Never Expected You by Jody Holford

Author:Jody Holford
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: contemporary romance, Entangled, Bliss, sweet romance, romance, Fiction Heroes Military, Clean & Wholesome, Women’s Contemporary Fiction, Small Town & Rural, American Contemporary Fiction, Contemporary Romance Fiction, Family Saga
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2018-08-29T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Zach didn’t mean to sneak up on her and he expected her to brush off her obvious emotion. She was more than a little sensitive about showing weakness. Instead, she gave him a luminous smile after he asked her if she was okay.

“I just came in to see if you needed anything else brought out,” he said, coming over to take the napkins and plates.

“That was thoughtful,” she said. He watched her visibly collect herself and didn’t mind. He knew a thing or two about wanting to control how people saw him. But he hoped, in time, around him, she’d feel like she didn’t have to put on a mask.

“My mother told me I wasn’t being a good host,” he said, making her smile.

He liked seeing her with her friends—people he knew she considered family. It was like seeing her with the animals.

“I like your mom.” She loaded up a tray with dressings, salt, pepper, and chips.

“The feeling is mutual.”

As they moved toward the door, she stopped and tipped her head up, looking at him. Fuck. He lived with her, saw her every day and still, every now and again, her beauty grabbed him by the throat.

“Shane seems nice,” Stella said.

“He is. He was in the army as well and loves animals and my mom, so it was pretty easy to make conversation with him.”

She continued to stare in that assessing way she had. “Easier than you thought it would be?”

He nodded. “Yeah.”

She laughed, and he opened the door, gesturing for her to go first. They were an eclectic bunch, he thought, as they sat around a huge picnic-style table that was made from a long, refinished door.

“This table is incredible,” his mom said, beaming at Stella.

“Thanks. Taylor made it. She’s incredibly talented. She refinished the dresser in my bedroom as well,” Stella said.

Taylor blushed visibly. Her pale skin made it easy to see that compliments overwhelmed her. “It’s just a hobby.”

“Damn well shouldn’t be,” Dec said, dishing up a huge scoop of potato salad.

They passed the bowls around as Garrett and Parker put a steak on each plate.

“You know, someone with more manners might say something like, ‘it’s a shame to waste your talent, Taylor.’ Something a little less caveman-ish,” Adam said, grinning at his buddy.

Zach had spent enough time listening to the two rib each other while losing fifty bucks to them at their poker game to know that it was good-natured.

“Not all of us have your finesse with numbers and words, Klein,” Declan said.

Parker snorted out a laugh. “I’m sorry. Was that out loud?”

Garrett chuckled and leaned in to kiss his husband’s neck. “I’d be careful before you start teasing Adam about his finesse with words given that your proposal included the words ‘come on man, we totally should.’”

The group laughed, and Zach took a seat next to Stella, his thigh accidentally brushing hers. He ignored the electricity. Getting to this place with her where he was sharing her business, her home, and her friends—well, he’d

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