Lahat ng Kabanata ng Lavender: A strong woman: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 10

Dedicated to all the good girls who dream of being bad.“Well now really when we go back into falling in love. And say, it's crazy. Falling. You see? We don't say "rising into love". There is in it the idea of the fall. And it goes back, as a matter of fact, to extremely fundamental things. That there is always a curious tie at some point between the fall and the creation. Taking this ghastly risk is the condition of there being life. You see, for all life is an act of faith and an act of gamble. The moment you take a step, you do so on an act of faith because you don't really know that the floor's not going to give under your feet. The moment you take a journey, what an act of faith. The moment that you enter into any kind of human undertaking in relationship, what an act of faith. See, you've given yourself up. But this is the most powerful thing that can be done: surrender. See. And love is an act of surrender to another person. Total abandonment. I give myself to you. Take me. Do

The smell of old sweat and leather tries to force itself down my throat and I furrow my brows, somehow thinking that will solve the problem. It doesn't.»Damn, Marissa, you're on fire today.« The voice of my coach Mike startles me and I glance at him. »You trying to kill the bag?«»I just need to clear my head.« My heart is beating quickly and I struggle to catch my breath, but I keep on pouncing, wishing he'd leave so I could continue taking out my emotions on the poor bag."Well, I think you're doing a brilliant job, but watch out when you do the hook so that you don't damage your wrist. You have to keep your head in this game, as soon as you're all instinct, that's when you lose. Don't forget that." He taps his temple. "You want to grab a coffee afterwards? Maybe a talk could help you clear your head, too."»No, I can't. I have, uh, a dentist.«I don't hear a reply, and besides, I don't care.I’m done with all men on this world. No way I’ll voluntarily sit down and have coffee with

There are three big lessons life taught me when it was busy screwing me.The first is that if I’m in a situation I don’t like, it will remain the same until I do something about it. I learned this lesson during my marriage. It is one of the few things I’m proud about doing. I didn’t lie to myself that it was going to get better, and I didn’t say that leaving a marriage is ‘not that easy’, because it is. If I never did something about it except hoped and pray it would get better, it wouldn’t. God never listened to me, I had to fuck it all up and then sometimes it got better. It often didn’t, but at least I tried.The second is that you need to take a break every now and then and do something you really want to do. I broke this rule many times and I regret missing each wish because there are some things you only want to do for a certain period of time. If you don’t, the desire disappears and you miss out on an opportunity to be happy for some time. And being happy for some time is one o

“Well, I’ll be damned. I thought this wasn’t a date.” Atlas says immediately when I open the door and climb into the passenger seat of his car.“It’s not.” I immediately reply. “But I’ve had this dress for some time now and I’ve been looking to wear it somewhere.”I’m wearing a bright red fitting dress that makes my boobs look phenomenal. I’ve decided to go without a wig tonight, letting my box braids complement my outfit.He lifts his brow quizically. “Sure, whatever.”"What's that supposed to mean?""Nothing.""Come on, tell me."He shakes his head and pulls onto the road. "No, you're gonna get mad at me.""I'm getting mad right now, and I'm gonna get even more mad until you tell me."Atlas chuckles. "You women really are something to behold."I take a moment to look at how he dressed himself, and fight a smile when I see he's also put some effort into it. He's wearing a white button-down through which I can see his tattoos, and black jeans. Very slight panic overcomes me when I rea

“Don’t be a child, c’mon.” he holds out his hand, and I look at it and then at his face.“No. I’m going to fall on my face.”“I promise that you won’t. I’ll throw myself under you if I see you’re falling, okay?”I debate about it for a few moments. God, I’m going to have to hold on to him all the time.“If I break my nose, you’re paying for my nose job.” I exit the car, ignoring his hand.Everything in me screams to turn around as I make tiny steps towards the entrance. “I really don’t like this.” I mumble, but he ignores me and continues pulling me towards the entrance. He gets us the skates and after we put them on, he pulls me to my feet, trying to get me to the ice. I stand up and make the first step, going headfirst for the floor.I chuckle darkly. “Oh, you’re so going to pay for this. Is this because of the drink?”He emits a laugh. “Come on, it’s not so bad.”“I’m not even on the ice yet.” I glare at him, but he doesn’t listen and pulls me towards the ice, basically carrying me