Kiss the Girl Read online

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Epilogue

  A Preview of Dare Me

  Meet THE DONOVANS In

  Chapter 1

  About the Author

  Also by Samantha Chase

  SAMANTHA CHASE

  Copyright 2022 Samantha Chase

  * * *

  All Rights Reserved.

  * * *

  No part of this book, with the exception of brief quotations for book reviews or critical articles, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

  * * *

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  * * *

  Cover Design: Uplifting Designs/Alyssa Garcia

  Editing: Jillian Rivera Editing

  PRAISE FOR SAMANTHA CHASE

  “If you can’t get enough of stories that get inside your heart and soul and stay there long after you’ve read the last page, then Samantha Chase is for you!”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Melanie Shawn

  * * *

  “A fun, flirty, sweet romance filled with romance and character growth and a perfect happily ever after.”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Carly Phillips

  * * *

  “Samantha Chase writes my kind of happily ever after!”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Erin Nicholas

  * * *

  “The openness between the lovers is refreshing, and their interactions are a balanced blend of sweet and spice. The planets may not have aligned, but the elements of this winning romance are definitely in sync.”

  - Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

  * * *

  “A true romantic delight, A Sky Full of Stars is one of the top gems of romance this year.”

  - Night Owl Reviews, TOP PICK

  * * *

  “Great writing, a winsome ensemble, and the perfect blend of heart and sass.”

  - Publishers Weekly

  * * *

  “Recommend Chase to fans of Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Well-written and uniquely appealing.”

  - Booklist

  For Dad.

  I miss you.

  ONE

  There were many reactions Savannah Brennan got when she mentioned the name Cash Coleman.

  This was the first time, however, that it literally made someone faint.

  “Oh my goodness!” Dropping to her knees, Savannah desperately tried to get the woman to regain consciousness. “Call 9-1-1,” she said authoritatively to the other woman standing beside them.

  “I’m on it!”

  The first thing she did was make sure the woman didn’t hit her head too hard and then immediately checked her pulse. Next, she needed to…

  “No one needs to call 9-1-1.” This came from the woman who was currently flat on her back. She stared up at Savannah, looking like she’d either eaten a bad clam or was smelling something distasteful.

  “Here. Let me help you up,” she said gently, slipping her hand under the woman’s back to guide her.

  “Don’t touch me. Parker? Parker, come and help me!”

  With no other choice, Savannah got to her feet and watched as the younger woman—Parker—gave her an apologetic smile as she helped her mother to her feet. “Come and sit down, Mom, and I’ll get you some water.”

  The woman went, but not before shooting Savannah another look that bordered on a sneer.

  That can’t be good…

  Five minutes ago, she had walked into Alloro and felt relatively confident about the job interview.

  Now? Not so much.

  “Um…”

  Parker Bishop looked to be around her age and appeared to be the owner of the spa. The older woman was obviously her mother.

  Please don’t let her be an owner too…

  “I’m really sorry,” Savannah said in earnest. “I…I really didn’t mean to upset anyone.”

  “It’s not you,” Parker assured her. “You just took us a little by surprise, that’s all.”

  Well, that was undeniable.

  And an understatement.

  They stood in awkward silence for several moments and Savannah realized that perhaps this wasn’t the job for her. Rather than wait for them to point it out, she opted to be the one to do it.

  “So, um…I think we can all agree that this isn’t going to work out.” She offered a small smile as she took one step back and then another. “Thank you for your time.”

  Neither stopped her, so she took that as her cue to leave. And without another word, she turned and walked out the door. She’d made it halfway down the block when someone called her name. Turning, she saw Parker jogging toward her.

  “Whew…okay,” Parker said breathlessly. “Thanks for stopping.” She paused and took several breaths. “And for helping me realize just how out of shape I’ve gotten.”

  It was said with a laugh and she was clearly trying to lighten the mood, but for the life of her, Savannah didn’t know why.

  “Look, I’m not even sure what to say to you right now,” Parker began after another few moments.

  It would be rude to point out that she had been the one to chase her down, so…

  With a small huff, Parker straightened and held out her hand to Savannah. “I’m Parker Bishop. The woman inside is my mother, Georgia Bishop. She’s Cash’s cousin.”

  Savannah gasped. “Oh! Um…I didn’t…I mean…I had no idea you…”

  “No, no. I got that,” Parker replied with a smile. “I guess I’m just confused, that’s all. I mean…if Cash is family to you and he’s family to me, then…you’re family! Oh my goodness! You’re family!”

  “What? No…I mean…it’s not like that! Not really.”

  Parker’s smile fell slightly. “I think you and I may need to sit and talk because I am curious as all get-out to know what’s going on. Come on. Come back to the spa and we’ll chat.”

  Right now, that was the last thing Savannah wanted to do.

  “I appreciate your time, Parker. Really. But, um…I should go. I wish you luck with all your interviews and maybe I’ll see you around.”

  The urge to turn and run was strong—and she seriously hoped Parker wasn’t the kind of person to chase after her, but…

  Oh. Right.

  She was.

  Letting out a long breath, Savannah took one look at Parker’s face and knew she needed to just be honest with her.

  “There is no way I want to go back inside and upset your mother more than I already have. Cash was very emphatic about not approaching his family until he was ready.”

  “Yeah, okay. I get that, but you didn’t know you were approaching his family,” Parker reasoned. “It was really just a coincidence.”

  “No, believe me, I get that too, but…this is incredibly awkward. I’m not comfortable talking to strangers about things that I know Cash doesn’t want me to speak about.” Her shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry.”

  “I really wish you’d reconsider. If you want, I can totally make my mom leave. I’ll call my dad or my brother to come and get her and…”

  Holding up a hand to stop her, Savannah told her, “Please don’t. That’s just going to draw even more attention to this situation.”

  “I hate to break it to you, but the cat’s already out of the bag.” She motioned to the spa and laughed softly. “I’d be surprised if my mother wasn’t on the phone right now either calling everyone she knows or texting them.”

  “Dammit.”

  Nodding, Parker laughed again. “If it makes you feel any better, she already saw the two of you earlier. She was telling me about it not long before you showed up. So…basically…even if you hadn’t come in for an interview, the gossip was going to start to fly.”

  Cash had warned her about the dangers of small-town life and she hadn’t believed him.

  Lesson learned.

  “Still…it’s not my call to make. I’m sorry,” Savannah murmured before turning and walking away.

  Tears stung her eyes because she really wanted this job.

  Needed it, really.

  Packing up her life in Seattle to bring Cash back to his hometown was a no-brainer, but she desperately needed to work. Her savings wasn’t big by any stretch of the imagination and since she had no idea how long they were going to be staying, it was important for her to have a job.

  “Just not this one,” she whispered when she got to her car. The crappy little Nissan Sentra was over ten years old and had well over 150K miles on it, but it refused to die.

  Which was great since Savannah didn’t have the money for a new car anyway.

  With a weary sigh, she climbed in and drove back to the tiny bungalow she and Cash were renting. It was fully furnished and the price was right, but she had to wonder if
they could have found something a little nicer. With the way his health was declining, she hated the thought of him living out the rest of his days in such a dingy environment.

  It was something they’d argued about during their three-thousand-mile trek across the country. His logic was that he didn’t have the money to spend on anything overly luxurious and he didn’t need anything fancy. Savannah had pointed out that she didn’t need fancy either, but the house was the exact opposite of fancy.

  Basically, it was shitty. There was no better word to describe it.

  And now, as she pulled up to it, she wished she had put her foot down sooner.

  Once she was parked in the driveway, she took a few minutes to collect her thoughts. She knew Cash wouldn’t be upset about her walking out on the interview, but she had no idea how he was going to feel about her coming face to face with his relatives.

  Feeling mildly overwhelmed, she let her head rest on the steering wheel and did her best to let the disappointment and anxiety wash over her. In a few minutes, she’d have to put a smile on her face and pretend like she was fine.

  Story of my life…

  Yeah. It was getting harder and harder to keep smiling lately. In the lottery of life, Savannah felt like she was constantly losing. Between health issues, family issues, more health issues, a divorce, and now this…it was amazing she even had the will to get out of bed every morning.

  A loud knock on the car window made her scream, and she straightened to see Cash standing there looking at her oddly.

  Time to put on a happy face…

  Forcing a smile, she grabbed her purse and carefully opened the car door as he took a step back. “Hey! What are you doing out here? Did you go for a walk down by the beach?”

  Cash chuckled. “Hardly. I saw you pull up and then you didn’t get out of the car, so I wanted to make sure you were all right.”

  Savannah couldn’t meet his eyes. She hadn’t finished her pity party, so her emotions were right at the surface and she was afraid she would do something stupid like burst into tears.

  “I’m good,” she said, stepping around him quickly and heading for the front door. “I’m starving. Would you like a snack?”

  She was inside the house and in the kitchen in the blink of an eye and knew it would take him a few minutes to catch up; it was the perfect amount of time for her to get herself together.

  With a shaky sigh, she opened up the refrigerator and began pulling out some chopped up vegetables she always kept on hand along with the container of hummus. By the time she had a small plate ready, Cash was shuffling into the kitchen. When she looked at him, she knew he’d figured out that she wasn’t okay.

  “I, uh…I didn’t get the job,” she said quietly before sitting down at the small kitchen set.

  “Oh, Savi,” he said quietly, sitting down beside her. “I’m sorry. I know you were excited about it.”

  All she could do was nod.

  “But…it was only the first job you applied for, so there’s no need to be so down on yourself.”

  He didn’t understand.

  Cash had a unique outlook on life and it was something she never could quite agree with him on. He was fine just going with the flow and being laid back, no matter what the situation. Savannah, on the other hand, pretty much lived in a constant state of anxiety and worry over what was going to happen next.

  Because there was always something and it was rarely good.

  “So what happened? Were they jerks? Was the place dirty?”

  Picking up a baby carrot, she dunked it in the hummus. “It’s a brand-new spa. Not even open yet.”

  He nodded. “And the owners?”

  She bit into her snack and chewed it slowly.

  Beside her, he let out a low laugh. “I know a delaying tactic when I see one. Come on. Out with it. What happened?”

  “What makes you think anything happened? Maybe I just wasn’t qualified.”

  “Savannah, never bullshit a bullshitter. I know I’ve taught you that. You’re more than qualified for that job. Hell, you’re overqualified. So why don’t we just cut to the chase and you tell me what these bastards did?”

  Several things played out in her mind. She could give him the abbreviated version and tell him that she realized who they were and opted to leave.

  But there was a really good chance he’d see right through that.

  Of course, she could lie and just agree with his initial thought and say they were jerks and not people she wanted to work for.

  He’d probably respect that.

  Unfortunately, she wasn’t a liar and Cash had a way of getting the truth out of her eventually, so why not just spare them both the added drama and just tell him the truth?

  With a steadying breath, she turned and faced him. “When I arrived, I was greeted by the owner of the spa and her mother.”

  His expression instantly softened. “Oh, Savi. Please tell me that didn’t upset you. I know you have issues about your mom, but…”

  “No,” she said, reaching over and squeezing his hand. “That wasn’t it.”

  “Okay. Good.”

  “We started talking and they asked what brought me to Laurel Bay from Seattle and I told them I was here with you—well, not you specifically. At least, I hadn’t at that point.”

  That’s when the lightbulb seemed to go on in his head.

  “They know me,” he said gruffly.

  Nodding, she said, “Yeah. They know you.”

  Muttering a curse, Cash rose and walked over to the refrigerator and yanked the door open. “Why is there never any beer in the house?” he murmured.

  “Because you have stage four liver cancer and you’re not allowed to drink alcohol.”

  Looking at her over his shoulder, he shook his head. “Not allowed? Seems to me it’s a moot point. I’m going to die anyway. Why can’t I at least enjoy the time I have left?”

  She hated when he talked like this. It was a reality she was well aware of, but that didn’t mean she needed the reminder.

  Slamming the door shut, he turned back to her, defiance written all over his face. “So they wouldn’t hire you because of me?”

  “Well…”

  When he continued to stare at her, it all came out. Parker, her mother, the faint…all of it.

  Then she held her breath and waited for him to go on a rant about the unfairness of it all.

  But he didn’t.

  He laughed.

  Hard.

  “Um…what is happening right now?” she murmured.

  Cash sat back down and took a moment to compose himself. “Oh, Savi, I am so sorry that you had to deal with that. Leave it to Georgia to be so damn dramatic.” He shook his head with another laugh. “I don’t know why she reacted that way. The last time I came home, it was all her idea. Kind of late to act so shocked.”

  “All her idea?”

  He grimaced. “Okay, fine. You gave me the final nudge, but you still get what I’m saying, right?”

  Reaching for some celery, she nodded. “I do.” After taking a bite, she looked at him. “Either way, I didn’t want to go back in and upset her more and there was no way I was going to share anything with them. It’s not my place.”

  When he looked ready to argue, she stopped him.

  “It’s. Not. My. Place.”

  With a small shrug, he reached for a carrot and frowned. “I really wish you’d buy some cookies or maybe some cake. This rabbit food is going to kill me faster than the cancer.”

  “Cash…”

  “Okay, okay…” He popped the vegetable into his mouth and made a face. “So what happens now?”

  It was Savannah’s turn to shrug. “I’m not sure. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of opportunities for someone with my qualifications.”

  “Sav, come on. You’ve got your cosmetology license. You can do hair, nails, facials, and you’re a licensed massage therapist.”