The line had finally moved, and I was able to start loading my items up onto the checkout counter while the person in front of me was busy getting their total added up.
“Well, looks like I've gotta sort this out now, Mrs. Dobbins,” I said to her. “It's been nice chatting with you. I'll see you later, I imagine. I have some stuff to do in my yard.”
“And I'll be on the porch with Fluffy, enjoying a nice iced tea. Would you like me to make extra for you if you're going to be out in your yard in this heat? There's nothing like a good iced tea on a warm summer evening.”
“If you've got any to spare, I might take you up on that offer later,” I said with a smile. “Thanks, Mrs. Dobbins. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“I will, Vivienne, dear. See you later.”
The clerk turned to me as she passed the last of my items over the scanner.
Ten minutes later, I turned onto my street and slowed down as I neared my house. I saw, from a distance, someone in the front yard of the house across the street from mine – the house that had formerly belonged to the Sanchez family, the house Mrs. Dobbins and I had been talking about.
As I drew closer, my eyes widened as I got a clearer view of the man in the yard mowing the lawn. A mundane task, yeah, but he was doing it clad only in a pair of gym shorts and running shoes. I had to make myself look back at the road so I didn’t hit a neighbor’s mailbox. One thing was certain; he didn't look like any school principal I'd ever seen. I might have wanted to go to school if my principal had been blessed with an Adonis-like physique and surfer's tan. I couldn't take my eyes off my new neighbor. The man was ripped.
Mrs. Dobbins had not been exaggerating; he was ridiculously attractive with his strong jaw covered with a five o' clock shadow and stylish black hair that was just long enough my fingers were itching to run through it just looking at him from the road. It’s a good thing the speed limit in o
ur neighborhood was only 10 miles per hour. Otherwise, my gawking would have been obvious.
I pulled into my driveway and parked the car, hoping that he hadn't noticed my staring when I had driven slowly past him. Thankfully, he seemed too absorbed in his task to notice, so I got out the car and took a few more good, long looks at him as inconspicuously as possible while unpacking my groceries.
Things around the neighborhood had just taken an intriguing turn. The really attractive man mowing the lawn shirtless just across the road from me was proof. Not that I wanted to get into anything, but I sure couldn't complain about the view.
Out of habit, I wondered if he was single. But someone that looked like him couldn't possibly be – not unless he was a player. Although, someone in a position of responsibility with such a public persona as a high school principal was probably unlikely to be a player. His job and reputation would depend on him not being one. Or at least being very good at keeping a low profile at it. But in a town like ours, someone would find out.
I shook my head and turned my focus to my groceries. “Doesn’t matter what he does in his free time, Vivienne,” I mumbled to myself. I was not ready to get into anything with a man, not yet, not after Simon. Just the thought of that man sent shivers of revulsion and disgust down my spine. It had been three years, and while I had mostly been able to put my life back together, some things just took time to fix. Longer than I would have ever imagined. So, no, I definitely wasn't ready to let another guy into my life, not in any sort of intimate way.
I carried my groceries inside and couldn't help but throw one last glance over my shoulder at the hot new neighbor as he pushed his mower around the lawn. He looked up just as I looked at him and our eyes met for a second. A jolt of embarrassment rippled through me, and a red heat flushed through my cheeks. He raised a hand and waved at me. I waved back awkwardly and hurried inside, closing the door quickly behind me.
I set my groceries down on the kitchen counter and let out a sigh of relief. That was close! He'd almost caught me ogling him. I started to unpack the eggs and almost dropped them when a knock at my door broke the silence. My heart practically jumped into my throat. I took a few steps back to the door, my heart pounding, and peered through the peephole. My jaw dropped. Standing there in all his shirtless, sweat-glistening glory was my new neighbor.
Chapter Two
Everett
Everybody can use a little distraction from the bullshit life throws at you from time to time. Doesn’t hurt if that distraction comes in the form of a blonde bombshell.
I had been wondering about the woman who lived across the street from me ever since the lady next door to her, sweet old Mrs. Dobbins, had come over and had a chat with me earlier in the afternoon. She seemed like a likable lady, even if she was a bit talkative. I hadn't even moved all of my boxes into my new house, let alone been able to unpack any of them, when I learn more about my new neighborhood in 20 minutes than I’d known about my old one in four years. The truth was, I had only been half-listening to her ramble on about everyone in the neighborhood until she mentioned that a beautiful 27-year-old lived across the street from me.
So, when I noticed a car coming up the street and saw an absolutely gorgeous woman in it, I had kind of hoped it was the woman Mrs. Dobbins had been talking about, although I figured with my luck, it'd just be some random person driving past who I'd never see again. Then again, maybe my luck wasn’t so bad. The car started slowing down and lo and, behold, she turned into the driveway right across from my house and parked her car.
I carried on mowing the lawn, not wanting to make it too obvious that I was checking her out. She had apparently just been grocery shopping, and I watched her as she unloaded her bags. She was short and petite with nice curves and a gorgeous head of blonde hair that shimmered in the sun. I couldn't help noticing her ass which was full and round, just how I liked 'em. Then, suddenly, she shot a glance at me, and our eyes met. I immediately felt as if there was a connection there, so I flashed her a smile.
I don't know if she was embarrassed or just shy, but she looked away quickly and hurried inside. Mrs. Dobbins had not been exaggerating when she’d said my new neighbor was beautiful. I tried to focus on the lawn. It was a mess, and it needed my attention something fierce. After all, I’d started the job; I needed to finish it before my meeting tonight.
I was determined to get done what I needed to get done, and after getting all the boxes into the house and getting my little Jane into bed for a nap, the tangled mess of lawn out front needed to be tamed. It had looked like a jungle since I’d started moving in the day before, and I wasn't about to present that sort of face to my new neighbors – especially the attractive one across the street that I couldn’t seem to stop thinking about all of a sudden.
Of course, I wasn't about to let that distract me from my purpose. I had moved here to turn things around at JFK High School. My past experiences and my reputation are what led the school board to offer me the job. The staff had already gone through the preliminary two weeks of prepping for the school year, so I was coming in with little to no time to get to know them.
I had enjoyed my time as a deputy principal at an inner-city school in downtown Los Angeles over the past three years, but the time had come for a change. So, when the school board of Irvine had contacted me and offered me the position of principal, a position I had expected to take me at least another five to 10 years to attain, I had to say yes. Besides, I'd felt like my work in Los Angeles was complete. I'd spearheaded a program that sorted out their gang violence problem and generally got things working as they were supposed to.
But even though Irvine was very different to inner city LA, I would be facing a set of challenges to deal with here, too — a new drug called “Rocket” was sweeping through southern California and leaving tragedy and broken dreams in its wake. It was creating an ugly mark on the formerly pristine JFK College. According to the head of the school board, they needed a man who could turn things around, who wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty, a man who could go toe-to-toe with drug dealers and gangsters and not back down. They needed me. I was ready to rise to the challenge. I had a tough job ahead of me, but like I said, we could all use a bit of distraction from time to time.
Besides, I had the perfect excuse to talk to her – a new resident wanting to meet his neighbors. It was all perfectly innocent.
I turned off the mower, checked the monitor in my shorts pocket to make sure Jane was still sleeping, and walked across the street, grinning. When I got to her porch and knocked on the door, it seemed like it took a while for her to open it, and in those few seconds between me knocking and her opening the door, I actually started to feel a little nervous.
When she opened the door, however, I felt that I had definitely done the right thing by going over and talking to her. She was even more beautiful close-up with her big blue eyes, dainty button nose, and full, dark pink lips. I was so busy staring at her that I forgot to speak.