The Last Boyfriend

CHAPTER ONE



A fat winter moon poured light over the old stone and brick of the inn on The Square. In its beams, the new porches and pickets glowed, and the bright-penny copper of the roof glinted. The old and new merged there the past and the now in a strong and happy marriage. Its windows stayed dark on this December night, prizing its secrets in shadows. But in a matter of weeks they would shine like others along Boonsboro s Main Street. As he sat in his truck at the light on The Square, Owen Montgomery looked up Main at the shops and apartments draped in their holiday cheer. Lights winked and danced. To his right, a pretty tree graced the big front window of the second-floor apartment. Their future innkeeper s temporary residence reflected her style. Precise elegance. Next Christmas, he thought, they d have Inn BoonsBoro covered with white lights and greenery. And Hope Beaumont would center her pretty little tree in the window of the innkeeper s apartment on the third floor.



He glanced to his left where Avery MacTavish, owner of Vesta Pizzeria and Family Restaurant, had the restaurant s front porch decked out in lights.



Her apartment above formerly his brother Beckett s also showed a tree in the window. Otherwise the windows were as dark as the inn s. She d be working tonight, he thought, noting the movement in the restaurant. He shifted, but couldn t see her behind the work counter.



When the light changed, he turned right onto St. Paul Street, then left into the parking lot behind the inn. Then sat in his truck a moment, considering. He could walk over to Vesta, he thought, have a slice and a beer, hang out until closing. Afterward he could do his walk-through of the inn.



He didn t actually need to walk through, he reminded himself. But he hadn t been on-site all day as he d been busy with other meetings, other details on other Montgomery Family Contractors business. He didn t want to wait until morning to see what his

Nora Roberts is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 200 novels. She is also the author of the bestselling In Death series written under the pen name J. D. Robb. There are more than 500 million copies of her books in print.

[Roberts] writes a great story with likeable characters so warm and real nobody does it better. New York Journal of Books
 
Roberts opens her heart and invites the die-hard romantics to stick around and snuggle with this poignant tale about trust, commitment, and optimism. USA Today

No one writes relationships as well as Ms. Roberts, with the subtleties and quirkiness of the give-and-take of friendship and romance. Fresh Fiction