Burning Barriers (Barriers Series Book 3) Read online

  Copyright © 2014 by Angela Page

  All rights reserved

  Cover Design by Renee Ericson, RE Creatives, http://recreativesdesigns.wordpress.com

  Interior Design and Formatting by Jovana Shirley,

  Unforeseen Editing, www.unforeseenediting.com

  Editing by Paige Smith

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This 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 personas, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owner.

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  Soundtrack

  Author Bio

  Acknowledgments

  I can’t figure out why I’m suddenly back in the woods behind my parents’ house in Breckenridge, Colorado, but here I am, walking down the mountain bike trails along the ski slopes. The aspen trees rustle above me as the typical summer afternoon storm suddenly rolls in. I hear the thunder roar overhead before I see the blackened storm clouds that continue to darken the path I’m trekking. I traveled this path a million times before I left this town. It was the quickest route to Jake Galloway’s house. I could walk this path blindfolded in the dark; that’s how many times I sneaked out to see him.

  To see him.

  I never really went to see him. Until the end of the summer after our high school graduation, we were hotter than hot for each other. His parents owned a luxury mountainside villa that cost more than I would ever earn in my lifetime, but I never had any issues with his family. They operated a horse ranch in the area, trained barrel racers, and were hardly around. I’d sneak out almost every night to be with Jake.

  My feet move steadily below me. Branches crunch under my sneakers as the wind howls through the thick tree cover. The heavy rain suddenly begins to push through the trees, soaking me to my bones. I quicken my pace some as I begin to make out the lights of Jake’s house ahead through the onslaught of raindrops. The clearing to his property is a few yards away.

  Something sends a chill down my spine, and I turn to see his stealthy eyes staring at me. I’m no longer that teenager sneaking out to see her boyfriend. I’m now twenty-five and glowering at the man who fucked me twice a couple of months ago. The same man who gave me the scar that now permanently brands my neck after he attempted to kill me as well as my best friend, Sam.

  Stone.

  My hand runs along my sopping neck as I feel the raised scar tissue where the knife sliced through, reminding me of that horrific night. I watch as Stone stomps forward before I yell at the top of my lungs and turn toward Jake’s house where it’s safe for me. As I turn, hands wrap around me from behind before my feet slip from under me on the slick, rocky trail. My vision becomes foggy as I am propelled forward, hitting a tree trunk on the way to the ground.

  Stone’s rough laugh and evil smile rush closer to me at the same time a body soars out of nowhere, pushing Stone to the ground. The mystery man kneels over Stone, ultimately pinning him below his strong, powerful body. Punch after punch lands across Stone’s face as the shoulder muscles strain through the back of the wet T-shirt of the man who came to my rescue. I watch until Stone’s body goes limp within seconds, and the grunts from my rescuer grow silent.

  This man who just saved me stands over Stone’s lifeless body, making sure he’s no longer a threat. I catch him raise the front of his shirt to wipe the sweat and rain off his face before he slowly turns toward me. The face of my rescuer stares back at me, and my body tingles all over. He’s even sexier than he was the last time I saw him. He’s no longer that high school boy I left behind. He’s all grown up, six feet of pure male with slightly grown out brown hair and brown eyes that overpower my senses. While I simply gaze, a cocky smile creeps across his face as he begins to near me.

  My jaw drops as my body weakens into lava the closer he gets to me. “Jake,” I breathlessly say as my body temperature rises, and my heart pounds inside my chest.

  My eyes can’t focus and begin trailing over his body. His chiseled jawline is sharp, but his eyes scream dominance. His defined abdominal muscles peek through the soaked beige shirt that clings to his skin. His bicep and forearm veins protrude as he intensely stands before me.

  “Hey, Luce, miss me?” His deep voice rumbles through me as he reaches down to pick me up. We continue to stare silently at each other as he cradles me in his arms, walking back toward his house. I take one last look behind me to see Stone’s body still lying motionless on the ground.

  My arm glides around his neck as I tease my fingers in his wet, messy hair. I hear him groan through his throat, his telltale sign that I’m turning him on. My eyes venture up from my fingers to his face just as we enter the back of his house with purpose.

  His feet hastily make their way through his private entrance, and I’m suddenly inside Jake’s old bedroom. My wandering eyes take in the walls as a soft glow lights them. Nothing has changed since the last time I was here. Before I can make a comment about our prom picture still sitting on top of his bureau, I’m dropped onto his oversized bed. His outdoor woodsy smell seeps into my nose. As I glance up, Jake is hurriedly removing his shirt and kicking off his sneakers. His hands drop to start fiddling with his leather belt until it’s undone; his zipper opens just as fast. Jake’s drenched jeans and boxers get pushed to the floor in an instant, and out of nowhere, he’s standing naked before me.

  Holy shit.

  My eyes take in his adult body until I see his hardened cock in front of me. He’s certainly grown into the man I’ve only fantasized about when I have sex with random guys these days. My breathing escalates as I anxiously wait for what I think he’s going to do to me.

  Jake’s hands reach down and pull off my wet sneakers before his fingers slide up my bare legs. Goose bumps form over my body. The elbows that once held me up have given way, and I shut my eyes as lie on my back, allowing my body to feel his hypnotizing hands. My stomach flutters with a sensation I have only ever felt with him.

  “Open your eyes, Luce. I want you to watch me claim your body again. It’s been way too long,” he hisses into my ear. My eyes fire open to see his smoldering eyes on mine. He slips one hand under my heavy shirt while his other hand pulls me up into him as his body crouches over me. My shirt is ripped over my head as my damp, disheveled, blonde hair slaps against the naked skin of my shoulders.

  Sitting here in nothing more than my pink lace bra and shorts, I feel completely exposed and yet covered at the same time. My body wants him. I’ve craved this for too long with him. Now that he’s here in front of me naked and willing, I’m not saying no.

  “Jake, I need to feel you inside me again,” I devilishly whisper as my fingers reach out to barely touch his taut body. His eyes are no longer smoldering; they are blazing with heated desire. My fingers begin to work their magic and zigzag over his pecks and then trail their way ove
r his nipples and lower to bump their way over each defined ab line on his stomach. One of my hands lies flat on his chest as the other suddenly wraps its way around his length to start stroking him slowly. I know what I can give him and what he likes. My hand may be small compared to his rigid cock, but it has always had the power to bring him to his knees.

  Up. Down. Squeeze tighter. Run thumb over the head in circles. Repeat.

  I raise my eyes to his, pleading for him to fuck me like he used to. I need him to eliminate the past seven years I spent away from him. Right here, right now. I don’t even care at this moment that he hasn’t asked about Stone’s attack in the woods or the scar on my neck.

  Forcefully, Jake curls his strong fingers over my wrist, pulling my hand away from his erect cock. As he gazes into my eyes, I can tell he senses my yearning to have him. Jake pulls me by the wrist until I’m standing in front of him. “You’re not ready to have my cock inside you yet, Lucy. I have other plans for you right now,” he growls into my ear as his hands reach around to unclasp my bra, letting it fall to the hardwood floor. My arms dangle lifelessly at my side, unsure of where to touch him next.

  My mouth salivates at the thought of falling to my knees and deep-throating him, but another part of my body is throbbing, and I need him there more than anything. Any thoughts of taking Jake into my mouth are thrown out the window when he undoes my shorts, ultimately dropping them unto the floor along with his body as he kneels before me.

  He eagerly pushes apart my legs before looking up into my eyes. His tongue inches out to lick his lips before he brings his mouth to my heated, wet folds. I’m immediately transported into another world the second his tongue spreads between my legs and finds my slick clit. I no longer need to fantasize about Jake being the one between my legs and making me come. He’s here right now.

  My hands fervently tangle in his damp hair, pulling him deeper into my core. The moans from Jake’s throat vibrate against me, and I’m already feeling the pressure between my legs building to a level it never has before. He pulls away as my knees tremble, and my naked body glistens with heated dampness.

  “Come for me, Luce. I want to taste your juices all over my tongue.”

  His words alone set my body spiraling out of control until his mouth is back on me. His tongue dances around my clit as his fingers slide inside my entrance. My body welcomes his strong fingers. I feel my walls throbbing around them as he picks up the pace both inside and out, and I can’t hold on any longer. My hands push against the back of his head, pulling him flush against me as my orgasm courses through my body. I scream his name with erotic pleasure as my head rolls back, and my eyes clamp shut, but I still only see Jake between my legs. His mouth and tongue prove they still work the same as before. My body shakes and grows weaker through Jake’s torturous assault of his fingers inside me.

  I remember now why I can never envision anyone besides Jake while I fuck another guy. He’s always been the only one who could make me come like this. Nobody else.

  As my breathing begins to settle, my eyes slowly open, and I chuckle at the fact I just experienced the best orgasm I’ve had in seven years. Then, all of a sudden, the feeling of ecstasy is missing from my core, and I roll my head back down to see why Jake stopped.

  Pushing my tangled hair off my face, my eyes rove back to where Jake knelt before me moments ago. It’s suddenly empty, and the room is no longer Jake’s. I’m fully dressed again, and I quickly glance around the room to figure out where I am until I realize I’m back in my old house. The house I no longer live in with my roommates, all because Stone tried to kill Sam and me nearly a month ago.

  Movement by the doorway catches my attention, and I immediately assume it’s Jake. When I look up, I see his haunting face staring back at me. It’s not Jake. It’s Stone, and his face seethes with anger as blood drips from the side of his head.

  What the hell happened to Jake? Stone is supposed to be dead. I know he’s dead. Everyone told me he was shot and killed.

  My body stills for a second until he starts rushing toward me, but my feet can’t move. It’s as though I’m stuck in quicksand, and there’s no escape. His hands dart to reach around my neck as I begin to scream for my life. My eyes slam shut, and I can’t stand to watch what he’s about to do to me.

  As I anticipate Stone’s death grip around my neck, I hear another girl screaming in the distance.

  That doesn’t sound like Sam. Who could possibly be screaming?

  My heart rate accelerates, and my body forces itself to help whoever is screaming and fighting to survive. I gave up too soon last time. I will never let that happen again.

  I feel my body shoot upward, and my eyes widen instantly. The hotel logo sits on the flyer perched on the nightstand next to me. My hands nervously shake as they grip the blankets covering me. The television is on with the source of the screams that disturbed me moments ago, waking me from my dream.

  I must have dozed off in the hotel room while watching Catching Fire. It was Katiniss’ screams in the movie that broke me from my dream. It all starts to come back to me. I know I need to get to Breckenridge. My parents are expecting me in a couple of days, but after my lengthy ten-hour drive across the very long state of Pennsylvania, I needed a break. I recall pulling off the highway somewhere near Indiana around midnight, and fortunately, the first hotel I came across had a room available.

  The hot guy behind the front desk clearly wanted to get into my pants. He kept giving me this look with his come-fuck-me eyes that gleamed while he sexily tousled his hair. The minute he took a sip from his Grumpy Cat coffee cup, I nixed the idea of even flirting back. Don’t get me wrong. I love Grumpy Cat, and on any other day of the week, I might have fucked him, but after driving all day, sex was the last thing I wanted to do.

  I know. I must be coming down with something.

  Besides, I just really wanted to sleep for once, but only after I read some more of the hilarious parody I downloaded onto my e-reader last week. I’m a Hunger Games junkie and have read the books and watched the movies multiple times. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve read The Humping Games by Jack Gallow at least ten times already. Each time I laugh even more than the last. I swear, this book actually made my hospital stay and dealing with my parents tolerable. Trust me when I say it was possibly the worst three days of my life. If it weren’t for The Humping Games, I might not have found my smile as fast as I did.

  As I look down to the e-reader still ablaze on the comforter next to me, I notice where I left off reading.

  Oh, yeah. I chuckle softly. Chapter five.

  One character in particular I connected with on a freaky level. Her name is Rabbitfoot. She slithers across the floor, licking spilled booze and killing men after having sex with them. Now that’s a girl after my own heart!

  I turn off my e-reader and lie back against the pile of pillows. I continue to watch the movie and attempt to keep my mind from diverting to thoughts of Jake. After the dream I just woke up from, I know this will be hard to do, so I reach for my cell phone and type out a quick text to Sam, letting her know where I am and I’ll be in touch soon. Then, I send my sister, Ellen, a text as well. I know she’ll still be awake, and it will prevent me from having to deal with my overbearing parents, who most likely are already asleep anyway. Ellen, on the other hand, is probably still living it up in downtown Breckenridge at the dive bar where she works.

  After hitting Send, I plug my phone into the charger and turn off the light next to the bed. The TV is still glowing throughout the room. I try to concentrate on my favorite movie, but as I close my weary eyes, only one image appears.

  Jake’s face.

  Sigh.

  It’s the last thing I remember seeing before sleep totally consumes me.

  Another night, another bar, and another chick grinding up against my cock. Same shit. Different day. Story of my fuckin’ life for the past seven years.

  Growl.

  If this chick doesn’t stop pushing he
r tits up against me and running her hands over my cock, I just might have to ditch her. I grab my beer from the bar and take a long pull before leaning over to her ear. She’s not even paying attention to me. Her eyes are glazed over from one too many blueberry vodka and lemonade concoctions they serve here at The Loaded Tavern.

  “Sweetheart, keep scratching that itch between my legs and the only thing you’ll be sucking back tonight are more of those drinks you’ve pounded all afternoon,” I explain loud enough for only her to hear. I don’t even know her name nor do I care.

  It’s Bike Week in Breckenridge, which means the town is swarming with tourists. This chick falls into that category, but most of the people around these parts tend to be tourists this time of year. They’re hikers, bikers, or big money snobs that travel down from Vail or sometimes Aspen, probably here to see how normal people live. I think Stacey, Tracey, or whatever her name is, mentioned she drove out from Denver with a bunch of girls for a weekend getaway.

  I don’t know, and I don’t care. I stopped listening ages ago. You know, before she had her third blueberry girlie drink. She’s like all the other girls I slam. Just here for the weekend and gone the next. I don’t give a shit about any of them. Most of them have nice racks, but I’ve seen enough tits and pussies since college. They all start to look the same after a while.

  I have my own life, my own responsibilities, and a family business to keep running. On top of that, I work at the local fire department.

  That is why the chicks love to throw themselves at my feet. They hear I’m a hose dragger, and they immediately assume I’m hung like a moose and an easy fuck.

  Ehhh.

  They could be on to something.

  There isn’t a moment that goes by that I don’t regret my past decisions after high school. My life might have turned out a whole lot different than it is right now. I had that someone special in my life, and I let her go, and she never came back. All the women and all the booze might have been avoided had I used the right head back then.