Better Together

by Jessie Gussman

  Better Together

  Jessie Gussman

  BETTER TOGETHER

  By

  Jessie Gussman

  Copyright © 2018 Jessie Gussman

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  Edited by Mary Cain.

  Cover Design by Tina Moss.

  All stock photos licensed appropriately.

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  Published in the United States by City Owl Press.

  www.cityowlpress.com

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  For information on subsidiary rights, please contact the publisher at info@cityowlpress.com

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior consent and permission of the publisher.

  Praise for the Works of Jessie Gussman

  “With solid writing and an intriguing cast of characters, this is an entertaining, romantic read.”

  –InD’tale

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  “So much more than just two very different people falling in love. It was sweet, and fun, and also heartwarming. A fantastic story!”

  – E-Reader Addict

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  “A quick-paced, delightful read. Just in time for pumpkins and fall! I like reading opposites attract stories. The secondary characters were well developed and before I knew it, I was at the end. It’s always nice to read a clean, well-written story. I highly recommend this book.”

  – Diane Holiday, Author of the Love Beyond Danger Series

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  “An author I can always count upon to engage my mind and warm my heart.”

  – Ramla Zareen Ahmad, Author of Light-Hearted Romance

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  “A fun read with lots of humor sprinkled in. I liked the opposites attract theme. The fall setting made it a colorful read and brought back the feel of a crisp day, drinking apple cider and picking pumpkins. The characters were likable and the plot kept the pages turning.”

  – Reading Romance

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  “Jessie Gussman creates believable characters that you will fall in love with and root for till the very end.”

  – Emily Camp, Author of Running Back

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  “I couldn't put this book down, kept thinking ‘one more page,’ and then didn't stop. The characters are an interesting window on country life, the dialogue realistic, and the plot constructed with unpredictable twists and turns, all imbedded with a cheeky humour that makes you chuckle.”

  – Rod Baker, Author of Constant Traveller R801168 and I Need My Yacht by Friday

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  “The type of classic sweet love story that romance lovers will truly enjoy. I liked that the author included these action adventure scenes to spice up the story and add depth.”

  – BeautyFul Word

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  “This sweet story is full of warmth and humor, a story I didn’t want to put down until I finished the last page. And even then, I didn’t want the story to stop… Both characters’ points of view were very believable...And I was right there with them in the tunnel as the train was going by! I look forward to many more stories from Ms. Gussman!”

  – Books are the Best!

  Author’s Note

  Don’t miss the book 2 of the Sweet Haven Farm series with JUST RIGHT

  While waiting to audition for a rare tubist seat opening, Avery Williams intends to cheer up her cancer ridden neighbor. She plans a throwback Christmas party in the barn where the sick woman got engaged forty years ago. It will be the highlight of the year, unless the building gets destroyed first.

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  In town for a short while to help his sick mother, Gator Franks expects to grab a side job and make some quick cash to help pay her hospital bills. Unfortunately, he has to get past the ugliest cat he has ever seen, which happens to be attached to a little blonde with sparkling pink fingernails, a city-girl attitude, and a fixation on saving the barn he just contracted to tear down.

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  Slowly, using simple words, Avery explains to the uncouth mountain man—the one with the ferocious, tuba-player-eating dogs—that she can’t have a party in the barn if he bulldozes it first!

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  When circumstances force them to work together, it’s a race to see who will win first, and if they’ll give in to the growing feelings between them.

  * * *

  BUY NOW!

  To my parents.

  Dad power-walked us through the railroad tunnel, and Mom drove the getaway car. I was well into adulthood before I thought to wonder what normal families did for fun. I love you both. Thank you.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  JUST RIGHT SNEAK PEEK

  Afterword

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  About the Publisher

  Additional Titles

  Chapter One

  “No way am I going in there.” Harper Bright took a second look at the yawning black hole in the mountain in front of her and crossed her arms over her chest. She didn’t need her doctorate degree to know this was a bad idea.

  “Did you know this tunnel was on Hitler’s charts during World War II? If he ever made it stateside, it was one of the places he planned to bomb.” Wyatt Fernandez planted his feet and put his hands on his hips. His dimples flashed but he spoke in the tone of voice that said, “I hear you, but I’m ignoring you”.

  He used the same tone every time he dragged Harper on some crazy adventure or another.

  She walked toward the openmouthed hole. Despite her family having owned the ground around the tunnel all her life, she hadn’t known about this small spot in Central Pennsylvania being on Hitler’s map.

  The looming mountain that shot up around the ravenous cavity blocked the sunlight. Leafy green trees waved in the warm June breeze. Harper squinted up. “You know, someday, we really ought to start acting like the mature adults we are.”

  “Gimme a break, Harper. The only time you ever spend two seconds not acting like an adult is when I strong arm you into it. Like now. This is going to be fun.” Wyatt flashed that irresistible dimple and his brown eyes twinkled. Harper wasn’t exactly short, but she still had to crane her neck to look at him as he walked beside her. His lanky frame had filled out in the decade since high school. Actually, now that she thought about it, he’d filled out very nicely. Broad chest, wide shoulders, and long, muscular legs. A flare of heat unfurled in her stomach. She straightened her spine. This was Wyatt. Her best friend.

  They reached the orifice of the mountain. Cool air blew from its depths. It smelled heavy and sweet, like rotting soil. Their next steps took them inside. The hair on the back of Harper’s neck pok
ed straight out. She scooted closer to Wyatt.

  “I’m not seeing the ‘fun’ part.” Her voice echoed off the cavernous walls. Water dripped hollowly, echoing in the blackness.

  Wyatt kept walking. “This isn’t supposed to be fun. It’s research. Do you want to find it or not?”

  Harper bumped Wyatt’s arm with her shoulder. “You know I do.”

  She wanted to see if the old stories were true, but couldn’t help shivering as she looked around at the stone walls arching above. The farther in they walked, the darker it got. At this point, she could barely see Wyatt’s outline. She pushed back the fear threatening to break loose in her head. It wasn’t that walking in the tunnel was particularly dangerous. It was more the idea of the dark unknown and being trapped in a small space with an angry locomotive.

  As if Wyatt could read her mind, he said, “There isn’t any danger if a train would actually go through while we’re in here. Although, I have heard that there could be a bit of air suction.”

  She planted her feet. “What?”

  “Kidding.” He pulled on her arm. “Come on.”

  She started walking again. Slowly. “What did you mean by air suction?” Wyatt had always been better with hard science. All she’d cared about was finding the family heirloom that her great-great grandmother had told her was hidden in the deepest depths.

  Wyatt tapped her head with the hand that wasn’t dragging her toward the tunnel. “Well, since you’re the brain in this relationship…”

  She swatted his hand and continued to drag her feet, even though she’d already decided to go along with his nutty scheme, the way she always did. After all, not only did she want to find the ring, but this could be the last time Wyatt and she went on an adventure together. She’d gotten the call yesterday that her tenure vote was scheduled for the end of summer. It was the one last thing she had to cross off the list of career goals she’d made the day she had graduated from high school.

  “Quit it. You’re smarter than me, and we both know it. I just happen to be able to stay in one place long enough to get a degree.” It wasn’t that she was so smart. She was simply willing to work hard. Plus, she liked to study. She’d enjoyed every second of the last ten years. Which led her to the vexatious question that had plagued her since the phone call: what now?

  “Ouch.” Wyatt placed a hand over his heart.

  She shrugged. Too often she’d wondered that maybe what she’d been working toward all this time wasn’t what she really wanted anymore. More likely she had become overly comfortable with achieving her goals, ticking each accomplishment off of her internal checklist. “It’s true.”

  “Yeah, well, you had a nice, secure home all your life.”

  And he hadn’t. Never really knowing or being wanted by his father, losing his mother in a tragic skiing accident, being sent to live with an uncle he barely knew. Of course, if he hadn’t come to live with the man her mother eventually married, she would never have gotten to know him. She bit her lip. “I’m sorry.”

  “Hey, not a problem. I’ll only rub it in if you change your mind and turn around.”

  They walked far enough into the tunnel that the light behind them faded, and Harper could no longer see the road under her feet. Dread balled and rolled in the pit of her stomach. She reached for Wyatt. Big and strong with rough calluses, his hand enfolded hers with an ease born of familiarity.

  How could she have forgotten how easily Wyatt’s touch could calm her? All the numerous phone conversations and thousands of text messages couldn’t replicate the comfort of his touch. The miles between them had always multiplied Harper’s anxiety. The pictures he sent hadn’t helped. Standing at the top of some snow-covered mountain with only clouds and sky in the background, or his arms outstretched, moments before he leapt from a who-knows-how-high cliff with only a thin bundle—hopefully a parachute—strapped to his back. Of course, she wasn’t sure which was worse, the pictures, or the times when she didn’t hear from him for days. He always warned her when he might be adventuring out of service areas, but that was one instance when knowledge wasn’t power, as her ragged bloody nails could testify.

  “Do you think we’re halfway?” she asked.

  “Why are you whispering?”

  She shivered—she hadn’t noticed she was whispering. “Just in case there’s a bear hibernating in one of those alcoves you talked about.”

  “It’s June.”

  “Maybe it’s waking up late this year.” Even to her ears it sounded asinine. Her cheeks heated. She looked over, but they were so deep in the mountain that she couldn’t see a thing. The darkness hid her flush. Lifting her chin, she tried to focus on the stories she’d heard as a child. If they found what they were looking for, it would be worth facing her fear.

  “I can’t believe someone has actually hired you to teach college students.” He squeezed her hand, and she didn’t need a light to know he smiled beside her.

  “I revert to my inner child when I’m scared spitless.”

  Wyatt activated his cell phone light. “There.” He pointed it at the wall. Sure enough, just ahead an arched area was chiseled into the side of mountain. “Maybe three feet deep, three feet long and,” he looked up, “seven or so feet high. We’d both fit in there easy.”

  “Us and the serial killer that eludes the cops by hiding in here.” She tugged on his hand. “Come on. Faster.”

  “Didn’t you ever hear you gotta enjoy the journey?” Harper could hear the grin in Wyatt’s voice, but he did speed up a notch. For her. Heck, this was child’s play compared to the stuff he normally did.

  But it was Wyatt, and she didn’t have to pretend to be brave. “I’ll enjoy it once we’re out of here.”

  “It’ll be over then.” He chuckled. “Oh, except we have to walk back through.”

  She stopped so fast her feet probably left skid marks. But she wouldn’t know since it was darker than sin, and she couldn’t see a blasted thing except for the far tunnel opening which didn’t seem to be getting any closer.

  “We only have to go to the middle hidey hole. That’s where it’s supposed to be. No one said anything about walking through.” Fear had turned her backbone into an icicle. “I know you’re an adrenaline junkie, but I’m allergic to the stuff.”

  Wyatt snorted. “If it weren’t for me, you’d be moldering under your books and lab rats. How many times have you left the state?”

  “Three. And it was three too many. I like being home. I like moldering.” She kept her eyes fastened to the circle of light on the ground from Wyatt’s cell phone until he put it away.

  “I like being home, too. But being home is sweeter after you’ve left it for a while.” His thumb moved lightly over her knuckles.

  A little of her tension eased. “I always assumed you had itchy feet like your mom.”

  “A little, I guess.”

  “If that’s not it, why not come home? You know Fink and my mom would love to have you back helping out on the farm.” She’d love to have him back, too. Gosh, she missed him. She hadn’t realized how much.

  Even though he’d been away more than home the last few years, she still considered him her best friend. They had always told each other everything.

  Well, except anything that even hinted of romance. Growing up, she’d always been very aware that her mother had gotten pregnant with her at fourteen. Harper had determined not to go down the same path, closing herself off to the very idea of boys or boyfriends. Studying instead of dating. She supposed, at twenty-eight, it was probably okay to crack that protective shell.

  “Come on, Pickles. We’re almost half-way. The next hidey-hole is probably close.” His deep voice rumbled above her.

  She smiled at the nickname he had gifted her with years ago.

  Light cut through the darkness parallel to the ground—the wrong angle for Wyatt’s cell phone—just before he tensed beside her. The rumble in the air and the vibration under her feet confirmed what her brain had suspected. She t
urned to be sure. The entire mouth of the tunnel was blocked out by the massive shape of a train engine. Like a flesh-eating bacteria, magnified, with teeth bared, it bore down on them.

  Acid shards cut through her trembling body. She barely felt Wyatt yanking on her arm. She couldn’t get her feet to move. The engine powered closer like a black avalanche, chewing up the distance between them.

  He swept her up in his arms and jogged the two steps to the nook, flattening himself against the side wall so his back was toward the train. The roar of the engine and the squeal of metal on steel reverberated throughout the stone walls. The vibration seemed to be alive, monstrous, so close and big and loud she could almost see it. She pulled her body into a ball and pressed against him. She wrapped her arms around his head, wanting to protect him, too.

  Her breath came in short gasps. Panic rolled through her like a bowling ball heading toward the king pin.