Read Online Righting a Wrong (A Ripple Effect Romance Novella) by Rachael Anderson - Free Book Online

prideful part of him couldn’t help but preen, another side wanted her to hate it—the way Eden would have hated him for updating her childhood home. This was his place now, and all the renovations he’d made had been to make it his home—not Cambri’s. But now that she’d approved of the changes, she was back in everything, and Jace suddenly felt like he needed to make over his makeover just so it could be all his again.
    Cambri shuffled her feet then waved her hand in a flippant gesture. “So there you have it—the story of how I inadvertently became a real stalker. Want to call the police now? I’ll go without a fight if it means I don’t have to stand here feeling stupid anymore.”
    There it was again—that charming insecurity that sneaked under the fence of his indifference and touched a tender spot in his heart. “Did you walk here?”
    Another shuffle. Another shrug. “I didn’t mean to walk this far. My feet just kept on going.” She cringed. “I think I need to stop talking now. That sounded lame.”
    A snicker escaped Jace’s mouth, and his gaze dropped to the ground. His foot scuffed against the crumbling walkway, dislodging a piece of concrete. He reached down to grab it then held it up for Cambri’s inspection. “I always told you this place was a wreck.”
    “And yet you bought it.” It was both a statement and a question.
    Jace tossed the piece of concrete to the ground and shoved his hands into his pockets, looking up at the house. “It came on the market a few months back when I happened to be looking and it was pretty much my only option.” He chuckled. “The one house I used to tease you about liking. And now I own it. Go figure.”
    “It’s called karma.” Cambri smiled. “Admit it. I was right. This place has character.”
    “Maybe.” He smiled slightly, glancing her way. “It definitely reminds me of you.”
    She caught his gaze and held it, making Jace’s heart pound in an uneven rhythm. “In a good way or bad?”
    Whether it was the darkness of the night or the reminder of a time when he used to talk to Cambri about everything, Jace felt himself wanting to open up to her. But like a rusted hinge being pried open, the words didn’t come as easy as they used to. “A little of both maybe. Mostly good, though. And yes, you were right, it does have great character.”
    Cambri stepped to his side and indicated the house. “You’ve made it beautiful—more so than I ever envisioned. I always knew you were talented from all the cool things you used to make in your shop classes—but this … this is impressive. It’s very you.”
    Three little words, and suddenly the house was all his again. “Thanks.”
    “Did you have to kill the tree though?” Cambri smiled as she said it, but there was an underlying sadness in her voice that pricked Jace’s heart.
    But what else could he do? There was no disguising the tree, or changing it to make it Jace’s and not hers. Every time he’d driven down Rose Street, that maple taunted him with the reminder of a perfect kiss gone way wrong and a friendship destroyed. It had to go. “The roots were making the sidewalk buckle.”
    She looked at the spot where it had once stood and shook her head sadly. “It was so big. So beautiful. So perfect.”
    And so in his face. “Your attachment to that tree wasn’t healthy. You’ll thank me for getting rid of it someday.”
    She cocked her head at him and lifted an eyebrow. “Just like you’re now thanking me for accidentally driving your bullet bike into the pond?”
    Jace frowned. “I’ll never thank you for that. That was a travesty.”
    “And you accuse me of having an unhealthy obsession,” she muttered.
    “What are you talking about? You loved that bike too.”
    “Not enough to fish it out of the pond and hold a burial service for it.”
    “That bike was family.” Jace shook his head, then chuckled at the memory. “It took all day to dig a hole big enough for that