New Beginnings Read Free Page B

smother it with years of anger and resentment.
    “I’m getting married, Marisa.” She cursed her vulnerability where this man was concerned, swiping at the tears that slid down her cheeks. “I have to think about my future, not my past.”
    “I know.” Marisa brushed away her own tears. “I know it’s not fair of me to ask this of you, but I don’t know what else to do. I’ve talked to his AA sponsor and he hasn’t been able to reach him. You’re the only person I can turn to.”
    She embraced her friend. She knew how much it hurt to watch someone you love destroy their life. His family had once been her family and, in her heart, they always would be. Even if it meant sacrificing her hard-fought resolve to help them, she would do it.
    “Fine, I’ll talk to him. I just hope he’s willing to listen.”
     
    ***
     
    Trey nodded to the bouncers who ushered him into the crowded bar, followed by his head of security and personal bodyguard for the night, Josh Cooper. Josh was one of the few people he trusted with his life. They’d been on the same football team in college and had remained close friends ever since. It hadn’t been easy to lure the career cop away from the force, but he finally made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.
    Trey hated having to travel with an entourage, but it was necessary most of the time. In cases like this, safe zones, where he’d been numerous times without incident, he was able to convince his handlers to let him get away without the protection of an army. Fortunately, now that Josh had joined his team, it felt like he was just hanging out with a good friend instead of living his life in a protected bubble.
    It took him a moment to adjust to the dim lighting. With any luck, he might be able to sneak under the radar tonight, pretend he wasn’t who they thought he was. He felt like an imposter most days, so it wouldn’t require much effort on his part.
    It still felt surreal, being back in a world he’d once belonged to, once dominated. Now, he stood on the periphery, watching the crowds of people dancing, talking, laughing, living. He tried to remember a time when he’d been that happy and carefree. It had been years, too many years.
    Marisa came up behind him, sliding her arm around his waist. At six foot, three inches, he was a foot taller and able to tuck her neatly under his chin as he drew her in for a hug. If only he could keep everyone he loved safe, holding them close, never letting go. But it was too late for that. The people he loved and longed to protect were gone forever.
    She smiled at Josh, her gaze lingering as she spoke to her brother. “I’m glad you came. I was afraid you’d change your mind.”
    He would have, but he knew his stubborn little sister well enough to know she would be banging his door down, waking half the neighbourhood, if that’s what it took to get him down here.
    “Don’t think I didn’t think about it, darlin’.”
    “How does it feel, being back?”
    “Different.” Jimmy’s held so many memories for him, both good and bad. It was a place where his dreams were born and later died. He found his voice on that stage and watched his wife walk out those doors and out of his life for the last time.
    Images of her flashed through his mind: her smile as she tipped her beer glass, her laughter as they tore up the dance floor, the sweet sound of her voice as they sang a duet, the tears in her eyes as she asked him not to fight the divorce.
    A curvaceous waitress in a denim miniskirt and thigh-high boots made her way through the crowd toward him.  She gave him a thorough once over and winked. “What can I get you, Trey?”
    Someone bumped her from behind and she brushed against him, giggling. “Sorry, sweetheart,” she whispered, flattening her breasts against his chest.
    He took a step back. He wasn’t in the mood to flirt tonight, not here. This place always made him feel raw, as though it had been five days instead of five years since