Teach Me To Live (Teach Me - Book One) (44 page)

The lock turned.

My breath caught.

And there she was. Raina Andrews.

Long blonde hair hung loose around the small frame of her pixie-like face. She was beautiful. Probably one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen. I can’t say any other woman has affected me in the way that Raina does. She warms me from the inside out. She steals my breath and rattles my soul. She’s just—she’s Raina.

Full pink lips parted on a harsh inhalation of air and her sharp green eyes widened. Her chest rose and fell and her breath hitched. She shook her head, looking a little stupefied, and a hell of a lot cute.

“What the hell are you doing here?” She demanded breathlessly.

Yeah, I should probably mention that I’m an asshole. Raina has been a constant in my world since as early as I can remember. Our parents are tight, so we were kind of raised together. Raina’s been a part of my life through it all, and vice versa. I was there through every stage of her metamorphosis. Skinny legs and buckteeth morphed into ball-busting curves and a smile to knock the breath right out of a guy—right out of me!

But I’ve been gone for nine months. I’ve been gone, and I haven’t called. Not once. Still, that didn’t mean I didn’t think of her every damn day. I did. Those green eyes haunted me every time I closed my eyes. The soft sweet coconut scent of her plagued my every dream. I most definitely hadn’t forgotten about Raina Andrews.

“Raina,”

“Kaiden?” She countered questioningly. “What are you doing here?”

“Are you going to let me in?” I’m not used to this cold standoff-ish Raina. She’s always been so warm, and comforting, and inviting.

“No.” Folding her arms over her chest, she glared those damning green eyes up at me.

I sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” She asked, continuing before I could get a word in. “For not calling for a year? For disappearing at a time when I know you needed me? For disappearing when I needed you?” Water shimmered in her eyes, and damn me, my heart clenched in my chest. “You left, Kaiden. You just left after
everything.
You left me. For a year.”

“It was nine months.”

“You’re correcting me?” She yelled without regard for the fact that we were standing in the hallway of her apartment. “You were the one who left without a word, and you’re correcting
me?
”

“Raina, I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” she huffed. “So am I, Kaiden.”

Her hand clipped the edge of the door and before I had time to react, she slammed the thing in my face. I blinked. I was stunned. The Raina I remembered was a definite hothead, but I’d always been her weakness.

Clearly, I wasn’t her weakness anymore.

Hey all! I want to say that I wish I could give every single one of my readers a great big heart hug for all the support you have given to me by being a part of Austin and Madison. I cried so much during this book it’s really unbelievable. This was an emotional ride for me—but I loved every moment!

I know this isn’t your typical happily ever after, but I do hope that I’ve given you something to smile about. Something to make your heart feel full and light. Something that has inspired you to
live.

Thank you,

XXX

Wow—this one has been a journey. I have to say, I’m horrible at acknowledgements. I actually kind of fear them. There are so many inspirations that bloom in the creation of a novel and I never want to forget someone. But for this book, I want to say a huge thank you to Cindi, a very dear friend to me, and the inspiration behind the heart hug. To all my Beta’s and Pimpers—Ashley, Marian, Dawn, Vicci, Nikki, Meredith, LJ, Wendy, Emma, and so many more—thank you. You have helped Madison and Austin become all that they could be and I am so grateful to you.

All my love. Always. X