Page 5 of Over the Moon (Rosewood River #3)

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Eloise

“Damn. You basically skinny-dipped with Clark Chadwick. There are a lot of women who would pay good money to have that opportunity,” Emilia said, as she dipped her french fry in ketchup.

“Well, I would have paid good money to get out of it,” I said, and she laughed.

We were at the Honey Biscuit Café having dinner in downtown Rosewood River. It reminded me of the small town in Texas where I grew up, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t sometimes crave small-town living.

“Are you the doctor here in town who came to help our local superstar get back on track?” an older man said as he approached the table.

“Hi, Oscar. This is Eloise Gable, and she’s renting my guest cottage for a few months,” Emilia said.

“Ahhh… the two musketeers. Eloise and Emilia, that’s interesting.” He quirked a brow.

“Well, we’re fast friends, so there you go,” she said.

“So, are you here for Chadwick? It’s all everyone is talking about. Even the Taylor Tea knew you were coming.” He arched a brow and turned to Emilia.

She told me about the anonymous column, and he was looking at her suspiciously.

“I wouldn’t know,” she said. “I actually don’t work there, nor do I read that column.”

“Is that so, Emilia Taylor ?” He said her name like she was a suspect in a murder mystery.

“That is so, Oscar Smith .” She mimicked him, and my head bounced back and forth between them.

“Well, you rented her your house, so you would have been the first to know that she was coming to Rosewood River,” he smirked.

“I believe Clark Chadwick probably knew first. And we all know this is a nosy little town, so everyone knew she was coming.” She turned to look at me. “Newcomers are big news in small towns.”

“Wait, did I really make the Taylor Tea ?” I gaped at them. “I’ve never been in the newspaper before.”

“They can’t name you, girlie. But they alluded to your arrival. A big, fancy doctor coming to fix our small-town hero,” Oscar said, just as a woman walked up beside him and smacked him on the shoulder.

“Are you harassing these lovely ladies?” she said, before extending an arm. “I’m Edith, his better half.”

“Hi. I’m Eloise. Nice to meet you.”

“Pffftt… I thought I was your better half?” Oscar said. “And I’m not harassing them. I’m just inquiring about your favorite Chadwick.”

“You say that about every single one of them,” she scoffed. “Let’s go. The kitchen is backed up, and they need some help.”

“Keep us posted on the hockey star. He’s the biggest thing to happen to Rosewood River since Nancy Prower got knocked up by her husband’s brother,” Oscar said, before his wife shoved him toward the kitchen.

“That’s old news. Let’s go,” Edith said with a laugh.

“Wow. I guess you’re right. The Chadwicks are a hot topic here.” I rolled my eyes.

“Welcome to Rosewood River,” she chuckled. “So tell me, how did the hockey star look in his briefs?”

I swatted her with my napkin. “I was not looking. I’m a professional.

And trust me when I tell you he’s not my type.

The man sings too loudly, and he dances like he’s working the room for tips.

He’s too smooth for his own good. He doesn’t care what anyone thinks.

He’s literally a walking red flag. And you don’t need to worry about me being tempted because I signed a contract as part of my employment agreement for the Lions about upholding the highest ethical standards.

I’m certainly not going to lose my job because the man does a few pelvic thrusts while he’s belting out a little Benson Boone. ”

“Oh, he’s giving Travis Kelce energy. Not sure anyone would call that a red flag,” she chuckled. “But you’ve clearly thought about this. Although, playing devil’s advocate, you have to train with the man every day. You can’t help but look. And what’s your type if it’s not Clark Chadwick?”

“I don’t date hockey players. It’s a hard line for me. My dad has been a hockey coach my entire life. I know the type all too well. Athletic, sexy, and way too cocky for their own good.” I said. “My last boyfriend was a scientist. Quiet and humble is more my speed.”

“Why’d you break up?”

“Well, he was a little too quiet and humble,” I laughed. “And all he wanted to talk about was dinosaurs.”

Her head tipped back in laughter. “That’s better than my last boyfriend. All he wanted to talk about was himself. In his defense, he was his number one fan, so he couldn’t get enough of the topic.”

More laughter.

I realized in this moment that for the last few years, I’ve just been focused on school and getting past the next hurdle. I hadn’t had a lot of time for lunch with friends or time to hang out.

This was the most fun I’d had in a very long time.

Just talking and laughing and not stressing over exams or finals.

“Thanks for showing me around downtown. I was dreading coming to Rosewood River, but it’s turned out pretty good so far,” I admitted.

“Because you saw Clark Chadwick in his tighty-whities?” She covered her mouth to keep from laughing.

“No. That was the low point of my day,” I lied, because it had been a while since me and Spencer had broken up.

It didn’t mean I liked the guy; he annoyed the hell out of me.

But he looked good, and it was far from the low point of my day.

“I’m just getting settled—meeting people who live here and finding my first friend in Rosewood River. ”

“I couldn’t agree more.” She smiled. “Hey, do you play pickleball?”

“I love pickleball, actually. We had a league in grad school. I played all the time.”

“Great. You’re coming with me to the Rosewood River Country Club this week. I just go on free play night, so there are no requirements. You can jump in when you feel like it and play when you want to.”

“That sounds great.”

“Do you work out with your prodigy just once a day?” she asked, as she reached for her iced tea.

“For these first two weeks or so. We just want to wait for that knee to heal a bit more. But yeah, we’ll start two-a-day workouts here pretty soon.”

Thoughts of Clark dancing around in his shorts with no shirt on, sweat glistening on his chest as he belted out the lyrics flashed through my mind, and I couldn’t help the smile that crossed my face.

He was quite possibly the most entertaining man I’d ever met, even if he wasn’t my type at all.

“You have a much more exciting job than I do. I don’t get to see any hot men in their undies at the flower shop,” she chuckled.

“Trust me. Cocky professional athletes are the last guys you want to see in their undies. They already know they look good. And you get to make people smile all day by handing them bouquets of blooms. That sounds dreamy.”

“I do love it. It wasn’t actually my plan to own a flower shop. I wanted to be an interior designer. I love it. I went to school on a full ride,” Emilia said.

“And what happened?”

“My grandmother got sick, and this was her flower shop. My parents didn’t think interior design was a real profession.” She rolled her eyes. “So, they really pushed for me to take over The Vintage Rose. The good news is that I still get to be creative there.”

It infuriated me on her behalf that she wasn’t encouraged to chase her dreams.

“Yeah, but you should have been able to do whatever you wanted to do. Do you have any siblings?”

“I have an older brother, Jacoby, but he lives in New York.”

“They didn’t want to guilt Jacoby into running the floral shop?” I asked, my voice teasing and trying to keep things light, though I didn’t find it the slightest bit funny.

She laughed. “Jacoby is a lawyer in New York. He just recently made partner at some big firm. He’s sort of the superstar of the family. I’m the ‘daydreamer,’ as my father calls me.”

“You know, I think that’s why I read so much. I never have time to daydream, so I’d take that as a compliment. I need to daydream more.”

She shrugged. “Books are a form of escape, so that’s probably your way of having a break from all the stresses in life, whether from school or work or the expectations we put on ourselves.”

“Ain’t that the truth. I’ve got a date tonight with a glass of wine, a hot bath, and a romance book.”

“That’s my kind of evening. But don’t forget: Saturday, we’re going to Booze & Brews, and we’re going to line dance, have some drinks, and act like normal women in our late twenties,” she said.

“Looking forward to a night out in Rosewood River.”

“It’s tourist season, so we might even find ourselves a handsome, grumpy, alpha hero looking to sweep a woman off her feet,” she said.

“I’m in for the line dancing, but that’s it. I’m here to work, and then I head back to the city. I’ve got no time for romance.”

“I guess you’ll just have to read a lot while you’re here,” she chuckled.

That’s the only place I was interested in romance at the moment.

In the pages of a book.

“The training sounds like it’s going well,” Randall said, as I held my phone to my ear and walked toward Clark’s house.

He lived less than two blocks from the guest cottage I was renting, and I was happy that I could walk there.

“Yes. I think the knee is healing well. But he’s stubborn and keeps asking me when he can start running again.”

“He’s definitely someone who likes to push himself, which is both good and bad news. He’s the hardest-working guy on the team, but he’s stubborn about listening to his body. Hence the reason he did whatever it took to score that winning goal to win the Stanley Cup,” he said.

“Agreed. But I’m on top of it. Are my daily notes helpful, or would you prefer I check in weekly with those?”

“I like seeing the daily results. That’s working out well. As the trainer of this team, it’s important that I am aware of what every single player is doing.” He always made a point to mention that he was the trainer. I was more than aware.

“Then I will continue sending you progress notes daily.”

“Great. How has your first week in Rosewood River been going?”