Everything I Want (The Everything Series Book 3) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  About A.K. Evans

  Other Books by A.K. Evans

  Connect with A.K. Evans

  Everything I Want

  A.K. Evans

  Published by A.K. Evans

  Copyright 2017 A.K. Evans

  This is a work of fiction. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without the express written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Dedication

  To dancers around the world, everywhere. I tell my stories using words; you do it with movement…and it’s nothing short of amazing.

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  About A.K. Evans

  Other Books by A.K. Evans

  Connect with A.K. Evans

  Acknowledgements

  The first half of Everything I Want flowed from my fingertips effortlessly. While attempting to write the second half of it, I had a lot of outside distractions that were doing little to help my writing process. The story was in my head, demanding to be told; yet, it seemed every free opportunity to write was being robbed from me. Through it all, my husband held my hand, dried my tears, and cradled me in his arms. I could write a thousand books and put my thanks to him in each one; however, I’d remain unsure that I’ve done justice in thanking him for just how much his unwavering support in all of this means to me. Thank you, Jeff, for lifting me up when I was down and for pushing me to continue to do what I love. I love you.

  One day, a few weeks before this book was published and released something profound happened. Sometimes, when it comes to writing, I question myself. Should I be doing this when I could be spending that time with my boys? Sometimes, I wonder if they will resent me for not spending every free moment I have with them. One evening, more than a month after my second book was released I had my single most successful day in book sales (not counting pre-orders and release days). When I say something profound happened, I am not referring to the book sales. My oldest, and now nine-year-old son (who was eight at the time this happened), heard me from the other room as I delivered this news my husband. Jeff didn’t have a chance to respond before my son cheered, “That’s great, Mom. Congratulations. I’m so proud of you.” My heart swelled. Hearing my little man tell me that he was proud of me solidified for me that it’s okay for me to do something that makes me feel happy and fulfilled.

  So, to my beautiful boys, J & J -- you’re nine and six right now. Please know that no matter how many books I sell or if your dream of me becoming famous ever comes true, it will all pale in comparison to the joy I feel at being your mom. It’s not always rainbows and sunshine, but boy do the good days make it all worth it. Gosh, do I sometimes wonder what I did so great in my life to deserve the privilege of being your mom. I love you both so much.

  Chapter 1

  Monroe

  “This is why you shouldn’t have left California.”

  “No, Vaughn. This is why I shouldn’t have ever listened to you, Remi, and Deacon. I should have kept my Boxster and I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”

  “Yeah, Monroe, you’re right…because a Porsche Boxster would have done really well in the snow. And sorry to say, kid, but you likely drove over a nail and that’s why you have a flat now. It has nothing to do with the actual car you are driving.”

  Ugh. I hated when he made sense.

  Vaughn was the second oldest of my three older brothers. Remi was the oldest and Deacon was the youngest. My brothers and I were all very close, but they were some of the most overly protective guys I’d ever had the pleasure of knowing. It came as no surprise then that when I told them I made the decision to move to Rising Sun, Wyoming they completely lost their shit. They were worried about me and I understood their concern; however, I needed the change I believed moving here would bring. I loved my brothers, my parents, and my job, but I was missing something in Ventura. I had a feeling that if I hadn’t found it there yet I wasn’t going to find it sticking around.

  A few weeks ago, I was overjoyed at my decision to move. Then, I did something really, really stupid and immediately regretted the decision. Unfortunately, I’d already signed the lease transfer papers on the condo that my best friend, Nikki, and I would be taking over from our two other best friends, Charley and Emme. In addition, Nikki and I had both already signed the lease on the building that would now be home to her new salon and my new dance studio. Despite the embarrassment I faced a few weeks ago when I’d done that really stupid thing, I knew that I’d never hang Nikki out to dry. So, as it stood, I was stuck here for at least the next two years.

  Once I signed the leases and made it official, my brothers finally gave in. They didn’t like it, but they accepted my decision and did their best to respect my choice. This isn’t to say that they didn’t insist on a few things happening before I made the move. One of those things was that I had to get a car that would be practical for the snow. So, I went from my beautiful Porsche Boxster to a GMC Yukon. I loved my Boxster and was so sad to see it go, but I really thought the benefits of moving would have made it all worth it. Being humiliated three weeks ago made me rethink my logic.

  My current predicament was that I was now sitting on the side of the road about two miles from my new studio, which wasn’t exactly new in the literal sense, and I had a flat tire. The only upside to the Yukon up to this point was the fact that I could comfortably drive the roughly one-thousand-mile trip from Ventura to Rising Sun and fit almost all of my belongings in the vehicle with me. Having a flat tire after owning this thing for just over a week now was plain ludicrous.

  I cal
led Vaughn hoping for a bit of guidance on the situation. If I were still in California and this happened, one of my brothers would have come to where I was and changed my tire. One of them would have just taken care of it and I wouldn’t have needed to give it a second thought. Unfortunately, I no longer had access to their unwavering help in situations like this. I figured that if I called Vaughn he could walk me through what I needed to do to change the tire.

  I wasn’t so lucky.

  He decided it would be better to give me a lecture on this and explain further why moving was such a bad decision. I wasn’t going to tell him that not long after I signed the lease I regretted my decision. That would lead to an even bigger lecture that I was in no mood to deal with, so I kept my mouth shut on that topic.

  “Are you going to help me and tell me what I need to do to change this or are you going to keep lecturing me on my decision to move?” I asked. Then, and because I wanted to avoid more lecturing, I added, “I am standing out on the side of the road in the freezing cold right now, so I’m hoping you’ll choose to help me.”

  He stayed silent a moment. “I hate you being out there alone, Monroe. Fuck. Alright, I’ll help you. You need to get out the tire changing tools. They’re in the back of the car. Go open the back gate of the Yukon and pop out the compartment next to the cup holder on the driver’s side next to the third-row seating. The tools are located under there.”

  “Okay, hold on.”

  “We should just call roadside assistance, I think,” Vaughn speculated as I walked around to open the back of the Yukon.

  “Yeah, but who knows how long I’ll have to sit here waiting for them to show up. I should at least try to do this first. Besides, I need to meet the guy who is dropping off the supplies I ordered for my studio soon,” I replied as I climbed in and popped the compartment out of its place. Sure enough, the tools were under it. I pulled them out. As I set them out, I eased my way back out of the Yukon. “Okay, now what?” I asked.

  “You’ve got to pull the cover off the middle of the rear bumper and put your ignition key in to unlock the pin for the spare.”

  I did as he said and pulled out the pin. “Alright, done. Now what?”

  Vaughn explained how to remove the actual tire. I inserted the tool he told me to use and began turning it to lower the tire. Unfortunately, I hadn’t realized how heavy the freaking tire would be.

  “Hang on, Vaughn. I need to put my phone down a minute so I can use both hands to pick this tire up.”

  “Be careful.”

  I set the phone down and pulled the tire out. It was heavier than I thought it would be and I struggled a bit. Eventually, though, I managed to stand it up and lean it against the back of my new mammoth vehicle. I picked the phone up again and said, “I’ve got it. Next?”

  “You need to jack up the vehicle,” he declared. He then told me which tool was the jack and where I needed to put it under the car.

  As I walked to the driver’s side rear tire and was about to bend down to use the jack I heard something off to my right side.

  I looked to my right to see a truck had pulled up directly behind me. “Wait, Vaughn, someone just pulled up. Maybe they can help me.”

  “Close the door and get in your car, Monroe. Lock the doors and we’ll call roadside assistance.”

  The door to the truck opened and I saw the boots as they stepped out and on to the ground. The sun was practically blinding me that I couldn’t see behind the windshield when the truck pulled up. When the door to the truck closed, I saw him.

  Xander Stone.

  The most beautiful man in the world.

  The man I moved here for.

  The man I thought would be the man with whom I’d fall in love.

  The man I thought would give me my happily-ever-after romance.

  Of course, this was all before my failed attempt to seduce him at Emme’s birthday party a couple weeks ago with a karaoke rendition of Toni Braxton’s You’re Making Me High. Did I mention it was a failed attempt? Remember that stupid thing I alluded to earlier? This was it. After my performance that night, which was directed right at him, Stone got up and walked out without a word. I haven’t seen or spoken to him again since that night.

  That is, until now.

  “Monroe?” Vaughn’s voice filtered in my ear.

  As I stared at Stone stalking over to me, I said, “Yeah, Vaughn?”

  “Are you in the fucking car with the doors locked?” he asked.

  “No.”

  “Get your ass in the car and lock the doors,” he demanded, no patience left in his voice as Stone came to a stop right next to me and looked down into my eyes.

  Damn him and those baby blues.

  I turned toward him and stood there silently staring at him. Every time I’ve ever looked in his eyes I always noticed a hardness in them. Now, I was seeing that hardness mixed with a bit of something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

  “Monroe?” Vaughn bit out, now slightly more impatient.

  “Yeah, Vaughn?” I asked as I continued to stare at Stone.

  Stone’s eyes narrowed.

  “Are you alright?” Vaughn questioned.

  Without a word, Stone took the jack out of my hand and bent down to jack up the car.

  “Yes, I’m okay. I’ll call you in a little.”

  “No you fucking won’t. Is someone there?”

  “Remember I told you about Charley and Emme’s fiancés?” I reminded him.

  “Yeah.”

  “One of their best friends is here. He’s already started changing my tire for me. I’ll call you back. I’m okay, I promise.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes, Vaughn. I’m sure,” I insisted.

  “Ok. Please let me know once you are back on the road,” he requested.

  “I will. Thanks for the help,” I added.

  “Miss you, kid.”

  “I miss you, too.”

  With that, I disconnected the call. When I looked back down at Stone I saw that he had already jacked up the vehicle and was removing the flat tire.

  “Thank you,” I offered, after he removed the flat and replaced it with the spare.

  He didn’t say anything. He just continued tightening the lug nuts on the wheel. When he finished, he stood and put the tools away for me. Then, he took my flat tire and put it in the bed of his truck. When he walked back to me, he finally spoke.

  “Luke’s brother has an automotive shop. I’ll have him fix your tire and then I’ll get it back to you. I’m assuming since you are out this way you are heading to your studio?”

  I nodded. He knew where my studio was because Nikki and I told everyone about it back when the group of us went out for breakfast the morning Emme and Zane announced their engagement. That was also the day before I made a fool of myself in front of Stone.

  “Going to be there a while?” he asked.

  I nodded.

  “Anyone else going to be with you?” he continued.

  I shook my head. “I have a guy delivering a bunch of supplies I ordered for the studio that I need to meet there in thirty minutes, but otherwise, no.”

  “Go ahead and get in your car out of this cold. Luke’s brother’s garage is a couple blocks down from your studio. I’ll go get the tire taken care of and bring it back to you.”

  “If you want to just give me the name of the shop I can take it later,” I proposed. I didn’t need to be seeing him again. This was already incredibly awkward and I wasn’t sure how much more I could handle.

  “Was already heading there anyway,” he shared.

  “Oh. Well, you don’t have to bring it back for me. I can just pick it up afterward,” I offered. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.”

  “It’s not a problem. I’m going to have to drive past your studio to head back home anyway.”

  I wasn’t going to win this battle and I was really beginning to feel the effects of the cold on my body.

  “Okay,” I acquie
sced. “Thanks again, Stone.”

  A look I couldn’t read washed over his face and he didn’t walk back to his truck. I didn’t move either.

  “Get in the car, Monroe.”

  I stared at him a moment before I turned and walked to the driver’s side door. I opened the door, took one last look at him, and climbed in. I let out a breath as soon as I got in. That was fucking brutal. I felt this unimaginable attraction to Stone. I couldn’t explain it. I hadn’t ever felt this way around anyone…ever. My belly would get these uncontrollable nerves, my heart would start beating a little quicker, my body temperature would rise, and my nether regions would begin to tingle every single time I was around him. It was a completely new experience for me.

  It should be noted that I was roughly two weeks away from turning twenty-five and I was part of what my friends sometimes joked as a rare, dying breed.

  I was still a virgin.

  When I was around Stone and my body reacted the way it did, I thought for certain he was the man with whom I’d fall in love and give my virginity. Apparently, I was wrong because after my humiliating performance Stone made it very clear that he had no interest in me. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t help but remember the way I felt wrapped in his arms a week prior to my performance when Emme was kidnapped and assaulted by her ex-boyfriend. That night was one of the worst nights of my life; I was consumed with worry and fear for my best friend and I spent the night crying my eyes out. Stone wrapped me in his arms that night and held me until the morning. Despite the anguish I had been feeling about Emme’s kidnapping, I’d never felt more content in my entire life. Stone gave that to me.

  I looked up in my rearview mirror and realized he was still behind me, waiting for me to drive away. I turned on the car, put it in drive, and drove to my studio. Stone stayed behind me the entire way there, but then continued down the road in the direction toward what I assumed was Luke’s brother’s garage. I parked, grabbed my purse, stereo, and bag filled with some of my music, snacks, and other random necessities, and made my way into the studio. After letting myself in, I set my things down and pulled out my phone to call Vaughn. I knew if I didn’t he’d completely freak out. It rang once.