February Or Forever
Read February Or Forever Online
Authors: Juliet Madison
Juliet Madison
Juliet Madison
In this heartwarming coastal romance, Escape bestselling author Juliet Madison asks, what if your favourite celebrity fell in love with you?
Yoga teacher and single mother, Chrissie Burns has a plan: move into the rundown beach house left to her by her deceased aunt, renovate it, sell it, and move on. The scene of a terrible accident years ago, the house needs to get out of Chrissie's hands as soon as possible.
But Tarrin's Bay, where the house stands, has more to offer than bad memories. The town is lovely, the people friendly, and even Chrissie's young son finds friends and begins coming out of his shell. Employed at Serendipity Retreat as a yoga instructor, Chrissie is shocked to be given the role of private teacher to Drew Williams, Australia's top singer/songwriter for the month.
Relationships between instructors and clients are strictly forbidden, but Drew draws happiness out of Chrissie with his down-to-earth nature and sense of humour. Days of stretching and bending may bring Chrissie unexpected peace and strength, but she knows that this interlude must end, and there's no pose or position to aid her when Drew walks away and leaves her broken-hearted.
Juliet Madison is a naturopath-turned-author with a background in dance, art, internet marketing and perfume sales (yes, she was one of those annoying people in department stores who spray you with perfume). Nowadays she prefers to indulge her propensity for multiple careers by living vicariously through her characters. She likes to put these characters into extraordinary situations and take them on a challenging journey to discover their true passion and inner strength, weaving in some laughs, tears, romance and sometimes a touch of magic along the way.
Living near the beach on the beautiful south coast of New South Wales, Australia, Juliet spends her time running her internet business, raising her son, writing as often as she can, and doing her best to avoid housework.
Juliet is a proud member and volunteer with The Romance Writers of Australia and she loves to interact online with readers and writers via Twitter (@Juliet_Madison), and Facebook (www.facebook.com/JulietMadisonAuthor). She can be contacted through her website at www.julietmadison.com where readers can also download some free short stories.
I'd like to thank Kate Cuthbert and Escape Publishing for supporting my writing career and allowing me to continue sharing my stories with readers around the world, and my editor Belinda Holmes for her enthusiasm for my work.
I'd also like to thank my family, friends, and the writing community for your support and encouragement, and my mum for reading the first draft of this novel and getting excited about it.
Thanks to author, Nicola Marsh, for recommending the nifty little writing machine, the Alphasmart NEO, which has helped me write faster without distractions from the internet and helped me complete this manuscript in record time! Happy to pit our Alphies against each other for a writing race anytime. ;)
Thanks also to author, Kate Belle, for suggesting the name âSerendipity' for the health retreat in this book, and a special mention to Jessie Chapman's book
Yoga Postures for your Body, Mind, & Soul
(Harper Collins 2000), which was a great help to me many years ago when I first got into yoga, and which I revisited while writing this book to help with the yoga scenes between Chrissie and Drew.
And thanks to all the wonderfully talented singers out there who inspire people with their music every day, and inspired me to create the character of Drew.
To my sister at heart, Alli Sinclair.
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Chrissie Burns should have learned by now that white clothing and motherhood didn't mix. She rubbed a damp cloth at the smear of Vegemite on her Lorna Jane yoga top and wished she could also rub away the anxiety that had resurfaced since moving to Tarrin's Bay. It was known as
The Town of New Beginnings
, but for Chrissie, it was the town of bad memories.
âI won't go, Mum, I won't!' Her six-year-old son, Kai, planted his Vegemite-stained hands on his hips in defiance.
Chrissie sighed. âKai, you have to go to school. C'mon, let's wash your hands and clean your teeth.' She gave up on the smear and gently grasped her son's arm, but he yanked her hand away.
âKai, please. You can't stay home.'
âBut why, Mum, why do I have to go?' he whined, his freckled face creasing and blue eyes pleading.
âMummy has to go to work, you know that. Kids go to school and parents go to work. Now c'mon.' Chrissie led him into the bathroom and washed his hands on his behalf, and, failing to get him to clean his teeth, left him crying in the hallway while she retreated to her bedroom and ripped off her stained top. She replaced it with a silvery-grey version of the same; a racer-back singlet with extra stretch, and returned to her red-faced son.
Kai sighed and trudged outside to the car, his backpack thumping against his little body with each step. Chrissie grabbed her bag and locked up, then dashed to the car and started the engine. She drove down Dune Road, past Serendipity Health Retreat where she'd be returning for work, and headed towards the school. She stole a glance in the rear-view mirror and her heart lurched at the sight of her son's blotchy red eyes and the sharp intakes of breath as his bottom lip quivered.
She clamped her lips tight and blinked hard, determined not to let a single tear fall in front of her son. She couldn't let him see that she was hurting too, couldn't add to his already excessive load of sadness at Daddy Not Living With Mummy Anymore. No, tears were for when she was alone. Crying was for the shower, when the stream of water could disguise it, and the bedroom, when Kai was asleep and only the tear-soaked pillow was privy to her emotional state.
She didn't know what else she could do to make him happy. She couldn't be a stay-at-home mum or homeschool him. They may have inherited a house right on the beach that would sell for a nice sum, but until the renovations were complete she still needed to earn a living and stick to a tight budget. Plus, this job was her saviour; she needed it for her sanity.
Chrissie pulled into the ten minute drop off zone outside the school and forced a smile as she unbuckled her reluctant child from his seat. âIt'll be fun, darlin', you wait and see. I bet Mrs Kitson has some super-cool activities planned for today.'
Nothing. No eye contact, no smile. Chrissie drew a deep breath and helped Kai from the car, his arms firmly crossed and glued to his chest.
âIt's not fair,' he mumbled. âYou're so mean.'
Chrissie ran a hand over her head and gripped her ponytail, tightness clenching her jaw. With no time to argue, she raised her chin and marched Kai into the school playground. The bell had just gone and kids were lining up in their class rows. She nodded a hello to a couple of mothers who looked like they belonged in the dictionary under âhappy' and âperfect', and led Kai towards his Year One classmates. Mrs Kitson flashed a smile as they neared, and curved her hand towards Kai to encourage him to line up.
âHe's a bit upset today,' Chrissie explained as Mrs Kitson's eyes narrowed in concern at Kai's red face.
âHe'll be fine, you go. We're going to have a great day, aren't we, Kai?' She crouched to his level and he eyed her cautiously.
Kai unfolded his arms and grabbed hold of Chrissie's Lycra pants as she stepped away. âKai, I have to go now.'
âNo,' he said, gripping the fabric tighter. It was so stretchy she could probably get all the way to the school gate before he lost his grip or she rebounded, or, heaven forbid, showed the entire school her three-dollar undies.
She wrapped her hand around his small fingers and peeled them away from her yoga pants, and Mrs Kitson grasped his hand gently but firmly. âHe'll be fine,' she whispered with a reassuring nod. âI'll call you if there are any problems.'
He looked far from fine, but Chrissie stepped backwards, offering a feeble wave to her unimpressed child, before turning and walking away. She didn't dare look back. In another six hours she'd return and he'd probably act like nothing had ever happened, until the next morning when the struggle would begin all over again.
She got in the car and closed the door, paused for a moment to steady her breath, then turned the key in the ignition and drove around the corner into Seaview Road. It sloped downwards, and Chrissie's eyes scanned the ocean panorama, stretching across the horizon and wrapping around the town. She gulped, a lump of dread bobbing back up like a cork in water. To anyone else, the view might be called spectacular, and it
was
beautiful, but to Chrissie the word that came to mind was deadly. Her chest rose sharply with fast, shallow breaths as she drove slowly down the road.
No, not again. Not after all this time.
Panic wound its way up her spine like a spiralling vine, tightening and gripping with each breath. Her heart pounded, each beat trying to outdo the previous one, until she gasped for breath. Chrissie slammed on the brakes, veered off to the side of the road and put on the handbrake. She placed her hand on her chest in an effort to stop the rising fear, as heat rose up her neck and sweat pooled at her lower back.
Oh God, oh God.
Her hand shook against her chest and she reached for her water bottle with the other, taking a quick sip.
Okay, I can handle this. Use the techniques, Chrissie. Remember?
She lifted her hands as she sucked in a long, deep breath, as though leading the air into her lungs, then turned her palms downward and lowered her hands with the exhalation. She repeated the technique her therapist had taught her years ago, until her breathing slowed. She didn't care whether any passers-by could see; she only wanted to regain control.
It'd been years since she'd had a panic attack. She'd thought they'd run their course, dying away along with the life she'd left behind. But being here again, where it all started, must have triggered something. Something she wished she could forget.
Chrissie glanced around the street dotted with a few cars, an elderly couple walking their dog, and mothers hand-in-hand with their toddlers who walked two steps to their one. Just an everyday Monday morning. There was no reason to feel scared, everything would be alright. Chrissie talked herself around, and eventually put her hand on the key to turn the ignition. Before doing so, she clicked open the glove box and took out a CD, her favourite CD:
The Best of Drew Williams
. The Aussie icon's music always calmed her, made her feel grounded and positive; exactly what she needed right now to get this day on track. And the fact that he was as hot as the summer sun didn't hurt either.
She resumed driving and let the smooth, earthy tone of his voice soothe her senses. The pitch perfect notes gave order and structure to the chaotic thoughts in her mind, and soon the panic and fear dissipated.