The One Read online

  The One

  Synopsis

  Jody Acosta’s life was turned upside down the day her father died in a work-related accident. Struggling with her grief, all she can do is immerse herself in her work at the local animal shelter and help her mother while they wait for the settlement from the wrongful death lawsuit.

  Nicole Bergeron, the company’s representative, is conducting an internal investigation into the accident. She understands the Acosta family’s grief, but that doesn’t mean the company her father built is automatically responsible for the tragedy.

  Jody doesn’t know what makes her more furious, that the wealthy Bergeron family refuses to pay for what they did, or that she can’t ignore her knee-weakening attraction to Nicole. But she’ll need to push aside her anger to work with Nicole to find the truth, about the company, about her father, and about her own heart.

  The One

  Brought to you by

  eBooks from Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com

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  Please respect the rights of the author and do not file share.

  By the Author

  Edge of Awareness

  The Courage to Try

  Imperfect Truth

  Love Came Calling

  Through Love’s Eyes

  Love’s Truth

  The Kiss

  The One

  The One

  © 2023 By C.A. Popovich. All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN 13: 978-1-63679-317-7

  This Electronic Original Is Published By

  Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  P.O. Box 249

  Valley Falls, NY 12185

  First Edition: February 2023

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

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

  Credits

  Editor: Cindy Cresap

  Production Design: Susan Ramundo

  Cover Design by Jeanine Henning

  eBook Design by Toni Whitaker

  Acknowledgments

  My thanks go out to Michigan Humane for all their efforts to rehome so many abandoned animals. Thank you, Sandi, for feedback on my first draft and as always, thank you to the hard-working folks at Bold Strokes Books for giving my stories a home.

  Dedication

  To Love

  Chapter One

  Jody Acosta pulled another dress off the rack and held it up for her friend Ash’s opinion.

  “It’s nice, too.”

  “That’s not helpful, Ash. Which one?”

  “Try them both on. Then you can decide.”

  Jody took both dresses to the tiny dressing room in the resale shop and modeled each one for her. “Well?”

  “Definitely the dark green one. It makes your pretty hazel eyes sparkle.”

  “You think my eyes are pretty?” Jody mentally slapped herself and focused on positive self-affirmations. One of the reasons she decided to shop for a new dress to wear to the fancy fundraiser event included pushing herself to improve her self-image. “Forget I asked that. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome, and you’re gorgeous. Wearing that dress will have every lesbian in the room drooling.”

  “How do you know there’ll be lesbians there?”

  “It’s a fundraiser for an animal shelter. Do I need to say more? Besides, Nicole Bergeron is a lesbian and she’s hosting the event.” Ashley smirked. “If you can’t decide, buy them both. The red one looks very hot on you, too.”

  Jody changed back into her jeans and T-shirt and took the dresses to the checkout. She had to admit she looked forward to the event, new dress or not. She’d heard about it when she’d spent the weekend volunteering at the local animal shelter and saw the lack of cleaning supplies and dog food.

  “Good job,” Ashley said as she started her car.

  “Thanks for coming with me. I suck at shopping.” Jody took a deep breath and enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment. The thrift shop was the perfect place to find bargains. For the first time since her high school prom, she looked forward to getting dressed up and going out. “So, who is this Nicole?”

  “She’s the daughter of the real estate mogul of the county, Daniel Bergeron. She does a lot to support the animal shelters throughout the state.”

  “Huh,” Jody replied. “I hope this event tonight will be fun. I’m glad you agreed to go with me. I’m a little nervous.”

  “If it’s anything like the last fundraiser she hosted, it’ll be elegant and well-attended.”

  “Well, it’s for a good cause.” Jody sat up straight and took a deep breath. She could mingle with the rich and famous for one evening.

  She hung her new dresses in her closet when she got home and made sure her shoes were polished. She thought about Ashley’s elegant comment and pulled out her strappy sandals. Maybe she’d go for elegant, too. She was smiling when she grabbed her favorite body wash and turned on the shower. She finished quickly and stood before her full-length mirror for a minute. She’d never been obsessed with her weight or figure having always been active, so she wasn’t sure why she bothered to check herself out now except she’d never been to a fancy, formal, fundraiser before. She slid into her new green dress and checked her makeup before slipping on her shoes and grabbing her clutch purse.

  “You ready yet?” Ashley called from the doorway.

  “I’ll be right there.” Jody took one last look in her mirror and went to meet Ashley at the door.

  “Wow. You look amazing.” Ashley grinned and shook her head.

  “Thanks. You clean up pretty good yourself.” Jody took her arm and tugged her to her car. The ride only took fifteen minutes and Jody watched the people streaming into the building as Ashley parked her car. It looked like there would be plenty of attendees. She followed Ashley into the brightly lit space and took in the chandeliers and crystal decanters with champagne flutes strategically placed throughout the room. “You were right about the elegance,” she whispered to Ashley.

  “Yeah. It’s beautiful.” Ashley looked distracted as she searched the area for her fiancé. “Do you see Bill? He said he’d meet us at the door.”

  “There he is.” Jody pointed to Bill striding toward them. “He looks quite dashing. And you look stunning. Have fun.” Jody sauntered to one of the tables and picked up a glass of champagne. She perused the room and her gaze landed on the most dazzling woman she’d ever seen. The beauty wore an expensive looking cream tuxedo designed to perfectly fit her solid but most definitely female form. Her thick blond hair flowed to her shoulders, and when she turned toward her, Jody found herself drowning in the depths of dark chocolate sparkling eyes. Heat followed the path as her gaze traveled from her eyes to her feet and back. Her strappy sandals were a good idea. She returned the perusal and took a sip from her glass. She never was any good at the flirting thing. She took a deep breath and released it as she watched the woman glide toward her.

  “Hello. I haven’t seen you at any of my events before. My name’s Nicole.” She never broke eye contact and gently tapped her champagne glass to Jody’s.

  “It’s nice to meet you. This is the first fundraiser I’ve attended.” Jody swallowed the lump in her throat when she realized she’d just cruised the event’s hostess. “I volunteer at the animal shelter on Main Street, so I wanted to participate in the financial support. My name’s Jody.” She took another sip of the bubbly alcohol.

  “I’m glad you’re here, Jody. I’d offer you a drink but you beat me to it. Come on. I’ll show you the plan.”

  Jody had no idea what “the plan” could be, but she followed Nicole. “Sounds good. Thanks.” Several people, mainly women, interrupted their progress by trying to engage Nicole in conversation while shooting daggers at her, she suspected, because Nicole had taken her hand and hadn’t let go.

  Jody stiffened and pulled her hand away. Nicole obviously got whatever or whomever she wanted. “I’d like to see this plan you’re talking about.”

  “It’s right this way.” Nicole led her across the room to a table with several photos of various shelter animals. “I found most people are more willing to donate after they see who their money is going to support.” She smiled and waved at a couple standing across from them. “We have quite a few supporters who like to symbolically adopt one of these. They pick one from the pictures and donate in whatever name they decide to give them.” She grinned and pointed to a picture of a Dachshund pup. “That sweetie has been adopted by seven different people and has seven different names. She’s responsible for nearly half of the donations going to her shelter.” Nicole took her hand again and led her to one of the small champagne tables. “Another glass?”

  “Thank you.” Jody’s hand tingled when Nicole stroked it with her fingers as she passed her a glass. She swallowed before speaking. “How often do you hold these events?”

  “I try for two or three a year. This is the first for this year, and I’m glad you’re here. I’m afraid I need to leave you for a while to mingle.” She glanced at her gold wristw
atch. “Can we meet here later? Maybe in an hour?”

  Jody’s thoughts spun like a top. Jody had no desire to be the conquest of a rich playgirl, even the intriguing Nicole. And she had no doubt that was exactly what Nicole Bergeron was. “I came with friends so I need to find them.” She smiled and headed to the area she last saw Ashley.

  She wandered around the crowded room, smiled, and nodded to a few people while sipping from her glass. When she noted her lightheadedness, she filled one of the small plates with a few hors d’oeuvres and found a bottle of sparkling water. She settled against one of the walls and people-watched while she ate. She hadn’t seen Ashley and Bill since they’d arrived, but she realized she hadn’t paid attention to anyone else once Nicole had crossed into her radar. She finished eating and went to the donation table to leave the check she’d brought for her local animal shelter. She made a circuit around the room impressed with the understated but elegant décor. She had to force herself to ignore their sad eyes pleading to be taken to a forever home as she continued her stroll and checked out the photos of the animals. Once she had enough money saved to buy her own home, she’d consider adopting a dog.

  Her thoughts turned to her mother alone in her house. Maybe she’d like a cat. She could talk to her about it when she saw her the next day. Thoughts of her mother reminded her of their pending wrongful death lawsuit. She had an appointment with the company representative on Monday to discuss the details. She found Ashley and Bill near the exit and she hoped it meant they were ready to leave. She’d met the beautiful Nicole and checked out the animals waiting for adoption. She was ready to go home, change into her sweats, and make a bowl of popcorn. “Have you seen enough?” she asked them.

  “We have. You ready to leave?”

  “Yes.” Jody glanced back toward where Nicole stood talking to an elderly gentleman.

  She pushed away thoughts of Nicole on the ride home. “Did you have a good time?” she asked.

  “We did.” Bill grinned as he spoke.

  Ashley held his hand. “This is our first time at a dressy event.” She leaned and kissed him. “He is dashing, isn’t he?”

  “Very.” Jody smiled. Ashley and Bill’s sister were friends and she’d met Bill at the welcome home party his family planned for him after he returned from deployment in Afghanistan. Jody had only ever seen him in his fatigues or jeans. He was a good guy and she was happy Ashley had found love. Lately she’d struggled to believe it would ever happen for her. She settled into the back seat of the car and enjoyed the memory of the warmth and gentleness of Nicole’s touch when she’d taken her hand.

  Chapter Two

  Nicole made one final tour of the room and stopped to thank the few donors and guests still present before beginning to put away the many photos and adoption documents spread across two tables. She locked away the cash and checks from the donation box and made a visual sweep of the room noting everything was in order. A stab of disappointment surprised her when she didn’t see Jody and she shrugged off the unexpected feeling. A woman as beautiful as her undoubtedly had a partner or a wife. She imagined she could still feel the softness of her hand enveloped in hers and hoped she hadn’t misread her interest. She helped the cleanup crew restore the room to its original state and carried the boxes of paperwork to her car. She stood next to her car for a few minutes to enjoy the pleasant evening temperature and allowed her thoughts to drift to Jody. She smiled and hoped she’d show up for the next fundraiser. She made one more walk through the room before heading home.

  Nicole settled in her office to check the paperwork she’d prepared for the pending lawsuit for one of her father’s companies that she managed. The information she’d collected indicated the company wasn’t liable for the death of one of the employees. It was her job to inform the family, and she was not looking forward to it. She created a folder for her notes and locked it in her desk. Monday had the potential to be a difficult day. She checked the time and contemplated an evening at the local lesbian club hoping to find someone to take her mind off the fetching hazel-eyed woman in the sexy green evening gown. She changed out of her tuxedo and tied her hair back before heading to her car.

  The club was packed by the time Nicole arrived and she made her way through the throng of women and smiled at a couple of familiar faces. She ordered a drink and leaned back on the bar to watch the few dancers when her gaze landed on a couple dirty dancing. She followed their impressive gyrations for a few minutes and fantasized about a remake of the movie starring lesbians. She sipped her drink, unsurprised when the woman she’d noticed at the end of the bar approached her. She’d been frequenting the lounge for a few months to help chase away the loneliness, and she’d seen the woman smile at her several times. She always stood alone and Nicole couldn’t ever remember seeing her dancing.

  The woman settled against the bar next to her. “Can I buy you another round?” She shifted closer so their shoulders brushed.

  Nicole turned to face her. She expected to be recognized pretty much everywhere she went due to her photo being plastered throughout the pages of most magazines and newspapers whenever she attended a grand opening of one of her father’s new acquisitions. “I’d like that. My name’s Nicole.” She waited for the brown-eyed brunette to introduce herself.

  “I’m Emma. I think I’ve seen you here before.” She passed the drink Nicole had ordered to her and turned to face her.

  “You probably have. I’ve seen you, too. Thanks for the drink.” Nicole waited for Emma to show her intentions. Too many seemingly innocent offers for company came with expectations of more when they recognized her.

  “You’re welcome.” Emma sipped her drink. “You’re very beautiful. Dance with me?”

  Nicole took her hand and let herself be led to the dance floor. Emma held her close and as she relaxed in her arms, she sensed their shared need. The need that brought her to the club. The need to feel desired.

  “Would you follow me home and spend the night?”

  Nicole smiled at Emma’s directness and shivered as her warm breath tickled her ear. “I would.” She ignored memories of the feel of Jody’s hand in hers as she took Emma’s and walked to their cars. The drive to Emma’s was a short one, and her small warm and cozy house felt welcoming.

  Nicole rolled over and stretched the next morning. Emma was an attentive and tender lover and Nicole enjoyed their time together. She snuggled into her warmth and murmured when she wrapped her arm over her and pulled her closer. Emma might not be the love of her life, but she was real and Nicole had lived with fantasy woman for too long. She refused to give up on her belief that she’d find the one for her someday, but Emma was a pleasant diversion for one night. “This is nice.” She kissed Emma lightly. “I have to get up soon, though.” She nestled into her one more time before placing another kiss on her lips and swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

  “I’m glad you came home with me.” Emma wrapped her arms around her and pressed her breasts against her back. “I hope we can do this again.” She kissed her bare shoulder.

  Nicole hesitated. She didn’t want to commit to anything she might not be able to follow through on. “I’d like that.” It was true and she could probably make it happen. She dressed quickly and left intending to go home, but decided to stop at her brother’s on the way.

  “Hey, sis. I expected you later. I haven’t finished the whole evaluation since you called, but this one, Emma, appears to be trustworthy.”

  “Thanks, brother o’mine. I appreciate you having my back.” Nicole hugged her lawyer brother and accepted the glass of Old Forester bourbon he offered. She’d called him from her car after leaving Emma’s house and asked him to do an extensive background check on Emma since the last woman she dated stole a hundred thousand dollars from her. She hated the intrusion into the women’s lives, but she needed to know who she could trust. “I’m glad. I like this one and I’ll probably see her again.” She took a sip of her drink and wondered what he might find on Jody. She hoped nothing, but it was a moot point. She didn’t have her last name, and she might never see her again. She checked her watch and finished her drink. “I’ve got to get home and review some notes before tomorrow.”