I Choose You (19 page)
Prologue
Roni tried to brace herself for the blow before it landed, but she was still knocked backwards into the stove. Her hands flew out, instinctively covering her face, as her hip caught the corner of the stove and she collapsed onto the jaundiced linoleum.
She curled into the fetal position and brought her arms up to cover her head, but his boot still found its way to her ribs. Roni cried out in pain as her husband kicked her repeatedly.
Hank shouted obscenities at her as he grabbed two fistfuls of her long blonde hair and dragged her towards their dingy living room.
Roni tried not to struggle as she was pulled along the floor, worried that her hair would be yanked out if she did. She kept her eyes and mouth shut, she’d been in this predicament before, and knew she’d end up with more cuts and bruises if she struggled.
She saw her opportunity when Hank stopped in the threshold and loosened his grip.
Roni rolled backwards and sprang to her knees. In one fluid motion, she gained her footing and turned to sprint towards the backdoor. Since her back was turned, she didn’t see Hank raise his leg to kick her, but felt his foot made contact with her back right before she went sprawling face first back onto the linoleum.
She didn’t pay attention to the blood that started oozing from her nose; instead she boosted herself up on to all fours and began crawling towards the exit.
Hank’s dry chuckle turned her belly cold, but Roni tried to push through the fear and stay focused on her goal.
This wasn’t the first time her husband had used physical violence to make a point. When she’d first met him, she thought he was so handsome and strong. She’d thought he’d take her away from the nightmare that she’d grown up in and protect her, the way her twin brother always had until he went away to college. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
The first time he’d hit her, she’d been beyond shocked. She’d never been struck a day in her life, her brother, Kent had made sure of that. When she’d told Hank she was going to leave him, he’d been full of remorse and promises, and she’d been foolish enough to believe him.
The last straw had come the night before, when he’d punched her in the stomach after they’d returned from the local bar. She’d been dancing to the band, by herself, but he hadn’t been pleased. As soon as they’d walked into their small trailer, he’d blind-sided her and called her a whore.
When she woke up this morning, she’d called Kent and told him the truth about her marriage. He’d been angry and appalled, but agreed to come and help her leave Hank, just like she’d known he would.
Kent was the one man she could always count on.
The surprise came when Hank had come home early and found her packing her things. She’d said she was leaving when her brother arrived and tried to walk out of the trailer quickly, but Hank had caught up to her in the kitchen.
Her thoughts seemed muddled in her mind and she crawled as quickly as she could. She felt like she’d been crawling forever, but had only made it a few inches, before she felt Hanks boot in her ass. Roni sprawled on the floor, then quickly tried to curl back into the fetal position and protect as much of her body from him as she could.
She felt his hot breath on her cheek as he leaned down and whispered, “I will never allow you to leave me.”
Roni braced herself for the next blow, then opened her eyes when she heard scuffling and the cold, hard tone of her brother’s voice.
“I should kill you right now,” Kent said in a low dangerous voice as he pulled Hank from her and flung him back towards the wall.
Roni scrambled up off of the floor and ran to the bedroom to grab her bags. When she got back, Kent was pummeling his fists into Hanks face.
She ran over to him and put her hand softly on Kent’s shoulder. “Stop. He’s not worth it. Let’s just get out of here.”
She heard Kent breath in deeply. He pulled back and Hank slid slowly down the wall. He landed on the floor with a thud.
“You will never see my sister again,” Kent explained to his brother-in-law, then he turned, put his arm around Roni, and led her out of the trailer.
When they walked outside, Roni winced at the bright sunlight. Kent stopped and turned her towards him.
She was ashamed to look him in the eye, so she kept her head down. He put his finger under her chin and brought her face up so he could examine it, his grey eyes filled with worry.
“It’s just my nose,” Roni said softly. “Hank doesn’t like to mark up my face.”
Kent swore under his breath and pulled her gently into his arms. “Why didn’t you call me sooner, Roni. I could’ve helped.”
Roni felt her eyes fill and her throat get hot and scratchy. “I was ashamed. You always protected me from Dad, then I go and marry someone just like him. I was afraid you’d be disappointed.”
“I could never be disappointed in you,” Kent replied as he kissed her softly on the top of the head. “I’m taking you back to Texas with me; we’ll figure everything out once we get there, okay?”
“Okay,” Roni said with a small smile. She let her brother walk her to the rental car and settle her into the passenger seat. While he shut the door and walked around the car, she settled back in to the seat and closed her eyes.
Roni felt Kent get into the car and heard him start the engine. As they drove away from the tiny trailer she’d called home, she finally felt
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I have to start by saying that I am humbled and grateful. Your amazing reception of
Make it last
fueled me to get
I Choose You
ready as quickly as I could. I hope you enjoy the second installment in the
Friends & Lovers
trilogy, as much as you did the first.
I would like to thank a few wonderful women: Raine Thomas, Autumn Sexton Hull, Taneesha Freidus, and Marilyn Almodovar, who once again took the
time to Beta read for me and gave me their input. Thanks for your continued support.
Next, I’d like to
thank Allie at b designs for designing the beautiful cover to
I Choose You.
She captured the relationship between Kent and Nicole perfectly. You can check out her designs here:
http://bdesignpublishingservices.wordpress.com/
I would like to thank, Heather, at SupaGurl Tours for setting up a book blast. You can find information about her tours here:
http://www.supagurltours.blogspot.com/
Finally, I want to give a big Shout Out to Julie at AToMR Tours. Thanks for taking a chance on me and allowing me to schedule the tours for
Make it Last
and
I Choose You
with you. If you are interested in finding out more about AToMR Tours, you can find it here:
http://atomrbookblogtours.com/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bethany Lopez was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in Michigan and San Antonio, Texas. She went to High School at Dearborn High, in Dearborn, Michigan, which is where she has set her Young Adult series. She is married and has a blended family with five children. She is currently serving in the United States Air Force as a Recruiter in Los Angeles, California. She has always loved to read and write and has seen her dream realized by independently publishing her first novels through Amazon.
Visit Bethany Lopez at:
http://www.facebook.com/#./pages/Bethany-Lopez/214630865247702
@BethanyLopez2
http://www.independentauthornetwork.com/bethany-lopez.html