Forgiving Love (The Soul Sisters Series Book 2) Read online

  Forgiving Love

  The Soul Sisters Series

  By

  Victoria Johns

  Copyright © 2015 Victoria Johns

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author or publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This work is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places or events are entirely coincidental.

  ISBN-10: 1508843627

  Other Books by Victoria Johns

  The Soul Sisters Series

  Fostering Love

  For my real life Neely. You are my person x

  For my Mum. Avid collector of bricks x

  A very special thanks to:-

  Suzie, Bina and Anna x

  All my beta readers, reviewers and the blogger community,

  You great people help me live my dream x

  Table of Contents

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Chapter Twenty Six

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  Chapter Twenty Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Epilogue

  Chapter One

  1 Year Ago (Well… 347 days, but who’s counting)

  “Sssshh,” he whispered, a little tipsy but still very much in the know of what we were about to do.

  “What if someone sees us, or realizes we’re missing?” I wanted people to see us, I was just giving him chance to come to terms with what he was doing.

  “No one will see, way too many people here for that. Come on keep up.”

  I did as he asked, I rounded the other party goers and avoided eye contact with anyone, I just kept moving. It was stupid really, I usually made it my business to attract attention and I’d been trying to get his attention for a while now. I couldn’t believe I’d pulled it off. We quickly stomped round the sides of a few sheds and barns, slowly leaving the noise and party bustle behind us.

  Christ. What’s his rush? I was seriously struggling in my heels, they were digging in the earth of the field and my super tight, super short skirt was not giving me any chance to hustle faster.

  He knew where he was heading and was only slightly swaying whilst continuing to take big gulps from the beer he was casually holding at the bottle neck. Maybe this isn’t a good idea, after wanting him for ages and deciding to take that shot tonight, I wasn’t sure I wanted a drunken shot at starting something with him.

  “Um… how about we just give this a miss and get together another time?” I suggested as he snuck us into an outbuilding.

  “Nah, come on, let’s have a bit of fun. I’m dying to see how you’re hiding underwear under that bit of fabric wrapped around that tight ass of yours.” He moved us towards the back of the building and stopped in front of a bench, he then reached up and grabbed an old picnic blanket from a shelf and put it over the edge of the bench. “Come on Neels, just let me get in there once.”

  “Seriously that is not the way to get what you want. It’s not the way to start things off,” I snapped back. I was definitely having second thoughts, his actions and mannerisms are not what I’m used to seeing and quite frankly, it’s ugly.

  A laugh leaves his face and he comes at me, “Sorry sweets, just the beer talking. Let me get a look at you.” He approaches me and frames my face with his hands, his gaze roams my features and I begin to see the man I’ve been watching from a far. He’s handsome, rugged and makes my mouth water. He gently kisses my lips and dips his tongue inside my mouth. I respond with a tiny gasp of shock and feel my belly melt at how sweet he’s being. Standing still, I let him kiss me gently and then feel his hands leave my face, slide down my neck and past my shoulders, where he tests the weight of my breasts in his palms.

  “Mmm. Ripe and full. Let me see them. I want to know what color your nipples are and see how hard I’m making them,” he murmurs. I don’t answer him and he interprets my lack of response or denial to proceed as permission to continue.

  He undoes the buttons on my blouse and smiles when he sees the demi-cut, lacy push up number enhancing the package I’ve got. He quickly looks at me and I think my pupils instantly dilate to meet the huge size his currently are. We’re both turned on and my inner ego slaps me on the back for making the brave approach tonight.

  Tonight things are going to change. I am going to get my guy.

  He pulls my bra down and this only pushes my breasts higher which seems to please him so he licks and swipes his tongue on me whilst humming with pleasure. I want him to continue, I feel good and I’m turned on, that much is obvious. I place my hands roughly at the back of his head and encourage him to continue. He takes this as a sign to get more involved and before I know it he’s hitched up my skirt and it’s now little more than a belt around my waist. I feel his hands run from my waist down my hips and to my thighs.

  He stops and looks at me with appreciation. “Well at least the underwear mystery is solved.” He’s right, I’m not wearing any because VPL in this skirt tips it from the hot category to slutty. Quick as a flash he lifts my ass onto the blanket on the bench and steps inside my legs. I can feel his hardness and the rough denim of his jeans rubbing along my thighs and cooch and it feels divine.

  I go back to kissing him and start really grabbing his hair because I want him to know I’m into this too. Before I know what’s happening I feel the head of his cock pushing at my opening, how did that happen? I didn’t even hear him unzip his jeans. I’m also a little surprised that he hasn’t done any ground work to see if I’m ready for him. I open my eyes wide and go to slow him down but all I can see is his eyes are closed and his face looks strained. Before I can get a word out of my mouth he grunts forward and rams himself into me.

  “Jesus, wait,” I try. I can cope with what he’s doing, but he’s not wearing a condom and I’m feeling a little less involved than I like, as in not involved at all.

  “Wow!” he says and in one fell swoop he retreats and comes back at me again. My slut ego begins to enjoy herself and reminds me that it’s been sometime since we had fun like this. I can tell how this is going and it won’t last long so I make the decision to become an active participant, but before I can act on my decision he grabs my feet and rests them on the edge of the bench. I’m exposed and full of him, really full of him.

  When he’s got me where he wants me he picks up his speed and rhythm and his beer red eyes take on a satisfied gleam. It’s not a pretty look and maybe I was wrong about just how drunk he was. As predicted his efforts don’t last long and after a few more shoves inside me he cums and stops abruptly, holding his position until he gets his breath back.

  O.K. Not what I was expecting, not only did he not check I was ready, not use a condom he also didn’t take care of me and that’s just selfish.

  “CHRIS,” I hear her voice shout and approaching footsteps, I start to shuffle and struggle to get him out of me and off me.
He doesn’t move though.

  “CHRIS, where are you? You promised me some alone time,” shouts Polly Vans again and she is definitely heading our way. She’s the girl from the ranch next door and has been insanely in love with Christopher Hales since she sprouted breasts and pubic hair. Their families are linked by trade, adjoining ranch land and friendship. Rumor has it that Chris was her first.

  “For fuck’s sake Chris will you get off me,” I demand, but it’s too late she’s hauling the outer door of the shed open.

  “Coming Penny, be with you in a min,” he shouts back. His nonchalant attitude makes me freeze and go cold.

  What. The. Fuck.

  “Cheers Neels,” he mumbles and starts to get busy by shoving his drooping cock back in his jeans.

  The bastard doesn’t even look at me or help me down from the bench. He just stumbles whilst turning to meet Polly at the door of the barn. The last image I have burned into my retinas is him putting his arm around her shoulder, dragging her to his side and walking out the door.

  As if that isn’t bad enough, at the last minute he turns to me and throws an odd look over his shoulder in my direction.

  Tears leak down my face as I put myself right and sort my clothes out. How did I make such a bad call? I feel dirty, used and am on the verge of seriously falling out with my inner slut ego. There have always been the signs and even odd rumors that he was a player who didn’t want to get involved, but I convinced myself that this was because he hadn’t found the right woman.

  I thought I was going to be that woman.

  A feeling of stone cold hatred moves through me and encases my heart in steel. I’m mortified that someone I’ve respected and have hung around with for years could treat me that way.

  My inner warrior starts fighting back and taking charge. Anger and rage are better than tears of despair, so I go with girl rule number one which is woman the fuck up and get out of there.

  Chapter Two

  Present Day

  “Work is dull. D. U. L. L. at the moment Dolly. I imagine raising Jonas’s broody bunch is more exciting than this at the moment.” I say this as I slap another research book on my desk. I’ve been a Paralegal at Hart, Hart & Smythe, Hawkstown’s local legal office since graduating college and I’m very good at it. I say this with pride because I know it’s true.

  She doesn’t answer me because she has this dreamy look on her face. “Where are the kids anyway?”

  “Barbara has them over at Mudjoes. They’ll be destroying the place and eating more cake than should be possible by two toddlers, so I thought I’d drop in and say hi.” Dalton Drakeson (was Frobisher) is my best friend, my yin to her yang, she’s the chocolate and I’m the chip, she’s my left and I’m her right. We’d been through everything together growing up in our small community. We both moved to Hawkstown when we were nine and ended up in the same class together. Since then it’s been fun, mischief, heartache and crazy times until she went through the craziest time of all. Dolly finally got the guy of her dreams, the guy she’s yearned over for years. Unfortunately it came with an accidental pregnancy and a kidnap drama, but it all ended well. Now she is Mrs two-point-four children family girl and is living her happily ever after.

  I love my soul sister, she totally deserves it. I’m so jealous, but in a good way… I think.

  Not jealous of her guy, just that she’s got one that looks at her like he would gift wrap the earth if she asked for it and give it to her at Christmas. Don’t misunderstand me, I’ve had my fair share of fun times and I still do, but I see this different type of fun that my best girl is having. It looks like really good fun and the contentment that comes with it is what I’m jealous of. I need to find the guy who will sweep me off my feet, treat me like a princess but can throw me round a bedroom, like the cheeky, dirty princess who really lives within me.

  I think I’m your average girl but my other soul sisters Lottie and Flo assure me I’m not and secretly, they’re probably right. On a night out I go out for maximum attention, after all, if a job’s worth doing, it’s worth really doing. I think my problem is that I’ve been in this town for so long that the available male fish pool is drying up. I’m no cougar and random hook ups only quench that specific thirst for a short period of time.

  My mom and dad think I’m intimidating. Dad says my intelligence level and “drive to the cause” puts guys off. Our love and family closeness doesn’t stop us arguing and disagreeing because he thinks I could be working in the city and “really using that brain of mine.” Mom feels very differently though, she sees the value in committing to our community and the beauty of wanting to put roots down where you were raised. I love that they are so different, they both give me every side of each argument but only ever guide me towards the decisions I need to make. My mom’s heritage and love of all things earth and nature is somewhere deep within me and comes to the forefront at the most random times. There are of course worse personality traits you could inherit from your folks so I’m thankful for what I’ve been blessed with.

  My job as a Paralegal isn’t brain taxing every day, but it can be interesting and I love the variety it brings. More often than not these days the variety tends to be in how I find the job, it can swing from interesting to mind numbing every few days. It’s probably the reason I’m feeling the relationship gap at the moment but I don’t complain though, I know I am valued and supported and have a great relationship with everyone in the office. They find it amusing when I’m hung over and turn a blind eye to my work approach and complete matter of fact attitude. I know this is because I’ve earned their respect and am good at what I do.

  I work for Steven Smythe, who can be a total sleaze. He is sometimes a lecherous creature, his innuendos are vast and many and his one liners come from some cringe worthy place reserved for creeps. I’ve learned facing him head on keeps him in line and he rarely strays out of his pervert box with me. All that said, he is a great lawyer and I learn a lot from him, there is no way I would put up with his shit otherwise. I’m sure he thinks that one day I will crack and fall at his feet, I remind him constantly that he has more chance of growing a vagina on his forehead than of us ever hooking up. Secretly we both know our working relationship runs smoothly because I provide amusing retorts to his commands and don’t give in easily during an argument. In return he gives me free rein to explore and research his cases as I want. He’s cool about teaching me new stuff and does it in a non-obvious way. Steven understands my mind prefers the mental challenge of figuring something out, with a slight push in the right direction to get a result.

  This brings me to the here and now, sitting in my office, having one of my very frequent visits from Dolly and I know she’s here because it’s time for Chris’s ranch BBQ.

  Chris Hales owns and manages one of Hawkstown’s largest working ranches. It’s a family business, he works hard and he runs it with pride and in truth despite the anger I feel towards him, he does it well. Chris holds the BBQ every year to introduce the new staff and formally kick the season off.

  I knew it was due about now because it’s nearly a year since the last one and I still haven’t dealt with what happened in that barn. You could say I’m not over it and I’ve got my head firmly buried in the proverbial sand about it.

  Dolly doesn’t know a thing about it, no one does. Why the hell would I share that with anyone? I expected Chris to make some lame hang over apology but he didn’t. He also didn’t carry on as normal, the same as I tried to do and we both know there is a problem between us, but until he comes to terms with it I refuse to make the first move to mend things. I am cordial with him at best, and I do this for the sake of group harmony, after all we’re part of the same gang of friends. Those friends see a very different Chris, they see the friend that would risk his life if one of them was in trouble. They see the friend that is part of our town’s community. They see the high school football hero and handsome all round guy who can do no wrong.

  I know differently, I
know that he’s capable of using the people he’s supposed to care about for his own fun and amusement. I know that he’s all front and hides a side of himself that makes me shake with rage and feel sick to my stomach. Chris is lucky, I use all my patience on him, and the effort I expend to remain friendly is totally out of character for me. I normally kill first and ask questions later.

  “So I’ll see you there tonight Neels? At Chris’s place? Barbara and Harrison have the twins overnight so Jonas and I can have a beer or two and let loose,” she finishes with a wink.

  “A beer or two? Even I know that’s not the reason you want A and B gone.” The Drakeson twin girls are referred to as A and B, firstly they were called this (along with peanuts) whilst Dolly was carrying them and they are the first letters of the girls names, Anna and Bea. Dolly titters at my reply but the gleam in her eye tells me she is planning on getting her some and that would be probably the multiple variety of some too.

  “Yeah, look maybe I’ll be there. Not sure yet Dolls. I’ve got some stuff I’m behind on here.” It’s not a yes and not a no, but I can sense she isn’t going to let things go.

  “Oh come on. It’s tradition we always help Chris kick his season off,” she whines. In all fairness she isn’t wrong about that, I really fucking helped him get it underway last year. I know I’m not going to be able to get out of this.

  “Yeah, alright. I’ll pop by.” It’s a compromise because I know she won’t let me get away with not going and my stubborn self refuses to give in too easily and be enthusiastic.

  “Cool sister, see you later then,” she says and heads for the door.

  The door to Steven’s office opens and he walks over to my desk the same way he does when he needs me to pay attention and drop what I’m doing. Today he’s dressed in a sharp three piece suit and at some point during the morning the jacket has been discarded and he’s rolled up his sleeves with a precision that means business. His whole life runs like clockwork and is as precise as the equally measured rolls in his shirt sleeves. In all fairness he is an attractive guy, he’s lean with a subtle amount of muscle and knows what clothes suit him. He has a great head of honey blonde hair and it’s only when he opens the gap on the front of his face that you start to feel mildly violent towards him, but working with him for years means that I have surpassed the anger phase. I can just block him out as an irritant and continue.