Falling IntoLove
Natalie Ann
Falling Into Love
Copyright 2020 Natalie Ann
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without a written consent.
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Contents
Author’s Note
Also by Natalie Ann
About the Author
Blurb
Prologue
1. Get Over It
2. So Far Away
3. All Tingly Inside
4. Change A Man
5. Find Some Fun
6. Extending Himself
7. Stopped Traffic
8. Watching Over Us
9. Cozy and Lived In
10. Adult Time
11. Nothing To Worry About
12. Excitement and Satisfaction
13. Keep Quiet
14. He Wanted More
15. A Big Step
16. Catching A Glimpse
17. Apple Pie
18. Judge Her
19. Defending Me
20. Bad Boy Exterior
21. Treating You Well
22. Return The Favor
23. Super Sweet
24. Making It Work
25. Battle Brewing
26. Right Decision
Epilogue
Sneak Peak at Mistletoe Magic
Get Out Of Town
Also by Natalie Ann
About the Author
Author’s Note
Author’s Note
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Also by Natalie Ann
The Road Series-See where it all started!!
Lucas and Brooke’s Story- Road to Recovery
Jack and Cori’s Story – Road to Redemption
Mac and Beth’s Story- Road to Reality
Ryan and Kaitlin’s Story- Road to Reason
The All Series
William and Isabel’s Story — All for Love
Ben and Presley’s Story – All or Nothing
Phil and Sophia’s Story – All of Me
Alec and Brynn’s Story – All the Way
Sean and Carly’s Story — All I Want
Drew and Jordyn’s Story— All My Love
Finn and Olivia’s Story—All About You
Landon Barber and Kristen Reid- All Of Us
The Lake Placid Series
Nick Buchanan and Mallory Denning – Second Chance
Max Hamilton and Quinn Baker – Give Me A Chance
Caleb Ryder and Celeste McGuire – Our Chance
Cole McGuire and Rene Buchanan – Take A Chance
Zach Monroe and Amber Deacon- Deserve A Chance
Trevor Miles and Riley Hamilton – Last Chance
Matt Winters and Dena Hall- Another Chance
Logan Taylor and Kennedy Miles- It’s My Chance
The Fierce Five Series
Gavin Fierce and Jolene O’Malley- How Gavin Stole Christmas
Brody Fierce and Aimee Reed - Brody
Aiden Fierce and Nic Moretti- Aiden
Mason Fierce and Jessica Corning- Mason
Cade Fierce and Alex Marshall - Cade
Ella Fierce and Travis McKinley- Ella
Fierce Family
Sam Fierce and Dani Rhodes- Sam
Bryce Fierce and Payton Davies - Bryce
Drake Fierce and Kara Winslow – Drake
Noah Fierce and Paige Parker - Noah
Wyatt Fierce and Adriana Lopez – Wyatt
Jade Fierce and Brock James – Jade
Love Collection
Vin Steele and Piper Fielding – Secret Love
Jared Hawk and Shelby McDonald – True Love
Erik McMann and Sheldon Case – Finding Love
Connor Landers and Melissa Mahoney- Beach Love
Ian Price and Cam Mason- Intense Love
Liam Sullivan and Ali Rogers - Autumn Love
Owen Taylor and Jill Duncan - Holiday Love
Chase Martin and Noelle Bennett - Christmas Love
Zeke Collins and Kendall Hendricks - Winter Love
Troy Walker and Meena Dawson – Chasing Love
Jace Stratton and Lauren Towne - First Love
Gabe Richards and Leah Morrison - Forever Love
Blake Wilson and Gemma Anderson – Simply Love
Brendan St. Nicholas and Holly Lane – Gifts of Love
Paradise Place
Josh Turner and Ruby Gentile – Cupid’s Quest
Harris Walker and Kaelyn Butler – Change Up
Philip Aire and Blair McKay- Starting Over
Nathan Randal and Brina Shepard – Eternal
Ryan Butler and Shannon Wilder – Falling Into Love
Brian Dawson and Robin Masters – Mistletoe Magic
Amore Island
Family Bonds- Hunter and Kayla
Family Bonds- Drew and Amanda
Family Bonds – Mac and Sidney
About the Author
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Blurb
Soft. Tender. Gentle. Not any of the words ever used to describe Ryan Butler. He’s determined, hard, and oftentimes grumpy. Women only want to be with him to change his bad boy ways. Finding love—never in the equation—and probably never will be. Not after witnessing the heartache his sister went through.
Shannon Wilder was living the dream with her wonderful husband and beautiful children. She had the picture perfect family she’d always dreamed of. Until tragedy struck and her world was flipped on its axis. Now someone from the past won’t leave her and the children alone so she does the only thing she can think of. She picks up and moves across the country to a development called Paradise Place. What better way to start her life over?
Prologue
“What do you mean he’s not conscious?” Shannon Wilder asked, her voice higher than when she was screaming out during childbirth.
“Mrs. Wilder,” the nurse said. “Let me see if I can find someone to talk to you. I believe your husband came in with another man.”
“Yes. His best friend, John.”
John had called her over an hour ago to say Tyler grabbed his chest and fell to the floor in their office. They’d called 911 and got him to the hospital right away, but she hadn’t heard a word since.
She’d been home working, like she’d done for years since she’d had her son, Jeffrey. Then when Maddie came along it was decided she might as well continue to work from home. Even Tyler worked from home half the time rather than driving the hour to their headquarters in Seattle.
“Right this way. I believe he’s in the waiting room down the hall,” the nurse said.
She wanted to push the lady to move faster than the calm stroll she was taking with her rubber-soled shoes squeaking on the floor.
“John,” she said, moving into his arms. Tyler and John had lived on the same street growing up and had been inseparable. When she started to date Tyler in high school they’d become the three amigos. When John married last year, the four of them did everything together. “What is going on?
”
“I don’t know, Shannon. They think he had a heart attack.”
“We’re twenty-seven years old. How is that possible? He’s in great condition.”
“It doesn’t make sense to me either,” John said. “They started to ask me all these questions about Tyler’s family medical history. I said I thought his parents were in great health.”
“They are,” she said. Her in-laws lived a few hours away and were on their way right now. Thankfully the nanny she never wanted to have was able to stay with the kids.
“I’ll see if I can find a doctor or someone to give us some answers,” he said and left the room.
Shannon didn’t know what to do with herself while she sat there staring at the wall.
This couldn’t be happening right now.
Everything in their life just seemed so perfect.
She had what she’d always wanted. What she and Tyler had talked about all through high school and then in college where they went together for another four years.
Heck, she and Tyler married as soon as they graduated and a family followed shortly after while he and John built their company up from the ground.
No one believed in those two but her. She put everything she could into it right alongside of them when most said they were nuts.
They were all multi-millionaires many times over now and living the dream.
That dream didn’t include her husband unconscious in the hospital.
She looked up when John walked back in and handed her over a can of soda. He had a large coffee in his hand that he was never without.
She opened the can and took a sip. When the doctor came in, she stood up and got one look at his face and knew her world would never be the same.
“Mrs. Wilder. I’m so sorry. We did everything we could.”
The can dropped to the floor, the brown liquid spilling everywhere, then the room just went dark in front of her.
1
Get Over It
One year later
“Ryan, perfect timing.”
“Why is that?” he asked his sister, Whitney. He’d been hoping to sneak into his office and grab a few things, then leave again. He’d rather be on site than sitting behind a desk. He’d leave that to his cousins Christian and Evan. Even his sister who was sending him a big smile and he knew he was going to get suckered into something.
“Shannon Wilder is on the phone asking a bunch of questions about her new build. I was going to take a message and talk to you or Evan, but since you’re here…”
“Take a message and let Evan do it,” he said. “He’s the people person.”
His older sister laughed at him. “Evan is out of town today and Shannon is three hours behind us with the time difference. It’s best if you just talk to her now.”
“Fine,” he said, moving to his office. He saw the flashing light and pushed that button. “This is Ryan Butler.”
“Mr. Butler,” he heard the woman say on the other end. He hadn’t talked to her once but knew about the build. He was working on it now and it should be done within the month. “I was wondering if I might make some requests or additions to the build.”
“It’s a little late in the game,” he said. This was why Evan took these calls. Ryan would love nothing more than to say, “What the hell are you smoking?” but his father and uncle would be up one side of him and down the other with every tool in the box if he said something like that to a paying customer. Especially one that was building as large of a house.
“I don’t think it’s a major change. More like cosmetic things. If your company can’t do it, then maybe you can let me know of someone who could.”
Her voice was sweet but firm. Businesslike. He’d heard it enough from Whitney. Again, he’d never say no without exhausting all possibilities even if he wanted nothing more than to do that and get back to the site. Butler Construction was started over fifty years ago by his grandfather and now run by his father and Uncle Michael.
His cousins, Evan and Christian, and he and Whitney all had major roles in the organization too. Only his cousin Katelyn didn’t work for the family business.
“What is it we can do for you?” he asked.
“I’d like to have the house move-in ready. The rooms all painted, a fence installed in the back and a swing set. Oh, a dog door too. I’ll be getting a puppy right away.”
He’d had no idea Shannon had kids but they must be younger if she wanted a swing set. Her name was the only one on the contract so she had to be single. And since she was paying cash for this house and had been pretty accommodating on timelines, this was the least he could do.
“Those are doable,” he said. “You’re still aiming for an early July close?”
“I am,” she said. “As soon as my son is done with school, we’ll start to pack up and get the moving trucks loaded and on the road. But since it’s just me and the kids, I’m not all that handy. I’d like to just walk in the door and have to do nothing more than put things away.”
Kids, she said. Plural. But only one in school. Must be younger then? Then he wondered why he cared when he never had before. It wasn’t his problem.
“How are we going to go about finalizing colors?” he asked. When clients asked for these things, they normally came in and picked it out themselves or brought the color swatches.
“If you let me know the brand of paint you’d prefer to use, with any luck I can get swatches around here, pick out what I want and let you know.”
Again, more accommodating than most. As annoyed as he always got over any change, he really couldn’t complain about anything she was asking.
Although, he hadn’t talked to her once. Whitney had the pleasure of all those conversations after Ruby Gentile got the paperwork going on the real estate end.
They’d found in the past year or so it was easier to just have a realtor or two they had a good relationship with do all the preliminary work and then when it was time to close, it would be back in their hands again.
This would fall under things to deal with with the builder and that was where Whitney came in as she had the best customer relations of them all. Which didn’t explain why Whitney passed this to him.
“That works. I’ll probably have you talk with my sister, Whitney. She handles the paperwork and the ordering of supplies, changes, and requests from clients.”
“I’m aware of that,” Shannon said. “But in this case, I wanted to actually speak to someone who is on site and can assure the work is done and done timely.”
That firm businesslike voice again. “It will be. I don’t foresee any delays.” He grabbed a pen to make a note on a scrap piece of paper. “I’ll check with Whitney to see if there are any supplies we haven’t received yet.”
“I believe the last of everything arrived last week.”
He put his pen down. “Oh.”
“I talk to Whitney at least once a week. Your sister is very sweet and helpful. Since I’m doing this build cross country, I’m juggling so many balls in the air, I’ve felt it was necessary to get weekly reports.”
His lips moved to a grin, thankful Whitney dealt with all of that. There was no way he’d have the patience, but his sister loved it. He’d bet they’d made plans to meet and have coffee when Shannon Wilder arrived in town.
“That’s good to hear. If that is all you needed, I can send you back to her to get the information on where to look for paint colors and our vendors for fencing, the prices, and so on.”
“Actually,” she said. “I need to run as I’ve got a call for work in a few minutes. If you could just let Whitney know I’ll touch base with her in an hour or so.”
“Sure,” he said, hanging up the phone and walking back to Whitney’s office. “I guess I’m your secretary now. Shannon said she’ll call you back.”
Whitney laughed. “Get over yourself, Ryan. I can already tell you’ve got a wrench up your butt. Normally it’s a screwdriver, but today must be something bigger. What’s your p
roblem?”
He narrowed his eyes at his older sister. She was the only one that could give him shit and he wouldn’t get completely mad over it. Well, his mother could. But if his father or cousins did, chances are he’d be yelling right back at them.
“Nothing,” he said.
“Please, Ryan. You’ve got a problem every day of your life. Most times it’s nothing more than you ran out of coffee or bread.”
He snorted. “I hate shopping.”
“Which is why you eat out so much. Shannon told me what she wanted. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.”
“It’s not. I just couldn’t understand why you had to have me take the call. She said you talk weekly.”
“We do. She’s a sweet lady.”
“I didn’t know she had kids,” he said.
“You wouldn’t know that. But she does. Two kids.”
“Rich divorcee, huh?” he asked. The size and cost of this house...she had to be getting the money from somewhere.
“No,” his sister said. “There you go wanting to lump people into categories like always. She’s a widow.”
“Oh,” he said again.