Learning to Forgive (The Learning Series) (42 page)

Jammie Cook my Best friend, PA, and half of 2Bookoholics Book Blog. Thank you. Thank you for brainstorming with me, telling me if something is stupid, and pushing me toward great ideas. You are someone I can’t do without now. So You Can’t Leave. I’m locking you up and keeping you. LOL!!! I truly love you and your witty attitude. Even when we’re around people that don’t care about us Indie Authors, you make it tolerable… And fun.

If you’re reading this THANK YOU. Thank you for taking a chance on my book. I hope you loved Lyric and Blaire's story just as much as me. You are why I write these stories & I hope I made you proud.

I hope they excited you and you'll continue with Ryan's story...

Thank you, Damien, for having such a great physique and personality. You’re a wonderful Lyric and I look forward to showing you off at the signings.

Brandee’s Bookendings for giving me an Amazing series tour and who’s working so hard setting up Lyric’s big tour. You’re a sweet and real person and I thank you for taking a chance on me.

HEAbook ShelfBlogger. Thank you for the friendship and the Blitz tour you helped set up to introduce Lyric to the world. I know I can count on you to help me or answer any question however weird it is. MWAH!!!

Mari Brown. Thank you for being so strong and introducing me to some amazing people. Thank you for always taking time to read what I send you. You and your family are in my thoughts, girl.

LU Ann & sweet Leah. I loved meeting you both. It's so nice to have someone who understands somewhat of the experience I go through. Thank y'all for embracing me in your circle.

Katie Mac. Thank you. Your kindness in being a friend and editor was a life saver. I hope you enjoyed Lyric, too. I know it was rough in the beginning, but with your keen eye, we made it what it is...

Francette Phal, thank you for giving me Nicholas Grayson. And for writing a book that blew me away and inspired Lyric. You are truly gifted and deserve to be a BESTSELLER. That book deserves a movie and an award. It was brilliance.

Kimber Dawn, my smut sista... Lol!!!

I love your wicked mind. Thank you for being a True Indie supporter. MOTOR BOAT!!!

Abby & Lisa. Y’all have stuck by me since day one and love all my characters. I’ve shared and teased you with tidbits of Lyric, so now you can see the final piece put together. Thank you for sticking by me. Oh! And Abby, when we meet, I’m soooooo touching your hair. LOL!!! <3

K. Langston, Thank you girl. For making me feel important and for your dirty mind... Thank you for being funny as Hell. Your posts have been great research and inspirations. Yak!!! Lol

Aine Kelly Author aka Shannon. Thank you for making my first signing so great. Loved sitting with you. Also loved losing our signing VCard together... I got your back.

Heather Gunter, thank you for accepting me from the beginning. Your smile and happiness is something that brightens my day. You're always positive and it helps to push me forward.

HJ Bellus. Thank you for writing Cree and your craftiness. Thank you for being down to earth country Girl and a True Indie supporter. My lady crush.

Lydia and you need to come south.

Trudy Stiles, thank you for your on going support and kindness. Thank you for always answering my questions and being a great down to earth person. Thank you for understanding me more than just on a writer’s level.

Ilsa Madden Mills, thank you for writing such inspirational stories and being a great friend. I loved meeting you and love talking to you. You’re so sweet and deserve the best.

Jennifer La Rocca, thank you for being another supporting indie writer. You're so much fun and I'm coming to visit you one day in P' Cola... Fair warning. oh... And thanks for letting me grind on you. I hope you enjoyed it as much as me.

Bethany Castaneda with HEA Bookshelf blog. Thank you for always being there to support me. For pimping me as a writer and friend. I hope to meet you and Hadley one day... Oh... & Thank you for pointing out what my brain can't. Lol!!! My sweet Grammar Cop.

The blogs who have stuck beside my rookie ass, either from the beginning or not. You all Rock and deserve a hug. I can't name you all because I'll surely forget someone.

I love bloggers and believe in supporting them just as much as my Indies. To me, if one doesn't exist, the other will vanish. So don't make this a competition. Make this a camaraderie. Friendships that reach from country to country. Words that touch millions and then some.

My Street Team of Risqué Readers and BETAS

Thank y'all so much for pumping me up and pimping me out...

I love you girls

Josette

Emma

Bella

Danielle

Colleen

Suzie

Taylor

Bethany

Samantha

Patricia

Caroline

Lindsey

Danielle

Ebony

Misty

Katherine

Helen

Jamie

And more… I know I’m missing a few. <3 Just know I love you all.

Y'all will never understand how much y'all made this happen. When I got low and wanted to give up, y'all's belief in my stories kept me going.

R.D. Cole is a lively person with a determination to make it in life. Once her mind gets set on an idea she pursues it with passion. As long as she has God and her family she feels she can conquer everyday. Besides reading and writing she loves to sing, dance, and go mudding on her Souped-up Can Am. Her hubby is 9 years younger but he seems more mature than her at times and they level one another out. She has a beautiful daughter named Bethani who is a miracle and a fighter. She's the only known living survivor of Matthew Woods Syndrome and when no one thought she'd live R.D. said "yes she will." R.D. takes nothing for granted when it comes to life. "Everything can be ripped from your fingers before they can grasp it. So if you want something in life, do it. Go for it."

That same mindset has helped R.D. write small pieces of her life mixed in to fictional settings and characters that will capture your heart.

"Read on. Dream on. Write on." -R.D. Cole

Support Indie Authors

You can stalk me at:

Website:
www.authorrdcole.com

Email:
[email protected]

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/r.d.coleauthor

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/authorrdcole

Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7134270.R_D_Cole

On the Edge by Mari Brown

SNEAK PEEK OF THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED NOVEL: ON THE EDGE

Coming June 2014

Blurb:

Katarina Roberts has grown up with an abusive mother and a brother who's part of the town's notorious Knight crime family. Drew does everything he can to help her, but her only goal is to get the hell out of Belmont and attend school at UCLA. The further away the better until Cole showed up in her life.

Cole Knight is sexy and dangerous. Being groomed to take over the family business, he has no interest in a relationship until he meets Kat. Cole has decided he wants Kat, and will stop at nothing to have her and keep her, making her part of the 'family'.

Kat now faces the hardest choice of her life; does she stay with Cole or does she stick to plan she has developed over the last couple of years and get as far away from Belmont as she can? Can she give up her dreams for Cole?

Chapter 1

As I take a sip of coke, my eyes dart around the crappy diner where I wait for Drew. Only my brother would pick a hole-in-the-wall, shit shack. After all, he’s into all kinds of shady things. I’m thankful that when I called him, he dropped everything to come meet me. He could hear in my voice how upset I am. I didn’t want to go into detail over the phone, so I asked him to meet me wherever he wanted.

I’m pissed off, and our dear mother is of no help in the situation. In fact, she’s part of the damn problem. She always picks the biggest assholes to date, and the latest one has already moved in with us. I’ve tried to keep my distance from him, but Mom left for a weeklong business trip this morning, and of course, Jim, the asshole, decided to start slinking up on me now that she’s gone. Yeah, not happening, buddy. I was out that door as fast as my ass could carry me.

I’m a senior and set on getting the hell out of this town, one way or another. I want a fresh start where I don’t have to deal with my bitch of a mother who cares more about her boyfriend than her kids, and my brother who is always busy with stuff. I don’t want to know what the stuff is, but I’m not stupid either. I know my brother is involved in the criminal world and the Knight family, even though Knight’s Construction legitimately pays him. I hear what people on the streets say about gunrunning, gambling, and lord only knows what else he’s done.

The bell above the door rings, and when I look up, Drew is entering the diner. His 6’3” frame makes him look as if he could take you down with one swing of his muscular arm. We share the same hair color, but he keeps his cut short and spikes it up all over. Our brilliant, emerald green eyes leave little doubt that we are related.

Drew scans the restaurant and, when he sees me, he heads straight in my direction. Two guys I’ve never seen before flank him on either side. One guy is so humongous that he couldn’t hide if he wanted. I mean Hulk huge. His hard, scary face gives the impression that he would show no mercy if you crossed him. In fact, some of the diners warily look at him as he walks by them. The other guy catches my attention for a whole different reason. I’ve seen some good-looking guys in my eighteen years, but damn, the eyes on this guy just draw me in like a fucking magnet. They are the most striking shade of Mediterranean Sea blue, and I can’t get past them to look at the rest of him. I need to stop staring before I embarrass myself.

Drew slides in next to me while Pretty Eyes and Hulk sit across from us.

”So, what’s going on, Kat?” Drew asks, with no preamble.

“Well, let’s see. Mom left on a trip today, her new boyfriend is living with us, and when I got home from school today, he tried to put the moves on me.”

My brother stiffens and, from the looks that cross the other guys’ faces, they don’t much like what I have to say, either, and they don’t even know me.

“So, what happened?” Drew manages to ask me through clenched teeth.

“So, I may have punched him in the face, kneed him in the balls, grabbed my keys, and got the fuck in Mom’s car.” I fiddle with the napkin holder on the table while I talk.

The three guys exchange a shocked look, then Hulk smirks at me, Pretty Eyes’ lips turn up in a faint smile, and my brother full-out laughs. Seems all three of these guys find my actions amusing.

When he finally pulls himself together, Drew turns towards me. “So, what do you need from me?”

“I need somewhere to stay until Mom gets home. I am sure as hell
not
staying in that house with him, and I don’t want to go to a hotel for a whole week.”

“Done, but first, I want to pay the asshole a little visit.” This visit will not be the ‘let’s sit down and have a beer together” kind. “You’re gonna pack your shit and come stay at my place until the bitch gets home.”

There’s no love lost between my mother and brother. Since she’s always been more concerned about her love life than her children, it’s always been just the two of us. Shit, we aren’t even sure we share the same dad.

“So, are you going to introduce me to the two guys sitting across from me, or should I just go with the names I’ve made up in my head?” I ask my brother.

“That’s Pete, right there,” he nods his head towards Hulk, “and this is Cole.”

I turn towards Pretty Eyes and smile. Then it hits me.

“Cole Knight?” I question.

Surprise registers across Cole’s face at my recognition. My brother shakes his head in the affirmative.

I find myself intrigued. My brother works for this guy's family. I soak in more details about Cole while staring at him. His dark hair sticks up in a sexy messy way that makes a girl swoon, and his small bit of facial hair is just enough to rub me the right way. Tattoos peek out from beneath his shirt, and I wonder just what is hiding under there. I want to lick those tattoos without even knowing what they are.

I shake my head, trying to clear my dirty thoughts. This guy is 23 and as badass as they come. I can’t go there with someone like him if I want out of this fucking town. I have heard so many stories about Cole. He likes women, weed, and beating the shit out of people, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Drew decides that since they walked to the diner from wherever they had been, we will all travel in my mom’s car back to my house. I end up in the back seat with Pretty Eyes, and struggle not to move in closer to him. Something about him draws me in and makes my pussy clench and become dripping wet just from being close to him. I need to get away from this guy before I do something stupid. Images of me straddling him run rampant through my mind, and I don’t even care that my brother is in the driver’s seat.