Say You Won't Let Go_A Return to Me/Masters and Mercenaries Novella Read online

  Say You Won’t Let Go

  By Corinne Michaels

  A Return to Me/Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Introduction by Lexi Blake

  Say You Won’t Let Go

  A Return to Me/Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Copyright 2018 Corinne Michaels

  ISBN: 978-1-945920-77-6

  Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.

  Book Description

  Say You Won’t Let Go: A Return to Me/Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  by Corinne Michaels

  I’ve had two goals my entire life:

  1. Make it big in country music.

  2. Get the hell out of Bell Buckle.

  I was doing it. I was on my way, until Cooper Townsend landed backstage at my show in Dallas.

  This gorgeous, rugged, man of few words was one cowboy I couldn’t afford to let distract me. But with his slow smile and rough hands, I just couldn’t keep away.

  Now, there are outside forces conspiring against us. Maybe we should’ve known better? Maybe not. Even with the protection from Wade Rycroft, bodyguard for McKay-Taggart, I still don’t feel safe. I won’t let him get hurt because of me. All I know is that I want to hold on, but know the right thing to do is to let go . . .

  About Corinne Michaels

  New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Corinne Michaels is the author of nine romance novels. She’s an emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun-loving mom of two beautiful children. Corinne is happily married to the man of her dreams and is a former Navy wife.

  After spending months away from her husband while he was deployed, reading and writing was her escape from the loneliness. She enjoys putting her characters through intense heartbreak and finding a way to heal them through their struggles. Her stories are chock full of emotion, humor, and unrelenting love.

  Also from Corinne Michaels

  Click to purchase

  The Salvation Series

  Beloved

  Beholden

  Consolation

  Conviction

  Defenseless

  Return to Me Series

  Say You’ll Stay

  Say You Want Me

  Say I’m Yours

  Say You Won’t Let Go: A Return to Me/Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Standalone Novels

  We Own Tonight

  One Last Time

  An Introduction to the Lexi Blake Crossover Collection

  Who doesn’t love a crossover? I know that for me there’s always been something magical about two fictional words blending and meeting in a totally unexpected way. For years the only medium that has truly done it well and often is comic books. Superman vs. Batman in a fight to the finish. Marvel’s Infinite Universe. There’s something about two crazy worlds coming together that almost makes them feel more real. Like there’s this brilliant universe filled with fictional characters and they can meet and talk, and sometimes they can fall in love.

  I’m a geek. I go a little crazy when Thor meets up with Iron Man or The Flash and Arrow team up.

  So why wouldn’t we do it in Romanceland?

  There are ways out there. A writer can write in another author’s world, giving you her take on it. There’s some brilliant fanfiction out there, but I wanted something different. I wanted to take my time and gradually introduce these characters from other worlds, bring you in slowly so you don’t even realize what I’m doing. So you think this is McKay-Taggart, nothing odd here. Except there is…

  Over the course of my last three books—Love Another Day, At Your Service, and Nobody Does It Better—I introduced you to five new characters and five new and brilliant worlds. If I’ve done my job, you’ll know and love these characters—sisters from another mister, brothers from another mother.

  So grab a glass of wine and welcome to the Lexi Blake Crossover Collection.

  Love,

  Lexi

  Available now! Click to purchase.

  Close Cover by Lexi Blake

  Her Guardian Angel by Larissa Ione

  Justify Me by J. Kenner

  Say You Won't Let Go by Corinne Michaels

  His to Protect by Carly Phillips

  Rescuing Sadie by Susan Stoker

  Dedication

  To my daughter, Emily: May you always chase your dreams no matter how impossible they may seem. You are beautiful. You are loved. You are special. You are capable of anything.

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  Discovery Bundle Three

  Featuring stories by

  Sidney Bristol, Darcy Burke, T. Gephart

  Stacey Kennedy, Adriana Locke

  JB Salsbury, and Erika Wilde

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About Corinne Michaels

  Also by Corinne Michaels

  An introduction to the Lexi Blake Crossover Collection

  Dedication

  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

  Epilogue

  Discover the Lexi Blake Crossover Collection

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  An excerpt from One Last Time by Corinne Michaels

  An excerpt from Protected by Lexi Blake

  Special Thanks

  “I wish I could turn back the clock. I'd find you sooner and love you longer.” — (Unknown)

  Chapter One

  “Thank y’all for comin’ out tonight!” I step back from the microphone and smile. I love ending a show. It’s exhilarating, and as the clapping continues, I wave, basking in the thrill of entertaining.

  I was meant to do this.

  “Great show, Emily,” Matt, the guitarist for Luke, says as I step into the shadows.

  “Thanks.” I grin. Coming from him, that’s a high compliment. “I’m really glad to be on this tour.”

  Matt touches my arm and squeezes. “We’re happy you joined on.”

  It’s been four months of traveling with Luke and his band. His last song went number one on the country music billboards. The fact that he asked me to be on his tour is baffling. I was so lucky he happened to be in the bar that night and heard me sing.

  “And she’s much prettier to look at than the last guy we had.” Luke emerges and hands me a beer.

  “Well, thank you.” I smile.
/>   “Don’t play shy, Emily. You know all the guys around here are happy to have a pretty blonde around.”

  I roll my eyes and chuckle. As if that matters to me. I’m not stupid enough to ever get involved with anyone from the tour. They call them horror stories for a reason. “Maybe I should dye my hair and get fat.”

  “Don’t you dare.” Matt nudges me. “You’ll sell more records lookin’ like sex on a stick.”

  I’m not sure if I should laugh or punch someone. “Good to know.”

  “Don’t listen to him.” Luke slaps him on the back. “They’ll buy your records because of your voice.”

  I’ll believe anything he tells me. My newest song “Don’t Call Me Darlin’” is starting to gain traction, which I owe all to Luke. He knows this business, and I couldn’t have asked for a better mentor.

  Matt laughs. “Comin’ from Country Music’s Sexiest Man Alive.”

  “Fuck off, Matt.” Luke turns his back to him. “You’ll sing the duet tonight?”

  “Of course.” I smile and try to calm my fluttering nerves and rein in my inner fangirl, which is hard. Sure, he’s electric on stage, there is no denying that, but he’s also a good guy and never balks at helping his opening acts gain more exposure.

  “Good. I’ll see you out there in a bit.”

  The lights shift, and the stage is now set for the main event. Luke drains his beer and grabs his microphone. One day, that’ll be me.

  I’ll be a headliner.

  Shortly after I sing the duet and exit the stage, I hear my name being called. Can a woman get two seconds to decompress before the wolves descend?

  “Emily?” my manager Ginny calls. “There’s a guy who says he knows you and wants to be let back here.”

  “I don’t know anyone from Texas.”

  She puts the phone up to her ear and grumbles. “He said he’s from Bell Buckle and his sister, Priestly, will kick your ass.”

  “You mean Presley! Cooper is here? Let him back!”

  I walk toward the side of the stage where the bouncers are keeping the crowd back. “Emily! Emily!” Two girls yell with their arms raised. I wave and walk over so I can sign the poster they’re holding out to me. “You were amazing!”

  “Thanks, y’all.”

  “I agree,” Cooper’s deep voice says as he comes closer.

  “Cooper Townsend, you sly man, showin’ up here without callin’ me.” I wrap my arms around him and hold tight. I have to lift up on my tippy toes just to reach him. He has to be at least six-foot-two where I’m barely five-foot-five. His strong arms close around me, and he squeezes, pulling my feet off the ground for just a second.

  He puts me down, and I take a second to look him over. My hands rest on thick muscular arms, his tall frame blocks out the sun that’s setting behind him, and I could melt right here. He’s always been sexy, but right now, he has that whole tall, dark, and handsome thing going on. The five o’clock shadow only adds to his appeal. The way his hair falls over the dark green eyes that are staring into mine makes it impossible to look away.

  “You look great, Em. Really great.”

  I feel the heat rush to my cheeks, and I duck my head. I’m blushing like a teenager. “Thanks, Coop. What are you doin’ all the way down here in Dallas?”

  I loop my arm in his, leading him away from prying eyes. “I’m here for a cattle rancher event.”

  “Ohhh, sounds like a ton of fun.” There is a grin on my lips as I tease him.

  “They’re revealing a few new products and I thought I should be here.”

  I nod and open the door to the tour bus. “Bein’ the sensible rancher you are.”

  “Of course.”

  “So, tell me what’s new?” We sit on the couch, and I rest my hand on his knee.

  Cooper fills me in on all the gossip from back home. He tells me about Grace’s little girl, Hannah, and Wyatt and Angie’s baby, Felicity. Then he takes out his phone to show me pictures of the girls. Wyatt’s little girl is getting so big, and I hate that I haven’t met either of those precious babies yet. When he shows me a photo of Trent, Grace, and Hannah, I have to fight back tears. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to miss everything since I’m on tour.

  “I miss y’all so much. Bein’ on the road is tough.”

  “But you’re happy?” Cooper questions.

  “I love it. I love singing for people, and Luke Berry is awesome to work with. It’s a great honor, and I’m so blessed. I just never thought it would go this far, you know? I thought I’d do like I promised my mama before she died and give it two full years of tryin’ to make it before returning back home.”

  His hand rests on my shoulder. “You were always meant for more.” Then Coop leans back with his arm draped across the back. “I’m happy for you, Emmy. I really am. Everyone back home is, too.”

  I love that he calls me Emmy. No one outside of Bell Buckle ever uses my nickname. It’s always Emily or Ms. Young. I just want to be Emmy or Em every now and then.

  I lean back against Cooper and rest my head on his chest. “You’re such a good guy. I wish I could be back in Tennessee so I could meet Hannah and Felicity.”

  Cooper’s fingers trace up and down my arm. “I wish you were back in Tennessee, too.”

  “Yeah?” I ask, sitting back up with a smirk.

  “Yeah, it’s hard not havin’ anyone to pick on now that they’re all married and havin’ babies.”

  “That’s why you wish I was back?” I challenge.

  “Well, that and I kind of like you…” Cooper’s green eyes turn liquid as he stares at me.

  “Just kind of?”

  He shrugs, and we both start laughing. “You know how Bell Buckle is. It’s the same even when everything changes.”

  I nod. It really is that way. Some things are meant to be the same, but it’s been far too long since I’ve been home. I haven’t had time to visit Mama or anyone else. Grace and Angie both have babies and are always asleep when I finally get around to calling—it’s been hard adjusting.

  “I can’t believe Grace is someone’s mama.” I laugh as I crisscross my legs.

  “It’s scary, but she’s happy, which is all that matters.”

  Cooper says the words with so much honesty that I hesitate before asking my next question. However, I’m not known for holding back. I know that he says he’s fine with her and Trent, but is he really? It seems crazy to me that after pining for her for years that he’d just be so easygoing about it all.

  “And you’re okay with her and…him?”

  He laughs. “Grace and I were never anything more than friends who shared an awkward kiss. I think I just really liked the idea of her.”

  “What pretty girl do you have your eyes set on now?”

  Cooper’s deep green eyes meet mine and they burn. Intensely. I see the heat pooling as his jaw tics just a little before he clears his throat. “The one that I’ve never quite been able to find.”

  I’m not sure what that means, and I’m not about to make assumptions, but a bud of hope grows. I’ve always wondered if we could’ve been. He has a big heart and a rocking body. I think Grace is freaking insane for not holding on to him. Cooper Townsend is grade A prime meat. One I’d like to sink my teeth into.

  “Well.” I sigh. “I’m glad you found me tonight.”

  Cooper looks at the floor and then meets my eyes. “What if I told you I knew you’d be here?”

  My teeth grip my bottom lip, and I tilt my head. “Is that what you’re tellin’ me?”

  Our lives aren’t the same. He runs a ranch, raising cattle and mending fences, while I’m on the road, singing and following my dream. I have no plans to settle down in Bell Buckle. I’m definitely not a rancher’s wife. I’m the girl who was making out with the football players while her best friends were in the 4H club. Hell no. Cooper has never been the guy to end up with a wild child like me.

  But we aren’t kids anymore.

  He leans in closer, and my heart s
tarts to race. “Maybe.”

  A shiver races from my neck to the base of my spine. No. We definitely are not kids, and there’s nothing saying we can’t see where this goes.

  “Maybe you should make up your mind.” I move toward him. Our breaths mingle and heat courses through my veins.

  “Maybe I have.” His deep voice smolders, causing butterflies to take flight.

  “Yeah?” I taunt. “Are you gonna share what you decided?”

  His hand lifts with hesitation, but then he cups my cheek. “I’m more of an ‘actions speak louder than words’ kind of man.”

  And then, Cooper leans forward, driving me crazy with how slow he moves. Inch by inch, his lips close in.

  My breathing grows rapid as the anticipation builds. Years I’ve wondered. Years I’ve thought about what kissing him could be like. Crushes are called that for a reason—they’ll either crush your heart or crush your self-control. I’m thinking it’s going to be the second one with my luck.

  I lift my hand and touch his cheek, and then, as our lips are just about to touch, a loud bang happens. I shift away as if I just got caught naked by my parents.

  “Fuck! You’d think—” My drummer enters and sees the two of us. “Sorry, darlin’, didn’t know this space was occupied.” Vince starts to back out with his hands raised.

  My chest rises and falls as I try to catch my breath. “It’s fine, Vince. We were just talking,” I say quickly even though it’s nowhere close to fine.

  “Sure you were.” He sniggers.

  I hate him.

  I glare at him, and he laughs. “I’ll be back in twenty minutes. Luke is almost done, and you know he hates hanging around at the venue after the show.”