1. Caroline

CHAPTER 1

CAROLINE

“You can do this,” I mutter to myself, staring at the little cursor blinking at me from my laptop. “It’s just an email.”

Ha! Right. It’s only the most important email I’ve ever written… and I don’t even know where to begin. What are the rules for getting the man you’re secretly in love with to fall in love with you when you’re pretending to be someone else so he doesn’t find out that you’re his best friend’s baby sister until it’s too late? If there’s a playbook for that scenario, I must have missed it.

The town matchmaker who helped me concoct this grand plan, my Fairy Godmother, wasn’t much help in deciding what to say, either.

You can do this, Caroline. Just be your charming self.

As if that’s doing me any good! When Jeremy finds out that I’m the one emailing him, he’s going to flip out. The last thing I want is to violate his trust, but I’m desperate at this point. I’ve been in love with him since the day my brother, Asa, introduced us. Unfortunately, he doesn’t see me the same way.

If I can’t change his mind, I’m going to spend the rest of my life loving him from afar. And I made a promise to myself when I came home that this would be the year I make that man mine. It’s time to follow through.

I exhale a deep breath and start typing.

Jeremy,

I’ve had a massive crush on you for years. There are so many things about you that I admire—your service to the country, your dedication to your friends, your generosity, and the way you’re always the first to show up for those in need. You have inspired me even when you didn’t know you were doing it, set me on fire, and made me imagine what the future could look like.

If you’re curious… have dinner with me tomorrow night?

Yours,

??

“Miss Steele, what’s a dis-brup-tive PITA?”

I startle, glancing up from my email to find Jeremy’s nephew, Simon, standing in front of my desk, his little face scrunched up as he reviews the sticky note clutched in his hands.

“Um, I’m not sure,” I lie, holding out my hands for the note that got him sent to my office. “Let me see it.”

He starts to hand it over, then seems to think better of it and pauses, his hand hovering in the air. “I didn’t mean to be a dis-brup-tive PITA,” he says, his blue eyes wide. “Please don’t call my dad.”

I bite my lip. Poor kid. He rarely means to be a disruptive PITA, but I think it runs in his genes. Since school started a few weeks ago, he’s been in my office every week. Last week, he started a mini-riot in his class over recess being canceled. The week before, he set off a stink bomb in the bathroom. We nearly had to evacuate an entire wing of the school because the smell was so awful.

The year just started, and I think his teacher, Harmony, is already considering murdering his dad, Sawyer. It’s not ideal. It’s her first year teaching!

“I’ll make you a deal,” I say. “If you tell me what you did this time, I’ll consider not calling your dad.”

Simon’s eyes widen. “Really?”

“Really.” The odds of me not having to call his dad are slim to none, but I can’t kill the kid’s sense of hope. What kind of guidance counselor would I be if I did that? A terrible one, that’s what kind.

“It’s Show and Tell, so I brought my dad’s new drone to show everyone. I didn’t mean to make it fly in the classroom! But then I couldn’t make it stop flying. It accidentally broke the light, and then it hit Roger’s habitat and broke it.” His eyes well up as he relays the news about the gerbil’s habitat. “Now, Miss Riser is grumpy,” he says, the story bursting from his lips in an unbroken train.

I hesitate for a full five seconds after he finishes, mildly alarmed. His dad owns some sort of aviation company. They work with freaking NASA. Jeremy’s father gives him so much shit because his brother is this big wig, but Jeremy decided to go into the Army instead, as if that made him somehow inferior to Sawyer. “Simon, does your dad know you brought his new drone?”

His shoulders slump.

“Simon,” I groan, rubbing my forehead. “You can’t just bring his stuff to school without talking to him about it.”

“But it’s really cool, Miss Steele!” Excitement fires in his eyes. “It has night vision and everything.”

“Hand over the note.” I motion for it and then wait for him to hand it over before skimming it. Harmony’s account of events more or less matches his. He broke one of the overhead lights in the classroom and his dad’s drone. Great. I do not want to call his dad. He’s going to lose his mind about this.

My gaze flickers to my email. Maybe I should have Jeremy deliver the news that Simon stole his brother’s drone and killed it. He can soften the blow because I’m guessing the thing cost a whole lot of money.

“Am I in trouble?” Simon asks, his voice soft… worried. “I didn’t mean to hurt Roger! I promise, I didn’t.”

“I know you didn’t, but I think so, buddy,” I say softly.

His shoulders droop, his bottom lip quivering. And that breaks my heart. He’s a good kid. He’s just… feral. His mom has never been in his life, leaving Sawyer to raise him alone. It’s been tough on him.

“Tell you what,” I say, taking pity on him when the bell rings, signaling the end of the day. “I’ll talk to Miss Riser for you to see if I can help. But it’d probably help if you wrote an apology tonight to bring to her in the morning.” I meet his gaze. “You should also talk to your dad about the drone, Simon.”

“He’s not going to be happy.”

“No, he’s not,” I agree. “But you did the crime, kiddo. That means you gotta do the time.”

“Should I write him an apology, too?”

“You can try.” I offer him an encouraging smile. “It’ll be okay. But you can’t take things without asking. Especially things for his work.”

“Okay,” he whispers, scrubbing at his eyes.

“Hurry before you miss your bus.”

He nods and darts out of my office.

I sigh, dropping the note onto my desk. And then I laugh quietly. Harmony is right. He is a disruptive PITA. But he means well. It’s hard to stay mad when he never means to do any of the damage he causes. He’s just an unstoppable force of nature… exactly like my brother, Asa.

Asa causes chaos wherever he goes. Jeremy is a stabilizing force in his life. I think he’s probably the reason my brother survived the Rangers. He’s strong, dependable, and protective. He’s exactly the type of guy you want around in an emergency. Asa could be the same way, but he tends to act first and think later.

The only time I’ve ever seen Jeremy act first and think later was when I got hit by a drunk driver. He was so freaking mad. I thought he was going to kill the guy with his bare hands. The only reason he didn’t was because I started crying. As soon as he heard me sobbing, he just stopped. He took me to the hospital and insisted they look me over. He didn’t leave my side, not even after Asa and Aiden got there to take over.

I think that’s the day I realized I was in love with him. I was nineteen. It’s been five years, and the feeling has only grown stronger. He’s the only man I’ve ever felt this way about. I gave up fighting it a long time ago. He’s it for me. My person. My one.

I glance back at my email, chewing on my bottom lip. If he doesn’t feel the same way, it’s going to crush me. But I’ve waited long enough.

Before I can talk myself out of it, I quickly hit send, a ball of anxiety in my stomach. Within seconds, the email is out of my hands, winging its way through cyberspace to him.

I stare at the screen for a moment, expecting… something. I don’t even know what! It’s ridiculous. Email isn’t magic. This one feels a little magical, though.

“You’re ridiculous,” I mutter to myself, shaking my head as I push my laptop screen closed so I don’t sit here, obsessing over it when I still have things to do.

I quickly snatch up Harmony’s note, scanning it again.

And then I grab my phone, my hands shaking as I send a text to Jeremy.

Me

What are you doing?

Three little dots appear as he types his response.

Jeremy

Finishing up for the day. Why?

Me

I need a favor.

Jeremy

What’s up?

Me

Can we meet?

Jeremy

I’m having dinner with Asa tonight at Midnight Brew. Come.

I shiver as I read his text. That single word isn’t a request. It’s a command. Come. How many times have I dreamed about hearing him say that to me? Growling it in my ear?

Jeremy

Is everything okay?

Me

Yeah. But I need your help with something Simon-related.

Jeremy

FML. What’d he do this time?

“Hey.” Harmony pops her head into my office, her brows furrowed. “You have time to discuss our favorite pint-sized problem?”

“Yep. I was just about to come find you.” I motion for her to come in before glancing at my phone again. “One second.”

Me

I’ll explain at dinner. See you then.

Jeremy

See you, sweets.

I set my phone aside, anticipation coursing through me at the thought of seeing him tonight. God. I am so gone over this man. If my Fairy Godmother’s plan doesn’t work and he shoots me down, it’s going to break me.