Beauty from Pain

Beauty from Pain

Georgia Cates

Published by Georgia Cates

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Georgia Cates

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment
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hard work of this author.

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
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.

Editing Services provided by Jennifer Sommersby
Young.

Cover Art by Georgia Cates

Photograph by Brett Jackman

Polar Impressions Photography

Cover Model-Samantha Dionisiou

But this had been a sin of
passion, not of principle, nor even purpose.

-The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel
Hawthorne

1

Laurelyn Prescott

I am sick of being on this plane. The
four-and-a-half-hour flight from Nashville to Los Angeles was fine.
The layover was tolerable, thanks to the airport bar. But the last
leg of our flight to Australia is becoming more and more unbearable
with each passing minute.

I try to calculate how much longer it is until
we land in Sydney. My exhaustion makes it difficult for me to do
the simple equation in my head, but it looks like it’s still almost
two hours until I will feel solid ground beneath my feet again. I
sigh and tell myself to be patient. I’ve made it this far. I can
take another two hours. I mean, I don’t really have a choice at
this point, right?

I look at my best friend sleeping in the seat
next to me and I’m irritated. Addison has slept most of the flight,
leaving me to entertain myself. She offered to share her Valium,
but I declined, certain I wouldn’t need it. Wrong.

I climb over Addison and take a
walk up and down the aisle to stretch my legs, which helps me feel
better. Upon returning to my seat, I decide reading will help pass
the time, so I grab my e-reader and pick up where I stopped on
the
slutmance
I’d
started earlier. Only at chapter six and of course, the woman is in
love with the hot new guy but is in denial. How typical.

Chapter twelve is winding down when the pilot
announces that we’ll be landing in Sydney in ten minutes. Addison
doesn’t stir, so I put my naughty tale away and nudge her, knowing
it will take the next ten minutes to get her out of her
drug-induced slumber.

“
Wake up, Addison. We’re almost in
Sydney.”

She barely stirs so I nudge her again.
“Addison. Get up. We’re in Sydney. You need to get buckled for the
landing.”

She lifts her head and stares at me with
unfocused eyes. She straightens in her seat and takes a moment to
get her bearings. “Wow, that went faster than I
expected.”

“
I guess so since you were in a
freakin’ coma. It was the longest thirteen hours of my life. I
didn’t sleep a wink the whole flight because I was too busy
wondering if we were going to end up being shark food.” That came
out a little pissier than I’d intended.

“
Well, there’s no reason to be
miserable when you don’t have to be. You should’ve taken a happy
pill and then maybe you wouldn’t be so cranky right now.” She won’t
have to offer twice on the flight home three months from now.
Lesson learned.

Buckled into my seat, I squeeze my eyes as the
plane’s wheels screech against pavement. Our fellow passengers
erupt into cheer and clapping when we’re safely on the ground. I’m
not the only one glad to be getting off this plane.

We collect our three months’ worth of luggage
and take a seat in the terminal to wait for our last flight. With
an hour layover, I decide to visit the airport bar. “I’m gonna grab
a much-needed and well-deserved toddy.”

Addison’s phone rings and I recognize her
brother’s ringtone. Before she answers, she gives me a warning. “Be
back in thirty minutes or I’m sending security for you.” I don’t
reply in words but make sure she sees the hand gesture I have for
her.

The airport bar isn’t far from our terminal
and I plop down on a stool. “What can I get you?” I might not be
able to tell by my surroundings, but I know I’m in Australia when I
hear his accent.

“
I’d like something from a local
brewery. I tend to favor lighter flavors.”

He serves me a pale ale from a Sydney brewery.
It’s stout, but good.

I sit at the bar enjoying my ale. The
bartender doesn’t try to talk about where I’m from or where I’m
heading. He appears to be in his fifties, so I can only assume he’s
heard more shit than he’d like over the years and thus isn’t
interested in mine. Works fine for me.

When I finish, I go back to where Addison is
guarding our huge pile of luggage. “Was Ben calling to check on
us?”

“
Yeah. He was making sure our
flight was running on time. I told him to expect us to arrive
around three. He said he’s bringing a friend to help with our
luggage.”

I see how many bags we have and I swear we
look like a traveling band of gypsies. Most of it is Addison’s, but
I have my fair share—there’s no way to pack lightly for a
three-month stay. “That’s not a bad idea.”

“
He’s my brother. He knows how
high maintenance I am.” I sit and prop my feet on the suitcase in
front of me. “He didn’t say it, but he’s really excited to meet
you.”

He’s really excited to meet
me.
This is a huge red flag. I hope she
isn’t thinking of playing matchmaker.

“
Don’t you dare even think about
encouraging him.” I’m not interested in dating anyone right now.
She knows this better than anyone. This whole Australia gig is
about getting away from all that shit, not finding another pile of
it.

“
He hasn’t dated many Aussies
while he’s lived here. I’m just saying you shouldn’t be surprised
if he tries to start something with you.”

Oh, hell no. We’re not even there yet and
she’s already trying to hook us up. “It’s not happening,
Addison.”

“
You’ll be living in the same
apartment with him for the next three months. Who knows what could
happen?”

Okay. Now, I’m getting pissed because it feels
like I’m being ambushed. “I might not know what will happen, but I
know what won’t, so forget it.”

“
Fine, fine, I won’t mention it
again. Ben wants to take us out tonight, but I know you haven’t
slept much. I told him you might not feel like it.”

“
Maybe I’ll feel up to it if I can
catch a power nap on the flight to Wagga Wagga.”

–––––

This time it’s Addison nudging me when our
flight is preparing to land. “Laurelyn. Wake up. We’re finally
here.”

I sit up and fluff my long brown hair. I look
terrible when it’s flat and I’m sure it’s lying against my head
after my nap.

I couldn’t have slept more than forty minutes,
but I welcome the overall refreshed feeling it brings—except for my
mouth. The combination of mouth breathing, beer drinking, and lack
of oral hygiene during our travels has skunked things up. I don’t
want to meet Addison’s brother for the first time and have him
question which end is my face. “I need some gum. Do you have any on
you?”

Addison reaches into her purse and holds out
the lime-green pack in my direction. “Doublemint work for
you?”

I take two pieces because I’m fairly certain
it’s going to take two shots of Doublemint to do the job.
“Thanks.”

We walk out of the jet bridge with our
carry-ons and I see two great-looking guys standing in the terminal
watching the disembarking passengers. I know Ben as soon as I see
him. I could pick him out of a crowd anywhere, even if I’d never
seen his picture. There’s no way to miss him; he’s the perfect male
version of Addison. His blond hair is darker than hers (her monthly
date with the hairdresser helps those playful highlights). Their
olive skin presents a striking contrast with their light hair. He
is stunning, just like his sister, but in a masculine way. It’s too
bad I’m not interested in dating because he is hot.

He puts his arms around his sister’s middle
and squeezes as he lifts her from the floor and spins several
times. “I can’t believe my little sister has come all this way to
see me.” He lowers her feet to the floor and looks at me. “And you
must be Laurelyn.”

“
Indeed I am.”

Addison and I have been best friends since we
met our freshman year at Vanderbilt, but my path has always failed
to cross Ben’s for one reason or another. Now that we’re meeting
after four years, I’m not sure if I should extend my hand for a
shake or lift my arms for a hug, so I wait for his cue.

He goes for the hug. “It’s good to meet you,
Laurelyn. I’ve been hearing about you for years, so I feel like I
already know you.”

“
I hope my best friend hasn’t
ruined your opinion of me.”

“
Never.” His
crooked grin shows off one of his deep dimples. It’s not a
friendly
nice to meet you
smile. He’s flirting with me already, so I’m
wondering what my good pal might have told him.

Addison clears her throat. “Are you going to
introduce us to your friend?”

The vibe I’m getting from Ben makes me
uncomfortable, so I’m happy to shift my focus from him to his
buddy. Zac is tall with an athletic build. His dark hair is buzzed
close to his scalp except for the spiked tuft on top, and long,
sooty lashes frame his almost-black eyes. He’s wearing a fitted
black T-shirt and I spy the tribal art tat wrapping around his
bicep. His whole exterior screams trouble and that means one thing:
my bad-boy-loving pal is going to be all over him.

He offers his hand to Addison first. “It’s
very nice to meet you.”

Oh, swoon. I’m not into guys like him, but I
could listen to his smooth Aussie accent all day.

I think I hear a sigh from Addison, and I know
she’s thinking the same thing. “It’s great to meet you. Love your
accent.”

He offers his hand to me, but not his
attention—that still belongs to Addison. “I hope your trip has been
a pleasant one.”

The trip here wasn’t a damn bit pleasant, but
it’s rude to complain to someone I’ve just met. Addison replies, so
I’m neither forced to lie nor complain because she is eager to keep
Mr. Dark and Handsome’s attention. “We had a super
trip.”

“
Do you ladies feel up for hitting
a club tonight?”

I feel like hitting something, but it’s called
a bed.

Addison is well rested from her snooze on the
plane, so that means I’ll be the party pooper if I decline, which
I’ve never been labeled as, and I don’t intend to start now. “I’m
like an Energizer bunny, ready to go.”

I’ll sleep when I’m dead, right?

2

Jack McLachlan

I sit in the dark corner and scan the room like
a starved predator searching for prey. I haven’t chosen her yet,
but the woman who will share my bed for the next few months is in
this room right now.

I watch a lovely blond approach my table.
“What can I bring you?” Hmm. A waitress—not at all my usual
taste.

I have a type. Attractive. Mature. Refined.
This barmaid meets the attractive requirement well enough, but
she’s void of refinement or maturity as displayed by her choice of
apparel—a white, barely there tank top and frazzled cutoff denim
shorts. She doesn’t do it for me. Plus, my last two companions were
blond. I want a different flavor this time, but no redheads. I want
a brunette. A beautiful one.