Page 2 of The Anti-Bachelorette (The Anti-Bachelorette 1)

I go to reach for his stomach when his hand shoots out and grips my wrist tightly to stop me from touching him. I continue to stare up into his eyes as he glares down at me. His hand squeezes tightly around my wrist, almost painfully so, and he is about to say something when Kenny walks out. “Oh Emory! You’re back!”

Kenny has been working for my dad for as long as I can remember. He is a tall skinny ginger with a full orange beard. He’s more like an uncle than an employee.

He walks up to us, and the contractor man drops my hand. Kenny wraps his arm around my neck. “Welcome back kiddo. I see you already met the new mean ole foreman of ours.”

The man just rolls his eyes at Kenny. They obviously have met before he started here. Kenny would only joke around like that with someone he knows well.

Kenny steps back from the hug and jabs his elbow softly into my side. “We all said Emory here should be the new foreman, but instead we are stuck with this hardass.”

I look over to the mystery man and raise my eyebrows at him. “My dad never said he was hiring a new foreman.”

Kenny laughs. “Well, technically our Alaric here is a founding member of the company. Started it with your dad all those years back. Sorry kiddo. He has to be your boss along with the rest of us sorry souls.”

I shoot my eyes back over to Alaric, and he has a smug grin on his face. My face forms into a snarl. “Alaric? Alaric Coleman?”

He nods back. “Emory.” He says my name with such disdain.

I scoff. “What are you doing back? I thought your psycho family ran you out of town or something?”

He just sneers back at me. “I see you still can’t find a real job and are still relying on daddy to take care of you.”

I can’t believe Alaric is back. I haven’t seen him in so many years. When my dad first started getting his life on track, he started working at a construction company. He assisted everyone in the company until he knew the trade through and through. When he was 21, he started his own construction company. He needed help, so he hired the boy down the street from him.

He had come in contact with Alaric a few times before when he’d found Alaric's older brother beating on Alaric, and my dad would have to break it up. Alaric’s family was heavy into some bad stuff. Drugs, prositituion, you name it.

My dad kind of took Alaric under his wing. After working closely together for so many years, they became close friends even though Alaric was 6 years younger than my dad. Alaric was mature for his age though. Growing up in a rough family home will do that to a person.

My dad made Alaric an equal partner after a few years of working for him when Alaric turned 18. The company started to pick up business after a while, and that’s when Alaric had to leave.

I was just a little girl back then, so I didn’t understand, but Alaric’s family had started pressuring Alaric more and more for money. He would sometimes give in and give it to them, but eventually it just became too dangerous for everyone involved when his family started showing up around the jobs sites, so he moved south. Every once and while he’d come to visit my dad, but I didn’t usually see him often.

He has definitely grown up since the last time I’ve seen him though. I didn’t even recognize the man standing in front of me as being the same young man I used to see hanging out with my dad. Obviously he didn’t recognize me either. Unless he did, and this is all his idea of a joke.

I am still standing there glaring at him when he adds. “Oh wait. That’s right. Now you’ll be relying on me to take care of you.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “You asshole.”

Kenny looks between the two of us and slowly backs away. “Oh no, I am not getting in the middle of whatever this is.” He turns and starts walking away. I look his way and see Tyler walking towards us. I can’t help the way my face lights up when I see him. He gives me one of those side smiles, and his cute little dimple peeks out.

Tyler walks up to me and Alaric. “Hey, there she is. We all missed you here.”

I give a small, shy giggle. “I missed you guys too.”

Tyler rolls his eyes. “Oh please. We all know you were not thinking about us guys while you were out there soaking up the sun, sipping on cocktails.”

I playfully pat his arm and give him a little wink. “Well, maybe it was just you I missed.”

Tyler gives me a huge grin then nods his head at me. “I just have to finish something up with Brian and then I’ll be over to your office for our monthly.”

He walks backward a few steps still looking at me, and I give him a small wave goodbye as I smile at him. He finally turns around and walks away back into the job site. I turn back toward Alaric, and he has a mean smirk and a cocked eyebrow. “You know they won’t respect you if you flirt like that.”

My mouth drops open a little at him. Then I take a step forward toward him again. I don’t know why I keep putting myself up in his personal space. I should be backing up, but he keeps pushing my buttons. “They are my subordinates. They will respect me because I tell them to. The only person I would need to worry about that with would be you bossman, and trust me, if you were the last man on earth, I wouldn’t consider flirting with you.”

He just cocks an eyebrow at me and smirks. “Weren’t you just calling me all hot and buff?” He taps his chin like he is remembering our conversation from a minute ago.

I roll my eyes at him and turn to leave, but then I look over my shoulder. “I never said you were hot.”

He just smiles back at me. “But you were thinking it.”

I roll my eyes again and walk away. “Keep dreaming!”

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