Fighting Chance Read online

  FIGHTING CHANCE

  A STAR-CROSSED LOVERS NOVEL

  PAULETTE OAKES

  COPYRIGHT 2016 PAULETTE OAKES

  COVER ART BY STEVEN J. CATIZONE

  All rights reserved worldwide. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without express written permission of the author. This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, events, locations, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to any persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This book is for entertainment purposes only. All trademarked items are the property of the owner and used only for entertainment purposes.

  Note: I am an indie author with no professional publishing team. All editing mistakes are my own. Please judge me on the quality of the story and not the small mistakes that I may have missed.

  This book contains adult content and is not intended for readers under the age of 18.

  Dedication and Thanks

  I’m just going to say this. I wrote this book for me. I have been a voracious reader my entire life, and that hasn’t changed just because I now write them, too. Recently, I had been sucked into science fiction romance. Some were good, some were just okay, and some were downright terrible. I loved the concept of alien worlds, but there were always certain things that bothered me. For starters, it seemed that all the male characters were cookie-cutter images of chest-beating alpha males who were possessive, driven by a “need” to mate, and not terribly bright. The heroines were always terrified wimps, or sarcastic with nothing to offer but their smart mouths. I wanted to see something new. I wanted to find an alien hero who was strong, handsome, and not driven by any other force other than admiration and respect. I wanted to see a heroine that could fight, stand up for herself, and learn to let herself go enough to love. I think I captured that in this book. If the reaction of my beta reader is any indication, it was a big success.

  This is also the first book I’ve written that has sex scenes in it. In deference to my friends and family, I kept the language as clean as possible and there are no “porn” phrases used. This book is about love, and sex is a big part of that. I think it’s classy, but still hot, but if you’re not into that sort of thing, just skip those scenes or don’t read it at all.

  And also for my Momma. Just because I will always love you and miss you forever.

  SOCIAL NETWORKING

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Dedication and Thanks

  SOCIAL NETWORKING

  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

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Epilogue

  OTHER WORKS BY PAULETTE OAKES

  Chapter One

  “Bring down the fighter!” the petite, redheaded woman screamed. “We have to take out the lead aircraft before we can scatter their reinforcements!”

  Chaos reigned all around her as military troops scrambled around to follow her orders. Bombs exploded, the sound of bullets ricocheting around them had them ducking for cover, and an influx of terrifying alien figures dropped from buildings to land before frightened citizens with vicious swings of their curved blades. Terrified screams rent the air as women and children ran for their lives and men were cut down without mercy.

  The woman assessed the situation and immediately began issuing more orders. “Fire at will! Aim for their heads and keep out of reach of their blades! Johnson, you and your men concentrate on evacuating the civilians and directing medical personnel on the front lines. Do NOT allow any hostages to be taken!”

  “General!” a tall, handsome man with wide shoulders and a crew cut addressed her. “What about the lead aircraft? Our guns are having no effect!”

  The woman’s eyes narrowed in determination and her back stiffened with resolve. “I guess I’ll just have to take care of this myself.”

  The woman set off at a run, her camouflaged fatigues hugging the firm roundness of her behind and emphasizing the generous swell of her breasts. Stopping briefly to snatch up a three foot-long RPG, the redhead ran for an abandoned motorcycle lying on its side in the road. As bullets tore up the street all around her, she straddled the shiny black Harley and slammed her foot down on the starter.

  Looking back for a brief moment to meet the eyes of her men, she curled her lip and called out, “For victory! For America! For the human race!”

  A loud cheer erupted from the troops as she turned forward and revved the engine on her bike. Before she could take off, however, a loud voice boomed, “Cut! That’s scene! Send in the stunt double!”

  The redhead reluctantly slid off the bike and set the prop on the ground as another woman, dressed identically to her down to the red wig affixed to her hair, jogged up to join her on the set.

  The two women shared friendly smiles as they stopped to chat while the crew prepared for the next scene. The newcomer, taller than the actress by several inches, clapped the woman on her shoulder and said, “Damn, Jess! That gave me goose bumps, and I was watching through the monitors. This movie will take you to the top of the leading ladies list for sure. You are amazing and the cameras love you.”

  The young woman blushed, pleasure at the compliment turning her fair complexion a lovely shade of pink. “Thanks, Mahoney. I just wish I could do what you do, though. I love acting and taking on these roles, but I wish I had the strength and ability to do dangerous stunts and fight scenes like you can.” Her voice was wistful and her soft blue eyes were full of longing.

  Mahoney gave the younger woman an affectionate squeeze on her shoulder. This was the third movie they had worked on together over the last several years and they had forged an unlikely friendship that continued off camera. To Mahoney, Jessica MacGregor was a rare commodity among actresses that she had worked with over the last seven years. Jessica, at the tender age of 25, was beautiful with her Scottish heritage lending her fiery red hair and bright blue eyes, but she was so much more than her looks. She was a hard worker, genuine in her affection, and without the fake artifice that seemed to run rampant in Hollywood. She was passionate about her roles, and treated the cast and crew with respect. There was no haughty pride or princess behavior about her, and Mahoney had found herself oddly protective of the young woman who was just beginning to earn a name for herself in the business.

  Mahoney bent and snagged up the prop RPG and balanced it on her shoulder negligently. Even through the bulky camouflage, the muscles in her arm bulged as she held the fake weapon steady. At over 5’10”, Mahoney had inherited her Irish father’s height, but her delicate features and shapely body were courtesy of her Japanese mother. Her eyes were slightly
canted, lending her an exotic flair, with deep brown irises that could either light up with mirth or turn dark and glassy with determination. Her body was lean and strong with ropey muscles that lent her both grace and strength that was clearly evident during her fight scenes. At only 31 years old, she had mastered several styles of martial arts including Wing Chun, Jiu-jitsu, several styles of Kung Fu, and even some Krav Maga. She was also both fearless and ruthless inside a boxing ring.

  “Are you kidding me?” the stuntwoman laughed. “You’d rather deal with broken bones, strains, and treating your body like a punching bag when you have the ability to transform yourself into any role you step into? Jess, you are so talented at what you do that millions of people around the world scream your name and flock to the theaters to see your movies. Don’t sell yourself short. You are beautiful, famous, and incredibly gifted at understanding human emotion.”

  The young woman flushed again, but her chin notched up with stubbornness. “Yeah, but you’re a badass. I’d trade it all to be more like you.”

  Their conversation was interrupted by the testy shouting of the director. “Take your places, people! Jessica, report to makeup! Mahoney, take your position!”

  The friends exchanged identical eye rolls as they agreed to meet at Jessica’s trailer after shooting wrapped on the next scene. As the crew rushed to arrange Mahoney on the bike, her face lost all trace of warmth as she mentally reviewed the stunt scene ahead of her. The motorcycle rumbled underneath her as if eager to begin, and she gripped the prop RPG with one hand. Though she had spent years riding motorcycles, she was still nervous about the scene since it called for navigating the bike one-handed. Ruthlessly, she pressed her nerves down and locked them up and allowed her confidence and training to kick in.

  “And, action!” the director barked.

  Immediately, Mahoney took off like a shot across the carefully planned set. She had practiced and trained on this course over two dozen times in the last few weeks, and she allowed muscle memory to assist her in dodging extras dressed as sharp-fanged aliens, screaming civilians, and fighting military troops. Cameras mounted on wheels followed her closely as others caught the action while mounted at different angles. Mahoney didn’t see any of it, though. All she saw was the course as she weaved in and out of parked cars, raced across crowded sidewalks, and finally approached the hidden ramp that would send her hurtling through the air for the final stunt.

  Mahoney’s heart began to beat faster as she increased the speed going up the ramp until she and the bike hurtled through air. Taking her other hand from the handle, she braced the prop against her shoulder for the count of five before tossing it away and gripping the handlebars once more. Her heartbeat was thundering in her ears as she braced for landing on the other side where another ramp was waiting to catch her. With a teeth-clenching thud, the bike landed perfectly to the sound of raucous cheers from the whole set.

  “Cut!” the director shouted with excitement. “That was an excellent take, everybody! Mahoney, let’s do it one more time to make sure we get all the angles.”

  Mahoney, buzzing with adrenaline, couldn’t stop the fist pump of glee over having gotten the first take done so flawlessly. Before she could come down from the high, she revved the bike up and made her way back to the starting point while the cast and crew raced to take their positions again.

  Two hours later, the light was beginning to fade, and the director finally called a halt to production. He had insisted Mahoney do the stunt a total of four times before he was satisfied with the footage. Mahoney accepted claps on the back and congratulations from the crew as she made her way across the set toward Jessica’s trailer. Her legs were a little wobbly with aftershocks from gripping the bike with her thighs and her arms ached from bracing herself for the landings, but her mood was jubilant as she rounded the corner to where Jessica’s trailer was resting far enough away from the set so that the noise and foot-traffic didn’t disturb her between takes.

  Mahoney swiped her face with her hand and it came away covered in makeup and sweat. The wig was hot and itchy, and she couldn’t wait to throw herself in the chair in front of Jessica’s mirror so she could begin the arduous task of taking it off. Her stride began to slow as she got closer to the trailer and narrowed her eyes at the massive bulk of a man standing with his arms crossed in front of the trailer door.

  The man was thick with muscles straining under the black tee shirt with lettering in white that pronounced “SECURITY.” His skin was as dark as coffee and his bald head shone with beads of sweat under the fading light of the California sun. Around his hip, he wore a holster with gun and ammo clip, but from the look of his physique, he wouldn’t need to rely on it in an emergency. His eyes tracked her every move and only the slow curling of his lips indicated he observed her approach.

  Mahoney came to an impatient stop in front of the immoveable man, and gave a brief tip of her head. “Bruce, you gonna let me in or what?”

  Bruce took his time running his eyes down her body with an obvious pause at her chest. “That all depends, Mahoney.”

  She fought to keep the flare of anger out of her eyes, but knew she was losing the battle. “On what?”

  A sinful smile revealed perfectly even, brilliantly white teeth. “On whether or not you’ll finally go out with me.”

  Mahoney rolled her eyes and snapped, “You had your chance, Bruce. You know the rules. If you can beat me in one-on-one combat, I’ll be your date. You lost. Get over it.”

  Bruce chuckled deeply, his pecs jumping with the sound. “Come on, girl. You know that’s not fair. My momma raised me to never hit a woman, so it wasn’t a fair fight going in. Besides, you have an unfair advantage with all that martial arts shit you can do. I’m just an old-fashioned street brawler, babe. I’m built for power, not speed.”

  She was not impressed. “Not my problem, Bruce. Them’s the rules, and you know it. Now move your big ass out of the way, before I make you.”

  Bruce laughed good-naturedly and stepped away from the door to let her pass. As she opened the door to her friend’s trailer and climbed the few steps inside, he called, “One of these days, someone’s going to put you in your place, Mahoney.”

  “Bigger men than you have tried, Bruce,” she replied flippantly before closing the door in his smug face. “And all of them have failed.”

  Chapter Two

  “Is Bruce giving you a hard time again?” her friend asked her worriedly. “I can talk to him, if you want me to.”

  Mahoney waved away her suggestion, and opened the mini-fridge to get an icy bottle of water. “No worries,” she assured the younger woman. “I’ve already handled him.”

  Jessica flopped back on the small, padded chair in the corner of the trailer as she regarded her friend. “I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted. I wish I could change out of this damn uniform so I can shower and go get some dinner, but Mike wants to shoot the love scene before we break for the night. It will probably be another late night where I don’t get back to the hotel until after 1 am,” she lamented, rubbing crankily at the smudged soot stains that the makeup artist had painstakingly applied to her face.

  A wry grin quirked at Mahoney’s lips as she twisted the cap off her water. “It sucks to be you, Jess. I’m done for the day. I don’t have to be back until noon tomorrow for the fight scene, so I can go back to my room and soak in that ridiculously big tub until I’m nothing more than a wrinkly prune.”

  Jessica shook her head in mock disgust, but her bright eyes lit up with excitement. “How did the stunt go? Since you’re sitting here and not being rushed to the hospital in five pieces, I’m assuming it went great.”

  “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it. I made you look like a total badass. When they get done digitally adding your face and the FX to the RPG, the theaters will ring with cheers for you.”

  Instead of the happiness she expected, Mahoney was bemused by the sad and disappointed look on Jessica’s face. “What did
I say wrong?” she asked her friend with confusion.

  Jessica’s pale, delicate fingers worried the stars sewn onto the chest of her uniform. Finally she answered, “I don’t want them to cheer for me because of special effects and the actions of someone else. I want to earn their cheers. I want to be the one riding the motorcycle and fighting in the action scenes. I’m tired of having to step back just when it starts to get exciting.”

  Mahoney sighed heavily and braced her forearms across her knees to study her young friend. She wasn’t used to having to choose her words carefully, but she struggled with what to say so that she didn’t hurt Jessica’s tender feelings. “For starters, the production company’s insurance carrier won’t let you put yourself in harm’s way. Not to mention the stuntman’s union would cause a ruckus if an untrained actress decided to take away jobs from the professionals. On top of all that, you don’t have the years of training and conditioning needed to not only perform the stunt successfully, but to deal with the fallout if it isn’t. This is dangerous stuff, Jess. We’re talking broken bones and contusions.”

  Jessica blinked her eyes rapidly to keep the gathered moisture at bay as the truth of her friend’s words sank in. “I just… I just want to be strong like you. You’re not afraid of anything and you can defend yourself if you need to. I’m just a wimpy girl who hides behind others when shit gets real.”

  Mahoney felt her heart go soft at the heartbroken tone in Jessica’s voice. “Aw, dammit, Jess,” she sighed, rubbing her hand over her face. “I may be strong in body, but you are strong where it counts. You have a big heart full of compassion and you make others feel good about themselves. I’m just a jerk with an attitude problem who thinks I can solve all my problems with violence. I am so prickly that I haven’t had a date in over a year, and the only ones that ask me out are meatheads who want to try to ‘put me in my place,’” she replied, tossing her head toward the door where Bruce was standing guard outside.