Page 1 of Recklessly Yours

Chapter One

HATTIE

“This one might actually be a keeper.”

I glanced up and found my sister Ashley standing in the doorway to my office, holding a large bouquet of white roses and blue flowers.

“Huh?” I tilted my head, confused about what she was talking about. It couldn’t be her husband. Weallknew she thought he was a keeper.

She plucked the crisp white card from the bouquet and read it out loud. “Hey, beautiful. Can’t wait to see you again soon.” Her face lit with a smile. “Who is he?” Before I could respond, she shook her head. “Don’t tell me it’s a guy from those dating sites you’ve been using.”

Sighing, I sat back in my chair.Here we go again. The same tirade for the hundredth time. I’d let her say her piece, and then, if I was lucky, she would leave my office and let me get back to work.

“I don’t like you meeting all these guys online. It’s so sketchy.”

I fought the eye roll I wanted to give her. She acted like online dating was the most absurd thing she’d ever heard of. Like millions of women get murdered by men they meet on the internet or like it was banned across the country instead of it facilitating plenty of lifelong matches.

My brother Rhett appeared behind Ashley. “Whose flowers?”

“They were just delivered for Hattie,” she said, looking over her shoulder. “And I was telling her she needs to be careful with this whole online dating thing.”

“Yeah. I’ve said the same thing.” He shook his head.

Frustration coursed through me. Great. Now they were both giving me opinions I hadn’t asked for.

Ashley stepped forward, dropped the bouquet onto my desk, and held the card out to me. Before I could take it, though, she snatched it back.

“Wait, is there even a signature?” Her face scrunched like she’d smelled something bad as she turned it over. “That’s weird.”

I let out an exasperated sigh. “They’re probably from Kevin.”

I’d send him a text and thank him later. But I had to admit, I was confused. Even though he was nice and our date had gone well, he’d come off as not that interested.

“Which weird dating site did you meet him on? Kill Me Over Coffee or Stab Me After Dinner?” Ashley chuckled.

Rather than amused, Rhett seemed pissed off. And I had barely told them anything.Thiswas why I was considered the quiet sibling.

I narrowed my eyes. “I didn’t?—”

“I know you’re looking for a real relationship and all,” Ashley said, crossing her arms, “but I don’t think this is the way to find one.”

I’d actually met Kevin at a bar a few weeks ago rather than on a dating site. But I couldn’t imagine these two would like that any better, so I kept that to myself. Ashley was still rambling about the dangers of online dating, so I couldn’t even get a word in anyway.

“I agree.” With a nod, my brother propped himself up against the doorframe.

Guess he wasn’t leaving anytime soon either.

“But—”

“It’s dangerous,” Rhett added. “Maybe Mom can set you up with one of the single guys from church.”

I slumped back in my chair. Jesus. I’d tried that last year and wouldn’t again. If they’d let me get a word in, maybe I’d tell them that I was done with meeting guys online for now too. It was an easy decision after one showed up wearing a kilt, which was fine until I asked if he was Scottish, and he said no. That he just liked airing out his junk. Then another one literally never stopped smiling. Like I couldn’t tell whether he had recently gotten Botox or just really liked to smile.

“I want you to find a love like I have with Jackson.” Ashley tilted her head to the side as she sent me a sympathetic smile. “Creating a family with him and Sophia has made me so happy. I want that for you too. But…I don’t know…” She trailed off.

I gritted my teeth.They mean well. I often chanted those words to myself in regard to my siblings.

Yes, I wanted to find something real. But even the guys that friends had set me up with or that I’d met while out in the last couple of years hadn’t worked out. And lately the selection had gotten even more weird. At this point, I was pretty much convinced that if they were still single by the time they were thirty, then something was wrong with them.

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