Contemporary Romance Week: Tail Lights and Teardrops by Connie Smith

​Bruised and battered hearts can keep beating. But can they heal?

Preston and Nick endured the breakup of all breakups when Nick accused her of cheating on him. He insisted, and she denied while the rain pounded against her driveway and thunder roared in the distance. Then they both ran—Preston to a life of Rock & Roll, and Nick to a career in the Army.

Four years later, they’re damaged and broken almost beyond repair. He’s carrying baggage from his military days, and she bears the scars of living a lifestyle she’s grown to hate.

​When Preston’s label forces her to take time away from music, their paths cross in a parking lot not twenty-four hours after her hometown return, anger and sparks flying in a confusing blend. But regardless of the feelings neither has been able to shake, too many lies and secrets stand in the way of the one thing they need in order to recover.

Each other.

- SNEAK PEEK -

​He was leaving his apartment when I got to his floor, and he smiled at me as if there was no animosity between us. “Hey, Preston.”

“Hey, Preston,” I mocked, then held up the figurine. “Take it back.”

He had the nerve to smirk. “How do you know I gave that to you?”

“Who else would leave a dolphin on my doorstep besides the guy who knows I love dolphins and wants to suddenly fix four years of betrayal?” His smirk disappeared, and I shoved the figure closer to him, glaring. “Take it back.”

“I don’t want it back.”

“Well, I don’t want it either.” He arched a brow, and I rolled my eyes. “Okay, it’s cute. It’s absolutely adorable, and it would look fantastic on my end table, but I can’t take this.”

“Why not?”

“Because I know what it means! You made a mistake, and you’re trying to make up for it. But it’s too late, Nick. If I take this, it’s like saying you have a chance to make things right, and you don’t.”

“You sure about that?”

I frowned. “Which part?”

With a grin, he shrugged almost casually, far too comfortable in a conversation that made me uneasy. “You’re spot-on about what the dolphin means, but are you sure I can’t make things right?”

“I’m so far beyond sure that sure isn’t even in my line of sight anymore.” I held the dolphin farther out, hoping he’d take it. “I can’t keep clinging to things that weren’t good for me in the first place if I want my next four years to be any better than the last four.”

Then he scowled. “You think I wasn’t good for you in the first place?”

“I know you weren’t. If you were, you wouldn’t have believed Dad and dumped me, and…” I waved the figurine in his direction. “Just take it.”

“Your sentence trailed off,” he mumbled as a smile reformed on his lips. “That’s a good sign for me.” He stepped closer until he invaded my personal space and forced the hand holding the dolphin to fall back against my stomach. After a moment of simply looking at me, so intense and needing, he pointed a finger at my face.

“That’s why I can’t take it back,” he gently insisted. His finger moved to brush my hair behind my ear, trailing along my jaw before tracing my lips. I knew I should move, slap his hand away, something. But I couldn’t. I just stared, my mouth gaping in shock, my mind consumed with Nick and his caresses. “Doubting you was the biggest mistake of my life. And you are my life.”

His index finger replaced his thumb to outline my bottom lip over and over. “I should’ve fought for this, and I’m not making the same mistake twice. I’m getting my life back.” He slowly stepped away and gestured at the dolphin. “That’s only the first step.” Turning, he walked to the stairwell at the other end of the hall and left me standing, gawking where he’d been and holding the dolphin figure much tighter.

- Prize One -

- Prize Two -

- Prize Three -

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1. What did you like most about the sneak peek of Tail Lights and Teardrops?
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