Mississippi Smoke Series by Abbi Glines

Calculating, cold, with lack of emotion was the way those close to me would describe me. I had thought perhaps there was truth to their depiction until this endless searing pain took the place in my chest where my heart used to be. Vengeance now ate away at my soul. The wrath I planned to unleash was going to make the demons in Hell appear mild... moreCalculating, cold, with lack of emotion was the way those close to me would describe me. I had thought perhaps there was truth to their depiction until this endless searing pain took the place in my chest where my heart used to be. Vengeance now ate away at my soul. The wrath I planned to unleash was going to make the demons in Hell appear mild. At least that was until…The twisted crux came in the form of eyes bluer than the sky on a warm summer day, a slightly upturned nose with a scattering of freckles, a pink cupid bow mouth, with a smile that made a man weak. She was the cause of the events that had left me with this raging agony and yet the balm that eased my soul. I had become a mockery to my own revenge because holding her at night while she slept was the only thing keeping me sane.The events that brought us here meant I should loathe her existence for eternity, yet my need for her grows with each passing day. She’s too young, she’s vulnerable and broken, yet somehow, she’s not damaged.Even still, I can never forgive the destruction she caused me and those I love. She’ll pay the price through my cruelty never knowing that while she dreams, I find my solace… with her in my arms. less

SaylorWas it a sin to hate the dead?It was something I had pondered many times over the past ten months. Although it wasn’t why I required medication to sleep at night. I wasn’t truly concerned about the level of darkness that resided in my soul. It was the images of the night I had watched a bullet take down the boy I had loved most of my life. Seeing the life leave his body, the way his eyes had gone void. It haunted me. Even now that I knew he’d betrayed me... moreSaylorWas it a sin to hate the dead?It was something I had pondered many times over the past ten months. Although it wasn’t why I required medication to sleep at night. I wasn’t truly concerned about the level of darkness that resided in my soul. It was the images of the night I had watched a bullet take down the boy I had loved most of my life. Seeing the life leave his body, the way his eyes had gone void. It haunted me. Even now that I knew he’d betrayed me. That what I thought had been real had all been a lie. Crosby Cash had been in love, alright, just not with me.Those closest to me, the ones who were supposed to love me, all accused me of being dramatic. Because that made sense. I just loved the panic attacks that robbed me of my ability to breathe. And the passing out from lack of oxygen was the best. Looking in the mirror and not recognizing the girl looking back at me was my favorite.Perhaps that was the reason I sought solace in the last place anyone would think I’d go. We weren’t religious people. I’d been born into a family of organized crime. The day I walked into the catholic church seeking… forgiveness, closure, something…anything to find the girl I had once been, I hadn’t expected him. The man ordained by God to lead his people to salvation. Well, that man in the sky so many believed in made a grave mistake allowing a man who looked like Jude, or rather Father Jude, to wear that white collar.I could lie and say I found what I was looking for standing in front of the altar, staring up at the crucifix, but even those with tarnished souls have their limits. I found something alright, but it wasn’t forgiveness. My answer wasn’t going to come from the one they called their Savior but the one they referred to as Father.JudeTemptation comes for all of us. I had thought I could overcome whatever Satan placed before me. This life had held little meaning for me after the day I lost the girl I loved. My first and only love. Too young, sweet, and beautiful for this world. But men are often fools. And I would soon learn just how weak I was - when a pair of bright blue eyes stood in my sanctuary staring back at me.She was lost. Hurting. Seeking comfort.She was the one temptation I never expected and would never regret. Hotter N' Hell features mature themes and content that may not be suitable for all audiences. Reader discretion is advised. TW include: religion, death of a loved one, mental health, sexual content, and some violence. less

Taking her was a means to an end. The task was to weed out the man who had stolen millions from us. He may have succeeded, but he’d pay with his life. Hiding from us was a grave error he’d regret soon enough because once he found out that we had taken the one thing he cared for as repayment- he’d show up. When a man had a weakness, it was foolish to make a mistake like this. He would come for her, and when he did, he wouldn’t walk away unscathed, nor would the sister he adored... moreTaking her was a means to an end. The task was to weed out the man who had stolen millions from us. He may have succeeded, but he’d pay with his life. Hiding from us was a grave error he’d regret soon enough because once he found out that we had taken the one thing he cared for as repayment- he’d show up. When a man had a weakness, it was foolish to make a mistake like this. He would come for her, and when he did, he wouldn’t walk away unscathed, nor would the sister he adored. This was my fault. I hadn’t seen his scheme. It was my mistake, so I had to fix it. However, it seemed the joke was on me. What I had thought would be an easy job proved more difficult than I’d imagined. I had underestimated the power of her big brown eyes, full lips, and sweet, sultry voice. Keeping my focus on torturing information from her- when what I really wanted to do was touch her, have her, own her- would not only be a painful obstacle but possibly my biggest failure. Except she hated the sight of me. But I couldn’t blame her. I’d walked out of her nightmares as her own personal monster. less

“They were kings, and for a brief part of my life, I was allowed to live inside their kingdom.”BranwenLittle girls grow up, and time steals their innocence. Memories fade, and things you love change. Except for me. You see, I fell in love at first sight when I was six years old. The problem with that was he was a grown man. My young heart had believed that he belonged to me. That should have faded with time. It didn’t... more“They were kings, and for a brief part of my life, I was allowed to live inside their kingdom.”BranwenLittle girls grow up, and time steals their innocence. Memories fade, and things you love change. Except for me. You see, I fell in love at first sight when I was six years old. The problem with that was he was a grown man. My young heart had believed that he belonged to me. That should have faded with time. It didn’t. Although I hadn’t seen him in over twenty years, I still found myself measuring up the men I dated to him. That was until the day he walked into a nightclub in Vegas and sat down beside me at the bar.He didn’t recognize the woman I had become, but I knew exactly who he was. My heart had soared, and the flutters in my stomach that no one else had ever stirred came roaring back to life. Fate had brought him back to me.Waking up in his suite alone the next morning with a note and a morning after pill with no way to contact him had taught me that flutters were not to be trusted and that fate was a mean bitch.Five years later, I am engaged, happy, and about to give my four-year-old daughter the life I want for her, complete with a white picket fence and a father.That is… until I find out that I can’t get married. Because I already am.LincThe fact I never asked a woman I slept with her name served a purpose. If I didn’t know it, then I wouldn’t have to remember it. No getting them confused and saying the wrong one in the heat of the moment. Hell, I didn’t remember most of their faces. I got what I needed and left. My life wasn’t meant for relationships. I’d tried it. My ex-wife now lives in Europe with her current husband.The day I walked outside to find the gorgeous blonde I’d had a wild drunken night with in Vegas five years ago handing me divorce papers and demanding I sign them, I’d been sure it was a joke or scheme to get money. The tiny replica of her that crawled out of the backseat of her car, however, struck me with an odd familiarity I couldn’t place. My gut had clenched tightly, and I knew my world had just changed. The paternity test confirmed it.This woman who had been number one in my spank bank for five years had lied to me. Stolen the first four and a half years of my daughter’s life from me. She may have the face and body of an angel, but she was cruel.The man she planned on marrying and bringing into my daughter’s life wasn’t happening. I’d end that. I was going to be the only father she had. I wasn’t sharing her with a stepfather.If I had to make sure her mother only wanted me, then I’d do it. When she was addicted to me, and I owned her soul- she was going to suffer. I wouldn’t hurt her body, but I would break her heart. Over and over again. less

This is Than's story. Blurb to come.

MontanaMomma hadn’t been gone from the world for twenty-four hours before the first letter showed up. Blue paper, folded into an origami heart, left where the writer knew I’d find it. Dealing with my grief, I was able to put it out of my mind until the next one came, then the next. Each one more disturbing than the last. Until I woke up to find one beside me.He’d watched me sleep.Only desperation could drive me to ask the man who had fertilized my momma’s egg for help... moreMontanaMomma hadn’t been gone from the world for twenty-four hours before the first letter showed up. Blue paper, folded into an origami heart, left where the writer knew I’d find it. Dealing with my grief, I was able to put it out of my mind until the next one came, then the next. Each one more disturbing than the last. Until I woke up to find one beside me.He’d watched me sleep.Only desperation could drive me to ask the man who had fertilized my momma’s egg for help. I preferred to forget him and his existence, just like he had us… me. But with Momma gone, I had no one, and I needed a safe place to escape—out of this town and away from the stranger who was stalking me.To say I was shocked that he turned me down would be a lie. I’d expected as much. He’d left me with no choice but to threaten to expose his sins to the God-fearing people of Mississippi who placed him in office. The nineteen-year-old daughter of a stripper he’d knocked up and deserted would know a lot about his transgressions.However, the two men he sent to get me weren’t what I’d been expecting, but I didn’t really have much of a choice. It was trust the devil I knew or stay and live in fear of the one I didn’t.ThanWaking up hung over and naked on the sofa of a friend’s house wasn’t out of character for me. Being woken up and told I was being ordered to babysit the Governor’s accidental offspring was another. It wasn’t fair that I’d been handed this task. Why me? I didn’t want to watch some stripper’s daughter who had decided to blackmail the governor. Why didn’t we have the philandering bastard hand over hush money, and then we could put enough fear in her that she kept her mouth shut?When I didn’t believe it could get any worse, the stripper’s daughter opened the cheap ass motel room door she had been staying in and knocked the wind out of my chest. less