#Heart (Hashtag #6) Read online

  A Hashtag Series Finale

  Lovers Gonna Love…

  Family isn’t always defined by blood.

  Sometimes family is born of love…

  Loyalty…

  And choice.

  Sometimes the bond that comes from someone having your back through the shittiest of times is stronger than anything you get from genetics.

  And sometimes you find that piece of your soul you didn’t even know was missing.

  I’m a lucky guy like that.

  I found a love that will never fade. I found a group of people who aren’t just my friends.

  They’ve become my family.

  There’s only one place to go from here.

  I’m gonna bind myself to Rimmel in every possible way.

  I’m gonna bring our family even closer together.

  The past has taught me it won’t be easy.

  Especially when faced with repercussions from a night that ended in death.

  But that’s okay.

  Family doesn’t quit each other.

  Love like ours never dies.

  Happily ever after isn’t just for storybooks.

  The Hashtag Series Finale

  by Cambria Hebert

  #HEART Copyright © 2015 CAMBRIA HEBERT

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions

  thereof, in any form without written permission except for the use of brief

  quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Published by: Cambria Hebert Books, LLC

  http://www.cambriahebert.com

  Interior design and typesetting by Sharon Kay of Amber Leaf Publishing

  Cover design by MAE I DESIGN

  Edited by Cassie McCown of Gathering Leaves Editing

  Copyright 2015 by Cambria Hebert

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-938857-79-9

  Table of Contents

  Contents:

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to my readers. The real live #nerds who have shown this series so much love in the past year that we have all become #family.

  This book is written for you, as not only a finale, but a thank you. I hope it’s everything you want it to be and more.

  What an incredible ride it’s been.

  This might be the last book in the series, but we aren’t over. Family doesn’t quit each other.

  We are #OneNerdPackUnited!

  Romeo

  Best game of my entire career.

  Yeah, okay, it was only my first season. And yeah, okay, I still had a lot of games in my future (God willing), but I knew without a shadow of a doubt that nothing—no game, not even a Superbowl title—would ever beat out today.

  Congratulations went around the locker room. I got slapped on the back, the ass, and in the head so many times you’d think it would get old.

  I was too happy for that.

  I was even too happy to be bothered by the ribbing and snide remarks I heard from a few corners around the room.

  Fuck them.

  Rimmel was going to be my wife.

  I felt my mouth pull into a wide, toothy grin. Hells yeah.

  I thought back to the moment I first realized she was it for me. The night at the animal shelter when she sat on the floor, soaking wet from the rain, and Murphy crawled into her lap. She’d pulled her hair out of her face and looked up at me.

  It was game over from there on out. I was hers.

  Even so, I’d been a little nervous tonight before the game. Asking a girl to marry you on live television, in the middle of a giant football game, was sort of a gamble. Especially for a girl like Rim.

  She liked her privacy. She liked to blend in.

  Rimmel didn’t know it, but she was destined to stand out. Without even trying, she’d become the darling of the football world. The cameras loved her and got at least one shot of her sitting in the stands at every game she came to.

  They watched her clothes, her hair… Hell, they even talked about her glasses.

  She was an unlikely fixture in the center of a football game. She wasn’t a model, a celebrity, or even someone who wanted to draw the public eye.

  And for that, people loved her. She was the girl next door, the one that everyone knew. People related to her in ways they couldn’t to all the other football elite.

  I’d been planning to ask her to marry me for a while now. I’d just been waiting for the right time.

  Then shit hit the fan at home.

  Zach was released, he went after Ivy, tried to kill her, and almost did. Braeden made it just in time to save her life.

  When I walked into her hospital room and saw her lying there battered and bruised, it served as a heavy dose of reality. We weren’t guaranteed any amount of time on this earth. We weren’t promised another day, another chance.

  It sealed the deal for me. I couldn’t wait any longer to claim Rimmel in every possible way.

  I called up Ron Gamble and told him I was ready. He’d been thrilled. Back when he set up a false press conference for me and basically helped me nail the bastards trying to extort money out of me in exchange for Rimmel’s life, I’d made him a promise.

  I promised when I proposed, I’d do it during a game. He wanted huge media buzz, and he knew this way he’d get it.

  So tonight during the game, I did it. Right there in front of thousands of cheering fans.

  Goddamn, she looked so adorable in her purple Knights hoodie and glasses. The surprise in her eyes was real and so was her emotion.

  The second I slid that ring onto her finger, my entire world felt complete.

  As soon as I finished changing I tossed all my shit into my bag and headed for the door. I wanted to see my future wife.

  “Someone’s getting laid tonight!” one of the guys hollered as I walked toward the door.

/>   “Hells yeah!” I yelled and left them all to their dirty jokes and exaggerated moans. Those guys were a bunch of pervs.

  I loved ‘em.

  Well, almost all of them.

  I stepped out into the quiet tunnel that led to the parking lot. I imagined Rimmel waiting out there for me and quickened my pace.

  Some movement in the shadows against the wall had my steps faltering, and a small figure stepped out into the light.

  I grinned. “How’d you get in here?”

  She mock gasped and pressed a hand to her chest. The rock I’d just put there glistened under the light and shone brightly. “Don’t you know who I am?” she intoned.

  I pretended to think it over. “Can’t say that I do.”

  She started forward, her eyes never once leaving my face. “I’m the future wife of the best player on this team.”

  “Ahh,” I drawled. “I thought you looked familiar.”

  I dumped my bag at my feet and held open my arms. “Get the hell over here.”

  She laughed and ran at me. I caught her midair, and her legs fastened around my waist like she didn’t even have to think about it anymore. She just knew where she belonged.

  “Mrs. Anderson,” I growled.

  “Not yet,” she sang.

  “Soon.” The word was almost lost between us when I covered her lips with mine.

  Her lips parted instantly, and my tongue sought hers eagerly. My fingers tightened on her hips as we went at each other right there in the tunnel. Rim’s hand fisted in my hair, and my mouth assaulted hers.

  A few steps and I pinned her back against the wall, using my chest to hold her in place, and ripped my mouth free to trail hot, wet kisses down her neck and then up to nibble on her earlobe.

  Her core rocked against my waist, and she groaned with need.

  Impatient, her hand slid between us and started traveling low, but she couldn’t reach the part of me she wanted most. The distressed sound that tore from her throat made me laugh.

  I stepped back just enough so she could slide down my body. The way she felt rubbing along my front was damned intoxicating. When her hand found and squeezed the rock-hard erection beneath my sweats, my body jerked.

  “Come on,” I said, hoarse. “I got us a suite at a nearby hotel. It’s got lots of nice amenities, but we’re not gonna use them.”

  Her teeth sank into her lower lip with anticipation.

  “Show me,” I demanded, possessiveness flaring inside me like some incurable disease.

  Rim knew what I wanted and she lifted her hand and held it out between us.

  The engagement ring took over her small fingers. I’d gotten as big a diamond as I dared, knowing if I went too big, she’d refuse to wear it. Hell, I knew the three-carat stone I’d gotten was probably more than she would have wanted, but I didn’t care. That ring represented so much to me.

  It represented my love for her.

  It represented me.

  It represented what we were to each other.

  And yes…

  I admit.

  It was also a large warning to any guy who ever dared to look at her. Hell, they’d be able to see the glittering center stone and smaller stones around it from across the room.

  It was a giant SHE’S TAKEN sign right there for every man to see.

  I liked it. It brought out my primal side. It brought out my continued need to claim her.

  “You like it?” I whispered, taking her hand and lifting it to my lips.

  “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful,” she whispered as I pressed a kiss to the ring and her hand.

  I grunted. “I have.”

  She bestowed upon me a brilliant smile.

  I picked her up and moved over to dangle her upper body over my bag on the ground. “I need my bag, Mrs. Anderson.” She laughed and picked it up. Her laugh turned to a screech when I pulled her up and flipped her body so I was able to carry her against me.

  “You can’t call me that. We aren’t married yet,” she said, settling my bag in her lap.

  “Wanna fly to Vegas tonight?”

  She laughed, but when I didn’t join her, she glanced up and sucked in a breath. “You’re serious?”

  “As a heart attack.”

  “We can’t just fly to Vegas.”

  “The hell we can’t. Tomorrow is my off day. We could be married by morning.”

  “You’d marry me tonight?”

  I laughed. “I’d marry you right the fuck now if I could.”

  “I love you,” she said, her eyes filling with tears.

  “Whoa,” I pulled back when she tried to come at me for a kiss. “What’s with the waterworks?”

  She giggled and blinked. “I just can’t believe I’m so lucky.”

  “Is that a yes to Vegas?” I asked, hopeful.

  She chewed on her bottom lip and then nodded once. I actually jolted in surprise. My feet stopped working and I stared at her in shock. “Did you just say yes?”

  “No, silly.” She laughed. “I already said yes, out there on the football field.”

  My heart actually turned over. “You’d marry me tonight?”

  “I’d marry you right the fuck now.” She echoed my own words.

  I love it when she says fuck.

  I grinned like the goofiest motherfucker on the planet. She made me so stupid happy. I never in a million years thought she’d actually agree to go to Vegas and marry me tonight.

  Goddamn, it was a powerful feeling to know she loved me as much as I loved her.

  I started running to the car.

  She squealed and hung on to the bag in her lap as it knocked around.

  Outside, there were a gaggle of reporters all hanging around, just waiting for us to emerge. My steps slowed to a quick walk when I saw them.

  I should have thought about this. I should have expected the press to be right here. Hell, they were always around.

  They rushed us, shoving cameras and lights in our face. Rimmel shrank against me, and I tightened my grip. I didn’t want to deal with this right now. I wanted to continue being stupid happy.

  But these people were stupid annoying.

  But I smiled anyway and turned to face them all, holding Rim. “Just practicing for after the wedding,” I joked.

  They all laughed and snapped some pics.

  One of the female reporters pushed close. “Let me see the ring!”

  Rimmel glanced at me and then held out her hand. More camera bulbs went off.

  “If you’ll excuse us,” I said, “we have plans.” I spun and deftly moved through the crowd.

  At the Hellcat, I tossed the bag into the backseat and then more carefully placed my life in the passenger seat, taking care to buckle her and let my knuckles skim across her breasts.

  Once that was done, I rushed around to the driver’s side and threw the Cat into motion.

  Rimmel laughed like she was totally amused, and I tossed her a smile.

  We made it to the hotel in record time. It was the nicest one in this town. I booked the honeymoon suite and asked them to fill it with white roses. When I told them my name, the lady almost pissed her pants with excitement.

  So I chatted her up, charmed her, and got Rim a couple more dozen roses for free.

  What can I say? It’s a gift.

  I pulled up to the front entrance and tossed the keys to the valet as I jogged around to get my girl. It was the first time I’d ever let a valet driver handle my car. Right now, I could barely think straight. I wanted to be alone with her so bad.

  I grabbed her hand and all but dragged her inside to the sweeping three-story reception area. A huge glass chandelier hung down in the center of the room, and two grand staircases with wrought iron railings filled the back wall, each staircase leading in a different direction.

  Rimmel’s breath caught and her footsteps slowed the second she saw the opulence. I left her there to stare as I checked in at the desk and claimed the room keys.

  The woman
at the counter was all smiles and went on about how she watched mine and Rim’s moment on TV and made sure the room was set up perfectly. I made sure to slip her an extra twenty before retreating to Rimmel’s side.

  “This place is amazing,” she breathed out as I ushered her into the elevator, craning her neck so she could see every last sight before the doors shut us in.

  Our suite was on the top floor, so it took a couple minutes to make it up there.

  “Wait.” Rimmel frowned when the doors pinged open, and I took her hand and led her into the hallway where there was a single set of white double doors. “I thought you wanted to go to Vegas?”

  The elevator closed behind us, and I picked her up, holding her out in front of me like she was a doll, her feet dangling above the floor. “You’d really go?”

  Her eyes softened. “I’d go anywhere with you.”

  I gathered her close and folded my body around hers. Damn. Sometimes she just got me exactly where I was the softest. The raging lust I’d been feeling dimmed to a dull roar and emotion swelled up within me.

  There were just no words to describe what she was to me. Oxygen to a suffocating man. An umbrella in a rainstorm. Light in the darkness. None of those even came close to the way I loved her. To the way she made me feel.

  I hugged her tighter for long seconds more and then pulled back. She tipped her chin and looked up.

  “As bad as I want to fly to Vegas and claim you right now, I can’t.” I groaned.

  Her forehead creased, and I leaned forward to kiss it.

  “I can’t be that selfish. You deserve better than a quickie I do with some Elvis standing in front of us. You deserve more than a bouquet bought at some cheap chapel that imports flowers by the dozen. I want you to have the wedding of your dreams with all our family around us.”

  “I don’t need fancy flowers and a huge fairy tale.” She smiled. “All I need is you.”

  “And that’s exactly why you’re getting everything.” I kissed her nose.

  “You’re just scared of what your mother will do if she finds out we eloped.”

  I grimaced. God, she’d have my balls.

  Rimmel laughed.

  I growled and backed her against the room door. “Woman, are you saying you think I’m scared of my mother?”