Chapter 1
The sight that met Evan’s eyes had him staring, unsure of what to do. Though he owned part of his and his cousins’ local moving company, he’d only been doing the grunt work of actually moving people for the past two weeks. With one of his cousins temporarily out due to an injury, Evan had willingly stepped in to take up the slack.
At first, being able to get out from behind a desk, away from a past life of accounting, had seemed a blessing. Sure, he was still sore, taxing his muscles on a daily basis doing manual labor, but he considered the physical exertion to be just the thing to kick-start his new life.
No one had mentioned what to do when the client got into a free-for-all in the middle of the living room.
The client, Rachel Kim, a petite Korean woman with a soft demeanor and a cute dimple, was wrapped around a tall, statuesque black woman. Rachel had her in a headlock, clinging to her like a koala on a tree.
“I’m taking it!” she shrieked and refused to let go. “It’s a memory, and it’s mine!”
“Idiot, it’s not yours,” the other woman managed, gripping at the forearm across her neck. “It’sours! Ask Kenzie. Rachel, get off!” She swung around, and the two did an odd dance as the poor woman tried to shake her human burr. “Besides, you don’t deserve it! Leaving me for a man? Way to idolize a penis, love slave.”
O-kay. That was more than he wanted to hear. Evan had been hired to move Rachel’s things, not involve himself in her private life.
“Shut up, Lila. You’re just jealous! Backstabbingbitch.” Rachel started going off in what sounded like Korean.
Lila choked, and Evan stepped forward. Then he realized she was laughing. Well, as much as one could laugh while gasping for oxygen. She continued to struggle for freedom, to no avail.
Evan decided he should probably get involved before Lila passed out. But just as he took another step to separate the two women, sunlight beamed through the front windows, illuminating the avenging angel who stormed through the front door, her brown eyes blazing.
His world stopped. As if the woman had been bathed in radiance, she made everything around her pale in comparison. He found it difficult to breathe.
Long, light-brown hair floated around her shoulders, framing an attractive face full of life and emotion. She looked to be about his age, and she moved with grace and energy. “You two are being ridiculous,” she huffed as she tried to pull Rachel and Lila apart. Dressed in ripped khaki shorts, aDrink LocalT-shirt, and flip-flops, she shouldn’t have appeared so impressive. But she did.
Evan just stood there, staring, trying to figure out what the hell was happening as his heart raced, his focus narrowed to this one incredibly arresting woman.
“Well?” the angel snapped at him. “You going to help me with these two or what?”
He started. “Oh, right.” But he hadn’t taken a breath before Rachel shifted to the new arrival, latching onto her and including her in the weird three-person tango.
“Nooo,” Rachel moaned. “Everything is changing too fast.”
Evan blinked, and the three women dissolved into tears, crumpled to the floor, and hugged one another. No one made any sense as emotions and a jumble of words, everyone talking over everyone, filled the air.
He cleared his throat. “Ah, you guys need help?”
They continued to wail, ignoring him, so he left them to their emotional crisis while he tried to figure out why he’d…panicked? Frozen? Lost his mind?
He’d once done the Heimlich on a choking man in a crowded restaurant while everyone else watched in shock. He’d prevented a young lance corporal from shooting his instructor at the rifle range during training back in his Marine Corps days. And he’d more than once talked down his oldest cousin from a fight, saving him from jail time and accompanying fines. Evan didn’t panic, and healwaysknew what to do.
So why the hell had the sight of that woman frazzled him?
He walked out to the moving van, grabbed his water, and guzzled it. August in Seattle typically proved to be hot, but temps had been higher than normal, and the current heat wave had his shirt plastered to his back. The sun continued to blaze overhead, spotlighting the charming home he’d parked in front of. A small Craftsman-style cottage with a surprisingly wide doorway, thank God. Getting furniture through some of the older homes in the city took real work, and Evan always wondered how the people had gotten their furniture in to begin with because not everything came in pieces from IKEA.
He held the cold bottle against the back of his neck and studied the front walkway. The front door remained open, and he could see and hear the three women crying, laughing, and talking together.
Talk about weird.
“Yeah, they can be a bit much to take.”
Evan spun around to see a lanky teenager approach. “Huh?”
The boy nodded to the home. “Chicks. Can’t live with ’em, can’t live without ’em.”
“Wise words from one so young.” Evan grinned.
The boy smiled back. “I live down the block, but this area is usually pretty loud. I think the women who live here had some kind of party pad. Lots of guys coming over, to both places.” The boy nodded to the home next door as well. “My mom told me to steer clear, but maybe now that the crazy lady is moving soon too, I can swing by more.”
