Holding_Playmaker Duet Read online

  “Why, Mrs. Prescott. Are you not wearing panties?” he asked quietly, his grin turning absolutely devilish.

  I loved it.

  “Mm. Yeah.” I leaned into nibble at his lips. “Unfortunately, you have bathroom business to take care of.”

  “I can be back in thirty seconds. And I can have you on your back and screaming—”

  “Silently.”

  “…my name thirty seconds after that.”

  “No one likes it when guys brag how quick they are.”

  “I haven’t been in you in almost a week.”

  “Pretty sure you were in me last night. Twice.”

  “I need you, Ash,” he groaned, his eyes closing.

  I kissed him once more before bringing my leg up over his, sitting on my side of the bed. “Well then go on with your bad self.”

  He jumped out of bed. “You better not move.”

  I watched him stalk toward the bathroom, tall, and strong, and self-assured, the muscles in his back, ass, and legs flexing. I certainly appreciated the view.

  Quickly, my mouth was watering and I could feel myself getting wet.

  I was going to have to change my dress.

  “I mean it, Ash. You sit right there,” he said, not bothering to turn toward me. He walked into the bathroom, leaving the door open. I watched with an amused smile as he peed, bent, and trying his damnedest to not make a mess.

  He hated toilet duty, and he knew I hadn’t been joking about giving him household chores.

  When he was finished, and washing his hands, I moved to my knees, bringing the dress up and over my body, which so was not what it once was, but Porter didn’t seem to mind the wider hips or the slight pooch that refused to go away, no matter how many crunches I did, or how hard I tried to follow a similar macro diet that he did. Carrying two babies, then three babies—all at one time—did things to a body.

  He flipped off the bathroom light and dropped the hand towel he’d been using to the ground, walking toward me. I sat down on my haunches, smiling up at him and at his predatory grin.

  “Peyton and Pres will likely shower. We have fifteen minutes,” I informed him as he crawled up the end of the bed.

  He continued to crawl to me and I moved my legs from under me, out straight, laying back on my pillows as he towered over me. His body completely caged me, his hands by my shoulders, his knees on either side of my hips. He kept his body off me though.

  I knew why.

  Last night he hadn’t asked. He simply eased me into it.

  This morning, he was going to ask.

  And damn if I didn’t love him for it.

  I wished we could get past it, but after two failed experiments of him just diving in, sending me into an incontrollable panic, we just played it safe.

  “What do you need, Ash?” he asked, looking down at me. His face was tight with need.

  “Just love me, Porter,” I whispered, lifting a hand to his face.

  “Always.” He bent down to kiss me softly.

  He would go slow when on top, unless I urged him further.

  I was going to urge him further.

  I needed this man with my last breath.

  Always have, always will.

  We weren’t the same seventeen and nineteen-year-olds we were. No, we had fourteen years of trials, fights, passion, love, and loss, between us. And five beautiful faces that were going to come banging down our door if we didn’t get started soon.

  With that thought, I pulled my husband down to me and let him go wild.

  And I matched him, pace for pace.

  Did you enjoy Porter & Asher’s story?

  Please leave a review at Goodreads, as well as your retailer of choice!

  If you’ve read any of my titles prior to Altercation, you may follow me on social media. If that’s the case, you may already know this story…

  The Prescotts first came to me in 2008.

  Porter’s story first came to me, then, in 2011.

  This story has deviated just slightly from the original, but it is still true to the first Porter who spoke to me. He grew up through the years, and I learned to trust my writing—and my process—in that time.

  But I stopped writing. For years.

  I didn’t think I had what it took, and quite frankly, I was too busy. But every time I stopped thinking about writing, a niggling conversation would happen in my head—and it was always Porter (unless I was driving and had minor road rage. That voice? Always Asher).

  Of every character I’ve come up with, it’s always been Porter who has driven me to write. It’s Porter who figures out how books 5, 10, 15 titles down the way, will work (…as well as how he’ll fit into the storyline).

  Authors often say their characters speak to them, and I am no different. My characters drive their stories, and my characters tell me when things aren’t going correctly. I had a character once (future Enforcers of San Diego story) who I paired up with a lady, had a storyline and everything…and promptly forgot it 48 hours later. Stories I’m meant to write, STICK with me for years. I may never write a single note down, but the story is engrained in my head. I took this as a sign my hero was laughing at my choice of lady for him.

  His current lady (who I paired up with him while I was hiking Devil’s Lake on Spring day in 2012) is still sticking around ;)

  What I personally find so special about Porter and Asher’s story, is that, aside from him being a hockey player, it has a true timeline to an everyday couple. Sometimes, happily ever after takes time to get to—and that was certainly the case for these two.

  Just like Caleb and Sydney have been spotted in O’Gallagher Nights and Saving Grace, this will not be the last you see of Porter and Asher. OOOOOH, NOOOO… I mean, the boy has talked my ear off for years; do you really think he’s stopped now that I wrote The End?

  Thank you for coming on Porter and Asher’s ride. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you look forward to their cameos in the future.

  I am so terrible at the ‘thank you’ portion of the book…

  As always, THANK YOU to my wonderful team of ladies who are in my corner: Jenn and Alexis, you helped make the book shine. Jenn, time and time again, I come to you with my freak out moments, and you always work your magic and find a way to calm me. Alexis…this duet was our first time working together, and I will say it until I’m blue in the face: I promise the timelines won’t be like this one! Thank you for taking me on (and Porter/Asher!) as a client; I hope we continue working together. Melissa, Paige, and Brianna, your early words always help me see clearer when writing. I love your cheerleading, and I love your insight on how to patch up open spaces. And then the “last” of my team… Lindsey, Aurora, and Jill, thank you, ladies, for loving these two lovies as much as I do.

  Readers…I’m sorry for splitting the book in two, but I’m glad you stuck it out and watched Porter finish his fight—and watch as Asher fully allowed him in.

  I’ve change up my marketing plan this year, and it’s been a bit fearful. While Giselle, Erin, and Mia didn’t work with Holding (but with Altercation), their efforts all came to fruition on the release date of Holding. Thank you, ladies, for putting up with my schedule change. You and your bloggers ROCK! If it weren’t for you guys, the visibility for this book would have been much smaller than originally planned.

  Speaking of PR/tour companies…

  The other day, I had a physical copy of each book I’ve written since April 2016; the only ones missing from my stack were From the Beginning, and the Duet. It is absolutely mind-boggling to see my words in physical form. With that, though, I was reminded of another woman. Lisa Filipe, if we ever meet, I owe you a big hug. As a blogger, her company was one of my favorites to review/tour for; when it came out that we both wrote, we started a weekly-word count goal, bouncing things off of one another. I say that Porter helped drive the desire to keep writing, but really, it was Lisa who had me opening up my manuscripts again.

  I am so thankful to every sin
gle person who has helped me along this journey. I have so many more stories to write! Thank you for coming on the ride.

  Mignon Mykel is the author of the Love In All Places series. When not sitting at Starbucks writing whatever her characters tell her to, you can find her hiking in the mountains of her new home in Arizona.

  Mignon writes in one world, so while every series can be read as a standalone, her stories will be more enjoyable if you read them in publication order.

  Webpage | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

  Amazon Author Page

  LOVE IN ALL PLACES series

  full series reading order

  Interference (Prescott Family)

  O’Gallagher Nights: The Complete Series

  Troublemaker (Prescott Family)

  Saving Grace (Loving Meadows)

  Breakaway (Prescott Family)

  Altercation (Prescott Family)

  Holding (Prescott Family)

  It was late.

  I came home from my game late because I was terrified of this conversation. I stared at her, sitting across the table from me. It was nearly dark in the house, the only light coming from the kitchen a few feet away.

  She knew something was wrong. I could read the worry on her face.

  I knew her face as well as my own. I knew her emotions, her thoughts. She was as much a part of me as I was of her.

  I looked at my wife.

  The woman I had been with since fourteen.

  The only woman I’ve ever loved.

  The single person, outside my parents, who stood by my side through my middle school, high school, and college hockey years. The same woman who cheered next to me when I was drafted to the NHL’s San Diego Enforcers. The one who supported me through my first years as a pro.

  The mother of the precious bundle in pink in the next room over.

  At some point though, everything lost it’s worth. I started to think outside of our relationship, questioning what she and I had.

  It made me feel like a lesser man.

  I hated hurting her.

  Hated knowing I was taking away from her more than just a ring on her finger. I was her family in every sense of the word.

  But I lost myself somewhere in the last few years and I didn’t want to drag my best friend, this beautiful woman, down with me. I didn’t want to hurt her more if I started to act on my thoughts and desires.

  Because it would hurt her more.

  But this was still going to hurt her. It hurt me.

  I took a deep breath and braced myself for her reaction. Forced the words from my mouth.

  “I want a divorce.”

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  Table of Contents

  Press Release

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Changes

  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

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Epilogue

  One Last Thing

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Coming Soon