The Last Thing (31 page)

Chloe stood a few feet ahead of us with some bulky tool on
her arm. It was no secret that she and Chase didn’t get along, even though the
studios made it seem like they were friends again. We ignored her, and she did
the same. Chase was on my arm now, and that was all that mattered.

“Who did you bring tonight?” a girl with a microphone asked.
She had dark hair, a skimpy dress, and looked like she could use a sandwich.

Chase pulled me close and beamed proudly.

“This is my girlfriend, Quinn.”

The reporter put the microphone in my face.

“Nice to meet you, Quinn. How far along are you, Quinn? Any
plans on getting married?”

I had prepared for the questions. Taking a deep breath, I put
my hand on my stomach, which stuck out under my tight-fitting black sequined
gown.

“I am due in early spring.” I kept my answers simple, as Rhea
had trained me. Don’t give too much away.

“And any plans to pop the question?” she asked Chase. Man,
she was not letting this go.

“One day…” he teased, but my head shot up to look at him. We
had never discussed marriage. Silly, I know, but it had never come up.

“How did you two meet?”

We both glimpsed at each other and gave a secret smile. No
one needed to know the truth.

“A party.”

“Is it true that Ginger Teague is your cousin?”

“She is my cousin and best friend.” That wasn’t so hard. The
butterflies in my stomach began to act up.

 Chase answered a few more questions about the movie before
we moved on.

“I’m so proud of you.” I gave him a light kiss on the cheek,
carefully so that I didn’t leave a mark from my red lipstick.

He walked behind me and pulled me close. He leaned in and I
could feel his hot breath on the back of my neck.

“I meant it.”

“Meant what?” I tried to turn around to look at him, but he
stopped me with his hands.

“When she asked if I we were gonna to get married. I’m going
to marry you, Quinn Bardot. Not today, but sometime soon. I’m going to ask you,
and it’s going to be awesome. Remember that.”

Thank you for reading The Last Thing. If you liked this book,
please take a moment to leave a review online! Feel free to contact me with any
questions! I love hearing from my readers.

 www.bookswithbree.com

Want to find out more about the happily ever after of Quinn
and Chase? Read Ginger’s story in The One Thing coming in 2015.

When
everything around me collapsed, he was the one thing that kept me together.

Keep reading for an exclusive sneak peek of the first
chapter!

The Last Thing
Playlist

(Find the Spotify playlist at my
website
)

Quinn’s songs

Amsterdam by Imagine Dragons

What Sarah Said by Deathcab for
Cutie

Stolen by Dashboard Confessional

Blue by A Perfect Circle

Now the One you once Loved is
Leaving by Lydia

Get Home by Bastillle

Young Blood by The Naked and Famous

One More Day by Lydia

Chase’s songs

All The Lights by The Cinema

She’s On My Arm Now by The Cinema

House of Gold by Twenty one Pilots

The Exit by Lydia

She Looks So Perfect by 5 Seconds
Of Summer

Crooked Teeth by Death Cab For
Cutie

Lego House by Ed Sheeran

Come A Little Closer by Cage The
Elephant

West Coast by Coconut Records

Acknowledgements

This is the first book that I’ve published on my own and
although I wanted to pull my hair out and curl up in the corner and cry at
times; it has been the greatest adventure. A year ago, I set out to write a
book about love and loss. The Last Thing deals with issues such as suicide,
abusive relationships, premarital sex, and divorce. Issues that, sadly, many
new adults have to deal with, but are much too young to handle. I wanted to
create characters that were perfectly flawed. I decided to bare my soul as a
creative outlet and share them with the world. Life sucks. Bad things happen to
good people and sometimes it isn't your fault. Other people's mistakes become
your problem and sometimes things get better, sometimes they don't. Quinn
deserved her happy ending, and so does everyone who reads it. So many people
helped in the creation of this book. I will start from the beginning, and if I
left anyone out, I am truly sorry. I’d like to thank my husband and kids who
dealt with a messy house and hours of being ignored so that I could write. All
my family and friends who encouraged and bought the Ethereal Underground series.
You have inspired me to write more. Brooke Kennedy, for being a great writing
partner and always encouraging me. My beta readers who helped me develop the
story to what it is today: Ashley, Lena, Nikki, Tessa, Jenna. The bloggers who
participated in the cover reveal and book tour. I am truly grateful for your
dedication! Ali, who helped me incorporate Spanish phrases into the book. Jen,
who edited The Last Thing for me.
A huge thank you to my
Official Blog Sponsor: The Chiq Blog and Official Advocates:
Obsessed by Books and Julie Juicy Book Blog and Review, and Within Pages. You
guys are so awesome!

About
The Author

Briana Gaitan grew up in the South, but calls herself a geek
at heart. She is a blogger,author,and fangirl who loves Star Wars, Star Trek,
and Jewelry (bet you never thought you'd hear those three things in a sentence
together) For fun, she loves watching any show on the SyFy channel, relaxing
with her family, reading, and listening to indie music (sometimes all at the
same time). Briana loves to write stories where there are no limits to the
imagination. She is the co-author of the best-selling  Ethereal Underground
series and author of the highly anticipated upcoming Hollywood Timelines
Series. Find out more about her book at 
www.bookswithbree.com
 

Don’t forget to check out her other books!

www.etherealunderground.com

 Follow her at twitter
@bookswithbree

Facebook
www.facebook.com/booksbybree

The One Thing

Ginger

I pull
off one of my green high heels before rubbing the back of my ankle. There is
definitely going to be a blister there tomorrow. Wincing slightly, I put the
shoe back on my foot and continue to walk uphill towards my destination. The
chilly wind engulfs my small body, but I can’t feel it because I’ve already
worked up a sweat.
Ten more blocks, I only have ten more blocks to go.
I
trudge on, putting one foot in front of the other, careful not to trip on the
old, cracked sidewalk.
Almost there, Ginger
. This thought inspires me to
keep marching forward. I’m late, but I’ve walked much too far to turn back now.
I was supposed to meet with the casting director, but my GPS gave me the wrong
directions. After paying over thirty dollars to park, and asking the attendant
if I was in the right place, I soon figured out that I wasn’t anywhere near my
intended destination. Not even close. With my purse in hand, I hurry through
the dirty streets, one eye on the lookout for muggers. I didn’t have the cash
to park anywhere else, and I’ll be damned if I walk past that parking attendant
again. It’s embarrassing enough that I had to ask for directions. Stupid pride.
It’s the story of my life though. When people see me, they automatically assume
I’m a ditz. People continuously try to take advantage of me, and most of the
time they succeed. But not today.

A bus
speeds past me with curious faces peering out of the window. I am tempted to
hop on, but who knows what type of infection diseases I might catch. Better to
be safe than sorry!

 After
another block or so, I stop and pull a hair tie out of my bag. I twist my long
copper hair up into a high bun. My makeup has rubbed off, and my short dress
has inched dangerously up my thighs, but I keep my head up and my eyes locked
forward. Who was I kidding? They won’t hire me anyway. After two years in show
business, I haven’t gotten anything more than low-budget commercials and a
supporting role on a cheesy soap opera. I drop my head and bite my lip so that
I can suck back a sob. This has to be the worst fuckin’ day ever. I lean back
against the brick wall to catch my breath and regain my composure.

“What’s
a pretty young thing like you doing out here all alone?” a voice says from
beside me. Looking up, I blink against the bright sun to try and find the
source.

“Over
here.” I spin around to see a guy, a little older than myself, sitting on the
stoop of an old auditorium. My eyes graze his shaggy, dark blonde hair that
falls over his face and his strong, square jaw, and his dimple in his left
cheek. His eyes are a kind, clear blue engulfed in dark lashes. As if on
instinct, I flash him a flirty grin.
Man, this guy is gorgeous.

“Just
taking a leisurely stroll,” I comment. I note the cigarette in his hand and
wrinkle my nose a bit. After noticing my displeasure, he quickly smashes the
butt under his old converse. Converse? No, no, no. I quickly talk myself down.
This guy isn’t cute, he’s grungy. He’s—and I’m—he isn’t my style at all. I tend
to go for more classic, metro-sexual men. Armani suits, expensive cars, slicked
back hair. That’s what turns me on; not grungy smokers with tattoos all up his
arm. From what I can see of his, they look quite impressive. A flash of something
large on his right bicep catches my eye, but I can’t make it out. I don’t want
to get caught staring, and his face isn’t any safer to look at so I look up at
the bright sky instead. The urge to walk away consumes me, but I need another
moment to catch my breath. He stands up and walks closer, making my heart pound
against my chest.
Oh, shit.
I stare straight ahead at his old gray tee
shirt and black jeans that hugged his lean body. He stops right in front of me
and rests an arm on the wall behind me to support himself.

“You
look really lost. Need some help?”

God,
that sexy voice. Heat begins to pool between my legs. No, this isn’t safe. He’s
a stranger! I straighten up and look into his face, that beautiful face.

“I’m
not lost. Would you kindly back off?” I snap.

Men don’t
randomly offer to help women. They always have ulterior motives. They always
expect something in return. He backs up with his hands out in front of him in
surrender. His face is sincere, honest. Like I even know what that looks like.

“Easy
now, I didn’t mean to scare you. I was only trying to offer you some local
hospitality.”

I sigh
in exasperation and pull my phone out to check the time.

 “Thanks,
but no thanks. I’m late to an appointment, like it even matters now. I won’t
get the job anyway.”

“Their
loss.” He shrugs while giving me a wide smirk that made my body tingle. Stop
that! He’s just like all the other men. He will use me and throw me away with a
broken heart.

“Are
you okay?”

I’m
scowling at him, and though I’m tempted to smile, I refuse. Attraction or no
attraction, I’m about to let him know how I felt.

“I’m
fine, thanks for asking. You can go back to…whatever it was you were doing.”

He
laughs, but doesn’t take the hint to leave. “I’m just taking a smoke break
between sets. We’re doing a sound check for a show tonight. Hey, you should
come check us out.” He motioned toward the building beside us, an ancient
looking place. Great, he’s a musician. They’re even worse than actors. I raise
an eyebrow at him, but don’t say a word.

“Doesn’t
like music, dually noted.” He laughs again.
So intoxicating
. His voice
isn’t suave or deep, he definitely sings with a wide range, kind of like Ben
Gibbard. That’s right; I like music. In fact, I love music and Death Cab for
Cutie is one of my favorite bands. I just don’t like the reputation that
proceeds musicians. I open my mouth to protest. I don’t need to explain myself
to this guy.

“Thanks
for the neighborly concern.” I roll my eyes and wait for him to go back inside,
but instead we both awkwardly stand there daring the other to walk away first.
With a crooked grin plastered on his face, he digs into his back pocket to pull
out another cigarette. After a minute, I give up, push myself off from the
wall, and turn my back to him.