The sound of the gavel echoed throughout the courtroom. No one said a word for what seemed like the longest few seconds Bree could ever remember. Then, the people around her came back to life, and she found air in her lungs again.
“Are you okay?” Trent asked. He was always asking her that, checking on her, making sure she was all right. Bree nodded. She was all right. She was going to continue to be all right, too. It seemed like a nightmare that had lasted almost two years was finally over.
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Two weeks later…. Bree sat on the beach, a drink one hand, Trent’s fingers interlaced with her other where it lay in the sand. The ocean waves rolled in, wetting the sand near their toes, the sun baking down on their tan skin as it dried from their first dip in the ocean. There would be plenty more.&nbs
The log cabin was bigger than Bree Matthews had expected. Of course, when her friends had suggested they rent a place up in the mountains for a few days during winter break, she knew it would have to have a lot of rooms in order for all of them to comfortably fit, but this place looked more like a mansion made of wooden beams than a traditional log cabin."Woah! This place is massive!" Bree's boyfriend, Jason Owens, said as he stared up at the house.
Trent Walker had just sunk a difficult shot, knocking two balls in the outside pocket when Bree walked into the room. She took one look at him and muttered a curse word. Not sure exactly what to make of that, Trent lined up the next shot but ended up scratching, which wasn't a surprise, considering how jarring it was just to see her again, let alone have her drop an expletive at the sight of him."Our shot!" Hank Yarborough said, a little too much happiness in his voice. "But first, let's take a break to say hi to Bree!"
Watching the guys play pool, Bree sat next to friends she hadn't seen in far too long and tried her best to listen to what they were talking about. Concentrating was hard. She truly hadn't been prepared for Trent to be there, and the fact that he was served as a distraction.Jason must've noticed her change in behavior. She'd mentioned Trent to him before because he'd come up when she was telling him some stories about things that had happened with this particular group of friends while they were in high school. Jason had specifically asked if Trent was going to be th
This Jason guy was a prick. Trent could tell by the cocky way he held his pool stick. Not to mention he didn't have too many nice things to say about Bree. The girls were sitting on the other side of the room, laughing and telling stories, though every time he looked at Bree, she seemed tuned out, like she had something on her mind.Jason was telling stories, too. "So anyway, she decides to bring her guitar, right, as if she's going to serenade the poor homeless dudes downtown. And I don't want to be there anyway. I've got more to do with my Saturdays than work a damn
Bree hadn't meant to follow Trent outside--not exactly anyway. She'd seen him leave but hadn't realized he'd stepped outside for a breath of fresh air in the same place she had until after she was halfway out the door. It would be strange to walk away from him. It seemed strange to walk toward him, too, though. But her feet were headed in that direction before she had a chance to stop them.The night was chilly, which was to be expected in the mountains in December; she wished she’d thought to grab her coat. It wasn't snowing, but the wind was stirring up ice cr
With her back to Jason, Bree hugged a pillow and tried to stop her tears. It was past 2:00 in the morning, and she was exhausted. Not only was she tired from a long day of school, being on the road, and one too many drinks, she'd spent the last few hours arguing with Jason.It hadn't been pretty on the porch. She'd tried to play it off, as if it meant nothing that she had her head on Trent's shoulder, that his arm was around her, but Jason would have none of it.
Bree was furious! How could that jerk of a now-ex-boyfriend take the car and leave like that? It wasn't even his car! She'd borrowed it from her roommate because it had new tires on it and wasn't as likely to break down as hers. Jason didn't even own a car! He got to and from class on a little Vespa he called his baby. He was such an idiot. At least they were done, and she'd never have to see him again.Her roommate, Lilly Edge, had gone home for the holidays, too, but her sister, who was a year younger than her, had stopped to pick her up on her way through town, so