Kiss This

Kiss This

Hadley Quinn

Copyright © 2013 by Hadley Quinn

The characters and events portrayed in this
work are entirely fictitious. Any similarity to real persons,
living or deceased, is purely coincidental and not intended by the
author.

No parts of this work may be copied or
reproduced, with exception of quoting excerpts of material for
reviewing purposes.

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“
If you live to be a
hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never
have to live without you.” –A.A. Milne

PROLOGUE

February 2012

Teague felt pressure on his forehead as
someone pinched his skin together, and he took a deep breath as he
returned to consciousness. When Jay patted his face roughly, Teague
finally opened his eyes. There were several familiar faces hovering
over him, and while the medic tended to the cut on his forehead,
only one person was bold enough to say what was on his mind.

“What the fuck was that?” Jay asked with
disbelief. “Were you seriously trying to kill your damn self?”

Teague blinked and tried to rub his eyes,
but something wasn’t working. His arm. He couldn’t lift it. “Ah,
shit…” he sighed.

“What?” Jay asked. “What’s going on, pal?
Talk to me. You know where you’re at, right?”

Hell yes, he knew where he was at. Why else
would he have five pounds of sand in his clothes and up his ass? “I
dislocated my shoulder,” Teague groaned as the pain finally
registered. He used his core strength to lift himself to a sitting
position on the beach.

“Ah hell, not again,” Jay said, observing
the way his shoulder drooped.

“Are you sure?” the medic asked.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Teague answered. He bit
back a string of curse words he wanted to shout and just took a
deep, aggravated breath instead.

“Okay, stand up,” Jay said. He grabbed
Teague’s good arm and pulled him up to a standing position. He
braced one hand against his chest and said, “Ready?”

“You’re not supposed to fucking ask,” Teague
growled. “Just do it.”

“We can set it for you, you know—” one of
the medics began, but Teague already let out a strained groan as
Jay knocked his shoulder into place with his other hand.

Jay faced his cousin as Teague took a few
measured breaths. “You good?” he asked.

Teague slowly nodded as he adjusted to the
pain. “Yeah. Get me the hell out of here.”

They walked past a sea of faces but Teague
didn’t look at a single one of them. He mumbled a few words to
those it was necessary to speak with, but other than that, everyone
left him alone and let him walk away.

“What happened?” Jay finally asked when they
were sitting in the Mustang.

Teague took in a long, deep breath and shook
his head as he let it out. “I wasn’t ready to do it.”

“Teague, you could do that fucking jump in
your sleep.”

“Fine, I had my mind elsewhere, okay? It’s
fucked me up so bad that I… I just can’t be here anymore. I just
can’t. I need some time away from it. From all of them. I can’t
take it anymore.”

“Okay, I hear ya,” Jay nodded.

Teague released a heavy sigh. “Quentin has a
house in Oregon. He said I could use it for as long as I want while
he’s in Europe. I think…I think I’m gonna do it. I need to get away
from here for a while.”

“Where in Oregon?”

“Somewhere on the coast near Lincoln
City.”

“That’s near where my dad is,” Jay mumbled,
running a hand over his head. “Oh well, who gives a fuck. I’ll come
with you.”

Teague shook his head. “I don’t think you
want to be around me right now, Jay.”

“I’m good for a vacation. How long?”

Teague slowly shook his head and then rested
it against the seat. “I have no idea. There’s nothing in this
fucking place worth coming back for.”

Jay didn’t respond as the car growled out of
the parking space.

Teague could feel the stares even with his
eyes closed, and when he chanced a glance back at the beach, his
anger began to refuel. Watching him leave were the two people in
his life that should love and support him no matter what, not stand
there shaking their heads with disappointment.

“I need a damn cigarette,” he mumbled. He
was surprised that Jay stopped at the first minute mart, but not
only that, allowed him to smoke in the Boss with him in it.

But then again, Teague’s life was a tangled
mess.

Even Jay felt sorry for him.

Chapter One

Ten months later…

Camryn Jacobs looked over her closet as she
pictured the packing list in her mind. She snagged a few of her
staple items, and then chose a couple of basic sweaters. Her sister
was sitting on the bed cross-legged with the stereo remote in her
hand. She switched Camryn’s alternative rock station to Christmas
music instead.

“Try not to forget to bring the mail in,”
Camryn said, placing several items on her bed. “You can just put
mine in here on my dresser.”

“Sure,” Melanie answered.

“I already paid anything that was due for
the next month, so you won’t have to worry about that,” Camryn
continued, removing three pairs of jeans from a drawer.

“Okay,” was the indifferent reply.

Camryn rolled her eyes. Like her sister
would care if collectors pounded down the door and the landlord
kicked them out of their two-bedroom Fresno rental. It wasn’t
Melanie’s responsibility, after all. Nothing was.

“Don’t forget to change the water in that
damn birdcage, either.” She considered trying for the most
efficient way to pack, and then just decided to stack things
however they ended up.

“Fine.”

Camryn tossed the last of her underwear and
socks into the bag and started to zip it shut. “You know you can
come with me, right? Brandon said he’d check on the house.”

Melanie flashed her bright green eyes with
alarm. “I’ll do whatever you just said, Cam. I promise. I mean…I’d
rather not be stuck here alone, but going with you to see mom is a
definite no for me. I just can’t do it.”

Sighing to herself, Camryn decided to let it
go. She’d much rather have Melanie come with her and let Brandon
check on the house. Two images dashed through her mind: the house
totally abandoned while Melanie flittered off to the next party, or
the house completely in shambles because of the parties that would
plow through it.

“And I can’t because I work,” Melanie added
flippantly as she examined her nails.

Camryn almost laughed. That was an excuse
used when it was convenient, not because she actually believed it.
At nineteen, Melanie Jacobs believed that one semester of college
was enough, and that her job as a barista was the best job in the
world to pick up guys. It wasn’t exactly far from the truth,
either. She always had some guy pursuing her and another one
chasing the hook she dangled.

Toting her bag to the hallway, Camryn pulled
her phone out of her pocket to call Brandon. Melanie yanked her
feet off the bed and silently followed her sister, just so she
could listen in.

“Hey, I’m ready to leave,” Camryn said into
the phone. “Of course, but I want to leave by noon so I can at
least get halfway tonight.” She set her bag by the front door while
she finished her conversation and then hung up. “I’m leaving in
about ten minutes when he gets here,” she told Melanie. “We’re
gonna get a late breakfast/early lunch and then I’m heading
out.”

“It’s called ‘brunch.’ And my hair
appointment’s at eleven-thirty so I guess I won’t be here.”

Camryn grabbed a jacket out of the hall
closet but didn’t know what last minute parenting she needed to do.
Tossing the jacket on her bag by the door, she decided not to
lecture her little sister again. She wouldn’t listen anyways.

“Drive safe,” Melanie added.

“ ‘Kay,” Camryn nodded. She gave Melanie a
long hug and sighed. “Please call me if… Well, just call if you
need to.”

“Sure, Cam. Tell mom hello, I guess.”

Camryn nodded as they pulled apart. She
didn’t mind helping her mom with funeral arrangements; it was the
emotional hurricane she was going to face in the process that was
going to get to her, and without someone else to share some of the
drama, it was going to suck even more. “Please call her anyways,
Mel. Even if you don’t want to.”

She saw Brandon pull into the driveway as
Melanie nodded a reluctant agreement. They spoke their goodbyes to
each other as Camryn grabbed her purse and shut the door behind
her.

***

“I don’t like the idea of you driving that
far on your own,” Brandon said, placing a hand over Camryn’s thigh
to squeeze it. They were practically side-by-side at a tiny table
for two, and he placed his elbow on it to lean his temple against
his fist.

“I’m a big girl,” Camryn replied. “Obviously
you know that by now.”

He laughed sarcastically. “Yeah, I do. But
still, it’s just the idea of you being on your own if something
happens.”

“And what’s going to happen? Car problems?
Gas station attendants wanting to fill
me
up instead? A
lonely trucker luring me into his love lair?”

Brandon lightly laughed. “Not funny, Cam. No
truckers.”

“Gas station guys are okay?”

“Sure. But only if you tell him your
boyfriend’s a six-foot-five linebacker for the Raiders.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “Six-five, huh?
Boyfriend? And the Raiders? Hmm, I could lie about your height and
status, but the Raiders? I’ll tell people you’re a Sumo
wrestler.”

He laughed out loud but shrugged. “Fine,
fine. Whatever works, pretty girl.”

She finished off her iced tea as the
waitress dropped the check on the table. Brandon scooped it up to
glance at the total, pulled his wallet out of his back pocket, and
dropped a few bills on the table with the tab. He took Camryn’s
hand and said, “Come on, lemme show you how much I adore you. Cold
Stone for dessert before you leave.”

She gave him an approving smile and let him
pull her along to the parking lot.

Sliding his arm around her shoulder he said,
“I am going to miss you, ya know. I wish you weren’t leaving for so
long.”

“Two weeks isn’t so long.”

He unlocked the passenger’s door of the
truck and waited while Camryn climbed in. When she sat, he gave her
a
look
and said, “Yes, it
is
a long time. I’m gonna
miss that smart mouth of yours.” When she smiled at his remark, he
leaned in and pressed his lips against her forehead.

She kissed him hard on the cheek before
shoving him back. “Get in and drive,” she commanded playfully. “I
want ice cream.”

With a grin he shut her door and hurried
around the front of the truck.

Camryn’s thoughts were all over the place
just from sitting in this seat. The smell of the truck had never
changed. If she closed her eyes and imagined hard enough, she could
place herself in a life two years ago. They might be going to the
lake right now. Zach would be holding her hand, or better yet, have
her crushed up against his side. Her head would be against his
shoulder and they’d be debating music or sports. She probably would
have kissed on his neck a little, played in his pants a bit, and he
would have joked about crashing the truck. She could hear his
voice, his laugh, his witty remarks…

“Did you catch that?”

Brandon’s voice smashed into her reverie,
and since she was brought back to reality, her chest started to
hurt again. It was never a good idea to think about Zach in public.
If she were at home, she’d curl up on her bed and cry.

“Um, what?” she asked.

“The Keys,” he nodded to the radio. “You
want me to get tickets?”

“Oh. I’ll have to check the calendar, but
that sounds great.”

Brandon flashed her a pleased smile, even
though she knew he could see right through her. He was ready for
her to do one of two things: either shut herself off entirely, or
get pissed and demand the gym.

He reached over and put his hand on her
shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “In for three, out for three.
You’re just fine, Cam.”

She nodded with a smile to reassure him. Two
years ago her life had suddenly changed. The first year was the
hardest as she dealt with the anger and despair, trying to find
anything she could to bandage the gaping hole in her chest.
Heartache had been killing her from the inside out and she depended
on physical exertion to get her through it. She kept busy with work
and looking out for her sister, and focused on as many distractions
as she could to remain emotionally afloat.