Vegas Virgin (Nevada Bad Boys 1)

“Daddy.” I groaned. “I thought you were asleep.”

“It’s okay Heather. I’m not here to judge you for a glass of wine.” He waved off my transgression. “You’re an adult now and after what you went through, I’m just happy you’re alive.”

“Thank you...” I muttered. “The news is making it so much more than it was.”

“They get paid to do that.” He sat down beside me and put an arm around me. “It’ll be over soon. There will a Kardashian mishap or a rapper will slap his girlfriend and then you’ll be old news.”

“It just sucks.” I shook my head and sat down my glass of wine. “Shane doesn’t deserve to be arrested for helping me.”

“He was arrested for what he did long before he met you. The news story made a big deal out of it, but it’s hard to know how you would react if you aren’t in that situation. I can’t even imagine what I would do to any man that was stupid enough to climb into your mother’s bed while I wasn’t home—there would be hell to pay, that’s for sure. Shane will be fine.” He patted my arm and smiled.

“How do you know?” I raised my eyebrows at him.

“There’s no fucking way Shane is going to jail after he saved my baby girl. I sent Amos to deal with those assholes.” His brow furrowed with a hint of anger.

“Wait...” I pulled away. “Are you serious?”

“You’re damn right.” He nodded. “The man is a hero and he saved your life. Amos will have him out of jail tomorrow. I promise.”

“You’re amazing...” I shook my head. “Thank you so much.”

“From what Amos has heard, Shane’s ex-wife wants this to be over. They don’t want to drag any of the past up.” He shrugged. “I can’t say I blame them. It has been six years.”

“Yeah...” I nodded.

“Don’t stay up too late.” He leaned over and kissed me on the forehead.

There was a time when my father would have lost every bit of his cool if he walked outside and saw me with a glass of wine. It was clear that he saw me in a different light after the ordeal. I was no longer his little girl, the one he had to look after. I had grown up and I made mistakes, but I had gotten lucky because Shane was there to save me. Shane had shattered the veil of innocence that made me a child.

I was a woman in his arms. Once my father was back inside, I picked up my wine glass and kept drinking. I liked the peace and quiet of the evening, but it was nothing like the peace I felt in the mountain cabin with Shane. It was easy to admit I missed him, but hard to do anything about it.

I hoped my father was telling the truth when he said that Shane wouldn’t have to do time because of his crimes. The man that had existed six years ago was clearly not the man who came down the mountain just to keep me from freezing to death.

I would never be able to thank him enough and I would never forget him, even if our lives never came together again. It hurt to think about that, but I knew life had to go on.

I miss you.

M Y CELEBRITY STATUS faded when classes started. I got the window replaced in my car, but it never really ran the same again. It made me late for class a couple of times and I had no choice but to trade it in. My father was willing to get me a new car, but I didn’t really care about having anything fancy.

I settled for an old Toyota that promised good gas mileage instead of the BMW he tried to push on me. I faded into the scenery of school, not really caring much about the parties on the weekend or getting wasted with my friends. I just wanted to finish school and leave it behind.

I often thought of Shane. Sometimes it was over a glass of wine at the end of the

day and sometimes it was long nights alone in my bed, imagining the things we did when we were together. I had no idea if he even thought about me, but I knew I could never forget him—I didn’t want to forget him.

God, I miss having you inside of me.

A YEAR PASSED AND THE winter winds blew through Tennessee again. A storm was on the horizon, but it was nothing like the one I faced the previous year when I met Shane. They said that one was once in a lifetime. They didn’t know how true those words really were.

“You really won’t come to the mountains with us this year?” One of my friends, Amelia, nudged my arm as she walked beside me.

“I think I’ve had enough mountain vacations to last a lifetime.” I shook my head.

“We’ll give you directions.” She laughed. “Hell, you can ride with us this time.”

“I think I’ll just spend my winter break at home.” I shrugged and shook my head. “I’d prefer not to risk it.”

“Have you heard from him at all?” She asked. “The guy that saved you.”