Destined to Change by Harley, M. (top android ebook reader TXT) 📕

right. I took off early so I could surprise Stacy. I stopped and bought her a dozen red roses and got her a box of her favorite chocolates from the little store on the corner.

I heard voices when I started for the stairs, and then I heard something I never thought I would hear. I heard Ratz scream out “Stacy” and then a loud moan. I walked into my bedroom and found him on top of her. She was so wasted that she actually reached for me and asked me to join them. I wanted to kill him, I wanted to kill her, but all I could do was stand there and stare as my life was ruined.

I turned around and walked out of our house. I got in my car and drove to my moms house across town.

“Son, is she using drugs again?”  My mom asked.

“I think so. She’s been acting really strange.  I wanted this to work so bad.  I love her, mom,”  I said as I held my head in my hands sitting at the table in my mom’s kitchen.

“She’s your first love, Jaxon.  We all think that our first love is forever, but ninety-percent of the time it isn’t.  I’ve been concerned about that girl for awhile.  I was wondering how long it would take you to see it.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, looking up.

“You needed to see it for yourself, son.  This isn’t something your mom can do for you.  You needed to figure it out yourself.  And now you need to plan your future.  You have to decide if Stacy is going to be part of it.”

“I honestly don’t know.  I thought she was my future, but now I’m not so sure.  Can I stay here with you for awhile?  Until I work some stuff out.”

Mom stood up and walked over to me.  Placing her arms around my neck, she said, “Of course, you can, Jaxon.  You can stay here as long as you need to.  Whatever you need, son.  I love you.  Don’t ever forget that.”

The next day I went back to my house and found a note from Stacy:

Jaxon,

I’m so sorry for what I’ve done. I hope one day you will forgive me. I’m leaving and I don’t know if I will ever come back. Please don’t hate me.

Love, Stacy

I waited a year for Stacy to come home. I searched for her in every hole I had ever been in and in every rehab I prayed she had checked into. I finally filed for divorce, sold the house, and moved in with my mom. Since nobody knew where Stacy was, I couldn’t finalize our divorce. I didn’t see anyone, I didn’t go out, I didn’t do anything but work. I didn’t care what was happening in the world. All I knew was that mine was shattered.

Another year passed, and I was leaving work one night when I looked over and saw a familiar jeep parked across the street. I really didn’t think Ratz was that fucking stupid, but he surprised me. He stepped out of his jeep and motioned me over to him. The look on my face should have told him to get the hell away, but Ratz never was the brightest bulb in the box.

I tried not to hit him. I swear to God, I tried not to slam his head into the front of the jeep. I really did, but I just couldn’t control my anger. I couldn’t move past the last time I saw him and the sounds he was making and what that meant to my world.

I asked him where the hell Stacy was and he swore that he hadn’t seen her since that night. He swore this as I held him by the throat over the hood of his jeep with a look on my face that had to scream “I’m gonna kill your ass.” So I believed him. To this day I don’t know why he was there that day, and I really don’t give a fuck.

That was the day that I decided I needed to get the hell out of this town, this state, this life. That was when my mom called my Uncle Jake and asked him if I could come stay with him for awhile. He told her to send me his way, and I was welcome to stay with him as long as I needed to.

Chapter 9

Loralei

I hadn’t seen Cade since I left his room yesterday morning. I hadn’t really been trying to avoid him, I had just been lucky. Emma left last night. She needed to get home to Eric and I needed to go back to being Loralei. I didn’t know what had happened to me over the past couple of days, but I needed to get myself back. I had been acting like a totally different person. The Loralei I had always been was not the person in this hotel room today. I had changed, and not for the better.

I just had one more event that I had to attend. Then I could head home. The final event was basically a “we’re so glad you came and spent all of your money on our cattle” party, but it was really an integral part of the schmoozing process. I had a bad feeling that I wouldn’t be able to avoid Cade tonight, but I knew I wouldn’t be ending up in his bed.

The event tonight wasn’t formal, so I brought a lacey white dress and my hottest pair of pink cowboy boots to wear. I had to look the part of the country bumpkin, and I was pretty good at it. I took a long bath in the amazing tub in my suite, applied a little bit of make-up, and pulled my hair up into a ponytail, tying it with a pink ribbon.

I headed downstairs and prayed I wouldn’t run into Cade. I never expected what I found when I got off the elevator.

The elevator dinged, the