Fierce-Ryder (Fierce Family Series Book 7) Read online

  Fierce-Ryder

  Natalie Ann

  Fierce-Ryder

  Copyright 2021 Natalie Ann

  All Rights Reserved

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without a written consent.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Author’s Note

  Also by Natalie Ann

  About the Author

  Blurb

  Prologue

  1. My Last Hope

  2. His Son

  3. Pay For Her Crimes

  4. Full Of Mistakes

  5. Work It Out

  6. Bad Kid

  7. Share My Time

  8. Unconditional Acceptance

  9. Welcome To Parenthood

  10. Absorb Every Minute

  11. What I Said

  12. I Was Hurt

  13. Sacrificed Enough

  14. Other Responsibilities

  15. Nothing In Common

  16. On Your Toes

  17. Went Overboard

  18. Twenty Questions

  19. Coming Together

  20. A Little Bit Of Comfort

  21. The Right Call

  22. Give It A Try

  23. Have A Little Chat

  24. Time Makes No Difference

  25. No Hiding It

  26. Complete Faith

  27. Tough Genes

  28. My Thoughts And Feelings

  29. Paternal Instincts

  30. Have Patience With Me

  31. To Accept Things

  32. Had It Pretty Bad

  33. A Little Inadequate

  34. Eased Her Burden

  35. So Much Was Going Well

  36. Call Me Dad

  37. Without Thought

  Epilogue

  Also by Natalie Ann

  About the Author

  Author’s Note

  Author’s Note

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Also by Natalie Ann

  The Road Series-See where it all started!!

  Lucas and Brooke’s Story- Road to Recovery

  Jack and Cori’s Story – Road to Redemption

  Mac and Beth’s Story- Road to Reality

  Ryan and Kaitlin’s Story- Road to Reason

  The All Series

  William and Isabel’s Story — All for Love

  Ben and Presley’s Story – All or Nothing

  Phil and Sophia’s Story – All of Me

  Alec and Brynn’s Story – All the Way

  Sean and Carly’s Story — All I Want

  Drew and Jordyn’s Story— All My Love

  Finn and Olivia’s Story—All About You

  Landon Barber and Kristen Reid- All Of Us

  The Lake Placid Series

  Nick Buchanan and Mallory Denning – Second Chance

  Max Hamilton and Quinn Baker – Give Me A Chance

  Caleb Ryder and Celeste McGuire – Our Chance

  Cole McGuire and Rene Buchanan – Take A Chance

  Zach Monroe and Amber Deacon- Deserve A Chance

  Trevor Miles and Riley Hamilton – Last Chance

  Matt Winters and Dena Hall- Another Chance

  Logan Taylor and Kennedy Miles- It’s My Chance

  Justin Cambridge and Taryn Miles – One More Chance

  The Fierce Five Series

  Gavin Fierce and Jolene O’Malley- How Gavin Stole Christmas

  Brody Fierce and Aimee Reed - Brody

  Aiden Fierce and Nic Moretti- Aiden

  Mason Fierce and Jessica Corning- Mason

  Cade Fierce and Alex Marshall - Cade

  Ella Fierce and Travis McKinley- Ella

  Fierce Family

  Sam Fierce and Dani Rhodes- Sam

  Bryce Fierce and Payton Davies - Bryce

  Drake Fierce and Kara Winslow – Drake

  Noah Fierce and Paige Parker - Noah

  Wyatt Fierce and Adriana Lopez – Wyatt

  Jade Fierce and Brock James – Jade

  Ryder Fierce and Marissa McMillan – Ryder

  Fierce Matchmaking

  Devin Andrews and Hope Hall- Devin

  Love Collection

  Vin Steele and Piper Fielding – Secret Love

  Jared Hawk and Shelby McDonald – True Love

  Erik McMann and Sheldon Case – Finding Love

  Connor Landers and Melissa Mahoney- Beach Love

  Ian Price and Cam Mason- Intense Love

  Liam Sullivan and Ali Rogers - Autumn Love

  Owen Taylor and Jill Duncan - Holiday Love

  Chase Martin and Noelle Bennett - Christmas Love

  Zeke Collins and Kendall Hendricks - Winter Love

  Troy Walker and Meena Dawson – Chasing Love

  Jace Stratton and Lauren Towne - First Love

  Gabe Richards and Leah Morrison - Forever Love

  Blake Wilson and Gemma Anderson – Simply Love

  Brendan St. Nicholas and Holly Lane – Gifts of Love

  Paradise Place

  Josh Turner and Ruby Gentile – Cupid’s Quest

  Harris Walker and Kaelyn Butler – Change Up

  Philip Aire and Blair McKay- Starting Over

  Nathan Randal and Brina Shepard – Eternal

  Ryan Butler and Shannon Wilder – Falling Into Love

  Brian Dawson and Robin Masters – Mistletoe Magic

  Caden Finley and Sarah Walker- Believe In Me

  Amore Island

  Family Bonds- Hunter and Kayla

  Family Bonds- Drew and Amanda

  Family Bonds – Mac and Sidney

  Family Bonds- Emily & Crew

  About the Author

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  Blurb

  Ryder Fierce is the biggest playboy in the Fierce family. The blonder, the ditzier, the more artificially enhanced they are, those are the women he ends up with despite his parents’ nonstop complaints. No one knows the reason. No one has ever asked. If they did, he had no intention of telling them it’s because he wants the complete opposite of what he lost. Of the person who broke his heart. Because he still hasn’t gotten over her.

  Marissa McMillan has had a big whopping secret she’s held for nine years. She knew it was wrong to keep it and she’d probably regret it for the rest of her life, but when your heart is broken as badly as hers, you do what you can to survive. But now she needs the help of the Fierces and that secret she’s held onto...well, everyone is in for one big surprise. The question is, can she ever be forgiven for what she’s done?

  Prologue

  “Not much longer,” Ryder Fierce said to his girlfriend Marissa. They’d been dating for a few months now and he was head over heels for her.

  He’d never in a million years thought he’d be struck by Cupid’s arrow this soon in his life, but when it was right, it was right. And this was as right as his mother’s apple pie that he’d steal and hide in his room to eat by himself so his brothers couldn’t have any.

  “Easy for you to say,” she said back. They were sitting on a couch in the lounge of her dorm. There weren’t that many people aro
und, but enough. “You’ve got a job all lined up. You’re going home to work for your father’s firm.”

  He was in his fifth and final year and he’d busted his ass to get his degree in Architecture. Just because he had a job to go to when he was done didn’t mean he had everything handed to him or took the easy way out in life. No one in their family did and it drove everyone nuts when people made that assumption.

  “It’s not like I didn’t earn my place there,” he argued.

  “I didn’t mean it that way,” she said, patting his leg. “I’ve been sending out resumes myself. No one is biting just yet, but I’ve got a phone interview set up for next week.”

  Marissa was in her fourth and final year as an economics major. She was going into financial planning and investments. She was from Greenville, not far from them at Clemson right now.

  “You don’t want to look for a job in Durham?” he asked. “My family knows a lot of people. I’m sure they could put a good word in for you and get you some interviews.”

  “No,” she said quickly. “I don’t need a handout.”

  “No one said anything about a handout.” She always got defensive when he brought this up. Or brought anything up about his family compared to hers. Like she was self-conscious or something. He’d told her again and again he wasn’t comparing anything and hated that she did.

  “I’m sorry,” she said again. “My mind is just on finals next week. I’m so happy to be done, but this semester has just kicked my butt. If it wasn’t for the English elective we both had, I'd have six econ and finance courses.”

  Marissa loaded her semesters the last two years since she’d changed her major. He knew that because he knew a lot about her. What they had, what he wanted in the future—it was everything he’d hope to find at some point in his life. He didn’t expect to find it at twenty-three though. And he was positive she felt the same way, if he could only get her to take the wrench and go lefty loosey instead of righty tighty on the bolts connecting her spine and take a chance and go back to Durham with him.

  “I understand,” he said.

  “Marissa, the room is yours if you need some peace and quiet,” Jody, Marissa’s roommate said. “Kayla is in the library doing a group project and I’m going to dinner now.”

  “Thanks,” Marissa said. “Guess we can go to the room if you want.”

  He ran his hand up and down her leg. “You know I do.”

  They stood up and made their way to the third floor. Between her two roommates and his two roommates, they didn’t get a lot of time alone and, knowing they only had a few weeks left together, he wanted to make the most of it. He’d have to work on her more to look in his hometown for a job, but for now, all he cared about was getting her naked once again.

  The hometown sweetheart. The girl next door. The type he’d never thought he’d fall for.

  He’d always been the loud annoying one in the family. The one his cousins busted on and had told him to get lost half the time for being a pest.

  But Marissa didn't think any of those things of him. She understood him. She got along with him. She loved him. The first person he’d ever said those words to.

  She was the calm in his crazy energetic world. She grounded him. She brought him down a few pegs so that he wasn’t so cocky.

  Once they were behind closed doors, they were reaching for each other’s clothes and shedding them fast, knowing their time might be limited.

  The next morning, he rolled out of bed in his own room, showered and then decided to walk over and surprise Marissa and take her out to breakfast. Neither of them had class for a few hours and he knew she’d be up early studying.

  He waved to plenty on his trek to her dorm; many knew him. He had a reputation as a partier here. Maybe even one with the ladies, but he didn’t think it was anything nearly as bad as his brother Sam or his cousins Wyatt and Cade had at Duke.

  When he got to Marissa’s dorm, he climbed the stairs to her floor and turned the corner to see Bryan, Marissa’s ex, ahead of him. What was he doing on this floor and moving toward Marissa’s room?

  He went to another wall and hid behind it, then waited to see where Bryan was going. Before he could get to Marissa’s room, the door opened and Marissa came out. She looked surprised to see Bryan there. Ryder couldn’t hear the words being said, but he saw the kiss.

  That was enough, forcing him to turn and leave without confronting them. No reason to. He wasn’t blind, but he was obviously stupid.

  1

  My Last Hope

  Almost ten years later

  Marissa McMillan took a deep breath and made her way into Dr. Sam Fierce’s office. This was her last resort. She’d been emailing him and calling his office for months and finally got through.

  Never in a million years did she see herself in this position in life. A single mother, a child with a medical condition and being told it was too risky to operate, but watching her son suffer wasn’t an option either. He wasn’t getting better and he might not if they couldn’t do this surgery.

  If one more doctor told her to wait a few years while he grows, she might scream. Those doctors didn’t live with her son. They didn’t care for him while he got infection after infection.

  “Marissa McMillan,” the nurse said. “Dr. Fierce will see you now.”

  She got up and followed the nurse into Dr. Fierce’s office. Tommy was off having some tests done after his exam twenty minutes ago. Though she wanted to be with him, she was told she couldn’t go, that he’d be in good hands. So far everyone had been nice, even Dr. Fierce.

  “Why don’t you have a seat,” Dr. Fierce said when she was led into his office. He got up and shut the door. “Why did you reach out to me?”

  “Because I’ve had multiple opinions and I don’t like what I’m told. You’re one of the best there is and I’m hoping you can operate.”

  “Tommy is young. The mass doesn’t seem to be growing or not much. I’ve looked over all his files.”

  Oh no. Not again. She couldn’t do this another time and felt her eyes start to fill up. “He’s sick a lot. You see that. He gets infection after infection. If I didn’t push his doctors to run more tests they wouldn’t have even found that mass on his liver.”

  “You’re right. They probably wouldn’t have. Why did you push?”

  “He shouldn’t be getting as sick as he is. It’s like it came out of nowhere. He went from being this healthy energetic kid to always having a cold. A sinus infection. Stomach pains. Ear infections. It’s like his body can’t fight much. The pains in his side are what made me push the tests last year.”

  No one wanted to believe her. They’d said Tommy was just a sick kid. A weak immune system. Some kids had them, but she refused to accept that answer.

  Finding out he had this mass on his liver and it was now pushing against bile ducts gave her the answers she needed. But knowing no one would operate while Tommy continued to get sick made it worse.

  “He had a biopsy done on it about eight months ago,” Dr. Fierce said. “It’s not cancerous.”

  “No. But that doesn't mean it’s not affecting his health. You can see his medical records. I feel like you are my last hope.”

  Dr. Fierce sat back and crossed his arms. “Tell me the real reason you sought me out.”

  She started to get nervous. “I told you. You’re the best there is.”

  He laughed, not really a funny sound. “I am. But there is more to it.”

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “I think you do. What’s Tommy’s middle name? What does the R stand for?”

  Crap. She knew this might come up. She’d hoped not, but once she got a look at Dr. Sam Fierce the odds were almost against her. He looked a lot like Ryder.

  She wasn’t going to lie. It wouldn’t benefit anyone at this point. “Ryder.”

  “Tommy is my nephew, isn’t he?”

  “Why do you ask that?”

  “Really?” Dr. Fierce asked. “Ar
e we going to play it this way?”

  She started to cry. It was all just too much for her. “Yes. He is. Ryder Fierce is Tommy’s father. Tommy doesn’t know. No one knows.”

  “Obviously not my brother either. Ryder might be a lot of things in life, but he’s not someone who would abandon a child. We weren’t raised that way. And if he even considered doing it, my brother and the rest of my family would kick his ass with me leading the way.”

  “He doesn’t know. I never told him.”

  “Tell me why and what happened.” When she didn’t make a move to speak he said, “I want to help you and I want to help my nephew, but this is a tricky situation. The least you can do is humor me and explain this.”

  “Ryder and I were dating for a few months our last semester at Clemson.”

  “He never said a word about you. I’d remember your name. I’d remember your face if I saw a picture. Trust me. I know my brother’s tastes and you aren’t anything like who he dates now and things are starting to make sense.”