Misters of Love: A Small Town Romance Boxset

by Piper Sullivan

  She shrugged. “That was payback, this is me being nice. You don’t know the difference?” Playfulness sounded in her voice and I shook my head.

  I had nothing to say to that, and I needed every breath I could suck in to make it back to what Bo called her cabin. It was really more like a mansion, with high ceilings and lots of windows, letting in a rainbow of colors enhanced by the burning sun. Her place was beautiful and rustic and homey. And I couldn’t stay.

  “What time is dinner?”

  She gave me another funny look. “Whenever the boys finish cooking, why?”

  “Because I was thinking I’d go home to shower and change, and then I’ll come back.” It was a lie and we both knew it.

  She sighed heavily and rolled her eyes. “There are like, three showers in this house. Use one and get your butt back down here in thirty minutes. Or less.” Her tone said it would be best if I made it back before the thirty minutes were up.

  I could have argued or simply left, but Bo had become my closest friend in Tulip and that would be rude. Plus, she could totally take me, and we both knew I couldn’t outrun her. “Fine.”

  She flashed an evil smile. “You’re both adults, so one little meal should be no problem. Right?”

  Yeah, it was easy for her to say because she didn’t know the whole truth, but I wasn’t in the mood to talk about it. Or him. So I gave another shrug and made my way upstairs to the guest room all the way in the back, as far away from the rest of them as I could get until I was calm and cool. Un-botherable. The best thing about this whole situation was the big blue-and-silver tiled bathroom with the waterfall shower.

  I took as much time as I could, letting the hot spray soothe muscles that had already started to ache, before wrapping an oversized towel around my body and going back into the bedroom, where Nate stood inside the door wearing a knowing smirk that I wanted to both kiss and smack off his rugged, handsome face.

  “Nate. What are you doing in here?” And why the heck was I standing here with no clothes, no hair products, and not a stitch of makeup on my face?

  “You seem to be asking me that question a lot lately, Mikki.”

  I didn’t bother to say it was because he was always someplace he shouldn’t be—namely, wherever I was. “Well?”

  He lifted my black bag, holding it out with two fingers instead of dropping it on the floor. Like a real man would. “Bo asked me to bring this up to you, said you’d be eternally grateful.” That smirk said he knew exactly how unsettled I was right now.

  “You can leave it there. Thanks.” Of course, Nate kept the bag dangling from his fingers because he wasn’t just a player, he was also a game player.

  “You don’t want it? Because if that’s the case, I can take it back downstairs.” The heat in his gaze was unmistakable, which only served as a reminder that I was naked besides this towel—and that I wasn’t impervious to him. Yet.

  I didn’t want this tension between us; hell, I didn’t want anything from him anymore. “Maybe you should do that, Nate.” I turned back around and shut myself in the bathroom. I was done letting Nate toy with me or my emotions. I’d had enough of that lately, from all the men in my life. Past and present. I took my time, applying conditioner to my hair and moisturizer to my skin, wasting ten full minutes before I went back out.

  And found Nate was still there, only now he’d made himself comfortable in my temporary room. “Seriously?”

  He shrugged and nodded to the bag resting right beside the work boots he didn’t seem to go without. “Are we gonna keep doing this?”

  “Doing what?” I wasn’t faking innocence, either, because it wasn’t necessary.

  “This back-and-forth thing we’ve been doing.”

  I snorted a bitter laugh at his words. “There is no thing, Nate. You think it’s fun to play games and I happen to disagree.” It was a fundamental difference between us, and I’d learned my lesson the hard way about trying to change the unchangeable.

  “Some call it having fun,” he countered with a playful smile. “Joking, even.”

  “And some don’t,” I shot back. We weren’t even friends, barely even acquaintances, which meant we didn’t play like that. Ever. “Do you mind?” I nodded at the bag and the room, hoping he’d take the hint and get the hell out.

  Nate let the mask drop, at least for a moment, when he raked a hand through thick red hair and blew out what seemed to be a frustrated breath. “What did I do that was so wrong, Mikki? Tell me.”

  I let out a heavy sigh and shook my head, hating that he had me at such a disadvantage. “Who said you did anything wrong?” No one but his guilty conscience.

  “It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out, Mikki.”

  I guess he wanted to do this now. Right now, with Bo and Jase downstairs and me in nothing but a really comfy towel. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Nate. Except now. Just stop pretending we’re friends or that we even really know each other, stop trying to make yourself feel better for running off in the middle of the night, and stop trying to do it at my expense. We had sex, once, and that was it. We are not friends or anything resembling it, just two people who live in the same town. End of story!” That rush of words felt… good.

  He unfolded his big body and stood, giving me a long, dark look filled with too many emotions to name, before he turned and walked away. Again.

  Big surprise.

  Nate

  That woman! Why in the hell did I stay there in her room, anyway? Because I’m an idiot, a glutton for punishment—or maybe, like she said, I was just playing games. That wasn’t my plan, but after her tirade, it was easy to see why she thought so.

  “Dammit!”

  “Wanna talk about it?” Bo appeared at my side, somehow without me hearing her approach.

  “Nope.” There was nothing to talk about.

  “That’s okay,” she said, flashing me a rare grin. “Jase already told me about how you slept with Mikki, and then ran away like your backside was on fire. I’m just trying to figure out why you’re out here pouting like a child while she’s inside helping Jase with the food.”

  At her words, I looked over my shoulder towards the house where, sure enough, Mikki and Jase were in the kitchen, all smiles and laughing. He’d just come in with a tray of grilled meat while she stood, laughing as she chopped veggies, looking for all the world like she hadn’t just verbally gutted me. “Don’t know, I guess.”

  She barked out a laugh. “I don’t believe that for a second, Nate.” There was a hint of something I couldn’t quite figure out in her voice and her eyes, so I shrugged it off.

  I arched a brow in her direction and crossed my arms. “Are you here to bust my balls because she’s your friend, or what? If so, I gotta tell you that I’m not really in the mood.”

  Bo turned and rested her elbows on the railing so she had an unobstructed view of the cabin. “If I need to bust your balls, I will. But you’re Jase’s brother and I’ve known you all my life, so you’re pretty much family.” She flashed a friendly smile and bumped my shoulder. “So, talk.”

  What the hell could it hurt? “She said we’re not even friends, Bo. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”

  Bo let out a very unladylike snort and turned all-seeing blue eyes up at me. “Are you?”

  I opened my mouth to respond even though I had no idea what I would say, which was lucky because Bo wasn’t finished.

  “Did you hang out before getting naked together? After? Do you even have her phone number, or know how she spends her free time? How about where she’s from or how she—”

  “Enough, Bo. I got it, okay?” My hands gripped the railing in anger and frustration. “We’re not friends and I don’t know her. At all, apparently.” I should have known that the women would take each other’s sides.

  “If it bothers you that much, you could always do something about it. Other than pout, that is.” I didn’t miss that gleam in her eyes—then again, I don’t think she was trying to hide
it.

  “I don’t think that’s something she’d be up for.” I couldn’t really blame her with the way she laid it all out. “Or me.”

  Bo sighed. “If you want to be her friend, then try being her friend. If you don’t, just leave her the hell alone.” Her tone wasn’t angry or threatening, but the look she sent me said it could become so—easily. “I never pegged you for one to play around with people’s emotions. I mean, I know you have an aversion to commitment, but this isn’t that, is it?”

  “Shouldn’t the food be just about ready?”

  Bo knew what I was doing, and I was grateful she didn’t call me out on it. “Yep. Let’s go check.”

  My shoulders started to relax after the talk with Bo. She had a good point and I had to decide why I cared so much about what Mikki thought before I decided if I wanted to do anything about it. “Smells damn good in here,” I remarked as we entered through the kitchen, interrupting whatever had Mikki’s face red from laughter.

  “It should, since I am an excellent chef.” Jase flashed a cocky grin as he went to Bo and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her like they were the only two people in the world.

  “Let’s hope the food lives up to the hype,” Bo teased with a loving smile that made me embarrassed to witness the interaction.

  “Ditto that,” I said and patted my flat stomach with an exaggerated smack. “Because I’m starved.”

  Jase frowned. “You literally ate the whole time you pretended to help. How can you possibly be starved?”

  I flashed a grin. “I’m a growing boy.”

  “You’re something,” he mumbled under his breath. “Let’s eat, then. Wouldn’t want Nate to starve.”

  The meal was delicious but tense as hell—or maybe all the tension was just in my head, because no matter what I said or how hard I tried, Mikki mostly ignored me. Other than those polite fucking smiles she loved to send my way. It wasn’t blatant, either, which meant I couldn’t call her out on it without looking like an even bigger jerk.

  Luckily, I was able to learn a few things about her, thanks to my kid brother. “What brought you to Tulip, Mikki?”

  She flashed a grin at Jase and put down her fork. “It seemed like a great place, so it was part of my top three contenders, and then I found out about Tulip herself and I was sold. She was damned impressive, and I figured maybe some of her badassery would rub off on me.”

  “Amen,” Bo said, raising her glass of pop with a wide grin.

  “Preston’s mother would love to hear that, especially coming from you.” Jase grinned and shook his head. “You should tell her that.”

  I snorted at that, because Sabrina Worthington didn’t love anything except money and the status she held as a member of the founding family of Tulip. “If she ever comes down to grace you with her presence.”

  Mikki blinked at me and then turned her attention back to Bo and Jase, politely, of course. “She came around when the shop opened, to welcome me to town.” The table fell silent and her cheeks turned pink. “What?”

  Jase was the first to speak after regaining his composure. “Sabrina Worthington came to see you? A lowly shop owner—no offense. Why?”

  She shrugged. “She’s aware of the family business.” Her words were clipped like maybe she was uncomfortable talking about it, which only made me more curious.

  “Which is?” The question sounded gruff and angry out of my mouth, and Mikki scowled in return.

  “La Famiglia Russo,” she said softly, her gaze firmly on Bo, who was probably the only person in town this news didn’t surprise.

  “Holy crap,” Jase laughed and jumped up from his seat, long strides carrying him to the big pantry and back. “This La Famiglia Russo?” He held up a jar of pasta sauce and a box of rotini, eyes wide with shock. “We even have some of that sundried tomato paste, which is delicious, by the way.”

  “My nonna would be happy to hear that, it was the first idea of hers that my great-grandpa actually added to the business.” Her smile was wistful, like maybe they were no longer around. Or maybe she was feeling homesick.

  “Holy shit, you are La Famiglia Russo.” Jase was clearly suitably impressed. “Is it rude or racist if I ask you if you can cook?”

  That question pulled a pretty, feminine laugh from her lush mouth. “I’m not offended so let’s go with no, but I am also a horrible cook. I keep it simple. Always.”

  Jase’s eyes went wide and Bo sent an elbow flying into his ribcage. He glared down at her. “What?”

  “Don’t even think about asking, or I promise, you’ll regret it.”

  Mikki laughed and rested her chin in her hand. “Well, now you have to ask.” Her eyes gleamed with gold threads as she waited for an answer.

  “I want to learn how to make pasta, especially ravioli.” His cheeks were pink, and my brother worked hard to avoid his girlfriend’s gaze.

  Mikki laughed again. “My nonna is a sucker for a handsome face so I’m sure she’ll have no problem with a video tutorial. Just promise to make it clear to her that you’re spoken for, and I’ll set it up.”

  “Really?” His eyes went wide like it was Christmas morning and he’d just unwrapped the big, unbreakable fire truck he’d begged for an entire year. “That would be so cool.”

  “No problem. Rocky, my sister, invited her down to her dorm room to teach a pasta-making class, roping half the football team to show up just for eye candy.”

  So, she also had a sister. Another fact I stored away, in case I needed it for some reason in the future. “Your grandma sounds like a hoot,” Bo told her. “I hope I get to meet her.”

  She sighed. “I imagine I won’t be able to keep her away much longer.”

  “Why?” I hadn’t meant to voice the question out loud, but I had a feeling she was going out of her way to keep her secrets because I was here.

  She turned to me and batted long thick lashes, slowly, before she answered. “She and my daddy had a difference of agreement about how I should be punished for ending my engagement.”

  Punished. Engagement? “You’re a grown woman.”

  Her lips curled into a tiny smile. “I’m aware, Nate. But the marriage would have been a good business deal. His wandering dick put that deal in jeopardy, but somehow, that makes me the bad guy in all this.” She shrugged like it didn’t matter, but those lines around her eyes revealed just how much she had to be hurting. “Now you know it all.” And her tone said she didn’t like that one bit. “Oh, and just in case you were wonderin’, his dick wandered over to my best friend. Ex best friend,” she clarified with more than a little southern belle spunk.

  The room fell silent once again and I cursed my own selfish need to know more, because it had embarrassed Mikki. “Sorry,” I growled. “He’s a dumb fuck, so at least you dodged a bullet.”

  For a long time, she simply stared at me, a blank expression on her face, and I figured she was about to give me a verbal lashing. Again. But finally, a smile spread across her mouth and sent a rush of warmth through me. “Thanks, Nate. I fully agree with that assessment.”

  That grin hit me right in the solar plexus and I knew, right then and there, I wanted to know more about this fascinating sexy woman. I just had to figure out how to get her on board with the plan.

  Mikki

  “You don’t have to come in and help me with inventory, Hope. None of my other designers do.”

  I appreciated the help, but even more than that, I appreciated the company. Starting Pretty Feathers had given me a purpose and a freedom I hadn’t realized I needed while I was so busy trying to be the perfect society fiancée and daughter back in Mississippi.

  “Are you kidding? I get to see everything before anyone else in town, and all the designs, colors and fabrics are excellent inspiration. Plus, if I didn’t show up here to harass you, I’d probably never see you.” Hope winked and opened a box filled with flirty summer skirts with a very girly squeal. “And shopping with my design earnings is like getting clothes for free.
”

  “I don’t get your logic, but okay,” I told her with a shrug.

  “No one gets my logic, and I’m okay with that.” She held up a yellow and white striped skirt with a grin. “This is perfect for a romantic dinner that ends with seduction, don’t you think?”

  “Sure,” I agreed absently, willing to indulge her in conversations reserved for the newly in love, but only giving half an ear.

  “I mean, it’s not traditionally romantic, but Will isn’t a traditional kind of guy. Did I tell you that he brought flowers to the diner? A full-on bouquet of wildflowers!”

  “That’s great,” I told her sincerely, but even I could hear the boredom in my voice.

  Hope looked stricken, which was exactly what I wanted to avoid. “I’m sorry, Mikki. Listen to me going on and on, and you’ve just ended your engagement in the worst possible way.”

  I didn’t agree with that. “The worst way would have been finding out after the wedding.”

  “Right. Crap. Of course.” Her cheeks flushed furiously, and I found myself reassuring her.

  “Listen to me, Hope. It is entirely possible to be happy for you even if my own romantic life isn’t what I thought it would be today. Okay?” When she nodded, a relieved grin crossed my face. “I’m not mourning either of those relationships, anyway. Toxicity is bad for you, don’t you know.”

  She let out a feminine laugh and rolled her eyes. “It’s sweet of you to say, but I still feel like I’m bragging.”

  “Well, honey, you finally landed the man of your dreams—you’d be crazy not to brag about it.” The next time—if there was a next time—I let myself fall for a man, and a good man? I’d brag loud enough for the whole dang state to hear it.

  “Maybe so, but it still feels wrong.”

  “That’s just ‘cause you’re a good person, Hope. But think of it this way: your newly invigorated love life is helping me make plenty of money, thanks to all the sassy, sexy designs we’re selling together.” Hope wasn’t buying it and I was pretty much over this topic of conversation, so I went for another distraction. “Speaking of sassy, sexy designs, what do you have for me?”