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Yours Forever
Yours Forever
Yours Forever
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Yours Forever

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When Riley showed up in the small town of Hawesville, KY, she was looking for a place to hide. Running from her abusive husband; Brian, the close-knit community charm convinced her to stay. Before she knew it, she was building a new life for herself while struggling to keep her past hidden. The townspeople were curious about her, but she was determined to keep from forming any real relationships. Reluctantly, she finds herself falling for the town's most eligible bachelor, Sam Harper.

One day as Sam was having lunch, he noticed a new face in the diner. She was sad and alone, and there was something about her that called to him. After giving her a job, a place to stay, and after a lot of kindness and patience, he was finally starting to break down the barrier that Riley had put up around herself.

Riley was starting to believe that she was finally free, that Brian wouldn’t find her in the small town, and that she could start thinking about her future.

But neither Sam nor Riley were prepared to learn the truth about Brian. And when HE finds her...she will be sorry.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateOct 4, 2013
ISBN9781301490745
Yours Forever
Author

Sheri Richford

In addition to being a Romance & Suspense Romance Author, I am a mother to two teenage boys (yes, help me!).We have a full household including four rescue cats - two of which literally showed up on our doorstep as kittens - and five chinchillas! Yes, they are SO soft and incredibly cute.​The last thing I want to say is thank you. I am so grateful you are reading this. Without your support, I would not have the career I love so very much. I absolutely love being able to put my stories on paper and share them with you. I have found my dream. My hope for you is that you have either found yours or are well on your way!

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    Book preview

    Yours Forever - Sheri Richford

    Yours Forever

    by

    Sheri Richford

    Smashwords Edition

    Copyright © 2013 by Sheri Richford

    All rights reserved

    Cover Design by: Cover Design by James, GoOnWrite.com

    Editing by: Editing by Amber - http://www.editingbyamber.com

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

    This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

    Sheri Richford

    Visit my website at http://www.SheriRichford.com

    Chapter One

    He found her. Her head was spinning from the realization she was no longer safe in this new life she had created for herself. Her knees fell out from under her, and she crumbled to the cold kitchen floor. How did he find her? Riley had been living in a small farmhouse in Hawesville, Kentucky for more than eight months now. Surrounded by miles of farmland and with a population of 945, it was the perfect place to get lost. She always told him she could never live in the south with the humidity, heat, and bugs as big as birds. This country town just across the river from Indiana was everything she could have hoped for…until now.

    This couldn’t be happening. Not now. Riley had finally begun to let go of the past and allow herself to believe that he was gone for good. She thought she might be able to be happy here. She was beginning to think she could actually start to live again. When she left, she thought she would never find happiness again. She thought she would never feel safe again. She thought no one would ever love her like that again. But things were finally changing. She was starting to feel hope. She was starting to feel free. She was starting to feel open to the possibilities of her future. She was starting to trust, and even love.

    When she came to Hawesville she thought it would be just one more temporary stop. She had stopped in probably twenty towns trying to find just the right place to disappear. Hawesville looked like any other small town with farmland as far as the eye could see. There was nothing particularly special here, but it felt different. It felt like it could be safe here. The days turned into weeks, weeks to months. She was happy. The countryside was beautiful and peaceful. She had a quiet, secluded house she could call home. She had a job working with nice people who didn’t pry into her personal life. She had even made a couple new friends, of course, she kept them at a distance. She couldn’t risk getting close to anyone, but then there was Sam. She couldn’t help herself when it came to him.

    Sam had been so good to her. She never told much him about her past–certainly not about Brian. Sam was kind and gentle, and never pushed her to talk. He could see the fear behind her eyes. Fear she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, talk about. But he loved her and watched out for her. Over the last year, they had grown as close as Riley would allow herself to be with anyone. It started simply by spending time together, talking and laughing. Most days, he gave her rides to and from work. He brought her homemade jams and canned fruits from his farm down the road. He chopped wood for her in early winter so she would have heat in the hundred year old house she rented from his parents. Over time it naturally became much more. She fought her feelings as long as she could, but it was far too easy to fall for Sam. He made her feel safe and wanted. She had fallen in love with him. She could see herself making a life with him…until now.

    She stared at the note in her hand as her mind raced. It arrived in the mail today, in a plain white envelope. She read the note again: The daisies will be blooming soon, my darling Rebecca. I will come for you and we will see them together…forever. Yours Forever, Brian. She hadn’t gone by the name Rebecca since she’d escaped. She called herself Riley now, Riley Pearson. But she hadn’t just changed her name. Along with trading in her long, flowing honey blonde hair for a shoulder length chestnut brown, she also traded her fragility for a newfound strength she never thought possible. Being a petite barely 5' 4" tall, she had never been known for strength. With her dark green eyes, high cheek bones, and angular chin, she was known for beauty, however, even if she never thought so herself.

    The daisies; she had almost forgotten the daisies. Brian used to take her to a park back in Oregon where daisies grew wild. You could lose yourself in the field of daisies, and they often did. They would spend hours in the field running, playing, talking and, of course, more. But that was before. Before he went to Afghanistan for two back-to-back tours in the Army. Back when they were happy. Back when she was his forever too. Those were the memories she chose to keep close to her heart.

    ***

    Tell me you love me, Rebecca cooed, looking into Brian’s brown eyes as they lay on the ground surrounded by white and yellow daisies. The field was in full bloom and it was as beautiful as ever. They both loved to come out to the field. It was their special time together. No one else in the world existed when they were in the daisies. They would spend hours here and sometimes even the whole night. They talked about everything here. They talked about their day, the funny or aggravating things that happened at work, and what they wanted to do on their day off. And they talked about their future. They had big plans for their life together.

    You know I love you, Brian caressed her beautiful face, her skin soft as silk. You know you’re my life. My forever.

    Your forever. I like that. Could we be that lucky? She couldn’t help but smile at the idea of forever with Brian. From the day they met, he made her feel special, loved, and safe. He saved her from her father’s abuse and now took care of her. She had never felt this way before and knew she would never feel this way about anyone else. For her, Brian was her forever too.

    We are that lucky. We found each other in this world of billions of people. What were the odds that we would find each other? But we did. I will never lose you. We can be miles apart, countries apart, but we will never lose each other. I will always find you, Brian answered.

    Countries apart? Why would we be countries apart? Suddenly there was a punch to her gut. Rebecca knew it might come to this, but she had hoped it wouldn’t. A stab of fear struck her heart as if someone had just grabbed it and held it so tightly it wouldn’t beat. She could feel her world closing in on her. It suddenly became very difficult to breathe.

    Just for a while, but it will be ok, I promise. I’ll come back to you, I promise, I will. I will always come for you, Brian reassured her.

    When do you leave? Tears were already filling her eyes. Things were going so well. They were so happy. Why? Why did he have to go now…again?

    Three days, he whispered softly. Brian pulled her close to him. She knew he couldn’t stand to see her cry. He knew her heart was breaking, and she knew his was too. He knew what his leaving meant to her. He knew how scared she would be being left alone again. He wasn’t ready to leave her yet. He wanted more time, but orders were orders, and he had to go.

    Three days?! The tears were flowing freely now. That’s so soon! Why so soon?

    I know, I’m sorry. You know that’s the way it is sometimes. We get our orders and we have to go. I don’t want to leave either, but I have to. You know I have to do this. I am trying to make a better life for us, Brian explained.

    That was the plan. Since he knew Rebecca was the one, he knew he had to do better than clerk at the hardware store. He needed to make a life for her, for them. He went to work full time straight out of high school because he didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life. He was fine waiting until something inspired him. Then she came into his life and he wanted more. He needed more. So at the age of 21 he joined the military to take advantage of the GI Bill. He would serve his country for four years and earn money for college at the same time. Once he got his business degree, he would get a good job, so he and Rebecca could start a family. And she would never have to work again, unless she wanted to.

    The part of the plan that he didn’t count on was a second tour in Afghanistan. The first time was so horrendous, he couldn’t bear the thought of going back a second time. But he didn’t have a choice. He signed on for all of this whether he liked it or not. He could never tell Rebecca of the things he saw over there, the things he had to do. He kept all of that well away from her. She had been through enough in her life. Her father was abusive and her mother was a drug addict, until her death. He didn’t need to add to the sorrow in her life. He would not let her worry about him any more than necessary. It was his job now to protect her and take care of her.

    He knew this would be his last tour. He only had another 11 months left of his service and then they could move forward with their plans. They would always be together, and nothing would ever tear them away from each other again. They could start their life. They just had to get through this one last tour and he would be done. One last tour.

    You know I love you more than anything in the world. I would never leave you if I didn’t absolutely have to, he reassured her.

    I know. It’s just…it’s happening so fast. She wiped away the tears and held his face in her hands. She wanted to look into his eyes and remember this moment. You be safe. You be careful and you come back to me. I love you. I will not live without you, so you BETTER come back to me.

    I will come back to you. I will ALWAYS come for you, I promise. You know I’m yours forever. But I want you to do one thing for me before I go.

    Anything. Anything.

    Marry me.

    Her heart skipped a beat as joy filled her entire body, completely overtaking the fear she felt ten seconds before. This is what she dreamt of from the day they met. Yes, of course! Yes, a million times, yes! She gently brought his face to hers and kissed him like it was the first and the last time.

    Chapter Two

    That cold March day turned her life upside down in the blink of an eye and she had been running ever since. She had been on the run for three months now and the only good thing she could say was at least the weather was getting warmer. She hated being scared and looking over her shoulder all the time. She hated wondering if today would be the day he found her. And if it was, what he would do to her. She just wanted to go back to the way things were before. But she knew that was impossible. Those days were gone forever, right along with the Brian she fell in love with.

    The Brian she fell in love with was kind and gentle, but ferociously protective. He never hurt or laid a hand on her. In fact, he made sure no one hurt her, including her own father. Her father seemed to live for tormenting and degrading Rebecca and her mother. But Brian put a stop to all of that. He took her away from a life of abuse and hatred, and gave her a new life filled with love and happiness. He did what she never thought possible; he made her believe in love.

    It was so easy to fall in love with Brian. He was handsome, of course there was that, but he was smart and athletic. He was on the football and track team in high school. He loved anything sports related. He taught her about football by watching the games on TV. Eventually she enjoyed the games almost as much as he did. They even had their own rivalries because she chose the New York Giants over his beloved Seahawks. The house was very noisy on the days those two teams played each other.

    ***

    Go! Go! Go! she screamed while jumping and wildly waving her arms as she cheered on her Giants running for the end zone.

    No! Stop him! he screamed at his team.

    The running back was tackled at the five-yard line, just short of his game winning touchdown.

    Yes, stop them boys! Stop them, I got a bet on this game, I have to win, he hollered.

    Hey, they still have two downs and only five yards, baby! I am so winning this bet, she replied.

    Oh a lot can happen in two downs and 45 seconds left in the game. It ain’t over till it’s over, he teased back.

    You are just afraid to lose because you will have to cook dinner for a whole week!

    Oh no, my team is winning. I’m going to enjoy my nightly massage all week long. I think we should start tonight, I’m feeling a little sore in the shoulders.

    Game isn’t over yet, my love. I’m thinking parmesan chicken with asparagus sounds good for dinner tonight.

    We will see, here we go, he said as they settled back in for the last plays of the game.

    The third down ended with and incomplete pass to the end zone. Fourth down and 29 seconds left in the game. The quarterback handed the ball to his wide receiver, who jumped hard into and over everyone he could, to end up with his feet in the end zone before being taken down to the ground by the defense.

    Woo hoo! Touchdown! I win, I win, I win, she sang as she did a celebration dance around the coffee table ending in front of Brian.

    He grabbed her and pulled her down to the couch on top of him, and they both laughed.

    You may have won this time, but I’ll get you next time, he said and kissed her.

    Maybe, but for now I think that parmesan chicken is calling, she laughed.

    Oh but it’s still a little early, maybe we should work up an appetite first, he began to kiss her lips, slowly moving down to her neck. He picked her up and laid her down on the couch as he moved on top of her.

    You are changing the subject, Mister.

    You bet I am.

    He took off his shirt, and she pulled off hers, then he leaned down and began kissing her again. He started at her mouth and worked his way down her neck and her chest, she moaned softly at his gentle touch. She reached for the button on his jeans and pulled it apart. He tore off his jeans while she wiggled out of her sweat pants. Their bodies became one, just like the hundreds of times before. They were in sync and knew how to please each other in every way. They moved together in a natural rhythm, kissing and caressing as they made love.

    Later they laid on the couch with their fingers intertwined. She pulled their hands up to her lips and kissed his fingers. She smiled and held his hand close to her heart. She never dreamed of love like this. She had been sure it only happened in fairy tales. All she knew was that if this was a fairy tale, she wanted the happily ever after to last forever.

    What are you smiling about? he asked.

    You…us…how happy I am.

    Good, I always want you to be happy, he replied. As long as I live, all I ever want is to make you happy.

    ***

    If only the happily ever after could have lasted. She should have known it wouldn’t. There was a reason those stories all ended there. That’s why it was a fairy tale. Real life isn’t always happy and perfect, it’s messy, and sad, and painful too. Now she was trying to start over without him, but he haunted her at every turn.

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