by Rutter, M J
Silver Bay
Song
M J Rutter
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form, including digital and electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written consent of the Publisher, except for brief use in reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. Characters, names, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
© Copyright Author M J Rutter 2015
Acknowledgments
Fifteen books in three years, wow, time to take a breath I think. Through this journey though, I have been so lucky to have such an amazing support network. No matter how many times I write these, I will always thank you, I would be nothing with your constant support and guidance.
Whether it’s a message on Facebook to say that you have loved a book, or a Tweet, a share, anything, your support means everything to me. I could go on and on, thank you a hundred times or more, the fact is, without you there wanting to read my books, I would have given up a long time ago. So, from the bottom of my exhausted heart, THANK YOU.
Susan Scott and Denise Roberts have been amazing recently. I know my Beta team are mother’s or work, so it’s not always possible for you to find the time to fit another of my books in. Just know how important you are as my team and when we all work together, we are fabulous.
Susan, you go way above and beyond the call of duty as a Beta, there when I need you and I truly feel blessed to have found you and have you in my life. Thank you for always being there and doing all you can to help me and promote my work. Most importantly, thank you for being such an amazing friend.
Denise, it’s been a tough year and a few months ago you offered your condolences when I lost my father-in-law. You were at the end of messaging when I needed a chat, now it’s your turn, never be afraid to ask if you need anything, please know that if I can be there for you, I will. Thank you for your encouragement and a sharp kick up the backside when I start slacking off.
Writer’s tip: If you have childcare issues and a teacher friend says, I’ll watch them for you, make good use of their talents, Diane King, thank you for your proof read, though we both know you couldn’t wait to read it, I, thank you for taking the time to run through this for me.
Finally a hug thank you to my loving family, hubster and children, you seem to sacrifice so much for me, how can I ever make it up to you, thank you.
The amazing cover for this novel was designed and created
by the very talented
Sassy Queens of Design.
Thank you!
One
Skylar Reynolds
“Have a great summer, Miss. Reynolds,” Jessica, my freckled faced second grader said as she handed me a posy of hand-picked flowers. They were wrapped in pink paper and had a picture she had drawn stuck to the side of them.
“Aww, Jessica, thank you, sweetie, that is such a thoughtful thing to do.” I smiled taking them from her. I looked over to her mother who waved. I mouthed ‘thank you’ to her and watched as Jessica skipped away. She was one little girl I would miss.
Summers for a teacher were great, who wouldn’t like the whole summer off, but for me they were bitter sweet and always pinched a little because it meant that after a whole year of getting to know a class full of students, they were moving on and I was left facing a new class and worrying if they will like me and if I can make a difference to their lives.
I closed my classroom door and locked it, then I carried my box of gifts and flowers to my old, red, beat up, classic Beetle and before climbing in I pulled down the white roof and put on my sunglasses.
The small North Carolinian sea side town of Silver Bay had been my home for most of my life. Obviously I had to leave to attend college, but other than that, I had lived there forever. I knew everyone and they knew me. Occasionally we’d get a visitor or a tourist, but we didn’t even have a large supermarket, so that was a rare thing.
My parents married young and I was their only child. My father, Sam Reynolds owned the local hardware store right up until he fell sick, then my mother made the almost impossible decision to sell it. He had huge medical bills which almost crippled them financially, in fact, all they had left when he finally died five years later, was the house, my house.
I was twenty one when he passed in his sleep after a long and painful battle with cancer. Within a year I was back at the graveyard watching my only relative left in the world be lowered into the ground. I missed them implicitly, thought of them always and wished I had a brother or sister who could share the burden of my pain.
You would have thought that losing both parents would have been enough pain for me to endure, but no. I met the man of my dreams, Jay Samuels and a year after we met he asked me to marry him. I gladly accepted, it had been the year for new beginnings, I started my job as a second grade teacher and life seemed to flourish, he moved into my house and for a few months everything was perfect, my little piece of heaven.
I was at work when the Principle, Mrs. Lennox called me to her office. It had rained all morning and as soon as I entered, I knew it was bad news. Two police officers turned to face me and told me that Jay had been involved in a road traffic accident. He had left home the previous night after we had heated words over the wedding. He died at the scene and I don’t think I had ever felt so much pain before in my life.
Losing Jay almost ended me, he was my everything; here one moment and gone the next. In the blink of an eye he was taken from my life and I knew that I would spend the rest of my life alone, because I had met my one true love and now he was dead.
I arrived at my house and turned into the driveway. It wasn’t overly big, just a three bed that backed onto the beach. It was painted white with a glass front door and blue shutters beside the windows. I left my parent’s room as it was the day my mother died. I haven’t had the heart to touch a thing in there since. I kept the floors wooden throughout and only updated the furnishings. The couch needed to be replaced and I had a new kitchen fitted as the old one all but fell off the wall.
As soon as I switched off my engine I could hear Misty, my white, mix breed dog, barking her lungs out. I collected my things and opened the front door. She came running towards me and jumped up onto my legs, stretching her own legs as she did so. She had been an amazing friend and the only company I had had for months. I adored her.
She was also the reason I kept going, I know I would have given up on my life had I not found Misty. I was no stranger to loss; it seemed to follow me no matter what I did in my life. How could I allow anyone to get close to me, surely they’d be ripped away too. I began to believe that I was one of those people that was meant to be alone and that’s why I got a dog. She was loyal, she agreed with everything I said and loved me unconditionally.
“Hey, sweetie,” I said ruffling her fur, “wanna hit the beach?” She tilted her head to one side, “Go get your ball then,” she jumped down and ran off to her bed. Her face was still stained with pink dye from where she had chewed through my new hot pink pumps the night before, but I left them out and I knew better than to leave my new shoes on my bedroom floor. Now I had to get another pair of shoes for my colleague Steff’s wedding which was now only a few weeks away.
Misty trotted back to me with her chewed basket-ball in her mouth. She had popped it within seconds of me giving it to her, now it was squashed and chewed, but she still insisted that I should throw it for her. I opened the door and she ran on ahead.
The breeze blew in my face as I walked towards the ocean. It
s salty air filled my lungs and I could taste the salt on my lips. This was why I could never leave, the ocean was my lullaby at night when sleep evaded me, my alarm clock in the morning when I felt too weak to face the world, my therapy when I felt sad and missing my family and most of all, the ocean to me was home.
I sat on the soft, yellow sand facing the crashing waves, the breeze blew through my naturally curly, auburn hair and the white sun reflected on the water, so I pulled my shades down out of my hair and covered my hazel eyes. I gazed up at the flawless, turquoise sky and watched a couple of gulls swoop and dance around on the breeze.
Minding my own business, I stretched out my legs and a small black dog crashed into me.
“Oh my God, I am so sorry. Scamp, quit bugging people,” a teen boy spluttered running towards me. I assumed he was around sixteen and as he got closer I recognised him, he was my girlfriend, Vanessa’s younger brother, Jamie or something like that.
“Skylar, is that you?” he asked.
“Yes, how are you?” I smiled with a slight, unsure frown.
“I’m Jason, Nessa’s brother.”
“Jason, of course,” I pulled my legs back, “I haven’t seen you for a while.”
“I’ve just finished my freshman year at college.” He explained.
“College, wow,” I gasped. “How is Nessa?”
“She and Nelson just had a kid, a boy, called him Charlie,” he replied.
“That’s amazing, please tell her congratulations when you see her next. Where are they based right now?” I beamed.
“Belize, until after the summer, then they are hoping to be posted to Texas,” he answered jamming his fists in his pockets.
“When you speak to her next, please tell her congratulations,” I smiled.
“They are visiting sometime this summer, I’ll tell her to call you.”
“Maybe I can get to meet Charlie,” I gushed.
“He is cute, but I’ll never admit to telling you that,” he winked with a grin. “Scamp, let’s go,” he called over to his dog. Scamp bounced towards us splashing me with his wet fur. “Sorry,” Jason said again.
“Its fine, have a good summer, Jason,” I chuckled wiping my brow.
“And you,” he replied.
‘Yeah, right,’ I thought as he walked away, ‘it will certainly be a lonely one-again!’
Misty bought her ball back to me, soggy and dripping with seawater, dropping it into my lap; I jumped to my feet sweeping the water down the legs of my white Capri pants. I threw her ball up the beach to try and dry it off a little. I hadn’t noticed him earlier, but there was a dark haired man, sleeping on the sand. Misty, being Misty, ran towards him and pounced on him. The poor guy jumped awake and sat up,
“I am so sorry,” I apologised frantically as I ran towards him.
“You should keep your mutt under control,” he barked and stood from the sand.
“I said I am sorry and she’s is not a mutt,” I retorted.
“Well, she’s no pedigree either,” he spat as an empty Vodka bottle fell from his leather jacket and landed at my feet. I gazed at the bottle and then back up to him. He scratched his hair and frowned at the bright sunshine.
“I am pretty sure drunken vagrants are forbidden from sleeping on the beach.” I stated frostily.
“That’s great, because I am neither.” He shrugged.
“Well, you are no millionaire,” I stated.
“What would you know?”
“Probably about the same amount as you know about my dog,” I snapped and walked away from him. ‘Jerk!’
Fuelled by temper alone, I hurried into my house with Misty quietly following me, whoever that jerk was, he had upset my dog too. I filled her bowl with clean water and lifted the bowl of grapes from the refrigerator and with my stack of un-opened cards from my students, I headed through my French Doors.
I sat on my veranda overlooking the ocean and began opening my cards, while popping sweet, green grapes into my mouth and just enjoying the quiet. Well, until music started blasting from the supposedly empty house next door. It didn’t last very long and told me that I actually had neighbors for a few weeks.
I shed many tears that afternoon and without realising it, the sun began to set and my stomach gave off an embarrassing growl. I heated up some leftover lasagne and served it with a garden salad and with my first glass of wine in months; I sat at the table and ate some dinner. This was my life and I was so used to it.
Two
Kaden Wright
“I quit,” I snapped.
“What?” Grady frowned, “Max, you can’t quit, you have a contract.”
I furrowed my dark eyebrows together, “So, sue me, it’s over, I cannot be a part of a band that has no respect for me.” I placed my sunglasses over my light blue eyes and lifted my car keys. “Tell the others, Seasons of Shame needs a new front man, I am done.” I then stormed towards the door and slammed it shut before hurrying to my silver Maserati. I started the engine with a roar and sped out onto the road.
I arrived in the sleepy North Carolinian town of Silver Bay after finding a rent house on the beach. I just wanted away from everything, the music industry, my so called band mates and my crap manager. I hadn’t felt part of the band for months, they would have writing sessions and not invite me, band meetings and act as if I wasn’t there, after all, SOS, as they were more commonly known, would be nothing without Max West as their front man.
Being a rock star had its good points too though. I had millions in the bank, three sports cars, a house in Beverly Hills and a beautiful girlfriend, but even she seemed to have used me to get her own fan base and I had had enough of it all.
Braden Walker had a bad attitude, SOS was his band and I was the last to join, five years previously. I had been offered an audition after playing a gig in a club and they asked me to join the band shortly after. But Braden and I never truly got along, Braden felt that as they were teen idols they shouldn’t have relationships or drive fancy cars. Getting drunk before appearing on a television show was probably not the best way to win him over. It had hit the papers,Max West, drunk on TV! Yes, it definitely wasn’t going to win any of the members over with those headlines.
The house was perfect for me and the area was practically deserted, anyone could disappear in this small town and that’s what I planned to do. The first thing I did after leaving the band back in LA was to have all of my hair cut off. Now it was short around the back and sides and a little longer and messy on top, I was almost unrecognisable. For the first time in five years I booked a flight in my real name and left Max West back in LA where he would no doubt fade away.
Kaden Wright was back and as I gazed at my reflection, my light blue eyes were edged in red from a lack of sleep and my hands shook violently. This was really happening, I’d had the tests and they came back positive. I now had six months to make my life mean something. Six months and then I was ending everything. I didn’t want to live with this disease and planned not to. My mother wouldn’t even miss me, she was too busy with her forth husband, my brother worked out in Hong Kong and my father had died in his thirties.
At the tender age of twenty six, being told I had the same illness that killed my father devastated me, but I was not going to let it ruin my life yet and would not let it get to a point where I would be relying on nurses because I couldn’t even wipe my own ass.
The yappy, flea bitten mutt that had pounced on me on the beach actually did me a favour, though I’d never admit it. I knew it belonged to my neighbour; I had watched her leave the house most mornings and figured she must have been a school teacher because of the hours she worked. I had been there a week and not so much as poked my nosed out of the door. But the night before, I had fought with Beth and told her it was over, our three year relationship had to end and she didn’t take the news very well. After our fight, I removed the sim card from my cell phone and snapped it in half. That part of my life was over, now I had six months to make amen
ds and to make peace with myself.
Once inside I filled a bowl with cereal and took it out onto the deck, then sat listening to the ocean. I did try and listen to some music, but it angered me so much I had to switch it off. I lifted the spoon to my mouth and my hand started shaking again. I dropped the spoon and hurled the bowl of cereal on to the sand. I sat back on the seat staring at the sky as it darkened. I heard a window open in the house next door. I figured they had gone to bed, I hadn’t seen a guy there or anything, but that wasn’t to say she lived alone, well, aside from the mutt.
My thoughts turned back to my life. Why me? What did I do to deserve this? I was twenty six, I’d never married and I didn’t have any kids, why did I get to have this disease? I watched as it ate my father away, little by little, the shaking at the dinner table, the limping and his shaky legs, I watched him fall time and time again. I watched my mother bathe him and feed him, I watched the nurses wipe his ass and that would not be me, it would not be me!
I hurried inside and hunted the cabinets for a drink, anything that would stop the shaking and help me sleep. I had nothing, so I raced out to my rental car and headed towards town praying that the liquor store would be open. But who was I kidding? I was in a small town that didn’t even have a Wal-mart, the only gas station on the highway was open.
I paced inside the store and headed for the refrigerators. All they had was beer, so I grabbed a couple of packs and marched towards the counter. The server could barely tear his eyes away from the TV screen,