Table of Contents
Finally…My Forever
Copyright
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
Epilogue
Other Titles by Kristi Pelton
©2020
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, place and incidents either are products of the author’s magical imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental—unless it’s a mean character in the book and then it’s directed at someone ☺
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes. If you are reading this book and you have not purchased it or won it in an author/published contest, this book has been pirated. Though I hope you like it, please delete and support the author by purchasing the ebook/book from one of its distributors.
Editor: Lisa Loewen
Cover Design: Sommer Stein of Perfect Pear Creative Covers
Formatting: CP Smith
Proofreaders: Amber, Clista, Lindsay
Chapter 1
1-900-FINDADATE
STANDING IN MY office, I stared out at the lit Dallas skyline—a complete opposite of the place where I grew up. A year ago tonight, I had been sitting right there in that very office after getting Emma’s text, replaying in my head the moment Zach got down and asked my girl to marry him. My girl. Only she wasn’t my girl. Not anymore. She, of course, said yes, like I knew she would. I shook off the irritating feeling in my chest. A chest filled with regret and insecure doubts. I had spent an entire year hoping that Em might come back to me, and I was finally digesting the cruel fact that it was never gonna happen. Wasted time. Time to move on.
This beautiful corner office on the twenty-sixth floor of one of the tallest skyscrapers in Dallas was where I’d spent all of my mornings, my noons and my nights for the past year. Every intern, every administrative assistant, delivery girls, even other attorneys…I’d been approached by them all. I’d passed on every one of them. I wasn’t ready.
You see, that’s the bitch about love. Sometimes the one person you think is your person isn’t. Instead, you simply filled that gap in her life while she was waiting for “him” to come back. Maybe Em knew. Maybe she didn’t. Maybe forever wasn’t in my cards when it came to any woman. I didn’t know.
But I’ll tell you what I did know. I missed Canon Beach. I missed Oregon. I’d stayed away for far too long. I was headed back soon to be in the wedding of the girl I once loved. It was time to put on my big boy pants and handle my shit. Actually, my father was insisting I come. But I’d go anyway. I’d promised Em. The problem for me was going alone. I didn’t want Zach to think I was still hung up on her. I wanted everyone to think I’d moved on. I needed to move on. My life had become one pathetic workday after another. Even that night, I was the only one left in the office. It was hard enough to meet a woman if you went out and did things, but my odds were horrible given I did nothing.
That night as I drove home, I scrolled through my brain trying to think of someone… anyone that might be able to tag along on the trip to Oregon. Someone who knew it was just an obligation. Someone who understood I wanted nothing more. Or maybe I did. Actually, someone who didn’t know me. Didn’t know about the money. Didn’t know about Emma.
I pulled into Braums, which was way less busy than a grocery store but way busier than I expected. After grabbing the milk, I waited in the line at the register. A long line. Scrolled through my phone still thinking about a future possible wedding date. A young kid was learning the register and the lady toward the front of the line wasn’t exactly patient. She shifted her weight from one hip to the other huffing and puffing. People were so damn rude and impatient. I loosened my own tie as if that would relieve the tension the woman felt.
A girl wearing a Braums cap rounded the corner and noticed the line. Strawberry blonde tendrils of hair spiraled out behind her ears. Seriously. I couldn’t escape redheads or reminders of Emma. I chuckled to myself, glancing away from the girl.
“What’s goin’ on, David?” she softly asked the younger kid.
“I don’t know,” he laughed nervously. She smiled, touching his shoulder.
“This is ridiculous. Could someone else just check us out. There’s a line a mile long here.”
The strawberry blonde’s eyes flashed up at mine since I was at the caboose of that ‘mile’. Thinking quickly and trying to let both employees know it was okay, I held up my thumb and index finger indicating an inch. My lame attempt at making them understand the mile comment was a ridiculous exaggeration. Her blush lips twitched into a slight grin.
The impatient lady lifted her frozen ice cream and slammed it back down on the metal countertop. Shaking my head, I glared at her with disgust. Was ice cream really worth someone’s self-esteem?
“I’m so sorry. The register seems to be frozen,” the ginger tried to explain.
“Now, how is that my problem?”
I finally caught a glimpse of her name tag. Freebie. Interesting name. I glanced back up at her, waiting to see how she was going to handle the rising tension. Part of me wanted to intervene. The lawyer part of me thought I could negotiate with the lady and help the girl.
“Ma’am. If I could have you step over to this other register over by the ice cream.”
“I am not moving.”
The girl closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as another customer brought up the rear behind me. I felt bad for both employees and honestly, I just wanted to put my milk back and leave to alleviate the line.
“Phoebe. We’re out of whipped cream,” a different girl from behind the ice cream counter shouted Red’s way, shaking an empty can. From the register, Phoebe held up a finger.
A phone started ringing inside the store, and the poor girls’ eyes closed. In one very long minute, this girl’s life unraveled.
“Ma’am. If you hand me your basket, I will run over, ring it up and come back to tell you how much it is. David, reboot the machine.”
“Fine. Could you hurry? I am in a hurry,” the rude bitch said as if she was the only one that mattered.
Phoebe picked up the lady’s items and hustled around a corner. Several of us grumbled about the woman in the front of the line. It wasn’t that difficult to see that this girl was overwhelmed.
“Hey,” I finally said. The stuffy looking woman reared around and then stopped, looking stunned. Like most women when they looked at me, she smiled, fluttering her fake eye lashes. “Ease up. She’s clearly feeling overwhelmed.”
That fake smile turned to sheer ugliness when this woman scrunched up her face at my comment. Phoebe hurried back to the lady. “Nineteen dollars and twenty-four cents, please.”
“Well, that doesn’t seem right,” the damn bitch replied. A collective moan bumbled through the line. “Here’s my card, but I’d like a receipt.”
Phoebe nodded and chuckled under her breath as she shuffled past us once again. The woman examined her well-manicured nails as if she hadn’t just been the rudest bitch alive to the poor girl.
“Ow!” The cry of pain grabbed all of our eyes as Phoebe slid t
o the floor, landing hard on her ass. When she brought her hand up, she grabbed her wrist, obviously in pain. Once she got to the woman in the front of the line, the woman shook her head, refusing the dirty receipt.
Phoebe’s shoulders slumped in defeat.
“I’d like to speak to your manager,” the woman demanded.
Something shifted in Phoebe’s face. Hardened may have been a better word.
“You know what lady, I pray to God that karma slaps your ass before I do,” she spat out. The woman’s mouth gasped open, and every single one of us applauded Phoebe. Several even cheered. Me, well, I grinned, proud of her for standing up for herself and putting this lady in her place. My smile only grew when she glanced my way.
“Phoebe!” a man cautioned from behind the counter.
Her cheeks tinged red in embarrassment as he approached her. The tag on his shirt read Dennis Manager. Where the hell had Dennis been while Phoebe navigated this entire issue without his managerial help.
“You need to apologize to this woman.”
“Dennis.” Her pleading tone pulled me into the conversation.
She said his name as the other woman stood with her hand on her hip waiting for an apology. Every man and woman in that line stayed quiet, waiting for her response.
“She doesn’t owe her an apology.” I finally said. “She was condescending and irrational toward your employee,” I explained just as Phoebe removed her Braums ball cap, shook out a mess of strawberry blonde hair and handed Dennis the hat. Damn that hair.
A guy in the line jabbed his hand in my direction, nodding. “Agreed.”
Phoebe smiled at me but shook her head.
“I’m waiting,” the woman spoke.
Stubbornly, Phoebe shook her head. “Wait all day. You won’t hear one come out of my mouth.” She lifted the apron off her neck, handing it to Dennis.
“Phoebe. You know you need this job,” he said.
My eyes darted to hers and then down to her worn out tennis shoes.
“I’ll figure something out,” she whispered, still staring at the woman. “If the rest of you want to move over to the other register, David should be able to help you. Sorry about this.”
The rest of the people in the line mumbled about what happened as they proceeded to go over to the other side of the store. Not me. I put the milk back in the case and watched her go through an oversized, metal swinging door. Only moments passed before she came back through, hugged the girl behind the ice cream counter and strode around the corner, nearly crashing into me.
“Sorry,” she said, stepping around me. “And, thank you, for speaking up back there.”
Creepily, I followed her out. An enormously large hoard of bugs flew around the bright, parking lot lights in the late summer night sky. As I watched her walk up the drive to the sidewalk, I wondered where she was going.
“Excuse me.”
She spun around, holding both her hands up in a protective stance. Trying to make her feel better, I held mine up too.
“What do you want? I swear, I have no money. Literally none.”
I chuckled. “I don’t want your money.” I heard her sniff, and I suspected she was crying.
“Thanks for trying to stand up for me in there.” She sniffed again. “I appreciate it.”
“I think you should have slapped her before karma,” I teased. I took out my handkerchief that I had never ever used in my life and handed to her. My father would be proud.
“What is this?”
“It’s a handkerchief,” I explained.
“For what?”
“Your tears. Your nose. Whatever you want.”
Her guarded stare bore into me even in the darkness. “What did you want again?”
The idea hit me literally as it was coming out of my mouth. “I have a proposition for you.”
“What is it? I don’t do sex for money.”
I laughed. “Understood. I need help and you clearly are going to need money.”
“What kind of help?”
“A date, of sorts.”
She pursed her lips and squared up, sizing me up and down. “You need help getting a date? Seriously? You are a gorgeously hot dude. You could probably have any girl you wanted. Why would you possibly need to buy a date? I mean, what do you really want?”
“I have a few questions for you first but then I’d like to make you an offer. May I buy you a drink?”
A car pulled in the parking lot and drove between us.
“I don’t drink.” She turned to walk away. I quickly closed the distance between us.
“Freebie,” I said, chuckling as I repeated what her name tag had read. “You don’t drink. Fine. Do you eat? Dinner?”
She paused, obviously trying to figure out what was really going on. “I don’t know you. Why would I go to dinner with you?”
“I’m completely safe. You have my word.” I flashed my smile her way, hoping it would work on her like it seemed to work on every other woman I came into contact with.
“Said like the world’s best serial killer. Honestly, I need to hurry or I’m gonna miss the bus. I’m not trying to be rude.” She started to walk away.
The bus? This girl didn’t have a car. I followed her, hurrying to catch up with her, stammering as I went.
“I…look…I know this sounds weird. I’m not even sure what I am doing right now. You’ve honestly entertained this conversation longer than I expected and I thank you for that. You see…I have to go to a wedding. She’s my ex. Actually, I’m in the wedding. Dear God, this sounds ridiculous.” I swiped down my face with both hands, suddenly embarrassed at how stupid this must sound to her. Could I be more pathetic?
“Fine. I’ll go.”
Shocked at her response, I stared at her in disbelief. “You will?”
She shrugged. “You had my back in there. You didn’t have to say anything. I owe you one. And besides, at least I won’t have to ask for a day off at work. However, I’ll probably need a dress.”
“Done. You can have a couple.”
“I think one will do. What’s the date of this shindig?”
More nervous than I should have been, I shoved my hands in my slacks pockets. “Well, before you say yes, you should know there is a slight catch.”
“You’re gay? It’s not all that surprising. You’re almost too good looking to be straight.”
This time I pursed my own lips. “No. I’m not gay.”
“So, what’s the catch? Seriously, I’m gonna miss my bus.”
“If you are gonna trust me enough to go to a wedding with me, could you trust me enough to give you a ride home?”
Lightning flickered in the sky behind us as a soft rumble of thunder rippled through the quiet between us. A storm loomed all around. Maybe more than we realized at the time.
“Just so you know. Camera. Camera. Camera. Camera.” She pointed to four different cameras within a block radius of where we stood. “The government sees you with me.”
“The government?”
She laughed, flicking her hand at me. “Police. Whoever!”
Her comments brought a full-blown smile from me. “That’s fair. Duly noted.”
I pointed to my Tesla. Honestly, I was a bit sheepish about my luxury vehicle given she didn’t appear to even have a car. It didn’t seem to faze her though as she opened the door and slid into the passenger seat. Once inside, she buckled. “Tell me this catch that you speak of.”
As I put the car into reverse, I threw another sexy grin her way. “Well. Wait until I get up to speed so you won’t jump out.”
The hesitant sideways glance kept my smile in place. “Just spit it out, Ralph.”
“Ralph?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know your name. But there’s a Ralph Lauren box in the back seat. Seriously, in that suit, you’re sort of a walking advertisement for some ritzy company, that’s for sure.”
“It’s Austin. Don’t call me Ralph.”
“I’m glad you
’re not Ralph. Ralph is rich, and rich people are assholes. Though this car, that suit, that face…the jury is still out. Go left here and get on the freeway.”
I had more money than she could ever imagine. No need for her to know that. “I’m just going to say it. So here goes. I’d like to hire you as my date for the wedding and the events leading up to the wedding. I’ll provide clothes, transportation and food. Plus, incredibly funny company, of course.” My smile broadened.
“I’m assuming you still haven’t told me the previously mentioned catch.”
“Oregon. It’s in Oregon.”
Her head snapped quickly in my direction. “The state?” she squealed, her voice raising multiple octaves.
I nodded, veering onto the freeway and navigating into traffic. “I mean, like you said, it’s not like you have a job.”
“Oh, a real jokester, eh?” She shook her head and I couldn’t tell how serious she was.
“I’ll reimburse you accordingly. You have my word.”
“If by accordingly you mean ten thousand dollars then I’m in,” she joked.
“Done.” I couldn’t have been more serious. I was relieved that this was as easy as it was.
“Ralph. Austin.”
“Freebie. Phoebe.”
“Just Phoebe. I go by Phoebe. And you can not be serious.”
After a slight wince, I replied. “It’s just Austin. I go by Austin,” I mimicked her. “And I am completely serious. I don’t goof around when it comes to money.”
Quietness settled between us for the first time since the Braums showdown. I thought the proposal was firm and things were a go but suddenly I wasn’t so sure. With her finger pointing, she navigated us to a part of town I wasn’t familiar with.
After we parked at an apartment complex, she unbuckled and turned sideways in her seat facing me. “How long are you talking? Like how long do you need me?”
“The wedding is in two weeks. I need to be there two days before and we can come home the day after. However, I believe we need to spend the next two weeks prepping a bit.”
“Prepping?”
“I want people there to think we are a couple.” Jesus, I reeked of desperation.
Finally...My Forever (Just One of the Guys Book 4) Page 1
