My in elegant, swirling script. Because she was my heart. My flower. The one that brought color to my life.
“We want a cousin Uncle Ridge!” Gavin squealed.
“Your dad’s been filling your head with shit again?”
“That’s a bad word,” Grant chastised through his ice cream cone. The serious one. Just like my brother. Gavin was all smiles and talkative, more like Kat, I figured.
“I don’t think so, buddy, but that gives us more time to hang out with you two, right?”
“Yeah,” they both cheered in unison.
A few years ago, when Mia's IUD expired, we had the kid talk.
We settled on letting nature take its course. If it happened, it happened, and if it didn't, it didn't.
It didn’t.
We thought for a while about adopting, but it didn’t feel right.
I think we’d had so much upheaval, we wanted something to come naturally, easily, and if it didn't, that was okay too.
My brother gave me shit for the first few years about not marrying Mia, but it was never more than just teasing.
I think Mia and I both sensed deep down that we must not have much respect for the institution if we were so willing to disregard it when she was engaged all those years ago.
And now here we were, babysitting my brother's twins for the weekend while he and Kat took a much-needed mini-vacation. He’d swooped her away on some anniversary trip to a place with white sandy beaches.
They were good.
So were we.
In fact, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
It’d taken a long time, years, but Mia slowly taught me to forgive myself. Taught me the guilt of my past was sinking me, it wasn’t what I was that was holding me back, but what I thought I was.
Perception is everything.
And looking out in the bright sunlight, across the harbor from the bright red lighthouse, with two little dark-haired boys slurping sticky ice cream cones next to me, and the girl that had saved me from myself across from me, I was right where I was meant to be. My perception was so good. The best.
I learned that apart we were weak, but when we came together, we were strong enough.
Unbreakable.
A force to be reckoned with.
Me and My.
My angel.
My savior.
My girl.
The End.
Look for the story of Wild's best friend, Slade, in summer 2014, with appearances from all the men of the Wild series.
If you enjoyed Ridge, please do me the greatest favor and leave a short review on Amazon. Reviews are essential in supporting indie authors. If I could, I'd send you each a cupcake in thanks, but since that would be expensive, how about if you leave me a message on my Facebook page (facebook.com/LaceSeries) saying that you left a review, I'll share a picture of a boy without a shirt who is probably the inspiration for one of my characters ; )
Also from Adriane Leigh
Steel and Lace: The Complete Series
The Mourning After
Light in Mourning
Ridge (Wild #2)
Slade (Wild #3)
The Ridge Playlist
The Only Time – Nine Inch Nails
Brother – Lord Huron
Sleeping By Myself – Pearl Jam
The End – Kings of Leon
Let Her Go – Boyce Avenue
For the First Time – The Script
Counting Stars – OneRepublic
Madness – Muse
Demons – Imagine Dragons
Night of the Hunter – Thirty Seconds to Mars
Crazy B*tch – Buckcherry
Wrecking Ball – Miley Cyrus
If I Lose Myself – OneRepublic
Not Over You – Gavin DeGraw
Hurt – Nine Inch Nails
On Call – Kings of Leon
Down in a Hole – Ryan Adams
Call Me When You're Sober – Evanescence
Something I Can Never Have – Nine Inch Nails
Breakeven – The Script
If You Ever Come Back – The Script
Nothing – The Script
Falling Away With You – Muse
Closer – Nine Inch Nails
Feel Again – OneRepublic
Creep – Radiohead
Just Give Me a Reason – Pink
Gorilla – Bruno Mars
Try – Pink
When I Was Your Man – Bruno Mars
I Would For You – Nine Inch Nails
Black – Pearl Jam
Pain – Three Days Grace
My Own Worst Enemy – Nine Inch Nails
Every Day is Exactly the Same – Nine Inch Nails
The Man Who Can't Be Moved – The Script
La Mer – Nine Inch Nails
Fix You – Coldplay
A Message – Coldplay
Just Breathe – Pearl Jam
Acknowledgements
I need to give a HUGE thanks to my supportive hubby. I couldn't write books and travel to meet so many amazing book people without his unending love and support.
Amy Jennings also deserves a huge shoutout. She brainstormed Wild and Ridge with me endlessly. She's a thoughtful reader, a thorough beta reader, a clever storyteller and an awesome friend. I heart you.
I'd also like to give props to my SmutSisters, The Smut Parade, my dear friends Nelle L'Amour and Sandi Lynn, and to every single reader who spent time with Ridge. My relationship with each and every one of you makes this job the best in the world!
About Adriane Leigh
Adriane Leigh was born and raised in a snowbank in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and now lives among the sand dunes of the Lake Michigan lakeshore.
She graduated with a Literature degree but never particularly enjoyed reading Shakespeare or Chaucer.
She is married to a tall, dark, and handsome guy, and plays mama to two sweet baby girls. She is a voracious reader and wishes she had more time to knit scarves to keep her warm during the arctic Michigan winters.
Stay up to date with Adriane's new releases here: adrianeleigh.com/contact/
Table of Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Thirty-Three
Thirty-Four
Thirty-Five
Thirty-Six
Thirty-Seven
Epilogue
Also from Adriane Leigh
The Ridge Playlist
Acknowledgements
About Adriane Leigh