Tempting Her Neighbor (a Georgeville novella)

by Laura Jardine

  Rachel never felt shy about showing off her body—and that wasn’t any different with Cole. But with him, she didn’t worry about showing him what was inside her mind, her secret fantasies. She wasn’t nervous about how he would respond to her physical desires. Cole wasn’t full of himself when it came to his sexual prowess, and he understood he couldn’t read her thoughts or know exactly what she needed at every minute. Though, admittedly, he was getting better at that—often he did know exactly what she needed, at exactly the right moment.

  Hell, if this was what it was like, maybe she should change her habits. Go for the younger guys with less experience.

  Cole wasn’t younger than her, though he claimed he hadn’t had anywhere near as much sex as she had. He was just a bit of a recluse. Not much of a charmer. So, no surprise there.

  Perhaps that was what she should do from now on—pursue the grumpy loners.

  Except…

  No, she only wanted Cole.

  They’d now slept together three days in a row.

  It was almost unheard of for her to have a guy she slept with every day. Though, she’d had a pretty good streak with Darrell Summers last year during her week off. As usual, she hadn’t gone anywhere for her vacation other than spending a night in Montreal with Jenna and Cassie. Because she was saving her money for when she finally made her escape from Georgeville.

  So, she’d spent the better part of the week in bed with Darrell. He was the only man, other than Cole, she’d ever trusted not to go around blabbing the details of their sexual exploits. Darrell might not hide that he’d slept with her, but she trusted he wouldn’t say anything more. She’d told him she didn’t want that, and he was the kind of guy who kept his word.

  Back in high school, he’d been best friends with Brandon, her ex-boyfriend. But unlike Brandon, he hadn’t flirted with every girl in sight when he had a girlfriend. And Darrell wasn’t friends with Brandon anymore, which spoke heavily in his favor.

  Still, although Darrell was a handsome guy, he paled in comparison to Cole. Most women would probably think Darrell was the better looking of the two. Definitely the nicer. And when she thought of his features individually, went through and listed his assets, she came to the same conclusion.

  And yet…

  There was just something about Cole Sampson that appealed to her far more than Darrell Summers ever had.

  She’d enjoy the time she got to spend with Cole before she made her move to the big city. She had been spending her evenings doing research. Examining the cost of living in different neighborhoods in Toronto and Ottawa. Looking at her bank balance. Making plans.

  She was leaving Georgeville, and nothing would stop her.

  The chimes above the door tinkled, jolting her out of her thoughts. She walked toward Jerry O’Donnell, who sat down at his regular table. She didn’t bother bringing a menu.

  “Your daughter’s coming up to visit tomorrow?” she asked.

  “Told you about that already, did I?”

  She nodded.

  “I won a tricycle at the Georgetown Heritage Festival,” he said. “Gonna give it to my granddaughter. You know those wheel spoke decorations? I found some star-shaped ones in Kingston the other day. Gotta put those on after lunch.”

  “I’m sure she’ll love it,” Rachel said. “So what’ll it be today? Burger and fries?”

  “Let’s go crazy. Onion rings instead of fries.”

  “Burger and onion rings. Coming right up.” She headed back to the kitchen to place his order, as she’d done so many times before.

  Onion rings instead of fries. That’s what qualified as exciting around here.

  …

  After work, Rachel drove to Shannon’s place. Her nephew, Jacob, was having a nap, and her sister was extremely pleased by this turn of events.

  “He rarely naps anymore.” Shannon shook her head and gestured Rachel inside. “Shh. I’m afraid he’ll wake up if I so much as flush the toilet.”

  They went into the kitchen. A container of muffins was open on the table.

  “Zucchini muffins,” Shannon said. “Jacob really likes them. I haven’t told him that they contain vegetables because he might refuse to eat them if he knew. Try one.”

  Rachel took a muffin and sat down.

  Shannon had bought a bungalow on the edge of Georgeville earlier in the year. It was a small house, but two bedrooms were enough when it was just her and Jacob.

  “How was your date on Saturday?” Rachel asked. “I’m very curious.” It was the first date Shannon had been on since Jacob was born. Rachel had texted her sister for details earlier in the week but had gotten no response.

  “It was… What’s the word? Anticlimactic? Have I got it right? You’re the one who reads. Not me.”

  “It would help if I knew what you were getting at.”

  “Like, there was so much buildup. My first date in years! What a big deal!” She raised her hands in the air. “And then”—she let her hands fall—“he was an insurance agent. Which was fine. I knew that before. It was on his profile. But he was a little too enthusiastic about insurance. I couldn’t stand listening to him.”

  “He’s from Barcroft Hill, right?”

  “Yeah. Not many guys in this area.” Shannon sighed then took a big bite of her muffin. “So, you’ll look after Jacob while I get my hair cut, and have some lasagna with us afterward?”

  “Lasagna.” Rachel chuckled.

  “What’s so funny? It’s easy to sneak vegetables into lasagna, and Jacob loves it.”

  It just reminded her of Cole. That was all. “I made some last week. Gave one to my new neighbor.”

  “Oh, yeah?” Shannon propped her head up on her hand and leaned forward. “I saw him moving in. Tell me. Would he be interested in a twenty-five-year-old woman with a toddler?”

  Nope. Already taken. But Rachel didn’t feel like sharing that. Her sex life might be no big secret around town, but she didn’t usually talk details with her sister. Besides, there was another way to put Shannon off.

  “I don’t think he likes people in general. He’s from Toronto. Keeps to himself. Says he came here for solitude.”

  “Too bad.” Shannon frowned. “There are so few dateable men around here. Not often we get new blood.”

  Rachel nibbled at her muffin. “I’ll stay for dinner, but I have to go home right afterward.”

  “You got plans?”

  “Yeah. Plans.”

  “You and your exciting single life.”

  “It’ll be more exciting when I move out of Georgeville,” Rachel said. “I mean it this time. I promised myself that I would be out by January. Enough talking about it. I’m going to finally do it.” She didn’t mention that it still scared the crap out of her.

  “I’ll miss you. So will Jacob.” Shannon paused. “But I’m glad. You’ve been thinking about it for ages.”

  She had. But right now, that wasn’t the main thing on her mind. She had plans for after dinner. Plans she’d been looking forward to all day.

  …

  Rachel had plans the next night, too. With Jenna and Cassie.

  She hadn’t planned to show up fashionably late. But Cole had dropped by her place unexpectedly after work, and of course she hadn’t kicked him out. She’d told him just ten minutes, but somehow—well, she knew exactly how—that had turned into twenty. So, she’d been late getting dinner ready, and now she was late to meet her friends at Lawson’s Bar.

  She saw them as soon as she walked in, sitting in the back corner as usual. She ordered a vodka and lime then headed to their table.

  “You look happy,” Jenna observed.

  “Must be the glow I get from having good sex,” Rachel said, sitting down.

  Four eyebrows shot up.

  “You have a lot of explaining to do,” Jenna said. “I don’t hear from you for almost a week, and then you show up thirty minutes late looking like you just had sex with Brad Pitt.”

  “Brad Pitt?” Rachel shook her
head. “I got over him years ago.”

  Cassie lifted her drink to her lips. “You were salivating over him just last month.”

  “So, spill. Who is it?” Jenna asked.

  “You know my hot new neighbor?” Rachel shrugged. “Yeah. Him.”

  Jenna frowned. “I thought he shot you down.”

  “He changed his mind.”

  “Decided it was no big deal that you live next door?”

  “Something like that.” Rachel didn’t want to share the details of that blowjob on the McNeil Trail. Didn’t want to talk about their argument or his apology. Or anything else that happened between them. People shared personal information about her all the time, and she hated it. She didn’t want to do the same thing.

  “How many times have you two done the deed?” Jenna asked.

  “Every night this week.” Rachel shrugged again, but she couldn’t keep herself from smiling. Having lots of hot sex was pretty awesome.

  “Do you watch movies and talk about your childhood and your feelings, too?”

  “Nah,” Rachel said. “We have sex, and he leaves. That’s it.”

  Crap. Had that sounded disappointed?

  No. That would make no sense. She liked it this way. And so did he.

  Sex without social interaction? That suited him.

  Sex without emotional entanglement? That suited her.

  “This one seems more serious for you,” Jenna said, studying her face.

  “Oh, yeah,” Rachel drawled. “Five days of sex. Totally serious. No, really. That’s all it is.” She never liked a guy enough to want more than that. Cole was no different.

  And this would be a particularly terrible time to get involved with someone, right when she was finally planning her escape from this small town. Especially with someone like Cole, who’d just moved to Georgeville to get away from the city. They had no future together.

  Or she’d end up sacrificing her dreams for their relationship.

  Nope, she wouldn’t let that happen.

  And seriously, Cole as a boyfriend? Introducing him to her parents? She stifled a laugh.

  “So…” Cassie looked down at her drink. “You don’t want anything more from this guy?” Her voice wavered a little, and Rachel noticed she didn’t have the same glow she’d had at Jenna’s last week.

  Rachel shook her head. “Not really.”

  Cassie looked at her skeptically then stood up. “I better go. I haven’t been sleeping well lately, and I’m exhausted. I’m sorry. I know you just got here, Rachel—”

  “Half an hour late,” Jenna said. “What’s happening with you?”

  “—but I just need to get a proper night’s sleep for once. See you later.”

  Cassie walked out of the bar. Rachel frowned as she looked at her friend’s half-empty glass, realizing she had only been drinking water. Had she drunk any wine at Jenna’s last week? Rachel remembered her having a full wineglass the whole time.

  Jenna leaned toward Rachel and murmured, “She seems off today, and it’s strange for her not to have a rum and coke at Lawson’s. I asked if something was up before you got here, but she insisted it was nothing, just that she wasn’t sleeping well.”

  Rachel immediately thought of pregnancy. But Cassie? An unplanned baby? It didn’t seem like her. And she hadn’t mentioned a guy in a long time.

  “I’ll try to talk to her sometime,” Rachel said.

  “Sometime when you’re not having sex with your new boy toy?”

  “You’re just saying that because it makes me cringe.”

  “Exactly.” Jenna took a sip of her cocktail. “I haven’t had a chance to say it for a while. But I’m glad your life’s gotten interesting again. I was starting to worry about you.”

  They chatted for a few minutes, until Darrell Summers sauntered over to their table.

  “Hey, girls,” he said. “How you doing tonight?” He turned to Rachel. “You going to let me buy you a drink?”

  Although she’d spent more than a few pleasant nights in his company, including that week last year, she wasn’t interested anymore. She had someone new. The thought of Cole made her feel warm and fuzzy inside, even though he was far from a warm and fuzzy person.

  “That smile for me, sweetheart?” Darrell put a hand on her shoulder.

  “Jenna just told a funny joke,” Rachel said, shaking herself out of it.

  “Oh yeah? Let’s hear it.” Darrell looked at Jenna and rubbed his thumb over Rachel’s bare shoulder.

  “Uhh…right,” Jenna said. “Very funny joke. Sorry, I won’t repeat it in polite company.”

  Darrell laughed and turned back to Rachel. “So what do you say?”

  She shook her head. “Maybe some other time.” But she couldn’t see that happening anytime soon.

  She saw a flicker of disappointment cross his face, but then he said, “That’s okay, honey. You know where to find me if you need me. Maybe you’ll want a Skee-Ball rematch at the Ridgewood Fall Fair.” He winked at her before walking away.

  “You two are serious,” Jenna said, surprise in her eyes. “You and Cole, I mean.”

  “The fact that I turned down Darrell Summers does not mean a thing. He’s just what I do when there’s nothing else on the table.”

  Jenna grinned. “On the table? You and Cole? Really?”

  Rachel rolled her eyes but laughed. “That flimsy thing in my kitchen? Have you seen how muscular he is?”

  “It would only need to support you. While he—”

  Rachel held up her hands. “Stop being jealous of my exciting single life.”

  “Oh, I’m not jealous. Now that I’ve stopped feeling guilty about not having a wedding. I wouldn’t trade places for the world.”

  Rachel was grateful for the change of subject. “Have you told your families yet?”

  “Yeah. Theo’s mom is pissed. I’m terrified she’ll plan a surprise wedding for us. So we really need to tie the knot before she can do that.”

  Rachel chuckled. “I’m certainly not jealous of you.”

  “I can tell,” Jenna said. “And I know it has something to do with—”

  “Lots of good sex.”

  Hot sex.

  Amazing sex.

  But that was all it was. Just sex.

  Chapter Eleven

  Cole groaned when he heard the knock on the door. Now he had to haul himself off the damn couch.

  He knew who it was. His mother. He’d totally forgotten she’d said she would come down from Ottawa today, two weeks after he’d moved to Georgeville.

  It wasn’t that he didn’t want to see her. He did. But she always had way too much energy, and it was exhausting to be around her.

  He put down his book and headed to the door.

  It wasn’t his mom.

  No, it was Rachel. In a tempting little dress, her hair pulled up high.

  The woman sure knew how to make his heart race.

  “I’ve got the day off, so I was thinking…” She rested her hip against the doorframe. “How about you come over in a few minutes and—”

  “No,” he snapped.

  She frowned, then peered at him from beneath her long eyelashes. “What’s wrong, lover boy? If you come over in ten minutes, maybe I’ll just happen to be in the shower.”

  He put a hand to his forehead and shook his head. “I can’t. Not today.”

  “Later?”

  “No, I…” He glanced at the driveway just as a familiar blue Toyota pulled up.

  Rachel turned to see what he was looking at. “You have a visitor? A woman?”

  “Yeah. And I need you to get out of here or it’s going to be really uncomfortable for both of us.” He shook his head again. “Actually, it’s probably too late.”

  If Rachel left now, it might not be too late for her. But it would still be too late for him. His mom had to have seen her, and she’d bug him endlessly about it. Her visit would be even more exhausting than usual.

  “I don’t need you to meet m
y mother.”

  Her eyes widened. “Your mother. Why didn’t you say so?” A smile flashed across her face.

  Had Rachel been wondering… Shit. Had she seriously thought he had another woman coming over? Really, it was a damned miracle he was sleeping with one woman right now.

  Hell, would Rachel really be jealous if there was someone else? It seemed like it.

  “She looks awful young to be your mother,” Rachel said as his mom got out of the car and waved.

  “She is. Teen pregnancy. I ruined her life.”

  Not that his mother saw it that way. At least, she would never admit it. But if she’d never gotten pregnant, she probably would have kicked the asshole who was his father out of her life much sooner. However, being a pregnant sixteen-year-old who was disowned by her parents hadn’t left her with very good options.

  And now, in jeans and a white blouse, her dark hair hanging below her shoulders, his mother didn’t look forty-five. She definitely didn’t look old enough to have a twenty-eight-year-old son.

  “I don’t…” Rachel began, then cleared her throat. “Well, I’ll get out of your way. See you later.” She hurried back to her apartment as his mom unloaded a box from the trunk.

  A few minutes later, after being stuck in an enthusiastic hug for a full minute, Cole learned what was in that box—a shit ton of food. His mom had doubts about his ability to feed himself—which, admittedly, were somewhat justified—but this was more than she usually brought.

  “There’s food in Georgeville.” He leaned against the counter and watched as she unpacked the box. Casseroles, jars of soup, bags of fruit… She’d brought a lot. He had tried to help her put it away, but she’d insisted on doing it herself. “And I can cook.”

  She snorted at that, and he laughed. Okay, fine. A bit of an exaggeration.

  “Is there even a grocery store in this place?” she asked, putting a container of strawberries in the fridge. “I didn’t see one on the way here.”

  “At the other end of town.”

  “You mean two blocks away?”

  “Something like that,” he said. “Where’s Joe? I thought he was coming.”

  His mother sighed. “He was going to. But he wasn’t feeling well this morning.”