by Sandi Lynn
“I’m going to miss you,” I whispered in her ear.
“I’m going to miss you too. Try not to work too hard.”
“I promise to call you every day and expect a lot of text messages from me.”
“I look forward to each and every one. I love you, Gabriel.”
“I love you too, baby.” I gave her one last kiss and took my suitcase downstairs.
The truth was I had to fly to Boston for a planning meeting for a few hours. After I was done with that, I would fly to Mystic to surprise her.
Kate
It felt good to be back in Mystic again. Rose greeted me with open arms and fell in love with Lady the minute she saw her.
“I’m so happy you’re here.” She smiled.
“Me too.”
“Bobby is going to cover the bed and breakfast for me today while I spend the entire day with you and this little lady.”
We spent the day shopping, had lunch, took a walk on the trails, and then it was time to head back. When we arrived at the bed and breakfast, I noticed the dining room doors were shut. Rose never kept them closed.
“Ah, good. You’re back.” Bobby smiled. “I went ahead and made dinner for you.”
“Aw, Bobby, you shouldn’t have,” Rose spoke. “Kate, why don’t you go into the dining room and have a seat. I’m going to take Lady outside and see if she has to go potty.”
I gave her a smile as I opened the dining room doors and froze when I saw Gabriel standing near a beautifully decorated table that was lit with candles and arranged with fresh flowers.
“Oh my god, what are you doing here?” I asked with shock as I walked over and wrapped my arms around him. “What happened to your meetings?”
“I already had my meeting.”
“Huh? I don’t understand. You said that you would be tied up for a few days.” I broke our embrace.
“I am going to be tied up for a few days, but not with meetings,” he spoke. “Kate, sit down.”
“Gabriel, what’s going on?”
He got down on one knee and pulled a small box from his pocket. Opening the lid, he took out a beautiful diamond ring and held it up.
“Kate, words cannot explain how much you have changed my life. I never thought I would love someone as much as I love you. You are my entire world and I can’t imagine you not being in it.”
I placed my hand over my mouth as tears started to stream down my face.
“Living with you the past three months has been incredible and I fall in love with you more every single day. I didn’t think it was possible, but I do, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you as your husband and you as my wife. Being my girlfriend just isn’t enough for me. Will you do me the honor of marrying me and spending the rest of your life as Mrs. Gabriel Quinn?”
The uncontrollable urge to bawl my eyes out swept over me as I cried like a baby in front of him.
“Sweetheart, you’re scaring me.”
“I—I—I’m just so happy,” I cried. “I wasn’t expecting this.”
“I wanted to surprise you. So—”
“Yes! Of course I’ll marry you. It’s all I want.”
A wide grin splayed across his face as he slipped the ring on my finger and then brought my hand up to his lips.
“I love you more than life, baby,” he spoke.
I was shaking uncontrollably as I wrapped my arms around his neck and we both stood up.
“I love you more than life,” I whispered in his ear.
Suddenly, we heard the light claps of Bobby and Rose, who stood in the doorway and watched us. Rose set Lady down and she came running over to us. Gabriel bent down and picked her up.
“She said yes, Lady. Your mama said yes!” he spoke with excitement.
“Looks like we have a wedding to plan, Bobby.” Rose smiled.
“We sure do, Rose.” He hooked his arm around her as she laid her head on his shoulder.
Gabriel and I were married in the gazebo at The Mermaid Inn of Mystic. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day. The sun was shining, and it was a perfect seventy-five degrees outside. We had to plan the wedding quite quickly while the weather was still nice, which was fine with me because I couldn’t wait to become Mrs. Gabriel Quinn. We kept the wedding small, inviting only about a hundred people. It was what we both wanted. Something intimate with family and a few friends.
“Welcome to the family.” Caleb smiled as he kissed my cheek and gave me a hug.
“Thanks, Caleb.”
“Welcome to the family, Kate. I couldn’t have asked for a better woman for my son to marry.” His mother grinned.
Gabriel and I both decided not to tell her about my past and we warned my father not to speak of his. She would be appalled and change her mind about me if she knew how we really met.
Gabriel
I had never felt so much happiness in my life. It was time for us to have our first dance together as husband and wife. As soon as Caleb and his band began to play, I took Kate’s hand and led her to the dance floor in the middle of the huge white tent that was strung with white lights, decorated tables and chairs, and fresh flowers that made it look exquisite. Rose had really outdone herself for our special day.
“Have I told you how beautiful you look today?” I smiled as I held Kate close to me.
“About a hundred times. But you can keep telling me.” She grinned.
“You don’t have to worry about that. I will spend my life telling you how beautiful you are.” His lips brushed against mine.
“You know, we never discussed how many kids we want to have,” she spoke. “Do you even want children?”
“Of course I do, and I think two or three is a good number. What do you think?” He smirked.
“I think two or three is perfect. Maybe we could agree on two and then if it happens a third time, that would be okay.”
“I like that idea.” I pressed my forehead against hers.
“Is nine months too soon?” She bit down on her bottom lip.
I stared at her for a moment and then leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Are you trying to tell me something?”
“I’m pregnant, Gabriel. I took the test this morning. I thought maybe I was just late because of all the planning we were doing for the wedding.”
I slowly closed my eyes as I pulled her closer and held her against me.
“I am so happy, and the thought of you carrying my child just made everything more perfect.”
“So you’re happy?” she asked as she slightly pulled away from me.
“Happy isn’t the word to describe what I’m feeling right now. I can’t wait to hold our baby in my arms and raise a family together.”
I had become the proud father of Elijah Matthew Quinn, future heir to Quinn Hotels. Finally, my dream of raising a family in my townhome had come true. Just when I had given up on finding the woman of my dreams, Kate Harper walked into my life and gave me the two most precious gifts of all: love and my son. My life was complete, and I wouldn’t take any of it for granted.
“Come on, Elijah. Walk to Daddy.” I smiled as I held out my arms to him from across the living room.
Kate slowly let go of him and he took a few steps towards me before he fell to his knees and crawled the rest of the way into my arms.
“Good job, buddy. You’ll get it soon enough.” I picked him up and kissed his head. “I can’t believe he’s going to be a year-old tomorrow.” A smile crossed my face as I walked over to where Kate sat on the couch.
“I know. He’s growing up so fast.” She pouted.
“Before you know it, we’ll be free of diapers and bottles. Now that he’s sleeping through the entire night, we can get some good sleep for ourselves.” I smirked as I kissed her lips.
She looked at me and bit down on her bottom lip.
“I wouldn’t get too used to that if I were you.”
“Kate, are you trying to tell me something?” I asked as my brow arched.
S
he threw her hands up in the air with a smile on her face.
“Woohoo! I’m pregnant again!”
I set Elijah down on the floor and wrapped my arms around her as excitement and joy overtook me.
“A beautiful wife, a beautiful son, and another baby on the way. Life is good, Kate. Really good.” I kissed the side of her head. “We’ve been so blessed.”
“We sure have, Gabriel. I love you and our little family so much.”
“I love us too. More than words could ever express.” I placed my hand on her belly.
The Negotiation
New York Times, USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling author
Sandi Lynn
Copyright © 2016 Sandi Lynn Romance, LLC
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.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used factitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Photo & Cover Design by: Sara Eirew @ Sara Eirew Photography
Models: Marie-Lise Therrien and Vincent Moreau
Editing by B.Z. Hercules
Created with Vellum
Mission Statement
Sandi Lynn Romance
Providing readers with romance novels that will whisk them away
to another world and from the daily grind of life – one book at a time.
Prologue
Age 7
“You look pretty, Mommy. Where are you going?” I asked, as any seven-year-old would, sitting on the edge of her mother’s bed and watching her get ready to go out.
“I’m going out on a date.” She turned to me and smiled as she made up her lips with a red color that brightened her pale skin.
“Can he be my daddy?”
She set down the tube of lipstick, walked over to the edge of the bed, and placed her hand on mine.
“No, sweetie. Remember what I told you. Mommy doesn’t need a man in her life to complete her. Companionship is a good thing; relationships are not. They only complicate your life in a way that takes away your independence, your freedom, and your self-worth.”
Age 10
“Francesca will be here soon, Emily.”
“Who are you going out with?” I asked as I sat on the edge of her bed.
“His name is Xavier and he’s a nice man.” She smiled.
“If he’s so nice, maybe he can be my daddy.”
“Emily, we’ve been over this a billion times. In order for someone to be your daddy, I would have to form a relationship with him and that’s something I’m not willing to do.” She smiled as she tapped me on the nose.
“But why?” I innocently asked.
“Because relationships are doomed before they even start. We’ve been over this before. No good comes from a long-term relationship. Happily ever after is a myth, my darling daughter. You need to remember that.” She placed her finger under my chin. “We Wade women do not let others, especially men, control or wreak havoc on our emotional state.”
Age 13
“I’m sorry, Gerald, but you need to leave now and please don’t call me again,” my mother spoke as I listened outside her bedroom door.
“This is how you respond to me telling you that I love you?” Gerald’s voice raised.
“You don’t love me. We only went out a few times. I told you from the start that I wasn’t looking for anything long-term.”
“But, Karen, it doesn’t matter how many times we went out. I fell for you the moment I laid eyes on you and I thought you felt something for me too.”
“Well, you thought wrong. We’ve served our purpose to each other and now it’s time for you to go.”
“You are a cold-hearted bitch, Karen. I’m sorry I wasted my time on someone like you.”
I could hear his footsteps approaching the door, so I ran back into my room, climbed into bed, and pulled the covers over my head. The hinges on the door lightly creaked as it softly opened. Before I knew it, my mother was sitting on the edge of my bed and carefully pulled the covers from my head. I stirred and opened my eyes to see her looking down at me as she brushed away the strands of hair from my face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked as I stared into her watery eyes.
“Nothing, sweet pea. I was just making sure you were asleep.”
“Is Gerald staying the night?”
“No.” She softly smiled. “He won’t be coming around anymore, Emily.”
“Why?”
“Because he wanted a part of me that doesn’t exist. We do not change who we are to make someone else happy, darling. Remember that. Go back to sleep.” She gently kissed my head.
Age 16
I was sitting on the couch watching a movie when my mother strolled in around one a.m.
“How was your date with Cecil?” I asked as she plopped down next to me.
“It was fine, but I don’t think we’ll be seeing each other again.”
“Why? He seems like a really nice guy.”
“He is, darling.”
“Then why would you stop seeing him?”
“Because he wanted to claim me for himself. He wanted us to be exclusive and he told me that he was in love with me.”
“Okay. So what’s wrong with that? I really like him, Mom.”
“My sweet girl. What have I taught you from the time you were a little girl about relationships?”
“I know, but—”
“No buts, Emily. Do you want to become someone else’s plus one? Do you want to give them power over you to either make you over-the-top happy or destroy you emotionally? Do you want to feel your heart break over someone you thought you knew, but in the end, you didn’t even really know them at all? Do you want to wake up someday next to the same man you’ve been with for years and wonder if there’s someone better out there? Romance dies, darling. Jokes are no longer funny, conversations become stale, sex will become routine and mechanical, and the person who you once were will no longer exist. And when the relationship ends, you will have to rediscover who you were in the first place. Because, make no mistake, darling, a person will change you. Love doesn’t last. It’s not possible. Men stray and when the going gets tough, they run to seek comfort in the arms of another who is new and unfamiliar to them.”
“You sound like a man hater, yet you date so many different men,” I spoke.
“That’s because each new man is exciting, and they serve a purpose. Why settle for one fish when you can have an ocean full anytime you want?” She smiled.
“I guess.”
“You come first, Emily. Never forget that. You will be successful, determined, and have the fulfilling career you always wanted. Men get in the way of that and I know you would never allow a man to deter you from your dreams.”
“Aren’t you lonely?” I asked as I laid my head on her shoulder.
“Not at all. I have you and I have plenty of men to occupy my time and needs. Remember, women are a man’s weakness. We have the bodies they crave, the vagina they want to bury their cocks inside, and the breasts their mouths desire. We make them feel good, and in return, they make us feel good. It’s purely physical, and as long as that’s all it is, life is good and uncomplicated.”
Chapter 1
Emily
I was there when my mother took her last breath; the day cancer claimed her life. I remember it as if it was yesterday and not two years ago.
“Hey. Are you okay?” Katie asked as she walked past me with an armful of clothes.
Snapping back into reality, I nodded my head.
“I’m fine. I was just thinking about my mom.”
“That’s right. Today’s the anniversary of her death.” She pouted. “I’m sorry, Emily. She was such a gr
eat woman. Man, did I respect the hell out of her. Strong, independent, and a woman of many talents. She’d be so proud of you right now.”
“Thanks. I stopped by the cemetery this morning before coming to the shop and put some roses down. She would be proud of me. Wouldn’t she?” I gave a small smile.
Katie set the clothes down on the white chair that sat in the middle of the store and hooked her arm around me.
“She would be very proud. She knew opening up this shop was always your dream.”
I was the proud owner of a boutique on East 9th Street called Emily’s Edge. My shop ranged from vintage clothing, couture, American labels, and up and coming designers. I wanted a store that housed a little bit of everything. Kind of like a one-stop shop. Any style and any occasion could be found at Emily’s Edge. I opened the store about six months ago after a yearlong process of planning, designing, and making sure it was everything I wanted.
Fashion had always been my passion. I loved clothes, fabrics, accessories, and I had a talent for styling. After graduating high school, I attended NYU where I obtained my BBA, then I went to Parsons for two years and received an AAS in Fashion Marketing. After Parsons, I was hired by Bloomingdales, where I worked for two years as a buyer for their women’s casual clothing.
My mother owned her own insurance company, which she started when I was three years old. Before she passed away, she sold it to a colleague of hers who had worked for her since the day she opened the doors. She knew insurance wasn’t my thing and she didn’t want me to feel pressured with having to take over her company. She made sure I was set money-wise, and she told me to follow my dreams.
I didn’t let anyone deter me from my dreams of becoming a successful businesswoman. Especially men. I dated, a lot. A few dates here and there, casual sex, and plenty of one-night stands. I wasn’t looking for a relationship because they were taboo. But I did like the companionship of men as long as they didn’t become attached. Any sign or showing of feelings on their part and they were kicked to the curb faster than I could say, “It’s over.” My mother was right all those years that I was growing up. From the time I was a teen, I’d watch my friends get their hearts broken beyond repair by a guy. I’d watch them change, not only in style but in personality as well. They put their boyfriends first and let their friendships drift away as if they had never meant nothing. I’d sit up endless nights with my roommates crying on my shoulder about how they caught their man with another girl or how they were just broken up with because their partner told them that they didn’t love them anymore. It was nothing but a clusterfuck of emotions and a position I was never going to put myself in. Like my mother, I was never going to let someone have that kind of control over my emotional state and wellbeing.