At First Spark (The Spark Brothers Book 4) Read online

  At First Spark

  The Spark Brothers Series Book 4

  Liwen Y. Ho

  Contents

  1. Darren

  2. Danica

  3. Darren

  4. Danica

  5. Darren

  6. Danica

  7. Darren

  8. Danica

  9. Darren

  10. Danica

  11. Darren

  12. Danica

  13. Darren

  14. Danica

  15. Darren

  16. Danica

  17. Darren

  18. Danica

  19. Darren

  20. Danica

  21. Darren

  22. Danica

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Also by Liwen Y. Ho

  At First Spark

  Copyright © 2019 by Liwen Y. Ho. All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 9781706607632

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

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

  Cover Design: Victorine Originals (ebook & print cover front) & Kristen Iten (print cover back)

  Interior Design: Liwen Y. Ho

  Publisher: 2 Square 2 Be Hip

  First Edition

  Created with Vellum

  For my dear niece, Lala, who always makes me smile when she says, “Not yet!”

  Chapter One

  Darren

  Darren Spark never imagined that one person could make him feel so happy and sad all at the same time.

  He was at his brother’s home for a baby shower, but all he could focus on was the woman sitting by the large bay window. The afternoon sun cast a warm glow on her, highlighting her long blonde hair. It was pulled back in a ponytail as usual, giving him a clear view of her high forehead and defined cheekbones. Other than some light pink lip gloss, she looked fresh-faced and natural. Long lashes framed her blue-gray eyes that were open wide with excitement. A light blue T-shirt dress paired with white sandals showed off her tanned legs.

  She sure was a beautiful sight to look at.

  “Here you go, Dare.” Darren’s older brother, Colin, interrupted his thoughts as he handed him a soda. Colin dropped onto the couch beside him and ran a hand through his chestnut brown hair that was a similar shade to Darren’s. “This is weird, right? Us at a baby shower. I kind of feel like a real adult.”

  “It’s about time you did,” Darren ribbed. He moved his arm out of the way when Colin tried to elbow him, despite the fact that they both knew what he said was true. Colin had only recently settled on a career and a serious relationship at age thirty. “We’re all getting older. Three of us are married or engaged,” Darren stated, referring to their family of five brothers. “Babies are naturally the next step.”

  “Let’s hope for Mom’s sake that she gets a granddaughter. She always said she was surrounded by too much testosterone.”

  Darren smirked. That was a huge understatement. Their mom had had her fair share of smelly laundry and wrestling matches when they were growing up. It would be a nice change of pace if their brother Brandon and his wife Bria had a daughter. Or for any of his brothers when the time came. As for himself, he had given up on that hope after his ex-fiancée ended their relationship. Her decision had confirmed, once and for all, that he wasn’t marriage material.

  “All right, listen up, guys!” Colin’s fiancée, Candy, called out for everyone’s attention from the center of the spacious living room. Behind her hung a widescreen TV that was hooked up to several video game consoles. To the right of her stood several guitars in their stands and piles of music sheets scribbled on with blue ink. Several bracelets along Candy’s right arm jingled as she clapped her hands. “We have one more game to play before we open presents. Everyone, find a partner.”

  A deep-sounding groan resounded in the room as Colin protested. He took the dramatics a step further by clutching his chest and pretending to faint.

  Candy shot him a wide-eyed look, silencing him with the sharp curve of one perfectly groomed brow. Her no-nonsense attitude could intimidate even the toughest of firefighters, but somehow, she had won the heart of their goofball brother.

  “I meant, yay! Let’s do this.” Colin blew a kiss to Candy, then rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “I have a feeling we’re gonna win this one, baby.”

  “Of course, we will. We make the best team,” Candy declared before walking over to give him a kiss of her own, right on his mouth. She wiped off the red lipstick stains on his lips as she cradled Colin’s scruffy jaw in her hand. The motion had the whole room of onlookers smiling to see them being so comfortable with their PDA.

  Almost the whole room. Darren chuckled when he spotted his nephew, Seth, with his nose scrunched up in disgust.

  “Ew! Why is there always so much kissing in our family?” Seth exclaimed with all the passion and disgust of an eleven-year-old boy.

  Brandon leaned over and ruffled his stepson’s blond head. “You’ll understand one day, buddy. Come on, you, me and Mom can be a team together for the game.”

  Darren raised his hand. “How about you join me, Seth? I don’t have a partner.”

  “Oh, yes, you do!” Candy declared as she pulled the blonde woman sitting on the other side of the coffee table to her feet. With a cheeky grin, she directed her toward Darren. “Danica will be your partner! Isn’t that right, Danica? We’re all set now.”

  “Hey.” Danica quickly sat down next to Darren. Their elbows brushed, causing her cheeks to flush. “I hope you don’t mind me joining you.”

  “No, of course not.” Darren gave her a reassuring smile. He really didn’t mind having her close, especially when she smelled so good. The scent of her shampoo reminded him of lemonade and sunshine, a perfect representation of her bright personality.

  Upon hearing his answer, Danica beamed, her eyes lighting up in relief. She leaned over and murmured in his ear, “Cool. Let’s crush ’em. Well, everyone besides Seth. He’s too cute to crush.”

  Her warm breath tickled his skin, causing Darren’s whole body to heat up. His mind drew a blank, so he simply nodded. He wasn’t a man of many words anyway—he had more brawn than brains—but he found himself more tongue-tied than usual around Danica Reed.

  She was the woman who’d been occupying his thoughts all afternoon. For good reason, too.

  Darren marveled at how amazing she looked in casual clothes and minimal make-up. She exuded such confidence and warmth, the latter which he found the most attractive. Honestly, Danica could wear a brown sack and she’d still be the most beautiful woman in the room to him. Everything about her was genuine and welcoming, especially her smiles.

  He’d noticed her smile the first time they crossed paths. He still remembered that June morning well, when he’d rushed to Between the Lines, the bookstore she owned, to help someone who’d fainted. It’d been a routine call for him as a firefighter and EMT. What he hadn’t expected was the impression Danica had left on him.

  One word came to mind when he thought of their interaction: intense. As brief as it was, it reminded Darren of the first
time he’d run into a burning building during his training days. All his senses came to life as the heat of the flames threatened to engulf him. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, drawing him past the point of fear to exhilaration. It was this feeling that gave him a sense of purpose and made him feel alive.

  And it was this same kind of thrill he’d felt the moment he laid eyes on Danica.

  After he and his crew had finished attending to the elderly woman that day, he’d left, assuming he wouldn’t see her again. But as God would have it, his oldest brother Aiden’s fiancée turned out to be best friends with Danica. That meant they were practically family now, or so it seemed with how much time they’d been spending in each other’s presence.

  Since he and Danica were both part of Aiden and Abby’s wedding party, they got together on occasion for planning meetings. They also hung out on the weekends with the whole gang, like they were doing today for the baby shower. Over the course of the year since they first met, and after getting to know her better, Darren knew the initial spark he’d felt with Danica was just as strong today as it was then.

  That’s why it made it harder to accept the fact that he’d likely never have a future with her.

  With a heavy heart, he turned his attention back to Candy who was explaining the rules of the game to each team. When she got to Darren and Danica, she handed them a roll of toilet paper and an inflated balloon, then instructed them to create a maternity outfit. “Make sure you put your best effort into this. Bows, ruffles—I want to see it all.”

  “I guess I’ll be the pregnant one?” Danica took the balloon and carefully stuffed it underneath her dress. She straightened and looked down at her now-blossoming belly holding up the cotton fabric. “Oh boy. I can’t see my feet anymore.”

  “You look great.” Now that Darren had finally found his words, he couldn’t stop giving her compliments. “Really beautiful, in fact.”

  “Aw, thanks, Darren. That’s sweet of you to say.” She placed her hands on her hips and grinned. “Shall we start? Let’s get a semblance of a dress going, then we can think about how we want to decorate it.”

  “Yeah, sure.” Unfurling the toilet paper, Darren began wrapping it around Danica’s shoulders, then her torso. He fought to keep his breathing slow and even, but with only a few inches between them, it was hard to stay calm. His whole body seemed hyper aware of her presence. He kept his eyes down as he worked, doing his best to keep his internal struggle hidden.

  With about a foot of height difference between them, he had to kneel down when he reached her stomach. He placed the delicate paper over the makeshift bump, looping it over and behind her back half a dozen times. He tried his hardest to focus on his actions and not on the beautiful woman gazing down at him. It was a good thing he was used to working under pressure. Once he was satisfied with the results, he stood up and gave her a quick onceover. “I think it’s good. You look about as pregnant as Bria,” he added, nodding toward his sister-in-law who was busy wrapping toilet paper around Brandon’s balloon belly.

  Danica placed her hands on her stomach and gave it a gentle pat. “Isn’t the miracle of life one of the most amazing gifts God gives to us?” She lifted her eyes to meet Darren’s. “I can’t wait to experience this for real someday. I don’t care what people say, I’m going to enjoy carrying around a watermelon—swollen feet and all. It’s such a blessing.”

  “Yeah, it is.” Darren lowered his head, busying himself with a wad of toilet paper he was trying to turn into a bow. Despite his best efforts, the paper kept ripping. His attempts seemed as hopeless as his personal situation.

  A lump formed in his throat as he digested Danica’s words. I can’t wait to experience this for real someday. It was just as he’d thought; regardless of how he felt about her, he didn’t stand a chance. That’s why being near her could produce the highest and lowest of emotions at the same time. Right now, he was definitely feeling the latter. Darren knew it was time to stop hoping for a spark between them. Danica would never want a future with him if she knew he wasn’t capable of having children.

  Chapter Two

  Danica

  Danica quietly watched Darren struggle to tie two loops of toilet paper together. With his brows drawn together, he slowly pulled on the ends to form a knot. A smile began curving his lips, but soon faded when the paper came apart at the perforated seam. His face fell for a second before he grabbed another handful of paper and tried again. She couldn’t help sighing at the intense look of concentration on his face. Seeing this six-foot-tall, hunk of a man trying so hard to do something so delicate made her insides melt.

  She decided she’d forgive Darren’s family for pushing her to be his partner for this game. Not that she could hold a grudge against any of his brothers or their significant others. They had become like family to her, and just like family, they liked to meddle. She was well aware that they had been trying to play matchmaker for the past year. For one reason or another, she and Darren were always conveniently paired up together. But his family’s good intentions were for naught, since it was clear that Darren had been friend-zoning her since the day they met.

  She could still picture him in his dark blue uniform arriving at her bookstore. He had strode in calmly but purposefully like he’d walked off the pages of the firefighter romance novel she’d devoured the night before. With his broad shoulders, defined chest, and tanned, muscular biceps, he’d worn his button-down shirt like a second skin. Everything about him screamed alpha male, like the fictional men she loved to read about. Except that Darren had the opposite inner qualities. He was gentle and kind. There was a humbleness to the way he talked and carried himself that made Danica long for him all the more.

  From the first time she laid eyes on Darren, she’d known she was in over her head. Talk about falling hard. She might as well have had a concussion because she started to believe in crazy things, such as love at first sight. As much of a romance buff as she was, the logical side of her knew love wasn’t all roses and sunshine. A relationship—and moreover, a marriage—took a lot of work. She’d witnessed it firsthand with her parents.

  They’d celebrated their forty-sixth anniversary earlier that year, but this milestone wasn’t without its share of heartaches and hardships. After fifteen years of marriage and several miscarriages, they’d finally become parents after adopting her. In the years since, they’d both faced cancer diagnoses. Danica knew it was only by the grace of God that they were still happily married.

  Loving someone required commitment, trust, and partnership. Pining away for a guy who didn’t care for her the same way was like looking for a non-fiction book in the fiction section. She didn’t have time to waste. At age thirty-two, she was ready to settle down and have a family.

  That’s why she’d decided to give up on her little crush. But her heart wouldn’t stop hoping for more.

  Danica shook her head free of its silly dreams and put her foot down—literally. She pressed the sole of her sandal into the plush cream carpet and took a deep breath. She couldn’t afford to keep swooning over Darren, no matter how attractive she found him. Especially today when he looked like a cover model in his blue linen shirt and dark washed jeans. She told herself she needed to stop gawking at his mouth and wondering how it would feel to—oh!

  She realized Darren had stopped messing around with the toilet paper bow. Instead he was staring straight at her with a curious look. She quickly stuck out her hand. “Do you need some help with that? You seem to be having a hard time.”

  He scoffed and mumbled what sounded like, “If you only knew.”

  “Sorry, what did you say?”

  “Nothing much. But sure, I’d appreciate your help.” He stuffed the crumpled toilet paper he’d been using into his back pocket, then tore off a few feet of unused paper from the roll. He placed it in her outstretched hand, his fingers skimming her palm in the process. The moment their hands touched, he pulled back as if he’d been burned by an open flame.


  Danica’s stomach sank. It was obvious Darren couldn’t even stand to touch her. This was yet another sign that he wasn’t interested. She shrugged as she tried to brush off her disappointment. It was better this way. She would treat him the same way he treated her—platonically with a capital P.

  “You got it off to a good start,” she replied in as nonchalant of a tone as she could manage. She busied herself with tying loose knots to form a bow with multiple loops. “Don’t feel bad. You just have bigger, stronger hands than me. Which makes sense since you have to carry people out of burning buildings. Me—the heaviest things I lift at work are hardcover dictionaries.”

  “Dictionaries are no joke,” he replied. “I’ve seen how big those books can get. They make great door stops.”

  Her hands stilled. She lifted her gaze cautiously, unsure if Darren was serious or not. She immediately sighed in relief to see his dark brown eyes twinkling with humor. “Darren! You do know that’s the last thing you should say to a bibliophile, right?”

  “A biblio—what?”

  “A bibliophile. A person who loves books.”

  He smiled sheepishly. “Ah, I see. Sorry, English was never my favorite subject.”

  Danica winced and pretended to clutch at her heart with her free hand. “And that’s the second to last thing you should never say to a bibliophile,” she joked. “Are you serious? You really don’t like reading and writing?”