A Tempting Friendship (Clover Park #10)
Page 21
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You’ve just read book #10 in the Clover Park series. The books in the series are The Opposite of Wild (Ryan & Liz), Daisy Does It All (Trav & Daisy), Bad Taste in Men (Shane & Rachel), Kissing Santa (Rico & Samantha), Restless Harmony (Gabe & Zoe), Not My Romeo (Vince & Sophia), Rev Me Up (Nico & Lily), An Ambitious Engagement (Luke & Kennedy), Clutch Player (Jared & Emily), and A Tempting Friendship (Angel & Julia). I hope you enjoy them all!
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Read on for an excerpt from Almost in Love, book 1 in the Clover Park STUDS series:
Successful entrepreneur Barry Furnukle is ready to take things to the next level with the pink-haired neighbor he adores. But when his attempt to woo her with the world’s most “awesome” date (birding and fro-yo) lands him in the friend zone, he wonders if a guy like him ever had a chance.
On advice from his ladies’ man brother, Barry returns to his acting roots for a little confidence rehab. Suddenly he’s got more female attention than he knows what to do with. But will his new found popularity make him happy? Or will he finally release his inner stud to win the woman he can’t forget?
Barry led Amber to the nature trails along the saltwater marsh. He stopped at the base of the trail. “You’ll need to move quietly, and don’t make any loud noises—”
“Like this? Ooh, Bare, yeah, right there!”
He went rock hard. All coherent thought left him as he pictured Amber riding him, his name on her lips.
She smacked his arm. “Kidding! I won’t make a sound.”
“Good,” he croaked.
Binoculars in hand, he led her to where he’d spotted the nest of black-capped chickadees the last time he was there. He peered at them through the high-resolution lenses and handed the binoculars to her.
She held them up to her eyes, one eye squinted closed. “What am I looking at?”
“Don’t squint. Just look normally. It’s a nest of black-capped chickadees. A little early this year. An amazing find, really.”
She peered again. “Oh. Yeah, there they are.” She handed back the binoculars. “Got it.”
“That’s it? Don’t you think it’s special?”
“Well…aren’t they supposed to make a nest?”
“Yes, but it’s rare to see one this early and so close to the trail. It’s a fantastic view.”
She nodded, lips drawn in. Barry tamped down his irritation. He thought someone like Amber with an artist’s soul would appreciate the beauty of nature.
“Let’s keep going.” He led her further down the trail. The sunbeams peeked through the tree branches. Birdsong was in the air. A light, salty breeze rustled through the leaves. It was breathtaking, amazing, the best kind of morning for birding.
He stopped suddenly and put a finger to his lips. He peered through the binoculars and smiled. “Look, a red-tailed hawk,” he whispered, handing her the binoculars.
She looked. “Cool.” Only she sounded really bored.
“Do you not like birding?” he asked.
“Birding?” She laughed. “That’s what we’re doing? I didn’t know there was a name for it.”
“It’s a very popular hobby,” he said defensively. “I thought you liked birds.”
She’d said she liked birds. He’d asked her that when he’d first met her.
“I like them okay, just not like…as a hobby.”
“Should we go?”
“No, no. I accepted your date. Bring it on.”
“All right,” he said gamely.
They spent the next hour birding, and while Barry was thrilled with some of the birds returning to the area, and especially excited over the rare sighting of a bay-breasted warbler, he sensed Amber wasn’t having any fun. He really thought Amber would be inspired by the beauty of birds. He gave up when he caught her texting just when he turned to her, excited about a bobolink.
“Ready to go?” he asked.
“If you are,” she said.
He nodded, putting the binoculars back on the clip on his belt loop. “I’m ready.”
She took his hand, and his hopes soared. Maybe the date wasn’t going so badly.
“Let’s walk along the beach for a bit,” she said.
“Sure.”
When they reached the sand, she slipped off her heels. She lost four inches without the shoes, reaching the middle of his chest. He was six foot, so most women were shorter than him, but Amber was so petite he just wanted to scoop her up and spin her around for the hell of it. He forced himself to keep his hands in his pockets. He knew he could get carried away sometimes.
He grinned. “You’re a tiny thing without your heels.”
“I’m five foot two.”
“That’s below average for a woman,” he said.
“Gee, thanks. I love being below average. Would you also like to comment on my age or my weight?”
He squinted at her. “Twenty-five and one hundred pounds?”
She shook her head. “Twenty-eight and, yeah, let’s go with that weight.”
“I wasn’t supposed to answer that, was I?”
She laughed. “I forgive you because you guessed in a complimentary direction.”
He wiped his brow dramatically. “Close one. I’ve got you beat by three years and a lot of heavy muscle.” He flexed his biceps, which were nothing to write home about.
She giggled. He loved that she laughed at his jokes. So few did.
They walked along the beach in comfortable silence. Amber stopped, facing the water, and took a deep breath in and out. He watched her more than the sea because she was infinitely more beautiful.
She turned to him suddenly and smiled. “Thanks for bringing me here. It was nice.”
“I wasn’t sure…” He trailed off as she stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek.
She smiled up at him. “What’s next?”
A kiss on the lips was the next natural progression, but did she want a warning before he went for it or—
“You’re thinking awfully hard,” she said with a grin. “Is there more to this date or just the beach?”
He shook his head. “Oh, I thought…yes, there’s more.” He nodded once. “Ready to go?”
“I’m ready.”
He held out his arm and led her back to where he parked, thinking he could get used to the feel of Amber on his arm. Next stop—The Dancing Cow!
Want to read more? Almost in Love is out now!
Other Books by Kylie Gilmore
The Clover Park Series
THE OPPOSITE OF WILD (Book 1)
DAISY DOES IT ALL (Book 2)
BAD TASTE IN MEN (Book 3)
KISSING SANTA (Book 4)
RESTLESS HARMONY (Book 5)
NOT MY ROMEO (Book 6)
REV ME UP (Book 7)
AN AMBITIOUS ENGAGEMENT (Book 8)
CLUTCH PLAYER (Book 9)
A TEMPTING FRIENDSHIP (Book 10)
The Clover Park STUDS Series
ALMOST IN LOVE (Book 1)
ALMOST MARRIED (Book 2)
ALMOST OVER IT (Book 3)
ALMOST ROMANCE (Book 4)
All Kylie Gilmore Books
Acknowledgments
Thanks to you! Yes, you, dear reader, for visiting Clover Park where everyone gets lucky! Thanks also to my family, Tessa, Pauline, Mimi, Kim, Maura, and Jenn for all you do.
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without pe
rmission. The publication/use of these trademarks are not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
A Tempting Friendship: © 2016 by Kylie Gilmore
Excerpt from Almost in Love © 2015 by Kylie Gilmore
Digital Edition 1.0
Cover design by The Killion Group
Published by: Extra Fancy Books
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the writer, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
ISBN-10: 1942238169
ISBN-13: 978-1-942238-16-4
About the Author
Kylie Gilmore is the USA Today bestselling author of the Clover Park series and the Clover Park STUDS series. She writes quirky, tender romance with a solid dose of humor.
Kylie lives in New York with her family, two cats, and a nutso dog. When she’s not writing, wrangling kids, or dutifully taking notes at writing conferences, you can find her flexing her muscles all the way to the high cabinet for her secret chocolate stash.
Click here to sign up for Kylie’s Newsletter and get a FREE book. You’ll also get new release info, exclusive excerpts, and lots of subscriber-only giveaways. You can also sign up on my website kyliegilmore.com or use this QR code:
Kylie can be found on Twitter @KylieGilmoreToo and on Facebook.com/KylieGilmoreToo. Contact Kylie at kylie@kyliegilmore.com
Table of Contents
A Tempting Friendship
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Epilogue
About the Author
Table of Contents