by Kira Adams
It’s crazy to say, but for once, both of us are in a place where we would like to settle down for a moment. Maybe a year, maybe longer, but we want to put roots down again. A year ago, Keifer let go of his cottage in New York so we could travel without the extra bills. We can essentially live anywhere in the world now and have been debating finding somewhere in Canada; Vancouver preferably. With the free health care and semi-rational leadership, we think it will be a better place to raise a child. Did I mention that I’m four months pregnant?
Sometime late last year, Keifer and I began toying with the idea of trying for a baby. We weren’t married or tied down, but the love that we felt and still feel for one another was powerful enough to know the baby would have a wonderful support system. It also helped that a year before we received the results about him fathering Lena’s baby and it was a 99.9% chance that he was not the father. I don’t think either one of us have ever been so relieved.
Knowing that Keifer’s first baby will be mine gives me more joy than anything. I’m ready to go through all the stages of pregnancy once again, and with such an amazing, supportive person by my side, I know it will be a wonderful experience. I’ve already been through the nausea and vomiting portion, so bring on whatever else comes!
“What are you thinking about?” Keifer asks, tucking my hair behind my ear.
“You. Life. The baby. Where we are going to live. If the baby is going to be a nomad like us…”
He chuckles, kissing me gently on the forehead. “We are going to find somewhere to live, don’t you worry. We still have five months before Lex is born.”
Technically, we chose not to find out the sex of the baby. We didn’t want to get our hopes up or be disappointed, so we decided on a unisex name. We are also preparing by shopping for both girl and boy things. We have enough play money that whatever extra we buy that isn’t used, can be saved for baby number two.
We have been staying in a nice hotel in Germany, but we need to find somewhere more permanent, before I’m too large to fly. It won’t be much longer.
“Baby,” he says, attempting to catch my attention.
“Uh huh?” Although it sounds like I’m listening, I’m still stuck in my head and he knows it.
“Hey.” He tilts my chin toward him. “I don’t want Lex to come into the world with parents who aren’t together.”
Scrunching up my nose, I giggle. “Who aren’t together? But we are together…?”
He waves me off. “That’s not what I mean.” Looking at me deadpan in the face, his voice changes. “Marry me.”
A gasp escapes my throat before I can stop it. “I don’t know what to say.”
He grins back at me. “Normally, you would say yes.”
I nod nervously. “Yes, that is generally what people say after being asked such a question.”
He sits up in the bed and then shifts his weight so he can properly look me in the eyes. “So, you don’t want to marry me?”
Pulling in a sharp intake of breath, I reach for him pulling him back down toward me. “Look, I love you, more than anything, but do you think we are moving too fast?”
His eyebrows furrow and he looks utterly devastated.
“Oh, come on!” I push him playfully. “You’re crazy if you think I want to spend my life with anyone else but you. You are the best and brightest thing that has happened to me after some of the hardest and darkest times of my life. You came into my life when I was a shell of myself, trying to find the pieces to put myself back together, and you showed me how to live again. You showed me that even though my dreams were ripped away from me, it’s never too late to start again. There is no shame in it. You pushed me out of my element and well beyond my comfort zone and right into your arms. And you know what? I don’t regret anything, not a single moment…because you, Keifer Jacks, are my person. I love you more than anything. So, to answer your question…of course, I want to be Mrs. Jacks and have our son or daughter grow up with two loving parents.”
He grabs my face and kisses me aggressively before I can process another thought. “God, you drive me crazy in the best way.”
Giggling, I peck him quickly. “I think you owe me a ring, mister!”
He begins tickling me until I’m begging for mercy. “Well, I guess you’re just going to have to come along to make sure I pick out the right one.”
“You really are something else, aren’t you?” And in all honestly, I like it. I needed different, after Finn. My husband was amazing, the best man I ever knew, but Keifer is outstanding as well. He’s different in almost every way, but still makes me feel like the most loved woman on earth. My relationship with Keifer is nothing like the one I had with Finn, and that’s okay. One of the reasons I fell for Keifer so quickly was because how vastly different he was from his cousin. No, he’s not the douchebag he first led me to believe, but more the softy who helped heal the broken girl.
For a long time, I mourned the life I had, the one ripped from me, but these days I look to the future ahead of me. The sleepless nights, pillow fights, and bubble baths. The first steps, first words, and first birthday. My wedding day. It’s hard to believe that in one lifetime, sometimes people only find one true love. Although there was nothing pleasant or happy about what I went through, I’m blessed to have fallen so deeply, once more, and to have the feeling reciprocated. This isn’t the life I asked for, but it sure as hell is a life I’m thankful to be living.
This story has been such a long time in coming. In fact, it took me fourteen months to finish the first draft. Work has been the focal point of my life for some time now, and I did not want to rush or ruin Tobin’s story. I always knew there was a reason I wanted to tell this story and I believe now it’s to help people learn how to grieve after a debilitating tragedy.
Thankfully, I’ve never had to deal with anything near what Tobin experiences in TLINAF. I hope I never do.
In the book, Tobin begins rediscovering who she is and what she likes. She travels, changes jobs, and falls in love. A lot of these things come from desires deep inside of myself. Someday, sometime, I’d like to do what I love for a living, including traveling. I’d like to impact the world simply with my words.
I just want to thank my ladies from the Kira Believers Group who helped me with solidifying my blurb, beta reading, and overall showing enthusiasm for Tobin’s story. Tina, Justine, Krystal, Nichole, Kristine, etc. You guys are always such big supporters, and this time was no exception. Thank you for giving me something to look forward to with my books!
Patricia, thank you for everything you’ve done for me with this book. The covers, the teasers, your support and enthusiasm have been unwavering. Thank you for everything you have done and will do for me!
I don’t know where my writing will take me next, but I hope you will stick around for the journey.
Don’t forget, if you’re not doing something you love, you’re not really living!
Always,
Kira Adams
Hitchhiking Life by Kira Adams
I think I’ve broken my hand. The pain is unbearable and my hand is doubling in size as I speak. It’s an exhilarating feeling punching someone, but when that someone is your fiancé, it’s an awful feeling. It’s not like I planned it out or anything, but when I walked into our apartment and into our bedroom, only to find my fiancé Emmett in bed with another woman, you could say I was filled with blind rage.
Maybe burning most of his clothes and shoes, in the bathtub, wasn’t the smartest decision, but the satisfying feeling of destroying things he cared about was well worth it. I guess this is what I get for dating a rock star and falling for his empty promises and countless lies. I knew there was something fishy going on when the same chick kept showing up. Emmett always defended her, attending every single one of their shows, because she was ‘one of their biggest fans’.
Well congratulations, homewrecker. You can have him.
He’s been calling nonstop since I hastily packed a bag and ran ou
t, brokenhearted, and with a potentially broken hand. Just seeing ‘Mi Amor’ flash across the screen of my phone over and over is filling me up with uncontrollable fury. Without refrain, I smash my phone along the sidewalk I’m marching down.
I can hear the hum of his car behind me and his familiar voice faintly calling out to me, but this is it—the death of Emmett and Victoria. Good riddance.
“Tori!” He continues to attempt to sway my attention.
I refuse to give him even the slightest acknowledgement. Luckily, because I’m on foot, I’m not confined to walking along the streets. I make a beeline toward the familiar park we have frequented in the past, and luckily, I lose him.
I haven’t even had a chance to digest what my eyes took in less than twenty minutes ago. I don’t even know where I am headed. I just couldn’t stand to be there any longer, knowing that my life as I knew it was over. I’ve spent the past three years supporting his dreams and aspirations; I don’t even know who I am, what I want. It’s all a bit overwhelming to take in. I feel hot tears begin to trickle down my face. My heart is racing a mile a minute, and I think I may pass out any second from hyperventilation.
Breathe, Victoria, breathe. I take a few deep inhales of air and it temporarily slows the beating of my heart. Actually, I’m not even sure I have a heart left, more like a gaping hole. My fiancé ripped it out of my chest and then bulldozed over it. The pain I feel is doubling and I’m clutching my chest with everything I have in me.
I have no money, in fact, when I checked my balance yesterday, I was negative fifty dollars. Normally the band throws me some scraps because I always run their merchandise table. So much for that.
For a second, I actually contemplate calling my parents, but the feeling quickly passes. My mother never approved of Emmett and his lifestyle, and I’m not in the mood to hear ‘I told you so’.
I walk until my legs feel like they are going to snap off, until I can’t go a step further, and then I fall to the ground, bawling my eyes out.
I’ve never felt so empty before, like a hollow shell of who I used to be. It’s incredible how just a few, brief moments can suck all the happiness out of one’s life.
I think about the possibility of calling a friend, but I am stopped by two obstacles. The obvious, I smashed my phone in a fit of rage—probably not my best moment or wisest decision. Secondly, all of my friends are his friends. After he convinced me to move to Vegas, his hometown, I hesitantly agreed. At the time I didn’t think I had anything to lose—oh, how wrong I was…
It probably isn’t the smartest decision just running out without a clear destination or access to the outside world, but I was able to retrieve my laptop before I left.
It is dark when I make my way inside a local fast food restaurant that has free Wi-Fi. It’s limited to an hour, but I am going to make the best of it.
After grabbing a small cup of water and refilling it no less than three times, I’m finally connected. I still have no clue what to do, but I instantly hop on Craigslist, pulling up the rideshares section. The only thing I know for sure? I’m about to hitchhike life—wish me luck.
Krista Pakseresht has always been a dreamer. From the first time she opened her eyes, she has been creating worlds through words, exhibiting her true, natural talent. She specializes in young adult/new adult romance, horror, action, fantasy, and non-fiction under the pen name Kira Adams. She is the author of the Infinite Love series, the Foundation series, the Darkness Falls series, A Date with the Devil, and Ultimate Game Changer.
Books by Kira Adams:
The Infinite Love Series
Learning to Live (Ciera & Topher)
Life After (Destiny & Topher)
My Forever (Madalynne & Parker)
Beautifully Broken (Jacqueline & Lee)
Against All Odds (Austyn & Avery)
The Foundation Series
Pieces of Me
The Fighter
The Road Back to Us
Darkness Falls Series
Into the Darkness
Emerging from Darkness
The Darkness Remains
Standalones
A Date with the Devil
Ultimate Game Changer
The Life I Never Asked For