The Exception Read online

  Dedication

  Prologue

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-one

  Twenty-two

  Twenty-three

  Twenty-four

  Twenty-five

  Twenty-six

  Twenty-seven

  Twenty-eight

  Twenty-nine

  Thirty

  Thirty-one

  Thirty-two

  Thirty-three

  Thirty-four

  Thirty-five

  Thirty-six

  Thirty-seven

  Thirty-eight

  Thirty-nine

  Forty

  Forty-one

  Forty-two

  Forty-three

  Forty-four

  Forty-five

  Forty-six

  Forty-seven

  Forty-eight

  Forty-nine

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  About The Author

  The Exception

  by Adriana Locke

  Copyright © Adriana Locke 2014

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the author.

  The book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or publisher.

  Editor: Ashley Amigoni, Escapist Freelance Editing

  www.facebook.com/AshleyAmigoniFreelanceEditor

  Interior Design: Christine Borgford, Perfectly Publishable

  www.perfectlypublishable.com

  Cover Design: Kari March, K23 Designs

  www.facebook.com/DesignK23

  Cover Photo: Shutterstock Images 76175764, 188012834

  www.shutterstock.com

  To my husband.

  Thank you for believing in me. You are my rock, my best friend, and my exception.

  I love you more than words could ever express.

  CANE

  If I close my eyes, maybe she’ll disappear.

  “That was amazing. So good, Cane.”

  Maybe not.

  The woman nestled against me, her hand draping across my body. She stroked my skin, the intimacy of the action curling my stomach.

  I switched on the bedside lamp, letting my eyes adjust to the bright light. Glancing at the clock, I pushed her hand away.

  It’s not too late. She can still go home.

  Sitting up, I swung my legs over the side of the bed; my body groaned in response. I stretched my arms overhead in an attempt to work some life back into my exhausted muscles.

  This girl was a decent choice for a last minute decision. Memories of her contorted in a variety of wicked ways, screaming my name, made my dick harden again.

  “Do you want me to get us something to eat?”

  Her nails grazed down my back and I moved out of her reach. Her touch, like her voice, was more annoying than I remembered it being a few hours earlier.

  That’s because I just dumped a load.

  I twisted around. Her blonde hair was spread across my pillows, black makeup smeared across her face. A part of me wanted to tell her she looked like hell, but a bigger part of me didn’t care enough to point it out. I just needed her gone.

  She rolled onto her back, cheap perfume wafting through the air.

  I’m going to have to do laundry. Hell, I’ll probably just have to burn these sheets to get rid of that smell.

  “I was thinking I would grab us some hamburgers. I could pick up some things for breakfast while I’m out.”

  I cringed at the implications saturating her voice. “You’re going to need to tone that shit down.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Look, I have things to do tonight.” Her face was familiar but her name—not so much.

  “Oh, that’s fine. I can just wait here while you do what you need to do.” She flashed me her biggest smile and settled back into the sheets, looking way too comfortable in my bed.

  “No. You’re going to need to get up, get dressed, and go home.” I massaged my temples with my fingertips, a migraine inching its way into my skull.

  For fuck’s sake! Why isn’t this ever as easy as they make it out to be? Maybe I should get them to sign some shit, a ‘This is a Fuck and Only a Fuck’ disclaimer or something.

  “I really have no plans for tomorrow, Cane.”

  “We discussed this. We fuck. You leave. You know this.”

  She had the nerve to look hurt.

  “I didn’t think you were going to say that once we were done.”

  “It was amazing. It is always amazing with me.” I flashed her a grin and literally watched her swoon.

  That never gets old.

  “Look, I don’t do this ‘sex and a sandwich’ thing, but that is not a newsflash.”

  “But Cane!”

  “Why does it feel like we’ve been here before?” Frustration took over and I took a deep breath, trying to keep myself calm. All I needed was a hot little body to dump my stress into for a little while and I had made no illusions otherwise. She agreed to this before she followed me home.

  Why does it have to be complicated now? I ran my fingers through my short blond hair, scrubbing my scalp in annoyance.

  “When I was here a few months ago, we had lunch, too. Remember? We sat out on the patio.”

  Remember her face. Do not triple dip this one.

  “You don’t understand how this works.” I glanced at her reclining against my pillows and fought hard to not sound as brusque as I felt. “I have a bunch of shit to do. You really need to go.”

  She sighed dramatically as she got up and found her jeans on the floor. I watched her ass jiggle as she pulled them on slowly, undoubtedly for my benefit.

  It worked.

  I had to restrain myself from grabbing her and fucking her one more time, just for good measure. That would only make getting her out of my house even harder and she simply wasn’t good enough to waste any more time on.

  Instead, I sat and enjoyed the show. She turned to face me as she pulled her shirt over her head, her eyes never leaving mine. She tucked her bra in her purse.

  With a final glance over her shoulder, presumably to give me time to change my mind, she was gone.

  And I was alone again—just the way I liked it.

  JADA

  Steam billowed from the cup of coffee in front me, rising quickly before disappearing into the surrounding air. A part of me wished I could vanish with it.

  Another nightmare had rocked me the night before. I had woken up in a cold sweat, scouring the room for a set of wild eyes and testing the air for the stench of whiskey. I could have sworn I heard him yelling at me like he used to.

  “What in the hell do you think you’re doing? I have to bust ass and work late and I get home to this? To you lying in bed with another book, no worries in the world? You are damn lucky I put up with you.”

  Bile churned in my stomach, the sound of Decker’s voice fresh in my mind. My eyes forced closed, trying to block the memories accosting me left and right.

  “You’ll
be back.”

  I shivered. Those were the last words he said before I left Boston.

  He was wrong. I wouldn’t be back—not to Massachusetts and not to him. Too many years had been spent at his mercy. Years of worry, heartbreak, and agony were finally behind me.

  I opened my eyes, feeling relieved to be sitting in my sister’s kitchen and 2,000 miles from my ex-husband. Kari had decorated her little house in the Phoenix suburbs a lot like our house growing up. It was cozy and warm, with a neutral palette accented with pops of turquoise and coral. Our mother would have loved it and it made me feel at home.

  The uncertainty I had lived with for so long had begun to lift in the few days I had been back in Arizona. The drive to Tempe had given me ample time to mull everything over from a safe vantage point; there wasn’t anything else to do in a car for six days but think.

  I had given Decker everything I had for so long. It was time I started to focus on me. I needed to start fresh and charge into the future with a clean slate and clear head.

  As I lifted the cup of coffee to my lips, I ignored the unsettled feeling in the pit of my stomach.

  These things take time. Fake it ‘til you make it.

  “Jada, stop this.” Kari made her way into the kitchen, tossing her light brown hair out of her eyes, bringing me out of my daze. Although a few years younger than me, Kari could have been my twin. The only real difference between us was our hair—mine was naturally much darker. “Just watching you sit there like that makes me want to smack you.”

  “Stop what?” I smiled and feigned innocence. Kari’s question was completely rhetorical—we both knew exactly what she was talking about.

  I sighed, gazing at the bougainvillea growing outside the window. Its purple flowers were a bit of happiness in an otherwise drab desert landscape.

  That’s what I need—a pop of color in my life.

  “We need to get you out of this funk, do something to shake you up.” Kari bit her lip before her green eyes lit up. “Maybe we need to go to Vegas again!”

  “Now that was a good time! Do you remember when Lara tried to climb into the fountain at the hotel? And the hot security guard had to basically restrain her?”

  “Well, I volunteered for him to restrain me! I would totally have taken that one for the team!”

  “You know, I’m pretty sure he may have taken you up on the offer, had you not vomited into the bushes right after propositioning him! You completely ruined the moment,” I recalled, throwing us into a fit of giggles.

  I wiped away the tears with the back of my hands. It had been a long time since I had felt comfortable enough to let my guard slip. Decker had kept me on alert; I was always waiting for the next argument, the next battle. I had almost given up hope of a happily-ever-after.

  Sitting with Kari, laughing at memories I hadn’t thought about in years, made me feel like I could breathe again. I felt lighter, less suffocated. Hope for a better future started to seep slowly through the crevices, exciting me but scaring me at the same time.

  “See? There’s the sister I used to know!” Kari tossed a turquoise towel at me.

  “I’m trying to get there. It still hurts.”

  “It only hurts because you lost a fantasy. Let’s be real for two seconds—he was never the man you thought he was.”

  Her words, full of truth, pierced my heart. I braced myself for the onslaught I knew was coming. “Obviously, I know that now. But he was my husband and—”

  “And if you had listened to me,” Kari began, narrowing her eyes, “I would have saved you from that mistake! I told you. Dad told you. The signs were all there.”

  If she only knew the half of what I went through, she would really be lighting me up!

  “I know. But don’t go there again. Not now, please.” I closed my eyes, trying to keep my emotions in control. “I thought I would be married once, you know? I did everything to make it work and look at me now! Do you think this is where I want to be?” I leaned forward, my elbows resting on the table. “I have nothing, Kari. I’m a lonely, unemployed, homeless girl living with her sister. It’s pathetic. I’m well aware. There’s no need to rehash it.”

  Kari rolled her eyes. “Could you be a little more dramatic? The lonely thing is a temporary setback; you just need to meet the right guy. You will be officially employed as soon as you get your ass to the office, so stop the whining about that. But mi casa es su casa for as long as you need.”

  “I know it’s time to move on,” I sighed, feeling my shoulders dip. I wanted to move forward with the new phase of my life, but it was a little nerve wracking. I took a deep breath, remembering my mantra. Fake it ‘til you make it. “I’m going to start work tomorrow. There’s no need to wait until Monday to go in. I’ll give Dad a call and let him know I’ll be there bright and early.”

  “Maybe some hottie will walk in the door and sweep you off your feet!”

  “Yeah, that’s so likely.”

  “Don’t rule things out! I meet guys in the strangest places. Remember the guy from Texas I met buying a gas can? Stranger things have happened!”

  “Only you would meet a guy like that,” I laughed. “But in all honesty, I get really nervous just thinking about meeting someone. I don’t want to be alone forever, but I’m going to be really picky this time—like crazy picky. I want to find someone that wants me and only me. I want to be someone’s priority.”

  “It will happen,” Kari nodded enthusiastically, the optimist in her blazing to the surface. “Everyone has a Prince Charming out there! I just hope yours has a sexy brother!”

  I grinned. “Exactly! I need to go for the Prince Charming’s of the world. No more bad boys for me.”

  “But they’re so fun!” Kari laughed before catching herself and pointing a manicured finger at me. “No, I get it. You are right. Some people, namely you, aren’t capable of just having sex. You have to go fall in love, so it would behoove you to play things carefully.”

  “Behoove me?”

  “Hush.”

  The sound of the doorbell rang loudly through the house. Kari jumped in her chair, her eyes widening for a split second.

  My eyebrows furrowed as I cast a curious look in her direction. “Are you expecting someone?”

  “No, not really.” Kari stood up and cleared her throat. “It’s probably just Max.”

  “Max?”

  She turned towards the door with a coy smile on her lips. “Yeah, Max. Just a guy I’ve been seeing for a little while.”

  “Seeing him? Want to go into detail because I’m getting the impression you’re downplaying something.”

  “I’m seeing him in the loosest sense possible.” Kari laughed over her shoulder as she made her way towards the front of the house.

  The door opened and closed. A deep male voice drifted into the kitchen, whetting my curiosity.

  Kari had been a loner since getting her heart broken by a surfer from Australia. Since then, she refused to even consider settling down with one man. She operated on the premise of keeping men as close as necessary for maximum sexual pleasure—until said pleasure ran its course. Then she simply found another eager participant and it didn’t take long for a replacement to show up.

  The fact that Max was dropping by and Kari was fine with that spoke volumes. I was a little shocked.

  The voices coming down the hallway grew louder and I ran my fingers through my hair, hoping that I didn’t look as much of a mess as I felt. I patted beneath my eyes, feeling the puffiness beneath my dark green orbs from a lack of sleep.

  I took a sip of my coffee as Kari appeared in the doorway, a man next to her that I presumed to be Max. He was tall, towering over Kari. I guessed him to be well over six feet. He had a chiseled face, golden tan, and jet-black hair. His eyes were a bright green and they held my gaze.

  He quirked a brow, seemingly surprised to see Kari have company.

  That makes two of us.

  “Jada,” Kari started, her voice shaking ever-so-
slightly, “this is Max. Max, this is my sister Jada.”

  I smiled hesitantly at the man looming large in the doorway. “Hi, Max. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, too.” His voice was deep and smooth, with just a touch of a southern drawl. It was the type of voice that made women swoon.

  “Do you want a drink?” Kari motioned for Max to take a seat at the table.

  “No, thanks. I didn’t realize your sister was here already. I can always come back.”

  Kari walked around the table, pulled out her chair, and took her seat. “You aren’t interrupting anything. We were just reminiscing a little.”

  Max placed his large hands on the back of the wooden chair across from me. He watched my sister intently, his features softening as she fiddled with her cross necklace. His tall, dark, and mysterious appearance would generally have me on edge; he was quite imposing. But there was just something about him that put me at ease. It was a complete paradox.

  “If y’all are sure. I know you haven’t seen each other in a while.” He looked at Kari and pulled a chair out as she nodded. He sat down and looked at me, tilting his head to the side with a small smile on his handsome face. “It’s nice to finally meet Kari’s sister.”

  “It’s nice to finally meet Kari’s boyfriend.” I pointedly ignored the look Kari gave me and continued watching Max’s reaction.

  He seemed entertained by my synopsis of their relationship. “Oh, I am not Kari’s boyfriend.” He glanced at my sister who was giving me a death stare, his grin growing wider. “Isn’t that right?”

  Kari kept her eyes on me, refusing to look at Max.

  “Oh, okay. So you are just friends then. Got it,” I said.

  “Nah, I wouldn’t say we were just friends either. That would imply she liked me.” He strummed his fingertips against the table, a smile creeping slowly across his face. “We fuck.”

  “Max!” Kari shrieked, her jaw dropping in disbelief. “Seriously?”

  Max chuckled and shook his head, amused by her reaction. “Did I misrepresent something, sweetheart?”

  “Well, no, but …” Kari looked between the two of us, her face reddening by the second.

  “My point. You just want me around to deliver the goods. We may as well call it like it is, right?”