Shuttered Affections (Cornerstone #1)

by Folsom, Rene

  Synopsis

  After escaping to a college town, Juliana Petersen was determined to put her troubled past behind her and make the most of life. She was satisfied with her current situation, or so she thought. It wasn’t until the day her new photography professor stole her parking spot that she realized there was such thing as lust at first sight. Now, she must struggle with the decision to break the rules and fall in love, or step back and let the chance of a lifetime pass her by—all while her past relationships come back to haunt her.

  How many men will it take to break Julia’s hold on reality?

  Shuttered Affections, The First Cornerstone Novel

  Copyright © 2013 Rene Folsom

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission from Indie Style Press or Rene Folsom, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Editing Services Provided by Cynthia Shepp

  www.CynthiaShepp.com

  Cover Created by Phycel Designs

  www.Phycel.com

  This is an Indie Style Press Publication

  www.IndieStylePress.com

  For Jim.

  My halo isn’t broken… yet.

  Table of Contents

  Synopsis

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Acknowledgements

  Follow Rene

  More from Rene

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  “First impressions are highly overrated.”

  Just my luck. I always seem to have trouble finding a parking spot in the mornings.

  Attempting to calm myself, I gripped the steering wheel tight, let my head fall back onto my headrest, and took a few deep breaths.

  My early morning photography class was one of my favorites and I’d be damned if I let parking issues make me late. It would have made sense for the college to have more ample parking on this side of campus, but I guess the administrators never ventured far enough from their offices to notice our daily issues.

  Even though the parking lot was rather large, it still seemed impossible to find a spot first thing in the morning. So, I continued to circle around the lot in search of anyone who would be pulling out soon.

  Searching for a space on the backside of campus was imperative since all my classes were around the Fine Arts department and I kept most of my art equipment and tools in my car.

  The large, multi-story buildings were only about a quarter mile away from a thick patch of pine trees, which separated the school from the interstate. Although my spare time was limited, I loved any moment I could spend walking on the trails behind the school.

  Since I was stuck playing ring-around-the-rosie with other cars in the parking lot, I decided to plug my phone into the FM transmitter and listen to Mandy Brooke. Her voice always cheered me up and made me smile. Singing along with her was challenging and fun.

  As I was enjoying the sounds of the silky voice and guitar strums reverberating from my speakers, I glanced in the mirror to check my face and hair. I wasn’t the type to lavish my appearance in layers of makeup, but I did try to keep a clean, neat look to the little bit I applied.

  Silky, blonde curls framed my face and tickled my cheeks. The Florida sun beamed through my open sunroof, making my curls glisten with golden specks. Green eyes stared back at me in the mirror and I couldn’t help but smile at the fact I had inherited my grandmother’s hair and eyes. She was so beautiful in every way and I missed her dearly.

  Plumping my curls a bit, I closed the mirror and forced myself to concentrate on finding a dang parking spot. I started strumming my fingers on the steering wheel, not in an attempt to keep in time with the music, but because I was getting anxious as I continued circling the rows of parked cars.

  The sun caused glares to shine brightly off the mirrors and chrome of the stationary vehicles as other cars droned around in circles with me through the half-mile long string of parking lots. Some of the lots were only a few rows deep, while others spanned at least a dozen rows and began to wrap around the south side of the building.

  I should’ve been thankful. From what I heard, getting a spot on the University campus downtown was even more challenging.

  I continued to vibrate with impatience because my class was going to start in five minutes. A new surge of urgency overwhelmed me at the realization of what time it was.

  As soon as I began wringing the steering wheel tight with nerves, I noticed a student bounding through the parking lot toward her car. Her short, black hair was a mess of straight strands flowing behind her as she ran to an old, beat-up VW Beatle with large tires covered in mud.

  “Great! Perfect timing!” I cheered to myself as I fist-bumped the cloth roof inside my car.

  My heart started to race and I slowly pulled forward toward where the girl was headed. I put my blinker on and sighed in relief when I saw the Bug’s weak reverse lights glow to life. Yesss!

  The spot couldn’t have been better either, because it was only two rows away from the building and smack in between my first and last classes of the day. I was thankful I came upon it just in the nick of time.

  With the calm collectiveness in knowing I wouldn’t be late for class, my demeanor cheered and I began singing louder along with the music, swaying my head back and forth and patting on my steering wheel to keep rhythm.

  As the girl’s Bug pulled away, a sleek, blue Miata zipped into the spot I was patiently waiting for and I all but jumped out of my seat in surprise. I probably would have if it weren’t for the damn seatbelt keeping me in place. I was stunned. I couldn’t believe my eyes. That person just stole the spot I was about to turn into!

  My heart leapt into my throat and my cheeks burned with anger.

  “What? That was my spot! UGH!”

  I could feel the adrenaline start to radiate inside of me like the fireworks grand finale on the Fourth of July. If I were stronger, I guarantee the steering wheel would have been ripped completely clean from my dash with the amount of fury being pumped through my veins by the pounding muscle in my chest.

  With pure rage and adrenaline coursing through my body, I surged forward and rolled down my window just as a breathtakingly handsome male climbed out of his teeny, be
autiful car.

  Oh, God. Of course he had to be gorgeous. That was just my luck. Well, regardless of his devastatingly good looks and scrumptious body, I wasn’t going to allow him to get away with making me late.

  Rich, smug bastard probably lives off Daddy’s money and has no sense of courtesy and responsibility.

  “Hey, what the hell? You just took the spot I was waiting for!” I hollered with my head and torso all but hanging out of my car window, gesturing to his piece of blue tinfoil that was now parked in the spot I lusted after. It seemed he almost thought about ignoring me as he began a slow amble toward the school buildings in the opposite direction.

  He didn’t say anything in response to my angry tirade. Instead, he simply turned toward me and, while continuing to jog backwards, shrugged with a sympathetic smile on his infuriatingly handsome face before turning back around quickly to face the direction he was headed.

  “What an arrogant piece of shit!” I said, hopefully loud enough so he could hear me. If he did, he didn’t acknowledge my outrage.

  I noticed he had a nice, professional camera draped around his neck and right arm, dangling along his lean hip and stomach.

  I wondered who he was because I thought I knew all the photo-nerds on campus. It actually made me even angrier to know I had something in common with this snatch-and-park god.

  The chirping of his car alarm being armed made me flinch and look over in his direction. He was standing on the sidewalk between two of the buildings, looking at me. Shoving his car keys into his pocket and running his fingers through his hair, he stood and watched me for just a few moments before finally turning and walking behind a large building, out of sight.

  I banged my fists on my steering wheel with a loud thud and several curses emanating from my mouth.

  “Damn, that hurt.” I winced and rubbed my wrists as they protested my angry fit.

  I was beyond pissed. Red blurred my vision. Thoughts of slashing those pretty little tires of his flashed through my mind.

  I huffed and tried to calm my erratic heartbeat. The last thing I needed was to sweat before class because I couldn’t calm my boiling rage at the fact assholes were allowed to roam the earth with normal human beings.

  I continued to circle the lot and thankfully found a spot about ten minutes later. Unfortunately, this spot was only two rows away from the polished blue toy car that, just by looking at it, made my mouth mutter angry little curses under my breath.

  He’ll be lucky if a rock doesn’t randomly make its way through his shiny little window.

  “Just great,” I muttered as I waited for the other car to back out, realizing I was now more than five minutes late for my photography class.

  I darted between the white lines quickly so some other inconsiderate prick wouldn’t snatch this spot from me as well. There weren’t many people around because most of them were likely in class by now.

  With fumbling fingers, I quickly closed the sunroof and gathered my backpack, camera bag, and portfolio folders before slamming my car door and hauling ass. Just when I had a chance to turn and run, I noticed I forgot to roll my window back up in my haste.

  “Figures.” I rolled my eyes and used my keyless entry to unlock the door.

  Scrambling to turn the ignition just enough to power the car, I dropped my photography portfolios, spilling some negatives and prints all over the dirty asphalt. I squeezed my eyes shut and cringed as I saw my photos scrape along the rough parking lot surface. Even a few of my negatives managed to slide out of the protective plastic sleeves and kiss the pebbled ground.

  “Aaargh! Perfect. Just f-ing perfect.” Boy, was this day turning out to be smashing. My stomach turned as I realized how many hours of work I probably just ruined by being a fumbling idiot.

  I sat there and tried to reign in my breathing, sucking much needed air into my oxygen-starved lungs. After the window took forever to roll up completely, I carefully stepped over the clutter on the ground and slammed my car door in a huff. Bending to pick up my mess, my hair fell around my face in a curtain full of curls and I wished I had remembered to bring a hair tie with me. With all this agitation first thing in the morning, my hair was beginning to stick to my neck and cheeks in a sweaty, sticky disarray of tresses.

  Reaching out for the scattered remnants of my portfolio, a warm hand came into my vision and brushed my fingers.

  “Here. Let me help.” His voice was deep and… did I detect a bit of humor in his tone? Even though his attempt to help was commendable, I didn’t need to be laughed at right now.

  My eyes trailed up the strong, flexing muscles of his tan forearm, up to his bicep, which stretched and undulated under a tight, green Abercrombie t-shirt. Oh, damn, those shirts were always so soft and touchable. I bit my lip at the thoughts of feeling his hard muscles beneath the soft shirt.

  Attempting to get a better view, I brushed my hair out of my face with the back of my hand and met with his big, piercing brown eyes. A strong brow hovered over his dark eyes, making him look exotic and dangerous. He was grinning at me with a perfect set of teeth and a chuckle sounded from his mouth like this entire morning was some sort of personal joke of his.

  Even though he looked down at the disarray of prints he was helping me gather, I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious as I quickly covered my cleavage with a few prints already in my hand. I clutched the photos to myself like a barrier—a sudden embarrassed feeling washing over me.

  It wasn’t like I was showing him much, but these skimpy, spaghetti-strap tank tops didn’t exactly keep my big breasts under cover, especially when bent over and exposed like a harlot in front of a stranger. And I was sure my ass was probably spilling out of the back of my low-rise jeans, causing my cheeks to play peek-a-boo with the rest of the world.

  Damn, I was a mess.

  I wasn’t necessarily heavy, but I did have some extra cushion, which caused me to be a little cautious of what I wore and how I wore it. I had a small hoodie on, but because of the warm weather, it was casually unzipped and therefore not protecting me much.

  Suddenly realizing I hadn’t responded to his offer to help, I quickly recovered and forced my voice to function.

  “Thank you. This morning has been nothing short of disastrous and I’m late for class as it is. I really appreciate your help.” I tried to sound polite, even though I was still smoldering from my earlier encounter with the parking-spot thief.

  “It’s my pleasure. I’m sorry your morning isn’t going well. Can I walk you to class?” He still had that smirk on his face, but I started to think it wasn’t about my absurd spillage of photographs. Maybe it was his attempt at flirting. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to find out—which was a shame, really, because he was cute.

  He seemed sweet, but I also noticed a hint of determination in his face, like he was expecting something from me. Wait, did he just ask me a question? I must have been completely losing it because I couldn’t even remember what he asked.

  I tried to help, but my mind felt lost as I watched him gather my photographs with a gentle touch, which was odd because he looked to be anything but tender. He didn’t look dangerous, but his expression carried a fierce undertone that made me cautious.

  As he fingered the last few prints, we both stood. Wow, he was tall. Tall and very lean.

  “My name is Vic.” He gripped a handful of my photographs and I smiled as he gestured to set the stack he was holding on top of the piles in my arms.

  “Thanks, Vic. I’m Julia,” I introduced myself as I awkwardly held my hand out to shake his, which was stupid because both my arms were full of stuff.

  He gave me a nice smile that crinkled the skin around his eyes. “Well, Julia. May I walk with you?”

  “Oh, of course. I’m late, so I will need to practically run, but you’re more than welcome to join me…” I began to smile slightly as I continued. “… if you can keep up.” Now I was sporting a full-on cheesy smile as I quickly turned and began to speed-walk toward t
he towering, white buildings.

  I meant it as a fun challenge, but I was sure I probably came across as a complete bitch.

  I never meant to, but I’ve been told a few times that my first impressions aren’t good and most people didn’t like me when they first met me. It wasn’t something I tended to dwell on. First impressions were highly overrated.

  He trailed behind me and I thought I heard him chuckle at my joke. Or, maybe he was laughing at my ridiculous display back in the parking lot.

  “So, what class are you late for?” he asked as he jogged a few steps to catch up to me.

  I cocked an eyebrow and looked at him sideways as I brought attention to the piles of prints in my arms. “Photography,” I answered with a derisive tone to my voice—as if the camera hanging off my shoulder and the portfolios weren’t evidence enough. I gave him a break though. He was probably just trying to make conversation.

  There goes that snarkey attitude as a first impression again, Julia!

  I attempted a polite smile to smooth over my previous snide answer.

  “Oh, cool. I’m headed to the graphic arts computer lab, which I believe is just upstairs from the photography lab, right?” he asked as he lifted his chin in the direction we were headed.

  He looked cute with both hands shoved in his cargo shorts, short, dark hair, slightly longer on the top and trimmed nicely on the sides, and those eyes… dark, beautiful, big brown eyes.

  I nodded to answer his question and just smiled, bringing my attention back to where I was going. Gawking at him was going to make me trip over my own feet if I wasn’t careful. Or maybe run into one of the big pillars that lined the outdoor hallways between the buildings. That would’ve been truly embarrassing.

  Usually, I had a tendency to become extremely nervous around strange men, especially if they showed an interest in me. I had no desire to become involved with anyone and therefore tried to keep my distance.

  To my surprise, Vic didn’t make me feel nervous. Well, not with fear like I usually experienced.

  It only took us about a minute before we were walking through the glass double doors of building P.