Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 87181 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87181 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Daniel stepped toward Cassie and held his hand out.
My heart dropped.
She took his hand and released my bouquet, sending it crashing to the floor. The head of one of the roses popped off the stem while the petals of the calla lily’s separated from the bundle. Pieces of baby’s breath brushed against my heels.
My.
Heart.
Dropped!
Daniel tightened his grip around her hand, and they darted off down the aisle of the church, past all three hundred and two—correction—three people from our small town. Kelly’s newborn was crying. I couldn’t blame the kid. The event turned into a modern day Shakespearean tragedy.
Daniel and Cassie left me standing confused, heartbroken, and alone.
Crazy how you could feel alone with three hundred sets of eyes on you.
Mom rushed to my side, wrapping me in her arms. Dad’s nostril flared as if he was ready to destroy Daniel for what he’d done. He stood and told everyone to leave in the kindest way possible.
Alec didn’t mock or bicker with me. He didn’t have some witty sibling remark. He looked sad for me. Somehow, that made it even worse.
At that very moment, I vowed I’d never love again. I doubted that betrayal was something I’d be able to get over any time soon. I never wanted to put myself out there to be hurt the way I was hurt that day. I’d never give someone enough of me so they could crush me so deeply.
Yes, that was the one thing I was most certain about.
I’d never, ever, ever date anyone again.
HOLLY
Ten Months Later
“I can’t believe I’m doing this again,” I muttered as I climbed into the back of a taxi and sank into the tarnished cushion like a deflated balloon. A few months back, I promised myself I’d never go down said road again after a spring season of trying to put myself back on the market. I promised myself not to dive back into the dating world, yet I purposefully drove the ship straight to Satan’s dungeon.
Loneliness had a way of making one return to the worst situations.
With the holidays approaching and the world falling into cuddle season, I was hunting for someone to keep my mind distracted. They could’ve kept my body distracted, too, if we’d reached that level with one another. It had been almost a year since a man had intimately touched me.
Sure, I had dates, but it never got to the intimacy level. I felt like the abandoned old banana sitting on the countertop, now bruised and unappealing. I was almost certain if a man touched my inner thigh, I’d collapse into a pile of banana pudding.
When I re-signed up for the dating apps, I swore they snickered in my face. “Funny meeting you here again, Holly. Remember this past spring when you thought you were too good for us? That was comical. Grab a chair. All the jerks you left behind last time are still here and willing to suck your toes in the back of their mother’s Honda Civic.”
First up was Bentley, the graphic designer.
We were meeting for a simple coffee and pastry. I was a fan of coffee dates. Some people were highly against them, but I preferred them over dinner dates. Imagine you meet up with someone, and halfway through the appetizer, you realize he’s not the one for you. Then you must sit through the main entrée and act as if you are interested in the bad date.
A coffee date came with a quick exit plan. I’d take a shot of espresso or a cortado if I was feeling fancy, then be on my merry way if the date went south. There was no awkward conversation for hours. The second date could be dinner. First dates, though? The coffee was just fine, especially since I didn’t have much time to waste. I had a job that had to be my focus. I was now a solo full-time romance author on a deadline from hell. Honestly, I shouldn’t have even been entertaining dating, but I was trying not to be alone for the next few months.
As the taxi driver drove to the coffee shop, I pulled out the latest novel I’d been reading. I traveled with novels the same way people traveled with their vape pens—glued in my hands. Imagine being in an awkward situation and you didn’t have something to preoccupy your hands with. Books had saved me multiple times on the city buses. You’d be shocked at how many times I’d escaped into reading during unpleasant commutes around the city.
Novels saved millions of people from uncomfortable situations.
The taxi driver pulled the car to the curb. “We’re here. Ten fifty.”
“Thank you,” I told him as I paid with my credit card. He didn’t reply as I climbed out of the car and shut the door behind me.
I slid my book back into my purse and saw Bentley approaching me.