Tainted Love
Page 30
This village has been my saviour. They don’t know who I used to be, they won’t judge me. They only know who I am now. A writer who has finally found her perfect retreat. What I did – the mistakes, the regrets, they’re staying where they belong. In the past. I may use them, one day, to create a new story. I may base characters on the people I once knew. Loved. Betrayed. Hurt. I might do that, one day. But, for now, I’m rebuilding my life. Rebuilding my relationship with Savvi. She’s at university now, in Manchester, but she comes to visit whenever she can. She misses Joss so much, I can tell, and that hurts, of course it does. She loves Joss maybe more than she loves me, I don’t know. Maybe I’m just being paranoid, but when Joss moved back to Sweden after Alex’s funeral Savvi cried for two days. But her and Danny, they’re growing closer. He applied to the same university as Savvi, they wanted to be together, after everything that happened, and nobody stood in their way. They need each other. We all need somebody. But we should never take what doesn’t belong to us. We should never, ever do that…
141
Connor
“Hey. Do you want one of these?”
She swings around and smiles at me as I wave a bottle of whiskey in the air.
“I’d love one. Thank you.”
I go into the kitchen of her neat little cabin, find two glasses on the counter and pour out a couple of measures. She takes a small sip and closes her eyes for a second or two. And when she opens them she looks at me, and she smiles again.
“You didn’t have to come all the way over here. But I’m glad you did.”
“I’m glad I came.”
“But you need to get back to Bobby.”
“Bobby’s fine, Joss. He’s with his grandparents, who are loving Gothenburg, by the way.”
She laughs quietly and briefly drops her gaze. “You understand, don’t you?” She lifts her head and her eyes meet mine. “Why I had to leave Millers Bridge? Why I had to come back home?”
“I understand. And you know why I had to follow you.”
The day she left Millers Bridge I knew it was going to be hard, not having her around anymore. And things were difficult, at first, working with Sam in the job that used to be hers. But we’re managing. We’re building a working relationship but I’m not finding it easy to forget what he did to her. And I need to deal with that, it’s just going to take time. Everything is going to take time.
Coming here, to Sweden; seeing her, being the friend she needs, it’s been good for me. Hopefully it’s been good for her, too. Seeing her smile again, even if that smile doesn’t always reach her eyes, it fills me with hope. That one day we’ll be together? Who knows. That isn’t something either of us are thinking about right now.
She smiles again, takes another sip of whiskey; she leans in to kiss my cheek and I feel my heart race slightly. I can’t kill the hope, but she’s just lost her best friend. A man I’m still certain was more to her than just a friend, I think their relationship was changing. I think they were in love. And after what Sam did to her, the fact she’d found true love with a man who’d been in her life since the day she was born, only to have him ripped away from her in such a tragic and unexpected way, just thinking about that tears me in two. Christ knows what it did to her. What it’s still doing, to her. So, I may still have feelings for this woman, but she’s grieving. She needs space and time and a friend she can trust. I want to be that person. I want to be that friend.
I want to be the man she turns to now.
I love Joss Engström.
Maybe one day she’ll love me back.
Maybe.
One day…
142
Joss
It’s a beautiful day in Haga, the Gothenburg suburb that houses the school I start work in today. Last night I said goodbye to Connor, and it surprised me, how empty I felt after he left. It was so good of him, to come here. To spend time with me. To care about me, I needed him. I did, I needed him. I needed someone I can trust. Someone who can make me believe that there are people out there who won’t lie to me. Won’t hurt me.
It’s a beautiful day. The sky is blue and there’s barely a cloud in the sky. The sun makes me feel a little lighter. A little brighter. Moving into my new home here in Haga felt like the first tentative step towards a future I’ve been reluctant to embrace, without Alex. But I know I have to. Starting work at this school, it feels like another step. One day at a time, that’s how I’m dealing with everything. And keeping the cabin on Hönö Klåva, I need to do that. I need to be able to go there and remember Alex. Be with Alex. But I also know that he wouldn’t want me to live in the past for the rest of my life. He’d want me to move on, I just can’t think about moving too far just yet. But I will, in time.
Do I think about Sam? About Summer? No. None of that matters anymore. They don’t matter anymore. I don’t hate them, they’re just a part of my past now, along with everything that happened. The only people I care about now are Danny and Savvi. And Connor?
Connor Sloane came all the way to Sweden, and for the first time since Alex’s death, he made me want to smile.
Connor Sloane.
He made me want to smile…
The End.
About the Author
Michelle Betham is an ex-media technician turned author of sexy, edgy, gritty romance, usually involving rock stars, sports stars, hot businessmen, and bikers. But not usually all in the same book. Yet. She is both self-published and published through HarperImpulse, a division of HarperCollins Publishers.
Addicted to binge-watching TV shows she struggles to think of a life before Netflix or Amazon Prime, loves rock music, tattoos – of which she has many – spicy food, superheroes (she’s a slightly obsessed Avengers fan-girl who harbors a particularly unhealthy obsession with Captain America), and Keanu Reeves – a crush that’s lasted well over twenty years, and one she blames entirely on ‘Point Break’. The original. She refuses to acknowledge any remake exists.
Her dream is to ride a Harley, visit Las Vegas, and be able to eat any amount of chocolate without putting on weight.
She lives in County Durham, north-east England, with her husband and West Highland Terrier, where she can be found most days drinking tea and making up stories.
Michelle also writes psychological dramas and thrillers under the name ML Roberts that focus on the darker side of family life, love and friendship. ‘The Wife’ is ML Roberts’ debut thriller, published by HarperImpulse.
Also by Michelle Betham
Titles published through HarperImpulse (A division of HarperCollins Publishers)
Striker – The Striker Trilogy Book #1
Extra Time – The Striker Trilogy Book #2
Final Score – The Striker Trilogy Book #3
The First Christmas Without You
Shirley Valentine Goes to Vegas
Writing as ML Roberts for HarperImpulse
To Have and to Hold (The Wife – Part One)
For Better, For Worse (The Wife – Part Two)
In Sickness and in Health (The Wife – Part Three) – Coming January 5th 2018
Till Death Do Us Part (The Wife – Part Four) Coming March 2nd 2018
The Wife – Complete ebook and paperback (Coming March 2nd 2018)
Self-Published titles
No Matter What (All that Glitters… Book #1)
Illusions of Love (All that Glitters… Book #2)
Too Much Trouble In Paradise
Bon Voyage
See You At The Show (A rock star romance)
Unbreakable
Revolution – The Lone Riders M/C Series Book #1
Retribution – The Lone Riders M/C Series Book #2
Resurrection – The Lone Riders M/C Series Book #3
Allure – The Forbidden Series Book #1
Obsession – The Forbidden Series Book #2
Surrender – The Forbidden Series Book #3
Broken – Soldiers of Darkness M/C Series Book #1
Betrayed – Soldi
ers of Darkness M/C Series Book #2
Bound – Soldiers of Darkness M/C Book #3
Lawfully His – The Dirty Business Series #1
Willfully Hers – The Dirty Business Series #2
Breathe Into Me (A Hollywood Romance)
Protection (A Death Knights MC Novel)
Contact Michelle
Keep up-to-date with what Michelle’s up to over on her blog: bit.ly/1Gz1d5w
Sign up to her mailing list for all the latest news on new releases,
special offers, giveaways, etc. http://bit.ly/1j2Vi2K
Or check out her website: michellebetham.co.uk
You can also keep up-to-date with all the news on her books over on her Facebook author page - on.fb.me/1M5w76G or connect with her on on.fb.me/1wunXmC
Follow her on Twitter at bit.ly/185oeRk @michellebetham
Find her on Instagram - michellebethamauthor
And over on Pinterest at https://uk.pinterest.com/writerchelle/
And all of Michelle’s books can be found over on Amazon - amzn.to/1DcmEqt
You can also find all books written by Michelle Betham as ML Roberts here - http://bit.ly/TheWifeBookSeries
And find out more about Michelle’s alter ego ML Roberts by following her on Twitter - https://twitter.com/AuthorMLRoberts @AuthorMLRoberts
Or ‘liking’ her Facebook Author Page - www.facebook.com/MLRobertsAuthor/