Fleeting Moments

A
ll rights reserved. This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any form without prior written permission of the publisher, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution, circulation or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly. Thank you for respecting the work of this author.

FLEETING MOMENTS
Copyright © 2016 Bella Jewel

F
LEETING MOMENTS is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places and events portrayed in this book either are from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, establishments, events, or location is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A
s always, my heartfelt thanks to every single blogger, reader and author that has supported my journey. From reading my books, to sharing them, to raving about them, to being there for me. Thank you. My career would be nothing without any of you.

A huge thanks to Kylie from Give Me Books for organizing my reveals and blitzes. You do such an amazing job. No matter how many times I use you, I am always blown away by how efficient you are. Nothing is ever a drama. Thank you for giving me so much support.

A massive thanks to Kellie from Book Cover By Design for this epic cover. It’s absolutely beautiful, and I couldn’t have imagined anything better. You got what I wanted, down to a T. Thank you.

To Carol from the Blurb Bitch, thank you for working on this blurb with me to make it the epic masterpiece that it is. I can’t thank you enough for the time and effort you put into helping with this. I really appreciate it.

To Lauren, my epic editor. You are the best thing since sliced bread, no lie. You seriously are the best person EVER to work with. You are quick and your notes always make me laugh. No one else could ever keep up with my writing pace, but you always nail it.

A big, heartfelt thanks to Rose from Read By Rose for this amazing proofread. You came in at the last moment and helped me in incredible ways. You’re truly epic and I can’t wait to work with you again.

And of course, to my admin, MJ, for ALWAYS keeping my page running beautifully. I couldn’t do it without you, girly. I love your teasers and your passion; thank you for taking the time out of your life to help this poor girl keep everything running.

And, last but certainly not least, to my loyal readers. To each and every one of you that picks up my books and give me a chance. To the reviews you write, good or bad. To the time you take to make me a better person. You make this real for me; never stop giving such love and passion. You make our journey so amazing.

DEDICATION
This book is for you—you know who you are.
Thank you for believing in me, and always talking to me about my work.
Mostly, thanks for being my friend and giving me something to write about.
PROLOGUE

L
ife is a series of fleeting moments. Moments that pass you by—sometimes without recognition. We let moments define us and other times we let them destroy us. Those moments can be small, or they can be momentous. They can introduce love, belief, and strength, and they can take away passion, self-worth, and happiness. Every piece of our life is made up of moments.

The biggest moment in any person’s life is the day they’re born. After that, moments are made up of friendship, love, pain, betrayal, happiness, marriage, children, and death. Our final moment is when we take our last breath and leave the life we created to be passed onto someone else. Our moments become our story and our story is shared. If we don’t relish in our moments, we may just lose them forever.

What can you say about your moments? Are you proud of them? Do you believe in them? Did they change you? Define you? Destroy you? Did you even notice as they passed you by? Do you remember the first time you fell in love? Your first friendship? Your first heartbreak? The smell of your first child as you held them in your arms? Those moments became you, but did you recognize them? Did you relish in them? Did you let them into your soul to become every single piece of who you are?

My moments defined me.

They took so much and yet returned the same.

They destroyed me.

But mostly, they created me.

~*~*~*~

I
recall a great deal about my life, but falling in love stands out the strongest. The day I met Gerard Jacobson changed me. It put a piece into my soul I hadn’t even known I needed.

I was just a girl, and he was just a boy. Cliché, I know. We locked eyes in a coffee shop and the rest is history. Falling in love for me was like coming alive—like taking your first breath. Dragging air into your fresh lungs and feeling it spread throughout your body, filling everything with life.

Being filled with love is like being filled with life.

I never imagined that a single second would pass by when I wouldn’t love Gerard. I certainly never imagined that another love could be stronger, more intense, and even more terrifying. He gave me the world with open arms and I took it, throwing myself into his life and being everything I knew a wife needed to be. I loved him as surely as I breathed, and he returned with equal passion.

I didn’t think there could be anyone else. It just wasn’t possible.

I certainly didn’t think he had it in him to change. To be different to the man I knew so well for so long.

But life is funny like that, isn’t it? It doesn’t give you a choice. It picks your moments and it thrusts them upon you. Sometimes I wonder if those hard moments are sent to test us; other times I wonder if they’re sent to hurt us. After all, why would my perfect marriage be thrown into turmoil without a good reason? Why would the man I’d loved for six years suddenly become empty to me? Why would my life and my moments be twisted until I could no longer recognize them?

If life has such a big plan for us, why the hell does it hurt so damned bad?

But before I tell you about the hurt, the testing moments and how they changed me, you have to know how it all began.

CHAPTER 1

M
y feet tread softly across the polished wooden floor as I make my way to the kitchen. I don’t want to wake Gerard until I’ve made him breakfast. It’s our anniversary today, three years married, six years together, and I want to surprise him. I hum a happy tune as I open the fridge, gathering the ingredients I need to make my famous fluffy pancakes. They’re his favorite. He’s been working a lot lately, which is nothing new, so I’m sure he’ll appreciate them.

“I love it when you sing.”

I spin around, floorboards creaking, to see my husband standing at the counter wearing nothing but a pair of boxer briefs. His lean chest is muscled and bronze, but it’s his face that makes my heart smile—chiseled jaw, blue eyes, soft blond hair. He’s beautiful in the perfect kind of way. The way that isn’t rugged, but definitely still masculine.

“I was going to surprise you.” I smile, moving around the counter to fall into his arms.

“I had the same idea,” he murmurs into my hair. “Only when I woke up to sneak out, I saw you beat me to it.”

I laugh softly. “Great minds.”

He chuckles. “Let me make breakfast. You put your feet up, relax.”

I push up on my tiptoes and kiss his lips. “No way. I love making pancakes. At least let me do this for you today.”

His eyes warm and his hands move down to my stomach where our seven-week-old baby is growing inside me, a creation of us, something we’ve tried so hard for. I had problems and it took a long time to conceive, but finally, we managed to make him or her naturally before having to turn to IVF. I thank God every day for that gift.

“You can make breakfast, but then you’re going to rest. I have a surprise for you later that you’ll need your strength for.”

“You do?” I beam.

“I do.”

“Well then I better get to this breakfast so you can tell me about this surprise sooner.”

He grins and lets me go, and I get back to flipping pancakes.

“You don’t have to work today?” I ask, pouring batter into the hot pan.

“I’m hoping I don’t have to. I asked them to give me the day off but you know how it is—anything can happen.”

I nod. Gerard is a lawyer, and sometimes he gets called in at less than desirable times and there is little he can do about it. People are forever getting into trouble, which means he’s forever working. Sometimes it bothers me, but I try to be the best wife I can and just support him. It’s his dream, and I’m sure when the baby comes along things will change.

At least I hope they will. I push that thought away and keep my smile.

“Well, here’s hoping for a crime-free day,” I say, flipping the pancakes.

“How’re you feeling?”

“Better, much better.”

I spent a little time yesterday feeling slightly off. This baby means the world to both of us, and we’ll do anything to protect it. Sadly, even the slightest cramp has us both panicking. I’m sure that’ll go away once we reach the second trimester but for now we’re both walking around on eggshells.

“Just a flu?” he asks, moving to the coffee machine and pouring himself a cup.

“I think so.”

He helps me serve the pancakes and we sit at our small, wooden round table. I serve him first, and then myself. My stomach can tend to be a little sensitive in the mornings, though that seems to have disappeared completely in the last two days. Maybe it’s finally over. That would make things so much easier; vomiting on the way to work is never pleasant.

“So, what’s my surprise?” I ask between mouthfuls.

Gerard grins and leans down, reaching into his briefcase. He pulls out a small envelope and hands it to me. “I know it’s nothing big, but I remembered how much you’ve wanted to go.”

Letting a little squeal escape my lips, I tear it open, producing two local baseball tickets for today’s game. My squeal becomes happy whoops as I get out of my chair and throw myself onto his lap. I’m a diehard baseball fan, more than most men I meet, and I’ve always wanted to see a game with him. I used to go as a child with my parents, but it’s been a long time since I’ve gone and I can’t think of anything better than spending the day with Gerard at a game. He knows me so well. It doesn’t take me much to find my happy.

“You got us tickets to a game!”

He laughs as I press kisses frantically over his face. “I did. We’ve not been to a game since we’ve lived here and I know you’ve always wanted to go together. I don’t know how I did picking the seats, but I tried.”

I look down at the tickets. “They’re good seats, but we could be sitting on the grass and I’d still be happy because you’re coming and it’s a baseball game!”

“We’re going to dinner afterwards.”

Happy sigh
.

I kiss him long and hard, tongues dancing, bodies clashing. Happiness swells in my chest and excitement bubbles deep. “You’re the most amazing husband in the world, Gerard Jacobson.”

“Only the best for you, Lucy.”

“What time is the game?”

“This afternoon, so you’ve got a few hours to rest this morning.”

I hug him close, pressing my cheek against his. There isn’t a better man in the world—of that I’m sure.

~*~*~*~

“Y
ou can’t be serious?” Gerard yells, throwing one hand in the air while the other holds his phone to his ear. “You promised me one day!”