Nine First Dates

by Jennifer Ryder

  I sit on the edge of the bed and grip Callum’s hand. With the straightest face I can muster, I stare at the doctor as he begins his assessment. “Is it serious, Doctor Nolan? Do you think he needs observation overnight?”

  He takes a moment to poke and prod Callum’s nose. To his credit, Callum barely makes a whimper, although his grip on my hand tightens like a vice.

  “If I’m honest,” Doctor Nolan says, a smirk on his face, “whilst it’s not the worst I’ve seen, I think for Mr Sullivan’s emotional well-being, once he’s released from hospital, he should have support.”

  A wide smile breaks out across my face.

  Callum laughs. “What’d I tell you, doc?”

  ***

  Wearing one of his oversized T-shirts and a pair of boxers, the spicy scent of his cologne permeates all around me. I’m feeling sated, which is surprising given we haven’t moved past our earlier pash session in the car.

  “You know, we’re just missing the pepperoni pizza,” I say as I snuggle closer to Callum’s side and pull up the sheet. Whilst I wish he’d ditch his clothes so we could get down to business, we need to take this slow. There’s something special between us. I don’t want to fall too fast.

  “It’s like, two a.m.,” he says and hauls me closer so my head rests on his rounded shoulder.

  I press a soft kiss to his cheek. “What’s your point exactly?”

  A laugh rumbles up his throat. He takes my head in his hands and sweeps his thumbs over my cheeks. “Where’ve you been, Abbie Yabbie?”

  My heart squeezes tight. Waiting for someone like you. “Sitting on the sidelines, waiting for someone to notice me.”

  He sighs. “You have my full attention.”

  EPILOGUE

  Twelve months later

  “You know your brother’s going to kill me, right?” Cal says, as we unload the last of the camping gear from his ute into my garage.

  “Why would he do that?” I ask as I stand the camping chairs up in the corner.

  Cal’s arms sweep around my waist and pull me into his hard body. His breath warms my ear, sending a flood of heat to my lower belly.

  “When he finds out we borrowed his double-swag, he won’t be impressed.”

  My big tough man is scared of my brother. Why? I swing around in his arms and weave my fingers together at the back of his neck. “It’s not like he uses it anymore.”

  Cal dives in and kisses me. My knees weaken but he holds me up.

  When our lips part, I take a few deep breaths to bring myself back to reality.

  “It’s not that, Abs. He’ll know by that beaming smile on your face what we got up to in it.”

  I was smiling?

  I frown. “So?”

  “No brother wants to find out his little sister’s been having sex.”

  I snort. Will has been a little weird around us at times, but who cares? “What does he think we’ve been doing for the past year?”

  “I don’t know. I’m sure he knows. There’s just a code.” He shrugs.

  Yes, there are unspoken rules when it comes to siblings of friends, but this is ridiculous. “Cal, you weren’t best friends. You weren’t even in the same circle.”

  His hands wander to my backside and squeeze. “We were on the same team.”

  I roll my eyes. “Yeah, twelve years ago. If you’re worried about it, you should talk to him.”

  The internal garage door closes. “Talk to who about what?”

  Our heads swing around. Will is standing there in workout gear and sneakers.

  “Will. Hey,” Cal says and takes a step away from me.

  You big baby.

  “Why don’t you guys go kick the footy around or something?” I say and smile at both of them.

  Cal faces me, glares, and then walks over to my brother. “Let’s see if you still got it, huh?”

  Will pushes his shoulder and laughs. “You’re on.”

  ***

  I help Mum prepare a salad for lunch. It’s hard to focus on the dicing and slicing of vegetables, when Cal is out there busting his gut to show dominance over my brother. Red-faced and puffing, Will gives it his all. He’ll no doubt end up hurting himself.

  I hoped there’d be more talking out there, but I guess this is how guys communicate. Wrestling and grunting.

  “Have a nice time camping?” Mum asks as she pulls apart the steaming barbecue chicken.

  Heat rushes to my face as memories flood back.

  Cal and I by the fire. Wine. More wine. Eating gooey toasted marshmallows from his fingers. Moonlight bouncing off his toned muscles. The chill of the air prickling at my bare skin as he took me over the edge. Coming down from the orgasmic high, wrapped up in the arms of my lover and best friend.

  “Abbie?” Mum prompts.

  I swallow and swing my head towards her. “Um, yeah. It was perfect. Great weather.”

  She bumps her shoulder against mine. “And great company, I’m guessing.”

  “Yeah.”

  I glance through the window as Cal side-steps from Will’s reach and sprints to the end of the yard before grounding the ball near the back fence. He does a commando roll and jumps up in the air, hands reaching for the sky.

  “When do you think Will will stop being weird about Cal?”

  Mum sighs and steps over to the sink. She rinses her hands and turns to me as she dries them. “He’ll probably never admit it to you, but he made a promise to your father.”

  A lump appears in my throat. This is news to me. “He what?”

  Mum places her hands on my shoulders. “He’s stepped into your father’s shoes when it comes to you.”

  I would’ve thought Daniel would have taken on that responsibility, but I guess Will and I have always been closer. “Why?”

  “He promised he’d make sure that you were with someone who deserved you. That your dream man would be everything Dad wanted him to be.”

  Tears well in my eyes. Will has always been there for me. The question is, does Cal live up to Will’s expectations? “Do you think I have anything to worry about?”

  “No. I don’t. I love Cal, you know that. He’s good for you, but your brother can be as stubborn as a mule.”

  “It’s been a year. You’d think he’d be fine with the two of us by now.”

  Mum nods and moves over to the window, gazing at the two men. They continue to play as if their honour depends on it.

  “Darling, in his eyes, you’re still his baby sister. His little cheerleader.”

  Will and Cal grapple for the ball, landing in a heap. After a struggle, the ball comes loose. They continue to wrestle.

  Will throws a punch.

  “Oh dear,” Mum says.

  I gasp as Cal climbs on top of my brother, overpowering him. His fist connects with his jaw. “Son of a monkey!” Before they take it too far, I run from the kitchen.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I call out as my feet almost trip over themselves.

  “Fuck,” Will cries out and hooks his fist into Cal’s ribs. Cal dives into the grass, protecting his side. He takes in a deep breath and launches himself at Will, blood seeping from his nose.

  I punch my fists at my sides and breathe in deep, ready to roar. “Stop!”

  “We’re. Fine,” Cal grunts.

  “This is between us, Abs,” Will says. Air whooshes from his lungs as Cal’s fist connects with his stomach.

  I rake my fingers through my hair. They’ve both lost their ever-loving minds. “Someone’s gonna get hurt.”

  “That’s enough,” Mum bellows from behind me. “Stand up. The pair of you.”

  Moans and groans emanate from the men as they rise to their feet, gasping for air. Heads down, clothes ripped, and stained with grass and blood, it’s as if they’ve been busted fighting on school grounds by the principal. Idiots.

  Mum steps closer to them. “William. Callum. What in God’s name is this all about?”

  Will wipes his nose with the back of his hand,
painting it with a stripe of red. He laughs. “No pussy is gonna marry my sister, so I told him to prove his worth.”

  My heart doubles in size. Blood pounds in my ears. Marry?

  Cal slaps Will on the chest with the back of his hand and jogs to my side, taking my hands in his.

  I close my eyes for a beat and open them. “W-what does that mean, Cal?”

  Cal’s eyes search mine. His shoulders drop and he smirks. “It means your brother’s really shit at keeping a secret.”

  I dart my head towards Mum. She’s holding both hands to her chest. Tears roll down her cheeks.

  Will shrugs.

  Cal lowers himself to one knee.

  Goosebumps rip over my skin like wildfire. “Cal?” My hands tremble as he reaches for his back pocket.

  “I wasn’t going to do it today, but very soon,” he says, and dusts off the front of his shirt, fingers clenched around something small. “Certainly not covered in dirt and blood and stinking of campfire.”

  A nervous giggle erupts from my mouth. Is he really going to ask me? Am I just imagining it because I want it?

  “Abbie,” Cal says and draws in a deep breath. “Will you marry me?”

  I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Yes, yes, yes.

  He holds up a platinum band with three set diamonds. “Will you marry a grub who adores you more than he could ever put into words?”

  My knees connect with the ground. “Yes, I will.” I wrap my arms around his neck as my heart pounds out his name. “There’s no other grub I wanna spend the rest of my life with.”

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  It feels like it’s been an age since I wrote Sing it, Sam. It almost felt like I forgot how to write, which is stupid really, having published eight books.

  I had so much fun with Nine First Dates, and after what I put readers through with Sing it, Sam, I think this book is what we all needed. A short, sweet, and funny read to devour in one sitting. The perfect reset for the mind, before taking on the next big read—you’ll need it for my next release :p

  As always with any book release, there are some super special people to thank.

  Firstly, my beautiful family—thank you for your support. I can only pray that my teenage daughter doesn’t have to go through what poor Abbie experienced. Here’s to my baby girl finding her Callum. When she’s thirty.

  Lauren Clarke from Creating Ink, you are the best editor in the land! You go above and beyond to help my work shine. Your friendship, encouragement, and faith in me keeps me going when I sometimes struggle. Your advice and coaching has me striving for continual improvement, and my books are always that much better as a result of your guidance. Thank you again for such stellar job with this project.

  I’d like to pay a special thanks to fellow Canberran and author, Kim Congram. You are one smart cookie, but not only that, you are a fabulous and giving person. Thank you for our catch-ups, which have made such an impact on getting into the right headspace to work smarter and write harder. You inspired me to move out of my comfort zone and this book is the result.

  A big thank you to my local gals, Kayla Kennedy and Jill McKenzie, who beta read Nine First Dates. Thanks for taking the time when I know how busy life is. Also, thank you to Andrea and Kolleen from Hot Tree Editing for your timely and detailed beta reports. Amazing!

  Thank you so much to the talented Ben Ellis from Tall Story Design for the epic cover and teasers for Nine First Dates. You really made this release pop!

  Thank you to my family and friends, bloggers, fellow authors, and dedicated fans who have supported me along my writing journey. Thank you to the members of Ryder’s Spark Support Crew. Your continued support means the world. Thank you for helping me share my work. And, for those new-to-me readers out there, if you’d like to join my group, I’d love to have you!

  Lastly, to you, the reader: I am deeply honoured that you chose my story to read. I hope that if you enjoyed it, you’ll tell a friend so they can experience Abbie’s disastrous dating journey. If you’d be kind enough to post a review, you’d make this little author’s heart sing.

  Jennifer x

  BOOKS BY JENNIFER RYDER

  Spark Series (available in boxset on Amazon)

  Spark

  Spike

  Strike

  Sting

  Switch

  Tandem

  Surfers Way Series

  Losing Faith

  Sing it, Sam

  Like A Boss: A motivational coloring book

  Check them out at

  www.jenniferryder.com

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Jennifer Ryder is a bestselling author who loves to write about boys on dirt bikes, detectives and strong females who aren’t afraid to fight for what they want.

  Born and bred in Canberra, now living on a rural property in New South Wales, Australia, she enjoys the best of city and country. Her loving husband is ever willing to provide inspiration, and her two young cherubs, Jack-Russell named Buddy and sheep that don’t see fences as barriers, keep life more than interesting.

  For news on my future releases, you can contact me in the following ways. I’d love to hear from you!

  www.jenniferryder.com

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