Can't Help Falling in Love Read online

  “You are going to love Hawaii, Mr. Chen. And your wife is going to be incredibly surprised!”

  “Thanks, Violet! We’ll be sure to tag you in our Instagram stories!”

  “I’ll be looking for them,” she replied with a smile. “Take care!”

  “You too!”

  Standing, Violet took off her headset and stretched. Her back was killing her, and she had a bit of a headache, but there was no way she was going to complain to Katie.

  Not even to tell her the reason for those ailments was the hard and lumpy bed and the lack of sleep it was causing her.

  Why? Because that’s what friends do for each other.

  Apparently.

  Plus, it had been a few days since the whole Braxton Hicks experience, and Katie still wasn’t feeling like herself. Violet knew next to nothing about pregnancy and chalked it up to her being so close to her due date. She was taking it easy, and right now was taking a nap. Eli and Kira were doing the same.

  “Wish I could nap,” she muttered and realized there was something better she could do for herself.

  Yoga.

  She hadn’t so much as given herself a proper stretch or even gone into a downward-facing dog in almost two weeks! It wasn’t going to solve the uncomfortable bed problem, but it would certainly get out some of the kinks. Feeling energized, she changed into a pair of yoga pants and a cami and pulled her hair into a ponytail. She didn’t have a mat with her, but that wasn’t going to stop her. Grabbing her iPod and earbuds, she was ready to go.

  Out in the living room, Violet was about to move the coffee table aside, when an even better idea came to her.

  The yard.

  It was a gorgeous day, the sun was shining, and being only a block from the beach meant the air smelled fantastic. Katie and Brian’s yard wasn’t overly large, but there was a beautiful grassy area that wasn’t currently in the full-sun and she thought it would be the perfect spot to get her yoga on.

  Within minutes, she had gone through some basic gentle stretches and felt some of the tension leaving her body. Feeling mildly encouraged, she transitioned into her warrior poses before stretching her hamstrings. Everything began to relax as she found her groove and she made a mental note to make time for this every day.

  A half-hour later, she felt like a new woman. Everything was loose, and she gave in to the crazy urge to do something she hadn’t done in years.

  She did a row of cartwheels across the yard.

  And came practically toe-to-toe with Eli after her last one.

  “Oh, hey, buddy,” she said with a smile, squatting down in front of him. “What are you doing out here? Does Katie know you’re up?”

  He nodded.

  Violet wasn’t quite sure she believed him, but Katie came to the sliding back door carrying her laptop. “Brian’s surprised us with some FaceTime. Can you keep an eye on Eli for me?”

  “Sure! No problem!”

  “Thanks!” The door slid shut and Violet stared down at the wide-eyed boy.

  “So…you want to play on the swings?”

  He shook his head.

  O-kay…

  Looking around the yard, she spotted a ball. “How about we kick the ball around?”

  Another head shake.

  Hmm…now what?

  “Can you flip?” he asked.

  “Flip?”

  He nodded. “Like before.”

  When did she flip? “Oh! You mean the cartwheel? This?” And she immediately flew into another one and heard him giggle. When she was standing in front of him, he was smiling, and damn if it didn’t make her heart squeeze. He was a fairly solemn kid, so this was a real treat.

  Then an idea came to her.

  “Want to do some tumbling with me?”

  He nodded, and she took him by the hand and led him out onto the grass. For the next few minutes, she showed him how to do a forward roll and a backward one. He listened intently to her instructions and almost seemed like he was studying for a test.

  That’s when she realized she had to make this as fun as she could–like a game. Something to help him relax.

  “How about this–let’s work on getting our wiggles out, and then we’ll roll across the yard. What do you say? You ready to wiggle and roll?”

  “Yeah!” he said, jumping up with excitement, and Violet wished Hunter was here to see this. Maybe this wasn’t out of the ordinary, but she kind of had a feeling it was.

  “Okay, then! Let’s…wiggle our hands!” She held her hands out and shook them and smiled when he mimicked her movements. “Now, our arms!” And she flapped them like a bird. “Let’s move those legs!” She jogged in place, and he did the same. “Now, let’s jump up and down!” And so he did. After a minute, she asked, “Are we ready to roll?”

  “Yes!” he cried.

  Side by side, they got into position. “Ready? Set? And roll!” Violet held back a little so Eli would be in front of her and she heard him squeal with laughter every time he completed a roll. It was a fantastic sound. He beat her to the fence and was cheering her on until she caught up with him. When she did, he asked her to flip again, and so she did.

  And again and again per his requests until she was almost dizzy.

  The sound of applause is what finally made her stop and turn.

  Hunter.

  Feeling mildly embarrassed, she fussed with her ponytail as she walked across the yard to where he was standing with Eli. “Uh…hey,” she said with a small smile. “You’re here early, aren’t you?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, I had an appointment to go to after lunch and decided just to take a half a day.”

  Not sure of what to do or say, she simply nodded in return.

  “Daddy, we tumbled!” Eli said excitedly. “And Vi flipped!”

  Hunter looked at him in wide-eyed disbelief. “Buddy, you tumbled?” Then he looked at Violet for confirmation. When she nodded, she swore he looked ready to burst with pride.

  “I’ll show you!” Eli immediately scrambled away and began doing somersaults across the yard.

  “Violet, I…wow. Just wow. I think that’s the most excited I’ve ever heard him. And I mean ever.” He paused and seemed to compose himself. “How did you do this?”

  “I honestly don’t know,” she admitted. “I was out here doing some yoga, and then Brian surprised Katie with a FaceTime call, and Eli came out here with me and saw me do a cartwheel. He seemed to be thoroughly entertained by it, so I thought we could sort of roll around. I made a game out of it and he seemed to enjoy it.”

  “I’m just…I mean…”

  “Daddy! Look at me! Look at me!”

  “I am! You’re doing a great job, Eli! That’s amazing!” he called out, and before she knew it, he was hugging her. Tightly. “Thank you,” he murmured against her ear. His body completely enveloped her, and it was all warm and hard and muscly and felt way too good.

  Maybe he felt the same way because he wasn’t letting go. If anything, it felt like his arms were slowly tightening.

  And damn if she didn’t go up slightly on her tiptoes to try to align their bodies a bit better.

  Not that that was going to happen. He easily had eight inches of height on her.

  But still, it had been a long time since a man had held her or made her feel this good. A low hum of appreciation was out before she could stop it.

  Mortified, she quickly stepped out of his embrace and forced herself to watch Eli, who was now trying to do a cartwheel. “It was nothing,” she said softly. “Really. He’s a great kid, and it was my pleasure to see him look so happy.”

  And when she watched him struggling to do a cartwheel, she excused herself and jogged across the yard and coached him through it–all the while feeling utterly self-conscious because Hunter was watching them.

  Then Katie and Kira came out, and she found herself dealing with two students.

  “I can’t believe you can still do all that!” Katie called out to her.

  “It’s just like
riding a bike!”

  “Somehow, I doubt it!”

  Kira caught on a bit faster and was making her way around the yard, but Eli wasn’t far behind her, and the first time both his feet got up in the air, he landed and then threw himself into Violet’s arms and hugged her tight.

  And that’s when she knew she was in trouble because both Jones men had hugged her today, and they both had her emotions all over the place.

  But for very different reasons.

  When the kids ran to play with the ball, Violet walked back over to the deck and groaned.

  “Violet was so good she could have gone to the Olympics!” Katie gushed. “You can still see some of her college routines up on YouTube!”

  “Kate…why?” she whined. “We swore never to bring those up again.”

  Shrugging, her friend didn’t look the least bit chastised. “You were the one flipping all over the yard; I just figured the cat was already out of the bag.”

  “A couple of cartwheels doesn’t equal being on YouTube!”

  “Oops.” But again, no remorse.

  Damn her.

  “For what it’s worth,” Hunter chimed in, “I don’t ever go on YouTube, so your secret is safe with me.”

  “Oh. Okay. Thanks.”

  “But you really should,” Katie said with a grin. “Seriously, Vi was one of the most talented gymnasts I’ve ever seen. She would fly across the gym during her floor routine and everyone’s jaw would be on the floor because she made it look so easy.”

  Hanging her head and covering her face, Violet wished the ground would open up and swallow her. “C’mon, Kate…”

  “Fine. I’ll change the subject. Since Hunter’s early, how about I treat you to dinner at the Sand Bar? Their burgers are legendary.” She nudged Violet with her elbow. “And I know you happen to have a weakness for quality burgers.”

  Slowly, she lifted her head. “And we’re done talking about…you know?”

  Katie made a zipping motion across her lips.

  “Fine. But only because I feel like I deserve a burger because I’ve been eating healthy all week.”

  “Same,” Katie said with a wink. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go and call Rose and see if she’ll stay with Kira so we can have a girl’s night.”

  Once she was out of sight, Violet and Hunter shared a look. “Somehow, I think this is more about Katie needing a burger.”

  Laughing, Hunter agreed.

  “This is just weird. Like…why would someone just leave all their stuff behind like this?”

  Hunter had to wonder the same thing.

  It was Sunday, and he and his brother Kyle were at Melissa’s place getting Eli’s things before heading over to Dean and Courtney’s for dinner. He had dropped Eli off with them earlier so he could come here and do what he had to do.

  “I feel like we’re robbing the place,” Kyle said as he wandered from room to room. “Any minute, I’m expecting the cops to show up.”

  “Dramatic much?”

  “You know what I’m saying. Although…you have to admit…she was clearly prepared. There’s a stack of boxes with Eli’s name on them, so…”

  Yeah. Hunter figured Melissa had been planning this for a while to be this organized. His son’s room had been cleared out–all his toys and clothes were in boxes. It was the same in the living room where there were two small boxes with random books and family photographs. It was like she didn’t take one thing to remind her of the life she was leaving behind.

  “Do you want to take any of his furniture?” Kyle called out from Eli’s room.

  Did he? He had an entire bedroom set at his place, and yet…he felt like he should take it just in case at some point Eli wanted it.

  “Uh…yeah. We’ll take it and store it in the garage for me to deal with later.” Then he looked around the house and considered if there was anything else he should take. This had been the first house he and Melissa had moved into together. The rent was cheap and most of the furniture was second-hand. They had always talked about how they would buy all new stuff when they were a little more settled.

  They never got there.

  And that’s when he knew there wasn’t a damn thing he was going to take other than Eli’s stuff. There was nothing here he wanted to remember. The house he had purchased on his own had always felt better to him–everything about it. And most of the memories he’d made there had been good ones.

  His brother walked by him with an armload of boxes, and Hunter knew he needed to get going with the rest of them so they could get out of here.

  And thirty minutes later, when he locked the door and put the key in the flowerpot, he thought good riddance.

  He climbed into his truck next to Kyle and sighed.

  “I’m not gonna lie to you, that was a little anticlimactic,” Kyle was saying as he buckled his seatbelt.

  “What were you expecting?”

  Shrugging, he replied, “I don’t know. Maybe finding ‘Screw you, Hunter’ painted on the walls in dripping red paint?”

  “What is wrong with you? No one does anything like that.”

  “Oh, please. It happens more than you think.”

  “Speaking from experience?”

  “Luckily, no. Although I’m sure there’s been more than one woman who thought about doing it.”

  Hunter fully agreed.

  “So, how’s Eli been with all this? Has he been asking for Melissa?”

  “Once. Then I told him he was going to be staying with me from now on, and that was it.”

  “Again, anticlimactic.”

  “Hey, it’s better than the alternative.”

  “True.” He paused. “What did I hear him telling Courtney earlier? Something about flipping?”

  Smiling, he thought of the day he found Eli and Violet in the yard tumbling.

  And honestly, it was a toss-up as to which sight enthralled him more–his son laughing and tumbling around–or Violet doing cartwheels in snug yoga pants and then rolling around in the yard.

  And that hug? Yeah, he felt the imprint of her curvy body from his head to his toes.

  And wouldn’t mind doing it again.

  “Okay, what put that goofy smile on your face? Is it the flipper? Is she hot? Wait! Did Eli mean stripper? Was somebody stripping and not flipping?” Kyle immediately started laughing, apparently cracking himself up. “Nah, you’re way too uptight to bring a stripper around your son, so…”

  “Seriously, dude. Grow up.”

  “Fine, then explain both the stupid grin and the flipping. Or stripping. Please tell me there was stripping.”

  Only in my mind…

  So he stuck to the basics. He told his brother all about Violet–from their disastrous first meeting to finding her doing gymnastics in the yard.

  What he didn’t mention was how he’d checked her out on YouTube and was seriously impressed.

  And more than a little turned on.

  That bit of information he was keeping to himself because, no doubt, his brother would totally go into creepy stalker mode and look for himself. And that wasn’t something he wanted to happen. He had a feeling if Kyle met Violet, he’d be all over her and break into his ultimate flirter mode and…just no. Hunter didn’t want to examine why that particular thought bothered him; he just knew it did. His brother could find his own women.

  Not that Violet was his, but…

  Yeah, okay. Fine. There was an attraction there. He’d been divorced for two years and had gone out on plenty of dates since then, and he knew there was nothing wrong with being interested in a beautiful woman.

  And Violet was definitely beautiful–petite, curvy, and thanks to YouTube, he now knew how she looked in a skin-tight leotard and how bendy she was.

  He’d be lying if he said that image wasn’t burned into his brain.

  But…she was Katie’s friend who was only in town temporarily to help her out. She clearly had a busy life and traveled a lot so…it was pointless to engage in
any kind of flirtation or imagine taking her out and seeing where it could go.

  “It’s obvious she made an impression on Eli,” Kyle was saying. “Hell, I don’t think I’ve ever heard him so chatty!”

  “I know. It was…I’m telling you, it was an amazing sight. I walked into the yard and I heard him laughing. Like this honest-to-goodness belly laugh. He was doing somersaults across the yard, and when he saw me, he was grinning from ear to ear.” He felt himself getting emotional. Again.

  “How long is this girl in town for?”

  “Until Brian gets back.”

  “And when is that?”

  “Katie doesn’t have an exact date, but maybe six to eight weeks.”

  “Okay, but think of what a great influence this Violet chick can be in that time? And really, what timing!”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Dude, you can’t be this clueless,” Kyle said with a little disgust. “Melissa leaves, and now there’s Violet!”

  “Who is also going to leave,” Hunter reminded him. “If anything, it’s not particularly helpful. Eli will develop a relationship with Violet and then she’ll be gone. And don’t even get me started on what’s going to happen while Katie’s on maternity leave.”

  “I thought you put in for personal time off during that time?”

  “I did, but I told them I’d be on call if they really need me. Dad said he’d come and stay at the house if I need him…”

  “And you know I’ll do it if Dad can’t.”

  “Thanks. Scarlett said she’d be willing to watch him too since she works from home. Plus, she said it would be a great way for Eli and Asher to bond.”

  “She realizes Asher’s still a baby, right? How much bonding could they do?”

  “How the hell should I know? She offered, and I was so relieved that I just let her ramble on.”

  “Smart move.”

  “Yeah, so…Eli’s going to have his world turned upside down again for the month he doesn’t go to Katie’s.”

  “And he doesn’t see Violet.”

  “Exactly.”

  “And then you don’t get to see Violet.”

  “I know,” he said miserably.

  “Ha! I knew it! I knew it wasn’t all about Eli! You’re into this girl!”