The following day was even busier. JT showed up at the Holley house a few minutes earlier than her. Seeing her brother with her son made her realize how much the pair looked alike. Except for the fact that JT’s face was covered in hair and he had a man-bun, the pair were so much alike, it was almost scary.

Her son took to her brother like they hadn’t just met. JT signed Connor’s cast and gave him a stack of comic books he’d written under a pen name. She worried that they were too scary, but he assured her they weren’t and made Connor promise that he’d let her look over them before he read them.

When they arrived at their mother’s house, Kayla and her mother started decluttering the kitchen. They pulled everything that didn’t belong in there into the garage while JT started in the living room with some of the bigger items. Then they organized the garage items into stacks of similar items. Kayla could tell that by the time they cleared the house, the small single-car garage was going to be full.

They stood back at a quarter to three and looked at the kitchen. Every surface shined and was completely clear of clutter. The room even smelled clean.

“Wow, when was the last time you remember seeing this kitchen like this?” her mother asked as she wiped her hands on a dishrag.

She thought back. “Before Lori and Dad left us.”

Her mother glanced over at her. “I’m sorry.”

“For?”

“For not being there for you.” Her mother’s eyes searched hers. “Something deep inside me… just snapped.” She shook her head. “I’m still struggling with it. I’m not saying that I won’t revert back to what I was, what I am, but something new is driving me.”

“What’s that?” she asked, feeling her heart weigh her chest down. She was a little surprised that her mother was opening up to her for the first time.

Her mother smiled. “Connor. He looks so much like JT and you two girls when you were his age. You may not remember, but when you kids were younger, before Jackson and I started having problems, I was a good mother. A great mother.” Her mother smiled and a tear slid down her cheek.

“You’re still a—”

Her mother stopped her with a wave of her hand. “Don’t lie to your mother.”

Kayla closed her mouth and nodded.

“None of us handled Lori’s death well,” Kayla added. “JT and I turned angry and you turned inward.”

Her mother nodded. “I’m done hiding.” She turned to Kayla and smiled. “The pain is still there, but when I saw Connor’s blue eyes, the little dimple in his chin”—her smile grew— “something snapped me out of my dream world.” Her mother looked around once more. “Now, you said you were starting a new job today?”

Kayla nodded. “At Serenity’s Attic.” She glanced down at her watch. “I’m supposed to be there at five.”

“Well, that will give you enough time to go back, shower, and get ready.” Her mother dusted her hands off again. “I’m going to help JT in the living room.” She turned to go.

“Mom?” The question she’d been dying to ask for almost ten years played in her mind. “Have you heard from Dad?

Her mother’s smile faltered. “No, honey, I haven’t heard from Paul since.... Have you?” Her eyebrows rose slightly.

Kayla shook her head. “No.” Sadness filled her heart as she looked into her mother’s eyes and saw the same feeling masked deep within her mother.

By the time she walked through the brightly colored doors of Serenity’s Attic over an hour later, her sadness was forgotten, replaced by nerves.

She’d had a few small jobs in the past, nothing that mattered. She’d never worked someplace where she knew her boss. Most of her work had been waitressing. If she’d gotten fired or showed up late, she’d found another job. But, here, now, this mattered. There weren’t a lot of job opportunities in Silver Cove, and she didn’t want to screw this up.

Oh, God! What if she screwed this up? So many what-ifs ran through her mind as she walked through the door.

When the scents of spices and essence hit her, she relaxed a little as her mind put the actual workplace in perspective. It wasn’t waitressing. She wouldn’t spend her evenings running around taking and filling orders. This was a very laid-back type of place. And Crystal was the queen of laid-back.

“Evening,” someone called from the back of the store. “I’ll be with you in a moment.”

She called out “Thank you,” then slowly walked through the aisles and enjoyed the memories flooding her mind.

Serenity’s Attic had something for everyone. Many visitors bought small trinkets such as tied-dyed T-shirts and scented candles, and locals had their regular orders of items such as local produce, shampoos, lotions, locally made honey, and jams. There were also out-of-the-ordinary items such as glass pipes and funky star charts.

Crystal had mentioned they’d started doing massage therapy in the back and yoga classes in the morning. However, she assured Kayla that her evening shifts wouldn’t be dealing directly with any of those things, just manning the storefront until closing.

As she waited, she ran her fingers over a few sundresses hanging near the front of the store. Summer was in full force and she could use some lighter clothes. She had a full bag of shorts and tank tops, but something a little classier would be nice. She ran a finger down a pretty pink sundress with bright flowers lining the bottom skirt.

“Sorry for the wait,” a woman’s voice sounded from directly behind her. “Our sundresses are buy one, get the second half off.” The woman’s long jet-black hair trailed down to the middle of her back and was tied back in several intricate braids. She was wearing one of the sundresses hanging in front of Kayla, so she’d probably gotten the deal for herself.

“Oh, thank you. I’m Kayla Thomas.” She smiled and dropped her fingers from the soft silk. When the woman just smiled at her, she continued, “Your new employee. You’re Olivia?”

The woman’s smile grew. “Yes, of course. Crystal told me you’d be stopping by tonight.” She shook her head. “Sorry, a shipment arrived and I was busy restocking the back.” She leaned on a display stand. “Boy, am I glad to meet you.” She held out her hand and Kayla took it easily. “I’ve been stuck working every night for the past three weeks.” She rolled her shoulders slowly, then leaned closer to her. “Which really cuts out any sex life I may or may not have had.” She turned, then waved to Kayla. “Follow me. Might as well get started on teaching you the ropes of stocking the shelves.”

She helped Olivia finish stocking the three massive boxes of clothing and lotions they had received and learned quickly how to enter everything into the store’s computer system.

“You’re good at this,” Olivia said. “See if you can ring up this sale.” She nodded to an older woman who had a small basket full of scented candles, bath oils, soaps, and incense.

The first time had been a little tricky, but after two more sales, she’d gotten the hang of it.

“What about discounts or refunds?” she asked, biting her bottom lip.

“Our policy is to give store credit, no refunds,” Olivia stated. “This is how to do that.” She tapped the screen. “Click here.”

Kayla followed along and was pleased with how easy everything was. Two hours later, she was working the cash register like a pro.

“The yoga clients have a separate entrance on the side of the building.” Olivia motioned towards the back door. “You can get to those areas through there, but no one comes in from back there. The door is locked with these.” She handed a set of keys to her. “These are yours. I’ll show you what key opens what.” Olivia showed her the yoga studio and the two smaller massage rooms.

“Okay, what’s the hardest part of this job?” she asked when they were alone.

“The lull times and balancing out at the end of the night.” Olivia took a deep breath. “No matter what I do, I’m always a few cents off.” She shook her head.

Kayla smiled. “It’s funny, I went to business school and could balance the most difficult spreadsheets but can never seem to balance my own checkbook.”

“Exactly!” Olivia pointed at her. “I can go line by line with my statements and still be missing a few cents.”

Kayla chuckled and nodded.

“So, you used to live in Silver Cove?” Olivia leaned against the counter.

“Yes.” Her smile faltered. “I moved away after school.”

“Where to?” Olivia asked.

“New York for a while, then Florida.”

Olivia sighed. “I’ve always wanted to go to New York.”

“I was too busy with classes to really enjoy my time there.” Kayla leaned her hip on the counter and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Why did you move away from the city?”

Kayla shrugged. “I found out I was pregnant and my boyfriend wanted us to move closer to his family.” She decided to leave her story short.

“Boy or girl?”

Here, her smile grew. “Connor is three and a half.”

“My Simona just turned three.” She pulled out her cell phone and showed Kayla a picture of a beautiful, chunky girl with jet-black hair who looked almost identical to Olivia.

“She’s beautiful,” Kayla said freely. She pulled out her own phone and showed Olivia the most recent picture of Connor.

“Oh, he broke his arm?” Olivia asked.

“Yes.” Her smile shifted. “He got a new cast just last night. My mother’s dog…” She shook her head. “Long story.”

Olivia shifted and glanced around. “This is the slowest part of the night. Which means I’ve got time for a story.” She smiled and pulled out two stools. “So,” she said after settling herself down, “spill.”

Two hours later, when she watched Olivia close out of the cash register and dump a money bag into the safe in the back room, Kayla was wondering if she’d just gained a new best friend.

The two women had compared stories about their exes, talked about their kid’s illnesses and spills, and even went over a list of who the most eligible and sexist men were in town.

Of course, Rowan had made both of their lists. She’d kept the knowledge that he was on top of her list to herself.

By the time she walked through the front door at Holley Hall, she was too tired to think about anything other than a hot bath, a soft bed, and snuggling up with her son.

She stopped short when she heard her son’s giggles come from the library, followed by a much deeper chuckle.

She moved to the doorway and her heart did a funny little flip in her chest when she noticed Rowan down on his hands and knees with her son firmly placed in the middle of his back. Connor’s good hand gripped Rowan’s T-shirt neck, almost choking Rowan, as Connors’ feet kicked up in the air.

“Giddup,” her son cried. Rowan took the hint and bucked slightly, then started across the room at a slow and steady pace.

Something shifted inside her as she watched a grown man play horse with her son. She leaned against the doorframe and watched for just a moment, noticing how nice his worn jeans looked stretched over his firm backside.

It didn’t take long for Rowan’s head to spin around and his eyes to catch hers as she watched. She smiled bigger when she noticed his face turn a slight pale pink with the embarrassment of being caught in the act of the childish play.

“Look, CJ, your mom’s home.” Rowan shifted and took Connor up with him as he stood. He set her son down. As soon as her son’s feet hit the ground, he rushed over to her and almost knocked her over as he plowed into her legs.

“Mom!” Her son’s laughter was contagious. “Row is a horsey!”

“Yes, I see.” She smiled and picked up her son. “I hope you didn’t kick him too hard.” She buried her face in her son’s neck and kissed him until he giggled.

She shifted Connor on her hip as Rowan approached them. She glanced around quickly. “Is Crystal around?”

“She had to run to the grocery store.”

“I hope Connor wasn’t too much—”

“Kayla, I volunteered to watch him,” he said softly.

“Oh?” She glanced down at her son, unsure of what to say next.

“I wanted to check and see how his stitches were holding up.”

“And?”

“Everything looked good enough to garner a long session of horsey.” He winked.

Without saying anything, he took her hand in his and turned it over to check on her stitches. “Yours look good too.” His eyebrows shot up as he smiled. “Care for a session of horsey?”

Heat flooded her face and she had to focus on swallowing the desire that rose in her throat.

“Have you had dinner?” he broke in.

“Umm.” She sighed and looked down at Connor. Rowan was throwing her off balance for some reason. She felt like she couldn’t control her body, including her mouth to speak.

“He ate two magical cheese sandwiches and a cup of tomato basil soup,” Rowan said.

“With fishy crackers,” Connor added in.

“Right.” Rowan smiled. “With fishy crackers. There’s some soup left over. I can heat it up?”

She started to shake her head, but then stopped when her stomach growled loudly. “Actually, that sounds wonderful.”

* * *

Kayla followed him back into the kitchen, holding Connor in her arms.

He’d had a blast during the last hour playing with the kid. Who would have thought that entertaining a three-year-old could be so much fun?

They’d gone through his box of sports items, and Connor had liked the baseball glove and ball the best. They had spent most of their time tossing the ball back and forth in the backyard.

Then, when it had gotten too dark, they had ended the evening up with a good old-fashioned horseback ride. He’d been thankful Kayla had entered when she had since he was sure he had gained a few bruises to his ribs.

He turned and watched her set Connor down in his chair, then sat next to him.

“Long day?” he asked, getting two bowls down from the cupboard.

She nodded. “I’ve been on my feet for most of it.” She pulled off her shoes, rolled her ankles, and then rolled her shoulders.

“It can be hard going back to work,” he said, pulling out the container of his aunt’s homemade soup.

“It’s been a long time since I had a job,” Kayla added. “Too long.”

“Oh? Did you have a job in New York?” He set the bowls into the microwave.

“Yes, for a while. I worked at a bookstore, then a restaurant, another bookstore, and another restaurant.” She leaned back.

“While you went to school?” he asked as he pulled out a loaf of homemade bread and placed it in the oven to heat.

She nodded. “Having a full school schedule and working six hours a day between classes was one of the reasons my grades in college suffered.”

“I’ll bet. When I had to do my internship, I actually felt like my brain was melting.”

She chuckled. “But you got through it and graduated.”

He smiled and leaned on the counter to wait for the soup and bread. “I did.”

“Now, you’re back here.”

“So are you.” His eyes ran over her. If he hadn’t looked closer, he would have believed she’d just freshened up for the day. But a closer look revealed that her blue eyes were duller, her smile a little less powerful.

He glanced over at the clock and gauged that she’d been on her feet for most of the day.

“So, how was work?” Her eyes had been running over him and he wondered what she was thinking about.

Her smile returned. “Wonderful. I met Olivia.”

“Oh? She’s one of my aunt’s favorite employees.”

“Yes, and from what she said, one of your ex-girlfriends.”

He chuckled. “I wouldn’t necessarily call it…” He shook his head. “We went out once.” He opened the microwave when the bell chimed.

“She said the night ended in a full-blown knock-your-socks-off kiss,” Kayla joked. “She was saddened when nothing further came of it.”

He set the bowl down in front of her. “Yes, if my memory serves me right, she started dating her ex and, shortly after, was pregnant with Simona.”

Kayla picked up the spoon he’d set in front of her. “Her loss,” he thought he heard her say before she took a sip of her soup.

He broke the bread in half and sat down. “Here.” He handed her the loaf.

“What should I do with all that?” She laughed.

“Eat it.” He nudged the bread towards her. “Trust me, once you try it, you’ll want more.” He scooped some butter onto the hot bread and sunk his teeth into the warmth. “Mmmm.” He groaned.

When he looked, Kayla was just watching him.

“Try it before you knock it,” he joked.

She shook her head and then slathered some warm butter on her half of the loaf and, with her eyes on his, slowly sunk her teeth into it as he watched.

Her eyes rolled back then closed. His eyes rushed to watch her lips as she licked the melted butter. He saw the edges of her lips turn upwards in a smile and then he heard the sexiest sound he’d ever heard. Her moan caused certain body parts of his to react faster than he could think.

His entire body was suddenly aware that she was in pure pleasure mode. Images of how she’d look, how she’d react, under him caused his body to stiffen even further.

He silently cursed himself when her eyes opened slowly and focused on him again.

“Wow,” she said quietly, “just wow.”

He swallowed the lump of lust in his throat and blinked a few times to clear the images his mind and dick had conjured up.

“Told you,” he managed to croak out.

He was shaken out of his horny stupor when his aunt walked into the kitchen.

“Oh good. You’re home.” Crystal walked over and picked up the sleepy Connor and gave him a kiss then settled him on her hip like a pro. “So, how was it?”

His mind flashed instantly to the image of her enjoying the bread. Maybe he needed another moment to clear his mind before he took part in any conversation.

Kayla sat up a little and smiled over at Crystal. “Wonderful. I can’t thank you enough for the opportunity.”

His mind refused to focus on what the two women were talking about.

His aunt waved her hand as she moved towards the pantry. “Nonsense, you’re the one helping me out.”

Finally, his mind cleared and he realized they were talking about Kayla’s new job.

Crystal pulled out a Tupperware container that he knew carried homemade cookies. He’d snuck a few for him and Connor while he watched the kid.

“Cookies!” Connor tried to clap his hands but came up short since his cast was between his thumb and fingers.

“One more before bedtime.” Crystal smiled. “If it’s okay with your mother.”

Kayla smiled. “As long as I get one too.”

“Row, too!” Connor turned his blue eyes to him and something shifted in his chest when the boy smiled over at him.

He’d finished his soup and bread and doubted he could eat another bite, but since the kid was looking at him with those big blue eyes, he decided he could take the cookie home for later.

As with the bread, he watched Kayla’s response to his aunt’s homemade chocolate caramel cookies which, in his opinion, would have given the Girl Scouts a run for their money.

Once more, his body responded to her reaction. Damn, he was going to be stuck in this chair until she took Connor upstairs for bed.

He sat there and listened to Kayla fill in his aunt on her evening at the store, but his mind was trying to analyze his reaction to her. Sure, she was attractive. Okay, very attractive. She was smart, funny, sexy… his mind continued to list her qualities until she stood up and took her sleepy son from his aunt’s arms.

“Thank you again for watching Connor,” she said, turning to him.

He nodded. “Anytime. Like I said, we had fun. Night, CJ.”

Connor waved his casted hand as his good hand wiped his sleepy eyes.

He waited until she disappeared through the doors, then gathered his bowl and placed it in the sink.

His aunt walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. “So, what would you think about watching Connor again tomorrow night?” She smiled. “I have a date.”

He chuckled and hugged her back. “Who with?”

Crystal shrugged. “Not sure yet, but seeing that boy with you… it’s good for him and for you.”

“Meddling?” He glanced down at her.

“Who? Me?” She laughed and reached up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. “Never.”