Amelia Foster [Foster - Meant to be Kept

Meant

to be

Kept

Meant to Be Series

Book One

By AMELIA FOSTER

Meant to be Kept

Copyright 2019 by Amelia Foster.

All rights reserved.

First Print Edition: January 2019

Limitless Publishing, LLC

Kailua, HI 96734

www.limitlesspublishing.com

Formatting: Limitless Publishing

ISBN-13: 978-1-64034-509-6

ISBN-10: 1-64034-509-4

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual personsliving or deadis entirely coincidental.

Table of Contents

Chapter One

Izzy

Folding the last t-shirt and laying it on top of the pile, Izzy glanced at the clock above the couch. A slow smile crept across her face. Three more hours and Tanner would be home. Two days had felt like an eternity while hed been gone.

But tonight, she hefted the laundry basket onto one hip and headed to the stairs. Tonight the kids were at his parents house and it would be just the two of them. The first time in far longer than she cared to admit.

The roaring sound of a loud truck engine made her jump just as she reached the top step. Her brows drew together. That sounded likebut it couldnt be.

Izzy flew down the stairs and ripped open the front door. She beamed when she saw the bright June sun reflecting off Tanners obnoxious yellow truck as it sped up the long driveway, dust clouds rolling behind the tires. Her feet were fixed until he parked in front of the house. As the drivers door opened, she bolted down the porch steps and ran the few feet to the truck, launching herself into his arms before he could even shut the door. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

But even her overwhelming excitement couldnt disguise the change in him. Instead of enfolding his body around hers as he had for so many years, his back stayed straight. His strong arms held her loosely, not pulling her close.

Izzy leaned her head back, hands braced on his shoulders. The expression on his face had the same effect on her as a dip in the lake on a January day. Tanner?

He gently pried her off him and made sure both her feet were on the ground before he spoke. Belle, we need to talk.

Her throat closed at his tone. She took a step back and then another. No, Tanner. No, we dont need to talk. You need to hold me and tell me you missed me and we need to go in the house and make up for the past two days, but we definitely dont need to talk.

Tanner closed the truck door and shoved his hands in the pockets of his khaki shorts with a heavy sigh. He dropped his gaze to the ground. Come on, Belle. Lets go inside.

Izzys stomach churned, and she held her arms around her midsection. Her mind flew in a million directions. They had been married for nearly eight years, and in all that time she hadnt had a single doubt or concern about their relationshipuntil now.

Hes sick.

The company took a massive hit.

Wyatt had an accident.

An avalanche of worst case scenarios flooded her mind. The one person she needed was standing just a few feet in front of her but seemed miles away. She wanted nothing more than to reach out to him, but everything about him from his voice to his posture screamed closed. Something hed never been before.

Belle, his voice softened a fraction, and he put a gentle hand on her back, lets go inside and sit down. I really dont want to talk to you out here.

She allowed him to steer her toward the house and up the porch steps, unable to slow her racing mind. A nervous laugh bubbled up as they crossed the threshold. Tanner, youre really scaring me.

He stood near the far corner of the gray overstuffed couch and gestured for her to sit down. She couldnt remember ever feeling this overwhelming sense of trepidation in Tanners presence. He had been her safe place since the first time his lips touched hers a month into her freshman year of college.

After a moments hesitation, she finally sat down. When he sat next to her, he gently wrapped his hand around hers and pulled it lightly until it rested on his knee. For a brief second, her heart lifted at his touch. But then the complete absence of warmth registered and she felt her heart breaking all over again. Please, Tanner. Her voice cracked. Just tell me.

His mouth opened, but he seemed to think better of what he was going to say. Where are the kids?

Izzys eyes dropped to her free hand, nervously playing with the hem of her shorts, and tears prickled the back of her eyes. At your parents for the night. I asked them to watch the kids so we could have some alone time and

Tanner nodded, his eyes fixed on their joined hands. Belle, I did something. The words came out in a rush, and when he finally looked up, his blue eyes were tortured. His grip on her hand tightened infinitesimally. Before I say anything else, you need to know I didnt sleep with her

From her head to her toes, Izzy was numb. His mouth was moving and she knew there were words coming out, but all she could hear was the distant sound of ringing in her ears. She didnt move. Couldnt move. She could barely remember to breathe in and out.

Izzy blinked and focused on him, narrowing her gaze. She pulled her hand free from his and slid to the opposite side of the couch. What do you mean you didnt sleep with her? she bit out between clenched teeth. With who? And if you didnt sleep with her, what did you do with her?

He swallowed, his brow knitting together. I dont know her name. I-I-I dont know what happened. Not exactly. Wyatt won the whole thing. He got the big belt buckle and decided we needed to go out to celebrate. And he was probably self-medicating some bruises after eight seconds on particularly nasty bulls three nights in a row. I dont even remember how much we drank

I dont even care. What did you do with her? She wanted to shout the words, but she could do little more than whisper.

Wyatt had this group offans, I guess, following him around, and he pulled me on the dance floor with all of them. I had a few more beers while we were dancing, and I-I dont really remember what happened next or how it happened, but the next thing I knew, Wyatt was pulling me away from some blonde girl that was holding onto my arm and he said I was He swallowed again. Kissing her. Touching her.

Izzy wanted to run away. She wanted to throw up. She wanted to throw something . Preferably at his lying, cheating head. She wrapped her arms around her stomach again, trying desperately to shield herself from some of the pain ripping through her body.

She focused on a small speck on the area rug beneath her feet. Leave. He had to leave. He had to get out of their house and just leave. A familiar memory tugged at the corner of her mind, but instead of seeing herself watching her father drive away, it was Ava and Noah with tears streaming down their faces watching as Tanner left.

No, he would stay. For now.

Belle. His voice cut into her thoughts. Im sorry. I cant possibly apologize enough. I guarantee I hate me more right now than you do. He ran his hands through his light brown hair. Ill spend the rest of my life making it up to you, Belle. Ill do anything

She jumped up. Bring your bag in. She focused her attention on the large window at the front of the house. Im doing laundry.