Second Nature
Authors: Krista Ames
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Romance, #Contemporary Fiction, #Contemporary, #Military
Thank you for purchasing this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Second Nature
by
Krista Ames
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.
Second Nature
COPYRIGHT © 2014 by Krista Ames
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contact Information: [email protected]
Cover Art by
Debbie Taylor
The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
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Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708
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Publishing History
First Champagne Rose Edition, 2014
Digital ISBN 978-1-62830-092-5
Published in the United States of America
Dedication
To my family,
your constant patience and understanding
is overwhelming!
~*~
To my wonderful editor
for making this story a reality, I owe this release to you!
Chapter One
“Am I totally crazy?” Dana shook her head. “Certifiably insane! Good Lord, I’m now talking to myself.” She sat up and looked around to make sure no one was listening to her one-sided conversation. Various men were reading the news and women were chatting with their children.
I’m on a freaking airplane for God’s sake and I hate to fly. I’ve always hated flying! Well, not always, since this is actually the first time, but who cares? What the hell was I thinking?
She swallowed the last of her iced-down tomato juice and crumpled the bag of peanuts in her hand. She really needed to go to the bathroom, but no way was she leaving her seat. Just the thought of walking through a piece of metal, literally floating through the air at thirty thousand feet above ground, made her stomach turn. Instead, she popped ear-buds in her ears, closed her eyes, and turned her iPod up as high as the volume allowed without bothering the other passengers around her.
Not that the guy in the window seat beside her would notice though. He was snoring a beat that could wake the dead. How anyone would possibly hear her music or jabbering over his nauseating snorts was a mystery to her. She prayed the rumbling noise at the back of his throat didn’t upset her stomach any more than it already was.
The country music blaring in her ears would hopefully block out the insufferable snoring, and the flight attendant’s announcements of how high they were above whatever city and how long until they landed in Seattle.
Dana Stevenson had never been a brave person. If there was risk involved she was out of the picture completely. There were very few people on Earth she would do something so drastic for. Unfortunately, this plane ride, one she saw as a major red-flag, was necessary. She was making an exception, for her friend who’d owe her big time. Dana would make sure.
She had met Amy at their college orientation and they quickly became best friends. They were inseparable. By mere chance, they had selected the same major and were in the same classes. They had found an apartment within walking distance of the campus and were each other’s shadow until recently.
During their senior year, Amy had met and fallen in love in with a Navy man. Dave was perfect for Amy, and during many long night telephone conversations, Amy assured Dana that Dave was one of the last original, great guys. When he was landlocked in Seattle, Amy had moved to Washington to be with him. She’d been gone for six months, but those six months were the longest and loneliest of Dana’s life.
Amy and Dave were now getting married and Dana had been asked to be matron of honor—her reason for flying halfway across the country on a freaking airplane. Big mistake.
Three weeks ago, Dana had resigned from her cushy office job as a column writer for a magazine to focus full time on her Internet cooking site and online kitchen gadget shop. She could manage her business from any place she could plug in her laptop. This luxury allowed her to take off as much time as she wanted, so she was flying to Washington a week early to help Amy with wedding preparations.
Amy had bought a little boutique after settling in Seattle. She’d asked Dana if she would mind taking over while on her honeymoon. How could Dana say no? Amy would do the same for her, and Dana wasn’t in any hurry to rush back to a lonely apartment.
She enlisted her younger stepsister, Mindy, to apartment-sit and to work at the gadget shop, giving Dana an extra two weeks in Seattle after the wedding. There were plenty of tourist sites she was determined to see. No doubt she’d stay busy. Amy had promised Dana a tour of the civilian areas of the Naval Base at Bremerton with Dave.
Every time Amy talked about the Navy base and Dave, Dana’s heart ached from her own memories. She never forgot about that one incredible freshman year she had spent falling in love with a tall, dark, and handsome man. After a huge fight outside her apartment one night, he’d mysteriously left school without an explanation or a goodbye. She found out much later he had left to join the Navy shortly before sophomore year.
Dana had asked Amy if Dave knew of Nicholas Prescott, but she didn’t really expect him to. How many men across the United States joined the Navy every year? The last Dana had heard, when she occasionally bumped into Nick’s sister in town, he was somewhere overseas. Dana sadly resigned to never see him again, except in her dreams—her very vivid, steamy dreams. Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. Isn’t that what they said? Too bad she didn’t believe that garbage.
She nearly jumped sky-high when a hand rested on her shoulder. Her eyes sprang wide open to see a flight attendant hovering beside her.
“Ms. Stevenson, please adjust your tray table.” The attendant pointed at the table, while a second attendant at the front recited her speech. “Please fasten your seat belts and place your tray tables in their upright positions as we are on approach to Seattle International.”
“Thank God,” Dana whispered. Unfortunately, the landing was almost as disturbing as the flying. She gripped the arms of the chair as the wheels hit the tarmac, skidded to a halt, and then rolled to the gate.
With her carry-on and purse in hand, and a load of stress eased from her shoulders, Dana walked the long hallway into a bustle of travelers anxious to get to their own destinations. All she could think about was finding the baggage claim, seeing Amy, and
never
flying again—all in that order. She’d worry about getting home at the end of her stay later…much, much later.
Collecting her duffel and garment bags from the luggage conveyor belt, she hoisted her laptop carry-on and purse over her shoulder. She turned to search for Amy and walked right into her. Tears watered from Dana’s eyes and Amy squealed in excitement as they embraced in a long, overdue hug.
****
Amy drove from the airport pick-up area and into freeway traffic. She informed Dana they would be going to an engagement party tonight, thrown by one of Dave’s best friends.
“Amy, why didn’t you tell me? I didn’t bring anything to wear to a dinner party.”
Amy glanced away from the road for a split second to give Dana her famous,
evil enough to skin a cat
grin. “Well then, we’ll just have to go shopping, won’t we?”
Dana laughed. As if they needed an excuse to shop.
It was still early, so instead of heading to Amy and Dave’s place, they went straight to the mall and shopped for two hours. Exhaustion tore at Dana’s body, but she followed Amy into one last store, where Dana finally found the perfect dress. It was silky black with spaghetti straps, and hit mid-thigh. She had always wanted a barely-there, sexy number, but never had a reason or an occasion to wear one.
“Girl, you look fabulous in that dress. It should be illegal.” Amy waved her hand, clicking her fingers.
“You don’t have to tell me twice. I’m getting it and I need black stilettos, too.” Dana stepped back in the dressing room. “Will there be any cute guys there tonight?” she asked through the closed door. “It’s been a long time, you know.”
Amy snickered. “Exactly how long? No, wait. I don’t wanna know.”
Dana opened the door with her perfect dress draped over her arm. She smiled. “Good, because I wasn’t gonna tell you anyway.”
They hit the shoe department next, and then with her purchases in hand they headed to Amy’s house.
Dave and Amy owned a cute three bedroom townhouse—no doubt for future planning on Amy’s part and her eagerness to have at least two kids and a dog. Amy claimed Dave was more than willing to comply. For now though, the second bedroom was a guest room, and the third had been converted into an office and a storage room, full of overflow from Amy’s boutique.
“This is a wonderful place, Amy. I just love it.” After Dana had the nickel tour, they went to the kitchen. “The pictures you sent didn’t do your home justice.”
“Thanks. It suits our needs and we like it a lot. A far cry from our college days, huh? Do you remember our first apartment?” Amy laughed.
“How could I forget? Ugh, it was hardly big enough for the both of us at one time. But hey, the price was right!”
“Are you hungry? We could have a small bite before we start primping for the party.”
Dana’s eyes went wide, her stomach growling at the mere mention of food. “Oh, yes, please! I’m starved! Peanuts and tomato juice on the plane didn’t cut it. Hey, I thought Dave would be home?”
Amy opened the refrigerator and pulled out cold meat, bread, and mayonnaise for sandwiches. “Actually, Dave is already at his friend’s house where the party will be. I dropped him off when I left to pick you up. You know how men are, last minute guy stuff. We’ll just meet him there. He’s almost as anxious to see you again as I was.”
After a quick bite to eat, Dana dumped her purchases on the bed and got dressed for the party. While they dressed and primped, Dana was briefed on the important people who would be at this party, namely Dave’s captain, sergeants, and other guys he worked with. Their family wasn’t able to come into town until the day before the wedding.
Once dressed, Amy rushed her out of the townhouse. Dana slid onto the passenger seat looking like a million bucks and ready for a good time. Amy’s dress was similar to Dana’s, only white with rhinestones covering the straps. She also wore teardrop earrings with a matching necklace, perfect attire for a bride-to-be.
Dana was so excited and nervous, her palms were sweating and goose bumps spread over her arms. She loved a man in uniform. Who wouldn’t? It really had been a long time since she’d been with a man. She could hear her internal clock ticking, or was that her hormones kicking into overdrive at the mere thought of men? She just needed to keep thoughts of her past with Nick in shut-off mode.
Amy parked in the driveway of a lovely Cape Cod cottage overlooking the bay.
Wow!
Dana smiled.
The exterior of the cottage had rustic barn siding with a dark green door and shudders. The sidewalk was a wooden boardwalk, and a wrought iron bench sat in the flower garden situated in front of a large bay window. This cottage was one she wouldn’t mind living in.
As if reading Dana’s thoughts, Amy smiled. “Wait until you see the inside. Ready?”
Dana shook her head, nervous and laughing. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Chapter Two
Nick stood on the balcony, facing the bay. He loved the view, which was the main reason he’d bought this place. He’d been moving around the last five years, and to finally call a place
home
created a sense of peace and belonging, even if he was alone.
He had met his best buddy, Dave, two years ago when they were assigned to the same ship. He didn’t like Dave at first, because the guy couldn’t stop talking about a girl he had just met. Dave’s obsession over Amy had annoyed Nick as it made him think of the girl he’d left behind.
She had been everything he always wanted in a girlfriend, beauty, personality—the whole package. It was true what they said about absence making the heart grow fonder. He fell for her hard, and not a day went by that he didn’t think about her, but she probably hated him, forgot all about him, and moved on with her life. He only wished he had been as successful at moving on with his own life.
Nick got to know Dave pretty well since they worked together for nine months on a ship in the middle of the wide open ocean. Once their deployment ended, and they were landlocked in Seattle, Nick wanted to find the perfect house, to settle down and embark on a future.