Carla Krae - [My Once and Future Love Revisited 02] Read online

  BETRAYED

  Absence makes the heart grow fonder...or forgetful. Jacob is attending university in London while Beth stays in Los Angeles. The tender long-distance relationship falls apart when she believes he betrayed her on the same day she learns her mother's cancer has returned. Sometimes love doesn't have a happy ending, at least not the first time.

  Years after their relationship crashed and burned, Jacob is the world’s newest hot rock star, and running into him in a twenty-four-hour market is the last thing Beth wanted or expected. The biggest surprise? He has an offer for her she can’t refuse.

  Betrayed is the second of five books in the My Once and Future Love Revisited series exploring Beth and Jacob’s relationship with all its joys, flaws, and heartache. New Adult Contemporary Romance saga.

  By Carla Krae

  Published by Willowick Publishing at Smashwords

  Copyright 2013 Carla Krae

  The right of Carla Krae to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  My Once and Future Love Revisited series:

  Kissed – Nov 3, 2013 paperback

  Betrayed – Dec 1, 2014 paperback

  Forgiven – Jan 5, 2014 paperback

  Loved – Feb 2, 2014 paperback

  Book #5 – coming 2014

  Prologue

  Christmas Day 2011

  There were voices in the hall.

  Beth ignored them. It was only her sister-in-law Darcy, and Dad. Darcy got up with the baby, and Daddy never slept past 6:00AM unless he was deathly ill. She wished they’d move further away from her room, though. She wasn’t a deep sleeper.

  Managing to drift off again, she didn’t notice when someone opened the door a couple hours later. They crept in, leaving the door ajar, and sat down by the side of the bed near her face, waiting for her to sense their presence.

  Patience must’ve been short. “Buh! Buh, Buh!”

  Beth yawned. “Hey, munchkin…how’d you get in here?” Baby Sarah smiled a toothless grin and gurgled happily. “Hey, somebody? Escapee baby in here!”

  She didn’t have her glasses on and rolled over when a male figure came in to get Sarah. The door closed a second later. “Too early for Christmas,” she mumbled in the darkness.

  “It’s nearing nine, lazy bones,” a voice softly said.

  Can’t be… “I’m dreaming…”

  “In Rudolph pajamas?” the voice countered.

  Her eyes shot open. “It’s possible.”

  “Is it possible to dream with you, love?”

  “Ohmigod.”

  Beth rolled over and came face-to-face with the source. Only one person in the world called her “love” like that! “Are you here?” she whispered, afraid she really was dreaming.

  “You tell me,” he said, then kissed her. A kiss of two months’ pent-up passion.

  She felt tears running down her face, but she wasn’t going to let him go for a second to wipe them away. He seemed to read her thought, his hands coming up to her face, his thumbs brushing the tracks away under her eyes. She slid off the bed into his lap, wrapping her body around his. “How?” she gasped into his mouth.

  Jacob only pulled back far enough to break the kiss. “I had to come. We’re on traveling days, and I finally said screw it—we’re going to see our families one damn bloody day out of the year. You have me for twenty-four hours.”

  “I’ll take it! God, I’ve missed you!”

  He kissed her again. “Missed you, too…so much. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  “Bethie…” He said her name with enough reverence to break her heart. “Again?”

  “I love you, Jacob.” Huh, not so scary the second time. “I have for so long. I just didn’t have the words.”

  “Think your dad would kill me if I shagged you right now?”

  She giggled. “Save it for later, big boy. I don’t want an audience.”

  He sighed, then she felt him smile as wide as his face would go. “Happy Christmas, sweetheart.”

  “Mmm. Best Christmas ever.”

  They would’ve stayed wrapped around each other on the guest bedroom floor indefinitely, but it was only a few minutes later when someone coughed very loudly outside the door. Point taken, they reluctantly parted.

  Beth opened the door to find her whole family eavesdropping in the hall. “Something I can help you with?”

  “Nope, just passing by,” Darcy said, then winked.

  Dad looked very relieved to find them both still fully clothed. Beth stifled a laugh as they went back to the living room. Jacob glanced at her and snickered, just as amused.

  “Get dressed, woman. I have presents.”

  She pouted. “But yours is at home.”

  “Correction, I already got mine.”

  She blushed. “Oh. Yeah. Gee, if I’d known you were that easy to please…”

  “Hush, vixen, or I withhold your gifts until next Christmas.”

  Miming zipping her lips shut, she batted her eyelashes, trying to look innocent. He rolled his eyes and wagged his finger at her. She stepped back in the bedroom and closed the door before he could tickle her into submission.

  Keeping their hands off each other in front of her family proved difficult. And frustrating. The normal holiday rituals of Christmas breakfast and Christmas dinner and everything else in between seemed to take forever. And to top it off, Andrew and Darcy apparently shared a tradition with their neighbors of having the whole town stop by to say hello!

  Well, it felt like the whole town.

  Jacob settled into the routine fairly quickly, though. Ironically, it was Beth that sat there jittery and looking for the quickest opportunity to pull him into a closet. Couldn’t she get five minutes alone to grope her man? It amused him greatly to see her so frustrated.

  That lasted until they were left in the living room alone for a few minutes. He motioned her over to the window seat, out of direct line of sight, and kissed her breathless.

  “What was that for?” she asked happily.

  “Opportunity. Listen…” He fidgeted with a small box he’d produced from somewhere. “I wanted to give you this. We can exchange the rest at home, but I couldn’t wait.” He handed over the box.

  It was light blue, and her eyes widened. “Jacob, this is—” Tiffany Co.

  “Just open it.”

  She slid the white ribbon off and removed the lid. Inside was a silver fob with one key on the ring. “A key?”

  “My key. Don’t wig out—I’m not asking for anything, I… I want you to know you’re welcome in my home just as much as before, only—”

  She stopped his rambling with her fingers on his lips, and smiled. “I understand. Thank you.”

  He let out a relieved breath and drew her into a hug. “Merry Christmas, Beth.”

  “Merry Christmas, Jacob. I’m so glad you came.”

  She laced fingers with his and led him into the kitchen where her family was sneaking cookies.

  Out of bedrooms, Darcy put Jacob on the couch for the night. Once the others were asleep, Beth snuck o
ut to the living room and snuggled up to him under the blanket.

  “Mmm, my Bethie…”

  “Didn’t mean to wake you,” she whispered.

  He yawned. “Didn’t. I’m still on Russian time.”

  She caressed his face. “Sleep if you want to. I just wanted to be close while you’re here.”

  “I love you.” He raised his head up to kiss her.

  “Love you, too.”

  She laid her head on his chest and slept better than she had in weeks. He would have to leave in the morning, but it was only for a week, and then…well, so started her life with a rock star.

  Chapter One

  2002

  Bright light hit Jacob’s face. He squeezed his eyes shut tighter and rolled over to hide from the sun. Long hair tickled his nose. What the…?

  Beth. As the haze of sleep cleared from his mind, he remembered the night before, and falling asleep sated and holding her. She’d rolled onto her side away from him, the sheet tucked under her chin. He reached up and pulled the drapes closed above his bed, shutting out the offending light, and cuddled up to her back.

  “Mmm…what time is it?” she mumbled.

  “Don’t know. Sun’s up.”

  She squirmed her hips forward an inch. “Quit poking me.”

  “Morning wood. Can’t help it.”

  “Geesh.”

  He grinned and snuggled closer again. Holding her was really comfortable. He could get used to this. “Will you be missed?”

  “Nah. It’s Saturday.” She rolled partially onto her back. “We do our own thing in the morning.”

  He kissed her nose. “Good. Rather sleep in.”

  She smiled. “We were up late.”

  “Mmm.” He put his head down on his pillow. “Starting to like this weekend trend, Miss Lawson.”

  She rolled to face him. “Me, too.”

  If she let him, he’d keep her in bed until their stomachs made too much noise to ignore. They’d christened his bed in a hell of a fashion, only stopping when she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. He pulled the sheet over their bodies, wrapped his arms around her with her head on his shoulder, and that was the last thing he remembered. Fell right to sleep for the first time in days.

  Her eyes were closed again.

  “You asleep, love?”

  “No,” she said, and yawned. “Sorry. Probably have morning breath.”

  “Nah.”

  She opened her eyes. “How long are you here?”

  “Long as it takes to box everything up.”

  “Are you going to miss the house?”

  A fair question. He’d lived here more years than he hadn’t. “Some. I’ll miss climbin’ over your wall more.”

  She smiled. “A lot of memories in two years. I’ll miss your mom being next door, too. You’ll both be so far away.”

  He kissed her pout. “I’ll miss comin’ back to the ol’ place, no question. When I left for uni, I thought I missed England…and I did, but L.A. might tip the scale of home a bit more.” He laced their fingers together. “And now there’s you.”

  “Jacob…”

  He kissed her before she started crying, before he laid his heart out too soon, and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. She moaned into his mouth, her hand clutching his shoulder. He loved her soft skin, especially when there was so much of it available to his fingers, and stroked her back, over her ass, and down her thigh. She curled her leg over his hip.

  She broke away from the kiss. “Do you have any more…?” Her brows rose, and he caught her meaning.

  “Don’t know.” He grinned. “Last night was intense.”

  She smiled back, but her cheeks turned pink. “Uh-huh.”

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah. Sleepy. And hungry.”

  He brushed her hair behind her ear. “Could see what’s around for breakfast.”

  Her nose wrinkled up. “You can move.”

  “I spend eleven hours on a plane and you want to be waited on?” he teased.

  “Yup.” She popped the “p” at the end.

  Now he was thinking about food, his stomach started gurgling. “Fine…but don’t think this’ll be a habit, missy.” He got out of bed and grabbed his jeans.

  She watched him pull them on, her hand propping her head up on the pillow. Though he knew he was a good-looking bloke, it thrilled him to see her admire him so blatantly. Put a bit more cock into his walk. He left the jeans unbuttoned.

  The refrigerator was mostly bare, his mother making sure she didn’t come back to a rotting kitchen. Too bad there was no milk for cereal…

  Beth never thought she’d be naked in this bed listening to Jacob hum in the kitchen. Even through all the years of wanting him to kiss her, she never thought further than I’d trust him to be my first. Now, she was thoroughly twitterpated, and had sex over two nights with her best friend, the change in their relationship just hours shy of two weeks old.

  Frea-ky.

  But awesome. This week would’ve been a lot harder without him answering her calls.

  Her bladder said it was time to get up, so she found her underwear and his t-shirt and used his bathroom. The girl in the mirror made her do a double-take. Her hair was a rat’s nest and she had a dark purple hickey on the side of her neck above her collarbone. There was no way of hiding that mark without wearing a turtleneck.

  She walked into the kitchen and slugged his arm. “Are you trying to get me in trouble?”

  “Hey! What are you on about?”

  “This. I told you not to leave obvious marks.”

  He touched it. “That’s a good one.” He grabbed the waffle that popped up out of the toaster. “Ooo, hot.”

  “Dumb-ass. My dad is going to freak when he sees my neck!”

  “Wear a scarf,” he said with his mouth full. “It’d be cute.”

  She rolled her eyes and grabbed the apple he left on the counter. “I don’t have a scarf, or a short-sleeve turtleneck, or make-up thick enough to hide this thing. You realize you have to flee now before he kicks your ass.”

  “Is he really going to notice with all that’s going on, Beth? A love bite’s a bit insignificant right now. Just hide it with your hair or something.”

  “Mom will notice and she’ll tell him, and she’s smart enough to put two and two together if they know you’re in town.”

  “What, you never made out in high school?”

  “No.”

  “Not ever?” He asked like he couldn’t imagine people existing with such a history.

  She looked away. “Kissing you was the first time I kissed anybody.”

  “Wow.” He took her face in his hands. “I’m honored.”

  She blushed. “Shut up. No fair being sweet when I’m annoyed with you.”

  He gathered her into his arms. “If it’ll make you feel better, I’ll take you shopping.” He looked down. “Are you naked under my shirt?”

  “God, you have a one-track mind.”

  “Didn’t answer my question.” His hands slid under the hem of the tee.

  She batted his hands away before he could distract her with their talents. “Quit that. I’m mad at you.”

  He grinned. “No, you’re not.”

  Okay, she wasn’t mad, but definitely inconvenienced. The hickey was not a good thing to come home with and she wished she could hide out until it faded, which, with her fair skin, couldn’t come soon enough.

  “Don’t wanna play, Jacob.” She sat on one of the dining chairs and bit into the apple.

  Seeing her genuinely put out, his demeanor changed and became more contrite. “I’m sorry, love. I’ll remember next time.”

  Guess it bothered her so much because it reminded her she was still a kid in some ways, and stuff like this was only the beginning of things that would chafe until she struck out in the world on her own. The dorm still awaited, but with Mom’s diagnosis… Well, she hadn’t decided if she could leave home, yet. On the one hand, she’d h
ave freedom. On the other, she’d worry.

  He touched her shoulder. “Hey, what’s going through that head, kitten?”

  “Lots.” She rubbed her forehead. “Too much, lately.”

  Moving a chair close to hers, he sat and put his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him. “I’m here, okay?”

  “I know. Until you have to leave.”

  He didn’t reply to that and she didn’t ask him to. They sat cuddling until the mood settled and they could turn their attention back to food.

  After breakfast, she wanted to get dressed, but needed a shower somethin’ awful. They went through a round of you go—no, you go and ended up with him using his mother’s bathroom and her using his. She braided her hair over the side with the bruise, which sort of concealed it.

  “What would you like to do today?” he asked, leaning casually on the doorframe.

  “Aren’t you supposed to box up the house?”

  “Technically, but I think I’m allowed to spend a day with my girl.”

  She’d never get tired of hearing that—my girl. “I don’t know…” She looked in the direction of her house. “Mom might need something.”

  “We could go to the beach, take your camera, escape the heat a bit…”

  That smile wouldn’t sway her this time. “Let me check in first.”

  He sighed. “Alright.”

  He plopped on the couch in front of the TV and reached for the remote. Rolling her eyes, she left through the back to climb over the wall again. No one was in her yard or showing through a window, so she dropped to the ground and hurried to her room. The pencil was where she left it, allowing her to get back inside. She dressed properly, then reached for make-up.

  Caking on concealer hid the hickey a bit more, but not entirely, so she’d still need to be careful to keep her hair over it if she ran into her parents. She loaded a roll of film into her camera and left it on the desk next to her purse.

  Her room was at the start of the hallway to the bedrooms. There was a bathroom between it and her brother’s old room, then Mom and Dad’s was at the end. She walked out to the front to check the driveway first. No cars, but one could be in the garage.