by Caz May
Contents
Also by Caz May
Preface & Trigger Warning
Playlist
Australian Slang Glossary
Prologue
1. Ashton
2. Tempany
3. Ashton
4. Tempany
5. Ashton
6. Ashton
7. Tempany
8. Ashton
9. Tempany
10. Ashton
11. Tempany
12. Ashton
13. Tempany
14. Ashton
15. Tempany
16. Ashton
17. Tempany
18. Ashton
19. Tempany
20. Ashton
21. Ashton
22. Tempany
23. Ashton
24. Ashton
25. Ashton
26. Tempany
27. Tempany
28. Ashton
29. Tempany
30. Ashton
31. Ashton
32. Ashton
33. Ashton
34. Tempany
35. Ashton
36. Tempany
37. Ashton
38. Tempany
39. Ashton
40. Tempany
41. Ashton
42. Ashton
43. Tempany
44. Ashton
45. Tempany
46. Ashton
47. Tempany
48. Ashton
49. Ashton
50. Ashton
51. Tempany
52. Ashton
53. Tempany
Epilogue
Bonus Chapter
Acknowledgements
Stalk Me
First Published 2021
Paperback ISBN 978-0-6488534-6-6
Published by Caz May
© Caz May 2020
Cover image from iStock
Cover editing by Caz May
The moral rights of the author have been asserted
All rights reserved.
Except as permitted under the Australian Copyright Act 1968 (for example, a fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review),
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, communicated or transmitted in any form or by any means.
This is a work of fiction. Any names or characters, businesses or places, events or incidents, are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Except for the original text written by the author, all images, songs, song titles, and lyrics mentioned in this work are the property of the respective songwriters and copyright holders.
To my fellow insomniacs.
And all the crazy thoughts that fill our brains at 1am.
Also by Caz May
My Girl Duet
Bk 1-Not my Girl
Bk 2-Still my Girl
Always Only You Series
Bk 1-Roommates Don’t Kiss & Tell
Bk 2-Friends Don’t Say Goodbye
Bk 3-Feelings Don’t Play Fair
Bk 4-Hearts Don’t Steer Us Wrong
The Mackenney Family Saga
Bk 1-Country Secrets
Bk 2-Doctor Attraction
Bk 3-Unlawful Attachment
A Holiday Romance Duet
Bk 1-Take Flight
Preface & Trigger Warning
Hey lovely readers!
From the moment Ashton popped into my head I felt consumed by his story.
Both of the tropes in this story are some of my absolute favourites to read and I’m so glad I can share one of my own stories of these tropes, with you, my readers.
Some parts may be confronting and triggering to readers sensitive to child abuse and sexual abuse.
And also there is mention of drug and alcohol addiction, and suicide.
This story is set in Australia, where the age of consent is sixteen. Please do not comment on this in regard to the story in reviews and such.
But take heart that this is a romance after all, and I promise a HEA.
Strap yourselves in for Ashton and Tempany.
Caz May xx
Playlist
Below is the playlist of songs for this story. They’re in no particular order. The Spotify playlist link is at the bottom.
Crush-Cigarettes After Sex
Oxygen-Winona Oak
What have you done-Within Temptation
He don’t love me-Winona Oak
Unconditional-Picture This
Sinning with you-Sam Hunt
Falling in love-Cigarettes after sex
My thoughts on you-The Band CAMINO
Naked-Jake Scott
Breaking Me-Topic/A7S
Worthy of you- Plested
Chew on my heart-James Bay
Nobody Else-Cole Norton
Fight for Love-Blue October feat Blue Reed
Bad Things-Jace Everett
Oh my my-Blue October
Cherry Twist-Becoming Young
Wild Love (Acoustic)-James Bay
Karma, Come Back-Incubus
Run-Matt Nathanson
Kill me slow-David Guetta, MORTEN
Falling (Acoustic Mashup)- Landon Austin
Shiver - Coldplay
Break your halo-Andy Black
Drop Dead-Holly Humberstone
Boys don’t cry (Radio edit)-Dan Owen
Temptation-Becoming Young
Short skirt/Long jacket-Cake
Carry on-Picture This
You be love-Avicii (feat Billy Raffoul)
Ashes-Stellar
Confide in me-Hurts
Spotify Link
Australian Slang Glossary
Ute-Truck
Bludger- someone lazy, doesn't do much and possibly relies on social security benefits
Ripper- something really good/great
Ridgy-Didge- Cool
Bonzer-Great, awesome
Pash/ing/ed- to kiss/make out
Arvo- afternoon
Chunder- Vomit, throw up
Gobby- Blowjob
Aussie Kiss- going down on a girl
Daks- pants/trousers/underwear
Undies/Knickers/Jocks-underwear (female knickers, male Jocks, undies both)
Dakking/ed- to pull or have pulled someone daks down (see above)
Bathers- universal name for female swimwear
Budgie Smugglers- small male swimmer that looks like underwear (google this one to see)
Thongs- Footwear, otherwise known as flip flops
Esky- Cooler-you keep drinks cool in it
Dunny- toilet
Bogan-white trash/trailer trash
Old Fella- Your father/Dad
Franger- Condom, Trojan etc
Milo- a malt chocolate powered drink mix (can be made hot or cold)
Macca’s-MacDonalds
Fair Dinkum- used to emphasise or seek confirmation of the genuineness or truth of something
Fucking/Bloody oath- similar to above, but an extreme or emphasised way of saying yes.
Shark Week/Rags- A woman’s monthly cycle
Stuffed if I know- a nicer way to say fucked if I know
AFL- Australian Rules Football
Fuck me dead.-oh my god, holy hell, struck dumb
Grouse- Describe something as great, terrific or good.
Giving me a view of her breakfast- showing your underwear from clothes to short.
The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.
Oscar Wilde
Prologue
ASHTON
Dribbling my basketball I shoot for the hoop. Again—for the umpteenth time—I miss. Muttering a curse word under my breath I can hear my father’s berating words in my head, ‘you’re useless boy’. I hate that his words get to me, hate that they tear at my insides.
I’m useless at playing basketball, but it’s all I want to do. Not being able to get into the Under ten’s for another year, I’m spending every waking minute practising. But it’s not like I’ll be able to play even if I get in. Daddy dearest won’t have it. Even now, he’s trying to make me like numbers so I can be a big shot businessman like him, but I don’t understand stuff like Maths. School sucks—except when I’m playing basketball at recess with Zeke—my best friend from kindergarten, Ezekiel Alessio. He’s like a brother to me, and sometimes I wish he was because other than my kid sister Ava and my mum I’d much rather have a different family. Zeke’s dad is the polar opposite of mine, supportive and loving.
My dad wouldn’t know what love meant if someone beat him over the head with it. He says the words to me sometimes, but then his actions show me hatred. Fidel Castello breathes hatred. It seeps out of his skin.
I’m still bouncing my ball, loving the sound of the rubber hitting the concrete and the feeling playing basketball gives me. Stepping side to side, I bounce the ball between my legs, psyching myself up to make the shot, and sink it through the hoop this time. And that’s when I see her, standing next to the court in a little tutu dress. She’s smiling, just like the last time she came to the park and watched me play.
She ran up to me then, taking the basketball and bouncing it; whilst giggling. I meekly introduced myself and she told me her name was Tempany Davies. I’d thought it was a weird name, but it kinda suits her.
Every time I come to the park basketball court I wonder if she’s going to turn up, and give me her sweet smiles that make my tummy feel funny.
I can’t help but smile now when she runs up to play with me, expertly snatching the ball away from me, starting to bounce it whilst I’m struck stupid by her. I’m sure she’s the same age as me, but she seems younger.
She crouches down, about to shoot for the hoop, and most likely sink it when a voice starts calling her name from across the park. “Tempany, Tempany, it’s time to go, baby.” She smiles shyly, and runs across the court, away from me.
It’s then—looking down at my empty hands—that I realise she took my ball. She ran off clutching my basketball against her tummy.
And I know that this time I’m going to be in big trouble. My dad’s warning about what he was going to do to me if I came home without my ball again are in my head, and walking across the park to go home hot tears are stinging my eyes, thinking about the pain I’m about to endure.
Pushing the front door open, I tiptoe inside, hoping to sneak upstairs without my dad seeing me. But of course no such luck. I hear his voice—from the formal lounge—before I see him.
“Ashton, get in here boy,” he shouts at me.
He’s clenching his fists, crunching a piece of paper in between his fingers. “You want to tell me how the fuck you get an F in Mathematics?”
The hot tears are stinging my eyes again. And I mumble, “I don’t get it, Dad.”
“You don’t get it! You don’t get it, because you don’t damn well apply yourself, boy. Always at that fucking basketball court.”
“I...I...I’m…”
“Spit it out boy!”
“I’m sorry, Daddy. I’ll do better. I’ll try harder, I promise.”
“That’s not good enough, Ashton. You shouldn’t have to do better.”
He stands up from the couch, stalking towards me. I’m trembling, knowing what’s coming next, and knowing that this time is going to be worse than the times before.
His dark blue eyes look down to my empty hands, and even deeper anger flashes in them, making them seem black—like his heart—when he realises I’m not clutching a basketball.
“Where is your basketball, Ashton?”
I bite my lip, mumbling through my teeth. “A...a...girl...stole it.”
He scoffs. “You expect me to believe that rot, Ashton. You know what happens when you lie to me, boy.”
His words make my tummy feel sick. I know what happens when I tell fibs, but I’d rather get hit than have him hit Ava or Mummy.
“I’m telling the truth. Someone took it.”
He’s fuming at me, like a bull out in the paddocks down the road. His words are loud when he responds, “That’s the fifth basketball you’ve ‘lost’ Ashton. Shit like that doesn’t grow on trees. You need to learn your lesson about the value of property.”
“I don’t get you, Daddy,” I reply meekly, fighting back tears.
He doesn’t reply then, and I step back, desperately wanting to escape the room when his hands start to undo his belt. I hear the sound of the leather cracking when he yanks it out of the loops on his pants.
And I gulp, telling my feet to move, to run from him. But I can’t. I can’t move an inch, or the beating will be worse. I don’t like that daddy does this to me.
“Pants down boy,” daddy commands, wrapping the end of his belt around his fist.
My knees are wobbly as I slip my trackies down to my ankles. The cold air hits my bum, and I brace myself for the first hit. Again I hear the crack of the leather and then the smack of it against my skin. It burns, and I bite the inside of my cheek to stop the scream escaping my mouth.
Daddy moves closer to me, caging me in. And without giving me any warning, his belt cracks against my bum again.
One. Two. Three. Four.
I’m counting in my head, wondering how many times he’s going to smack the leather against my backside. It’s practically numb but is also throbbing and I just want it to be over so I can run to my bed and cry myself to sleep.
I close my eyes then, waiting for the final blow of the belt against my skin, but it doesn’t come and I feel relief rush through me for a moment, until the heel of Daddy’s hand smacks harder against my skin.
Once. Twice.
Six smacks. Six markings on my skin. And this time they hurt so much more than they ever have.
I hate my daddy.
But now I also hate Tempany Davies.
She did this to me because she took my basketball.
One
Ashton
10 years later
It feels surreal that this day is finally here. The first day of year twelve, the last year before I can get the fuck out of Lockgrove Bay, and move to the city where my dad can’t find me. Unless mum opens her trap. She might be free of him according to the divorce papers but he still controls her every move, holding money over her and using the house as collateral; a bargaining chip so Mum jumps when he says so.
I’d cut him off to—the prick—but he pays my way, pays my school fees for Lockgrove Preparatory. And that means I can own the hallways as captain of the elite Lockgrove Lions for this final year in hell.
Turning the Camaro into my reserved car park, I cut the engine, grabbing my gym bag and slinging it over my shoulder. Glancing around the courtyard, I sigh looking at all the familiar faces, and feeling a knot twist in my stomach. Every damn person looks like they took some happy pills—some molly—over the summer holidays and they’re all floating into Lockgrove Preparatory like they actually want to be here.
I’d rather be as far away as possible. Especially because Mum has told me my new stepsister is likely to be starting school today, and when I meet her I’m expected to play nice.
She’s only told me her name is Te and she’s in year eleven.
Like I should actually even give a fuck.
I have a sister, I don’t need another one. Ava’s a brat—a sweet one—but still a brat and making sure she doesn’t get herself into trouble at school is enough shit to deal with, with basketball, and trying not to flunk Maths so daddy dearest lays off.
I don't need anymore girl drama.
Tentatively I walk across the co
urtyard, and I’m startled by a slap on the back.
“Hey dipshit, you got ya balls back yet?”
I laugh, slapping my hand against my best mate Zeke’s in greeting.
“Hey bro. And yeah I put my big boy daks on. Fallon can go fuck a tree.”
“Wouldn’t put it past her. She’d fuck anything.”
“Harsh, mate.”
“You aside, man. Still don’t know why you tapped that when you could have had your pick, and played the court.”
We walk in the front gate, and I spot my ex-girlfriend Fallon Warner sauntering towards me with a fake smile. She’s done up to the nines, like she's going out clubbing—not to school—her face caked in makeup that’s the wrong shade for her skin tone. And she quite frankly looks like a clown who’s been dragged through the bush backwards and then drowned in the ocean.