Breaking Everly Read online

  Breaking Everly

  K.L. Jessop

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Epilogue

  Dear Reader…

  Acknowledgments

  Books available

  About the Author

  Breaking Everly

  First Edition.

  Copyright © 2019 K. L. Jessop.

  All rights reserved.

  No parts of this book may be reproduced in any form without written consent from the author. Except in the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a piece of fiction. Any names, characters, businesses, places or events are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to persons living or dead, events or locations is purely coincidental.

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you are reading this book and have not purchased it for your use only, then you should return it to your favorite book retailer and purchase your own copy.

  Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Cover Design by Najla Qamber Designs

  Cover Image by Lindee Robinson Photography

  Editing by Schmidt’s Author Services

  Interior book formatting by Pink Elephant Designs

  To the warriors…

  Sometimes we must break in order to find our strength. Never give up.

  1

  Adam

  I hear a car pull up outside and seconds later Jamie stumbles in with a beer in his hand and a grin on his face. “Well hello, princess.”

  “Please tell me you were dropped off and you haven't driven home drunk?”

  “I may have driven. I may have walked.” He throws his car keys on the coffee table and slumps down into the chair.

  “Jesus, J.” I push down my frustration at the fact he clearly has driven, not wanting to get into anything with him because he’ll never see it from anyone else’s side but his own. I haven’t seen him since the morning of Christmas Eve when Mum and Sam did nothing but argue in the kitchen. I finally got my season’s greetings call from my mum the evening of Christmas day, and I could tell by the tone of her voice that she was pre-occupied, and that soon became clear when she went straight into how Jamie had managed to ruin the festivities. I should be used to the neglect I feel: I’ve had years to process it but even though I’m now twenty and a man, I still carry those feelings I felt when I was a boy. I know my mum means well, and I know in her own way she loves me, but it seems because now I have my head screwed on, it’s like she doesn’t need to worry about me anymore, and by doing that I seem to be forgotten. During the call, she never asked about how my Christmas day had gone or wanted to know what I had given to Everly. My irritation and disappointment must have been obvious whilst I was on the phone because Everly had wrapped her arms around my neck as soon as I’d hung up, telling me that she loved me and that no matter what, her family would always be there for me. The Braithwaites—Everly’s parents, Helen and Robert—are like the parents every kid in this town wants. Their generosity and love towards others are something I look up to and deeply respect. They’ve never once judged the family I come from and have always, without question, welcomed me in their home with open arms. I’d spent Christmas day with them and it had been the best Christmas I’d ever had. They show nothing but love, respect and loyalty, whereas in my family, I have had to put up with years of rejection and lies. It’s the same shit all the time and the more I drown in it, the more I want out.

  “Is there a reason you’re drunk before lunchtime?”

  “It’s Christmas,” Jamie says. By the look of his bloodshot eyes, I can tell it’s not just alcohol that’s in his system. He’s high.

  “Christmas was days ago.”

  “Well then call it pre-New Year drinks.” He grins, taking a sip of his beer. “What are you doing for New Year’s anyway? Want to hang out with your big brother like old times?”

  You’re not my fucking brother.

  “Sorry, snorting a few lines and hanging out in the park is not my thing. I’m spending it with Everly.”

  He grumbles something under his breath, but I don’t catch it. I shake my head and continue to flip through the photos on my camera that I’d taken over Christmas. Most of them are of Everly in her sexy little number she got as a surprise for me; the others are of the early morning red deer that you can find down in the woods. The wildlife at dawn is the most beautiful thing, and it’s one of the most peaceful yet rewarding parts of being a photographer. When I move on to the next image, a smile breaks out across my face when I see an image of Everly on the screen that I never knew was there. The little minx has taken a selfie, and my dick twitches at the sight of her. The camera has been angled and raised high so I can see all of her. She’s sitting cross-legged with her feet in thick, white winter socks, her hair pulled up into a messy, uncontrolled ponytail as my blue t-shirt hangs off her shoulder, revealing her perfect soft skin that I want to press my lips against. Her face is makeup free, her lips pouted, and the right amount of light highlights those tiny little freckles that cover her nose. She is picture perfect.

  “What the fuck are you smiling at?”

  “Nothing that concerns you,” I reply, turning off my camera and placing it back into the bag.

  “Let me guess: Everly,” he slurs. “Good old fucking Everly.”

  His tone pisses me off in an instant: this no-reason-feud he’s got going on with her is getting ridiculous. She’s done nothing but try to be friendly with him because he’s a part of my family—to be civilised when he’s an arsehole—and each time, he responds with sarcasm or hatred.

  “What’s your problem, Jamie? Because it sounds like something has worked it’s way up your arse today.”

  “Why are you even with her man? We had a bond, a pact, before that tart came along.”

  “Watch your fucking mouth,” I snap, standing to my feet as the feeling of aggression spikes inside of me at the way he speaks of her. All Jamie does is laugh, struggling to stand as I head towards the other side of the room for my jacket, wanting to get out of here. “I’m with her because I love her. We had a bond that ended long before Everly came on the scene—a bond that you put on the line the day you stole booze from the corner shop and then told Mum and Sam that I dared you to do it. Then you really fucked it up the day you hotwired Mrs Pepper’s car, blamed it all on me and got me arrested.”

  He laughs as if it’s no big deal. “You weren’t charged.”

  “That’s besides the fucking point, Jamie, and you know it. All you had to do was own up, yet you’d rather let Mum and Sam think it was me, which caused hostility in the house and shit I didn’t need.”

  “Oh, here we go. Poor fucking Adam playing victim.” The frustration behind his words are noticeable when he raises his voice, staggering towards me with the beer can stuck to his hand like it’s his life support.


  I can sense this isn’t going to be our usual brotherly bickering. I’m too riled up for starters as this has been a long time coming. I’ve tried to keep the peace for years, I’ve tried to be the better person, but right now, as he’s continuing to stick the knife in, I can’t hold back any longer.

  “What’s it this time, Ad’s? Has Mummy not paid you any attention recently? Did she not tuck you up in bed last night? Has my dad sided with me again and you’re feeling a little jealous? It’s always about you isn’t it? Every fucking time.”

  My fists are clenched at my sides, my chest full of hot air with every word he’s spoken. “How is this always about me when you’re the one that constantly brings the wrong kind of attention to our door? Ever wondered about that, Jamie? Ever thought that the reason why this household isn’t a happy one is because of you? I mean look at you: you’re a fucking mess.”

  “You’re the fucking mess, prancing around like a posh boy, snapping pretty pictures and shit. What’s happened to the boy that played in the mud pits and made fires from sticks and newspaper and wanted it to be just the two of us? The one that used to hang out with me and the boys down in the field and swear he’d stay a Keswick lad forever? What the fuck happened to him?”

  “I grew up, Jamie. It’s about time you did the same. Stop filling your bloodstream with shit you cannot handle and get a job because right now your life is looking like a lost cause. It’s pathetic.”

  He takes a step closer, and we’re now inches apart. “I blame her: your precious fucking Everly. She’s the reason you’ve changed.”

  “That’s what happens when you find someone that loves you. They bring out the best in you. God help any woman that gets involved with you.”

  “She’s a fucking nobody.” He holds his finger up as if he’s just thought of something important. “Oh wait, maybe she is something and that’s why you can’t get enough of her. Is she good in the sack, Ad’s? Does the little slut fuck well?”

  Before I can even feel my body moving, I’ve pinned him against the wall with my arm pressed to his throat. If there is one thing in this life I cannot stand, it’s a man disrespecting a woman, never mind the woman I love.

  “Nobody… nobody talks about her like that. You hear me?” I say through gritted teeth. He grins. I know he’s struggling to breathe because his face is turning redder by the second, and even though he’s broader than I am, his drunken state gives me an advantage on my hold.

  Yet all he does is fucking grin—no pulling at my arm, no hands held up in mercy… nothing but a sick smirk like he’s loving every second of this.

  “What the hell is going on?” I hear Sam roar as he comes in through the front door before I’m being pulled back. “Jamie are you ok, son? Adam, what the hell?”

  There’s no point even trying to explain my innocence in all of this or my reasons because I know Sam will only side with his son. I need to get out of here and fast because the anger that is burning in my chest right now is not like me and I don’t like it. I shake myself out of Sam’s grip, keeping my eyes on Jamie, who is loving every minute of this, before I growl out my final words, pressing my finger hard into his chest. “We are done.”

  With that, I grab my camera bag and jacket and head out the door, needing fresh air and wanting the only person that can calm me

  * * *

  “If you could give a name to the brightest star in the sky, what would you call it?” Everly asks, snuggled in my arms as we lay on our backs looking up at the black canvas of billions of twinkling lights.

  I glance at her and smile. “You already know.”

  She nudges me and hugs me tighter. “I know, but I want to hear you say it again.”

  “I’d call it Everly.” I can sense the smile on her face without even looking at her. Everly is everything that life can give and even more that it can’t. I knew from the moment I saw her enter my school Arts class that she would be the girl I’d take home—the girl that would make me a better person and the only girl my heart would beat for.

  “Why?”

  I turn to face her. “Because when I close my eyes at night, regardless of whether you're beside me or not, the last thing I see is you. You are the night sky to my morning sun. Whenever I look at a sky full of stars, I see nothing but you.”

  I pull the tiny silver star from my pocket that she had gifted me on Christmas Day, smoothing my thumb over the engraved letters of her name. I look down at her with a raised brow and a wide smile. The soft light from the wooden cabin glows against her skin, and the late December weather dusts her nose pink.

  This is my favourite place to be: in her arms, under the stars, down at the Derwentwater lake, no matter the season. It’s a place where everything bad going on in my life outside of her embrace is forgotten—a place where only we come because we’ve made it ours. The lake is free for anyone to visit as it’s part of the beautiful place that is Keswick, but this particular spot with just the right amount of visible sky, a small wood cabin hidden between the trees and out of sight of locals and tourists is a place just for us.

  The cabin was once owned by the great Jeff Whitehead, a man who lived in the town until the grand age of ninety-eight. He used to look after the lake and the surrounding area as part of his groundman duties, but in his later years had to give it up due to ill health. There had been talk of bringing in someone new, but the fact Everly and I are always down here and that I work at the lake dock, we said we’d take things on and report any untoward behaviours or trespassers. Thankfully, the council agreed but, long story short, it’s mostly because we offered to do it without payment.

  This place has now become our second home, and if I could live here forever, I would.

  She giggles softly and looks up at me. “That's beautifully creepy.”

  “I just spouted romantic shit and you're saying it's creepy?”

  “A little. The beginning was good, but then you made it sound like I'm dead.”

  I laugh and roll her onto her back so I can rest over her, the thick layers of our clothes preventing us from proper contact. “Shall I try again?”

  “Please.”

  “You are the night sky to my morning sun. You are and always will be the light of my life. My world would be nothing without you, Everly Rose Braithwaite. I love you now and forever.”

  “Now that’s more like it, Mr Knight,” she says with a sarcastic smile.

  I grin, leaning down closer to her face. “Less of that tone. I can be romantic when I want to be. And you love it.” I rub my cold nose against hers in an eskimo kiss. “Now do I get some loving words back?”

  “Just because you gave, it doesn’t mean you have to receive.”

  I look at her with a cocked brow, which causes her to giggle, a sound that is infectious and beautiful. Linking her arms tighter around my neck and lacing her fingers through my dark hair, she sighs happily. Her chestnut eyes are on mine as she murmurs. “You're my shining star too. A world without you would be a lonely place. You light up my heart and soul and keep my heart beating every day.”

  “Impressive. Which novel did you get that from?”

  “Shut up and kiss me.”

  I press my lips to hers and kiss her with meaning, slipping my tongue into her mouth so we dance with each other. Her body melts into mine and the sigh that escapes her is one I will never get tired of hearing. Everly is my safe haven when life at home gets tough. Mum and Sam have been married since I was seven and do nothing but fight when Jamie brings trouble to our door, and although Sam has always treated me like his own, it’s obvious at times that Jamie will forever come before me, regardless of the shit he gets himself into. Growing up in a world with Jamie, I got used to being ignored.

  That was until Everly.

  Before her, I was slowly getting lost in the troublesome world that belonged to my stepbrother. I’d started to hang out with his crowd and a bad reputation slowly gathered on my shoulders. I’d somehow ended up standing in his area of destruction,
not wanting to be there but too afraid to say anything. So, I’d played along with his games and the first time the police turned up at my door looking for me was on my thirteenth birthday.

  I’d known then that I didn’t want to head down that road but never quite knew how to change. When the arguments with my parents had started over my sudden change in behaviour—Mum blaming Sam for his son’s peer pressure and Sam blaming her for me not finding an interest in life—I’d tried to keep out of Jamie’s way, and I soon ventured away from all of them, finding a new love for Keswick through the lens of a camera. Photography soon became my obsession, but it was Everly who was my saviour. She quickly turned out to be part of that beautiful distraction, and I can’t thank her enough.

  “I don’t think I can stay out here much longer. Take me inside and make me warm.”

  “As you wish, my lady.” Once I’m on my feet, I hold out my hand to help Everly up, picking up the mattress we’ve been lying on and dragging it back to the cabin.

  In the summer down by the lake it’s beautiful and peaceful, and although it’s quiet in the winter and bleak as shit, it still has an air of beauty. That’s the thing with living in Keswick: everywhere you turn, no matter what day, there is always something wonderful to look at. Our little market town is situated in the northwest of the Lake District and surrounded with mountains, water and foliage. When spring hits the air, every colour of green you can imagine comes to life, blanketing the hills with regrowth while the birds entertain us in song.