“I’m good. What’re you laughing at?”
“Oh, nothing.” Nothing sounded like it was definitely something.
He heard a male voice in the background, and his muscles tensed, his sister’s words coming back to him. Professor Hottie Pants. “Who was that?”
“Mitch Grayson. I told you we were seeing each other a few weeks ago, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.” He told himself not to make a big deal out of it, but a question came out before he could stop it. “Did he come over for breakfast?” Please say yes.
“Mm-hm. Yup. Sure did.” She giggled.
Robin Pennington was not a giggler. Unless she was lying. Dash silently chastised himself for feeling weird about his mother having a serious relationship. “That’s nice. Does he treat you well?”
“Very well. Like a princess.”
His mother was the farthest thing from a princess, but she sure as hell deserved to be treated like one. “Good. I’d like to meet him next time I’m in town.”
“I was hoping you’d say that. Are you still coming before the fundraiser?”
“Yeah. I’ll be there the Friday before.” He knew he should let her go spend time with Mitch, but he was dying to tell her about Amber. “I met someone, too.”
“Oh, honey. I want to hear all about her. What’s her name? How did you meet her? Where does she live?”
He chuckled, loving her enthusiasm. “Her name is Amber Montgomery, and she grew up in Oak Falls, Virginia and lives in Meadowside. I think you may know her. She went to Boyer and spent a lot of time in the library.”
“Amber…Amber…Was she in the LWW sisterhood? Dark hair, pretty, on the quiet side?”
“Yes, that’s her.”
“Oh, Dashy, she was one of my favorite girls,” she said thoughtfully, the nickname tugging at his heartstrings. “We talked almost every day. It’s all coming back to me. I remember she missed her family so much when she first came to Boyer, I worried she’d go home and never come back. But she stuck it out. How did you meet her? Through Sinny?”
“Yeah, at a party in a barn. She’s really something, Mom. She’s…She reminds me of home.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good thing. You had so much responsibility on your shoulders when you lived here.”
There was no denying that, but nothing could ruin home. “It’s a good thing, Mom. You showed me what family is.”
“No, honey. You showed me what family is. You were the glue that held us together.”
“I don’t know about that, but either way, I don’t regret any of those years, and Amber is all about family. She’s wholesome and smart. She makes me laugh and think and feel. She brings out parts of me I had forgotten existed, and she’s got this quiet strength and confidence that blows me away.”
“It sounds like you’re really taken with her.”
“I am. I think about her all the time. I’ve only known her for a week. Is that nuts?”
“That’s not nuts, honey. That’s how you know it’s real, when it bites you in the butt and you don’t want to run away.”
He chuckled. “I’m not running. I’m in LA for a couple of days, and I want to jump on the next flight out of here and get back to her.”
“What does she do for a living? Will she be going with you on your tour?”
He hadn’t considered that option. “She owns the bookstore where I’m starting the tour. I doubt she can take that much time off.”
“A bookstore. She followed her dreams. I’m happy for her, and I’m happy for you, my sweet boy. You’ve been wrapped up in football for so long, I thought maybe you’d forgotten that there was more to life than winning a game and more to women than…you know.”
“Mom. You know I’m not like that.”
“Every young man is like that, even if you don’t act on it all the time. It’s hormones.”
“Okay, we’re not going there.” He walked over to the balcony doors, looking out at the city, missing Amber. “I’d like to bring her with me when I come home so you can meet her.”
“I would love that. Look at us, two solo flyers picking up copilots.”
“Speaking of which, tell Mitch I’m sorry for taking up your morning and to expect the third degree when I get there.”
They talked for a while longer, and after they ended the call, he sent a text to Amber. I’m looking out over LA, but all I see is you. Too keyed up to go back to sleep, he threw on a pair of shorts and headed out for a run.
AMBER GLANCED AT the notification on her phone as she rang up a customer, hoping it was another text from Dash. He’d texted a few times earlier in the day, and each text had been more romantic and playful than the last. He’d told her to check his Instagram feed, and she’d been on cloud nine all day after seeing a picture of the Hollywood sign against a dusky morning sky with the caption I love morning runs in LA, but nothing compares to small-town starry nights. Fictional heroes had nothing on him. But the notification was from her book club forum, about their upcoming meeting. Even though the club was online and discussions took place in the forum, they also held in-person meetings at different locations throughout the year. Amber had yet to attend one, but she tried to join via video chat. Their conversations always turned to their personal lives, and this month she’d actually have something fun to add to the conversation.
She put Dash’s book and the other items Britney Gregson, a pretty brunette who was a little younger than Amber, had purchased in the bag and handed it to her. “I hope you’ll make it to the book signing next weekend.”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’m sure you’ve heard the buzz about his morning workouts at the park. I’m going to join them when he’s back in town.”
“Yes. I’ve heard he’s quite the inspiration. Enjoy the books.” Not only had Amber’s mother spent most of breakfast going on about how much she and her friends were missing their morning exercises with Dash, but she’d also helped two other customers who had talked about joining the group and must have seen his post this morning as well, because they’d gossiped about his glamorous lifestyle—Can you imagine jetting off to LA? I bet he flies on a private jet with champagne and pretty attendants. Amber knew better. Dash had mentioned last night how exhausting the travel was. He admitted to flying first class, but only because it was easier to get on and off the plane with less fanfare. Maybe she should be jealous that so many women were into him, but it was hard to muster that emotion when everything he did showed her that, at least for now, he only had eyes for her.
Amber logged on to the book club forum to post about attending the virtual meeting as Phoenix came out of the stockroom with more copies of Dash’s book. “Thanks, Phee. I was just going to ask you to do that.” She pocketed her phone and went to help her. Reno pushed to his feet from his dog bed by the register and followed her.
“They’re really flying off the shelves.” Phoenix eyed Amber as they set out the books. “Are we going to pretend there were no sparks flying between you two the other night at Lyrics and Lattes?”