For Now, Not Forever (Rival Love Book 2) by C.W. Farnsworth

Author:C.W. Farnsworth [Farnsworth, C.W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-09-28T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

NATALIE

“Good morning, Natalie.”

My hand flies up to my heart and my elbow collides painfully with the side of the fridge.

“Shit. You scared me.”

My mother waltzes past me to the espresso machine, acting as if being awake first thing on a Thursday is some normal occurrence for her. “Language, Natalie,” she chastises.

I rub at my elbow as I lean back against the shiny stainless steel, staring at the back of her matching pajama set. “Is Dad coming back?”

He left on Monday. If he’s already returning to Alleghany, it would be the shortest trip he’s taken in years.

“No. He’s not sure when he’ll be back.”

I don’t suppress the snort. Sounds about right. “Then why are you up?” I ask.

Aside from the few days when my dad was just home, my mother hasn’t been up before eleven a.m. all summer. “I don’t appreciate the tone, Natalie.” She tucks a piece of blonde hair behind one ear.

I scoff and shove away from the fridge, opening the door and pulling out one of the pre-made smoothies I usually have for breakfast. “Whatever. I’ll be home late.”

“Not too late.”

“Advice you should take yourself,” I mumble as I leave the kitchen.

If my mother hears me, she doesn’t respond. I pull out of the garage and drive down the street, pausing extra long at the stop sign to grab my phone out of my bag and plug it in to charge. It’s hiding beneath the ball of gray fabric that’s been stuffed in there since Sunday.

I keep driving, my thoughts filled with him. I know I’ll forever associate the taste of tequila with him. A permanent reminder the boy who doesn’t let loose slackened a little.

For me. Again. I feel his kiss on my lips and his warm body next to mine like phantom touches.

It never should have happened. I wish I could blame it on the thrill of the forbidden. But we talked for hours after having sex again. I can separate the two—the Glenmont quarterback and everything else that makes up Liam Stevens. But I shouldn’t. Doing so makes it too easy to admit that I like the guy. Jake and I had a fling all spring, and I barely thought of him when we weren’t together.

Not an issue with Liam, that’s for damn sure.

I park on the main street downtown, grab my smoothie, and head for the double doors that lead into the community center. Air conditioning laced with the scent of lemon cleaner and fresh flowers greets me.

Rachel, the receptionist, shoots me a smile before continuing her conversation with the middle-aged woman and the little girl standing at the front desk. It sounds like they’re signing up for dance classes.

I head upstairs, exchanging pleasantries with the staff members I recognize before entering the art room. It’s a wide, open space with a far wall almost exclusively made of windows. Easels and stools are neatly spaced through the room. Art in a myriad of mediums, colors, styles, and techniques lines the walls.

I set up

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