Ex-Factor (Diamond Girls) (29 page)

My sweaty palm slid over the door handle, and the irritating
ding
,
ding
,
ding
, signaling the open door followed me as I made my way to the intersection of Visalia and Evans. The cross street had originally been named Macintosh but was changed shortly after my father’s death as a way to honor his memory. I swept a stray tear from my cheek as I spied the small arrangement of candles, flowers, and a weather-beaten sign that read, “In loving memory of James Marshall Evans.” It seemed as though my life was not the only one he’d impacted.

The junction bordered a somewhat upscale residential area, and was quiet save for an occasional car. My breaths came in short, rapid pants as I crossed through the intersection and came to a stop in front of the makeshift memorial on the opposite corner. I knelt down in front of a vase of dried out flowers and swapped them with the lively spring-inspired bunch I held in my hand.

Unsure of what I wanted to say, or how long it would take me to say it, I plopped down onto my butt with my back to the intersection and crossed my legs. With my eyes closed, I focused on my breathing until I was fairly certain I could move forward without losing control.

“God, Daddy, there’s so much I want to say to you. So many things I wish I could change and apologize for. It’s so hard living without you. Sometimes I miss you so much it hurts to breathe.”

I swallowed back the lump that began forming, and practiced the calming exercises Dr. Frank had told me about.
In through the nose. Out through the mouth.

“I was awful to you after Mom went away, Daddy, and I’m so sorry for that. You didn’t deserve what I put you through. You were hurting every bit as much as I was, but you held yourself together and kept going for the both of us. You loved me, even when I probably didn’t deserve to be loved.” I shook my head and stared at the dirty pavement, my eyes trailing a random ant as it circled a crushed piece of green candy.

“I wish there was some way you could hear me and know how sorry I am for all the partying and drinking. For all the lies I told you. I wish there was some way I could go back to that night, Daddy, and just take it all back. I wish I would have stayed sober, taken Nate’s keys away, and kept him from leaving the party drunk.”

So engrossed in my one-sided conversation with my deceased father, I didn’t sense Bodie’s approach until he was standing over me. He slid down onto the ground behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist in a giant bear hug, his legs jutting out on either side of mine. He placed his lips to my ear and whispered softly. “I’ll leave if you want me to, Doll Face. I just didn’t want you to feel alone.”

I’d spent the majority of the past year doing nothing but feeling alone. I never wanted to feel alone again—ever. Relishing in the warmth and power radiating off his body, I placed my hands on his forearms and leaned back into his body. Angling my head so that I saw him out of the corner of my eye, I pressed a kiss to the side of his chin, just over his scar, and smiled. “Please, stay. I’m almost finished.”

He squeezed me again and dropped his head against my shoulder, his warm breath trickling across my upper back like a gentle caress.

“I met someone, Daddy.” I squeezed Bodie’s arm. “A great guy that’s been through the same stuff I have. He lost his sister and his best friend, so he understands. He knows what I’m going through and doesn’t judge. I think you’d like him a lot. He and I were asked to be a part of the Every Fifteen Minutes assembly at school. It’s such an important program, and I was so happy to be a part of it. My biggest hope is that what we did made a difference. If we stopped even one person from getting behind the wheel of a car drunk, then I can walk away satisfied, and hope that maybe you’re smiling down at me from heaven with pride.”

Bodie pressed a soft kiss to the side of my neck and tightened his hold on me. “He’s proud, Doll Face. I know he is. And that pride is only gonna grow when he watches you take the mat today.”

I inhaled a slow breath and smiled as I sighed, hoping he was right. “C’mon,” I said, signaling Bodie I was ready to leave. “I’ve got one hour to get ready and get myself to the arena, or Coach Shea will tear me a new asshole.”

Bodie chuckled and slapped me on the behind. “Tell her she’ll have to come through me first. I happen to like your ass just the way it is.”

***

My heart raced as I stood behind the giant curtain with my team, waiting for the announcer to call us onto the mat. There were six teams in the small senior level five division, two of which completely tanked it on day one, three who performed clean, and the Diamond Girls, who’d suffered a fall during the elites. Scoring for two-day events varied from company to company, Infinity Jamz, the company running our national competition, opting to go with a twenty-five/seventy-five split. With this type of scoring system, we had a better chance of rising from the ashes after our blip the first day. We were banking on it to help us take first place.

Claire’s fall had been unfortunate—she’d performed with the stomach flu—but it wasn’t the end of the world. The difficulty level of our routine was far above the other teams in our division. If we performed clean, we had the competition in the bag.

A jolt of excitement shot through me as I pictured myself in the fancy black jacket awarded to the first place teams. After a half season working with the Diamond Girls, I finally understood my cousin’s unholy love for the sport of cheerleading. I’d joined a sisterhood. A group of finely tuned athletes who sweat together, bled together, and celebrated each other’s victories and losses as if they were their own. The camaraderie between my teammates was unlike anything I’d ever experienced, and I knew I’d made sisters for life.

The announcer’s deep voice echoed throughout the indoor arena. “In the hole: Athletic Elite, Lady Firecrackers.”

I glanced over my shoulder to Erin, then Tayla, who’d done a fabulous job filling in for Callie, and smiled.

“On deck: Texas Stars, Fantasy Five Elite.”

Livvie blew me a kiss, and Erin gave me a wink, whispering an excited, “We’ve got this.” I nodded once and mouthed a quick “oh, yeah” in return. We totally had it in the bag.

“And now performing: X-Factor Cheer, Diamond Girls!”

An explosion of sound rained down on us as we took the mat, a million camera flashes sparking throughout the darkened arena like twinkling stars.

A rush of adrenaline coursed through me as I stepped into formation in the center of the mat, placed my hands at my sides, and looked down. Five teammates fanned out at a diagonal angle from me on either side, the rest of the girls lining up in formation behind us.

This was it. The culmination of all we’d worked for. Two and a half minutes of insanity that would make or break our undefeated winning streak.

Shouts of encouragement sounded from all sides of the stage, and I couldn’t help it. I let my gaze pop up when I heard Bodie’s deep voice shout, “Kick some ass, Doll Face!”

I smiled and mouthed a silent “hell yeah” as our music blared, and stepped back into a standing full along with every other member of my team.

Yeah, we were totally going to kick some cheer ass.

Acknowledgments

The phrase “it takes a village” holds as true to bringing a book to life as it does to raising a child. I couldn’t have written this book without the help of a group of very talented, wonderful people. My list of people to thank is long, so I’m going to go ahead and just get right to it!

My fabulous agent, Brittany Booker Carter: You are made of all kinds of awesome. I’m so blessed to have found you, and I love that you love my characters as much as I do. Thanks for finding my book babies an awesome home!

My BBFL, Deanna Genung: You’ve been a fountain of support. You’re a fabulous beta/proofreader, and a fabulous friend. I’m blessed to have you in my life. Love you, lady!

My BBFL, Dawnna and Monika: I feel equally blessed to have both of you in my life as well. You ladies are the best and I love your encouragement and support. Mwah!

My critique partner, Kristin Miller: Girl, I aspire to be you when I grow up. I’m in awe of your talent, and thankful to have you as a critique partner and friend. You see everything I don’t, and my book is better because of you.

My wonderful beta readers, Lisa Langdale, Carol Oates, and Brenda Pandos: You girls rock my socks! I’m forever in your debt and look forward to reading more of your awesome work!

My daughters, Kendall, Taryn, and Irelynn: This story came to life because of you. Your love and dedication to the sport of competitive cheerleading is truly inspiring, as are the hours of hard work you put in every week to achieve your goals. I’m proud that you’ve chosen to be a part of something bigger than yourselves, and proud you know what it means to be a part of a team. Keep on keeping on, girls. You make your mama proud!

My husband, Ryan: What can I say? You’re my rock and the love of my life. I wouldn’t be able to write without your support, patience, and willingness to pick up the slack when I’m knee deep in first drafts. Love you, babe!

Elisa Dane

Elisa Dane is a lover of books, chocolate, reality television, and long days spent shopping with good friends. She’s the proud mother of three All Star cheerleaders, and when she isn’t fangirling over a good book, she’s cheering them on.

Elisa writes contemporary YA romance with cheerleaders. It’s her hope that her stories will not only take you on a romantic journey that will warm your heart, but that you’ll find a new respect and interest in the sport of cheerleading you may not have had before.

When Elisa isn’t pounding away at her keyboard, or shuffling her kids to school and cheer practice, she can usually be found snuggling with her Chihuahua, Mocha, or reading a good book. Chocolate chip cookies are her favorite dessert, she thinks milk is the foulest substance on the planet, and she enjoys her little corner of Booktube where she can always be found chatting with people about her favorite books and characters.

Elisa is represented by Brittany Booker Carter of the Booker/Albert Agency. Her contemporary YA trilogy featuring a group of level five All Star cheerleaders releases in 2014 with Swoon Romance.

Preview UNBREAKABLE

(Book 2 in the Diamond Girls Series)

Chapter One

“Goddammit, Janice.”

Slam!

“Can’t you get anything right?”

Bang!

“I told you to get me Hef. Not this shitty piss-water crap.”

Crash!

I flinched, all too familiar with the splintering sound Janice Tate’s kitchen chair made as it smashed against the wall.

Diesel growled, the swatch of tan fur at the nape of his neck standing on end. Teeth bared and tail pointing down, he turned away from the half-eaten scraps of chicken I’d dumped into his bowl and sauntered over to where I sat on the bottom step of my back porch. Ears pricked, eyes focused on the neighbor’s backyard, the large German shepherd plopped down in front of me and whimpered.

I dug my fingers into his thick, fluffy coat, my stomach souring as Joseph Tate’s hard, gravelly voice echoed through the chain-link fence separating our properties.

“I’m going to the store to pick up some real beer, you lazy bitch. Dinner better be ready when I get back or I’m going to make you pay.”

Another loud crash echoed across the yard, followed moments later by the sound of tires squealing down the street.

Diesel’s chest rumbled beneath my fingers.

“I know, boy,” I said with a sigh. “I don’t know why she doesn’t leave. It’s getting worse.”

The Tate family had moved into the cheery, yellow home behind me on my tenth birthday. I remembered being so excited because they had a boy, Reid, who was close to my age. The rest of the kids on my street were either too little to be any fun, or too old and too cool to give me the time of day. I wanted a best friend, and Reid Tate was going to be it.