Suburban Outcast Series

HOLLY
The only thing I’ve wanted to do is be a Labor & Delivery nurse  and I’ve made that happen.  I have a job I love helping bring new life  into the world, I have a supportive family, and music fills in the  holes.  Still, I know something’s missing—a place I truly belong.

I had no idea that I’d find a family when I walked into work.  I had  no idea I’d find more than that in the form of Cole Howard, sexy as sin  lead singer of Suburban Outcasts.  He looks at me and I feel seen and  appreciated.  He looks at me and I feel desire and want.

 
I had bad luck with a musician before.  They’re all about the image  and the celebrity, right?  Cole seems different, but that doesn’t mean  the fame machine won’t chew me up and spit me out. 

So many people want a piece of Cole.  Will I be enough for him?  Will he have enough for me after he makes his dreams come true?

 
He’s a star and I’m just a girl with a wish.
 

COLE
I know we made the right decision to relocate to Denver and be  closer to our family.  I didn’t know how much that decision would change  my life until I met the woman who is meant to be mine in a hospital  hallway.  I might have been there for the family, but I found my future  that day. 

Women who only cared about my money and fame have used me before.  I  can tell that Holly isn’t like that.  The fame might be intimidating,  but I just need her to give me a little trust and some time so I can  show her how much she means to me. 

With everything I learn about her and with every moment I spend with  her, it makes me more confident that she’s the only one for me. 

I just hope the fame and the ugliness that comes along with it isn’t too much for her.  I need her. 

I’d give it all up for her.  Without her, it means nothing.  

ELLIOT
I’ve been watching the men in the family fall at the feet of their  women one by one.  Some men might be happy that they haven’t found their  happily ever after yet, especially considering the way women throw  themselves at rock stars, but not me.  I’m itching for it, trying to be  patient and keep my eyes and ears open.
 

That is until I turn a corner on the way to Banks Ink. to get a  tattoo to commemorate the end of Suburban Outcasts’ third tour and see  her.  I know in an instant that she’s the woman I’m supposed to worship  for the rest of my life.  She’s all fire and quirks and I can’t take my  eyes off her.
 

Falling for Quinn feels like the most natural thing I’ve ever done.   I just hope that nothing stands in our way, but life isn’t simple and  easy.  Sometimes you must face the gauntlet to hold that happiness  close.
 

QUINN
When you’re having one of those days, you never expect to be rescued  when you never have been before.  I wasn’t expecting Elliot, how could I  have been?  It’s not every day that a rock star swoops in from the  sidelines and shows you just how special you are.  If I had been a  little braver in facing my sister’s ridiculous party, I might have  missed him.  I’m so glad that I didn’t.
 

I finally found a place where I belong and a man’s arms to wrap  around me and hold me close.  I can only hope that there aren’t too many  bumps in the road to our future 

BOOKER

You know those existential crisis moments? The ones where you want to reach out, but aren’t sure that you’ll be able to hold on when you grasp? It was like that. I was like that. Trying to keep it all together and focus on the way our futures were changing without running away like my life was a fun house mirror attraction.

Then I heard her voice and I knew. She is mine.

But a voice on a video that doesn’t show a damn thing is not a great lead.

I’ve got to find her and then hope that she’s ready for me.

ANNA

I never wanted to be noticed. I never wanted the limelight. I never even wanted much excitement from my life. All I really want is for people to stick around. That isn’t too much to ask, right?

When my friend records and posts a video of me singing, I really thought I would be able to keep my head down and continue to live my life as I had been. The video didn’t show me anyway, just the dark café that I manage. I figured I was safe.

I had three days of denial and then Booker comes bulldozing his way into my life. He says that he fell for my voice the moment he heard it. Stuff like that doesn’t happen to me, but I can’t deny the honesty in his eyes.

Now, I guess all I can do is hold on and hope that the demons and fears from our pasts can yield to our future.

Who doesn’t want a hot rock star chasing after them? 

GAVIN

It kind of messes with your head when you’re the last of your brothers to fall, wondering when your turn will be. I don’t begrudge them happiness; I just can’t help but wonder when my time will come. I’ve always been the steady one, the one that keeps the peace and keeps us moving forward. It’s come in handy more times than I can count.

When Iris comes out of nowhere it’s clear that she needs me to be that constant in her life too. I’m glad to do it, even when her brother seems to want to keep us apart. I get it. He loves her and is protective of her.

He has no idea that she brings those same feelings out in me and nothing, not even him, is going to stand in the way of making her mine. Either he gets on board or he’s going to lose her, but I win no matter what.

IRIS

I make a horrible first impression often. It’s one of my many charms. I go to the opening of an art exhibit with the hope that there’s a job on the other side of it. What I wasn’t expecting was Gavin. I don’t think anyone could be prepared for a man like him.

How is it that I meet someone who makes my heart flip in my chest when at my worst? It’s a skill, I guess. He doesn’t seem to notice all the ways I can’t keep my life together; in fact, he seems to be content with helping me. Maybe he has a savior complex or something?

It doesn’t really matter. When he tells me I’m his, I believe him. If only my brother could understand that I’m not a little girl anymore and my heart is mine to do with as I please. If I want to give it away to a sexy drummer covered in tattoos, that’s my business. I just hope he doesn’t try and get in the way because I don’t want to have to choose, but I will. I hope the men in my life know that I’ll always follow my heart, even if it gets broken in the end.