Forty and Free: A Sweet Romance Series Bundle - Books 1 - 4

by Blake, Lillianna

  First stop was the bank to get some cash out for her adventurous weekend ahead. A favorite hobby of hers was to treasure hunt at thrift stores and flea markets. Along with floral arrangements, she also offered unique custom-made gift baskets. It was fun to dig through her assortment of thrift store finds to select the perfect items that would set off the rest of the contents in the baskets.

  When Angela parked in front of the bank, she noticed that there were a few people in line for the ATM. She took the time to check her e-mail on her phone. She noticed a few new posts on an online forum she belonged to—Forty and Free.

  As she read over the latest update from one of the women she knew on the site, her teeth clenched. It was all about how the love of her life had come along when she’d least expected it.

  With a sigh, she turned off her phone. Stories like that always made her emotions get tangled up. Some people made romance look so easy—as if you could trip right over it. She shook her head as she climbed out of the car to make her way to the now available ATM machine. As she walked up to it, she mulled over in her mind the gift baskets that she needed to put together for Monday, as well as the fresh flower order she needed to pick up from a local greenhouse. Distracted, she slid her bank card into the ATM and poked at the buttons.

  One anniversary basket, two birthday baskets, one baby shower basket—what a busy week. She smiled to herself. Busy meant success. She was proud of the fact that she’d taken a chance on opening her own business.

  She selected the amount of money she needed—which was more than usual, as she hoped to find some large decorative items for the inside of the shop. As she pulled the money from the ATM her mind shifted back to the gift baskets.

  The sensation of a hand on her shoulder didn’t register at first. It was so foreign that she thought she’d imagined it. She glanced up and into wide blue eyes—wider than they should have been. Her breath caught in her throat and her entire body tensed as if it was filled with concrete.

  “Give me the money,” he growled from behind the black knit mask he wore.

  She stared back at him, unable to process his request.

  “Give me the money!” He gave her shoulder a hard shake.

  That woke her up. This wasn’t a nightmare. There was no safe warm bed to wake up in. A shudder carried up along her spine.

  “Don’t hurt me.”

  He reached for the money in her hand and with a sharp movement tried to wrench it out of her grasp.

  Chapter 2

  Like ribbons of gold. Ryan blinked and forced himself to look away. He’d been staring at the woman at the ATM for far too long. As he waited for her to finish her transaction he tried to distract himself by flipping through radio stations.

  But his gaze kept drifting right back to her. Her long blonde hair rippled in the light breeze. The sunlight sparkled along the strands. He’d never seen anything more beautiful. He considered offering her a compliment, but he didn’t want it to be taken the wrong way. As he rehearsed in his mind what he could say to her, he noticed that it looked like she was almost done completing her transaction.

  He decided to get out of the car before she could get to hers. Maybe they’d even have a conversation. Despite the fact that many women described him as handsome, when it came to initiating a conversation with a woman, Ryan was woefully inexperienced.

  When he closed his car door he noticed a man approaching the ATM. With the man’s head down, Ryan didn’t notice the mask he wore at first. When the guy lunged toward the woman at the ATM, Ryan snapped into action.

  He didn’t want to spook the mugger into hurting the woman, so he gave him a wide berth and prepared to interfere. When the mugger grabbed the woman’s hand and tried to rip the money out of it, Ryan caught sight of her wide brown eyes and the tremble in her full lips.

  He surged forward without a second thought. His body connected with the larger man and propelled him back against the brick of the bank’s outer wall. The woman stumbled back a few steps. The mugger cursed at the top of his lungs and struggled to get out from under Ryan. With one sweep of his foot, Ryan brought him down to the ground. He shoved his knee into the sweet spot of the guy’s lower back—the spot he knew could paralyze even the most muscular of men.

  “Call 911.” He looked up at her as he held the man down. “Take a breath, you’re okay. Call 911.”

  She stared at him as if he had two heads. He knew that look. She was in shock. He tried to meet her eyes, but she continued to look around in a panic.

  “What’s your name?”

  “Angela.” She whispered her name as if she was too frightened to speak louder.

  “Angela, listen to me. I can hold him down, but not forever. I left my phone in the car. I need you to use your phone to call 911, okay?”

  “Yes, oh yes. I can do that.” She blinked and fumbled in her purse for her phone.

  As she called for help, Ryan leaned down beside the man’s ear.

  “Picked the wrong ATM and the wrong girl, scum.”

  “Let me go!” He squirmed under Ryan’s knee. “You’re going to regret this.”

  Ryan looked up at Angela as she explained the situation to the 911 operator. From the delicate slope of her nose, to the light dusting of freckles on her cheeks, he instantly adored everything about her.

  “I doubt that.” He smirked down at the criminal beneath him. “I don’t think I’ll ever regret this moment.”

  “Just let me go. I just need a fix. I wasn’t going to hurt her.”

  “You already did.” Ryan scowled down at him. “You just stole her sense of safety from her. That’s as violent as anything else you might have had in mind. I advise you to shut your mouth and keep it shut.”

  Sirens in the distance calmed Ryan. He looked back at Angela.

  She stared at him. “Are you okay? You’re not hurt, are you?”

  A bit startled by the question, he shook his head. “I’m fine. Are you?”

  “I think so.” She looked at the money still clutched in her hand. Finally she tucked it into her purse. “This has never happened to me before.”

  “Just take a few deep breaths. The police will be here soon and all of this will be over. Okay?”

  She nodded and wrapped her arms around herself.

  Ryan fought the urge to be the one that held her. He needed to keep the mugger secure. If the criminal escaped, he would never live it down.

  A moment later a patrol car squealed into the parking lot.

  Ryan rolled his eyes. “Nice driving, Collins.”

  “What?” Angela looked over at him.

  “Nothing.” He smiled. “See, they’re here now.”

  “Yes.” She sighed and blinked a few times to hide her tears.

  He wished he could comfort her.

  “It’s okay to be upset, Angela. What just happened was scary.”

  “I’m okay.” She drew a deep breath as he instructed. “I’ll be okay.”

  “Yes, you will.”

  “What’s this? I thought you were off duty today, Scott!” Collins smacked him on the shoulder.

  “How about we get this guy in cuffs?” Ryan straightened up and looked over at Angela. “He tried to mug Angela here, and she’s a little shaken up.”

  “That’s to be expected. Do you want me to call an ambulance, ma’am?”

  “No, I’m fine. Really.” She looked confused as her gaze went between the two men.

  Collins nodded and pulled out his cuffs.

  Once the mugger was led off to one of the patrol cars, Ryan turned back to face Angela.

  “I meant to tell you earlier—you have a beautiful name.”

  “Oh?” She smiled a little. “Thanks. What’s yours? Scott?”

  “Last name.” He held out his hand to her. “Ryan Scott. Nice to meet you, Angela.”

  Chapter 3

  Angela stared at the hand that Ryan had extended to her and after a moment, took it in a mild handshake. The moment her skin touched his, her
eyes widened. What was that? It was as if she’d been zapped from the inside by a high-voltage wire. She cleared her throat and drew her hand away.

  “I don’t know how I can ever thank you, Ryan. You saved my life.”

  “I don’t know about that, but I’m glad I was here.” He pointed to his car in the parking lot. “I was next in line.”

  “Oh.” She smiled. “Just my luck to have a hero nearby.”

  “Oh sure, Officer Scott is a real hero.” Collins clapped him on the shoulder again.

  “Officer Scott?” Angela looked from Ryan to the officer beside him, then back again. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”

  “I’m off duty today.” He shrugged.

  “Sorry to make you work on your day off.” She offered a light smile. “But I appreciate the rescue.”

  “No problem. I’m happy I was able to help.”

  She couldn’t deny the fact that he was handsome. From his short brown hair to his huge gray eyes, she thought he was very attractive. But that didn’t change the fact that he was a police officer.

  “Ma’am, if we can just take your statement, then you’ll be free to leave.”

  “Great.” She turned to the other officer and told him what she could remember about the attack.

  As she spoke, her gaze drifted back toward Ryan. Though it was his day off, he’d made no move to leave. He also didn’t try to get to the ATM.

  When Angela finished her statement she started back toward her car.

  Ryan followed after her. “All set?”

  “Yes.” Angela paused with her keys poised to unlock the door. “Thanks again to you.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay to drive? After a scare like that, you might be more shaken than you realize.”

  “I’ll be okay.” She tried to slide the key into the lock, but her hand trembled so much that she couldn’t get the key to go in.

  His fingertips coasted along the back of her hand in a soothing stroke. He wrapped his hand around her keys.

  “Why don’t we get a coffee? There’s a place right over there.” He gestured to one of her favorite coffee shops.

  She hesitated. She didn’t expect her hand to shake like that. What would happen when she got behind the wheel?

  “It’ll help you calm down.” He met her eyes. “Trust me, I’ve been through a lot of adrenaline rushes, and you want to give yourself a little time to chill out before you battle traffic.”

  “Okay.” She nodded, though she wondered if she was making the right choice. Ryan was so nice, and he had saved her, after all. “But only if I buy—as a thank you.”

  “Fine.” He smiled.

  When they reached the coffee shop, he held the door open for her and let her walk in first.

  Angela was more than a little impressed with his manners.

  “Officer Scott, good to see you again.” The barista behind the counter winked at him. “Oh, and Angela—hi!” She smiled.

  Angela laughed. “I guess you’re as addicted to this place as I am—or do you just bring all the girls you save here?”

  “Only one.” He smiled and leaned against the counter. “You’re the first. I’ll have my usual, Mae.”

  “You’ve got it. Angela, yours too?” She looked between the two with a secretive smile.

  “No, actually just some chamomile tea. I need to calm my nerves a bit.”

  “I bet you do—around this hunk.” Mae raised an eyebrow at Ryan.

  Angela blushed and looked down at the keys she still clutched in her hand. “I guess you’re right about that.” She stiffened as the warmth of Ryan’s palm radiated through the back of her shirt.

  “We’re just sharing a coffee, Mae. Angela had a pretty frightening experience.”

  “Oh no! Is that what all the sirens and tire-squealing were about?”

  “Unfortunately, yes. Well, not the tires squealing—that’s just Officer Collins’s bad driving.” He shook his head.

  “Uh-huh. I’m so sorry Angela. I hope you’re okay.”

  “I’m fine.” Angela frowned. “I’d like to pay.”

  “Okay.” Mae’s smile faded a bit with Angela’s brusque attitude. “Nine fifty.”

  “Great.” Angela handed her a twenty. “Keep the change.”

  “Are you sure?” Mae’s eyes widened.

  Ryan leaned close to her. “Angela, you just gave her a twenty.”

  Angela blinked a few times and sighed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize.”

  “Don’t apologize, it’s okay.” Mae smiled and handed her back a ten dollar bill and two quarters.

  Angela dropped the quarters into the tip jar.

  “Wow, I must really be more shaken up than I thought.”

  “Don’t worry, it’ll fade. Let’s find somewhere to sit.” Ryan steered her toward an empty table.

  “I guess you know a lot about adrenaline, hm?” Angela sat down across from him.

  “The job does present some dangerous situations.”

  “Right.” Angela fought her desire to launch into a long speech about her opinion about police. Ryan had protected her when she’d needed it, and that was all that mattered at the moment.

  “Where were you off to today? Sometimes it helps to talk about your routine—to snap you out of the shock, I mean.”

  “Oh, just some errands. Actually, quite a few errands.” She glanced at her watch. “Which I should be doing right now.”

  “Not right this second.” He rested his hand on top of hers.

  She met his eyes and experienced that strange jolt again.

  It’s just because he rescued you, Angela, don’t be silly. She took a deep breath.

  “Do you do this for everyone you rescue?”

  “No.” He smiled. “Just you.”

  She realized he’d singled her out twice now. Was he flirting with her? The thought surprised her.

  Then came another unnerving thought. Did she want him to?

  Chapter 4

  It was easy for Ryan to spot the glaze in her eyes. He’d seen it with many victims of trauma. One minute a person could be holding a conversation, the next their mind was somewhere else. Lucky for Angela, her trauma could have been way worse.

  He’d also noticed the skittish way she avoided the topic of his job. Something about it seemed to bother her—or maybe he was reading too much into her expressions.

  Every chance he had, he seemed to want to touch her. It wasn’t just to offer her comfort, but to confirm to himself that she was real. With every moment that passed, he expected the feelings that had been building within him to pass. But they didn’t.

  He’d felt sparks with women that he’d rescued before. It was easy to create a connection with someone in an emergency situation. But this went much deeper. The sensation billowed through every nerve in his body, a subtle warmth that grew each time she looked at him. He noticed there was no ring on her finger.

  “Tell me about yourself, Angela. What do you do for a living?”

  “I’m a florist. I just opened my own shop.” Her expression brightened. “I also sell gift baskets.”

  “That must be a very rewarding job. I imagine you get to see people at their happiest moments.”

  “Sometimes.” She laughed a little. “I have noticed a trend of husbands buying apology flowers.”

  “Apology flowers?” Ryan raised an eyebrow.

  “Yes, they always pick the biggest bouquet for the occasion.”

  “At least they’re trying.” He shrugged.

  “Maybe. But maybe if they tried a little harder in the first place, they wouldn’t need to buy apology flowers.”

  “Good point.” He grinned. “What about you? Have you ever gotten apology flowers?”

  Her features grew tense. “Oh, I don’t date much.”

  There it was. His heart raced. An admission that she was single. That was what he’d hoped to hear.

  “Why is that? You’re such a beautiful woman.”

  “Ha.” She rolled
her eyes at him with a warm smile. “I’ve never been accused of being beautiful. But, honestly, I guess I’ve just lost interest in dating.”

  He started to reach for her hand, but the delivery of their drinks interrupted the gesture. Once Mae walked away, he tried to meet Angela’s eyes.

  “You are beautiful. No question about it.”

  She stared down into her tea. He expected her to say thank you, but she remained silent. He tried to figure out, from the curve of her lips and the language of her body’s position, whether she was enjoying his company. One moment she was smiling, the next she seemed to retreat.

  “And your job? I’m sure that you get to see many failed relationships.”

  “Huh? Not that often. I guess we do get some domestic calls.” He frowned. “Those are some of the hardest. I hate to see a woman in a vulnerable position.”

  “I can tell.” Angela smiled.

  “Oh yes, you’re right. But some women—they’ve just spent so many years being told and shown that they’re worthless that they believe it. That breaks my heart. The ones that don’t even want to press charges, because they’ve been conned into believing that they deserve to be mistreated…” He clenched his jaw to hold back a sudden rise of emotions. “That’s the hardest.”

  When he looked back at her, he noticed the distant smile on her lips.

  “It’s a good thing they have you there to protect them.”

  “That’s the thing. I can’t.” He spread his hands out palms up. “They don’t want me to. It’s the most helpless feeling in the world when you know that as soon as that door closes, they’re going to pay a price and there’s nothing you can do. I try every time. I tell them just how important they are, and that they have a right to safety, but…” He shook his head and frowned. “More often than not, they just send us away.”

  “How sad.” Angela took a sip of her tea.

  He thought perhaps it was to hide the tremble in her chin. He picked up his mug and allowed the silence to fill the space between them. Great job, Ryan, you’ve brought up a heavy subject. Now she’s going to think all you are is doom and gloom.

  She glanced at her watch.

  His chest clenched. This was his last chance; he could sense it.