Tempting Brooke: A Big Sky Novella Read online

  Tempting Brooke

  A Big Sky Novella

  By Kristen Proby

  1001 Dark Nights

  Tempting Brooke

  A Big Sky Novella

  By Kristen Proby

  1001 Dark Nights

  Copyright 2018 Kristen Proby

  ISBN: 978-1-948050-32-6

  Foreword: Copyright 2014 M. J. Rose

  Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.

  Book Description

  Tempting Brooke

  A Big Sky Novella

  By Kristen Proby

  From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kristen Proby comes a new story in her Big Sky series…

  Brooke’s Blooms has taken Cunningham Falls by surprise. The beautiful, innovative flower shop is trendy, with not only gorgeous flower arrangements, but also fun gifts for any occasion. This store is Brooke Henderson’s deepest joy, and it means everything to her, which shows in how completely she and her little shop have been embraced by the small community of Cunningham Falls.

  So, when her landlord dies and Brody Chabot saunters through her door, announcing that the building has been sold, and will soon be demolished, Brooke knows that she’s in for the fight of her life. But she hasn’t gotten this far by sitting back and quietly doing what she’s told. Hustle is Brooke’s middle name, and she has no intention of losing this fight, no matter how tempting Brody’s smile -- and body -- is.

  **Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you'll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

  About Kristen Proby

  New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kristen Proby has published more than thirty romance novels. She is best known for her self-published With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series, and also works with William Morrow on the Fusion Series. Kristen lives in Montana with her husband, their pug and two cats.

  Also from Kristen Proby

  Click to purchase

  The Big Sky Series:

  Charming Hannah

  Kissing Jenna

  Waiting for Willa – Coming soon!

  Kristen Proby’s Crossover Collection – Coming March 12, 2019

  Soaring With Fallon: A Big Sky Novel by Kristen Proby

  Wicked Force: A Wicked Horse Vegas/Big Sky Novella by Sawyer Bennett

  All Stars Fall: A Seaside Pictures/Big Sky Novella by Rachel Van Dyken

  Hold On: A Play On/Big Sky Novella by Samantha Young

  Worth Fighting For: A Warrior Fight Club/Big Sky Novella by Laura Kaye

  Crazy Imperfect Love: A Dirty Dicks/Big Sky Novella by K.L. Grayson

  Nothing Without You: A Forever Yours/Big Sky Novella by Monica Murphy

  The Fusion Series:

  Listen To Me

  Close To You

  Blush For Me

  The Beauty of Us

  Savor You

  The Boudreaux Series:

  Easy Love

  Easy Charm

  Easy Melody

  Easy Kisses

  Easy Magic

  Easy Fortune

  Easy Nights

  The With Me In Seattle Series:

  Come Away With Me

  Under the Mistletoe With Me

  Fight With Me

  Play With Me

  Rock With Me

  Safe With Me

  Tied With Me

  Burn With Me

  Breathe With Me

  Forever With Me

  Stay With Me

  Indulge With Me

  Love With Me

  The Love Under the Big Sky Series:

  Loving Cara

  Seducing Lauren

  Falling For Jillian

  Saving Grace

  From 1001 Dark Nights:

  Easy With You

  Easy For Keeps

  No Reservations

  Tempting Brooke

  The Romancing Manhattan Series:

  All the Way

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Click here to explore

  FOREVER WICKED by Shayla Black

  CRIMSON TWILIGHT by Heather Graham

  CAPTURED IN SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  SILENT BITE: A SCANGUARDS WEDDING by Tina Folsom

  DUNGEON GAMES by Lexi Blake

  AZAGOTH by Larissa Ione

  NEED YOU NOW by Lisa Renee Jones

  SHOW ME, BABY by Cherise Sinclair

  ROPED IN by Lorelei James

  TEMPTED BY MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  CARESS OF DARKNESS by Julie Kenner

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  TAME ME by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Click here to explore

  WICKED WOLF by Carrie Ann Ryan

  WHEN IRISH EYES ARE HAUNTING by Heather Graham

  EASY WITH YOU by Kristen Proby

  MASTER OF FREEDOM by Cherise Sinclair

  CARESS OF PLEASURE by Julie Kenner

  ADORED by Lexi Blake

  HADES by Larissa Ione

  RAVAGED by Elisabeth Naughton

  DREAM OF YOU by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  STRIPPED DOWN by Lorelei James

  RAGE/KILLIAN by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON KING by Donna Grant

  PURE WICKED by Shayla Black

  HARD AS STEEL by Laura Kaye

  STROKE OF MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  ALL HALLOWS EVE by Heather Graham

  KISS THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  DARING HER LOVE by Melissa Foster

  TEASED by Rebecca Zanetti

  THE PROMISE OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice

  SERVICING THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Click here to explore

  HIDDEN INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  BLOOD ON THE BAYOU by Heather Graham

  SEARCHING FOR MINE by Jennifer Probst

  DANCE OF DESIRE by Christopher Rice

  ROUGH RHYTHM by Tessa Bailey

  DEVOTED by Lexi Blake

  Z by Larissa Ione

  FALLING UNDER YOU by Laurelin Paige

  EASY FOR KEEPS by Kristen Proby

  UNCHAINED by Elisabeth Naughton

  HARD TO SERVE by Laura Kaye

  DRAGON FEVER by Donna Grant

  KAYDEN/SIMON by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  STRUNG UP by Lorelei James

  MIDNIGHT UNTAMED by Lara Adrian

  TRICKED by Rebecca Zanetti

  DIRTY WICKED by Shayla Black

  THE ONLY ONE by Lauren Blakely

  SWEET SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Four

  Click here to explore

  ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING by Kristen Ashley

  ADORING INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  SWEET RIVALRY by K. Bromberg

  SHADE'S LADY by Joanna Wylde

  RAZR by Larissa Ione

  ARRANGED by Lexi Blake

  TANGLED
by Rebecca Zanetti

  HOLD ME by J. Kenner

  SOMEHOW, SOME WAY by Jennifer Probst

  TOO CLOSE TO CALL by Tessa Bailey

  HUNTED by Elisabeth Naughton

  EYES ON YOU by Laura Kaye

  BLADE by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON BURN by Donna Grant

  TRIPPED OUT by Lorelei James

  STUD FINDER by Lauren Blakely

  MIDNIGHT UNLEASHED by Lara Adrian

  HALLOW BE THE HAUNT by Heather Graham

  DIRTY FILTHY FIX by Laurelin Paige

  THE BED MATE by Kendall Ryan

  PRINCE ROMAN by CD Reiss

  NO RESERVATIONS by Kristen Proby

  DAWN OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  TEMPT ME by J. Kenner

  Sign up for the 1001 Dark Nights Newsletter

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  As a bonus, all subscribers will receive a free copy of

  Discovery Bundle Three

  Featuring stories by

  Sidney Bristol, Darcy Burke, T. Gephart

  Stacey Kennedy, Adriana Locke

  JB Salsbury, and Erika Wilde

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About Kristen Proby

  Also from Kristen Proby

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Four

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Five

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  Discover More Kristen Proby

  Discover the Kristen Proby Crossover Collection

  Special Thanks

  One Thousand and One Dark Nights

  Once upon a time, in the future…

  I was a student fascinated with stories and learning.

  I studied philosophy, poetry, history, the occult, and

  the art and science of love and magic. I had a vast

  library at my father’s home and collected thousands

  of volumes of fantastic tales.

  I learned all about ancient races and bygone

  times. About myths and legends and dreams of all

  people through the millennium. And the more I read

  the stronger my imagination grew until I discovered

  that I was able to travel into the stories... to actually

  become part of them.

  I wish I could say that I listened to my teacher

  and respected my gift, as I ought to have. If I had, I

  would not be telling you this tale now.

  But I was foolhardy and confused, showing off

  with bravery.

  One afternoon, curious about the myth of the

  Arabian Nights, I traveled back to ancient Persia to

  see for myself if it was true that every day Shahryar

  (Persian: شهريار, “king”) married a new virgin, and then

  sent yesterday's wife to be beheaded. It was written

  and I had read, that by the time he met Scheherazade,

  the vizier's daughter, he’d killed one thousand

  women.

  Something went wrong with my efforts. I arrived

  in the midst of the story and somehow exchanged

  places with Scheherazade – a phenomena that had

  never occurred before and that still to this day, I

  cannot explain.

  Now I am trapped in that ancient past. I have

  taken on Scheherazade’s life and the only way I can

  protect myself and stay alive is to do what she did to

  protect herself and stay alive.

  Every night the King calls for me and listens as I spin tales.

  And when the evening ends and dawn breaks, I stop at a

  point that leaves him breathless and yearning for more.

  And so the King spares my life for one more day, so that

  he might hear the rest of my dark tale.

  As soon as I finish a story... I begin a new

  one... like the one that you, dear reader, have before

  you now.

  Prologue

  ~Brody~

  My dad is an asshole. He’s yelled and thrown fits my whole life. Whether he tried to scare me, or was just being a massive jerk, doesn’t matter.

  He’s a dick.

  But last night, he hit me for the first time. Like, full-out hit me because he said I’m a man now, and I can take it.

  And I fucking hate him.

  I’m meeting Brooke Henderson, my neighbor, at the end of our block, just like we always do on weekdays. We walk to school together every day, and have since we were in grade school.

  She’s been my friend forever. She’s small, with long dark hair and big brown eyes, and she might be the one person in this world that I’d do almost anything for.

  “Hey,” she says with a big smile as I wait for her on the sidewalk. Her smile is my favorite. It reaches all the way to her eyes and lights up her whole face. “I’m not ready for Mr. Koch’s math test today. I’m just so bad at it.” She loops her arm through mine and offers me a bite of her breakfast burrito, which I happily accept. “Do you have any finals today?”

  “Just English.” I pass her burrito back and cringe when we walk down a curb. It makes my ribs sing in agony.

  “Are you okay?” she asks, staring up at me with worried brown eyes, and I want to tell her everything. How he screams at both my mom and me for hours. How he used to smack her around, but now he’s decided to move on to me.

  But I can’t because I’m afraid she’ll never look at me the same way again, and I couldn’t stand that.

  “I’m fine,” I lie. “Just didn’t sleep a lot.”

  “I sleep like the dead,” she says. “I slept until noon on Sunday. Noon! That can’t be normal.”

  “It’s probably normal.” I don’t think I’ve ever slept until noon. My dad would never permit it.

  “We have to hurry.” She picks up the pace, and I want to moan as my ribs cry out from keeping up with her. “I want to get to class early to get some math help.”

  “You know I’ll help you whenever you want.”

  “Well, come on. I’ll take you up on it.”

  * * * *

  Three years, and I’m done.

  That motherfucker put his hands on me for the last time yesterday. Just before graduation, he pulled me into his bedroom and kicked me in the ribs until I was sure I’d cough up blood. Trying to defend myself only makes it much worse.

  As usual, my mom cried, and begged for him to stop, but it didn’t do any good.

  I’m eighteen. I have a car, and about a thousand dollars that I hid away over the past two years from my job. I begged Mom to go with me, to leave him and this good-for-nothing town and make a new start.

  She refused.

  I don’t want to leave her, but if I stay, I’ll end up killing him, and I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in jail. I don’t want to live like this anymore.

  I need to leave.

  This town never did anything good for me. Aside from Brooke, who I don’t even speak to anymore because my life went into the shitter, and I didn’t have the balls to talk to her about it.

  Nothing good has come from being in Cunningham Falls.

  I throw my one bag of clothes and personal things behind the seat of my Ford truck and speed off, not looking back.

  Chapte
r One

  ~Brooke~

  “I stopped at the post office and got the mail,” my sister, Maisey, announces as she marches into my shop and drops a stack of envelopes and catalogues on my table.

  “Thanks.” I reach for the envelopes first and thumb through them. “Lots of bills here.”

  “Always,” she says with a smirk. “Who knew that being a business owner would be so expensive?”

  I stare at her for a moment and then bust out laughing. “We did.”

  “Oh yeah.” She sniffs at some pink hydrangea blooms, fussing over them. Maisey and I are less than a year apart, so we’ve always been close. Opening businesses at the same time, and supporting each other through that process, just seemed natural.

  An off-white envelope catches my eye, and I pull it out from the rest, immediately opening it.

  “Holy shit,” I mutter.

  “What?”

  “Hold on.” I skim the letter, and then shake my head. “No. Absolutely not.”

  “What the hell?” Maisey demands, so I read the letter aloud.

  Dear Ms. Henderson,

  I’ve recently inherited the building your business resides in. I intend to sell the building. This is your sixty-day notice to vacate. I’ll be in Cunningham Falls next week to meet with you in person, should it be necessary.

  Respectfully,

  Brody Chabot

  “Shit,” Maisey whispers and drags her fingers down her face. “I guess that means I can’t rent the space next door now.”

  Maisey makes delicious wedding cakes, and her business has skyrocketed in the past year. She’s been baking out of her house, and we host tastings here in my shop. When the space next door became vacant, she was hoping to move her bakery in there.