Page 30 of Hero Next Door
It was insane, all of it, and I was positive she’d never go for any of that.
Which was why it was better, all around, to just keep my heart to myself and keep Parker Pelton out of it.
CHAPTER16
Parker
Iwoke up the next morning to the brightest light I’d ever seen outside, the sun glowing down on me like it had come up for that specific purpose. No mist this morning, and I could see into the valley and to what felt like the end of the state through my bedroom window, the fresh, green world stretching out in front of me. There were more butterflies floating along in front of the window—seriously, what was it with them?—and the tree just to the right of the window seemed to have burst into bloom overnight.
I couldn’t hear any birds singing but I was sure they were. There were probably deer grazing on the lawn too, and some foxes and raccoons and any number of other fantastical creatures out there getting ready to burst into song. That was how ridiculous the morning itself was.
The thing was, that ridiculous feeling—ridiculousness? Ridiculosity?—was inside me, too. And that was the weirdest part.
I woke up feeling lighter than I thought I’d ever felt in my entire life. I’d been up too late last night and had way too much to drink and Dev’s truck was still parked in my driveway—not because he’d slept here but because he’d decided it would be safer to walk than drive—but even with all of that complication, I felt...
Light. It was the only word for it.
And grounded at the same time.
This was my house. This was myranch. I’d become one of those people who actually owned land and a house, and though they’d been mine for less than a week, they already felt like they’d crept right in and become part of my soul.
I’d come here thinking that I would get through the week, sell the place, and then get back to Nashville where things made sense. And instead, this place was crawling under my skin and making itself right at home.
While forcing me to admit that I kind of liked the idea of putting roots down in this town where I’d been born.
No, I amended quickly. It wasn’t that. It wasn’t the town, because I still had trouble forcing myself to cross into the streets and buildings where so many bad things had happened to me. So I couldn’t say it was Arberry, exactly, or the people of Arberry.
It was Butterfly Glen itself. My house. My ranch.
And the man I’d found here. Dev Hawthorne. He’d come in like a freaking tornado, wrecking everything in his path and throwing up dust in his wake, and I’d thought he was nothing but destruction personified.
But that had changed.
Somewhere along the way, he’d started to feel like a safe place. And for a girl who’d never had a safe place of her own—unless you counted Scarlett and her aura—the idea of finally having that base was...
Intoxicating.
I rolled out of bed, grabbed my phone, and, before I could think too much about it, dialed the number of the developer who’d been calling nonstop since I got into town. He didn’t answer, possibly because it was like 6 in the morning, and that suited me just fine. I didn’t need to talk to him. I didn’t need to hear what he said.
I just needed to let him know that I was absolutely, definitely not interested in his offer.
The message was short, sweet, and to the point, and I finished it up by telling him that he didn’t need to bother calling me again and that his number was going to be blocked from here on out.
“There,” I said, hanging up. “Try to misunderstandthat.”
I blocked his number, grinning at the feeling of power it gave me, and tossed my phone back on the bed. Then I looked through the window once more, letting the sight rush through me, fill my veins, and make itself at home. I’d known I loved the place the day I arrived, I remembered. I’d thought that it felt right to be back here.
And then I’d started fighting it, tooth and nail, reminding myself that I just wanted to go back to Nashville.
But what if I’d been lying to myself about that? What if my heart had been screaming the entire time that it wasn’t going to be better if I went back to Nashville, and that the universe or karma or whatever else had brought me back here for a weekend?
What if the world had somehow twisted and turned itself around to give me the safe place I’d always been searching for, and it was right there at my feet, staring back at me with a bright green, butterfly-filled gaze that I couldn’t ignore?
A knock at the door interrupted this fluttery, insane thoughts, and I threw on a sweatshirt against the chill—and to cover my pajamas—and ran down the stairs, wondering who the hell thought they needed to knock on my door this early in the morning.
Dev, it turned out, had brought me breakfast.
“Pancakes,” he said, lifting a basket. “And coffee. I figured you could use it after last night.”
