Chapter One
BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
NO ONE ELSE CAN HAVE HER
Sam Crescent
Copyright ? 2024
Chapter One
Nate Smith watched as Carly Andrews sat at her lonesome table, waiting for a date that would never arrive. He’d already seen to it that the man who was supposed to be meeting her wouldn’t make it.
It wasn’t because he was cruel, he simply didn’t want any other man to have her. No one deserved the kindness that was Carly. Out of the whole group, Carly was the nicest. He was the cruelest, and then there was Sarah, who to put it mildly, was the slut. Reese, Dalton, and Mitch were players, but altogether they made their own little family.
Carly was the youngest. While he, Sarah, Reese, Dalton, and Mitch were all thirty years old, they assumed Carly was twenty-nine, but no one knew Carly’s real age. She had come to the foster home when she was young, and from the information they had gotten, she hadn’t come from a good environment. Rumors of being locked in a cage had circulated.
Several other kids had tried to taunt and harm her, but he, along with his buddies, took her under their wing, and they’d been inseparable since. That was over twenty years ago. None of them had ever gotten adopted, and they’d been able to stay together from one home to another, much to their surprise.
He watched as Carly glanced down to check out the time once again, and then looked around the restaurant. There was no way he could leave her to deal with the humiliation of being stood up again. Not that any of her dates intended to stand her up, or leave her alone—that was all on him.
Entering the restaurant, he ignored the ma?tre d’, even as he called toward him, “Sir.”
Carly didn’t pay him any attention until he was standing by her seat.
“Hey, Carly,” he said.
She looked up and smiled. “Nate, oh my, what a surprise.” She got to her feet and instantly embraced him. This was Carly all over, ever the hugger. She always wore her emotions on her sleeve. She was so easy to read.
“Miss, is this man bothering you?” the ma?tre d’ asked.
Clearly the bastard was asking for a death wish, because no one said that kind of shit to him and got away with it. He may have come from nothing, and been told all his life that he was a worthless piece of shit, but he was the total opposite.
When people said his name, it was mingled with fear and respect. No one dared cross him. He was the one with the power—a king—and those who betrayed him, well, they didn’t breathe for long.
Reese, Dalton, and Mitch were his closest allies, and he rewarded them well.
No one had what it took to overthrow him from his throne. Kingpin, crime lord, street king, gangster, it didn’t matter what label they gave him, he was the one that ruled the underbelly of the city, and he liked it.
There was nothing better than having nothing, then having it all.
“No, of course not. Would you like to join me?” Carly asked.
“I’d love to.”
The smile on her lips made him happy. There were a lot of things in his life that made him happy, but real joy only came from being with Carly for just a few moments. He didn’t know how she did it, only that she did.
Whenever his rage took over, when he couldn’t gain control, the only person who was ever safe around him was Carly. She brought him back from the brink time and time again. He’d lost count. She made him sane.
The ma?tre d’ grumbled, and he made a note to have a word with the little shit. No way was anyone going to embarrass him in his own restaurant. He owned a great deal of businesses, legal and not so legal.
He knew the only way to stay on top was to have his hand in a lot of different pies. The cops ate out of the palm of his hand, and, well, he had a lot of deals in process, and no one could get anything past him, which was exactly the way he liked it.
“Have you ordered?” Nate asked.
“Nah, I was waiting for my date.”
“A date? Would you like me to leave?” He pretended to stand but Carly reached out and placed a hand on his arm.
“Please, don’t. I … my date didn’t show, and I’ve been waiting around for a good forty minutes. It’s sad, I know. I should have left after ten, but you never know.” She shrugged. “I’m hungry and I’m tired.”
“Would you like me to have this son of a bitch killed?”
Carly rolled her eyes. “No, it’s fine. Standing someone up is no cause to lose a life.” She smiled and he didn’t know how she did it.
She’d always been too forgiving, too nice, too gullible. This was why he made Sarah share the apartment that he’d also purchased for Carly. She paid next to nothing for the rent, and Sarah had no choice but to keep an eye on Carly. Not that Sarah minded, but Nate had started to pay the other woman to constantly keep an eye on Carly’s whereabouts.
“You know, if you actually tell Carly how you feel, she’d be more than willing to give it a try.” That had been Sarah’s last piece of advice to him just two weeks ago, which he ignored. Only their closest friends could give their opinions, but that didn’t mean he’d take it.
Carly picked up the menu and he watched as she looked over and smiled at him. “You’re going to tell me you know what’s good at this place?”
“As it happens, yes. Their spicy chicken wings are excellent. I highly recommend them.”
She rolled her eyes and closed the menu. “Fine, I will let you order, but I warn you, no salad. Not today. I’m done with veggies for awhile. I’m so tired of being hungry all the damn time.”
He hated that every other day Carly seemed to be on one or more diets at a time. To him, she was perfect the way she was, and there was no reason to change. He didn’t see a problem with her full, ripe tits, flared hips, curvy ass, or juicy thighs.
Snapping his fingers toward the server, he didn’t have to wait long before he was served. He ordered double the spicy chicken wings, as well as the house special, along with Carly’s favorite—fries drenched in spicy cheese sauce. She always had a love of spice.
“My mouth is watering,” she said.
He couldn’t resist smiling at her. “It’s a good place.”
With the waiter gone, he and Carly were finally alone. She blew out a breath, and offered him a smile.
“This is good. How long has it been since you and I enjoyed dinner together?” Carly asked, reaching across the table to touch his hand.
“It has been a few months.”
It was now August. The last time he ate with Carly was on Christmas, but she had invited the whole gang to hang out. It was important to all of them to spend time together, especially at the holidays. Carly insisted on it, as she told them, they were a family.
If only she knew he didn’t consider her in any way sisterly or motherly. Carly had always meant more to him than that. He’d never crossed the line with her. Never.
Carly was too precious to him to just take what he wanted when it came to her. It didn’t for a second mean he wasn’t pissed off when other men thought they could have what belonged to him. There was no chance of that.
“You’re right, I think this calls for another get-together or a barbeque. You know how the guys love that, and Sarah will do anything to show off her latest bikini body.”
Nate sat back and looked at her. “This is your subtle way of asking me to use my pit, isn’t it?”
Carly rolled her eyes. “You’re the only one that has a barbeque pit and a pool, and yes, you know it is, but all for a good cause. It’s been eight months since the whole gang’s been back together, and we did all promise each other we wouldn’t wait too long.”
She did give him those amazing eyes, and she was right, this is the longest they’d all gone without seeing each other.
They had promised each other, years ago, that no matter what, they would stick by one another and be a family. No one else wanted them, so they’d always be there for each other. Most years, they found multiple reasons to meet up, but in the past couple of years, they had drifted just a little.
“If you organize everything, I will be there,” said Nate.
****
“So you had dinner with Nate?” Sarah asked.
Carly rolled her eyes, and then looked into the mirror at her best friend, who didn’t know the first thing about boundaries. Their apartment was amazing. Each bedroom had its own en suite, so no reason to share a bathroom, and yet Sarah was in hers, dressed in a raunchy negligee, and she looked good. There was no denying it.
However, Sarah had already insisted on hearing all the details as she took a shower, flossed, brushed her teeth, and now finished off her nightly face ritual of cleansing, toning, and moisturizing.
“Yes, Nate was in the area apparently, he saw me sitting alone, and came to see what was going on.”
“I’m sure he did,” Sarah said.
Carly frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing at all. I’m sure Nate was conveniently in the same area where your date was supposed to turn up. Did this one even call and give an excuse?”
Carly wrinkled her nose. “No, he just didn’t show up. Am I that … bad … you know, for no guy to want to date me?”
Sarah sighed and walked toward her, putting hands on her hips. “You’re gorgeous, babe. Trust me, none of this is your fault. Guys are just dicks. They clearly don’t know how to fight for what they want, so they don’t even show up for dates.”
“I hope you’re right.” Carly sighed. “I’ve not exactly been lucky on the dating front. Everyone seems to have an excuse, or they don’t show up. The ones that do are absolute pigs, and it always puts me off dating for a long time.” She tried not to feel upset or like giving up. She took a deep breath.
“What’s the matter?” Sarah asked.
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
“Don’t do that to me, babe. You and I both know we don’t have secrets from one another, so just tell me.”
Carly finished swiping the brush through her hair and turned toward Sarah. “It’s silly, really, and I don’t even know why I’m letting it bother me.” Her friend didn’t interrupt, and she knew she couldn’t keep it in any longer. “I get that as a kid, parents and couples didn’t want me. I always hoped when I was older, I’d find someone who could love me, that we’d be able to start a family, have lots of babies, and those babies would love me as well. I’d be this amazing mom, always at the stove, cooking up pies and cakes, and making homemade medicines, like chicken soup.” She felt tears spring to her eyes. She’d lost count of the number of birthday candles she blew out on that wish.
“Oh, honey,” Sarah said, wrapping her arms around her.
“It’s fine. Honestly, it’s fine.”
Sarah didn’t let her go and Carly couldn’t help but want her best friend’s tight embrace.
“I’ve got you,” Sarah said. “We’re your family, and you can cook me chicken soup anytime.”
Even as tears fell down her cheeks, she couldn’t help but let out a laugh. She could always rely on Sarah to keep it real.
“I love you,” Carly said.
“I know, and I love you too. I also know the guys would gladly come for your chicken soup.”
They were the best. She knew she could always count on Sarah, Reese, Dalton, Mitch, and of course Nate. They were her family. When no one else wanted her, even the other kids in the care home, they were always there.
“Are you going to be okay?” Sarah asked.
“Yeah, of course. You know me, I always bounce back from something like this. I will be A-OK.”
Sarah didn’t look convinced.
“So, are you going to tell me all the juicy gossip with Nate?”
“There is nothing to tell, and I don’t get your obsession with him.”
“Trust me, I am not obsessed with him. The dude is like a brother to me.”
Carly watched as Sarah wrinkled her nose. She kind of understood what her friend was saying. Reese, Dalton, and Mitch were like brothers to her, no doubt about it, but she never thought of Nate in a brotherly sense. However, she did think about him a lot, and she would quickly push those thoughts deep down so they had no chance to escape.
Someone like Nate Smith would never go for her. She’d seen women swarm around him, even when they were teenagers. He always possessed that dangerous, dark edge that seemed to draw a lot of women. Nate always seemed disappointed in a lot of women. He was her best friend, and they were technically family, but none of them were actually related. It was messed up.
She would never do anything about it, though. She couldn’t ruin nearly twenty years of friendship because she had feelings for him. Sarah didn’t always help matters, as she constantly tried to imply there was more between them, but that wasn’t the case.
Nate was always there for her, and it was a relief because no one else had ever been able to understand her. She knew Sarah and the others were there for her, but it was different with Nate. She didn’t feel like a freak around him. Sometimes, she felt like the others only kept her around because of Nate. She knew she had no right to feel that way since they’d never made her feel less or anything like that. It was just different with them.
“But come on, you and Nate, on a date? Tell me what happened. Give your girl the deets.”
This was where Carly always felt guilty, because Sarah was always there for her, and her old insecurities felt so out of place, it was unreal.
Carly laughed. “It’s not that thrilling. Nate ordered us chicken, and trust me, it was delicious, and he made sure I got my fries dripping in cheese sauce. You know how much I love that. Then for dessert, we shared some chocolate pudding.” She was not about to tell Sarah that Nate insisted on being the one to feed her. If she told her that, she wouldn’t hear the end of it.
Stepping out of her bedroom, she made her way into the kitchen to prepare her bedtime drink of a lovely hot chocolate. She knew it was bad for her, but she’d also been on a strict vegetable diet, and she was in serious withdrawal. It wasn’t like she even dropped the weight either. No, she ate more and put weight on. Stupid diets and stupid fads that don’t work.
“Do you want one?”
“Hell, yeah,” Sarah said, taking a seat at the kitchen counter. “Come on, you must have more details to spill? How was Nate?”
Carly rolled her eyes. “He seemed good. I don’t think he’s dating anyone.”
“Nate doesn’t date anyone.”
“Do you think he will ever settle down?” Carly asked.
“For the right woman, I can imagine Nate being a happily married man and devoted father,” Sarah said.
She was not going to get jealous. Any woman who got Nate Smith would be one hell of a lucky woman.
“Oh, that reminds me, I’ve convinced Nate to allow us to use his home for our family get-together. Barbeque and the pool.”
Sarah let out an excited squeal. “Consider it a party, and I have got the perfect bikini for the occasion.”
Carly laughed. She’d provided her friend with enough distraction that she stopped asking a load of questions, which was a relief. She didn’t want to keep talking about Nate and him settling down with a woman, or anyone.
She couldn’t deny it, though, any woman who snagged Nate would be lucky. She knew he acted the tough guy, and yes, he was, but there was a part of Nate that was sweet, kind, loyal, and loving. Any woman who was able to inspire that in him would have to be special.