Small-Town Sweetheart (The Spring Grove Series Book 2)

by Toni Aleo

  She isn’t lying, but before either of us can comment, a soft melody begins and the McElroys start up the center aisle. Shirley wears a beautiful black dress that falls on her like a drape. She’s always been a bigger lady but still so beautiful. Her strawberry-blond hair is down, framing her sweet, pudgy face, but it’s hard to look at her with all the tears rolling down her cheeks. Ambrosia holds on to her mother, looking more like her momma every day. Bright-red hair down to her shoulders and tear-filled green eyes, wearing a plain but fitted black dress, which only brings out her fair skin. All the McElroys are pale—well, except Reed. He’s got more olive skin, and damn it, I shouldn’t be lusting over him in the middle of his dad’s funeral. It’s so hard, though. He walks with such confidence, his shoulders back and his eyes in front of him.

  Unlike Devin and Reed, who both wear crisp black suits, Bryce wears his sheriff’s uniform. He’s been the sheriff of our town for the last five years, and everyone adores him. Devin too; he’s the lead distiller and just so kind. I don’t miss the way everyone glances and whispers as Reed brings up the rear.

  Both men are crying, but not Reed. He just looks livid.

  I can’t blame him.

  I’d be a whole lot of pissed if I lost my mawmaw—along with heartbroken.

  But thankfully, I don’t need to think of that at this moment.

  No. Instead, I’ll mourn a good man.

  And only lust a bit over his rebellious son.

  Shirley hugs me tightly, her tears wetting my neck.

  “Thank you for coming,” she cries, and I hold her tighter. “It means so much to us, and all the food y’all prepared… You didn’t have to do that.”

  I pull back, bending down a bit since I’m so much taller than she is, to look into her sorrow-filled eyes. “We wanted to. If y’all need more, let me know. I’m a call away.”

  She cups my face, kissing my cheek. “You are such a sweetheart, Delaney Kate.”

  I smile as she and Mawmaw wrap up in a tight hug. Ambrosia looks to me, and I reach for her. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Thank you, and thank you for the cookies. I ate the whole sheet of them.”

  I smile against her shoulder, holding her tight.

  “Good. You deserve them all.”

  “Can you make me more?” she asks tentatively, her eyes swimming. She’s always been the quiet one, the one no one has a clue about because she doesn’t cause a fuss. She doesn’t stick out; she just loves her books and her library that her daddy had built for the town. Man, McElroy loved her, and I’ll make her all the cookies she wants just to bring a bit of happiness back into her life.

  I nod, my own tears threatening to fall. “I’ll do that as soon as I get home.”

  “You’re the best, Del.”

  She gives me a weak smile as she follows her momma. I watch them for a bit before Bryce takes me in his arms. His lips come to my cheek, and I melt in his embrace. In another time, in another world, I’d be attracted to Bryce McElroy. Problem is, when he asked me out, I was still caught up on his brother and believed he’d come back.

  Again, pathetic.

  He takes in a deep breath, holding me close. “Thanks for coming.”

  “Of course,” I say, and then Mawmaw is fussing over him, which is my out. I can’t do this anymore. Devin is not holding it together, and there is no way I’m facing Reed right now. The whole funeral, I couldn’t stop looking at him. His jaw was so strained, thick, and I wanted to rush to him and hug him. Don’t ask me why, ’cause I sure as shit don’t know. I can hear Mawmaw gushing and fussing over them as I head to the side of the church, where I know Theo and Holden ran off to.

  When I round the corner, though, it isn’t just the boys standing there.

  Reed is there too.

  And they’re smoking.

  His green gaze stuns me in place, and I stare back, my heart jumping up in my throat. Reed has a bit more than just a shadow of hair on his jaw; he hasn’t shaved in days, and it’s rugged. Sexy. Lord. Boy Reed was really beautiful, but Man Reed is sexy as hell. I shake my head and try to keep my wits about me as I ignore Reed completely. “Ooh, Theo, Gen is gonna have your ass.”

  He brings in his brows. “Don’t tell her. Today sucks.”

  I nod before leaning into Holden. “It sure as hell does.”

  A silence falls over us, and I can’t help but let my gaze wander. If I thought Reed was big earlier, it’s nothing to being this close. I swear, he could swallow me whole in those arms of his. I thought he was a vet? He shouldn’t be able to fill out that suit so perfectly, straining the back of that coat of his. But I guess Reed has to be buff to carry around dogs, cats, and whatever else he carries. Just like that, I’m jealous of an animal, which is downright tragic. Reed didn’t want anything to do with me then, and I doubt he does now. Plus, I can’t still be crushing on him. That would be sad. And anyway, I’m swearing off men. Especially a man with green eyes that could easily scorch my panties off with one look.

  “It was a beautiful service,” I say softly, and everyone agrees with a nod.

  I still can’t believe Old Man McElroy’s gone.

  Or that Reed is here.

  “It was,” Theo agrees, taking a long drag before passing the cigarette to Reed to finish off. “Shirley did a damn fine job.”

  “Yeah, she and Ambrosia did it all,” Reed says then, squeezing the cherry of the cigarette out of the butt and then tucking the cigarette into his pocket, I guess to throw away later. Man, it’s like déjà vu. Countless times, we stood like this as they all shared a cigarette and we decided what we were doing next. I was the pain-in-the-ass little cousin Holden couldn’t get rid of. But now, we’re all adults with lives and know what we want.

  Like how I wouldn’t mind pulling at that tie of Reed’s and sucking on his thick neck.

  Oh. My. God.

  What is wrong with me?

  Reed wipes his mouth with the back of his hand and makes a face. “Yup, that didn’t do shit for me. I’m officially a nonsmoker.”

  The guys all laugh as I quirk my lips. Theo nods as he says gruffly, “Me too, man. Me too.”

  Holden shakes his head. “Wasn’t my jam anyway.”

  A silence falls over us, and when I feel a gaze on me, I find that Reed is, in fact, staring at me. I push off of Holden and meet Reed’s gaze. His gaze moves along me like a warm trickle of honey before his eyes snap back to mine. He looks at me expectantly, and I look back at him, widening my eyes.

  “Damn, Del. No, ‘Hey, how ya doing?’” he finally asks, his words sharp. And to my surprise, he’s still got that raspy voice. I thought he’d grow out of it, but none of that matters when his eyes focus on mine in his no-nonsense way.

  I want to be a smartass, Lord do I ever, but the man just lost his daddy. “Hey, Reed, how are you?”

  “I’m fine, thanks,” he says, and then his eyes narrow a bit. “You?”

  “Livin’,” I say simply. “I’m real sorry about your daddy.”

  “Thank you,” he says, his eyes not leaving mine. When his lips turn up at the sides, my breath catches. I know that look. “I swear you haven’t changed a bit.”

  I hear Holden take in a sharp breath, and then Theo gawks at Reed as he demands, “You’re kidding, right?”

  Reed’s eyes stay locked with mine, mischief swimming deep in those shiny emeralds. “What? Just like everyone and everything in this town, she hasn’t changed either.”

  Oh, how I wish I had a come-filled shirt at this moment since my mawmaw won’t give me my Louisville until the softball season starts.

  I glare, and again, I’m not one to toot my own damn horn, but I’ve lost almost a hundred pounds—naturally. I don’t look a damn thing like how I did when he left! Not even sort of. I know he is taking a dig at me, trying to ruffle my feathers. He loved doing that. I’d get so mad that I’d chase him. But at over two hundred pounds, it was easy to say I never caught him. It was just what we did. He’d take a dig at me, I’d take
one at him, but really, today? Fourteen years later? What is wrong with him?

  I know my mawmaw would slap me silly for what I’m about to say since this man is hurting, but I don’t give two shits.

  “Right? Yet you left, and everything changed about you. You used to have that luscious black hair, and I used to lie in my bed at night, dreaming of having your hands on me, running my fingers through that hair, feeling your body press into mine,” I say breathlessly, and his eyes turn to dark-green pools. “Mmm, but now…” I say, grimacing. “I think if I did that now, you’d be balding even more. Bless your heart, Reed. Don’t worry. Rogaine for men. It’ll do wonders,” I add with a wink.

  His eyes don’t narrow, nor does his jaw drop in shock like normal people when someone insults them. Like how Holden and Theo are gawking at us. Nope, Reed McElroy’s eyes burn into mine, a sneaky little grin pulling at his lips, and while I thought maybe I was getting him back, turns out I did just want he wanted.

  I let him ruffle my feathers.

  I guess nothing has changed.

  Chapter Four

  Reed

  “To Old Man McElroy,” Holden says, holding up his beer to where Theo, Devin, and I hold ours. I haven’t been out in a really long time. Back in Lexington, a wild night was getting Chinese for Wilbur and me and then watching Ninja Warrior. When I was younger, still in college, Noah and I tore up the town, but then he met Cynthia. It was good between them, it was right, and before we knew it, they got married, had two girls, and life was complete for him. I’m not jealous or even bothered by it. My time will come. But for now, I have my dog, I have my job, and I’m good.

  I just wish I still had my dad.

  I know I shouldn’t be thinking of that when I’m out with my friends, but I can’t help it. The guilt of not having been here is stifling. I ran the first chance I had. I was a kid, and I wanted out. Looking back at it, though, maybe I was wrong. Who cares if no one likes me here? My dad and my mom love me. So do my siblings. But I let my pride get to me, and I had to get out. In the process, I lost fourteen years with my dad, unlike my brothers and sister. They got all that time, and I only got vacations. I’m such an asshole, especially since I don’t regret leaving. I only regret not making more time for my dad. He was busy with the distillery, though, so it was hard for him to leave, and I didn’t want to come back.

  I’ve only been here for two days, and leaving my cabin is a daunting task. I feel like a monkey in a cage doing a dance with the way people stare at me. I get it. I don’t look like my mom or my siblings, but they love me. So why can’t this town? It’s so stupid. So what if I’m not Shirley’s boy by blood; I am by heart. She loves me, and it’s bullshit that no one else in this town can see that. That they made me the outcast. Or maybe I made myself the outcast.

  I just want to go back home.

  I almost left after Dad’s funeral, but I have to be here for the reading of the will. Something I am dreading as much as the next two days in this town. I hadn’t planned on leaving my cabin. At the church, I agreed to come out, but I never thought Theo would hold me to it. He did, and here I am at the Drunken Barrel. To my surprise, it isn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. Mostly just regulars are here, probably because it’s outside of town since our town is dry as a bone. I never really understood how you could have a distillery in a dry town, but Dad always said that was the charm of it.

  I think it’s annoying as hell.

  As I take a long pull of my beer, I glance at my watch, seeing that it is well past my bedtime. I’m usually in bed by nine, up at four to run, and then to the clinic. I’m sure if I told Theo and Holden this, they’d razz my ass. So instead, I swallow back a yawn and tell myself that I don’t ever get to do this anymore. That I should enjoy it. I’m constantly on the go back in Lexington. It’s nice to just hang out. Wilbur and my bed can wait for me. Shit, maybe I should text Ambrosia to go love on him, though.

  As I do that, Devin leans back, shaking his head. “Today sucked ass.”

  My brother’s face is pale and so sad, probably mirroring mine. I felt bad asking him to come too, but he jumped at the chance. I don’t think he gets out much; he works himself into the ground, making sure to make Dad proud. I know he is wondering what will happen with the distillery, and to be honest, it’s the last thing I want to think about right now. One thing is for sure, I don’t want it. I never did. It wasn’t my thing. But it’s Devin’s, and I know he’s concerned about it. Now is not the time to discuss that, though.

  “It sure did,” I agree, tucking my phone back into my pocket after Ambrosia agrees to get Wilbur and take him back to her apartment that sits over the library. Mom wasn’t too happy when I brought Wilbur with me, but I needed my buddy. I know she’s allergic to dogs, but I really didn’t expect her to kick me out of our family home and send me out to one of the cabins. I don’t mind too much, except there is no way to make food, so I have to drive up to the main house. That’s only for two more days, though. Then I’ll be back home, to my normal life.

  “It’s going to be tough for a while,” Holden says then. He’s the youngest of us all, but some would say the wisest. He hasn’t had the easiest life. His mom was in and out of his life, and she wasn’t the best person. I’d never seen Mawmaw hit someone until the day Holden’s mom showed up and tried to take him after six years. It was scary for someone who was only ten, but Holden just kept pushing on. Like they do Delaney, everyone loves Holden. He liked to act like he was in with Theo and me, and he was, but not because he was an outcast like we were. No, we just loved the guy. “For everyone. He was the pillar of this town.”

  “He sure was,” Theo says, shaking his head. “One of the best men I’ve known.”

  We all agree, tapping our beers once more, toasting to my dad, and my heart swells in my chest as the guys fall into easy conversation about the latest Braves game.

  I lean back in my chair, holding the mouth of my beer to my lips as I take in the bar. It’s always been old as hell, looking more like a saloon than anything modern and classy like I’m used to in Lexington. The only thing they’re missing is a swinging front door. It’s nice, though—dirty and dusty, but a good hole-in-the-wall for people to come to get drunk in. To forget their problems. To drown their sorrows. To find a good time.

  All the things I’m doing at this moment.

  “So, anyone special, Reed?”

  I shake my head, taking a long pull of my beer. “No, I’ve been sleeping with this girl, Stephanie, on and off for a while. But she doesn’t want anything serious, and I’m good with it. Work is busy.”

  Theo makes a face. “On and off? How does that work?”

  “Like it sounds. When she wants to hook up, she calls.”

  “So you’re a booty call,” Holden asks, and I grin.

  “I guess so.”

  “How is that?”

  I shot him a smirk. “Great. No drama, just mind-numbing sex,” I say, and I kind of wish she was here. I haven’t seen her in a month or so.

  “No way. I want more than that,” Theo says then, and I laugh.

  “Well, when you find the one you love, I guess that makes sense. I don’t care about it, though. I’m busy with work,” I say.

  “Or she doesn’t do it for you,” Holden says. “And since we all know you don’t put yourself out there, you’re just fine hanging out.”

  “No, that’s not it.” I shrug. “I just don’t have time.”

  “Nope, a good girl, the kind that makes you forget how to do simple shit, will always be the one you make time for.”

  I look at the two of them, drawing my brows together. “What, are you two love gurus now?”

  They both laugh at that just as Devin shakes his head. “You think just ’cause you live that big-city life, you got it all figured out. When, actually, we small-town boys know it all.”

  I scoff at that. “Please, only Theo is engaged, and that’s after pining for the same girl for years. You two don’t know shit.�
�

  “He’s got y’all there,” Theo agrees, but Holden waves him off.

  “He ain’t got nothing on anyone. We all know your game, Reed. And with you, you need someone who is going to pin you down and make you theirs. You won’t go for anyone yourself. Never have, never will.”

  “Maybe,” I say, and Devin laughs.

  “But even then, no one can hold Reed down. He’s got things to do,” Devin says, his eyes catching mine.

  A small grin pulls at my lips as I nod. “And I do them well,” I say, tipping my beer to them, but they aren’t impressed. I may not have the same mind-set as these three, but I don’t want to. I love my life. I’m working all the time, Wilbur comes to work with me, and I eat a lot of junk that I’m sure some woman would be against. I doubt they’d want to eat Chinese five nights a week, but I do. I have a good life, one I’m really missing. But being with these knuckleheads, I have to admit, may be a bit better.

  When the door opens, I don’t know why, but my gaze is drawn to it. Maybe it’s the fear of someone walking in and giving me that look that says I don’t belong. Or maybe it’s someone I can go home with, forget the troubles that have plagued me all day. To my surprise, my gaze falls on the busty, thick girl I grew up with. Unlike the lacy black dress she wore earlier at the funeral, she’s now wearing a pair of cutoff shorts with a tank that hangs low on her breasts. Don’t get me wrong, I get my fill of those plump peaks, but when I see that her shirt reads, “Whiskey makes me frisky,” I’m having irrational thoughts about getting frisky with Ms. Delaney Kate Abbot. Her blondish-brown hair is up in a high ponytail, her makeup is dark, and she has big hoop earrings in her ears.

  Man, I thought she was looking mighty fine earlier. But looking at her now, I can see Delaney grew the hell up.

  She is two years younger than us, and she was always the pain in the ass Mawmaw made us entertain. I wasn’t the kindest to Delaney, and it was mostly because, while I hated this town, she loved it. And everyone loved her. I mean everyone. She couldn’t walk through town without someone doting on her. She was kind and helpful, and being the snot of a kid I was, it annoyed me. Why was she so special? Her mom didn’t even want her—dropped her off and ran out of town. It wasn’t fair. Mine died, but everyone adored Delaney.