Dare Me: A Small Town Second-Chance Standalone Romance (The Donovans Book 1) Read online

  The only plus side to it? It meant her parents were leaving her sister Ryleigh alone for a little while. Apparently, she was their prime target for the last four years, and poor Ryleigh was at her wit's end. So for now, Arianna was willing to take one for the team and go out on some dates to make her parents happy. They didn’t need to know that she was still harboring a bit of a broken heart. She’d get over it eventually.

  Maybe.

  And now that she was an adult, no one was scaring guys away like they used to. Just thinking about all the boys her brothers had harassed and threatened back in the day was enough to make her roll her eyes. They never truly succeeded in making anyone run or break up with her, but it was cute how they tried.

  Now, no one was getting chased away. If anything, whenever she was down at their family pub, Donovan’s, Patrick and Jamie were practically sending eligible guys her way! It had actually become a bit of a fun family game and maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if even one guy had given her even a hint of the feels, but…they hadn’t.

  Damn you, Will Jameson!

  Flopping back against the pillows, she tossed her phone aside with disgust. She couldn’t keep doing this to herself. The smart thing to do would be to delete all those pictures and just forget about the whole thing. Maybe she’d be able to focus on meeting a nice guy if she didn’t keep pulling up Will’s picture and making comparisons.

  Maybe.

  Her phone chimed again. “Dammit, Mark, I said I’d let you know,” she murmured before grabbing it. Her sister’s name popped up and it made her smile.

  Ryleigh: So? How was your night?

  Rather than texting her back, Arianna simply hit the call button.

  “I wasn’t expecting you to call,” Ryleigh said with amusement.

  “Well, I know why I’m home and in bed by eleven. What’s your excuse?”

  “The date went that well, huh?”

  “Mark was really nice, but…”

  “Ugh…not again, Ari. They can’t all be nice guys that you have zero interest in. It’s just not possible!”

  “Sadly, it is,” she said wearily. “We had a great dinner and then he wanted to take me to some bar where a friend of his was playing in a band.”

  “Say no more. I hate when they have a friend in a band,” Ryleigh replied. “It never goes well.”

  “Exactly.” The sigh was out before she could stop it. “Look, I’m more than happy to keep going out with these guys if it takes some of the pressure off of you. I know Mom and Dad have been pressuring you to find Mr. Right…”

  “And Gram and Pop,” Ryleigh interrupted. “They joined the campaign too.”

  “Oh, no…”

  “So did Nana and Grandpa. And Uncle Ronan. I’m telling you; it’s been brutal. I appreciate you stepping in and giving them a new focus, but they haven’t forgotten about me. I’m going out with Gram’s hairdresser’s nephew tomorrow.” She groaned.

  “And you couldn’t get out of it?”

  “Nope. I said I had planned on working at the pub that night since Saturdays are so busy, and Dad said not to worry, that he’d get someone else to cover the shift.”

  “Damn.”

  “I know.” Now it was Ryleigh’s turn to sigh. “Is it wrong that I just want them to back off a bit? I mean…I’d like to meet a great guy too! Most of my friends are married already and here I am getting old and running out of prospects!”

  “Ry, you’re only twenty-six. That’s not old.”

  “Tell that to Mom and Dad. If you listen to them, I’m practically ancient and on the verge of becoming an old maid.”

  “Oh, stop. They did not say that!” she said with a laugh.

  “Wait…keep passing up these nice guys and they’ll start labeling you just like they’re labeling me.”

  “Doubtful. I’m only twenty-three. I’ve got a few good years in me yet.”

  “That’s what I thought too and yet…here I am.” She paused for a moment. “Other than the friend in the band thing, what was wrong with this guy?”

  “I don’t know…”

  “He wasn’t Will,” Ryleigh stated, because…well…she was the only person Arianna had confided in.

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “You didn’t have to. Look, I’m not trying to be mean, but…it’s been a year. It’s time to move on. You have to accept the fact that he just used you.”

  “But he didn’t!” she countered. “How did he use me? We didn’t have sex! We walked around San Francisco and ate dim sum and went on a sunset cruise! Where was the using?”

  “Okay, okay…calm down. Don’t get all pissy.”

  “It’s not fair, Ry. How could the universe find me this perfect guy like that and then he just disappears?”

  “Something could have happened to him, Ari. Have you thought about that?”

  “Why would you even say that?” she cried.

  “Um…”

  Tears stung her eyes. “I’ve tried not to think like that, but…oh, God! What if it did?” Honestly, she had thought that exact thing far too many times and would immediately tell herself not to think like that.

  “This isn’t helping anything,” Ryleigh reasoned. “The important thing here is that you stop thinking about this guy because he didn’t care enough about you to keep in touch. Let’s just say that he was a major jerk and move on.”

  They’d had this conversation at least a dozen times in the last year and, as much as it pained her, Arianna knew this needed to be the last time. Swallowing hard, she nodded. “You’re right. It’s been a year and…and I just need to pretend like that day never happened.”

  “I’m so sorry…”

  “Don’t be. I’m the idiot who fell in love on a single date. I mean…knowing me, I’m probably over-romanticizing the entire thing.”

  “Yes! Yes, that’s it! You made it seem like so much more in your head when, in reality, he wasn’t all that.”

  Nodding, she forced herself to agree. “Okay, no more talking about this or any other dating topics. Let’s talk about Liam. Has anyone gotten a definitive date out of him yet for when he’ll be home?”

  “All I know is it’s next week sometime,” Ryleigh told her. “Have you thought about where you’re going to go? Have you even looked at apartments for yourself?”

  “Um…”

  “Ari! Come on! You make great money, how is it that you can’t find an apartment? Have you talked to Patrick? He’s always got property available.”

  “I haven’t really talked to him about it in a while. Most of the places he manages are out of my budget. Plus, I guess a part of me wasn’t sure this was where I wanted to stay.”

  “You mean at Liam’s?”

  “No. Laurel Bay. I’ve been looking at jobs…elsewhere.”

  Her sister was silent for several long moments. “Like how far elsewhere?”

  “Like…back in Chapel Hill where I went to school. There are a lot of opportunities there, and…”

  “Stop. Just stop.” She let out a long breath. “Why are you just now telling me this?”

  “Because I don’t know if it’s something I’m going to do. I know everyone will freak out if I move away again.”

  “You can’t live your life for everyone else. Trust me. I’m doing it and it sucks.”

  “Then maybe you need to stop doing it,” she challenged.

  “Please, one crazy Donovan daughter at a time.” She paused. “So…you really think you’ll move away?”

  “I’m not sure. I keep looking at positions in bigger cities and…there’s nothing keeping me here in Laurel Bay. Once Liam gets home, you know he’ll only tolerate me staying here for so long. He’s going to want the place to himself and will probably resent having his baby sister in the next room when he wants to bring a woman home.”

  “Ugh…I don’t need that image in my head.”

  “You know what I’m saying. I didn’t want to sign a lease on someplace here if I wasn’t going to stay. Maybe Liam coming home is the push I need to make that decision.”

  “Damn. I’d really hate it if you moved, Ari. I feel like you just got back. I missed you.”

  “I’d only be a few hours away,” she said softly. “And you can come and stay with me anytime. Like when you need to run away from all the matchmaking.” Then she laughed.

  “Sure, laugh it up, but I’m telling you, soon it will be your turn and then it won’t seem so funny.”

  “All the more reason for me to leave town. And who knows? Maybe I’ll meet a nice guy and fall in love in Chapel Hill.”

  They didn’t stay on the phone much longer and when they did hang up, Arianna studied her phone and pulled up her photos one last time.

  It would be easy to delete all the photos of her and Will right now, but as she scrolled through them again, she just couldn’t do it.

  “Tomorrow,” she whispered before putting the phone face down and doing her best to fall asleep.

  “It’s decided, you’re coming home with me.”

  Will Jameson looked over at his friend and was seriously at a loss for words. Not that he didn’t appreciate the offer—because he did—but…it was complicated.

  More complicated than he cared to explain.

  “Do you want to go back to California?” Liam Donovan asked him.

  “No.”

  “Have you made any plans or even thought about where you’re going to go?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Will, we’re out of here in two days! How could you not know where you’re going to go?”

  With a shrug, he replied, “I’ll figure it out once I drive out the gates of the base.”

  Which was a huge lie because he’d done nothing but think about it for the last year. In a perfect world, he co
uld very easily agree with his buddy and go with him to Laurel Bay—to Arianna—and have a pretty spectacular life.

  But he’d totally screwed that up.

  At the time, it seemed like the perfect thing to do—to just never talk to her again once he realized she was related to Liam. He just never told her that he knew. And now, a year later, he wondered why he didn’t just say screw it and let things just play out the way they should.

  With his buddy beating the shit out of him for touching his little sister.

  Beside him, Liam was scowling as he looked down at his phone.

  “Problem?”

  “Let’s just say it’s a good thing I’m heading home.”

  “Why?”

  “I think my whole family’s gone mad,” he murmured. “Honestly, I don’t know what’s gotten into them.”

  “Yeah, you’re going to have to elaborate, because I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “My sisters,” Liam said. “It sounds like my parents practically have a ‘Come date our daughters’ campaign going on at the pub! It’s insanity! I mean…are they even checking these guys out?”

  Will didn’t know what to say, but the thought of Arianna going out with a bunch of guys did not sit well with him either.

  If anything, he was probably more pissed off than Liam.

  “How…um…how do you know this?” he casually asked as he scrolled the local news on his own phone.

  “Jamie’s texting me and telling me how he’s going to set Arianna—she’s the youngest of all of us—up with some guy he used to play lacrosse with! Lacrosse!” he added with a snort of disgust. “I bet he’s a total douche.”

  Will had to agree.

  Liam began to furiously type out something to his brother, but Will needed to know more. “So…what’s the big deal? She’s obviously a grown woman, right?”

  Shooting him an angry glare, he said, “She’s only twenty-three and my doofus brother should not be setting her up with any of his friends! They’re all older than her and…and…just no. Brothers are supposed to protect and look out for their sisters, not set them up with their friends.”

  “Um…sure, but…how much older? Aren’t the two of them close in age?”

  “Dude, whose side are you even on? She’s young and doesn’t need my brother or anyone fixing her up. She doesn’t need to be dating. Period.”

  “That sounds a little unrealistic,” Will countered. “You know she’s probably dated plenty of guys while she was in college.”

  The look his buddy gave him told Will that was the wrong thing to say.

  And this is why I had to say goodbye to Arianna…

  Yeah, he knew Liam well enough to know how protective he was of his sisters and the fact that Will was nine years older than her would not have gone over well.

  “Why is your brother even texting you if he knows this is a sensitive topic?”

  “Because my brother’s an ass sometimes.” Tossing his phone down, Liam leaned back in his chair and raked both hands through his hair. “I swear, sometimes it’s like he’s baiting me and thinks it would be funny to watch me come home and go off on everyone. It’s so stupid.”

  “And yet you’re taking the bait.”

  “No,” Liam quickly replied. “Well, yes. Maybe.” He growled in frustration. “I’m not going to go home and create a scene, but it’s good to know what I’m walking into.”

  “I don’t see how you’re walking into anything. It’s not really any of your concern.” Will knew he was now the one baiting Liam, and yet he couldn’t seem to help himself.

  “Will, just…trust me. You don’t get it. You’re an only child. You have no idea what it’s like to have sisters.” He growled again. “All your friends hit on them and it’s just…it’s wrong.”

  Well, there was the definite confirmation that he’d made the right decision, but it didn’t make him feel any better.

  “You know what? I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” Liam said as he got to his feet. They were hanging out in the barracks while most of their squad was out celebrating the weekend. “I want to know if you’re in on my business plan.”

  Liam’s plan for when he returned to Laurel Bay was to form a construction company and his first project was going to be a tiny house community that would either be some kind of fishing resort or perhaps a fifty-five and over one. Either way, it sounded fascinating. Will had an architectural engineering degree and he knew the two of them could really do something amazing together, but the thought of being that close to Arianna and not being with her was really holding him back.

  “Before we switch gears,” Will began, “let me ask you something.”

  “Sure.”

  “What if…say…your sister…”

  “Which one?”

  “Either one.”

  “Okay…”

  “Let’s say your sister meets a guy on her own and he’s older than her,” Will said cautiously. “What if he’s a genuinely good guy and you scare him off because you’ve got it in your mind that he can’t be good for her because of his age? Have you thought of that?”

  “No.”

  His eyes went wide. “That’s it? Just no? Liam, come on. You can’t be so closed-minded.”

  “Look, I get what you’re trying to say, but…I don’t know. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a big deal for Ryleigh, but any guy older than Arianna? It would just feel a little creepy. I’ve beaten the crap out of several good friends just for looking at her.”

  Awesome.

  “O-kay, so…”

  “Why are we still talking about my sisters when we have a serious business opportunity ahead of us?” Liam asked as he took the seat across from Will. “I really think you and I have a chance to make this great. Why aren’t you as excited about this as I am?”

  There was no way he could answer honestly, so he had to go with some of his other concerns.

  “For starters, I think this is going to take a lot of time and capital to get this project off the ground, Liam. Neither of us has sat down with a bank or lawyers or whoever else we need to, so…I’m just hesitant to make a decision to move someplace where things might not work out.”

  Nodding, Liam considered him. “That’s fair. And I realize Laurel Bay isn’t a big city, but you’ve always said how you hoped you could settle down in a small town. And trust me, Laurel Bay is as small as they get.” He grinned. “Personally, I think it’s exactly what you need.”

  “I can’t imagine there’s a lot of real estate there…”

  “You can crash with me. I’ve got a two-bedroom apartment that I plan on keeping only for a short time, but then you’re more than welcome to it.”

  “Why? Where are you planning to go?”

  “Not only have I been looking at real estate for our project…”

  “Your project,” Will corrected.

  “Our project,” Liam stated firmly, “but I’ve also been looking at houses for myself. I’ve spent so many years here in the service either living in barracks or tiny apartments. Before that, I grew up in a small house with four siblings. I’m really looking forward to buying a place of my own and having a yard and not sharing walls or rooms with anyone.” His smile grew. “And I think I’ve found a few places that could work. My brother Patrick dabbles in real estate and property management and he’s going to help me out.”

  “Oh, well…good for you.”

  “What about you? Are you interested in a house? Condo? Do you want to rent or own…?”

  “Hard to decide until I know where I’m going to land. I joined the Marines right out of high school, and I guess back then I always thought I’d go back to Oakland.” He shrugged. “With my mom gone, there’s no reason for me to go to the West Coast, but…”

  “Then you should try the East Coast!” Liam exclaimed.

  “But…I haven’t given myself the time to really think about it. Part of me thought this day wasn’t going to come.”

  “Seriously? Why?”

  Another shrug. “I don’t know. I think I was still considering just staying in so I wouldn’t have to decide. And with no family to go home to…”

  “Well, that’s just stupid. I’m telling you, Will, you need to at least come home with me and just spend a few weeks in Laurel Bay. It’s not like you’ve got anything else planned. Just check it out and come with me to look at property—both for the project and for my own personal home purchase—and if you totally hate it there, I’ll let it go.”