And shatter, p.1
And Shatter, page 1
Reese Rivers Presents
Time After Time
Book 3 – And Shatter
Copyright © 2022 Reese Rivers
Time After Time, Book 3 – And Shatter
Ebook Edition
All Rights Reserved
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Cover Art by:
Carol Marques Cover Designs
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Cade
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Eden
Eden
Luca
Eden
Eden
Cade
Eden
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Finn
Eden
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Cade
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Eden
Eden
Eden
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Eden
Eden
Sebastian
Eden
Author’s Note
Unbreak Me – An RH Contemporary Standalone
Also by Reese Rivers
Also By Reese Rivers
Cade
I push the bike faster and faster as I roar recklessly through the twists and turns going up the mountain. I clench my thighs tighter around the straining beast as I lean into a sharp turn and the wind whips my hair back behind me. All my focus is on the road ahead as one wrong move will send me hurtling to a painful and possibly fatal accident. I don’t give a single fuck one way or the other. I just want to feel something, anything other than the empty void that has numbed me for centuries. The only time I feel anything is when I dream of her and it’s a blessing and a curse. The faceless woman that I’ve dreamt of for hundreds of years shows me everything I’m missing in this too-long life but also the pain, grief, and sadness that comes hand in hand with the love she offers. I have never felt the extreme emotions that taunt me in sleep while awake and it’s slowly driving me...all of us...mad. The dreams used to only come to us every hundred years or so but over the last six months, they have increased to the point of almost nightly.
Her hot mouth glides over my neck and down my chest as the scent of sweet vanilla envelopes me. The lower she drags her mouth the more her silky waves of hair slide across my skin like silk. My cock throbs with every brush of her mouth and hair but it’s the burning pressure of love that fills my chest for her that makes me come undone.
The memory of the latest dream has me roaring back into the wind that buffets me as I swing into an outlook and slide to a stop with gravel flying from under my tires. My head drops down to the handle bars as I squeeze my eyes tight in frustration, desperation, and need. I woke from that dream with the sheets sticky with my release and my arms aching to hold the faceless woman I have never met. I should be grateful it was a dream of passion and love and not the broken grief and rage that sometimes comes to me instead.
I climb off the bike with a curse and pull the bottle of top-shelf whiskey from a saddle bag, downing a good half of it before pulling it away from my lips with a snarl. It won’t help. Nothing fucking helps. I’ve drank every spirit known to man, done every drug, and fucked thousands of women over the last five hundred years and nothing invokes a fraction of what the mystery woman in my dreams makes me feel. I toss the bottle to the side with a crash of glass and start stripping my clothes from my body. There’s only one thing that dulls the pain I live with. It doesn’t erase it but it’s a muted release for the few hours a day I run the mountain in my wolf form. The sun is starting to rise behind the mountain as I shift into my wolf and tear off into the trees on a hunt for prey that will allow me to feel a small thrill that has nothing to do with a woman I have never met but have loved for as long as I can remember.
When I pad slowly from the trees hours later, exhausted but somewhat more clearheaded, there is a matching Ducati Desmosedici resting on its kickstand next to mine and my cousin Finn is perched on the rail of the fence that keeps unsuspecting tourists from plummeting to their deaths over the sheer drop off of the look out. He doesn’t even turn his head to look at me when he calls out,
“Done decimating the rabbit population, then?”
My lip curls up over my canines as I issue a low growl of annoyance that he would mock the small release I manage to get with the hunt. He prefers to ease his own pain by fucking every woman or man that catches his eye. It’s been months since I joined him on his version of the hunt, no longer interested in the unfulfilling release from fucking random people. There’s only one woman I want and I’m terrified I will never get to see her face. I shift back to my human form and dig out a packet of wet wipes to clean off the traces of mud and blood before getting dressed and then join him at the fence.
“Why are you here, cousin?”
Finn shrugs one shoulder casually. “Like you, to escape.” He sighs in exasperation. “Bas is on a tear. He’s fired one and sent two others scurrying away in tears. At the rate he’s going, we’ll be the one serving drinks and scraping dried jizz from the alcove walls under black light! Luca is on the hunt for a witch or seer to try and solve the dreams. He’s convinced we’ve been hexed or cursed in some way. I’m sick of the lot of them and talk of her.”
I look out at the view, rich in the fall shades of orange, yellow, and some reds as fall shifts toward winter, and shake my head.
“We are all suffering from the constant dreams of late. If we just had a direction to look for her or a clue of some sort as to why we are all being tortured this way we might be able to put them behind us and move on. You canna deny they affect you as well.”
He snorts and rolls his eyes at me. “Of course, they affect me! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve blown my load in my sleep over her but it’s the other dreams that slay me. The ones with all-encompassing grief, pain, and anger. Those wreck me for days at a time. I don’t care if she might be our mate, no love is worth that type of anguish.”
I send a sharp look his way. “You think she might be our mate? That hadn’t occurred to me at all. With both Luca and Sebastian dreaming of her too, I never once thought she could be our fated mate.”
He shrugs again before sparking up a cigarette and taking a deep draw and then blowing the smoke out to taint the fresh mountain air.
“How long have we been a pack now, five hundred years or so? Did you really think we would break away from our brothers, fated mate or not? No, if we do find her one day it will be all of us as a pack. Just because vamps don’t traditionally have a fated mate doesn’t mean it could never happen.” He grinds out his smoke on the fence post and then swings his feet over to stand beside me. “I don’t know who she is. Witch, mate, or a curse set upon us. Who the fuck knows? I just want this over with one way or another. Luca’s way seems like our best bet. If he can track down a powerful enough witch, we should get some answers.”
Finn walks away to climb onto his bike and with a sharp nod, peels out of the small parking lot and heads back down the mountain. With one last look at the view, I move over to my own bike. The tension I had eased with my run and hunt is now back - tightening my shoulders like a heavy weight I just can’t release as the same question echoes in my head over and over again...who are you?
Eden
Two sets of hands stroke my skin as one hot tongue licks at my neck from behind. His hard cock grinds against my ass even as another tongue licks between my wet folds and circles my throbbing clit. My body is on fire with need as the cock moves from my ass and slides deep...
The hit rocks my head back and has a nasty curse slipping out of my mouth.
“Focus, Eden, or we’re done for the day!” Diesel barks at me with a look of impatience.
I push the mouth guard from between my teeth and suck in a deep breath to get my head in the fight. He only let me come back to the gym a month ago after five months of intense, three days a week therapy. I can’t fuck up my second chance so I clamp back down on the guard and give him a curt nod that I’m ready again. I shove these infuriating sex bomb images from my mind and concentrate on ducking, weaving, and watching for my opening. I only manage to get four solid hits in on him in the next ten minutes before he calls the match and sends me to the bag to wrap up today’s session. My body feels fucking fantastic to be back in the gym and pushed to its limits. Now I just need to get my fucking head back in the game.
Therapy has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Facing up to everything I’ve been through and learning the tools to cope more healthily has been exhausting but also a huge relief. My knee-jerk reactions and panic have gotten so much better and while I’m still on guard for threats, it’s not my very first reaction to situations. I’m on the lookout for the start of the red haze that used to overcome me and can now beat it back with breathing and focusing tools that my therapist taught me. I know I have a long way to go to be the person I once was but I feel like I’m getting closer every day.
As I slam my fists into the bag and spin to kick it, a growl slips out of me at what’s not getting better in my mind. These fuc king dreams I keep having! Holy hotness of hell, these dreams are killing me. I don’t think I’ve ever been so horny in my life. I wake up with my panties soaked and a throbbing ache between my legs almost every night now. If those dreams aren’t bad enough, every few days I get hit with the dreams of love and loss that are so filled with sadness and grief that I wake up bawling. My therapist is convinced that the dreams mean my subconscious is trying to tell me that I’m ready to be in a new relationship but the idea of dating anyone right now literally fills me with an ice-cold dread. Sex though? Hell yes! I desperately need to get laid to cool off these dreams that are starting to take over my waking thoughts now. You know you need it bad when your dreams are filled with multiple men worshiping your body...at the same fucking time! I’ve never been with more than one guy at a time but after the past few months of nonstop porn dreams, I’m ready to throw down with all the dick to scratch this itch and get some fucking relief.
I unwrap the tape from my hands and then hit the mats to do my cool-down stretches. My brain can’t help but go back to these weird dreams I’ve been having for the last few months. The sex ones leave me all wound up but it’s the other ones that cause the ache in my chest as a constant reminder of what my life is missing...love. This overwhelming feeling of so much love and happiness that the dreams bring me hurts so fucking bad when I wake up and remember I’m all alone in life. I walk around in a daze of loneliness after they hit me that just...hurts so bad. I’m trying so hard to get my life back on track, to be fully functioning again, and just maybe healthy enough to actually be in a relationship. I desperately want the feeling these dreams give me to be in real life until the other type of dream that shows up kicks me in the teeth and reminds me of how much that kind of relationship can fuck a person up. The potential for anger, heartbreak, and sadness when you trust the wrong person makes me terrified of ever letting myself be that vulnerable to another again.
I shake my head, lost in these thoughts as I get into the shower in the change room to get ready for my shift at work. I might be healing in some ways but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to let myself love someone else again. I can’t take the chance of being broken that way again. I don’t think I’ll ever recover from that kind of pain after everything I’ve been through.
It's good to be back at the station again. Everyone welcomed me back with open arms and I pretend not to see the pity in their eyes. I hate that every single one of my coworkers knows what happened to me and Sam but it’s also a little bit comforting knowing that they’ll have my back when I freeze up or hesitate when the memories hit. They’ve all been so supportive and it makes me regret not coming back to work sooner. I’ve just finished restocking our rig for the night’s run when Lacey corners me.
“You’re coming right? C’mon, Eden, I really want you to come with us! You can’t say no. It’s my birthday! Besides, when was the last time you went out with the girls and just had fun? No drama, no dicks. Just drinks, dancing, and a whole lot of laughs.”
I chew on my bottom lip searching for a valid excuse to give her for not coming and come up blank. Fuck it, she’s right. I can’t even remember the last time I went out like that so I slowly start nodding. She squeals in excitement dragging a smile across my face. I can do this. I can be normal and go out with my friends for a night of fun.
“All right, already! You’re such a freaking pest!” I laugh out. “Where and when and what’s the dress code?”
She bounces on her feet making her blond ponytail bounce comically. “Tomorrow night. We’re meeting up at Diva’s for drinks and appies at nine and then we’ll hit a hot new club to break our feet with nonstop dancing. Dress code is...slut! Oh My God, I’m so pumped you’re coming!”
I laugh again at her enthusiasm but suddenly feel so fucking old. I know for a fact Lacey’s got two years on me but I just can’t remember feeling so excited about anything like she is right now. That just tells me I need to start doing more of this kind of thing to get my groove back. Twenty-nine is NOT old and I need to remind myself of that.
“Ladies, what would you suggest a man wear to dress slut? Like are we talking some forearm porn or unbuttoned dress shirts to show off the chest candy?”
We both turn to my new partner, Kevin, with eye rolls but Lacey beats me to the takedown.
“One, you’re not invited so it doesn’t matter and two, maybe try not wearing socks with sandals to start with. Slut is not a style you can pull off, dude, when you can barely manage average!”
He pretend pouts for a moment and then laughs. “Fine! But you guys don’t know what you’re missing out on. I’m sure I’ve got some thick gold chains I could rummage out to wear with an open shirt. That look totally slays the ladies.”
I snort a laugh. “If by slay, you mean repulse then, yes that would work.”
He tosses his head back like he has a long mane of hair instead of a buzz cut and looks down his nose at us while cocking a hip. “Hater’s goin’ to hate!” He glances into the back of the rig and then nods my way. “Ready to roll?”
At my nod, he winks at Lacey. “See ya, short stuff. If I don’t see you tomorrow, have a great birthday and try not to end up in the back of one of our rigs.”
I see the exact moment they both remember that not that long ago I was in the back of a rig broken and bleeding but to spare them the awkwardness I know is coming. I bark out a laugh.
“Don’t worry, I’ll cut her off before she gets to that point. No stomach pumping or alcohol poisoning on my watch! See ya, Lace. Let’s roll, partner.”
I turn my back on them and head to the passenger side door to load up. It’s okay, I know it will take a while for those memories to fade but it will in time, for all of us. Kevin jumps in behind the wheel, checks off the last items on the clipboard, and radios in,
“Dispatch, Rig 57 is rolling out and on the clock.”
When he gets the go response, he pulls us out into the late afternoon sun and hits the streets. We cruise in easy silence for ten minutes until I catch him sending quick looks my way.
“What?” I ask him.
“Nothing, I’m just happy you’re going out with the girls. I think it’ll be good for you.”
I huff out a laugh.
“Thanks, Dad.”
He side-eyes me an exasperated look.
“Whatever, it’s been a hard couple of years for you so I’m just happy to see you getting back out in the world again.” He sighs deeply. “You know we’re like a family at the station and we all care about you. I’m not the only one that’s noticed how sad and lost you get sometimes.”
I turn and look out my window at the passing city streets while answering him.
“You know I’ve paid my therapist heaps of money to get me to this point, right? It’s not like I can flip a switch and just let it all go.”
He makes a right and the iconic Pike’s Place market comes into view.
“I know that, Eden, and I’m not making light of it. I’m just saying I’m happy you’re heading out with the girls for some fun. You deserve happiness and this is a great start. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet some hot guy that’ll put a spark in your eye and pep in your step.”
I turn back to him and roll my eyes. “Oooh, do you think so? I’ve been desperate to find a big bad dick to make all my problems go away!” I tell him sarcastically causing him to choke out a laugh and he sends me a cheeky grin.
“I know, right? My wife tells me every morning that my dick cures all her problems so...just passing on her advice.”
I bare my teeth at him in glee. “Huh, I’ll have to ask Claire about that, then.”
He makes a mockingly horrified face. “Oh, God! Pleases don’t! She’ll chop it off and carry it around in her purse alongside my balls that she keeps in there.”
We both burst out in laughter at that. Kevin’s wife, Claire, is a spitfire of a woman that barely reaches his chin in height. She might be small but she doesn’t take shit from anyone, especially Kevin and he’s head over heels for her. I can only hope to find that kind of partnership someday.
It's a fairly easy shift for the rest of the afternoon and evening but we both know that things will start popping the later it gets. We’re cruising towards midnight when we get the call for a suspected overdose at some nightclub nearby. I fucking hate these kinds of calls. Trying to do our job is hard enough without the blasting music and thick crowds of drunk people wanting a look at the scene. It just makes everything harder. Kevin drives up over the curb and parks us right in front of some stature in front of the club’s doors. It’s spot lit in the dark so it’s easy to make out the couple depicted in an intimate embrace with the word Gothic on the base. I’ve never had a call out to this club before but I’ve heard rumors that it’s the city’s newest hot spot and that it promotes a sexual theme.
