Relinquishing Liberty (Second Chances)

by Mayer, Maureen

  I shook my head because honestly, I wouldn’t expect any less from him.

  “I get that you’re not happy about this. After everything we now know, I wouldn’t expect you to be, but you can’t continue to put all of the blame on Shayne. Maddie wasn’t an innocent bystander in all of this. It takes two to make a baby, you know.”

  Brett leaned against the lockers opposite me, with his arms crossed over his chest. “Thank you for that lovely abridged version of the birds and the bees.”

  “I’m serious, Brett. Look we can’t change the past. What happened, happened. They both made a mistake. A huge, stupid, drunken mistake. I’m not happy about it either, but there’s nothing we can do about it now. I love Shayne, and because I love him, I’m willing to move past this.” My mother’s advice reverberated through my mind as I spoke. “Because I don’t want to spend the rest of my life wondering ‘what if’.”

  Brett’s chin dipped down towards his chest, and I could just barely make out that he was nodding his head. Was Brett actually agreeing with me on something? There’s a first!

  “You’re right. I’m not happy about this, but I love you, Liberty, and I just want you to be happy. The same goes for my sister.”

  “Thank you, Brett. That really means a lot to me.”

  Brett looked up at me through hooded lashed. “So are you? Happy, that is?”

  I smiled and looked down at the ring sparkling back at me. “Yes. I can honestly say I’ve never been happier.”

  Brett let out a long, breathy sigh. “Well then I’m happy for you…but I still think you have shitty taste in guys.”

  “Shut up.” I giggled and shoved him back into the lockers. He wrapped his arm around my neck and kissed the top of my head before leading me back out to the dining area. Shayne was leaning against the bar, but when his eyes landed on the pair of us, with Brett’s arm around me, his posture immediately straightened up. When Brett loosened his hold on me, he did the very last thing on earth I would ever imagine him doing.

  He extended his hand out to Shayne.

  If I wasn’t still leaning into Brett, I probably would have fallen over, but nothing could stop my jaw from quickly plunging to the floor. I watched everything play out in front of me as though it were happening in slow motion. The corner of Shayne’s mouth curled up, and he took Brett’s hand in his giving him a firm shake. Brett gave him a quick pat on the back and congratulated us, but not before threatening Shayne’s life if he ever hurt me again. Now that was more like the Brett I knew and loved.

  Brett turned towards me and lifted my jaw until my mouth closed. “Don’t want to get any flies getting in there, darlin’.”

  I shook my head in disbelief and threw my arms around his neck. I gave him one last tight hug and a kiss on the cheek before we left, mouthing thank you to him as I pulled away.

  “Ready to head home, fiancée?”

  I loved hearing him call me that, but I looked even more forward to the day I’d hear him call me his bride. “Yeah. Take me home, fiancé.”

  A few minutes later, we pulled up to our house, but before heading inside, I slipped around the side of the house and walked down to the beach. I plopped down in the sand, and Shayne came up behind me, placing a leg on either side of mine and wrapping his arms around my chest. This was where I felt most at home. Sitting here, gazing out at the waves in front of us and wrapped up in the arms of the man I love. The man I will spend the rest of my life with.

  “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

  I sighed. “Yeah. I just wasn’t expecting Maddie to react the way she did, but I guess I should have. I’m pretty sure you’ll forever be on her shit list.”

  “Well, you can’t please them all.” He placed a soft kiss on my neck. “And all I care about is pleasing you.” I turned back to look at him and with the smirk painted on his face, I knew there was a double meaning there. Cheeky man.

  “Are you happy?” He looked down at me with a twinge of concern in his eyes.

  I smiled back at him. “Yes. I’ve never been happier.”

  “Have you put any thought into where you’d like to get married?”

  I looked around and knew exactly where I wanted us to get married. “Right here.”

  “Right here? On the beach?”

  “Yeah. I can’t think of a more perfect setting for our wedding.”

  He pulled me in tighter and whispered in my ear. “All right, sweetheart. We’ll get married right here.”

  I turned in his lap so that I was facing him and wrapped my legs around his waist. “I love you, Shayne. Thank you.”

  “For what, baby?”

  “For everything. For showing me what was missing in my life. For healing my heart. For…loving me.”

  He let out a soft laugh as he took my chin between his finger and thumb and brought my gaze up to his. God, those beautiful emerald eyes of his will forever captivate me. “It wasn’t hard, sweetheart. Loving you was the easy part.”

  “And what was the hard part?”

  He pressed a slow, lingering kiss against my lips that nearly took my breath away, and then softly whispered, “Nothing.” He trailed his finger over the tattoo on my wrist that matched his own. “Once I knew I loved you, everything else fell into place. I knew that I had finally found my other half, my better half…my missing puzzle piece.”

  Look for Maddie’s Story, Unforeseen Heartbeat, in early 2014!

  Suicide Prevention

  It can be scary when a friend or loved one is thinking about suicide, but you are not alone. If you or someone you know is showing any warning signs, you are encouraged to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK) or 1-800-SUICIDE so that you can find out what resources are available in your area.

  National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

  Suicide.org - Prevention, Awareness, and Support: www.suicide.org

  Planned Parenthood

  Planned Parenthood delivers vital reproductive health care, sex education, and information to millions of women, men, and young people worldwide. If you or someone you know is pregnant and unsure of their options, please call 1-800-230-PLAN to find the Planned Parenthood health center nearest you.

  Planned Parenthood: http://www.plannedparenthood.org

  The Funeral - Band of Horses

  Catch My Breath - Kelly Clarkson

  Starting Over - An Honest Year

  Crash Into Me - Dave Matthews Band

  Can’t Take My Eyes Off You - Cary Brothers

  In My Veins - Andrew Belle Ft. Erin McCarley

  What I Needed - Erin McCarley

  Gravity - Sara Bareilles

  Free Like You Make Me - Cary Brothers

  Yours To Hold (Acoustic) - Skillet

  Northern Wind - City and Colour

  My Heart - Paramore

  Cold - Crossfade

  I Won’t Give Up - Jason Mraz

  Just A Kiss - Lady Antebellum

  She Is Love - Parachute

  Sweet Nothing - Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch

  When I’m With You - Corey Crowder

  Kiss Me - Ed Sheeran

  Between the Raindrops –Lifehouse Ft. Natasha Bedingfield

  Give Me Love - Ed Sheeran

  Alive - Adelitas Way

  Pitter-Pat - Erin McCarley

  Lovesick Mistake - Erin McCarley

  Every Lie - My Darkest Days

  Please Don’t Go - Barcelona

  Stay - Rihanna

  Alone In This Bed - Framing Hanley

  Kiss Me Slowly - Parachute

  Mirrors - Justin Timberlake

  First and foremost, I have to thank my boyfriend, Michael, because without you, Relinquishing Liberty never would have been written. I came to you one day with this crazy idea for a book, and instead of laughing in my face, you were totally supportive and told me to go for it. Even when I doubted my writing and felt like breaking down, you continued to push me and never let me give up. Thank you fo
r believing in me and always putting up with me, even when I was a raging bitch. I love you to the moon and back!

  My family and friends, who have always been there for me, encouraging me to work towards what I love. I can never put in to words how thankful I am to have such wonderful people in my life.

  My amazing editor, Margo. Thank you for believing in my book, and for talking me down from the ledge when I thought my writing sucked.

  A huge thank you to the best beta readers a girl could ask for: Dawn Martens, R.J. Greer, Christina Turner, Tasha Gwartney, Denise Riley and Wesley Zimmerman. I am so grateful for you taking the time to read Relinquishing Liberty in its raw stage and for all of your advice. Dawn, I can honestly say that my book wouldn’t be where it is right now without your help…you’re my numero uno bitch!

  To Robin Harper of Wicked By Design, thank you for designing such a beautiful cover for Relinquishing Liberty!

  To Angela McLaurin of Fictional Formats, thank you so much for formatting my very first novel!

  To all of the incredible authors who continue to inspire me and offered me valuable advice as I enter into the wonderful world of self-publishing: Molly McAdams, Amanda Stone, Dawn Martens, Jenn Sterling, Kelly Robinson, Brooke Cumberland, Crystal Serowka, R.J. Greer and anyone else who took the time to answer my obnoxious questions. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

  To Monica Murphy, thank you for allowing me to reference your characters, Drew and Fable, from One Week Boyfriend. I think Maddie fell in love with them just as much as I did!

  All of the blogs and bloggers who have shown me support from the very beginning, I will never be able to thank you enough for all that you do for us newbie authors. You’re like our own personal cheerleaders, and indie authors would be nowhere without you.

  Last but not least, I have to thank all of my readers. If you’re reading this right now, thank you so much for purchasing Relinquishing Liberty. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

  Maureen Mayer was born, raised and currently resides in Buffalo, NY with her loving and supportive family and boyfriend of 8+ years. She’s always had a love for the outdoors, and when the city isn’t buried under snow, she can be found hiking, fishing, camping or lying on the beach. She’s a sucker for off-color humor, but holds a sweet spot for sick and twisted horror films. When she’s not writing, you can find her curled up in bed with her kindle, diving into a steamy romance novel and falling in love with the latest book boyfriend.

  You can also connect with Maureen online via:

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/authormaureenmayer

  Twitter: @AuthorMoMayer

  Blog: http://maureenmayer.blogspot.com/

  Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/AuthorMaureenMayer

  Email: maureenmayerauthor@gmail.com