Page 2 of Too Enchanting

They’d look me over from head to toe, noticing my petite stature, my well-proportioned body, long, silky dark hair, and my face. They usually got stuck on my face.

It wasn’t a ritual I enjoyed; it was one that I put up with.

I waited until his eyes paused on my face, then turned on my best smile and said, “Look, Jed. We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot. Not only are you friends with my cousins, but, we’re neighbors. What do you say we start over?”

I stuck out my hand and kept a pleasing look on my face as I waited.

And, waited.

Finally, Jed reached out and shook my hand.

He had a firm, but sweaty, grasp, and it took all of my willpower not to wipe my hand on my jeans once he let it go.

With narrowed eyes, Jed said, “All right. I’ll agree to a reboot … but, only because your cousins are great guys, and I know how excited they are to have you back in town.”

I bit back a nasty remark and gave a smooth nod.

“Thank you,” I replied, then turned to go.

“That being said,” Jed added before I could walk away. “If you have an issue with your plumbing or electricity, or just need something heavy moved…” I smiled, patiently waiting for him to offer his assistance. “It’s probably better if you call one of them, rather than knocking on my door.”

Then, without so much as a farewell, he picked up his weed whacker and turned around, leaving me standing there catching flies.

What an asshole, I fumed as I stomped back to my new house.

I thought momentarily about walking over to Reardon and Chloe’s house. They lived in the Copper Woods subdivision too, and was part of the reason why I’d chosen to buy a house there. I knew Chloe would listen with a sympathetic ear about my super jerky neighbor.

I sighed. No, I couldn’t do that. Not only did I know they liked Jed, but I didn’t want them to find out about my snarky behavior. I needed to be Serena, the sensible cousin and put-together art gallery manager.

Plus, Chloe was about to give birth and was currently on bed rest.

Instead, I walked into my house, opened a bottle of wine, and decided to start unpacking.

“Welcome back to Cherry Springs,” I said to the empty house, my glass raised. “Here’s to starting over and becoming the woman my family has always expected me to be.”

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