The Shifter Romances The Writer (Nocturne Falls Book 6) (3 page)

And just what she needed to relieve the stress of this divorce. Thomas was about to be the furthest thing from her mind. At least for a little while.

She was shifting into reverse when a male voice called out to her.

“Sweet ride.”

She glanced over. A handsome man, her neighbor, stood in the side yard. He looked to be about her age, well built and obviously very proud of that fact based on the tight T-shirt he wore. She’d seen him a couple times, but they’d never spoken. Something about him, maybe his cocky smile, maybe his overly confident posture, said loud and clear that he was not her type. But she could imagine him very easily on the cover of one of her books. And he was probably a very nice guy despite her first impression of him. And since he was her neighbor there was no point getting off on the wrong foot. She smiled. “Thanks.”

“’69?”

“Yep.” The wind blew past her, and he seemed to…sniff it. If he’d been one of her paranormal romance heroes, that wouldn’t have been weird at all. But he wasn’t. So it was.

His grin took on a feral edge. “My favorite year.”

Or maybe not so nice a guy. Her smile faded.

He jerked his thumb toward the house behind him. “That’s my ’69 Camaro. Rebuilt it myself.”

She shot a quick glance at the black muscle car sitting in the driveway and nodded tentatively. “How nice.” But she was done talking cars. All she wanted to do was drive. “Have a good day.”

She looked behind her, backed out and took off down the street. If that was her neighbor, they were not going to be getting together for BBQ’s. Guys like that found out what she did for a living and instantly thought she was an easy target. Like she was looking to do some up close and personal research.

Uh, no.

And unless he was a vampire or a werewolf, he really had nothing to offer her. She laughed at that thought. If vampires and werewolves actually existed, that would be something. They’d probably be nothing like the heroes in her books. In fact, they’d probably have all the same issues real men had, like working full time, paying bills and doing yardwork. That would kill the fantasy pretty fast. Except for the yardwork part if they were half naked and sweaty and ripped…

She glanced in the rearview mirror. Whatever that guy thought, she wasn’t about to start getting chummy with her neighbor. That was a fast way to make things awkward. No, thank you. All she wanted was to be left alone, live her life and write the books that made her readers happy and her new single life possible.

Maybe she’d think about dating in a year or two.

Or never.

She could probably live with never. Especially if she got a dog. Or a houseful of cats.

The air whipped past. Sad, really. She considered herself a great catch, but she wasn’t about to let another man into her world and risk ruining all this happiness. And why was she even thinking about this? Her divorce was still who knew how long away from being final.

Enough. She cranked up the radio, found some good tunes and settled in to enjoy the ride. The back roads of Nocturne Falls took her past some beautiful scenery and some amazing houses. No clue who lived in the big mansion near the winery, but the place was epic. Delaney had mentioned that her husband’s grandmother had a house that was beyond all else. Could that have been it?

She sped on, loving the winding roads and unexpected turns. This town was not only the perfect place to live (Halloween every day was a paranormal romance author’s dream), but it was proving to be the perfect place to own a car like this.

The Corvette would never be her daily driver. Her trusty hybrid was much more suited for that. But for weekends? And outings? And just plain fun? The Vette and these roads were a match made in Car & Driver heaven.

She owed Delaney lunch and a major thank-you for getting her to come to Nocturne Falls. Something told her this place was going to be life-changing.

Her foot got a little heavier on the gas, and she zipped through another right-left-right turn combination. She whooped out loud, the grin on her face causing her cheeks to ache. She could practically feel her dad smiling down on her.

Then the wail of a siren interrupted her perfect day.

The Corvette sped past Alex’s patrol car as he was sitting at a stop sign, about to turn back toward town on his normal route. He doubted the driver had even seen him since she’d made no attempt to slow down.

He flipped on the siren and went after her, catching up in a quarter mile. Then she slowed and pulled onto the shoulder.

Nice car. New Jersey plates. That was a long way to drive a classic car on vacation, but then, stranger things happened.

He stepped out and approached the vehicle. “Ma’am, are you aware you were doing seventy in a fifty-five mile per hour zone?”

She glanced at him, a pair of big sunglasses hiding her eyes. “Yes.”

Not the response he’d expected. Usually, a traffic stop brought on tears, arguing, excuses—you name it, he was used to it. But admittance of guilt? That was a rare one. He blinked behind his aviators. “Any particular reason you were going that fast?”

She seemed to be fighting a smile. “Because I can?”

He wondered if he should administer a field sobriety test, but his sensitive nose didn’t detect even a hint of alcohol. Still, there were other substances that might be making her this bold. All he was picking up on was something sweet and floral. Not a bad smell at all. Not the slightest hint of anything supernatural, though. She was a hundred percent human. Like most tourists. “It’s illegal and unsafe to exceed the speed limit, ma’am.”

“I know. But sometimes you just need to let loose, you know?”

“License and registration, please, ma’am.”

She sighed loudly as she dug in her purse. “Could you cool it with the ma’am business? We’re probably the same age.”

She handed over her information and he checked. She was twenty-nine. Five years younger than he was. Roxanne Sykes from New Jersey. And not bad-looking, now that he could see her without sunglasses and a scarf over her head. “I’ll be right back.”

“No hope for a warning, huh?” She smiled optimistically.

“No, ma’am.” He walked back to his car while she frowned after him. Warnings were for locals, not tourists. He plugged her info into the system. Nothing outstanding. He wrote up the ticket and walked back.

He held out his clipboard. “Sign here please.”

She signed.

He returned her ID and registration, along with a copy of the ticket and instructions about how to pay it. She stuffed it all in her purse, obviously not happy with him. Which was to be expected. “Have a nice day, ma’am.”

“I was. Until you showed up.”

“Just doing my job.”

She looked at him, brows raised and just peeking over the rims of her sunglasses. “Are we done?”

He nodded. “Yes, ma’—”

She yanked the shifter out of park and drove off.

Women. He shook his head as he walked back to the patrol car. At least she hadn’t resorted to tears. That always made him feel like such a heel.

A call came in on the radio. A noise disturbance at one of the local hotels. He responded and drove away, the ticket he’d just written all part of his day.

By the time that day was over, he was happy to go home. He didn’t feel much like studying, but the test for sergeant was coming, and he wanted to be prepared. He changed out of his uniform and into shorts and a T-shirt, then grabbed a beer from the fridge.

Diego was lounging in the hot tub on the back deck, a beer at the ready. And probably not his first.

Alex stared at his brother through the kitchen window. Diego had the radio turned up and his eyes closed like he didn’t have a care in the world. Pretty amazing that someone who still didn’t have a job after three weeks could feel that way. Irritation curled in Alex’s belly, but some of that was aimed inward. After all, he’d allowed Diego to move in.

But what were his options? He sighed. He knew what they were. He should have said no. Made his little brother face reality. Like every other adult had to do. Alex took a long pull off the bottle, the cold liquid diminishing some of the heat building in his gut. He loved his brother, but this conversation needed to happen.

He pushed the slider open and walked onto the deck.

Diego opened his eyes. “Hey, bro, jump in. The water is perfect.”

Alex stayed put. “How did the job hunt go today?”

Diego shrugged. “You know how it is.”

“No, I don’t. That’s why I asked.”

Diego drank his beer before answering. “It’s tough out there.”

“Where did you apply?”

Diego frowned. “I didn’t make it out today. I found a couple places in the paper, though. I’m going to call them in the morning.”

“You didn’t even make phone calls today? Diego, come on. This is the third week you’ve been here. You should have had a job two weeks ago.”

“I got busy with other things.”

“What other things could you possibly have to do? You’re unemployed. Living in my house. And there are dishes in the sink, so clearly those other things don’t include cleaning up after yourself.” Alex looked away for a moment, feeling the beast within him rise. He knew his eyes must be gold.

Another breath and he found enough calm to speak again. “You have one more week. Get a job or you need to find other living arrangements.”

“You’re going to throw your baby brother out? Pretty heartless, bro.”

“I am your brother, Diego, not your parent. You want to live like a child, unencumbered by work or bills? Move home with Mom and Dad.” Alex strode back inside and shut the slider. He leaned on the kitchen counter and heaved out a breath.

He hated feeling like his brother was taking advantage of him, but that’s what it had come to. He’d known that would happen, but he hadn’t listened to his instincts. That was his mistake. As an officer of the law, he knew better than to ignore his gut. Now he was paying the price.

The mail was on the counter, so apparently Diego had managed one chore. Alex flipped through it. Bills and junk mail. Except for one envelope. Looked like a card of some kind. And it wasn’t for him.

The name on the envelope was Roxy St. James, and the address was next door. He’d been so busy he hadn’t met the new neighbor, but he knew he had one. The Tamakas had been good neighbors. He hoped Roxy was too.

No time like the present to make an introduction, he supposed. Besides, he needed a break from Diego. He stuck his beer back in the fridge, grabbed the envelope and walked next door.

He knocked on her door and waited. Maybe she wasn’t home. There was a car in the drive, one of those eco-friendly types, but she could be out for a walk or in the backyard.

He was about to knock again when the door opened and a petite brunette in yoga pants and a cropped T-shirt appeared. She had a mass of curly hair and big brown eyes that were as strong and warm as the Cuban coffee he loved.

The three inches of soft, tanned stomach on display were equally as mouth-watering. He looked toward his house so he wouldn’t be caught staring. That was no way to make a first impression. “I’m Alex, your neighbor from next door.” He made eye contact again as he held the envelope up. “I got your mail by mistake.”

She squinted at him for a hard second, then snatched the envelope out of his hand. “Are you kidding me?”

He stared at her. Why did she look familiar? “No, I really did get it by accident—”

She crossed her arms, tucking the envelope under them. “Just my luck. The cop who pulls me over lives next door.”

He inhaled. And recognized her perfume. But without the scarf and the sunglasses—“Why does it say Roxy St. James on that address?”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but St. James is my maiden name. And it’ll be my legal last name again as soon as my divorce is final.”

He shoved a hand through his hair. “Sorry about the ticket. I would have given you a warning if I’d known you were local. I thought you were a tourist.”

Her glare didn’t lessen. “Oh, so you’re
that
kind of cop.”

He really wasn’t. “I’m not saying I’d do favors for you based on the fact that you live next door, but I could have given you a warning. But tourists are sort of how the town makes money in general.” He sighed. Her expression wasn’t changing. He didn’t want to have this kind of tension with the woman who lived next to him. “I can make the ticket go away.”