Always For You (Always Love Book 1) Read online

  Meghan smiled. “Me, too. But while I’ll admit I happen to think my husband is the sexiest, most incredible man in town, I find it hard to believe he’s the last one.”

  “Okay, maybe Rilla’s the one to blame. She snapped up Mason from under our very noses.”

  “Were you interested in Mason?” Meghan’s voice was equal parts surprise and amusement.

  “Not one bit. I mean, the man is seriously hot. He’s built for sin, he’s a huge flirt, and he’s sweet as sugar to boot. But other than that, not my type.” I flipped up the top flaps of a half-packed box.

  “So exactly what is it you’re looking for, if it’s not someone like Sam or Mason?” She started on a new shelf of books.

  “Ah, I didn’t say I wasn’t looking for someone like Sam or Mason. But there are definite aspects of those men I’d love to have in my OAO.”

  “OAO?” Meghan’s forehead wrinkled.

  “One and only.” I winked at her and then tilted my head, thinking. “I guess I’m looking for someone . . . easy. Someone who I can hang out with, who knows me and likes me for who I am. Someone I don’t have to pretend with.” Smiling, I stood up and stretched my back. “Physically, I’m not that picky. A little taller than me, in good shape but not too built, you know? I don’t want to be intimidated by how much he works out. A regular guy.”

  “There’ve got to be tons of regular guys around Burton. Maybe you’re just not looking in the right places.”

  “Oh, yeah? And just where do you think this battalion of regular guys hangs out, pray tell? At Mason’s? At church? Out at the farm stand?”

  Meghan threw up her hands. “I don’t know, Reenie. But you have to put yourself out there to meet people. Your—what did you call him? Your one and only isn’t going to just walk up to your front door and ring the bell.”

  “Maybe he’ll bring in his dog to the clinic. We’ll lock eyes over his only-a-little-bit sick pet, and he’ll say . . . ‘Hello, Dr. Evans. I’m just a regular guy, and I’ve been looking for a girl just like you.’”

  “You’ve been reading too many romance novels.” She lifted a stack of paperbacks. “Exhibit A.”

  “Yeah, whatever. Why shouldn’t my life be like one of those books? I deserve a beautiful happily-ever-after.”

  “Of course you do. I’m just saying you might have to do a little something to make it happen.” Meghan lifted up the box and carried it out of the room. “So is your mom really upset about you moving out?”

  “No. I don’t think so.” I stopped moving for moment. “I mean, I think she’s a little sad. I’m the last chick to leave the nest. Iona’s been gone since she left for college, and Flynn . . .” I rolled my eyes. “He left with all the big drama, of course.”

  “And came back in the same way.” Meghan dropped onto the floor and began to put together one of the flattened boxes. “But it all worked out.”

  “Yup.” My baby brother had left our small town the day after his high school graduation, full of ambition, determination and with a badly broken heart, since his long-time girlfriend Ali Reynolds had changed her mind at the last minute about going with him. He’d only returned about a year and a half ago, when our father had died suddenly. He’d been as surprised as the rest of us to learn that Ali’s daughter Bridget was actually his child.

  As Meghan had said, everything had worked out. Ali and Flynn had gotten married about a year ago, and now they divided their time between New York City and Burton, where they’d built a small house on the Reynolds’ family farm.

  “Still, I don’t think it bothered Mom so much because I was here. Or Dad was. And when I told her my idea about buying the old Walker house, she was as excited as I was.” I wrapped another piece of crystal. “But over the last few weeks, she’s been pretty moody. Maybe it just hit her that I’m really leaving.” The thought of my mom rambling around this big house, lonely and sad, hurt my heart.

  Meghan stepped around boxes and piles of stuff to sit on the bed next to me. “Maureen, this is a good thing. It’s a move forward. You’re buying your own home, and now you own the clinic, too. Your mom knows that, even if it’s going to be an adjustment at first.”

  “I know.” I sniffled a little and dug in the pocket of my jeans for a tissue. “I guess change is always hard.”

  “Helloooooo!” A familiar voice floated up the steps, and I smiled.

  “Up here!” Meghan answered, and we heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps running lightly up the stairs. A few seconds later, my sister-in-law’s head peeked around the corner.

  “What’s this? I thought we were working. Packing and shit.”

  “Ali!” Meghan popped up and clambered over everything blocking her way to the door. “When did you get into town?”

  “Just now, basically. We pulled into the farm, and Sam told me where you were. I left Bridge and Flynn to unpack and settle in. I figured y’all could use some help.” She surveyed the room. “Seems I was right. Shit, Reen, how the hell did you accumulate all this stuff?”

  I shrugged. “I have no idea. And I swear I didn’t have this much crap until I started packing it. Maybe it multiplied.”

  “That sounds possible. Point me in the direction of boxes, and tell me what to do.”

  I pointed to the shelves. “How about helping Meghan finish up the books? That seems like the biggest priority.”

  “On it.” She grabbed a box and began pulling books from a shelf Meghan had begun. “Okay, bitches, tell me all the news. Email and texting is great, but I feel like I never get the real scoop until we talk.”

  “First of all, can we discuss how you talk when you come back from being up north? Since when do you call your friends ‘bitches’?”

  Ali laughed. “Sorry. I need to stop talking Yankee when I hit the Mason-Dixon, huh? But stop trying to divert me, Reenie. I need to know what’s going on with you and one Mr. Smith Harrington.”

  My face grew warm, and I dropped the marker I was using. “Nothing. What do you mean?” I bent over to retrieve the pen.

  “I mean, when we left for New York after Christmas, you were living here, working at the clinic, clinging to the status quo. Then about a month ago, I hear from your mom that you’re taking over Dr. Yancey’s practice, buying a house, and the guy who made your heart go pitty-pat all through college is moving down here. Moving in with you.” She dropped two books into the box and threw up her hands. “What the fu—uhh, I mean, heck? Tell me what happened.”

  I reached for a pile of notebooks and slid them into the box I was packing. “First of all, Mom’s not here, so you don’t have to worry about her yelling at you for your language. Second, Smith isn’t moving in with me. He’s going to rent the upstairs part of my house. Mrs. Walker converted it to a duplex a few years back.”

  “But how did Smith end up being your renter? I didn’t even know you were still in touch with him.”

  I’d forgotten that Ali would probably remember Smith—and that she was one of a very select group of people who’d known about the huge crush I’d had on him. We’d still been friends early in my college years; our estrangement hadn’t happened until the summer before my junior year. Crap.

  “Yeah, we did. Keep in touch, I mean. Nothing big, just emails, social media, that kind of thing.” I worked hard to keep my voice casual. No way did I want Ali making a huge deal out of this. “He was looking around for a new practice, and I knew I didn’t want to try to run Dr. Yancey’s on my own. I’ve got some good ideas for expanding it, but I can’t do that without a partner. So it worked out well.”

  “Mmmmmhmmmmm.” Ali finished her box and began taping it. “And is Mr. Smith Harrington married?”

  I didn’t look up. “Um, no.”

  “And is he currently involved in a relationship?”

  “Not that I’m aware of.”

  “And are you planning to jump his bones?”

  “I don’t—God, Ali. Seriously? Are you fifteen?”

  “Nope. Just morbidly curiou
s.”

  “Well, stop. That whole thing with Smith—that was a long time ago. And keep your mouth shut when he gets here, because he never knew about any of that craziness. Thank God. I’d have been mortified.”

  “Okay, I feel like I just walked into the second act of a play. What’re you talking about?” Meghan looked from her sister-in-law to me. “I thought Smith was just an acquaintance from college. Did you guys date?”

  “No.” I filled that one word with as much emphasis as possible. “We did not. We were very good friends. We still are. And that’s all we’ll ever be.”

  Ali nodded, her face poker straight. “That’s right. They were very good friends. Smith was the very good friend Reenie wanted to screw silly.”

  I groaned and dropped my head into my hands. “Ali. You’re making me regret telling you all my deep-darks way back when.”

  “Too late. And tell me it’s not serendipity, him deciding to move down here. You’ll be in the same town, in the same house, working together . . . sounds like the perfect set-up to me. Time to make some of those sexual fantasies come true.”

  “When did you get such a dirty mind?” I stood up and crossed my arms over my chest.

  “Blame your brother. We’ve been making up for lost time, and he’s very creative. Just the other night, we—”

  I clapped my hands over my ears. “La, la, la, la—I don’t need to hear the disgusting details of your sex life with my little brother.”

  Meghan came over to sit next to me again. “Don’t worry, Reen. If she gets out of hand, I’ll just make sure I talk about what her brother and I did last weekend down at the lake.”

  Ali made a face and held up one hand. “Okay, okay. You win.” She shook her head. “When did it happen that my sisters-in-law ganged up on me like this?”

  “That’s what happens when you spend six months out of the year in the big city, little sister.” I picked my way across the room and folded her into a tight hug. “But we love you anyway. Thanks for coming over to help, even if you are a pain in the ass.”

  “Maureen Ann, language!” The front door slammed shut, and my mother’s words sailed up the steps.

  I rolled my eyes. “Why is it always me she catches? You two could out-swear sailors and she never hears a word.” Raising my voice, I leaned out into the hallway. “Sorry, Mom.”

  She appeared at the top of the stairs, lifting her curling black hair off her neck. “It’s hotter than hades out there. Ali, come here and give me a hug. Look at you, you’re more beautiful than ever.” Mom wrapped Ali in her arms then leaned back, studying her daughter-in-law. I saw my mother’s eyes narrow a little, but she didn’t say anything before she released her. “How’re you girls coming up here? Almost done?”

  “Oh, uh, we’re getting close.” I glanced behind me at the partially-packed boxes and piles of assorted stuff.

  “Hmm.” Mom raised one eyebrow. “Well, pizza’s waiting for you downstairs. Let’s go eat while it’s hot.” She turned and headed down the steps.

  I slung an arm around Ali. “You know what the best part is of you and Flynn and Bridge being back in Burton? It means Mom has three other people to worry about and pester.”

  Ali sighed and shook her head. “Oh, joy.”

  I laughed. “Welcome home, little sister.”

  WHEN I’D PLANNED THIS MOVE to Georgia from Boston, the idea of driving down seemed to make sense. It meant I could transport my baby, my precious car, without worrying about it being damaged. And that was a good thing. What I hadn’t taken into consideration was that the 1965 Corvette hadn’t exactly been designed for long-distance traveling.

  “Why the hell would you want to put all those miles on an antique car?” My brother Fox had shaken his head as he watched me load up my suitcases. “Just use the transport company. They have insurance. They’ll take good care of her.” He’d glanced at his watch. “And I bet we can still get you on a flight down to Hicksville. You’ll beat your wheels down there.”

  “Thanks, but I’m fine. I want to drive down. I’ve never been through some of those states. It’ll be educational.”

  Fox snorted. “Driving along 95 by yourself is only going to teach you how much road trips suck. All you’ll see is trees, trucks and billboards.”

  I closed the trunk and leaned on the car. “You could still come with me. Call Ana, tell her you changed your mind. She thought the two of us driving down together was terrific idea.”

  “That’s because she’s got a soft spot for her little brother-in-law. She still sees you as the pip squeak you were the first time I asked her out. But sorry, I’m not up for a road trip. Things are too busy at work for me to leave right now, plus I’ve been there, done that. Senior year of high school, spring break. Daytona for a week.”

  I frowned. “I don’t remember that.”

  “Yeah, you might not. The parentals weren’t thrilled about it, so they told you and everyone else I’d gone to Europe for the week.” He smirked. “They weren’t always the mellow and laid-back people you know now.”

  Laid-back and mellow were not words I’d used to describe my mother and father, but I wasn’t going to argue the point. “Still, it’d be more fun with me. We could talk. You know, make it a real brotherly love trip. Get in touch with our feelings and shit.”

  Fox laughed. “Maybe another time, buddy. Tell you what, if you make it that long down there in the sticks, I’ll plan a trip for after Christmas. Ana, Jason, Mila and I will all come down, and you can show us your new life. How’s that for a deal?”

  “I’ll hold you to it.” I stuck out my hand. “I’m going to miss you, brother. Keep in touch, okay? And not just through Ana. Call me some time.”

  “Will do.” He shook my hand, and then to my utter shock, pulled me into a rough and brief hug. “Be careful, okay, dude? Stick to the speed limit in South Carolina and Georgia. Those troopers see a city boy in a fancy car, and they’ll pull you over and throw your ass in jail.”

  “Duly noted.” I clapped him on the shoulder. “Hug Ana for me and tell the munchkins Uncle Mitty loves them. And I’ll see you all when you come down.”

  He sketched a salute and stood there, his hands jammed in the pockets of his dress pants, as I drove away from the townhouse that used to be mine. The image of him in my rearview mirror was my final Boston memory.

  And while he hadn’t been exactly wrong about the trip down—I hadn’t seen much beyond miles of pine trees and chain restaurants along the highway—the quiet and the time had still made the drive worth the effort. I’d listened to old music, singing along as loud as I wanted. I’d played some of the radio dramas I’d downloaded onto my phone to while away the miles. And I thought. I spent most of the time doing just that, running my mind over memories I’d tucked away long ago.

  I hadn’t seen Maureen since the end of our second year of vet school, and even then, it had been a casual good-bye. We’d thought we’d be together again when summer ended, but an unexpected opportunity came up for me to spend my third year of school in England. I took it, and by the time I returned to the University of Georgia, Maureen had accepted an internship closer to her hometown. She hadn’t returned for graduation.

  I’d been tempted countless times to drive down to Burton to visit her. Each and every time, I’d chickened out. After all, we were just friends. No matter how much I’d wanted more, she’d never seemed interested or responsive. Friendly, always. Kind to a fault, and unfailingly loyal to our group of friends. But she’d never seemed to quite accept the idea that she was one of us.

  I remembered one sunny afternoon in the spring of our freshman year. We were having an impromptu picnic on the commons to celebrate the return of real warmth. Maureen and Lainey, her roommate, had driven into town for fried chicken, and some of the older guys in our crowd brought a cooler of beer. I joined in a game of Frisbee, pretending I wasn’t showing off for Maureen, until I dropped onto the blanket next to her.

  Sweaty and panting, I reached for a
chicken leg from the container. “This is great. Thanks for getting the chicken.”

  She’d shrugged like it was no big deal, but her cheeks had turned just the slightest bit red. I’d heard her talking to the girls once, chalking up her tendency to blush to her Irish heritage. Whatever, it was damn sexy. Made me want to see how far down that pink tint went.

  “Oh, it wasn’t a problem. I was just happy to be invited.” She smiled at me, and for a minute, I forgot to breathe. I’d been in serious lust mode for this girl since before Christmas break. Actually, I’d liked her from the moment we met the day we moved into the dorms. Maureen had been ahead of me on the steps as I carried a box to my room. I’d noticed her several trips back, as I’d lugged belongings to my room, but this was the first time I’d gotten close enough to really check her out. Her mom trudged next to her, and they were chatting as they climbed. Preoccupied with checking out her very fine ass, covered in a pair of worn denim shorts, I wasn’t ready when Maureen suddenly stopped and turned, her overstuffed backpack missing my face by mere inches.

  For a minute, I’d teetered on the step, with visions of falling backward and ending my college career before it began. But her mom reached out just in time, grabbing my arm, and all was well.

  That near-miss had led to an introduction and eventually an easy friendship. I’d liked her soft Georgia drawl, the way her eyes lit up whenever she was excited about something and the wicked sense of humor that she only shared with her closest friends. The like I felt for her had slowly evolved into something more, and by the time she’d given me a quick hug and a kiss on my cheek before we’d left college for Christmas vacation, I’d realized I wanted us to move beyond friendship.

  But it wasn’t an easy transition to make. When I’d casually asked Maureen if she’d like to go out to eat, she’d said yes—and then invited three of our other friends to join us. That scenario repeated itself until I nearly gave up. I was almost convinced that she was trying to let me down easy because she didn’t see me as any more than a friend.