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  “I’m happy to help.”

  “You really are the best.” Roxy hands me back my phone and bends to give me a huge hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  POPPY

  * * *

  I step through the door of the Stars and Stripes and stop in my tracks. I watch as Roman and the waitress get all touchy feely with each other. At one point she takes his phone and I can only assume she gives him her number because she pulls her own phone out to show him something… maybe a call or a text coming through from him.

  I watch for another minute to make sure I am seeing what I think I am seeing. I know I am super sensitive, but at the same time, I won’t be played for a fool again.

  Sure enough, the waitress bends over and practically lays in Roman’s lap as she drapes herself around his neck for a kiss. With the sun behind them I can’t see his face, but I think I’ve seen enough. I got the picture.

  I am well aware that I have no claim on Roman. I mean, I have no idea who he’s seeing or anything that happened before today. But after the time we spent today, it is a shock to see him flirting so openly with someone else. Watching them makes me feel like today meant nothing to him.

  I blow out my breath. I don’t know him very well. This is my own fault. This is what happens when I jump in without looking. I don’t know what I want, but I know what I don’t need: I don’t need to waste my time with another player—no matter how hot the sparks are. The thought makes me shiver. No thanks.

  “Damn it,” I whisper under my breath, grateful that he hasn’t turned to see me before I can slip out the door.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  POPPY

  * * *

  “Oh, look at that one, Poppy! All the cute fur babies!” Grandma Lynn waves at the parade float as it rolls by. This one features the local animal shelter workers sitting with dogs, puppies, and cats of all sizes. “I think I might want to get a dog.”

  Behind them is the high school marching band, followed by a large float decorated like a giant red white and blue top hat. The high school cheerleaders dance along the brim and Uncle Sam stands at the top, waving to the crowd and throwing candies at the children.

  We clap when the marching band finishes their number and then the parade pauses and the cheerleaders begin one of their routines.

  “Poppy!”

  I hear my name called over the din of the parade, but I can’t tell which direction it came from. I look around.

  “Poppy! Up here!”

  I look up and see Uncle Sam waving at me from the top of the float.

  I stand up and shield my eyes from the morning sun so I can see his face, but he’s covered in a white wig under a huge top hat and has a ridiculous stick-on beard.

  “Poppy, who is that?” Grandma Lynn’s voice tells me that she likes what she sees, very much.

  When he takes off his hat, I can see his face. It’s Roman. “Oh.” I sit back down and feel cornered. “Just a guy, Grandma. Why is the parade stopped for this long? Can you see anything blocking them up ahead?”

  “Poppy!”

  I will myself not to look up at him again.

  “Why don’t you just give him a wave, dear. Let him know you see him.”

  “Mmm hmm,” I say, not committing to anything.

  Then I watch in horror as Uncle Sam slides down the ladder on the side of the hat and lands on the brim. The crowd goes crazy and the kids swarm up near the float. He reaches into a giant bucket and grabs handfuls of candy which he tosses to the kids.

  Then, like a man on a mission, Uncle Sam jumps off the float and makes a bee-line right for me.

  He takes off his hat when he gets close. “Poppy. You stood me up last night.”

  “Well, aren’t we direct?” Grandma Lynn grins at him.

  “Excuse me.” He turns to Grandma Lynn and bows as he offers his hand. “You must be Lynn, Poppy’s grandmother. She’s told me about you. I’m Roman Chandler.”

  “How nice. Any relation to Pete Chandler?” she asks.

  He nods. “Pete’s my uncle.”

  She takes his hand and fans herself with her free one. “Aren’t you a tall drink of water?”

  I stare at them. “Um. Hello?”

  Roman releases my grandmother and straightens, then he smiles at me. “You stood me up last night.”

  I look over my shoulder at the people nearby who are taking all of this in with rapt attention. “So you keep saying. But for your information, I did not stand you up. I arrived to find you otherwise engaged.”

  “Oh, dear.” Grandma tsks and shakes her head. “Not good.”

  Roman’s face is sweaty under his wig and beard. “Otherwise engaged? I waited all night for you, by myself. If you’re not interested, that’s fine. But after yesterday… I was… well, I was surprised that you didn’t show.”

  I feel the fire in my cheeks, but I refuse to look away. “Really? When I got there, I saw you with the waitress. I watched you exchange phone numbers and then get rather… intimate.” As I say it I feel foolish, like I am the one who got caught.

  Roman laughs. “Roxy? All right. Well, what you witnessed was her and Jackie, the bartender, roping me into this getup. I agreed to do them a favor and she was thanking me with a hug and a kiss. On the cheek, I should add.”

  I realize how wrong I am and it’s like water being thrown over my back. “Oh.”

  “Yeah, oh.” He touches my hand and the fire ignites inside me in a flash. I can tell he feels me reacting to his touch. “I know we just met, but can I get another chance… to prove myself, I mean.”

  “I like this one, Poppy.” Grandma Lynn taps on my arm.

  I can’t help but smile.

  The parade starts moving again. “You have to go.”

  He doesn’t move his feet, instead he takes hold of my other hand. “Meet me after. At the clock tower.” The float is now past us and about to make the turn around the park.

  “You’re going to miss your ride,” I say.

  He shrugs like he has all the time in the world. “I can’t leave until you promise me.”

  The float is now twenty yards away and still moving. I feel an incredible amount of pressure, like I am the one shirking my parade duties.

  I sigh. “Fine. I promise. I will meet you—”

  Roman smiles and kisses me with everything he’s got and it literally knocks me off my feet and into his arms. The crowd around us cheers as he puts me into my chair and runs off to catch his float. He hops on board like he’s got wings on his feet and doesn’t miss a beat waving to the crowd.

  Grandma Lynn winks at me. “That Roman looks just like his Uncle Pete Chandler did back in the day. Talk about hot stuff. Holy diggety.”

  I gape at my grandmother and then catch the last glimpse of the Uncle Sam float before it turns around the corner and out of view.

  CHAPTER NINE

  ROMAN

  * * *

  It takes a little bit to extricate myself from the end of the parade, but as soon as I am free, I make a run for it. I cut across the fair grounds and through the park and when I get to the town square, I see her.

  Poppy sits in the shade on a bench under the clock tower.

  “You made it,” I say.

  She eyes me, serious. “You didn’t have to run.”

  “You kidding? I was afraid you wouldn’t wait for me.”

  “I said I would.” She bristles visibly at my teasing.

  “Hey. I am sorry. I meant that you’d have to get your grandmother home or something. I feel like I stepped wrong and I don’t know how to get back in line.”

  “Grandma Lynn is at the picnic with her bridge friends.” She sighs and rubs her hands on her knees. “I am sorry. It’s me.” She pauses for a moment as if gathering her thoughts. “I recently ended a long-term relationship because I found out he was cheating.”

  I open my mouth to interject but she stops me with a wave of her hand.

  “Roman, when
we… Um… Yesterday was incredible.” She smiles and then looks away. “It happened so fast. We never had time to even discuss other people or anything like that, and if you’re dating someone else, that’s all right. I have no claim on you… in a relationship. But when I saw you in the bar last night, even if I got it all wrong, it showed me something about myself. I realized that I don’t want to share. And I don’t want to play. I want something real.”

  I take her hand and pull her to her feet. “Walk with me.”

  We spend the next few hours wandering through town, talking. I tell her about Anna and she tells me about Matt. It’s weird sharing things so openly with another person who I barely know, but with Poppy, I know she gets it. She listens and she understands where I am coming from.

  When we get back to the fairgrounds and the town picnic, we stop at the gate. I touch her hand and she laces her fingers through mine. Her touch sends a zing up my arm.

  “What is that?” I say. “Every single time I touch you it’s like…”

  “…a tiny bomb going off,” she finishes my sentence and smiles.

  “Big Bang Boom!” A craggy old voice comes floating toward us from inside the gate. It sounds like a cross between Willie Nelson and Yosemite Sam. We turn and watch the owner of the voice—a naked dude—come twirling around the gate like he’s dancing to music only he can hear and then he shuffles on past us down the road.

  He’s tan all over every inch of his ancient body and he’s wearing a sparkly red, white, and blue hat with a matching sparkly pouch for his junk. “Well, glad to see someone dressed for the occasion.”

  Poppy smiles and waves at the man as he passes. “Hi, Mr. Freeman. Glad to see you’re doing well!”

  He waves over his shoulder without turning back. “Hey there little lady, tell your grandma Dick says hello.”

  “Do I even want to know?” I ask, watching him roll into the sunset, the white hair on his shoulders catching the glow.

  She shrugs. “He’s harmless. Milltown’s resident nudist. He’s got a whole closet full of holiday pouches.”

  I wag my eyebrows at her. “Nudist… perhaps he’s onto something?”

  She runs her hands over my shoulders. “Hmm. I think maybe you’re right.”

  I take her hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Back at my place, I lay a blanket on the freshly cut grass in the open field. The evening is warm and still, and the night bugs fill the air with their songs.

  “Today was nice, thank you,” Poppy says as she stretches out on the blanket.

  I sit down next to her. “I’m glad I found you at the parade.”

  She leans back and presses herself against me and we watch the sky, waiting for the fireworks to begin in town.

  I move her hair off her shoulder and kiss the back of her neck, letting the surge of heat move through my body.

  She shivers. “Gosh that really is something.”

  “Big Bang Boom,” I whisper.

  Poppy giggles as she turns and climbs on top of me, pulling my shirt up over my head.

  “We’ll miss the show,” I say, tipping my head as the first bloom of color fills the sky.

  She runs her nails over my chest and bites my nipple. “Oh, I think we can manage our own fireworks right here.”

  ONE YEAR LATER

  POPPY

  The parade is longer this year. Grandma Lynn and I watch from the sidewalk as the floats roll past, each one with their own piece of the local flavor. As the Stars and Stripes float approaches, I can see Uncle Sam waving and dancing at the top of the gigantic top hat, while throwing candy to all the kids down below.

  Roman comes up behind me with a cardboard tray with three lemonades. “He does a much better job than I did.”

  I smile at the memory. “Well, the costume was actually made for him.”

  We wave up at Tommy as he rolls by. He tosses a handful of Tootsie Rolls in our direction.

  “But you made for a better show, my dear,” Grandma Lynn says. She looks up at Roman and winks behind her sunglasses. “I wonder if anything will happen this year to top that.”

  “There’s always Mr. Freeman,” I suggest.

  Grandma Lynn scoffs. “That old coot and his bedazzled noodle covers? You call that a show?” She waves it off.

  “Well, now that you mention it, there is something. I was saving it for later, but if Grandma Lynn asks…”

  I watch as Roman gets down on one knee and takes my hand. The spark of heat when we touch is as alive as it was a year ago and shows no sign of letting go.

  “Poppy Blaze, you bring me to my knees. I thank god every single day that I get to wake up next to you and feel that kick whenever we touch. I feel like the luckiest guy alive that I get to see the light in your eyes when you smile at me. I’d like to give you the rest of my life. Would you do me the honor of giving me the rest of yours?”

  I feel the eyes of the crowd on me as everyone grows quiet. It’s as if all the people are holding their breath like I am. The stun wears off and my eyes well up with happy tears. Once my throat loosens, I speak. “Yes, Roman, yes! Oh my god. I can’t believe this. I love you.”

  He opens the little velvet box and the diamond inside sparkles in the morning sunlight. It’s got a ruby on one side and a dark sapphire on the other. “Red, White, and Blue… like the fireworks when we met and the ones in the sky too.”

  I throw myself into his arms and kiss him, letting all the little bombs light up over my skin. “I love you, Roman.”

  “I love you, baby.”

  Grandma Lynn applauds. “Now that’s how it’s done.”

  Want to see what happens next? Download the

  BONUS 2nd EPILOGUE

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  SNEAK PEEK: BLAZING HOT CHEF

  - SNEAK PEEK -

  CHAPTER ONE

  MARINA

  * * *

  “We’re on our way to the hospital now.” My producer gasps into the phone between sentences as she grapples with labor pains. Her baby isn’t due for another month. “Looks like this little guy is determined to choose his own birthday regardless of my plans.” She lets out a nervous laugh.

  I hold the phone to my ear as my mind races with all the things we still had left to do before she went on leave. “Oh, wow, Grace. Okay. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll call Paolo’s people and let them know we have to cancel.” I grab my coat and keys and head out the door. I need to get to the office and start making calls. “Good thing we weren’t already there, or you’d be having your baby on Paolo’s private island!”

  Grace’s breathing has gone back to normal, replaced by the echoey rumble of road noise as our call plays through her car’s speakers. “We aren’t going to cancel, Marina. We can’t. Too many things have been put into place for this.”

  “Oh. All right,” I say, confused because the whole point of this project with celebrity chef Paolo Perso was the timing, and if the producer isn’t available… “Are we rescheduling, then?” Even as I trace through my memory trying to recall who Grace had lined up to take her place when she went on maternity leave, I know I’ll come up empty because this very thing was on the list to discuss this coming week.

  “Oh, god. Hang on!” My boss’s breathing is measured and loud as she does whatever it is pregnant mothers do during labor. When she comes back on a minute later, she does so with a loud, tired sigh. “Marina. Paolo’s shows need to happen as planned. His branding team has done a huge media buy to support it ahead of his new sauce line’s launch, and CCI is counting on us as part of their big push ahead of their competition.”

  Grace is telling me things I already know. “Right. Understood.” The California Culinary Institute’s annual cooking competition is happening next month. It’s a huge deal for them, and this year the competition has been picked up by the Eating Channel. As one of their most famous alumni, Paolo Perso has agreed to do several exclusive cooking shows as a lead-in to the competition. His show will be th
e prime time program every night during Cook-Off Week, where all the programming will be talking about CCI and their annual event.

  “I’ll take care of everything, Grace. Don’t worry.”

  “I was hoping you’d say that.” Her relief is obvious. “You’re the best, Marina.”

  I smile at the compliment and roll through the names I was going to suggest for her replacement when we met this week. “All right, so who did you want me to call to take your place? I think Greg Chadwick is back in town tonight, and last I heard he was available. I could try Simone Glass from Channel Six. She’s been doing more freelance work lately. I don’t think Michelle Winn is available anymore. I heard she signed on to that climate change documentary.”

  “Marina…”

  I unlock my car and slide into the driver’s seat, trying to come up with more names, but it’s the end of summer and people are on vacation and it’s becoming clearer to me that our options are probably more limited now than they might have been earlier in the season.

  But I am determined to find the answer, as always, to whatever hurdle we’re facing. “I bet Jessie might be interested. He’s been working with the film school a lot lately, but I’m sure he’ll—”

  “Marina,” Grace interrupts, her voice soft.

  “Yes?” I feel like she’s about to tell me that she’s already lined up someone to take over and I can almost feel the tension release from my shoulders.