by Lexy Timms
Fragile Touch
Fragile Series, Volume 1
Lexy Timms
Published by Dark Shadow Publishing, 2017.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
FRAGILE TOUCH
First edition. November 15, 2017.
Copyright © 2017 Lexy Timms.
Written by Lexy Timms.
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fragile touch
Fragile Series Books #1
By Lexy Timms
Copyright 2017 Lexy Timms
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to an actual person, 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/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
All rights reserved.
Fragile Touch
Fragile Series # 1
Copyright 2017 by Lexy Timms
Cover by: Book Cover by Design
FRAGILE SERIES
Fragile Touch
Book 1
Fragile Kiss
Book 2
Fragile Love
Book 3
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FRAGILE TOUCH BLURB
“His body is perfect. He’s got this face that isn’t just heart-melting but actually kind of exotic...”
Lillian Warren’s life is just how she’s designed it. She has a high-paying job working with celebrities and the elite, teaching them how to better organize their lives. She’s on her own, the days quiet, but she likes it that way. Especially since she’s still figuring out how to live with her recent diagnosis of Crohn’s disease. Her cats keep her company, and she’s not the least bit lonely.
Fun-loving personal trainer, Cayden, thinks his neighbor is a killjoy. He’s only seen her a few times, and the woman looks like she needs a drink or three. He knows how to party and decides to invite her to over—if he can find her. What better way to impress her than take care of her overgrown yard? She proceeds to thank him by throwing up in his painstakingly-trimmed-to-perfection bushes.
Something about the fragile, mysterious woman captivates him.
Something about this rough-on-the-outside bear of a man attracts Lily, despite her heart warning her to tread carefully.
Contents
FRAGILE SERIES
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FRAGILE TOUCH BLURB
Chapter 01
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Fragile Book 2 Blurb
FRAGILE SERIES
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Chapter 01
April 4 (Day 103)
Black coffee, blue mug
Organic granola, yellow bowl
Banana
Large spoonful of peanut butter
Lillian sat back and sighed, her eyes glued to the paper. “I should probably take more precise measurements,” she muttered to herself, adding a check mark beside the listing for granola. “Granola was fine, so was banana and peanut butter, but coffee? Definitely not.” Next to that one, she put a big black X. “I’ll have to figure out how I can drink coffee without it upsetting my tummy,” she said, looking at her cat as if he understood.
The cat just stared back with his usual unimpressed expression.
“Lunchtime for you, isn’t it?”
This time he did understand, and peeled himself off the kitchen table. He was a massive cat, and when he leapt off the table he landed with a heavy thud.
Lillian looked outside. The sun was shining, but dark storm clouds were beginning to darken the sky in the distance. “I think it’s going to storm, Black Cat,” she told the animal again. The sound of cat food clattering in the bowl brought the other feline running full speed into the kitchen, skidding to a stop in front of the other bowl.
“You’ve got some, too, don’t worry.” Another scoop, another clatter, and both cats were happily chowing down on their food like they hadn’t eaten in years. She looked back outside at the gently swaying treetops. “Hopefully this storm will stop what’s-his-name from having a crazy concert next door again.”
Who am I kidding? she thought. He’s going to have those parties, rain or shine. Weather can’t put a damper on fun, I guess.
Her gaze settled on the corner of the living room, where several thick blankets were nestled snugly in a huge comfy chair. A matching ottoman sat in front of the chair, and she felt herself being beckoned to the corner to spend some quality time with her current novel. Or, rather, the three she was reading at the same time.
Later, later. There was work to do around here, and she couldn’t get distracted. The sun was shining and she wanted to go on her walk before the rain came. Reading and hot tea would happen then.
After checking to make sure the litter box was clean, she pulled on her shoes and slipped out the back door. Quietly.
Everything was quiet, even how she gingerly closed the screen door and stepped lightly across her back porch.
It was always quiet. Lillian hated noise. She liked her life discreet and safe, especially now that she was figuring out how her new diagnosis was affecting her. Spontaneity was the last thing she wanted in her life at this moment.
Afternoon walks through the forest were her solace. Back in college, she had a couple of friends she would hike with on the weekends. They always talked about how lonely they’d be in nature if they didn’t have someone to be with. Lillian always thought she would like it better without other voices interrupting her thoughts and the sounds of nature.
Now there were no voices to disturb her meandering, and she relished the silence. It’s not that she hated people. She did like people; after all, her job was all about helping people. But she rarely let anyone into her inner life. Keeping a distance was her forte. A friendly distance...most of the time.
Thinking about it, her bitchy moments weren’t uncommon, only occurring when incompetent people were involved in the situation. A lot of people were incompetent, though.
Lillian took a deep breath and tilted her head back, feeling her neck muscles stretching. Oh, the only thing that could make this day perfect is if I could sleep without the pounding bass from next door.
She wandered along the narrow, worn path through the forest that led to the small lake. Here, the distant storm clouds were much clearer, and she noticed from the small waves that the wind had picked up. The rain was blowing in fast.
Disrupting the peaceful moment, pain ripped through her stomach. She lowered herself to the ground, doing her best to take deep, even breaths. Her insides burned like fire, and she realized with dread that she forgot to take one of her pills this morning.
I’ll be fine. I’ll be fine. The pain’ll subside. She sucked in ragged breaths, trying to control something...anything.
After a few minutes the cramping eased, and she wiped a few drops of sweat from her forehead. The wind blew against her just right, and she cooled off quickly. Her strength was sapped, but the weather felt so good right now that she hated to go back home already.
Half an hour won’t hurt, right? She knew it was stupid to stay out with such little strength, but her eye caught so many flowers she hadn’t noticed before.
For a little while, she traipsed along the edge of the forest, collecting flowers to take back to her drying station. That one might do, she occasionally thought, turning a bud over in her palm. Aside from drying the plants for fun, she hung them in shadowboxes and sold them at a local florist. They were wildly popular in town, and since spring had officially arrived they were selling out fast.
Another tiny, sharp pain pricked her stomach, and she sucked in a breath. I shouldn’t be pushing myself so much. It’s time to go home. Her nose caught a whiff of storm air on the breeze, and she reluctantly ripped herself away from a lovely patch of spider lilies. Weeds or not, these are some gorgeous flowers. She quickly uprooted a few before hurrying back home.
As she closed the door behind her, the rain pounded down on the roof as hard as the bass from next door’s parties. She listened closely for a minute, but when no noise came from the party house a wave of relief swept over her.
It’s way too early for the music, she admitted, still hoping maybe tonight would be different than every other weekend since her neighbor had moved in about six months ago. Part of her kept hoping that she could sleep in peace tonight, but the other part knew the partygoers would arrive in a few hours.
“Maybe the rain will flood the street and no one will be able to drive here.” She laughed at Black Cat. “That means no party!” She scooped the cat into her arms and looked him in the face. “Right?”
He gave her a sarcastic look, as if to say, Yeah, but if they couldn’t drive, they would walk.
She stuck out her tongue at the cat, who kicked against her stomach and launched himself onto the floor. “Take it easy, jerk; that hurts,” she murmured, turning her
attention to the spider lilies. “Let’s go set you up for drying, shall we?”
AT 10 P.M. SHE FELT the first thump.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she growled, easing herself out of the corner chair and setting her book down. She’d been reading the same two pages for the last ten minutes, trying to fight off sleep but badly losing.
Pushing aside the drapes, she peered next door. The windows were mostly dark, except for what looked like some moving colored lights in one room and a strobe light in another. People were walking up the front steps and laughing loudly as they invited themselves into the house.
Someone had a good time pre-gaming, she thought sarcastically.
She felt the vibration from another thud and turned to look back at the cats, who were sprawled out on the couch. Gray Cat was looking around droopy-eyed, her ears twitching once when the next thud came. She put her head back down.
“Are you more used to it than I am?” Lillian asked, wishing the cats could talk back. “I wish I could sleep as hard as you two do.”
There was a brief silence before the next song started up, louder than before. The sound of a small crowd cheering reached her ears, and she felt her blood beginning to boil.
Something’s gotta be done. She plopped herself down on the chair a little too hard. Her lower back popped in a rough way that froze her for a few seconds. She cursed under her breath and lay back, head propped up on a pillow.
More cheers drifted through the air. She stared blankly at the ceiling, wondering what on earth she could do about the situation.
I just want to sleep. Why can’t they go to a bar and burn the energy there? Why a house party? How old is this guy anyway?
When she moved in several years ago the house was unoccupied, as the family who owned it was renovating it to resell. This neighborhood was one of the most beautiful in the whole area. Behind all the houses were lush forests, and most of the homes on this side of the street had part of a lake beyond the woods.
