Heartless
Authors: Cheryl Douglas
Heartless
Book Six in the Nashville Nights
Series
Cheryl Douglas
Copyright © by Cheryl Douglas
All rights
reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, including photocopying,
graphic, electronic, mechanical, taping, recording, sharing, or by any
information retrieval system without the express written permission of the
author and / or publisher. Exceptions include brief quotations embodied in
critical articles and reviews.
Persons, places
and other entities represented in this book are deemed to be fictitious. They
are not intended to represent actual places or entities currently or previously
in existence or any person living or dead. This work is the product of the
author’s imagination.
Any and all
inquiries to the author of this book should be directed to
Heartless © 2012 Cheryl Douglas
Heartless – Book
Six
Derek McCall was devastated when his girlfriend married his
best friend, Josh. He respected the boundaries of friendship for years, but one
night they gave in to temptation. Feeling guilty for betraying his best friend,
Derek left town, determined to put the past and Ashley behind him.
Ashley Cooper has loved two men in her life, her ex-husband,
Josh, and her ex-boyfriend, Derek. This single mom is finally ready to start
dating again when Derek returns to town, ready to throw his hat in the ring.
Her kids are dead-set against the relationship, but will she risk their
disapproval for a chance to re-write history?
Read What the
Reviewers Are Saying About Nashville Nights…
“
Shameless
has wonderfully flawed
characters that have to fight to get back what they lost, but when they get it
right, it is absolutely fantastic.”
Cocktails
and Books
“This
series is very emotional and I can’t wait to pick up a new book after it’s
release.”
Book
Travels
“I read
the whole series and let me tell you, I love it. I read all four books in two
days. I couldn’t put them down.”
My
Eclectic Bookshelf
“
Shameless
is a sensual story
packed full of passion, temptation, and forbidden love.”
For the
Love of Reading
“
Shameless
drew me in heart and
soul from the very first page to the satisfying conclusion after the final page
was turned. Those wanting an emotional roller coaster ride, climb on board and
add this one to your bookshelf.”
Wow from
the Scarf Princess Blog
“There
were times throughout
Shameless
where I was actually overcome with emotion. It made me cry
and smile, and sometimes gasp or laugh out loud; a piece of art that couldn’t
have come at a better time. Simply a must read. I give this book a solid five
stars!”
Read2Review
“The flow
of this story
(Fearless)
was perfect. I cannot wait for the 3
rd
installment.”
Insightful
Minds Reviews
“I really
adore all of the characters in this series.”
Autumn
Review
Derek McCall sat
listening to his brother’s friends and family pay tribute to a life cut short
in the line of duty, fighting for his country. They called him a hero. But to
his sobbing wife, he was a husband who would miss out on the opportunity to
dance with her at their daughter’s wedding, and a father who wouldn’t live long
enough to hold his first grandchild.
Derek and his late
brother were cut from the same cloth. A soldier and a cop, who believed in
fighting for what was right, standing up against injustice and crime, and
putting your life on the line when necessary. Only Dave had paid the ultimate
price for his beliefs, and it left Derek to question when his number would be
called. When it was, would he have a wife and children to mourn him or would he
be lying on his death bed wishing for more time to live the life he’d dreamed
about?
He glanced across
the aisle of the small church and was reminded why he was still waiting for his
life to begin... Ashley Cooper, his best friend’s ex-wife, his college
girlfriend, and the only woman he ever loved. She was as beautiful now as she
was back then, and it reminded him of the girl he’d fallen in love with a
lifetime ago. She had grown children now, but when he looked at her, Derek felt
as though time had stood still.
He could still
remember lying on a blanket in the bed of his truck, holding her in his arms
and watching the fireworks explode over the lake on the 4
th
of July,
or making love in the tall grass when she planned an impromptu picnic to
celebrate the start of their first summer together. They would plan for the
future, dream about the kids they would have, the exotic places they would
travel, and the careers they were planning.
Derek’s life took
a sharp turn during his junior year. Football started monopolizing more of his
time, keg parties dominated his weekends, teammates became his family, studies
became an afterthought, and Ashley got tired of waiting by the phone for the
calls that never came. That’s when she told him it was over, and instead of
trying to win her back, Derek dealt with the pain by partying harder and
pretending he didn’t care.
He watched her
fall in love with his best friend, Josh Cooper. He stood by Josh as he married
the woman who should have been his bride. He snuck into the hospital room the day
their twins were born, kissed cheeks, shook hands, and went home and cried for
the first time, cried for the life he’d lost.
Josh was his
partner on the Nashville police force for years, his other brother. It wasn’t
his fault they’d fallen in love with the same woman. Derek didn’t want to lose
his best friend and the woman he loved, so he remained quiet, living a lie,
pretending it wasn’t tearing his heart out every time he saw their happy
family.
He was the ‘cool
uncle’ to Ashley’s kids, taking them to hockey games, coaching Little League,
and savoring the piece of their lives they were willing to share with him. He
loved those kids like they were his own. If things had turned out the way they
were supposed to, they would have been his.
He looked over at
the boys, who weren’t boys anymore. Jay and Mike Cooper were grown men, both
successful in their own right, and sons any father would be proud to call their
own.
Uncle Derek hadn’t
been their hero since they found out he slept with their mother while she was
still married to their father. Now he was just the guy they loved to hate.
Derek’s younger
brother, J.T., nudged him. “Hey, you okay?”
No. How could he
be okay? They were getting ready to lower their brother’s lifeless body into
the ground for eternity. Nothing would ever be okay again. Their family would
never be the same. But Derek couldn’t say that because he had to be the strong
one. Now that Dave was gone, they were all counting on him to be the glue that
held their shattered family together.
“Yeah, I’m okay.
How ‘bout you, kid?”
J.T. squeezed his
fiancée Nikki’s hand and she smiled up at him. “I’m gettin’ through it, man.”
For the first
time, Derek envied his younger brother. At least J.T. had someone to help him
get through it. After the last guest left and silence fell, J.T. would have
someone to hold him, someone to remind him that life went on. Derek only had
the promise of a big empty bed waiting for him.
“It’s time,” J.T.
whispered, rising to his feet.
They all watched
Dave’s fellow soldiers carry the casket out of the church, across the field to
his final resting place. A small cemetery flanked the pristine land surrounding
the church. One of the few places untouched by progress, and the place Dave had
chosen as his eternal home.
Dave was honored
with the fallen hero’s service, complete with the presentation of their flag, a
reminder that his life mattered, his service was appreciated, and he was part
of something bigger and more important than most could comprehend.
Derek walked beside
his mother, holding her trembling frame as she tried to come to terms with the
fact that she’d lost her first-born son. Derek couldn’t begin to comprehend his
parents’ pain. Losing a brother was devastating. He couldn’t begin to imagine
what it must feel like to know that your child’s life was cut short in his prime.
The mourners all
sat in silence, listening, praying for strength to navigate the coming weeks
and months without their brother, son, husband, father, and friend.
By the time he
tossed the final rose on the lacquered casket, Derek just wanted to disappear.
He’d faced his fears before. He’d looked down the barrel of a gun, felt a
bullet ricochet through his body, negotiated with mad men, but he’d never felt so
lost before. He’d always had direction, known where he was going and how he was
going to get there. Today, he felt adrift, as though he’d been cast out on a
deserted island with no tools for survival or hope of being rescued.
He felt the heat
of a hand sear through his suit and he knew only one person could make him feel
that way. Ashley.
She reached up to
hug him and he held on to her as though she were throwing him a lifeline in a
sea of never-ending water. He didn’t care that her sons and ex-husband were
probably watching the scene unfold. He needed her now, and to hell with what
everyone else thought.
“I’m so sorry,
Derek,” she whispered, stroking his hair. “Your brother was a good man.”
“The best.” He
cursed the tremor in his voice. He was raised to believe that cowboys don’t cry.
He may be a big city cop now, but he would always be a rancher at heart. He
cleared his throat. “I still can’t believe he’s gone. It just doesn’t seem
real.”
“I know,” she
said, brushing away the tear that slipped down her cheek. “I can’t even imagine
how Christine and the kids must be feeling right now.”