Page 2 of Falling for the Guy Next Door

Ella rolled her eyes. “How would I know? Audrey said the person was working somewhere nearby and needed the place through October. She said it made her life much easier to just have one person in the house for several months.”

“That makes sense,” Ava said. “I thought I saw a truck parked in the driveway yesterday, but I haven’t seen anyone yet.”

“Me neither, and if there is someone there, they’re quiet.” Ella worked from home, so she’d be the first to know if someone had moved in next door.

My phone vibrated in my beach bag. I reached in and pulled it out. Seeing Dustin’s name on the screen made me sigh … and not in the dreamy way Isla sighed whenever Luke’s name popped up on her screen.

“Want to get an ice cream later? I’m off early.”

“I’m with my sisters right now, but I can meet you at the ice cream shop after three.”

“Sounds good.”

I dropped the phone back in the bag.

“Was that Dustin?” Aria asked.

“How’d you know?” I asked.

“Because you wear that same look on your face whenever it’s him. And it’s not a look of admiration or longing.” Aria had taken on the role of guardian when our dear Nonna passed away just as I graduated high school. She made it her job to keep up on all our social lives, especially mine. I was almost thirty, but it seemed I’d never be old enough to lose the baby sister title.

“I thought you were going to break up with him,” Ella said.

I stretched my legs out and dug my feet into the warm sand. “I can’t break up with him.”

All faces turned toward me with puzzled brows.

I dug my feet even deeper to reach the cooler sand beneath the surface. “Look, I am now the third wheel whenever I’m with any of you, which, I guess, makes me the ninth wheel when we’re all together. That’s why this has been so nice, just us gals. I’m not going to show up to Isla’s wedding without a date.”

“But Luke and I aren’t getting married until next year. And if we can’t find a wedding venue, we might just elope and leave the whole wedding idea behind. I’m not entirely opposed to that.”

Aria and Ella turned to Isla with expressions that assured her elopement was not on the table. Ava, on the other hand, nodded along with Isla’s notion of eloping. I was on Aria and Ella’s side, but it would make life much easier on me if I didn’t have to worry about having a date to the wedding. Dustin and I had been dating for three months, and I’d been wanting to break it off for the last month. I’d discovered fairly quickly that he wasn’t my type. He rarely laughed and didn’t take teasing or joking well. He took himself far too seriously. On the other hand, he had no problem laughing if I tripped or spilled a drink or did something embarrassing.

Isla decided to get the attention off her. “Layla, don’t keep dating him just because of the wedding. That’s silly. Don’t string him along, or it’ll be harder to end things.”

Ella picked up the bag of grapes. “Yeah, really, Layla, that’s just silly.”

I crossed my arms and rested back.

“It’s not silly, guys,” Ava came quickly to my defense. “Layla, we’ll all be together for the wedding, and you’re not a ninth wheel. You’re a Lovely sister, and the men in our lives can never break that bond between us. Isla’s right. It’ll only be harder to break it off if you let it go on too long. It’s not fair to Dustin.”

I shrugged. “I’m seeing him later. I’ll let him know it’s not working out.” I rested my head back.

“Well, I hate to end this fun lunch break, but I’ve got to head back to the café and finish prep for tomorrow,” Aria said.

“Yep, I need to get to the bakery for some prep work, too,” Isla said.

I lifted my head. “I thought we’d at least have time for a swim.” I looked at Ella and Ava.

Ella shrugged. “I’ve got work waiting.”

Ava was avoiding eye contact. It was summer, so I knew she didn’t have to get back to the college because classes ended weeks ago.

“You’ve got plans with Jack, don’t you?” I asked.

She crinkled her face in an apologetic smile. “We’re driving along the coast and going out to dinner.”

Isla sat forward suddenly. “Hey, guys, I just had an idea.”

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