Falling for nola, p.1
Falling for Nola, page 1
Falling for Nola
Katie Reus
Copyright © 2024 by Katie Reus. All rights reserved.
Cover art by Sweet ‘N Spicy Designs
Editor: Julia Ganis
Proofreader: Book Nook Nuts
Author website: www.katiereus.com
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the author.
Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book. This purchase allows you one legal copy for your own personal reading enjoyment on your personal computer or device. You do not have the right to resell, distribute, print or transfer this book, in whole or in part, to anyone, in any format, via methods either currently known or yet to be invented, or upload this book to a file sharing program. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Contents
About the Book
1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Epilogue
10. Dear Readers
11. About the Author
12. Complete Booklist
About the Book
They started off on the wrong foot…
When Nola’s firefighter neighbor wakes her up for the third night in a row with his loud motorcycle, she has some choice words for him.
Once they clear the air, sparks fly between them…
Kayce falls for his neighbor from the first moment she yells at him, and he’s not alone in his attraction. But since they’re neighbors, she’s worried about the fallout if they part ways. Only he wonders why she thinks they’d ever break up…
Author note: this is a sweet, short novella I wrote for the Read Me Romance podcast, set in one of my favorite cities, New Orleans.
Chapter 1
Nola jerked awake to the sound of that stupid motorcycle. The loud, obnoxious engine that had woken her up the last four nights. Or mornings, considering it was three in the morning.
“That’s it,” she growled to her cat, Nebula—who was looking at her with the same amount of disdain she felt.
She tossed her robe on as the engine revved again. Then stalked to her front door, shoved her feet into her sneakers and yes, stalked across her damp yard to face her new neighbor who’d decided to make an enemy of her.
As she approached, the rider of said motorcycle took off his helmet and blinked at her in surprise. And oh god, the man looked as if he’d been carved by a deity and placed on this earth to walk among mere mortals who could only aspire to such sharp cheekbones. He was…beautiful.
And that just pissed her off even more. “Hey, assface!” Okay, maybe she should have been more diplomatic but it was three in the morning.
He blinked those baby blues at her. “Uh, hey.”
She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “See that house?”
“Yep.”
“I live there. And for the last four mornings you’ve woken me up with this monstrosity. And probably more of your neighbors too, but they’re too polite to say anything. So while you’re out here getting hard on your stupid motorcycle, or hog, or whatever the hell you call this thing, people are trying to sleep!” And oh god, when had she turned into her dad? She was only twenty-five. But whatever. There was a reason she’d moved away from the Quarter. It had been too loud and apparently she’d been born with an old soul. Or a cranky one. Whatever.
The dark-haired god looked as if he was fighting a smile as he swung his leg over the bike. But at least he didn’t take a step toward her. Though to her annoyance she had to look up at him when he stood. Damn it!
“I apologize, ma’am. I didn’t realize how loud it was and honestly didn’t think about the time. But that’s on me. Sometimes when I get home, I’m still listening to a podcast or book.” He pointed to his helmet, which looked fancy. Must be connected to his phone. “I’m used to keeping weird hours but I shouldn’t let it affect my neighbors. I promise from now on that I’ll turn off my engine and finish listening to my stuff in my house.”
She blinked, surprised by his easy, apologetic manner. “I’m a good ten years younger than you, so you don’t have to ‘ma’am’ me. But thank you.”
He cleared his throat and yep, he was fighting a grin. And that pissed her off too. Because apparently she’d turned into a rage monster. What the hell was wrong with her?
“I promise I’m not trying to piss you off even more, but…your top is see-through.” And the bastard didn’t look even a little sorry about that.
She glanced down, saw that her robe was wide open. Yeah, probably because she’d forgotten or lost the sash somewhere on her warpath to yell at him. Her white tank top was indeed see-through and her nipples were hard—because of the fall weather, thank you very much. “You’re welcome for the peep show,” she snapped even as she tried to tell herself to calm the heck down. But it was like she’d unleashed an angry beast on the sexiest man she’d ever seen in real life and couldn’t stop herself. “Because my breasts are fantastic.” Then she stalked back home, deciding to go out with her head held high.
Chapter 2
Kayce Laurent watched as Nola Cartier stepped into the backyard of Mrs. Aguilar, one of his new neighbors. He’d come to the weekend barbeque solely in the hopes of seeing Nola.
The woman who’d called him assface a week and one day ago was the most adorable, gorgeous woman he’d ever met. Though something told him that if he called her adorable, she’d knee him in the balls. Or at least think about it.
“Oh, that’s Nola,” Mrs. Golda, his neighbor on the other side told him. “You’ve probably seen her, but she lives on the other side of you.”
“Oh?” He nodded along, hoping for more information without seeming obvious. Because he definitely wanted to know more about his feisty neighbor. This afternoon her dark curls were down around her shoulders and she had on formfitting jeans, a T-shirt with the Saints logo, and bright green sneakers.
“Oh yes. And she’s absolutely wonderful. An artist, that one. And she’s made quite a name for herself for someone so young.” She laughed softly. “If only my son lived here, I’d introduce them.”
“High praise.” He took a sip of his beer as he listened and tried not to stare, to track her movements like a weirdo.
“Indeed. She works with the owner of one of the galleries on Julia Street. I can’t remember which one… I’ll introduce you. Nola!” she called, smiling at their neighbor as she waved her over.
About twenty families had shown up this Saturday afternoon and he’d already been told that more would filter in and out over the next couple hours. He was just glad that his gorgeous neighbor had shown up. And yes, the chance of getting to talk to her again was the real reason he was here.
Her smile tightened ever so slightly as she approached, but she gave Mrs. Aguilar a hug. “It’s good to see you. I’ve already snuck a little of your jambalaya. It’s definitely the best in the neighborhood,” she whispered conspiratorially.
“I know, but thank you for the validation,” the woman said on a laugh as she turned back to Kayce. “And this is your new neighbor, Kayce Laurent. Kayce, this is Nola Cartier—she’s the sweetheart who looked after my dog when I was on vacation last month.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” he murmured, drinking her in and wondering if the attraction he was feeling was one-sided.
She cleared her throat. “Nice to meet you too.”
“Oh, I see Gloria, I’ll catch up with you later,” Mrs. Aguilar murmured, squeezing Nola’s arm before she hurried off.
Nola looked around briefly, as if she was contemplating escaping.
“Look, I’m sorry about the other night. I want to be a good neighbor and I’m coming from living between a condo I was barely in and the fire station downtown. I’ve never lived in a house—not since I was eighteen.”
“And that was…like fifty years ago?” She grinned mischievously.
“Ha ha.” But he found himself grinning. He was thirty-five, thank you very much.
“I’m joking obviously, but apology accepted. I want to be a good neighbor too. And I probably shouldn’t have yelled at you and called you an assface.”
“You don’t sound sorry.”
“I know. I said I probably shouldn’t have done that.”
He barked out a surprised laugh. “What if I take you on a motorcycle ride? As an extra apology?”
She narrowed her gaze at him. “Is that like a weird euphemism?”
Now he nearly snorted out his drink. “Ah, no. It’s just a peace offering.”
“I’ll take it…if you let me drive.”
“Maybe once I get to know you.”
“That’s fair. So how does this afternoon sound?” she asked.
“Perfect.” Hell, better than perfect. He turned slightly, nodded at the rest of the party. “So, is there anything I need to know about our neighbors?”
“Um, well, Mrs. Aguilar and Mrs. Johnson have a serious rivalry over who
“For real?”
“Yes, because they will definitely ask you and they both hold grudges. Or you could fake a shellfish allergy and avoid the whole thing altogether.”
“Since I don’t plan on moving anytime soon, I’ll just eat both.”
She grinned at him. “So are you from here?”
“Ah, not originally. I was born in Biloxi, then my family moved here when I was eighteen so I decided to attend college here to be close to them. What about you?”
“I’m from here, born and raised. Do you have siblings?”
“Oh yeah, three sisters. You?”
She laughed lightly. “Two brothers and one sister. And I’m the youngest.”
“I’m the oldest.” He took a sip of his drink, looked around casually, mostly so he wouldn’t keep staring at her. But it was difficult to look away when he wanted to memorize every gorgeous inch of her. “So I hear you’re an artist?”
“Yep. I started painting before I started writing,” she said on a laugh. The woman was like walking sunshine.
“Mrs. Aguilar said you show your pieces downtown?”
“Ah yeah, but not exclusively. I mainly work with a gallery off Julia Street. But I occasionally set up shop at Jackson Square in the spring or fall. Usually during peak tourist times or festivals.”
“But not the summers?”
“Hell no. I’m not dealing with that heat… And speaking of heat, you’re a firefighter? But you’re not living at the station anymore?”
“I’m an inspector now. I recently got promoted.” And everything had changed, something he was still adjusting to.
“That’s really great. I bet you’re glad that Halloween is over.”
He laughed because she was right. “Yeah, it’s worse than Mardi Gras. But Thanksgiving is coming up soon and that’s even worse.”
“Oh, I know. I’ve heard the stories about turkeys and fryers. One of my brothers is a firefighter. He’s with Engine 9 off Esplanade.”
“Oh nice. I know some of the crew over there.”
“So which house were you at?”
As he answered, he was vaguely aware of Mrs. Aguilar watching them with interest, but he kept his focus on Nola and found himself entranced by just her voice.
Later he realized that was the first sign that he was absolutely a goner for her.
Chapter 3
Nola felt light-headed as she held on to Kayce’s middle as he zoomed down Elysian. They’d left the barbeque early and true to his word, he’d taken her for a ride on his bike. She didn’t want to love it so much. Or like him so much.
But the man was funny, kind and, okay, gorgeous. And now that she knew he wasn’t actually a jerk she did feel bad for the way she’d freaked out the other night. To be fair, a sleep-deprived Nola was a monster, and that was her only excuse.
He squeezed her knee once—the sign to ask if she was still doing good—and she gave him a thumbs-up. Taking an afternoon motorcycle ride through the Garden District then around the border of New Orleans proper was a perfect way to wrap up her Saturday. Though she didn’t want today to end and was contemplating asking Kayce if he wanted to grab something to eat a little later.
Then she second-guessed herself. Because that was what she did, second-guess everything. Ugh.
She had no idea how long they’d been riding, but by the time he pulled down their street she actually felt a twinge in her thigh muscles from squeezing so hard. Aaaaand at that thought, her mind went to a dirty, fun place. But she locked it down because she’d just met the guy and this had been his apology bike ride.
He steered into his driveway, parking behind a shiny blue sports car. A striking blonde stepped out as Nola took her helmet off, and oh my god, her hair was sweaty and sticking against her head after the long ride. And of course this woman looked as if she’d stepped off a runway.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said to Kayce, handing him the helmet even as she pulled out her cell phone. “I’ve got to take this but I’ll catch up with you later.”
“Ah, sounds good.” He looked like he wanted to say more, but she smiled and half waved at the bombshell as she held her phone up to her ear and pretended to answer a phone call.
It was almost six and some hot woman was at Kayce’s house because it was Saturday night and of course he had plans. How could he not? He probably had plans most nights of the week. With a different woman.
Once inside, she shoved her phone in her back pocket, then caught sight of herself as she stalked by the foyer mirror. Yikes. Her curls had definitely not fared well during the ride. And she soooo wasn’t going to dwell on the fact that Kayce was going out with someone tonight.
Why shouldn’t he?
She just…ugh, had a teeny tiny crush after today, that was all. But he was a firefighter—or had been—and in her experience, the majority of them were players. So she was going to lock down this crush and be the best neighbor ever.
Her phone rang and she nearly jumped, but grinned when she saw her older sister’s number. “Hey.”
“Hey yourself. Want to come over and watch your precious nieces for a few hours?”
“Why does precious sound like code for monster?”
Celine cackled. “Because it definitely is. My sitter canceled last minute and we’ve got tickets to The Nutcracker. The girls are bouncing off the walls.”
“It’s kind of early for The Nutcracker,” she said even as she grabbed her keys and purse.
“It’s playing all month and next at the Saenger and oh my god, that’s not the point. Can you watch them?”
“Of course, crankypants, I’m already on my way.”
As she pulled out of her driveway, she saw that the sports car was still there and neither the bombshell nor Kayce was in sight. Because they were inside his house.
Doing who knew what. Ugh. She knew exactly what.
Chapter 4
Two weeks later
Nola wiped sweat from her brow as she reached her driveway, slowed to a walk as her heart rate started slowing. A four-mile jog was exactly what she’d needed this morning. No one in her family ran but her, couldn’t understand her love of it, but it centered her. Especially when she needed to work on a new project.
She’d been trying to get back into her current painting, but found herself too distracted.
On instinct, she glanced over at Kayce’s driveway, knew he was already gone for the day. Because she’d heard him leave, and only then had she come out for her morning run. She hadn’t seen him in the two weeks since the day of the neighborhood barbeque and motorcycle ride. She wasn’t exactly avoiding him. Just trying to keep her distance.
Which, okay, maybe she was avoiding him. She was simply annoyed by her attraction to him, that was all. And distance was the best way for her to get over her dumb crush.
Sighing as she reached her porch, she frowned when she realized two of her steps had been fixed. They were on her long to-do list—owning a home was a lot different than renting, she’d learned. As she walked up the steps, she balanced back and forth to make sure, and yep, everything had been nailed or glued down. Huh.
She pulled her cell out of her pocket as she headed inside.
Her dad answered on the second ring. “Hey, short stuff.”
She smiled at her entire family’s nickname for her. “Hey, yourself. Did you sneak over here and fix my front steps?” She slid her sneakers off before making a beeline for her kitchen. She knew she should drink water after running, but whatever, it was a coffee kind of morning.
“Nope. But I was planning on coming over tomorrow to help with the fruit trees.”
“Oh, okay. Just checking. I’d planned to fix them tomorrow and thought you beat me to it.” Maybe one of her brothers had?
“I bet it was one of the boys,” he said, reading her mind, even though her brothers were both grown men. To their dad, they’d likely always be “the boys.”
