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  Kiss My Ash

  Leddy Harper

  Edited by

  GFY Editing

  Cover by

  Robin Harper At Wicked by Design Covers

  Copyright © 2018 by Leddy Harper

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Heidi…

  You’ve seen every version of Ash I’ve attempted. Thank you for not giving up on him…or me.

  Contents

  Prologue

  1. Kristy

  2. Asher

  3. Kristy

  4. Asher

  5. Kristy

  6. Asher

  7. Kristy

  8. Asher

  9. Kristy

  10. Asher

  11. Kristy

  12. Asher

  13. Kristy

  14. Asher

  Epilogue

  Leddy’s Notes

  Hey You!!

  All About Leddy

  Also by Leddy Harper

  Prologue

  Asher

  I grumbled as I pulled into my driveway, noticing someone had moved into the house next door. I’d grown used to the privacy of not having anyone live there for almost a year. And knowing this neighborhood, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were an elderly couple who’d complain that my power tools were too loud.

  That was the last thing I needed.

  I finished typing out a text to my dad, letting him know I’d made it home, and got out of the car. A week at my mom’s with her arrogant husband had left me exhausted and craving the privacy of my dad’s house. But before I made it inside, the crash of falling metal and a muted curse stopped me.

  A woman stood in the driveway next door with a large box in her arms, struggling to keep it from falling. She was young, not grey-haired like I had imagined. Then again, that didn’t mean she lived there. It was possible she was helping her parents relocate—or grandparents.

  I walked over to lend a hand, finding her more attractive the closer I got. And when I rounded the front of the car, discovering the broken box and array of personal effects scattered around her feet, I became hypnotized by her wide, surprised eyes. The color was unlike anything I’d ever seen before—a marriage of royal blue and gold, the end product being a vibrant teal.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” I reached for the box in her hands before she dropped that, too.

  “Oh, you’re fine. I just didn’t see you come from…” She glanced around, clearly not having a clue where I had come from.

  I nudged my head to the right without looking away from her eyes. “I live next door.” Shifting the box to hold it with one arm, I held out my free hand and said, “Ash.”

  “Ash?”

  “Uh, yeah. That’s my name—Asher Jenkins.”

  Embarrassment colored her cheeks a light pink and darkened her eyes to a deeper green. I’d heard of people wearing their emotions on their sleeve, but I never understood it until now. And I began to wonder what else I could learn about her just by studying her face.

  She shook out of it and slipped her warm, soft hand into mine. “Please, don’t mind me. I’ve been unpacking an entire house by myself this week. It seems the isolation has affected my ability to be social. I’m Kristy.”

  “You live here alone?”

  “No. Well, right now, yes. But that’s because my daughter is at her father’s house. But I didn’t want to wait until she got here to get this done. Scouring through towers of cardboard just to find a mixing bowl is not fun.”

  “I can’t imagine it would be.” I glanced into her car through the open door, noticing only a few more items remained. “Looks like you’re almost done, so that’s good news.”

  “Yes, almost there. I only have this left and then my daughter’s room. But I’m leaving that for her to do. Heaven forbid I put something in the wrong place.” She rolled her eyes and laughed.

  Since I didn’t have a kid—or even know one—I couldn’t relate, so instead, I smiled like I had a clue how mad a little girl would be. “Too bad I wasn’t here, or I could’ve kept you from doing it all by yourself. I went to visit my mom and literally just got back.”

  “I’m used to doing everything by myself, so it’s no big deal. At least you came over and spoke to me. No one else has. In the five days I’ve been here, you’re the first neighbor I’ve met.”

  “Don’t worry, they’ll introduce themselves when they have a complaint.”

  Her eyes widened and brows arched high. “Do they do that a lot?”

  “Not really, but they’re all old…er.” I hoped I hadn’t offended her, considering I didn’t know her age. If I had to guess, I would’ve said thirty, thirty-five tops. Yet coming from someone younger, there was no way to know how she’d take it. “The sign at the entrance used to say, ‘retirement community,’ but I think someone took it down.”

  “Did it really?”

  I laughed under my breath and shook my head. “No. I’m just kidding. It feels like that, though. You’re probably the only woman here who doesn’t have white hair.”

  She toyed with the errant strands of strawberry-blond that framed her face, a small grin tugging at the corners of her naturally pink lips. I had to shift the box again to keep from reaching out and tucking the hair behind her ear.

  “Oh my God, I’m so sorry. Here…give me that.” She practically lunged forward and reached for the box, as though she’d forgotten I had taken it from her to begin with. However, I didn’t let it go, and eventually, she gave up.

  “Just tell me where to put it.”

  She huffed and dropped her shoulders, yet she didn’t argue. “Anywhere in the living room is fine. It’s right through there, just past the laundry room.”

  I followed her directions and set it against the wall, next to the TV cabinet. On my way out, I passed her in the garage, the rest of what I’d seen in her car now piled in her arms. Although, the scattered effects still lay on the driveway where she’d dropped them. So, I kneeled on the pavement and began to help pick them up.

  A noticed a picture frame and turned it over, hoping it hadn’t shattered. Just then, Kristy returned, saying something while she walked toward me, but I couldn’t hear her words. I was too busy staring at the image behind the glass—a photo of Kristy and a girl I recognized.

  “That’s my daughter, Emma.” She squatted in front of me and began to help pick up everything. “She’s sixteen—just got her license and a car. I have no idea where the time goes.”

  I was about to interject, tell her that I knew Emma, that we went to the same school, only she was a year younger than me. But I never got it out, because her next words were a game changer.

  “She’s going to start looking for colleges this year. Do you attend one of the local universities?”

  “I, um…I don’t go to college.”

  The striations of gold brightened as she blinked at me. “Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t know why that’s always my first assumption—I never went, either. I guess since it’s a common topic in my house, I think everyone your age is a student.”

  Technically, I was a student; I just hadn’t graduated…high school. I should’ve corrected her, yet I didn’t. Instead, I smiled and nodded, and then continued to pick up her stuff off the driveway.

  I’d correct her later.

  Either that or she’d realize the mistake when Emma recognized me.

  Chapter One

  Kristy

  “Hey, Mom.” Emma’s lips curled into a Cheshire grin when she slinked into the kitchen. She bent over t
he counter and all but batted her lashes—her signature move when she wanted something. “Tori’s going to the mall. Do you mind if I go with her?”

  I knew her too well.

  Tori wasn’t what I considered a good influence. However, she wasn’t necessarily bad, either. Emma was always honest with me—at least I hoped she was—and from what she’d told me, Tori was a bit boy crazy. I couldn’t protect my child from everything, but the idea of her hanging out with a girl who snuck boys into her room didn’t exactly excite me. Granted, it wasn’t like I could really say much—I had Emma two weeks before I turned seventeen. I would do anything to keep my child from going through what I did at her age.

  “Only you and Tori?”

  She rolled her eyes, knowing exactly where my thoughts were. I guess that’s what happens when you practically grow up with your kid. We’d always been super close and very open with one another—sometimes a little too comfortable sharing things. Regardless, I never hesitated to be her mother. I knew when to put my foot down and when to give in. I had mastered the art of picking my battles, and so far, it seemed to have paid off. Emma was a good kid; she made straight As, never broke curfew, and as far as I knew, never did drugs. Short of checking to see if her hymen was still intact, I was rather confident she was still a virgin, too.

  “Yes, Mom, just the two of us. It’s ten thirty on a Saturday morning. What is it you think we could possibly get into?”

  If only she knew she’d been conceived before noon on a weekend at an arcade. But I wasn’t about to tell her that. We were close, but not that close. She didn’t need all the details to know the end result. “Sure, go ahead. Do you need money?”

  With a small bounce on the balls of her feet, she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed my cheek. “No, but thank you.” She never accepted money when I offered, probably because she knew I didn’t have much to spare. Then again, she never needed to take mine when she had a father who tried to buy her affection—and based on how much he gave her, I could only assume he thought her love was expensive.

  Emma grabbed her keys from the bowl on the counter and ran out of the house. She’d turned sixteen two months ago, so the thought of her behind the wheel of a car did nothing but give me chest pains. It was hard to acknowledge that my baby was growing up—my only baby.

  Summers were hard enough without her constant need to meet up with her friends. During the months she was out of school, she lived with her dad—part of the custody arrangement we’d agreed to when she was little. His wife had worked from home, so at the time, it made sense for Emma to stay there. Even with a full-time job, I couldn’t have afforded daycare five days a week, which had left me in no position to argue. And even though she wasn’t a kid anymore, we’d never changed the agreement. Emma had always enjoyed the time with her dad and half-sister, so I hadn’t pushed it.

  Not only was this her first weekend of the summer with me, but it was her first weekend at the new house, too. I’d managed to get everything unpacked, anticipating spending time with her. Yet it seemed the second she had her room set up, she was out the door. As much as I wanted to make her stay home, I didn’t have the heart to keep her from her friends. I knew too well how quickly a person’s world could change, and while I prayed every day that she’d never experience that, in the event she did, I wanted her to live her life while she could.

  With Emma out of the house, the boxes unpacked, and nothing else to do, I decided to take a little time for myself. One of the selling points for this house was the neighborhood pool located in the center of the subdivision—one street away. Actually, it was the only selling point. I hadn’t taken a swim yet, considering I’d spent my entire vacation unloading boxes and putting things where they belonged. So, I slipped into a bikini, slathered on sunscreen, and grabbed a towel on my way out the door.

  I was surprised when I approached the gate and noticed I was the only one there. It was almost noon on a Saturday in the middle of summer. I had imagined there would be at least seven families, nine Super Soakers, and a minimum of two radios playing vastly different music. Then again, I pretty much lived in a retirement village.

  As I draped my towel over a lounge chair, I giggled when I thought about Ash’s assessment of our neighbors. He wasn’t wrong. I still hadn’t met any of them, but I’d seen a few in their yards or walking down the sidewalk, and so far, every last one of them had been over the age of sixty-five. At least they seemed friendly, waving or smiling as I passed.

  I settled onto the chair and closed my eyes, happy I’d picked this house to buy—the peace and quiet made the older home well worth it. With as hot as it was outside, I hadn’t planned to lay out for long. And after less than twenty minutes, the heat had already started to get to me. Yet it was the slow creak of the gate that made my eyes fly open, signaling I was no longer alone.

  Ash strolled in, set his things on a white, plastic table near the entrance, and reached behind him to pull his shirt over his head. He hadn’t once looked my way, so I wasn’t sure if he’d seen me. Although, I doubted he could’ve missed me when he’d walked up.

  I just lay there, watching him from behind my tinted glasses, hating myself for how attracted I was to someone so much younger. A trickle of perspiration fell between my breasts, though I doubted it had to do with the summer sun or insane level of humidity. Even though it may have been nearly a hundred degrees outside, it didn’t come close to how hot my neighbor was.

  The muscles in his shoulders rippled with every step he made toward the pool. The dimples on either side of his spine, just above the waistband of his swim shorts, left me drooling. And then he dove in, offering me a moment to pull myself together.

  This was insane. Ash couldn’t have been more than twenty-five, though I figured he was around twenty-two. At least, that was what I told myself at night when I was alone in my room with thoughts of his deep voice, hard biceps, and sexy grin. I’d feel dirty if he wasn’t even twenty-one. Not that it really mattered. Whether he was twenty or twenty-five, he was too young for me.

  When he surfaced, he swam to the side and wiped the water from his face—directly in front of my chair. He crossed his arms on the concrete ledge, dropped his chin onto his folded hands, and stared right at me.

  For a second, I wondered if he’d believe I was asleep. But when he smiled, I realized I had a better chance of convincing him I was the Queen of England. My sunglasses weren’t fooling anyone—especially him.

  “Hey, Kristy.” His voice was low and gravelly, and my name was nothing more than a rumble coated in a hint of seduction. “You plan on getting in?”

  I thought about acting surprised, like I hadn’t seen him there, but then I thought better of it. Instead, I shrugged. “Yeah. Actually, I was just about to cool off when you showed up. I figured you came here to relax, so I didn’t want to interrupt.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. The pool’s big enough for both of us.” He jerked his head the way guys did when calling someone over. “Come on, jump in. It feels great, and you’re hot.”

  I couldn’t be sure, but I doubted he meant overheated. My suspicion only grew worse once I slid off the chair and noticed his bottom lip roll between his teeth. As I ambled toward the shallow end, choosing to use the steps rather than jump in, I could almost feel his eyes follow me. But it was when I stepped into the water, facing him, that I became convinced I hadn’t misinterpreted his words. With his arms still crossed over the ledge, his head turned toward me, he raked his gaze down my chest until I’d lowered myself enough to hide the view.

  Crouching in the shallow end wasn’t very comfortable, yet I couldn’t stand up straight, and if I went into the middle where it was deep enough to touch without my shoulders being above the surface, I’d be even closer to Ash. While my body thought that was a great idea, my brain warned against it. Getting involved with a neighbor could be disastrous. Not only that, but I was sure Emma would have a lot to say about her mother sleeping with someone closer to her age th
an mine.

  Thankfully, Ash didn’t leave his post along the side. He did, however, turn around to face me. And with the way he held himself up with his elbows on the ledge behind him, it made it very difficult to pay attention to anything other than his hard, bare chest and broad shoulders.

  I wondered how long it’d take to convince myself he was thirty.

  “I haven’t seen you around this week. Have you been hiding?” His deep timbre traveled over the surface of the pool with ease, eliminating the need to raise his voice. It took no effort at all to hear every word he uttered in his baritone vibrato.

  “No.” I circled my arms through the water, yet I kept my feet firmly planted on the smooth bottom. “I work during the week, and since I used vacation time to move, I had a lot to catch up on—late nights.”

  “What do you do?”

  “I’m a bank manager.”

  “Nice. How exactly does one become the manager of a whole bank?”

  “I started as a teller when I was about your age and just worked my way up.”

  His brows knitted when he asked, “And how old do you think I am?”

  “Twenty-two?” I phrased it as a question in the hopes he’d answer, and then I held my breath as I waited for confirmation. I refused to analyze my need to know, considering it wouldn’t change anything. Unless, of course, he told me he was thirty and just looked younger. If that happened…so much would change. Such as, I wouldn’t need to keep my knees bent in the shallow end anymore.

  He didn’t do or say anything for a moment, only regarded me with a slightly furrowed brow. Then his expression relaxed. His head bobbed like one of those dashboard ornaments, a hint of a smirk dancing at the corners of his mouth and something akin to mischief glimmering in his eyes.