Kiss This (52 page)

Teague grinned proudly. “See? Told you it
was a rational honeymoon gift.”

“Yes, the most amazing assortment of
lingerie imaginable…and boxes of pregnancy tests.”

“I cover all the bases,” he said, leaning
his forehead against hers.

“Yes you do, and you’re really sexy right
now, so can we celebrate the conclusion of my birthday and our
wonderful news?”

“I want nothing more than to give the grand
finale to the birthday girl,” he smiled, kissing her neck as he led
her to the bed.

“I want fireworks.”

“Oh, sweetheart, you’re gonna get
fireworks.”

He laid her on the bed and climbed next to
her. But before anything else, he lifted her shirt up and put his
lips against her belly. Kissing it softly he whispered, “I thank
God every day for your mommy, little McCallan. She makes me the
happiest man in the world.”

Don’t miss Jay’s story, coming 2014!

“
TAME THIS”

Other stories by Hadley Quinn:

“
The Fighter’s
Block”

To Connect With the
Author…

www.facebook.com/hadley.quinn.3

www.twitter.com/theHadleyQuinn

www.goodreads.com/HadleyQuinn

The author would like
to…

Thank you, thank you,
thank you!

To all of you that read
this novel, I thank you profusely for taking the time. Even if you
didn’t like it, hey…that’s okay. We are a diverse planet of people
and it is expected! I am a reader first and a storyteller second,
so I appreciate the love and passion for books and the opportunity
to share the excitement for them.

I would like to thank my
husband, who is busy enough as it is but always has time to listen
to me babble about my characters or let me bounce ideas off of him.
He is simply amazing, treats me like the most important person in
the world, and I thank God every day that I met him when I did. We
are so different but live one life together so perfectly with our
beautiful kids. I love you, babe. You rock!

Thank you to KS and your
endless projects. The experiences have been priceless and I’m glad
you are talented in so many ways! Thank you for your thoughts,
opinions, corrections, suggestions, and advice in general for
material in this story. The movie industry still fascinates and
scares me in equal measure!

Many wonderful people make
the world go round and I am blessed to be a part of it!

For the music lovers out
there…

Kiss This
Soundtrack

“
Evil Angel” – Breaking
Benjamin

“
Broken” -
Lifehouse

“
I Drive Your Truck” – Lee
Brice

“
Kiss This” – Aaron
Tippin

“
Howlin’ For You” – The
Black Keys

“
Between the Raindrops” –
Lifehouse w/ Natasha Bedingfield

“
Madness” – Muse

“
Never Stop” -
Safetysuit

For a detailed explanation
of these song choices…

“Evil Angel”-
When Teague became a victim to the wiles and lies
of other people, he did what a lot of people do when they’re
hurting. He turned to alcohol to numb and potentially bandage some
of the damage. In this case, Teague’s “Evil Angel” is
indeed…alcohol. You can interpret songs any way you see fit, but
this particular comparison was automatic for me. Like Camryn, I
wished that I could have been there for Teague during this very
horrific time in his life. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and
help bear the pain. Agony is a very difficult thing to endure
alone.

“Broken”-
Lifehouse has been a part of my life for more
than a decade now. I can pick any one of their songs and literally
apply it to an aspect of my life easily. When we lose someone in
our life, things are never the same. Pieces of us change. We so
badly wish we could rearrange things to make it work out
differently. Sometimes we can move on because we know we have to,
but it’s still hard as we hold on to things that cause pain or
heartache. When I think of Camryn losing her fiancée overseas, so
many parts of me are affected. I have a deep love for my country
and the soldiers that protect it. I imagine that Camryn’s loss
almost broke her in half. I feel that it really would take a couple
of years to even feel put-together enough to look at another man
let alone give your heart to him.

When I think of the
anguish Teague suffered through because of the trials in his life,
I understand how helpless he probably felt. He lost a child. His
life was altered dramatically because of greedy, selfish people.
What do you do? What
can
you do? He only wanted to protect Chase’s future,
but how do you do that and put yourself back together at the same
time? “I’m falling apart; I’m barely breathing; with a broken
heart; that’s still beating.” These words may only be powerful to
those that have been there…

“I Drive Your
Truck”-
Oh goodness sake, when I first
heard this song…I cried. I’d already written the storyline of
Brandon driving Zach’s truck after he died, and because Zach was a
soldier…it all fit. This song was just an eerie connection but in a
good way. This song is for Brandon. He truly is a sweet guy, and if
you imagine what it was like to lose a brother, have parents that
didn’t handle it well, and also try to be supportive to your
brother’s fiancée… Brandon had a full plate. Camryn was there for
him as well—they got through it together—but the man deserves a hug
from every reader that can empathize.

“Kiss This”-
I honestly had never heard this song before until
after this book was complete. I was in my car when it came on and I
really had to laugh out loud. It was Camryn all the way. I like
feisty female characters. Even more, I like feisty girls that are
witty. Even more than that, I like witty, feisty girls that can be
really sweet. Camryn was sometimes angry but she had good reason.
No way did she want any man to easily win her over. She knew the
pain and heartache she harbored sometimes came out a bit
aggressively, and sometimes she’d even catch herself being a little
too unfair in that aspect. Oftentimes it’s hard to find a fair
balance when it comes to protecting our hearts, but when you
combine that with intolerance to disrespectful men, you have Camryn
“Kiss This” Jacobs.

“Howlin’ For You”-
Ahh, when a guy finds that girl that he can’t
stop thinking about, sometimes it’s a pitiful howling of sorts to
be with her. Teague was not the type to make an ass of him self
over a girl, but once Camryn stepped into his life, things shifted
a little. He was enamored with her from the start, but after a
deception of the worst kind, he was a little more than cautious.
Things in his personal life were revealed gradually. His family and
his past with Kate weren’t things he was able to bring up in the
first week or two of knowing Camryn. The information started to
unfold rather naturally and he chose to let it be that way. He
didn’t trust Camryn, or any female for that matter, but she’d made
such an impression on him so quickly, he couldn’t stand to be
without her.

“
Between The
Raindrops”-
Yum, yes I picture the scene
in the rain between Teague and Camryn. Sexy and passionate, and
full of love and forgiveness. But beyond that, this song is so much
more in an everlasting sense. The ups and downs. Endurance. Living
life. Sharing the pain and the joy
together
. What I love about Teague
and Camryn is that they both give
and
take. That is such an essential
part of a lasting relationship. When you are able to accept help,
enjoy compliments, and most of all, love unconditionally… You’re
ready to face anything life throws at you. It becomes a
journey
together
,
not just a companionship for survival.

“Madness”-
I think I could listen to this song a dozen times
a day and never get tired of it. It makes me think of Teague when
Camryn told him she knew about Chase. He pretty much freaked out
without even realizing it. He feared that the things that almost
killed him once before would now threaten his happiness with
Camryn. He was still torn in two when it came to the situation with
Chase. Sometimes you can’t resolve an issue in your life when you
don’t even know
what
needs to be resolved. But once he confronted his father and
the panic wore off, Teague finally realized that Camryn was more
important to him that anything else in his life. Perhaps he already
knew this, but when he was finally forced to share a part of him
he’d spent a year trying to bury, the love he shared with Camryn
prevailed, and Teague knew that letting her in
all
the way was the only form of
healing he would ever need.

“Never Stop”-
Whether you’ve heard of Safetysuit or not, this
band is one of my absolute favorites. It doesn’t matter where I’ve
seen them perform—if I see them live, on a video, or hear them on
my stereo—they put so much heart into everything they do. These
guys are fun. They are sweet. They are honest. This song is
actually my favorite love song
ever
. It is simple in the best way.
It is passionate. There is no confusion, it’s blatant. It’s
beautiful. There is nothing better than an honest declaration of
love. Knowing how much I crush over Safetysuit, my husband
surprised me one night and performed for me an acoustic cover of
this song. I freaking cried. It’s gorgeous. I’ve even heard SS
perform this song acoustic and it is so damn moving. But enough
about me and my fondness for bold affirmations… This time I
dedicate this song to Teague and Camryn. They deserve
it.