Page 1 of Accidentally in Love

Chapter One

AVERY

SEPTEMBER

One thing I loved about living in the small town of Drakesville, Pennsylvania, was the annual Fall Arts Fest. I loved walking up into the town square and seeing all the booths for the local businesses lined up together—like the bakery, the paint and pottery place, and my favorite brewery. The MacGregor Brothers Brewing Company.

Being ten miles north of Philadelphia and in a generally safe area, Drakesville gave you that small-town feeling without being too far away from it all. Not that I went into the city all that much. Only when I was going on yet another horrible date.

My current date, Greg, had agreed to meet me at the Arts Fest. He lived a few towns over and was happy to come check out the festivities with me. We met on a dating app and had been talking for a couple of weeks, but this was our first in-person date. Greg wasn’t my typical type. I preferred my men thick and bearded, and he had that clean-cut look about him. He also looked like he went to the gym five times a day. I tried not to judge him too harshly because, at thirty-five and perpetually single, I couldn’t be picky anymore.

I pushed my hair behind my ear and bent down to admire a crystal necklace at one of the jewelry booths. I didn’t believe in the power of crystals. That was my sister Gemma’s thing, but I thought they were pretty.

I was cramming the last of a donut into my mouth when I spied the disgusted look on Greg’s face.

“What?” I asked, thinking I had chocolate smeared all over my face.

“Nothing,” he snapped.

I reeled back at that because, until now, he had been the perfect date.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

He sneered at me and wrinkled his nose. “You would be prettier if you lost a few pounds.”

My mouth hung open in shock at his bluntness.

I knew I had some curves on my petite frame. Most people wouldn’t even consider me plus-sized, though. I just liked a side of cheese fries with my cheesesteak and beer every once in a while. What was wrong with that?

“Excuse me?” I stuttered out once the shock wore off.

He shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. “No wonder you’re still single. Men would be more interested in you if you put in the effort and got fit.”

Wow.

I knew men were garbage, but I’d never had a man be so rude to my face. I stood there blinking at him in shock for what felt like an eternity. Finally, I clenched my teeth together and chose my words carefully. “Why did you agree to go out with me?”

He shrugged, and we continued to walk down the street. “You looked thinner in your profile picture.”

WOOOOOOW!

“Did you ever wonder why you’re still single?” I asked.

He shrugged as if he didn’t care.

“Because you’re an asshole,” I seethed at him. “I need a beer.”

“You know there’s a lot of cal—”

I fixed him with a glare. “Greg, go fuck yourself and never call me again.”

With that, I stormed off down the road until I reached the booth for the tattoo shop where my friend Lizzie worked. Lizzie stood at the booth with her toddler, Matty, on her hip. She cocked her head to one side, and her lavender-tinted hair hung down at me like a question mark. Her son pulled at her hair, and she nuzzled her face against his nose, which made him giggle. That made me smile. Her kids were cute.

“Hey Avs, how’s the date?” she asked, but I think she knew since I was alone.

“Bad,” I groaned.

She frowned and shifted Matty onto her other hip. “What happened?”