Redeem Me (Kin #6)
Author: Jennifer Foor

Chapter 1

Parker

“Chug, Chug, Chug, Chug,” my frat brothers were yelling as I competed in drinking the boot filled with warm beer. It wasn’t my best moment of the night, but it sure as hell beat being considered a pu**y on my own stomping grounds. I’d set out to stay sober all night, on account of promising my girlfriend that I’d behave. That all went to shit once I felt the pressure of impressing my peers.

I wouldn’t consider myself a follower by any means, but there was a different kind of gratification when I entertained the people around me. Seeing as my fraternity brothers were the only family communicating with me, at the moment, I never wanted to disappoint them.

That could only mean that with their bad influences, I’d be left to argue with my pissed off girlfriend in the morning. Somehow I’d come up with a convoluted excuse to wean my way back into her good graces. After all, Cameron wasn’t just the prettiest girl on campus. She was also the most kindhearted.

Still, there were several occasions where her pristine past reminded me just how much I didn’t deserve a girl like her. In some ways I think loving her makes me want to be a better person. Anything would be better than the man I saw when I looked into the mirror each morning. I’m not talking about the blonde headed, handsome gentleman, with kind blue eyes. I’m talking about the evil part of me that I wished wasn’t there; the one who had lost the respect of his family, and kept secrets from the woman he was in love with.

I finished the beer and threw my hands high in the air, celebrating my victory amongst a room full of belligerent college acquaintances. Sure, some I knew better than others, but we were all there for the same purpose. We came to unwind, and forget about everything else in our lives that we’d been stressing about. We wanted to feel free if only for one night out of many.

Four shots later I could hardly recall being dragged to my room. Even as my face landed over my pillow, I never even flinched. I rolled over, still fully clothed, and watched the room spinning around me. My bedroom door shut as I began to laugh in hysterics at my predicament. It was only a matter of time before the alcohol showed it’s pretty little face, leaving me to spend the rest of the night on the cold, hard porcelain bathroom floor. My immediate fate was already determined as the first sign of a belch occurred. It never failed, or maybe I should say that I never learned. I’d mix my drinks, and be up all night hurling.

My alarm sounded at six. With my eyes still caked shut with morning gook, I felt for the tiny device that blared the loud volume. After knocking it off the nightstand, I managed to locate it and tug the plug out of the wall. The room was silent as I sat up and looked around, noticing that I was still wearing a pair of shoes, and jeans. My shirt was bunched up on the floor. When I went to pick it up to put it back over my head, I spotted a large pile of vomit on the floor. Realizing that I was the only person that was going to clean the mess up, I fell back down on the bed and silently cursed at myself. I’d been up for less than five minutes, and already my day was ruined.

Twenty minutes later my phone was vibrating off the nightstand. I was surprised that it hadn’t died overnight from not being charged. There was no need to check to see who the caller was. She always rang me to make sure that I was up and ready to meet her in the cafeteria for breakfast, when she hadn’t spent the night with me. Everyday was the same monotonous routine. At breakfast we’d discuss our plans for after classes. Cameron would then proceed to lecture me on how not to act when I was around my friends. When I’d get pissed at her, she’d give me the silent treatment, which included cutting me off sexually, until I finally caved.

I supposed that this was common for relationships with people our age. We wanted to settle down and have meaning, but instead fought with the simple fact that we were still finding ourselves, and forging toward our separate wants and needs. One could either succumb to growing alongside their partner, or call it quits instead of doing a little bit of work.

I think when things got bad between us I still kept Cameron around because, at the end of the day, I didn’t have anyone else. She was there when my family pretty much disowned me. Though I couldn’t tell her the real reason, she’s already speculated on various ideas. For the most part I’d told her a lie about interfering in my brother’s relationship, stating that his now wife had cheated on him. I told her that the family hated me for being honest.

The only thing honest about that was the fact that I had a brother, who in turn had a wife. Ashley had never cheated on Shayne. The lie had nothing to do with fidelity.

The real truth was that before she and my brother got together, we’d had a one-night stand that left her pregnant with twins; twins that I wanted her to abort.

I know that makes me sound like a total ass**le, but I had legitimate reasons for feeling the way I did.

That one drunken night could have ruined my chances at becoming something. It didn’t help that my brother took the blame and ended up falling in love with the chick. He thought he was helping me, but instead had only made my life more difficult. I had to see her, and face him.

When the time came to finally reveal the truth, I forged ahead, trying to free my brother and myself of any kind of responsibilities. She had the help of her family, who wanted nothing more than to get my brother out of her life.

I had no idea how involved the two of them were; or the fact that their love was so real. At the time I didn’t even know that kind of love was possible. Then I witnessed firsthand what my brother went through after the twins were born, and when Ashley suffered from the aneurism. I watched the man that I’d always looked up to struggle with everything he believed just to be able to keep those kids. I’d already signed over parental rights giving him the opportunity to be their father, but only the family knew the truth.

My parents did everything they could to get Shayne to change his mind. He spent so many countless hours at her bedside, praying that she’d one day come back to him. Just when we’d all lost hope, it actually happened. While my brother celebrated with his new family, I was basically shunned. My parents lost all respect for me, and the measures that I took to ruin things for Ashley. They acted like I’d had some kind of vendetta against her.

I’d never felt so abandoned than the first time I faced my dad. One look in his eyes let me know that I was no longer the kid he was so proud of. I’d destroyed our relationship, and the trust we’d always shared. With little hope of making things right, I turned to football, and the welcoming arms of Cameron. She may not have known the truth, or the fact that I was the world’s biggest ass**le, but she knew that I was struggling, which in turn made her want to fix me.