Hunks: Opposites Attract
A novel of erotic romance by
Marie Rochelle
Published by Phaze Books
Also by Marie Rochelle
A Taste of Love: Richard
Alpha Male Incorporated: Under Your Protection
Closer to You: Lee
My Deepest Love: Zack
All the Fixin’
Caught
Caught 2: Anja’s Return
Closer to You: Lee
My Deepest Love: Zack
Crossing the Railroad
Desire
The Men of CCD: Loving True
The Men of CCD: Tempting Turner
The Men of CCD: Slow Seduction
The Men of CCD: Help Wanted
Lucky Charms
So Much Better
Taken by Storm
Roped Into You
This is an explicit and erotic novel
intended for the enjoyment
of adult readers. Please keep
out of the hands of children.
www.Phaze.com
Hunks: Opposites Attract
Copyright © 2012 by Marie Rochelle
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Edited by Judy Bagshaw
Cover Art © 2012 by Niki Browning
First Edition January 2012
ISBN-13: 978-1-60659-647-0
SMASHWORDS EDITION
Published by:
Phaze Books
An imprint of Mundania Press LLC
6457 Glenway Ave., #109
Cincinnati, OH 45211
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, Mundania Press LLC, 6457 Glenway Avenue, #109, Cincinnati, Ohio 45211, books@mundania.com.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
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Dedication
You never know when your Prince Charming
might be right around the corner.
Prologue
“I’m so glad you could meet me for lunch. I thought you might turn me down because you were shut away in your office working on that blog of yours,” Shauntie Kane complained as her best friend Sapphire Rhodes joined her at the table. “I don’t know how you find time to do it with your already hectic work schedule.”
“I wasn’t working on my blog if you have to know,” Sapphire replied as she placed her purse on the chair next to her. “I’ve been having writer’s block lately. I can’t think of anything new to write about once I get home from work. You know how much I love posting to my blog when I’m not at the dentist’s office. It helps me clear my head and get my mind off my non-existent love life.”
Shauntie picked up her lemonade and took a sip placing it back on the table in front of her. “Are you still worried about finding a guy before New Year’s Eve? Don’t let Emerald’s little competition get to you. She’s just acting crazy as usual. You don’t really have to find a guy before your favorite holiday.
“See how Nash came into my life when I wasn’t even expecting him? I mean your guy is out there. How about you come with me and Nash to New York this year and watch the ball drop? I know it used to be me, you and Emerald for such a long time. She cancelled going this year, but I would still love to go with you. Nash doesn’t care if you come either. He knows how it used to be our thing. He even volunteered to stay home, so what about it?”
Sapphire flicked her hair over her shoulder as she stared at her girlfriend of almost twenty years wondering how Shauntie could even ask her about going to New York now. She didn’t want to come off as envious of what Shauntie had found with Nash, but she didn’t want to be the third wheel on their romantic getaway either.
Nash was the only man she knew who would have taken everything Shauntie tossed his way without blinking an eye and ended up winning her heart. They were so perfect together which amazed her since Shauntie had been so dead set against falling in love again.
“Come on, you know what’s different now. You also understand why Emerald decided not to go this year either. Please don’t pretend that you don’t.” She sighed. “All of us were single the last time we made the trip to New York. Now, one of us is in a relationship so it changes everything. Remember that one blond bartender who liked you and gave all of us a free drink?”
“Yeah, he was very good-looking. I loved how his hazel eyes looked more green than brown,” Shauntie recalled with a faint smile to her full lips.
“We aren’t able to do those things anymore, besides I don’t want to be considered a tag-along friend. You go and have fun with Nash. Lately, I’ve gotten used to being by myself on New Year’s Eve anyway. Don’t you recall how I was all alone last year and the previous year? This New Year isn’t going to be much different in my opinion.”
Sapphire had thought about being honest with Shauntie and then changed her mind. Her best friend should know the real reason behind her decision not to visit Times Square this year. It wasn’t anything against her or Nash, but she couldn’t stand there and watch Shauntie and Nash staring into each other eyes. It would be a little too much for her since Shauntie hadn’t even been on board about the find your hunk challenge from Emerald.
“I can’t believe you aren’t going to New York because you think Nash will have a problem with it,” Shauntie complained. “He was the one who told me to come and make sure you were invited. You and Emerald wouldn’t be considered third wheels if you came with us.”
Undoubtedly, Nash probably told Shauntie to invite her again because he was such a good guy, but no man wished to ring in the New Year with his girlfriend and her single best friend only a few steps behind them as the ball dropped.
This was going to be one of those times that Shauntie wasn’t going to get her way. Sapphire wasn’t going to New York and that was the end of it.
“Tell Nash I was very touched by the offer, but my answer is still no. You go and have a great time with him. I’m going to stay here and think about the next entry for my blog. I want to have it up by New Year’s Eve. I don’t have a lot of time left to get something into my laptop. My followers are waiting for a new post and I’m having writer’s block.”
“What’s going on with you, Sapphire?” Shauntie asked as she leaned across the table concern etched on her pretty face. “You never run out of things to write about. I think the last time I was on there your followers had grown by at least two hundred people. I remember how you wrote about how the two of us first met each other.”
“Oh, I remember how you grabbed those killer pair of black heeled boots right out my hand at the shopping center,” Sapphire laughed, waving at finger at Shauntie then reaching for her salad fork.
“You had already placed those boots back on the shelf before my hand got anywhere near them. I got them fair and square. You always have a memory lapse when it comes to that story.”
Alright, Sapphire was woman enough to admit that Shauntie was telling her the truth, but the way she had written it on her blog was so much funnier. Especially with the two cartoon women fighting over a pair of shoes she’d added. In less than seventy-two hours, the shoe entry gained her a hundred more members. Somehow, the crazy shoe incident turned them into best friends instead of enemies like it would have done most teenage girls back then.
She loved Emerald a lot and would do anything for her, but Shauntie was like a sister to her. When Sapphire moved here from out of state away from her family, she didn’t know how Shauntie would act once she laid eyes on her; however, her best friend had welcomed her with open arms. No one knew how good it felt to have a close female friend to confide in. There were just some things Sapphire knew she couldn’t tell to Emerald.
Now, here she was wishing for another real life post for her struggling blog. All of her loyal followers responded to her much more candidly when she revealed events that had occurred in her real life rather than when she discussed current events.
Sapphire agreed to have lunch with Shauntie in hopes her girlfriend could help her come up with a cute or creative idea for her next blog post.
“I can’t believe you’re having a hard time thinking of something to write. Your blog is always so informative not to mention creative,” Shauntie said before she reached for her drink again.
How could she tell her best friend that a part of her was worried if she still had the touch to keep her blog talked about?
What if she was losing her creative ‘touch’?
Sapphire hated the thought of closing down her blog because she couldn’t draw in a wider range of followers besides other business women and housewives. She needed to spice things up with something that would have everyone talking and sending more people towards her blog. Over the past couple of months she’d written with her reader in mind, keeping everything energetic and as interesting as possible.
Her blog was the device she used after a long day at work to unwind; it was something she did just to get away from everyone else for a few moments. Plus, it kind of gave her a little kick having so many people interested in her personal life. She tried to write like she was speaking to one of her girlfriends or even to herself
Sighing, Sapphire played with a fork on the table trying to think of a way to make Shauntie understand her concerns. Her blog was important to her since it was the devise she used to clear her head after a long trying day at work.
“I’m telling you the truth. Every time I sit down to type one of my famous one-liners my mind comes up blank. I’m not used to having problems like this. I usually have to drag myself away from the computer because my mind is racing with ideas. What’s going on with me?”
Shauntie looked at her over the rim of her empty glass before setting it back down in front of her. “I think you need to get away. I’m sure some fresh air away from the hustle of the city will help you out a lot. Your mind is probably in overload and needs something different to stimulate it.”
“I’ve already told you that I’m not going to New York.” Why wasn’t Shauntie listening to her?
“Will you please let me finish? You need to get some patience.”
Excitement shone in Shauntie’s eyes like the most amazing idea in the world just dropped down from the sky and hit her on the head. “I’m not talking about going to Times Square,” she said. “How about you go to that little cottage I bought at the end of last year. You were so relaxed when we were there to celebrate Emerald’s promotion. I think it’ll be the perfect place for you to ring in the New Year. It’s off by itself. How about it? Nash and I were going to go there until he told me to continue my tradition of going to New York for the countdown. Do you still have the keys I gave you?”
A newly awakened sense of happiness filled Sapphire’s body at the sudden suggestion. Shauntie was so right! She’d loved being out there. Truthfully, she’d hated when she’d had to pack her bags and leave. She hadn’t been that content or relaxed in years.
The cottage would be the ideal location for her to visit and work on her blog while on vacation from her job. She wasn’t going to find a man way out there, but there was a damn good chance she might get her artistic juices back. Sapphire could barely contain her excitement, but it quickly got banked.
The offer was wonderful and very sweet. Shauntie was truly the best friend anyone could ask but she couldn’t take her up on this. She didn’t want to go there when Shauntie hadn’t even spent time there yet with Nash.
“It’s so nice of you to offer but I can’t stay at the cottage,” she answered disappointment clear in her voice. “You should go there first with Nash and enjoy the solitude.”
Shauntie looked around the busy lunch crowd and then leaned in closer to her. “Don’t worry about Nash and me not enjoying ourselves. We find a lot of places inside my house and his to have a good time. I can promise you that we don’t need the cottage right this second.”
Sapphire couldn’t help herself as she burst out laughing. It rang out loudly throughout the crowded restaurant making every single customer’s head turned in their direction before Sapphire covered her mouth with her hand.
“Oh, should I have kept that little tidbit to myself?” Shauntie asked moving back in her seat. “I think you’d like to know that I’m being a little more adventurous. Emerald isn’t the only one who can tell racy stories about her sex life.”
“Girl, you are so bad,” Sapphire answered as she moved her hand away from her mouth. “I don’t need to know those intimate details.”
God, she never knew what Shauntie was going to tell her at any given moment nowadays since Nash came into her friend’s life.
A wide eyed innocent look passed over Shauntie’s beautiful face like she was surprised by her confession. “Sorry,” Shauntie answered. “I thought you wanted to know if Nash and I need the cottage and I thought I would let you know that we didn’t.”
Sapphire knew her friend was only trying to help her out and she appreciated it a lot. She would be crazy not to take her up on her generous offer. She wasn’t getting anything done here.
Why not take a trip away?
It might just be the thing she needed to get her mind going down the right path. She recalled how her mother raised her that if someone was kind enough to offer you a helping hand tell them ‘Thank You’ and take it.
“How soon do you think I could leave?” Sapphire asked, already envisioning herself sitting at the huge bay window typing away on her laptop.
At the very back of the cabin was a breathtaking pond that, in the spring and summer, had wildflowers growing along the edge. Since the weather was a lot colder now hopefully the pond had already frozen over and she might be able to do a little ice skating while she was there.
Sapphire loved going ice skating at the rink anytime she was lucky enough to get a chance, but lately she’d been so swamped with work and trying to figure out how to change her personal life. She hadn’t even thought about lacing up her skates until now.
A trip back to the cottage would be an amazing way for her to do two things she loved: working on her blog and ice skating. She could light a fire, put on some music and relax with a glass of her favorite wine.
Sure, she would be alone instead of kissing a hot guy like half the world might be doing after the ball dropped, but it honestly didn’t sound like a bad way for her to start off her New Year.
Perhaps this is what she was supposed to be doing instead of being so worried about her single status. Sapphire thought it would be right this time for her to focus on enriching her own life with a stronger self-worth.
“You can leave as soon as you want,” Shauntie replied. “However, I haven’t bought any groceries or supplies for the cottage since we were there. So, I think you should grab some things from the store before you head out on the road. Everything else should be fine once you get there. Are you sure that you’re okay staying way out there by yourself? I can have Nash send Brian or Chance to check on you after a couple of days.”
“Shauntie, I’m not a child. I can handle being out in isolation for a little while,” she replied, insulted that her best friend thought she would be frightened of the woods at night.
Leaning back in her chair, Shauntie held up her hands in mock surrender. “Okay, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have implied that you couldn’t handle being alone. I forget how tough the great Sapphire Rhodes is. Please forgive me.”
“Keep it up and see what you get,” Sapphire laughed. “Are you really happy with Nash?” she asked, changing the subject. “Have you gotten over that he’s related to J.T.?”
Dropping her hand, Shauntie stared at her from across the table. “I have to be honest. At first I thought it was something I wouldn’t be able to see past ever. But when Nash was gone and I thought I’d lost him I missed him like crazy. The separation made me realize how much I truly cared about him. He’s the man I’m in love with.”
“Do you still have a problem with him making less money than you?” Sapphire asked.
“Lack of money isn’t what I think about when I see Nash,” said Shauntie with a smile. “Yes, I might make a little more money than him, but our love for each other surpasses the amount on the check we deposit into the bank. He treats me with respect and love, two things that money can’t buy no matter how hard some people might try to use it for that situation.”
An instant squeezing hurt wrapped its hand around Sapphire’s heart as she listened to Shauntie talk about her relationship with Nash. She was thrilled that her friend had found the love of her life, but there was a touch of envy inside of her. She was still alone.
“What about you?” The question was tossed out there so suddenly that Sapphire was momentarily stunned by the change of topic.
“What do you mean what about me?” she asked confused about what Shauntie wanted to know.
“Wasn’t there a guy you were going to ask out on a date? Did you ever do it? I never heard anymore about him from you.”
She had only brought up the sexy mailman once to Shauntie. Sapphire had forgotten what an excellent memory her girlfriend had. She should have known she wasn’t going to get out of here without being asked a question about a man or her lack of one.
“No, I never asked him out a date,” she replied. “The opportunity never came up and I wasn’t going to force anything. Besides, it would have been a little strange for me to go up to a total stranger and ask him out. “
Shauntie’s eyebrows rose in amazement. “Sapphire, how do you think people get to know each other? Most couples started off being strangers first until one of them gets enough nerve to ask the other person out. Please don’t tell me you didn’t do it because you were scared of getting rejected?”
Unconsciously, Sapphire’s brow furrowed. “No, I’m not scared of rejection. I just decided not to ask him out on a date and there was nothing more to it. So, can we just leave it alone?”
“Sorry. I won’t bring him up again. I didn’t mean to upset you. How about we get out of here? I need to go home and pack for my trip because I won’t be able to do anything when Nash comes over later,” Sapphire teased as she got up from the table.
“God...I don’t want to hear about your sex life when mine is dead and buried,” Sapphire complained as she stood up. “I might as well start looking into adopting multiple cats and find a rocking chair for my front porch.”
“Your sex life isn’t dead nor is it buried. I think it’s on a little vacation for the moment. It will probably be up and running before you know it. All you have to do is find the right man and you’ll be telling me all of your juicy secrets.” Spinning away from her, Shauntie headed toward the front of the restaurant.
Yeah right, Sapphire thought as she followed Shauntie.
She was more positive there weren’t any juicy secrets in her future to tell anyone especially not Emerald or Shauntie. Hell, Emerald would end up fulfilling her end of the deal before she even got her foot into the door of a new relationship.
Chapter One
“Man, do you have to be in such a good mood all the time since you got involved with Shauntie? You haven’t been dating her that long and you’re already acting like an old married couple,” Brian Terry complained, tossing back bourbon and coke before slamming the glass down on the bar counter.
“How can I not be the happiest man in the world?” Nash Wentworth, his childhood buddy boasted. “I finally got the most flawless woman in the world and I’m planning to ask her to marry me on our trip to New York.”
Brian’s bluish-gray eyes narrowed and hardened as he stared at Nash. “Don’t you think you’re moving a little fast here? You haven’t been dating Shauntie for that long. Yes, she’s gorgeous, but don’t you want to wait a little while longer before you put a ring on her finger? You can’t know everything you need to know about her yet.”
Easing back from him, Nash folded his arms over his chest. “Nothing you can come up with will make me change my mind about asking Shauntie to marry me. I’m in love with her. I loved her before she even knew who I was. My feelings have only grown stronger.”
“Isn’t there anything I can say or do to make you rethink his stupid mistake?” Brian demanded. “I know Chance’ll be on my side with this one. You just aren’t ready to be a married man yet.”
“I’m not going to listen to any of this while you’re nursing this bottle,” Nash said, moving the liquor bottle out of Brian’s reach. “Do you want to tell me why your housekeeper Nina called me over here? I was on my way to Shauntie’s house to help her pack for our trip when I got the phone call. Why are you drinking this early in the afternoon? Is there a reason why you aren’t at work today? I thought you were trying to save up your personal days, so you could take a trip this summer?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Brian got up from his seat and reached for the bourbon, but Nash got to it first.
“Brian, you’ve had enough to drink. Just tell me what’s going on with you. You aren’t much of a drinker, so what made you go into your secret stock and pull this out. Just tell me what’s going on with you. As long as I’ve known you, I don’t ever recall you drowning your problems in liquor.”
Leaning back in the chair, Brian ran his hands through his hair and then down his face. Minutes ticked by without any sort of an answer and Nash was beginning to get worried. His buddy wasn’t the kind of man to keep things to himself. Sometimes, he was like an open book to him and Chance.
“I want Shauntie,” Brian mumbled.
“What in the fuck are you talking about?” Nash snapped. He grabbed Brian by the front of his shirt yanking him up from his chair. “Why in the hell do you want my girlfriend?”
Brian wrapped his hand around Nash’s wrist and tried to yank it away from his shirt, but he didn’t let go.
“Nash, you misunderstood me,” he gasped as his buddy’s grip grew tighter.
“How did I misunderstand you? I heard you loud and clear. There’s no way in hell that I’m going to allow you to get near Shauntie again. She’s going to be my fiancée after this trip is over. Do you hear me?”
Struggling against the hard grip on his body, Brian kept pulling until Nash finally decided to let go. “God man... are you trying to kill me?” He coughed a couple of times trying to get oxygen back into his lungs.
“How in the hell do you expect me to react when my best friend tells me he wants my woman?” Nash shouted, shoving him. “Do you think I would take a comment like that lying down? I should be kicking your ass right now.”
Stumbling backwards, Brian grabbed the edge of the table so he wouldn’t fall over onto the floor. “Stop it Nash!” he hollered. “You didn’t let me finish the rest of my sentence before went all crazy and attacked me.”
“Brian, I wasn’t twenty feet from you. Do you expect me to be okay with your comment?” Nash snapped.
“I wasn’t talking about wanting your Shauntie. I only meant I wanted a woman like your girlfriend. A female who will be able to see past what I might not be able to give her to the man underneath.”
Brian grabbed the arm of the chair and fell back down into it. He made a mental note to never bring up Nash’s girlfriend unless it was something to do with them as a couple. He didn’t want his buddy trying to kick his ass again over a few misspoken words.
If he ever doubted Nash was in love with Shauntie, he knew that he was now by his reaction. Brian also made a mental note to warn Chance not to bring up Shauntie in conversation either.
“You’ll never have a woman like Shauntie because you’re too worried about what she might think about you. In addition, I don’t think you could handle being with a woman who made more money than you.”
“Nash, you’re so far off the mark.” Brian hated that his friend had figured out a small part of his problem. “I would be able to handle if my girlfriend’s paycheck was bigger than mine. How can you say I can’t handle having less money than my woman?”
“Are you trying to tell me that you asked out that attractive doctor you were interested in? I never heard anymore about her,” Nash asked calling him out on his lie.
“So, what if I didn’t ask her out on a date?” he demanded tired of the way this conversation was headed. “What business is it of yours? There could have been another reason besides her money. Maybe I thought our personalities wouldn’t blend well together. Did you ever think about that?”
Shaking his head, Nash took a seat at the table stretching his long legs out in front of him. “All I’m saying is that you need to think about why you didn’t ask her out on a date? From what little you told me about her, she showed some interest in you. Why do you think she would have turned down an invitation to lunch or for a cup of coffee?”
“Did you feel any kind of apprehension with Shauntie?” Brian asked him. “I mean were you ever nervous she would laugh at you for asking her out on a date?”
“Not at all,” Nash replied, honestly. “I knew that I already had feelings for Shauntie. My only problem was how to get her to see me and what might happen when she found out the truth about J.T. However, I got lucky. Shauntie was amazing enough to forgive me about my cousin.”
“I hate to admit it but you’re right. I should have asked her out but now I can’t because of the holiday break, but I’ll do it as soon as I go back to work. So, tell me about this trip you’re taking Shauntie on. Does she have any clue that you’ll pop the question?”
Grinning from ear to ear, Nash shook his head. “She doesn’t have a clue. I got some help from her two best friends about the ring she might like. I swore both of them to secrecy, so I’m crossing my fingers they’ll keep their words. When are you going to get some free time so I can introduce you to Shauntie’s friends? She’s met mine and I want my buddies to meet hers.”
“Every time I’m ready to meet them, Chance backs out at the very last minute. I don’t want to do it by myself and get the third degree from two women I don’t know. Chance has to be there with me. He’s better with comebacks then I am and we both know it.”
His expression stilled and grew serious. “You’re right. Chance isn’t sticking to his word. How about Shauntie and I pick out a day and then get back with you and Chance? I’ll make sure Chance doesn’t find a way to back out on us. I wonder why he’s doing it anyway,” Nash questioned.
“Chance thinks you’re going to try to fix him up with one of Shauntie’s friends. He isn’t interested in being fixed up when he doesn’t have a problem finding his own women,” Brian told him.
“I’ve never tried to fix up Chance before, so why is he so worried I’ll do it now? I don’t care who he’s dating. It’s his life and he can run it any way he wants. God, he should know me better than that by now. Enough about Chance,” Nash said. “I came here to see you. Tell me, are you going to do anything special since you turned down my invitation to go on the trip with me and Shauntie?”
“No, I’ll probably just stay at home and watch the ball drop on television,” Brian admitted. “Chance is going out with some new girl he met while at a convenience store. You know how much women love Chance in his police uniform.”
“Yeah, I’ve been around a few times when Chance’s uniform has gotten him some phone numbers. He doesn’t have to do much to draw their attention. I can’t blame him for calling them. He’s single and isn’t interested in anything serious.
“Brian, you need to do more than sit at home on New Year Eve’s. How about you get away for a few days and relax?” Nash suggested. “I know you’ve wanted to do something like that for a while. A mini vacation will do you some good. It will give you time to think about how you’re going to ask that woman you wouldn’t tell me about.”
Brian loved Nash’s idea, but there was only one little problem with it. Where in the hell was he going to go at this short notice? All the places he thought about were probably already booked weeks or even months ahead of time.
“I love you have this big plan for me, but do you also have the just the right place for me to take this sabbatical of yours? I mean it might be kind of hard to find anywhere to stay at such short notice,” Brian pointed out.
“Well...I... I hadn’t thought that far in advance,” Nash admitted, “but I’m sure I can come up with something. Just give me a minute to think about it.”
“Sure,” Brian laughed, but without humor. “I can give you two hours and you still wouldn’t be able to think of a nice, quiet location for me to relax over the New Year’s Eve holiday. Thanks again for your suggestion, but I’m going to stick with what I had in mind at first.”
For a long moment, Nash looked back at him and Brian wondered what was going on inside of his head. He watched as the different thoughts reflected across his friend’s face, but none of them were a clue to what Nash was thinking about or even if he would let him in on it.
“I have it!” Nash shouted, grinning at him. “I know where I can send you. This is just the spot you need to be and I know you will enjoy it.”
Brian was curious about where Nash wanted to ship him off to after he saw the changes on his face. “Well, are you going to tell me or do I have to play twenty questions with you?”
“You can stay at Shauntie’s cottage. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before now. Here let me give you the key.” Reaching into his pocket, Nash dug out his keys and then took off the key ring Shauntie had given to him.
He tossed it on the table in front of Brian. “It’s very secluded and you can stay there until the New Year. I know Shauntie won’t care at all.”
Picking up the key, Brian gave Nash a long glance of utter disbelief. He was stunned by his friend’s generosity that he didn’t know what to say. “Are you sure about this,” he asked, twirling the key between two of his fingers. “Don’t you think that you should ask Shauntie about this first?” His excitement might be short lived if Shauntie pulled the rug from underneath both of them about the cottage. He didn’t want to be what caused a fight between Nash and Shauntie.
“Go upstairs and start getting packed. Shauntie won’t care at all. She told me she never goes to the cottage during cold weather and since it’s empty why not let you get some enjoyment out of it? Are you going to think of another way to turn down my offer?”
Brian held the key up and then glanced back over at Nash. This was the best idea his buddy could have come up with at a moment’s notice. He wasn’t stupid and only a dumb man would turn this down.
“I think I’m going on a little trip,” Brian answered as his hand closed around the key ring.
“Great! I know you’re going to find everything you need at the cottage. From the way, Shauntie talks about the area, it’s a dream come true for anyone who loves the wilderness.”
“Sounds like it’ll be just what I’ve been waiting for.” Brian was more than excited. He was still at the idea of being alone the next couple of days. The time alone with give him another chance to think about if he should go along with the career change he was thinking about.
The cottage might end up being the answer to all of his problems.
Chapter Two
“Shauntie, will you stop worrying about me so much because I know what I’m doing.”” Sapphire held the cell phone to her ear with one hand while she pulled up the cottage and parked. “I told you when I called you from the gas station that I could find this place again. I’m excellent when it comes to direction.”
Turning off the car, Sapphire stared out the windshield at the light powdering of snow on the ground and on the cottage’s roof. The whiteness of the fresh untouched snow on the porch contrasted with the dark blue siding drawing her eyes to the white rocking chair on the wrap-around porch. The image could have been placed in a Hallmark movie about a city woman going back to her country roots.
Everything about Shauntie’s picturesque little cottage brought a smile to Sapphire’s face. She loved being here with the peace and quiet surrounding her.
What more could she ask for?
“Sapphire, are you still there?” Shauntie asked, drawing her out of her hypnotic state.
Well, that lasted about five seconds. She wasn’t going to get any peace until she gave Shauntie what she wanted.
Sighing into the phone, Sapphire answered her overprotective best friend. “Yes, I’m still here. I was just getting lost in how beautiful the cottage looks this time of year. Remember when we came here it was the middle of summer. The place looks totally amazing with the snow covering the ground. You really should have come here with Nash. It’s very romantic.”
“I’m not about to give up on a trip to New York to see some snow on the ground and maybe a deer or two in the forest. You make it sound like something out of a Disney movie and I’ve never considered myself Snow White. No, you can have the place all to yourself. I’ll tell Nash all about it when he gets back home. He went to check on Brian and then he was going shopping for our trip. We’re trying to get everything taken care of today before our flight.”
“I still can’t believe you fell in love with Nash and now you’re going out of town with him. Wasn’t I the one who took the challenge with Emerald about finding a man before my favorite holiday?” Sapphire said. “You hated the idea and vowed not to get involved at all; however, you were the one who did it in a matter of weeks. Do you have some kind of magical powers I don’t know about? Care to share some of it with me?” Sapphire teased, as she grabbed her purse out of the passenger seat.
“Come on. You already know that Nash did most of the work in our relationship.” Shauntie pointed out trying to make her feel better. Yet, both of them knew Emerald would set her sights on someone guy and win him over. There wasn’t a man in the world that Emerald couldn’t charm with her personality and smile. “I wouldn’t have gone to the lengths he did to win me over. I couldn’t ask for a better man. But you shouldn’t give up. New Year’s Eve isn’t here yet. You might end up accomplishing what you set out to do. Don’t forget that Emerald hasn’t found her hunky man yet either,”
Looking around the woods which surrounded the cottage, Sapphire seriously doubted that her dream man was going to walk out of the forest. This wasn’t a romance novel, but real life she was living in. Men just didn’t appear out of thin air when a woman was searching for her Mr. Right.
Hell... there wasn’t even a Forest Ranger anywhere around here. She loved that Shauntie had such faith in her abilities to make a man come to her before New Year’s Eve, but she lived in reality which meant she knew it wasn’t going to happen.
“Okay...you believe that nonsense, but I’m about to head into the cottage and start a fire. After I’m finished unpacking I’m going to relax in front of it with a nice cup of hot chocolate.”
“Don’t give up. You really never know what could happen.”
Opening the car door, Sapphire got out slamming the car door behind her. She loved how the snow crunched under the heels of her boots. “I’ll try to call you back later on after I’m finished. How long will you and Nash be up? I don’t want to interrupt anything,” she teased.
“Call as late as you want,” Shauntie told her. “I’m still deciding what to pack and anyways it’s only like a little after two o’clock here. I still can’t believe you got there so fast. The last time I drove there it took me at least four hours.”
“I told you I’m very good with directions and I took some back roads to get off the main highway to cut down on time. So, I’m going to let you go and I’ll call you back about seven o’clock. Cross your fingers that I’ll be able to get something down for my blog.”
“I wish you luck on your blog. Just don’t talk about me too much. I know you can get carried away with it sometimes; but most of all, I just want you to relax and stop worrying so much. You already have an amazing career which means the rest of your life should be easy.”
“Shauntie, I know I do, but sometimes I wish I still had a little more.”
“I’m not blind I can tell you’re lonely and there’s nothing wrong with wanting a man in your life. Good luck again with your blog and have some fun while you’re out there,” Shauntie told her before hanging up.
Pressing the end button on her phone, Sapphire tossed it back into her purse and took a few seconds breathing in the fresh clear air. She listened as birds rustled around in the trees and other animals moved around in the thick forest away from her. How could anyone not find the surroundings beautiful? If anything could jump start her writing skills, it would be here.
At first, she was a nervous about being out here by herself; however, now that she was here she knew keeping her inner fear to herself was a good thing because Shauntie would have changed her plans and found a way to come with her.
She loved her best friend dearly and would do anything in the world for her, but now wasn’t the time she wanted or needed a sidekick to help her get through her problems. .
Secretly, Sapphire hoped she didn’t get caught in the beauty of being out of the city and end up not having one idea for her blog. She wanted to get inspiration from her solitude and not get ruined by it.
Hopefully, she would be able keep her word to Shauntie and tonight her fingers would be dancing across the keyboard working on a new creative topic for her loyal followers of Sapphire’s World.
Moving away from the car, she strolled around the back then unlocked the trunk. Sapphire grabbed everything she needed out of it before slamming it shut. Placing her suitcase on the ground, she pulled it behind her while carrying her bags of groceries with her other hand grateful Shauntie had told her about grabbing food before coming out here. She wasn’t planning on going back into town until it was time for her to leave.
Going up the front steps of the cottage, Sapphire stopped on the porch and placed the groceries next to her luggage before digging the front door keys out of her purse. She slipped the key into the lock, turned it and then pushed the door open. Spinning around, she picked up all of her items.
Once inside, Sapphire kicked the door closed with her foot. She stopped in her tracks as she got lost in the tranquility of being back at the cottage. Everything was just as she remembered from the first time she came here and a part of her loved that Shauntie hadn’t changed the homey decorating.
The dark brown sectional sofa with the floral design was still positioned towards the back of the room a few inches in front of the huge bay window that overlooked the frozen pond. Off to the left side of the window was a medium sized built-in bookshelves filled with a huge collection of books. Another matching shelf was on the right side to accommodate more storage needs.
Three light russet lamps were strategically placed at both ends of the sofa on top of two end tables with the third one at the side of the bookcase. Hanging on the far wall behind the couch was a long mirror giving the room a bigger feel than normally would be in the space.
Directly in front of the living room table was a closet-style storage unit that was concealed behind standard louvered doors hiding a 27-inch television. Other electrical goodies like a home entertainment system were placed there too just in case someone wanted to listen to music.
Other pieces of furniture like a huge comfy plush chair, a small circular table with four wingback chairs and one more handsome made bookshelf completed the entire living space turning it into a mini paradise for any one lucky enough to be staying here.
Sapphire was thrilled she was that person. Shauntie was too good to her and she would have to find a way to make it up to her. Her girlfriend absolutely knew of the most amazing place for her to come and alleviate all of the stress from her year.
How could anyone not fall in love with all of this?
Picking up the grocery bags, Sapphire decided to get all of the food put away before heading upstairs and choosing which one of the four bedrooms she would sleep in. Walking across the room, she went through the door separating the kitchen from the living room.
She placed the four bags on the white island in the center of the kitchen. Looking around, Sapphire couldn’t get over how this room spoke volumes about Shauntie’s decorating style. The white cabinets with the print border only complimented the stunning gingham on the French doors to the pantry. The blinds on the windows above the kitchen sink gave the space a little added light it needed.
Sapphire took everything out of the bags and organized all of her items inside the cabinets, pantry and refrigerator. She didn’t want to spend too much time in here. Sapphire hoped to get settled in pretty quickly. Since there were already several ideas running through her head she wanted to get onto her computer.
Leaving the kitchen, Sapphire hurried back into the living room and picked up her suitcase before going up the staircase. She had thought about getting something to eat, but that was before her mind got stimulated with new ideas.
Chapter Three
The bedroom was perfect.
Taking a sip of her hot cocoa with mini-marshmallows, Sapphire couldn’t keep the thought from filtering back into her head as she walked around the frozen pond at the back of the cottage.
After she had gone upstairs, Sapphire had spent a few minutes checking out all of the bedrooms before finally the last one captured everything she was looking for while she was here on her mini-vacation.
A huge pine four-poster bed stood proudly in the center of the room beckoning her to stay there. The predominant teal mixed with a touch of ocher colors relaxed her mind the second she walked through the door. She couldn’t help but envision herself curled up in the middle of the night with her laptop, working away on her blog
. None of the second hand finds Shauntie used to decorate the space from the antique chest at the front of the bed to the reupholstered armchair by the window brought down the beauty of the room. Even the turquoise table to the left side of the bed was shabby chic.
The sweet smell of nature filled her nose as the wind through the trees gave the backyard a feel of tranquility Sapphire wasn’t getting from the city.
Everything about the cottage was ‘picture perfect’. Even the birds flying one tree to another made the stress of her writer’s block leave her body clearing her cluttered mind. The cottage was the total opposite from her. Nothing about her was relaxing or calming. Her creative mind was always flowing until a couple of weeks ago when she hit a roadblock.
Sapphire had spent so much time working on the dental care of her patients over the last five years that she’d gotten used to putting everyone else’s need before her own. Noise and chaos seemed like they were the front runners in her life now.
Yet, now that she was all alone, Sapphire saw the reason why Shauntie encouraged her to spend the rest of the month here away from the city. Who wouldn’t be inspired to do something incredible surrounded by such beauty?
Most of her life she had made a vow to herself that she wanted to be a successful career woman and not a woman who stayed at home with the kids while her husband worked. Being a success in the medical field was her main focus.
As a young girl Sapphire had made a very important decision concerning her life. She knew she didn’t want to be dependent on anyone but herself. So she studied extremely hard during high school and college taking courses in biology, health and mathematics. While she was a college undergraduate she’d taken science courses like biology and chemistry which were required before she could apply to dental school.
In addition to all of that she was also required to take the Dental Admissions Test which was a requirement for all dental school applicants. Dental school considered the scores earned in the Dental Admissions Test, along with her grade point average plus recommendations and of course the interview as a part of the admissions package. Doing well on all of those things was front and center for her back then. She hadn’t thought of failure.
She was always fascinated by people’s teeth when she was growing up. Her parents always told her the importance of making a good first impression, and of course a nice smile was a big part. So, she decided to become involved in helping people make that great impression.
By the time she arrived at high school she already had her career choice in mind and nothing was going to change her mind.
Once she informed her parents about her career path, of course they warned her about the long road of studying ahead of her, but they never tried to talk her out of her dream. In fact, her mother and father were cheering the loudest when she walked across the stage at graduation.
Making her way over to the bench a few feet away from the frozen pond, Sapphire brushed away the light dusting of snow with her glove, took a seat and took another sip of the hot cocoa. She loved her career.
Being a dentist gave her a chance to diagnose and treat problems with her client’s mouths if they came in early enough for her to fix it. She didn’t want to be the dentist everyone was afraid to visit once a year. She wanted to be the dentist all her patients loved coming to see because of the outstanding treatment they received from her and her staff.
For the first couple of years of her career, Sapphire had worked as a dental associate with a few other dentists to get her feet wet but after about four years in that particular work environment she made a decision to become a solo practitioner which meant she would have her own business.
The thought of being her own boss over other people had scared her immensely, but she pushed her fears away and went forward. In the end it turned out to be the best decision for her; however, after getting everything the way she envisioned it at her practice she still had some excess energy she needed to burn off. Without a doubt, she was an overachiever in every aspect of the word. She always wanted to be doing more and more.
Not knowing exactly what she still wanted to do with her free time Sapphire decided to start writing in a journal again like she’d done all through high school and in college to ease her nerves before big tests.
Anytime things got too overwhelming for her at school and she needed an outlet to release all of her bent up energy, writing always did the trick for her. After one particularly long workday she’d come home and started writing in her journal and she was almost done when a thought crossed her mind. She wondered what it would be like to share her day with people on the internet like a personal blog. The second the idea came to her she’d loved it, but getting it started was harder than she thought it would be.
Her biggest concern was getting someone too interested in her life and that wasn’t what she wanted from this experience. All she wanted to gain was to see if other people out there were having the same problems as her. Some days she loved her job and life, then there were the days the thought of getting out of bed made her pull the covers over her head.
Why shouldn’t she share her daily thoughts with other people?
Sapphire had laid her journal to the side and got on the internet researching all of the blog sites that she could find. Google was an excellent tool. She got a lot further in one day with the click of a mouse than she could have done doing research at the library.
After printing out everything she could on the subject, Sapphire took the rest of the day working on designing how she wanted her blog to look before she typed in her first post. At first, she didn’t get too many hits but as soon as she incorporated topics from her personal life more and more people joined and became followers of her blog. Some of them even recommended her to others. Six months after starting her blog, Sapphire’s World was more successful than she could have ever dreamt with new followers joining her every day.
Later on, when Sapphire finally had come clean and told Emerald and Shauntie about her pastime after work, it had gone worse than she thought it might. They called her crazy and tried to talk her into taking it down. Emerald thought she was out of her mind for sharing her most private thoughts with a group of strangers, but she didn’t see it like that.
About 90% of her followers posted their own personal experiences too which made all of her life experiences seem a lot less over the top.
Most of the individuals who clicked into her blog deserved her respect by making her next blog entry something valuable and worthwhile. Usually if she ran into a dry spell with the blog, Sapphire would review a book or post about a childhood memory about what her and her sisters did for fun; but this time she was fresh out of ideas.
What am I going to do? Sapphire thought
She needed to think of something and fast. Half of her followers constantly commented about how they thought her topics had great content and insight, yet this time Sapphire’s World might be lacking in that department.
God, she truly hoped being away from her usual writing spot would push her imagination up to a new level, because if she didn’t get any new visions for it her blog writing days might be over.
People liked her blog because it was written by her, not a business or ‘ghost writer.’ Every typed word was done by her and no one else. Seeing her blog littered with comments gave her an immense pleasure.
Sapphire shoved the doubt devil off her shoulder preventing him from whispering in her ear any more. She had never been and didn’t believe in not giving something your all. Therefore, she sure in the hell wasn’t about to give up something that gave her such immense pleasure...not just yet
For once in her life, Sapphire felt like everything was going the way it should with the exception of her less than exciting love life. Who in the hell knew when that would change? How could she have such a successful career, cool as hell friends and a house she loved coming home to but no one to share any of these things with?
Was it her? Was she too picky? Should she just live in the moment and go out with every guy who asked her out on a date and not think of it beyond the here and now? Could her lack of love life be the factor causing her writer’s block?
Every single time she feared no new ideas would come to her, something always appeared out of the blue. Taking a deep breath, Sapphire allowed the fresh air to ease into her lungs. As much as she would love to stay outside and unwind in this beautiful weather and the harmony of her surroundings, Sapphire knew she still had bags to unpack and she wasn’t going to have any dinner tonight unless she figured out what to cook.
Getting up from the bench, Sapphire took one last lingering look at the pond already planning to make another trip down here tomorrow to ice skate. Something about this place made her feel like her life change was going to transform more than she could have ever thought possible.
Yeah, this might be the best decision of her life.
Chapter Four
Tossing his dark blue duffle bag down on the porch, Brian Terry allowed his gaze to wander over the nature surrounding him. Back at home, he’d fought against coming way out here to clear his mind but Nash wasn’t going to leave him alone until he finally gave in.