Текст книги "Paper Thin"
Автор книги: Jennifer Snyder
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PAPER THIN
Copyright © 2015 by Jennifer Snyder
Editing by H. Danielle Crabtree
Cover Design created by Lindee Robinson Photography
Cover Model: Megan George
Formatting: Champagne Formats
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the above author of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook 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’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Other Books
Dedication
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
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Thank you
Coldcreek Companion Series – Break You
Prologue
Chapter One
Purchase Information
A Risk Worth Taking
Chapter One
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Other Books by Jennifer Snyder
Succubus Kiss
Kiss of Awakening, prequel novella
Seduce, Book 1
Savor, Book 2
Tethered
Catalyst
Conjure
Confined
Marked Duology
Marked
Changed
Coldcreek
Break You
Control You
Wreck You
Forget You
Reaper Novellas
Touch
Hereafter
Unloved
The Unloved
The Damned, Unloved novella
Exhale
Shattered Soul
For anyone who has ever felt paper thin.
“OPEN THE DAMN THING. You’re staring at it like it’s the scariest thing you’ve ever seen.” My roommate laughed. Her red hair swayed around her shoulders.
She was right. I was being stupid and melodramatic, exactly the type of girl I hated, but my sister had never sent me a letter before. We talked once or twice every couple of weeks on the phone. That was about it. Our distance was my fault. I completely took the blame for it, but only because her calls scared the shit out of me. She never had anything good to say, not about our mom at least.
My fingers closed tighter around the envelope Sadie had tossed onto my bed as though it was nothing other than my sister’s latest attempt to reach out and bond.
Who knew? That could be the reason behind it. The letter could be a new way Emma decided to bypass the ignore button on my cell. I had a hard time believing she would do something so drastic. Who wrote letters anymore? Why couldn’t she shoot me a text or leave a voicemail? What if something horrible had happened to Mom, something so bad she couldn’t bring herself to tell me over the phone or through a text?
“Good grief, Charlotte,” Sadie huffed. “Want me to open it for you?”
I swallowed the lump rising in my throat and shook my head. If it was something about my mom, I wanted to be the one to read it. “No. I’ll do it.”
“Then do it already!” Her hands lifted in the air as her voice rose an octane or two in exasperation. “The suspense is killing me!”
My lips twisted into the tiniest of smiles. Sadie didn’t have any sisters; she had brothers. Three of them. Her family was picture perfect. A mom and a dad, three brothers, a buttload of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Both sets of grandparents were still alive and kicking. I had Emma and Mom. My dad bailed on us when I was two and Emma was five. I never understood why. Emma said she didn’t remember our parents ever fighting. Mom attested to this and claimed he simply realized being with us wasn’t the life he wanted. She never badmouthed him, which looking back surprised me, because I could see how easy it would be to do such a thing—to blame him for her single-mother troubles. She would only tell us settling down and raising a family wasn’t always right for everyone. It hadn’t been right for him, but unfortunately he’d come to the realization one wife and two kids too late.
Needless to say, Sadie didn’t understand the issues involving my family and me. Family was a magic word to her. To me, it wasn’t. We had different definitions.
“Open it! Open it! Open it!” Sadie started chanting, dragging each syllable out.
I glared at her. The excitement from what the letter could say had brightened her blue eyes and plastered a childlike smile onto her face. “Fine.” I sighed.
My fingers trembled as I flipped the envelope around in my hands and tore it open. I stared at the folded slip of purple paper inside, still debating whether the news my sister was trying to give me could be anything good. It had to be. Purple paper had to be something good. Emma wouldn’t write anything earthshattering on purple paper. Blue or gray maybe, or green even, but not purple. Purple was her favorite color. Writing sad news on her favorite color would tarnish it forever in her mind, wouldn’t it?
I slipped my fingers inside the envelope to retrieve the paper while kicking myself for not answering her last few calls. The Montgomery stubborn streak had gotten the best of me after our last conversation, and now I regretted it. My mind drifted back to why I was so pissed at her, trying to remember what it was she had said that set me off, but nothing stuck out. I was too focused on what I might find written across the purple stationary my sister had bought last year during an Easter sale at the dollar store. The memory of her saying she loved the spacing of the lines in that overly excited voice of hers tumbled through my mind. I couldn’t understand her obsession with stationary products.
I stared at the paper in my hand. No. Emma would not write bad news on her beloved purple paper. She just wouldn’t.
“Come on,” Sadie pressed. “Read it.”
I chewed my bottom lip as my fingers unfolded the letter. My eyes soaked in her familiar handwriting. It was still pretty. A memory of trying to mimic her perfect Y’s flashed through my mind before I could focus on what the letter said. I had tried for hours to get the curl right.
“What’s it say?” Sadie pulled me back to the now. I situated myself so she could read it over my shoulder, and then dropped my gaze to the paper.
Char,
I’m sick of hearing your voicemail. It’s not even set up right. You’re supposed to tell people who they have reached, not let some automated robot say a standard, cold greeting and repeat your number. It’s impersonal. Change it. Please.
Three more things:
One: Call me! Seriously.
Two: Mom is fine, so don’t worry. Although, she probably wouldn’t mind talking to you more as well.
Three: I’m getting married!!!!
The engagement party is in two weeks. Please, please come home for it.
Love,
Emma
P.S. Pick up your cell and call me. NOW!
“She’s getting married.” Sadie said the words before I could, with just the right amount of shock.
My sister was getting married. That couldn’t be right. I skimmed the letter once more. The words were there, written in her impeccable handwriting.
“When did this happen?” Sadie shouted. “Who is she even dating? You haven’t mentioned she was seeing anyone serious.” I told Sadie everything, and it was obvious from her tone she thought I had left out some vital information.
I didn’t know the answer to either of those questions. My sister didn’t have time to date, let alone find someone to marry. At least I hadn’t thought. Apparently, I had been wrong. “I don’t know.”
“So she hasn’t mentioned anyone to you?”
I thought back to our previous conversations. “No. She only talks about Mom’s doctors and nurses. Stuff like that.” Which was why I avoided her calls.
“Could be a hot, young doctor she’s been taking your mom to.”
My brows furrowed as I contemplated this. “No. She would have told me if there was a hot doctor she was interested in.” At least I thought she would. Maybe I had let us drift so far apart it wasn’t something she felt a need to inform me of. I couldn’t think of the last time when we’d discussed dating and guys.
“Could it be a hot nurse, then?” Sadie moved to sit on the edge of her bed. “There are some pretty hot male nurses nowadays. It’s not just females in the field now. Eric was in school to be a nurse.”
“I remember.” How could I forget him? He was one of the first guys Sadie dated during our freshman year here. He was also the first guy I ever met who was in school to become a nurse. Eric would be making a lot of women’s fantasies come true in the nursing ward one day. “And no, she didn’t mention any guy nurse. She hasn’t mentioned anyone to me. At all.” Why hadn’t she mentioned someone to me before now?
“Okay, this is your sign, then. You have got to pay more attention when she calls!” she chided. “There is no way she wouldn’t have said something to you about this.”
I averted my gaze to the carpeted floor of our dorm room. “I know.”
“I love you to death, Charlotte. I really do.” She slipped off her bed and moved to kneel in front of me. She smoothed her hand along my forearm while holding my stare. “But, you seriously should answer the phone and pay attention when your sister calls. What if it had been something about your mom? What would you do then?”
“I don’t know.” I could have mentioned that had been my fear from the moment my eyes landed on the envelope, but I didn’t because then she would ream me even more for my lack of relationship skills when it came to my sister.
Sadie talked to her mom every day, and her dad and brothers at least three times a week. She didn’t understand why I would keep distance between my sister and me the way I did, especially not when our mother was as sick as she was. To Sadie, this was a time when I should be calling home every day. She didn’t understand I couldn’t; I was scared to hear from Emma that Mom was getting worse.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again.” Sadie stood and walked toward our shared desk. “With as sick as your mom is, the two of you should be bonding over it. No one in the world knows how you feel better than Emma.”
I closed my eyes, knowing she was right, and fell back against my mattress. I couldn’t count how many times Sadie had said those exact words to me. Each time they made me feel like the world’s shittiest sister.
“I’ve said my piece. Now I need to meet Jeff in the quad.” The sound of her moving around the dorm made me look at her. I watched as she plucked her denim jacket off the edge of her bed and flashed me a smile. “He’s taking me out to a late lunch. This is date number two.”
I sat up on my elbows and narrowed my eyes at her. “Don’t you mean number three?”
“Studying in the library does not count.” Her facial expression grew so serious I laughed.
“Okay. Sorry.” I contained my laughter. “I forgot about your ‘it’s not a date if you don’t leave campus’ rule.”
“Why do you always laugh at that? It’s good to have standards.”
“I’m not saying standards are a bad thing. I just find some of yours to be comical is all.”
“Anyway, I’m out of here. I don’t want to leave him waiting. He’s taking me to that little deli around the corner.” She adjusted the collar of her jacket and flipped her hair over her shoulders.
“Have fun.”
“I always do.” She winked over her shoulder at me before slipping out the door.
I fell back against my mattress again and let out a long sigh. My sister was getting married. I really needed to call her.
I PULLED THE DOOR to Double Shot open and stepped inside. Sadie had wanted me to be here by six thirty. However, it was nearing seven, which meant I was late like always. I realized early on in life being punctual wasn’t my thing and had grown used to it. Sadie was my alarm clock. She knew how to wake me up and get me out the door on time for most things. Tonight she had left me on my own, and I wasn’t sure why.
Double Shot was a place frequented by the students of Bradly University, but rarely by Sadie and me. Which had me wondering why we were here tonight, considering I needed to leave first thing in the morning for Parish Cove. I grimaced at the reminder, because the seven hour drive was not something I was looking forward to.
Scanning the dimly lit place, I searched for Sadie. She was sitting in the back beneath a light with a logo for some beer I’d never heard of, staring at her cell. Jeff was beside her, staring at his cell phone also.
Strike two, I thought as I watched them. Jeff’s first strike had been the way he shook my hand the night I met him. My grandma—God, rest her soul—had a firmer handshake than he did. A guy should have a firm handshake, it was an unwritten man rule. Jeff’s second strike came from paying more attention to his cell than Sadie. They should be chatting, not trolling Facebook. I gave them another week, tops.
Tugging my purse higher onto my shoulder, I started toward them. I bit my bottom lip, trying to keep a smirk off my face. Sadie hated it when I tossed out predictions about her relationships. Not because she found it annoying that I would place a time limit on her relationships based off something she thought was ludicrous, but because I was always right. Always.
“Hey, guys, what’s up?” I slipped into the chair beside her, and hung my purse on the back. “Anything happening on Facebook I should know about?”
“Nope. Nothing new.” Sadie set her cell on the table, and then pressed the button at the top to darken the screen.
“I just took a quiz that placed me in the orange personality group,” Jeff said as he continued scrolling through whatever the quiz was telling him about his personality. I arched a brow at the intense expression of concentration twisting his features and the lack of sarcasm he’d spoken with. “It’s been pretty dead on so far. Even got that I’m a perfectionist. Plus, orange happens to be my favorite color.” A smile twisted his lips.
“Interesting,” I muttered, dragging the word out.
Sadie gave me a look I knew meant she wanted me to cut the sarcasm. “I think it’s cool.” She smiled at Jeff. “You’ll have to share it, and I’ll take it later.”
“Okay, sure.” His thumb tapped on the screen of his cell. “Text me with your results whenever you take it. I’m curious to see if we are compatible.”
Dear God, was he planning to let a quiz on social media be a guide for their compatibility? If that was the case, he might not last to the end of the week. I knew Sadie well enough to know she wouldn’t tolerate such cheesiness for long.
“So. What are we doing here?” I glanced around, taking in Double Shot. It was a typical bar—dim lighting, crappy music, and ugly signs for standard beers you already knew the place carried lining the walls, dark wood everywhere. “Are we celebrating me leaving in the morning?”
“Something like that.” Sadie grinned. Her eyes had shifted over my shoulder, landing on someone she was obviously glad to see. My stomach flip-flopped.
“What did you do, Sadie?” I arched a brow. “If you set me up with someone again, I’m going to hurt you.”
“I didn’t set you up with anyone.” Innocence entered her voice while softening her features at the same time. “Fate did. All I wanted was to have a drink with my friend before she leaves town.”
Was she calling herself fate now? Did she really think this match was that good? I squared my shoulders, preparing for whoever was about to slip into the seat beside me. Thirty minutes. That was all I was giving the guy no matter who he was, and then I was out of here. I had stuff to pack and a roommate to kill. No one came though.
Seconds ticked away and still nothing. The seat remained empty.
“I’m going to order us a pitcher. Is that okay?” Jeff asked, finally setting his cell down.
“Sure. Thanks,” Sadie cooed.
“What do you want?” Jeff shifted his stare between the two of us. “I prefer light ales, but if you ladies want a darker one, I’d try it I guess.”
While I did enjoy a man who knew what he wanted, there was something annoying about the way Jeff had asked. The guy rubbed me the wrong way.
Strike three. I hated Jeff.
When Jeff stood to order our pitcher of pee, I turned in my seat to glance behind me and see who Sadie had said fate brought my way. I didn’t see anyone. Until I did.
William Pelzer.
The sight of him had my heart pumping hard and fast through my rib cage. It had been months since I’d last seen him. What was he even doing here? He was supposed to be on a mission trip still. A tingle of panic skated through me. Had something happened to him while away that would have forced him to return home early? He looked fine, mouthwatering even.
“Close your mouth, sweetie,” Sadie teased. “Like I said, I didn’t invite anyone for you. All I wanted was for the three of us to have a drink or two together before you leave tomorrow, but it looks like fate may have had something else in mind for you tonight.”
Dear God, I wished she was right, but I knew she wasn’t. Nothing like that would happen. We’d known each other for over a year, and while we got along well and seemed to have loads in common, there seemed to be something always standing in the way of us ever crossing the friendship line.
“He looks good. Tan. Really tan,” Sadie stated.
I watched him as he smiled and talked among the group he was with. He did look tan. I knew why though. He went to Haiti. The last time I talked with him was the day before he left, which was over two months ago.
I continued to stare at him. Helping people in Haiti sure did look good on him. The sun had kissed his skin a thousand times, making him a rich, golden brown and lightening his hair. Stubble now covered his cheeks and chin, giving him a rugged appearance that suited him. Normally, he was clean-shaven and baby-faced. This was a new look for him. A manly look. I loved it.
“You should invite him over to have a drink with us,” Sadie suggested.
I should. I knew I should. We hadn’t seen each other in so long. It would be great to catch up...right before I left. Our timing was off again. Disappointment spread through me.
“It’s not like you’re going to be gone for forever, just a weekend,” Sadie reminded me as though she knew where my thoughts had dipped. “Now might finally be your time together.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” I placed my palms flat against the tabletop and moved to stand. The second I did, a dark-skinned beauty stepped to his side. His arm reached for her tiny waist, wrapping around it and forcing her to Will’s side. It was so natural, so smooth, as though he hadn’t thought about the movement at all until it happened. I watched them from where I stood. She was made to be pressed against him. She was his. He was hers. They were a couple, and they looked perfect together.
“On second thought, I’m not planning on staying long. I have to pack still.” I erased any emotion from my face, turning my expression into something neutral, and faced Sadie as I sat. “He just got back from his mission trip to Haiti. I’m sure if I get him talking, I’ll be here all night.” I tried to tack on a small chuckle, but it came out all wrong, making my words sound strangled.
“That is true.” Sadie was quick to agree. She’d seen the girl get swept into Will’s arms like he’d done so a thousand times. She also knew all about my feelings for him and how the timing had always been off for us. “Where the hell is Jeff with our beer?” She craned her neck to search for him.
“I was wondering the same.” A beer, no matter what kind, sounded good right now.
Will had slipped through my fingers again. Damn it. Why the hell did life enjoy screwing with my heart when it came to him so much? It wasn’t fair.
One whole year. The timing had been off for an entire freaking year.
We’d met in the library. He was studying for an anatomy test. I was working on a research paper for my women’s history class. There was a book I needed on a top shelf. Instead of asking the librarian to get it down for me, I let the stubborn Montgomery gene take over and grabbed an unoccupied chair from his table and pushed it against the bookshelf. As soon as I placed a foot on the chair, he spoke.
“I would have let you borrow my height, if you had asked.”
His husky tone had vibrated through my core, sending goose bumps racing along my body, and I knew right then I wanted him. I climbed onto the seat of the chair, reaching for the book I needed before I risked a glance at him. I could still picture the little smirk twisting his lips when I finally did look at him. It had caused all the breath to leave my lungs at once.
“I can see you’re the independent type who likes to do things for herself.” His smirk morphed into a wide grin.
It had taken so much strength to break our stare and force my fingers to grip the massive book I needed. There was not one part of me that wanted to look away. All I wanted to do was drink in this beautiful guy slouching in his chair, surrounded by books about parts of the human body—parts I had, ones that were on fire from the mere existence of him.
“That’s me.” I clasped the book against my chest as I attempted to make my way down from the chair. “I like how you used the term independent; most just call me stubborn.”
He lifted his pen and pointed it toward me, as though he was punctuating my sentence in the air. “I’ve never been a fan of the word stubborn. Independent sounds way better.”
My lips quirked into a larger smile than I had wanted them too. I could still remember the fluttering feeling in my stomach the entire moment had brought on.
“I’m Will Pelzer, by the way.” He licked along his bottom lip. “And you are?”
“Charlotte Montgomery.” I never knew how my words had come out so strong sounding during that awkward introduction, but they had, and I had been grateful.
Things had seemed to be looking up for me. After all, when had anyone ever heard of meeting their next asshole boyfriend in the library? Nice guys hung out in libraries. Smart, considerate guys. Guys who were determined to make good grades and had goals and ambitions set for themselves.
Will was all of this and more.
Unfortunately, he also had a girlfriend. A drop-dead gorgeous, should-be-a-model girlfriend. They dated for three more months. During that three-month stint, I could feel the chemistry building between us. We had too much in common for there not to be a natural attraction. But by the time they broke up, I was dating someone. And so the vicious cycle began. If I wasn’t dating someone, then Will was. And when we were finally free to date one another, he had already signed on to head to Haiti for a mission trip that would last four months. From the looks of it, he had found someone while there. I, on the other hand, was still single, which was not intentional. I didn’t believe in long-distance relationships, the same way I didn’t believe in waiting for someone forever. Neither was realistic. Life always got in the way.
“Here you go, ladies.” Jeff slipped back into his seat beside Sadie. There was a frosted-over pitcher of the lightest beer I had ever seen in one of his hands and three glasses in the other. “Want me to pour you one?”
“Thanks.” Sadie smiled.
“Sure,” I added. Generally, I wasn’t much of a drinker, but this situation was a tad bit depressing. Here I was, sitting at a table with my roommate and her boyfriend, pining over the guy across the room as though he had been mine before and I’d lost him to someone else. What the hell was wrong with me?
Nothing that was what. Who needed a man anyway?
I damn sure didn’t. I was fine being alone. You had to love yourself before you could love anyone else right? Wasn’t that how it worked? I’d heard somewhere that was the secret. If you didn’t like who you were, no one else would either. Well, I liked who I was. Even when I was boyfriend-less.
Jeff poured Sadie her beer first, and then mine. I felt the tension in my shoulders release as I gripped the cool glass and lifted it to my mouth. Skunk. The beer tasted like watered down skunk. I hated it.
“This is good.” Sadie praised Jeff for his choice. Was she not drinking the same beer as me? We had similar tastes when it came to alcohol, and this was nowhere close to what we liked.
“It is, isn’t it?” Jeff took another sip, and smacked his lips together. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. I hated when people did that. It didn’t make them taste anything better. It was just plain annoying. “What do you think, Char?”
Char? Jeff didn’t know me well enough to cut my name down to Char.
“It’s not my favorite.” I shrugged, avoiding Sadie’s eyes because I knew she would frown at me for being so bold. She also knew how much I hated it when people shortened my name as though they’d known me for years. There was only one person I had let slide with that.
He was sitting on the other side of the bar with a girl who wasn’t me wrapped in his arms.
“Hey, Sadie. Hey, Char.” The voice was husky, sending goose bumps across my skin in a ripple effect. “I spotted you over here, and figured I’d say hi.”
Scratch that, the only person I had ever allowed to shorten my name in such a short time was not across the bar. He was standing behind me.
