Read Online Happily Ever Afters Guaranteed by Lacy Williams - Free Book Online Page A

luck, he’d behave
himself tonight and not beg for scraps too much.
    Kate moved out onto the patio. Her territory.
She spoke as she set out the plates and arranged the cutlery, aware
that Brody wheeled out the door right behind her, pasta balanced on
his lap.
    “So… why’d you pick me? To do this… date, I
mean—” Kate cut herself off, embarrassed that she couldn’t get the
words out right. She closed her eyes, praying he wouldn’t say,
because you were the only woman around.
    Brody’s warm hand enveloping hers brought her
eyes open. His serious, dark gaze showed sincerity. “I asked you to
dinner tonight because you captivate me. I want to get to know you
better.”
    “Oh.” Kate knew she was flushing. What a nice
thing to say. But would he still feel the same when he found out
about her background? She was a high school dropout, after all…
    Brody released her hands and pulled out a
chair for Kate to sit down in. Their knees knocked when he wheeled
himself up to the table.
    “Whoops. Sorry.”
    “It’s okay.” Every touch, even the accidental
ones, served to discombobulate her more. She’d been attracted to
Brody from the start, but the connection jumping between them was
almost frightening in its intensity.
    She tried to compose herself while Brody
offered a prayer for the meal, but his warm, attentive look as the
prayer ended sent her heart soaring. Should she just let go and
allow the evening to play out as it would? For someone who was used
to planning her days in fifteen-minute increments, it wouldn’t be
easy.
    “So I know you take care of pools like mine
during the day, but what else do you do, Kate? Any hobbies?”
    Kate kept her eyes on her plate as Brody
loaded it with the casserole and a slice of the garlic bread he
must’ve brought out with it. “I don’t really have time for hobbies.
I’m still working on my bachelor’s degree. Night school.”
    Would he comment on her long-term plan? Ask
why she wasn’t finished with her degree yet?
    “That’s great.” His comment surprised her
into raising her gaze. He didn’t seem to think anything of her
school situation, was actually digging into his pasta. “Mmm. And so
is this,” he said when he’d swallowed his bite.
    “Thanks. It’s my mom’s recipe.”
    “I’d love to meet her sometime and tell her
how wonderful it is. So what are you studying?”
    Kate had just taken a bite and motioned that
she needed a moment.
    Brody grinned at her. “Wait, let me guess.
Advanced Pool Treatments?”
    Kate took a sip of water to wash down the
pasta but spluttered it at his comment. She shook her head and
dabbed her mouth with her napkin.
    “Hmm. Not it, huh? What about… Something in
athletics? I think you must really like working outside…”
    “Wrong again,” Kate said with a chuckle.
“Biology.”
    “Really? Interesting.”
    She wanted to change the subject before he
wondered why she was still working on her degree at twenty-five.
“What about you? I couldn’t help but see you had a manuscript laid
out on the living room couch. What are you working on?”
    For the first time tonight, a cloud passed
over his face. He frowned. “Not what my agent wants to see.” He
blew out a breath, waving his fork in the air as he spoke his next
words. “She wants me to write a travel guide for those with…
‘physical limitations’ is how she puts it.”
    “But you don’t want to?” Kate asked,
genuinely confused. “I’ll bet it would sell, with your reputation…”
She tried to hide her grimace behind a bite of garlic bread. She
hadn’t meant to reveal just how much she’d followed his books.
    “It might,” came his casual reply. He
shrugged. “But if I write that kind of book, it would feel
like…”
    “Giving up?” she guessed, fascinated by the
play of emotions crossing his face.
    “Exactly. Giving up.” Color swamped his
cheekbones as he went on. “I know the doctors don’t think there’s
much chance—any chance,