Until Her Smile: Happily Ever Alpha World Read online

  Until Her Smile

  Happily Ever Alpha World

  Samantha Lind

  Until Her Smile

  Copyright © 2019 by Samantha Lind

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Published by Boom Factory Publishing, LLC.

  Samantha Lind CONTRIBUTOR to the Original Works was granted permission by Aurora Rose Reynolds, ORIGINAL AUTHOR, to use the copyrighted characters and/ or worlds created by Aurora Rose Reynolds in the Original Work; all copyright protection to the characters and/ or worlds of Aurora Rose Reynolds in the Original Works are and shall continue to be retained by Aurora Rose Reynolds. You can find all of Aurora Rose Reynolds Original Works on most major retailers. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, distributed, stored in or introduced into any information storage or retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic, photocopying, mechanical or otherwise, without express permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, story lines and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons, living or dead, events, locales or any events or occurrences are purely coincidental.

  The following story contains adult language and sexual situations and is intended for adult readers.

  Cover Design by Jersey Girl Design

  Cover Photograph by Reggie Deanching

  Cover Models Tionna Petrmola & Cody Smith

  Editing by All About The Edits

  Proofreading by Proof Before You Publish

  Created with Vellum

  Dedication

  For all those who believe in love.

  Contents

  1. Peyton

  2. Stacey

  3. Peyton

  4. Stacey

  5. Peyton

  6. Stacey

  7. Peyton

  8. Stacey

  9. Peyton

  10. Stacey

  11. Peyton

  12. Peyton

  13. Stacey

  14. Peyton

  15. Stacey

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  Coming Soon

  Acknowledgments

  Also by Samantha Lind

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Peyton

  “Everyone ready?” I ask my squad of eight soldiers. I was promoted to Sergeant about six months ago and assigned to lead a great group of soldiers. Soldiers I would lay my life down to protect, and I know they’d do the same for me.

  “Yes, sir!” they all call out to me, and I just shake my head at the smartass response. We’re more like family than anything. You have to be when you’ve been deployed for as long as we have been in this desert hellhole known as Afghanistan. Thankfully, we’re headed back stateside tomorrow, to Fort Campbell, which is situated on the Kentucky-Tennessee border, about an hour outside of Nashville. Our six-month deployment has come to an end and I’ve successfully kept my squad alive and unhurt in our time over here.

  “Have you decided what you’re going to do once we make it back and are officially on leave?” Lukas Espinoza, one of my best friends and squad guys, asks as he takes a seat next to me.

  “I’m going to head down to Nashville for a few days. Check in with my old man, see a few friends,” I tell him. “What about you?”

  “I don’t think Tia is going to let me leave the apartment,” he says, a smirk on his face and his eyebrows bouncing up and down.

  “Ah yes, the honeymoon stage is still in effect with you two. You’ll be fucking like rabbits twenty-four seven for the entire time we’re on leave,” I joke with him. “Be careful, or you’ll be reporting back to duty with a baby on the way, unless y’all are ready for one.”

  “Maybe.” He shrugs his shoulders. “I’m just ready to have time to actually spend with my wife in person. Kinda sucked to ship out just a week after we got married. But it was the right thing to do. I needed to know she’d be taken care of if something had happened to me while we were over here.”

  “Well, I wish you guys all the best. You know that.”

  “Yep, now we just need to find you a woman,” he says, smacking my back.

  “Nope. I don’t need one,” I answer him, shaking my head. “You know my stance on women in my life.”

  “I do, and I think it’s shit. Just because your mom walked out on you and your dad doesn’t mean every woman is going to be the same,” he tells me for what’s probably the hundredth time.

  “Not worth the heartache. I’m perfectly fine with the occasional one-night stand. Scratch the itch and move the hell on. No relationships, no chance for someone to walk out on me or fuck me over.”

  “Trust me, when you meet the right woman, you’ll be changing your tune, and quickly.”

  “We’ll see,” I say, placating him. “Not all of us are meant to settle down with a wife and kids. Nothing wrong with me living out my days as a bachelor.”

  “There’s also nothing wrong with finding your soulmate and settling down. Can’t knock it until you try it.”

  “I suppose you’re correct. I can’t completely knock it until I try it. But I don’t have any plans to try it out anytime soon.”

  “Hey, Sergeant.” Amber Jones, one of my youngest crew members, saunters over. She’s one hell of a soldier and one I’m proud to have on my team.

  “What’s up, Amber?” I ask, turning my attention in her direction.

  “What time do we need to report to the airstrip?” she asks.

  “Zero nine hundred hours was the last I heard. If that changes, I’ll let you know.”

  “Sounds good. If you don’t need anything else from me, I think I’m going to head to bed.”

  “You’re good. See you in the morning,” I tell her, then turn back to Lukas.

  We shoot the shit for a while longer, joined later by Keaton Baldwin and Maxwell Abbott, two of the other guys in our squad. Lukas, Max, and I have been together since basic training. Thankfully, over the years, we’ve been lucky enough to stay together as we’ve been moved around to different bases. We’ve all risen up the ranks, and I’m sure once both of them are promoted again, we’ll be split up as they’ll be assigned squads of their own to oversee.

  “All right, guys, I’m calling it a night. See y’all on the flip side,” I tell them, standing and stretching.

  I head to the bathroom and do my business, brush my teeth, and head to my bunk. I strip down to a t-shirt and my boxer briefs and slide into my bed. It’s finally the last night I’ll have to sleep on this uncomfortable mattress.

  I might not have anyone waiting for me when I return, like most of my squad does, but my bed is waiting for me and I can’t wait to get back to it.

  We make it back stateside after stopping in Germany to refuel and swap out supplies. It takes us a full twenty-four hours to make it back to our home base, and as soon as we’re cleared to leave, I head straight to my apartment and crash. I’ve got the next two weeks off for rest and relaxation and I plan to make use of every second.

  After sleeping off the jet lag for a good solid twenty hours, I finally pull myself out of bed, shower, and get some laundry started. With the next two weeks off, I plan to go see my dad and just take it easy. While the first load is in the washer, I run out and grab some takeout. I’m starving and the thought of having a good greasy burger sounds perfect right about now. After eating way too many MRE’s over the past six months, I’m ready for a burger from my favorite local joint.

  A few hours later, I’ve got all my laundry done and a bag packed to head to N
ashville. I don’t have anything else planned, except crashing with my old man, so, with nothing left to do, I jump in my truck and get on the highway.

  “Dad,” I call out as I enter his house a couple hours later. “You here?”

  As I make my way further inside, I anticipate finding him in his recliner as he watches TV, but the living room is dark and there’s no sign of him. I head down the hall and as I approach his room, I can hear the low hum of the TV.

  The door is halfway open and I can see him sleeping half-sitting up on his bed. I take in his sleeping form and it hits me just how much he’s aged since I’ve been gone.

  “Dad,” I call out from the doorway and he stirs awake.

  “Peyton! When did you get here?” he asks, then breaks out into a coughing fit.

  “Just pulled in a few minutes ago. Are you okay?” I ask, concerned.

  “Yeah,” he says, coughing once again. “Just this nasty case of pneumonia I’m trying to kick.”

  “You been to the doctor?” I ask, knowing how my old man can be stubborn and doesn’t like going to the doctor unless he’s practically dying.

  “Went yesterday, finally. They gave me a shot of antibiotics and put me on some medicine. They said if I don’t start to feel better in the next day or so, to come back in. I think my fever’s gone, so I assume I’m starting to respond to the medication they gave me. Enough about me, when did you get back home?”

  “About thirty-six hours ago. After we were cleared, I crashed for almost an entire day before getting up and coming here. Figured I’d hang around here for my time off.”

  “Sorry I’m not better company.”

  “You’re good, Dad. Anything I can get you?”

  “I’ll be fine. Just need to sleep it off. I’ll be back to normal in just a couple more days.”

  “If you say so,” I tell him, scratching the back of my head.

  My dad and I have been super close pretty much my entire life. When my mom walked out of our lives twenty years ago, he did his best to make sure I had everything I needed growing up. It wasn’t always easy with him being in the Army. The one time he deployed when I was younger, I had to go live with my grandparents for the time he was gone. Thankfully, that was only for about nine months. I did my eighth-grade year with them, and even though I hated it when it was happening, it really wasn’t all that bad of a year, looking back now.

  “Feel free to head out and go do something. I’m not going to be much company tonight,” he says as he swings his legs over the edge of the bed and stands up. He stops his movements as another coughing fit takes over.

  “Yeah, maybe.”

  I pull my cell from my pocket. I hadn’t told anyone I’d be in town, so I’m not sure who will be around tonight to meet up. I shoot off a text to my buddy, Ethan, to see if he’s available.

  Peyton: Hey, man. I just got into town, I’m on leave and will be here for the next two weeks. You around to grab a beer tonight?

  I return my phone to my pocket as I walk back down the hall and out to my truck. I grab my bag and bring it inside, taking the time to put my clothes in the dresser and store my bag in the closet. All my years in the military and living in my dad’s house has ingrained in me to have everything put away. Many of the guys I went through basic training with struggled with keeping their barracks clean and would get in trouble all the time. Not once did I ever get in trouble for it as I’d basically grown up with my own form of a drill sergeant. The one thing my dad knew well was the Army way of life.

  I knew when I was about fifteen that I wanted to follow in my dad’s footsteps and join the military. It was the only way of life I knew and I didn’t want to change anything. While my dad was proud I followed his lead, he never pressured me to do so. He encouraged me to find my own path in life, but I knew being a soldier was what I was meant to be. So, the summer after I graduated from high school, I shipped out to basic training at the ripe age of eighteen and a half years old.

  In the ten-plus years since then, I’ve been through many good and bad moments. Even with the bad times, I still wouldn’t change my path in life and intend to continue on toward a full career in the military.

  Chapter Two

  Stacey

  “Hey, Cam!” I said, putting my cell to my ear.

  “Hey! How are things going? Staying busy?”

  “So very busy! Writing a few hit songs for one of the top female acts in country music has increased demand of my time the past few months.”

  “I’m so happy for you! You deserve all of the accolades. Are you going to the CMA Awards?”

  “Absolutely! I’ve been nominated in two categories. Can you believe that?” I settle back into the driver’s seat and place my head against the headrest, a grin plastered on my face.

  “That’s amazing! I’ll for sure be watching and rooting for you to win.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

  “I know you’re busy, so I’ll get to the point of my call,” Cam states. “I’ve got a new client that we think would do well with some music therapy. Are you still taking on any clients, with everything going on with the songwriting popularity?”

  “I haven’t worked with any kids in the last few months, just due to my schedule, but depending on what you’re thinking for a time commitment, I might be able to help you out.”

  “An assessment is still needed to determine how often sessions would be recommended. As you know from past clients, I prefer to have the professional working with the client be the one to perform the assessment.”

  “Let me pull up my calendar and see when I might have an available time,” I tell her, placing the call on speakerphone as I pull up the calendar on my phone. “It looks like I have some free time either next Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday morning.”

  “Oh, awesome!” Cam exclaims. “Let me contact the patient’s mother and see what day would work better for them, and then I’ll get back to you. Does that work?”

  “Works perfect. Will it be done at your offices or an in-home assessment?”

  “Whatever you’d prefer. I can also ask the mother if she has a preference on the location.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Just let me know once you’ve got it scheduled and where it will be, and I’ll make sure I’m there.”

  “Thank you so much, Stacey.”

  “Anytime! Hey, I’m meeting a few other friends tonight for a drink to celebrate the award nominations. Would you and Ethan like to come?”

  “I’d love to! Ethan is working until eight-ish, so depending on what time, he can meet up with us.”

  “It’s a laid-back, come-as-you-can kind of thing. I think we were planning to meet up around seven thirty or so, down at The Tap House.”

  “I’ll be there. Thanks for the invite!”

  “Can’t wait to see you. Don’t you have a ring to show off to me?”

  “Yes! I can’t believe that I haven’t seen you since Ethan proposed. It was all so amazing. I was shocked and not expecting it at all. I’ll tell you all about it tonight.”

  “Awesome, see you tonight!” I tell her before we hang up. I slip my phone back into my purse, then open my car door and climb out.

  I’m meeting with my writing partner, Lee Davidson, and our superstar singer herself, Reese Blackwood, Miss Country Star Hotshot. The three of us penned her current hit single last year and it’s been a huge success. It’s been in the number one spot on the country charts for the last fifteen weeks, and it was our second big success. We had two back-to-back number one singles that have both broken records for the number of weeks they’ve stayed at the top of the charts. We’ve had a handful of weeks where the songs sat in the first and second spots on the charts, breaking yet more records and joining a very short list of other singers who have held the top two chart spots.

  “Hi,” Lee greets me as I walk into the room. He’s sitting on one of the couches in the room, a guitar already in his hands as he strums some notes on it.

  “Hey. How’s
it going?”

  “It’s going,” he says, moving some papers around in front of him. “I worked on that song we left undone yesterday, and think I have the kinks all worked out.”

  “Let me hear the changes,” I tell him, taking a seat across from him and pulling out my notebook. He plays through the song and I note where he’s made changes in my notebook, marking down what I think is working and what still needs to be fine-tuned to make it perfect.

  “What do you think?” Lee asks, once he finishes the song.

  “I’m really liking the changes. I think, with a few more tweaks, it will be perfect. Let’s wait for Reese to get here so you can play the changes for her and then we can tweak it.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Did I hear my name?” Reese asks, shuffling into the room and plopping down in the chair next to me.

  “Sure did,” I say, laughing at her. “You look a little ragged. Did you have a fun night?”

  “Oh, ya know, just a night with my man after they kicked Nashville’s butt,” she says, winking at me.

  “I swear, you guys are going to be popping out babies left and right here soon, for how often you two go at it.”

  “That’s what birth control is for, my dear,” she says cheekily. “We’ve already discussed wanting kids and we’re going to wait a few more years. We want to have a year or two after being married to just be together before we start a family.”

  “Y’all are so cute, it’s almost sickening,” I tease her.

  “Thanks?!” she quips back, then turns to Lee. “Okay, let me hear what you’ve got.”