A Forever Love Read online

  Copyright © 2014 by Kelly Elliott

  All rights reserved.

  Cover Designer: Angie Fields, i love it design studio

  Editor and Interior Designer: Jovana Shirley, Unforeseen Editing, www.unforeseenediting.com

  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 persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Visit my website at www.kellyelliottauthor.com

  ISBN-13: 978-0-9913096-6-5

  1950s Slang

  Chapter One: Garrett

  Chapter Two: Emma

  Chapter Three: Garrett

  Chapter Four: Emma

  Chapter Five: Garrett

  Chapter Six: Emma

  Chapter Seven: Garrett

  Chapter Eight: Emma

  Chapter Nine: Garrett

  Chapter Ten: Emma

  Chapter Eleven: Garrett

  Chapter Twelve: Emma

  Chapter Thirteen: Garrett

  Chapter Fourteen: Emma

  Chapter Fifteen: Garrett

  Chapter Sixteen: Emma

  Chapter Seventeen: Garrett

  Chapter Eighteen: Emma

  Chapter Nineteen: Garrett

  Chapter Twenty: Emma

  Chapter Twenty-One: Garrett

  Chapter Twenty-Two: Emma

  Chapter Twenty-Three: Garrett

  The Letters

  Thank You

  Playlist

  The following includes some terms you will see throughout this book.

  candy-ass—a wimp

  cool cat—a nice guy

  ditz—a female idiot

  easy—a girl who will sleep with anyone

  eat your heart out—be jealous of me

  fast—a girl/guy who will sleep with anyone

  flog your log—to masturbate (masculine)

  fuzz—the police

  heat—the police

  knuckle sandwich—a fist in the face

  on the stick—someone who is bright, prepared, and pulled together

  paper shaker—a cheerleader

  passion pit—drive-in movie theater

  sides—vinyl record

  square—someone who is not cool

  stacked—big breasts

  swapping spit—kissing or making out

  thicker than a five-dollar malt—someone who is not very bright

  virgin pin—a pin a father gives his daughter for her to wear until she is married, a promise to remain a virgin until married

  wazoo—rear end

  what’s your bag?—what’s your problem?

  I sat down at the kitchen table and looked at all of them. Ten faces were staring back at my beautiful bride and me.

  “So?” Ari said as she wiggled her eyebrows up and down.

  “So…what?” I flashed them all a smile. I knew why they had come over. “You’re all kid-free tonight, and you’re sitting here with two old people.”

  “Speak for yourself. You’re as old as you feel, and honestly, I feel like I’m only fifty,” Emma said as she sat down next to me but not before she kissed me softly on the cheek.

  “Oh, don’t play innocent with us. I think we’ve all waited long enough to hear the ultimate love story. Come on, Gramps, you once told me that your and Grams’s love is a forever love. Spill it,” Gunner said as he glanced at Ellie and then back at me.

  “Now, why do y’all want to hear our story?” I raised my eyebrow at them.

  Ari let out a laugh. “Please. I know you two still keep a quilt in the back of your truck, old man. There’s a reason you have a sixth sense when it comes to sex.”

  “Ari!” Ellie, Heather, and Amanda said at the same time.

  I chuckled as Emma reached over and grabbed my hand. I peeked over at her, and when she smiled at me, my heart skipped a beat. It took me back over fifty years to that moment when I’d realized I would do whatever it took to see that smile every day for the rest of my life.

  “Well, I can tell ya one thing. This woman sitting here put up one hell of a fight,” I said as I winked at Emma.

  “I was just playing hard to get, that’s all,” Emma said as she looked at the kids.

  “Gramps, tell us what it felt like the first time you saw Grams,” Gunner said with a slight smile.

  I let out a chuckle. “Y’all want a story, huh?”

  “Yes!” they all said at once.

  Emma and I both started laughing. I glanced over at her, and she nodded her head.

  “Well, if we’re going to tell this story, I need a beer and a sweet tea,” I said.

  Ellie and Ari both jumped up and scrambled to get the drinks. My sweet Ellie handed me a beer and flashed her beautiful smile at me.

  Oh, how she reminds me of my Emma.

  Ari placed a sweet tea down in front of me and another one in front of Emma.

  I took a drink and looked around at each of them. I loved them all like they were my own, and my dream was for them to have the kind of love that Emma and I had been blessed with.

  “I’ll never forget the first time I ever laid eyes on Emma Rose Birk. I’m pretty sure my heart stopped beating, and I fought like hell to catch my breath.” I closed my eyes and could still see her piercing gray eyes staring back into mine, like it had happened just moments ago. “It was 1956, and I was seventeen…”

  Mason, Texas

  Summer 1956

  I jumped out of Billy’s truck and made my way over toward the drugstore. It was another hot summer day in Mason, and I was exhausted from burning thorns off the prickly pears.

  “Garrett, are you sure you want to take over your dad’s ranch someday? I mean, we could move to Austin and have completely different lives than what our dads had growing up in this little town.”

  I smiled as I shook my head. Billy was like a brother to me, but he and I had very different ideas on where we saw our lives going.

  “I want to be a cattle rancher. It’s my dream.”

  “All right, but don’t be jealous while I’m in Austin getting laid by different girls every other day.”

  I let out a laugh and hit him on the back. “Keep dreaming.”

  We walked into the drugstore, and I couldn’t wait to get something cold down my throat. I glanced around, and my eyes were immediately drawn to the blonde girl sitting at the counter. She was in between Margie and Anna, and I couldn’t help but notice Wayne standing there.

  Anna glanced up and smiled.

  Shit. I was hoping that Wayne would have made Anna forget her crush on me, but it looked like that wasn’t happening.

  All Anna ever did was tell everyone how I was on the stick, and we would make great babies with her blue eyes and mine. We were both smart, organized, and good-looking.

  “Why, if it isn’t Garrett Mathews,” Anna purred.

  The blonde spun around, and that was when her eyes met mine. I was pretty sure my heart had just dropped to the floor, and I was having a hard time breathing for a few seconds.

  “Mathews? What in the heck is wrong with you?” Billy asked as he slapped me on the back.

  As she slowly smiled, I shook my head and about dropped down to my knees. No girl had ever had such an effect on me.

  None.

  I had already had my fair share of girls. None of them had meant anything to me though, and the fact that they had all been easy turned me off.

  �
��Wow…check out the new girl,” Billy said.

  I smiled back at her, and I was positive her reaction toward me was the same one I’d just had. She quickly looked down and then back up at me. She gently bit on her lower lip and turned back to face Margie, who whispered something into her ear. The blonde snapped her head up and gave me a funny look before glancing over at Billy.

  “I think I just got a woody,” Billy said with a chuckle.

  I quickly looked at him. Jerk.

  “Come on, Mathews. Let’s go say hi.”

  I drew in a deep breath and started to make my way toward everyone. When I saw Anna jump up, I gave Wayne a look, and he grabbed her and started talking to her. Just the fact that a guy had his hands on her caused her to forget about me. She just wanted to suck in all the attention. Everyone talked about how Anna had slept with half the school. She and I had hooked up earlier this year, and then she’d quickly moved on to my three best friends—Raymond, Billy, and Wayne. Now, she was back to me, trying for a repeat, but one of the biggest mistakes of my life had been screwing Anna King in her bedroom when her parents were in Fredericksburg.

  Margie stood up and smiled at me. “Garrett, Billy…I’d like you to meet my cousin, Emma Birk. Emma, these are some good friends of mine, Garrett Mathews and Billy Bauer. We’ve known each other since…what? First grade?”

  Billy let out a loud laugh. “Something like that.”

  He reached out his hand, and Emma shook it as she smiled. When she glanced over at me, I momentarily forgot how to talk. Finally, I tilted my head and tipped my cowboy hat. I held out my hand, and she stood up.

  “It’s a real pleasure to meet you, Miss Birk.” I gave her the smile that I knew drove the girls crazy.

  She bit down on her dang lip. “The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Mathews.”

  Oh dear God.

  She had the voice of an angel. There went my stupid heart again, and now, I could hear ringing in my ears.

  What in the hell is wrong with me?

  I stood there, like an idiot, and just stared at her. She was beautiful with blonde hair and bluish-gray eyes that pierced my soul. I glanced down at her soft pink lips. I’d do anything to taste her lips and see if she was as sweet as she looked.

  She couldn’t be more than five-three, but she had a figure on her that was to die for. The pink ribbons in her hair screamed her innocence. The moment she placed her hand in mine, I felt a jolt of electricity, and I was positive she’d felt it, too, because she sucked in a breath of air. I smiled, which was a mistake. She knew I’d seen her reaction, so she quickly pulled her hand away and sat back down. She turned her back toward me and acted like she was listening to something Wayne was telling Anna.

  “What can I do you for, Garrett?” Mr. Horster asked.

  “Root beer, please,” I said with a slight smile.

  I looked at Margie, and she gave me a wink before sliding down a seat, leaving the seat next to Emma empty. I quickly sat down before Billy could. He shot me a dirty look, and I pretended I hadn’t noticed it. There was no way I would let Billy anywhere near my Emma.

  My Emma?

  “You look a little lost there, Garrett,” Margie whispered in my ear.

  I snapped my head over at her and shot her my crooked smile. “I’m never lost, Margie. You should know that.”

  She let out a small laugh as she gave me a look my mother would give. Margie was like a sister to me. She had wavy long brown hair and green eyes. She was pretty enough to get any guy she wanted but classy enough to keep her legs closed. She did have a thing for Billy though. I was pretty sure if they had the chance to be alone, they would end up together. They both liked each other, but neither would ever admit it. They always put me in the middle of their messed-up friendship, and I was getting tired of it.

  “I know I’ve never seen that look on your face before. You seem a little…shall we say, smitten with my cousin?” Margie said as she glanced over my shoulder at Emma.

  I turned around, only to see Emma’s back was still facing me as she played with the straw in her strawberry milkshake. When I looked back at Margie, she had one eyebrow raised, and a chill ran up and down my body.

  “Don’t give me that look, Marg. You look evil when you do that, and it doesn’t suit your face.”

  Margie tilted her head and said in a hushed voice, “Garrett Thomas Mathews, I saw the way you looked at Emma. Don’t deny it to me. I’m one of your best friends and like a sister to you. I’m probably the only girl in Mason County who can say she’s seen your penis and about threw up. Don’t bullshit me.”

  I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “Are you ever going to forget that day? Ever?”

  She slowly smiled. “Nope,” she said, popping the P sound. “It was your idea to go swimming in the tank on my daddy’s ranch. It wasn’t my fault you got a fish caught in your drawers, and no one but me would help with it.”

  Good God. The memory of me ripping off my britches and Margie standing there, staring at my dick, still made me sick to my stomach. Then, when she’d opened her mouth and said, I’m impressed, Mr. Mathews. I’m very impressed, but put your snake away, I’d wanted to crawl under a rock for the rest of my life.

  “We made a vow—a vow, Margie—that we would never talk about that day. Do you know what a vow is?” I asked as I quickly looked around.

  I smiled at Mr. Horster as he set my root beer down.

  Margie glanced around also before looking back at me with her evil little smile. “I know what a vow is. You’re not the only smart one in our class.”

  “Hey, Garrett. What are your plans for tonight?” Anna ran her tongue across her upper teeth.

  She was probably the only girl in Mason County who gave blow jobs out like she was passing out Halloween candy.

  I gave her a weak smile. “I’ve been burning thorns all day, Anna. I’m probably going to go home and go to bed early.”

  She pouted her lip. “That doesn’t sound like fun.”

  I couldn’t help but notice that Emma was watching me. Billy was talking to her, but her eyes were on me. I tried not to look at her, but a part of me liked that she was staring at me while he was talking to her.

  “So, what do you say, Emma?” Billy asked.

  Emma sat up a little and cleared her throat. “I’m so sorry. What were you saying?”

  Billy let out a laugh. “We’re all going to the passion pit tonight. Are you going with Margie and Anna?”

  Emma crinkled up her nose and giggled. “Passion pit?”

  “Drive-in theater is what he meant,” I said as I shot Billy a dirty look.

  Emma glanced over at Margie and then looked at me as she tilted her head. “Are you going, Mr. Mathews?”

  I didn’t know what in the hell came over me, but before I could stop myself, I said, “Yes.”

  Anna’s mouth dropped open. “Hey, you just said—”

  “What a great way for Emma to get to know everyone. This will be fun!” Margie said, cutting Anna off.

  I tried not to look at Anna, but I quickly peeked at her. She practically had steam coming from her ears as she looked back and forth between Emma and me.

  Great. Just great.

  I sat there for a few more minutes, listening to Billy, Margie, Anna, and Wayne make plans to meet at the drive-in tonight. I was exhausted and not in the mood to go see a picture show, but if it meant spending time with Emma, I would do it.

  Margie stood up and bumped me on the arm as she smiled. “I’m going to kick you in the wazoo if you don’t show up tonight, Garrett Mathews.”

  I chuckled. “I’ll be there, I promise.”

  Emma stood up and smiled. “Wayne, Billy, it was very nice to meet you both.”

  When she turned to face me, I got up and held out my hand. I glanced down and saw my hand was shaking.

  Oh, man. Get it together, Mathews. It wasn’t good that a girl had me so nervous that I was shaking.

  She slowly let her smile move across her face. “Gar
rett, it was a pleasure meeting you. I’ll see you tonight?”

  I smiled back and tried my best to make her melt.

  Nothing.

  Her face never budged. She stared me in the eyes, and I had to quickly turn away before looking back at her.

  “Yeah, I’ll be there. The pleasure was all mine, Emma.”

  Her eyes lit up when I said her name, but other than that, she had no response. I watched as Wayne walked out with the girls, and he began talking to Emma. I knew what the jerk was thinking—new girl, new chance to score. There was no way in hell I would let that happen.

  “You got your eye on the new girl?” Billy asked as he pushed my shoulder, causing me to stumble into the stool.

  I turned to face him and shrugged my shoulders. When Billy let out a laugh, the people sitting farther down the counter looked at him.

  He leaned closer to me and said, “Did you see how stacked she was?”

  I instantly felt my face get hot. I grabbed on to him and pulled him closer to me. “Don’t ever talk about her like that again.”

  His smile faded, and I gave him a good push away. I threw money down on the counter and thanked Mr. Horster.

  Billy followed me out. “I’m going to take that as a very clear response that you’ve got your eye on Emma Birk.”

  I smiled as I jumped into Billy’s truck.

  Neither one of us said a word as Billy drove me back home. His family owned the ranch next to ours, and we had been best friends for as long as I could remember. I thought this was the first time we hadn’t spoken a word to each other on this daily drive. I got a funny feeling in my gut that maybe Billy liked Emma also. The last thing I wanted to do was ruin our friendship over a girl. No girl was worth that.

  “You want me to take you all the way down?” Billy asked as he pulled up to my family’s gate.

  I looked up at the big M on the gate and smiled. Someday, this will all be mine.

  “Nah, I need to clear my head, so I think I’ll just run home,” I said as I got out of his truck.

  He nodded his head and glanced around before looking back at me. “I like her, too, Garrett,” he said.

  My stomach dropped. “All right. How do you think we need to handle this, Bill?”