"Matt." Matt was funny, sweet, kind, loyal, had a great job, great family, and...was pretend. Which really made him the perfect boyfriend.
"He didn't want to come with you?" Gram made a show of looking at Olive's ring finger. Her ringless ring finger. "I'd have loved to meet him."
Okay, so there were downsides to a pretend boyfriend. But the plus side? No fielding questions from anyone about why she was still single. Or why she still had trouble trusting people with her heart. Not to mention making her seem even more put together, and she'd take all the help she could get there. "He's been super busy lately, so—"
"Poppycock. Who's too busy for love? You deserve it, more than anyone I know."
Olive didn't want for love. She wanted for structure, which had always been missing from her life. As a result, she tended to operate in relationships like that young kid she'd once been, recreating the chaos she'd lived with growing up.
A truck drove up the common driveway, parking at the very top, on Katie's side. The man who got out was everything she remembered: tall; leanly muscled; his dark, slightly curly hair peeking out from beneath a ballcap; his eyes hidden behind mirrored sunglasses. Once upon a time, he'd always had a smile, but not today. Today his mouth was grim. He rolled his shoulders like he was in some pain, then stilled at the sight of the Mini Coop.
The one that had nearly hit him less than half an hour ago.
Olive sucked in a breath and slouched in the porch swing. She was still holding that breath when he removed his sunglasses and peered inside the car before lifting his head, unerringly finding her gaze with his own.
CHAPTER TWO
Olive slid as low as she could without falling to the floor, trying to get below the sightline of the white picket fence.
"What are you doing?" Gram asked.
"Hiding. You never saw me. I'm not here—"
"Could've fooled me," a male voice said.
The unbearably familiar male voice reminded her of some of the best times of her life.
And the worst.
With a grimace, she looked up.
Noah stood there, looking better than a guy who'd once ruined her life should, even with his eyes narrowed, his mouth grim, and those muscles in his jaw all bunched.
"Olive Porter, as she lives and breathes," he said with absolutely no inflection at all. Which meant she was ticked off on top of being ticked off. Ticked Off Squared.
Except...he hadn't ruined her life. She'd ruined his.
"It's nice to see you," Gram told him. "Been a while since you've been home."
Noah used his most charming smile. "Adele. Looking good."
Gram, being of the female persuasion, fell victim to Noah's deliciously rugged charm, beaming. "Aren't you the one." She glanced at Olive. "Is your Matt this sweet?"
Okay, first of all, Noah had never been sweet a day in his life. Sharp, funny, dangerous, yes. Sweet? Not a chance. And second, why had she thought it a good idea to make up a boyfriend? Why hadn't she just said she didn't need a man in her life? Because she didn't, not even a little bit. Damn hindsight. "Matt's far sweeter."
Noah just smirked, the bastard. "I need to talk to you."
Olive took another cookie. "I'm very busy right now."
But he already had her by the hand, tugging her upright, leading her in that uneven gait, which gave her a pang straight through her heart.
Stupid heart.
She must've made some sound because he glanced back at her, caught the look on her face, and hardened his. "Feeling sorry for me?"
"Not even a little bit." She took a bite of the cookie she'd managed to hold on to.
"Nice to know the sarcasm didn't change with the new look." Out of hearing range, Noah abruptly let go of her hand and stepped back from her like maybe he was trying to avoid the temptation of strangling her.
He could join her club.
