by Lacey Wolfe
Opposites Attract
by
Lacey Wolfe
Opposites Attract
Copyright © 2013, Lacey Wolfe
ISBN: 9781937325558
Publisher: Beachwalk Press, Inc.
Electronic Publication: February, 2013
Editor: Pamela Tyner
Cover: Fantasia Frog Designs
eBooks are not transferable. No part of this book may be used or reproduced without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
Back Cover Copy
Francesca thought she knew what she wanted in life until one stormy night when she got a blast from the past.
When Randy receives a call at his auto shop one night from a woman whose car has broken down and needs a tow, he never imagined he’d be coming face-to-face with his high school sweetheart. Randy has never loved a woman the way he loved Francesca, but she broke his heart, claiming he could never provide the life she was determined to have. That was years ago, but he’s still bitter about the way she tossed him aside.
Seeing Randy again, Francesca realizes what a mistake it was to breakup with him. She’d like to try to rekindle the old flame, and she can tell he’s still attracted to her too, but every time they’re together, all they do is argue. Can she convince Randy she isn’t the girl he remembers and that she can settle for love even if it comes without money?
Content Warning: explicit sex
Dedication
To my own sexy mechanic who I always enjoy watching as he bends over to work on my engine.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to Beachwalk Press and my editor, Pamela Tyner, for seeing this series through and helping me make each book shine. I’ve had so much fun writing it. Thank you to my fans, who have waited patiently for the last story, for loving the series.
Chapter 1
The hot water sprayed against Francesca’s body, easing her aches. She’d just put in an intense workout with weights. As the warmth engulfed her, she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to get out of the shower.
It was Friday evening, and she had absolutely no plans. Once again she would be going home alone to her apartment. But that was how things had been recently. Sure, there was probably someone she could call up to take her out for the evening, but it was all so meaningless. Everyone she knew was getting married and starting lives with babies and all that mushy stuff. And all she did was bounce from one rich guy to the next, hoping that maybe one would fall in love with her and not just want her for arm candy.
Turning off the shower, Francesca stepped onto the cool tile floor. She wrapped a big, white, fluffy towel around her and made her way through the Hot Bods locker room. After opening her locker, she dug through her bag. Of course she had designer clothes packed, but today she just didn’t feel like it. Why get glammed up just to go home alone? As she dug deeper in her bag, she saw an extra set of gym clothes. And they were her loose ones for when it was that time of the month. Could she do it? Wear these clothes out of the gym?
Letting the soft cotton fabric skim across her fingers, she decided, hell yeah she could. People left the gym all the time without even showering and no one seemed to care. So surely she could do this. Taking the bag, she slammed her locker shut and went toward the dressing stalls.
After getting dressed she went to the vanity area where she usually spent much of her time doing her hair and makeup until it looked perfect. As she stared at herself, she decided to just pull her hair up into a high ponytail. She then applied a light layer of makeup. There was no way in hell she was going to leave this place without that.
After she was finished, Francesca made her way to the front of the gym. Maybe she could get out of there before anyone she knew saw her.
“Francesca,” a familiar voice called.
Damn. Francesca turned to see Skylar. These days they were sort of getting along. Skylar was a gym instructor at Hot Bods, and at one point they had been involved with the same guy. And to make matters worse, Francesca’s brother was getting married in a few weeks to Amy, who just happened to be Skylar’s best friend. So they were having to put the harsh feelings behind them and find a way to get along.
“Hi, Skylar. I was just leaving.”
“I’m glad I caught you then. The gym is putting together an event next week to show our customers our appreciation. I wanted to make sure you knew, and I hope you stop in. Here’s a flyer with all the details.” Skylar shoved a neon orange paper in Francesca’s hand.
“Thanks, I’ll be sure to come by.”
“Is everything okay? You don’t look like yourself.” Skylar looked Francesca up and down.
“I’m fine.”
“Are you sick?” Skylar asked.
“No, I’m not sick.” Geesh, did she look that bad?
“Okay. Well, I’m here if you need to chat.”
Sure she was. She could be her new best friend. Yeah, right. “Thanks, but I’m just going to go home. Have a good evening.”
Francesca didn’t even give her time to speak again, she headed out the door as quickly as possible. A glance up at the sky showed the clouds looked as though they were ready to open up with a nasty storm. She hoped she made it home before it happened. She hated driving in the rain.
Climbing into her white Lexus, she started it up and left in a hurry. As she drove, her car wasn’t handling the way it usually did. She pressed her foot on the gas a little more and gazed up at the sky again. She really wanted to get home. The sky was getting awfully dark, and she knew the storm was going to hit at any moment and this stupid car just wouldn’t go as she accelerated.
Francesca took a left at the stop sign and was now on the homestretch to her apartment. Pushing the pedal even more, the car began making some weird noise and then smoke started coming from underneath the hood. What the hell? She pulled over to the side of the road. This wasn’t good. Was the car going to blow up? Did she need to get out?
Panic set in and the tears started. She knew nothing about cars or what she should be doing right now. Grabbing her purse, she searched through it until she found her cellphone. She opened an app to try and find someone who could help her.
A rumble shook her car and then the rain pounded the windshield. Shit, she was going to be sitting in this stupid car as the storm hit. Maybe she should just call 911. This was an emergency.
Adam! Yes, she could call her brother, he was a policeman.
No, he would laugh at her.
Scrolling through the results on her phone, she called the mechanic that was closest to her. The sooner they could get there, the better. A man answered on the second ring and after she explained what happened he said he would be out there quickly with his tow truck. Francesca let out a sigh as she hung up.
Lightening lit the sky, and she prayed like hell there wasn’t a tornado watch going on. In the south, it was always a possibility. And this road was all flat land—no ditch anywhere to take cover. But she wasn’t going to think that way. There wasn’t going to be a tornado.
The wind picked up and the rain got messy, whipping this way and that. It wasn’t looking good at all. Had she done something horrible that she was being punished for?
From the rearview mirror she saw a set of bright lights pulling up behind her. Finally, help had arrived. The tow truck drove around her and then backed up slowly in front of her vehicle. Francesca opened the door and went out into the pouring rain, ready to get into the tow truck.
The driver got out of the truck and Francesca froze. S
he couldn’t believe who had come to help.
“Randall.”
Chapter 2
Cupping his hands over his eyes so he could see through the downpour, Randy gazed at the beautiful woman. He couldn’t believe that Francesca stood before him. It had been years since he’d seen her. He wasn’t sure this was going to be a happy reunion. They’d been high school sweethearts, and after graduation they went their separate ways—not by his choice.
He’d moved back to town a year ago, after his father’s death, and had kept up with her from afar. The only thing he really knew about her now was what he heard through the rumor mill, some would call her a ‘gold digger’.
“Francesca,” he called. “Get out of the rain. Go climb into the truck.”
But she just stood there, letting the rain drench her. She was a sight to see in the rain. Her clothes hugged her body and he could see all her curves.
A flash of lightening shot through the sky and the ground shook. Francesca yelped and ran toward his truck and climbed in through the driver side. Walking over to her car, he wished he’d brought help. This storm looked like it was going to get nasty, and quick.
Another bolt shot through the sky and once again the thunder was loud. There was no way he was getting killed just to load her car up. He could come back for it after the storm. Without a second thought, he jogged to the truck and climbed inside.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m not looking to get killed tonight in this storm. Once it clears, I’ll come back for your car.”
Francesca bit her bottom lip and then nodded. Good, she wasn’t as cold-hearted as he’d heard. Pulling onto the road, he glanced at her and asked, “Where to?”
“I’m not too far from here. Just about four miles, and my apartment complex is on the right.”
“You live in Meadow Creek Apartments?” That apartment complex was the only gated place around and had its own rent-a-cop on duty twenty-four seven. Of course she lived there.
Francesca rubbed her arms up and down. It dawned on him that she might be chilly in her wet clothes. Leaning forward, he flipped on the heat and then stole a glance at her breasts, catching a glimpse of her hard nipples.
“Thanks,” she said in a soft tone that sent shivers through him.
Sitting next to Francesca was like sitting next to a stranger. They had a past together, one that still stirred in his thoughts from time to time. But the way they sat silently, doing their best not to look at one another, you never would have known that they’d been each other’s first. That together they’d learned all about the opposite sex’s body. And now, it was like he’d never even known her.
Meadow Creek Apartments came into view, and he turned his blinker on as he pulled up to where you would usually punch a code in. But the gates opened right away. Glancing over, he saw that she had what looked like a remote on her key chain. Once through the gates she directed him to where she lived. His truck was too big to park in a spot, so he pulled up in front of the building and wondered what the hell to say now.
“Thank you.” She ran her hand through her long blonde hair. “What do I owe you?”
Owe? Oh yes, she needed her car towed. This woman still made his mind mush. “It depends. I can either tow your car to the shop of your choice, or if I bring it to my place, the tow is free. You just pay the charges of whatever it takes to fix it.”
“Did you take over your dad’s place?”
He nodded.
“I was sorry to hear about him.”
“Well, we all gotta go up to the big pearly gates one day.”
She didn’t say anything. Death was always one of those topics where no one ever knew what to say. His dad had been a great man, always going out of his way to help people. Randy hoped to one day follow in his father’s footsteps.
“Here’s my card. How about I take your car back to my place to fix? I promise I’ll give you a good deal.”
“Sounds great.” Francesca’s hand lingered on the door handle as she gazed into his eyes. “I guess I should get inside. I just wish the rain would let up.”
“Yeah, this is a nasty one all right.”
“Thank you again. I’ll call you in the morning. Will that be okay?”
“Sure. Stay safe.”
She nodded and then climbed out. After slamming the door shut, she ran through the rain toward the breezeway. He watched until she was out of sight. Hopefully safely in her home. Now he had to figure out how the hell to turn this truck around without hitting someone’s overpriced car.
* * * *
Francesca stood in the middle of her living room. She was drenched from the rain, but she didn’t care. She was still getting over the shock of seeing Randall. She had loved him with everything in her, and then she’d just dumped him. Told him she wanted a better life than anything he could have given her. She was certain if she’d married him, he’d never be able to give her all the things she dreamed of. At that time, she thought money would buy her happiness. But now that she was in her early thirties, and had been nowhere close to marriage, she was beginning to wonder just how smart her life plan had been. Maybe if she had made different choices, she’d be somewhere else right now.
Almost everyone she knew was married or getting married. Their lives were full of love, and they all floated on air. They weren’t worried about what the other could buy. All she had ever wanted was the most expensive of everything. Growing up, her parents always joked she needed to marry a rich man to be able to afford her tastes. She took their advice to heart and for years searched for that wealthy guy. Sure, she’d found plenty, but she hadn’t kissed one yet that caused her to lose her breath. Not like Randall did.
Francesca groaned. She needed to stop thinking about him and get out of these clothes. In her bedroom, she stripped her wet clothes off and suddenly realized what she was wearing. Embarrassment flooded her. But as she slipped into her light blue silk pajamas, she realized he probably couldn’t have cared less what she was wearing. It had been pouring rain and anything she had on would be clinging to her. Maybe it was good she had gym clothes on. Her suede boots she had packed to wear home would have been ruined, and they had cost seven hundred dollars. Talk about heartbreak.
Francesca ordered take-out and decided to spend the evening watching movies. Not her ideal Friday night. But at least now if someone asked, she could tell them she was without a car, so what other choice did she have?
Chapter 3
It was eight o’clock in the morning and Francesca was wide awake. She was never up this early on a Saturday. If she was up by ten, that was early. Of course it probably had something to do with the fact that she had fallen asleep around nine the night before.
She wished she felt more energized, but Randall had haunted her dreams. All night she had replayed the way she had broken not only his heart, but hers as well.
“Well, baby, we did it. We’re high school graduates. We have our whole lives ahead of us. Just you and me. Let’s take off before college and travel all around the country together.” Randall kissed her neck.
Normally, whenever his lips touched her, she lost the ability to think. But today was different. She was done with high school, and it was time to start her life. And she hadn’t yet told Randall that she had been accepted to a college out of state and she wasn’t going to be attending the community college with him in the fall. She’d been putting off telling him only because she wasn’t sure she was making the right choice. But her parents fully supported it and thought that going to college without Randall was the best decision she was making.
“What do you say?” he asked again.
“I don’t know,” she whispered.
He pulled away and looked up at her. “What’s the matter?”
Taking a deep breath, she blurted out, “I think we should breakup.”
He jerked away from her and started to pace her bedroom. “Why?” he finally asked.
“I don’t think we want the
same things in life. I don’t want to just settle for a normal life. I want to have it all.”
“And you don’t think I can give that to you? We can have anything, as long as we’re together.”
“You’re going to school to be an automotive technician and following in your father’s footsteps. We will always struggle and live paycheck to paycheck. That isn’t what I want.”
He looked stunned. “I plan to open my own shop.”
“And that takes money. And face it, the chances of that actually happening aren’t looking good. You’ll probably be just like your dad and have a heart of gold, always doing jobs for free. I’m sorry, but I want more. I want to see the world and eat at fancy restaurants.”
“Didn’t I just ask you if you wanted to travel before college in the fall?”
“I got accepted to Berkeley, and I’m leaving in a few weeks.” She crossed her arms, hoping he would just drop it. Breaking up with him was harder than she thought it would be.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“What does it matter? I’m going.”
Randall walked to her bedroom door. “Maybe I should have listened to my friends. All these years they said I could never make you happy, but I didn’t believe it. When we made love, and the way we connected, I really thought we would be together forever. Looks like they were right and I was wrong. You’re out for only yourself.”
He had walked away and she hadn’t seen him again, until last night. And when she had seen him, once again the world had stopped all around her. Her heart raced and she knew that moment that she had never gotten over him. Randall was the one who had gotten away. She was pretty sure it would stay that way. There was no way he would want to ever deal with her drama again. And she was no better now than she was in high school. In fact, she was probably worse.
