Rescued

  RESCUED

  L.P. Maxa

  Diane Benefiel

  Cindy Holby

  Gabi Stevens

  Sheri Humphreys

  Marilyn Baxter

  Joan Bird

  Emily Mims

  Bleu – L.P. Maxa

  Over the past few months Bleu and Maykin have become best friends. They hang out all the time, especially after Bleu punches a guy for trash-talking Maykin, and gets sentenced to community service at an animal shelter. Cuddling puppies leads to finally giving in to the attraction they've been avoiding. And becoming dog parents seals the deal. Forever.

  Burnover – Diane Benefiel

  After a horrible year, including getting dumped days before her wedding, Eva decides to find a forever friend at the animal shelter. Finn, a feisty doggie escape artist, runs over to Eva's new next-door neighbor, the firefighter hottie who's been flirting with her over the café counter where she works. Eva intends to avoid Diego Jones, but not for long. A firebug with an unhealthy attachment to Eva forces her to rely on Diego for more than protection. He's captured her heart, and he plans to keep her loved and safe for the rest of their lives.

  Abandoned Love – Cindy Holby

  5 a.m. and bakery owner Emily Redding finds herself trapped in a dumpster while trying to save a little dog and her newborn pups. Sheriff deputy, Luke Hall responds to the 911 call. A handsome but taciturn man who is new to the area, Luke slowly draws Emily in with his easy manner and winning smile. As they search for the culprit who is dumping helpless dogs all over the community, they navigate their way into each other's hearts.

  Chaos – Gabi Stevens

  Mystic, Wyoming is home to all things strange and magical. Summoned to use skills unique only to her, Amelia Brent returns to the small town nestled in a picturesque valley. Little does she know forces are at work that will change her life. It all starts with a dog named Chaos, his dad, famous furniture maker, Roman Innis, and powers that reveal no one is exactly who they seem to be. Which is the best thing Amelia and Roman could wish for.

  Sparks – Sheri Humphreys

  Tiny, but mighty, a little dog races into a burning house to save... a cat. Firefighter Brian Becker swoops up the brave dog and takes him to the emergency vet. Dr. Jennifer Magee is everything Brian wants, but with their schedules, her three special needs pets, and him with his new friend, Sparky, the odds of them getting together seems impossible. Until Brian realizes anything worth having is worth working for.

  Always a Hero – Marilyn Baxter

  When a hurricane threatens St. Magnus Island, deputy sheriff, Noah Tindall finds Lucy Jansen home alone. She hasn't evacuated along with all the other residents, and the reason – her foster dog is giving birth. Six pups later, Noah convinces Lucy to go to his home on higher ground. No power, a tornado warning, and cramped quarters make for intimacy neither want, but both end up craving. Forever.

  Oscar – Joan Bird

  Jobless, single, pregnant, Fiona Kavanagh's life is a mess. When she finds a sweet, starving puppy beside the brook where Phee had been crying her eyes out, she takes the little guy home knowing they are rescuing each other. Dr. Cabe McCain is an ass. A good vet, an unbelievably great-looking man, but an ass. Until Phee learns his past might be the reason they will have an incredibly bright future together.

  Cocoa – Emily Mims

  Brittany Barstow grew up with musicians. Famous musicians. She knows all about their life on the road, and what that does to relationships. So even though handsome, guitar playing, country music singer, Lonnie Jeffries, of the Jeffries, helps her save a little dog from certain death, he is not boyfriend material. Not even close. Until he proves he is.

  www.BOROUGHSPUBLISHINGGROUP.com

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. Boroughs Publishing Group does not have any control over and does not assume responsibility for author or third-party websites, blogs or critiques or their content.

  RESCUED

  L.P. Maxa, Diane Benefiel, Cindy Holby, Gabi Stevens

  Sheri Humphreys, Marilyn Baxter, Joan Bird, Emily Mims

  Copyright © 2018

  Smashwords Edition

  All rights reserved. Unless specifically noted, no part of this publication may be reproduced, scanned, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Boroughs Publishing Group. The scanning, uploading and distribution of this book via the Internet or by any other means without the permission of Boroughs Publishing Group is illegal and punishable by law. Participation in the piracy of copyrighted materials violates the author’s rights.

  ISBN 978-1-948029-46-9

  E-book formatting by Maureen Cutajar

  www.gopublished.com

  CONTENTS

  Bleu

  Burnover

  Abandoned Love

  Chaos

  Sparks

  Always a Hero

  Oscar

  Cocoa

  About the Authors

  RESCUED

  BLEU

  L.P. Maxa

  To my husband.

  Thanks for letting me fill our house and lives with rescue animals.

  I’m really sorry they ate the couch.

  And all our plants.

  And every air compressor hose you’ve ever had.

  “You will always find the answer in your heart where it has been waiting since long before the questions.”

  —Atticus

  Bleu + Maykin text messages

  Bleu: Nick and Diminutive Dove are being lame asses. Wanna meet for drinks after work? Well, after I get off work. I literally have no idea what you do all day.

  Maykin: One, I’m taking 12 hours and getting a show ready for a gallery in Uptown. So, suck it. Two, I have a date tonight. And three? Diminutive? Nice.

  Bleu: Ew, a date? Why?

  Maykin: Because occasionally I like to shock my parents by doing what they ask. It keeps them on their toes.

  Bleu: So…collared shirt with khaki shorts and a frat strap around his Costas?

  Maykin: Prolly.

  Bleu: Ditch. Let’s get white girl wasted and make fun of people less cool.

  Maykin: I can’t.

  Bleu: Lame ass.

  Maykin: We could meet up after? I’m not letting the future cheating CEO stick his dick in me or anything.

  Bleu: I bet it’s small anyway.

  Maykin: But he thinks it’s huge b/c his parents have spent the last twenty plus years blowing smoke up his ass.

  Bleu: Mine is MASSIVE.

  Maykin: I have no doubt.

  Bleu: Are you doing sarcastic?

  Maykin: Of course not.

  Bleu: I still can’t tell.

  Maykin: Drinks or no?

  Bleu: It’s pierced too.

  Maykin: Drinks offer expiring in three…

  Bleu: The good kind of dick piercing, not the boring kind.

  Maykin: Two…

  Bleu: Why don’t you want to get pounded by my giant pierced dick!?

  Maykin: One…

  Bleu: Fine. Drinks, no pounding.

  Maykin: See you tonight :)

  Maykin: Hey loser, how you feelin’?

  Bleu: Like I got run over by a train. Where are you? I woke up and you were gone. I thought maybe we could bang like bunnies before breakfast.

  Maykin: Did you tho?

  Bleu: No :(

  Maykin: I’ve told ya killer, I like you too much to fuck you.

  Bleu: Sam
e. I’ve gotta get some ass though dude. It’s been waaaaaaay tooooo loooong.

  Maykin: What happened to that little blonde that was drooling over you on the dance floor Kevin Bacon?

  Bleu: Footloose is a spectacular old film, I refuse to be embarrassed. And idk, somewhere between licking salt off your neck for that tequila shot and making Evie reenact that final dance scene with me, the blonde peaced out.

  Maykin: Well her loss. I mean fuck, you’ve got the good kind of dick piercing, not the boring kind.

  Bleu: I KNOW, RIGHT?!

  Maykin: I came back to my place to shower your apartment funk off my body. You want to meet for brunch?

  Bleu: My apartment doesn’t smell. And hells yes, I’m starving. I puked. So my tummy is empty.

  Maykin: I know. I was there.

  Bleu: Come back here and help me get dressed. It’s hard to move my arms.

  Maykin: You need a nanny.

  Bleu: I REALLY DO.

  Maykin: Maybe we can pay a prostitute to fuck you AND take care of you?

  Bleu: I’m so fucking down. Let’s discuss over brunch. But for real, come back and help me.

  Maykin: Fine but brunch is on you and I’m NOT holding your giant pierced dick while you take a piss.

  Bleu: You’re my favorite person in the whole world.

  Maykin: I better be.

  Maykin: I need you to come get me.

  Bleu: Aren’t you on a date? Did something happen? Did he try to finger you under the table? I’ll break his fucking hand.

  Maykin: What kind of dates do you go on, man? No. He did NOT try to finger me under the table.

  Bleu: He ordered wine, didn’t he? I don’t know why you have such an issue with that. Nicky drinks wine, he’s manly.

  Maykin: He did order wine. But that’s not why I need a rescue. He’s just…boring? And like super into himself. He’s irritating me. I can’t deal. I’m too sober. Plus I’m pms-ing real fucking hard.

  Bleu: Well that’s what you get for going out with rich douche canoes that pop their collars and press their pants.

  Maykin: Save me the lecture. Be a pal. Do me a solid.

  Bleu: Oh I’ll do you solid baby girl, don’t you worry.

  Maykin: Why does every conversation we have come back to your dick?

  Bleu: Because it’s awesome and deserves to be spoken about often.

  Maykin: Please come get me. He hasn’t even stopped talking about himself long enough to realize I’m not listening.

  Bleu: Have you ordered yet?

  Maykin: Drinks and an appetizer.

  Bleu: Order us dinner to go.

  Maykin: What?! Don’t you think that would be a little obvious? Oh hey Tanner, I’m not feeling well, I have a ride coming to get me in the middle of our date. But first! I’m going to order enough food for two people.

  Bleu: Since when do you give two shits about other people’s feelings?

  Maykin: Uh since his parents are my dad’s colleagues? And if they find out I ditched for another dude, they’ll ask me a trillion fucking annoying questions.

  Bleu: Fine. But we’re getting food on the way home. AND you’re buying.

  Maykin: Deal. Now come get me. Plllleeeeease.

  Bleu: Don’t beg.

  Maykin: Why? Because it’s beneath me?

  Bleu: No. Because it makes my spectacular dick hard AF.

  Maykin: The look on my face right now is nothing short of withering.

  Chapter One

  Bleu

  I washed my hands and then wiped them on one of the black towels hanging by the sink. Today had been a long-ass day of tattooing. But hours of listening to the buzz of my gun was better than hours spent doing about anything else. Except maybe fucking. Hours of fucking would have also been a fantastic way to spend my day.

  “You done?” I walked out of my station and toward the front desk of Revival Ink. Nicky, my best friend and the owner, was standing at the counter looking over the schedule for the next week. We needed to hire more people, and fast. Revival Ink had three main artists: Nicky, myself, and our other buddy, Hawkins. Since all of Evie’s uncles had come into the shop a couple weeks ago to get inked by Nick, we were busier than ever. A couple insta-stories from the Devil’s Share crew and we were famous as fuck.

  The uncles were trying to do Nick a solid since they all worshipped him for saving Evie from her pill addiction and her rapist ex-boyfriend. But in reality, they’d kind of screwed us.

  “Yeah, finished about ten minutes ago.” He closed out and shut the monitor off. “I’m fucking beat, man. This week has been crazy.”

  “Anyone reply to our ads?” We’d posted a few places, saying we were hiring and listing specifications a mile long. Apparently, when you were the best, you got to be picky as hell.

  Nick nodded, grabbing his keys from under the counter. “Few people, I have interviews set up for next week.”

  It was Saturday, almost midnight, and we weren’t open tomorrow. Which meant I was more than ready to go get fucked the hell up and then promptly pass the hell out. “Where are the girls?”

  Nicky’s girlfriend Evie and her best friend Maykin were really the only females I’d been spending time with lately. After the attack on Evie, we all kind of hunkered down. We closed ranks and did everything we could to make sure she felt comfortable.

  Evie was great, and Maykin had quickly become one of my favorite people on the damn planet. She was feisty and flirty, and gorgeous as hell. And funny. Man, could that little redhead make me laugh. Usually it was at my expense, but I didn’t mind. She had a witty, sarcastic sense of humor and I enjoyed the fuck out of her.

  “They’re waiting for us at the Truck Yard.” Nicky tossed me my jacket from the hook by the front door.

  “The Truck Yard? I hate the fucking Truck Yard, man.”

  He shrugged, locking the door after I closed it. “Sorry, bro, your girl chose it.”

  “She’s not my girl.” Maykin was no doubt the coolest chick I’d ever met. We were friends. We talked all the time and hung out constantly. But she certainly wasn’t mine. “And she has awful taste in bars.”

  Neither she nor I wanted to ruin the vibe we had going by hooking up. I mean, sure, my dick would have jumped at a chance to be with Mayk. He gave a little twitch every time she walked into the damn room. But my brain knew it would be a terrible idea. I wasn’t really a commitment type of guy, and she certainly wasn’t that kind of girl. Why mess up a great thing with something that was doomed to fail?

  “Maykin has terrible taste in a lot of things.” Nicky climbed into his badass vintage Scout, reaching over the seat to unlock the passenger door for me. “We had to double date with her last week. The dude she brought was pre-med, but he wanted to go into plastic surgery. The asshat was pointing around the room, telling us the things he would ‘augment’ on the people eating at other tables.”

  I snorted, shaking my head. “Was that a guy she picked out? Or another douche canoe her parents set her up with?”

  “Does it matter? I still had to suffer through a two-hour meal with the guy.” Nicky pulled away from the curb, driving the short distance to the Truck Yard. We could have easily walked, but it was November in Dallas and cold as balls once the sun disappeared.

  Maykin had overbearing, rich-as-fuck parents. They wanted to see their baby girl settle down, so they were constantly setting her up with their friends’ sons. Maykin rarely made it through a whole date. Most of the time, she was texting me during appetizers asking for a rescue. I didn’t mind helping her out. My mom tried to set me up all the time too. But at least her heart was in the right place. She wanted to see me happy and in love. And she wanted grandkids like yesterday.

  But Maykin’s parents had a different motivation, in my opinion at least. It seemed to me like they were trying to tame her. Mayk was a free spirit, a wild child. She was an artist and she was ballsy as hell. She spoke her mind and then shot you a wink afterward. Her parents set her up with wealthy, boring clones of
themselves. They were going to graduate and become doctors, lawyers, senators—carbon copies of their fathers, and their fathers before them. They had no personality, no spunk. They’d never, in reality, be able to handle someone as spectacular as Maykin Miles.

  “Earth to fucking Bleu?”

  I was jerked out of my thoughts by Nicky’s loud voice and the solid punch he sent into my arm. “Huh? Sorry, it’s been a long week.”

  “We’re here.” Nicky climbed out, waiting for me at the entrance to the Truck Yard.

  I could hear live music still going strong, and the buzz of conversation. The girls had chosen an outdoor venue, which made no fucking sense. It was cold, and there were only so many propane heaters to go around. I should have brought an extra jacket because Maykin would inevitably steal mine within minutes.

  “There they are.” Nicky pointed to our immediate right, up on a small raised platform.

  Evie and Maykin were huddled under a blazing heater, their hands held up to the coils, trying to gather as much warmth as possible. I stifled a sigh and made my way through the packed crowd.

  “It’s cold outside,” I told her the obvious.

  Maykin sent me a smirk. “I wanted to hear some live music, and Evie wanted Philly cheesesteak.”

  Music and food. Those were the two reasons that we were all going to be freezing our asses off for the next hour. I picked up Maykin’s half-eaten sandwich and took a big bite, talking with my mouth full. “We have a waitress? I need a shot. Fireball, to help heat my blood.”

  “It’s not that cold. Stop being such a baby.” Maykin rolled her eyes and stood on her tiptoes, searching the open venue. “I’ll get you your damn shot.”

  Our waitress, a cute brunette with ink on her arms and small gauges in her ears, bounced over to the table. She reminded me of a tiny emo bunny.

  Maykin pointed at me. “I need a shot of fireball for my delicate friend here.” She sent our waitress a playful frown. “It’s a little too cold out here for him.”