That didn’t seem like a sacrifice at all. She could still have him and live in the city like she’d always wanted. And she’d always been scared about making the move, but if she was with him, it wouldn’t be anywhere near as frightening. Her world was opening up with possibilities.
Relationships didn’t have to be scary. They didn’t have to tear you apart, like Brandon had done to her in high school.
They could be the opposite. This relationship would make her stronger.
She would cancel her trip to Toronto to look at apartments. But she could still be out of Georgeville by January, which had been her goal all along.
“Come on, Rachel,” he said. “My shriveled and blackened heart can’t take much more of this waiting business.”
“Yes,” she whispered. “That sounds perfect. Me and you.”
“I’m glad.” His voice was a little rough.
“You’re right. About the reason I turned you down the other day. I thought I’d have to pick between having you and leaving town, and it seemed foolish to pick you when I’ve wanted to leave for so long. Even though your scowl is just so damn sexy.”
“I try my best. Though I didn’t have much success with it before you came along.”
“But when I was running on the McNeil Trail, where we—”
“I promise I will never forget what happened there.”
She remembered kneeling on the twigs and leaves before him, taking him in her mouth for the first time…
“Neither will I.” She snapped her mind back to the present. “And I realized what was really foolish was to give up on you when we hadn’t even talked about it, and if I had to choose between leaving and being with you…I might choose you. But I’m glad it’s not one or the other.”
“I wouldn’t want you to give up your dreams for me. I’m here to help your fantasies become reality.”
He kissed her, his mouth melding with hers, then slipping away, then coming back. This was so much better than a few rounds of sex and nothing more. Not that she regretted how she’d lived the last few years. They’d brought her to this point. To Cole.
“I don’t know how you did it,” he said. “But you showed me that it’s worth taking a risk to get close to someone, even though I’m better at keeping people away. I used to be completely baffled by relationships. I never understood the appeal. But now, I truly can’t imagine anything better than being with you.”
She knew, without a doubt, that this was the man for her. He liked her for who she was, and he would help her become a better version of herself. One who would reach for the life she desired.
“Enough with the pretty words,” she said, emotion overcoming her. “Time to have sex. Maybe in the shower, because I need to get cleaned up after that run.”
“Mmm. I’ve never done it in the shower before.”
“There’s always a first time.”
He pulled her shirt over her head, followed by her sports bra. Which didn’t cause him any trouble since it didn’t have any clasps. He set his mouth to her breast, swirling his tongue over the peak. She arched against him and gripped his shoulders, basking in the physical pleasure, the way he cared for her like no one else.
They eventually made it to the shower, and afterward they ordered pizza from Ridgewood and made salad. Cole suggested they buy the most expensive bottle of wine at the liquor store, but the store was already closed.
Life in a small town.
So, they sat at the table eating cheap pizza and drinking beer, and talking about all the things they would do one day.
Together.
Epilogue
Five months later
“Okay,” Rachel said as the elevator door opened. “Let’s go.”
Cole lifted up his end of the couch that had previously sat in Rachel’s living room in Georgeville. They would put it in the living room of their new apartment in Ottawa. His couch was in the second bedroom, which he was calling the study.
He was looking forward to their new life together, and he was glad he’d be closer to his mother. But he’d insisted on getting a place with two bedrooms. After a decade of living alone, sharing an apartment with Rachel would take a little getting used to, and he thought the extra space would help. That way she would always have somewhere to flee to other than the bedroom when he was watching one of the crime shows that she hated. Plus he could work somewhere other than the living room.
“Goddammit,” he said, “this couch is so much heavier than mine.”
“Too heavy for you to handle, lover boy?” She started walking backward out of the elevator. “Do we need to ask someone for help?”
“Hell no. It’s a two-person job.” Moving was certainly easier when he wasn’t doing it alone. “But how does a couch get so heavy? Are there rocks in the bottom of it?”
“That’s it. We’re taking a break after this.”
Rachel only walked into the wall once as they headed down the hallway. After they maneuvered the couch into their apartment and into position in the living room, she promptly collapsed on it.
He sat beside her and ran his hand through her hair. She looked beautiful, as always, though today she was wearing a large blue sweater that covered up her curves. He couldn’t wait to take it off and have sex in their new apartment for the first time.
She’d been grinning all day. He knew she was super excited. After months of planning, they were finally doing this. Moving in together, moving to the city together. She’d gotten a waitressing job at a pub in Ottawa, and she was applying to colleges for next fall.
He bent down to kiss her but straightened up when her smile disappeared.
“What is it, darling?” he asked. “Nervous?”
She shook her head. “Not really. Not with you here.”
“I never thought anyone would find my presence comforting. But I’m glad you proved me wrong.”
Once Cole had thought he’d always be alone, and he’d been fine with that. However, the past six months with Rachel had shown him that his life could be even better if he shared it with someone. Someone who understood him and challenged him…and liked having sex nearly every day.
“I’m just a bit overwhelmed at the thought of everything we still have to do.” She pressed the back of her hand to her forehead.
“We can afford a five-minute break.” He dropped his mouth to hers and kissed her. But one press of his lips to hers was nowhere near enough—it never was—and he kept kissing her.
She moaned softly as he stretched out on top of her. He was trying to remember if the condoms were in the apartment or down in the truck when he heard the clink of dishes in the kitchen.
Shit. He immediately shot up. They weren’t alone. He’d forgotten about his mom, who’d insisted on organizing the kitchen and bringing two weeks’ worth of food.
“What is it?” Rachel asked, sitting up. “What’s wrong?”
He put his arm around her shoulder and cocked his head in the direction of the kitchen, right before his mother emerged with two glasses in her hands.
“I brought you some lemonade since you’re taking a break,” his mother said. “Though I wasn’t sure whether I should leave the kitchen, in case you two were making out.”
Cole tried for a “not guilty” look. However, he’d never been great at that when he was a kid; his mom had always seen right through it. And he didn’t think it was working now, either.
His mom laughed. “You should have gotten a girlfriend years ago, Cole. I love teasing you. I missed out when you were a teenager.” She put down the glasses on two coasters on the coffee table. “Now I promise I won’t come out here for the next ten minutes.” She headed back to the kitchen.
Cole and Rachel looked at each other with awkward smiles and shook their heads. No way were they going back to what they’d been doing a minute ago. He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten about his mom. But that was what Rachel did—she made him lose track of the world around him.
She picked up her l
emonade and took a sip. “Later I’ll make you some with vodka. Once we’re all done moving.”
“I won’t say no this time.” He curled his hand around her neck.
“I think we should save the kissing for later and finish moving.”
“I wasn’t going to kiss you. I was just going to tell you that I’m glad I didn’t get a girlfriend years ago.” And now he was going to say a few mushy words, the kind he’d gotten so good at lately. But they were all one hundred percent true. “I’m glad I waited for the right woman. And that’s you. I love you, Rachel.”
“I love you, too,” she murmured.
He couldn’t resist a quick kiss on the lips—and he really did keep it quick this time—before they went back to the truck to get the bed.
Which they’d make very good use of later.
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Acknowledgments
Thank you to everyone at Entangled for getting Tempting Her Neighbor out into the world. My editor, Nina Bruhns, was so enthusiastic about the project and helped me make this story even better. Thank you also to Toronto Romance Writers and the wonderful writing community of AbsoluteWrite. And lastly, thanks to my husband and father for all their support.
About the Author
Laura Jardine decided she wanted to be a writer when she was in grade two, sometime between writing “The Heart That Got Lost” and “The Land of Shapes.” She later studied engineering and worked as a geophysicist before turning to writing romance novels.
Laura lives in Toronto with her husband, and despite living in Canada her whole life, she hates winter. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking, hiking, eating too much gelato, and reading on the balcony when it’s raining.
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