Chapter One ~ page 1 ~ 300-word excerpt ~
Ivette Wayland caught her breath. With the sun shining down on him, Jaxon Langford always caught her just a little unawares. He only lived upstairs, but every morning she found herself anticipating his first appearance of the day. She gazed through the plate glass window of her cozy tea shop as his little black Scottie dog scampered to keep up with his long strides. Jaxon halted just outside her door.

Would he enter?

She ached to run her fingers through that molasses-brown hair, still damp from the shower and sparkling like sugared ginger crinkles. It was ridiculous how much she yearned to touch him. He was her landlord, for goodness’ sake. Ivy reined in her longing. Jaxon paused on the sidewalk and quickly stepped over to hold open the door for the tiny, elderly Hazel Bestwick, president of the Hazard Historical Society.

Please come inside, Jaxon.

A couple of young boys on their way to school, backpacks swinging, asked him a question. Jaxon leaned down to answer. He fist-bumped the taller of the two boys and grinned. Jaxon’s smile shot straight to her core. As if sensing her watching, he glanced at the window, trying to see through sunlight bouncing off glass, his eyes the color of a well-steeped Irish breakfast tea.

She let out a little sigh. What she wouldn’t give to have him for…

“Focus,” said a voice behind her.

Ivy jumped and blinked twice to bring herself back to reality. “You have customers.

Remember your goals.”

Her older sister’s constant criticism put her on the defensive. Ivy swung abruptly to face her, causing her high blonde ponytail to smack her own cheek. She shoved it back. “Business is steady.”

“My business is steady.” Holly drew herself up straighter in her pink bakery smock smoothing a hand over her flawless updo before sweeping an arm out to draw Ivy’s attention to the nearly empty tearoom. “Your business is slow. And he…” She flapped her hand toward the window “…is a distraction to success. You can’t have it all.”

~ 800-word excerpt ~
Ivy sucked in a breath and bit her tongue. She gazed out over her cute little tea shop with its small round tables covered in emerald-green tablecloths and ivory lace, topped with glass to protect the fabric from spills. Chairs with curved metal backs and comfy vinyl seats, reminiscent of a 1950s ice cream parlor, were mixed in with dark, bentwood chairs that might grace any Irish pub. Ruffled lace curtains framed her large window with its stunning view of the town square. Honestly, she couldn’t hope for a better location. Her little Welcome/Shut sign in Old English script added that homey, yet elegant, note.

Of course, Hollister’s Bakery, her sister’s business adjacent to hers with its sleek modern design, had a steady stream of customers, while the Ivy Way Tea Shop did not. She could swear Holly popped over several times a day through their shared kitchen just to gloat. Holly’s success versus her own less-than-success resulted in their ongoing argument.

Was it possible to have a love life while building a successful business?

Even though Ivy currently had neither, she believed that yes, it was possible to have it all.

Holly maintained that it was not. Choices must be made. Priorities must be set.

Ivy turned toward her sister, losing sight of her delectable landlord as he strode down the street toward his own corner office. “All being a successful businessperson in a long-term relationship….” Ivy trailed off. She couldn’t share her complete thought, leading to my own personal happily ever after. Holly would scoff. “Yes, of course it’s possible, lots of people do

it.”

Holly rolled her eyes, and in one quick motion raised a hand to smooth her tightly coiled bun again. “Pu-lease. In this town? Who?”

Ivy opened her mouth to shoot back an answer, and faltered. Hazard did rather live up to its name in the romance department. Still. “Our parents.”

“Who no longer live here.”

“Well, what about Garrett and Priscilla?” It irked Ivy to name her high school nemesis, but Priscilla did seem to have had success in the romance department.

“Committed? They should both be committed the way they bicker. I would hardly call them happy, what with all her scheming.”

“Okay.” There must be happy, successful couples, but Ivy’s mind was coming up blank. All she could think of were local relationships that had ended in divorce or tragedy. “Well, if it’s what I want.”

Holly pursed her lips, tilted her head, and shrugged. “Sure. Okay.”

Ivy narrowed her eyes. Her sister never just agreed with her.

Holly continued, “You just can’t have it all at the same time. Once you’ve achieved a suitable level of success, then pursue a relationship. If you want to build your business, little sis, put more effort into marketing instead of mooning over Jaxon Langford every time he walks by.”

It was true that he did walk by a lot, since Langford Architectural Enterprise was just three doors down. She often saw him passing her shop window when he was going to meet clients. Plus, he walked that jaunty little dog twice a day.

“It’s not like he’s over his wife.” Holly’s words were like a drenching dash of icy, cold water.

“She’s been gone three years,” Ivy muttered. Three years I’ve been waiting for him to see me as more than a tenant. Three freaking…

“Success takes work.”

Ivy let out a huff. Like she didn’t know that. Still, Hollister’s Bakery was busier than the Ivy Way Tea Shop by far, and Holly worked constantly. Her sister actually adhered to a ten-year plan. Amazing, really. Ivy preferred living in the moment, making the most out of each and every day. “Let’s make a bet.” The words fell from Ivy’s mouth before she could reconsider.  “You’ll lose.”

“Not this time.”

Holly smirked. “You always lose.”

“So what are you worried about?”

“Hmm, I’ll bite.” Holly took a bite of a scone sample from the glass counter. “What do I win when you lose? And how do we know when you’ve lost?” She waved the remaining bit of scone in the air.

Ivy pursed her lips. “By the end of the month, I’ll increase my business 30% and be in a committed relationship.”

“And this is why you lose.” Holly laughed and popped the last bit of scone in her mouth.

“It could happen.”

Holly rolled her eyes. “In twenty-eight days? Your timeline’s too short, with too many indeterminate variables that’ll burn you.”

Ivy resisted the urge to stomp her foot, or better yet, stomp on Holly’s foot like Holly stomped on all her dreams. “Tell you what, if you win, I’ll clean and close up your shop for a month and if I win, you’ll clean and close up mine.”

It wasn’t fair, of course. Holly’s bakery mess was much worse than Ivy’s tea shop mess, but it didn’t matter because this time Ivy would win. She glanced at the heirloom cookie press hanging from its emerald green ribbon in a place of honor on her wall.

What if it wasn’t just a myth?

What if the stories were true?

What if fate was just waiting on her to take the chance?

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