by Noelle Adams
He stood on one side of the chair and sang while Daisy stood on the other. When it came time to blow out the candle, they each helped her, and she squealed with glee when everyone clapped for her.
And then he took another couple dozen pictures.
The cake on her tray was specifically for her to destroy—which she did by putting her fists in it and then rubbing icing all over her face. Behind him, Teddy whined loudly because even he could tell that this was a gold mine of opportunity to get some real food. Carter shot him a look, and the dog skulked away to his bed in the corner of the living room. He looked up and saw Daisy slicing and serving the second cake they’d ordered to their guests.
“She’s going to need a long bath tonight,” Daisy said from beside him a few minutes later as she did her best to actually get a taste of the cake into Molly’s mouth.
Carter crouched down beside her and laughed. “A long bath? We may have to hose her down first. I don’t know if we’ll ever get all this frosting out of her hair.”
“It’s a rite of passage, right?”
“I believe so,” he said. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the dog watching them. “Of course, we could just let Teddy at her for a few minutes. I can pretty much guarantee that she’ll be clean in no time.”
“Ew, Carter!” she said with a laugh. “That’s gross!” Then she paused and looked at him. “Please tell me you’ve never let him do that before.”
Carter could only laugh and took over trying to get Molly to actually eat some of the cake.
Daisy’s parents and Carter’s dad came over and took pictures of the three of them and commented on all the ways the two of them had done the same thing at their first birthdays. While the imagery was funny, Carter was regretting that they hadn’t opened presents before having cake.
“We may need to hose her down before she opens her gifts, don’t you think?” he asked. “I don’t know about you, but I’m not too keen on holding her while she’s this messy.”
Before Daisy could respond, her mother swooped in and playfully lifted Molly from her chair to get her cleaned up. He appreciated the help—actually, all the help they’d received in the past year.
From the time Molly had come home, the entire community seemed to embrace them. For those first two months while he was wrapping things up in Norfolk and preparing to move, he hadn’t had to worry about a thing because so many people were around to help Daisy when she needed it. It wasn’t ideal, and he’d hated every single second that he was away from them, but at least he knew they were being taken care of. And he still couldn’t believe how welcomed he’d been upon moving. Besides the job with the town, Carter had found that there was something to be said for living in a small town. Knowing Chris and Heather helped, but he’d made so many new friends in the past ten months that it was still hard to wrap his brain around.
“You’re looking pretty fierce right now,” Chris said as he walked over. “Everything all right?”
Carter nodded. “Just thinking about all the changes in this past year and how much I’m enjoying small-town life.”
With a knowing smile, Chris nodded. “I know the feeling. I never thought I’d want to come back to this, but once I did, I knew it was the right decision.” He paused. “Actually, it was the best decision.”
And Carter knew his friend was speaking the truth. Chris and Heather were getting close to celebrating their second wedding anniversary, and he’d just found out they were expecting their first child too. He was happy for them and beyond grateful to them—if it hadn’t been for their wedding, no doubt Carter wouldn’t be here celebrating today.
Casually he nodded. “I hear ya. I can honestly say that I totally understand.”
“So,” Chris said after a minute, “you ready for all this? Molly’s getting pretty mobile, and it already looks like you’re outgrowing the place. Have you thought about where you want to move to?”
He shrugged. “We’ve talked about it, but we love this place, and I think we’re going to stay put for a little while longer. There are some other things we need to work out first.”
Chris arched a brow at him but didn’t say anything, and Carter was saved from having to explain himself when Daisy walked over.
“My mom is a pro at the fast bath thing, and she’s getting Molly changed now. Why don’t we set up the camera to get video of her opening her gifts? Most of the presents are on the coffee table and around it, so I can hold her on the couch if that will work.”
“You got it,” he replied, leaning in to give her a quick kiss.
Moving around the room, Carter set up the tripod he had gotten for just this occasion and put his phone on it and set it up in video mode. It took a little bit longer to get Molly cleaned and settled, but as soon as she was situated in Daisy’s lap, Carter started the video.
For almost thirty minutes, Daisy made a big production out of trying to get Molly to help rip the bows off and to tear the wrapping paper, but his daughter was happy to be playing with one of Teddy’s squeaky toys. The look on Daisy’s face was a combination of comical defeat and exasperation.
And he had it all on video.
“Well, I know when to throw in the towel,” Daisy called out. “Thank you, everyone, for the amazing gifts. I know that she may not be showing it right now, but I know that Molly appreciates all of them!”
Everyone laughed, and it seemed like people were about to start moving around again when Carter spoke up.
“Um… Daisy,” he began, “you missed one.”
She looked at him quizzically.
“The small box under the table,” he said, pointing to the square box wrapped in silver paper with a pink bow.
Reaching under the table, Daisy took it out and showed it to Molly, who had zero interest. Daisy gave an apologetic look to their guests and then looked for a card. “I think we lost the card somewhere…”
But no one claimed the gift as theirs.
She unwrapped it while talking to Molly about how pretty it was and even gave her the big pink bow to play with but to no avail. His daughter was all about making the squeaky toy squeak.
“Sorry,” Daisy said with a small laugh.
Carter motioned for Chris to take over with the video and then stepped into the camera frame and came up beside Daisy. She looked up at him and smiled and then opened the box in her hands. Looking into the box, she seemed confused.
Then pulled out another box wrapped in silver paper with a pink bow.
Without missing a beat, she took the bow off and carefully removed the paper before opening that box.
“Look at me,” she said out loud, and Carter smiled at the note that was inside that box. Slowly Daisy’s eyes met his. “I don’t… What is…?”
Carter dropped to one knee beside her and took one of her hands in his.
“The first time I saw you, I had never been so happy to be at the kind of event that I normally avoid,” he began, and several of their guests laughed softly at his admission. “I spent the first half of Chris and Heather’s wedding simply watching you and wishing I had something clever to say to you as a way of introducing myself. Then—much to my surprise—you came over to me.”
Daisy blushed, and he knew she was hoping he wasn’t going to share with all their guests what really happened on that fateful day.
“And you’ve been surprising me ever since,” he said as he winked at her. “I look at you, and I see this amazing woman who is brave and strong and loving. I look at you, and I see my future.” Then he reached over and took the box from Daisy’s hand and placed it on the floor before reaching into his pocket and pulling out an even smaller box—only this one wasn’t wrapped. It was small and velvet, and when he opened it, everyone in the room gasped.
Including Daisy.
He looked at her with a lopsided grin. “I could have done this when we were alone or out on a date or someplace romantic, but nothing about our relationship has ever been what most people would expect. Th
ere’s been a lot of speculation about us—who we are, what we’re doing—and I thought the best way to ensure that everyone was in the know was to do this while they were all here.”
With an exaggerated pause, he looked out at the crowd and was thrilled to see so many faces smiling back at him.
“Daisy, I love you. I love the life we’ve created together—not just with our daughter but as a family. And there’s nothing I want more than to take this life we have and make it even better.” He took the ring from the box and held it out to her. “Marry me,” he said gruffly. “Be my wife, my partner, my everything. Let’s spend the next fifty years or so showing our daughter how much we love each other and how good life can be.”
Tears were brimming in her big, beautiful eyes even as a smile crossed her face. She didn’t speak—she didn’t seem to be able to—instead, one hand went over her heart, the other over his as she nodded.
His hands shook as he slid the ring on her finger right before he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her—pouring everything he felt into the kiss and knew Daisy was doing the same. All around them, people clapped and cheered and Molly cried out at all the noise, but Carter’s father was there to pick her up and distract her.
When they broke apart, Chris gave him a thumbs-up from behind the camera, and everyone began congratulating them. It seemed like the party went on for hours, and even though they were initially supposed to be celebrating his daughter, it quickly turned into an engagement party. He had given both Chris and Kirk a heads-up about his plans, so they both walked out and came back in with a couple of bottles of champagne for everyone to toast with.
All around him were the people who meant the world to him. With his arm around Daisy’s waist, he realized that Chris’s earlier words really did ring true—coming to Preston, moving to Preston—really was the best decision he had ever made.
Well… that and taking a chance on seducing a sexy redhead in the back room of a wedding reception.
***
If you haven’t yet read them, be sure to read the first two Preston’s Mill books, Roommating about Heather and Chris and Speed Dating about Isabella and Jace.
If you’ve enjoyed the Preston’s Mill books, you might enjoy the Protectors series by the same authors. We’ve expanded, revised, and repackaged the original books, and they’ll be coming out in August. On the following pages, you can read an excerpt from the first one, which is now called Protecting His Best Friend’s Sister.
Excerpt from Protecting His Best Friend’s Sister
The first time Harper Murphy turned me on, she was sixteen and crouching down beside a flat tire on the side of the road.
I was only eighteen. She was my best friend’s sister and totally off-limits, but I wasn’t some creepy thirty-year-old leching on a kid.
Still. She was forbidden. I definitely didn’t want to get hard at the sight of her.
Her brother, Gavin, and I were both seniors in high school that year, and we’d been best friends all our lives. He was getting ready for soccer practice when he got a call from his little sister. She was on a winding country road outside of town, and her tire had blown out. She had a spare in her trunk, and she was trying to put it on herself, but if he happened to be in the area, she’d be happy to see him.
That was actually what she said. If he happened to be in the area. Not that she needed his help. She’d always been little and blond and pretty, and it was hard not to look at her and see delicacy, helplessness. She hated that.
When I was eight and she was six, she chewed me out for helping her move a heavy rock across her backyard so she could set up tea party for her stuffed animals. There she was in her Cinderella dress and a tiara on her head, dragging a rock almost as big as she was, and she yelled at me for trying to give her a hand.
Some things never changed.
So when Gavin got the call five minutes before practice started and asked me to drive out to make sure Harper was okay, I knew what to expect.
Or I thought I did.
She was Gavin’s little sister. Tiny. Loud-mouthed. Braver than anyone I’d ever known—not that I’d ever tell her that. She’d always been on the periphery of my life but never very important.
Then I drove outside of town, saw her little blue car on the side of the road, and pulled my old truck onto the shoulder behind it. I got out and walked over to the blown tire on the passenger side.
And there she was.
Little Harper.
Wearing a white tank-top and very short cut-offs, crouching down on the gravel shoulder. She was small but curvy, and for the first time I took note of those curves. The way her little round ass was hugged by the worn denim, the way the cotton of her top clung to her breasts, the way the soft, smooth skin of her thighs was exposed nearly up to her hips because of her position. Her blond hair was in a loose ponytail, but a lot of it had slipped out and was sticking to her damp neck and shoulders. And her shirt was riding up as she leaned forward, exposing a large expanse of bare skin and the top of her pink panties.
I stood like an idiot on the side of that road, dumb-struck as a wave of heat and arousal slammed into me without warning.
Sure, I was eighteen, and I was so flooded by hormones that I could get turned on by shopping cart back then. But this was different.
This was earth-shattering. Like every breath in my body and every pulse of my blood was all centered only on her.
Harper.
My best friend’s little sister.
Gavin would kill me if he knew what I was thinking at that moment, and I would deserve it. I didn’t have a sister myself, but if I had, Gavin had sure as hell better keep his hands off her.
I couldn’t control the bone-deep desire coursing through me as I stared at her, though. I was rock hard and afraid she’d be able to tell if she looked down at my jeans.
“What’s the matter with you?” she demanded, looking hot, tired, and frustrated. She’d managed to get the flat tire off and was trying to roll the spare closer to the car.
Had I been in a more reasonable condition, I would have been impressed by the fact that she’d been able to jack up the car and loosen the lug nuts on her own. I had far more pressing things to think about, though—like not striding over to her, hauling her up into my arms, and taking her hard and fast on the hood of her car.
“Since you’re here,” Harper continued, looking up at me over her shoulder, “you could try to make yourself useful.”
That was as close to a request for help as I’d ever heard from her.
It took a minute, but I finally managed to make myself move. It wasn’t entirely comfortable, since I was embarrassingly aroused the whole time, but I lifted the spare tire for her and then tightened the lug nuts with a wrench.
I didn’t say anything. I was afraid she’d be able to hear what I was feeling in my voice.
When the spare was on and I’d lowered the jack, she stood in front of me, wiping some of the sweat from her face with her hands.
I’d never seen anything hotter, anything I wanted more than I wanted Harper at that moment.
She dropped her eyes briefly and then slanted a look up at me. “Thanks,” she murmured.
Now my head and my heart were pounding as fiercely as my groin. “You’re welcome.” The words came out as almost a growl.
“I could have done it myself, you know.”
“I know.”
“But it was nice of you to drive out.” She’d been looking at the ground again, but her eyes darted up so unexpectedly that I was afraid she’d caught a hungry look on my face.
She’d evidently seen something but didn’t know how to interpret it. “Why are you acting weird?” she asked.
She’d always said exactly what she thought.
“I’m not.” What could I do but deny it?
“Yes, you are.” She was scowling now, and she pulled her tank-top out away from her chest and turned it into a kind of fan, evidently trying to cool herself down. “Of
course I’d get a flat on the hottest day of the year. Story of my life.”
The fanning of her top gave me a clear sight of what was beneath it. Lacy white bra barely hiding perfect breasts.
I gulped and turned away in an awkward move. There was no way I could keep looking at her and hold myself back.
“Well, it would be nice if you were in a better mood about it,” she said, again misreading my expression. “But thanks anyway.”
With that, she took her hot, little self back to the driver’s side of her car and gave me a wave before she drove away.
She left me standing there, still so turned on I could barely move.
I had wet dreams of Harper for weeks afterwards, and even years later, they would still occasionally hit me unexpectedly.
After everything that happened, after Gavin died, you would have thought the attraction would fade into a fuzzy memory, but it never did.
***
You can find out more about Protecting His Best Friend’s Sister and the entire series here.
About Noelle Adams
Noelle handwrote her first romance novel in a spiral-bound notebook when she was twelve, and she hasn’t stopped writing since. She has lived in eight different states and currently resides in Virginia, where she writes full time, reads any book she can get her hands on, and offers tribute to a very spoiled cocker spaniel.
She loves travel, art, history, and ice cream. After spending far too many years of her life in graduate school, she has decided to reorient her priorities and focus on writing contemporary romances. For more information, please check out her website: noelle-adams.com.
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Books by Noelle Adams
Tea for Two Series
Falling for her Brother’s Best Friend
Winning her Brother’s Best Friend
Seducing her Brother’s Best Friend
