Taking Chances (The Chances and Choices Duology - Book 1 of 2 - Contemporary Romance) Read online

  As Buster and I walked along, I lifted my face to the sun and enjoyed the light breeze off the water. It was a truly glorious day. I heard him before I saw him. “Buddy, come!” he yelled. Just then a big, golden retriever barreled towards him with an orange Frisbee in its mouth. I was walking up behind them, so couldn’t see if he was a ‘cute guy’ but his broad shoulders and great ass suggested that he probably was.

  When the dog reached him and he bent down to lovingly ruffle its ears as he took the Frisbee, I made a snap decision to say “Hi” to him. It was completely out of character and to-the-moon-and-back out of my comfort zone to walk up and speak to a stranger. I kept reminding myself that it was only one word as I forced myself to walk towards him.

  When Buster and I got to within a few feet of him, his dog gave a quick “Woof!” in greeting. He turned, and I was met with one of the most gorgeous men I had ever laid eyes on. His dark hair was just a smidge too long, and he used an elegant hand to swoop it back off his forehead. And those eyes – they were the most amazing green eyes I’d ever seen. They may not have been the eyes from my naughty dream, but they were fantastic and draped by long, dark lashes that most women couldn’t dream of having, even with the help of mascara. He took my breath away.

  I felt completely tongue-tied, and we were too close for me to just walk away like I hadn’t intended to speak to him. “Ummm,” I stalled. Jeez! What is wrong with me? My breath was coming fast and I could feel my face flushing. I had to do something. After what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds, I finally got the word out. “Hi,” I mumbled, crossing my arms awkwardly and intending to make a quick exit.

  “Hi!” he responded and flashed me with a grin that just about bowled me over. He was way out of my league, and I just wanted to get away from him before I embarrassed myself further. Of course, Buster chose that moment to plop his butt on the ground and sit for a spell. I coaxed him with a “Come on Buster, lets go get a treat!” I whistled and tugged at him, but the damn dog refused to budge.

  Handsome man and his happy, energetic dog stood there watching the whole exchange. Both of them had big grins on their faces, looking extremely amused at my predicament. Taking mercy on me, the man finally said, “It doesn’t look like you are going anywhere for a while. I’m Seth. Seth Davis.” He extended a hand to shake with mine.

  “Abigail Brown, nice to meet you,” I said, shaking his hand gently. Nice to meet you?? My thoughts screamed at me. How clever. I tried to push the negative self-talk out of my mind, but it seemed to be just as stubborn as Buster, who was panting and lolling on the ground as if he intended to stay there indefinitely. “Come on Buster. We need to go,” I tried again.

  Buster finally harumphed and started the process of standing up. Sumptuous Seth, as I had decided to call him silently in my head, surprised me by saying, “Wait.”

  This gave me an excuse to pause and look directly at him. He was a sight – all tall, dark and handsome, but that standard description didn’t do him justice. He was all of those things, but he was also one of the most ruggedly good-looking men I had ever seen. His jeans and tee shirt were snug enough to give a hint of the tight, tan body that they covered. I licked my lips and realized that his full attention was focused on me. It was almost as if he was waiting for me to say something. Oh no! Did he ask me a question?

  “Huh?” I asked. Oh, way to dazzle him with your witty repartee, Ab.

  He didn’t seem to be phased by my inner turmoil. “I said that Buddy and I were just getting ready to head to Treats, the bakery on Beach Street. Would you like to join us?”

  I knew the place he was talking about. It was a local favorite. They had a few alfresco tables that overlooked the water. People took their dogs there all the time. The bakery even offered specialty dog treats, and they kept water bowls outside for their canine visitors.

  I didn’t have to think about it. “I’d love to,” I answered instantly, and the four of us set off.

  That is when it happened. He was so handsome, and I was so nervous that my diarrhea of the mouth set in. I started chattering non-stop and couldn’t seem to stop myself.

  It only took a few minutes to walk to the bakery, but by the time we arrived, I had already told him about my job, Courtney and that I was divorced. The only things I knew about him were that his name was Seth Davis, he was super-hot and he had a dog, named Buddy.

  When we arrived, I finally took a breath, so Seth took that moment to say, “If you want to stay with the dogs and grab us a table, I’ll go in and order. What would you like?”

  “English Breakfast tea with cream and sugar, please.”

  “Coming right up, ma’am,” he said before flashing his amazing smile at me and dashing inside. As I flopped down in an available chair, I shook my head in disbelief at my incredible fortune and the way my non-stop rambling was likely ruining it.

  “I’m glad you’re here, Buddy,” I said to the dog. He thumped his tail upon hearing his name. “I have acted like such an ass that I’m quite certain he would sneak out the side door, if he didn’t need to get you back.”

  It took quite a while for Sumptuous Seth to come back. I almost had myself convinced that he had left out the back entrance and would come back later to collect his dog. I took a deep breath and vowed not to beat myself up like this. If he was gone, I wasn’t any worse off than I was when I started my walk, I rationalized; and if he was still here, I needed to slow down and let him do some of the talking.

  My breath hitched a little when I saw him opening the door to come out to our table. He was so damn good looking, and I couldn’t believe he was here with me. I clearly wasn’t the only one who noticed how handsome he was. Every woman and a man or two gawked as he walked past. Seth didn’t even seem aware of all the attention he drew.

  He had his hands full with two cups, a pink box and a white bag filled with bakery goodies, so I started to get up to take something from him. In that moment, Buster lunged faster than I’d ever seen him move. He managed to tangle his leash with Buddy’s, which caused Buddy to try to dart around me to get out of the way. My legs got tangled in the leashes just as I was taking a step toward Seth, and I started to fall forward. I fell face-first into Seth’s chest. He caught me by wrapping both of his strong arms around me, and it felt like heaven.

  My humiliation quickly crept in, as he helped me get untangled and back to my chair. “I’m such a clutz,” I muttered, shaking my head. “And you caught me and managed to keep ahold of all the stuff in your hands,” I said as I blew on my tea.

  Seth brought a warm blueberry donut out of the classic pink bakery box and set it on a napkin in front of me. “It could have happened to anyone,” he reassured me kindly. Then he chuckled, “I’ve never seen a basset hound move that fast.”

  “I know, right? I wonder what he was after.”

  “Well, I hate to reward him for almost knocking us both down, but I did enjoy catching you.” His eyes twinkled as he grinned at me. He lifted two dog treats out of the white bakery bag. “Do you think he’d prefer peanut butter or chicken?”

  “From the way he licks our jars clean when we are done with them, I know he’s a fan of peanut butter.”

  As Seth leaned down to give the dogs their bone-shaped cookies, I took a deep breath to calm myself. Then I shifted the conversation and started asking him some questions. I learned that he was a boat builder, that he loved nature and that he wasn’t just handsome. He was also funny, smart and sweet.

  Mr. Finley, the grandfatherly bakery owner, stopped by our table to see if we needed anything. When he leaned over Seth’s shoulder to refill the hot water in our tea mugs, he caught my eye and waggled his bushy eyebrows, making me smile.

  I kept looking for the fatal flaw that must be present in Seth, but I sure didn’t see one. With this level of perfection, women must be throwing themselves at him all the time. It didn’t make sense for him to be spending time with me, and seeming to enjoy himself. I almost had mysel
f convinced that he must be gay, when he asked if he could see me again.

  I made a valiant attempt to control the excitement in my voice as I responded that I could probably work him into my busy schedule, texted him my cell phone number and told him goodbye. Then I proceeded to float on cloud nine all the way home, thinking what a fantastic day this had turned out to be.

  Chapter 4

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I said, grabbing Courtney and hugging her, as soon as she walked downstairs.

  “Umm, you’re welcome,” she said, hugging me back. “What’d I do that was so great?”

  “You suggested that I say ‘hi’ to him, and he is so handsome, but I didn’t know how handsome until he turned around. He’s so dreamy that it nearly took my breath away, but it’s not just his looks. He’s also kind and funny and down-to-earth, and he has a golden retriever,” I gushed, breathless.

  I knew the golden retriever part would win her over. “Well, any guy who has a great dog like that has to be somewhat okay, but slow down. Who is this guy and what do you know about him?”

  I took a moment to enjoy how protective she was of me, and then I started about telling her all about Sumptuous Seth. Courtney liked my nickname for him, but decided that SS was much easier to say.

  “SS does sound great,” Courtney admitted. “Just be safe and only meet him in public places at first. You never know. He could be an ax murderer or some other kind of freak.”

  “We’re coming to Joe’s on Friday night, so you can check him out for yourself and see if you think he has dead bodies buried in his basement.”

  We both snickered, but then Court turned serious. “I mean it. You haven’t been out in the dating world for a while, and it’s a jungle out there.”

  “Technically, I’ve never been in the dating world, other than that fiasco of a blind date that Annie sent me on.” I had been so awkward with my pimples and braces in high school that boys had barely glanced at me. Larry and I had met during my first week of college. I remembered the thrilling feeling of realizing that he was actually flirting with me.

  Larry wasn’t Sumptuous Seth handsome, but he certainly wasn’t unattractive; and in the initial stages of our relationship he had been attentive and sweet. He had completely swept me off my feet. We dated the entire time I was in college. During that time, we had some serious make-out sessions. I regularly gave him hand-jobs and had even sucked him off a few times; but I was determined to remain a virgin until marriage, even if I was only a technical-virgin.

  The summer after I graduated from the University of Michigan, we got married. That was when I learned about my inability to orgasm. I loved that Courtney was so willing to blame it all on Larry, but deep down, I knew the truth was that in those initial months of our marriage, Larry had truly tried to pleasure me. When he had his fingers or dick inside me, it felt good (sometimes really good), but it never quite sent me over the edge.

  We had experimented with different positions and lubricants and nipple stimulation and watching porn and watching ourselves, but nothing worked. We decided to try different locations to spice things up. We fucked in the car, on the floor, on the counter, outside, on his office desk, in the shower, in a restaurant men’s room, at a good friend’s party. Whatever we could think of, we tried.

  The final straw came when we rented a sleazy motel room and agreed to meet there. Feeling naughty, I had greeted him wearing a trench coat with nothing underneath. He had ripped it off me and we spent the entire night going at it hard. Our sweat-slicked bodies made smacking sounds as he pounded into me from behind. Suddenly, he surprised me by slowing, then stopping. “You could at least fake it, you know,” he growled in my ear before shoving out of me and slamming the bathroom door.

  I felt like I’d been slapped. I couldn’t believe that he would even suggest that I fake it. How would that make anyone feel better? From that night on, our sex life consisted of a weekly missionary-style session of him grunting and ramming into me, while I counted the ceiling tiles and waited for it to be over.

  “You still in there?” Courtney was waving her hand in front of my face.

  “Sorry, I guess I got caught up thinking about the past for a minute. I do have a question for you.”

  “Shoot.” Courtney encouraged me when I didn’t immediately continue.

  “Well, as you mentioned, I haven’t dated in a while. So, I wasn’t sure what the current protocol is. I mean, I was wondering, um.”

  When I paused again, Courtney gave me a curious look. “Spit it out.”

  “When should we do it?” I asked her, squeezing my eyes closed in embarrassment. I opened one eye to gauge her reaction. She wasn’t laughing, so I continued. “I won’t be expected to put out on the first date, will I?”

  “Probably not,” she reassured me. “If all goes well, a kiss with a little tongue would be appropriate. Maybe even a little outside the shirt booby action. If all goes fantastic, and you want to bang his brains out, I doubt he would complain, though,” she laughed.

  I could handle kissing. It was good to know he wouldn’t learn of my sexual failings on the first date. When Courtney started to leave the kitchen, I called out to her. “Wait. What should I wear?”

  Courtney smiled as she put her arm around me and said, “You have asked the right person. Lets go find you a cute outfit that shows off your perfect ta-tas.” I shook my head as I followed her.

  Chapter 5

  Time seemed to slowly crawl by while I was waiting for Friday. When it finally arrived, my nerves kicked into high gear. All week, I had been writing pick-me-up reminders to myself on sticky notes, and they circled my mirror. I took a moment to read through them. Breathe. You are an intelligent woman. Don’t chatter non-stop. Smile. Do not worry. You are worthy. You deserve to be happy. They were simple, but reading them helped me calm down.

  I smiled at the new one that Courtney had added in the center of my mirror. Have fun. I took a sip from the glass of chilled white wine that she had delivered to my bathroom before leaving for her shift at Joe’s.

  Since I still had over an hour before I needed to meet Seth at the restaurant, I decided to take a bubble bath. The wine and bath must have been just what I needed because I was almost calm as I donned my denim mini skirt and the v-neck, light pink tee shirt that Courtney had chosen for the occasion. I still couldn’t believe that she had loaned me her favorite cowboy boots with the pastel flowers swirling around them; but they looked fantastic, and they gave me just the extra boost of confidence that I needed as I walked to Joe’s.

  Joe’s was one of the only full-service, waterfront restaurants in town, and it was bustling with activity when I arrived; but Courtney had promised to save us a table. She ran over to greet me as soon as I walked in. “You look fantastic!” she gushed. “He isn’t going to be able to keep his hands off you.” Her enthusiasm was contagious as she covered my eyes and led me over to the table that she and I normally shared on girls’ night.

  “Ta-da!” she yelled when she removed her hands to reveal how the table had been transformed. Twinkle lights sparkled from above the booth and along the back of the table, a lit candle created a subtle glow and a bouquet of fresh wildflowers had been placed in a water glass in the center of the table.

  “Oh, Court. It’s beautiful! You treat me like a princess,” I said with watery eyes.

  “You deserve only the best,” she whispered in my ear before sliding up to the bar to grab a tray of drinks for one of her tables.

  I knew when Seth arrived because the group of ladies sitting across from me stopped talking and turned to gaze at him. He walked to my table and grinned at me as he said, “You’re even more beautiful than I remembered.”

  I blushed and then chuckled as Courtney went behind him fanning herself with a hand, silently mouthing the words “hubba hubba.” She was right. Seth looked like a Greek god, and I could not believe he was here with me. His dark hair was slightly damp, as if he’d just gotten out of the shower. He
was clean-shaven and smelled like Irish Spring. His black tee shirt was just tight enough to show off his flat abs and bulging biceps. And, speaking of bulges, his jeans were snug enough to give a tantalizing hint of his junk. I had to pry my eyes away.

  As he sat down, he commented, “Wow, it looks like we scored the best seats in the house.”

  I grinned as I said, “I know people.”

  Courtney stopped by with a quick, “Hi, I’m Court. Take good care of my girl or we’ll have words.” She waggled a warning finger at Seth with a smile, before hustling off to her next table. She had arranged for one of the other waitresses to take care of us. That had surprised me at first, but being her thoughtful self, she had probably figured I would be more comfortable without her stopping by the table periodically all evening.

  Seth and I split a bottle of white wine from a local vineyard and an appetizer platter full of fried, fabulous, fattening goodies. Then we topped it all off with a brownie sundae. It was a perfect evening filled with interesting conversation, laughter and great food.