Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Erin Davenport always imagined she’d end up with a quiet man. Someone like her. Then she met Jay Malone. He’s the loudest, pushiest, most sales-oriented man she’s ever met. A top Hollywood agent, Jay’s bought a waterfront house in Carmel, and everywhere Erin turns, he seems to be there, Big, gorgeous and pulsing with life. He seems to go through women like candy, but Erin has no intention of being his latest treat. Jay can sell anything to anyone. He turned a hot young surfer into an A list movie star, so why is it so hard to sell himself to Archer Davenport’s sister? Erin isn’t like anyone he’s ever known. He’s been in Hollywood so long, he’s accustomed to being surrounded by some of the most beautiful, talented women in the world. But Erin attracts him in a way no other woman ever has. She’s gorgeous and rarely bothers with makeup or fancy clothes. She’s a brilliant writer, but happy to work for the local newspaper, The Seashell. He thinks she’s the woman he’s been looking for all his life. But can he convince the emotionally risk-averse writer to take a chance on their love story?
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Chapter One
When Erin Davenport walked into Anna’s Coffee Shop on Tuesday morning, Tessa and Mila had already settled themselves at their favorite table. Mila was wearing a smart navy blue suit and had a particularly brilliant smile on her face, which usually meant one of two things: a really fun night with her fiancé, Herschel, or she’d sold another house.
Before Erin had a chance to ask her which it was, Mila said, “Today isn’t a coffee day, ladies, it’s a champagne day. Guess who just sold a waterfront home on Scenic Drive?”
Erin stroked her chin, pretending to ponder the question. “Dan Ferguson? I hear he’s the best Realtor in Carmel.”
“Very funny,” her sister said, flipping back her long blonde hair, which was bleached lighter than normal from the July sun. Since Dan Ferguson was Mila’s mentor and had trained her, it was a mild jab at best.
Tessa shook her head at them, a slight frown worrying her usually smooth brow. She was getting better, but she still wasn’t completely accustomed to the way the Davenport siblings liked to tease each other. Erin regarded her new sister-in-law for a moment. Tessa was dressed in what looked to be vintage blue Levis and a pretty pink pastel shirt that no doubt she’d found at one of the thrift stores she loved to visit. Even in a casual, comfortable outfit, she was absolutely glowing—there was no other word for it. Despite her more introverted nature, she’d managed a very public wedding to Erin’s A-list celebrity brother Archer at a grand, sprawling castle in Scotland, which had been splashed across every media outlet from digital to cable to print. Erin had noticed the way she’d avert her gaze if she saw their wedding pictures on the front cover of an entertainment magazine, but she never said anything, and in Erin’s opinion, Tessa had handled the transition from a very private person to the wife of a big celebrity with true grace. Although, based on the way her paintings were starting to sell, Erin thought she was going to have to get used to the limelight. To everyone’s joy, but possibly Archer’s more than anybody, a Tessa Taylor-Davenport painting was becoming a real collector’s item and the demand—and price—for her work was soaring.
Erin ordered a cappuccino and as she took her seat next to the two women she loved so much, she was perfectly willing to listen to Mila, who was just about bursting to tell them about her latest sale. “Go on.”
Mila grinned. “It’s that house you love, Erin. The one on Scenic Drive with the deco windows and all the Carmel stone. I don’t want to boast, but the commission was a nice chunk of change.”
Erin felt her jaw practically hit the floor. “I can’t believe that house was for sale and I never even knew it.” Even in her wildest dreams, Erin couldn’t have afforded that home, but she loved it so dearly there was a tiny part of her that thought the house was waiting for her. That she didn’t even know it was for sale was like a betrayal.
A little secretive smile played around Mila’s lips. “That’s why they pay me the big bucks, sis. I have my finger on the pulse and I get the scoops. Like you, at the newspaper, except with multimillion-dollar properties.” She paused to enjoy getting in a little jibe of her own, and let the small smile grow. “Plus, it turned out the new owner is friends with another of my clients, and they gave me a recommendation. It was such an easy sale too.”
“Who bought it?” Erin asked. How lucky they were to have that house and how she hoped they would treat it right. She sighed. She wasn’t wealthy like some of her siblings and could never afford her dream house. But she didn’t envy them. She was truly happy at her job as a reporter for the Sea Shell, Carmel-by-the-Sea’s local paper, and not earning a big wage was okay with her. She’d created a life she loved and that suited her quiet nature. She couldn’t imagine anything worse than having millions of screaming fans chanting her name, like her rock-star brother Damien, or being hounded by paparazzi like Arch.
Now Mila couldn’t stop the grin from all but exploding on her face. She glanced at Erin in a very significant way. “Actually, you know the new owner.”
“I do?” A spark of joy went through her and she reached out and grasped her sister’s hand. “It’s not Smith Sullivan and Valentina, is it? It would be so great to have them in the neighborhood, especially now that they’re expecting a baby. And Arch—”
Mila shook her head. “Not even close. Well, actually, sort of close. Try again.”
Her sister was clearly enjoying stringing this one out. Erin racked her brain. Who did she know who could afford that place and wouldn’t have told her about it? “Is it another actor?” Mila shook her head. “A director?”