Diamonds and Dirt Roads

by Erin Nicholas

  And wow, she’d come up with that without having to pay Karen three hundred dollars an hour.

  “Okay, then,” Brynn said. “We’re going.”

  “Yep, we’re going,” Cori agreed.

  Ava nodded too. “Look out Bliss, Kansas. The Carmichael sisters are moving in.”

  4

  “Wow.”

  “No kidding.”

  “Not at all what I expected.”

  “Oh yeah, that’s totally what I expected.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “Seriously.”

  “I mean wow.”

  “What the hell did you put in their hash browns this morning?” Evan asked Parker as his friend topped off his coffee.

  “Their hash browns?” Parker asked, leaning onto the counter across from where Evan sat in the diner.

  Evan tipped his head toward the booth behind him where four of Bliss’s favorite residents sat having breakfast. Ben, Hank, Roger, and Walter had been diner regulars until Rudy had moved to town and opened the pie shop, where they could sit and gab for hours without anyone making not-so-subtle comments about how they should either keep eating—and buying—or move on. But now that the pie shop was closed, the men had been forced to relocate back to the diner if they wanted someone to make and serve them coffee. And no, their own kitchens were not an option. Apparently.

  “Oh, they’re not talking about my hash browns,” Parker said.

  “No?” Evan looked up to find Parker’s attention focused over Evan’s shoulder.

  “Nope.” Parked pointed out the window.

  Evan took a bite of toast and turned to look. And almost choked.

  There was a long black limo parked across the street from the pie shop. And leaning against the side of it were three long-legged, gorgeous blonds. Who were identical other than what they were wearing.

  Evan swallowed hard.

  “Let me guess. Left to right—Brynn, Cori, and Ava,” Parker said.

  He’d nailed it. Brynn was wearing a blue sundress and a pink sweater. She had her hair back in a ponytail, her black-rimmed glasses on her nose and she was clutching a book to her chest.

  Cori was in the middle in a red-and-white striped dress, short black boots, and her red leather jacket. Her hair was loose and curly. And she was holding a champagne glass. Evan felt his body stir even from this far away. He wasn’t sure if it was the jacket or the boots, but he didn’t think he’d have her take either off in bed.

  And because he was not supposed to be thinking about Cori and beds in the same thought, he tore his eyes away and looked at her sister. Ava’s hair was stick straight and she wore a black skirt, white blouse, and, sure enough, heels. And she was holding a briefcase.

  Evan cleared his throat. “Good guess,” Evan said to Parker. He knew Rudy had told Parker as much about his daughters as he’d told Evan.

  Parker chuckled. “We’re in trouble, huh?”

  “What makes you think that?” Evan asked, knowing his eyes should be on his “girlfriend” but finding they were back on Cori. Crap. He was definitely in trouble.

  “Those girls don’t know a damned thing about living in a town like Bliss.”

  That was an understatement. “Could be fun.”

  “Could be a pain in the ass.”

  Well, he couldn’t argue with that.

  “And I told you that you needed to get them into blue jeans,” Parker added.

  “Yeah, well, I got them into the state of Kansas. One thing at a time,” Evan said. He stood from the stool, fished a ten out of his pocket and tossed it on the counter.

  Parker swiped it up as he reached to return the coffeepot in his hand to the warmer. There was no such thing as a best friend discount in Parker’s diner and he fully expected Evan to tip.

  “The scenery in town just improved. Times three,” Noah said as he slid onto the stool next to Evan’s and picked up the cup on the counter and held it up for Parker.

  Parker sighed and grabbed the pot again. He was always annoyed filling coffee cups. He made crappy coffee on purpose and overcharged for it, and yet people still insisted on coming in to drink it. He filled the cup. “Don’t get all gaga over those girls,” he warned Noah. “They’re here with very specific instructions. And if they don’t do what they’re supposed to, we’re all screwed.”

  Noah took a sip. “I’m just saying that this front row seat might not be all bad.”

  Parker rolled his eyes.

  Evan took a deep breath. “I’m going to go introduce the girls to their new business,” he said. “And get them out of sight.”

  “Yeah, like that’s gonna matter,” Parker said.

  Half the town had already seen them, and they’d be talking to the other half of the town—Evan glanced around and noticed a number of people on their phones—if they weren’t already.

  “Damn.” This was going to be…interesting. Good thing Evan loved the unexpected.

  As his hand hit the door, he heard “Hey, Evan, is that your new girl?”

  He’d started the rumor about him and Ava immediately upon returning to Bliss two days ago. It had been easy enough. He’d simply told Parker while sitting on the very stool he’d just vacated. During the lunch rush. With Shelly Perkins sitting right next to him. Shelly owned the hair salon. It had only taken two hours for the news to spread. In fact, in that time the story had grown from Evan and Ava having a love-at-first-sight reaction when they’d met in New York to them having an online relationship for the past few months before actually meeting. For possibly the first time in his life, Evan appreciated the Bliss rumor mill and its absolute inability to keep any fact straight.

  “Yep, that’s her,” he said.

  “She’s out of your league,” Hank told him.

  “No shit,” he muttered, pushing his way through the door.

  But he couldn’t help but grin as he headed for the three newest residents of Bliss. They looked completely out of place, and Evan felt a stirring of anticipation. He loved his hometown, but he had to admit that things were pretty routine around here. Evan loved a good shake-up, and there was no question the Carmichael triplets would be providing that. Ava, Brynn, and Cori might not be ready for Bliss, but Bliss wasn’t ready for them either. At worst, this was going to be something new. At best, it was going to be a hell of a good time.

  “Wow.”

  “No kidding.”

  “Not at all what I expected.”

  Cori stood between her sisters, staring at the front of the pie shop that they now owned and were to operate over the next year.

  Besides the fact that it was a pie shop and none of them knew a thing about running a pie shop, there were a few more details demanding their attention. Like the fact that the storefront was, well, green and pink. A not-quite-neon green. A not-exactly-lime green. It was more…

  “Avocado,” Cori decided. “That color is the color of the inside of an avocado.”

  Ava and Brynn nodded.

  “And the pink is kind of…”

  “Bubble gum,” Brynn said.

  “Or Pepto Bismol,” Ava said.

  Cori nodded. “Yep. Definitely.”

  The siding was painted in the inside-an-avocado green, while the front door and the shutters on the windows were pink, with a green-and-pink-striped awning over the door.

  Even more surprising, the colors didn’t stand out on the main street of Bliss, Kansas. All of the buildings were painted in bright colors. There was pink and yellow and a light blue and even lavender. They didn’t all have awnings, but most had huge picture windows, and a couple had benches or chairs in front. The sidewalk that ran in front of the stores was so white it almost required sunglasses to look at it directly. There were lampposts with old-fashioned-looking lanterns at the top, a median in the middle of the street that held grass and flowers that were just as bright as the siding on the shops, and right in the center was a tall post that hoisted an enormous clock high above the street. Directly across the street from
the storefronts was a huge park with lots of trees, beautifully kept grass, and flowers everywhere.

  “And that name?” Ava asked. “Seriously?”

  Cori focused on the sign above the awning in front of them. The loopy green script read Blissfully Baked.

  “It sounds like a pot shop,” Ava said.

  It did. “Maybe it was a marketing strategy,” Cori said. “Nothing like pie when you’ve got the munchies, right?”

  Ava sighed. “I wouldn’t know.”

  Yeah, well, she could take Cori’s word for it.

  “Do we go in?” Brynn asked.

  Considering they didn’t know where anything else was, like the house they were going to be living in, that made the most sense. The GPS had gotten them to the pie shop, but they didn’t have an address for the house. “Did you call Evan?” Cori asked Ava.

  “No, why?”

  “Well, someone should probably tell someone that we’re here. And we don’t know anyone else. And it should probably be you since you’re his girlfriend.” Cori grimaced slightly as she said it. That was going to take some getting used to.

  Ava sighed. “Fine.”

  She pulled her phone out, but just then Brynn said, “No need.”

  Cori looked over to see Evan coming toward them. And she was shocked by how happy she suddenly felt.

  He’s your sister’s boyfriend. Keep it in your pants, girl. But she couldn’t help her smile when she saw that his gaze was on her. Pretend boyfriend. He’s Ava’s pretend boyfriend, she couldn’t help but think.

  “Don’t you just hate when the car rental company is out of practical cars and puts you in a limo instead?” he asked, coming to a stop in front of them.

  “Actually, no,” Ava said.

  “Let me guess,” Cori said. “The last limo to roll through Bliss was on prom night?”

  He grinned. “Jaci and Seth Marshall’s wedding last September, actually.”

  And of course, he knew the people’s names and the exact date. Because Jaci and Seth were two of only fourteen hundred and sixty-three people living in this town, according to the sign they’d passed on their way in. A lot of things about this situation were going to take some getting used to.

  “A limo can be practical, actually,” Ava told him.

  “Because it color coordinates with your outfit?” he asked, moving closer to her.

  “Because I was able to plug in my laptop and Cori had champagne,” Ava said.

  Cori held up her glass. “The champagne on the plane was better, but I’m not complaining.”

  The champagne was definitely taking the edge off of traveling all day with Ava, who literally had a spreadsheet to keep her other spreadsheets organized. She had one for work, one for packing, one for items she’d need in the new house, one for things to check on with the pie shop, and God knew what else. Cori had tuned her out after hearing that she’d been in contact with some chef she knew in New York who knew some other chef who did something with pies.

  Cori would love to give the pies a shot, honestly. She loved being the kitchen. There was something about creating recipes that would give someone else pleasure. But, after a brief session with Karen yesterday, she’d realized that maybe finding some of that same satisfaction would be good for Ava too.

  Evan looked like he wanted to comment on the champagne thing, and Cori waited for it, knowing that it would be flirtatious. But Evan swallowed and looked at Brynn instead. “And was the limo practical for you too?” he asked.

  Cori felt a stupid sense of disappointment.

  Brynn nodded. “Plenty of space. To keep those two apart,” she said, pointing at her sisters.

  Evan laughed at that and Cori sighed. She liked when he laughed. This was going to be the longest year of her life. He only has to date Ava for six months, she reminded herself. There were six more months in the year after that. Then he leaned in and kissed Ava’s cheek, and Cori felt her eyes widen. Yeah, all she had to do was leave him alone for six months. And not hate her sister for getting even the pretend Evan kisses.

  Ava looked similarly stunned when he leaned back.

  “We’re being watched,” he said quietly. “Look over my right shoulder.”

  Ava did and Cori almost did.

  “But not all of you at once,” Evan said, just as Cori was turning.

  Instead, Cori watched Ava’s eyes go round. “There are about thirty people looking out the window of the—” She squinted and finished, “—the diner.”

  “Probably more like fifty,” Evan said. Then he looped an arm around Ava’s waist and started toward the pie shop. “How about we get inside where we can talk more freely?”

  Cori scowled at the sight of him touching Ava. And then told herself to chill out and consciously relaxed her expression. She couldn’t go around glowering at Evan for the next six months. And a big part of this trip was about Cori reconnecting with her sisters. Karen had talked her through that too. So she couldn’t hate Ava for going along with this plan that was for all of their goods. This pretend plan.

  “They can hear us from here?” Brynn asked, following Evan and Ava across the street.

  “I swear to God, even the trees here have ears,” Evan said.

  Cori was the last to start for the pie shop and she made a point of not looking in the direction of the diner. Or watching Evan’s hand on Ava’s lower back as he reached to pull the door open for her. He also held the door for Brynn and Cori, and as Cori passed him, he said softly, “Needed something stronger than Nutella today?”

  She paused in the doorway and smiled up at him, unable to help it. “Nutella is for when we’re hanging out for a few hours and Ava has vodka and I have pajamas on. When I’m stuck in airborne tin cans with her and I’m wearing a push-up bra and she’s organizing everything from what time we get to the airport to what carry-on bag I can use, it’s definitely champagne. Or whiskey.”

  She didn’t miss how his eyes dropped to her breasts at the mention of her push-up bra, and she felt a twist of heat in her stomach. But almost immediately, his eyes were back on hers. He gave a soft chuckle and Cori actually sucked in a quick breath at the deep, rumbly sound that seemed to vibrate through her chest. And they weren’t even touching. They were just standing a lot closer than a guy and his girlfriend’s sister should be.

  “Well, I included Nutella and bacon on the list of things they stocked the house with,” Evan told her.

  Evan’s hand was still on the door and there wasn’t much space between them, and for that moment, she let herself just enjoy the close proximity, turning to face him fully. “Someone stocked the house for us?”

  “And cleaned it, made the beds, all of that,” he said. “I’m sure there are a few casseroles in the fridge too so you don’t have to cook for a while.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “I am.”

  “Why would they do that?”

  “They loved Rudy and you’re his daughters. And they’re glad the pie shop is opening again. Well—” he grinned, “—Parker is, anyway, and his mom was one of the women getting the house ready. And—” He broke off and looked past her.

  But Cori understood. “And they love you and think your girlfriend is living in that house,” she said.

  He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. Everyone in Bliss already knew that he and Ava were supposedly a couple. Awesome. Which meant Cori should really move away from him.

  Don’t you dare ruin Nutella for me, she thought as she stepped through the doorway. Don’t be sweet and flirtatious and make me think dirty thoughts about my favorite snack when you’re out of reach.

  But she already liked him, so him being out of reach was a good thing, she reminded herself. She wasn’t supposed to be dating. Which was also good, because she was not in a position to leave or avoid him after she called it quits. Karen had also brought that up when she’d pointed out that Cori was committed to being in this one place for a year now. Her shrink loved that there would be no mo
ving on after a few weeks or months when Cori started to feel like she’d used up her welcome. She had to stay now, and she knew Karen was hoping that she’d see she was able to contribute to a relationship long-term. But Cori was going to concentrate on that relationship being with her sisters. Because they had to keep loving her anyway.

  Shaking all of that off, Cori concentrated on looking around the little shop that now belonged to her, Ava, and Brynn.

  The lights weren’t on, but two of the four walls were made up of windows and the sunlight poured in onto the white linoleum, the six tables with mismatched chairs, and the long Formica counter that stretched along the top of an empty glass case. There was an opening that gave access to the area behind the counter where, presumably, the pie shop staff would be positioned, ready to help the customers. And behind that was a white swinging door that had to lead to the kitchen.

  The place was dusty and drab and, frankly, a little sad. Especially after seeing the bright and cheery outside.

  “This is…” Ava started.

  “Dull,” Cori supplied.

  Ava sighed. “Not what I expected.” She turned to Evan. “I thought you said that he’d had it renovated.”

  “It used to be a soda fountain,” Evan said. “But the building had been empty for a long time. Rudy hired a guy from Kansas City who specializes in rehabilitating old buildings in small towns. He came in and helped with things like removing the soda fountain and fortifying the interior walls and updating the plumbing and electricity. But Rudy liked that it was…rustic.”

  Cori snorted. “I don’t think that word means what he thought it meant.”

  Evan smiled. “He wanted it to be basic. He wanted the bare minimum. Said he wanted people to come for the pies and the company. He thought that doing a lot of fancy upgrading might change that.”