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“Do you have a pizza place in this town?”
I glanced over at her. This was my kind of woman.
“Are you kidding?” I smiled. “Does any town not have one?”
She nodded. “That’s what I’m in the mood for.”
If this woman wanted pizza for lunch, that was exactly what she’d get. I’d only just met her, but she was the very type of woman I’d always been afraid of meeting. This was a woman who could break my heart.
3
SIERRA
“Mmm.”
I closed my eyes as flavors bounced around my mouth. When I opened them, I found Travis staring at me.
“Sorry,” I said. “It’s been a while since I’ve had good pizza.”
He pulled a slice from the box and slapped the lid closed. The pizza place had been packed, so we’d grabbed our order to go. Now, we sat on the floor in the room that would be my boss’s office soon. It was the only area of the lobby besides my guest room that wasn’t covered in drywall dust right now.
“How have you missed out on pizza?” he asked. “I thought that was a staple of every twenty-something’s diet.”
I sighed. “I’m surrounded by health nuts. First, it was my mom. Then I went off to college and ended up with three roommates. One was allergic to everything, one was terrified of chemicals, and the other was vegan.”
“I guess pizza isn’t vegan.”
I gave him a look. “You can find vegan pizza. I’m not sure you want it, though.”
“I don’t even know what’s involved, and it’s already a ‘no’ from me,” he said, taking a generous bite of his slice and shaking his head.
“I’m hoping to make friends with some pizza lovers around here.” I wiped my mouth with the corner of the napkin and set the slice on top of it on my lap. Then I reached for one of the bottled sodas we picked up at the pizza place. “I haven’t seen too many people my age, though.”
“You won’t find too many up here,” he said. “Although this place will bring them in droves.”
“I’m sure I’ll meet plenty of guests my age once the retreat center opens. I’m talking about permanent residents.”
“People move here to get away from everything,” he said. “Not too many women your age want to do that.”
I tilted my head slightly. “Is that what you wanted? To get away from everything?”
“I guess so. I love nature, so that’s a big reason, but yeah, I’m not the most social guy in the world. But mostly, it’s work. With all the development around here lately, I stay busy.”
“You can’t ask for much more than that,” I said as I grabbed another bite of pizza. “I graduated with a hospitality degree. I had no idea how tough it would be to find decent-paying work.”
I wasn’t exaggerating about that. I had to move back home to North Carolina after graduation. I pounded the pavement for a while, but the longer I lived at home with my parents, the better a move to another state sounded. So I started looking at East Tennessee, where I’d gone to college. At least it was familiar. And Rosewood Ridge was a short drive to Knoxville, where I still had some friends.
“I don’t know any men your age, either,” he commented.
His statement snapped me out of my thoughts. I stared at him as I finished chewing and swallowed.
“Most of the men around here are old like me,” he added.
“I’d hardly call you old,” I said, setting my napkin and pizza down again to take another drink. “You’re what… thirty-five?”
“Thirty-six,” he said. “And I’m guessing you’re twenty-three.”
I nodded. He’d probably assumed that from hearing I was a recent college graduate.
