Always Amy: Reynolds Family, #4

By Kali Hart

Amy

After a turbulent end to a bad relationship, all I want is to reset.
I moved home to be closer to family, but I refuse to rely on them.
Or anyone.
Relying on someone is what got into this mess in the first place.
So when Reid tries to be more than my smokin' hot landlord, I can't allow it.
I'll share my bed once or twice, but that's it.
Why won't he accept that?

Reid

Never mix business with pleasure. My number one rule.
But when Amy moves into my rental, all my rules go out the window.
She's guarded.
She's hiding something.
The fear I've seen in her beautiful eyes doesn't lie.
I'll do whatever it takes to protect her, rules be damned.
She's willing to let me into her bed, but not into her heart.
Not yet. But she will.

Sweet & steamy short story instalove romance with an alpha man and younger curvy woman with an HEA. NO cliffhangers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jackie M. Wallick
• Release date: Dec 3, 2019
• ISBN: 9798223704492

Book preview

1

AMY

I’ve made wiser decisions than renting a place off of Craigslist, sight unseen.

But if I’m being honest, I’ve made worse.

Moving back home with less than five-hundred dollars, for instance.

Topping that list, however, is dating that jackass Jason. I left behind my friends and family to follow him to New York. He promised me we’d both get the chance to fulfill our dreams. But in the end, I realized that he only meant that for himself.

I pay the Uber driver, thankful the place wasn’t too far from the bus station—never in my life did I imagine myself on a bus for twenty-six hours. I don’t have much money left. Just what little I got for pawning that cheap ring. I shouldn’t have been surprised to find it worth so little.

I double check the address from the online advertisement I’ve stored on my phone. This gray two-story house with a covered front porch is the right place. 3455 Big Elk. I’ve only corresponded with a man named Reid, but from the looks of this house I suspect Reid and his family live here.

Hopefully I can wrap up this rental deal quickly. I need to be down at Rusty’s Nail for an interview in a couple of hours. Bartending isn’t my number one choice, but I’m back to square one and willing to take the job if it means I can save up money. Someday I hope my writing will pay all my bills. But until then, I’ll do what I need to.

One of my two suitcases drags awkwardly from its broken wheel. Even the luggage my ex bought me for a birthday gift is a cheap knockoff. I abandon them both at the foot of the porch stairs. Before I can make it to the door to knock, it opens. The man that steps through takes my breath away.

Can I help you? he asks.

Words tangle on my tongue. He’s tall… so tall. I bet the top of my head barely reaches his muscular pecks on full display with that tight gray T-shirt. Everything about him is delicious, from those sky-blue eyes to the way his muscles flex when he folds his arms.

Miss?

His voice brings me back to reality. Back to his front porch—to his family’s front porch—and to the very fact that I gave up men. After Jason, I realize they’re not worth the trouble. I don’t need another one in my life that’ll make promises he won’t keep. Hi, I’m Amy.

Amy? His eyebrows draw together.

Amy Reynolds. I contacted you about the rental? My heart accelerates in my chest. I thought he was expecting me, but now I’m not so sure someone else didn’t snatch my rental from under me. It was a smokin’ deal I couldn’t pass up. I could live with my sister if it came down to it, but Katy has her hands full with her own family. Is it still available?

Yes. I just—I expected someone… different. That’s all.

REID

Never mix business with pleasure.

That’s the warning that flashes through my mind the second I realize the woman standing on my front porch is my new tenant. The attraction is not just instant, it’s potent. She’s simply standing there, waiting for me to show her the garage apartment. But