Once and Again: Petal, Georgia, Book 1
Page 16
They might never have the friendship they’d had in high school, but they were friends and right now, both Zoe and Roger needed all the friends they could get.
And Chase needed to be there for both of them as much as he could.
Besides, his dad was worrying about him too. Ever since Roger had turned in his resignation, the old man had come by as often as he could, but it was now re-election time and instead of visiting every couple of days, he could only get by once a week or so and Chase had promised he’d come by today.
All valid reasons.
Nobody needed to know it was a perfectly legit cover for him to be able to look at Zoe and soothe the ragged pain inside his heart, one that gotten worse ever since the time he’d laid eyes on her again in the city square a few months back.
He couldn’t help her.
She was going through something he couldn’t even imagine and he couldn’t do shit to help.
Except bring some books for Roger and offer to help out at her store as much as he could, and that didn’t count for much of anything. He couldn’t take this pain from her, he couldn’t fix Roger—as fucking jealous as he was, he’d fix the man in a heartbeat if it was in his power, but he couldn’t.
All he could do was stand by and watch as two people he loved suffered.
The door swung open and the smile and speech he’d rehearsed faded away into nothing as he found himself staring at Zoe’s face.
“Chase, hi.”
Forcing himself to smile, he held out the bag. “Hey. Wanted to bring this by. And I promised my dad I’d come by and check on things.”
She might have barred him from coming in but he edged past her, forcing her to back up unless she wanted him brushing up against her. Which she didn’t—Chase was fully aware of the extreme care she took not to let him touch her. The door closed behind them and he turned to study Zoe’s face.
She looked tired.
Still so fucking beautiful it made his heart ache just to look at her, but tired. Like she could sleep for a week.
Tired and frazzled and frustrated.
He felt like a major prick because he wanted to offer to hold her for the entire week.
Her husband’s dying, man. Remember him? Guy used to be your best friend? Still is your friend?
“How are you?” he asked.
“I’m fine.” She gave him a practiced, completely false smile.
“Bullshit.” He dropped the bag on the table centered under a mirror and folded his arms over his chest, studying her face. “Don’t hand me the line you hand people in your store, people at church, whoever. I know you too well. How are you, really?”
She lifted a golden brow at him. “Chase, you don’t really me that well. Not anymore.”
“Don’t I?” He reached out and tucked her hair behind one ear. “When was the last time you watched Old Yeller?”
She scowled at him.
“Still reading the Valdemar books? How many copies you gone through now?”
She tucked her hands into her pockets and rocked back on her heels. “Things like that aren’t exactly knowing me.”
“Hmm. How about this? You’re pissed off. You’ve been riding on nerves and caffeine for a while, but today, you’re pissed off and you just want to hit something.”
Something flashed in her eyes, but she remained silent.
“What set you off?”
“Nothing.” Her voice was low and flat.
“Nothing? You sure about that, princess?”
There it was again…a flash of fire, hot and angry.
“Come on, surely there’s something. Your panties are in a twist over something.” He slanted a look toward the bedroom she shared with Roger. Jealousy twisted his gut, but he kept his voice easy and light as he said, “It’s got to be rough, where you’re at right now. No way to burn off that anger, that stress, that…”
He saw it coming, but he didn’t bother to move.
His head snapped back from the force of her blow and even as the pain bloomed, he grinned at her. She stared at him, shock written all over her face. “Feel better?”
Zoe gaped at him. “You…what…”
Edging past her, he went to the mirror and peered at his mouth. He tasted blood. “Damn, you’ve got a good right hook there, Zoe.”
Once and Again
Lauren Dane
This time, he plans to do it with class. Style. And more than a little groveling…
Petal, Georgia, Book 1
Seven years ago, Lily Travis was only too glad to see her hometown of Petal, Georgia, in her rearview mirror. Thanks to her father running off with a twenty-year-old, though, here she is, trying to pick up the pieces. First order of business: meet with her brother’s teacher in a quest to pull his grades out of a downward spiral.
Nathan Murphy is pretty much resigned to his bachelor status—until he looks up from his desk to see an all-grown-up Lily walking into his classroom. Of all the women who turned out to be totally wrong for him, she’s the only one who felt right. At least until his foolish, immature mistake drove her away.
Lily has to admit that time has been more than kind to gorgeous, sexy Nathan. Except there’s no room on her full plate for another complication. Especially with a man who broke her heart once before.
With a little help from his friends, Nathan has a plan to rekindle the flame. It isn’t long before they’re burning up the sheets. Winning her heart? That’s another matter.
Warning: Hot, sexy high school teacher in denim and boots. Strong-willed females abound. Bad words and naughtiness, too. Come on, you know you want to read it.
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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
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Once and Again
Copyright © 2011 by Lauren Dane
ISBN: 978-1-60928-520-3
Edited by Anne Scott
Cover by Kendra Egert
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: August 2011
www.samhainpublishing.com
Table of Contents
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
About the Author
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