Also By
Please visit your favorite eBook retailer to discover other books by Haley Jenner:
The Leave of a Maple Series
Archer (#1)
Jake (#2)
Bennett (#3)
Maples, Strawberries and Fairy Tales (#3.5)
Luca (#4)
Toby (#4.5)
The Chaotic Rein Series
Tangled Love (#1)
Reining Devotion (#2)
Stand-alone
Impact
Impact
Cross your Heart
Cross your Heart
My New Neighbor
Hope Ford
My New Neighbor © 2020 by Hope Ford
Editor: Kasi Alexander
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
www.authorhopeford.com
1
Caroline
I’ve spent the last two hours watching him from behind the curtains of my living room. I knew eventually that someone would be moving into Uncle Jay’s house. I mean, he wasn’t really my Uncle Jay, but that’s what I called him. Darn, I miss that man.
Movement outside catches my attention and I make sure that I’m farther away, the drapes barely open, but there’s a slit wide enough for me to look out and see him. I feel like some kind of peeping Tom, but anyone that saw this man would understand. He’s beyond handsome. He has on jeans that fit against his hard-muscled thighs. A black tank top is stretched across his hard pecs. His brown hair is short, but I think he may usually wear it shorter because he keeps brushing it out of his face. Yes, I’m officially stalking the new neighbor.
I’ve watched as he’s helped the movers carry in furniture all afternoon, his arms flexed and covered in sweat from the Texas heat. I jump back when he looks toward my house. I move to another window quickly and peek out of it, and, sure enough, he’s looking toward the window I was just standing at. From this distance, I’m really not sure, but his eyes look blue. The fact that I can’t tell for sure has me pressing further into the window, wanting to get closer to him.
With my eyes on him, I barely notice the car that pulls into his driveway. My eyes are glued on him as he turns around. A cute, petite blond woman gets out of the driver’s side and I watch as she runs up to him and he catches her, swinging her around.
I jerk back from the window. Of course he’s married.
I fight the urge to turn back to the window and watch their reunion. I’ve had enough pain these last few months, no sense adding to it.
I’ve been grieving since Jay passed away. He told me over and over that he lived a good life and I believed him. He was in his late seventies. But that doesn’t make it any easier. He was a good man, the best man I’ve ever known. And I miss him. I didn’t know until after he passed that he left me this house and a small fortune. This was once his guest house and I rented it from him what seems like ages ago. And now it’s mine.
The fact that his house has sat empty these last few months hasn’t bothered me. I wasn’t ready for someone new to move in. But once I saw the new neighbor, something awakened inside of me. Of course, it was attraction, but there was something else, something safe about him.
I know that’s crazy, and maybe I’m putting all my feelings of safety with Jay toward the newcomer. I’ve spent a lot of time over there. Especially when tornado season hit. Jay knew when the storms came, I would be walking in his front door. Eventually he learned how to deal with my crazy fear of storms. He’d open the door and take me to the basement, with tea and cookies already set out. We would talk for hours like that and he always took my mind off whatever was brewing outside.
Unable to resist, I look out the window again and now the woman is helping to carry what looks like groceries inside. She glances my way and sees me, steadying the bag in one hand and waving to me with the other. I raise my hand and wave at her.
I watch as she and the man pass each other smiling at one another, and I pull back. Well, I won’t be getting any writing done for now. I head to the kitchen to make some cookies to welcome the new neighbors.
Clay
It took a few months, but I finally did it. I still can’t get rid of the feeling that it’s a little too late. It had been months since I’d seen Jay. He was my mentor. He taught me everything I know about stocks and trading. I don’t ever have to work another day in my life if I don’t want to. I’m set up for life… and no one to share it with. After Jay taught me everything about the stock market, he tried to teach me about life. However, I ignored those lessons. I was more focused on making money than anything else. He tried to warn me over and over that I needed to slow down, I needed a life outside of my work. But I ignored him. We still talked, but the more pressure he put on me to take time off, the less time I gave him. It was a few weeks after he passed that I found out he had died. And I found out through a letter from him, sent to me by his attorney.
He was one of the good guys. The best I’ve ever known. I’m going to miss him, that’s for sure.
He gave me his house with a promise. He promised me if I just took a few months off and stayed in his house, I would see what he was talking about. It would give me a whole new perspective on life – his words, not mine.
I fought it. I thought it was ridiculous. But after more thought, I knew I had to do it. My guilty conscious wouldn’t let me say no. So here I am. I picked up and moved from New York to my hometown, a small town in Texas. His house is huge and at the end of a long drive. There’s only two houses on this road. It almost looks like the one next door is a guest house for Jay’s; they look a lot alike, except the other one is considerably smaller. However, the letter ensured me that that house is separate.
I can’t help but wonder about the woman next door. In the letter, Jay told me to be nice to her, as if he had to tell me to be nice to a woman. It makes me wonder if it’s someone he was dating or not. I’ve kept my eyes on the house, but besides a few movements of the drapes, I haven’t seen anyone yet.
The mover comes in with a box that says office and I point him into the next room. He comes back out quickly. “We better move fast. A storm’s brewing.”
I follow him outside and already you can feel a change in the atmosphere. “I didn’t even know it was supposed to rain.”
I’m glad that Penny didn’t stay long. She dropped off some groceries, carried in a few boxes, and then had to get home to her husband and my nephews.
The man turns and smirks at me. “That’s Texas for you. This one might be a doozy though. You may want to find some candles and flashlights.”
Just as he says it, the rain starts pouring from the sky and we run to finish the last few loads. The wind is going every direction around us and we push against it to get the last few boxes in.
One thing that wasn’t in Jay’s letter was the little reminder about Texas weather. I may have been born and raised only twenty miles from here, but that was forever ago. How could I forget about the unpredictability of Texas weather?
2
Caroline
The cookies are made, all ready to go in the sealed plastic dish. But this storm came out of nowhere. I knew that this season would be hard, not having Jay to run to. But I wasn’t ready for it so soon. I thought for sure I had a another few weeks to mentally prepare myself.
The cookies are on the coffee table in front of me, but I can’t take them now. Not like this. Besides the massive amount of rain I would have to run through, I don’t want my neighbor’s first impression of me to be that I’m some crazy lady afraid of storms. Which is about the truth. I don’t know what it is, but I’m petrified of storms. I’ve dealt with it for years, but Jay’s the one that has helped me come this far. At least now I don’t hide in closets, even though the thought of doing so righ
t now is almost too hard to resist. Man, what I wouldn’t do for a basement right now.
The radio I have on is staticky and I can only hear about every other word. I jiggle the knobs, turning away from the station and then back, moving it slightly until it’s clear. A loud horn comes over the speakers followed by a voice. WARNING! Take cover. A tornado warning has been issued for Beaumont. Repeat. Take cover…
I freeze at the sound. I know exactly what they’re saying and I know that a warning means that a tornado has been seen. I pick up my rain jacket and pull it on, grabbing the box of cookies as I go to the door. Whether they like it or not, my new neighbors are about to see my crazy because there’s no way I can sit in this house alone.
I pull my jacket tight around me and run across the yard. Halfway there, lightning strikes across the sky and I jump. Clenching the plastic box to my chest, I run as fast as my short legs will let me.
When I get to the porch, I almost just open the door and walk in, but at the last minute I remember I don’t have that right anymore.
I push on the doorbell, once and then a second time for good measure. I’m about to push it again when the door swings open and the man from earlier is standing there with a surprised look on his face.
Clay
When I hear the doorbell, the first thing I think is the movers forgot something. But when I open the door and see a woman standing there, I’m shocked. What is she doing out in this? She’s a tiny thing, small, wrapped up in her jacket, holding a plastic Tupperware box in front of her.
She lifts her head, the hood of her jacket falling backwards, showing her brown hair and her eyes staring up me. I gasp at the clear blue of her eyes and the fear I see inside them. I take a step toward her. “Are you okay?”
Her face is pale, almost white as a sheet, and her body is trembling. I almost reach for her, but when the loud crack of thunder comes from the sky, she jumps toward me, pushing me into the house, away from the turbulent weather outside.
I close the door and grab her shoulders, trying to hold her steady, and I can feel her large breasts pressed into my belly and her body trembling against me. I reach for her jacket. “Here, take off your wet jacket.”
She turns her back to me so I can pull it from her and hang it on the hook next to the door.
When I turn back to her, she’s facing me again and I’m lost. She’s a fucking wet dream come to life. The feeling that ignites inside me is like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. I want to protect her and claim her. I want to pull her into my arms and put a stop to whatever has caused that look on her face. I don’t want her scared or afraid. My heart starts to race staring at her. She’s tiny compared to me, but already I can tell we’re a perfect fit. Thunder booms and she jumps, pressing herself against me. She fits against me like we were made for each other.
The feelings are too much for me to process, and before she feels my hardening bulge, I hold her away from me and ask her gruffly, “What are you doing out in this?”
She jumps at the curt sound of my voice. “Uh, I was bringing you and your wife some cookies to welcome you.”
I take the container from her hand and set it on the entry table. “In a fuckin’ tornado?”
I know I shouldn’t cuss at her, but the thought of what could’ve happened to her fills me up and I don’t want to think about why it upsets me so much. The sight of her curvy body is enough to have me undone. Her nipples are tight, pressed against her white T-shirt. She may have had a jacket on, but she’s still soaked, and her clothes are plastered to her, showing off every curve of her body.
“Wait, wife? I’m not married,” I tell her. “Let me get you a towel.”
I go to grab her a towel and when I come back, she has her arms wrapped around her tightly and she’s staring out the window.
I hang the towel over her shoulders and I can’t resist rubbing it briefly over her wet skin. She takes over drying herself and thanks me. “Uh, so, your wife--?”
I shake my head. “I’m not married.”
She tilts her head to the side. “I’m sorry, the woman I saw earlier…”
I smile, wondering if she’s jealous at all. Wondering if she feels what I’m feeling. “That was my sister.”
When there’s another kaboom from the thunder, she jumps. She’s frightened and I walk over, wrapping my arms around her. She fits perfectly against me, but I don’t have time to dwell on it.
Her soft voice asks me, “Can we go to the basement?”
3
Caroline
If he doesn’t already think I’m crazy, I’m sure he will now. Who shows up at someone’s house you just met and asks to go to the basement? That’s right. This crazy girl does. “Uh, look, Jay that used to live here…”
He stops me. “Jay… you know Jay?”
I can’t help but roll my eyes. “Well, I mean we were neighbors. But more than that, we were friends. Anyway, when it would storm like this, he, uh, would let me come over and we would hang out in the basement and wait for the storm to pass. And well, I wasn’t going to intrude on you and your wife”—he starts to interrupt me again, but I hold my hand up—“I know you’re not married. I wasn’t going to come and intrude, but I have a real fear of storms. I’m sorry.” I try to keep the tremble from my voice but I can’t.
When he doesn’t say anything, I know I’ve made a fool of myself. What made me think I could just show up here? Ready to leave, my face heats and I point to the cookies. “Uh, maybe I should just go. Those cookies are for you.”
I turn to leave, but I don’t get very far. He wraps his arm around my shoulder. “C’mon, let’s go to the basement.”
He leads me down the stairs to the basement and in the corner is my chair, with the same cabinet sitting next to it. It’s still here. And I get a little emotional as I walk over to the chair and slide my hand up and down the velvet brown material. It was probably the oldest piece of furniture in Jay’s house, but I loved it. He’s brought in all different chairs in here, wanting to find me something more comfortable and better quality, but this was always my favorite. It reminded me of him. Maybe a little older, but sturdy and dependable.
“He kept the chair,” I tell the man in wonder.
He pulls over a bar stool and sits down on it. “Yea, that and the cabinet next to it was the only piece of furniture Jay left down here.”
I know it shouldn’t, but it does. It hits me then: even after he’s gone, Jay’s taking care of me. My hand rubs across my chest right over my heart.
“Go ahead, sit down,” he tells me, pointing at the chair.
But I shake my head. “No, it wouldn’t be right. I can take the stool.”
He doesn’t give in, though. “I insist. Really sit down.”
I kick off my shoes and sit down, tucking my feet underneath me. I look over at the man and he’s eyeing me, watching every move I make. “So, uh, I’m sorry, my name’s Caroline, by the way.”
He nods his head. “Caroline. I’m Clay.”
My mouth drops open. “Jay’s friend Clay? You’re that Clay?”
He looks at me with a small smile, but I can see he’s consumed with guilt. “Yeah, he was my best friend, my mentor, but I wasn’t really a good friend to him… I wasn’t here when he needed me.”
There were many times in the beginning that I didn’t like Clay. Just hearing Jay talk about him, I knew how much the man missed him and wished he would come see him. But Jay always understood. He knew that Clay wouldn’t come… not until he was ready.
I smile, remembering all the conversations we’ve had about Clay. Right now, I feel like I already know him. Of course, Jay never mentioned he was handsome. “Jay talked about you. A lot. He loved you and he wouldn’t have wanted you to see him like that. He always told me you would come when you were ready.”
I had hoped my words would make him feel better, but instead his frown deepens. I start to ask him about it, but instead, he asks me, “So I don’t know anything about you.”
I laugh, and it’s high pitched and off key. I hate to talk about myself. “Uh, I’m an author. I write suspense novels.”
He cocks his head to the side and smiles at me. “Really?”
I laugh again but this time for another reason. “What? Do I not look like an author to you?”
“Actually, I can see it. But I would’ve guessed romance or something.” He smiles at me.
What I thought was calming outside seems to be getting worse. The night sky lights up outside the tiny window and I can see leaves whirling around in the wind. I try not to start trembling again but I can’t help it. I wrap my arms tighter around myself.
He notices and stands up from the stool. “I’m sorry, Caroline. I didn’t even think. You’re freezing. Let me go get you some clothes to change into.”
He only gets a few steps and a crack of thunder fills the room and then the lights start blinking before they go completely out. I almost tackle him to the ground as I run into him, grabbing on to his arm. “No, please don’t leave me,” I beg him.
He turns around, gripping my shoulders. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re okay,” he reassures me, pulling me against him. His body is hard and hot, and I burrow into his heat.
I can barely make out the outline of his face. The room is pitch dark, but I still huddle closer. I know he’s using a soft voice to calm me, but he doesn’t realize the terror that a storm brings me.
The storm is close now and it seems to be getting worse. I know I should be embarrassed but I’m not. I burrow into his arms until I’m pressed right against him.
His hands go through my hair, cupping the nape of my neck. He tilts my head backwards for me to look at him, but I can barely make his face out.
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