What the Heart Wants: An Opposites Attract Anthology Read online

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Ball Out by Jami Denise

  Drive Me Crazy by T.M. Franklin

  Gotcha by Lindsey Gray

  Holiday by Jiffy Kate

  Everleigh by Jennifer Locklear

  Meet-Cute by Sydney Logan

  Love Wanted by Jeanne McDonald

  Heart Strings by Melanie Moreland

  The Years Between Us by Ayden K. Morgen

  A Still Life by Jo Richardson

  Acknowledgements

  About Enchanted Publications

  Also Offered by Enchanted Publications

  Copyright © 2017 Enchanted Publications

  Copyright of individual works is maintained by the respective authors.

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, introduced into a retrieval system, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including without limitation photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher and/or authors, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. The scanning, uploading, and/or distribution of this publication via the internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher and/or authors is illegal and is punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrightable materials.

  Cover Design: T.M. Franklin

  Interior Design: Lindsey Gray

  Cover Photograph: Ekaterina Pokrovsky via stock.adobe.com

  Published by Enchanted Publications

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the authors’ imaginations and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance of actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Enchanted Publications

  www.enchantedpublications.com

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  All proceeds of this collection are to benefit the Terry Foundation: https://terryfoundation.org/

  For our friend

  Suzanne Carroll

  Thank you for helping us name this collection.

  Boone Walker spent most of his life on the back of a horse. As a retired rodeo star, he traded the circuit for a quiet life on his family’s ranch. He has no interest in love or the complications relationships bring with them.

  Until he lays eyes on the quirky, beautiful woman at the local coffee shop.

  Paisley Stone lives the life of a gypsy. When her van breaks down in the town of Red River, she feels trapped like a caged animal. But after a few months of small town life, it starts to feel like home.

  Even more so when she serves coffee to the moody, ruggedly handsome Boone.

  She can’t help but hope he’ll throw a lasso around her heart, and Boone knows that Paisley will be the hardest creature he’s ever had to wrangle.

  I'd lived in Red River, Montana, a little over nine months, and I was in love with the town. Of all the places I’d been, all the towns I’d lived in, it was the one place that truly felt like home to me. The scenery was beautiful, the people were friendly, rent was cheap, and I had a real job for the first time in my life.

  Mari’s Sweet Cakes was in the center of the small business area of town, and we were always busy. I liked the customers a lot. They called you by your first name, smiled, and gave great tips.

  So yeah, I liked my job.

  Sometimes I loved it.

  Especially when the sexy cowboy came in to order his black coffee and lemon muffin. Those were the days I lived for. I woke up every morning looking forward to walking to work at five a.m. simply to get a glimpse of his rugged smile.

  “Mari, can I leave early?”

  I expected the usual look of annoyance when I looked over at my boss, so I was surprised to see her smile.

  “You wish. Stop daydreaming and get back to work. You need to get over this little thing of yours.”

  “What's that supposed to mean?”

  She propped herself up on the counter and drummed her fingers on the tile. “Every time tall, dark, and handsome comes in, your brain goes kaput, and you're out of it for the rest of the day.”

  I giggled. “Am I that obvious?”

  “You are. If I wasn’t all washed-up and married, I might get giddy when he walked in, but I am. That doesn’t mean I’m blind, though.”

  I took off my apron and wadded it up in a ball. “It's not like I have a chance. I highly doubt I’m his type. But he’s gorgeous, right?”

  She rolled her eyes and hopped down. “Shoo with you. I have work to do, and so do you.”

  If I wanted to admit it—which I didn’t—I was completely obsessed with the guy. His name was Boone, which intrigued me, but only because I’d never met a Boone in my life. The only reason I knew his name was because I had to ask for it when I took his order.

  He set me off balance, and I couldn’t pinpoint why. I’d never had a problem talking to guys before, but when it came to him, I ended up tongue-tied and twisted up inside. I blamed it on his blasted smile. It rendered me stupid no matter how hard I tried to keep myself in control. I’d feel a whoosh of emotions that I couldn’t begin to label. I’d never, ever, felt that way around someone in my life.

  It was infectious, and I was addicted to it—and him.

  Mari liked to mess with me about him, but it didn’t bother me. It was nice to have someone pay attention for once. That’s not to say I lacked attention. I didn’t. I’d had a few guys ask come in the bakery and ask me out. Some of them were cute, I had to admit, but not one of them came close to being like him.

  He came in my first day and ruined me for other men. After that, they had zero chance in hell.

  I’d been robbed of any interest in the opposite sex, all except for him. I hadn’t been on a date or had any kind of interaction with a guy in almost a year. I’d resorted to self-love; whispering his name into the room was about as frisky as it got.

  It was a little pathetic, but the saddest part was it was more satisfying than anything I’d ever experienced. Imagining his face, those big soulful eyes, and his dimpled smile left me breathless and aroused.

  “Your life is officially the lamest thing ever.”

  Even my cat got sick of my obsession with Boone Walker. She ran away, opting for the streets over my constant babbling.

  I even Googled him, which I was embarrassed to admit. But I’d overheard a conversation between customers about him and had to find out what it was all about. I discovered that he was a former rodeo star. He was a famous bareback bronc rider. Big time famous.

  You’d never know it by looking at him—not that I knew what a famous bronc rider looked like. He was so humble, quiet, and almost shy. He didn’t strut around town like a badass, which was what I’d expect someone as badass as a bareback bronc rider to do. No, he pulled his hat off his head in the bakery, was polite, and almost floated when he walked. He was a big guy, but not in an obnoxious steroid way. He was fit, and you could tell he worked hard. He had working man muscles, if that was a thing.

  I’d never been to a rodeo, even though I’d lived in countless cowboy towns all over the country. I never got into the culture, but it was mostly since we never hung around long enough for me to get into anything. We were always stuck at th
e fairgrounds, and then we hit the road.

  After looking him up, I spent a lot of time wondering about him. Where did he live? Why did he ride rodeo? Was it his childhood dream, or a way to pay the bills? Sometimes I’d make myself crazy thinking about him.

  It was one of those things I couldn’t control. I'd always thought too much and overanalyzed everything. I had to tear things apart and figure them out, or I’d go nuts. My dad called me a dreamer. Everyone else thought I was a weirdo.

  “He probably thinks I'm a weirdo, too,” I muttered.

  Boone had been missing in action for weeks, and it had me in a bad mood. I started losing hope of ever seeing him again. Sure, there were plenty of ways I could’ve found him—I’d already perfected my internet stalking—but I wasn’t that far gone. I still lived for those brief moments when he’d walk into the bakery. Then they stopped. For freaking weeks!

  When he’d walked in that morning all scrubbed down and pretty, smelling like spicy soap and wearing my favorite green t-shirt, everything flooded back. It didn’t hurt that I got a small peek at his chest hair due to his sunglasses being tucked into the collar of that damn green shirt or the way his jeans snuggled up to his ass like a prayer.

  It was his smile that made every part of my body quiver. And when I say every part, I mean every part.

  He’d walk in and share that smile and leave me yearning when he walked out with his coffee, muffin, and my heart.

  Mari snapped her fingers in my face, and I glared. “What?”

  “You’re dopier than usual. What’s the deal?”

  The deal? It was hardly a deal. It was a monumental breakdown waiting to happen. I was still frustrated that he’d been gone. Seeing him for mere minutes wasn’t enough. I had officially lost my cool about the situation.

  “You know what? The only reason I don’t quit this job is because I get to see him, and where the hell has he been? I bet he’s been cheating on me at some other coffee joint because you buy the plain wrap coffee! He’s probably been over there at Starbucks. I should slash his tires.”

  Mari barked out a very unattractive laugh, causing several customers to look over at us like we were crazy.

  “Sometimes I don’t know what to do with you, Paisley. You’re a goof.”

  I shrugged. “I've been called worse.”

  “Honey, he’s a busy man. He runs a ranch. That is enough to keep him out of town for days on end. You’re so in love with the guy, yet you know nothing about him. You need to step up your game. He’s a man, Paisley. He can’t read your mind.”

  “Pft.”

  I grabbed one of the rags and started scrubbing the already clean counter. I was frustrated, and Lord help me, I missed him.

  “He’s gone for two weeks and comes in all clean and spiffy. Probably for his girlfriend. I’m so delusional I never even considered he had a chick.”

  “From what I hear,” she said, leaning closer and whispering, “he isn’t dating anyone. This is a small town, and everyone knows the Walker’s. I’d hear if he were.”

  Clenching my teeth, I scrubbed harder and tried to ignore her. “Maybe it’s on the down-low. He’s quiet. Mysterious. Maybe he has a mail-order bride or something. Don’t cowboys do that? Get a wife to hold down the fort?”

  She reached over, grabbed my rag out of my hand, and spun me around. “You read way too many trashy novels. He doesn’t have a mail-order bride. Jesus, Paisley, you’re making me crazy. Ask the man out. What will it hurt?”

  I sputtered and laughed out loud. “Oh, let's see. I'll look like a giant loser for one. If he were even remotely interested, he would've already asked me out. He hasn’t. He barely looks at me.”

  She smirked. “Oh, he looks at you. He smiles at you, too.”

  I rolled my eyes. “He's polite. His mom must have raised him to be nice. He's probably smiling at Bambi or Becky or maybe Bubbles over at Starbucks right now. He's a smiler. It has little to nothing to do with me, Marilyn.”

  She snapped the rag, spanking me in the ass, and making me yelp. “If I hadn't asked Tommy on a date he'd still be living in the basement apartment at his mother's house. Trust me. Men aren’t as brave as we are. Just do it. I have a good feeling.”

  I had to laugh at that. “You had a good feeling about me working here if I remember correctly, and I'm a shitty employee. I can't brew coffee, I'm late every day, and my attitude is deplorable. I have no respect for your feelings. No offense.”

  “All I'm saying is that I know things, and you're a stubborn little shit. Be an idiot. I don't care. Your little crush keeps me entertained. You’re right, though. You are a shitty employee. Now get to work before I fire you and throw you in the streets. Move!”

  Mari loved showing her maternal side with me. Her antics made me laugh, but most of all, they made me feel like I belonged. She took me in and gave me a chance, something no one else had ever done for me. She was my landlord and boss, and I owed her everything.

  Plus, she was all bark. Inside, she was full of fluff and rainbows.

  “Maybe he likes charity cases just like you, ya old fool!”

  “Paisley! Restock the damn cups and shut the fuck up!”

  A crotchety old lady sitting near the counter looked up and gasped, gave me a disapproving look, picked up her stuff and left. It wasn’t the first time Mari had driven a customer out of the shop, and it wouldn’t be the last. She had a mouth like a trucker, but a heart like an angel.

  I looked over at my co-worker and wondered how she could be so happy all the time. She was sweet—almost too sweet.

  “Tina,” I called to her. “I'm going back to the stockroom to grab more cups. Can you cover up here?”

  She smiled and agreed, so I found my way into the back to hide out for a while. I only had an hour to go, and then I could go home and feel sorry for myself like a normal person. If I could avoid public contact until then, I was golden.

  I pulled out the cups and stripped them out of the plastic wrappers. Plopping down on the little stool, I dropped my head down and sighed. I needed to get a grip, but he consumed me. It wasn't healthy, and Mari was right in a way. I had to shit or get off the pot.

  “Hi, I'm Paisley. Want to go out sometime?”

  No matter how many ways I phrased it, I sounded like a desperate troll.

  Everyone knew Boone Walker, hometown hero, rodeo phenomenon. I wanted to know the guy who ordered black coffee and lemon muffins. I wanted to know the man behind the breathtaking smile.

  After obsessing over what Mari said all night, I decided to take her advice. When he came in, I was going to talk to him, no matter what. He’d been missing in action for over a week again, and I could hardly stand it.

  It was an unusually slow day, which was good and bad. Good because I wouldn’t look like crap if he came in, bad because I had way too much time on my hands to stand around thinking about him and what I’d say.

  “I notice you like your coffee black. How'd you like some sugar with that coffee.”

  That made me snort. God! I was losing my ever-loving mind.

  “I'm Paisley! Is it weird that I'm obsessed with you?”

  I smacked my forehead against the counter and groaned.

  “It is a little weird.”

  The air whooshed from my lungs. I looked up slowly, and sure enough, there he was—standing at the counter smiling down at me.

  “I liked the first approach better, though. And yes. I want to go out with you.”

  My tongue swelled in my mouth, and I had the urge to bite down so it wouldn't disappear down my throat. That's what happened when you had a seizure, right? I was sure I was having a seizure.

  “What?”

  He chuckled, and it was beautiful. Exactly the way I imagined his chuckle to be.

  “Well, this is awkward. You weren’t talking about me, were you?”

  I blinked several times, trying to make sense of what was going on. I was mortified he'd overheard me, and equally horrified that I'd embarrassed hi
m.

  He ran a hand over his thick beard and looked down at the counter, the tips of his ears as pink as his cheeks. I’d made him blush!

  I was an idiot.

  “I was!” I blurted out. “I mean, I was talking about you, I just didn't know you were standing there. Oh God, I’m going to kill myself!”

  I turned to run to the backroom, but he tugged on the strings of my apron and thwarted my escape.

  “Hey, where are you going?”

  I whimpered and bit down on my lip. I'd done and said some stupid shit in my time, but this moment would go down in history as the stupidest of the stupid. He made me act and feel like a newborn deer—all gangly and awkward. He turned me into an emotional basket case.

  “Please,” I begged. “I'm so embarrassed right now. I think I was cursed by Gypsies!”

  “Can you turn around? Please?”

  I did as asked, but I couldn’t look up at him. I was mortified.

  “You're pretty adorable, Paisley.”

  I looked up, shocked. Idiotic, yes. Adorable? No.

  “How did you know my name?”

  He smiled, wide and gorgeous, and leaned both hands on the counter so we were almost nose to nose. I held my breath, mesmerized.

  “Can I tell you a secret, Paisley?”

  I nodded.

  “First of all, you introduced yourself three times while you were standing there trying to figure out how to ask me out.”

  “Oh,” I answered numbly. I was hoping for some magical confession of true unbridled love, but that was the obvious answer.

  “Yeah, oh,” he went on. “And by the way, I do like sugar in my coffee, but you always get my order wrong.”

  I ducked my head. Of course I did. I was too busy having mini orgasms to pay attention to his damn orders.

  “You know what else, Paisley?”

  This time, I looked him straight in the eye, unable to avoid it any longer.

  “What?”