Apple Valley Love Stories

Not everyone is destined to live happily ever after, right? I’d be fine with averagely ever after. Lower expectations mean less heartbreak. But then I meet Mac and Daisy. Single dad Mac needs a temporary nanny for his daughter, Daisy. I need a second job until my promotion kicks in. It’s the perfect arrangement…until it isn’t. Because who can resist a dad buying ballerina tights after a day spent in a hard hat? Not me, that’s for sure. Now, Mac’s green eyes and Daisy’s crooked pigtails have me dreaming about a future I can’t give them.

I get it. We were in elementary school. Just a couple of kids on the playground. But after Nash Hendrix called me Enemy instead of Emily, his stupid nickname haunted me for years. Now our best friends are getting married, and they expect me to stand across the aisle from Nash the Ruiner without killing him? Whatever. I can survive that. It’s only for one weekend. Until it’s not. When I get roped into wedding planning at all the same places Nash is fundraising, I’m ready to blow up our truce. But the more time we spend together, the more I feel like…not murdering him.

People think it’s easy being Felix Dodd III, and sure, the legacy and inheritance aren’t exactly terrible. But the name comes with so many strings; my hands feel permanently tied. Like I’m stuck following in my father’s footsteps. Like I can’t trust people’s intentions. Like my grandmother wants me settled down before my thirtieth birthday. I’ve got less than zero interest in marriage, ever since my one attempt at love crashed and burned. But Grams won’t let me access my trust until I’m engaged. Which means I need a fiancée.

Spencer Crane thinks I’m a human tornado. I think he’s a calendar app come to life. While he schedules? I spin-out. When I spontaneously combust? He overcompensates. And this is why convincing my new boss to hire him is a completely brilliant idea. You see, workplace romance is forbidden, but attraction between total opposites like Spencer and me is a non-issue. I only wish I hadn’t discovered Mr. Clark Kent Glasses is (secretly) scorchingly hot. Even worse, he’s funny and chivalrous, and shoving me straight out of my Tess the Mess comfort zone.