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Chapter 1

“Oh, no, no, no, no, no!” Haley murmured in disbelief as she watched her pink, white, and yellow tulips being yanked viciously out of the ground She shoved back from her co to kill him this time there was no doubt about it

After five long years of juvenile nonsense he’d finally gone too far Her college rooravate her this h her sixdeodorant to “save the planet”

Five years ago she’d been proud to buy her first house at the ripe old age of twenty-four She'd worked her butt off to buy her dream ho her own hoined

She spent countless hours picking out the perfect color sche every yard sale within a thirtyto turn wood and plaster into a real hoin to coarden With countless blisters, cuts, bee stings and back aches she turned her dull yard into a paradise

Her enjoyment lasted for all of four months That’s when he moved into the house next door At first she was excited to have a neighbor, one that wasn’t elderly and well, cranky All of her enjoyment ended the moment she met Jason Bradford

Within the first ten minutes of his arrival he’d backed into her mailbox, spilled fast food wrappers from his car onto his property, which quickly made their way onto her ireat old oak tree in his front laith a sheepish s in her horrified direction

The man was a barbarian

For the next five years he turned her picturesque life into a nighted to take so much control over her happiness, but he did Over the years she dealt with paintball pellets decorating the laundry hanging on her clothesline and the side of her house, loudto climb the fence to skinny dip in her pool, three a hissy fits on his front lawn and sometimes on hers when the jerk refused to come out and deal with them

What made it worse was that they both worked at the sa classroo for hiht” things from her room like paper, pens, books, and even her desk one time

He see et his way, leaving her with extra work and responsibilities while he got to be the laid back teacher It didn’t take her long to figure out that she would have to suck it up at work There was no way at her age she was going to be able to land a better job She'd been lucky to land this one So the only option left for her was to move

After the first year she tried to sell her house, unsuccessfully Every time a prospective buyer caave up the idea of selling her house for the next two years and put it up again last year when he took up golf and shot out three of her s After heout to get the e when he threw his computer out theaccompanied with a loud roar, and of course there was the upkeep or rather lack thereof of his property