by Cassia Leo
Chapter Thirty-Two
Claire
Forever Ours
May 27, 2013
It’s hard not to think about Chris on his twenty-first birthday. But I’m going to try my hardest not to. I know wherever he is today, he’s probably having lots of fun. Drinking lots of booze. Screwing lots of girls. He’s living. So that’s what I’m going to do today. I’m going to live my life without thinking about Chris.
Senia is moving in next week and we’re going to have a great summer. My new apartment in Wrightsville Beach is kind of old and some of the doors and cabinets are swollen with humidity, but it smells like fresh paint. And it’s mine.
Dropping out of UNC just may turn out to be the smartest decision I’ve ever made.
Chris dropped out and look at him now.
Nope! Stop thinking about Chris.
I grab a bottle of water out of the tiny refrigerator that came with the apartment, then I head out the door. I walk through the small parking lot and toward my new workplace: Beachcombers Café. But I don’t go inside. I continue down Lumina to the surf shop next door.
A bell jingles as I enter the shop and I’m reminded of the movie It’s A Wonderful Life. “Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.” This reminds me of Christmases with my mom and I realize that I didn’t just come here to forget Chris. I came here to forget my mother.
Today, a new Claire emerges from the ashes of the fire that burned down every good thing in my life.
The walls of the shop are covered in surf apparel: wet suits, rash guards, board shorts, T-shirts. The floor displays are stacked with everything from surf wax and leashes to energy gum and tourist gifts. The surfboards are all standing up like soldiers behind the counter.
“Can I help you?” asks a young blonde girl with dreadlocks.
“I’m looking for Fallon.”
My voice is a bit shaky, but she doesn’t seem to notice or care. Her face lights up when she smiles. She slides off her stool and rounds the counter.
She holds out her hand for me to shake. “I’m Fallon.”
Her voice is kind of husky, but it’s comforting. I take her hand and shake it lightly. Her skin is a bit rough, but that makes me trust her. Fallon works until her fingers are calloused. Living with Jackie and Chris, seeing the long hours Jackie worked at the bakery and the endless hours of practice Chris would endure to get a song right, I’ve come to appreciate a strong work ethic as a very desirable quality.
Must stop thinking about Chris.
“Great!” I reply, letting go of Fallon’s hand. “I was just wondering … Well, someone told me that you give … Um, I was told that you’re a guru or something. I mean, I don’t know what to call it. I just … I want to learn to meditate.”
She continues to smile serenely as if I’m the millionth person who’s walked in here stammering like an idiot and she knows just how to fix it. “I can help you, but are you sure you’re ready?”
“What do you mean?”
She tilts her head as her gaze wanders over my face and to the empty space above my hair. “Do you think you’re ready to let go of all this?” She waves her hands around my ears as if she can see all my negative thoughts floating around my head. “All this stuff you’re carrying, it’s heavy. Real heavy.”
I can smell smoke on her breath and I’m wondering if maybe I made the wrong decision. She’s obviously smoking some good stuff. But maybe that’s what I need. Not to smoke some good stuff. But maybe I need someone who’s willing to do what I’m not willing to do. Maybe she can teach me how to do what I’ve been unable to do on my own. Maybe she can teach me to forget.
“I don’t know if I’m ready,” I reply. “But I know I’m desperate. That counts for something, right?”
She purses her lips, which are a bit too pink for her golden skin. “We’ll see. Meet me at the shore tomorrow at six a.m. I always start with a surf lesson to get to know you before we attempt meditation.”
I search my mind for my work schedule and realize I work at nine a.m. tomorrow. Linda won’t mind if I’m late to work. In fact, I’ll stop by the café right now and see if I can get someone else to cover my shift. This is too important.
I thank Fallon and leave the shop feeling lighter than I’ve felt in months. She’s right. I was carrying some heavy stuff around. But I already feel it being lifted away.
Now I know what people mean when they say today is the first day of the rest of my life. That’s exactly how I feel right now. Today, on Chris’s twenty-first birthday, my life without Chris finally begins.
***
Thank you for reading FOREVER OURS!
Chris and Claire’s love story continues in RELENTLESS, available here.
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About Cassia
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cassia Leo loves her coffee, chocolate, and margaritas with salt. When she’s not writing, she spends way too much time watching old reruns of Friends and Sex and the City. When she’s not watching reruns, she’s usually enjoying the California sunshine or reading – sometimes both.
Forever Ours Playlist
Chapter One
“Cover Your Tracks” by A Boy and His Kite
Chapter Three
“Like Home” by Nicky Romero and Nervo
Chapter Five
“Are We There Yet?” by Ingrid Michaelson
Chapter Six
“Little Wing” by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Chapter Seven
“Nicest Thing” by Kate Nash
Chapter Eight
“Firefly” by Ed Sheeran
Chapter Nine
“Fools” by Lauren Aquilina
Chapter Ten
“Alive” by Krewella
“Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes
Chapter Thirteen
“Take Your Time” (Acoustic) by Fun.
Chapter Fifteen
“My Kind of Love” by Emeli Sandé
Chapter Sixteen
“Lilo” by Lauren Aquilina
Chapter Eighteen
“Your Song” by Ellie Goulding
Chapter Twenty
“The Only Exception” by Paramore
Chapter Twenty-Three
“First Day of My Life” by Bright Eyes
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Waiting Game” by Banks
Chapter Twenty-Five
“Say Goodbye (I Won’t Even)” by Adaline
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Autumn Leaves” by Ed Sheeran
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Say Something” by A Great Big World
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Let Her Go (feat. Hannah Trigwell)” by Boyce Avenue and Hannah Trigwell
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Till I Fall Asleep” by Jayme Dee
Chapter Thirty
“Sweetheart, What Have You Done to Us” by Keaton Henson
Chapter Thirty-One
“I Almost Do” by Taylor Swift
Chapter Thirty-Two
“She’s Long Gone” by The Black Keys
Chapter Thirty-Three
“1000 Sundowns” by Emma Louise
“All I Want” by Kodaline
Listen to the playlist on YouTube.
Listen to the playlist on Spotify.
“Forever Ours”
Sun in your hair, ignites my insides,
Glow of your skin, lights me up right,
Touch of your hand, I’m on my knees here,
Begging please, baby just st
ay near,
Yeah, right here.
‘Cause we don’t have to go nowhere,
This place is ours, it’s everywhere,
Yeah, we can stay,
Stay forever.
Ours.
It’ll stay forever ours.
I don’t mind, if we stumble and fall,
Just the way we get through it all,
No, I don’t care, if you break us down,
‘Cause I’ll get up, dust you off again,
All over again.
‘Cause we don’t have to sleep in darkness,
Blast the lights, it’s ours, there’s no one else,
It’s only me and you,
This is forever.
Ours.
It’ll stay forever ours.
“Sleepyhead”
Feels so wrong to want this
You look so broken there
A flicker in the mist
As tired as the air
Your head upon the pillow
It’s time to bury bones
Outside a whispering willow
The limbs fall like stones
So frightened of the dark
You’re my sleepyhead
Hiding with the stars
Put your dreams to bed
My sleepyhead.
You’re my sleepyhead.
With eyes full of shadow
And a mouth full of glass
Gasps come so hollow
Your lips taste like ash
Don’t waste your hours
Your time don’t come cheap
Don’t fall apart, baby
Just fall asleep
And I don’t know why I can’t kill this doubt
But I promise I’ll put your pain to rest
If it means I never sleep again.
Table of Contents
Red Hot Bikers, Rock Stars, and Bad Boys
Forever Ours by Cassia Leo
Resisting by Chelle Bliss
Randomly Ever After by Julia Kent
Stella & Dane by Deanna Roy
Every Breath You Take by Blair Babylon
Cold Fusion by Olivia Rigal
The Storm and the Darkness by Sarah M. Cradit
Rock Candy by Daizie Draper
Wuther by V. J. Chambers
Three Nights With A Rock Star by Amber Lin and Shari Slade
Revik by JC Andrijeski
Disclaimers and Copyright Notices
RESISTING
by Chelle Bliss
RESISTING
by Chelle Bliss
RESISTING © Chelle Bliss 2014
I belong to no one.
It’s the way I’ve chosen to live. Master of my own destiny, finding my way through this bullshit thing called life.
I learned from a young age how to get my way. Being a woman isn’t a weakness. It’s the opposite. I’ve spent my life being surrounded by four overbearing brothers, but I’ve never been a wallflower. Independent and unwilling to be tied down, I grabbed life by the balls and lived it to the fullest.
I was enjoying myself, minding my own business at my brothers wedding. Then WHAM.
Ever have a man walk into your life and alter your entire universe? My answer would’ve been no before he tempted me into his bed. I’m talking about the big damn bang.
Everything that I thought was right, suddenly spins on its axis and bitch slaps me in the face.
PROLOGUE
I’m a simple woman. I grew up in a house with four brothers and loving parents who have remained married even after more than thirty years together. They showered us with love and affection. I’m the youngest of their children.
I have four very annoying older brothers. They’re overprotective, and even though I’m an adult, that’s never changed. They chased every man I ever liked (fuck the L-word) away as they screamed bloody murder and ran for their lives. Some would call the Gallo men alphas, but not me. I call them pains in my ass.
They helped mold me into the woman I am today. I don’t take shit from anyone. I know how to throw an amazing right hook, just the right angle to knee a guy in the balls so he’ll never have children, and how to keep my mouth shut.
A couple years ago, we opened a tattoo shop together. We simply named it Inked. Our family has money, but we were raised to not sit on our asses like spoiled brats. We get up each day and go to work. It’s our goal to stand on our own two feet. So far, we’ve been successful. Even though we fight like cats and dogs, we love each other fiercely and are very careful whom we let into our little Gallo Family Club.
Thomas, my eldest brother and an undercover DEA agent, is the only one who doesn’t work in the shop. He’s a silent partner, and we pray that, one day, he’ll get sick of his undercover work and settle down. He’s been working inside the Sun Devils MC for some time. Moving up the ranks, he’s made his mark and is on the verge of bringing the entire club to its knees.
Joe is one badass motherfucker. He’s kinda my favorite, but I’ll never tell him that. Shit, I’m not stupid. He’s an amazing artist and tattooist, and will be an amazing father. A while back, he rescued a little hot blond named Suzy. She’s sweet as pie and used to be innocent. His badass biker ways ruined her, but naturally, I rubbed off on her, too. Some of his friends call him City because he was born in Chicago. The name fits him, but he’ll always still be my Joey.
Mike is our shop’s piercer, and he’s built like a brick shithouse. He trained for years to be an MMA fighter. He was moving up the ranks and making a name for himself. That was until he literally knocked the woman of his dreams on her ass. He traded in his fighting days to help the love of his life, Mia, with her medical clinic. I’d almost say that he lost his balls somewhere along the way, but that would just be my jaded, fucked-up perception of love talking.
Anthony. What can I say about him? He’s my partner in crime most of the time. He and I are the single ones out of the group. Thomas doesn’t count, because we never know anything about his life. Anthony wants to be a rock god. He wants ladies falling at his feet, professing their love, and freely offering their pussies to him with no strings attached. It makes me laugh, because honestly, he’s already arrived if those are his criteria. He’s stunning. One day, someone is going to steal him from me and I’ll end up being a lonely ol’ biddy.
Then there’s me—youngest child who still uses the word daddy. I’m not talking about some sick fuckin’ fetish shit either. I melt into a puddle of goo when my father’s around. I’ve always been a daddy’s girl. I don’t think that’ll ever change.
I live by no one’s rules—well, maybe my daddy’s at times—and I try to cram as much fun as I possibly can in my one shot at this life. I don’t make apologies for my behavior. I shoot straight and tell it like it is. I never want to be tied down. Fuck convention. I don’t need a husband to complete me a la Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire.
Men are only good for a few things. One—they’re handy when you have a flat tire or some other thing that requires heavy lifting. Two—their cocks are beautiful. Three—did I mention cock? Four—fucking. Wait… that’s still cock-related.
I take it back. They’re only good for two things in life: lifting heavy shit and fucking. Walks of shame are for pansy asses. I proudly leave them hanging, walking out the door, and I make no apologies for it. I’m not looking for a prince charming or knight in shining armor. I want to be fucked and then left the hell alone.
That is where my life was headed. I was blissfully happy and unencumbered. Life was grand—one big fucking party and I was the guest of honor.
Ever have a man walk into your life and alter your entire universe?
I’m not talking about the small shit. I’m talking about the “big fuckin’ bang.” You’re minding your own business, enjoying yourself, and then WHAM. Everything you think is right suddenly spins on its axis and bitch-slaps you in the face.
The party came to a screeching halt the night of my brother’s wedding.
He chang
ed everything. He fucked it all up.
World altered. Party over.
James Caldo became something bigger.
I couldn’t resist him.
CHAPTER ONE
“Everyone’s ass better be at my house tomorrow at two,” Joe said as he finished cleaning his station.
“Yeah, yeah.” Anthony kicked back and sipped a beer.
