“Hmm. And he looks like…?” When it took too long for Serenity to answer, she said, “Maybe I should be coming to Firefly Lake, instead. We definitely need to talk, little sister.”

“Oh, please. There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Serenity, spill it.”

Serenity hesitated briefly, then said, “Okay. Gabriel Cunningham is fine, with a sexy body to match.”

“Mmm…sounds like he has a body women would love to run their hands all over,” Chandra murmured.

“I wouldn’t know.” Not the entire truth. She had run her hands over his chest and had, admittedly, after feeling his hard thighs beneath her as he held her in his lap, fantasized about doing the same to the rest of his body.

“But you could,” Chandra countered.

“Anyway, he’s a really nice guy.”

“And you like him.”

“Yes, I like him. He makes it hard not to, but I’m not trying to put my heart out there again. You remember how it was with Lloyd. My self-esteem took a beating, and I don’t want to go through that again.”

“Who says you will? Honey, you aren’t the first woman to experience a broken heart, but if you put yourself on a shelf, thinking that’ll protect you, you’re going to end up alone and left with a lot of what-ifs. I don’t want that for you. I’m not saying this guy is the one, but someone is going to come along who is worthy of your heart, and you’ll have to decide whether you want to take the risk.”

She heard every word Chandra said. Everyone else—her mother, Natasha, even her father—had said the same thing, but Serenity didn’t believe she would ever be able to give herself or her heart to another man.

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Gabriel increased his pace, the slip-slap of his running shoes hitting the pavement with a steady rhythm. The midmorning run was just what he needed to clear his mind. He’d been in town a little over a month and had done only minimal work. He didn’t want to admit that Glenn had been right about his needing some downtime. But now he was ready to get back into the groove. He had a call with Darius scheduled so they could go over the specifics of the new app they were developing. This would be a project for themselves, which they hoped to market once completed.

He hit the curve and decreased his speed to a slow jog. Since it was a Thursday, he pretty much had the trail to himself. A shortcut he’d discovered last time led him to a small waterfall, and he continued his stride until he reached the lake. Once there, he stopped for a moment to catch his breath, then walked back to his car.

Gabriel had enough time to shower and grab a quick bite to eat before calling Darius.