Laying it Bare After a Loss (Laying it Bare Series Book 6)

By L.E. Martin

Devastation is too weak of a word to describe the depth of heartache Trinity Connors experienced after her shattering loss. And now, she vows to never risk anything like that ever again. With not much to brighten her days, alcohol and her best friend are all she makes time for anymore.

Mitch Gannon is no stranger to loss. Even though he is seldom defeated in the courtroom, he experienced an incredible loss when he lost the only girl he ever loved to one of his best friends. While moving past the emptiness, he finds himself intrigued by Trinity and recognizes a similar pain, but she carries a lot of baggage. Is she too much to deal with, or are they the perfect balm to each other’s soul? But what happens if the last person she wants to be with is a lawyer?

Possible Triggers: Story deals with heartbreaking loss

• Language: English
• Publisher: L.E. Martin
• Release date: Oct 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005039523

L.E. Martin

L.E. Martin is currently working on adding more books to her Laying it Bare Series. She has a couple biker stories in the works and also a rock star one. Her next release is book one of a paranormal romance duet, which is releasing Oct. 15, 2022. There will also be another paranormal story following a side character from the Blood Covenant world releasing after book two of the duet.

Book preview

Laying it Bare

After A Loss

By L.E. Martin

Laying it Bare After A Loss

Copyright © 2021 L.E. Martin

Cover Designed by Rose Bush

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in reviews. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

For My Readers

I love all of my characters, even the minor ones. So if your heart broke for Mitch in an earlier book, as mine did, enjoy his HEA.

Possible Triggers: Story deals with heartbreaking loss

One

~Trinity~

Sitting with my best friend Charity at our favorite bar, Shooters, I couldn’t help sneaking peeks at the gorgeous brown haired guy a few tables away. He and his buddies frequented this bar but for some reason I was incredibly drawn to him this night. It could be because I really needed the distraction tonight or it could be the fact that he was extremely hot and appeared to miraculously still be single.

I had caught his deep green eyes a couple of times when I had walked by during one of my numerous occasions to use the restroom. Since I had been downing the beers like it was water and I had been stranded in the desert for three weeks, my bathroom trips had been quite frequent. Each time our gazes met, he would offer me a friendly smile. With my simple brown untamed hair, hazel eyes, pale skin, and practically non-existent boobs, it didn’t surprise me he hadn’t shot me a seductive one or tried to pick me up. But did I even want to be picked up by some random stranger tonight? Probably not. But maybe a small part of me did.

If you stare at him anymore, drool is going to start dripping from your mouth and he’s going to rush out for a restraining order. My best friend brought me out of my depressing thoughts. She didn’t have to stare at guys to attract their attention. Her silky natural golden blonde hair, big blue eyes, sun kissed skin, and phenomenal rack had guys gravitating to her. Tonight alone she had shooed away six. I couldn’t even get one. But was I even trying as I sat here chugging down the alcohol?

You know you could’ve hung out for a bit with one of those guys, over at the bar or something. I feel bad you are babysitting me. Or you could have gone home with one you were interested in. I could have walked home or something. Raising my mug to my lips, I upended the rest of my beer before grabbing the pitcher at our table and pouring myself another, emptying its contents into my glass.

You might only live a few blocks away from here but it would not be safe for you to walk home even if you were sober. Which you aren’t even close to resembling. She raised an eyebrow at me. Charity was a great best friend. She had seen me home safely on many occasions. And tonight was definitely going to be one of those times. We probably shouldn’t have even come out tonight. I knew his birthday was going to hit you hard. I would have been happy hanging out at your apartment, eating pizza, drinking beer, and watching movies. So why don’t you walk over and talk to the hottie you’ve been eyeing? I’ll introduce myself to the only other possible single guy, the blond with the brown eyes. Maybe they’ll invite us to join them.

Um, the blond hottie will definitely be interested in you but the sexy green eyed alpha has only shot me friendly smiles, nothing heated in his gaze. I actually picked up on a hint of sadness reflected in his eyes the couple of times I walked by his table but he quickly masked it. Maybe he’s dealing with a loss too. And yeah the other brown haired guy is definitely with the blonde girl. And the red head is married to the dark haired guy and they have a baby. They have that vibe about them. I took a long pull on my beer to cover my smirk.

You can really tell all of that by watching their body language?

No. I giggled and then let out a horrendous burp and giggled again. She brings her three month old daughter into the pediatrician’s office for checkups and such. And I’m just assuming they’re married. But I can’t remember their names at the moment.

Instead of ordering our third pitcher, why don’t we go make new friends? Leave it to Charity to try to find a way to talk me out of more alcohol. I only did this on Saturday nights so I wasn’t in any danger, right?

I don’t know that I would make good company tonight. You’re only here because you love me. My last word slurred slightly. So I signaled the waitress to bring another pitcher.

Charity and I chatted a bit about our work week and she continued to bug me about going over to meet the sexy guy. After I finished off another beer, I ran to the restroom again. On my way back to our table, I argued with myself about whether or not it was a good idea to go over to say hi but finally talked myself into a ‘what the hell, give it a shot.’ I had a ton of liquid courage flowing through me now and a confident side kick to lead the way.

I stumbled when I reached our table and ungracefully dropped into my seat. Do you have a good idea how we should start out? I mean, ‘hey you’re hot and I caught you looking my way’ may not be the best idea but that’s all I’ve got. I hiccupped. I needed to stop drinking like this. It was only once a week but I didn’t meet anyone when we were out and then always woke up the next morning alone and with a horrendous hangover that lasted a good portion of the day.

I know him from the emergency room, the blond. So I can open with that. Come on. After she stood, she grabbed my hand and tugged me up as well.

Whoa, too fast. I put my hand to my forehead as the room danced. You can’t be doing things like that. The room is moving now but I am not. I closed my eyes for a moment to get the room to settle down. When I was pretty certain I could walk like a semi-sober person, I eyed my friend. Okay, I’m good. I’m ready.

She eyed me with concern for a moment but I awkwardly waved her off.

When Charity got to the table, poise radiating off of her in huge waves, she smiled widely at the blond. I know you from somewhere. It’s been bothering me since I noticed you guys over here so I had to come over and find out if I was right.

My legs grew a bit wobbly from attempting to stand still, so I swayed into Charity, trying my hardest not to be so obvious. Then why did you insist on drinking like a fish? My traitorous thoughts belittled me.

Oh by the way, I’m Charity Winslow and this is my best friend Trinity Connors.

The crew around the table offered hellos, the blond eyeing Charity like he was interested in more than just a hello. And color me not surprised; she attracted guys with little to no effort. I chanced a quick peek at my green eyed fascination. His gaze wasn’t exactly uninterested or annoyed but maybe guarded. My brain cells weren’t firing correctly so he could have been looking at me with disdain but I chose to interpret it as something at least somewhat positive.

You are a nurse in the emergency room. I remember you from when I was in there like a month ago for stiches in my thigh. I’m a mechanic and had a sharp piece of metal rip through my jeans and skin. I had to get a tetanus shot too. Ugh.

The blond chuckled. I remember you now. His smile grew. I thought it was incredibly hot that first you were a mechanic and second the laceration in your thigh barely bothered you. Why don’t you guys join us? He reached behind him and pulled two chairs from the empty table.

Thank you. Charity sat in the chair beside him and I plopped down next to her.

I’m Jace by the way and this is Sawyer and his girlfriend Callie. He gestured to the other brown haired guy and the blonde we figured he was seeing. Then he grabbed his mug from the table and took a swig. Flynn and Apryl just got married six months ago. He aimed his glass at the black haired guy and the red head beside him. And Mitch there is single like me.

Mitch gave him a strange look but since I wasn’t firing on all cylinders it was difficult to decode. I didn’t think I was giving off any vibes that I was interested. Hell, I barely glanced his way and still hadn’t said a word. Not that I was normally a shy person or anything but because I was pretty drunk I didn’t want to embarrass myself with ridiculous utterings, so sat there like pretty much a dolt. Hopefully I was a convincing shy person not an awkward sloshed idiot.

But Charity had no problem keeping pace. She made small talk with the others but kept most of her attention laser focused on Jace. Me? I could barely follow a conversation thread. Then without my drink to concentrate on, my awareness shifted to the fact that my stomach had started to churn. Was it all of the alcohol or was I getting worked up about how I appeared to our new acquaintances? Fine time for me to start being concerned about that.

Excuse me. I managed to force out through clenched teeth and clumsily left my seat, weaving my way through the crowd – which added to my nausea – and staggered to the restroom. Once safely tucked inside one of the stalls, the tears rolled down my cheeks and I threw up. Kneeling in front of the toilet, more tears flowed down my cheeks. This was a new low. I had never gotten sick while I was at the bar. It always happened after I had made it home. And I’d never had to kneel on the dirty floor of a public bathroom. I didn’t want to go back out there. I didn’t want any of them to know what had happened. I didn’t know them from Adam but I was embarrassed just the same.

Thankfully Charity was right behind me. Hey, Trin. Which stall are you in?

I jerkily tossed my hand out to smack the door. Huh, I hadn’t even locked it.

I want to go home, T. I’m such a stupid idiot. My tears transformed into sobs.

Oh, Trinity. She ripped a glob of toilet paper free and wiped my mouth before pulling me up from the floor and into her arms. I swayed more than earlier. It’s okay. People get drunk all of the time. I’m sure it’s nothing new to them. They’ve probably even been stupid drunk a couple of times themselves.

I’m like this every Saturday night. I whimpered into her shirt.

She hugged me tighter. Not this bad and you’re still hurting, Trin. She kissed the top of my head. Hey, can you help me walk you back out there and we’ll head home? I’ll help you get showered and to bed.

I don’t know. I can try.

When she started to walk me out of the stall, my legs gave out and she had to support all of my weight. This wasn’t good. And the room really started to spin.

I’m sorry, T. I’m so sorry. Just let me lay in here until I sober up. If they want to toss me out into the back alley at closing, that’s fine. You don’t deserve this. Go hook up with Jace.

No. She practically dragged me over to a low stool and sat me on it and propped me up against the wall. Don’t move at all and you should be fine. I’ll be right back. She rushed out of the bathroom.

With my head against the wall, the room continued to spin and the sound of talking and music began to fade in and out.

When she finally returned, my vision had blurred and I could barely make out the voices. Voices? Who did she haul in here to help get me out of here?

She doesn’t usually get this bad. Yes, that was T’s voice.

Why does she do it at all? A voice I didn’t recognize responded. But just because I didn’t recognize it didn’t mean I didn’t know who had accompanied my best friend into the lady’s room to retrieve me.

She’s having a rough time. You’d have to ask her. It’s not my story to tell.

Whatever. What do you need? She looks in absolutely no condition to get out of here.

No shit, Sherlock. Too bad I needed his help and had to just suck down my pride and accept whatever he was going to offer. If I ever saw him again, I’d avoid him.

That’s where I need your help. Between the two of us we can get her out to my car and I can get her home.

Well, she didn’t drive herself so there’s that.

And cue feeling even worse about myself. No, I never brought my car because I would NEVER get behind the wheel if I even so much as sniffed alcohol. The lights went out in the bathroom? No, I had closed my eyes.

Strong arms wrapped under my thighs and behind my back and lifted me ever so gently and slowly. Oh God, he was a Saint and smelled delicious, like citrus, musk, and woods. Lead me to your car.

And that was the last thing I remembered before silence engulfed me.

The next morning, horrible pounding in my head awoke me. Holy shit, did I drink the bar’s entire supply of beer last night? And the cotton balls I had apparently eaten must have been soaked in vinegar and turpentine first. I needed a toothbrush, desperately.

I slowly turned my head so the tiny bit of the Georgia sunlight peeking through the light blue curtains covering the window near the foot of my bed stopped irritating my head. When I managed to force my eyes to open to slightly past little slits, I discovered another body in my bed. For a split second, I panicked that I did something even more stupid last night and drunkenly slept with the green eyed hottie. First of all I didn’t think he’d touch me with a ten foot pole even though he had carried me out to Charity’s car, I thought. I couldn’t be sure since I had passed out but I was at home, so he must have gotten me to the car. My small burst of alarm had caused me to jerk back slightly and the jackhammers going to town on my brain increased their vigor. Ow. I moaned, quietly. Or at least I tried to so I didn’t wake my best friend.

Her eyes popped open and she smiled at me. I’ll get you some breakfast and aspirin. Then you can get yourself showered. I couldn’t manage to get you into the shower myself last night and I doubted you wanted Mitch to help. Not yet anyway. She waggled her eyebrows at me. But you’re going to want to wash these sheets today. We both went to bed gross.

Ugh to both of those statements. I gradually rolled to my back and draped my arm across my eyes, shielding them from most of the light. No, I wouldn’t want to be any more vulnerable around him. He probably thinks I’m absolutely pathetic. But thank you for taking care of me. And staying here with me. You didn’t have to do that, but I appreciate it.

Hey. She gently nudged my shoulder with hers. He doesn’t know your story so he shouldn’t be all judgy. And I stayed last night because you were really out of it and I was worried to leave you alone.

Removing my arm from my eyes, I slowly turned to my side. I’m sorry I scared you. The last thing I remember last night is passing out in his arms. I’m sure that went over well with him. But whatever. I’m done with drinking, T. I’m not even going to touch the stuff. A few tears journeyed down my cheeks. I still want to go out and hang out with you but I’ll be drinking soda. I promise. That was the last.

Inching closer to me, Charity wrapped her arms around me and hugged me close. I’m not judging and you know that. But yeah, your condition last night scared the hell out of me. So I’m excited about your decision. But sweetie, you had to come to that on your own. I have no idea the extent of pain you are going through. But you know I am always here for you.

Thank you. I sniffled into her shoulder. And I know. But you shouldn’t have to babysit me like that. I’m sorry I ever put you in that position.

You’re fine. I love you. I’d kiss you, but you smell like bar bathroom. She released me and sat up, careful not to rock the bed too much. Why don’t you grab a shower now while I make you some breakfast? I think you need a bit more than your usual Toaster Strudels. Your stomach isn’t still upset, is it? And then I’ll let you to your day. Go back to sleep, watch television, read a book, whatever. But you need to change these sheets first. She wrinkled her nose at me and I couldn’t help but laugh, which made my head pound even more. But I had brought it on myself.

No, my stomach is okay. My head, now that is a completely different story. And I sure as hell won’t miss these hangovers. If I feel a little better later, I’ll make you some of my famous fudge you love so much as a thank you for last night. Rising unhurriedly, I eased my legs over the side of the bed and sluggishly stood. My bedroom furniture was unremarkable; all items I had purchased on sale at a second hand store. The wooden finishes on the night stand and dresser didn’t match but they served their purposes. It wasn’t much but it was my home and I had even painted the walls in my place just to add a bit of me to it. My bedroom walls were a slate blue.

Once I was certain my legs would support me, I walked over to my dresser that sat along the wall opposite my bed and grabbed a pair of gray sweat pants, a pink t-shirt, and a pair of panties. I wasn’t going anywhere today and besides my lack of boobage didn’t really necessitate me wearing a bra at home. If I took Charity any goodies later, I’d toss one on then.

She headed toward my door. Holler if you need anything.

Hey. You’re going to stay and eat breakfast with me, right? I had gotten used to being by myself, for the most part, but I wanted her to eat some of the food she was so graciously preparing for me. Then I would keep myself busy for the rest of the day and probably take a nap.

Think I’m just cooking this wonderful breakfast for you? Think again. She shot me a smirk on her way out my door.

Smiling, I walked across the hallway to my little bathroom. Since it was so small, I had painted the walls a soft peach to brighten up the space. Then I sat my clothes on the bathroom vanity, peeled last night’s outfit from my body, grabbed a washcloth from the closet, switched on the water, and hopped in. I took a warmer and longer shower than usual in the hopes to get the pain level of my headache down to at least a tolerable one.

About a half an hour later, I emerged, dried off, pulled on my clothes, and then brushed the nasty taste out of my mouth. After hanging up my towel and taking care of my dirty clothes, I walked down the short hallway to my tiny kitchen. My entire apartment was pretty small but it suited me just fine. I had a small table that sat four in my kitchen but I usually sat at the island, even when I had Charity over. On the other side of the island was a cozy living room. And in addition to my bedroom and the bathroom I had another small bedroom. The apartment fit my budget and it suited me perfectly. I sat down on one of the stools in front of the island. Breakfast smells amazing. Although should we call it brunch since it’s after eleven?

I’m going to call it ‘get you through your hangover’ food. She scooped eggs, bacon, and pancakes onto two plates and slid them onto the counter. Dig in. Then she circled the island and sat down beside me. "You smell much better. I doubt you feel much better though."

Not really. I feel more like myself but my head is a killer. I