Crushing On You: Travis and Gabriella (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book One) Read online

  Crushing On You: Travis and Gabriella

  An Emerald Falls Romance, Book One

  Christine Kersey

  Contents

  Note to Readers

  Book Description

  Acknowledgments

  Books by Christine Kersey

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Dangerous Lies Chapter 1

  Dangerous Lies Chapter 2

  Books by Christine Kersey

  About the Author

  Note to Readers

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  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Crushing On You: Travis and Gabriella (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book One)

  Copyright © 2016 by Christine Kersey

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  eBook Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people.

  Discover other exciting titles by Christine Kersey available through her official author website: ChristineKersey.com or through most online retailers.

  Created with Vellum

  Book Description

  Gabriella Peters has crushed on Travis Haywood since she was 15. When they run into each other ten years later, sparks fly.

  When Gabriella Peters inherits her aunt’s cottage in Emerald Falls, she’s ready for a change. After a failed relationship in another city, she’s determined not to make the same mistakes again. But when she runs in to a crush from her past, she wonders if taking a chance might be worth the risk after all.

  Travis Haywood plans to live in Emerald Falls only long enough to complete his veterinary internship, but when he meets Gabriella, he begins to question what’s most important to him—the woman who has captured his heart, or his long-held career aspirations.

  BONUS: Includes the first two chapters of Dangerous Lies: Sawyer and Amethyst (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book Two)

  Acknowledgments

  I want to thank my wonderful beta readers for their willingness to read Crushing on You: Travis and Gabriella and give me their feedback! I truly appreciate them and the time they spent helping me out. Their names are listed below, alphabetically by first name.

  Abigail W.

  Amy Chris

  Angela Macias Dial

  Corinn Kendall

  Jennifer Dhillon

  Kathy Labossiere

  Kris Bird

  Robyn Maitland

  Tiffini LeJeune

  Traci Sessions

  Books by Christine Kersey

  Park City Firefighter Romance

  Rescue My Heart

  Hearts On Fire

  Emerald Falls Romance Series

  Crushing On You: Travis and Gabriella (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book One)

  Dangerous Lies: Sawyer and Amethyst (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book Two)

  Searching for Love

  Falling for You (Searching for Love, Book One)

  Finding Reese (Searching for Love, Book Two)

  Surrender My Heart (Searching for Love, Book Three)

  Bring Me Home (Searching for Love, Book Four)

  Lily’s Story

  He Loves Me Not (Lily’s Story, Book 1)

  Don’t Look Back (Lily’s Story, Book 2)

  Love At Last (Lily’s Story, Book 3)

  Life Imperfect (Lily’s Story, Book 4)

  Parallel Trilogy

  Gone (Parallel Trilogy, Book 1)

  Imprisoned (Parallel Trilogy, Book 2)

  Hunted (Parallel Trilogy, Book 3)

  After (a parallel story)

  The Other Morgan (a parallel story)

  Over You Series

  Over You

  Second Chances (sequel to Over You)

  Witness Series

  Witness (Witness, Book 1)

  Retribution (Witness, Book 2)

  Standalone Books

  Suspicions

  No Way Out

  Box Sets

  Parallel Trilogy

  Lily’s Story

  Searching for Love bundle

  Chapter 1

  “It’s okay, Sadie,” Gabriella Peters murmured to her gray tabby as she carried her into Emerald Falls Veterinary on a mid-August morning. “If you want to start spending time outdoors, your shots will have to be up-to-date.”

  Sadie mewled in protest, but Gabby tucked her against her chest as she stepped up to the counter in the empty waiting room. “I don’t have an appointment,” she said to the woman behind the counter as she tried to hide an embarrassed smile. “But I just moved to town and thought I’d take the chance that the doctor would have time to see Sadie.”

  The woman checked her computer screen, then turned to Gabby with a smile. “Looks like today is your lucky day. The doctor can see Sadie in about fifteen minutes.”

  Smiling with relief, Gabby said, “That’s great. Thank you.”

  The woman placed her fingers on the keyboard. “Let me get some information from you.”

  She gave the woman her contact information, then the woman asked, “What brings you to Emerald Falls?”

  Holding a squirming Sadie in her arms, Gabby thought about the passing of her Aunt Mary, whose cottage she’d inherited, then considered her answer. Had it been serendipity that she’d been given the opportunity to move to Emerald Falls—the place where she’d spent many happy summers in her teenaged years—right when she needed a change of scenery? She liked to think so, although she already missed Aunt Mary and her sage advice.

  She decided to keep her answer simple. “I’m going to be teaching second grade at Emerald Falls Elementary school when school starts in a couple of weeks.”

  “Oh,” the woman said with a smile. “My grandson will be in second grade there this year. Maybe he’ll be in your class.”

  Happy to feel a connection to the community, however small, Gabby’s face lit up. “Really? What’s his name?”

  “Samuel Richards, but he goes by Sam.” The woman paused. “I’m Emily Richards, by the way.”

  “So nice to meet you, Emily.” The woman’s name didn’t ring a bell from the summers Gabby had spent there. Then again, it had been ten years since her last full summer th
ere. Plus, she had only been fifteen that year and not exactly paying attention to the adults of Emerald Falls.

  “Well,” Emily said with a warm smile. “If you’ll have a seat, the doctor should be with you shortly.”

  With a nod, Gabby turned away, then sat in one of the chairs and placed Sadie in her lap. Stroking Sadie’s soft fur, Gabby thought about the move to her aunt’s cottage—the place that held so many good memories. Her aunt had been there for her when her parents had gone through a nasty divorce when Gabby was only twelve, and for the four summers afterward, Aunt Mary had cared for Gabby while her parents had worked.

  The summer Gabby turned fifteen had been her last summer in Emerald Falls. After that, she’d gotten a job in her hometown and hadn’t been able to come for extended visits and she’d lost touch with her Emerald Falls friends. Not much for social media, Gabby had no idea which of those old friends were still in town and which ones had moved away.

  Now, as she struggled to picture the faces of the girls she’d hung out with during her summers in Emerald Falls, another face popped into her mind. A face that made Gabby’s heart do a little flip. She had no trouble remembering that particular face.

  Travis Haywood. The boy she’d crushed on from afar. The boy she had been too shy to even speak to. The boy who had gone off to college before she’d been able to gather the courage to let him know she was alive.

  Gabby remembered the summer she’d first seen Travis Haywood. She had been fifteen and had just arrived for the summer. He had been eighteen and had just graduated from high school. His family had moved to Emerald Falls late the previous year, and by the time Gabby had shown up, he’d already established himself as the boy all the girls were crazy for.

  With no desire to compete for his attention—not to mention her complete lack of flirting skills—Gabby had developed a king-sized crush on him from a distance. A crush that had not been reciprocated. How could it have been when Travis hadn’t even known Gabby existed?

  Why had she been so shy? Why was she still so shy?

  Frustrated with her lack of confidence, Gabby consoled herself by remembering the painful lesson she’d recently learned that taking chances didn’t always pay off.

  Face heating with fresh humiliation, she tried to push the unfortunate incident out of her mind.

  Sadie nipped at Gabby’s finger, yanking her out of her memories, and she realized she was holding her cat a little too tight.

  “Sorry, kitty,” she whispered as she loosened her grip.

  “You must be Gabriella Peters,” a male voice said.

  Gabby lifted her gaze from her cat to meet the deep-blue eyes of the man who stood in front of her. When recognition flooded her a split second later, her eyes widened and her throat closed up.

  The man held out his hand. “I’m Dr. Travis Haywood.”

  Chapter 2

  Travis waited for the woman to take his hand, but she just stared at him with her mouth hanging open. Not wanting to embarrass her, he dropped his hand to his side and pretended nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. Instead, he squatted in front of her and reached out to the cat on her lap, which immediately recoiled, its claws springing outward as it tried to scoot out of his reach.

  The woman yelped as the cat’s claws dragged across the skin on her bare arm. “Sadie,” she said, her voice laced with pain. “Calm down.”

  Not wanting to agitate the cat further, Travis stood. “Are you okay?” He didn’t see any blood on her arm, so that was good.

  A tentative smile appeared on her face. “Yeah.”

  “All right. Then if you’ll follow me.”

  Partially irritated with Sadie for scratching her, Gabby was also glad the pain had brought her out of her stupor. Standing, she pushed a loose strand of her long, dark hair behind her ear, then she followed Travis down the hallway and towards an exam room.

  She couldn’t believe Travis Haywood was in Emerald Falls. And he was the vet? Wow! He was as hot as ever. But he didn’t recognize her. Then again, why would he? It had been ten years and she had never spoken to him back then. What did it matter though? He was probably involved with someone, maybe even married. Anyway, how embarrassing would it be if he knew how much she had crushed on him way back when?

  Swallowing past the tightness in her throat, Gabby kept a firm hold on Sadie as she entered the exam room and watched Travis close the door.

  Oh my goodness! I’m alone in a room with Travis Haywood!

  A flush climbed her face as the silliness of her thoughts swept over her. She had to get a grip. She was twenty-five years old, not fifteen. Besides, all she was to him was the owner of one of his patients. Nothing more.

  “So,” Travis said as he turned around. “What’s going on with Sadie, Ms. Peters?”

  Trying not to notice his perfectly trimmed beard, short dark hair, and sapphire-blue eyes—all things which only emphasized how he’d become even better looking since he was eighteen, Gabby softly cleared her throat. “You can call me Gabby.”

  His lips turned up in a smile—the smile that Gabby so clearly remembered. The one that always made her heart thunder with longing.

  “Okay, Gabby.”

  Fighting the attraction that had prevented her from forgetting about him for all these years, she dragged her gaze away from his face and set Sadie on the exam table.

  Glad Gabriella—he couldn’t quite see her as Gabby—seemed to have recovered from her earlier reaction, Travis placed his hands on the gray tabby and began examining her.

  “I just moved to Emerald Falls,” Gabriella said. “And I wanted to make sure Sadie’s shots are up-to-date.”

  Curious about the woman, Travis looked up and met her gaze. “So you’re new to Emerald Falls?”

  She seemed to hesitate, but then she nodded. “Yes.” She paused a beat. “When did you…that is, how long have you been here?”

  “Two months,” he said.

  Why did something about her seem familiar?

  Until he’d started working at the clinic, it had been years since he’d lived in Emerald Falls. His family had moved away a few years after he’d left for college, so besides the summer after he’d graduated from high school, he’d spent very little time there and didn’t know many of the town’s residents.

  She’d said she’d just moved there, so why did he feel like he’d seen her before?

  Turning his focus back on his patient, he tried not to think about the attractive woman standing on the other side of the exam table. He was in Emerald Falls for one reason only: To gain experience under Doc Martin’s tutelage for a one year internship. That was it. That was all. Once he had completed his internship, he wanted to leave Emerald Falls and work for a larger practice in a busier city. He’d worked too hard to get sidetracked by a beautiful woman.

  Wait a minute. She had just gone from attractive to beautiful? He had to slow down.

  “Do you have a shot record for Sadie?” Travis asked.

  “Oh. Yes. Sorry.” Gabriella fumbled in her purse for a moment before pulling out a sheet of paper and holding it out to him.

  With a subtle glance at her face—why did she look so familiar?—Travis took the paper and reviewed the information. “Great. If you’ll wait here, I’ll grab the shots she needs.”

  When he returned a few minutes later and began administering the shots, he couldn’t seem to stop himself from wanting to learn more about Sadie’s owner. “So, Gabriella,” he said, glancing at her while trying to convince himself that he wasn’t attracted to her. “Where did you live before moving to Emerald Falls?”

  Beyond pleased to have Travis Haywood show interest in her—this was the first time she had ever spoken to him!—Gabby told herself he was only making small talk and not to read anything into it. “Sacramento.”

  He set the syringe on the exam table and looked at her, his eyes appraising. “Is that right? What made you want to move here?”

  She wasn’t sure how much she wanted to divulge. She’d
already told him she was new here, which wasn’t exactly true, although she’d never officially been a resident, so it was kind of true. “I, uh, I got a teaching job here.”

  “Oh.” He poked and prodded Sadie a bit more, then he smiled at Gabby. “She’s all set.”

  Disappointed that he was dismissing her—then feeling dumb that she’d entertained the idea that this interaction was anything beyond a professional visit—Gabby lifted Sadie from the table. “Okay. Thanks.”

  He opened the door to the exam room. “Please give us a call if Sadie ever needs anything.”

  Noticing the use of the words us and Sadie, Gabby got his message loud and clear: I’m not interested in you.

  The humiliating incident that had sent her fleeing from Sacramento flashed into her mind, and she reminded herself that she was never going to put herself out there like that again.

  Chapter 3

  “Excuse me,” a woman said to Gabby as she filled her shopping cart with vegetables two days later. “Don’t I know you?”

  Gabby turned to see who was speaking to her. She’d been in Emerald Falls for nearly a week and was still trying to settle in. She had yet to run in to anyone she’d known from her past—besides Travis Haywood, whom she was still trying to push out of her mind. But the moment Gabby saw the beautiful red hair and emerald green eyes, she recognized her old friend. “Amethyst?”

  Amethyst’s eyes widened. “It is you. Oh my gosh, Gabby!” Amethyst stepped forward and pulled Gabby into a tight hug. After a moment she released her. “What are you doing here? Are you staying with your aunt?”

  “I live here now.”