Fighting for the Truth teaser 1
I lock myself in my apartment still trembling inside. After a moment spent taking a breath, I toss my keys on the kitchen table and put my purse beside them and then find my favorite wine. I start to reach for a glass and decide I don’t need it; the bottle will do.

I plop down on my couch and turn on the television in search of something to take my mind off his hate filled green eyes and the way they mocked me. I rest my head on the back of the couch as I swipe away another tear. 

He makes me so angry. And the only reason he’s getting to me this much is because I didn’t bury my feelings deep enough. A mistake I’ll be working on tomorrow. But for now, I’ll let the wine drown him out.

I take my first sip as I hear a knock on my door. Probably Briella. Dang Zander and his big mouth. He didn’t want me to be alone because I was so upset. I’m sure he called her. 

I unlock the door and almost scream. Not Briella. “What are you doing here, Hawk? And how do you know where I live?”

He sends me a small smile, but it lacks warmth. “Can I come in? We really do need to talk.”

I step aside so he can enter my apartment. Once inside, I walk back to my living room and take my seat back on the couch. He follows me, casually glancing around before sitting on the other end. 

I mute the TV. “Let’s hear it. What other insults and stones are you planning to throw at me?”

He stares directly into my eyes. I can’t stand how he makes my heart race even as I want to hate him. 

“I know you don’t trust me. And I haven’t forgotten the fact you hate me. You’re not my favorite person either,” he begins.

I roll my eyes. “Is there a point to this?”

His jaw tightens. “Yes. My point is, you’re going to end up in trouble if you get involved with the Leones in any way. They’ve got it out for me and you’re going to get caught in the crossfire.”

“Why? What did you do? Break a promise to them too?” I ask sharply.

He stands and rakes a hand through his dark hair. “The details aren’t what matter. What matters is they’re trying to hurt me, and they’ll use you to do it.”

I stand and lift my chin to meet his gaze. “Then you’re in the clear. There’s no reason coming for me would hurt you. There’s no love lost between the two of us, remember?”

He surprises me by reaching out and tracing my jaw with his finger. His face seems to soften as he relaxes his knit brows, but his eyes blaze. “I remember everything about you, dolcezza. And that means you’re mine to love or to hate. They know too much about my past, and it includes what you used to mean to me.”

I don’t back down. He started this. He thinks I broke my promise to him. I didn’t. And he’s about to learn the truth the hard way. This will probably make him hate me more, but I can’t find it in me to care how it affects him, or even me right now. He took everything else from me, why shouldn’t he take the only other thing I have left to give?

“Come on then. I’ll fulfill one of my promises to you,” I say confidently.

His eyes widen a fraction, almost as if he already knows what I’ll say next. “What are you talking about?”

“I promised you I’d always be yours, and you just said I’m yours to love or hate, yet you’ve never had me.” I pull my shirt over my head and drop it on the floor. “Take me, Hawk. Go ahead and take what’s yours.”

 

Fighting for the Truth teaser 3
“Where are you going?” he asks, trailing a few feet behind me.

I slide my shoes on and search for my keys.

“Out,” I reply tersely. 

“I’ll come with you,” he says.

“No. I’m only going for a drive to clear my head. Then I’m going to pick up some food.”

“Brittney, I told you I’m going where you go until this is over.”

I abandon my search for my keys and turn on him. “This is Greendale Valley. Nothing is going to happen here. Just let me be, okay?”

He pulls me close and holds me tight with his hand on the small of my back. “You and I both know living in a small town doesn’t keep bad things from happening. It’s not like we have scum detectors at all entrances to Greendale Valley. Some scum already lives here. Do I need to remind you of things that have happened in the last two years in this town?”

I break my gaze from his. Of course, I remember all the things that have happened here recently. We’ve had everything from obsessive stalkers to abusive pyscho ex boyfriends to misguided revenge ploys which got someone innocent killed. Small towns seem safe, but in reality there’s evil everywhere. No corner of the world is safe from it.

“Fine. You can drive, but I don’t want to talk. I want to grab some dinner from a drive thru and drive around,” I say as I concede.

He releases me and pulls my keys from under my purse and hands them to me before taking his own from his pocket. “If I’m driving, we’re taking my truck.”

I roll my eyes as I follow him outside and then lock my front door. He’s holding open the passenger door for me when I reach his truck. I climb in and let him shut the door and then watch as he rounds the front to get in the driver’s seat.

I direct him to the first fast food joint we see, and we order greasy burgers and even greasier fries. He pulls into a parking space and turns on the interior light so we can see to eat. He keeps his word about not talking as we chew in silence. Once we’re finished, he begins to drive around as promised. 

I’ve been mulling over what he said to me in my bedroom. He said he was getting me out of this, but it’s him they really want. If he thinks he’s going to sacrifice himself somehow, he’s sorely mistaken. I won’t let him do that. I don’t know what happened in Nashville, but I know it’s enough to have driven him back home. He’s only tangled in this now because of me, because I couldn’t get over my pride enough to trust his warnings.

“Let’s run. We’ll go somewhere no one can find us,” I say suddenly.

His gaze cuts to me briefly. “There’s no place to run where they couldn’t find us. Besides, I’ve run from them for long enough.”

“Hawk, I won’t let you do whatever it is you think you’re going to do to get me out of this. I got myself into it, I’ll get myself out,” I declare.

He continues to drive in silence for a few more minutes before finally coming to a stop and switching off the ignition. He faces me. “You don’t have a choice, dolcezza. This was always meant to be my war, not yours. And I’m sorry you’re in the middle. But I promise, you’ll be able to get out of it and live the life you want.”

I stare at him, taking in his ruggedly handsome face. “The life I want is with you. The only life I ever imagined was with you beside me. I don’t care what we have to do, it’s what I want, Hawk.”

He reaches across the cab and tugs on my lower lip with his thumb. “I wish it were that simple.”

I pull away and get out of the truck. It doesn’t take long to realize where we are. He drove us back to the grove of trees behind where our houses were…the same place we almost made love for the first time all those years ago. I start to walk away but he grabs my wrist and twirls me around and into his embrace. 

“Please don’t leave me here for a second time, Dolcezza,” he pleads in a husky voice.

 

Fighting for the truth teaser 4

She stares at me as her lower lip trembles before finally crawling under the covers. I hear her sniffle as she tries to fight back her emotions. I walk around the bed to where she’s turned on her side so I can see her face. This time she doesn’t meet my eyes, she stares blankly at something behind me. 

I kneel and tuck a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. “You mean more to me than anyone ever has, dolcezza. You can trust that.”

She peers at me sadly as she rapidly blinks tears away. “Did you love her? Did she take my place when you left me behind? It was her, wasn’t it?”

“What are you talking about?” I ask.

“Did she get all your firsts, Hawk?” she asks in a pain-stricken tone.

I pull my hand back, unsure how to answer, but my silence is answer enough. I thought I loved Angel back then, but I realize now nothing about it was love. Infatuation and running from my demons landed me in her arms. And regrettably, I did share my first time with her instead of Brittney like I should have. Angel is the definition of deceit. If you look it up in the dictionary, her picture should be beside it.

Brittney closes her eyes, and the tears leak down her nose and into her hair. I attempt to wipe them away, but she whispers a plea, “Please don’t.”

“Baby…” I start.

Her watery gaze focuses on me. “I know you care. I even believe you love me, Hawk. But I don’t think you’re in love with me. Not in the same way I’m in love with you. It’s only ever been you since we were kids.”

I stare at her in surprise. I don’t know how to respond. I do think I’m in love with her, but I’m not going to drag her into what it means to be a Rossi. My grandfather made it clear I owe him for his help. The debt will be settled by taking on the role he thinks I should. My feelings for Brittney can’t save me from that fate. 

 

Fighting for the truth teaser 5

“I’m here now to lay all my cards out,” he says softly.

“Here are all the facts. I have family in Nashville who may require my attention, but Greendale Valley is home. I love working on Valley B with Tate. I won’t hide anything about my family from you, but at the same time, I won’t ever let anything from that part of my life hurt you. If your dream is to sing, I’m behind you each step of the way. I love that you have the biggest and most giving heart even if it’s been broken. You see the best in people, and I hope you still see that in me. Because I’m in love with you, Brittney,” he tells me as he swipes the tears from under my eyes with his thumbs.

“There is no fight more worthy of winning than the one for your heart…to be your last and forever,” he adds with a hopeful smile. 

I let out a sob or a laugh, to be honest, I’m not sure which. I grab his face on each side and pull his lips to mine. He drops his hands to my legs and hoists me up, so they wrap around his waist. 

The same moment we found each other was the same moment we were knocked to the ground…literally.