400 First Kisses

by E. L. Todd

  “I realize that.”

  I knew how much Cypress loved my sister. It was the kind of love I’d never witnessed any other time in my life. But it was just unrealistic. “Cypress, I understand how you feel. But no one would judge you if you moved on with your life. You deserve to have a family of your own.” I’d mentioned this once before, but he hadn’t taken my advice.

  He looked out the window of Carmel Bakery, past the shelves of cookies and cupcakes and to the sidewalk outside. Tourists walked past the window, taking a peek at the goodies inside before they continued on their way. “In sickness and in health…that was my promise.”

  “Cypress…”

  “Really, it’s okay.” He brushed it off like it was nothing, but it wasn’t nothing.

  I knew Cypress had hope that something would change. Bree had been walking down the street late at night when a driver had a stroke and crashed into her. She didn’t have any serious injuries, but she hit her head on the sidewalk. Ever since then, she’d woken up every morning thinking it was three years in the past. The last memory she had of Cypress was the first time they broke up, and frankly, he had been an ass. “The doctors said they have no reason to think her condition will change.”

  “You don’t need to remind me.” He crossed his arms over his chest, but he wasn’t harsh toward me. He eyed the girls as they continued to make huge messes of their ice cream cones. When he didn’t want to talk about it, he changed the subject. “Any improvements with Evan?”

  “Nope. Not at all.” I was still fighting to get him to pay child support. Since he knew I had money, he said I didn’t need him to give me anything. Now he was living with his barely legal wife in Monterey. He’d traded me in for a younger, hotter woman. I would never get over the betrayal. The worst part was, he didn’t even take time to see his daughters anymore. It was like he stopped caring about them.

  And that was the most difficult part.

  Cypress had been more of a father to them than Evan had ever been.

  “We’re gonna have to take him to court,” Cypress said. “It’s not about the money. It’s about reminding him that he can’t just blow off his responsibilities. I’ll handle it. I know a few great attorneys.”

  “Thank you.” It was so much easier not doing everything alone.

  “No problem.”

  He pulled up the sleeve of his shirt and eyed the time. “If you’ve got it covered here, I think I’m gonna head home.”

  I knew exactly why. “Of course. Have a good night.”

  He hugged both the girls before he patted me on the shoulder. “Things will get better. I promise.”

  4

  Bree

  Overnight, my yard had gotten out of control. My shrubs needed to be trimmed, my flowers needed sprucing up, and the plants in my window box were getting so tall they blocked most of the sun. I pulled on my gardening gloves and got to work. The sun had been out since seven in the morning, and it made my normally leisurely gardening feel like work. I wiped my forehead with the back of my arm so the sweat wouldn’t get in my eyes.

  I heard my neighbor’s door open and shut next door and then the sound of a jingling collar of a dog. I didn’t even know I had a new neighbor. When I looked over my shoulder, I came face-to-face with an Australian Shepherd, his mouth open and his tongue hanging out. He released a quiet whine before he rose on his hind legs and put his paws on my shoulders.

  Kind dogs populated the town of Carmel, but I’d never met such a sweet dog. “Hey, boy.” I dropped my tools and gave him a good rubdown, scratching his back and behind his ears. He kept his paws on me and drooled onto the soil underneath him. “Aren’t you cute?”

  He dropped his paws then moved closer into me, shaking his tail enthusiastically and looking at me with his tongue hanging out.

  “Wow, you’re friendly.”

  Footsteps sounded next to my yard, and a pair of Keds appeared in my line of sight. “He likes you more than me,” a man said with an attractive chuckle. “Traitor.”

  The guy sounded hot, but that was too good to be true. Most of my neighbors were retired, along with the other residents of Carmel. It was a cute town full of quiet streets and aggressive squirrels. One woman’s lawn flamingo was decapitated, and it was all the town could talk about for three months. “He’s just a big sweetheart.” I looked up, embarrassed that I was in my gardening pants and sporting a bun.

  And I looked right into the face of Cypress, the biggest heartbreaker in the world. “Uh…what are you doing here?”

  “I live next door.” He nodded to the large white house next to mine. “And this is Dino.”

  “Dino? As in dinosaur?” Wait, I was getting off topic.

  “Yeah. He’s pretty ferocious.”

  “A ferocious licker, maybe.” I stood up, giving my knees a break from being bent for so long. I gave Cypress another look to make sure it was really him. The last time we saw each other was a year ago. He looked exactly as I remembered. “So…what are you doing here?” I never had fantasies of us getting back together. He was the biggest asshole in the world when he hooked up with Vanessa while I was throwing him a surprise party. He had just given me his key a few days before that, but his gesture of commitment obviously meant nothing.

  “Like I said, I live here.”

  So he was still a smartass. “Why do you live next door to me? And when did you move in?” My initial reaction was fury. I didn’t want this guy anywhere near me, not after what he did. But if I got really upset, he would know how much power he had over me. Couldn’t let that happen. I had to play it cool as much as possible.

  “I moved in recently,” he said vaguely. “And this was the only house for sale in my price range that I loved.”

  “Did you know I lived next door at the time?”

  “No. It’s a great coincidence. But you know what they say, sometimes things are just meant to be.”

  I hated it when he flirted with me. The fact that he was so good at it just annoyed me. With perfect good looks like that, he could pull off anything. He wasn’t just handsome by normal standards. He was exceptionally beautiful, the kind of man who belonged on TV or in a magazine. That was probably why I used to jump his bones any chance I got. “I doubt our circumstance qualifies…”

  He stood in dark jeans and a white t-shirt. He was just as fit as he used to be, judging from his muscular arms, powerful chest, and his long and toned legs. When we were together, he used to run every morning and lift weights every evening. He must still do that regimen. “You wanna get breakfast at La Bicyclette? Dino and I were just about to go.”

  I couldn’t keep my cool any longer. “Sorry, I’m still trying to process the fact that you live next door…”

  “Then let’s talk about it over breakfast. Come on.” He whistled and walked to the road, Dino immediately following without needing a leash. When Cypress reached the road, he turned around. He cocked his head to the side and whistled, signaling to me just the way he did to his dog.

  “Are you calling me like a dog?” I asked incredulously.

  He patted his thigh. “Dogs are awesome, so don’t act like it’s an insult.”

  “I don’t have four legs, and I’m not covered in hair—so it is an insult.”

  “That’s debatable.” He grinned as though teasing me gave him immense pleasure.

  I didn’t understand how we could run into each other like this and talk like we were old friends. I should be angry, and he should be embarrassed. But like always, the chemistry was there. Against my better judgment, I joined his side, and we walked up the hill to Dolores.

  “I’m starving.” He moved effortlessly up the hill, not winded by the steepness. Tourists always had to stop a few times to catch their breath. It seemed like he’d been living there for years rather than days.

  “I’m hungry too.”

  “What are you going to get?”

  “Definitely a coffee.” I wasn’t fully awake yet, and I needed liquid energy to wrap my
mind around what had just happened. When I got back to the house, I’d have to call Amelia and tell her the news.

  “Not a morning person, huh?”

  “I am. I’m just not used to company so early in the day.”

  We turned on Dolores, and the road finally leveled out, so we walked leisurely and gave our tight calves a chance to relax. When I first moved here, I was achy on a daily basis, but now my body was used to it. “Are you sore?”

  “Why would I be sore?”

  “You aren’t used to walking up and down all the hills. When I first moved here, I was exhausted all the time.”

  “Oh…not yet.”

  “It’s probably because you’re already so fit.”

  He turned his head in my direction, a smile on his face. “You think I’m fit?”

  Instead of feeling embarrassed, I kept my cool. “Well, you obviously aren’t out of shape. Anyone with eyes would notice.”

  “But you’re the one with the eyes, and you’re the one who noticed.” He nudged me in the side with his elbow. “You obviously aren’t out of shape either. That’s what my eyes are telling me.”

  Dino walked right beside me, looking up at me every few seconds with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. He always stayed close by and never wandered into the street. “You have a good dog.” Steering the subject away from our toned bodies was smart. I hadn’t gotten any action in the past year and I was drier than the desert, but I wasn’t going to let my hormones get to me. If he had been just a hot next-door neighbor, that would have been fine. But he was my cheating ex—so that was never gonna happen.

  “Yep.” Cypress looked down at his furry companion. “He’s my best friend.”

  I was such a sucker for men with dogs. Seeing a strong man care for an animal was the biggest turn-on in the world. But I swallowed those feelings down and refused to let them come back up.

  We walked inside La Bicyclette, the French restaurant on the corner. It had large oval windows and two old bicycles outside, and it was full of people even on a Tuesday morning. We got a seat on the left side of the restaurant at a small wooden table with even smaller chairs. Cypress looked humongous in it, and I hoped the chairs were sturdy enough to hold his weight. All the waitresses were young, pretty girls in dresses with sneakers. One approached our table and took our coffee order before she walked away.

  Dino lay underneath the table, his chin resting on his paws as he surveyed everyone in the room. Chefs in white coats prepared breakfast in plain sight using a wood-burning oven. Eggs sizzled in hot pans, and bread was freshly baked at the same time. This place always smelled incredible. They should charge just to experience the aroma.

  Our freshly brewed coffees arrived on silver saucers, along with cream and cubed brown sugar.

  Cypress drank his black, exactly as I remembered.

  I needed nearly all the cream. I liked my coffee almost white, milky.

  Cypress held up the small sheet of paper. “What are you getting?”

  I glanced at the menu, and it didn’t take long to find what I wanted. “Village combo. I love their poached eggs.”

  “I was gonna get the French toast, but that sounds pretty good…”

  “It’s a big decision,” I teased. “Take your time.”

  “I have an idea.” He dropped the menu on the table. “We split an order of French toast, and I’ll get the Village combo too. You love French toast too. The more syrup, the better.”

  I was surprised he remembered that. I couldn’t even recall when we’d had French toast together. We only dated for three months. “Now that is genius.”

  Cypress put the order in, and we returned to staring at each other while we sipped our coffees.

  I couldn’t believe I was sitting across the table from Cypress as if everything was normal. The gang would get a kick out of it when they heard the news. Everyone had hated Cypress after I walked into the restaurant and told them he wasn’t coming—because he was busy getting his dick wet. They’d probably judge me for eating with him right then and there.

  The fact that we were getting along so well only annoyed me. If he hadn’t been a liar and a cheat, I had no doubt we would have ended up together. Despite what he did, he would always have a place in my heart. That was just the vulnerable romantic inside me, but I would never give in to her soft ways. I wasn’t stubborn or unforgiving, but I didn’t accept anything less than what I deserved. And Cypress didn’t deserve me.

  “So…what are you doing here?” I held my cup between my fingertips, blew off the steam, and then took a drink.

  “I’m pretty hungry,” he said with a straight face.

  I chuckled just before I took a sip. “In Carmel. When did you leave Monterey?”

  The corner of his mouth rose in a smile. “I own a few restaurants here. It’s much easier to walk into town and handle business than drive every day.”

  “You own restaurants?” I blurted. In college, he talked about owning a business someday, but I didn’t realize that was his objective, especially in Carmel. It was difficult to start anything in this small town because there were intense restrictions on everything. For instance, corporate chains weren’t allowed in the city. Even Starbucks didn’t make the cut.

  “Yeah, a few. There’s a Mediterranean place on Lincoln, and an Italian place on Ocean and Casanova.”

  I could hardly believe what I was hearing. “I had no idea…”

  He stirred his coffee even though he hadn’t added anything to it before he took another drink. His shoulders looked broader than I remembered. Maybe he drove to the gym in Monterey every day to lift weights.

  The fact that I was doing something really weird with Cypress and it didn’t feel weird…was weird. I hadn’t seen him in a long time, and we’d ended on such bad terms. I was still hurt by what he had done and would always be scarred by it, but I didn’t feel like I wanted to strangle him…at least right now. “Isn’t this strange?”

  “What?”

  “Did you ever think we would be next-door neighbors and having breakfast together?”

  “Not quite. But I always hoped our paths would cross again.”

  Dino moved underneath the table and rested his chin on my foot. I could feel the soft hair brush against my ankle. The dog was particularly comfortable with me even though I was a stranger. “Why would you want our paths to cross?” He’d tried to get me back when we broke up, but after about a week, he gave up.

  “I really am sorry about what happened. I wish I could take it back.”

  But he couldn’t. He never could.

  “I guess I’d like another chance.”

  “Another chance?” I asked incredulously. We hadn’t spoken in a year, and he wanted to get back together? He didn’t even know me anymore.

  “Another chance to be your friend,” he explained. “You and I always had a great connection. Seems like a waste to throw it all away.”

  “Yes, a waste is the best way to describe it,” I said coldly.

  He brushed off the insult by not reacting to it.

  “So…did you move next door to me on purpose?”

  “You already asked me that.”

  “And I’m still suspicious. I’m not the type of person who believes in coincidences.”

  “Maybe it’s not suspicious or a coincidence. Maybe it’s fate.”

  “Fate?” I asked incredulously.

  “Yep.”

  “Fate for me to sell my grandmother’s house and move, maybe.”

  He continued to wear his expression of confidence. It had hardly ever faltered in the time I’d known him. “I’m a very charming guy. I’m easy to talk to, I make you laugh, and I’m a dog lover. I think the two of us could get along pretty well.”

  “I’m sure we could. I fell in love with you for a reason.”

  The hard expression in his eyes immediately softened. “Then fall in love with me again.”

  I forced a laugh even though I was hot and uncomfortable. My body still cra
ved his on a primal level. My attraction for him would never die, despite the scar he left over my heart. He made me weak and strong at the exact same time. If he was going to be my neighbor, I couldn’t let myself go weak for him. Friends, maybe. But nothing more. “I think that ship has sailed, Cypress.”

  “Come on, we all make mistakes. I’m not the same guy I was back then.”

  “Once a cheater, always a cheater.”

  He shook his head. “Not true.”

  “How would you know? Have you really changed that much in a year?”

  He clenched his jaw and looked down at his coffee. “Maybe it’s only been a year, but it feels like much longer. Yes, I’m a very different man than I was then. I’m the most loyal guy you’ll ever meet.”

  I scoffed even though I felt bad for doing it. “Then the next woman in your life will be very lucky.”

  “How about if that next woman is you?”

  I cocked my head, surprised by his aggression. “You haven’t seen me in a year. You don’t know me anymore. I could be a weirdo.”

  “I’m a weirdo too, so that’s fine with me.”

  “You aren’t a weirdo,” I said with a laugh. There were two women in the corner who had checked him out five different times. They’d sink their claws into him the second they could.

  “Then let’s make this a date.”

  “I thought you said we could be friends.”

  “How about friends who date?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Friends only.”

  “One date. How about that? That sounds fair.”

  “It would be fair if I owed you something, but I don’t.” I hadn’t even put on my makeup or changed my clothes from gardening, but he was pursuing me like he needed to have me. “There are a lot of beautiful women in this city, especially if you like tourists. You’d have better luck with them.”

  “I don’t want them,” he said seriously. “I want you.”

  I held his gaze until the intensity became too much. I looked away just when the pretty waitress arrived and placed our food in front of us. Poached eggs, tomatoes and greens, and a fresh baguette from the oven, along with thick slices of French toast. It smelled incredible, but the food wasn’t enough to make me forget about the awkward situation currently in effect.