Nerdy Girl Nation (Nerdy Girl #1) (25 page)

Emma took Rob back to her father’s house after their monster dinner. Once they walked into her room, Rob shut the door behind them and placed his bag on the floor.

Emma ran her fingertip across the buttons of Rob’s shirt. “I think I remember a little promise of a gift.”

“I seem to remember the promise.” He kissed the side of her neck, his two-day scruff rubbed beneath her ear.

“Ahhhhh, almost as nice as a new Lego set.”

“Almost?”

She slid her arms around his neck and gave him a soft kiss. Her lips hovered a few centimeters in front of his as she spoke. “I do like Legos.”

Rob pushed her back and watched her laugh at his expense. “At this rate, you’re not getting anything.”

“Come on, please. I’ll be good.” She sat down on the bed with a bounce.

He shook his head with a laugh and went to his bag to retrieve her gift.

“Now. . .” He balanced the wrapped box between his two hands and observed her excited anticipation. “I’ve got a lot of pressure on me at the moment. This is the first gift I’m giving you as your better half.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “Come one, please. I had to be good all through dinner. I don’t think I can wait any longer.”

“Yes, you’re right. You were a good girl. Remember, I will be giving you many more gifts and if I screw this one up, I’ve got several ideas for makeup presents.” He handed over the gift and sat next to her on the bed.

She ripped into the package and saw the picture on the outside of the box. Her breath caught in her throat. “Really?”

“Yes. Do you like it?”

“Like it?” She cupped his cheek and brought his lips close to hers. “I love it.” She placed several soft kisses on his lips and cheeks before she returned to open the box.

“Is blue okay?”

Emma took the blue Lego block alarm clock out of the box. “This is pretty perfect. My bedding is several shades of blue so it will fit right in. I can’t wait to find a place of my own. I’m not materialistic or anything, but I miss sleeping in my own bed with my Egyptian cotton sheets.”

“I can’t wait to feel those sheets.” Rob wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her shoulder.

“The house we see tomorrow could be the one.”

“I hope so because this talk of sheets has me hankering to get you between some.” He nipped at the skin above her collarbone with his teeth.

“Soon.”

After the huge family dinner, Emma was still stuffed the next day heading into her lunch meeting at Dooley’s Irish Pub.

“Welcome, Miss MacLean,” the barman called from the end of the bar. “Kieran be helpin’ gettin’ the meal together. Not often we get ‘em in the kitchen.”

“What’s on the menu?” Emma took a seat on a bar stool and set down her bag on the bar. Al and Ben began to set up at the end of the bar.

“Lamb. Best thing you’ll ever taste,” he boasted.

“I am a MacLean, after all. Just because I don’t have the accent doesn’t mean I don’t know a thing or two about the best recipes to ever come out of Ireland.”

“Well, well.” He sat a pint of dark liquid with a thick head on top in front of her. “Got a fiery lass here.”

She picked up her pint and tipped the cool glass toward him before taking a sip. The bubbles warmed her, flowed down her throat and settled in her stomach.

“God, so good.” She smiled at her new favorite barman and set the pint down.

“Best in Boston.”

Emma turned to find Kieran Finley walking out of the kitchen with a dish towel thrown over his shoulder.

“And you’re the connoisseur, Mr. Finley?”

“I’ve tried a nip about every pint they serve in the place. This one here’s the best.” The barman set another glass on the bar, but with much less of the heavenly drink. “Don’t drink much of the stuff meself, but a nip here and there never hurt none.”

Emma felt at complete ease with the young Irishman. His accent flowed off his tongue with a sweet edge. The heavenly inflections only complemented his six foot four frame of solid muscle. The dark brown, almost black hair made his green eyes pop. The camera would love him and the fans would go crazy for him.

“Let’s get down to business, shall we?”

Kieran led her to a table with both their drinks in hand. Al and Ben followed setting the camera up only a few feet from their table. Their food was brought a few moments later. They ate and drank and talked for only an hour, but the man was definitely IWA material.

“Can you spend a day in our training facility with some of our guys?”

“Name the day and I’ll be there.” He switched from laidback to eager and excited in an instant.

“How about tomorrow?” she asked and saw his eyes light up.

“On my list.” He tapped his temple and smiled.

“I have a good feeling about you, Finley. Don’t make me regret it.”

Kieran shook her hand. “You’ve got my word. I won’t be makin’ you sorry, Miss MacLean.”

Emma walked out with a feeling like she’d taken another step in the right direction. Kieran Finley was exactly what the IWA needed to shake them up a bit.

The moment Rob walked into the house Emma and Nell were thinking of buying, he felt at home.

The first floor was one big space. The kitchen, dining, and living rooms were all together. He imagined the huge family dinners in the dining room. The room was big enough for a table to seat sixteen.

Emma and Nell held onto each other and walked from one room to another with tears in their eyes. He saw both of them fall more in love with the house with each step they took.

“Well? You think you want to make an offer?” the realtor, he’d learned was named Gina Lombard, asked.

“When can we get an inspection done?” Emma asked.

“If I get the offer to the buyer today, I can call in a favor and get an inspector out here tomorrow.” Gina was all smiles, as she should be. The inspection didn’t matter; Emma would do whatever needed to be done to live in the house.

Emma turned to Rob. “I didn’t ask what you thought.”

He took her hand and pulled her away from Nell and Gina.

“You know what I see when I look at this house?” She shook her head. “You making dinner in the kitchen with Annie and Nell while Charlotte frosts one of her cakes for our dessert. Over there.” He pointed to the empty living room. “I see a big, comfy couch we can all lounge on for movie nights with popcorn fights. And out there.” He pointed out the back window at the large back yard. “I see barbecues and birthday parties and a tire swing. I see a tree house and campouts and making some memories that will last forever.”

“You do?”

“We might not be there yet, but we will be and I think this is the house where we all can be happy. Look at Nell.” Emma turned to see Nell with stars in her eyes. “This can be a real family house. MacLeans, De Lacys, and even maybe a Breyer or two.”

She grabbed him by the back of the neck and brought his lips down to hers. He responded with everything he had in him, knowing this kiss would be the first of millions they would share under her roof.

Nell’s laugh carried over to the two and broke them apart.

Emma touched her lips and turned to Gina. “You got a pen?”

After the high of the weekend with the house inspection going so well, her offer accepted, and signing her first wrestler to a contract, Emma hadn’t expected a low Monday night in Kansas City.

“How bad is it?” Peaches winced when the doctor prodded her knee for the hundredth time since she and Cherry left the ring.

Dr. Sorenson hated to give bad news, but by furrowed brow and sorrowful eyes, Emma surmised it wasn’t good.

“You’ll need an MRI, but I fear your ligament is torn.”

Emma saw the tears well in Peaches’ eyes. Months of rehab and an uncertain future were not what Emma saw for the talented woman who moments after her injury secured a Bombshell tag team title shot.

“What can we do, Emma?” Cherry asked at her tag team partner’s side. “I can’t fight for the titles by myself, can I?”

“You ladies have two options?”

Emma turned to see Aaron enter the room with a small smile on his face.

This is bad. Very, very bad.

“Only two, Mr. President?” Emma scoffed.

Aaron expression told Emma he was not amused.

“I will leave it up to you ladies, but I’d like you to hear my options.” Aaron waited for a response and Emma nodded for him to continue. “You can forfeit the match and The Ramona’s will get the title shot.” Cherry stood to object, but Aaron lifted his hand to halt her. “Or.” Cherry sat and crossed her arms. “You can choose another partner.”

Emma rolled her eyes. She went through a mental list of whom Cherry had to choose from. The Bombshell division wasn’t as big as the men’s, so the ladies who weren’t involved in matches or a natural enemy of Peaches and Cherry were few. She glanced up to Aaron and to find him staring at her. She turned her gaze toward Peaches, then Cherry and saw both the ladies were staring at her, too.

“No.” Emma stepped back toward the door. “No. No. No. No. No. No way.”

“You’re ready. We’ve been working so hard,” Cherry pleaded.

Emma felt her heart beat hard against her breastbone. She couldn’t get enough air in her lungs, which might be causing the black spots blurring her vision.

“Whoa, girl. Don’t freak out.” Cherry grabbed Emma’s hand and led her to sit in a chair next to Peaches.

Aaron handed her a bottle of water and she sipped at the cool drink while she tried to calm down.

“Hey.” Peaches grabbed Emma’s hand. “You can do this. Betty and Wendy won’t know what hit them.”

Emma attempted to let the idea sink in. Harry would be ecstatic and a little jealous. Her father would worry. Rob would be supportive. He might even help her out. She’d worked well with Lazlo and he kept telling her what a natural talent she was. She could almost hear Bill Bell’s voice telling her to get her ass in the ring and give it all she had.

Every face in the room smiled with encouragement. Emma turned to Al and Ben and saw both of them nod to her. They sealed it. Those two had showed her the footage they had taken during her training sessions and pointed out all her best efforts. They had complete faith in her. With their approval, Aaron’s suggestion, and pleas from Cherry and Peaches, she had no choice.

“I’ll do it.”

Cherry jumped on Emma’s lap and hugged her tight. “You won’t regret this. I’ve got your back. We will work our asses off this week. There will be no way we can lose.”

“We can go out and make the announcement in a few minutes. The men’s tag team match should be over soon.”

“We’ll need to go back to Boston tonight. I want to get started as soon as possible.” Emma also didn’t want to give herself any time to think about backing out. The sooner she started, the sooner she would convince herself she could actually fight live in front of forty thousand fans.