AN ADVENTURE FOR ASTER

  NATALIE ANN

  Copyright 2024 Natalie Ann

  All Rights Reserved

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without a written consent.

  Created with Vellum

  CONTENTS

  Author’s Note

  Also by Natalie Ann

  About the Author

  Blurb

  Prologue

  1. A Dream Come True

  2. Only Single One

  3. The Cute Teacher

  4. Go With The Flow

  5. Adaptable Person

  6. More Than Enough Wealth

  7. His Need For Order

  8. Activity Number Two

  9. A Little Romantic And Sappy

  10. Normal Dating Life

  11. Coming Out Of His Shell

  12. More Real For Me

  13. Nice To Be Included

  14. Hated The Attention

  15. If It Happened

  16. As Close To Perfect

  17. Lucky Bastard

  18. Gave Her Hope

  19. Make A Good Team

  20. Different Person

  21. Pretend He Understood

  22. Not A Big Deal

  23. Crazy Sappy Look

  24. Sacrifice Of Your Comfort

  25. Find The Right Guy

  26. Thought Is Always More Important

  27. No Big Deal

  28. Something Better Now

  29. Learning Experience

  30. Should Be Next

  31. The Way She Was

  32. Between Us

  33. Got Her Point Across

  34. All A Test

  35. For The Best

  36. Life Is Messy

  37. Making It Work

  38. A Good Ending

  39. Adventure Dating You

  Epilogue

  Also by Natalie Ann

  About the Author

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Author’s Note

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  ALSO BY NATALIE ANN

  The Road Series-See where it all started!!

  Lucas and Brooke’s Story- Road to Recovery

  Jack and Cori’s Story – Road to Redemption

  Mac and Beth’s Story- Road to Reality

  Ryan and Kaitlin’s Story- Road to Reason

  The All Series

  William and Isabel’s Story — All for Love

  Ben and Presley’s Story – All or Nothing

  Phil and Sophia’s Story – All of Me

  Alec and Brynn’s Story – All the Way

  Sean and Carly’s Story — All I Want

  Drew and Jordyn’s Story— All My Love

  Finn and Olivia’s Story—All About You

  Landon Barber and Kristen Reid- All Of Us

  The Lake Placid Series

  Nick Buchanan and Mallory Denning – Second Chance

  Max Hamilton and Quinn Baker – Give Me A Chance

  Caleb Ryder and Celeste McGuire – Our Chance

  Cole McGuire and Rene Buchanan – Take A Chance

  Zach Monroe and Amber Deacon- Deserve A Chance

  Trevor Miles and Riley Hamilton – Last Chance

  Matt Winters and Dena Hall- Another Chance

  Logan Taylor and Kennedy Miles- It’s My Chance

  Justin Cambridge and Taryn Miles – One More Chance

  The Fierce Five Series

  Gavin Fierce and Jolene O’Malley- How Gavin Stole Christmas

  Brody Fierce and Aimee Reed - Brody

  Aiden Fierce and Nic Moretti- Aiden

  Mason Fierce and Jessica Corning- Mason

  Cade Fierce and Alex Marshall - Cade

  Ella Fierce and Travis McKinley- Ella

  Fierce Family

  Sam Fierce and Dani Rhodes- Sam

  Bryce Fierce and Payton Davies - Bryce

  Drake Fierce and Kara Winslow – Drake

  Noah Fierce and Paige Parker - Noah

  Wyatt Fierce and Adriana Lopez – Wyatt

  Jade Fierce and Brock James – Jade

  Ryder Fierce and Marissa McMillan – Ryder

  Fierce Matchmaking

  Devin Andrews and Hope Hall- Devin

  Mick McNamara and Lindsey White- Mick

  Cody McMillian and Raina Davenport – Cody

  Liam O’Malley and Margo West- Liam

  Walker Olson and Stella White – Walker

  Flynn Slater and Julia McNamara – Flynn

  Ivan Andrews & Kendra Key- Ivan

  Jonah Davenport & Megan Harrington- Jonah

  Royce Kennedy & Chloe Grey- Royce

  Sawyer Brennan & Faith O’Malley- Sawyer

  Trent Davenport & Roni Hollister- Trent

  Gabe McCarthy & Elise Kennedy – Gabe

  Ben Kelley & Eve Hall – Ben

  Dane Grey & Sloane Redding – Dane

  Zander Conway & Regan Philes – Zander

  Paradise Place

  Josh Turner and Ruby Gentile – Cupid’s Quest

  Harris Walker and Kaelyn Butler – Change Up

  Philip Aire and Blair McKay- Starting Over

  Nathan Randal and Brina Shepard – Eternal

  Ryan Butler and Shannon Wilder – Falling Into Love

  Brian Dawson and Robin Masters – Mistletoe Magic

  Caden Finley and Sarah Walker- Believe In Me

  Evan Butler and Parker Reed – Unexpected Delivery

  Trey Bridges and Whitney Butler – Forever Mine

  Dylan Randal and Zoe Milton- Because Of You

  Cash Fielding and Hannah Shepard – Letting Go

  Brent Elliot and Vivian Getman – No More Hiding

  Marcus Reid and Addison Fielding- Made For Me

  Rick Masters and Gillian Bridges – The One

  Cooper Winslow and Morgan Finely- Back To Me

  Jeremy Reid and McKenna Preston- Saving Me

  Christian Butler and Liz Carter- Begin Again

  Cal Perkins and Mia Finley- Angels Above

  Amore Island

  Family Bonds- Hunter and Kayla

  Family Bonds- Drew and Amanda

  Family Bonds – Mac and Sidney

  Family Bonds- Emily & Crew

  Family Bonds- Ava & Seth

  Family Bonds- Eli & Bella

  Family Bonds- Hailey & Rex

  Family Bonds- Penelope & Griffin

  Family Bonds- Bode & Samantha

  Family Bonds- Hudson & Delaney

  Family Bonds- Alex & Jennie

  Family Bonds- Roark & Chelsea

  Family Bonds- Duke & Hadley

  Family Bonds – Carter & Avery

  Family Bonds- Egan & Blake

  Family Bonds- Carson & Laine

  Family Bonds- Grace & Lincoln

  Family Bonds- Kelsey & Van

  Family Bonds- Jarrett & Andi

  Blossoms

  A Love for Lily – Zane Wolfe and Lily Bloom

  A Playboy For Poppy- Reese McGill and Poppy Bloom

  A Romantic For Rose – Thomas Klein and Rose Bloom

  A Return For Ren – Ren Whitney and Zara Wolfe

  A Journey For Jasmine- Wesley Wright and Jasmine Greene

  A Vacationer for Violet – Violet Soren And Trace Mancini

  A Hero For Heather- Heather Davis and Luke Remington

  A Doctor For Daisy- Daisy Jones And Theo James

  An Investigator For Ivy- Ivy Greene and Brooks Scarsdale

  A Date For Dahlia- Dahlia Greene and Hugh Crosby

  A Surprise For Sage- Sage Mancini and Knox Bradford

  An Adventure For Aster – Aster Allen & Raine Scarsdale

  A Lesson For Laurel – Laurel Glasglow & Easton Cooke

  Looking For Love

  Learning To Love – West Carlisle and Abby Sherman

  Love To The Rescue – Braylon Carlisle and Lily Baker

  Love In The Spotlight- Laken Carlisle and Jamie Wilde

  Love Collection

  Vin Steele and Piper Fielding – Secret Love

  Jared Hawk and Shelby McDonald – True Love

  Erik McMann and Sheldon Case – Finding Love

  Connor Landers and Melissa Mahoney- Beach Love

  Ian Price and Cam Mason- Intense Love

  Liam Sullivan and Ali Rogers - Autumn Love

  Owen Taylor and Jill Duncan - Holiday Love

  Chase Martin and Noelle Bennett - Christmas Love

  Zeke Collins and Kendall Hendricks - Winter Love

  Troy Walker and Meena Dawson – Chasing Love

  Jace Stratton and Lauren Towne - First Love

  Gabe Richards and Leah Morrison - Forever Love

  Blake Wilson and Gemma Anderson – Simply Love

  Brendan St. Nicholas and Holly Lane – Gifts of Love

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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  BLURB

  Aster Allen is a true hero. But with that unwanted title comes a career change he didn’t plan on and a lot more stress he doesn’t need.

  A job offer from his old Army Commander ends up being his savior, forcing him to move to a small town where few know him or his background. And maybe he’d like to keep it that way.

  Raine Scarsdale is sick of being labeled and judged by her career and upbringing. But living in the small tourist town of Mystic makes that almost impossible. She just wants to be who she is and finally has a chance when she meets a newcomer to the area.

  The only problem, it seems too good to be true, just like her last serious relationship, when she starts to suspect Aster’s not always forthcoming with his personal history.

  PROLOGUE

  Aster walked into the living room of the small ranch house he grew up in. On leave, he had nowhere else to go. It’s not like he owned any property and he went where the Army sent him. He’d arrived yesterday afternoon and had to figure out what to do with himself for two weeks.

  “Hey,” his sister Daphne said, opening the front door. “Did you just get up?”

  “No,” he said. “Why would you ask that?”

  It was almost four in the afternoon. “Your hair is wet like you just got out of the shower. I know you’re not sleeping much. I heard you walking around last night. I thought now that everyone was out of the house and it was quiet you could sleep.”

  His younger sister by six years was good at catching things like that.

  “It’s all good,” he said. “I’m not used to getting that much sleep. I’ve been cleaning up some. Or trying to.”

  He looked at the comical expression on his sister’s face. “If you clean too much then Mom and Dad won’t do anything.”

  “Like they ever do,” he said.

  The living room had been littered with dirty dishes and plates, ashtrays too. It drove him nuts, but nothing he could do about it. He’d grown up like this. The amount of dust in the corners and on the windowsills was making him sneeze just walking into the room worse than when he’d been deployed in the desert for a year.

  “Some things never change,” Daphne said. “And speaking of changing, I’ve got to be at work in a few hours and I’d like to get out of these clothes.”

  His sister worked two jobs. Full time at a daycare center that paid shit, then she was a waitress a few nights a week. He knew she hated doing that, but she made more at her part-time job and needed the full-time one for benefits.

  “I was going to see if there was anything to make for dinner,” he said. It’s not like he’d done much checking of things yesterday. Daphne had picked him up at the airport because his parents couldn’t be bothered to take time off of work to do it. He hated that his sister was going to use her time off for that and offered to get an Uber.

  “Good luck,” she said. “There might be pizza leftover that Mom brought home last night.”

  “No,” he said. “I picked up the empty boxes this morning and heard Mom and Dad talking about bringing them for lunch.” He hadn’t been able to sleep with all the noise in the house and he was too jet lagged to sleep when he went to bed last night. He’d probably crash tonight.

  “What did you eat for lunch?” Daphne asked.

  “Coffee and toast,” he said, shrugging.

  “That’s not much of a lunch. I’m going to change.”

  Aster moved to the small kitchen that he’d spent three hours cleaning earlier and repairing loose handles and a leaky sink. That was him—he was a fixer of pretty much anything. He’d want to say he got that from his father who worked maintenance for one of the oil companies in the area, but his father never fixed anything that he wasn’t paid to do.

  He opened the fridge and saw it didn’t have much more than condiments on the shelf that looked months past expiration. There was a full shelf of beer because they were never short on that in this house, but food was slim pickings like when he was growing up.

  They never went hungry; his parents picked up takeout if they couldn’t throw together spaghetti and sauce from a jar. They weren’t poor; his parents were just lazy. The older he got, he’d make what he could from what he could find.

  He opened the freezer next and there was nothing but ice cream, frozen dinners, and a couple of bottles of vodka.

  “Find anything?” Daphne asked. She was in shorts and a T-shirt right now. He was positive it wasn’t her work uniform because she complained about the men looking at her chest even though it gave her bigger tips, so she sucked it up.

  A few times he’d transferred money into her account without her knowledge. It’s not like he had anything to spend his salary on and had more in the bank than he ever thought he would.

  Daphne would only reach out and give him hell, but he didn’t care. He had enough guilt that he should have stayed around to care for her. He’d needed to get out of the area before he got sucked in and never left.

  “No,” he said. “I’m going to run to the store and get a few things. What are you in the mood for?”

  “Anything you get that isn’t frozen is great. I gave up buying things and leaving them in the fridge. Mom and Dad would eat them on me.”

  Aster sighed. He knew Daphne paid rent to live here, but she didn’t make enough to live on her own. The fact that she was doing that and his parents were still eating the food his sister bought for herself was selfish.

  “You should keep it in a fridge in your room,” he said.

  “I have a mini fridge in there,” she said, grinning. “I keep lunch foods and some things in there, but even then Mom has grabbed food out of it when I’m not around.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Why am I not surprised? I’ll at least stock up while I’m here.”

  “That’s your choice,” Daphne said.

  “I’ll be back in twenty minutes if I can use your car?”

  She grabbed the keys that were on the counter. “It’s your car, not mine.”

  He’d left it here for her. It’s not like it was a new car, but it was free for his sister and he never thought of it as his at this point.

  He drove to the store and parked. It wasn’t that busy at this time on a Tuesday. Barely four and he’d get in and out quickly.

  When he was walking around he noticed some young girl on her phone the whole time. She appeared out of place to him. Too fancy for the likes of this area with her diamond bracelet and earrings that stood out more than they should. Her long blonde hair was perfectly styled, her nails professionally done with designs on them as her fingers typed into the phone.

  She didn’t seem to know where things were either as if the grocery store was foreign to her.

  She’d passed him a few times, almost zigzagging while her face was buried in the screen.

  The third time he’d seen her he noticed the same guy watching her too. Older, dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt, a hat on his head and pulled down low so his face was shielded.

  He felt tingles up his spine and had to tell himself to shut his brain off and not be looking for enemies lurking in corners but rather ground beef for dinner.

  By the time he checked out with a few bags of things, the girl had five items and was being rung up next to him.

  He was putting his cart in the stall and grabbing his two bags when a black van came speeding toward the front door just as the girl was walking out not paying attention.

  The man that had been following behind rushed the girl to shove her into the van, but Aster was close enough to jump in and start fighting the guy off as the girl was screaming and kicking and putting up one hell of a struggle to not be taken.

  He yanked her out of the way and shoved her to the ground, then threw punch after punch as he was yelling, “Run!” to her. She wasn’t moving, and before he knew it, the guy he’d been fighting off pulled out a gun and all he felt was a burning pain in his chest.

  Then he hit the pavement and blacked out.

  1

  A DREAM COME TRUE

  Six Months Later

  “Is this the excitement you signed up for volunteering?” Carter asked Aster at the volunteer fire department on the first of October in Stonington, Connecticut.

  “It beats some of the things I’ve done in my life,” he said.

  He never thought he’d move to the East Coast, least of all the small tourist town of Mystic.