Текст книги "Faithful"

Автор книги: Kelly Elliott

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Текущая страница: 1 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

Copyright © 2013 by Kelly Elliott

All rights reserved.

Cover Designer: Angie Fields, i love it design studio

Editor and Interior Designer: Jovana Shirley, Unforeseen Editing

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Visit my website at http://www.authorkellyelliott.blogspot.com

ISBN-13: 978-0-9887074-6-7

Prologue

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

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty-One

Chapter Forty-Two

Chapter Forty-Three

Chapter Forty-Four

Chapter Forty-Five

Chapter Forty-Six

Chapter Forty-Seven

Chapter Forty-Eight

Chapter Forty-Nine

Chapter Fifty

Chapter Fifty-One

Chapter Fifty-Two

Chapter Fifty-Three

Chapter Fifty-Four

Chapter Fifty-Five

Epilogue

Thank You

Faithful Playlist

High School

“Heather?”

I heard Ari say my name, but I was so numb that I couldn’t even turn around.

They left me.

I felt a hand on my shoulder as I closed my eyes. Why did I ever tell Ari about my secret place? It was the only spot I could escape to when I needed time to think.

“Heather, Ells and I are really worried, sweets. Please come back to my house with me. You can’t be all alone tonight.”

I felt a chill run through my whole body. How am I going to sleep in that house, knowing they’ll never come back?

I tried to talk, but nothing would come out. I looked up toward Ari as tears ran down my face.

Ari dropped to her knees and grabbed my hands. She put her head on my lap as she started to cry. “I’m so sorry, sweets. God, you know I would do anything to bring back your parents. Anything. Just please tell me what to do, Heather. What can I do to help you?”

I smiled as I looked down at her beautiful dark brown hair. Ari was filled with so much spit and fire but also with so much love. I knew there wasn’t a damn thing she wouldn’t do for any one of us.

“Will y’all stay with me tonight? I can’t leave the house, but…I can’t stay there alone either,” I said as I began to stroke Ari’s hair.

She sat up and smiled at me. “A slumber party?”

I let out a small giggle. “Yeah, a slumber party. You, me, Amanda, and Ells.”

Ari stood up and reached out her hand for mine.

“Will you give me just two more minutes?” I asked as I glanced back to the water.

“Sure, sweets. I’ll be waiting in my Jeep. I’ll go ahead and call Amanda and Ells, too,” Ari said as she rubbed my back before leaving me to my thoughts.

I closed my eyes, took in a deep breath, and held it for a few seconds. I would never forget the first time Daddy brought me to this gazebo. I’d felt like such a princess. He’d told me that this was our special place—a place where we could always come and feel each other’s presence, a place to feel safe when we were scared, lost, or lonely.

“Daddy…it isn’t working. I feel so lost…so completely and utterly lonely without you and Mom. I can’t do this. I can’t do this by myself.”

A warm feeling captured my whole body as I thought of my father’s last words to me.

“Princess, you’ll never find anyone who will love you like your mother and I do. Remember to guard your heart, and don’t let just anyone in. To love strongly is a great thing. To be loved just as strongly in return…well, that is a miracle in itself.”

I would never love anyone again like I loved my parents. No, I’ll guard my heart and never let anyone in, so I’ll never be hurt again.

I stood up and took one last look at the river. Closing my eyes, I decided right then that I wouldn’t cry anymore. It did no good. They were gone, and they were never coming back.

“I’m sorry, Daddy. I’m sorry I couldn’t get there in time to be with you and Mommy one last time. I love you both. Good-bye.”

I slowly turned and started to walk toward Ari’s Jeep.

All because I wanted to go on a stupid date. If I’d just gone with my parents to Marble Falls instead of insisting on meeting them there the next day, I would’ve been driving, and they would be alive today.

This is all my fault.

Sophomore Year of College

“Dude, how many times do I have to tell you? You’re gonna get in trouble,” Jeff said as we walked onto the football field for practice.

I let out a laugh. “Jeff, I’m careful. I’m not going to get a girl pregnant. Besides, I’m too damn young to settle down with just one girl. I wanna have fun.”

Jeff rolled his eyes as he looked over at Gunner, who was talking to Smitty.

“Gunner agrees. You have to take it easy, Josh. You’re a fucking manwhore.”

When my eyes darted toward the bleachers, I saw Victoria sitting there. Shit. I let out a sigh as I threw my stuff down on the ground.

Jeff glanced over to where I was looking.

“Your latest? She’s cute. What’s her name?” Jeff asked as he turned back to me, raising his eyebrows.

“Fuck off, dude. I actually liked this one, but she’s so damn clingy. Gonna have to break it off.”

“Yeah, they tend to get that way after you sleep with them. You’ll have to forgive them, Josh. Most girls don’t put out for just a one-night stand.”

I smiled at Jeff, shaking my head. “Most of the girls I meet have no problem with a one-night stand.”

“You ain’t all there.” Jeff pushed my shoulder back and started running off toward Gunner.

When I glanced over at Victoria again, I decided to just get it over with. As I walked toward her, I noticed her beautiful, long dark brown hair. She had it down today, and the thoughts running through my head were making my dick rock-hard. I’d hooked up with her more than any other girl, and she knew it. Something was missing though. I just wasn’t feeling it with her.

Fuck. I want to meet a girl I feel something for. I want someone to love me for more than just my looks.

As I got closer, the smile spread wider on her face. Yeah, she’s definitely beautiful, great in bed, and smart as hell, but she’s too fucking needy.

“Hey there, handsome.”

“What’s up, Tori?” I asked, giving her my signature smile.

“I was hoping you were,” she purred back.

Oh god, I think I just threw up in my mouth.

“I thought I’d come and watch y’all practice. Afterward, maybe you and I could go…you know, play around a little back at my place.”

Tempting, but… “Listen, Tori, I don’t think this is working out for me,” I said as I noticed her friend Michelle sitting near her.

“What?” Victoria said, almost shouting.

Ah hell, here we go. “Listen, it was fun. It was, um…it was a lot of fun, Victoria, but it’s just not working out. I’m not really ready to settle down yet, and to be honest, you were giving me that vibe.”

She leaned over and said something to Michelle. Her friend quickly looked over at me and smiled before she turned and walked away.

“Baby, let’s go back to my car and talk about this. I’m sure I can…change your mind,” she said, glancing down toward my junk.

I let out a sigh.

Damn, a blow job would feel really good right about now. I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. I needed to find a girl who would not put out just because I smiled at her. Fuck me. Does someone like that even exist?

“While you’re thinking pretty hard about it, Josh, I’m feeling a little wet with excitement,” she said with a wink.

Yeah, fuck this shit. “Sorry, Victoria. It was fun, but I’m done. Good luck with nursing school. You’re gonna make a damn good nurse.”

With that, I walked away, and she called out my name twice.

Just keep walking, Josh. Just keep walking.

Her hand grabbed my arm, pulling me to a stop. “Wait, Josh! Just one more time? Please. Just as a good-bye, that’s all. I promise.”

I looked back at the field where Gunner, Jeff, and Brad were all talking. I reached in my back pocket and pulled out my phone to see how much time I had before practice started. Fifteen minutes. I could do that.

I glanced back at her with a smile on my face. “Lead the way to your car, baby,” I said as she smiled back.

Yeah, she’s beautiful, and we have great fucking sex, but she’s definitely not the one.

I glanced over at Ari. She was staring out the window, and I could see tears running down her face. I looked up to the front seat where Jeff was on the phone with Gunner. I assumed Jeff was giving Gunner the details about the accident.

Oh my god. I didn’t even tell him that I loved him before I walked out the door. I just left.

Ari squeezed my hand. I was guessing it had been about twenty minutes since I’d stopped crying hysterically.

“It’s gonna be okay, sweets,” Ari said with a weak smile.

I tried to smile back at her. My heart was pounding in my chest as images of Josh flashed through my mind. Leaning my head against the seat, I thought back to when he’d made such passionate love to me in the rain.

Two Nights Ago

I was sitting on the sofa, watching his every move. He started his iPod and then walked toward me. With that panty-melting smile on his face, he held out his hand.

My heart was racing. How does he make me feel this way?

I smiled as I reached up, and his warm hand took mine.

“Will you dance with me, princess?” he asked with a look that just melted my heart.

“Yes.”

He pulled me into his arms and captured my lips with his. As he led me outside, I could hear Ed Sheeran’s “Kiss Me” playing on the outdoor speakers. Damn, he knows how much I love this song.

The rain was coming down at a steady pace as he guided me down the steps and out to the patio. Looking up, the rain hit my face, instantly cooling me off. God, that feels so good. After days of having a fever, the drizzle felt like heaven on my skin.

He drew me closer to him and put his lips against my ear. “I love you, Heather.”

“I love you, Josh, more than anything.”

Heartbeat to heartbeat, we danced in the rain.

“Are you feeling better, princess?” Josh asked against my ear.

“Yes…especially here in your arms,” I said, slightly leaning back to gaze into his beautiful green eyes.

While the music played, he slowly moved us over to one of the patio chairs.

“I’m going to make love to you in the rain, Heather,” he said with so much seduction it felt like my knees were about to go out from under me.

“Oh god,” I said as he started to pull my T-shirt up and over my head.

Leaning down, he kissed me so softly that I just wanted to pull him in for more. I needed to feel him against me, getting as close as I possibly could to him. I needed him inside me.

Slowly turning me around, he placed gentle kisses on one shoulder before moving to the other while his hands slid down to undo my bra.

Oh god. He’s trying to kill me. I glanced over my shoulder. “Josh, please…it’s been so long.”

He let out a small chuckle as he pushed my bra off my body. Wrapping his arms around me, he said, “I know, baby, but you had bronchitis, a sinus infection, the flu, and God knows what else. There was no way I was getting near you, let alone having sex with you!”

I spun around and smacked him on the shoulder, making him laugh. “Nice. You just ruined one of the most romantic moments of my life, you ass!”

Then, he smiled that smile—the one that always made me think of our lunch in Marble Falls. With his crooked smile and the dimple in his cheek, I felt the throbbing between my legs. His expression turned into a smoldering look that just about had me on my knees, ready to beg him to make love to me.

He took my hands in his. “I love you, Heather.”

“I love you more, Josh.”

“I love you more times infinity,” he said with a wink.

“Make love to me, Josh.”

His hands released mine, and he gently caressed them up my wet arms, over my chest, and down my shorts. By the time he had them off, I was ready to explode. Oh god. The way he made me feel was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. Every time with him was like the first time.

When he stood back and stared at me, I so desperately wanted to cover myself, but I knew how that would upset him. He always told me how perfect and beautiful I was. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to how he made me feel so special, so wanted.

I watched as he took off his T-shirt and dropped out of his shorts. I raised my eyebrows at him and smiled. “Commando today, huh?”

“Easier access for you, baby,” he said with a wicked smile.

Throwing my head back, I laughed, again reveling in the feeling of the rain on my face. Is this really happening?

I snapped my head back up and looked at him. “We can’t do this!” I practically yelled.

“What? Why the hell not?”

“This is your parents’ house, Josh! What if they come home? I mean, what if your mom…oh god, I don’t even want to think about it!” I turned to get my shirt.

Josh grabbed my hand and pulled me to his wet, warm body. “Princess, my parents are at their lake house. They’re not coming home until tomorrow. It’s just you and me.”

He pressed his lips to mine and kissed me with so much passion that I knew I would have an orgasm the moment he touched me. He slowly lowered himself to the lounge chair and moved back, allowing me to straddle him. When I sat down and pressed against him, I let out a moan. Between his warmth and the cool drizzle on my body, I was in heaven.

“Oh god, I’ve missed you so much,” I said with desperation in my voice.

“Jesus, Heather, you feel so damn good. I love you, princess,” Josh said as he lifted me up and down onto him.

Wrapping his arms around me, he covered me in soft kisses as we made the sweetest, most romantic love of my life…in the rain, heartbeat to heartbeat.

Ari’s voice suddenly awoke me from my memory.

“Heather, sweets, we’re at the hospital,” Ari said with sadness in her eyes.

As soon as Jeff parked the car, I jumped out.

“Heather, please slow down!” Ari called out from behind me.

I had to get to him. I kept running. What if he doesn’t make it? I never even told him I loved him before I left. Oh. My. God. We were fighting.

On the way toward the hospital, I sent Josh’s mom a text message, letting her know I was there and asking where she was.

Elizabeth: Second floor. Surgery waiting room.

I crossed through the ER and headed straight to the elevator. I heard Jeff tell Ari that Gunner and Ellie were praying for Josh. Don’t cry, Heather. Do. Not. Cry.

As we stepped into the elevator, I looked at Ari. That was a mistake. I immediately felt tears building in my eyes. I turned away and looked down at the floor.

“Heather…” Ari started to say.

“Please don’t.” I glanced back up at her as the doors opened.

Ari grabbed my hand, and we rushed to the waiting room. I saw Elizabeth and Josh’s father, Greg, standing there, talking to a doctor dressed like he had just come out of surgery.

I stopped just short of them, unable to take another step. What if he’s telling them that Josh didn’t make it?

Elizabeth glanced in my direction and immediately walked over and took me in her arms. “He’s going to be okay, baby girl. Breathe. Just breathe, Heather.”

Oh god. That was what Josh told me all the time when he knew I was upset or nervous.

I pulled back and looked at her. She took her thumbs and wiped the tears away from my face.

“He’s going to be okay? But I thought he was in critical…” I couldn’t finish.

When I started to sob, Ari rubbed her hand on my back, trying to soothe me.

“Come on, Dr. Michaels was Josh’s surgeon. He just came out to talk to us.”

As we walked over to the surgeon, Jeff’s phone started to ring. All I heard him say was, “Hi, Gunner.” Poor Ellie. She just had her baby, and she doesn’t need this added stress.

“Dr. Michaels, this is Heather Lambert, Josh’s girlfriend,” Elizabeth said as she gave me the sweetest smile.

After Dr. Michaels and I greeted one another, he began to tell us about Josh. “It looks like we were able to stop the internal bleeding from the blunt force trauma to his abdomen. His spleen was lacerated, probably by one of his two broken ribs. With a procedure called exploratory laparotomy, we were able to stop the bleeding by using a heat probe to seal the blood vessels. He lost a lot of blood, so we also had to give him a transfusion. His brain scans show that he suffered a slight trauma to the head, resulting in minor swelling. We’re treating that with IV steroids and mannitol, and we’ll observe him. We won’t really know any more until he wakes up. He is stable now, and he’s breathing very well on his own. His blood pressure is good, and all his vitals are normal.”

Greg cleared his throat. “What about his head trauma? Do we know if he had any significant injury to his brain?”

“We’ll have to wait until he wakes up to see how significant it was. All the brain scans appear to be normal, and the swelling is steadily going down, so I didn’t see the need to induce a coma.”

Looking over at me, Dr. Michaels gave me a weak but genuine smile. I smiled back the best I could, but my heart was racing.

He’s going to be okay.

“We’re going to keep him in the ICU overnight, and then we’ll move him to another room tomorrow. Although he’s not awake, y’all are more than welcome to go in. We just ask for only two people to visit at a time.”

“Of course, of course,” Elizabeth said.

My heart started racing even more. Oh god.

“We’ll be right back.” Greg leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

I watched as Josh’s parents followed the doctor through the double doors. Jeff must have sensed what was about to happen because he rushed to my side and grabbed on to me when my knees gave out. With Ari on one side of me and Jeff on the other, we walked over to the small sofa.

After Ari and I sat down, I just let go. I had never cried so hard in my life. Even after my parents passed, I’d tried not to cry. This time though, I couldn’t hold it in. Thinking back to the last forty-eight hours, every emotion I’d felt came crashing down on me,the beautiful moment in the rain when Josh had made love to me, my anger over him and Lynda and the fight we’d had before I left, the excitement about Alex, Josh’s car accident, and how scared to death I was when I’d thought I lost him.

As Ari gently held me in her arms, I let it all slip away.

He’s okay.

We’ll be okay.

Twenty-Four Hours Before the Accident

I looked down at my cell phone in my hand. Fuck, why is Lynda calling me again?

Heather was staring at two dresses on my bed, trying to decide which one to wear to my mother’s office Christmas party tonight.

“I’ll be right back, babe,” I said as I turned and walked out into the hall.

“Lynda, what do you need?” I asked in a hushed voice as I quickly made my way down the stairs.

I headed through the kitchen and out onto the back patio. The last thing I wanted was for Heather to hear me talking to Lynda.

“I’m so sorry to bother you, Josh. I’m just having a really hard day. Christmas is so close, and I feel so alone. Can’t we just meet for lunch, please?”

I took a deep breath and looked out toward the pool. As my eyes locked on to the lounge chair where Heather and I had made love the day before, I smiled. I slowly let out the breath I’d been holding in.

“No, Lynda, we can’t meet for lunch. You have your family. You’ll be fine. You need to get out and meet someone.”

“I don’t want to meet anyone else. What we had was such a good thing. You know it was.”

“No, what we had was nothing, Lynda. You knew from the beginning that I loved Heather. I’m tired of having this conversation with you. Listen, I need to go. You’re gonna be okay, trust me. Please just get out there and look for someone. You’re a beautiful girl, and I promise that you’ll have no problem finding someone.”

When I turned around, I found Heather leaning up against the door. She had obviously been listening to me.

Fuck me. “Listen, I have to go and get ready for a Christmas party. Later.” As I hung up the phone, I started to walk toward Heather.

She put up her hand to stop me from coming closer. “You felt the need to come outside to talk to her? How often do you sneak away to talk to her on the phone, Josh?”

“Heather, I know it upsets you, so—”

“So, you snuck outside? Why can’t you see that this girl is playing you? This whole feel-sorry-for-me shit is getting old.” Heather turned and began heading back into the house.

“Heather, wait. I’m trying the best I can here,” I said.

She stopped immediately and spun around to look at me. The expression on her face told me that I had just said something very wrong.

“You’re trying your best? No, you’re not trying your best. When she calls, you drop everything to comfort her, and she knows it. You need to ignore her. I’m tired of this, Josh. I’m ready to move on and leave all of that behind, but we can’t. Every other week, she calls you with some sort of breakdown. She’s lying to you. Why can’t you see that?”

I pushed my hands through my hair as I let out a long breath. I glanced over at the clock. My parents would be home any second, and the last thing I wanted was to be fighting with Heather when they walked in.

“Okay, Heather. You’re right. I need to learn to just ignore her. I care about her though, and I worry, so—”

Her mouth dropped open as she shot me the dirtiest look.

Oh fuck.

“What? You care about her?”

Jesus H. Christ! I can’t believe I just said that. “Okay, this is getting fucking ridiculous, Heather. I love you. I’ll only ever love you. I want to be with only you. Why are you so fucking jealous over someone who’s only a friend?” I shouted.

I watched as tears began pooling in her eyes before she lowered her head. Oh, holy shit. Why did I just yell at her? I was nervous about proposing to her tonight, and I was taking it out on her.

She started to shake her head as she looked back up at me. “She’ll never go away, will she, Josh? How would you feel if I talked to Jerry on the phone all the time? If I told him how handsome he was? If I snuck outside to talk to him? If I told you I still cared about him?” Heather asked as she tried to hold in her sobs.

“Baby, I meant to say, I cared…as in past tense. I feel nothing for Lynda. I just worry that she’ll do something stupid,” I said as I moved closer to Heather.

“She. Is. Not. Your. Problem. The problem you have right now, Josh, is the fact that you can’t open your eyes and see she’s coming between us. She’s doing the very thing she set out to do the day we walked into that hospital room together.”

“Heather, Lynda is not trying to keep us apart. That’s just stupid. Why do you keep saying that?” I asked as a tear rolled down her cheek.

Jesus. My whole world just stopped at the sight of that tear.

“Whether you want to see it or not, that’s exactly what she’s doing.” Heather turned and walked inside and then made her way upstairs.

Just then, I heard my parents, so I went inside to meet them. I watched as my mother and father came into the kitchen, laughing. I put on a smile, trying to act like nothing was wrong.

“Josh, darling! Is Heather here also?” my mother asked, looking toward the family room.

“Uh, yeah. She’s upstairs, trying to figure out what to wear for the party.” I glanced at my father, who was giving me a knowing look. How the hell does he know when I’m putting up a show?

Turning to head up the stairs, my mother said, “Wonderful! I can’t wait to see what she has planned for tonight. I’m going to go say hello and see if I can help her pick out a dress.”

Once she was gone, my dad looked at me. “What happened?”

“Lynda called, and I took the call outside. Heather overheard me talking to her, and that led to a fight.”

“Josh, you need to cut these ties with Lynda…now,” Dad said as he took a water bottle out of the refrigerator.

“Oh fuck. You, too, Dad? What exactly am I doing wrong? The girl has problems, and I’m just trying to be her friend.” I sat on the bar stool and put my head in my hands.

My dad let out a laugh that caused me to look up at him.

“What the hell is so funny?”

He stopped laughing and gave me a look. “Are you kidding me, Josh? The only problem that girl has is the fact that you love Heather and not her. The other night, your uncle told me he saw Lynda out with his neighbor, and she was hanging all over the kid. Wake up, Josh. Stop acting like a fucking idiot, and give a hundred percent of yourself to the girl you love. She deserves at least that. I think she’s been patient enough with your ass.” He reached for an apple and took a bite.

“Well, shit. Don’t hold anything back, Dad,” I said, standing up.

My mother walked into the kitchen. She stopped and placed her hands on her hips, shooting me the look she always gave when she was pissed. “What in the hell did you do to Heather?”

“Oh. My. God. You, too?” I said as I started to walk past her.

My mother grabbed my arm, stopping me. “She just left, Josh. She said she’s not going to the office party tonight. She wanted me to tell you that she’s heading to Mason. So, I’ll ask you again, Josh. What the hell did you do or say that caused her to walk out of my house with tears in her eyes?”

When my father cleared his throat, my mother and I looked at him.

“Lynda,” he said, raising his eyebrows.

Traitorous bastard.

“Josh, oh no. Josh, you didn’t…” My mother started shaking her head.

“I didn’t, what?”

“Will you just kick that girl to the curb already? Can’t you see that she’s trying to pull you two apart?”

Holy hell. Not her, too? “This is bullshit. I’m going upstairs to take a shower and get ready for your Christmas party, Mom.”

“Josh, what about Heather? She left!” My mother pointed toward the front door.

Reaching down, I held on to the ring box in my pocket. “I’m not going to force her to go to the party. If she doesn’t want to go with me, then I’ll have to go without her,” I said as I walked out of the kitchen.

Before I hit the stairs, I heard my father say, “Stupid bastard is going to lose the only girl he’s ever loved just because some twisted nutcase won’t let go of him.”

With each step I took, my heart starting beating faster. I couldn’t lose Heather. I’d rather die than live without her.

What the hell am I supposed to do?