by Jenn Leigh
A Mended Heart
Live and Love Series
By Jenn Leigh
Copyright © 2015 Jenn Leigh
All rights reserved
First published 2015 by Jenn Leigh
The right of Jenn Leigh to be identified as the Author of the work has been asserted to her in accordance with the Copyright Act of Canada 1921, revised 1988 and 1997.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, establishments, organizations, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously to give a sense of authenticity. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales, is entirely coincidental.
ISBN 978-0-9947373-1-1
Cover design: Wicked By Design
Editing: C&D Editing
Dedication
To all my family and friends who support me
unconditionally
Prologue
Twelve Years ago
Mark
“Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked, holding her face in my hands. “I don’t want to push you, because God knows I can wait. I love you, and I want to make sure you’re okay with this.”
Nilka closed her eyes and leaned into my touch. She was Egyptian, her skin dark compared to mine. It was like light mocha under my hands, very smooth and soft, making me warm and excited.
“I’m okay with this,” she answered. “I want this more than anything, Mark, and I love you, too.”
We had been each other’s high school sweethearts for two years and had both waited to be in love before we took the leap into sex. We had talked about it, making the decision to be each other’s first.
“Okay,” I said, kissing her slowly.
We had done lots of other things, but never actual sex. I was horribly nervous because I knew I was going to hurt her. I hated to see her hurt, but after the pain is pleasure, and I couldn’t wait to get to that part with her. It was very special to share that with someone you loved and trusted.
I knew I was young at seventeen, but Nilka was my life, and I felt, in the deepest part of my heart, that she was my one and only.
We started off slow with lots of kissing and touching, leisurely undressing each other. My palms were sweaty, and my heart was racing as we slowly made our way to my bed, never stopping the kissing and touching as I laid her down and covered her body with mine.
I brought my face up and looked into her beautiful, brown eyes, wanting her to see the love and admiration I had for her. When she smiled softly, letting me know she was ready, I slowly slid into her, taking each gasp she made into my mouth as I kissed her gently. My hands were around her face, and my thumb wiped away any tears that fell. I whispered, “Sorry,” as I continued to push inside.
Once I was fully in, I stopped moving to allow her to get comfortable. As soon as her breathing became less pained, I slowly moved again. This time, she responded with less of a gasp and more of a moan. I took that as a good sign and kept moving slowly, continuing to kiss and touch her everywhere. I wanted to make sure this was as special for her as it was for me. I couldn’t imagine anything more loving than this moment.
We started to pick up the pace, our movements becoming more frantic as we went along, both trying to reach the point of no return. I could feel her clenching around me, so I knew she was close, and I was right there with her. After a few more thrusts, we were both moaning in pleasure as we poured our love into each other.
“Are you okay?” I asked once I could breathe normally again. I hadn’t pulled out because I was afraid to hurt her more.
“I’m okay. It hurt more than I thought it would, but then it started to feel good. It’ll get better each time, and I can’t wait to do it again.” She winked at me.
I smiled back, slowly pulling out of her. I told her to stay put while I went to dispose of the condom and get a towel to help clean her off.
“I went on the pill yesterday, so maybe next time we won’t have to use a condom,” she offered with a shy smile.
I only smiled at her and kissed her soundly as I cuddled up with her in bed. We stayed mostly silent except for our breathing, and it was the most relaxing time I’d had in a while.
Over the next few weeks, we became insatiable, finding ourselves stealing moments anywhere we could find them until one day it all stopped.
Chapter 1
Present Day
Mark
“When are we supposed to go and pick up the tuxes again?” Daniel asked.
“Tomorrow, I think. I’m sure Natalie will let us know,” I offered with a shrug.
Josh and Nat’s wedding was only a few days away, and Daniel and I had gotten stuck with some duties: tuxes and liquor. At least those were manly duties. I was worried about flowers and shit, but thank God, Nat took pity on us and gave us something we actually knew about.
“The joint bachelor and bachelorette party are coming up this week,” Daniel said as a reminder.
I nodded in acknowledgement, feeling a little twang in my chest from the longing for this to be Nilka’s and my day.
To this day, I wasn’t sure what exactly had happened twelve years ago, and things hadn’t been the same since. I knew she was the one for me, but so much had changed over the last twelve years, and the shitty part was I still saw her almost every day.
We had remained friends, but there had always been tension in the air that neither of us were willing to acknowledge. Nilka was the only one who knew what had happened between us, but she had remained quiet all this time. I had tried numerous times to talk to her, yet she always shut me down. I would find out one day, just maybe not today. I didn’t want to wait around forever, though, and I had waited long enough.
Sure, I’d had a few relationships since then, but I couldn’t seem to find the same connection I’d had with Nilka. That was how I knew we were meant to be. I simply needed to convince her of that.
“Want to stop for a coffee?” asked Daniel.
“Might as well. The off-sale doesn’t open for another hour, and there’s no sense wasting gas by driving around.”
We stopped at Martie’s Delicatessen, which was the only bakery in town, and she had a mean cup of coffee, too.
As we entered, a young girl ran smack into my chest, so I grabbed her shoulders to keep her from falling over.
Her eyes went wide, then narrowed. “Watch it, mister,” she sneered.
“Whoa, little lady, I believe you ran into me,” I replied, eying up her clothes.
She looked like a homeless girl. Her clothes were in tatters, although that might be the style these days. But she did look unkempt.
I held onto her shoulders to make sure she was all right, and when she tried to shrug me off, I complied because I was sure she could do some significant damage to the family jewels. I lifted my hands and stepped back, but both Daniel and I were blocking her way out.
I looked at her quizzically. “Hey, don’t I know you?”
She looked at me warily.
“Yeah, I think I’ve seen you around town. Do you hang out at the high school in the evenings?”
She looked at me blankly.
“I’m pretty sure you’ve been there. My friend Shane runs the youth program there, and I play basketball with him sometimes. I’ve seen you hanging out on the bleachers, watching us play.”
Realization dawned on her face, but she scowled at the same time, almost
like she was pissed she had been found out.
She looked around the café and then looked back at me with her arms crossed. “Yeah, so?”
I smirked at her. She was a bit of a spitfire; that was for sure.
“Nothing. I just thought I’d seen you around, and you look like you need a doughnut. Can I get you one as an apology for almost knocking you over?” I offered her gently.
She looked as though she was debating whether or not I was going to kidnap her while she shifted from one foot to the other, chewing on her thumbnail. She wouldn’t look us in the eye, but the wheels were turning. What had happened to this girl?
I heard a loud growl come from the direction of her stomach. Daniel and I looked at each other, and he nodded in approval.
“We aren’t going to do you any harm. We’re locals here. Nothing’s going to happen. I just thought you’d want a doughnut. If not, you are free to go back to whatever it is you were heading off to do. No obligation here,” I offered with my hands in front of me.
She finally looked at me with the brightest blue eyes I had ever seen, which were contrasted by her dark, caramel-colored hair. She must be no older than ten or eleven. She was overly skinny, but it was nothing a few good home cooked meals wouldn’t fix.
She looked at the counter where all the baked goods were. I could tell she wanted something, but I was patient while I waited for her to make the decision.
“I don’t have any money,” she said quietly with her head down.
Daniel looked at me then at her. “No worries, darlin’. We’ve got it covered. Just tell us whatever your little heart desires, and we’ll get you one,” Daniel said, putting on the full southern charm.
She merely stared him down, and I smirked in her direction. Yep, there was that spitfire personality again.
“Can I have the chocolate one with sprinkles?” she asked, looking in the direction of the counter.
“One chocolate sprinkled doughnut, coming right up. Why don’t you and Mark go and sit at a table, and I’ll bring it for you,” Daniel suggested.
I smiled at her brightly, hoping she’d take the hint to sit with us. We needed to figure out ’what was going on with this girl. I would hate to send her on her merry way and into whatever trouble she was heading for. I would never have forgiven myself if I saw her face plastered on the six o’clock news as the latest runaway murder victim.
Daniel went and grabbed the food as I sat with Little Miss Runaway. We stared at each other curiously; me wondering what to do about this situation, and her probably thinking I was some sort of kidnapper. Her hunger outweighed her flight or fight reflex, though. Underneath that rough looking exterior, she was just a scared, little girl, and I wanted to fix that for her, even if it was only over a doughnut.
“So,” I started, “where are you from?”
She twiddled with her hands before answering, “Around, I guess.” She looked at the exit.
“Look, darlin’, I’m not going to do anything to you or hurt you in any way. I simply want to make sure you are okay and that you aren’t going to get hurt on your own. Shit, you don’t look a day over ten, and not that it’s my business, but you aren’t looking too healthy. My brother and I are good guys here, offering a pretty, little lady a doughnut and some company. We can eat in silence if you want, but I’d much rather hear about you.” I paused so she could soak that in. “Here’s what we can do: I’ll tell you something about me, and you can tell me something about you. Sound fair?”
She looked at me with her big, blue eyes, weighing her options. “I don’t have to tell you bad stuff, right?” She looked worried.
I swallowed slightly. Bad stuff? What the fuck?
“Whatever you’d like, darlin’. I’ll start. I’m Mark, and that’s my brother Daniel standing in line for the doughnuts. Your turn.” I offered a polite smile.
She took a deep breath, looked around again, and finally said, “Cassie.”
I turned to Daniel as he came and sat down with us and said, “Daniel, meet Cassie.”
Daniel offered his hand to her. “Hiya, Cassie.”
She shrank back in her chair.
We shot each other a look, but we quickly recovered. Then Daniel offered a smile at Cassie, indicating no harm, no foul.
He placed the doughnut on a napkin and slid it toward her, moving his hands away quickly once it was in front of her, acknowledging her caution.
She looked at the doughnut and then at us. With a shy smile, she moved so quickly we both jumped slightly as she inhaled the doughnut faster than any man I knew.
Daniel and I shared a look again before he got up to go grab another. I knew it wasn’t healthy, but it seemed like this girl hadn’t eaten in quite some time, like this might have been the only meal she’d had in a while.
“So, Cassie, what brings you to Edgewood?” I asked, studying her face as she licked the icing off her fingers.
She looked up at me cautiously, asking, “Are you a cop?”
I laughed. “Uh, no. Just curious, that’s all.”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m a runaway, but I ran for a reason, not that I want to talk about that with you. I am looking for someone, though,” she said.
“Oh, are they here in Edgewood?” I asked, intrigued as to why she would be in this small town.
“I was told they were here, but I have no idea, honestly.”
Daniel came back in the middle of our conversation, picking up the gist quickly. He handed Cassie the second doughnut.
“Maybe we can help point you in the right direction. Do you have any names or anything to go on?” Daniel asked.
She looked around again. “No, I don’t have anything, just the name of this town. I was told they lived here.”
“Who?” I asked.
“My parents,” she said quietly.
Daniel and I looked around then back at her. I thought we were both trying to figure out if anyone we knew had an illegitimate child. She was a pretty thing under all that grime.
We let her have some silence as she finished eating her cinnamon bun, which Daniel bought after the doughnuts. That girl could sure pack that stuff in. Hopefully, she didn’t get sick from all the sugar.
I pulled out my phone and discreetly fired off a text to Daniel.
What do you want to do?
It was a few seconds before his text came back
Well, we can’t leave her like this; she’s so young and needs help.
After reading his text, I quickly formulated a plan. Now, we just had to get the girl to go along with it.
“Cassie, I think Daniel and I can help you out, but what I’m going to offer you might sound a bit odd. I would like for you to come to our house to get cleaned up. Then I would like to go to the local sheriff’s office to let them know we’ve found you. Not to return you to where you were, but to offer us having temporary custody until we can locate your folks. Is this something you’d like to do? I want you to know that this is completely up to you. If you want to go on your merry way, I won’t stop you, but just know that you have another option, okay?” I hoped she’d agree.
While she looked at us warily with huge eyes, I wondered what had happened to her at such a young age. It made my blood boil just thinking about the possibilities.
“Um … I’ll think about it,” She said slowly as she got up from the table before running out the door.
Daniel and I shared a look.
“That went well,” Daniel stated, taking a sip of his coffee.
I merely kept my eyes on the door as I watched Cassie run down the block.
***
Two days later, I was with Shane at youth night, having a pickup game of basketball with some of the teenage boys. I was taking a water break when I noticed Cassie out of the corner of my eye, sitting in her usual spot on the bleachers.
I really wanted to help this girl, but I didn’t know how to get her to trust me. I totally understood where she was coming from, though.
I decide
d to try to get to know her better.
“Hi, Cassie.” I waved over to her.
She looked taken aback, flinching at the unwanted attention, and I chuckled at her response, approaching her, anyway.
“I thought that was you,” I commented as I took a seat beside her.
When she scooted farther down the bench from me, I took the hint.
“How are you today?” I asked, genuinely interested in what she was going to say.
She stared at me blankly.
I smiled. “Generally, this is how people make small talk. You know, talk about sports, the weather, those kinds of things. Now it’s your turn.”
She huffed and looked at me like I had two heads, and I laughed and was sure I saw her lips twitch.
“Look, Cassie, I want to help you. I really do. I am not some pervert kidnapper who’s interested in little girls. In fact, I’ve been pining away for the same girl since I was your age. I need to find a way to get her back in my life, but for now, I’d like to be able to help you.”
She was weighing her options—run or stay—as her leg bounced up and down. I simply kept my gaze on her in a friendly manner, reassuring her nothing bad was going to happen.
“If you’d like, we can walk down to the station first where you can verify with the sheriff that I’m a good guy and that my family is full of good people.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “As long as you don’t touch me in any way, I would like to see the sheriff, too, just to be sure.”
Once I nodded at her request, we got up and headed to the door.
I pointed her in the right direction of my truck right outside, and as we got to it, I opened the door for her to climb in. I sent Daniel a quick text to meet us at the sheriff’s office before we drove off toward the station.
As we reached our destination, Cassie jumped out of the truck before I had a chance to open the door for her. She raced to the door and ran in ahead of me.
Daniel walked over from his parked car and said, “This’ll be interesting. You sure you want to take this on so close to the wedding?”
