Carly Atwood always remembered the man that used to live in the loft above the barn when she was a little girl. John was her childhood crush, he was the guy she wrote about in her diary, and when he left her in his army greens, he was the first man she ever cried for. Nine years later, Carly isn't the eleven year-old girl John left behind. She grew up and moved on with her life, taking over the Atwood Ranch following her father's death. John isn't the man he used to be either; physically and emotionally scarred following his last deployment in Afghanistan, John is returning to the only place he ever called home, back to the loft above the barn and to the pretty blonde girl that's been holding onto his dog tags for all these years. ----- Title inspired by the song of the same name by Tim McGraw.

She looks up at me, taking a step forward and smiling slightly, "How can I ever get hurt when I have you here to protect me?" "But you could have gotten hurt," I murmur softly, hanging my head and feeling my shoulders drop, the tension seeping from my body. "No. Stop," She cuts me off sternly but tenderly, "Don't talk like that, Reece. I'm okay, you're okay, we're okay," She speaks softly, reaching her hand up to gently brush her thumb over my cheek, just under the cut that's there. "We're okay," I repeat, taking a small step closer to her. She nods with a small smile, moving her hand down from my cheek and instead placing the palm of her hand on my chest, right over my heart. I know she can feel how fast my heart is beating. I just don't know why it's doing that. ~ Reece Carter is the bad boy of Northwood High. He smokes and he fights. He has countless tattoos covering his body. And he doesn't care about anything or anyone else. Layla Stevens is your average seventeen year-old girl, just trying to get through high school, with the friends she loves and doing the things she loves. When these two cross paths accidentally in an unusual way, they leave and never expect to speak to each other again. But fate has other plans. Layla finds her way into Reece's life and Reece doesn't know what to do about it. This ray of Sunshine suddenly meant something to him. She understood him when it seemed like no one else did. And he protected her from everyone who tried to hurt His Sunshine. Get ready for a story filled with bad pick-up lines, twin telepathy and a lot of fighting. Like, a LOT. Thanks for that one, Reece.

Darcy and her father return back to their old stomping grounds of New York City. With her, Darcy brings habits of being reclusive. She is perfectly content spending most of her time within the walls of her father's café and sees nothing wrong with the way she lives her life. But then Christopher Radley makes a reappearance in her life and opens her eyes to a sweeter way of living. As the year draws to a close and a new one begins, Darcy decides that it's about time she turned over a new leaf and marked this year as the ultimate game changer. And with Chris heartbroken over the breakup with his longterm girlfriend, they decide to take on the new year together. To remember this momentous year, she and Chris have one goal: to document everything. But while Darcy knew she was going to document all kinds of ups and downs, this new year had a lot more in store for her than she expected. ** This is a spin-off to my story A Thousand Words which can be read as a stand alone, but I recommend reading ATW to reach maximum feels while reading this one. ** cover by dysanic

Reece Bremer goes through life with a scowl and cold personality. Jessica Andrews goes through life with a glowing smile and positive outlook. Reece looks at life with dull, judgmental eyes that make him hate the world and the people living in it. Jessica, well... She looks at life through a camera. Literally. They're polar opposites, and that's what sparks Reece's immediate hate for Jessica the moment they meet. All he sees is a girl with the best life, put in the category of those who get everything handed to them on a silver platter. But who says Jessica's life is like that? Just like a photograph, there's more to the story than what you see. Stumbling across one of Jessica's hidden portfolio might reveal that her happiness isn't all that true. Behind that smile and each picture she takes, holds a thousand words of a very big secret - one that Reece is determined to find out. And who knows? It just might change everything between them. cover by dysanic || 2015 watty's winner for talk of the town ||