Chapter One
Sean gazed around Travis’s backyard. His friends and coworkers threw backyard parties all the time, but he’d almost decided not to come to this one. Even though he enjoyed being with his friends and their littles, sometimes it was hard because he thought it would never happen to him.
At that moment, he was glad he had come. Good friends, great food, and his favorite beer in his hand. His decision was more enjoyable than what he had planned to do, which was work.
He stood with Travis and talked about the business, town, the weather, and friends.
Sean’s gaze roamed over the people standing around. He knew most of them, but a few were new to him. When his eyes locked on a woman he’d never seen before, his mind froze, and his body went numb. His body stilled. The bottle of beer was suspended halfway to his lips, and he narrowed his eyes as he followed a tiny woman across the lawn of his friend’s house.
He focused so intently on her, everything else faded. The warm breeze lifting the brown-colored hair off his forehead and the sounds of the people talking and laughing, tweeting birds, and barking dogs disappeared. He watched her kneel and then sit on a blanket under the massive oak tree in the back yard, tucking her long skirt around her legs. She talked with a friend’s daughter, Katie.
This woman was the most alluring one he’d ever encountered, with the most beautiful hair he’d ever seen. It was a pure deep black, very long and very curly, with ringlets cascading down her back to her waist. He wondered if she got the color out of a bottle, but he didn’t think so for some reason. Her skin was pale, like she didn’t spend much time outside in the sun, and she was petite, almost tiny. Measuring her height to the little girl she was with, the top of her head probably only came up to his shoulders.
She was short, maybe a little more than a foot shorter than him, which was fine by him. He didn’t know why he liked his women small, but it had been that way since high school.
The long-oversized skirt she wore tightened across her curves, showing a body that made his mouth water and his body instantly hard. The short-sleeved light pink shirt she wore molded itself across her full breasts when she leaned forward to tuck a wispy lock of hair behind Katie’s ear.
Sean took a deep breath and lowered his bottle. “Holy fuck.”
“What’s up, man?” Travis asked.
Sean lifted his bottle, indicating the woman. “Who’s that woman? Who is that with little Katie?” He’d never seen a more beautiful woman. Everything about her was utterly feminine, and he couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen her before.
“That’s Ava. Remember? I told you about Nia’s new friend, the librarian.”
“Well, you sure as fuck didn’t tell me she was beautiful,” Sean grumbled. The feeling was coming back into his body, making him feel slightly dizzy. “How long has she lived here?”
Travis smirked at him. “About three months, I think. Why?”
Sean felt paralyzed. Every muscle in his body was tense. “Is she in a relationship?” He clutched the bottle of beer he held in his hand so tightly he thought it would break, waiting for but afraid of the answer.
Sean glared at Travis when he chuckled. Then he turned back to Ava, unable to keep his eyes off of her. “Quit fucking with me.”
Travis shook his head. “I don’t think so, as far as I know. Why?”
“Because if she doesn’t have a man, she’s mine,” he said with arrogant determination.
Travis sputtered and then snorted out a laugh. “Dude, you can’t say shit like that.”
Sean glanced at Travis in surprise. “Why? You did with Nia.”
Travis grabbed his arm when he started toward Ava.
Sean stopped, turned, and tensed when he saw the serious look on his friend’s face.
“Take it easy with her, buddy. She’s a timid little thing, and I don’t think she’s had an easy time of it.”
Sean looked toward Ava. “Why? What do you know about her?” he demanded as his gaze went back and forth between the woman and his friend.
“Nothing really. It’s just a few things Nia has said about an old boyfriend not treating her right.”
Sean went rigid. “What the hell does that mean?”
Travis shrugged. “That’s all I know.”
He handed Travis the bottle of beer and slapped him on the shoulder. “I won’t do anything to scare her away.” The thought of losing her before he even had her made him nauseous.
****