“I hope we don’t smell like tequila in the morning. Someone will smell it on me.”
Sanders groaned. “Don’t say that word.”
“Tequila?” I asked and he groaned again. I laughed and said, “Aren’t you taking that group zip-lining today?” I teased.
He fake sobbed against my back. “Well, it may be me that loses my cookies this time.” He yawned. “Is this the group from the Florida company?”
“No, that’s next week. This is the one from Texas.”
“Oh yeah. I did know that,” he said.
“I know.” I shimmied and turned until we were face to face. “Are you happy?” I asked him.
“So much. I love working with the Lodge.”
“And you’re glad you moved out here? It’s very different than Denver.”
“Mm-hmm.” He nodded sleepily. His eyes were already closed.
“I think Skip is going to move out here soon. All these trips back and forth for ‘work’ have to be draining on him.” I emphasized work because he clearly wasn’t flying out to only help Sanders establish OTB in Green Valley.
“Hmm, hope so,” Sanders slurred, almost asleep.
I traced a finger over his relaxed face. I loved him so much my chest ached with it. I deserved this happiness, I reminded myself. His light lashes fluttered under my perusal.
“I love you, Roxy.” His eyes opened and held mine. “You have made me the happiest person alive. No matter what the future brings for us, I want you to know that you’ve made me a better person.”
“I love you,” I said back. “We’re going to make each other great.”
His eyes flicked back and forth between mine. “I think so too.” Then he groaned.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I was just falling asleep.” He sighed dramatically and pulled back the blanket. “Now, I have to have you again.”
I giggled as he climbed on top of me.
I was complete. I was happy. I trusted in this. From now on, I wasn’t alone at all.
Acknowledgments
Like so many, 2020 was a struggle for countless reasons and there were many times, as with most authors I’m sure you follow, I wasn’t sure if writing was something I could even do in a time of so much uncertainty. Eventually, Roxy and Sanders found their way back to me and their love gave me hope once again. Isn’t that the whole point? That love conquers all. My love of writing and the love I felt from my friends and family did just that.
As always, this book would not be possible without many, many people (this year especially).
Tracy, thank you as always for picking me up and dusting me off to remind me that I could do this.
Kelly, Shan, and Layla, thank you for the reads, the company, the countless conversations and words of encouragement. This book would NOT exist without you.
Elaine, thanks for letting me blatantly steal an Aussie joke from you.
My fellow Smartypants authors and Fi for endless advice, support and laughter.
Browhiski, the MVP of my heart, thank you for all that you do.
Lynsey, thanks for telling the truth and making this book so much better. You think you are a storm cloud but you are often a ray of light when I need to see the sun.
My betas - your comments SAVED THIS BOOK.
Penny, for letting me live in your world as though it were my own. Your kindness knows no bounds.
Thanks to Pipe’s Peeps. I cannot emphasize this enough, YOU ALL kept me afloat this year. Thanks for those who waited patiently, who checked in, who sent me thoughts and love. I am so grateful for you all. To the VIPeeps of my heart, thank you so much for sticking with me.
To JR, just…I can’t even begin to thank you for saving me this last year and making me do hard things. We can do hard things.
To mini P, for keeping me going, making me laugh and astounding me every day.
Finally, Tina. May you never read this but know if not for you, I may have never returned from the darkness.
About the Author
Piper Sheldon writes Contemporary Romance and Magical Realism books that hope to be NYT bestsellers when they grow up. For now, she works as a technical writer during the day and writes about love the rest of the time. Of course she also makes room for her husband, toddler, and two needy dogs at home in the Desert Southwest.
Find Piper Sheldon online:
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2lAvr8A
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2kxkioK
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2kx2RVn
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2lxxV7H
Website: http://bit.ly/2kitH3H
Find Smartypants Romance online:
Website: www.smartypantsromance.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smartypantsromance
Twitter: @smartypantsrom
Instagram: @smartypantsromance
Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/
Read on for:
1. Sneak Peek: Dewey Belong Together by Ann Whynot, Book #7 in the Green Valley Library Series
2. Piper’s Booklist
3. Smartypants Romance’s Booklist
Sneak Peek: Dewey Belong Together by Ann Whynot, Green Valley Library Book #7
Maxine
“A game is an opportunity to focus our energy, with relentless optimism, at something we’re good at (or getting better at) and enjoy.”
― Jane McGonigal
I must have been crazy when I agreed to host a dozen strangers from an online game in my hometown of Green Valley, nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.
In person, I was the furthest thing possible from a social butterfly. I am what might be called a basement dweller. Like all underground creatures, I prefer depth and darkness to the shiny world above. Above the basement floor of the Green Valley Public Library, that is. And okay, so I don’t inhabit the basement as much as catalog there. This is my ninth year of creating, polishing, and publishing records in all their metadata glory for several counties—an honor given to the Green Valley branch because of, well, me. I can say without an inflated ego that I am probably the best cataloger in the state, due to my meticulous nature and the fact that the beauty and structure of the records appeal to me as a librarian far more than interacting with the patrons, or other staff, upstairs. I swear, half the time the other librarians forget I’m even down there. More than once I’ve come upstairs after
