Books by Elizabeth Reyes
Desert Heat
Defining Love
Moreno Brothers Series
Forever Mine
Forever Yours
Sweet Sofie
When You Were Mine
Always Been Mine
Romero
Tangled—A Moreno Brothers novella
Making You Mine
5th Street Series
Noah
Gio
Hector
Abel
Felix
Fate Series
Fate
Breaking Brandon
Suspicious Minds
Again
Rage
His to Guard (2016)
Uninvited (2016)
Rage
(Fate #5)
Elizabeth Reyes
Rage
Elizabeth Reyes
Copyright © 2015 Elizabeth Reyes
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Edited By Theresa Wegand
Cover Design by Amanda Simpson of Pixel Mischief Design
To my nephew Christopher Reyes,
Ask me why and I'll remind you.
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Epilogue
Coming in 2016
Also by Elizabeth Reyes
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Prologue
AJ
One of the first things they teach you as a baseball catcher starting in little league is it’s a leadership role. As a leader, you have to be in command and demand respect. But, no one’s giving respect to or taking orders from someone who doesn’t know what he’s doing. As a catcher, you also have to be the toughest on the field. No game is too long, no opponent too hard, and definitely no foe too strong to stand up to. Most importantly, being the leader on the field, you have to anticipate all situations. Stay in control at all times. By high school, AJ Romero had mastered all except the latter. But it wasn’t always his fault, and he was determined to master every requirement if he were going to reach his ultimate dream: to be the best catcher Major League Baseball had ever seen. He just needed to check a few things off his list to get there.
High school
Repeating the sign for a low curve ball between his legs for the second time, AJ raised his glove and stretched his left leg out in anticipation of the next pitch. The pitcher threw the ball, and just as intended, it curved and fell low and left into AJ’s glove, just as the hitter swung and missed.
“Nice,” he said, taking the ball from his glove and throwing it back. “Just like that,” he yelled out to the pitcher. “One more, we got this.”
“Yeah,” the batter muttered under his breath as he readied himself for the next pitch, “just like I used to get your mom every Friday night.”
AJ’s head jerked back, not sure if he’d heard the guy right, so he took a second before giving the pitcher the sign for the next pitch. “What was that now?” he asked without standing up.
The guy chuckled, lifting the bat up over his shoulder. “I said just like I used to get your mom—”
Instantly on his feet, AJ pulled off his catcher’s mask, feeling his insides heat, and got in the guy’s face but tried desperately to stay calm. “I know you’re not talking about my mom.”
Obviously startled by AJ’s quick reaction, the batter backed up a bit, but smirked. “Sure I am. The stripper whore—”
AJ buried his fist in the guy’s face, and both benches emptied as the umpire and several other players on his team attempted to break it up, but not before he got a few more good ones in. A couple of others started to get into it as Chino, his good friend and third baseman, managed to pull him aside and talk AJ down.
“He was talking trash about my mom,” AJ said through his teeth, still unable to calm himself.
“Alright,” Chino said calmly, looking him in the eyes. “You got’ em, AJ. He’ll be sportin’ a good shiner for at least a week. Now be cool.”
The team started to make its way back slowly into the dugouts. AJ was still full of adrenaline and ready to land a few more blows in that asshole’s face if he could get to him, but Chino was right. AJ needed to calm down. One glance in the stands showed him the disapproval in both his brothers’ faces.
“You might just get off with a—”
“Out of here!” the ump said before Chino could even finish what sounded like his usual optimism “Both of you out,” he added, pointing at the asshole batter.
The ump wasn’t even looking at him anymore, already writing something down on the small notepad he’d pulled out of his pocket. AJ’s head fell back, knowing exactly what that meant. He’d been right too. Not only were he and the other guy ejected from the game, they were both suspended from school for a couple of days and the next game in the series.
His oldest brother Isaiah was adamant that AJ had been set up. While it did piss both his brothers off that the guy would take a stab at their mother, Isaiah insisted AJ needed to work harder on practicing better self-control.
“I probably would’ve decked him too,” Isaiah admitted.
“Fuck yeah,” Nathan, his other brother, immediately agreed.
“Clearly the guy knew saying something like that was way out of line,” Isaiah said. “Anyone would’ve reacted the same way you did. If it were anyone else, it wouldn’t be so suspicious. There was no question you’d react, and you’re batting cleanup with a batting average of over .500.”
Isaiah shook his head, completely annoyed with the fact that the other team would stoop this low and take a stab at their recently murdered mother. It’d been in the papers the whole year, so those assholes knew all about it. He’d also made mention of her being a stripper, something they’d often had to clarify to the press. She tended bar at a seedy nightclub. She wasn’t a stripper. So that alone was clear evidence that they’d meant to bait him.
“Of course they’d try riling you to get you out of the lineup next game. This is the playoffs. Why do you think they chose one of their shittiest players to do so? They knew you’d both be suspended, and that guy was no sacrifice for them. You gotta get your shit together, man. I know it’s hard to not lose it, especially hearing someone trash-talk Mom, but you make it way too easy for them.”