Splintered Oak (Winsor Series Book 3)

SPLINTERED

OAK

T. L. GRAY

Copyright © 201
3 Tammy Gray

All rights reserved.

ISBN-10: 1493704486

ISBN-13:
978-1493704484

Cover to Cover Designs © Kari Ayasha

www.covertocoverdesigns.com

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
www.zondervan.com 
The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A special thanks to Kari Ayasha at Cover to Cover Designs for bringing my vision to life. It was a pleasure to work with you.

To Josh Webb of Root Radius, thank you for your continued guidance and strategic coaching.

To Debby Wade of ACTSolutions Counseling
Center for her insight into the troubled mind of a man like Jake. The depth of understanding you gave allowed me to bring his character to life in a unique way.

To my new e
ditor, Tracy Heffner. I thoroughly enjoyed working with you.

To my sister, Angel,
for always reading my first draft with keen eyes and wise words. Your invaluable input continues to make me better each time.

To my faithful beta readers,
Abby, Angie, Karen and Tonya, thank you so much for your encouragement, advice and ideas. I’d be a mess without all of you.

Finally, t
o my amazing husband and children, thanks for supporting my dream world, allowing me to pour my heart and soul into every word.

For my
sister-in-law, Tonya, whose strength of character inspires me every day.

1. WHERE IS SHE?

JAKE

I stared at the ceiling for at least an hour before finally giving up. Insomnia had become a regular occurrence and the lack of sleep was beginning to weigh on me.
I slid off the bed, carefully put the silk sheets back in place, and attempted not to disturb the person next to me.

Her brown hair draped lazily over my pillow, and the aroma of citrus and honey hung in the air, but did nothing to entice me like it had the night before.

Mornings brought regret and the cruel reality I could forget at the bar where sexy music and alcohol eased stress and inhibitions.

Forget I’d lost my first love. Forget my cousin had been missing for two months. Forget my maniac uncle had strip
ped me of my job, my career and now possibly my freedom.

I moved towa
rd the bathroom, wondering how long the girl in my bed would linger before making her shameful exit.

I needed to stop bringing them home. Who was I kidding? I needed to stop altogether. Every m
orning I had such resolve when I watched another one ease out the door with hope in her eyes.

They always left their numbers. I never called.

Some would find me, call me, or do drive-bys. They’d show up constantly at the bar I frequent and pretend it was a coincidence, or worse, throw themselves at me, offering more of what we’d already done together.

Those were the women I took the most advantage of
—the insecure ones, the ones who set no physical boundaries.

They were also the ones who left me the emptiest.

Like a life force against my tense muscles, the shower began to slowly get my body as alert as my mind had been for the last few hours. Circling my head under the steady stream of heat, I allowed the rhythm of the spray to sooth me.

I love
d the sound of running water or the soft drumming of rain against the windowsill. It took me back to a time when life was still good. A time when my mother was healthy and vibrant and would pull me outside with her to catch rain droplets in our mouths. She would say the rain had healing power and could wash away all the hurts in our life. I believed her and stood in the rain for hours after she died. I guess she took the power of the rain with her, because it had done nothing that day but get me wet.

“Jake?” The voice was soft and hesitant, and I cursed
the sound in my head.

“Just give me a minute, babe, and I’ll be right out. There’s a bathroom no one uses in the guest room. You’re welcome to that one.”

I tried to keep the irritation out of my voice, but didn’t do a very good job. I knew her name, Ammie with an i.e., but refused to say it out loud. The intimacy it added felt too personal. The longing I had for that level of closeness disappeared the minute we were finished.

I quickly turned off the shower and grabbed a towel before heading to my medicine cabinet. Gripping the sink, I stared at the pharmacy behi
nd my mirror. I needed the pills, but resented my dependency.

Pulling
the container from the shelf, I rolled the slim bottle around and examined the contents. My anxiety medicine was getting low, but I still had enough for the rest of the week. I pushed the small pill to the back of my throat and swallowed, then did the same with the antidepressants.

They both seemed to help, to keep me walking around in a semi-functional state. But neither stopped the rage or fear.

Wrapping a towel around my waist, I emerged from the bathroom to find my now unwelcome guest patiently waiting. She attempted to kiss me, her eyes assessing my half naked state.

A strained peck on h
er cheek was my only response. I brushed past her to grab my clothes. I could sense the hurt she radiated and knew this would be the last night we spent together. She was getting attached and clingy, neither of which appealed to me.

S
he bounced on the bed and crossed her legs. “What do you want to do today?” Her voice was light, hopeful.

“Actually, you may want to take off. Stock market opens in a couple of hours and I have to focus today.” My dismissive voice left no question I wanted her to leave.

“That’s right. You’re a big investment guy. I had forgotten.”

Not anymore
, I thought bitterly to myself. Now I was just an online day trader trying to make enough money to survive the lifestyle I’d created.

Ignoring my irritation, s
he reclined on my bed with a come-and-get-me smile. “Surely you have a little time.”

She and I both knew
her offer was a trap to be saddled with her the rest of the day. I shook my head, completely uninterested. “Sorry, sweetheart, not today.”

The disappointed look on her face only adde
d to my foul mood. “Listen, the front door is a little tricky, so make sure you close it tight when you leave.”

I quickly shut the bathroom door, a blessed barrier between us. I didn’t want to see the tears I knew were coming after such a harsh brush off.

She lingered longer than I expected, but I finally heard the front door shut and was able to breathe fully for the first time all morning.

I was a pig.

My cousin Issy was right on point when she called me one. Even I hated this version of myself.

I could hear David moving around in his room as I made the morning coffee. He would undoubtedly ask me about the rent aga
in.

Living with the guy who owned the condo had
its perks, but avoiding payment talks was not one of them. Still, David had been surprisingly understanding about things since I got fired from the investment firm we both worked for.

That was months ago, tho
ugh, and my lack of employment was starting to get on his nerves.

Another thing
to thank my uncle for. He had blackballed me from the industry, threatening to pull his money and influence.

My immense hatred
for Issy’s father made my hands shake. I sucked in air slowly to get myself under control. For the hundredth time, I vowed I would see Andrew Summers fall. For me, for Aunt Diana, and for Issy. I would ruin him.

I gripped the counter in front of me; the hurt, fear and confusion all combining into one steady emotion—rage.

“You okay, man?” David asked as he approached the coffee pot. I hadn’t heard him come into the room, but that was typical when I had a panic attack. Time seemed to pause.

I took another breath and pushed off the counter. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

He eyed me suspiciously, but didn’t press.

“Any good financial leads to throw my way today?” I
hoped he had valuable information to pass on to me before the market opened.

My account was below the $10,000 mark and, unfo
rtunately in my business, I had to have money in order to make money. And I needed a lot. Rent was long past due, and I still hadn’t caught back up on the Mercedes payments or the credit cards.

David poured his coffee and took a seat a the bar.
“Radius Media Marketing is going public today. The CEO is some kind of marketing genius. I’m planning to get in right at opening.”

I jotted down the name and looked up, hoping for more. One small investment wouldn’t be near enough. “Anything else?”

David examine
d me. I still dressed as if I were going to my old job, refusing to work in sweats even though my office was now the living room sofa.

The hard line of his mouth warned me what was coming next. “Today’s the tenth.”

I turned away so he couldn’t see the desperation in my eyes. “I know.”

“I can’t keep floating you, Jake.”

“I got it, okay? Today’s going to be a big day; I can feel it. You’ll have the check tonight. I promise.” I continued to walk away from him, hoping the conversation would be over soon.

“I should have had the check ten days ago, and would have, if you hadn’t drank your earnings away all week. This isn’t what I signed up for when I asked you to move in here with me.”

My anger pushed through the embarrassment and disappointment. “I’ll have your money tonight, so please, just lay off. This hasn’t exactly been the easiest few months of my life, you know.”

David’s face softened. He was
one of the rare “nice guys” out there and still showed me compassion regularly even though I didn’t deserve it. “What did your lawyer say?”

A sour taste filled my mouth. “My lawyer is
a court appointed waste of space who has no shot against Andrew Summers’ hired goons. This should be an open and shut probation case. Instead, the DA is pushing for one to three years.”

“You shouldn’t have punched him. A man with Andrew Summer’s power has
everyone dipping into his pockets.”

“He’s lucky I didn’t kill him!” I slammed my hand on the counter, heat flushing my body. “Need I remind you that he stormed into
my
apartment, attacked Grant and then tells me Issy is missing like it was my fault.”

Issy had run away from her father when he tried to marry her off to some billionaire.
Grant had been Andrew’s assistant for seven years and in love with Issy for most of those. He had been searching for her every day since with no luck.

David stared at my outburst, his eyebrows pinching at my lack of control. He didn’t understand my pain. Issy was the only family I had left.

“So no lead on Issy then?” he asked.

“No.
” I walked towards the couch and my laptop, leaving David and the conversation behind. It was all too much.

David sensed my closure and quietly drank his coffee while reading the news on his iPad. The silence conti
nued for another twenty minutes until he stood and put on his suit coat. “There’s another tip I have for you, but I’ve hesitated knowing your opinion on this company.”

His
hesitation should have been a warning, but I pressed anyway. “Tell me. I’m just about desperate at this point.” I hated to admit it, but I was.

“Andrew Summers Industry is rumored to be in bed, both literally and figuratively, with Crescent United. If they put their forces together, both stocks are going to skyrocket. Since the failed merger with Stone Electric, Summers’ stock has been at record lows. I guarantee they will double when the market opens today.”

I glared at David as he grabbed his keys.

“You don’t have to do anything with that information, Jake. I just wanted you to know. I hope things go well for you today.” He shot me another sympathetic smile and left the condo.

I stood and paced, reeling from David’s information. How did Summers do it? How in the world did he get Rachel Barron, the ice queen of the business world, to work with him?

My hands grabbed at my face
, stretching the skin as if it would erase the horrible truth.

Andrew Summers was going to win…again.

The choice was staggering. Invest in his stock and double my bank account, or walk away with the integrity of knowing I had no part in his blood money.

I sat back down and looked into the Ra
dius Company David mentioned. The rising business was a good bet for long-term growth, but I needed money now.

Frustrated and desperate, I paced some more before finally making my decision. A few clicks later, all I could do was wait and watch. I had preset all of the numbers so the computer would sell the minute the stock hit my desired number.

At 9:30 a.m., the screen burst into a flurry of activity. Two hours later, I hit my mark and twenty thousand dollars was deposited back into my brokerage account.

But what
should have felt like victory and elation, felt only like disgust.

I
’d sold out, convinced I had a right to earn money off of him since he stole everything from me.

I shut the laptop, unable to look at the screen any longer, and grabbed my phone, wondering why I had so quickly dismissed Ammie. I scrolled through my contact list and searched for her name. She would come right back if I called.

But as her name appeared, so did another’s.

I clicked the name just to see Avery’s face again. It was one of the two of us laughing. I had taken it at an arm’s length despite her protest.

Avery had been the first girl to see beyond the mask, to make me feel special and loved the way my mother had done. She brought out the best in me.

My thumb hovered over her number, knowing she wouldn’t answer.

If only she knew how much I needed her, how much she did for me, then maybe…

“No,” I said out loud as a set the phone down.
She had rejected my love.

My phone lit up right as my ears heard the ding. The words stood out
on the screen as if they were a mirage.

Grant: This is Issy. When I call, please pick up.  

He found her.

I dropped to the couch, clutching the phone while my heart raced with anticipation. The phone rang and I immediately reacted.