The Playboy Next Door Read online

  The Playboy Next Door

  Book 3

  Love on the North Shore Series

  The Playboy Next Door, Copyright 2015 by Christina Tetreault

  Published by Christina Tetreault

  ISBN: 978-0-9906511-6-1

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from the author at [email protected]. This book is a work of fiction. The characters, events, and places portrayed in this book are products of the author’s imagination and are either fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Other Books By Christina Tetreault

  Prologue

  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

  About The Author

  Other Books By Christina Tetreault

  *Loving The Billionaire, a novella

  *The Teacher’s Billionaire

  *The Billionaire Playboy

  *The Billionaire Princess

  *The Billionaire’s Best Friend

  *Redeeming The Billionaire

  *More Than A Billionaire

  +The Courage To Love

  +Hometown Love

  +The Playboy Next Door

  *The Sherbrookes of Newport Series

  +Love On The North Shore Series

  Prologue

  No more blind dates. Catrina sent the text message and then slipped her phone back into her purse. She’d said the exact same thing last month after the disastrous date with Kelsey’s coworker, but this time, she meant it. Vincent had a good excuse, but she still found herself seated at the bar alone drinking a hard cider on a Saturday night while her car sat in the garage waiting to be fixed. She’d much rather be with one of her friends or sitting on her own comfortable couch.

  Yep, no more arranged dates no matter how much her friends pestered her. The next time she saw Kelsey or Ella, she’d let them know that.

  “Do you need anything else?” the bartender asked after setting a sandwich in front of another customer.

  Cat’s stomach picked that moment to rumble. She was already out; maybe she should eat. “Can I see a menu?”

  The bartender slid a menu across the bar. “Let me know when you’re ready,” she said before walking away.

  Cat eyed the choices and ignored the customers around her. From the corner of her eye, she saw someone take the seat next to her, but didn’t glance up. If she were sitting at the bar inside Masterson’s, she’d look over, fully expecting to see someone she knew. You couldn’t sit inside the popular restaurant in North Salem and not see someone you knew. O’Leary’s, the busy downtown pub she sat in now, was a different story. Located at the heart of the city, she never bumped into anyone she knew from her hometown.

  “Hey, Cat. I thought that was you,” a male voice said.

  Cat looked away from her menu and to her new neighbor, surprised to see Tony Bates seated next to her. “Hi, Tony. How’s it going?”

  A few years older than her, she’d known Tony all her life, although she hadn’t seen him all that often since she’d moved out of North Salem.

  “Good. You?” Tony gave her his trademark smile. The one she suspected had melted more than one woman’s heart.

  Cat had to admit she wasn’t 100 percent immune to his smile. Tony Bates was one handsome devil, and he knew it.

  “Hangin’ in there. Are you meeting someone?”

  “No, I stop in here occasionally on my way home,” Tony answered.

  “Long time no see, Tony,” the bartender said, stopping near them. “What can I get you?”

  “Hi, Cora. How about a beer? Whatever you have on tap tonight.”

  Cora gave him a smile and walked away.

  “What about you? I’ve never seen you in here.”

  Tony turned his full attention toward her again, his intense gaze exciting her.

  “I was supposed to meet a date at the Scarlet Letter. He canceled at the last minute, so I stopped in here.”

  “Jerk. It’s his loss. What did he give for a reason?”

  “Surgery.”

  Tony gave her a look of disbelief. “That’s an original one.”

  “Ella’s cousin is a doctor, so it’s possible.”

  “Still his loss.”

  Cora returned with Tony’s beer and looked in Cat’s direction. “Have you decided on anything?”

  “No, sorry, not yet,” Cat answered.

  “What about you, Tony? Can I get you anything else?” Cora leaned forward with a calculating smile, and Cat wondered just how well the two knew each other.

  “All set for now, Cora. Thanks.”

  The pretty bartender pulled back, her smile gone. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

  Cat glanced at the menu again as her stomach rumbled.

  “Since we’re both alone, what do you say we finish these drinks and find a better place for dinner? Other than the buffalo wings, there’s not much decent on the menu here.”

  “Saturday night and Tony Bates doesn’t have a date? Is the world coming to an end?”

  Over the years, Tony had become known as North Salem’s resident playboy.

  “Even I need a break from time to time. What do you say?”

  Tony reached for his beer mug, the movement drawing her eyes to his long, tanned fingers and the scar that ran across the top of his right hand. She’d seen Tony more times than she could count and had never noticed it.

  “Sure, why not.” Cat put down the menu, and right away, Cora came back over.

  “Did you decide?” Cora asked in a less friendly tone than the one she’d used when Cat sat alone.

  “I’m going to pass tonight, thanks.”

  Cora shrugged and turned her gaze back to Tony. “What about you, Tony? Change your mind about eating?” The bartender’s curt tone softened as she spoke to him.

  “Not tonight, Cora.” Tony handed the bartender the money for his beer.

  Cat and Tony made idle chitchat as they finished their drinks, and Cat couldn’t help but notice the looks the bartender kept sending in Tony’s direction. She figured the two had either gone out a time or two, or Cora hoped he would ask her out. She wouldn’t be surprised if the first was true. Cora looked like Tony’s type. She was pretty and had a knock-out body, something Cat couldn’t help but notice thanks to the sprayed on jeans and tight black O’Leary’s Pub T-shirt Cora wore.

  Actually, Cora seemed like her brother’s type too. Striker didn’t go for conservative women either. He’d never admit it, but in many ways, Striker and Tony were a lot alike. Both were carefree bachelors who based their dating decisions on the way a woman looked rather than her personality.

  “All set?” Tony asked as he put his empty beer mug down.

  She’d finished her drink five minutes ago. “Ready.” Cat hopped off the stool and waited as the bartender spoke to Tony again.

  “Cora seems to like you,” Cat said as they walked toward the exit.

  Tony pushed open the door and held it for her. “We went out a few times in the spring. Tonight’s the first time I’ve see
n her since June.”

  Judging by Cora’s behavior, she wanted to see more of Tony. “I think she’d like you to take her out again.”

  Tony shrugged as they stepped outside. “It’s a nice night. We could walk to the Seaside Steak House,” Tony said, referring to a restaurant about a block over.

  “I don’t like red meat. Never have.”

  “Are you serious?” Tony looked at her as if she’d admitted she worshiped the devil. “Okay, how about Turin? It’s just down the street.”

  “Perfect, I get takeout from there all the time. They have the best eggplant parm.”

  “I’ve never tried it, but their homemade pasta is good,” Tony said as they crossed the street.

  “Do you work nearby?” Cat asked as they entered the restaurant. At some point, her brother or father may have mentioned where the gym Tony owned was located, but she couldn’t recall, and it seemed like a good question. In all honesty, she didn’t have a lot of experience starting up conversation with men that didn’t involve whatever current project she worked on.

  “Boston, but I stop in O’Leary’s once in a while. Sometimes it’s nice to walk into a place where you don’t recognize every single face.”

  “I know the feeling. That’s why Zack and I originally got a place in Salem instead of moving back to town.”

  “Since you were meeting some doctor tonight, I’m assuming you’re not with Zack anymore.”

  Cat figured everyone in North Salem knew she and Zachary Cummings, her high school sweetheart, had split after almost ten years together.

  “No. We haven’t been together since Valentine’s Day. I’m surprised Pop didn’t say something. I think he was more upset than me.”

  Tony laughed. “That’s not the kind of thing he’d mention at practice.” For a moment, Tony looked confused. “Didn’t they go deep-sea fishing together a few weeks ago?”

  “Yep. I know, weird, right? Zack looks at Pop as almost a father. Even before we got together our senior year, he saw my dad as more than just a football coach. He’d come over and talk whenever he needed a man’s opinion. They even go hunting together.”

  “The football players have always loved your dad. I think that’s why we’ve always had such a great team. No one wants to let him down.”

  She agreed. Pop had a way with the guys on the high school football team. They gave 100 percent because they wanted to, not because it was expected of them.

  “Pop says the players love you.” Well, those weren’t his exact words. It had been more along the lines of idolize. According to her father, half the guys on the team wanted a life like Tony’s someday. A successful small business owner who had a different attractive female on his arm every other month and a new Corvette parked next to a Harley in his garage.

  “He’s glad you came back this year as an assistant coach.”

  “This might be my last season. I already told him that.”

  Cat waited until a waitress took their orders before she spoke again.

  “And has he already started trying to change your mind?” She knew her dad well. Pop had had many assistant coaches over the years, but Tony and her older brother Striker were his favorites.

  “How’d you guess?”

  Tony smiled at her, a dimple appearing in his cheek, and Cat wished she had a fan handy. Wow, was she suddenly warm.

  “Lucky guess.”

  “I suggested he talk to Sean if I don’t come back.”

  She could picture Sean O’Brien, Tony’s BFF, as Pop’s coach. At one time, Sean had been North Salem’s star quarterback. Even now after all these years, Pop mentioned what a shame it was that Sean hadn’t played in college. Pop strongly believed if Sean had, he would’ve made it to the NFL.

  “Doesn’t he work at MIT’s Lincoln Lab now?”

  She’d overheard a conversation at Peggy Sue’s one morning about how Sean had secretly graduated from MIT and landed a job at the well-known laboratory in Lexington. She probably wouldn’t have remembered if it hadn’t surprised her, as well as the entire town, so much. While she’d never considered Sean stupid, she hadn’t pictured him the academic type. Evidently, she’d underestimated him because he’d earned a master’s degree in physics from MIT.

  “Yeah, but I think he’s got some flexibility with his hours. He’d be good at it too.”

  Their waitress returned with their meals, and Cat didn’t miss the quick glance the waitress threw over her shoulder as she walked away. Looking back at Tony, Cat was about to tell him the waitress seemed interested in him, but the words never made it past her lips.

  She wished she could capture Tony’s expression in a picture and pull it out whenever her ego needed a little boosting. Men gave her the once-over on a somewhat regular basis. As a computer engineer, she worked in a predominately male field, but, until now, she’d never had a man eye her as if she were his favorite sports car and dream swimsuit model all rolled into one.

  Unable to hold his gaze, she looked at the eggplant parmesan on her plate, a bizarre combination of embarrassment and excitement washing over her.

  He’d stopped at O’Leary’s Pub for a drink–– nothing else. Contrary to popular belief, he didn’t walk into every place with the intent of leaving with a woman. Sure it happened, but he did often stop somewhere for a drink or meal and leave alone. That had been his plan tonight.

  Even when he’d recognized Catrina Striker at the bar, the idea of leaving with her hadn’t occurred to him. A former resident of North Salem, he’d never looked at her as anything but his buddy’s kid sister. Tonight though, when she’d sounded rather down because her date bailed on her, he’d felt like he should do something.

  Now, as he watched Cat walk back to their table after a trip to the ladies’ room, he found himself noticing, for the second time that night, things he’d never noticed before. She might not have on skintight jeans like Cora at the pub, but her outfit highlighted all her curves. Tony didn’t know what her day-to-day routine was like, but he suspected she didn’t sit in a chair all day eating cookies. No one got a body like that from sitting in a chair.

  “Our waitress stopped by. She asked if we wanted dessert.” Tony watched as Cat brushed her long hair over her shoulder again, and he wondered if it was as soft as it looked.

  “I’m not interested in dessert, but go ahead if you want something.”

  He wanted something, but it wasn’t dessert. Unless by dessert she meant some whipped cream and her naked body. Since he doubted that was on the menu, he pulled his wallet out. “All set.”

  His body definitely had the desire for something it shouldn’t want, considering who sat across from him. Cat was Striker’s kid sister. While he didn’t consider the guy his closest friend or anything, they were friends. They hung out from time to time and coached football together. That alone made Cat off limits.

  He also coached with her father. Starting late in the summer and continuing until at least Thanksgiving, he saw her father five or six days a week on the football field. He liked and respected Edward Striker, which meant he shouldn’t be thinking about how the guy’s daughter would look naked with nothing but her long hair covering her breasts.

  Unfortunately, he couldn’t get the thought out of his stupid head.

  Tony placed enough cash to cover the bill and a tip inside the folder containing the guest receipt. “Lets go.”

  “Wait. What’s my half of the bill?” Cat pulled a wallet from her shoulder bag.

  Pushing back his chair, Tony had no intentions of answering. Dinner had been his idea, and in hindsight, it had been a bad one. “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Tony, come on.” She reached for the folder, but he pulled it away.

  “Next spring you can buy me a burger or something at a block party.”

  Cat grabbed the folder from his hands. “I don’t think so.” Without looking at the total, she pulled out one of the twenties he put inside and slipped in two tens.

  “Now we can go.” She s
hoved the twenty she’d removed into his front pocket.

  Of course, the head residing south of his belt took notice and decided now was the time for a full and proper hello. Tony mentally cursed.

  “You’re bossy, aren’t you?”

  Cat smiled and nodded, her hair brushing against his arm.

  Yeah, just as soft as it looks.

  Tony followed her outside without further argument. It seemed the wisest decision.

  “I’ll walk with you back to O’Leary’s.” Since they’d met inside the pub, he assumed her car remained in O’Leary’s parking lot, and it was getting dark.

  “No need. I walked there tonight. My car died on my way home and got towed to R&M Garage, but I only live on Curtis Street. I can walk.”

  He didn’t know where Curtis Street was, but he wasn’t going to let her walk home alone. Maybe if they were in North Salem he would. The worst thing that happened there was a yard got covered in toilet paper during homecoming week. The city of Salem was a different story.

  “Then I’ll drive you home.” He anticipated an argument, but unlike a few minutes ago, he wouldn’t give in this time.

  Not a single comment against his idea materialized. Instead, Cat turned the corner and walked toward O’Leary’s.

  Tony followed Cat’s directions to Curtis Street, and in a few minutes, he pulled over in front of an old Victorian mansion.

  “Thanks for the ride and the company tonight.”

  The hair she’d pushed over her shoulder half a dozen times that night fell forward when she turned to look at him. Without thinking, he reached out to push it back.

  “Anytime.”

  He leaned forward, his lips intent on making contact with hers. Whatever arguments his brain voiced during dinner got drowned out by the more primal arguments the rest of his body was making now.

  He could tell by her expression that she realized his intention, but she didn’t back away or make an attempt to stop him. Instead, Cat ran her tongue over her bottom lip before leaning toward him, meeting him half way.

  He pressed his lips against hers, and then teased them apart as he pulled her closer. When she parted her lips, he didn’t hesitate. Tony deepened the kiss as desire and lust took hold.