His lips twitch in humor. “I know. Talk to me. What’s wrong?”
“Maybe I just didn’t get enough sleep last night.” It’s not a lie; I didn’t sleep well last night.
“Hmm.” He studies me closely for a second. “You look well rested.”
“I’m fine.”
He tilts his head to the side. “Don’t ever lie to me, Savannah.”
His eyes are narrowed, and between that hot look and his firm voice, well, I guess you’d say I’m all kinds of turned on.
So of course Eli pokes his head around the corner, interrupting us.
“Ben, are you going to come shoot hoops with us?”
“Yeah, we’re almost done here.”
Eli nods and disappears, and I want to beg Ben not to go. Don’t go shoot hoops, don’t go away to college.
Stay with me.
But that’s dumb, and he’d probably laugh at me and tell me I’m being stupid. I’m just a kid, after all. Fifteen-year-olds don’t have anything figured out, and I’m a baby.
But I don’t feel like a baby when he’s near. Not at all.
Ben cocks a brow, waiting for me to answer him.
“I’m not lying.” I shrug a shoulder and do my best to look like I’ve got all of my feelings under control.
I should win an Oscar for this performance.
“You’ve got this handled,” Ben says with a smile after studying me for a moment. “You’re doing great, Van. I’m going to go shoot with the guys, but I’ll be around later if you have any questions.”
“Okay.” I smile and nod, turning my attention to my homework. “Thanks.”
“Van?”
My head whips up. “Yeah?”
“Even though I like your hair longer, this is cute too.”
He grins and winks at me, and then he’s gone, and I’m left sitting here in the dining room, my hands sweaty, and a stupid grin on my face.
Ben thinks my hair is cute.
It’s a start.
Chapter One
Present Day
Savannah
Two years.
It’s been two years since the day I thought I was going to die, but instead I was set free.
I didn’t sleep last night, but that’s not new. I haven’t been able to sleep well in years. It’s probably the biggest thing that I still carry with me from my marriage, and no matter what I do, I can’t seem to change it.
But compared to where I was two years ago, not sleeping great is not worth complaining about.
I stare at myself in my vanity mirror, my brush clenched in my white knuckles and search my unblemished face. I can still see the bruises from that last beating. The marks around my neck from where he savagely strangled me. The wet hair from the tub where he tried to drown me. I can still feel the humiliation when my siblings came running into the bedroom after I called them for help.
Even Ben came, and that was the biggest humiliation of all. I never wanted anyone to ever see me like that, especially the man that I’ve loved my entire adult life. For a moment, I’d almost wished that Lance had done the job of killing me, just so I wouldn’t have to see the absolute fury and disgust in Ben’s face.
These two years have gone by in the blink of an eye, and yet, there were moments when I thought the days moved like a glacier. I spent many months living with family, afraid to be alone. I’ve been through hundreds of hours of therapy, and I take a self defense class every week.
I grin at myself in the mirror.
I’m here, I’m alive, and I don’t look like I’m going to break at any moment.
My cheeks have color, my hazel eyes look happy, and my lips curve up in genuine smiles again.
Thank God.
My mom and most of my siblings have already sent me texts this morning, sending words of love and encouragement. Just as I raise the brush to my hair my phone beeps again.
It’s my twin brother, Declan.
I love you.
I grin, not willing to let any tears fall today, whether they’re from sadness or happiness, and reply.
Love you more.
I wouldn’t have made it through the months after the incident without my family. That’s not me being dramatic, it’s simple honesty.
Without them, I would have lost my mind.
My phone pings again and lights up, catching my eye. But this time, it’s not a sibling.
It’s Ben.
“And cue the freaking butterflies,” I whisper as I check the message.
Lunch?
I take a deep breath, close my eyes, and grin. Ben’s a man of few words, especially when it comes to the telephone. He’s really much better in person.
Except, when I’m with him, I’m the one who ends up being tongue-tied. Holy Jesus, the man has had the same effect on me since I hit puberty.
All rational thought is gone, and all I want to do is climb him like the big oak trees out at my sister’s inn.
Ben has been best friends with my brothers since they were young boys, so he was always at my house, and I would come up with any reason I could think of to be where he was.
Much to my brothers’ dismay.
But then he went off to college, and our lives didn’t cross much for a few years. I eventually went to college myself, in Tennessee, and met Lance there.
I frown at myself in the mirror.
“Don’t even think that asshole’s name.”
I punch out a quick response to Ben and grin when he immediately replies.
Usual place, 1:00.
Yes, sir. I laugh as I close out the text and wander into my closet to choose my outfit for today. I decided to take the day away from the office. A woman doesn’t escape from the worst horror of her life every day. It should be celebrated.
The alternative is to overthink and get broody, and I’ve done that way too much over the past two years.
I deliberately select something that he would have never let me wear. A pretty pair of blue cropped pants with a white, sleeveless button down top and red ballet flats. He would have said that I was showing too much skin. Even in the hottest summer months I wasn’t allowed to wear sleeveless tops, or skirts shorter than my ankles. It’s wonderful to have a large wardrobe full of pretty things that I love. I reach for my red Louis Vuitton handbag to match my outfit and finish pulling myself together for the day.
And then my phone rings. It’s Larry, my ex-husband’s brother. Despite the bullshit his brother put me through, Larry has maintained a relationship with me. He was always kind, and I’m glad to still have him in my life. My family was hesitant at first, but Larry has always been respectful, only being around as much as we’re all comfortable with. How he was raised in the same house with his brother and didn’t turn out completely evil is beyond me.
“Hello?”
“Hey there, hot stuff,” he says, making me laugh. “How are you today?”
“Never been better,” I reply and grin as I realize that it’s not an exaggeration.
“You sound great.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “Is it weird that I thought I should check in on you today?”
“Not at all; all of the other important people in my life have done the same. I figured everyone would forget.”
He’s quiet for a moment. “No one will ever forget, Van. If I had known—”
Easy Fortune: A Boudreaux Series Novella
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