by T. L Smith
Copyright T.L Smith 2018
Kandiland by T.L Smith
All Rights Reserved
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to real events, real people, and real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the Author’s imagination and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, organizations or places is entirely coincidental.
All rights are reserved. This book is intended for the purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the express written permission of the Author. All songs, song titles and lyrics contained in this book are the property of the respective songwriters and copyright holders.
WARNING
This ebook contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. This ebook is intended for adults ONLY. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.
Cover – RBA
Photographer- Lauren Watson Perry
Edited – Swish Editing
Proofread – Contagious Edits
Proofread – Judy’s Proofreading
Table of Contents
Title Page
Disclaimer
Kandiland
Prologue | Kandi
Chapter 1 | Kandi
Chapter 2 | Kandi
Chapter 3 | Kandi
Chapter 4 | Kandi
Chapter 5 | Kandi
Chapter 6 | Kandi
Chapter 7 | Kandi
Chapter 8 | Huxley
Chapter 9 | Kandi
Chapter 10 | Huxley
Chapter 11 | Kandi
Chapter 12 | Huxley
Chapter 13 | Kandi
Chapter 14 | Huxley
Chapter 15 | Kandi
Chapter 16 | Kandi
Chapter 17 | Huxley
Chapter 18 | Jarod
Chapter 19 | Kandi
Chapter 20 | Huxley
Chapter 21 | Kandi
Chapter 22 | Huxley
Chapter 23 | Kandi
Chapter 24 | Huxley
Chapter 25 | Kandi
Chapter 26 | Huxley
Chapter 27 | Kandi
Chapter 28 | Huxley
Chapter 29 | Kandi
Epilogue
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Other books by TL Smith
Sasha's Dilemma (Dilemma #1) FREE
Adam’s Heaven (Dilemma #1.5)
Sasha’s Demons (Dilemma #2)
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Antagonize Me (Standalone)
Degrade (Flawed #1)
Twisted (Flawed #2)
Black (Black #1)
Red (Black #2)
White (Black #3)
Distrust (Smirnov Bratva #1) FREE
Disbelief (Smirnov Bratva #2)
Defiance (Smirnov Bratva #3)
Dismissed (Smirnov Bratva #4)
Lovesick (Standalone)
Lotus (Standalone)
Savage Collision (A Savage Love Duet book 1)
Savage Reckoning (A Savage Love Duet book 2)
Buried in Lies
Kandiland
Distorted Love (Dark Intentions #1)
Sinister Love (Dark Intentions #2)
Connect with T.L Smith by tlsmithauthor.com
BLURB
He was forbidden, my boss and incapable of loving me.
People talked about him, whispered about him in passing.
He was the king of his town.
And I was a visitor.
I was by no means a smart girl. Never loved with my head, always with my heart.
That fact alone almost killed me once.
I should have listened the second time around.
But the king of this small town, had me starving. Had me craving his taste.
My name is Kandi, and he called me his Kandiland.
The king declared I was his medicine, and with each dose, he became better and better.
He was the perfect liar.
And I was his perfect Kandi.
Together, we were explosive, and toxic in every way.
Prologue
Kandi
One Year Ago
“Run, run!” he screams at me. His hands are pushing me further away, but I can’t seem to move. My feet are stuck on the same spot while his frantic face searches my eyes. My hand lifts, it touches the side of his face and brushes on the stubble of his cheek.
The world freezes.
Everything freezes in an instant. I don’t know what to do.
What he’s telling me, I can’t possibly do, can I?
As I shake my head, his hand reaches up and grips my hand. He squeezes my fingers hard, pulling them away from his face. I die a little inside. My heart bleeds, and it drops all the way to the ground between my legs. I can even hear the splatter that accompanies its splash in the dirt.
It’s the end.
“Leave. Now, Kandi.” Blue eyes plead with me.
My lip quivers and I can feel a tear wanting to break free. I shake my head slightly, and that’s when I hear it. Gunshots. He pushes me so my back slams into the car, our car, the one we have traveled all over the country in. The one he wants me to drive off and leave him in.
“No, not without you.”
He sighs heavily, his shoulders dropping. His blue eyes lift from the ground, he looks up and pulls me to him. His blond hair hits my face, and even if that used to bother me, right now it doesn’t. Nothing does. I only want him to make sense of whatever this is. I want him to come with me, right now.
I’ve loved Jarod since I was eighteen. He’s all I’ve ever known. To me, he’s it. But the look in his eyes is imploring me to get in that car and drive away.
I don’t want to, not without him.
His hands wrap around my waist—they’re urgent and fast. He’s told me he loved me from the minute he saw me in the street walking into a bar, and that he had to follow me so he could talk to me. That was how our love story started. He wasn’t my type. As a matter of fact, he was the complete opposite, but he made me laugh and he wined and dined me. He showed me a man could appreciate everything about a woman and make her feel as if she was all he could see. I believed him, I still do. No other person has looked at me the way Jarod does, no one has wanted me the way he does. All any man ever wanted was what was between my legs, but Jarod desired more. He showed me that daily with soft kisses and appreciation.
I was his queen, and I loved every second of it. There were only a few days in our five-year relationship which had made me second-guess things. Jarod though, he was the smoothest of smooth talkers and made any doubts fly away on the wind.
“You must leave. Do it for me, Kandi.” His blue eyes hold mine as he lifts his hand and wipes away a stray tear. I’ve never been separated from him in five years.
Why doesn’t he understand the fact I can’t just turn and run? It’s like removing one of my limbs and handing it to someone freely—I just can’t do it.
Another gunshot.
I jump into his arms and before I can say a word his lips slam into mine and he takes my breath away. My hands grip his sides. He isn’t made like the romance novels describe their characters. Jarod has a waist, he has love handles, and I adore them. Just as I love him. My fingers dig in, and he pulls back making me catch my breath. His eyes are so clear it almost stops my heart with the pain he’s showing in them.
“Now, Kandi. Now.” He pulls open the car door and pushes me into it. It’s an old beat-up car we’ve had forever. Flashy things aren’t our style. He shuts the d
oor and pushes the keys into the ignition. Starts it, then looks back to me one more time. “I love you, but you have to drive, Kandi. Drive!” He screams the last part as I see two men come into view.
My foot pushes down and before I know it I’m driving away, leaving him there because he told me to do it. He stands watching me. I notice him in the rearview mirror, and as my vision of him becomes blurry I slam on the brakes and come to a stop.
That’s when it happens.
That’s when he’s taken from me.
My husband.
My vision blurs even more, this time from the tears I shed as I watch Jarod fall to the ground after a loud shot hits him. Everything around me is in slow motion, and I feel like in that moment, whoever they are should have shot me too.
Yet, somehow. My foot goes back on the pedal, and I manage to drive.
Drive away from everything I call home.
To somewhere unknown.
With a hole in my chest and swollen, red weeping eyes.
I drive.
Chapter 1
Kandi
Now
“Welcome to the town of Candy,” I say out loud as I drive past the large deep blue sign with white writing, and a giant colorful lollipop sticking out from the top. It sounds funny, a town named Candy. Like it shouldn’t really exist, or if it does why isn’t it made out of candy like the sign. My hands clutch the steering wheel as I drive through the town, busy for a town so small.
Jarod would often speak of this place. He’d never been but said it would be the perfect place for us to live. Because it was me, Kandi. I used to laugh at him because that’s the stupidest thing I’d ever heard. Yet here I am, in the land of Candy and ready to try to rebuild my life—where we intended to as a couple. This time though, I’m doing it alone, without my husband.
Pulling my old car over I get out. The real estate agency is the first place I head. I need somewhere to live, then I have to find work. Because I can’t live purely off my money anymore. I never wanted to touch my money to begin with. My father died when I was eighteen, just after I met Jarod, and he left all his savings to me in his will. Dad wasn’t in a relationship, my mother and he separated when I was ten, and he never really moved on. That’s the money I’ve been living off since Jarod died. I’d rather try and earn money because I want to use what’s left for something more permanent, something to invest in, like buying a house.
Opening the door to the real estate agency, the woman behind the counter looks up, her eyes squint, and I know why. I get those looks all the time. The eyes that turn down and the nose that scrunches up. I’m not your typical girl. My hair is pink, and I have tattoos. My life isn’t normal, I’m not normal, and I’ve come to love that about myself. It took me a while to get there, to stop hating people for the way they look at me. They don’t know better, they don’t love themselves enough to see that different is sometimes a good thing. Not everything different is bad, and sometimes you should embrace it.
“How can I help you?” Her voice is high-pitched, and it reminds me of Jarod’s mother, who honestly, had a stick permanently up her ass. She hated me. I wasn’t good enough for her precious son. How wrong she was.
As I sit down, I lean my elbows on her desk and look over the pictures of the houses she has available. When I look back up at her, her eyes are still assessing me.
“I’d like to buy a house.”
She looks up and down, I do the same in return. My eyes skim over her—clothes perfectly ironed, sky-high stilettos, minimalistic jewelry, her face impeccably made up where I don’t even have a drop of makeup on my face.
“Are you sure that’s what you want to do?”
Sitting back in the seat, I nod my head once. Just as I’m about to say something that shouldn’t leave my mouth, the door opens, the bell rings, and then heels are heard clipping on the tiled floor.
I turn to the laughter as four girls step inside with heels so high I’d be sure to break an ankle. Their makeup is flawless, and they’re dressed in clothes that are more suitable for strip clubs.
How beautiful they are. Literally. They look like they’ve just stepped off a runway, and I can’t see anything out of place. I’m kind of in awe of their beauty.
My real estate woman with the stick up her ass gets up from behind her desk and walks around forgetting all about the fact that I’m here. She smiles, very brightly at the ladies in the room. I look down at my ripped jeans and cuffed shirt. I don’t have as much skin showing as those ladies, yet the real estate woman looks at me like some kind of damn hooker.
“I love your hair.”
My eyes leave my clothes to see a blonde looking at me. Her smile is kind as she stares. “I wish I could pull that off.” She flicks her own hair over her shoulder and smiles, turning back to the ladies who are now chatting.
“Thanks,” I say standing. I’m shorter than them, all of them, even the real estate woman.
“You new in town? Visiting?” the same blonde asks me, her eyes returning to me. “I’m Davina.” She holds out her perfectly manicured hand, offering it to me.
I lift mine and shake hers before I answer, “Staying.”
Her eyes light up, but the other girls seem to go silent as they watch our exchange. Even the real estate woman is now watching the exchange.
“That’s so exciting, you’ll love Candy. It’s a place like no other. My girls here and I all work together. If you ever need to get out, come visit us at Candy Village.”
I nod my head, and the rest of the girls turn to walk off. When the door closes behind them, I swing around to look back at Regina, my real estate woman, who never once offered me her name. Thanks to those women, I overheard them say goodbye to her using her name.
“So where to first?”
Her hand goes to her hip. “You’re serious, you really want to buy here?”
I nod my head. She shrugs her shoulders and goes back to her desk picking up her bag and a portfolio. Her eyes find mine again as she grabs a set of keys. “You can follow me, I’ll show you around a few.” She isn’t polite, she’s the exact opposite actually. How she manages to sell houses baffles me. But I’ll take what I can get right now.
“THANK YOU, REGINA.” She nods her head as I pass her a deposit. Not once has she warmed up to me. Even with smiles so big my cheeks hurt, for some reason she still doesn’t like me. It can’t be just my hair, I’ve been nothing but nice to her since I met her. But right now, I don’t really care. The place I just bought is a small, two-bedroom cottage on a few acres. It sits alone, and the current owner has agreed I can move in after paying my deposit. So now, I need to find a bed to sleep in, plus some extra furniture to make this place a home.
Walking out on the busy main street I search around for a shop that stocks bedding supplies. Even if this small town doesn’t have a place that sells beds, the least I will need is a blanket or two and some pillows.
As I continue down the street, I notice the beautiful white oak trees lining the footpath, and under them, small delicate flowers are planted. The day was warm, but it’s late afternoon now, and the sun has started to set. Then I hear it again, the girls’ laughter and I look up to see them walking in through a red door just down the street. I quicken my step in an attempt to follow them, but stop as my hand touches the door they passed through. The sign above reads Candy Village. That has me intrigued, I’d like to know what’s inside.
The building stands alone, and there’s a large neon sign above the door flashing in pink. Although I can hear the music, I can also feel it through the door as my hand touches the wood inset with glass paneling.
Stepping back, I start to turn away, but the door flings open and a man steps out. He doesn’t look up, he’s gazing at his phone’s screen, and his fingers are moving quickly across the glass.
He’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen.
Literally.
The first thing I notice is his hands. They’re sexy, strong, and tanned, and I wonder
what he can do with them. My eyes travel the length of his body. He has a steadfast posture, his shoulders are held high, and his black hair is impeccable, there’s not a single strand out of place. And his lips—the fullness of his bottom lip, the top one not so much but with a flawless bow in the center—they’re perfect. I’ve dreamed of lips like his, and the way they would smile, talk, nibble and kiss me.
He seems to be everything I’ve dreamed of and he’s standing in front of me and all I can do is stare. Because even if he is the most beautiful man to walk this earth, my heart is broken and unable to be repaired. So I downcast my eyes, pick up my heart and turn to walk away.
Something stops me.
It’s the way he’s speaking, it surprises then shocks me all in one go.
“You stare at all men like that?” He hasn’t looked up from his phone, so I haven’t been able to see his eyes. I ignore him. The door opens and Davina strolls out, the blonde I met at the real estate agency. She’s dressed as she was earlier and she doesn’t see me. She steps up to the man and places her hands on his shoulders, her lips coming dangerously close to his ear as she whispers something to him.
It almost feels like I’m intruding on their intimate moment, so I look away ready to walk when he speaks again.
“Get back to work, Davina,” he says with the kind of voice that should only be heard in the bedroom. His dark, low tone is made for the bedroom. Especially when he has your hair in his hand and his lips on your ear, biting. I shake that thought from my mind and look back as I walk. He’s looking up now, his eyes are on me. I can’t quite make out the color, but the way he watches me makes me want to run—and not to him. No. I want to run far, far, away.
I’ve already done that once. So now it’s my turn to keep myself grounded. Looking away, I still feel his stare on my back as I walk into what seems like a small furniture store. The owner is a little old man who’s more than happy to sell me everything I need. Stepping back out and passing Candy Village, I can’t help but stare and wonder who he was, what’s past that door, and why he made me think of another man that way when I haven’t been able to since Jarod.
