Vipers Den Box Set: 1-3 (Vipers Den #1-3)

by J B Heller

  Pixie stepped forward and wrapped her slender arms around my neck. “You just said so yourself, we’ve waited a lifetime to be together. I don’t want to wait a moment longer either. I love you, I want to be your wife as soon as possible.”

  “Could you be any more perfect?” I whispered.

  “Nope, don’t think so. I’m pretty sure I’m as close to perfection as humanly possible.” She shrugged her shoulder.

  Our lunch breaks for the rest of the week consisted of Pixie obtaining the marriage license while I talked to Mario and Maria about catering and found a local celebrant. Our little wedding was coming together so smoothly, it was just another sign that this we were meant to be together.

  Pixie hand made little invitations for all her close friends, but when she gave one to dickwad it didn’t go down too well. She came home crying on Wednesday and I was ready to kick his arse. I shoved my feet in my boots and headed for the door as soon as she explained what had happened.

  “NO, Jake! He’s upset and hurting, he didn’t mean it. I know he didn’t. Please, please just leave it. He quit this afternoon. He told Piper he couldn’t work in the same space as me anymore.” Sobs wracked her small frame as I held her tight against me, my fists clenched.

  Just thinking about that piece of shit made me want to hunt him down and show him just what it meant to be hurting.

  It was awkward as hell when I gave Rhett the invitation Pixie had made for him. He glanced down at the names on the invite then back at me, then down to the names again. “What the hell? Pixie Cole? As in my Pixie Cole?” he asked. My eyebrows shot up. “Your Pixie? What the hell are you talking about?” I demanded.

  The jackarse just laughed at me and clasped his hand around my shoulder. “I was wondering when you were going to tell me you knew my sister. As soon as Piper found out I’d put you on, she was on the phone giving me the down-low, as she called it, about you and Pix. I didn’t realize you two had been together long enough for church bells, though.”

  “Don’t say shit like that to me, man, I’m delicate when it comes to my lady. And no, we haven’t been together for a long time, but we have history. She’s the one, so why wait to start our lives together? You know?”

  He laughed again, filling the workshop with the sound. “I was just bustin’ your balls, man. I’ll be there.” He clasped my shoulder again, and the merriment had disappeared from his eyes. “Don’t fuck this up.” I nodded and accepted his warning. Instead of being pissed I was glad Pix had surrounded herself with good, honest people who loved and protected her.

  I was relieved I didn’t have to kick Rhett’s arse for touching Pixie. He may have been bigger than me, but it’s a battle I would have won. And then I would lose my job, and I really liked my job, and the friendship I was building with Rhett. Kade had stopped by a few afternoons this week for beers after work, and I’d learned that he was an all right dude too.

  For the first time in my life, I was picturing a future for myself that didn’t consist of booze, loneliness, and more booze.

  Today was going to be my wedding day. I wasn’t like most little girls who dreamed about what kind of dress they would wear on their wedding day or how many people they would have watching them walk down the aisle. The older I got, the more I realized that what I wanted in life never mattered; I was born to further the endeavors of the family. I was a pawn a tool to be used at will to achieve a greater goal, but not anymore.

  When I ran away, I left the love of my life behind. For years it was my biggest regret—my only regret, actually. I was proud of the woman I had become, of the life I had created for myself. And then he found me.

  As I looked in the mirror at the woman before me, I smiled. People say it’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Jake and I have had one hell of a journey to get to where we are today. But I wouldn’t change it. I became Pixie Cole because of the things I endured, and Pixie Cole is one kickarse chick.

  Today is just the beginning of another journey for Jake and I, and I can’t wait for it to begin.

  Piper, Tay and Mish fought over who would be doing my hair today so I told them all to get nicked, I’d do it myself. The only one that was happy to just sit back and observe was Tempi.

  I pulled the hair back from my face beside each of my temples and braided them together at the back. I wore no tiara or sparkly headbands; instead I picked a few flowers from my garden and slipped them into the braid, leaving the rest of my hair flowing loosely over my shoulders and down my back.

  I called Piper, Tay and Reags in to help me put on my dress and they came rushing to my aid. I had a feeling the whole thing was a little too much for Tempi to deal with. Reags and Tay gathered the bottom of the gown and lifted it for me to slip in from the bottom.

  As I poked my head through the top, Piper lifted the front panel and held it in place as the other girls began tying the ribbons that would secure the dress to my body.

  My dress was made from panels of a variety of soft white and cream laces. Two sections gathered to form a halter around my neck. Gold ribbons wrapped around my torso from front to back and around again, exposing most of the wings tattooed on my back. The fabric fell from my hips and pooled around my bare feet.

  I felt like a beautiful fairy princess.

  “Are you ready for this, Pix? If you’re not, Kade’s car is out front and I’ve got the keys in my clutch,” Piper informed me.

  I shook my head at her silly offer. “Why would I want to run away from my destiny?” She knew it was a rhetorical question, so she just smiled and kissed me on the cheek, then left me to join the small gathering of guests in our garden.

  Jake had chosen the song I would walk down the aisle to. He didn’t tell me what it was, he just said I would know it when I heard it. I was happy to go along with it. I knew music was special to him, it always had been. He had used it to express himself since we were teens, and he still did.

  I stood in the hallway, waiting for the music to start.

  “You and Me” by Lifehouse started to play and I took a deep breath and walked through my little laundry and waited at the open doorway until the chorus began. Then I stepped out and locked eyes with the only constant I had ever known. Jake stood under the big Poinciana tree in our garden in a pair of black dress pants, white shirt open at the neck and a black vest. My heart jumped into my throat.

  I closed my eyes and listened to the lyrics, “It’s you and me.” Those words centred me, and I took that as my cue as I opened my eyes and took the steps to stand with the love of my life.

  The ceremony was short and sweet, just as we had requested. A single tear escaped me as I kissed my husband for the first time. Our friends cheered and threw glitter in the air, showering everyone in sparkles.

  Mario and Maria congratulated us first. Maria wrapped her arms around me. Holding me tight, she cried on my shoulder. “Siete una bellissima principessa miei cari,” she whispered in my ear, making me cry. “Grazie, Maria, grazie per essere qui,” I responded in a hushed tone, overwhelmed by my emotions. She kissed my cheek and released me.

  Jake leaned over and asked me about our little exchange. “She told me I look like a beautiful princess and I thanked her,” I said, sniffling.

  He snaked his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his side. “You are a beautiful princess, every single day, not just today,” he told me as he kissed my nose.

  We mingled with our friends, drank wine, and ate the amazing canapé’s Maria had made for us. She wouldn’t accept any money; she told us it was our wedding gift. She and Mario only stayed a little while as the early evening air was too cold. We kissed them goodbye and thanked them for their generous gift as they left.

  “It’s time to dance with your husband, my sweetness.” Jake whispered in my ear then nodded over to Kade who was in charge of the music. Seconds later Thinking Out Loud began to play and just like he had the night he proposed, he took me in his arms as we waltzed around the garden. When the song ended
another began, and our friends all joined us partnering up and swaying to the music.

  Later that night or perhaps early the next morning after all our guests had left, and Jake had made sweet love to me, we lay in our bed wrapped in each other. Jake kissed the top of my head. “Goodnight, my sweet wife. I love you.”

  I would never grow tired of hearing him say those words. “And I love you,” I murmured before falling into a deep sleep.

  THE END

  A NOVELLA

  BY JB HELLER

  Copyright © 2015 by JB Heller

  All rights reserved.

  Published by JB Heller

  authorjbheller@outlook.com

  Cover Design JEB Designs

  Formatting by JEB Designs

  jebdesigns@outlook.com

  Editing by Colleen Snibson

  colleensnibsonediting@gmail.com

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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

  Name- Taylor Jane Seymour.

  Age- Thirty-three and counting.

  Occupation- I work as a stylist at Vipers Den beauty salon.

  Bio- I’m thirty-three and single. Obviously, otherwise I wouldn’t be filling out this damn singles profile.

  I can’t believe it’s come to this.

  I’ve been pining over Nate Summers since he sauntered his fine arse into the Den two years ago. I quickly came to the conclusion he was gay since he was applying for a job as a nail technician. All the hopes and dreams I had conjured up in the six minutes it took for the words nail tech to come out of his mouth, blew up in my face faster than I had time to make them. But let me tell you, they were freaking HOT hopes and dreams.

  It took another six months for me to realise he was, in fact, not gay but very much straight. That’s when the hoping and dreaming started up again.

  Unfortunately for me, it was glaringly obvious that I wasn’t his type. He tended to go for the soft-spoken, airhead bimbo kind of girls. The ones that batted their eyelashes at him and pretended they were naïve and innocent. I was anything but soft-spoken, and shy—forget it.

  I saw what I wanted, and I went for it. That’s just who I was, except in this instance. My mind was made up, Nate was the perfect guy. I wanted, more than anything, to have an actual relationship with him but I knew I wasn’t what he looked for in a woman, and my heart couldn’t take the rejection that I knew would come from me declaring my undying love.

  So, for the first time in my life, I kept my big mouth shut. I had to protect myself. Having a plutonic friendship with him, was better than having a broken heart and making things weird between us.

  It will be my thirty-fourth birthday in three weeks’ time, and I’ve been broody for the last four years. I see a baby and my uterus hurts, I want one for myself so badly, I crave a family of my own, so much so that I’ve started to consider going the turkey baster route. Even though being a single mum isn’t the ideal situation, it’s looking like that may be my only option.

  I slammed the lid to my laptop with a huff and slumped back in my seat. Finding a guy online wasn’t the answer. I knew who I wanted a relationship with, I knew who I wanted to start a family with. My chest tightened as I tried to fight back the tears that were inevitably on their way. But it didn’t work. A single tear escaped before I could stop it. Sneaky little bastard.

  I allowed myself to have a little pity party for a few minutes before I pulled myself together enough to put my laptop away and throw my dinner in the microwave. Then I poured myself a big-arse glass of wine. Tonight would be spent getting drunk by myself and wallowing in self-pity while watching The Backup Plan. If J-Lo could make it work and score Alex O’Loughlin then surely I could work something out.

  By the time Monday morning rolled around I was well and truly depressed. I wanted a baby damn it!

  As I walked into the Den, I had to forgo my usual chipper attitude. I just wasn’t feeling it and I didn’t have it in me to fake it today. Ignoring all my colleagues, I walked straight out the back to store my bag and make myself a strong coffee. I was a professional so I couldn’t be a Sally Sadface with my clients, and I had a full day ahead of me. Hopefully the coffee would help with that.

  Sighing, I rested my forehead on the cabinets above the little coffee machine.

  As soon as she walked in I knew something was wrong. Tay always had a smile on her gorgeous face, always. Time of the month and all.

  The only reason I knew when she was on her rags was because all the chicks in here spent so much time together that their cycles had synced up. Let me tell you, hell hath no fury like a bunch of raggy women with scissors in their hands and hot wax at their disposal.

  You’re probably thinking What kind of guy thinks about that sort of shit? Well the answer is, a guy who was raised by five women. My dad bounced before I was even born, leaving my mum knocked up at seventeen. Luckily for her, she had four sisters who surrounded her with love and support. That meant I was outnumbered, my childhood was one big happy estrogen fest. I honestly didn’t mind- it gave me insight into how chicks worked, ultimately giving me an advantage other dudes lacked.

  Chicks go crazy for a guy who knows when to buy her chocolate then back the hell away at the right time; e.g. their time of the month.

  But back to the issue at hand…Tay. I had never seen her with less than a smirk on her sweet lips. I waited a few minutes to see if anyone else would go after her, and when nobody did, I followed her into the backroom.

  She was leaning against the cupboards by the coffee machine, her eyes closed tightly and her teeth digging into her full bottom lip. I didn’t like it. Quietly, I walked up behind her and placed my hands on her tight shoulders. She jumped at my touch, her shoulders tensed even more.

  “What’s up, Sugar?” I asked as I slowly began to apply pressure to her tense muscles, rubbing my thumbs in circles to loosen the knots.

  She released a deep sigh, her shoulders relaxing under my ministrations. “Nothing you want to know about, trust me,” she whispered.

  I didn’t like that either, my eyebrows furrowed. “How would you know unless you tell me?”

  She spun around and pressed her delicate hands against my chest, staring at me with a raised brow. “You want to give me a baby?” My eyes popped open. “Yeah, didn’t think so,” she said, then turned her back on me again and finished making her coffee.

  That was not what I was expecting her to say. I thought she had a bad night’s sleep or some shit. But a baby? Where the hell had that come from? Before I had a chance to gather my thoughts, she finished making her coffee and began to walk away. My hand shot out and wrapped around her upper arm. What the hell was I doing?

  “You want a baby, Tay?”

  Not moving her focus from my eyes she answered me. “Yes, Nate. I want a baby.”

  I blew a breath out through my nose. An image of Tay, with a beautifully rounded tummy, formed in my mind. I felt possessiveness bloom in my chest at the thought of another man’s baby growing inside of her. I released her arm and reared back at the foreign emotion.

  I had no plans of settling down. I mean, I was into Tay—I’d be crazy not to be. But I never got into anything with my colleagues. It was the only rule I lived by when it came to women, but the image of her pregnant, with someone else’s baby, had me suddenly rethinking that rule.

  Tay reached out with her free hand and touched my forehead. “Are you alright? You’re real pale all of a sudden.”

  “Umm, yeah I’m fine. Ah, I’ve gotta go. I’ve got a client coming in early today,” I stam
mered, then turned on my heels and left her standing alone in the backroom. What the hell was going on with me?

  That was, by far, the weirdest exchange I had ever had with Nate. He’d never touched me like that before. He took me by surprise. I mean, he’d always been a touchy-feely kind of guy, even flirty, but I don’t know, something about the way he was massaging my shoulders felt almost intimate.

  I rolled my eyes at myself, Nate getting intimate with me, dream on.

  I was a little shocked that I told him I want a baby; it’s not something I’ve ever voiced—to anyone. It’s not like I was hiding the fact, it just hadn’t ever really come up. I wondered what he thought of my little announcement. Shocked, obviously, judging by the way his eyes nearly left their sockets.

  That’s the moment an idea started forming in my head. I may not be able to have Nate, but maybe, just maybe, I could have a little piece of him.

  The rest of the day was uneventful. I put on my happy face for my clients and fake laughed at their jokes. I spent my lunchbreak in the backroom—with the door open so I could watch Nate work— nibbling on my gluten-free chocolate and banana muffin. Before you think it, no, I am not a stalker. I’m just a woman suffering from unrequited love, there’s a difference.

  When we closed up for the day, I tried to escape before anyone else could intercept me and grill me about my lack of sass today. My attempt failed, miserably.

  Pixie, Piper, Reagan and Tempest ganged up on me when I went to retrieve my bag. I rolled my eyes when I saw them holding it ransom. I plonked down on the couch and waited for them to all have their say.

  Piper, our ever-fearless leader, started. “What the shit is going on with you? I know you faked the happy for the clients today, which I appreciate, but this isn’t you, Tay. So spill.”