Laying a Foundation: Bonus volume: Includes series prequel The Groundbreaking (The Love Under Construction Series) Read online

  Laying a Foundation

  &

  The Groundbreaking

  Love Under Construction Series

  Prequel & Book 1

  by

  Deanndra Hall

  The Groundbreaking

  &

  Laying a Foundation

  Love Under Construction Series

  Prequel & Book 1

  Celtic Muse Publishing

  P.O. Box 3722

  Paducah, KY 42002-3722

  Copyright © 2013-2014, Deanndra Hall

  Kindle Edition

  Originally published separately, July 2013

  Combined print version, May 2014

  Combined ebook version, May 2014

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.

  This book is a work of fiction.

  Names of characters, places, and events are the construction of the author, except those locations that are well-known and of general knowledge, and all are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is coincidental, and great care was taken to design places, locations, or businesses that fit into the regional landscape without actual identification; as such, resemblance to actual places, locations, or businesses is coincidental. Any mention of a branded item, artistic work, or well-known business establishment, is used for authenticity in the work of fiction and was chosen by the author because of personal preference, its high quality, or the authenticity it lends to the work of fiction; the author has received no remuneration, either monetary or in-kind, for use of said product names, artistic work, or business establishments, and mention is not intended as advertising, nor does it constitute an endorsement. The author is solely responsible for content.

  Cover design 2014 Novel Graphic Designs, used by permission of the artist.

  Disclaimer:

  Material in this work of fiction is of a graphic sexual nature and is not intended for audiences under 18 years of age.

  More titles in the

  Love Under Construction Series

  Tearing Down Walls (Book 2) – Fall 2013

  Secrets – they can do more damage than the truth. Secrets have kept two people from realizing their full potential, but even worse, have kept them from forming lasting relationships and finding the love and acceptance they both need. Can they finally let go of those secrets in time to find love – and maybe even stay alive?

  Renovating a Heart (Book 3) – Spring 2014

  Can a person’s past really be so bad that they can never recover from it? Sometimes it seems that way. One man hides the truth of a horrific loss in his teen years; one woman hides the truth of a broken, scarred life that took a wrong turn in her youth. Can they be honest with each other, or even with themselves, about their feelings? And will they be able to go that distance before one of them is lost forever?

  Planning an Addition (Book 4) – Fall 2014

  When you think you’re set for life and that life gets yanked out from under you, starting over is hard. One woman who’s starting over finds herself in love with two men who’ve started over too, and she’s forced to choose. Or is she? And when one of them is threatened by their past, everyone has choices to make. Can they make the right ones?

  Also available . . .

  The Celtic Fan

  Who is Nick Roberts? He wrote a bestselling novel, The Celtic Fan, but no one’s ever met him, seen him, even confirmed that he exists. When four buddies take their annual “guys road trip,” they set out to find Roberts. Three of the four get distracted, and only Steve Riley, a journalist from Knoxville, stays on track and hunts down Roberts. His search takes him to the address he was given, only to find someone he’s sure has no ties to the author. But when a flash flood traps him with the shy and quiet Diana Frazier, the search is almost abandoned until Steve makes a discovery: Nick Roberts might not be as far away as he thinks. And if he finds the elusive author, will he tell? Two books in one, Steve’s story is told in his voice as Roberts’ original work winds through it. They’re sweet, passionate love stories, but one has a tragic end.

  The Harper’s Cove Series

  Come and visit the neighbors of Harper’s Cove! From Karen and Brett, to Becca and Greg, to Donna and Connor, every house on the block has a dirty little secret – and individually they think they’re the only ones. As they go about their kinky business, sneaky Gloria, the neighborhood busybody and drunk, is determined to know everyone’s secrets. As she pokes and pries, she gets a few surprises she never could’ve imagined. Join in the fun in the fast, nasty little erotica novellas and see how much fun you can have! This series will have seven to nine books eventually, and there’s a new one always around the corner.

  Adventurous Me

  When Trish’s husband of almost 30 years decides he’s leaving her because she’s “boring, tiresome, and predictable,” Trish sets out to show him a thing or two. But when her attempts to drown her sorrows put her in the path of a man who can introduce her to adventure she could never have imagined, she steps into the realm of BDSM and finds her place. And when something passing as fate pits her for two solid weeks with the one Dom in the place who seems to hate her, will she survive the adventure of a lifetime?

  Support Indie Authors!

  Independent (Indie) authors are not a new phenomenon, but they are a hard-working one. As Indie authors, we write our books, have trouble finding anyone to beta read them for us, seldom have money to hire an editor, struggle with our cover art, find it nearly impossible to get a reviewer to even glance at our books, and do all of our own publicity, promotion, and marketing. This is not something that we do until we find someone to offer us a contract – this is a conscious decision we’ve made to do for ourselves that which we’d have to do regardless (especially promotion, which publishers rarely do anyway). We do it so big publishing doesn’t take our money and give us nothing in return. We do it because we do not want to give up rights to something on which we’ve worked so hard. And we do it because we want to offer you a convenient, quality product for an excellent price.

  Indie authors try to bring their readers something fresh, fun, and different. Please help your Indie authors:

  - Buy our books! That makes it possible for us to continue to produce them;

  - If you like them, please go back to the retailer from which you bought them and review them for us. That helps us more than you could know;

  - If you like them, please tell your friends, relatives, nail tech, lawn care guy, anyone you can find, about our books. Recommend them.

  - If you’re in a book circle, always contact an Indie author to see if you can get free or discounted books to use in your circle. Many would love to help you out. If they help you out, please have circle members review the book(s) to help us out;

  - If you see our books being pirated, please let us know. We worked weekends, holidays, and through vacations (if we even get one) to put these books out, so please tell us if you see them being stolen.

  More than anything else, we hope you enjoy our books and, if you do, contact us in whatever manner we’ve provided as it suits you. Visit our blogs and websites, friend our Facebook sites, and follow us on Twitter. We’d love to get to know you!

  Table of Contents

  Title Page br />
  Copyright Page

  Disclaimer

  More titles in the Love Under Construction Series

  Also available

  Support Indie Authors!

  The Groundbreaking

  A Word from the Author

  Welcome to the Commonwealth of Kentucky!

  Tony

  Nikki

  Vic

  Laura

  Steve

  Kelly

  Peyton

  José

  Molly

  Laying a Foundation

  A Word from the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Author’s Note

  About the Author

  Nikki’s Meatloaf Recipe

  Sneak Peek: Tearing Down Walls

  Sneak Peek: Renovating a Heart

  Sneak Peek: Planning an Addition

  Connect with Deanndra on Substance B

  The Groundbreaking

  Love Under Construction Series

  Prequel

  by

  Deanndra Hall

  A Word from the Author . . .

  Welcome to the Love Under Construction series! While there aren’t enough changes to call this a new edition, I hope you’ll enjoy the combination of this series’ prequel and first novel. I decided to make this leap when the decision was made to take this series into print. It only made sense, as the prequel was so short. This way you get all of it at one time!

  As I wrote the first book, I realized the characters were far more complex than I ever thought they’d be, and their stories deserved to be told so the reader could appreciate them and how far they’d come to get where they landed. It wasn’t easy writing; some of their stories are difficult to read even for me, painful in fact. But as a reader, you’ll find it easier to read the subsequent books if you know more about the characters. You’ll probably even discover that you have a favorite character (I do have a favorite myself, but I’ll never tell – I love them all!).

  The most important thing about these books is that, unlike most others, the main characters aren’t just barely out of their teens. They’re mature adults who would argue that the best portion of their lives is still ahead of them and, if you read these books, you’ll find out they’re right!

  As a reader, you also need to know these aren’t stand-alone books. If you skip one, there will be aspects to the next that you won’t understand. Also know that they get progressively steamier as they go along – that’s something to look forward to!

  A special thanks to my loving partner, who has been long-suffering in this effort. In the original version, I promised him that I’d take a break after I finished these five books. He now knows that’s never going to happen. So thanks, baby! And thanks too to Kellie at Novel Graphic Designs for the beautiful works of art that grace these books.

  Enjoy this volume and keep reading – some of the things that happen will surprise you. I wrote them, and they surprised me!

  Love and happy reading,

  Deanndra

  Visit me at:

  www.deanndrahall.com

  Contact me at:

  [email protected]

  Join me on Facebook at:

  facebook.com/deanndra.hall

  Catch me on Twitter at:

  twitter.com/DeanndraHall

  Find me blogging at:

  deanndrahall.blogspot.com

  Check out my Substance B page at:

  substance-b.com/DeanndraHall.html

  Write to me at:

  P.O. Box 3722, Paducah, KY 42002-3722

  Welcome to the Commonwealth of Kentucky!

  The city of Louisville, Kentucky, occupies four hundred square miles of riverfront property on the Ohio River. Even though the city also known as “The Ville” or “da Ville” doesn’t seem like a southern city, it is physically below the Mason-Dixon line, the imaginary line of demarcation for the southern states. Most of its residents sincerely consider themselves southerners, and they will let you know that in no uncertain terms.

  With a metropolitan area of almost three quarters of a million residents, and the Louisville Combined Statistical Area boasting a population of 1.45 million, it is richly diverse in culture and lifestyle. Louisvillians are surprisingly open-minded, despite the fact that out of its nine colleges and universities, three are religious seminaries. It has micro-populations of virtually every nationality and culture, partially fed by nearby Fort Knox. The dining options are numerous, from Thai to Indian to Mediterranean, Italian galore, and everything in-between. Cultural events are plentiful, and the big event of the year, no surprise here, is the Kentucky Derby on the first Saturday in May.

  And if you live in Kentucky, you’d better like – no, love – basketball. While the University of Kentucky Wildcats are legendary, University of Louisville’s men’s Cardinals won the NCAA Championship for the 2012-2013 season, and their women’s team was second in the nation that season. When March Madness hits, households in the Bluegrass State revolve around their local coverage of games, and as Kentucky teams are eliminated, fans of the eliminated teams rally behind other Kentucky teams and will cheer their Kentucky rivals on to the end. When it all shakes out, as long as somebody from Kentucky wins the championship, everybody’s happy; well, fairly so anyway.

  Hospitals abound. University of Louisville’s hospital was the first in the nation to offer a trauma center. Residents from five states come to University of Kentucky’s medical facilities and University of Louisville’s hospital. Norton excels in spinal surgeries, and Kosair Children’s Hospital is a premiere facility drawing patients from all over the country.

  Lexington’s horse farms are gorgeous, and as the second largest city in Kentucky, it has a Combined Statistical Area of almost seven hundred thousand people. The metropolitan area has a variety of laws in place to allow it to grow without destroying the horse farms that make it known as “Horse Capital of the World.” As cities in Kentucky go, it is the chic place to live and raise kids. The population tends to be wealthier and better educated, and residents of Lexington consider themselves somewhat more sophisticated than most other Kentucky residents.

  Shelbyville, by contrast, is a typical Kentucky small town. With a population of barely fourteen thousand, it’s known as the “American Saddlebred Capital of the World.” Its little main street is quaint, and the county is dotted with horse farms. It lies along Interstate 64, the artery that connects Louisville, Frankfort (the state capitol), and Lexington, known by most Kentuckians as “The
Golden Triangle,” and, as such, serves as a bedroom community for Louisville. Shelbyville may be small and well north of the triangle, but it carries the flavor of all three of Kentucky’s largest cities.

  Family is important in Kentucky, and nationwide, Kentucky has the largest percentage of native-born residents still living inside its borders. If you’re born in Kentucky, you’re pretty likely to be buried there. And for most Kentuckians, that’s just fine with them.

  TONY

  Christmas 2011

  The fire was warm and comfy, and so was everyone near it in the huge house not far outside Shelbyville, Kentucky. Drinks were sloshed around, enough food was spread out to feed a university campus, and the holiday music coming from the home theater system was just so much noise in the background.

  Tony looked around at the other couples in his big family. Most were touching each other in some way, holding hands or sitting side by side with an arm around the other’s shoulder, and it took everything he had not to give in to the dull, persistent ache in his chest. If he lived to be one hundred, he’d never fully understand how someone could be in a crowd and still be so utterly alone.

  While everyone else ripped at wrapping paper, he went into the kitchen for another drink. If he were being honest with himself, he did it just to get away for a minute or two, to distance himself a little from all the merriment. A hand on his back caused him to turn, and he looked down to find his baby girl. She might be a grown woman, but she’d always be his baby.

  “Dad, you okay?” Her voice was rife with concern.

  “Yeah, fine.” He popped the cap on another beer. Not very convincing, he thought with a sad smile.

  “I know it’s hard. You’ll find someone eventually. I have faith in you.” Her hand rubbed small circles between his shoulder blades.