Read Nothing Lasts Forever Online
Authors: Cyndi Raye
Tags: #saga, #women's fiction, #literary, #comtemporary, #Romance, #new adult, #short story, #dating, #relationships, #love, #doctor, #hospital, #family, #fallinginlove, #Suspense, #heartbreak, #medical
Author of the Tomorrow Series presents book #2 of the Forever Series
Nothing Lasts Forever
by
Cyndi Raye
Copyright © 2014
www.CyndiRaye.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced in any format, by any means, electronic or otherwise, without prior consent from the copyright owner and publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. All characters, names, places and events are the product of the author's imagination or used fictitiously.
To NRW, one of the lights of my life. Like Abby and Jon in this series, nothing lasts forever, but anyone can get through those tough times. I love you for your strength when life gets hard. Storms never last.
Chapter 1
“Elvis who?” Jon relaxed with his feet propped up on the dash while Abby steered the RV in to the campground.
“You know, the king of rock n roll. We’re right next to the mansion he lived in. It’s famous.”
Jon nodded but his eyes stayed on how close she came to the fence as they drove through the gate. “Want me to park this rig?”
Abby laughed out loud. “Nope. I’m going to park it this time without any mishaps.”
Jon sighed.
“It was obvious the other camper was in my way and took up too much room.”
“The camper gave you enough room to get through.”
“There was a bug on my nose and when I swiped it off, the RV kind of turned with me.”
Jon shook his head. “It was sweet of you to buy them a brand new camper.”
“That thing she drove was ready to fall apart. It’s good I did crash in to the side of theirs. Now they can drive around in a nice, new, dent free rig.”
“It’s nice you have so much money to burn.”
“You’re in love with a rich woman. Don’t complain,” Abby teased, but she knew her money did not mean a thing to Jon. He was a doctor and well off by any standard. Her grandfather left her with enough money to live a life of comfort. They’d never have to worry about hardships in the financial department, so if she could make someone else happy with a few nice things, she would.
“Abby, heads up.”
She forgot for a moment she drove the rig along a one lane road through the campground. “Our spot is along the back near the cabins. I reserved a nice, quiet area against the tree-line. Penny will love it.”
“Stop the rig.”
“What? No. I can do this.”
Jon placed a hand on hers. “Please.”
Abby looked up to see a row of orange cones knocked over. “Now who did that? Oh, rats!” She hit the brake while Jon took his hand and shoved the RV in park.
He let out a long sigh. “Thank you.”
They switched seats and the rig began to move towards the back of the campground. Abby giggled to herself and stretched in the seat. “Can you believe we’re almost here? I’m so close to where Elvis lived and the children’s hospital is minutes away. Thirteen to be exact.”
Jon smiled, his eyes on the road as he concentrated on the one lane road. When Abby pointed to their reserved spot, he began to back the rig in to their space. It was lined with trees on the backside and enough room so Penny could wander about outside. A picnic table sat on a concrete slab, along with a small charcoal grill embedded in the ground.
“I could’ve parked this rig, you know.” Abby jumped up before the RV came to a complete stop. She was stoked. She unlocked the door and it flew open. Abby took a giant leap from the bus and twirled around. Penny ran after, her tail wagging back and forth.
Jon leaned over the steering wheel and she knew his eyes were on her. “I’m so complete,” she told him as she twirled around and then stopped when she saw him stare. She swallowed. His forearms were across the wheel as he gazed at her with hungry eyes. They said tonight. He was kind and caring and waited a long time to make love to her. She wouldn’t keep him from it any longer. She flung her head back and raised her hands in the air. “Yes! Tonight.”
As she twirled around, he got off the rig and came at her like a mountain lion who conquered his prey. His arm went around her waist and with his other hand, he wrapped it around the back of her neck and crushed her body to his. His mouth found hers in a long, deep kiss. Abby’s heart pounded as she melted in to him. Tiny puffs of air escaped from her lungs when he released her mouth. “That was crazy wild. I can’t seem to breathe.”
He nuzzled her neck. “It’s a taste of what’s in store for later.”
She pushed him back, her knees weak and yet she knew the moment they parked the rig this would happen. “Promise?” she whispered.
Jon nodded. “Soon.” His chest heaved a bit before she watched him get control of himself.
“Why wait?” she challenged, her voice low, sultry. There was no reason to wait any longer. Except right at that moment an older couple decided to appear out of nowhere.
Abby turned to find a lady with long red hair splattered with grey at the roots dressed in a tie-dyed summer dress. She wore loose fitting flip flops on her feet and the biggest smile ever. Penny began to whine when the man and woman strolled hand in hand towards them. “Hi there,” the woman said.
With her other hand she waved to them. “I’m Anne, we’re the greeters. Are you Elvis fans?” She looked from Jon to Abby and when he shook his head no, her eyes widened. “No? Well then you won’t need these coupons to get in to the mansion.”
Abby interrupted and held out her hand for the coupons. “Oh nice to meet you. We’ll take them. I plan to turn Jon in to an Elvis fan before we leave here.” She didn’t look at Jon to see how he reacted to the news. “My parents introduced me to Elvis. My mom would hold me on her lap under the stars and she would sing Love Me Tender until I fell asleep. I learned a lot of his songs that way.”
“Good for you honey. Tell me, what’s a young couple like you two doing out here in Memphis if not for Elvis?” She stared, her eyes suspicious.
“Could be we’re up to no good,” Jon challenged. He stared right back at the older woman, his eyes dark and brooding.
He didn’t like the couple interrupted their kiss.
Abby tried to hide a smile. He was desperate and hungry for her.
The older man, his dark brown hair a product of dye, laughed out loud. “We’re gonna move on, but if you need any help, stop by the trailer on lot #15. I’m Joe.” He nodded and shook hands before he grabbed a hold of his wife’s arm and strolled away.
Jon slung an arm around Abby and pulled her close. “Let’s get this rig hunkered down and we can relax the rest of the night. I’m beat, it’s been a long trip.”
Abby slipped from his embrace. “Eighteen hours and twenty nine minutes on the road. That doesn’t include our overnight disaster in Mississippi.”
Biloxi turned out to be a night to forget. It started when Abby side-swiped the camper and they had to console a woman with three kids. She was living in the camper while she waited for her love to come home on leave from the Army. Abby and Jon drove them to the nearest RV center to buy her a brand new one instead of going through the insurance.
The new rig wouldn’t be ready until the next morning so the woman and her three children spent the night on Abby’s rig since there wasn’t a hotel close by. Jon wasn’t too happy to share space with a woman and her family so he slept outside in a chair. The next morning they dropped off the woman and her kids at the RV center to a brand new RV paid for by Abby’s estate.
Tonight it would be the two of them at last. After all this time, she would have him in her arms. She was scared and nervous and excited. Would he realize she never had sex with anyone before? At her age, she should have done it with at least someone. But her life had been different than most. Homeless with her parent’s until she was seventeen and later, her philanthropy took up all of her time. She never cared about a relationship. That is, until Jon.
Now all she could think about was how he would make love to her. Tonight.
She followed him while he secured the motor home and hooked up the hoses and electric. With the push of a button the awning rolled out and she helped Jon set up their little patio. This would be their home on wheels for the next few weeks.
Penny began to explore the area around their camp. She didn’t need a leash, but since the campground’s rules required all dogs to have one, Abby secured it to her leather collar. Penny looked up at her like a caged animal would, but she bent down to reassure the dog. “Oh Penny, we must follow rules or we’ll get thrown out with no other place to go.” The dog sat back on her haunches, her hot breath on Abby and her tongue slaked out and gave a big sloppy kiss. She giggled and hugged her best friend. “I’m going to take her exploring,” she told Jon, who busied himself at the grill.
“Don’t go too far without me,” he told her.
“I won’t. I’m going to check out the tree line over yonder,” she mentioned and began to trek toward the small row of thick, dense brush and trees. Penny trotted through the grass, pulling the leash forward so Abby had to run to keep up with her. She looked back once to see Jon stand by the grill, hands on hips as he watched her frolic with Penny. His head tilted to one side, his stare intense, she stared back at him, the dog forgotten. This man, the man who claimed to love her, wanted her like no one ever had before.
Would she be able to please him? He was worldly, a physician. Abby was sure he’d been with many women before. Her pulse began to quicken at the thought of disappointing him. She sucked in a deep breath and let it out. She wanted him, more than she wanted anything, even her work at the children’s hospital. Volunteering was her life and so much of who she was, but he was now so deep in her heart all she could think about at the moment was how he would hold her in his arms.
She’d give it her best shot and if she didn’t live up to his standards, then she’d take a course in lovemaking or something. They must have them online. What did he expect from her, she wondered. She followed Penny around the grass for a while and then hurried back to her love. She needed to ask him some pertinent questions before tonight. Questions to reassure her, without him suspecting she pressed him because she was afraid and nervous.
She sat on one of the zero gravity chairs they put out earlier and reclined back. “Jon, how many girlfriends have you had before me?”
He leaned over the grill and flipped their burgers, then tossed them on to the buns on the paper plates. He topped the bun with a fresh sliced tomato and a fistful of lettuce then handed Abby a plate before taking his place in the other chair beside her. “Why do you ask?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure, curious I guess.” She took a bite of the burger, filling her mouth with food so she wouldn’t have to explain more. She wanted the question answered.
He grinned. “I had a few.”
“How many is a few?”
Jon cocked his head, his brow furrowed. “Do you want me to answer truthfully or tell you something to make you feel good? I’m not sure what to say. I never talk about other women when I’m with someone.”
Abby sighed. “I need to know.”
He took a bite of the burger, taking his time to chew and swallow before he spoke. “Abby, you’re asking a loaded question but I’ll be honest. I dated a lot of women but I never went out with them twice.”
So he likes one night stands! How do I compete in that area? Will he make love to me and then dump me too?
“Well, what kind of women? I mean blondes, dark hair, skinny, fat? What kind of woman do you like, you know, in bed with you?”
Jon stared at her while dark eyes watched her mouth as she chewed on the burger. “I like all kinds of women, but I love redheads. There’s a particular one I’m thinking about right now.”
Abby smiled as if she knew the world’s biggest secret. “How did you have time to date so many women and become a doctor at the same time?” she questioned.
Jon laughed out loud. “You got me there, Abby. There’s not much time to date in med school. A quick fling now and again is all, but after I became a doctor, I made sure to make up for lost time.”