Katie pulled the ribbon to unfasten the bow and tore the paper off the package. “You didn’t have to do this. You’ve already done so much for me.” She lifted the lid off the box and gasped as tears filled her eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands and looked up at Blake. “Oh my gosh, it’s gorgeous! Thank you!” Her tears began flowing in earnest as she took in the gift and the look of adoration in Blake’s eyes.
“I’m glad you like it. Happy birthday, sweetheart.”
Blake had given Katie a gorgeous new fiddle, one that was nicer than she had ever played and certainly nicer than the battered instrument she had been dragging across the country. Her old fiddle had seen her through good times and bad and she would always love it, but the new one was amazing. And it was from Blake, given to her on her twenty-fifth birthday, and every time she looked at it, she would remember this day.
“I know that musicians can get attached to their instruments, so I promise you it won’t hurt my feelings if you still use the old one. Absolutely no pressure.”
“Oh my gosh, no! I’m going to start using this one tonight if I can. It’s amazing. This might be the nicest gift anyone has ever given me.” Tears threatened to fill her eyes again, but her breakfast finally did arrive and she allowed the room service attendant to distract her.
He grinned at her and got to his feet. “Have your breakfast, sweetheart, and get yourself ready for the day. I’ve got more surprises for the birthday girl later. I’m afraid if I stay in here with you in nothing but that robe for much longer I’ll miss my afternoon appointments.” Blake winked and pulled Katie into his arms and held her close. “Take your time getting ready and I’ll see you in a bit.” He looked down at her and smoothed a wet lock of hair behind her ear before pressing a soft kiss on her lips. He raked his eyes over her, bit his lip, and let out a low whistle before stepping back with obvious effort and leaving her alone in the hotel room.
• • •
The stage lights were blazing and the floor rumbled beneath her feet, shaking from the noise of the crowd. Katie looked at the set list taped to the back of her monitor and saw “KATIE” scrawled in black marker between the neatly written song names of the familiar show order.
She looked across the stage to find Blake already watching her, his expression mischievous. He pulled an acoustic guitar onto his lap as he perched on a stool in the middle of the stage. The other musicians set their instruments on racks and moved to the side of the stage to watch, apparently already aware of what was going on.
Blake winked at Katie and pulled the microphone down to meet his lips. “Hello, Denver!” The crowd screamed and flashes went off as people took pictures. “Tonight is a special night, and I’m so happy that you’re here for it. We’re celebrating a very special birthday.” He held his hand out and gestured towards Katie, who was frozen in place. “Happy Birthday, baby.” He absentmindedly picked out the notes to ‘Happy Birthday’ on his guitar as he looked out into the audience with a wide smile.
The audience roared, and Katie felt her face flush as she realized that all attention was on her. She put her fiddle on its stand and turned towards Blake, clasping her hands at her heart as tears welled in her eyes.
“Have you ever met someone who seemed like they were made just for you? Someone so special that it was almost too good to be true? I have. I’ve also screwed the whole thing up. I had the perfect woman right in front of me, and I let her go. We don’t always get a second chance, but this time I did. I’ll never make the same mistake again.”
Blake turned to Katie and mouthed the words, “I love you.” Katie’s heart squeezed and buttery warmth spread through her, all the way down to her toes.
He pulled the strap of his acoustic guitar over his shoulder and settled himself on the wooden stool before adjusting the microphone. “I wrote a little song for the lovely, talented, incomparable Katie McCoy, and I hope you’ll indulge me while I share it with y’all.” The crowd shouted their approval, and Blake strummed a couple of chords on his guitar before clearing his throat. He gave the crowd a toothy smile and said, “Thanks y’all. You’re the first people I’ve ever played it for, so here goes.”
“From the moment that I saw you, all I wanted was to kiss you. I knew that if you left me, all I could do would be to miss you. Kiss me, Katie, if you love me like I love you. Kiss me, Katie. I’ve had days and weeks when I’ve thought of only you. I’ll die a happy man if you love me like I love you. I dream of your eyes, your lips, your sweet smile. I’ve had days when being a foot away from you felt like a mile. Kiss me, Katie, if you love me like I love you. Kiss me, Katie.”
Katie willed herself to focus on the words of Blake’s song and forced herself to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill over onto her beautifully applied makeup. On shaking legs, she found herself propelled across the stage towards Blake without ever consciously deciding to go to him. The magnetic attraction she had always felt for him was pulling her closer to him, drawing her to his side.
His voice filled her head and everything else fell away. There were only the two of them, no hot stage lights, no screaming crowd, no band members at the edge of the stage. She reached Blake and took his face in her hands, dimly aware that he had stopped singing, and kissed him full on the lips. Reality came crashing back as he returned the kiss and the crowd erupted into ear-splitting cheers. She pulled back a bit, suddenly aware that she had kissed Blake Jackson in front of several thousand strangers, and bit her lip. He pulled her back towards him, until their foreheads touched, and looked into her eyes. Katie was pressed awkwardly against Blake’s guitar, but his strong arm around her waist and his warm hand holding her close felt so right that she didn’t want to move.
“I love you, and I always will.” Blake’s voice was husky. He pressed another sweet kiss on her lips, and Katie threw her arms around his shoulders and squeezed. She felt the love in his kiss, but finally hearing the words was pure magic.
“I love you, too. I always will.” Katie couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she pulled herself away from Blake and forced herself to walk back to her spot on the stage. From now on, her place was by Blake’s side, and she had come home. She picked up her fiddle as the rest of the band returned to the stage, grinning at her and Blake and shaking their heads. They had never seen him like this. Blake blew her a kiss, handed his acoustic guitar to a roadie, and held his arms out to the crowd.
“Sorry about that, guess I just couldn’t resist. Look at her, though, I mean, who can blame me? Now, I suppose you good people want to hear more of what you came here for. One, two, three, four!” He counted off and the band started their next song.
Acknowledgments
I’d like to thank my wonderful friends who read and critiqued the earliest versions of Kiss Me, Katie. Your endless support and enthusiasm for this project are what kept me going, and without you I never would have come this far. I certainly would have given up long ago, and I am forever grateful for your steadfast belief in me.
Thank you to Matt Thompson, world traveler, drummer extraordinaire, and real-life professional rock star, for advising me. Your input helped lend authenticity to Blake and Katie’s story, and you saved me from making some major mistakes. You are awesome!
Finally, and most importantly, I have to thank my fantastic husband, Dave, for believing in me and encouraging me to write when there was no guarantee that success would come. To be loved and supported in such a way is an incredible gift. That’s good stuff.
About the Author
Monica Tillery lives in Texas with her handsome husband of more than a dozen years, two sons, and a bunch of pets. Being the only girl in a house full of boys is so much fun, but her favorite things are romance novels, playing games with friends, girls’ nights out, and her book club. Monica loves hearing from readers. Visit her at www.monicatillery.com to see all the ways to connect.
This
edition published by
Crimson Romance
an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street
Avon, MA 02322
www.crimsonromance.com
Copyright © 2013 by Monica Tillery
SBN 10: 1-4405-6858-8
ISBN 13: 978-1-4405-6858-9
eISBN 10: 1-4405-6859-6
eISBN 13: 978-1-4405-6859-6
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, corporations, institutions, organizations, events, or locales in this novel are either the product of the author’s imagination or, if real, used fictitiously. The resemblance of any character to actual persons (living or dead) is entirely coincidental.
Cover art © 123rf.com
Drive Me Sane
Dena Rogers
Avon, Massachusetts
Contents
Cover
Dedication
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
Epilogue
About the Author
Copyright
For Dwayne. Thanks for showing me how amazing the stars can be.
Chapter 1
“Who . . . ? Oh, shit!” Sera sputtered, her lips quivering, as she drove up to her uncle’s house. She swallowed hard, and her heart slammed into her chest upon recognizing the oversized Silverado pickup truck parked in the driveway. “What the hell is he doing here?”
“I don’t know,” her friend Maggie answered. “But half the country is talking about that truck.”
Sera’s quick temper flared. She jumped out of the car, slammed the door, and took a few hasty steps forward, but stopped when her mind caught up with her feet.
He’s here.
Looking at the ground, her stomach knotted as full realization of the situation sank in. The man she was once engaged to, who had ended their relationship by voicemail merely weeks prior to her deployment to Afghanistan, was there.
“Tyler!” she screeched, having no clue what she might say when he appeared. Her only thoughts were fueled by almost three years of pent-up anger.
With no movement from the door, her patience thinned. She picked up a piece of gravel from the driveway and hurled it towards the truck. Her unsteady hand missed it entirely. “Tyler Creech!” she screamed again.
Another stone thrown; this time it bounced off the tailgate. She had just grabbed a handful, ready to launch them all at once, when the screen door squeaked open. Pausing, she watched it inch wider until his large form filled its frame. She’d never thought of him as the heartthrob he was portrayed as on country music radio these days. He was a big bear of a guy, full of thick, meaty muscles. Tall and lean, but never with washboard abs or protruding biceps; however, his body was one to admire.
“Shit,” she muttered, meeting his paralyzing stare.
“I see you haven’t changed,” Tyler stated with little emotion.
Her eyes didn’t move as she watched him lean his body into the open door frame. She didn’t so much as flinch when Maggie turned the car back down the driveway.
Biting down on the inside of her lip, she tried to think of what to say next. The immediate adrenaline rush was beginning to fade, but it didn’t curb her anxiety. Three years had passed since she’d last seen him, and as much as she wished she could say Tyler hadn’t crossed her mind, the eagerness of the radio stations to play his newly charted number one hit—and the fact that she’d bought his record—made it difficult. Trying not to let the moment get the best of her again, she swallowed the hard lump that had risen back up in her throat.
“This is my uncle’s house, you know.” And Tyler’s mother’s house now too. But Sera left that part out.
He let the screen door swing closed and took the three steps to the porch railing. Leaning over for support, he squinted into the sunlight as he cocked his head to the side and replied, “And that’s my truck you just hit.”
She tossed a look back over her shoulder. As if she couldn’t identify the silly thing. It was every redneck’s vision of a perfect ride: big, loud, and loaded with chrome. Maggie was right—it had gained a lot of notoriety after being featured in his music video driving down a muddy road with Tyler serenading a voluptuous blonde sitting next to him.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I had some downtime. I knew Mom and Roy were in Florida so I thought I’d hang out at the house. What are you doing here?”
Sera watched him steadily; his broad arms rested against the wooden railing, his unkempt hair rolled slightly into dark curls at the ends. His full cheeks, despite being bristled with whiskers, had a boyish appearance. Damn him and his downtime.
Taking two steps forward she said, “Well, you can’t stay here.”
“Yeah, well, your uncle is married to my mom now, so I have just as much right to be here as you do.”
She closed her eyes, willing the situation away. How much more unfair could life be at the moment? Her ex-fiancé was now her step-cousin. It sounded much worse than it was, but the fact that Tyler’s mom was now married to the uncle who had raised her from the time she was sixteen definitely hadn’t helped in her quest to forget him either. “Can’t you go stay with your dad?”
“Can’t you go stay with your mom?”
Grinding her teeth together, trying to keep the bit of composure she’d gained back, she said, “She’s two states away, Tyler. I’m not packing up and leaving because you had some downtime.” She took a couple of more steps in his direction. Her legs felt weaker with every stride. Yet her stubbornness refused to let her stop.
“Well, I’m sorry to inconvenience your stay. I didn’t know anyone would be here.”
Likewise, she thought. With a deep breath, she reined in the last bit of her unleashed hostility as she straightened her shoulders and pushed forward, determined not to let the man she’d once loved more than life itself know how badly old wounds had just broken open.
• • •
So how long are you in for?” Tyler asked, following Sera into the house and to the kitchen where she stopped for a bottle of water.
She unscrewed the cap, giving him only a quick glimpse of her dark eyes before she tilted it up. He scanned downward, taking in her long hair lying flat against her back before his eyes settled in the heavenly curve just above her hips. Her waist was thinner than he remembered and she looked tired, but other than that, she looked good. Damn good, actually. Clamping down his jaw, he swallowed a gulp of relief, thinking back to the frantic call he’d received from his mom saying Sera had been involved in an accident while deployed. The vehicle she’d been driving was hit by an IED. For days he’d been beside himself, though his mom assured him that no one was terribly injured and that Sera was okay.
Seeing her finally released some of the unease he still carried around, but the awful memory caused a rush of guilt, igniting an urge to get back in his truck and get the hell out of there. He’d imagined this day would come, most days even hoped for it. With his mom and Roy now married, he knew he and Sera couldn’t ignore each other for the rest of their lives, but in no way was he prepared for it today. The five-hour drive from Nashville had zapped all his energy, and what he’d thought would be a nice and relaxing visit home was now sure to be anything but.
“I’m here to stay for a
while,” Sera answered, tipping the bottle up to her mouth again.
So she was out of the army? He wasn’t sure how he felt about that—relief in knowing she was safe, disappointed that she hadn’t carried on with the only thing she’d ever talked about doing, or angry for more reasons than he could begin to list at the moment.
At the age of sixteen and on the verge of juvenile delinquency, Sera Cavins had come into his life after being sent to live with her uncle. Roy’s sole priority had been for his niece to graduate, and although Sera quickly settled in and flourished in their minutely populated town of Cobb City, Kentucky, college was never something she’d given much thought to. Instead she’d enlisted in the army a week after graduation and shipped off for basic training two months later. “So I guess you had enough of military life?”
“Yep,” she answered, swinging around on her heels toward the hallway.
“When did you get out?” he asked, following her to the doorway of her room. She paused long enough to give him a short glimpse of the chestnut color in her eyes, eyes laced with all the hurt and anger of the past few years. He winced at the thought before hearing her say that she’d been back in town for a week. Then, without giving him a chance to say anything further, she quickly closed the door.
Chapter 2
After lying restless in bed for more than two hours and hearing Tyler strum idly on his guitar, never putting more than a couple of chords together at a time, Sera gave into the insomnia that plagued her most nights and got out of bed.
His music had always reflected his moods and his inability to work through a song echoed his failure at forming clear thoughts, letting her know that whatever was on his mind was as heavy as his obsessive pull on the strings of his guitar.
Wondering if his unsettled mood was solely about her presence, or if something else was bothering him, she walked down the hall knowing good and well she should leave him alone. Contact with Tyler was the last thing she needed. She’d hoped to take the time alone while Roy and Diana were in Florida to try and find her way back to being the Sera that they all knew, or at least some semblance of the woman they remembered. She missed the vibrant person she once was, but didn’t know how to find her again. It seemed life was drifting by just outside of her reach. She wanted to grab on and go with it, yet the weight of the last few years kept holding her back.
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