Ryan's Love (Sawyer Brothers #1)

by C. A. Harms

  By the time I was done, I was dirty, sweaty, hungry, and riding along the edge of exhaustion, but I still couldn’t wipe the smile from my face.

  My cellphone rang in my back pocket, and I dropped the small box onto the kitchen table and quickly retrieved my phone before it went to voice mail.

  “Hello?” I said breathlessly.

  “Hey, sweetness! What are you up to?”

  It was Bailey, my BFF who was more of a sister than a friend. I love her dearly, and I have always been able to count on her.

  “I’m moving in. Where the hell are you?” I asked, smiling as I remembered our conversation only a week ago.

  Bailey had just lost her job in the accounting branch of some department store. She hated it with a passion and bitched daily about her boss and what she would refer to as the woman’s “minions.” Bailey seemed to be the only one who would stand up for herself while the others bowed down to that nasty woman. Because of that, her boss made Bailey a target and piled on the reasons to let her go—which only helped me convince my very prissy and delicate friend to move to Livingston and work at the bakery with me. I laughed at the thought of her living in this small town. She would be lost without her shopping centers and top-notch salons, but I would deal with that when she got here.

  “That’s why I’m calling,” she said. “Apparently my flight has been delayed, and now I won’t arrive until around four p.m.”

  We’d already packed up most of Bailey’s things and tossed them into the U-Haul with my stuff. She had to stay behind to clean up her apartment and take care of her banking before flying out.

  “Okay, I’ll be there waiting for you at the airport,” I assured her. The delay also gave me a little while longer to clean up. Maybe within that time I could also find someone to help me move in our bedroom sets, being that they were the only true items of furniture we brought. We’d either sold or donated everything else.

  We hung up, and I decided to go clean myself up a bit before taking a little walk in hopes of finding a willing guy or two to volunteer their muscles.

  Walking past all the little shops that surrounded the bakery, I got a strong sense of security. It was a gorgeous area with some of the most beautiful scenery I had ever seen—open land as far as the eye could see, colorful flowers, and ash trees highlighted the spans of grass. The locals were so welcoming and friendly, smiling and offering polite nods as I passed.

  I was too busy looking off in the distance to pay attention to what was in front of me. My foot caught a high spot on the sidewalk, and I stumbled a few steps before I bumped into someone. I immediately held my hands out before me, and a set of strong hands gripped my shoulders to steady me.

  “Whoa, darlin’,” a deep voice said, followed by a chuckle. “You okay?”

  I looked up into a set of big green eyes and smiled in return. “Yeah, sorry about that. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

  “Not a problem.” He smiled, and the cutest dimple indented his left cheek. “You’re new in town?”

  I nodded. “Sure am.” I held my hand out, and he circled it with his big bear claw. “My name is Amber. I’m actually Helen’s granddaughter. I bought the bakery and plan on reopening it soon.”

  “No kidding! Helen was an amazing woman. Can you bake as well as she could?” he asked with an arched eyebrow.

  “I guess you’ll have to let me know once I get it opened for business,” I fired back.

  “Well, Amber, my name is Jackson, and I’ll be sure to stop by. Once you get everything up and running again, I’ll be your first customer.” He was obviously flirting as he continued to flash that cute dimple and his handsome grin.

  “Hey, Jackson, who do we have here?” a tall, dark-haired guy asked as he stepped up to Jackson’s side, his gaze raking over me from head to toe. A confident smile covered his lips, and a somewhat seductive gleam filled his eyes.

  “Booker, this is Amber. Amber, meet my overly flirtatious friend, Booker Lauss,” Jackson said with a roll of his eyes. “She’s reopening Helen’s Bakery. Helen was her grandmother.”

  “Love a woman who can cook,” Booker said with a wink.

  My cheeks began to heat. What the hell was it with cowboys? They had me fumbling over my words, unsure of how to respond. I had been flirted with more times than I could count, but there was just something about men in a cowboy hat and boots. Maybe it was the tight jeans hugging their muscular thighs or the snug shirts highlighting their thick arms and broad chests.

  There I stood in the middle of the sidewalk, my mouth watering from all the manly goodness before me. The charm these two men were oozing was too much, and I was forced to look away. Then I remembered the reason I went for a walk in the first place. “You two wouldn’t happen to have a few spare minutes to do me a favor, would you?”

  Booker’s smile grew wider, and he stepped forward, but Jackson elbowed him in the gut and shoved him to the side.

  “What can we help you with?” Jackson asked.

  “I need to move two bedroom sets upstairs, and there is absolutely no way I can do it on my own.” I placed my hands in my back pockets and rocked back on my heels. “Think maybe I could borrow your muscles for a bit?”

  “Two bedrooms sets?” Booker questioned. “Are you telling me there’s more than just one of you sweet additions to the area?”

  I nodded. “My best friend Bailey will be here tonight.”

  “Oh sweet Lord, I think this place just got a whole lot better!” Booker was laying it on thick, and I couldn’t help but laugh. He was cute, and his actions were nothing but a little harmless fun.

  “Lead the way, darlin’,” Jackson said as he stepped in front of Booker and once again nailed him in the gut with his elbow. I was getting the impression that Jackson was less than amused at Booker’s forwardness.

  They followed me back to the apartment, and as they moved the furniture up the stairs, I couldn’t help but snap a few photos. It would help me convince Bailey that while this small city wasn’t Chicago, it still wasn’t so bad. What better way was there to do that than show her pictures of two extremely sexy men with flexing muscles and cute butts?

  Chapter Three

  Ryan

  “Liv, have you seen my keys?” I hollered as I filled my oversized red thermos with coffee.

  “Seriously, Dad?” she groaned as she walked into the kitchen. “I should superglue them to your hand.” She spun around and walked off to look for them. I grinned as I heard the faint jingle from the other room. Olivia had found them in ten seconds flat after I had spent thirty minutes straight looking for them before finally giving up.

  “We need to get one of those key thingies to hang by the front door. Then I could put them there when I get home every night,” I said, holding my hand out for them as she reentered the kitchen.

  Olivia dropped them in my palm and laughed. “Yeah right, Dad, you’d just forget to hang them on the hook.” She rushed past me to the end of the counter, where she stood on her toes and pulled a coffee mug from the cabinet above. When did my teen daughter start drinking coffee? I kept watching as she filled her mug, adding enough cream and sugar for ten cups of brew. After stirring her coffee, she turned around and leaned her hip against the counter. She lifted the bright orange coffee cup that used to be her mother’s to her lips but paused when her eyes met mine.

  “What?” she asked.

  “When the hell did you start drinking coffee?”

  “A month maybe? You’re always running around like a chicken with its head cut off, so that’s why you haven’t noticed until now,” she said before taking a sip.

  “I’m not sure I like it.” No, I didn’t like the idea of my little girl growing up. She should still be drinking chocolate milk and begging me for the cereal with marshmallows inside, not drinking damn coffee.

  “Oh, Dad, it’s okay. You have years before I start drinking your beer,” she said, giving me a mischievous look. I noticed the slight curl of her lip as she foug
ht the urge to laugh. Damn girl was good at getting me wired up.

  “Yeah, well, the day I catch you popping open one of my beers, we will have problems. Don’t even joke about shit like that,” I said as I pointed my finger at her to show her how serious I was. She was a smartass, always attempting to dig under my skin and fire me up.

  Her baby-blue eyes gleamed as she stuck her tongue out at me and then took another sip of her too-sugary coffee.

  “Your grandma will be here to get you at noon,” I said. “I’ll swing by to pick you up midmorning on Sunday.”

  Olivia put her mug down on the counter and came over to give me a kiss on the cheek.

  “O-M-G, Dad, I know. You’ve told me three times already. I love you, now go have a good time.”

  She walked out of the kitchen and into her bedroom, leaving me once again shaking my head with amazement. Oh, how quickly she was growing up.

  ***

  “Have you seen the new girl in town?” Booker asked as he sat down on the rock next to me in front of Pretcher’s Lake. He let out a whistle and shook his head, smiling brightly. “Got us two city girls in town, actually. They’re both nice to look at, but I gotta say Amber is a fine sight. Sweet as candy too.”

  Booker has always been that one guy who crawls beneath my skin. He annoys the shit out of me, and I think he knows it too.

  “No, Book, I haven’t seen them. Jackson said you two helped carry up some furniture for them or something?”

  I tried hard not to show him I was annoyed. I came out here to relax and gain some peace, and the last thing I was going to do was let him ruin it for me with his arrogance.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure the shorter one, Amber, had a thing for me. I even caught her snapping a picture of our asses as we carried up the mattress.”

  That cocky asshole. Booker seriously thinks every girl he comes into contact with wants him, when in reality most just want to get away from his overly inflated ego. Besides, I had already heard about Amber and her friend from my youngest brother, Jackson. He found out they’re the new owners of Helen’s Bakery, soon to be renamed Heavenly Temptations. He’s somewhat of a horn dog, so when a new lady comes to town, he knows about it. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little intrigued by the news of someone new in town, and from the way Jackson described them both, they were definitely two very attractive women.

  “Well, Booker, we have already established the fact that you’re top dog around here,” I said, hoping he could hear the sarcasm in my voice. The guys sitting a few feet away from us chuckled. Every man in town thought the same thing about Booker; he was a huge pain in everyone’s ass.

  “Yeah, well,” he said as he cocked his head to the side and grinned, that smug son of a bitch.

  “I thought I would give them a little time to settle in before I made my move. They’re having the grand reopening on Fourth of July weekend.”

  I nodded slightly while silently begging for him to pick up on the fact that I didn’t give two shits about his plans.

  Despite being constantly irritated by Booker and his cockiness, the weekend of fishing with the guys had been great. It had been too long since I was able to cut loose and spend some time with my two brothers, my father, and Marty, my dad’s best friend. It was nice to get away and feel normal for once. I had allowed myself to fall into a repetitive pattern ever since Claire’s death, one of very little me time and a whole lot of regret. Regret for the things I didn’t do and the things I didn’t say. I had focused my entire life around Olivia and had let go of the Ryan I once was. I had forgotten what laughing and being carefree felt like.

  I would forever love Claire. My world was consumed by her beauty at a very young age, and my love grew to heights I never could have imagined. Losing her was like losing half of myself, and I still struggled daily to feel whole. But this weekend gave me a piece of myself back. A part that let me know it was okay to keep living. I had to finally let go of all the heartache and face the unchangeable fact that Claire was gone.

  Chapter Four

  Amber

  Bailey and I had spent each night and day for over a week cleaning the bakery. It was in desperate need of a facelift, and Heavenly Temptations needed a new look to go along with the new owners. We had to make it ours yet leave a few touches of my grandmother.

  What were once dingy yellow walls were now cream with light pink and blue accents, making the room bright and cheerful. And to bring back Helen’s signature color, we threw in a few splashes of yellow here and there too. We’d cleaned and repositioned the displays, opening the place up a little more than before. We painted all the cabinets in matching cream to get rid of the hideous brown color. And the new signs and flyers arrived yesterday, just in time for tomorrow’s opening.

  I was nervous but ready for this new beginning. I was definitely ready to leave behind a past that was dragging me down.

  So far everyone in town had been welcoming and extremely helpful. Livingston was starting to feel like home to us.

  A loud crash came from the kitchen, and I quickly rushed toward the commotion.

  “Goddammit,” Bailey muttered. A fresh batch of oatmeal-raisin cookies lay scattered across the floor as she waved her hand back and forth to cool it. “I am not cut out for this shit,” she grumbled.

  The girl looked a hot mess. Her hair was going in every direction, and I wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but there was something crusty stuck to her cheek. I couldn’t help but laugh when she looked up at me in defeat.

  “I burned my hands again!” she groaned and hung her head, her nostrils flaring in aggravation.

  I stepped closer and wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “You know I love you, right?” I asked and she nodded. “How many people do you know would pick up and move across the country just because their best friend asked them to? You left behind everything to take this adventure with me, and I can’t thank you enough. But…”

  I paused, and she looked up, her eyes questioning me.

  “If you regret it, if you feel like this isn’t the place for you, I understand. I would never force you to stay, Bay. I love you entirely too much to make you when you don’t want to.”

  She nudged me with her shoulder. “Yeah, like my life was just so amazing,” she joked. “The only thing I liked about Chicago was you being there with me. I had a shit job, a variety of loser guys that bored me to death, and parents who barely noticed I was in the same city. This is where I’m supposed to be, right here with you.”

  I hugged her close, and she let out a sigh. “But I can’t bake for shit, Amber. I seriously have to be the worst cook in history. I’m going to cause someone to become ill, or worse yet, the health department will shut you down from my lack of skills.”

  “You’re actually improving.” I bit my lower lip to hide my smile.

  “Whatever. I’ll just stand behind the counter and look pretty. You can stay back here and do all the manual labor.” Bailey tossed her hair to the side, all dramatic. She stepped over the cookies and pushed through the double door, smiling back at me as she left me to tend to the baking.

  The cookies on the floor were charred, and some of them had burned so bad they were stuck to the pan that lay alongside the crumbled mess. I couldn’t help but laugh. Bailey was right—she’s not a baker. A disaster with an apron maybe, but definitely not a baker.

  ***

  “Bailey,” I hollered up the stairwell that resembled more of a path of doom than the entrance to our apartment. It was still so dark and dingy. We had spent so much time finishing up the bakery we had neglected our home. I made a mental note to grab some light-colored paint, because the brown color on the walls had to go.

  A few seconds later she appeared at the top of the steps with a big blue towel wrapped around her hair. “Yeah?”

  “I’m going to run to the store and pick up a few things. I shouldn’t be long.”

  The grand opening for Heavenly Temptations was less than a day away, and the last
thing I wanted to do was run out of anything. Yes, we ordered all our supplies in bulk, but I still feared running out of something as small as napkins. Having a backup stash would make me feel better.

  I had ordered all-new appliances, including three coffee machines. I had even invested in a fancy espresso maker and one that made three different flavored cappuccino drinks too, hoping customers would welcome the new additions. My grandmother was definitely old-school, but I wanted to give the shop a contemporary feel.

  I spent nearly an hour shopping, roaming the store aisles while running inventory through my head. I left with bags full of supplies after spending entirely too much money.

  Pulling out of the parking lot and turning right onto Main Street, I mentally went through my checklist again. I was so nervous about the opening.

  Suddenly I heard a swooshing noise, followed by the car sounding like it was dragging the ground. I pulled over to the side of the road, rolled my window down, and stuck my head out just enough to hear it better as I slowed to a stop.

  I had a flat tire, which was the last thing I needed right now.

  I slammed my car in park and banged on the steering wheel as I let out a frustrated sigh.

  “Ugh! I can’t believe my luck.” I shoved my car door open and looked back toward the rear wheel. Seeing the flat tire only made me more agitated. I walked over, lifted my foot, and kicked it.

  “Goddammit,” I yelled, as if that would somehow magically fix the flat. I kicked it a few more times.

  The sound of someone clearing their throat startled me. I let out a yelp as I spun around. Two men were standing behind me.

  “We didn’t mean to startle you, but I don’t think kicking it is gonna help matters much.” His deep, husky voice made my heart race.