by Kari March
Promise Me Always
Published by Kari March
Copyright © 2014 by Kari March
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be 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 are reading this book and you did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for supporting and respecting the hard work of this author.
This 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 events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in the work of fiction.
Cover Designed by K23 Design
Edited by Cara Arthur and Jaime Witkamp
Content Editors - Cara Arthur and Megan Noelle
Interior Design by Angela McLaurin, Fictional Formats
Prologue—Four years ago…
Chapter 1—Here we go again…
Chapter 2—Forever Friends…
Chapter 3—Complications…
Chapter 4—Confusion…
Chapter 5—Interrupted…
Chapter 6—It’s Not Like That…
Chapter 7—Another Side…
Chapter 8—Fall For You…
Chapter 9—Claim Me…
Chapter 10—All The Way…
Chapter 11—Crossing Over…
Chapter 12—None of Your Business…
Chapter 13—Pushing her Away…
Chapter 14—Cutting In…
Chapter 15—Get it Over With…
Chapter 16—What the Hell is Wrong With You…
Chapter 17—Just Walk Away…
Chapter 18—Time to Forget…
Chapter 19—Awkward…
Chapter 20—I Need a Hero…
Chapter 21—It’s All My Fault…
Chapter 22—Never Going to Change…
Chapter 23—Pulling Away…
Chapter 24—Whatever it takes…
Chapter 25—Perfect…
Chapter 26—Fireworks…
Chapter 27—Nervous Wreck…
Chapter 28—Surprise…
Chapter 29—Always and Forever…
Epilogue—Present Day…
Acknowledgements
This book is dedicated to my husband.
Thanks for inspiring me every day. Without you, this story would have never been possible. I love you.
You’re worthless.
A fucking accident.
You don’t deserve shit.
Those words had been resounding in my head my whole life and, right now, they were blaring louder than ever. She was gone and I knew why. She finally saw the truth, she finally realized she was too good for me and that’s why she left.
He was right—I wasn’t good enough. I never would be.
“Blake, hand me the crescent wrench, would ya?” Devin asked from under the hood of the Bronco, snapping me from my thoughts.
I usually hated hanging out with my brother when he worked on cars, but anything was better than sitting at home alone. At least here I could try to get my mind off of the destruction that was my life.
I handed Dev the wrench and then took a seat in the corner of the garage, popping open my third beer of the day. Devin usually hated it when I drank—he was such a hypocrite. He was drunk every weekend in high school, yet had the nerve to get mad at me when I had one lousy beer. Today, he was making an exception. It was my first weekend without her and he knew I was devastated.
“How’s she coming?” Cole asked as he and Shane entered the garage.
Cole was one of Devin’s best friends. The carburetor on his Ford Bronco needed to be replaced and Cole didn’t let anyone, but my brother, touch his baby. Shane was Cole’s neighbor and was always around. He went to school with me but was a senior this year instead of a junior.
“Almost finished, man. She should be good as new once I’m done,” Devin replied, his head still buried in the engine.
“Thanks, Dev,” Cole said as he took a seat next to me. “So, Blake, how are you holding up?” He asked, slapping me on the back.
I didn’t even know how to answer him. I was fucking falling apart, but there was no way I was telling him that. I just shrugged my shoulders and tossed back a large swig of beer.
Maybe if I drink enough, it will numb the pain.
“That bad, huh?” He said as he gave me a pathetic look. “Don’t sweat it, man. She’s obviously psycho—what kind of person does something like that, anyway?”
Shane started to laugh and, for a moment, all I wanted to do was kick his ass. “You just need to get drunk¸ find some hot piece of ass, and forget about her,” he said nonchalantly from the corner.
If only it were that easy. I didn’t know if I would ever be able to forget about her, but getting drunk seemed like the perfect place to start. “Step one – check,” I said, as I held my beer can up in the air.
“And it looks like step two just arrived.” I heard Devin say with a chuckle, nodding his head down the driveway. “Looks like Palmer brought that hot piece of ass with her.”
“Holy shit! I call dibs,” Shane said, a little too eagerly. All Shane thought about was sex. He was hornier than Devin. The only difference was that Devin had standards. Shane would screw anything, as long as it was female.
“Hell, that isn’t a piece of ass. That’s Palmer’s little sister!” Cole exclaimed as he stood up. Before he headed their way, he added quietly, “I’m not kidding. She’s off limits. Palmer will kill you if you even look at her wrong and then she’ll kill me for being friends with you.”
I still hadn’t even seen the girl they were talking about, not that it mattered. The way I was feeling, a fucking Victoria’s Secret model could be walking up the driveway and I wouldn’t care. There was only one face I wanted to see and I knew whoever was walking up the driveway—it wasn’t her.
I watched as Cole came back into the garage. Palmer was right next to him, his arm draped around her shoulders.
“Hey guys!” Palmer said cheerfully. “Do any of you know my sister?”
Devin finally took his head out of the Bronco and looked up to where I’m assuming Palmer’s sister was standing. He looked like a total dumbass, standing there and staring at her with a stupid smile on his face. I looked over at Shane and he was watching her with the same dopy smile as my brother.
“No, we don’t,” Devin said, taking a step closer and wiping his hands off on a towel.
“And it’s a damn shame. Where have you been hiding her, Palmer?” Shane said, sounding like a complete moron. He was on his feet in no time, looking like he had just won the lottery. I couldn’t believe them. They were acting like she was a fucking supermodel or some shit.
Not fucking caring who her sister was, I dropped my head and looked at the beer can in my hands. I pulled back and forth on the tab until it broke off, furiously flicking it towards the trash can and missing it entirely. With a heavy sigh, I got up and headed over to pick it up.
“Well, Tess, this is Devin, Shane and that angry fella in the back there–that’s Blake. Guys, this is Tessa,” Palmer announced.
Not wanting to be a complete jackass, I threw the tab in the trash and turned to say hello. I suddenly understood why Devin and Shane were staring like idiots. All the air left my lungs at the sight of her. She was glowing brighter than the sun in her yellow dress and light pouring in from behind her made her look like an angel. The corners of my mouth turned upward and I realized I was gazing at her lik
e a goddamn fool as well. Shit, she probably thinks we’re all insane. I tried to look away, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t tell what it was, but there was something special about her. I had never seen anything so beautiful in all my life and then she smiled at me…
The dark roadway in front of me was blurring through my tears. I glanced at the clock—11:32pm. I could not believe this was happening. Again. Why didn’t I just stay away from him the first time?
I reached for my phone and tried calling my sister for a third time, the tears continuing to flow down my cheeks. Damn! I tossed my phone into the cup holder as her voicemail picked up. What the hell was she doing?
Two red lights later, I heard a buzzing noise and held my breath as my phone jiggled beside me. That better be Palmer! I looked at the screen and saw a picture of Jared blowing me a kiss. Fuck! What the hell could he possibly have to say to me after what I just caught him doing?! After what I just witnessed, I had nothing to say to him. A few minutes later my phone buzzed again. This time, it was a text from Jared.
Baby I really need to talk 2 u. Plz.
No, thanks.
I switched my phone off vibrate so I would hear it when my sister finally called me back. I threw it down on my passenger seat and just started sobbing again. How could I be so stupid?
I wiped the tears from my eyes with the back of my hand as I replayed his words from the first time this happened.
“I’m sorry, baby! I will never do it again!” he had pleaded with me. “It means nothing, Tess! Nothing! I was just drunk! That’s all, baby.”
I never should have taken him back after that. Even though I was really hesitant, he begged, pleaded, brought me flowers – the whole shebang—for over three months and I finally broke down. He was really convincing; I figured any guy that asked for forgiveness for that long really must be sorry.
Then my phone started to play “Pretty Good at Drinkin’ Beer” by Billy Currington, I knew my sister was finally calling me back. I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Hey,” I answered pathetically.
“Sorry, Tessa—we walked down to the liquor store because we ran out of beer already. I left my phone in the apartment. What’s up?”
“Jared’s what’s up. He did it again, Palmer,” I said, with a crack in my voice.
“That asshat!” Palmer screamed into my ear. I could tell she had already had a lot to drink tonight and I couldn’t help but laugh to myself over her word choice. “Where are you? Do you need someone to come pick you up? Matt is sober and I am sure he wouldn’t mind.”
“No, I’m driving. Just got on the highway. I should be there in about fifteen minutes,” I said, fighting back tears. I knew the moment I saw her I would break down.
“Alright, Tess, I’ll watch for you and meet you in the parking lot so we can talk.” I heard her jostle the phone a bit. “Cole,” she yelled to her boyfriend. “Pour Tess a shot… Yes he did… No, we don’t need to go find him—not yet anyway,” she said, her voice laced with anger. “Tess, we are getting your shots all ready for you, doll,” her attention back on me. “See you in a bit. Love you.”
I hung up and sat the phone back into the cup holder. The tears had finally slowed. Trying to maintain my current mindset, I turned up the radio to distract me. “Wide Awake” by Katy Perry was playing. Isn’t that fitting?
Just that short conversation with Palmer made me feel better. She always had a way of making me calm down. That was her specialty. She was the complete opposite of me in every way, even down to the way we looked. She had long blonde hair that fell halfway down her back and gorgeous hazel eyes that would bring any man to his knees. Standing at six feet tall, she always stood out in any crowd. She had just as much attitude to back up her look, too.
Right before I made it to Palmer’s, I received another text from Jared.
R U home? I’m outside. Plz call me :(
I parked the car and then shot him a quick text back, just so he would leave me alone for the night. I knew I was going to have to talk to him eventually, but I just couldn’t do it yet.
Staying at my sister’s. Don’t come over unless you want your ass kicked.
Hopefully that would keep him away for awhile. He was very persistent. He didn’t give up very easily, even if he knew what he did was wrong. He went after what he wanted and I guess that is part of the reason I fell for him.
As soon as I got out of the car, Palmer’s arms were around me and I broke down—“ugly cry” broke down. Really, I didn’t know why I was crying so hard. It isn’t like this was the first time he did this to me. I should have seen it coming. ‘Once a cheater always a cheater’—isn’t that how the saying goes? We had been together for two years the first time it happened. Well, the first time he got caught. I couldn’t help but think back to that night while I cried in Palmer’s arms.
It was early December and the day of his company’s Christmas party. Jared was an executive at his father’s commercial construction company. It was a very large business with over three hundred employees. Jared had just finished college and already had one foot in the door, thanks to his father. Really, I don’t even know why it was so important for Jared to get his degree. His father was going to give him the position whether he had it or not.
The whole day started out perfectly. Jared sent me down to the Hyatt where the party was being held. When I arrived, he had a personal stylist make me over from head to toe. Then, she escorted me to a luxury suite where the most gorgeous gown was waiting for me. It was a strapless, flowing dress in a striking crimson red. It had sequins on every inch of it. It was the perfect dress for an elegant, black tie Christmas party.
He arrived right on time, commenting how beautiful I was and how he couldn’t wait to take me out of my dress later that night. We begrudgingly left our suite and headed down to the ballroom. Everything was just remarkable. His father had gone all out.
There were over four hundred people in attendance and you could hardly tell because the ballroom was so massive. There were four huge Christmas trees in each corner of the giant ballroom. White drapes were lining the walls and the custom lighting effects made it look like snowflakes were falling all around us. It was breathtaking.
Dinner was exceptional. There was a band playing soft classical-style Christmas music the whole time we ate. Jared was being so sweet, too. He whispered the most romantic and naughty things in my ear all throughout the night.
After dinner, we were all escorted into a different ballroom where everything was set up just like a giant high-end lounge. There were white sofas and chairs circling an enormous dance floor. The lighting was a dark blue color and the same snowflakes from dinner were falling all around us—the whole room screamed ‘winter wonderland’. There was a DJ in front of the dance floor getting the party started.
We had been dancing for about an hour when I started to feel ill. I ran to the bathroom and made it just in time to see my whole dinner come up.
When I finished and I had freshened myself up, I opened the rest room door. Jared was standing there, talking to his father’s secretary. Pamela was a short, busty girl with bleach blonde hair. I had met her before and something about her just screamed ‘slut’ to me.
She was obviously drunk, swaying back and forth. She was also touching Jared’s arm a lot and it was making me even sicker just watching it. When he saw me, he walked right past her and asked me if I was okay. I told him I was feeling ill and that I wanted to go back to the room. Jared said he couldn’t leave yet because he was in charge of the raffle giveaway that was going to be happening in about thirty minutes. I told him it was no big deal and that he could just come up after he was done. He agreed and I made my way back up to the room to get some rest.
As soon as I made it to the room, around nine thirty, I changed out of my dress and passed out—the exhaustion of the long day and then being sick was taking its toll on me. I woke up later and looked at the clock. It was midnight and Jared still wasn’t back yet. I tried call
ing his cell, but it went straight to voice mail. I texted him and got no reply. Finally, at twelve thirty, I decided to get some clothes on and go downstairs to find him.
When I got back to the ballroom where the party was held, there were still a few people hanging out on the dance floor… but Jared was nowhere to be found. I spotted his father at the bar and asked if he had seen him. He said he thought he saw him go outside with some co-workers, so I turned and headed for the exit.
At first, I didn’t see anyone. Then I heard noises coming from around the corner. When I peeked my head around the wall, there he was—with Pamela.
He had her pushed up against the brick wall of the hotel with his pants around his ankles. Her legs were wrapped around his waist and her dress was bunched up around her chest. I was going to be sick all over again.
I must have let out a gasp when I saw them because I heard Jared yell out for me as I was making my way back inside. “Tess… wait… Oh, God… Babe, come back. Tess!” he yelled.
I couldn’t speak. I was sick as a dog and he was fucking some slut against a hotel wall. I was devastated. Luckily, I beat him to the elevator and the doors closed moments before he got to it. I went straight up to the room, grabbed my purse, and then took the stairs back down to the lobby. I made it to my car without running into him. Once I got out of the parking lot, I called the first person I always called—Palmer.
It was déjà vu—me, in my sister’s arms, crying like a dope in the parking lot of her apartment complex because the man I loved was cheating on me.
“How did you find out this time, Tess?” Palmer asked me softly, rubbing small circles on my back.
“Oh, Palmer! It was horrible!” I cried, sobbing into her shoulder. “Way worse this time.”
“I swear—I am going to cut off his dick, Tess. I wanted to do it the first time but now I’m determined,” she said, pulling me away from her and looking me in the eye. Her face was a mixture of concern and fury. “I will go Lorena Bobbitt on his ass if I ever see him again.” With that one statement, I was laughing again. God, I loved my sister. She always knew just what to say to make me feel better. “So, spill it—how did you catch the little bastard this time?” she asked.