Break Me (The Summer Series)

by James, Harper

  “Dancing, hello.” She began to sway against him, and he pushed her as far away as he could in the crowded living room.

  “Liv, stop it.”

  “What?” She looked at him startled and then pouted up at him, pushing her pink lip out as her beautiful eye lids drooped.

  “Just . . .” He groaned and looked toward the still-waiting guys. “Come on, damn it.”

  Olivia let out a squawk as he pulled her roughly through the house and out the front door. “Is Hope home?” He looked over his shoulder to see that she was listening to him.

  “No.” Olivia narrowed her brows at him and then looked over her shoulder toward the party. “Last I saw she was still at the party. Why? What’s going on? Are you about to leave?”

  “Yes, actually, we both are.” He answered without turning around and narrowing his eyes on his destination.

  “What? Why?” She pulled back, trying to free her arm from his grasp, but he only tightened his hold.

  “Because you’re pissing me off.” Nate didn’t look back, and as Olivia tried to pull him to a stop in protest, he bent, throwing her over his shoulder, much like her brother had with his girl earlier. “If you’re going to throw up, could you aim out?” He sneered, getting more and more disgusted with her behavior by the second.

  “If I throw up, it’s going all over you, you big oaf.” Nate tried to keep the chuckle quiet but knew instantly that she could hear by the way she tensed in his arms. “Ass. I wasn’t even drinking.” She grunted.

  It was a long walk back to the dorm, but he could feel his nerves calming with each welcome step away from the party. He knew she was exhausted. Unlike everyone else, he actually paid attention. She was in class from eight to one every day. She had tutoring for two or three hours a day, depending on the subject. She had a sorority schedule to keep, she volunteered for the basketball team boosters, and she studied constantly. Essentially, she wasn’t sleeping, eating, or relaxing. She hid it well. The fact that he saw it so easily only served to prove what he knew he couldn’t avoid for much longer. He was into his Little Livvy, dangerously into her.

  He wasn’t surprised at all when her breathing slowed and she calmed down pretty quickly on the walk. Nate almost wished he could cradle her in his arms so she could get some much needed rest while he had an excuse to watch. Upon entering her dorms, he was disappointed and then not disappointed at all to see that the front desk was empty. When a girl coming out of the elevator saw him carrying the now-exhausted Olivia toward her, she stepped out of the way. “Excuse me?” she asked meekly.

  “Yeah.” Nate looked over his free shoulder toward her.

  “Is she okay with”—the girl pointed to Olivia over his shoulder—“that? You aren’t doing anything shady, right?”

  “No.” He laughed. “But I like that you care. What’s your name?”

  “Leigh.” She narrowed her eyes at him in confusion.

  “Well, Leigh”—he shifted the now-compliant Olivia on his shoulder—“I’m Nate Fennell. Her name is Olivia. Find her tomorrow and make sure she is okay for me. Would you mind? Room 412.”

  “You do know I can talk and function, right?” Olivia put her elbows on his back and rested her chin in her palm, shocking both Leigh and Nate to find she was suddenly awake. “I’m Olivia. Nice to meet you, Leigh.”

  “S-sure.” Leigh walked away with a lost look on her face as Nate pressed the four on the elevator, chuckling at the startled look on the girl’s face.

  When he let himself in her dorm suite, he checked Chloe’s room first. He didn’t know if he was hoping she was there with Scott or not. On the one hand, they could take Olivia off his hands. On the other hand, they would take Olivia off his hands. Why did giving her up hold absolutely no appeal?

  She was already snoozing again by the time he walked into her room. He was beginning to worry about her. She shouldn’t be this exhausted, and if she was, what did that say about everything she had on her plate? As gently as he could, he lowered her off his shoulder and onto her bed. He looked toward Hope’s side of the room and wondered where she could be but was quickly brought back to reality by Olivia and her grumblings. “What was that, Liv?”

  “Nate.” She sat up and pushed her hair out of her face “Thank you for tonight. I’m always glad when you come.”

  His brows drew together. “Yeah. Always.” He didn’t know what she meant, but he knew that for her, his little Livvy, he would always be there.

  “Why?” There was a touch of longing and a hint of sadness in the question. He ached with the word. Lowering himself onto the bed, he leaned closer to her.

  “Why, what, baby?”

  “Why don’t you want me? It is because I’m too tall? Most guys like girls like Chloe. They don’t want to look a girl in the eye.” She was being honest. She wanted the truth. He wanted to let her know of his absolute interest, but he wasn’t sure where this was going, and he sure as hell wasn’t sure he was ready to say some things she may not want to hear.

  “Liv . . .”

  “Is it my hair? Did you like it better short? I can cut it, you know.”

  He studied her for a minute as she slowly regained some of her senses in front of him, wilting under his scrutiny and clearly shocked with her own forwardness. Of course he loved her longer hair. It took her beautiful face and added a softness to it that he hadn’t seen on her since she was a child. The waves enticed his fingers. The way it now hid her neck made him ache to search out her pulse. It made those baby blues of hers shine in contrast to the long gold strands. He sat back a little as a revelation hit him. She was perfection: smart, loving, somewhat crazy perfection. “Liv, I love your hair.” He reached out and ran his fingers down a strand, allowing them to brush the hollow of her neck.

  She let out a moan that had him jerking his hand back in surprise. “Nate.” She leaned forward, bringing them closer, curiosity and vulnerability radiating off of her. “Why do you want her?”

  He was too confused by the change in subject to understand what Olivia was getting at. “Who?”

  “Chloe.” She leaned away and pouted as she lay back down. “Why do you and Scott only have eyes for her? What do I have to do to get those eyes to see me like that? To want me like that?” She was losing the battle with sleep as she laid her head on her pillow, and he struggled to keep up with exactly what she was implying. Clearly school and all her activities were starting to get to her. Or maybe he missed her taking some drinks? Whatever it was, she was losing him.

  “Which eyes?” he said loudly, trying to keep her coherent a little longer.

  “Those”—she barely lifted her hand toward him—“the beautiful and mesmerizing eyes I would kill to have yearn for me. The ones that follow Chloe out of a room and sneak sideways glances when you think no one is paying attention.”

  “I don’t . . .” Nate stopped as he heard Olivia let out a quiet snore. She was gone for the night. He shook his head and stood, rolling her comforter up and over her back so she wouldn’t get cold in the frigid dorms. Unable to help himself, he leaned forward and gently kissed her temple. “These eyes only follow Chloe out of the room because she is taking your brother,” he whispered, right into her ear. “When she takes him away, I’m free to be near and watch the girl I really want. Good night, my little Livvy.” He started to leave and then thought better of it, wanting to be near in case she needed him. He decided to collapse on Hope’s bed until she got home. There was no way he was letting Liv wake up and get away with the conversation they had. He wanted some answers. He knew now there was something worth finding out.

  Saving Tatum

  by Micalea Smeltzer coming Fall 2014

  Synopsis

  Even tough girls need saving.

  Jude Brooks is bad news. He’s the kind of guy that leaves behind a string of broken hearts and Tatum O’Connor is not about to be one of those girls, despite all of Jude’s advances. They have a past, and Tatum’s determined to make sure they don’t have a fut
ure.

  Unfortunately for her, “no” isn’t a word in Jude’s vocabulary.

  The more she backs away, the more he pushes.

  But what if he pushes too far?

  Tatum’s hiding a pain that no one sees and holding on to a hurt that may never heal. Letting Jude into her heart could shatter her completely—and what if she opens up to Jude and he can’t handle her baggage?

  Love is never easy—especially when the person you’re falling for is the person you blame for the worst event in your life.

  Love, heartache, and despair.

  That’s the name of the game when you’re Saving Tatum..

  Excerpt from Saving Tatum

  (unedited and subject to change)

  Prologue

  I jolted awake at the sound of someone trying to beat our front door down. I sat straight up, the blankets pooling at my waist. My head twisted to look at the blinking orange numbers flashing on the clock beside my bed. Three in the morning.

  Fear slithered down my spine like a serpent.

  Nothing good came from someone at your door that early in the morning.

  I heaved my tired body out of bed. My muscles were stiff and overworked from a rigorous cheerleading practice the night before.

  I opened my bedroom door and poked my head out. I saw my mom and dad coming out of their bedroom. A baseball bat was clutched in my dad’s hand. What did he think he was going to do to an intruder with that? Knock them out? Besides, if someone was trying to break in, why would they be knocking on the door?

  “Stay up here, Tate,” my dad warned, quietly tiptoeing down the steps. My mom followed him even though he warned her to stay put as well.

  I kept watch on the door.

  My dad looked through the peephole and muttered, “What the hell?”

  Swinging it open, I saw red and blue flashing lights and an officer stood at our door.

  I rolled my eyes. The neighbor’s kids were probably vandalizing again.

  I was about to close my door and get back in bed, when I heard the officer speak.

  “Mr. and Mrs. O’Connor?” He asked. He was young and nervous, obviously new to the police force.

  “That’s us,” my dad answered, “is there a problem?”

  “It’s about your son, there’s been an accident. I’m so sorry to tell you this, but he didn’t make it.” His face was somber, eyes downcast.

  My mom let out a piercing, soul-crushing wail, and started to fall. My dad’s arm held her upright.

  But there was no one there to hold me up.

  I crumbled to the floor, clutching at my chest.

  I couldn’t breathe.

  I was suffocating under the pressure.

  He didn’t make it.

  He was dead. My big brother—my best friend—was gone.

  “I’m sorry,” I heard the officer say one more time before my dad closed the door. His cries soon joined the sound of my mother’s.

  Tears streamed down my face, but my sobs were silent.

  Graham was gone. In a matter of hours he’d been ripped from my life forever. I’d just seen him at dinner! We’d been talking about school and how I’d be cheering at the football game on Friday! He was telling me how proud he was of me!

  Everything had been perfect! The way it was supposed to be!

  Something like this wasn’t supposed to happen!

  Graham was a senior! This was his last year! He was supposed to leave for college and study to be a lawyer like our dad!

  He. Wasn’t. Supposed. To. Die.

  None of this was supposed to happen.

  My perfect life wasn’t supposed to explode like this.

  But it did.

  Over night, I went from having it all, to having nothing.

  I watched my mom close herself off from everybody.

  I watched my dad spend his every waking hour slaving over his job so he didn’t have to think about Graham, or mom, or even me.

  I watched myself slowly spiral from a carefree happy girl, into a complete and utter cynic.

  And I knew exactly who was to blame for everything.

  Jude Brooks.

  Escaping Heartbreak

  Coming June 2014

  It’s time for Sawyer to start living her life. Since she was fifteen she has taken care of everyone but herself, including her older brother Dane. She has been lying to herself to keep from feeling the pain of her parent’s death. Now she is twenty and she’s ready to start a life of her own. Moving into her parent’s lake house would be the perfect escape. Wouldn’t it? That’s what she thought. Only, it led her right into the emotional place she’s been hiding from all this time. All of those years of running from her feelings, she now has to face them. It’s too much. She can’t deal with it alone. Someone has to help. She’ll do anything to escape the heartbreak, but you can only run so far.

  Travis can’t believe his eyes; his half-opened, blood shot eyes. Sawyer Evans was in the flesh and standing over him. He hadn’t seen this girl since he was ten years old. Travis only saw the Evan’s during the summer when they moved into the lake house. He and Dane were best friends. When Dane invited him and the old gang to a welcome back party at the Lake House, he couldn’t wait to go. It turns out getting wasted was only half the fun. Seeing Sawyer was the other half. She was the sexiest girl he’d ever seen and he was going to make sure that she knew it. Only she shot him down time and time again. He’s determined to break down those walls and get inside her head, but he’ll have to be sober to do it, and no matter how hard he tries, she’ll always run. He can’t keep chasing her. He has to figure out a way to make her stay.

  It’s time to stop running, stop hiding, and start learning where the true escape lies. Everyone will face heartbreak, but not everyone will find love.

  ONE

  Sawyer

  “Earth to Sawyer,” Uncle Jake snapped his fingers in front my face. “Where are you at?”

  Today marks the six year anniversary of our parent’s death. It still feels like it was yesterday. I was fifteen and my brother Dane was eighteen, when the accident happened. The rain was coming down hard that night. The semi lost control and crossed over the yellow line. The officer said that it was instant and no one felt any pain. There’s no way in hell that he could know that. At fifteen you feel like your life is shattering around you, but when everyone else is crumbling, you have no choice but to be strong. I’m grateful that I was there to help everybody, keeping busy made things easier for me.

  The snapping continued. “I’m here.” I shook my head and tried focusing my attention where it was needed. Uncle Jake was such a handsome guy. His long brown hair hung down in front of his blue eyes. He had aged so much over the past several years. After mom and dad died, he stepped in as sole guardian for me. Dane was eighteen and in his first semester of college. He couldn’t handle the responsibility. Uncle Jake was only thirty at the time and had absolutely no clue what it meant to raise a daughter, a teenage one at that. He was so young himself. The two of us have practically raised each other. Actually, I’d say I raised him. I did all the cooking and household responsibilities. Someone had to. He worked and made sure that the manly duties were all taken care of. As far as teenage female issues, he had no clue. I learned a lot of things on my own or from my best friend Wren.

  “It doesn’t look like you’re here.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “I asked you what you want to do for your birthday.”

  “It’s two weeks away. Do we really have to discuss this now? Besides, I’m sure Dane won’t come home. It’s been nearly six months since I’ve seen him. He barely even calls me anymore. We used to be so close and you’d think that today of all days, he’d call.”

  “I know pickle, but he’ll come around. He’s probably busy with finals or something.” I love that about Jake. He finds the good in everyone. He has to stop making excuses for Dane though. Dane is a big boy, he needs to start acting like it.

  “Uncle Jake,” I said taking his hand.<
br />
  “Yeah,” he squeezed my hand. I gave him one of those overly serious, we need to talk looks. He lifted his brows. “What is it? You’re freaking me out.”

  “How long has it been since you’ve had a date?”

  He looked down at his watch. “What day is it?”

  “I’m serious Uncle Jake.”

  He rolled his eyes. “I don’t know maybe a year.”

  “Or three,” I waved my fingers in front of his face. “You have to get out and get yourself a life. You will never be married at this rate. You don’t want to end up an old lonely man with nothing but a computer and a dog.”

  “Sounds like the pot calling the kettle black. You haven’t been living much yourself, you know.” He tugged on my ponytail.

  I set back in my chair and shut my mouth. He was right. Besides my best friend Wren, I have no life. I haven’t had a date since my junior year of high school. It went so bad that I refused to do it again, ever. I prefer spending my time taking care of Jake and when Dane’s home I take care of him. Dane’s the older of the two of us, but certainly not the wiser. I was supposed to go to college right out of high school. It was what my parents and I had always talked about. I chose to work instead and stay home with Jake. We’ve always been a team. Only recently have I been thinking that it’s time to do my own thing. I’ve just not found the right time to tell him. Or, maybe I’m just scared of what it will feel like to be on my own.

  “I think it’s time that you got out more pickle.”

  “I’m twenty years old. Don’t you think it’s time you stopped calling me pickle?”

  “Hell no, you’ll always be my pickle.”

  “Whatever,” I rolled my eyes. The thought of eating pickles now makes me sick. I used to eat them jars at a time when I was little and the name just stuck.