My Everything
by
Melanie Shawn
Cover Design by Hot Damn Designs
Published by Red Hot Reads Publishing at Smashwords
Copyright 2013 Melanie Shawn
All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book. No part of this may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without permission in writing from Melanie Shawn. Exceptions are limited to reviewers who may use brief quotations in connection with reviews. No part of this book can be transmitted, scanned, reproduced, or distributed in any written or electronic form without written permission from Melanie Shawn.
This book is a work of fiction. Places, names, characters and events are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
Table of Contents
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
Sneak Peek: Friction
Excerpt: My First
Excerpt: Sweet Reunion
Other Titles by Melanie Shawn
About the Author
Chapter One
Amber’s heart races as she walks down the long hallway, passing door after door. She can’t stop staring at his strong back as he stalks in front of her. He moves with an easy grace. His long legs carry him forward with a powerful stride.
Finally, he stops. Pulls out a keycard and slides it into the lock with a loud click. The light turns green.
This is it. Decision time. Is she going to do this or not?
He opens the door, moving to the side to allow her to walk in. His deep compelling eyes meet hers and a shiver runs from the tip of her head to the bottom of her feet. Her legs feel unsteady as her knees weaken from just his stare. Decision made.
Inside, a surreal orange glow fills the room. She realizes it's coming from a florescent light on the adjacent building's neon sign. Good, she thinks. It's best if this seems as unreal as possible. His jet black hair shines from the golden illumination beaming through the window. He takes off his jacket and hangs it on the desk chair, causing his button up white shirt to pull taut against his strong, muscled back.
“Do you want a drink?” At the sound of his deep, sexy voice, the tiny hairs at the nape of her neck stand up.
“No.” She reaches down, rolling her delicate gold bracelet around her wrist. She can feel her pulse rapidly beating as her thumb brushes the soft skin below her palm.
“Do you want to sit?” He motions smoothly to the small maroon couch that lines the wall beside the king sized bed.
“No.” Amber stares directly into his piercing blue eyes.
“Do you want to talk?” His question sounds more like a challenge than an inquiry.
Amber shakes her head slowly back and forth, her long dark hair softly brushing her shoulders. “No.”
She stares, captivated by his tall, athletic form. He stands a few feet away from her, legs planted shoulder width apart, hands hanging loosely by his sides. His eyes never leave hers, never stray down to her low-cut neckline or further, to the rest of her tight black dress.
“What do you want?” he finally asks, breaking the electrified silence.
“I want one night,” Amber replies with a shaky breath. “One night where I can forget. One night where I don’t have to think. One night where I don’t have to take care of anyone. One night where I don’t have to make any decisions. I want one night where all I have to do is feel.”
He doesn’t immediately respond to her request. Instead, with seemingly none of the sense of urgency or intensity that is flooding her entirely, he reaches up and slowly loosens his red tie. Then, after unbuttoning the top two buttons of his crisp white shirt, he removes his cuff links and rolls up each sleeve twice, his gaze never leaving hers.
If it were up to Amber, her cocktail dress would already be on the floor and they would both be in bed. Naked. If she decides she wants something, she takes it. And she definitely wants him.
But somehow, his deliberately easy pace is a turn-on. He has an air of authority and the appearance of someone who is to be instantly obeyed. He seems completely…contained.
“How much have you had to drink?” he asks flatly, his tone indicating that he is not to be lied to.
“That rum and coke was my first, and I didn’t even finish it,” she answers honestly as all of her nerve endings begin to tingle with anticipation.
Taking two wide steps, he crosses the room, effectively closing the distance between them in what feels like a millisecond. He is standing in front of her, his broad, wide chest even with her hungry eyes. His scent, a combination of soap and earthiness, surrounds her and causes a fluttering in her belly. She lifts her chin as her eyes scan up to meet his.
“What’s your name?” he asks. His gravelly voice sends an aching need through her that begins pulsing between her legs.
She doesn’t hesitate.
“I’m done talking.” She reaches up and winds her arms around his neck as she lifts on her toes to press her lips to his.
She softly kisses him for just a moment before he engages. Taking over, his firm lips do not leave any question of who is in control. She feels the roughened pads of his fingertips graze the side of her neck as his large hand wraps firmly at the base of her scalp, tilting her head even further up, giving his mouth complete and total access to hers.
A soft whimper of need escapes her lips as they part. His tongue sweeps inside, meeting hers in a sensual caress. He claims her, owns her, with his passionate kiss.
His hand possessively grips her hip as his other continues to hold her head in place, exactly where he wants it. His dominance creates a fierce desire that quickly spreads through her body, consuming her like a wild fire. Her hands move down his shoulders. She feels his muscles ripple beneath her touch, sending a tremor through her arm and down her spine.
He tears his mouth from hers as he quickly pulls her dress over her head. Then grabbing the back of her thighs he lifts her up, pressing her back against the wall. She feels his erection pressing firmly against her silk covered mound.
“Is this what you want?” he growls as he rocks his hips into hers.
A jolt of pleasure shoots through her core at the intimate contact. Her panties, already damp, are now soaking wet with arousal.
“Yes,” her voice is barely audible above the loud siren.
She tries to ignore the noise. She reaches to kiss him again but she can’t. The siren is growing louder and louder. She closes her eyes and tries to just feel. She wants nothing more in this moment than to lose herself in animal sensation. She bucks her hips towards him, searching, desperate with need - but feels nothing.
She opens her eyes again and is greeted with nothing more than the sight of a plain white ceiling.
W
hat the hell? She closes her eyes, willing herself back into the erotic escape, and then opens them once more.
White ceiling.
Damn.
Amber shook her head to clear it, and then turned to look at her alarm clock, sitting on her nightstand, blaring its unwelcome song.
All of her senses returned to her at once. She realized she was not in DC, back in that hotel room, at all. She was lying in her bed, at home in Harper’s Crossing. And that wasn't a siren she heard just moments ago. It was the shrill cry of her alarm clock, jerking her unwilling consciousness back to reality. She reached to turn it off as disappointment flooded her. Exhibiting what (she considered) admirable restraint, she refrained from throwing it at the wall across the room.
“Why do I always have to wake up before the good part?” she grumbled under her breath.
Then she noticed the time.
Damn!
She picked up the phone and quickly scrolled through her contacts. Before she was able to find the correct one the phone began vibrating in her hand as Haley’s picture appeared.
Amber pressed the answer icon, “Hey…”
“Where are you?” Haley interrupted.
“Still in bed. I overslept. But I will be there in fifteen.”
“No, don’t rush, it’s fine. Sophie stopped by to invite us to a party and stayed to help out. I only called because I was worried about you.”
“We’re that busy?” Amber didn’t think her small boutique shop could possibly be so slammed that Haley wouldn’t be able to handle it on her own, especially since they open at ten and it was only ten-fifteen.
“Um...it’s the fifteenth,” Haley’s voice sounded confused. “Are you okay?”
Damn, how had she forgotten the date? On the fifteenth of every month, Amber opened Bella, her clothing store, an hour early and invited the women that were staying at HCWS (Harper’s Crossing Women’s Shelter) to come and use their gift cards.
Each month, Amber donated gift cards to the shelter, and the women staying there could earn the cards by participating in programs. The shelter offered everything from counseling to self-defense classes. The morning of the fifteenth was Amber's favorite time of the entire month! Something happened to a woman who was trying to get her life together when she slipped on a beautiful suit or office dress and looked at herself in the mirror. It was like she suddenly saw herself as the strong, capable woman that all of the HCWS counselors had been trying to convince her that she was. It was like the belief in her own abilities magically entered into her consciousness as the fabric slipped over her body.
Amber had seen the transformation happen a hundred times, and would never tire of it if she saw it a thousand more.
Dang, girl, she chastised herself – get it together!
Her phone buzzed from another incoming call.
“Hold on, Hales,” Amber said as she checked to see who the call was from.
She sighed. Of course! Why was she even surprised? It was that kind of morning.
She put the phone back to her ear to wrap up with Haley. “I’ve got to take this call, Hales. Don’t worry, though, I’m fine. I’ll see you in a few.”
Amber disconnected Haley’s call and took a deep breath before answering the other. She pressed the button and moved the phone back to her ear.
“Hi, Mom,” Amber tried to sound as upbeat as possible.
“Hey, Sweetie,” her mother slurred.
Amber felt her entire body tense as she carefully controlled her tone. “Mom, where are you?”
“Um, well, I can see the road but can’t see the sign,” she giggled. “Hey handsome, do you know where we are?”
“Yeah, a shitty motel. Can she give us the money or what?” Amber heard a man’s gruff voice in the background.
“Hold on! I haven’t asked her yet, Bubba,” her mother whispered loudly.
“You can tell Bubba she said no,” Amber said flatly, not wanting to draw this conversation out any longer than necessary.
“What?” her mother asked, her voice shaking.
“No, Mom, I am not giving you any money. I will come pick you up and take you back to Horizons, but that’s it.”
“No, no, no, you don’t have to do that,” she hiccupped. “Just send me the money and I’ll take a bus back.”
“No, Mom, I’m serious. I’m not sending you any more money.” Amber felt like her head was being squeezed by a vice and her fingers began to tingle. She knew those were signs that her blood pressure was shooting up. She needed to calm down.
“You know what?” her mother screamed through the phone before bursting into tears, “Aaron would have helped me! He would have never said no to his mother! He loved me! Why do you have to be such a bitch?”
“Goodbye, Mom.” Amber’s hands shook as she set her phone on her nightstand.
She blinked several times from the tears that were stinging her eyes. She glanced over at the framed photo that sat beside her alarm clock. It held a picture of her and Aaron taken right before his last tour in Afghanistan. They stood in front of a chain link fence, both squinting from the brightly shining sun. Aaron’s arm was draped loosely around her shoulders as she hugged his waist. Huge smiles spread across their faces as they looked up at whoever they had asked to take the picture.
God, she missed her brother so much. It had been eight years since he was killed in the line of duty. She had thought that it would get easier with time. She had known she would never forget her brother or stop being sad. But, man. She really hadn’t imagined that, this many years later, she would still feel the same level of stabbing pain in her chest which she had felt when she had learned that he had been killed, every single time she thought about him.
She knew she didn’t have time to deal with it now, though. She picked up her phone once again.
After two rings, a woman’s voice came on the line. “Horizons, this is Sherry.”
“Hi, Sherry, this is Amber Webb. My mother, Susan Webb, is a patient at Horizons. I just received a concerning phone call from her, leading me to believe she is no longer under your care. Can you tell me when she left there and why I wasn’t contacted?”
Amber could hear the clicking sounds of a keyboard before Sherry’s voice came back on the line, “It looks like she voluntarily checked-in, which means she can check-out at any time. Under those circumstances we are not required to notify anyone of a patient’s status.”
“Can you just tell me when she left?” Amber had no idea if her mom was on a two day or a two week bender, at least this would narrow it down.
“I’m sorry, I can’t. It’s against policy.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Amber knew, logically, that it wasn’t Sherry’s fault that she couldn’t give her the information she needed. Sherry was just doing her job. But that didn’t change the fact that right now, Amber didn’t like Sherry very much. Nope, not at all.
--- ~ ---
“Holy shit! Is that your bike?” Cameron asked loudly, still looking through the window as Seth walked into the small office.
“Yep.” Seth watched his oldest friend's face light up as he held the blinds open, staring outside with a look of wonder on his face.
“She is a beauty. Can I take her out?” Cameron asked, dropping the blinds and turning towards him.
“No,” Seth immediately replied.
Cameron shook his head, a slow smile spreading across his face, “Damn, you look good. You always were a pretty S.O.B. Looks like you just got better with age. Like a fine wine, my man. What do you have, a twelve pack under there?” Cameron slapped at Seth’s abs, then, patting his own gut, he added with a wink, “I may have lost my girlish figure, but the ladies still love them some Cam.”
“Good to know.” Seth felt a smile tug at his lips.
He and Cameron had always been polar opposites, which was probably the reason they had gravitated toward each other in grade school. Together, they had ruled the school. Hell, as teenagers they had pretty
much dominated the entire town - maybe even the county.
Cameron stepped up and pulled Seth into a hug, “Still a man of few words. Glad to see some things never change. I missed you, man.”
“You too,” Seth said as he patted his friend on the back.
Cameron moved to sit behind his small desk, pushing his chair back to make room for his significant gut. “So, what are your plans now that Uncle Sam no longer wants your damaged ass?”
Seth sighed as he took a seat in one of the two folding chairs that sat opposite the desk. “I’m headed to Jason’s.”
Katie, his brother Jason’s wife, wanted to throw him a welcome home party. He had always liked Katie and was glad his little brother had finally ended up with her, so he had agreed to it. Seth wasn’t a big fan of crowds and didn’t particularly enjoy parties, but he figured, what the hell - get all the awkward conversations out of the way in one fell swoop.
He knew people would be interested in the fact that he was back in town. Since he had left for basic training fifteen years ago, he hadn’t spent more than a couple of days at a time back in Harper’s Crossing, and he had only done that a handful of times. But now, he was home.
So much had changed over the time he had been away. He never expected to be back here. But it seemed that life tended to throw him curve balls.
When he had left, his brothers were young. Riley was sixteen, Jason was fourteen, Alex was twelve and Bobby was ten. Now Bobby, Riley and Jason were all married and Alex was engaged. Hell, Riley even had a baby on the way. In his absence, his dad Bob had suffered two heart attacks and had retired, handing the reins of Sloan Construction over to Seth's little brother Jason.
That wasn't all that had changed. Seth had changed. Even if he had come back to find Harper's Crossing exactly the same as it had been when he left, he didn't know if he would have been able to experience his quaint, small hometown in the same pure way as he had when he'd left.
Seth knew it was a cliché to say that 'war changes a man' – but, damn it, clichés got to be clichés because they were true. Seth had come back from overseas completely fucked up, and he didn't even know what the full extent of the damage might be. Oh, not just his shoulder. That was what had resulted in his discharge, but it was a mere flesh wound compared to the real scars he carried around. Those were mental – and spiritual.
My Everything - Seth & Amber Page 1