The first thing Jaya ever learned from life was to work hard and never get attached to someone else. So what's a woman to do when she ends up living next door to a male supermodel who's looking for a connection that goes beyond skin-deep?
At twenty...
Ten minutes later, Noah stalked across his backyard with the weeping puppy in his arms.
"You're really something, P," he muttered. "You like her that much?" Shaking his head, he smiled to himself. What are the odds?
He couldn't tell if Jaya being his new neighbor was the best development or the worst.
"Jaya?"
"I'm over here."
He walked up to the seven-foot wall between their properties.
"How about we put a gate in here so Penelope can run back and forth between us?"
"I can't believe you're my neighbor."
"Small world. Do you want the gate?" she asked impatiently.
"Yes." They could tear the whole wall down for all he cared.
"Hold Penelope and step away from the wall."
"Why?"
"I'm going to make a hole."
"How?" He walked backward, side-stepping his petite lemon tree.
"I have superpowers."
"Smartass."
She laughed; he sure liked that sound. And her voice too. It was made to tell enchanting stories and whisper sexy things in his ear.
"I do own power tools though," she explained. "My parents dropped off my truck and tools earlier. I flip houses. Learned a lot about demolition and construction in the process. Are you standing at a safe distance?"
"Yes." He stepped a little farther away. If she were any other person he knew, he would've stayed where he was—but with Jaya, he'd be wary even if she hadn't joked about the superpowers.
While Jaya went ahead with the demolition, he occupied his mind with images of her swinging on a wrecking ball in her underwear (thank you, Miley Cyrus!).
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Five minutes and a lot of noise later, the wall crumbled.
"Well, that was easier than I thought," Jaya said, inspecting the hole with the sledgehammer propped on her shoulder.
Noah tried not to laugh. She looked like a grasshopper with the safety goggles on.
"Once we put in the gate, I can leave it open whenever it's okay for Penelope to come over."
"Sounds good. Thanks." He let go of Penelope, who couldn't get to Jaya fast enough.
She gave him a cheeky smile. "Let's hope it works. I'm not moving in with you if it doesn't."
***
The following evening, Noah and his best friends Nico and Elena sat outside enjoying drinks over a delicious barbecue. The sun had just set, and strings of overhead fairy lights illuminated his patio like fireflies.
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