Page 1 of Bad Boss

PROLOGUE

ERIC

Fuck me,flashes through my mind as I watch the headlights get closer. Dammit, that asshole is going to hit me. At the last second, I picture all the things I still want to do. I survived eight years in the Navy SEALs to end up becoming roadkill on a stormy night.

Beep. Beep. Beep.The sound drives nails of pain into my aching skull. Son-of-a-bitch. Hell sucks. “Come on, dickhead. You need to wake the fuck up.” My brother’s voice overrides the loud beeps echoing around me. “I know you always want a little extra attention, but this shit is going overboard.” Attempting to flip him off, I groan as pain slices through my right hand and arm. It takes all my strength to lift my left middle finger in the general direction of Hudson’s voice and I realize I’m alive. In pain and pissed off but still among the living.

I drag my eyes open before immediately slamming them shut as the bright light above me causes pain to radiate through my throbbing skull. “What?” Is that my voice? Clearing my throat, I try again. “What happened?” There. Not too bad for a nearly dead dude. He flips off the bright light, and I finally manage to open my eyes. I blink several times, bringing the hospital room into view. Monitors and IV poles surround me. I really screwed the pooch. Swallowing, I lift my head and take inventory of the damage. My right arm is covered by a soft cast that extends all the way up to my goddamn shoulder. Relief smashes into me as I wiggle my toes on both feet. My right leg is elevated above the bed. The steel rods protruding from my ankle cause me to wince. I bet those are going to hurt when the happy time meds wear off.

“You picked a much bigger opponent.” Hudson reaches for the water cup and holds it up to my lips for me to drink. I groan in relief as the cold liquid coats my dry throat. “And they won.” Flashes of crumpled metal and glass tease my mind, and I shut that shit down. “I’m going to let the rest of the family know you finally got enough beauty sleep.” My oldest brother walks to the door. “Don’t ever do that shit to us again,” he orders me. Like I chose to lay my bike down under a car.

Over the next three weeks, I realize hell on earth does exist.

CHAPTER1

ERIC

“I hireda nice girl to take care of you.” My mother fluffs the pillow behind my back, and I barely resist the urge to groan. Needing someone to “take care of me” at almost forty years old is a bite in the ass. I survived two tours of duty to almost die at the hands of a teenage joyrider. Thank God for my quick reflexes. They kept me from becoming a hood ornament on the stolen sports car. “Lynette should be here any minute.” My mother rambles on while I wait for the pain meds to kick in.

After fourteen days in the hospital followed by another week in rehab, I was so fucking ready to come home. The doctor required I hire round-the-clock care for the next several months before agreeing to release me. My mother promised to find the perfect candidate to nurse me through my recovery, and I trusted her. “Great. I can’t wait to meet my babysitter.” Frustration fills my growl. After the ordeal of getting settled on my black, leather sectional, I’m sweaty and shaking with exhaustion. My dad helped me prop my leg up on the ottoman, then hightailed it out the door. I’m pretty sure my family is getting tired of my pissy attitude, but I don’t really give a shit.

My mother ignores my wisecrack and hands me the remote. “Why don’t you find something to watch on TV while I make your lunch?”Yippy,runs through my mind, but I keep the bitchy comment to myself, knowing I’ve been pushing my luck since the accident.

I’m dozing off when I hear the doorbell ring. Great. My babysitter is here. I listen to them whispering in the hall for a few seconds, but the words are too low for me to make out. I take a deep breath, preparing myself to deal with her.

Fuck me. I wonder if she gives naked sponge baths?

“Eric Randolph Russo,” my mother snaps as I watch an adorable pink blush slowly cover the beautiful little doll’s face. “I can’t believe you.”

“Sorry,” I apologize. Guess I said that out loud, rather than the thought slamming into my narcotic-muddled brain. On autopilot, my eyes move over my new caregiver’s luscious body, caressing the bountiful curves along the way. And this girl has her fair share of curves. She’s a handful. My handful. Images of twisting my fingers in her long, straight dark brown hair while fucking her into next week fill my mind. Her stunning heart=shaped face and bright aqua blue eyes join to create the perfect woman.

“Lynette.” My mother glares at me, and I realize I’m going to get an earful later. “This is my son, Eric.”

I watch her elegant throat move up and down as she swallows, and images of her kneeling in front of me with my hard cock shoved down her throat bombard me. Where in the hell are all these crazy thoughts coming from? My brave little doll squares her shoulders before giving me a huge smile. “Hi. I’m Lynette Hilton. And I do give sponge baths.” That’s more like it. “But naked will cost you extra.” She winks and steals my heart on the spot.

“We can negotiate later,” I agree, realizing I’m the one in the hot seat now. I gave Bianca, my little sister, hell when she snagged our oldest brother’s best friend. Then Hudson instantly fell for his new next-door neighbor, and I loudly proclaimed that I’d never give my heart to anyone. That’s probably when Karma set her sights on my ass.

My mother interrupts us, looking at Lynette. “Why don’t I show you around?” She glances at me. “We’ll be right back.” After my curvy little caregiver turns to leave, my mother leans over to whisper, “Have you lost your mind?”

“No, my heart.” As my mother’s eyes widen, I wince. Damn that pain medication.

I listen to them moving around upstairs and lay my head back to stare at the ceiling. Today is my lucky day. My curvy little doll fell smack dab into my lap, and I’m going to keep her. I attempt to watch a mindless television show while they tour the house, but my mind is filled with dirty thoughts of the beauty. Thank God my mother talked me into hiring a home health nurse. At first, I fought the idea but soon came to realize there’s no way I’ll ever be able to take care of myself with two broken, pinned, and immobilized limbs. Imagine my surprise when my dream girl walks in the front door ready to cater to my every whim. Well, close enough.

After retiring from the Seals, I moved back to Atlanta. The last year overseas took its toll on me, and I came home feeling lost. Not knowing what to do with myself, I let my parents convince me to take a position at the family business, Russo, Inc. My parents started the company years ago with a chain of automobile dealerships, which has now grown into a financial empire. My oldest brother, Hudson, left his career in politics to become chief counsel for the corporation. Brendan, my other brother, is CFO, and I became the head of security. The job was okay. Don’t get me wrong, for most men, it would’ve been the perfect position, but I was bored. When a friend of mine decided to sell his motorcycle shop in Atlanta, I quit Russo, Inc. and bought the shop. My new career didn’t sit well with my parents, but they soon came to accept my decision. Once my family realized I was happy for the first time in recent history, they stopped giving me hell and life settled into a routine pattern. Until a fifteen-year-old little shit stole a car and took it for a joyride in a downpour, that is. At least Russo’s Ride is still up and running strong. Hudson asked one of the dealership employees to oversee the shop until I’m ready to return. My mechanics and office manager are top-notch, and they don’t require too much supervision. Knowing it’s in good hands doesn’t keep me from missing my shop. I can’t wait until these fucking casts come off and I can return to work.

Hearing their footsteps approaching, I mute the television and turn to them. “How was the tour?” There. I congratulate myself on how normal my voice sounds while my cock fights to burst through my pants. Grabbing a throw pillow, I slap it down on my lap to hide the growing bulge.

“You have a beautiful home, Eric.” Her smoky voice sends hunger coursing along my nerves. Lynette’s delicate floral fragrance reaches my nose, and the only thing stopping me from stripping the plain, boring scrubs from her luscious body is my injured body. It’s a double-edged sword. My injuries brought my soulmate into my life at a time that I’m powerless to act on the chemistry filling the air around us. That doesn’t mean I won’t work on winning her over in the meantime.

“Thank you.” I ignore my hungry cock and smile at the curvy doll. “Why don’t you sit down so we can get to know each other?” I ask and notice my mother’s mouth dropping open out of the corner of my eye. It might be true that I’m the gruff, grouchy Russo, but there’s something about this little doll that turns me into a pussycat.

“That sounds like a great idea,” my mother cuts in. “I’ll leave you two to it.”

Lynette sits in the chair facing me, and I have a hard time controlling my smirk when my mother stands behind her and mouths,Don’t screw this up. My nosy parent gently slides the heavy wooden door closed, leaving us alone.

CHAPTER2

LYNETTE

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