Table of Contents
Copyright and Disclaimer
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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
More from Amanda!
About the Author
Acknowledgements
Runway Encounter
A Teacher-Student Romance
Amanda Heartley
Copyright and Disclaimer
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination and have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 Amanda Heartley
Copyright © 2017 Cheeky Books Ltd
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 the copyright owner. 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 the trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Contents
Copyright and Disclaimer
Want Free Books?
Please Leave a Review
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
Want Free Books?
Please Leave a Review
More from Amanda!
About the Author
Acknowledgements
Runway Encounter
Prologue
Darcy
I put one foot in front of the other and keep my head down as I walk out of the building. My heart races as I do my best to ignore the whispers going on around me. I know they’re talking about me, because I’ve been the hot topic for the last two weeks, ever since this whole mess started.
“Need a lift, Darcy?” I jump as Tom Watkins runs his hands down over the curve of my back, roughly cupping my ass. “There’s not much room in my truck, but you can sit on my face any time. I hear that’s what you’re into.” His friends howl with laughter while I choke back tears.
“Fuck off, Tom,” I growl. He laughs and stumbles off with his friends as they cheer him on and clap him on the back.
I hate that this is happening to me, but more than that, I hate that I can’t do anything about it. I feel like this is never going to stop. It’s going to follow me forever, casting a shadow over everything I do. How does he get out of this without any consequences at all, when I was the one who did nothing wrong? He lied to me. He cheated on his wife, I just trusted someone who couldn’t be trusted.
I clench my fists by my side. I’m trying so hard not to show any emotion, but I’m so angry that I’m shaking. It’s probably a good thing that he won’t answer my calls or my texts, because I don’t trust myself not to kill him right now.
When I’m outside the school gates, I break into a jog, desperate to get as far away from there as I can. I’m not sure how much more of this I can take. I’ve played it down, because I thought I could handle it. I thought eventually people would move on to the next bit of hot gossip, but Lacey made sure that didn’t happen. If it were just at school, I could handle it, but it’s everywhere. They wouldn’t sell me a soda in the store yesterday, because the attendant knew someone who knew Georgia.
My parents don’t know how bad things are because I’m keeping it from them. They’re disappointed in me enough without adding to the list that I’m being bullied.
I take a shortcut through Henson’s Park, relieved that I’m almost home. I’m almost on the other side when out of nowhere, Lacey and the offsiders surround me. She narrows her eyes, her jaw twitching as she glares at me.
“Going somewhere?” she taunts.
“Just leave it, Lacey,” I mutter.
“No. Why should I, you filthy whore? You’re so upset because everyone knows what a slut you are. Maybe you should’ve thought twice before doing what you did to my sister.”
“I didn’t do anything,” I cry. “I went out with a boy who I thought liked me as much as I liked him. Why aren’t you over there, hanging shit on him? He’s the one who cheated on Georgia. Not me. I didn’t even know about her.”
“How could you not?” Lacey laughs. “You think I believe anything you say? You’re nothing but an attention-seeking whore, and now everybody knows the truth.” She smiles, satisfied about how much chaos she’s caused in my life.
“Fuck you,” I bite.
I push past her, but she grabs my arm and swings me back around. I fall to the ground, gasping, as the air is pushed out of my lungs. Someone is standing on me. I cry out as the first kick hits my side, then the others join in. Before long, I can’t breathe, the pain is so intense.
Tears silently rolled down my cheeks as my hands clench into fists around my face. It’s the only thing I can protect, because there is only one of me and five of them.
Gasping, I scream as pain radiates through me. Every breath I take feels like it’s going to be my last. It’s like knives are being thrust into my stomach, over and over again. The pain is incredible. My sobs grow louder as I lay there. I give in, because I can’t fight it anymore. I close my eyes, feeling woozy.
And then I black out.
***
Forcing my eyes open, I glance around me, trying to work out where I am. The pain is constant and intense, especially when I breathe. I take soft, shallow breaths, because i
t’s all I can manage, and even then, I feel like I’m going to pass out. I turn my head to the side. Mom looks up from beside the bed I’m lying in. Her eyes widen.
“Greg, she’s awake.”
My father comes into view. Tears fill both their eyes as they stare down at me. I see every emotion in their faces, from concern, to happiness and fear. I swallow, my throat feeling like it’s been stuffed with a thousand razor blades.
“What happened,” I mumble around the constriction of my throat.
“Don’t worry about that,” Mom soothes. “You’re going to be fine, Darcy. Why didn’t you tell us that things were this bad?”
I don’t tell her that she’s contradicting herself by questioning me about the very thing she’s telling me not to worry about.
“Because I didn’t know that they were,” I mumble. Hurling abuse and food scraps at me as I walked down the halls is one thing. Beating the shit out of me is a whole new game.
“It’s going to be fine,” Dad says. He sounds less than convinced. “You just rest and recover, and we’ll sort all this out.”
“How can you,” I whisper. “No one believes me. You guys don’t even believe me.”
Mom glances at Dad, and neither of them will look at me. I turn away and close my eyes, pretending I’m asleep. I figure if I do it for long enough, they’ll leave me alone.
My plan works and eventually they leave me to sleep. I open my eyes and stare at the ceiling, trying to work out this mess. How did things become so bad? How did I go from thinking I’d found the one, to wishing I’d never met him? The worst thing is, I can’t see a way out—at least not one I’m happy with. The whole town hates me. I can’t go to school. I can’t work. I can’t do anything. All because I fell in love with the wrong person. I haven’t even allowed myself to grieve for the loss of the relationship. Everything happened so fast, and any sadness I felt toward Tyler was quickly replaced with anger. So much anger. I’m hurting as much as Georgia is, but nobody sees me as a victim.
Because I’m just some homewrecking whore who broke up a happy family.
Chapter One
Lennon
“You, my friend, need to get laid.”
I drag my eyes away from Stacy long enough to glare at Rick as he slides down into the seat next to me. He stumbles forward, almost teetering off the chair as he leers at me. I shake my head and groan. He’s so drunk he can barely string his words together, but apparently that doesn’t stop him from wanting to poke his nose into my business.
“Yeah?” I retort. “Is your sister free?”
Max and Chris snigger from across the table, and while Rick struggles to come up with a half decent comeback, I go back to staring at Stacy. I’m just in time to see her tongue-fucking the asshole she’s calling her new boyfriend.
Eight years we were together, and she suddenly decides we’re not right for each other. To say I was gutted would be an understatement. She was my high school sweetheart, and the only girl I had eyes for right through college. I thought we’d end up married with a few kids and a dog, but she had other ideas.
Then I found out she’d been sleeping with her course advisor for the last six months we were together. That’s what hurt the most. If you’re over us, fine, but at least have the decency to break up with me before you start letting some other guy stick his dick in you.
“He has a point,” Max says. I glare at him, and he winces. If I thought anyone would be on my side about this, it would be Max, since he went through a similar experience last year. He nods in Stacy’s direction. “I mean, does it look like she’s still pining over you?” he asks.
No, it doesn’t. “That’s not the point,” I mutter. “I just can’t get over the fact she cheated on me. I can’t forget eight years, just like that.”
“We’re not saying you have to find some chick and marry her,” Rick laughs.
He brushes his blond, curly hair away from his eyes and smiles at a passing group of girls. They giggle and whisper while glancing back at him, and I roll my eyes. He eventually turns his attention back to me when they’re gone from his sight.
“Dude, we’re at a wedding, for fuck’s sake. Just find some random piece of ass, say a few nice words to her, then take her back to your hotel room and bang the life out of her. By morning you’ll be saying Stacy who?”
“Unless you have really bad luck and choose another Stacy,” Chris pipes up.
I can’t help but laugh at the both of them, particularly Rick. Sober Rick says whatever he likes, but drunk Rick is a thousand times more crass.
“I mean,” he continues, slurring his words, “isn’t it a rite of passage for the best man to bone one of the bridesmaids?” he asks. “Like, you’re seriously letting the team down, man. Get out there and rep-re-sent,” he whoops.
“Okay, Casey’s bridesmaids are her married older sister, her ten-year-old niece, and her gay brother,” I growl. “Which one do you propose I try to bone first?”
“Fine, so pick someone else,” he sighs. He shakes his head, frustrated, like I’m completely missing his point. “What would Gary say if he knew you were sitting here pining over her instead of choosing some of the talent he hand-picked especially for you to choose from?”
“Hand-picked?” I laugh and rub my forehead as I gaze around the room.
I glance over at Gary and study him for a moment. A pang of jealousy hits me. He has his arms wrapped around his new wife and he’s smiling as he looks deeply into her eyes. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for them. Casey’s a great chick, even if she is high maintenance, and she treats Gary well. That’s all I can ask for my best friend, but this is what I thought I’d have one day with Stacy.
The four of us have been friends since elementary school. These days, we’re a bit of a mixed bunch, which means sometimes our personalities clash—almost always involving Rick—but at the end of the day we’re still close enough to tell each other anything.
The guys were the first people I called when I found out Stacy was cheating on me. Gary full on almost ended his engagement with the arguments that followed between himself and Casey over whether to invite Stacy to the wedding. But in the end, I said I didn’t care. Stacy and Casey were close friends, and I figured we were adult enough to put aside our differences for one night and celebrate the marriage of our best friends. Of course, that was before she decided to bring Fuckface as her plus one.
I lean back in my chair with my arms crossed and sigh. God, I don’t know anymore. Maybe the guys are right. Maybe I do need to just move on. Pick some chick to sleep with and get Stacy out of my mind, even if it’s just for a few hours. Maybe this is the perfect opportunity for me to move on.
I scan the room, weighing my options. It’s late, nearly ten, so most of the singles have either already hooked up, or are too off their faces to consent to anything. The last thing I need is a lawsuit on my hands, because that would go down great with my new job.
Six years of college to get my Master’s degree and I’ve just landed my first solo teaching gig. It’s only for one semester as I’m filling in for someone who is away on maternity leave, but it’s a start. Oddly enough, I always wanted to teach, ever since I was a child and I’d try and organize all the other kids and boss them around. The passion never really left, so it was a logical choice when it came to choosing my major in college. I chose high school, because younger children more than slightly terrify me. And how hard could it be to teach a class full of teenagers? I’m sure I won’t regret those words.
Teaching was another thing Stacy hated about me. She thought I was selling myself short. She thought I had more potential than just being a teacher. She tried to convince me to go into medicine like nearly everyone in her family, and for a moment there I almost considered it. But if I’m going to be stuck in a job for the next fifty or sixty years, it better damn well be something I enjoy doing.
I glance back at Rick and realize he’s still talking to me. I’d blocked him out after his first sentenc
e. The guys are still sniggering, so whatever he’s saying is either offensive or downright rude, which means I’m probably not missing much.
Rolling my eyes, I get off my chair and stalk across the room in the direction of the bar. I’ve been pretty good tonight. I took my best man duties very seriously and waited until the speeches were over before I even touched a drink.
To be honest, I was honored when Gary asked me to be his best man. It would’ve been hard, having four best friends to choose one to stand above the others. I reveled in the responsibilities of helping them plan their wedding in the wake of the disaster that was Stacy. Just having something to take my mind off my life really helped. I think that was his plan all along.
As I near the bar, a girl catches my attention. She’s gorgeous, with a long mop of dark hair that’s been loosely twisted into a bun, and bright blue eyes that just scream trouble. At a guess, I’d say she’s in her late teens, maybe eighteen or nineteen. I’m twenty-five, and I figure she’s probably too young for me, but I’m drawn to her all the same. What I find most intriguing about her is that she’s scoping the room like she’s about to commit the crime of the century.
I stand back, my arms crossed over my chest, and just watch her, both amused and curious about what she’s planning to do. When she’s confident no one is looking, she lifts herself up onto the bar and reaches over to retrieve a bottle of beer. She quickly tucks it up under the bottom of her skirt and walks toward the door. I snort. God knows what’s holding that beer in place.
I follow her to the exit and walk outside, keeping a safe distance between us. A shiver races through me. Even though it’s the middle of winter, I wasn’t expecting it to be so damn cold. I glance back, wishing I hadn’t forgotten my jacket which is still hanging over the back of my chair.
I look around the parking lot, trying to spot my mystery girl, but she’s nowhere to be seen. I’m about to give up when I notice the light in the wedding car is on. With a bemused smile, I shove my hands in my pockets and walk in that direction. The only people with keys to the Porsche are Gary and I—and only me because I was the one who rented it.
Forbidden: A Student Teacher Romance Page 1
