So Trashy (Bad Boy Next Door Book 2) (23 page)

The tumbler turns in the lock and I hold my breath, waiting.

Two…Three…Four.

Nothing.

I step inside, careful to be quiet. My chest tightens and my
gut urges me to bail. If it weren’t for Sophie and Mom, I’d run.

Leaving my shoes in the entry, I creep into the living room.
My ears strain for signs someone’s awake. The television is muted, but its
flickering light bounces off the walls, illuminating the figure sprawled on the
sofa.

My pent-up breath seeps out. It’s just Mom, not
him
.
I spread a quilt over her and pull her Rosary from her fingers, arranging it on
the coffee table, and turn off the TV. Most nights she passes out on the couch.
It’s been like that since even before my baby sister Lola died.

Stopping at Sophie’s room down the hall, I push open the
door. I stumble over piles of toys to her bed. The nightlight casts long
shadows around me.

She rubs her knuckles over her eyes. “Mom took those pills
again for her somnia. Is she asleep?”

My heart cringes, as it does every time Sophie asks about
Mom. “It’s
in
somnia, Soph. And, yes, she’s sleeping. Seven-year-olds
should be too. That means you, kiddo.”

A door slams. Every muscle in my body grips the nearest
bone. Sophie takes a breath like she’s going to say something, but I cover her mouth
and shush her. We wait, eyes wide. I stare through the dimly lit room. Was that
movement in the crack of light around the door?

Sophie’s jaw clenches under my palm. A crash in the kitchen
is followed by shattering glass, banging cabinet doors, and cursing.

Minutes inch by on their hands and knees. Footsteps come
down the hall, but then they stop and retreat. I count to ten, and then
whisper, “Was he gone all evening?”

“Yeah. Mom said he had a dinner meeting.”

Relief floods my veins. The less he’s around, the better.
Maybe he’ll go straight to bed and leave us alone.

I move Sophie over and climb in next to her. With the tip of
my finger, I brush the hair off her forehead, pushing it behind her ear. Mom
always says how much Sophie looks like me, but other than matching olive
complexions, along with our dark hair and eyes, I can’t see it. Sophie’s
beautiful. I’ve never been anywhere close to beautiful.

Taking a deep breath, I say, “Okay, and this is how it goes:
I once had a penguin named Al.”

She puts her little hand on my cheek and snuggles close. “Al
is a real pal.”

We play our happy game of nonsense and whatever rhymes we
can think of, which generally devolves into gibberish and made-up words that
never existed. Sophie loves this game. It’s perfect for keeping her mind busy
when things get stressful.

Once again, I stay the night in Sophie’s room to guard
against the last person she should need protection from—our father.

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Dear Reader,

I hope you’ve enjoyed SO. TRASHY.

If you liked Buck and Lou’s story, please share it with your
friends. The best compliment you can give an author is to tell someone how much
you like their work. Please consider giving a review on Amazon and/or
Goodreads
, talk with a
friend about SO. TRASHY. or one of my other books, or buy a copy. All of these
are the highest of praise to any author. I am forever in your debt should you
choose to do so.

Thank you again.

Best regards,

Kelley Harvey

Kelley and her husband Mike live in North Central Texas
with their two daughters. Kelley still feels as though she lives on Teenage
Drama Island, even though her eldest is now in her twenties. She’s waiting for
the day her sweet husband whisks her away to Adult Sans Kids Resort.

Kelley enjoys reading, crafting, scrapbooking, sewing, and
crochet. Mostly, she loves writing. It took her thirty-eight years to figure
out what she wanted to be when she grew up. Her characters become as real to
her as her friends and family. She truly hopes her readers connect with them
the way she does.

Acknowledgments

I am so blessed to have the support of my family, friends,
and readers. I thank my Lord everyday for the grace He gives and the success He
grants. I can do nothing apart from Christ (and yes, I believe He loves me even
though I write hot, sexy scenes. He knows better than anyone what’s in this
head of mine; HE created this mind, after all.)

Thank you to my sweet husband who has supported and loved me
for well over half of my life. He’s
my
Buck Wylder, my knight in shining
armor. All my romances have a little piece of our love in them. Without you, Mike
Harvey, I wouldn’t believe in “happy-ever-afters” and write about them. We’ve
been together for over twenty-five years;
you
are my happily ever after.

WOW! SO. TRASHY. has so many wonderful contributors, I hope
I don’t miss anyone.

First, thank you Karla Pierce, for encouraging me to write
about a bad girl. We love our sweet heroines, but every once in a while, it’s
nice to see a girl who can take care of herself and kick some ass when she
needs to. Lou can certainly do that.

Thank you, K. A. S. for the amazing insights you gave on
what it’s like to work in a strip club as a dancer. Without that information, I
probably couldn’t have written this story in quite this way. Also, an even
BIGGER THANK YOU for your openness about growing up bi-racial. My heart hurts
to think that anyone should feel as though they don’t belong. You belong. You
are in my heart forever. I’m so happy you’ve grown into such a beautiful,
loving woman. Race is stupid. We’re all just people. My humanness recognizes
your humanness, and I love you.

Lance Corporal Ashlynn Pierce, US Marine Corps, thank you
for your contribution on the facts of life as a female Marine. Basing Lou’s
military career on yours worked beautifully. I appreciate your help more than
you can know. Having served in the US Air Force myself, you know how much I
support and love all our military servicemen and women, but there will always
be a special place in my heart for “our Marine”, my “other” daughter. Thank you
for your service to our nation.

Thank you, M. D. McGaha, for lending me your big heart,
generosity, spunk, and frankness for Aunt Delores of SO. TRASHY. You know you
are cherished by your family and friends, and now you are treasured by the
readers who loved the character that I based loosely on you.

Thank you, Diana Page, for coming up with the word FIDIOT…
you are truly on the cutting edge of language development. I appreciate your
letting me use the term.

To my friend, my critique partner, and my mentor, Lana
Grayson, you ROCK my AUTHORLY world. I could never in a million years have
gotten this far in my writing career without you. Much love and thankfulness
for your friendship and support, for talking me down off the ledge, for kicking
my ass when it needed a boot, and for the encouragement to keep going.

To my friend and Personal Assistant, Terri Hanson Sullivan,
you are simply fabulous. You never cease to thrill and amaze me with your
dedication to help me as an author and a friend. Also, to the rest of my Dream
Team, Kristin Ashley Smith, Jennifer DiCenzo, and Diana Page, you ladies are
all amazing. I can hardly believe how close we’ve become over the last few
months. I can’t wait to meet each of you in person and give you big squeezes.
You have helped me so much to achieve success as an author. There’s no way I’d
be able to do this without you, and I don’t want to.

Thank you to all of my beta readers, Jennifer DiCenzo,
Ashley Hawkins, Kristin Smith, Terri H. Sullivan, Diana Page, Corey Day Clancy,
and Melissa Fisher. This book would not be nearly as smooth a read if it
weren’t for you. It thrills my heart to know you like my words enough to read
them when they’re still unpolished and ugly. I heart you all so hard.

Valorie Clifton, thank you for being my copy editor
extraordinaire. All those little things add up, so thank you for helping me
weed them out on that one last edit. Bless you.

I also thank my wonderful reader/fans who have become my
friends. Much appreciation and heartfelt thanks to those who have helped me get
the word out about SO. TRASHY. and my other works. In no particular order, Veronica
Garcia, Kd Russell, Joanna Helms, Jamie Buchanan, Diana Page, Terri Sullivan,
Jennifer DiCenzo, Kristin Smith, Pennie Adams, Penny Leidecker, Reva Coomer,
Wendi Stacilaucki-Hunsicker, Amy King, Jodi Naylor, Kendra LaSalle, Sylve
Takajian, and Kim Quicks-Brooks. There are so many more who’ve pimped my works
on Facebook and posted banners and covers in comments there as well. Thank you
all. And thank you to those who’ve introduced their friends to my words.

I cannot say thank you enough to all the wonderful authors
who’ve helped me along, coached me, hosted at my release parties, and generally
have just been fantastic to their fellow author. Specifically for posting about
my book on your own pages and social media platforms, and for all the other
things you do, I thank you, Lana Grayson, Winter, Cora, and Joanna. I always
appreciate everything you do.

Thank you to all the bloggers who’ve posted about SO.
TRASHY. on your blogs for the blog tour and for the release day blitz, and just
in general because you like my work. Without y’all, I know SO. TRASHY. wouldn’t
have had such a wonderful launch.

Last, but most assuredly not least, thank you to all the
fantastic readers who’ve read Buck and Lou’s story and loved it. You are the
reason I write. Thank you all.

I continue to be blessed daily.