Trusting Hearts (The Heart Series)

by S. Donahue

  “No, we have security. Plus, Brad’s here.”

  “Okay. Call me if you need me. I will be there in a heartbeat. I’m only a block away.”

  “I know you will. I’ll be okay.”

  “I love you, Rach.”

  “I love you too. I gotta go. He’s here. Genene’s buzzing me.”

  “Vinnie’s here,” Genene whispered into the intercom.

  “Send him in,” Rachel said as she disconnected the line.

  Rachel was kind of shocked that Vinnie stormed through the door and slammed it. He didn’t even care that this was a place of business. He had no damn respect for anything.

  “What do you want and why are you slamming my door?”

  “You fucking bitch! Everyone in South Philly is saying that my wife is sleeping with my best friend. Then your little boy toy goes and has the court date changed so he can fuck you with a peace of mind,” Vinnie screamed.

  “If you see it that way,”” Rachel responded calmly.

  “So you’re not denying it.”

  “All I’m saying is that we are over and you need to accept it. I asked him to try and move the court date so I can be rid of you faster.”

  “Are you dating Carson?”

  “Why does it matter?”

  “I want to know.”

  “Yes. I am with Carson. I love him.”

  “I’m going to fucking kill him.”

  “You are not. You’re going to divorce me and leave me alone.”

  “How could you throw away everything we had?”

  “Really? You cheated, in case you forgot. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.”

  “Are you sleeping with him?”

  Rachel hesitated. She didn’t want to upset Vinnie, but she also needed to get the truth out in the open.

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but yes. Last night was the first time.”

  “You lying bitch. I saw you with him.”

  “What?! When?!”

  “At the restaurant, and when he picked you up for your date a while back.”

  “Have you been following me?”

  “Yeah... It was me.”

  “Vin, who is the blonde girl that’s following me? I know that you know who it is. You are definitely working with them. That story about Clara is made up. I called her.”

  “Well, half of it is made up. I have been following you.”

  “Who’s the fucking blonde?!”

  “I can’t tell you. I promised I would never reveal her.”

  “Really? Do you care about anyone?”

  “I care about you.”

  “Save the fucking bullshit for your whores and tell me the truth for once in your life!!”

  “Fine! It’s Maria. I’ve been working with her to find out what’s going on between you and Carson. We both know you have loved each other forever.”

  “No, Vin. I loved you. You hurt me. Wait!! Are you sleeping with Maria?!”

  Vinnie didn’t say anything. He just stared at Rachel with a blank expression.

  “I’ll take your fucking silence as a yes. That whore. She sat in my house comforting me and she was fucking my husband. How long has this been going on?!”

  “Three years.”

  “What?! You fucking piece of shit! Get out of my office and never look in my face again,” Rachel yelled as she threw the pen holder across the room.

  “No. I’m not leaving. We are going to talk about this.”

  “I said yes. I heard enough.”

  Vinnie made his way toward her desk. He tried to grab her to tell her he loved her, but Rachel pushed him away. Vinnie exerted himself on her and he started to push her harder. “You love me, not Carson! We can work through this!”

  “Never. I’ll never fucking get back with you! I wouldn’t care of you dropped dead right now!” Rachel screamed as tears ran down her face.

  Vinnie threw Rachel down on the desk aggressively. He was not taking no for an answer.

  “Rach, you fucking love me. You’re my wife. I only want you. Just tell me you love me.”

  “I hate you! Get the fuck off of me, asshole.”

  “No,” Vinnie said as he tried to tear her shirt off of her. “I want to fuck you right here. We are going to work this out. You are mine.”

  Rachel started to cry harder. She was so distraught, she couldn’t fight back. Vinnie was too powerful. He was winning. He was refusing to give up.

  “No, Vin. Stop!”

  “Never! I’m not leaving without you.”

  Just then, the door busted open.

  “Take your fucking hands off of my woman, now!” Carson yelled as he ran over to the desk and pulled Vinnie off of Rachel. Carson punched Vinnie in the stomach. “That was for twenty five years ago.” He punched him again and threw him on the floor. “And that was for today. Don’t you ever lay a fucking hand on her!”

  Vinnie laid on the ground holding his stomach.

  “Now, get up like the man that you think you are and get the fuck out of this office or security will be up here to throw you out, and stay the hell away from her!”

  “This is not over!” Vinnie yelled.

  “You’re right. See you in court asshole. Then she will be all mine and rid of you forever,” Carson said.

  “She’ll never be rid of me. We have kids together,” Vinnie spat back.

  “Well, she’ll be with me and I will protect her from you.”

  “Please, you were a pussy then and you’re a pussy now,” Vinnie said laughing evilly.

  “Try me. I’ll show you who the real pussy is! Maybe I let her go too easily back then but I’m never letting her go ever again. By the way, you just got your ass handed to you.”

  “You wish,” Vinnie laughed.

  “Oh, Carson. I love you,” Rachel said as she kissed her hero.

  “You two are pathetic,” Vinnie said. “You know what I’d kick your ass, but that skank isn’t worth it.”

  “Fuck you, dick!” screamed Rachel with anger written all over her face, but suddenly her anger morphed into something else. “I have a question,” Rachel asked. “Why did you say Clara was pregnant if she isn’t?

  “Because Maria is,” Vinnie said dropping the bomb. “She’s three months.”

  “Oh my God,” Rachel stood there in shock.

  “What?!” Carson demanded to know.

  “What about the boyfriend at the party yesterday?”

  “She paid him to go with her so no one would suspect anything.”

  “You’re both lowlifes,” Rachel yelled at Vinnie. “Just leave, Vin. I never want to see you again. We’ll have to figure something out with the kids but as for me I’m through.”

  “What did I miss? What’s going on?” Carson asked, confused.

  “This dog here has been sleeping with your ex for the past three years and he got her pregnant,” Rachel informed.

  “What? Do you like my fucking sloppy seconds or is it that you just want what I have?” Carson asked Vinnie. “You’re a disgrace.”

  A security guard barged through the door.

  “Is everything okay, Mrs. Rossini?”

  “Yeah. Get this trash out of my office and never let him back in the building.”

  Brad was standing in the doorway. He addressed Vinnie. “Don’t ever come into my building ever again, you piece of shit. I didn’t like you before and I sure as hell don’t like you now.”

  Brad walked up to Carson and shook his hand.

  “Thanks for alerting me that he was here. What happened?”

  “Come on, I’ll tell you all about it. You’re never going to believe this. We can call Gia on speakerphone,” Rachel informed.

  Epilogue

  The following week came quickly. The court date for the divorce was finally here. Rachel had been dreaming about this day for the past year. As much as she wanted this divorce, it was bittersweet. She had a lot of great happy memories with Vinnie, but there were also very dark, sad memories that she wante
d to forget. She knew her sons would never want or need for anything. She couldn’t let them be her reason for staying with him. She needed to move forward and accept that she can’t change people. Vinnie probably cheated on her their entire marriage and more than likely would have never stopped. The news about Vinnie and Maria was a blow but she had a very supportive family who stood by her. She also had a wonderful, loving man who came back into her life and swept her off her feet.

  Rachel drove to the shore this past weekend and had a talk with her sons. They are at an age where they understand what people were going through. No kid wants to see their parents divorced, but they also don’t want to see them unhappy either. They told Rachel that they loved her and would stand by her no matter what she decided. They also said that they were happy that she was with Carson. Rachel and Carson planned on visiting them the following weekend so they could all spend time together. She was going to let Vinnie tell them about him and Maria.

  Rachel sat nervously next to Carson at the table. Vinnie sat with his lawyer opposite them with Maria by his side. She wasn’t going to lie; it did hurt to see them together. She was now able to tell that Maria was pregnant; her belly was beginning to round. She couldn’t tell before because Maria is so skinny. Rachel refused to look over at them because they made her completely ill, but Gia kept glaring at Maria from the bench. They had a huge argument when everything went down the previous week. Gia stated that Maria was lucky that she was pregnant because she was going to fuck her up. Carson did his thing in court and Rachel waited for the judge to say the words out loud.

  “I hereby grant the divorce between both parties. Mrs. Rossini will be awarded custody of Jason and Jeffrey Rossini. Mr. Rossini will be awarded visitation rights every other weekend and on Wednesday nights. Mr. Rossini will pay child support for both children until the age of eighteen. Mrs. Rossini’s name will be changed back to her original maiden name as requested in the divorce litigation. Since both parties names are on the house, Mrs. Rossini will have to either buy Mr. Rossini out of his half of the house or the house would need to be sold and the capital gains would need to be split,” the judge addressed to both Vinnie and Rachel. The judge then turned to Vinnie and said, “A word of the wise, I see that you have another woman pregnant. Don’t make the same mistake twice. You already ruined one marriage.” She then turned to Rachel and said,” Mrs. Rossini, I am sorry for all you have gone through. Hopefully, you can find happiness again,” she said winking at Carson.

  “Court is now adjourned,” the judge said, banging the gavel hard on her desk.

  Carson stood up and turned to Rachel. He moved the microphone so everyone could hear him.

  Vinnie and Maria stormed out of the courtroom.

  “Rachel, I have loved you from the day you walked into my Kindergarten class and I will love you until the day I die and beyond. I want to grow old with you. I want to love you and treat you the way you deserve to be treated. Will you marry me, Sweetie?”

  Tears flooded Rachel’s eyes. She was so happy. “Yes! I will marry you! You have made me so complete.”

  Carson put a two carat diamond ring on her finger, kissed her passionately, and lifted her in the air. Brad, Gia, Rachel’s parents, Jeff and Jay and Carson’s parents came running over to congratulate them. Carson had informed every one of the plan prior to the court date. Everyone was so happy. They all decided to go to lunch to celebrate.

  “You have made me the happiest woman alive but you know this mess isn’t over by far. You all work together. It could get ugly,” Rachel reminded Carson.

  “We will get through it, as long as we have each other.”

  Coming Soon!

  Judging Hearts

  Carson’s Story

  “If these walls could talk, they’d nominate us for the Jerry Springer Show.” – Gia Roberts

  Carson Licciano has never been happier. He is engaged to the love of his life, Rachel Coppi and they are planning a Christmas wedding. Both Rachel and Carson couldn’t be more thrilled and they are overcome by their pre-wedding bliss. But when Carson’s ex-fiance Maria drops a bombshell on Carson, the news could jeopardize all of their best laid plans. What could Maria possibly have to say that could derail a wedding? Will Carson’s happily ever after be derailed once again?

  Rachel Coppi is thrilled at the prospect of marrying her high school sweet heart, Carson Licciano. But when his ex-fiance Maria, who also happens to work with Carson, comes forward with some crazy news, it threatens to throw a wrench in Rachel and Carson’s plans. Rachel doesn’t know how to cope with the news and throws herself into her work, allowing her job to distract her from the trouble being stirred up by Maria. Rachel is assisting the undeniably sexy Dr. Colin Hill on a project at work, and as the long hours begin to pile up, Carson starts to wonder if Rachel’s heart and eyes have begun to wander. And with Maria and Carson working in the same office, can Rachel keep her jealousy at bay? Will Rachel and Carson make it down the aisle to have the wedding of their dreams? Or will their fairytale come crashing down in front of them?

  Maria Porter has been having an affair with Rachel’s ex-husband, Vinnie Rossini, for the past three years. She cheated on Carson with Vinnie while he was still married to Rachel. Now as a result, she is pregnant with her first child. Vinnie and Maria move in together, but life with Vinnie is not what she expected it to be. Unhappy, confused and jealous of Carson’s love for Rachel, Maria concocts a plan to sabotage Carson and Rachel’s wedding. Could Maria’s plan be so powerful that it could destroy Carson and Rachel’s love? And what does Maria plan to gain from her actions? Don’t expect her to go down easily.

  Gia Roberts has returned from maternity leave and has resumed her responsibilities as an attorney at the same practice where Carson and Maria work. She was leary about going back to work because she knew she would have to face her life-long best friend Maria. She was furious with Maria for sleeping with her sister’s husband for three years behind their backs. When Gia found out the truth about Maria, an argument ensues and Gia doesn’t try to hide her feelings. Refusing to let anyone hurt her family, Gia defends her sister and keeps an eye on Maria while in the office. Is keeping a vigilant eye on her untrustworthy ex-friend, and taking care of a husband and 4-month old baby boy too much for Gia? Will Gia snap working in such close quarters with the women who caused her sister so much pain?

  With Carson, Gia and Maria working together in the same law firm, sparks will be sure to fly. How far will Maria go to sabotage Carson’s happiness? How far will Rachel go to defend her love? Whatever the case, be prepared for lines to be crossed, alliances to be broken and lives to be changed forever. At the end, one woman will reign queen and the other will be shamed forever.

  Other Books by S. Donahue

  Acquiring Hearts

  Released October 2013

  Trusting Hearts

  Released February 2014

  Judging Hearts

  Coming in Summer 2014!

  Acknowledgements

  Thanks to my husband Bob and son Bobby for always being there for me and allowing me to have this opportunity. Your love and support mean the world to me.

  To my family and friends- thanks for always being by my side and supporting me in every way.

  Thanks Amanda Haury for all your time and dedication to my book. This would not be possible without your skills.

  To my Beta Readers- Amanda Haury, Jenni Fields- Hatfield, Amy DeJesus and Kelly Kligge- Thanks for taking the time to read Trusting Hearts in advance. All of your advice and input is very much appreciated.

  Thanks to Philadelphia Row Home Magazine for publishing an article on Acquiring Hearts.

  Thanks to all the authors and bloggers in the Facebook community. Your continued support means so much. Especially Sticky Reads, I Choose Books Over Sleep, Book Friends Forever, Broken Bird Media...to name a few.

  To my Fans- Thanks for reading Acquiring Hearts and thanks for all your support. It means a lot to me.

  Abo
ut S. Donahue

  S. Donahue is a Philadelphia-based author who penned her first romance novel Acquiring Hearts in 2013 on an independent basis. She followed up with Trusting Hearts, and has many more books up her sleeve. Trusting Hearts is the second book in her series titled The Heart Series. She is currently working on the third installment in the series, Judging Hearts. Donahue lives in the City of Brotherly Love with her husband and their son.