Remy's Choice

By Catherine MacKenzie, RC Bonitz, Val Muller and Deborah Dera

Remy, just out of a relationship gone wrong, meets handsome Jeremy, the boy next door. Jeremy exudes an air of mystery, and he seems to be everything she’s looking for. While Remy allows herself to indulge in the idea of love at first site, she realizes she’s the girl next door according to her boss, Dr. Samuel Kendrick.  
 
For the first time in her life, Remy has the luxury of choosing between the handsome young neighbor and her upstanding-and-sometimes-uptight boss. The situation intensifies when Barbara arrives, claiming to be an ex-beau of Jeremy and pregnant with his child.  
 
Is Jeremy who he claims to be? Is Sam on the level? What does Remy do? Does she pick the right man?

• Language: English
• Publisher: MacKenzie Publishing
• Release date: Jul 15, 2016
• ISBN: 9781927529348

Book preview

Chapter 1

Alison and Sarah cheered when Remy sank the eight ball, clearing the table and winning the game. The neon lights above the bar gave Remy’s hair a purple glow, and she raised her arms in the air like a rock star.

Thanks, gals! Remy bowed and then checked her phone. Her whimsy faded with the lateness of the hour. Oh drat, I’ve got to get going. Work tomorrow.

At least play one more game, Sarah said. She leaned in close. I think that guy’s been checking you out.

Through her peripheral vision, Remy watched the man in question while he sat at a bar table with another man, eating wings and playing with his phone. She smiled, following a whim. Then she picked up the pool cue like a microphone, mouthing along to the music and glancing in his direction. She pulled at her black blouse, adjusting her neckline.

After a moment, she checked her phone and then looked back toward the bar. The guy still didn’t notice her, and she sighed with relief. What would she have done if he had? She dropped the microphone cue back onto the table.

Sarah giggled. See what I mean?

Remy glanced once more at the guy. Cute, but I think he likes his phone more than he likes me.

Alison laughed. Maybe he likes his phone almost as much as you like yours!

Remy blushed, shoving her phone into her pocket. Work tomorrow.

Want us to walk you home? Alison asked.

Nah. I live right around the corner now, remember?

Alison shrugged. Suit yourself. She snickered. That guy’s pretty cute, though. If you stuck around, maybe he’d put down his phone.

Sarah laughed. I’d put my phone down for you, baby.

Alison and Remy joined in her laughter, and then Remy’s smile faded. Seriously, you know how nervous I get around guys. Night, girls.

She walked toward the door, careful to avoid eye contact with the good-looking stranger. She made it safely to the sidewalk and took a deep breath, avoiding the temptation to take one last peek through the window.

Go home, she reminded herself.

The girls had chosen the Corner Pocket for their Thursday night outing on purpose. It was a block away from Remy’s new condo, so it would be a fast walk for Remy, who had the earliest start in the morning.

She had taken her first step toward home when her phone vibrated. A text popped up on the screen:

-Mr. Hottie is following you!-

She turned around. Indeed, he had left right after her, and he was alone. She felt her skin flush.

Step, step, step, she told her feet. Don’t look back. Her mind raced. Had her stunt at the pool table really worked? And if so, was that really the type of guy she wanted to attract? Someone who liked a goofy girl lip-syncing to a cheesy pop song? And here she was, alone in the dark. What if he was some kind of creeper? Maybe he thought she was drunk. What had she done?

Behind her, a male coughed. You shouldn’t be walking alone.

She felt her face turn even redder. The deep voice was his. She knew it. She couldn’t help but turn around again.

It was Mr. Hottie.

Remy’s feet turned to lead.

I thought we could walk back together, he said. His hair was perfectly disheveled, and his smile could have been chiseled by Michelangelo. His eyes twinkled like the stars above.

Her heart fluttered. Get a grip. Or at least say something. Walk back together? I— Real smooth.

We’re neighbors, he said.

Neighbors?

His cologne wafted toward her on the wind.

He nodded. Yep, neighbors. He placed his hand on his hip.

Even through his black T-shirt she could see how chiseled his chest was.

You’re the new girl. The one in 1352.

Thirteen fifty-two, she repeated senselessly. Her head spun. She was losing the ability to think. Her friends would never believe this was happening.

I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself. I’m across from you. 1353. He held out his hand, and the muscles in his forearm rippled. I’ve seen you around the building. I’m Jeremy. I’ve only been here a few months myself.

Jeremy, she said, the syllables flowing off her tongue. She barely realized she had started walking again.

That’s right. I saw you playing pool in there. Didn’t want to interrupt you with your friends. You left kind of abruptly, but I was going to offer to walk you home.

Oh. She felt her face heat as she remembered how she’d posed for him. Maybe he wasn’t that obsessed with his phone.

Say something, her mind screamed just before it went blank. What were words, and why did they become so elusive every time a guy was involved? So you were...uh...waiting for me to finish?

Was that a blush on his face?

It’s just that it’s getting late, and you never know....

You never know what, she wondered. Relieved, she pointed to the next sidewalk leading up to the condo. This is me.

He nodded.

Of course he knew where she lived. They were neighbors. Duh.

Do you hang out at the Corner Pocket often? he asked, stopping under her porch.

The lighting from the street lamp broke the trance. Yes, she said, regaining her ability to think straight. I’m sorry. I’m Remy. And yes, my friends and I hang out there on Thursdays.

Remy. What a different name. But nice. Jeremy smiled with his eyes, his lips curling in approval. It’s a date, then. Next Thursday at the Corner Pocket. He typed into his cell phone and then reached toward her.

A date? Remy’s heart raced. He’s going to take my hand, she thought.

But he didn’t.

Instead, he slid her phone from her fingers and typed. Text me, he said, handing back the phone.

She examined her screen. He had entered his phone number. She smiled, but when she looked up again, he had disappeared into his own entryway.

-Night- she typed, hesitating before sending it.

When she entered her apartment, her phone vibrated. It was from Jeremy: -sweet dreams Remy-

She drifted off to sleep, embarrassed at the way she’d displayed herself for Jeremy at the pool table. But then her thoughts turned happier as she dreamed of his smile and hair and muscular arms and the possibilities that next Thursday night might hold.

Chapter 2

Remy rolled over in bed and glanced at the clock. Darn it, time to get up already. Her dreams had been wonderful, all about Mr. Handsome Jeremy from the Corner Pocket and Unit 1353. But darn, she woke up every time things got hot and sexy. What was that about?

She’d been a mess ever since Brian. Even late in their relationship, she had already started to fantasize, imagining Brian to be the man of her dreams. It was easy to think of him as perfect while he slept beside her, looking peaceful and still. It was more difficult to get him to live up to her mental image of him when reality hit. And when he hit her....

The alarm clock chiming reminded her that reality had once again set in.

She groaned and slid out of bed, stretched every muscle in her body, and headed for the bathroom. No time to dawdle over dreams. She needed a shower and then had to move her butt and get to work. Dr. Samuel Kendrick was a stickler for being on time and insisted his employees be in the office before he arrived.

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