirenPublishing.com
www.BookStrand.com
DEDICATION
Dear readers,
Thank you for purchasing this legal copy of Believing In Love.
Eliza Grace is determined to get past the events from college and the things that have held her back from truly feeling whole and alive again. In doing so she keeps pushing away the men who truly care about her.
It’s simple really, and a lot of people have experienced the need to be strong, to feel strong, and to force the belief that they must succeed on their own and without the love and support of others. As Eliza Grace pursues the need for success and independence, she places herself in a danger that could have been avoided in many ways. She ignores her gut instincts, she minimizes the loving, caring actions of her men, and her in-experiences misguide her in the decisions she makes.
Enjoy her story, as Eliza Grace figures out exactly what true love is all about, and how much better life can be with more loving people by her side, supporting her and ultimately protecting her from harm.
Happy reading.
Hugs!
~Dixie~
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Epilogue
About the Author
TOWN OF CHANCE: BELIEVING IN LOVE
The Dare Series 7
DIXIE LYNN DWYER
Copyright © 2016
Prologue
How are you feeling today?
Eliza Grace looked at the text message on her phone. She stared at it for several seconds, wondering how to respond. It was the same thing day after day, week after week. Parker’s texts asking how she was feeling, and if her bruises were almost gone, and what her schedule at work was. It was driving her insane.
“What’s wrong?” Missy Ann asked her as she thumbed through a magazine while they lay out by the pool. It was a hot summer day, and Eliza Grace sat under the umbrella being sure to not burn. Since doing the photo shoot for a fundraising calendar she had been so busy with jobs. Her boss Clarissa hooked her up with a couple of other boutiques a few towns over, and she was scheduled for a runway show in a few weeks too. She swallowed hard. Her dad and her cousins hadn’t seen the calendar yet, but she knew they would any day now. So far they were the bestselling calendars in several years, and she was shocked to see she landed not only the front cover, but also several other shots throughout.
She had been insistent that she wouldn’t wear the tiny bikini as she posed in front of the classic sports car. Somehow, from her boss’s perspective and the photographers working the shoot, she looked extremely sexy in the short strapless romper. She was happy with the end results, just nervous that the calendar would give her further exposure. She didn’t want the negative kind.
“Oh, I know that look. Is the text from Parker again?” Missy Ann asked her as she adjusted her large breasts in the small bikini she wore only for sun bathing. It was pink with tiny white polka dots and barely covered her breasts.
Eliza Grace looked at her and sighed. “I can’t take it. This whole big brother stuff is ridiculous.”
“They like you. They claimed guardianship of you and you declined them even though you’re crazy about them.”
“I’m not crazy about them.”
Missy Ann raised one of her eyebrows up at her and then snorted. “You da
ydream about them all the time and turn down dates with other guys. Hot guys, I might add.”
“I turn down dates because I don’t feel comfortable about dating.”
“Eliza Grace, you’re being stubborn. I know you have fears. We all do, but Burker, Parker, Lynch, and Tazer are older, more experienced and mature, and they know what a commitment is. When they find out you’re a virgin, they’re going to really become more protective of you.”
“Missy Ann, you sure do talk a tough game considering you’re a virgin too. If you were in my shoes you’re telling me you would feel confident taking on four much older men who are Special Ops no less? That is just bullshit, plain and simple.”
Missy Ann sighed. And looked toward the pool and then back toward Eliza Grace.
“I don’t have four older, sexy men wanting to make me their woman. You do, and your cousins know, your dad knows, hell, the sheriff and most of the town know that those men want you, but you’re fighting it. Why?”
“For a lot of reasons.”
“Like?”
“Like, we’ve been over this before. Parker and Tazer claimed guardianship because I was in danger and hurt after the attack and Shelby’s abduction. There was nothing more to that, and basically they backed down as soon as I was in the clear and Shelby was safe.”
“They were put on the spot by the sheriff. Max asked you if you accepted them as guardians and you said no.”
“Of course I did. They want to be big brothers. They see me as a little sister and nothing more. Besides, I’m not interested in getting involved with any man, never mind four men like the Hayes brothers.”
“But you like them.”
“What’s not to like, Missy Ann? They’re mysterious, sexy, have huge muscles and dangerous jobs, and they disappear all the time to do those jobs that no one knows about or questions. They have connections and resources. I’m sheltered, shy, not sexy enough, or woman enough, and I’m a hermit.”
Missy Ann chuckled.
“A hermit? Honey, you’re a model and I saw the calendar pictures. Your body is exceptional, and you have that whole petite, sweet angel look about you. Did you ever stop to think that they might feel too old, or too experienced for you? That maybe they think you deserve more?”
She glanced down at the text and thought about what Missy was saying. She exhaled. “I don’t know what to think. I just don’t have any experience to go by in dealing with Parker and his brothers. The only experiences I’ve had when dealing with men, boys, if you think about college, is violence.”
Missy Ann reached over and covered Eliza Grace’s hand. “Honey, you still haven’t gotten over the fact that you were attacked, nearly gang raped in college. You fought back, and those five guys didn’t succeed.”
“They almost did. They did enough, saw enough, and grabbed at me, touching me, and scared the hell out of me. I was damn lucky.”
“They suffered the consequences. They moved on with their lives and you need to move on with yours.”
“I think I’m doing a pretty good job at that.”
“Are you now? Because you don’t sound happy. I think you need to start thinking about the things you’ve wanted to do but held back from doing.”
“You don’t mean like a bucket list? I’m twenty-four years old. I’m afraid of heights so sky diving or bungee jumping is not a wish of mine.”
Missy Ann chuckled. “I don’t mean anything extreme. I mean doing something that makes you happy, that excites you but also challenges you. Maybe something you were scared of doing for whatever reason but now you can overcome that fear. It doesn’t have to be huge and definitely not dangerous or your cousins and the Hayes brothers will have my ass.”
Eliza Grace laughed.
“Missy, please, you are not a negative influence in any way and my cousins like you.”
“You can really live on the wild side and do the Hayes brothers. You can pop that cherry and move on as a new, more experienced woman. Think about it, four older men in their thirties with super big hands which mean super big—”
“Missy Ann!”
“Well, it’s what I heard. You know, the whole big hands, big penises thing.”
Eliza Grace covered her face with her hands.
“Come on. You can get the experience of four lovers under your belt. That should get you over the memories from college and also the attack in your apartment and help you move on with your love life.”
She swallowed hard.
“You don’t get it. I can’t even be that close to them. When one of them is around me I get all nervous and feel like running. When two of them are around me it’s even worse. When I think about them touching me, kissing me at the same time and then about the four of them surrounding me, it’s total freak out panic attack. I can’t help but to think about college and those five guys. It was so scary. If people ignored my screams or didn’t hear them over the music, the outcome would have been horrific.”
“But they did hear your screams.”
“Then they denied it. They said I wanted it, that I led them on and came into the room with them. It was their words against mine. I’ll never forget that feeling. How the dean of the school and even the police looked at me with suspicious eyes. I was a victim and they made me feel like the perpetrator. All the while I was beaten up, my breasts exposed, my clothing ripped and had to walk past all those kids I had classes with and knew. It was a nightmare. I still have nightmares about it. How the hell could I even think of being with four men? How?” she asked with tears in her eyes. Eliza Grace felt so frustrated. She liked the Hayes brothers. She just didn’t think she was right for them. They needed an older woman, a bigger woman, and not some petite twenty-four-year-old, passive scaredy cat like her.
Her phone buzzed again.
“You’d better answer that. Something tells me that the Hayes men are not the kind of men to make angry.” She raised her eyebrows up and down and Eliza Grace snorted as she shook her head.
“Although, they could be quite sexy angry. You know, all those hard, big muscles flexing as they reprimanded you for ignoring their text messages. I bet they’re into discipline too. They probably would toss you over their knees and spank your ass.”
“Missy Ann!” Eliza Grace scolded, feeling her cheeks heat and her body react to the idea. Here she was twenty-four and a virgin, no way capable of taking on older, more experienced and lethal men like the Hayes brothers.
“Sorry. I guess my own lack of experience has me wanting to live vicariously through you. You’re so freaking lucky. The Hayes men are super sexy and hot. I mean women throw themselves at those kind of men and you have their full attention. Maybe if you tell them about what happened to you, they would take their time and ease you into the intimacy part? I bet they would. They like you so much. I can see it in their eyes. You keep pushing them away and they might just give up on you entirely.”
She thought about that and felt immediately sad. This was so frustrating. She did like them, but yet, she felt so young and inexperienced. It was a vicious cycle of her not feeling confident. She had been so confident years ago when she went off to college instead of sticking around here. Then that night happened and things changed. She changed.
“I don’t think they even date. I’ve never seen them even flirting back with any of the women who flirt with them. They only have eyes for you. When you’re around they give you their full attention even when you’re not paying attention,” Missy Ann added, still on the whole push to get Eliza Grace to go out with them.
“Not their full attention in that way. They just like to be in control and feel like they’re protecting me like a sister.”
“Honey, I don’t think they’re thinking thoughts associated with a sister. I saw them at the hospital with you. They took turns watching over you and Parker was caressing your hair and whispering to you as you lay there recovering. Don’t you remember any of it?”
“I remember waking up several times and they were keepin
g their distance. They were all business, like they were bodyguards or something. By the time I was ready to be discharged, and Max asked me if I accepted their guardianship over me, I realized they didn’t really have feelings for me in a romantic way but felt more obligated to watch over me. Especially with my cousins claiming guardianship of Shelby and spending all their time loving her.”
Missy Ann smiled. “Shelby looks so happy now. I wouldn’t write off the Hayes brothers. Maybe they’re feeling just as unsure about you that you feel about them?”
“Well, the last thing I need to do is choose the wrong men to trust. I’m just not ready to date anyone or to get romantically involved. I don’t know when I’ll feel safe enough.”
“Well then, do like I suggested and try to accomplish some of the goals and dreams you’ve had. Now is a better time than any.”
She thought about that a moment and then smiled. “Why the hell not.”
“Oh, you may want to keep your adventures under the radar, especially with Parker texting you all the time.”
Eliza Grace looked at the phone and texted back.
All good. No need to text me any more. Thanks.
She hit send and as soon as she did she felt guilty as well as sad. It was strange, but she was used to Parker texting her, checking up on her and as much as it annoyed her, and made her realize that him and his brothers weren’t attracted to her, the more she became accustomed to receiving those text messages, and liking them. She was such a loser. She hadn’t a clue about men, and certainly not about men like Tazer, Lynch, Burker, and Parker. They were Special Ops. They had more strength, confidence and capability than she could ever imagine even having an ounce of. They probably saw her as weak, petite, fragile, and vulnerable. She didn’t want to feel that way or appear that way. Just because she had a petite body didn’t mean she was weak. She was well endowed, worked out all the time to stay in tip top shape and she did fight off those guys in college until help arrived, just like she fought off the men who abducted Shelby until she was knocked in the head. The drive and determination to not be weak was there when she needed it. That self-confidence to go after what she wanted no matter how intimidating things were, kept her driving toward success. But she had her limitations still. Perhaps Missy Ann had a great idea. Maybe if she achieved some of her goals and overcame challenges, then she could be in a better place and be ready to actually date and have a boyfriend.