“Did you know about this?”
Ry shook his head, still looking a little shell-shocked. “Nope, but I’m more worried that I’m not worried about it.”
That would worry me, too, but I kept my mouth shut. “If you need any help, you know how to find me.”
“If you and Nina ever come up for air.”
“We will. Soon.”
“Trouble in paradise?”
I shook my head. “Just the opposite. As we speak, all of her things are being moved to my place.”
We’d talked about moving in together a couple of times, but her lease was up tomorrow and she’d only keep procrastinating if I let her.
“That sounds like a fight you don’t want to have, my friend.”
Mikey squirmed out of Ry’s grasp and Ry let him down gently, not taking his eyes off the little boy.
“The argument will be short-lived, but the making up won’t be. Play your cards right and you’ll know exactly what I mean.”
He snorted and shook his head. “First, I’ve got to show her I’m more than just some immature kid with a crush.”
“If anyone can do it, Ry, it’s you.”
“Yeah, thanks for the confidence, but I’m almost at my limit of rejections.” Still, his eyes never strayed far from Penny.
I smiled. Watching this drama unfold might make this hometown heroes calendar nonsense worth it.
The End.
Hope you enjoyed Nina & Preston’s story Dear Reader. Small town romances are kinda my jam, and if you like them too, then check out Accidentally Hitched. A preview of this small town, accidental marriage romance is next!
Preview:Accidentally Hitched
Viviana
The door opened and I stared, stunned, at a face I hadn’t seen in almost ten years. Same royal blue eyes, same jet black hair a little longer than it used to be, and same broad shoulders. Only now, with more muscles. “Holy sh-” I looked down at Norah. “Holy crap, Nash Boudreaux! Norah, you didn’t tell me Nash was your old man.”
“You never asked,” she sang and wrapped an arm around her father.
He wore a scowl that said I wasn’t welcome here, and I took a step back because I was no longer the girl who didn’t notice things she should.
“Right. Well, it was nice to meet you, Norah.” I tossed a wave over my shoulder as I jogged down the steps, eager to get away from Nash and the feelings he evoked. Not the crush I had on him for like five seconds back in high school, but the feeling that I got just now, of being someplace you’re not wanted.
I’d missed it with Claire, Jase, and Thad and it cost me almost a decade of my life. I wouldn’t make that mistake again. No matter what it cost.
“Sorry, she bothered you.”
“No bother,” I said and waved again without looking back, pumping my legs in long strides to hurry back to the safety of my own space. And there was plenty of it with two storeys plus an attic and basement, so I could get lost for days without needing to surface.
But first, I needed a stiff drink. Ice cold.
And maybe a shrink.
Nash
Holy shit. Viviana Stark. I hadn’t seen her since the night of our high school graduation party when she made a move on me, and I let her down as gently as a horny eighteen-year-old could. She’d been cool about it at the time, but she’d left for Chicago at the beginning of the summer, instead of the end like the rest of us. We were friends who traveled in the same circle, but had never been all that close. I was interested in your basic teenage boy things—sports, girls, and video games—but Viviana didn’t have enough curves back then to hold my attention.
Now though, she had curves in all the right places. And a husky laugh and sleepy eyes that made it look like she just woke up. Fuck me, and she was my neighbor.
“You know Viviana, Dad? That’s a pretty name. Viviana.”
“Yeah, Peanut, we were friends in school, but I haven’t seen her since I was a kid.” And now I wouldn’t be able to get away from her, or the sight of her in that damn blue and white striped bikini top. Those tits were perfect, just a bit more than a handful and shaped like a perfect teardrop. Fuck man, I can’t get hard with my kid around.
“I like her. She’s cool.” That was high praise coming from a girl who had purposely chased off every nanny, babysitter, and caretaker she’d ever had.
“You hardly know her.” Still, it made me wonder what kind of job she had. A single dad could never have too many willing babysitters.
“I know that she doesn’t talk to me like I’m a dummy, and she’s a writer. I bet you didn’t know that.”
“I didn’t. What does she write?” I couldn’t remember what she’d been into in school, only that she’d been at the top of the class every year.
“Books. She said they weren’t right for a girl my age.” Her tone told me exactly what she thought of that idea, but it made me wonder what dirty fantasies she put on paper. “She also said I could hang out with her anytime.”
“That was nice of her.” And it didn’t have a damn thing to do with me. I saw the shock on her face when she realized it was me and I also saw the heat she didn’t even try to hide.
“Yeah, but you were rude, so she might take it back.” Having your eight-year-old kid school you on manners was enough to make any parent want to kick his own ass.
“I wasn’t rude.” Maybe a little gruff, but not rude.
“Whatever.” Norah stomped in the house and I shook my head wondering what in the world I did in a previous life to have been cursed with a girl. Little girls were moody creatures. Emotional land mines I couldn’t navigate to save my life. And to think, she was only eight. Still a few years away from teenage hormones and already, I was flunking out of parenthood.
“I made us something.” I knew I shouldn’t hide in my workshop all day, but my woodworking business had picked up over the past few years thanks to a table commissioned by the First Lady of Louisiana, which meant I rarely got to make anything just for me. Or for Norah.
“Not another bookshelf, Dad.”
“Nope, not another bookshelf,” I told her in a mocking tone that made her laugh. “A coat rack. We still need hooks and knobs, but I figured we could go shopping for them together.”
“Okay.” She sounded like I just asked her to pave the damn driveway.
“What’s wrong, Peanut?”
She sighed, and I knew I just had to wait her out. Norah couldn’t keep anything to herself. If she was angry, she said it. If she was happy, she laughed and did goofy things to make everyone else happy. When she was sad, which was rare, Norah got quiet.
“Are you not dating ‘cause of me?”
“What? No. I’m not dating because of me. I don’t really have the energy to do all that right now.” It had been a couple years since my last real attempt at dating, and it hadn’t gone all that well. She was expecting more than I’d been planning to give, and that was that.
“Pinky swear?”
With a suppressed smile, I hooked my pinky with hers. “Pinky swear. Let me worry about that, you worry about being a kid.”
“Fine. But if you wanna date, you can. I don’t mind.”
“Good to know.” It was the first time she’d mentioned my love life, ever. Which was weird all on its own considering she hadn’t been all that fond of Stephanie and hadn’t made a secret about it. “What brought this on, Norah?”
“Becky Foster is spending the summer in California with her mom and her mom’s new boyfriend. He has a house on the beach. And Callie’s dad just got a whole new wife. You’re way handsomer and you have no one!”
“Ouch.”
“Sorry, Dad, but it’s true. Viviana is really pretty and she’s cool too.” That’s my kid, nothing subtle about her.
* * *
“I hear you got a new neighbor.” My best friend, hell, my only friend, Zeke Riley, sat with me on the back porch while Norah ran around chasing butterflies.
“Norah?” He nodded with a mi
schievous smile. “Said she was real pretty too. Pretty enough to make you mad, and you know that’s a kind of pretty I’ve gotta see.”
“No, you don’t,” I growled at him, feeling possessive when I had no cause. With Norah talking about Vivi nonstop, I couldn’t forget all those curves and that silky creamy skin she didn’t seem to mind showing off. “She’s my neighbor.”
“And a saint, or a nun?”
“I’m not sure, maybe a combination of both since she never turns Norah away. Yesterday, I came out of the workshop at nine and she wasn’t home. They were having a “writing session” if you can believe it.”
The laughter shining in his brown eyes said he couldn’t believe it either. “What was Norah writing?”
“A play.” The disbelief still hadn’t left my voice because that’s what I felt. “She wants to be a playwright. Like Shakespeare. Why me?”
“To be fair, she could want to be a porn star, or something dangerous, like chase serial killers.”
“You always go so dark so fast.” I shook my head and he just shrugged.
“I call it putting things into perspective. She’s got a mentor, that’s a good thing since your dumb ass can’t help her with this kind of stuff.” As usual, Zeke made a good point, which is why I ignored the dumb ass comment.
“I just can’t figure it out, I mean why is she so cool with letting a kid hang out with her?” I’d met more than my share of women who feigned interest in Norah just to get close to me, but I didn’t get that vibe from Viviana. Nanette couldn’t be bothered to stick around, and she’d given birth to Norah. So I had a hard time understanding what motivated Vivi. “I know her. Well, I used to know her, but that was a long time ago.”
“You’re too suspicious, bro. Maybe she’s lonely and just likes having someone to talk to for a little bit.”
Maybe, but I wasn’t convinced. Not yet, anyway. She barely spoke to me when I went to pick up Norah, and she definitely hadn’t made any overtures for sex or a date. “I don’t know, Zeke.”
“What’s to know? Your daughter made a friend, who you used to be friends with, and you’re attracted to her. Big deal.”
He was right. It wasn’t a big deal. Viviana and I were friends once, and there was no reason we couldn’t be friends again. “Exactly. It was just a momentary freak out, that’s all. We can be friends, and you’re right, maybe it’ll be good for Norah to have a woman to hang out with sometimes.” She wasn’t even out of diapers yet when Nanette left me a note saying she wasn’t cut out for motherhood, so she might appreciate someone who could paint nails and play dress up. “It’ll be good.”
“Who’re you trying to convince, me or you?”
That was a good question, and one I had no answer for at the moment. All I had to do was keep things casual. Make sure not to send out any vibes of any kind, and we would be fine. We’d all be fine.
Absolutely fine.
* * *
Vivi & Nash’s story continues here!
About the Author
Piper Sullivan is an old school romantic who enjoys reading romantic stories as much as she enjoys writing them.
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Also by Piper Sullivan
Accidentally Hitched: An Accidental Marriage Romance
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Boxsets & Collections
Kiss Me, Love Me: An Alpha Male Romance Boxset
Accidentally On Purpose:An Accidental Marriage Boxset
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The Takeover Boxset:An Enemies to Lovers Complete Series
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