Mother Trucker: A Secret Baby Romance Read online

  Mother Trucker

  A Secret Baby Romance

  Piper King

  Contents

  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

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Epilogue

  What To Read Next

  Cover by Mayhem Cover Creations

  Copyright © 2016 by Piper King

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  1

  It had been one hell of a night. I shoved open the door of the all-night diner off I-40 where the thick scent of fried dough and corn syrup hung heavy in the air. My eyes scanned the fluorescent-lit restaurant, sweeping past the plastic booths sticky with puddles of leftover grease. This place was a goddamn dump, but I always swung by this joint on my way back home after another long-haul trucking job.

  I had a damn good reason for coming in here, and there she was. My muscles tensed just from the sight of her. She stood out from the grimy backdrop like headlights on a long stretch of dark road with her rosy cheeks, her bright as morning smile, and her sexy curves that could rival the sleekest of hubcaps. Seeing her was the highlight of my otherwise hellish week.

  As I settled into my usual booth, my eyes swept appreciatively across her ass. Her name was Lucy, but that’s all I really knew. I’d been coming here for months, but I’d never learned more than that. Hell, I hadn’t even tried.

  She finished taking the order of another trucker before her eyes lifted to meet mine. A smile crested her face, warm but a little bit shy. Goddammit, she was so fucking perfect. Sweet, innocent, kind. Everything inside me longed to smile back. No, I growled to myself. Keep your shit together, D.

  I wasn’t the kind of guy to keep my bed cold for long. I fucked who I wanted. When I wanted. And I always left them begging for more. I rolled into town in my big-ass truck, took the best piece of ass I could find, and then moved on before the sun rolled into the morning clouds.

  But not this girl.

  She just seemed too fucking sweet, too fucking fragile, for an asshole like me to screw over, leaving her panting in my exhaust fumes after I’d bent her over and took her hard from behind.

  So, I’d do what I’d always done. Keep my mouth shut and move right the fuck on as if I didn’t want her with every inch of my big cock.

  “Hiya,” she said with that sexy little smile of hers. Her apron was cinched tight around her waist, and her ponytail curled just around the edge of her long and slender neck. God, I could nibble on that neck for so fucking long.

  My eyes skipped down to her breasts where a hint of cleavage spilled out of her tank top.

  “I’m guessing you just want the usual?” She leaned down, bringing with her a whiff of sweet apple shampoo, and I couldn’t stop myself from looking up. Her eyes were deep, deep green, so soft and warm but something more. Something sad and something fragile. Something had happened to this girl to make her this way, and I couldn’t bear the thought of that sadness shining stronger out of those gorgeous eyes.

  “Yep, the usual.” I gave a grim nod.

  “Got it.” She started to shift away, but something stopped her. “You alright? You look like you’ve had a long night.”

  Oh, we could make it even longer if you waltzed that sweet little ass of yours out to my truck.

  “I’m a trucker.” I crossed my arms and leaned back into the booth. “We don’t get much sleep.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her staring at me with her head cocked. Almost like she was sizing me up the way I did her when she wasn’t looking. Almost like she was trying to peer through the cracks in my armor. Unfortunately for her, there were no fucking cracks. I didn’t let anyone in, not even her. Especially not her.

  If she got involved with me, her whole life could get ripped into a million shreds. Just like mine. I’d done a lot of fucked up things in my life, but one thing I wouldn’t do was ruin a girl like that. My shitty life was mine to bear alone.

  “You sure do come in here a lot,” she said, her cute little head tilted to the side. “I’d say it was the food, but I know what it tastes like. No one would ever keep coming here for that. So, it must be something else you’ve taken a liking to…”

  What the hell? I jerked up my chin and met her gaze. This was the most she’d said to me in all the months I’d been stopping here on an almost weekly basis. Something electric passed between us, and I sucked a sharp breath through my nose. A flirty little smile lit her lips, so sexy and cute with her full pink lips that I almost groaned out loud. My cock twitched, and every inch of self-control I’d felt before got knocked to the side by my intense need to have those pouty lips wrapped around my dick.

  She was fucking flirting with me. The little suggestive light in her eyes was one I’d seen too many times to count. Just never from her. She’d never so much as given me a second glance, at least not until now.

  I needed to leave. I needed to get up out of that fucking booth and walk out of there right now. Never look back. But as my eyes scanned across every inch of her body, my cock had other things on its mind. And it sure as hell wasn’t leaving, not without making her scream out my name while she writhed underneath my tongue.

  Fucking hell, D. Get a grip.

  “I’ve gotta go.” I shoved away from the booth and dropped a wad of twenties on the table.

  Lucy’s face dropped as her eyes flicked from the money on the table back to me. I tried to ignore the way her lips turned down, but I was too fucking weak to look away. I’d caused that look, but I’d cause a hell of a lot worse if I stuck around for even a minute longer.

  A small flash of hurt crossed her face as she took a step back. She thought I didn’t want her. She thought she’d put herself out there, only for me to shove rejection into her pretty face. If only she could feel the hardness of my cock twitching in my pants, she’d sure as hell know she was wrong.

  But she couldn’t know. She could never know. Before my willpower could crumble, I turned my back and walked away.

  2

  I did not get this guy at all. Every single week without fail, he’d roll up here to this shithole of a diner, plop down at that same damn booth in the corner, and stare at me all night long when he thought I wasn’t looking.

  Yeah, that’s right, buddy. I saw the way you looked at me. The way you fucked me with your dark as night eyes.

  Every single time, he would order a platter of pancakes and barely touch them at all, taking his time while he watched me serve tables but never saying more than a few words. He was lucky I didn’t think he was a creep
. Truth was…my thoughts were totally on the opposite side of the spectrum.

  Because one thing was for sure. He was hot. Maybe a little intimidating with his massive biceps covered in tattoos, but they were also what made him seriously panty-dropping. Not to mention his thick tousled hair and scruffy face. He was the very definition of rugged.

  He was a trucker, after all. All the guys who dropped by the diner usually were. This hole in the wall was connected to the only truck stop for miles. So, long haul truckers came in here all night long just to sit or get a massive plate of greasy food. Sometimes they’d fall asleep with their cheeks smashed on the sticky table, corn syrup smeared across their beards.

  This guy never had food stuck in his hair though, but if he did, I had a feeling he’d make it look like the sexiest piece of food on the planet.

  So, when he had shown up tonight after my particularly hellish day, I had thought, Hey Lucy, why don’t you have a bit of fun?

  Maybe I’d wanted to take my mind off of how my life had gone to shit, if only for a little while, if only with the rugged and hot as fuck man who stared at me every damn week. I’d expected the trucker to throw me over his shoulder, carry me out to his truck, and bang all the messy thoughts right out of my head. He looked like the kind of guy who liked to fuck hard.

  Instead, he was rushing to get away from me as if I smelled like a skunk. Hell, maybe I did. It only took two seconds into my shift for the stench of fried fat and burnt toast to seep into the skimpy blue tank top they made me wear.

  Whatever. If he wanted to fuck off, he could fuck off. Next time he rolled up in here, eyeing me up like sex on a stick, I’d ignore it just like I had until tonight. He had his chance. And he blew it.

  The door jingled as the trucker disappeared into the steamy summer night, and I snatched the wad of cash from the table. He certainly wasn’t like any other trucker that came into this place, dropping cash like it meant nothing to him. As I shoved the money into my front apron, the door jingled again, the clomp of heavy boots following.

  He was back.

  My heart flickered inside my chest, and I took a deep breath before turning around. Had he changed his mind? Had he decided to finally do something about the way he’d been looking at me for months? My body began to ache, imagining his rough hands roaming across every inch of my skin.

  But when I turned to meet his gaze, I found myself face to face with someone else. Someone who doused all the fire inside me with a single angry look.

  It was Jared.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, taking a few steps back despite telling myself to stand strong. My heartbeat began to hammer inside my chest, and my palms went slick with clammy sweat.

  His pupils were wild and dilated, a sure sign he was as high as a kite. Jared was always as high as a kite. That or always crashing down from massive heights. He hadn’t always been this way. Not during all the years I’d known him, and I’d known him all my life. We used to be best friends, partners-in-crime, and then adopted siblings when his grandmother had taken me in. But after he’d gotten back from his short stint in the army, he’d gotten pulled in by the wrong crowd. He’d started using every week, and his addiction had caused his life to spiral out of control. And I cared so damn much that he’d taken me down with him.

  I’d been left picking up the pieces. And even though I’d turned away from him months and months ago, I still couldn’t shake him from my life.

  “I need some money.” He shuffled forward, a long finger pointing to where the trucker’s money was peeking out of my apron.

  Annoyance flared up inside me, burning away the fear. I took a few steps closer and dropped my voice to a whisper. “No, Jared. I’m done funding your drug habit. You’ve drained all my college savings. You’re not taking the roof over my head, too.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “You listen to me, Lucy. You owe me, and you know it. If it weren’t for me getting Grams to take you in, you’d be out on your ass in some alleyway, hooking like your birth mom did.”

  His words were a slap in the face. I knew he didn’t mean them. Or at least the Jared I’d grown up with would have never meant them. He’d turned vicious, angry, hurtful. When he didn’t get what he wanted, he lashed out. Always at me. But knowing this wasn’t the same brother from before didn’t dull the sting. I’d been taking this bullshit from him for way too long, and this time his words cut too deep.

  He knew where I came from and where I wanted to go. He knew he’d saved me when I needed it the most. But he also knew he’d been the one to rip my college dreams away from me forever.

  I lifted my eyes, steeled my shoulders, and raised my voice loud enough so he couldn’t miss my words. “Go to hell.”

  Two seconds later, his hands shoved into my shoulders. I stumbled. I fell. My knees slammed into the floor, and my head rang and rang, my mind desperately trying to grasp what had just happened.

  Jared had pushed me.

  Hard.

  3

  As soon as I stepped outside the diner, some drugged-out loser shoved past me through the door. With my eyes narrowed, I watched through the windows as he wobbled up to Lucy, his hands waving like windmills. Lucy’s eyes were wide and fearful as he pointed at the cash.

  He was trying to rob her.

  Gritting my teeth, I shoved back open the door just as he pushed her so hard she fell. A smack echoed loudly in the tiny restaurant as Lucy’s knees hit the floor.

  Anger clenched every muscle.

  I grabbed the asshole’s shoulder, spun him around, and slammed my fist into his face. His nose crunched and blood trickled onto his lips, his eyelids fluttering with shock and pain. He tried to scramble away, but my grip on his scrawny arm was like a vice.

  My eyes locked on his face, and everything in the entire world slowed.

  It was him.

  The man who had ruined my motherfucking life.

  “You’re not getting away, you fucking asshole,” I growled, raising my fist high in the air.

  I squeezed my fingers tight as his eyes widened.

  “No, don’t.” Lucy’s soft voice cut through my rage, and I dragged my eyes to where she knelt shakily on the floor, her hands splayed across the tiles. She shook her head, tears streaming down her face. “He doesn’t know what he’s doing. He’s high. Just let him go.”

  “Let him go? Hell no.” My nails dug harder into his skin.

  “Please don’t. I’m begging you,” she whispered.

  I paused but didn’t relax my grip. Anger burned through me like motor oil, but Lucy looked so shaken I couldn’t bear to go against her wishes right now, especially not with her looking up at me with those scared eyes of hers. I’d wanted to take my rage out on Jared Evans for so fucking long, but Lucy’s terror-filled eyes gave me pause. “At least let me call the cops.”

  She shook her head again. “I know him, okay? Just please…let him go.”

  Narrowing my eyes, I turned back to the asshole. She knew him. That made it even worse. And I should have known. Jared Evans screwed up everyone’s life he knew. I should pummel him until he could do nothing more than limp his way to jail. But I found myself hesitating before my hand released his arm. He widened his eyes, turned around, and sprinted out the diner door.

  Next time, I swore to myself. Next time he’d get what he deserved.

  As soon as he disappeared, sobs began to shake Lucy’s body. Every cell in my soul crumbled at the sight. I cast aside my anger and dropped to my knees beside her, putting a careful hand on her shoulder. She flinched, but when I went to pull away, she grabbed my hand as tight as she could.

  “Thank you,” she said in a whisper. “I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t been here.”

  My heart skipped. Her words tugged on some part of my soul way down deep inside me, a part I tried to keep buried as deep as I could. “Let’s not think about that. Why don’t we get you off the floor, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Gently, I
helped her stand and kept her steady while she found her feet. She sniffled, brushing her damp cheeks with the back of her hand and patting down her hair. She shook out her hands and stomped her feet, a little jig that couldn’t help but make me smile. She was so fucking cute it was criminal.

  “I bet I look a sight,” she said with a strained laugh.

  “You look fucking beautiful, Lucy.”

  Her eyes widened, and she glanced away. “Thank you again for helping me, and I appreciate you letting him go.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to call the cops?” My heart hardened at the thought of that asshole running around like he’d done nothing wrong. “What if he tries something like this again?”

  She spun away and stared out the window. “No cops. He’s just…going through a rough patch is all.”

  Rough patch, my ass. If he was into shit that bad, it would take a long time for him to dig himself out…if he ever did. I wanted to argue with her, but I could see there was nothing I could say to change her mind. At least not yet.

  It was long past time for me to go, but I couldn’t leave this girl alone. The diner was empty. The other trucker had disappeared during the fight. No other perky waitresses were manning the tables, and the chef was in the back, unaware of everything going on up here. If I left Lucy alone, Jared Evans might come back.

  And she was still shaking. If I left, she might fall apart.

  I’d stay just a little longer. Just to make sure she was alright.

  4

  I should have been more freaked out than I was. I should have hated that this trucker guy had punched my brother so hard I swore I heard something break. I should have been taken back by his intensity, his anger, his massive muscles that had rippled as his fury took hold.

  But I wasn’t any of that. My cheeks flamed. Every logical part of my brain told me I needed to say goodbye, to thank him for his help, and to get straight back to work in this empty, quiet diner where I would break down the second I was left alone with my thoughts.