*This novel contains mature content and is not intended for younger readers.
Kolson Hart and Gabriella Martinelli…destined to be together, fated to be torn apart.
After avoiding his father for years, Kolson knew asking his father, Langston Hart, for a favor would be like selling his soul to the devil. Only the devil wants more ... more than Kolson is willing to pay. But some promises can’t be broken, not without losing what’s most important. For Kolson, that’s Gabriella Martinelli.
Left with two choices–pay up or risk everything–Kolson’s only way out is to do something drastic, something so monumental not even Langston will be able to interfere. The question is: Will it be enough to guarantee Gabriella's safety from his father?
Kolson freed Gabriella from her past, and now he’s risking everything for her again. Will she be able to save him from the demon that hunts him? Or is fate too strong for them to fight?
As the suds rinse, I stare at and memorize everything about her. A deep clenching pain rips through my gut, and then I know it’s not true what they say about your heart breaking. It doesn’t even come close. Your heart doesn’t break. A gash splits your gut wide open and then it expands straight on up to your sternum until your heart explodes out of your chest. The f***ing thing isn’t broken. It’s goddamn annihilated. And there isn’t enough superglue in the entire world to piece it back together again. And then parts of you start to fall off, one by one. And you know it’s not possible to ever be put back together again. You’re f***ing Humpty Dumpty
Kolson
“Mommy! Mommy! I’m scared. Where are you?” Dark. It’s
so dark. I can’t see anything and my throat hurts so bad. I want my mommy. But
she won’t answer me. Why won’t she come? She always comes when I call her at
night. But she doesn’t come this time. And I keep calling her. My Spiderman
pajamas are wet and I want my blankie because I’m cold. My teeth make a
clicking noise because they keep chattering and they won’t stop. I have to pee
again and I don’t know where the potty is. I’ve already wet myself once and I
don’t want to do it again. Mommy will be mad at me and I don’t want to ruin my
Spiderman pajamas. Maybe if I roll up in a ball I’ll be warmer. After a while
it doesn’t help much, so I call for Mommy some more. But she still doesn’t
come.
There’s a noise somewhere and I lift my head. I
think I was sleeping. “Mommy, is that you? Mommy!” I sit up and it’s still so
dark out. I want to see my Spiderman pajamas so I hold my arm in front of my
face but it’s too dark to see anything. I scream. And scream so long my throat
hurts. And I cry. “Mommy! I want my mommy!” I curl up, knees to chest, and rock
back and forth, crying for Mommy. But she never comes.
Something scrapes in front of me. Is it a monster? I
think there’s a monster in here and I scream.
“Shut up. Stop that screaming or I’ll leave.”
I can’t stop screaming. I try but they keep coming
out of me, even though I don’t want them to. Something covers my mouth, and a
mean man tells me if I don’t shut up, I’ll have to stay in the dark forever.
His voice scares me more than the dark. More than not having my mommy. My body
shakes and suddenly my voice is gone. I can’t talk.
“That’s better. Now listen. This is your new home
and the sooner you learn some manners, the better it will be. Behave, and your
life will be easy. Obey me, and you’ll be given treats. Disobey, and you’ll be
left here alone. Do you understand me?”
The mean man says things to me but I don’t know what
they mean. I only sit and try to see him. But I only see the dark.
“Good. Now eat this.”
Something is pushed into my mouth. I can’t eat it
because my throat hurts so bad. I start to choke. Then I vomit.
The mean man yells and he wipes my face. It’s so
dark, I can’t see him.
“Drink.”
He shoves a straw in my mouth and I drink. When I do,
it burns my throat and I cry.
“More.”
I drink more but it hurts. My face is wet from
crying.
“Good.”
Then I hear the scraping sound and it’s quiet again.
And I curl up and cry. I want my mommy. I want her to sing to me and rub my back
like she does when my head hurts. I want her to kiss me and tell me a story. I
want to tell her I didn’t mean it when I did those bad things and didn’t listen
to her. Maybe that’s why she’s not here now. I’m sorry, Mommy. I didn’t mean
it. I’ll be good. Come back, Mommy.
It’s
often said that an addict has to hit rock bottom before they can begin their
journey to recovery. My story is much different. Surprisingly enough, I’m not
an addict and never have been. But I’ve been at the bottom. More than once. I
hit it the first time when I was only seven years old. Not only was it the
bottom. It was hell. It’s when I learned to lick the fiery flames of the devil
himself. Only my devil was a dragon. Also known as my father. What I didn’t
realize was that time was only a dip in the barrel compared to what would
happen to me later.
The
first time I thought he broke me but I didn’t know how wrong I was. It wasn’t
until later that I realized what kind of destruction he could spawn. And that
time I didn’t only break, he took me apart piece by piece, until there was
nothing left to crush.
William
Shakespeare wrote, “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we
not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not
revenge?” Well, for years I was wronged. And now I plan to seek revenge.
Carefully, slowly, and methodically. And when the time is right, I will strike
with everything I have.
Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Smashwords
One day, on her way home from work as a sales manager, A. M. Hargrove, realized her life was on fast forward and if she didn't do something soon, it would quickly be too late to write that work of fiction she had been dreaming of her whole life. So, she rolled down the passenger window of her fabulous (not) company car and tossed out her leather briefcase. Luckily, the pedestrian in the direct line of fire was a dodge ball pro and had über quick reflexes enabling him to avoid getting bashed in the head. Feeling a tad guilty about the near miss, A. M. made a speedy turn down a deserted side street before tossing her crummy, outdated piece-of-you-know-what lap top out the window. She breathed a liberating sigh of relief, picked up her cell phone, called her boss and quit her job. Grinning, she made another call to her hubs and told him of her new adventure (after making sure his heart was beating properly again). So began A. M. Hargrove's career as a YA/NA and Adult Romance writer. Her books include Kissing Fire, Edge of Disaster, Shattered Edge, the series the Guardians of Vesturon (Survival, Resurrection, Determinant, Beginnings and reEmergent), Dark Waltz, Tragically Flawed, Tragic Desires, and Exquisite Betrayal. Other than being in love with being in love, she loves chocolate, ice cream and coffee and is positive they should be added as part of the USDA food groups. (If you're wondering, it didn't happen EXACTLY that way, but….) You can also find her on Goodreads as Emerson St. Clair. Her novella series, Dirty Nights, is available and those are a little dark, a little erotic and a lot sexy!
Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Author Goodreads |
Kolson did so much for Gabriella and during all that time, there were secrets of his past that I was just dying to know about...
So, as I began this book, it started with a bang and didn't hold back.
I was in shock at the darkness that Kolson had endured and my heart bled for him. All I could think about was how in the world could this amazing guy have survived his past??
But, as I kept reading, his past isn't really in the past and now Kolson is having to deal with things he has tried to bury...
Does the love of a good woman help Kolson?? Does the past destroy the relationship he so desperately wants to have with Gabriella??
All I am going to say is that nothing goes as I would have expected...I was so proud of Gabriella and the strength she showed. She has grown so much through her own struggles....
But, you need to experience Freeing Him for yourself....Discover Kolson's past and battle the demons that seem to haunt him everyday...
No comments:
Post a Comment