by Ella Miles
She flashes me a glare, but all I can do is laugh, because her heart isn’t in it and it turns more into a half smile, half grimace.
“Because I know you. You won’t leave my side, you bought me a new dress to wear today, and you bought enough flowers to fill my entire house.”
“Our house,” I say, referring to her home that we moved into together. I wasn’t sure I would like the smaller, more modest home. But I love that there are fewer places for her to escape to and hide away from me. And I like that it gives us a fresh start.
“And can’t I just do something nice for you?” I ask.
“No, you are up to something.”
Larkyn grabs the vase of flowers and moves them from the right side of the front desk to the left side.
I wrap my arms around her stomach from behind and feel her relax in my arms. I love that I simply have to touch her and she melts.
“Everything is going to be perfect. Now stop fussing, and kiss me,” I say into her ear.
Her head leans into me as I speak in her ear. I turn her head toward me as I kiss her, not able to let go of her stomach, where our baby is due any day now. She turns her body toward me to deepen the kiss and her arms wrap around my waist. I grin against her lips when her hands grab my ass, then slide toward the front of my slacks shocking me. I might get to fuck her in her office.
“Ah, hah! What is this?” she asks, pulling a tiny box out of my pocket.
I shrug. “I don’t remember putting that in there.”
She glances down at my mother’s ring that hasn’t left her finger since the night we told each other we loved each other and wanted to make this real. I would never replace that ring with another.
“You didn’t buy me another ring, did you?” she asks, exacerbated with the idea of me buying her more jewelry.
I grin. “Open it and find out.”
She eyes me and the box carefully. And then opens it. She smiles and shakes her head, as she pulls the tiny handmade heart out with a note attached that says: You’re mine forever.
She looks at me unsteadily as her eyes grow bigger, and I know, if I do this right, she’ll cry, and I’ll get to see her gorgeous tear-streamed face filled with love.
“I didn’t want to propose. I know you don’t want me to. And I don’t either, but I wanted something special to cement our new relationship before this baby comes,” I say, placing my hand on her stomach.
Her lip trembles.
“We don’t need a redo. Everything I’ve ever felt for you was real. The pretending, the marriage, the love. All of it real. The only thing fake was when I treated you like crap.”
“I don’t want a redo either.”
“We don’t have to get married again, or go through a proposal or any of that. I just wanted you to know that I will spend the rest of my life finding ways to tell you and show you how much I love you, forever.”
She kisses me, and I forget about my speech or what I was planning next. I know I need to wrap this up soon so we can officially open her business to the public. But I need a few more stolen moments with her. As soon as her business is open, and we have this baby, I know my stolen moments with her will be few.
“I’ll be yours forever, as long as you promise never to be an ass again.”
I smirk. I love calling herself mine. I love it when she calls me her husband or her baby daddy or any of the words she uses to describe me too. She loves me. And I love her. I was afraid, for far too long, of screwing up and becoming my father, but the only thing I needed all this time was the right woman, one that I didn’t want to screw up with.
“Can I be an ass twice a year?”
She raises an eyebrow at me.
“Never being an ass is too hard,” I say.
She laughs, and I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to get to listen to her laugh for the rest of my life.
“Fine, but you’ll be sleeping on the couch any time you are a jerk. And you have to do cute things like making me handmade hearts to win me back after you fuck up. But no more pretending to be a jerk because you enjoy watching me squirm.”
I smile; I never want to be fake with her ever again. “Deal.”
The End
* * *
Thank you so much for reading! Sebastian has his own story to tell! Grab Pretend We’re Over Here!
I’m not looking for a date. I’m definitely not looking for a husband—just one night of passion. I’m in Vegas, after all. And what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.
* * *
So how did I end up with a giant rock on that finger, you ask? Your guess is as good as mine.
* * *
Now I’m stuck fake married to the biggest self-centered jerk I’ve ever met. We agree to keep the charade going for six months to protect our pride and dignity. We have six months to convince everyone we aren’t meant to be. Should be easy.
* * *
I’m sweet, kind, fun Millie.
He’s cynical, self-absorbed, loner Sebastian.
* * *
We don’t belong together. Convincing everyone we’re married is the easy part. Convincing everyone we’re over—that’s proving more difficult. Convincing myself that we’re over is proving hardest yet.
* * *
I just have to remember that it was all pretend from the start. We were never together. Pretending we’re over is just going back to my life before. But what if I don’t want to keep pretending?
* * *
Grab Pretend We’re Over Here!
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* * *
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Also by Ella Miles
SINFUL TRUTHS:
Sinful Truth #1
Twisted Vow #2
Reckless Fall #3
Tangled Promise #4
Fallen Love #5
Broken Anchor #6
TRUTH OR LIES:
Taken by Lies #1
Betrayed by Truths #2
Trapped by Lies #3
Stolen by Truths #4
Possessed by Lies #5
Consumed by Truths #6
DIRTY SERIES:
Dirty Beginning
Dirty Obsession
Dirty Addiction
Dirty Revenge
Dirty: The Complete Series
ALIGNED SERIES:
Aligned: Volume 1
Aligned: Volume 2
Aligned: Volume 3
Aligned: Volume 4
Aligned: The Complete Series Boxset
UNFORGIVABLE SERIES:
Heart of a Thief
Heart of a Liar
Heart of a Prick
Unforgivable: The Complete Series Boxset
MAYBE, DEFINITELY SERIES:
Maybe Yes
Maybe Never
Maybe Always
* * *
Definitely Yes
Definitely No
Definitely Forever
STANDALONES:
Pretend I’m Yours
Finding Perfect
Savage Love
Too Much
Not Sorry
About the Author
Ella Miles writes steamy romance, including everything from dark suspense romance that will leave you on the edge of your seat to contemporary romance that will leave you laughing out loud or crying. Most importantly, she wants you to feel everything her characters feel as you read.
Ella is currently living her own happily ever after near the Rocky Mountains with her high school sweetheart husband. Her heart is also taken by her goofy five year old black lab who is scared of everything, including her own
shadow.
Ella is a USA Today Bestselling Author & Top 50 Bestselling Author.
Stalk Ella at:
www.ellamiles.com
[email protected]