Wild Bride Read Free

her mind and only focused on where she was, who she was with. She was determined to make the most of her life and that meant getting over her childhood fears.
    Her uncle was right in one way. She was a woman now. And she was more determined than ever to never show weakness. After all, her party had been a huge success and she’d eaten up all the attention she’d gotten. She’d loved every jealous look from all the girls and every lusty glance from all the boys and was determined to continue getting every ounce of attention she could.
    She didn’t mind so much that some friends had stepped away from her; you couldn’t please everyone. She smiled as Travis drove to the local make out spot and parked.
    Yes, tonight she would become a full woman. A woman who was one hundred percent in control of her own life. And she was going to do everything in her power to make sure she never lost that control again.

Chapter Two
     
    Ten years later...
    H er life was over. She frowned as she looked at the full-length mirror that still stood in the same spot in the corner of her room. Even though the furniture had changed a little, it was still her childhood room. She’d changed styles and had had the room painted and decorated so many times she couldn’t remember most of the styles, but one thing was still clear. This was still her space.
    She closed her eyes and wished more than anything that she hadn’t been the one to wreck her life. It was her scheming that had backfired. She hadn’t seen this coming at all.
    She frowned and thought of Billy. Closing her eyes, she tried to get his face out of her mind. Reaching for her cigarettes, she closed her fingers over the pack and gasped. Her hand moved away from the desired package. Her eyes moved to the full-length mirror again and she sat down on the edge of her bed. She felt like crying. Her life was over. She repeated it over and over in her mind.
    Everything she’d worked so hard for in the last ten years was gone. Here she was in her mid-twenties and she’d screwed everything up herself.
    She had no real education. No job. Nothing. Leaning back on her bed, she sighed and wished for a do-over. Just one night. Less than a month ago, on a cool spring night.
    Just then, her cell rang. Reaching over without opening her eyes, she answered it.
    “Hey, are you going to tell me?” He sounded worried.
    “Yes,” she whispered.
    “Yes, you’re going to tell me? Or yes, yes?”
    “Yes,” she repeated.
    The line was quiet. “I’m coming over,” he said quickly.
    “No.” She opened her eyes and sat up.
    “Why?”
    “I…” She had no real excuses to give.
    “I’ll be there in ten minutes,” he said and hung up.
    What had she done? She looked down at her new iPhone and felt like throwing it. What had she done? She set her phone down and closed her eyes again and felt a wave of sickness rush through her. When she opened her eyes again, she felt the room spin and had to rush to her bathroom and get sick.
    By the time she’d cleaned up, she heard a light tap on her bedroom window and walked over to let Billy in.
    It wasn’t as if she didn’t like him. After all, Billy had been one of the best-looking guys in school. But they’d been out of school for years now, and Billy was like a lot of guys who had stayed in town after school. He worked a dead-end job, drank too much, and ran around with any available girls that weren’t married off.
    How had she ever gotten together with him?
    She watched him step into her room and sighed. He was impressive. Even though he was a screw up, he was easily better looking than any other man in Fairplay.
    His dark hair was a little longer and pushed back away from his chiseled face. His dark eyes were easily one of his best features. His nose was straight and led your eyes down to the perfect lips that had somehow escaped her attention for so many years.
    “So,” he said, shoving his hands into his worn jeans and looking at her.
    “So.” She