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That’s what I thought, too, for all of three weeks, until the network mysteriously cancelled the show – and picked up Jake’s brand-new one. Goodbye,Fortune Hunting, which paid me a handsome fee for every new episode; hello,Fortune Favors the Bold, which… didn’t.
Yeah, he even kept my name.
I could probably have fought it in court, sued them all to get my fair share, but by then, I was burned out on legal wranglings, and wanted to just be done with it. Done with him. So, I packed up and left my marriage with some modest savings, the occasional royalty check on old reruns, and the solemn vow to never,everlet a man take credit for my work and ideas again.
So what the hell is he doing here?
I round the corner down my street, more than ready to go sink into a hot bath – and break out that emergency bottle of good wine, too, ice and all – when a sleek rental car pulls past me, and into the Keller’s driveway.
Their vacation renter.
I take a deep breath, and plaster on a neighborly wave. “Hi there,” I call, as they open the driver’s door. I promised I’d keep an eye out, and make sure they weren’t throwing week-long orgies. Or, even worse, neglecting Jinny’s prized pot plants. “I’m your neighbor. I’m just down the hill, if you need anything.”
“Thanks,” the guy calls back, pulling a duffel from the passenger seat.
I freeze.
There’s something familiar about his voice, the set of his shoulders … my pulse kicks, like it’s already one step ahead of me, but my brain doesn’t catch up for half a second until he turns to face me and I realize …
It’s Reeve.
My jaw drops. My heart stops. My mind goes blank. It’s him. Here.
How?!
“I … um … Hi,” I blurt, reeling. He’s even more handsome without the costume, if that were even possible: casual in worn jeans and a navy peacoat; his dark hair rumpled, and his jaw freshly shaven.
Suddenly, I’m slammed with the memory of his mouth on mine, his body pressing me into the chaise.
The wicked swirl of his tongue sending me screaming over the edge.
“Hi!” he says, strolling over to the overgrown hedge dividing the properties. He sticks out his hand, and flashes a friendly smile. “I’m Reeve Donavan. I guess we’re going to be neighbors. For the next couple of weeks, at least.”
I stare at him. Reeve stares back. His hand is out, his gaze is still mildly curious, and as the seconds stretch past, I realize to my absolute horror …
He has no freaking idea who I am.
5
IVY
"So,have you lived here in Milford Falls long?”
I blink. Reeve is still smiling at me, the vague, bland smile you give to a complete stranger, and not, say, the woman you licked to a screaming orgasm not even eighteen hours ago.
He really doesn’t recognize me.
Oh God.
Humiliation crashes through me. Could this day get any worse?
I gape at him in dismay for a moment, until finally, self-preservation kicks in.
“I… I… Ivy,” I finally manage to say. I awkwardly grasp his hand and shake.
“Great to meet you, Ivy.” Reeve nods. There’s a tiny part of me that’s hoping the physical contact will jog his memory, that the electricity that sizzled between us last night will spark to life again.
Nope.
