Damaged and the Dragon Read online

  Damaged and the Dragon

  Bijou Hunter

  Copyright © 2014 Bijou Hunter

  Smashwords Edition

  Dedication

  Freckles, Tigger, Pooh, and Roo for owning my heart

  Mustang Sally and Marvelous Miranda for having my back

  Saucy Sarah and Hardcore Patty for knowing the genre

  Eusebia, Jennifer, Arnie, Gail, and the rest of the awesome Denny’s crew

  Bijou Hunter Books

  Damaged and the Beast (Apr ‘13)

  Damaged and the Knight (July ‘13)

  Damaged and the Cobra (Oct ‘13)

  Damaged and the Outlaw (Nov ‘13)

  Damaged and the Bulldog (2014)

  Damaged and the Saint – Final Damaged Book (2014)

  Bijou Books

  Gator (Feb ’14)

  Used (June ’14)

  *****

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Chapter One ~ Bailey

  As Bailey Fucking Johansson, my life should have been easy. For a long time, even after the devil child was born and I was no longer the center of the universe for my parents, my life remained pretty damn good. I didn’t know when shit went downhill, but I clearly needed dramatic changes if I wanted my life to improve.

  My new boobs were the most obvious change. I went from a big A to a small C cup. While I wanted them to be Double D Dolly Parton big, Raven said no. She put her still casted foot down and claimed I would look like a loser. Wussing out, I did as she commanded.

  My mom would have gotten me any size I liked. She always wanted me to make my own decisions and be independent. She even pretended to support my choice to move out of the house. On the other hand, Pop was thoroughly against me leaving.

  “First, you want new tits!” he yelled. “Now, you want to move out. I’m suspicious of where this ends.”

  Pop refused to say goodbye when I moved into my new place, but Mom and Sawyer joined me for dinner. Later while they prepared to leave, I studied their matching curly blonde hair and blue eyes. Getting lucky by having Pop’s straight blond hair, I’d also been blessed with Mom’s eyes. Those eyes that were now tearing up.

  “You can always come home,” Mom said.

  “I just moved out,” I muttered, smacking a mosquito on my sweaty arm.

  “No, I mean if you’re lonely or want to spend a night or two at home. Your room is still yours.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” I said, hugging her which wasn’t easy with my new knockers in the way.

  Sawyer shook her head. “I liked how you were whining less. I wish you didn’t have to leave.”

  “I’ll still be around.”

  Giving me a hug, Sawyer stared at my boobs. “I’d have gotten them super big.”

  “I know. You told me that an hour ago.”

  “Just saying.”

  “Well, we should go,” Mom sighed, taking Sawyer’s hand. “If you need anything, you know where we are.”

  “Tell Pop I love him.”

  “He knows. It’s just hard watching his little girl grow up.”

  “I’ll see you soon.”

  Mom gave me a little smile before she and Sawyer walked across the long driveway and disappeared into our cabin-style house. Left alone at the apartment over the garage, I stared at what looked like a million stairs. As nervous as I was to be on my own, time had come for me to grow up and be a new woman.

  A month earlier, Mom had the apartment remodeled to give it a more feminine touch. In the past, my oldest brother Cooper then our buddy Vaughn used the place for their harems. While I told my parents I didn’t want to touch anything skanked up by the prior residents, I really didn’t want reminders of when Vaughn’s cousin nearly beat my friend Raven to death in the living room. I hated imagining her suffering the way she did.

  Raven and Vaughn now lived in a big yellow house, just another happy couple in love.

  I hoped getting my place would be the first step to finding love one day too. First my idiot brother Tucker met Maddy then my smarter idiot brother Cooper hooked up with Farah. Her sister Tawny fell for the Reapers’ enforcer Judd. Our crew soon expanded when Lark married Cooper’s best friend Aaron. Finally, Lark’s sister Raven jumped on Vaughn and refused to get off. Through it all, I remained alone.

  Now in my new place, I warmed up a Hot Pocket and sat in front of the TV. An hour alone made me realize I was nervous to be on my own. My fear was stupid since my parents were within yelling distance and I’d been alone in the main house overnight. Even so, I decided to get one of our millions of giant dogs to stay with me.

  Opening the door, I found Pop halfway up the stairs. He looked conflicted until seeing me then he smiled.

  “Do you want a dog to stay with you?” he asked, walking up the final steps. “Do have your phone nearby? Gun too?”

  “Yes to all three,” I said, hugging him.

  His strong arms held me to him. Pop smelled like Marlboros and Old Spice with a hint of barbecue sauce from dinner. Mostly, he smelled like home.

  “Thanks, Pop,” I said when he let me go.

  “I want my little girl to be happy.”

  “I just need to grow up a little.”

  “A little.”

  “Not too much,” I promised.

  Tall and powerful like the boys he fathered, Pop stroked my hair then looked into the dark night. He whistled and a few dogs rushed over.

  “Danger is a good indoor dog,” he said then called out to her. Once the Rottweiler rushed up the stairs, we pet her for a minute. “See you at breakfast,” Pop said, hugging me once more.

  I stood at the top of the stairs until Pop reached the house and disappeared inside. Danger and I walked into the apartment where I locked the door. While the dog got comfortable by the TV, I pulled out my journal. Keeping my ideas in one place was my therapist’s idea. She had a lot of great ideas, but once I had my new life plan in motion, I didn’t really need her anymore.

  In the journal was my four part plan to happiness.

  Step one ~ buy new boobs. Check. They were excellent too.

  Step two ~ get serious about my career. Check. I changed my major to business and hired a personal assistant to practice bossing people around.

  Step three ~ move into a place of my own. Check. The place smelled new. Not even a hint of whorehouse remained.

  Step four ~ get me a good man.

  The final part proved to be the trickiest so far since Nick Davies wasn’t cooperating.

  Chapter Two ~ Nick

  The first time I stepped into the cage at the Thunderdome I could barely breathe. The crowd was smaller then, yet rowdier. Wasted guys threw empty beer bottles at the cage. Hell, sometimes they tossed hot dogs and nachos.

  My first opponent was a Reaper’s son who had won his last three fights. Wearing sweatpants and an oversized tee, I stood in my corner and wondered if getting pounded was worth a hundred bucks.

  Never imagining I’d win and make the three hundred winner’s pot, I only hoped for easy cash to take the pressure off of paying my bills. After getting a concussion from Cooper Johansson, his family paid for my freshman year tuition. I figured making extra money the first year would make the rest of my college experience easier.

  When the biker’s kid came at me, I feared the first blow, yet the pain awoke something dark in me. Growing up, I took more punches and abuse than this fucker. I knew I could beat him. Not through brute strength, but by lasting longer. After he came crashing to the ground and I held the winner’s fee
in my hand, I knew Dragon was back.

  Fighting in the Thunderdome became a chance to act out my ugly past. I pretended I was defeating every asshole that ever treated me like shit. Every douche standing in my way. Every loser who made me hide as a kid. Once I kicked the asses of all those imaginary foes and lost the fire for winning, I simply fought for the money.

  A lot of my opponents were real athletes while others were jerks looking to impress girls. A few were crazy fucks wanting to legally hurt someone. I dealt with each opponent differently.

  The athletes arrived with a plan of attack, so I had to frustrate them until they made a mistake. With the jerks, I only needed to score a few hard punches before they didn’t want to play anymore. As for the crazy fucks, well, I made those fights personal.

  They were easy to spot. Unlike the other guys who played the crowds, the crazy fucks only cared about their prey. I was a victim they got paid to pound into the ground. Once the gate closed behind them and they focused on me, I doubted the freaks even remembered the money or crowd. They only wanted me to bleed.

  My dad was the same kind of man. How many times had he bitched about laws against hitting wives and kids? He claimed what happened in a family should be family business. I knew he wanted a legal way to pound on people.

  The crazy fucks were mere obstacles between me and my money. Even so, the Dragon part of me wanted them to feel like the people they preyed on. No way was I the first one they viewed as easy prey. I wouldn’t be the last either, yet I enjoyed the look on each freak’s face when my first punch took him off guard.

  Everyone said I had a boyish look about me. The Thunderdome manager Axel mentioned the same thing when I arrived for my first fight. Why does a sweet boy like you want to get your ass kicked? I just smiled at his comment since I never had a talent for the kind of trash talking that made so many men scary. As a teenager, I practiced acting tough in front of the mirror. I always ended up laughing because even I didn’t believe the bullshit coming out of my mouth. Though tall and strong, I’d never be scary.

  Every guy I’d fought over the years thought he could take me in less than a minute. Even now as Dragon, I never scared anyone. Their lack of fear was what made the first punch so perfect. The moment my opponents realized they were fucked.

  The guy tonight was an athlete. Wide in every way, I suspect he played football. I enjoyed fighting the bigger guys because they were easier to dodge and wear down. If I escaped the brunt of most punches by being faster, I could outlast them until I delivered the final punch.

  Glancing at the crowd, I saw girls wearing dragon shirts and makeup. Their interest meant Axel paid me more to keep fighting. Even appreciating that the girls’ lusty squeals distracted the athlete, I planned to dodge them like I dodged the guy’s punches. Only one girl interested me, but I hadn’t found our right moment just yet.

  Chapter Three ~ Bailey

  All my friends were joined at the groins and I wanted to know the secret to their happiness. Dropping by Cooper and Farah’s suburban house to chat with my least favorite sister-in-law, I brought along my new assistant.

  A month earlier, I’d hired Winona Todds to take notes for me in class. She also helped me keep organized. The adopted daughter of the Reapers’ pastor and her sister Harlow had a rough time over the summer when a few crazy fuckers grabbed them. I didn’t know everything that went down, but the girls killed one guy and escaped. Now, Winona was my first employee.

  Once inside the two-story family room, Winnie attempted to disappear into the furniture. As much as I liked how quiet she was, sometimes I forgot she was there. Once I even left her at a pizza shop, only remembering hours later.

  Since Farah snared my manwhore brother, she clearly knew a few tricks. Asking for advice was my new thing, but it hadn’t helped me so far. Raven’s brilliant tip to catch a man was flashing my titties. Tawny told me to play coy. I didn’t even know what the hell that meant, but it sounded boring so I never asked her to elaborate. Lark’s advice was to be true to myself. You know, as if I was living in a Disney movie.

  Finally, I turned to Farah for help. The uptight bitch never should have worked with Cooper, yet somehow she wrapped his giant asshole ego around her finger. I wanted to know her secret, so I could use it to trap my man.

  Preggers with their first kid, Farah didn’t look too sexy waddling around the kitchen. Her corndog breath wasn’t working either. I did notice her boobs were bigger. Clearly liking this fact, Cooper said goodbye to them before leaving for school.

  “He’s an idiot,” I told her after he left.

  “He’s sweet,” Farah said with a dreamy smile. Then she frowned at me, “What do you want again?”

  “To rub your Buddha belly for luck.”

  Farah smiled, but I think she wanted to smack me. All the hormones made her shifty and I was a big fan of the feisty changes to her personality.

  “How did you get Cooper to fall in love with you?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Liar.”

  “Why don’t you ask him?”

  “So he can tell me a sappy story about how your eyes met and his dick just knew you were the one? I don’t need the romantic version. I need the blueprint. I’m looking to con a man into loving me.”

  “Sounds like a solid plan, but what works for one person won’t work for another.”

  “Are you saying I’m not hot enough to play your tricks?”

  Farah smirked. “Yeah, basically. Nice boobs though.”

  Rolling my eyes, I stormed to the living room where I threw a sighing fit. With a baby girl on the way, Farah should view my drama as a test run for her future teenage daughter.

  “Cooper came to Denny’s where I worked,” Farah said, sitting down with her corndog salad. “We talked and he made me laugh. I guess that’s how we fell in love.”

  Narrowing my eyes, I muttered, “So the cornerstone of your epic love is that you served him like a slave and he made you laugh? I feel like I’m being punked.”

  “Fuck off, Bailey,” she mumbled with a mouth full of corndog. “I’m sorry you’re having trouble finding the right guy, but don’t take it out on me.”

  “You ever wonder if getting so fat will make Cooper cheat on you?”

  Farah stopped mid-chew and the light faded from her big doe eyes. After allowing her to squirm, I crawled over to her chair and rubbed where my niece was cooking.

  “You’ve got my brother whipped. He’d never cheat because you’d cry and he hates that shit. I hope I break a man’s spirit like that one day.”

  Farah caressed my head as I nuzzled her bump. “Don’t worry, you will.”

  Smiling up at her, I glanced back at Winnie. “Add be a slave and funny as ideas to catch my man.”

  Winnie jotted down the advice then hid behind her dark hair again. When Farah started to say something to my assistant, I patted her tummy.

  “Don’t mess with her groove. She’s not in a chatty mood,” I warned. “Do you have any advice to help me get my man?”

  Farah cupped my face like maybe we’d make out. “Be the best Bailey you can be with him. Don’t be fake though. When he falls for you, he should fall for the real you.”

  Smiling, I pretended her advice was aces even though it was the same crap Lark told me. No way did I buy into their “real me” shit, but I’d already been mean enough to Farah over the last year. No reason for me to smack her around more by mocking her dumb advice.

  After watching Farah scarf down corndogs while I fought the urge to point and laugh, I left the house with Winnie.

  “How will I manage to be Nick’s slave? Should I offer to clean his apartment?”

  Winnie said nothing. She didn’t even look at me either, but I still felt her mentally rolling her eyes.

  “I’ll take that as a no. Maybe I can make him laugh. Or he can make me laugh. Yeah, humor is good. I could also spill something on him then clean it up without asking. Ooh, I’ll be submissive to him.”

&nbs
p; Winnie glanced at me as I prepared to drop her off at the Todds’s 1970’s inspired Brady Bunch house.

  “What?” I asked when she said nothing.

  Rather than pissing me off, Winnie hoped to make a getaway. She climbed out of my SUV then said, “Don’t spill anything.”

  “What should I do then? I’m studying with him in an hour and I need a plan to land my man.”

  Winnie sighed. “Go with your gut.”

  “My gut gets me into trouble.”

  “When the Devils came here and one of them tried to grab you, your gut told you to fight back by shooting at him. That was a good move.”

  “Are you still having bad dreams about that?” I asked softly.

  Stepping back, Winnie lowered her gaze. “Good luck with Nick.”

  After waiting until she was safe in the house, I drove to New Hampton College with the goal of sweeping Nick off his feet. Too bad my plans remained iffy.

  At no point during our study session did Nick look at me. He looked at other girls. Even smiled at them, but I was right there and he didn’t see me.

  I noticed Nick the first day of our freshman year. He was cute with his thick brown hair always falling in his eyes. He also had a great smile, but his bright green eyes were what drew my attention.

  Back then, he hadn’t been so buff or bruised. Having gained around forty pounds, he had wider shoulders, thicker arms, and a stronger chest. A perfect body for fighting, Nick battled guys a few days a week at the Thunderdome. I noticed a healing bruise on his jaw while he had a fresh one near his temple. His hair was shorter these days, but occasionally his bangs covered those amazing green eyes. Though the guy hypnotized me with his sexiness, I couldn’t even get him to flash a glance in my direction.

  Probably downing a gallon of Sprite before study group was a mistake. Or maybe I was sick of sitting across from him and being ignored. No more playing it cool when I ran hot whenever he was in the same room.

  I slammed my hand down on the book he was reading. Not even flinching, Nick didn’t seem startled at all, even while the others jumped. He lifted his gaze to meet mine then waited as if I was a spoiled child and he was the ever patient parent. Fuck him for his patience.