The Love Trials Read online

  The Love Trials

  Part I

  J.S. Cooper & Helen Cooper

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  This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Copyright © 2014 by J. S. Cooper

  Prologue

  “I want to make you mine.” His voice was low and hoarse, and I shivered in the darkness.

  I felt the light touch of the feather being guided along my naked body, and I knew that I needed to become his as well. I wanted to become his. I had to become his. I whimpered slightly as I felt something cold touch my skin.

  “I’m going to make you forget your own name.” His voice became louder as he guided the feather farther down.

  “Please,” I whispered as I felt what must have been an ice cube grazing my nipple. “Oh.” I trembled as he ran the melting ice cube across my breasts. I could feel the residue of water on my skin.

  “Please what, Nancy?”

  “Please,” I moaned in high anticipation.

  It was then that I felt his warm breath on my breasts as he eagerly licked up the water, sucking gently on my nipples as if he were enjoying every last drop of water. I felt the tip of the feather moving between my legs as he teased me. I gasped as his finger accidentally grazed me, and I cried out when his finger touched me again. That time hadn’t been an accident.

  “I’m going to leave you now,” he said.

  I heard him step away from me, and I froze. My hands were still handcuffed to the bed and I couldn’t move.

  “What do you mean?” I cried out, my whole body aching for him.

  “You’re not ready yet.”

  “I am,” I whispered, embarrassed to admit it.

  “No, no you’re not.” His fingers trailed between my legs again and he played with my wetness. “Your body is ready, but you are not.”

  There was silence in the room as he continued playing with me. I clenched my legs to trap his fingers. I needed him to know how badly I wanted him.

  “That’s not enough, Nancy.” His voice was deep, and I could imagine the look on his face. “I will not make you mine until every fiber in your body has to have me.”

  “I do want you,” I whispered.

  “Not enough. I will not take you until you are screaming out my name and begging me. I won’t take you—not until there is no other thought in your mind but me inside you. I won’t take you—not until I know I possess every inch of you.” He leaned down and pressed his lips gently against mine, and then he walked away.

  Chapter 1

  The invitation, when it arrived, wasn’t entirely unexpected. I knew as soon as I saw the crisp, white linen envelope with the neat, black calligraphy handwriting that my time had come. I picked it up quickly and surreptitiously and then ran to my room. There was no way I wanted my nosy little brother, Harry, asking me what it was. Or even worse, my dad, Brandon. Shit, if he knew what was in the envelope, all hell would break loose. He’d probably lock me up and throw away the key. I giggled as I locked my bedroom door. There was no way in hell that I could let anyone know what was in the envelope. No way at all.

  I was a normal eighteen-year-old girl—if you ignored the fact that I’d recently found out that my sister was my mother and the man I’d grown up hating was my father. I know, I know. I already sound like the first guest on the Jerry Springer Show. I could practically hear the people in the audience whispering, “That’s Nancy Hastings, crazy old Nancy Hastings.” And they’d all stare at me in awe. Only they wouldn’t know the most scandalous part of my life at all. That was yet to come.

  I opened the envelope slowly and carefully, taking my time before I stared at the card that was going to change my life. I pulled the crisp, cream-white card out of the envelope and read it quickly. My heart beat fast as I perused the short and simple note.

  “Nancy Hastings, you’ve been accepted to the Lovers’ Academy. We expect you to arrive in one week.”

  I swallowed hard as I realized this was it. This was the moment I’d been waiting for. For the last two years, I’d been in love with a man named Hunter. He didn’t know that I existed. Or at least he pretended that he didn’t know. He was at least five years older than I was. I didn’t know his exact age. All I knew was that he was the most handsome man I’d ever seen and that, when he smiled at me, I felt like birds were chirping in my ears. I knew, in my head, that he was the one for me. I mean, if one can feel as strongly as I did for him, well, then it had to be true love.

  I always blamed our not getting together on the fact that he had been a teacher at my school, but I wasn’t a student now and he was no longer my teacher. At least not in the academic sense. I was hoping he’d become my teacher in other ways. In ways of the mind and body. In ways of the soul. I imagined him to be my soul mate. I’d had so many dreams of him when I was in school that sometimes I barely knew what was reality and what was make-believe. To be fair, it was all make-believe and I was just obsessed with him. However, my dreams were about to become reality and I couldn’t wait.

  ***

  The day I was supposed to arrive at the academy approached slowly. And as it grew closer, my resolve grew weaker and weaker. I wasn’t sure how I was going to leave my new family to go to a sex school. If my dad ever found out, I knew he would kill me. Especially after everything that had gone down at the private club he’d started with his best friend, my uncle Greyson.

  As the day to leave grew closer, I decided that I was no longer going to attend. Yes, I had a crush on Hunter. Yes, I’d sent off an application hoping to be accepted, but I’d never really thought it through properly. I knew that I couldn’t just go. I tried to pretend that I was happy about my decision, but I wasn’t. I wanted to be there with every fiber of my being. In fact, my suitcase was still packed and ready to go. Only, I wasn’t sure if it was the right move.

  Then another letter arrived.

  Nancy Hastings, you have a date with your destiny. The lovers’ academy awaits you and so do I.

  Mr. X

  I swallowed hard as I realized that they wanted me at the academy as much as I wanted to be there. Had Hunter sent me the letter? I shivered as I grew excited. Hunter wanted me there as badly as I wanted to be there. He had to be the one who’d sent the letter. I knew then and there that I had to go. No matter how scared I was about the situation. Or my dad finding out.

  “Brandon,” I called out as I walked into the living room. I still found it hard to call him Dad.

  “Yes, dear,” he called back with Harry in his arms, squirming and giggling as he was swung around upside down.

  “Does Katie know you’re treating Harry like a monkey?” I raised an eyebrow and laughed at the two of them.

  “Nancy,” Harry giggled. “You look funny.” Then he screamed as Brandon swung him around the room.

  “Thanks, Harry. I love to be complimented. You’re going to be a hit with the ladies when you get older.” I grinned down at him, and Brandon laughed and put Harry on his feet on the ground.

  “The earth is spinning.” Harry collapsed on the floor and giggled some more.

  I shook my head at my five-year-old brother and went over to give him a hug. I was going to miss him while I was at the academy.

  “Hey, dad.” I looked over at Brandon, my heart thudding. “One of the colleges I wanted to go and see is having an orientation this weekend. I was thinking I could go and then go and see som
e friends next week.” I bit my lower lip as I lied, praying that my face wasn’t turning red.

  “This weekend?” I could hear the frown in his voice.

  “Yeah, why?”

  “I thought Katie wanted you to—”

  “I wanted Nancy to do what?” Katie walked into the room, and Harry jumped up and ran towards her.

  “Mommy!” he screamed and ran to her arms.

  “Nancy wants to go and look at a college this weekend.”

  “Oh.” She looked at me. “I thought you could come with Meg and me to look at bridesmaid dresses.”

  “Oh, can we go when I get back? I’m really interested in this school.” I smiled at her weakly, hating having to lie.

  “I guess.” She gave me a small smile. “Meg will be disappointed.”

  “I’ll see her soon.” I leaned down and played with Harry’s hair.

  If there were anyone I would feel guilty about lying to, it would be Meg. She was one of my closest friends and confidantes. She was the first person I had really trusted in a long time. I wanted to tell her the truth, but I knew she would tell Katie what I was up to. And I knew if she told Katie, then Katie would tell Brandon and that would be it. There was no way that he would let me go. I’d only been in his life for a short while, but he was making up for lost time by being an extremely overprotective dad.

  “Do you want me and Meg to come with you?” Katie looked at me consideringly.

  “No!” I blurted out loudly and then paused before trying to explain away my resistance to them coming. “I mean, it’s so not cool to have your parents at the orientation.”

  “Can I come, Nancy?” Harry looked up at me. I pulled him up and he gave me a hug.

  “Next time.” I kissed his cheek and held him close to me. “You can come next time.”

  “Ewww, kissing!” He pulled away from me and we all laughed.

  Chapter 2

  On Friday evening, I took a train from Penn Street Station with my backpack, $500 in cash, and a new American Express credit card. I stared at the Google directions I’d found for the address on the invitation. This was it. I was finally on my way.

  I slowly opened my backpack and looked at the invitation again. I wondered if Hunter had sent it to me. Had he been excited that I had applied? Had he even recognized my name? I bit my lower lip as I realized that I had no idea if Hunter even knew I existed outside of the classroom. What if he hadn’t even seen my application? I sighed as I realized that I had no real clue as to what awaited me at the lovers’ academy. In fact, I didn’t really know what the lovers’ academy was all about. I had an idea, but I had no real clue.

  It had been my mother’s ex-boyfriend Frank who had tracked down Hunter for me. He was the one who had told me where Hunter worked. I had found a mysterious website and sent off an application saying why I wanted to be a student at the academy. I knew there was some element of sex to the academy, but I wasn’t sure.

  Another worry crossed my mind. What if he didn’t recognize me? I looked at my reflection in the window and stared at my long, dark-brown hair and brown, worried eyes. I wasn’t sure how memorable I was. I sighed as I realized that I really had no clue if Hunter had been the man known as Mr. X or not.

  “Going somewhere fun?” the middle-aged man sitting across from me asked me in a friendly tone.

  “Yes, thanks.” I nodded and stuffed the invitation back into my bag.

  I noticed a man a few seats away giving me a hard look. I stared back at him for a few seconds, wondering what his problem was. He looked like he was rich, with his navy-blue pinstriped suit and shiny shoes. His face was classically handsome, with his bright, shrewd, green eyes and jet-black hair. He gave me another dismissive look and looked away from me. I frowned to myself. What was his problem?

  “So where are you off to?” the man across from me asked.

  “To visit a friend,” I lied smoothly.

  I studied the man in front of me. He looked like he was in his sixties or seventies, old enough to be my grandfather. He had lines in his face, and I wasn’t altogether sure if his smile was genuine or not.

  “That’s nice,” he continued. “I’m going to visit my son.”

  “Oh, very nice,” I answered back, wondering if my nice demeanor meant I was going to have to talk to this man for the whole journey. I sighed as I realized that I wouldn’t have much time to make a game plan for what I was going to do when I arrived at the academy.

  “I’ll let you get back to your thoughts,” the man said kindly, and my face flushed as he laughed at my surprised expression.

  “I didn’t mean to be rude.” I gave him an awkward smile and looked away from him.

  I saw the other man staring at me again. He had a look of derision on his face, and part of me wanted to go over and ask him what his issue was with me. I sat back, closed my eyes, and tried to think of Hunter instead of the man staring at me. I opened my eyes again after a few seconds and looked over to see what the arrogant-looking man was doing, but he wasn’t there. I jumped up and smiled at the man across from me.

  “Do you mind watching my bag? I just need to go to the bathroom.”

  “Sure, my dear.” He smiled. “You can trust me.”

  “Thanks. I’ll be right back.”

  I made my way through the car and stopped dead when I realized the arrogant man was waiting by the restrooms. I was about to go back to my seat when I saw him look my way and then turn back around again. Jerk! I thought to myself and continued walking to the restroom. I stopped behind him and stared at the ‘occupied’ sign on the door, praying for it to turn to ‘vacant’ soon.

  The arrogant man turned to look at me and nodded his acknowledgment. His eyes were a darker green than I had thought, and he was even more handsome close up. He had the beginnings of stubble on his face, and I could see the traces of red wine on his lips. I waited for him to say something to me, but he kept quiet. I felt quite peeved at his silence. I felt like he was judging me even though he didn’t even know me. He looked to be about twenty-five. I tried to ignore the fact that I was wildly attracted to him. There was something so mysterious in his gaze. I looked away from him and sighed. I felt slightly guilty that I was so attracted to him when I was on my way to meet up with Hunter.

  Ding, ding, ding. Some bells went off in the train, and suddenly, all the lights went off. I was caught unawares and fell forward into the man. I fell against his back and held on to his arms to steady myself in the dark. He felt warm and hard. His arms were muscular and his back was stiff. My breasts crushed against him, and my breathing deepened as I realized just how close I was to him. I could smell the deep musk of his cologne as I straightened myself up and stood back.

  “Sorry about that,” I whispered, feeling embarrassed.

  “It’s not a problem.” He grabbed my arms and brought me towards him. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine, thanks.” I nodded as he stared into my eyes.

  “Good.” The pressure of his fingers on my arms increased, and he moved towards me slightly.

  I took a step back and felt the wall against my back. He took another step towards me and I felt his body pressed up against mine as he looked down into my eyes. I stared up at his lips and wondered if he was going to kiss me. I licked my lips in anticipation. I couldn’t help it. There was some sort of wild animal attraction between us. I’d never felt a buzz like this before. Not even with Hunter. I wanted him to kiss me. I wanted to know what it felt like to have a kiss with a stranger on a train. I closed my eyes and waited to feel his lips on mine. I could feel his hardness against my stomach, and I moaned slightly.

  “Next time, try and be more careful,” he whispered in my ear and let go of me. I slowly opened my eyes, and he stepped away from me.

  “I said I’m sorry,” I muttered, feeling dazed.

  “Sometimes, sorry isn’t enough.” He frowned at me and then muttered something under his breath. “I’m going back to my seat.” He looked at me and the
n walked back to his chair.

  I stood there, unsure of what had just happened. Why hadn’t he kissed me? I sighed in frustration as the bathroom door opened and an apologetic-looking lady walked out. I walked in, crouched above the seat, and wondered what the deal with the guy was. Why had he been such a jerk? I had been so sure that he was going to kiss me. I walked back to my chair and made sure that I didn’t acknowledge the man at all. I wasn’t going to waste any more time thinking about him. He was nothing to me. I kept repeating that in my head over and over again. He means nothing to me. He means nothing to me.

  Without knowing it, I fell asleep. My dreams were vibrant and full of handcuffs and dark corners.

  “I think this is your stop.” The man across from me nudged my shoulder and woke me.

  I blinked up at him in confusion, the mysterious man’s face still in my mind. “Huh?”

  “This is Cadestown.” He nodded at the sign on the tracks.

  “Oh.” I jumped up and grabbed my backpack. “How did you know I was coming to Cadestown?”

  “I saw your ticket.” He smiled. “You better hurry before they pull off.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” I smiled at him again before running and jumping off the train. I heard the conductor ring the bell and then watched as the train left the station.

  “That was a close one, wasn’t it?” a dry voice whispered in my ear, and I jumped.

  “Argh!” I shouted out in surprise and turned around to face the handsome man from the train.

  His eyes studied my face intently, and then he frowned. “You shouldn’t fall asleep on the train like that.”

  “Excuse me.” I pulled my backpack onto my back.

  “It’s not safe.”

  “It’s none of your business.” I looked back at him and squared my shoulders. “Maybe you should just worry about yourself.”

  “I was just trying to give you some advice.”