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  Empty Net

  An Assassins Novel

  Toni Aleo

  This book is for anyone that needs that reassurance that your Happily Ever After is out there.

  It will happen.

  Don’t give up.

  ISBN:

  Empty Net – An Assassins Novel - First Edition September 2012

  © All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  The author acknowledges the copyrighted or trademarked status and trademark owners of the word marks mentioned in this work of fiction. The author owns nothing of the following; this is purely for entertainment purpose and to make this work of fiction believable.

  Chapter 1

  It figured that Audrey Parker would get dumped the day of her sister’s bachelorette party.

  It was just her luck.

  As Audrey stood outside of Wanna B’s bar with her cell phone to her ear in yet another argument with her boyfriend; she couldn’t help but think that the day had started off so perfectly. She had spent the morning in bed with her boyfriend. Well…lover...yeah, that’s a good word for him, her lover. They had made love, and it was all perfect. Then she went for a day of pampering with her beautiful sister, Fallon, and all of Fallon’s friends. Audrey loved the girl time with the women who she had known for years and even the ones who she had just met. It was a beautiful afternoon and Audrey knew that the night was going to be a hit.

  That was until she got home and got into a huge fight with her lover.

  Levi Moss was positively the most hardheaded, stubborn, gorgeous man Audrey had ever dated. He wasn’t much taller than her 5’5 frame but that didn’t matter. He stood as if he were 6 feet tall, with large arms and an even larger neck. Levi had his brown hair in a horrible buzz cut. Audrey didn’t care for it, but hey, his face made up for it. His eyes were bright green with flecks of gold in them. His face had sharp angles, with full lips and Audrey couldn’t help but smile when he did. She loved his smile and since he only smiled at her every once in a while, it always took her breath away when he did.

  But even with his gorgeousness, he was a pain in her ass. She loved him. She did. But man, he bitched like a chick. If it wasn’t her cooking, it was her extreme need to have everything clean. Just because he was a slob, didn’t mean that she had to be. When he left stuff all over the place, it drove Audrey crazy, but she loved him so much that she looked past it. She wouldn’t complain but just clean up behind him. Pathetic, she knew, but she loved him. Audrey knew she shouldn’t love him since both Fallon and her soon-to-be husband, Lucas, had told her countless times not to…but she did. She couldn’t lose the only man who would want her.

  Looking around the outside of the bar, Audrey begged her tears to stay at bay as Levi screamed at her through the phone.

  “You are probably out whoring yourself all over Broadway! It’s disgusting, but don’t worry I won’t be here when you get home tomorrow!”

  Audrey rolled her eyes, “For one, I am not whoring myself all over the place and second, weren’t you just out for Lucas’ bachelor party last night!?”

  “We didn’t do anything! We played hockey and drank beers while Lucas talked on the phone with Fallon all night!”

  “And that’s my fault? I didn’t do anything wrong here.”

  “Yes you did. You didn’t cook dinner for me before you left and now you are out at some club, probably picking up guys,” he snapped.

  Audrey pinched the bridge of her nose, “I am not picking up anyone and I am enjoying my sister’s last weekend as a single woman. Everyone does this and it doesn’t mean I’m gonna cheat.”

  “I don’t care. We’re through. I’ve had enough of you.”

  Audrey shook her head as she looked up at the sky. How was he dumping her when, for one, they weren’t really together as he had told her many times before? And for two, she did everything for him! The tears threatened to fall because even though he said the reason he was breaking up with her was because of her being out and not cooking dinner, she knew it wasn’t true. He was messing with someone else. Someone who apparently was better than her.

  “If you leave, you aren’t coming back Levi, so make sure she is worth it,” Audrey said as strong as she could.

  Levi’s laughter made Audrey want to puke, “She is worth it. She is way better than you’ll ever be, you fat whore. Don’t ever call me again.”

  The line went dead.

  Audrey’s hand fell to her side, her phone held loosely in it. She could have done without his exiting line, but she brought it on herself. She should never have brought up the other girl. She had known about her for months. So why was she letting it bother her now? Levi was a wanderer, she knew that when she started things with him. She also knew that in a couple weeks, he would call her apologizing and she would be right back with him.

  It was the vicious cycle of her love for him.

  Audrey knew it was wrong, and she knew that if Fallon found out, she would probably kill her, but it didn’t stop Audrey from taking the crap Levi gave her. Levi might be an ass, and say the most awful things, but there were good times between them. Like when he would hold her in his arms, and run his lips down her temple. Or the way he loved watching girly movies with her. Or when he would trace hearts along her palm, or when she would come home and he would rub her feet.

  Audrey loved him. It was sad, but true.

  As she shook her head sadly, she couldn’t understand why she couldn’t meet her Prince Charming. The one who would sweep her off her feet. The one who would love only her for the rest of their lives. The one who would think she was enough, only her, because that’s all she could give him. Audrey shook her head again and wiped away the stray tears that escaped as thoughts of never being able to find a man who would love only her, ran through her head. She couldn’t think like that right now though. It was not going to help anything to start thinking about things she couldn’t change. She would be a ball of tears in no time if she did.

  So Audrey did what she did best.

  She stood straighter in her Christian Louboutin black studded pumps and slid her hands down the tight black sparkly pencil skirt that she had paired with a low cut gray blouse. She couldn’t go inside looking as if Levi had just crushed her heart, not tonight. Tonight was Fallon’s night, and Audrey had no difficulty hiding her distress.

  She was the queen of hiding emotions.

  Audrey looked good tonight, hot really, and if Levi Moss didn’t want her, well, damn it, someone freaking did. She made her way back inside, going to where Lucas had rented them a VIP area. Audrey couldn’t help but be a little dreamy at the thought of her future brother-in-law. He was the perfect man and everything Fallon needed. Audrey could only hope that she could find a man even half of what Lucas was. He treated Fallon like the queen she was. He was the best father imaginable, and even loved Audrey with everything inside him.

  He was Prince Charming.

  Audrey had rooted for Fallon and Lucas since the day Fallon had told her about him. She would never forget the day she met Lucas Brooks outside of her family’s wine company. He looked like a love sick fool, and she couldn’t help wanting to help him. Man, how so much had changed. A small smile came across Audrey’s face as she thought that within a week, Fallon and Lucas would be married in front of over a thousand people. They had been through so much, and thank sweet baby Jesus, Fallon finally got her head out of her ass and saw what was in front of her.

  The perfect man.

  When Audrey spotted Fallon laughing while being surrounded by all the women who loved her, her heart skipped a beat. Fallon was dazzling in her one shoulder lace black dress with ruffled black heels. When she came down the long staircase of their home, Luca