Just Breathe
Célia Pereira
Copyright
Just Breathe
Copyright © 2020 Célia Pereira
Published by: C.P. Publishing CO.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication and use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the author of this book, Célia Pereira, except for the use of quotations in a book review. For more information, address: [email protected]
Cover photograph: Volodymyr TVERDOKHLB/Shutterstock.com
Cover designer: Ismail Ben Design Group
Editing: Wild Rose Editing
Formatting: word-2-kindle
For mature audiences only (18 and older).
Contains some subject matter that may be offensive due to violence, language, and sexual situation. Reader discretion is advised.
Dedication
To every woman out there who has taken on the role of motherhood.
You don't need to carry a child in your womb to love, protect, and call them your own. You are exactly what they need.
This one's for you.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Prologue
Bailey
I can feel my body wanting to shut down, begging to just go to sleep and have the numbness take over. To take me away from all this madness that has become my life.
“Bailey!”
I think I hear someone calling my name. It’s too distant for me to make out clearly.
Shit, my body feels like it’s gone up in flames.
“Bailey! Open your eyes, baby.”
Gavin? He came back? I didn’t think he would, not after the way we left things. Open my eyes? My eyes are open; it’s just dark. Panic washes over me as I remember what happened. Forget me, find Logan. Please let Logan still be hiding.
“Bailey!”
Why does he sound like he’s stuck in a damn tunnel? Shit, my entire body feels to be on the verge of exploding.
“Bailey, you just stay with me, okay! Don’t you dare close your eyes. Stay with me!”
Everything he says seems so damn muffled, and I don’t know why he keeps asking me to keep my eyes open, they are, he just has to turn on the damn lights.
“Lo—Logan,” I think I manage to get out, but to my ears, I can’t make anything out clearly, and wow, does my throat feel like it’s been through a shredder.
“I have him. He’s safe. Just stay awake. Please!”
Again, everything he’s saying sounds so damn muffled, but I don’t even care, because he just made everything better by telling me Logan is safe. I hope my mind isn’t messing with me because the next thing I feel is that inferno inside of me taking over my body. The numbness finally engulfs me, and everything goes completely dark and silent.
Chapter One
Bailey
Six months earlier
I squeeze my eyes tight and try to breathe through the throbbing in my right side. My bruises from a week ago were just starting to fade. Guess they’ll be present once again.
“He will never be your son! Don’t brainwash his little mind with your stupid words!” Frank, also known as my father, if you could even call him that, grips the back of my hair tighter and practically spits in my face. I struggle to free myself, but my body is just too weak.
“It should have been you! You should have died that night!” He grips my shirt and shakes me roughly before backhanding me, making me spit out blood.
“I’m his father. Don’t ever forget that. I could take him away from you whenever I want. Now, clean this mess up.” He throws me back onto the living room carpet and makes his way toward the front door. Once I hear the sound of the door locking, I let out a sigh of relief.
“Mom?”
Shit.
Logan’s timid voice breaks through my fog of pain as I try to push myself up off the floor.
“Mom! You’re bleeding!” Logan rushes toward me and kneels next to me while reaching for my hand.
Oh, my sweet little boy. How I wish I could take you away from this nightmare.
“I’m okay, Bubba.” I grit out as I push myself onto my knees. My side burns with the movement, but I ignore it.
“It’s just a little blood. I’ll get cleaned up and it will all be gone. I thought I told you not to come out of hiding until I came for you?” I try and wipe the blood from my busted lip the best I can.
“I heard the front door lock. I knew he was gone. Can we leave? I don’t want you hurt.” He curls up in my lap as I stroke his hair gently.
I have thought of nothing else for the past six months, of how to escape this nightmare and keep Logan safe. Granted, Frank has never once hurt Logan, but I think that’s all part of his plan. To leave Logan untouched while he beats me. Beats me and blames me for our mother’s death. That way, I have no solid proof that he’s unfit to have guardianship over Logan and that I’m just emotionally unstable ever since my mother died. He knows he has power over me since I’m now twenty-one, and by law, he doesn’t need to take care of me anymore. Logan is only six years old, so Frank keeps me around to take care of him since he’s out doing God knows what with who knows who. I have a sickening feeling that he’s mixed up in some serious shit with some scary people. I don’t know for sure, but Frank’s come home a few times sporting bruises on his face and mumbling he had to come up with the money or they’d kill him. That’s happened quite a few times in the last few months. Frank must have turned into a gambler or something for him to be saying things like that. All I know is that I need to get Logan and myself out of here before Frank’s messed up life comes crashing through our front door.
“I know, Bubba. I’m working on it, okay? Just give me another
month to save up a little bit more money, and then I’ll take you out of here. I promise.” I press a soft kiss to his head, hoping I’ll be able to come up with a plan to escape this mess sooner rather than later.
Chapter Two
Gavin
My heart is beating so damn hard and fast; it feels like it is going to burst right through my chest. I almost got him, just a little bit farther and I can get Travis out of this nightmare. I push myself to go harder and faster. I can feel the sweat mixing with the dirt and running down my face. I don't bother wiping my eyes as I push myself to run faster.
"Gavin!"
I search for where Travis's voice is coming from, but he's not ahead of me anymore. Where the fuck did he go? "Travis!" I don't stop running. I keep searching. "Travis!"
"Gavin..."
Travis? He sounds closer but where is he? Within seconds, we're in a clean and sterile room. Gone are the dirt and explosives. I look all around the room, and from thin air, a bed appears, Travis is lying on it with all these tubes and shit. I try to call and reach for him, but I don't hear a sound leave my mouth. No, this is not happening! I'm frozen in place as I watch. A doctor appears and starts to resuscitate him, but the sound of his heart monitor beeping that loud, continuous, and dreadful sound brings me to my knees. “Travis!”
I jolt up in bed, trying to catch my breath and adjust to my surroundings. There's a lightreflecting through my bedroom window, when I look over, I see it's raining steadily. Zeus, my German Shepherd, moves closer to me on the bed, lays his head on my right thigh, and lets out a small whimper.
"It's all right, boy. Just a bad dream." I rub his furry head and use the shirt I took off before going to bed to wipe off the sweat running down my face and chest. I throw it onto the floor and reach for the bottle of water on my nightstand and take a long drink. Sitting up against the headboard, I lean my head back while watching the lightning mix with the rain. Everything is silent, except for the pitter-patter against the window, matching my now steady heartbeat.
"Six months, ten days, and five hours,” I whisper into the lonely room. Zeus looks up and throws out a low growl.
"Yeah, buddy, I know. You miss him the most."
Chapter Three
Bailey
Six weeks later
"Good morning, Mr. Henderson, how are you feeling today?" I give Mr. Henderson a smile that he says brightens up the room, as I pour him a cup of coffee.
"Good morning, sweetheart. Oh, you know, the usual. I woke up with a kink in my lower back, and I'm pretty sure I pulled my hamstrings getting into the shower. But I'm sure you don't want to hear about all these aches and pains from an old geezer like myself. How are you and that sweet boy of yours?"
Mr. Henderson is a sweet man, never wanting to bother anybody with anything and just minds his own business. He is a widower who lost his wife to cancer six months before Logan, and I arrived here in Watermount Falls. His wife, Lila, was very loved by the townsfolk. According to Mr. Henderson, she always stopped to have little chats with everyone she met when they went on their daily walks in town. Now that he is on his own, he feels people just don't pay any mind to him anymore. I won't lie, the first time I met Mr. Henderson I about shit myself. He scowled at me the entire time I took his order, and when I checked on him to ask how his food tasted, he complained it wasn't the same as the week before, but he continued to eat it anyway. I quickly came to realize that Mr. Henderson was just sad and lonely and missing his wife. With a little courage, I began smiling at him and asking him how he was. It took some work but now he's like a teddy bear when he sees me.
"You just need to take it easy, Mr. Henderson, and perhaps pay that chiropractor of yours a visit," I respond teasingly, knowing he hates visiting with any doctors.
"Logan is doing great. He's loving school and has new stories to share every night. I’m sure on Sunday he will be talking your ear off with all his updates."
"That’s lovely, sweetheart. I always enjoy our Sunday time together. He’s a sweet boy. He's gonna be a knockout with the ladies when he's older." He chuckles while winking at me.
"Please, Mr. Henderson, don't tell me things like that. I'm just thankful that he still thinks all the girls, apart from me, have cooties. I'll be back with your usual."
As I reach the front counter to place Mr. Henderson's order, I can feel eyes burning into the back of my head. A chill runs up my body, leaving goose bumps all over. I know he's here before I even turn around. Gavin is already sitting in my section, like every morning since I started working here.
"Damn, girl, that man has it so bad for you, and you don't even see it." Ashton leans against the counter while wiping a few coffee mugs and putting them away. It's the same conversation with her every morning as soon as Gavin walks in.
"He comes in for breakfast, like every other person in this town does before heading off to work. He does not have it bad for me." I repeat for the thousandth time since I started working at Momma B’s Grill with Ashton. She's an amazing waitress and has become a pretty great friend who has accepted Logan and me with open arms, but she is also annoying when she wants to play matchmaker.
"That man doesn't open his tattoo shop until eleven. Also, he can sit anywhere he wants, but do you know where he sits every damn morning for the past six weeks? In your section. That is the definition of having it bad for someone," she sasses back.
"He's my neighbor, Ashton, he's just being polite by sitting in my section. Yes, he does own the tattoo shop, so he must have to go in early to get the place organized before opening,” I reply, feeling very proud of myself for not stuttering over my words when speaking about Gavin. He is beyond handsome, the perfect mix of sexy and bad boy charm. He just has to smile, and girls throw their panties at him, I’m sure. But he's not for me, or should I say, I'm definitely not for him. I have way too much baggage for a man like Gavin to even spare me a second glance. Plus, there's also Logan, we're a combo. He can't have one without the other, and besides, my focus is not on dating or even casual dating, I just need to focus on working, supporting my son, and possibly changing towns soon.
"Look at you getting all sassy and using my full name. Bailey, that man wants you. When the day comes that you realize I'm right, I want all the juicy details of when you two do the bow-chicka-wow-wow."
"Oh, gosh! Would you stop!" I manage through bursts of laughter.
Thankfully, Mr. Henderson's order is up and allows me to escape continuing the conversation. After dropping off his order, I make my way over to the one person I serve every morning who gives me butterflies in my tummy and leaves me with the inability to manage a simple conversation.
"Good morning, Gavin."
Chapter Four
Gavin
Six weeks. Six weeks I've been coming into Momma B's Grill for breakfast at nine in the damn morning, just to be closer to her. Bailey moved into the apartment right across from me six weeks ago. She's quiet and tries her hardest to blend into the shadows. The thing the girl doesn't know is that not even the darkness can dim her beauty. Look at the shit this girl has me saying, I don't even know why I'm doing this. Every time I try and speak to her, she freezes like a deer caught in headlights and won't say more to me than a fucking hi. She's definitely not the type I normally get tangled with, that’s for sure. I always tend to go for the easy kind, the kind of women that all I have to do is crook my finger and they're already stripping naked for me.
Not Bailey though, she's definitely not easy. She's reserved, quiet, but has a fight in her you don’t see in everybody. A survivor. Bailey is the type of woman that you would move mountains to be worthy of. She has the most delicate, smooth skin and a tight, lithe body that drives me mad with need. I have never seen her with an ounce of makeup on, which I appreciate since her green eyes are already so damn captivating. Makeup would only enhance them and drive me crazier than I already am. Then there's her hair, chestnut-colored and curly. It looks so damn soft and leaves me with an overwhelming urge to to
uch it. Natural beauty, I tell you.
Let's not forget she has a son. Yeah, you heard me right. Six-year-old son, the cutest little kid if you ask me. Now, he's been an easy win. Logan loves Zeus, my dog, and every time he sees us he comes on over to say hi and gives him some love, and let me tell you, that dog eats that shit up. Too damn bad his momma barely even acknowledges us. Damn, I need to get laid and just work her out of my system.
I've been sitting in Bailey’s section for about ten minutes now, and I know she knows I'm sitting here waiting for her because Ashton hasn’t been too subtle in voicing that apparently I have it bad for her. Shit, is it that obvious I only come in here for her? It’s not long after that I see her making her way over to my table, all my previous thoughts fall by the wayside. Her soft curls are thrown up on top of her head in some messy bun. Seeing it like that makes my hands itch to tug at it so I can watch them cascade down her back.
"Good morning, Gavin."
So damn soft and sweet. Did I mention that she has the sexiest voice I've ever heard? It's the perfect blend of angel and devil. Smooth with a little bit of a rasp. The way my name rolls off her tongue makes me want to throw her over my shoulder and get her alone so I can make her moan and see if she says my name in the same way as I drive into her. Fuck, now my dick is hard just thinking of her under me. She clears her throat, and I finally realize I'm making her nervous, just by staring at her.
"Good morning, beautiful," I manage to choke out. I clear my throat and smile up at her. She grants me a half-smile that nowhere near touches her eyes. At least she smiles, the first time I called her beautiful she ran away and didn't even answer me. I call this progress.
"What can I get started for you today?” she softly replies, avoiding making eye contact with me.
I hate how nervous she is around me. I have tried everything to be friendly and welcoming, but it seems I'm either off my game or suck at the friendly approach, because I'm the only person in town she doesn't talk to unless she has to.
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