Under The Same Sky (Horseshoe Bay Book 1) Read online

  Under The Same Sky

  Tamsyn Bester

  Synopsis

  It’s been nine years since I last saw him, and now he’s back in town.

  Thorin Decker.

  Front man of Eighteendust, one of the world’s most famous rock bands. But before his rise to fame, he was the boy I fell in love with, and the boy who broke my heart.

  I never expected to see him again, but in a cruel twist of fate, we’ve been tied together in a way neither of us saw coming. If I thought he would be the same boy who left all those years ago, I was dead wrong. But he’s not the only one who’s changed. He’ll soon realize the girl he both broke, and saved, no longer exists.

  I might have moved on with my life, and let go of our past, but if he thinks a second chance is in the cards, he’s going to have to prove that he’s worth the risk.

  And if he is, will I be willing to take it?

  Contents

  Synopsis

  Copyright

  Disclaimer

  Playlist

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Epilogue

  Dear Reader

  About The Author

  Copyright

  Copyright © 2019 Tamsyn Bester

  Original Song Lyrics “Under The Same Sky” © 2019 Tamsyn Bester

  Edited by: Brazen Ink

  Cover Design by © Sommer Stein at Perfect Pear Creative Covers

  PHOTO COPYRIGHT © DepositPhotos

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. 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 owners. This eBook is licensed for your personal use only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Disclaimer

  Parts of Reese’s backstory are based on true events

  To my dad, who survived and got a second chance; to my mom and Dad #2, who carried me in both hands through the hardest year of my life.

  And in loving memory of my Uncle Andy, my Oupa, and my Ouma.

  here is the deepest secret nobody knows

  (here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

  and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows

  higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)

  and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

  i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart) - E.E Cummings

  Playlist

  Sanctuary (feat. Charles Esten and Lennon & Maisy)

  Love Don’t Die Easy - Charlie Worsham

  Dammit - Jana Kramer

  The Ship and the Bottle - Brett Young

  Mercy - Brett Young & Laci Kaye Booth

  Beautiful Believer - Brett Young

  Don’t Call Me - Laci Kaye Booth

  Heaven - Kane Brown

  What’s Mine is Yours - Kane Brown

  What Ifs - Kane Brown (feat. Lauren Alaina)

  Hometown - Kane Brown

  Comeback - Kane Brown

  Jesus Take The Wheel - Danielle Bradbury

  What Are We Doing - Danielle Bradbury

  Human Diary - Danielle Bradbury

  There Goes My Everything - Kane Brown

  Chapter One

  Reese

  I growl in frustration as the woman on the phone tells me for the millionth time that I can’t speak to Thorin. “I don’t know how you got this number, but we don’t allow fans or groupies to speak to any of the band members,” she says haughtily. I have no clue who she is, but by the sounds of it she’s probably the band’s assistant. God. My week can’t get any worse. Between memorial service arrangements, daily visits to the hospital and dealing with everything else, I’m strung out, physically and emotionally. It’s been the longest, and hardest, five days I’ve ever had to endure. I pinch the bridge of my nose, and gather whatever semblance of patience I have left. It’s not much.

  “Listen, I have some very important news for Thorin, if you could please let me—”

  “Sorry,” she cuts me off, “but as I said, we don’t allow fans—”

  “I’m not a fucking fan!” I snap, the shreds of my patience dissipating. “Get Thorin and tell him Reese Pie is on the phone, please. This has to do with his brother and sister-in-law, and I need to talk to him. Now.”

  My throat burns, my eyes begin to water, and if I wasn’t already on the verge of an emotional meltdown five minutes ago, I sure as hell am now.

  “If you can prove to me you’re not a fan—”

  For Christ’s sake. “His middle name is Jude, after his grandfather, and that scar above his eyebrow? He got that after helping me when I was too scared to climb down from a tree on his dad’s ranch. He has a birthmark behind his ear in the shape of what looks like a moon, and—”

  “All public information,” she replies coolly. Total bullshit. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, Reese Pie,” she spits out Thorin’s old nickname for me as if she hates it almost as much as I do, “the band is about to come off stage, and I have work to do.” Before I can get another word in edgewise, the call is disconnected and I’m left looking at the phone as if it’s the physical embodiment of the bitch I just spoke to.

  Damnit.

  I think Thorin and his band are somewhere in the United States—I never bothered to check their tour schedule—and after looking through some of Ryan’s things in his office, I finally found a contact number. I’d lost contact with Thorin years ago—nine, to be exact—not that I want to take that particular trip down memory lane right now, but I know Ryan spoke to him as often as he could. I only know it’s the last show on their tour because Ryan wrote it down, and after this, only God knows where Thorin will go. He won’t come home—I cut that thought short because he has to come home. His brother is dead, and so is his sister-in-law, and I’ve put the memorial service plans on hold in the hopes of reaching Thorin to let him know and give him time to get here.

  Keep it together, I tell myself. Just until after the service.

  Except it won’t be that easy because my life has blown up, and I don’t know what I’m going to do. My two best friends—who
took me in, and made me part of their family—died a week ago in a sick, and ugly twist of fate, and the weight of it all lays heavily on my chest. I’ve kept it together for the most part, because I have someone else depending on me now, but I’m also scared out of my mind, and there’s no one here to guide me.

  “Fuck,” I mutter, staring down at the granite kitchen top. I shut my eyes, and try with every fibre of my being to breathe, and pull myself towards myself. I check the clock, and realize I have to get to the hospital. I grab the keys to my truck, make sure the car seat is secure in the backseat and take off down the gravel road towards town. Horseshoe Bay is a small town in the middle-of-nowhere, hill country, Texas. I was born and raised here until I got the hell out of dodge and went to Auburn University, Alabama. Not that my parents cared. I’d absolved them of any responsibility they had toward me, and decided the only way I was going to make it was on my own. By the time I graduated from Auburn, though, my parents had sold their home without a word, and left me homeless. Not that I expected anything less. That’s when Melissa and Ryan took me in, and I’ve been living with them on Ryan’s ranch for the past five years. He even built me a small house at the back so that I could have my own place, and later expanded it for me when I expanded my business. I have my own fully equipped gym, a small studio space for photoshoots, an office, and three bedrooms, all with en-suite bathrooms. It’s too big a place for just me, but that was Ryan. A heart bigger than Texas. Then again, we’d known each other since we were kids, and I always knew how much he cared about his friends and family. I wipe away a stray tear as I pass through the small town, past the church where him and Melissa got married in straight out of college, past the town square, past the high school. This place holds so many memories, and despite all the bad ones, it’s the only place I want to be. I stop in front of the hospital, put my truck in park, and stare at the entrance. Of all the things I’m scared of, this scares me the most. But, if Melissa and Ryan trusted me enough to do it, then I’d give it everything I’ve got. For them. And their son.

  The nurses at reception greet me, their eyes filled with the same sympathy they’ve been throwing my way all week, but I smile weakly, and head up to the maternity floor. The elderly African-American matron, Imani, spots me, and in spite of her gentle smile, her gaze is also filled with compassion an empathy. As much as I appreciate the support, I’m so tired of being looked at that way. I hate it when people feel sorry for me, a heavy scar left behind from high school. “Hi, Reese.” She gives me a hug, and I didn’t know how much I need it until her arms are around me. It’s the most human contact I’ve had since contacting Ryan and Melissa’s close friends, and Ryan’s family to give them the worst news imaginable, and being held feels good. Comforting. It’s a hug that says, you can do this. When I pull away, I wipe my face again, probably looking as haggard as I feel. “Is he ready?” I ask, the tremor in my voice unmistakable. I can’t hide how I feel, but Imani just smiles and starts walking toward the nursery. “Almost, they’re just changing his diaper and getting him dressed.”

  I stop outside the door, and Imani looks at me with understanding. “Do you need a minute, sweetheart?” I swallow the ball of emotion lodged in my throat, and give her a nod. She opens an office door, and lets me in. “Take all the time you need, okay? I’ll check on you in a bit.”

  The click of the door being shut rings out loud in my ears, and without warning, everything inside me comes out. I cover my mouth to stifle the sob coming from deep within my chest, but it’s no use. I’m not ready for this, for any of it. But life happened, and now I have no choice. My two best friends are gone, I can’t reach Thorin, and with no one left to call, I let it all out until I’m wrung dry. As hard as I try, my mind won’t stop going back, back to the night it all changed, back to the night I lost everything that really, and truly mattered to me.

  One week earlier

  Ryan’s brows furrow as he looks at Melissa. “Babe, I can cancel if you need me to. It’s just poker night with the guys.” Melissa rolls her eyes, and keeps her head on my lap. “If you don’t get out of my face, I’m going to punch you, Ryan Jason Decker. You’ve been stuck in your office all week, then looking after me at night, and you need a break. Reese will stay with me, and besides, we still have six weeks before this kid gets here.” She rubs her belly affectionately. “We’ll be fine, I promise.”

  Ryan glances at me. “You’ll call if you need me to come home?”

  “I will, Ry. Promise. Miss Cranky Pants and I are just going to relax, watch a movie, and I’ll make sure she takes her medication like a good little girl.”

  Melissa sticks her tongue out at me. “I’m not cranky.” Total lie, but I don’t blame her. She’s seven-and-a-half months pregnant and got sick a few days ago. She’s uncomfortable more often than not, and way past ready to have her baby. Ryan gives us both one last look, his body tense. He doesn’t like leaving Melissa, but she’s right. The guy could use a break. Between running a fully staffed horse ranch, and taking care of Melissa at night, he’s run himself ragged. He has circles beneath his eyes, and his upper body is tense, his muscles taut beneath his t-shirt. He’s a big guy, tall and muscular, with a take-no-shit attitude, but when it comes to his wife? He goes soft around the edges, and tends to her every whim. His purpose in life is to make Melissa happy, and I’ll never forget the look on his face when she told him she was pregnant. He looked like a kid who got his first bicycle on Christmas morning. The love they have for each other is something people search for their entire lives and rarely find. But Ryan and Melissa found it, and sometimes it’s hard not to envy them. But I love Ryan like a big brother, because that’s what he’s been to me. And when I met Melissa? I knew we’d be friends for the rest of our lives. “I’ll stay with her until you get back,” I tell Ryan, giving him a reassuring smile. “I’ll call if we need you.”

  He hesitates, but when Melissa lobs a pillow across the living room and hits him square in the face, he relaxes, chuckles, and shakes his head before grabbing his keys and heading out.

  “Silly man,” Melissa mutters as soon as the door shuts. “Worries too much.”

  I pull my fingers through her long, brown hair, and hear her sigh. “He just loves you,” I reply. “And it probably drives him crazy seeing you like this knowing there’s nothing he can do to fix it.”

  “Full of shit is what he is, and it’s his damn fault, anyway. Him and his super-sperm.” Last I checked, it takes two people to make a baby, but I’m not about to bring that up right now. I shake my head, and laugh. “Lord, I hope your kid is just like you, boy or girl, so you can get a dose of your own medicine.”

  Melissa decided early on she didn’t want to know the sex of their baby until he or she was born, much to Ryan’s disgruntlement, but like with everything else, he gave in to what she wanted. Luckily, the baby didn’t show us anything during the scans anyway, but who knows, maybe at the next one we’ll get an accidental peak and Ryan would be put out of his misery. I, on the other hand, don’t care what sex the baby is, as long as my godchild is healthy. I look down, and notice that Melissa has drifted off. Just as well, she needs her sleep. With a yawn, I lean my head back on the couch. I have a mile-long to-do list for work, but I’ll deal with it tomorrow. Being my own boss definitely has it’s advantages, but I’m a workaholic by nature, and with all my social media accounts, I always have a ton of emails and messages to respond to. If all else fails, I’ll just ask my best friend, and assistant, Mya, to help. She’s due for a visit soon, anyway. Ever since Ryan expanded my house to include a fully equipped gym, I’ve been able to grow my lifestyle blog, and I’m in the process of designing my own fitness clothing brand, along with an app I’ve spent months working on. It wasn’t what I envisioned for my own future, but my perspective on life changed when I was seventeen, and in the aftermath of one bad decision, I found my purpose. Life is funny that way, I guess. I startle awake when Melissa mewls, and clutches her belly.

  “Mel, are you
okay?”

  She mewls again and then cries out. “Reese, something’s wrong.” She sits up slowly, and when I help her stand, I notice the blood on her sweats. Her face goes pale, and she looks at me with panic in her eyes.

  “Stay calm, I’ll grab my keys and we’ll head straight to the hospital, okay?”

  She bends over again, and visibly starts crying. It’s enough to send my own panic skyrocketing, but I stay calm, grab my keys and get Melissa to my truck.

  “It’s going to be okay,” I tell her. “Just hang in there.”

  I’m driving through town a few minutes later, trying to reach Ryan. It just keeps ringing, and by the time I get to the hospital, all my focus zeroes in on Melissa. I call a nurse, and before I can blink, they’re wheeling her in. I run beside her bed while they page her OB/GYN, and she squeezes my hand. “Have you called Ryan?”

  As if he knew we were talking about him, my phone rings and I release an audible sigh of relief when I see it’s him. “Hey, Reese, sorry I missed your call—”

  I cut him off with, “You need to get to the hospital, Ryan. Mel’s bleeding, and the OB/GYN is on her way.”

  “I’m leaving now.” I hear some shuffling in the background, a few mumbles. “Do they know what’s wrong?”