Predestined Hearts

by Kelly Elliott

  * * * *

  Predestined Hearts

  Copyright © 2016 – 2018 by Kelly Elliott and Kristin Mayer

  Published by Once Upon a Forever, LLC

  All rights reserved.

  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 both the copyright owner and the above publisher 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, bands, and/or restaurants 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.

  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.

  Visit our websites:

  Kelly Elliott

  www.kellyelliottauthor.com

  Kristin Mayer

  www.authorkristinmayer.com

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  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

  A Forever Ending

  Thank you

  Other Titles

  I SWIRLED MY red wine in a glass, listening to the happy chatter of the guests at my best friend, Amelia’s, wedding. The newlyweds left about thirty minutes ago. The entire bridal party had been asked to stay behind so the guests didn’t feel as if the party ended.

  It had been a simple but elegant wedding. At the center of each table were tall silver vases filled with pale-pink cascading flowers. Picking up one of the fallen petals, I caressed it with my fingers, feeling its softness.

  I secretly wished to have something like this one day, but more intimate. Today, I had been the maid of honor. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. That was me. Oh, I was in a relationship, a long-term relationship actually, but there were no wedding bells in my future.

  My boyfriend of five years, Harris Huntington the Third, didn’t believe in marriage—at least that seemed to be his outlook now. When Harris and I first met, I had envisioned a different future for us, but as the days came and went—I knew that future was but a dream. I loved him, I really thought I did, and that’s why it was hard to walk away.

  I was a hopeless romantic. I hoped Harris would walk through the door of our Manhattan condo and realize there was more to life than making money. With the death of his father, Harris had inherited a business empire that had changed him—changed us. It wasn’t a quick change, but a slow erosion that I began to notice over the last year. Part of me was scared to move on from Harris. That’s why I held on to hope. Maybe, just maybe, Harris and I would be able to find our way back to each other.

  Forever the eternal optimist, I hoped Harris would come back to me.

  While the red liquid continued to swirl around the glass, I watched the residue slowly come down the side wall.

  I was alone at this event since Harris had a business dinner that he deemed more important. I sat in a corner waiting to make my escape at the first acceptable moment.

  A slow song came on and bodies moved closer together under the twinkle lights of the dance floor. I sighed to myself. Seeing all this made my heart hurt knowing I was missing out on this type of love. I wanted to feel those butterflies and undeniable attraction to someone.

  The lights of the dance floor gave off a romantic feel as the glow illuminated the embracing couples. Bodies swayed back and forth. I imagined Harris and me out there, holding each other like we used to. Those days seemed but a distant memory. The wedding coordinator gave me the sign that I could leave, so I gathered my things and made my way toward the parking lot. My purple chiffon dress didn’t provide much warmth against the occasional wind gust thanks to the unseasonably cool fall evening.

  To the right, I heard some giggling and quickly glanced over. There was a couple all over each other as they fumbled for the handle on the back right passenger door of a car. It was hard to pull my eyes away seeing the need those two had for each other. Hell, when is the last time I had an orgasm? The truth was, it had been longer than I wanted to admit. As of late, Harris was too time constrained to give my body the attention it needed. So, I faked that blissful euphoria I loved. Before all of the money had come into our lives that couple scrambling to get in the car would have been Harris and me as the need to have each other consumed any rational thought.

  Driving out of the parking lot, I looked at the time and saw it was approaching nine PM. My Aunt Leelyn, who raised me, would be going to bed any minute. There wasn’t a night that we didn’t say goodnight to each other, even if it was simply a two-minute phone call. Connecting the Bluetooth, I dialed her number.

  “Hello,” she answered. I loved Aunt Leelyn’s sweet voice.

  “Hey, there. I’m leaving the wedding, but wanted to call and wish you goodnight.”

  A yawn came through on the other end as my sixty-two-year-old aunt fought the sandman. “Night, sweetheart. Did it go okay without Harris?”

  “It did. I missed him.” The phone was silent on the other end. I knew Aunt Leelyn didn’t approve of the new version of Harris, but she didn’t get involved. I continued on, “Tomorrow night I have a dinner with him. I’ll call you earlier in the evening before we leave.”

  “Sounds good, Ashlin. Night, love you.”

  “Love you too, Aunt Leelyn.”

  We hung up the phone as I continued to make my way back into the city. Aunt Leelyn had always been there for me. My mother and father had been magicians. During one of the water acts that consisted of my mother being shackled and tied underwater while my father hung upside down in a straightjacket, my mother had died.

  The straightjacket had been put on wrong and the fail-safe was broken. My mom drowned looking up at my dad. They had been each other’s w
orld.

  Two months after Mom’s death, Dad killed himself with a bullet to the head. I still remember sitting at the window, watching the firework show at our neighbor’s house on the Fourth of July. Amidst all the noise, a loud bang echoed through the house, which wasn’t a firework.

  Bang.

  The memory of the sound still brought an involuntary shudder to my body. A tear slipped down my cheek as the memory momentarily escaped the vault I tried to keep it in.

  Running down the hall, I found my dad lying on the floor—lifeless. Blood pooled around him as the firecrackers continued to go off across the street.

  Bang.

  Bang.

  Bang.

  To this day, I hate fireworks.

  The suicide note said, I miss my love. Leelyn, please take care of Ashlin. I still wondered why my dad hadn’t thought I was enough to stick around for. If only I could find someone who thought I was enough.

  Parking in my designated parking spot of our building’s garage, I got out and hit the button on my car remote. The lights flashed as I made my way to the elevator.

  The garage elevator attendant, Joe, greeted me wearing his normal black business suit attire. “Evening, Miss Thomas.”

  “Evening, Joe. How was your day?”

  He hit the top floor button. “It was very nice, Miss Thomas. Mr. Huntington arrived about twenty minutes ago. How was your evening?”

  I gave a slight nod and a tired smile. “It was good.”

  I caught a glimpse of myself in the side wall mirror of the elevator. My long golden-blonde hair was done up on my head and my teal eyes looked tired and slightly lost. Even I could see the sadness emanating from my slim figure. I looked at the floor, unable to gaze back at the person I saw a moment ago. Did I look this unhappy all the time? I hoped not. The elevator came to a halt on our floor.

  “Night, Joe.”

  “Night, Miss Thomas.”

  Walking out of the elevator, I entered the foyer that led to the front door. Taking a deep breath, I unlocked the door. Stepping across the threshold, the dread I always felt returned—this still wasn’t home after a year.

  We lived on the top floor of a Manhattan apartment building. The only thing beautiful about this place was the view. Everything else, except my office, was cold and depressing. The walls were done in steel-gray with black furniture that felt like you were sitting on concrete. Supposedly, that was elegant and classy for the type of people we entertained here from time to time, per Harris’ mother. I disagreed. Slipping off my heels, I followed the low classical melody that came from the living room. I stopped at the entrance and leaned against the column, watching Harris looking out into the city.

  He was in lounge pants and a T-shirt, which was a rare sight these days. Normally, he stayed in his business slacks and dress shirt until bedtime. As I stood there watching, Harris ran his hands through his messy coal-black hair and sighed heavily. I knew his piercing blue eyes probably looked lost and abandoned by his stance.

  Quietly, my feet padded over to where Harris stood and I wrapped my hands around his firm middle. Harris got up at four every morning to work out. His body showed the dedication.

  Kissing his shoulder, I spoke, “Hey, there. I missed you tonight. Amelia and Steven are on their way to Barbados. It was beautiful. They wished you could have made it, but understood why you weren’t able to.”

  I nuzzled my face into his back and took in his scent. Since Harris had made it big financially, or rather inherited it, he had changed his more subtle smell to something spicier. I preferred the old cologne. His hands came to rest on top of mine and my heart swelled at the tender moment. They were few and far between. This moment right here was why I kept holding on to the thought that Harris would come back to me.

  Harris dropped his hands. “I needed you with me tonight. I was the only man there without his significant other. I looked like a fool. This was important to me, Ashlin.”

  I dropped my hands and took a step back as my heart lost the warmth it felt and splintered instead. “Amelia and Steven used to be your friends, too. Or have you forgotten everything that happened before last year? Did you think that maybe it was important for you to be with me? Or how foolish I looked that my boyfriend of five years, who supposedly adores me, chose a business dinner over me?”

  Harris turned and the irritation was evident. His piercing blue eyes were angry. “I don’t want to go over this again. You know I spend all day working so you can have the best of everything. This is always about you. Do you not appreciate what I sacrifice to give you all of this?” Harris’ hand swept across the room.

  “I wish we didn’t have all of this. I wish we could go back to before the money. We were happy and got by fine. When was the last time we laughed? Hell, when was the last time we made love? When was the last time you said you loved me?” Harris stood there staring at me. I couldn’t take it anymore. “I’m going to work in my office. Don’t wait up for me. Not that you would.”

  I turned and walked out of the room. His voice stopped me and I hoped he would ask me to stay and talk things out. “I need you tomorrow for the dinner. Those other bastards are bringing their girlfriends and I need you to show them up.”

  A lone tear fell down my face. “I’m not your arm candy, Harris. Don’t treat me like it. I said I would go and I will, but you and I are going to need to have a serious talk afterward.”

  Harris didn’t respond. Without looking back, I trudged down the hall to my office. The walls were different shades of blue, which helped soothe me. As of late, I had been falling asleep in my office more than in our bedroom. There was a chest for my manuals and office supplies, and recently, I’d cleaned out a drawer to keep some of my pajamas in, too. I snatched a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt and hastily put them on. I was miserable in this relationship. I would get through tomorrow’s dinner, then Harris and I were going to put it all out on the table. After tomorrow, I assumed I’d be looking for a new place to live. If I needed to go to Amelia’s while they were away on their honeymoon, I knew I’d be able to. I sat on the couch and brought the afghan over me. Eventually, exhaustion took me.

  My body jostled and I knew Harris was carrying me by the feel of his embrace. I kept my eyes closed, not wanting to fight again. He laid me down in our bed as I felt the soft mattress surround me.

  “Ashlin, are you awake?” He asked softly.

  I didn’t move and his thumb came up and caressed my cheek. “Ashlin, I do love you. I feel myself changing and I can’t stop it. I crave the power and I want more. But I want you, too. I can’t let you go and I won’t. I want it all. Don’t ask me to give up anything. I’m keeping you, Ashlin. I won’t let anyone else have you. This isn’t a battle you’re going to win. We were meant to be together.”

  Harris gave me a kiss on the forehead as I kept my breathing even. I didn’t think he thought I was awake since he hardly ever let me see the tender side of him anymore. My heart raced when he pushed off the mattress. Next, I heard him leave the room.

  When the door closed, the tears started free falling down my face. Somewhere beneath his new demeanor was the Harris I knew and had fallen in love with, but he was lost. I wasn’t sure if the old Harris could be saved, or that he wanted to even be found. Change was a scary thing and I knew I was on the brink of being forced to make a decision for my own sanity.

  I LEANED OVER the counter, putting the finishing touches to my mascara when my phone vibrated on the black granite in our bathroom. It was early evening and we would be leaving in about thirty minutes for Harris’ dinner.

  Picking up the phone, I balanced it between my shoulder and ear. “Hey, Aunt Leelyn.”

  The gentle voice of my aunt came through the other end. “Hey there, sweetie. I got your message. Hope you have a good dinner tonight. Did I hear you right, you may be coming home for a few days?”

  Earlier today I had called to see if I could come home. Distance and perspective seemed to be something I needed.
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  I took a deep breath. “I may, if that’s okay. I miss you and could use some downtime.”

  My head snapped to the right as shoes were dropped noisily on the tile. Harris looked at me without blinking as my aunt continued to speak. “You come anytime you want. I’ve got that thing that I found and have been dying to show you. You’re going to love it.”

  I gave Harris a straight face and he looked at his watch. Rolling my eyes at his behavior and curbing my thoughts of throwing his shoes at him, I focused back on the conversation at hand. “I can’t wait. You’ve definitely got my curiosity piqued. Maybe you should tell me. I’ll still come down.”

  Aunt Leelyn chuckled. “I want to see your face when I show you. It’s sitting on my desk and will be waiting for you. Keep me posted. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Love you, Ashlin.”

  “I can’t wait. Love you too, Aunt Leelyn. I’ll call you tomorrow. Night.”

  “Night.”

  We disconnected the phone as Harris continued to look at me. Hurt passed over his features briefly. “Are you almost ready?” His voice didn’t match the sadness his eyes had displayed for a brief moment.

  “Yes, I’ll be ready in just a few.”

  He nodded and left. I added my lip gloss before discarding my robe and getting the cocktail dress off the hanger from the back of the door. Underneath the black sheer fabric of my dress was a deep crimson red. I added matching red heels and walked out of the bathroom. Harris secured his cuff links when he looked at me in the mirror. My golden-blonde hair was to the side in a waterfall braid.

  He turned. “You’re beautiful.”

  “Thank you. You look quite dashing yourself.” The grin that spread across my face was automatic at Harris’ praise. “Are you ready?”

  Harris matched my expression and held out his hand for me to proceed through the door. “Yes, let’s go before we’re late.” I walked as Harris switched back to business mode. “This is potentially a multimillion-dollar real-estate deal. It’ll surpass the most profitable year of the company by four times. The people we are meeting with are family-oriented and they want to meet the future Mrs. Huntington. At some point we’ll need to get engaged.”