Always the One Read online

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  © 2016 CC Monroe

  All rights reserved.

  Edited by Wild Rose Editing

  Cover Design and Interior formatting by Jersey Girl & Co. Design

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, 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, except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products, bands, and/ or restaurants referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/ use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  License Notes

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite e-book retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Kate Stewart.

  I love you, something fierce.

  I adore you for believing in me no matter the obstacle. I will never be able to thank you enough.

  “Oh hush, you decided to change your life. I’m just a cheerleader.” - Kate the GREAT!

  Shayla

  TODAY IS MY HIGH school graduation, it’s the end of an era and a fresh new beginning for most people, and today, I’m one of those people. I made it—we made it—and when I say we, I mean Lana, my best friend, and me. Now we have to make a life outside of these halls and build the future we’ve been envisioning and planning together for three years now. We’re moving to Seattle with my older brother, Kingston, and my other best friend, Trey, to make this dream a reality. I had to work multiple jobs all while maintaining an A average, and believe me it was hard but so dang rewarding. My brother and Trey coming for their own dreams of opening a recording studio was an added bonus.

  The thought of Trey makes my heart beat so heavy I can feel it pounding against my chest. I’ve been pining over my brother’s best friend for a few years now, and I still haven’t spoken up and done anything about it. Which, I most likely never will. He’s got a lot of deep-seated commitment issues, and I’m not sure he has the capability to love or if he even likes me for that matter.

  Lana comes rushing toward me, and I feel my face light up. She’s the greatest thing to come into my life. My feet make movement toward her, meeting her halfway, our high-pitched squeals granting us stares from the people in our pathway.

  Move it or lose it, folks!

  “We did it, Lana. We graduated, we made it through the wonder years!” I shout over the sound of people cheering, families congratulating their loved ones, and the noise coming from every angle. It’s a gorgeous sunny day in Utah, and I’m so glad my best friend is standing next to me, how could we not be this enthusiastic? We have our futures in the palms of our hands.

  Our future, together as friends, is something I find myself often fearing won’t happen like we want it to. Lana’s been in an abusive relationship for two long, silencing years. I’m shocked Joel agreed to move with us to Seattle, though, if we all had it our way, he wouldn’t be coming with us. But she won’t walk away. I know this is supposed to be a happy moment, so I push this dark thought to the far corners of my mind.

  I see my dad standing next to the row of trees lining the sidewalk, taking note of his proud stance and puffed-out chest, I chuckle. I was the first generation to graduate with honors. I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but…toot, toot! This isn’t just a moment of celebration and gratification for me, it’s for him, too.

  “Princess!” he says, opening his arms wide for me, I blush with a smile, fitting in his arms perfectly.

  “Dad! Stop, I’m not a baby anymore,” I mumble quietly so others can’t hear my embarrassment, I also don’t want him to think he’s smothering me, because he never has.

  “Did Mom make it?” I ask, my voice filled with hope, I look around him and the surrounding crowds but don’t see her. She’s seeing a new guy, well multiple guys, but they live close…she should be here. It’s my high school graduation, you would think since I’ll only do this once she would’ve found a way to be here. What am I saying? She shouldn’t even need to find a way here; she just should be present. Period.

  I feel my heart crumble a little more, caught in the crossfire of my parent’s tortured love affair, and I do mean tortured. My mother had been unfaithful to my father for as long as I could remember. My dad, well he just turned a blind eye so he wouldn’t have to admit her flaws and live without her. He loved her completely. I thought I never saw my mother before the divorce, now it’s close to never. Every three months she will pop in to visit, drop demands and insults to the way I live my life, and then give me some half-assed motherly wisdom that would make real mothers cringe.

  “No, princess, she didn’t. I’m sorry.” His answer is short and warrants no explanation.

  “Yeah,” I say, my eyes shift around the grassy field and bleachers surrounding us. Doing whatever I can to avoid making eye contact with my dad, I don’t want him seeing me emotional on such a big day. He hates it when I cry.

  “Missing this is her loss. She said she’ll stop by tonight, at your party.”

  “How nice, she’ll make a public appearance so people will think she cares.” I cross my arms like a defiant child throwing a tantrum when she doesn’t get her way.

  “Don’t let her ruin your day, sis! You fucking graduated! I didn’t think you had the brains, you cute little shit!” My brother lifts me off the ground as he spins me in the air before bringing me in for a bear hug. Breaking the tension and distracting me, I love this big goofball with every fiber of my being. He graduated a couple years back, since he is three years older than me, but we are still close despite the age difference. Usually, most brother and sister relationships substitute for name-calling, and ‘anything you can do I can do better’ games, especially with an age gap like ours, but not Kings and me. Don’t get me wrong, we tease, but it’s always friendly. Other than that, we’re ride or die best friends until the end.

  He sets me down and I look up at him and smile. He looks down on me with an adoring smile, our eyes holding. I love his eyes, they are green with rivers of honey flowing through them. We both got our mother’s eyes, but other than that we look like our father.

  “Shut it, I’m the smart one out of the two of us and you know it!” I see something moving toward us from my periphery. Pulling my gaze from Kingston’s smiling face, I see Trey. His smirk turns into a raging smile, showing me his dimples and perfect tee
th. He’s looking so dang edible in his black, tightly fitted jeans that hug his strong, powerful thighs. His matching black fitted tee is stretched deliciously across his defined chest. That man looks like sin wrapped in black.

  I’ve known Trey since he became friends with my brother ten years ago and not only did we grow close, my romantic feelings grew with that time, also.

  “He’s right, I was shocked you graduated, little bug.” Trey joins in on the friendly banter. Running his hand through his sandy blond hair, his shirt rises just enough for me to see the deep cuts of his hips. I fall silent; Lana notices and nudges my arm, urging me to say something.

  “You guys are just so funny!” I make sure to drag out the ‘so’, sarcastically, causing everyone to laugh.

  “I’m shocked either of you two knuckleheads even made it past your first day of senior year. But you’re cute, so I guess someone felt bad enough to let you graduate,” Lana says, poking Kings in the chest.

  “You think I’m cute, baby?” Kingston says, winking at Lana, she visibly stiffens at his comment. She looks around, and I know she’s searching for her boyfriend. If he were here, that comment wouldn’t fly, but fist would for sure.

  We all wait a split second until she comes to the realization that he isn’t here. Once she calms down and goes back to friendly flirting with my brother, I walk around the outskirts of our circle, toward Trey. Making sure I swing my hips slowly. I don’t mean to be a tease, and I know my teasing pales in comparison to his bevy of experienced women. But I’m a glutton for fueling my desire to be wanted by him. He looks me up and down, spending a significant amount of time on my hips. I bite my lip, knowing that even if he would never go for a girl like me, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t like what he sees.

  “Come here!” He hauls me into him. Instantly, my nose is hit with the scent that belongs to Trey, some woodsy aftershave that reminds me of a pure, hardworking, male. Almost like he could chop down a tree and build a fire next to the house he just built for me. He places a gentle kiss to my forehead and follows with a benevolent smile. The one he reserves only for me. That kiss fills my stomach with a frenzy of butterflies.

  “Thanks for coming, Trey. This means the world to me,” I say.

  “I will always be there, you can count on me. Always,” he says, the harsh finality combined with his words stick to my heart where they embed themselves, for always.

  “You’re right. You’re always the one who’s there.”

  His words seem to hold more of a meaning than I understand, but I know I will never forget them and the comfort they brought to me in this moment.

  “Okay, party time at your place, then we spend all day tomorrow packing. Seattle is waiting!” Lana says, cheering and taking off toward the car. I’m more excited than ever for the journey the four of us, and unfortunately, Joel too, will be making together.

  Shayla

  “THAT’S IT, SHAYLA DONOVAN! I can’t believe we’re having this conversation again,” Lana says, looking up from her spot across the table from me. I throw my head back laughing; she really is my best friend. I mean, she puts up with all my crap. Lana and I have been best friends for thirteen years. We met in elementary school, on the monkey bars. Actually, I was on the ground crying with a bloody nose. Falling off and breaking my nose was a tad traumatic. But it would be that way for any eight-year-old, no doubt.

  However, Lana made it easier for me, distracting me from what we now call the ultimate fall. I remember the feel of the grainy sand digging into my palms, leaving little grooves and scratches behind. When I noticed the blood dripping onto my shirt, I started screaming; I was sure I had lost a body part. Luckily, Lana saved the day with a joke, showing her dimples and contagious smile.

  She’s had my back ever since then and now we’re both twenty-one-year-old single ladies, living in the heart of Seattle, scraping to get by and doing whatever we can to build up our dream. We, ‘the dynamic duo,’ are now the owners of CC Chic Boutique, located in downtown Seattle. We actually made it happen, we never gave up.

  We talked for hours upon hours about opening up our own store and being the most successful ‘bitches,’—Lana’s words not mine—that we could be. That’s her biggest strength, finding laughter when the whole world’s in sorrow. After we opened, it slowly became more than just childhood talk that Lana and I shared. It became us, it became the missing puzzle piece to our lives. We hope to make it bigger one day, but there are always the competitors, always someone better. This will never stop us, especially Lana, she’s the hardheaded one, and I am the soul and emotion. Some would say we are the perfect team, and I don’t disagree.

  Starting up this boutique was a getaway from the harsh reality that we left back in Utah. Lana escaping her abusive ex wasn’t just for her. No, it was for me, too. I feared for the life of my best friend every moment she was with him. When he would push her around and leave her to lick her own wounds, I was there. I’m so happy she finally broke free before we moved here. Joel’s plan was to move with us, but after he was arrested for putting Lana in the hospital for three weeks, suffering through multiple injuries, mental exhaustion, and pain, she ended it and we left without him, thank hell. That pig’s behind bars. When he was arrested he had an unregistered gun in his possession as well as drug paraphernalia, landing him five years in prison, since it was his second drug offense. And I couldn’t thank the Lord hard enough.

  The first time I saw her smile, after the incident with Joel, was the day we found our location. It’s in the perfect area of downtown, really in the heart of the hustle and grind of city life. Our favorite thing is hearing the conversations of passersby when we leave the doors open on spring days. Even more, we love watching people walk around in fall weather, with leaves changing all around them, running to get to one place or another. The city is always alive, Lana quotes to me daily. Believe me, we live, eat, and breathe this dream.

  “L, you are the one that brought it up, I’m not telling Trey that I like him,” I tell her, taking a sip of my wine. We have this conversation every week. The more the wine gets pouring, the more our mouths get to yapping. Trey Adams is the man of my dreams, and I can’t have him. Not only is he my brother’s best friend, he is also way out of my league.

  It’s not my looks that make me feel this way, because I’m not ugly by any means. I’m actually what some would call beautiful, and no, I’m not bragging, just simply being honest to society’s standard. I don’t wear too much makeup; my soft ivory complexion and green eyes contrast with my long burgundy hair that falls just below my shoulders. My biggest worry isn’t about not being in his physical league, it’s more so based on our social status, and let’s just say, experience. For as long as Trey and I have been friends, I have known him to be popular, funny, outgoing, you know, the life of the party. Also, he’s been with tons of beautiful, experienced women, not virgins like me. His commitment issues are the icing on the cake. Trey Adams, doesn’t do love.

  I find myself behind books laced in poetic words about the beauty of love, setting my expectation far higher than reality. I enjoy clothes, obviously, and I avoid nights out, wild parties, and big crowds. We are two different people from two different worlds.

  “I think you are underestimating yourself, Shay. Trey has always been flirtatious with you, I mean what friends cuddle and have zero feelings for each other?” I roll my eyes as she continues. “You guys are best friends. What makes you think he hasn’t thought about something more with you? Shay, I see the way he looks at you. Why would you even think he wouldn’t give you a chance?” she says, eliciting a laugh from me.

  She’s on a roll tonight, using legit facts that have me questioning my doubts. I stand and grab the empty bottle of wine and head to the sink. She does have a point, Trey and I have always been a little bit more physical in our friendship, not sexually or anything, but we do cuddle…a lot. “That’s different, we’re best friends, we can do that stuff.”

  She scoffs behind me. “You a
nd I don’t cuddle, Shay.”

  Turning the water on and making myself busy with cleaning the wine bottle—a useless task, but at least I can create a small diversion while I avoid her prying questions. Hearing the chair scrape across the floor, I listen to the sound of her feet padding across the kitchen and down the hall.

  “Whatever, girl, let me know when you grow some lady balls and ask Trey out.” I don’t respond, and I wait for the sound of her bedroom door. Turning back toward the empty room, I place my hands on the counter on either side of me and slide on top. Grabbing my wine, I stare out of the large floor to ceiling windows in our living room. I let my thoughts take me away as my eyes trace over the city lights.

  “LET’S GO TO THE tree house, I need a second to breathe.” Looking up from my plate, I meet Trey’s anxious gaze. My mouth is filled with the delicious chocolate birthday cake, so I signal a yes with a curt nod.

  Today is Trey’s graduation, and I could tell he hated the attention from distant relatives and all of his stepmother’s extended family. I don’t blame him, getting pecked on the cheek and congratulated by older folks has to be exhausting. Crap, it’s even making me dread the day I graduate.

  I try my best to keep up with his long strides, my shorter legs not able to keep up. When he opens the side gate to his house and the noise from the party fades, I watch him take a deep breath and his steps become less hurried.

  “You okay, T?” I ask when we hit the sidewalk leading toward my house. We haven’t been back to the tree house since we were a lot younger. We outgrew it, obviously. This only confuses me more as to why he wants to go there of all places, I’m sure my living room would suffice and keep us far enough away from the crowd.

  “Yeah, I just need to clear my head. Can we wait to talk in the tree house?” he begs, his eyes glued to his feet. I don’t miss the way his eyes close and tighten when he speaks, like he is struggling more so than what he led on.