Tempting Fate (A Rolling Hills Romance Book 1) Read online

  “You’re a beautiful woman Charlotte. It would kill me if someone thought they could take something that wasn’t there’s. Would you mind if I put up the floodlights?”

  I shake my head. “Go ahead. I appreciate it, I’ve been wanting to install some for the longest time but haven’t made it a priority.”

  “Why did you argue with me about it then?” He asks, his eyes bulging out of his head.

  Crossing my arms over my chest, I raise my brow. “It wasn’t that I didn’t want them, it’s that you thought you could come in here and do as you please. You’ll find with me, you need to ask, not tell.”

  He steps in closer, invading my space. I’m pressed against the brick wall of the building and he’s leaning in real close. “I have to ask if I know it’s something that you need?” He whispers in my ear, the heat of his breath tickles my neck and the scruff of his trimmed beard drags against my skin before he places a soft kiss on my cheek. “What if you need something, but you don’t know it yet?” The rasp of his voice is wreaking havoc with my senses. My nipples are in hardpoints and my pussy hums with need. I’ve never been this turned on in my life. I can’t answer him because I don’t know what I’d say if I opened my mouth, my body would likely betray me. I’d probably let him do what he wanted and regret the decision later.

  He searches my face then steps back and the lust-filled cloud I’m in bursts as a breeze of cool air hits me.

  “When do you get out of here today?” He asks.

  “It depends, it could be as early as six and as late as eight.”

  His eyebrows pull together. I know it’s stupid but every time he shows me that he’s concerned about me, butterflies flutter in my stomach.

  “Are you closing by yourself again?”

  I sigh and cross my arms over my chest. “I guess we’ll see, Hannah usually closes on the weekends, but she hasn’t let me know if she’ll be coming in today.”

  “Either way let me know. I want to take you out to dinner tonight when you’re free. As long as you don’t already have plans.” He growls the last part.

  Quirking my head to the side, I study the gruff man and bite my lip to stop from smiling. I don’t think he’d take too kindly to that. Nothing about him seems like he’s trying to play me. It’s not like dating me would earn him favor with my uncle, if anything it would cause him problems. Has no one told him the unspoken rule around town? “Like a date?”

  He steps into my space, leaving barely an inch between us. “Not like a date darlin’. Make no mistake about it, this will be a no holds barred, authentic fucking date.”

  My heart beats double time and it’s hard to breathe. Normally a man talking to me like this would turn me off instantly, but there’s something different about Beau, something drawing me to him that I’m willing to explore. “This is a small town Beau, you take me out you’re making a statement.”

  “Good. I want everyone to know you’re mine.” He says roughly before spearing his fingers into my hair, then pulling me in and leaning down, eyes studying mine. “I’m going to kiss you now.”

  Oh lord. My eyes widen in shock and anticipation right before his mouth covers mine with firm, yet soft lips. I press my body against his on instinct, not caring who might see us. The only thing that matters is the way he’s holding me, as if letting me go isn’t an option. Standing on my tiptoes I wrap my hand around his neck and hold him to me, not wanting him to pull away.

  Groaning Beau picks me up and pins me against the brick wall with his body. I lick along the seam of his lips and he opens for me before taking over our kiss, owning me with his tongue. My pussy throbs in a way it never has before and I whimper, wanting him in places no one has ever been.

  After a few seconds, Beau pulls away and looks at me for a long minute before finally setting me back on my feet. Using his thumb, he wipes away the proof of our kiss from under my bottom lip. “You’re trouble, you know that?”

  Smirking I put my hand on my hip and cock it to the side. “I’m an angel.” I say with the straightest face I can manage and immediately burst into laughter.

  “Get back to work Charlotte, but remember, you’re mine tonight.”

  I turn to walk back inside and look over my shoulder at him. “Just tonight?” I tease.

  Beau slaps my ass. “Careful darlin’. Don’t tempt a man who knows exactly what he wants and goes after it.” He growls.

  Holy smokes. He opens the door and pushes me inside. I lean against the door with a huge smile across my face. What did I just get myself into? I consider calling my Aunt so she can talk to Uncle Nolan before this turns into a problem, but I’m called away to finish with Julie. Fuck, I hope someone kept an eye on her foils for me.

  Chapter Three

  Beau

  It takes me a couple of hours to get the floodlights installed around her building. When I come in to tell her I’m finished, she’s standing in the back with bags of sandwiches and chips. She looks up when she hears me walk in the room, then goes back to what she’s doing. “I get lunch for everyone on Saturdays so they don’t have to leave for a lunch break if they don’t want to. This way we work and take breaks when we can. Here, I got you this.” She hands me a sandwich and a bottle of water.

  “What is this?” I ask her as I take them from her.

  She shrugs her shoulders and smiles easily. “It’s an ultimate twelve inch sub. I thought you might be hungry after you were finished. I also wanted to say thank you for doing this for me.”

  “Darlin’, this was as much for your safety as it was for my sanity, but thank you for lunch, I’m starved. Do you have time to sit and eat with me?”

  She looks back out at the salon and I follow her gaze. The place is still packed with people waiting to get their hair done. “I can see that you’re busy.”

  “Sorry Beau, like I said last night, Saturdays are my busiest day of the week.”

  “No worries. What time will I see you tonight?”

  “You’re not keen on asking women if they want to go out with you, are you? Do you just tell them when and where and they listen?”

  “There haven’t been any women in my life, besides my momma, for a very long time. Let’s just say I’m a little rusty.”

  Her lips twitch with a smile. “I’ll get out of here around six tonight. Turns out Hannah was able to make it in.”

  I push an escaped curl behind her ear. “Then I’ll be here at five forty-five.”

  “Why don’t I just meet you somewhere in town? I’ll still need to shower and change after my shift.”

  “Call it me being old fashioned, but would it be too forward of me to follow you back to your place, that way I can drive us to dinner?”

  She thinks for a moment. “Yes.”

  “Yes, it’s too forward, or yes I can follow you home?”

  She laughs. “Both, but I’ll let it slide. Seeing as how my uncle is your boss, I feel confident that you won’t do anything that might get you fired.”

  I hold my hands up in the air, palms facing her. “You’re safe with me Charlotte. I won’t let anything happen to you and I swear I won’t put you in a position you don’t want to be in.”

  “You’re a good guy Beau, I can see that. To be honest, it’s been a while since I’ve been out on a date with anyone.” The bell chimes above the door stealing my woman’s attention from me. After seeing another customer step into her salon, Charlotte looks back to me, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. “Shit, Beau I need to get back out there. See you around six?”

  I hold my sandwich and water up. “Thank you for lunch. I’ll take these to go and see you here before six.”

  “Sounds good,” she says looking relieved.

  I go out the back door, not wanting to draw any more attention than I already have and get back into my truck. When I get home and walk in the door Thor is laying on his back staring at me.

  “I brought lunch.” I say holding up the sandwich. He immediately rolls to his side before jumping
off the couch and following me to the kitchen, tail wagging back and forth. I open the sandwich to find it’s already cut into two pieces and packed with meat, cheese, and veggies. “She’s a keeper Thor. Not only is she beautiful, funny, and sweet, but she can order a sandwich big enough to fill me up.”

  Thor sits still, looking up at me with his big brown eyes, waiting patiently for me to give him a bite. I cut one of the halves in half and hand it to Thor who practically swallows it whole. I laugh and do the same with mine. Damn that was a good sandwich. You can’t beat subs from the town’s deli. They’ve been open since I was a kid. We would stop there to pick up sandwiches before heading out for a day on the lake in my dad’s boat.

  I spend the next couple of hours painting my spare room. I had picked out a soft blue because I figured it was a neutral color for anyone who stayed over, but now my mind is working in overdrive. I can already picture a dark stained crib against one wall with a rocking chair to match in the corner. Charlotte would bust my balls about the color of the room and make me paint it another color. The room is across from the master and would be perfect for a nursery. The longer I think about it, the more I start to imagine my life with Charlotte and how perfect she fits. I only know the few things my captain has mentioned about her, but after meeting Charlotte and getting a taste of her sweet lips, I’m addicted. I know with every fiber of my being that she’s the woman I’m meant to be with for the rest of my life. Now all I need to do is make her believe it too.

  I haven’t been able to keep my eyes off Charlotte all night. She’s so fucking beautiful with her curly hair hanging loosely down her back and just a hint of make up on her beautiful face. It’s refreshing to see a woman who doesn’t feel the need to spend hours getting ready to go out. She’s wearing a jean skirt over her plump ass and a black blouse showing more cleavage than I’d like for anyone else but me to see. The moment she walked out of her bedroom, my breath caught in my chest. Since then she’s had me caught in her spell.

  “Why do you keep staring at me? I feel like there’s something on my face.” Charlotte says and wipes at her mouth.

  Grabbing her hand away from her face, I hold it on the table and continue to stare. “You’re flawless, don’t worry.” I laugh. “I’ve never seen a more beautiful woman Charlotte. I never knew what my ideal woman was, but now I know.” I tell her sincerely, but she rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

  “You don’t have to pour on the charm Beau, you’ve already got me out on a date.”

  “It wasn’t a line darlin’, but as long as you think it’s charming, I’ll keep pouring my heart out.”

  Charlotte shakes her head and takes another bite of her burger. When she’s finished chewing she wipes her mouth and takes a sip of her beer. “So what made you move back to Rolling Hills?”

  I grab my beer and take a long pull from it then set the bottle down. “I had one too many cases showing me the ugly side of people.”

  Charlotte nods thinking about what I’ve said. “Isn’t that the job though? I know Uncle Nolan has a slew of stories from over the years about things he’s witnessed.”

  “It is. Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do. I like that I get to help people when they’ve gone through something and hopefully get them the justice they deserve. On the flip side of that, when you’re constantly working sixty to eighty-hour work weeks with barely a day off it gets to you. I was getting burnt out. I was ready to come home and settle down a bit.”

  “That makes sense. I can’t relate to the horrible crap you’ve seen and I thank God for people like you and my uncle that I don’t have to. I remember when I opened my salon a few years ago though. I was going nonstop for the first two years. Now things have finally calmed down some. I guess you could say I’ve found my sweet spot.”

  “Did you always want to be a hairstylist?” I ask before taking another bite of steak.

  “My mom was a hairstylist and always did my hair when I was little. I begged her for years to teach me everything she knew, and finally when I was ten, she did.”

  “I bet she’s proud of you.”

  “I’d like to think she would be.”

  I quirk my head to the side, about to ask her what she means, when she sighs and shakes her head. “I’m so used to everyone knowing my business around town, I forget it’s been years since you’ve lived here.” She gives me a sad smile. “My mom and dad died when I was twelve years old in a freak car accident. It was storming one night and they collided with another vehicle. I went to live with my aunt and uncle after that. They were never able to have children and raised me as if I were their own.”

  “Shit. I’m sorry Charlotte.” I say, grabbing her hand, rubbing my thumb over her knuckles.

  Charlotte gives me a warm smile. “Nothing to be sorry about Beau. They have been an amazing second set of parents. I’m lucky to have them. When I graduated high school, I told them I wanted to follow in my mom’s footsteps and open a salon one day like she had done. They supported my dreams and after I had finished cosmetology school, I went to work at the same salon my mom owned before she died. A couple years later I felt ready to open my own salon.”

  “Were you ready?” I ask.

  Charlotte laughs. “God no! I thought I knew what I was doing, but I was so wrong. Thank God there were so many great people on my side willing to jump in and help, even when I told them I could do it on my own. After a lot of hard work and long hours, things are finally going well.”

  “What about boyfriends?”

  “What about them?” she asks, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “Is there anyone I need to be concerned about?”

  “Oh yeah. There are so many Beau. Should I make you a list?”

  I tap her foot under the table and she bursts into a belly laugh. “There’s nothing to worry about. The last boyfriend I had was in high school. We broke up when he went off to college. After that I didn’t have much time for guys.”

  “Do you have time now?”

  “I’m here aren’t I?” She says and then winks.

  Her sassy mouth is going to get her in trouble one day.

  Chapter Four

  Charlotte

  After our date last night Beau brought me back to my place. I invited him in, but he refused, claiming he didn’t want to tempt fate. I wasn’t sure what he meant but then he kissed me at my door and my stomach erupted into butterflies. When he finally pulled away, he wrapped me in his arms and held me tight. I shifted slightly to wrap my arms around him, and he groaned. I could feel the evidence of what our kiss had done to him and it made me smile. It was then that I understood what he meant about tempting fate. I wouldn’t have minded tempting it, but it felt good to know that he did.

  Most of the guys I grew up with would have gladly accepted an invitation to come in. Him refusing my offer only proves how different he is than everyone else. There have been guys over the years who have asked me out, and I’ve told each and every one of them I wasn’t dating. It never once occurred to me to give Beau the same answer. The moment he walked into my shop I knew there was something different about him. Something I was drawn to in a way I never had been with any other man before. He left once I was in the house with my locks bolted.

  Sundays are the only day I get to sleep in. This morning I woke to a text from Beau with a picture of a dog holding a leash in his mouth, asking me to go for a hike with them. Spending time with Beau and his dog sounded like a lot more fun than a few more hours of sleep did.

  Pulling up to the state park, Beau and his dog are already outside walking around. When Beau sees me pull in and park, he walks over to my Jeep and opens my door for me, then plants a swift kiss on my lips.

  “Good morning Beautiful.”

  “Good morning.” I hop out of my Jeep and slide my phone into the pocket of my black leggings and my keys into the other.

  Beau looks me over and shakes his head at me with a smile on his handsome face. “Do you always wear black?”
r />   Laughing, I nod. “Didn’t you know? It’s like a hairstylist’s uniform.” Before he can respond, the dog sniffs my legs and jumps up on me, licking my face. “Well hello to you too buddy.” I say laughing and rubbing his head.

  “Thor, down.” Beau says in a firm, controlled voice. Thor listens instantly and stands beside his master. “Good boy.”

  Is it wrong that turned me on a little?

  “Are you ready?” Beau asks.

  “Fair warning, I’m not much of a hiker, so don’t leave me behind when I start slowing down.”

  “I’m never leaving you.” He says in as serious a tone as he used with Thor.

  I bump his shoulder and start walking to the opening of the path. “Let’s go then.” I say over my shoulder.

  We’re hiking for about an hour when we hear a dog barking nonstop. After a few seconds Beau, Thor, and I take off running towards the sound. They get there first. By the time I finally make it there, I see Thor sitting to the side watching Beau helping a woman who has a gash to her head. Her dog is wearing a service vest and is sitting very close to her.

  “What do you need me to do? Should I call an ambulance?” I ask.

  “That’s a good idea. I’m going to see if I can help Megan make it to the parking lot. Could you run ahead to call?”

  “You got it.” I say then take off jogging as fast as I can. When I make it back to the parking lot where I have cell reception, I call nine-one-one. I let them know what has happened and where to meet us.

  By the time the ambulance is pulling up, Beau is walking out of the clearing with Megan in his arms and the dogs walking on each side of him. Talk about perfect timing.

  A police SUV pulls up beside the ambulance and my uncle and one of his deputies get out. What the hell is he doing here?