Completely Captivated
A. D. JUSTICE
Contents
Part 1
Completely Captivated
Prologue
1. Table for Two
2. Take A Chance
3. First Date
4. The Other Guy
5. A Day Late
6. Evening the Odds
7. Meet the Millers
8. Breaking Hearts
9. Breakfast Buffet
10. Baby
11. Making Plans
12. Memory Lapse
13. No Stress, No Excitement
14. File The Papers
15. Prepare for the Shift
16. Just Friends
17. Realization
18. Quarter After One
19. A Date at Court
20. Best Friend Love
21. Personal Delivery
22. Unexpected Visitor
23. Change of Plans
24. Safe and Secure
25. Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
26. Dating My Spouse
27. Meet the Family
28. Always on My Mind
29. Endings—and New Beginnings
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Also by A. D. JUSTICE
Part I
Completely Captivated
A.D. JUSTICE
COMPLETELY CAPTIVATED.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. If the location is an actual place, all details of said place are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to businesses, landmarks, living or dead people, and events is purely coincidental.
* * *
The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
All copyrights are held by A.D. Justice and have not been transferred to any other individual. Sharing or posting of this material in any group is considered copyright infringement and will be reported to the authorities. Criminal and civil charges will be pursued for damages.
* * *
Copyright © 2017 A.D. Justice.
All rights reserved.
Prologue
The End…Or Not
* * *
July, Present Day
This is the story of two very different men who are in love with the same woman. To grasp the full impact one person has on another’s life, I’m starting at what seems to be the end of the story. But don’t be deceived by appearances. I’ll just be getting started with my plans for them by the time you catch up with me.
Who gets the girl and lives happily ever after is yet to be seen. My part in this story will be made clear soon enough. Until then, I’d like to introduce you to Christa, Aaron, and Jared. How they started. Where they fell apart. Then you and I will see how they end up—together. This is their past. Their future is still to come.
Buckle up, buttercup. We’re all going for a ride.
* * *
Christa and Aaron walked hand in hand into the ultrachic, urbanely modern downtown office building. She was still reeling from their whirlwind weekend. Reality hadn’t yet set in, leaving her to question if she’d hallucinated everything that had happened. A beautiful, life-changing, dream-come-true hallucination.
If I am, don’t ever let me wake up, she thought.
As they crossed the marble floor of the lobby, she glanced over at Aaron for the hundredth time, convinced she was dreaming it all. A recurring unease ran through her mind repeatedly and plagued her thoughts. She was desperate to ask if he felt as shocked with their new life as she did. Part of her wanted to know if the extreme mixture of excitement, fear, and exhilaration, immediately followed by sheer terror, overwhelmed him as much as it did her. But she didn’t want to be that girl—the needy, clingy, “What are you thinking?” type of girl.
Her thoughts drifted to how different everything she’d ever known was compared to just a few short months ago before she’d met Aaron. Even at her young age of twenty-two, she’d learned firsthand how life wasn’t fair. Her parents had made sure to teach her that valuable lesson.
She’d also accepted she’d never be lucky in anything. She’d been unlucky in having the big, loving family she’d dreamed of her entire childhood. As the only child of a deadbeat dad and a neglectful mother, the only people she could lean on were friends she’d made along the way. The Miller family had all but adopted her, giving her the only stability throughout her childhood.
Luck in money had escaped her, since she had scraped by on her very last dime for anything she’d ever had. She’d worked tirelessly to start her own business, rising early in the morning and remaining in her shop until late at night to get her café off the ground.
Finally, she’d most decidedly been unlucky in finding love. The few men she’d made time to date turned out to be less stellar than she’d initially thought. Or dared to hope. But after the last three days, she was finally convinced her luck had changed for the better, that true love could happen, that happiness could last.
As they walked into the posh office building, nausea washed over her in repetitive waves when she realized she was completely out of place and notably underdressed. Elegant, professional women clicked by in their stiletto heels, with their hair perfectly coiffed and their nails fashionably manicured, wearing their expensive designer business clothes. Unlike everyone else, she was dressed in faded jeans, off-brand Ugg-type boots, and a generic name sweater. Her long, straight blond hair usually refused to cooperate, preferring to hang loosely on her shoulders.
She was grateful Aaron held her hand tightly in his, paying no attention to the beautiful women surrounding them. His strength flowed into her through their connected hands, giving her the courage to face whatever awaited them.
The security guard noticed her first and stood as though to stop her. The moment he realized she was with Aaron, his demeanor changed. “Good morning, Mr. Rivers.”
“Good morning, Ty.” Aaron dismissed the guard with a nod.
Aaron pushed the up button, and they were soon joined by several other people in the morning rush to their posh offices. Neither spoke as the elevator climbed to the twenty-sixth floor, where he led Christa to an expansive corner office.
The space was professionally decorated, with pictures and sculptures arranged to be both visually pleasing and modernly chic. The large, dark cherry wood desk was strategically placed in the corner, facing the door but not obstructing the impressive view of the city from the floor-to-ceiling windows on each side. Her back was to the door, staring out at the sights, until the angry male voice behind her caught her attention.
“Hold all my calls, Barbara.” His command resembled an irritable growl when he entered the office and all but slammed the door shut behind him.
He cut his gaze to Aaron and sighed heavily without even attempting to disguise his disgust and disapproval. She watched the wordless exchange between the two men, observed as Aaron quickly averted his eyes from the heavy glare of the other man. She had a quick and powerful urge to come to Aaron’s defense and put the other man in his place. The obvious question was why he’d be so disappointed in Aaron in the first place.
“Hello, I don’t believe we’ve met before. I’m Christa.” She extended her hand to offer a handshake.
“Yes,
I know who you are, Christa Lanes. I’m Lance Rivers, Aaron’s older brother.” His reply was curt and brash as he blatantly ignored her proffered hand.
She immediately noticed he didn’t say it was nice to meet her, and a sickening feeling about this impromptu, early morning meeting settled into her gut.
Lance’s stare darted between Aaron and Christa, throwing daggers in their direction. “Have a seat.” He motioned at a small conference table close to the window then jerked the chair out for himself.
Aaron took the farthest seat, putting his back to the window. Christa sat directly across from Aaron. Lance sat at the head of the small table and waited for them to settle before he began. He opened the manila folder he’d brought with him and pushed a neatly stacked collection of papers in front of Christa. He then clicked his pen and laid it directly on top of the papers.
“Ms. Lanes, let’s cut to the chase, shall we? My brother, Aaron, is quite impetuous—that means he doesn’t always think through his decisions as thoroughly as he should.” Lance’s tone was extremely condescending.
“Yes, I know what ‘impetuous’ means, Lance. What are you trying to say?” Christa’s hackles were immediately raised, her tone rife with indignation over his assumption she was ignorant.
Lance smiled, but his eyes lacked any humor or warmth. “Everything I need to say is right there in those papers in front of you, Ms. Lanes.”
Christa looked down at the papers, and her world came to a crashing halt. She couldn’t breathe and couldn’t form a coherent thought. The words jumped off the page at her, but in her panicked state, they were in no given order. Her mind raced and her heart throbbed, rendering her unable to comprehend the meaning of the words. Everything was a jumbled mess. But there was one lone word that resonated and reverberated throughout the echoes of her mind.
Divorce.
“I don’t—I don’t understand. Wh-what is this?” Christa demanded of Aaron when she finally found her voice. She searched his face intently, but it was void of any emotion. He deliberately masked his feelings, retreated inside himself, and blocked out the unpleasantness around him.
“It is exactly what it says it is.” Lance spat out his sarcastic response. “Ms. Lanes, you and my brother do have not a real marriage. This fiasco never should’ve happened. We need to rectify this situation as soon as possible. As Aaron’s lawyer, I’ve drawn up these papers to handle the procedures speedily.”
She gripped the armrests of her chair, trying to focus on a single spot while a vortex of blackness threatened to erase her very existence. Her entire world stopped spinning and hung precariously on its axis, of that much she was sure. But the room she sat in was spinning fast enough to draw the air from her lungs, making it harder and harder for her to maintain her composure.
“Aaron. Why?” Desperation gripped her like a heavy vise and spilled over into her voice—forcing the pleading tone that was obvious even to her. She struggled to maintain her dignity and poise over the despair that suffused her. Everything she’d ever wanted in life was within her grasp, and she felt it slipping away, like tiny grains of sand sliding through her fingers. She was powerless to stop it.
“Ms. Lanes, surely you didn’t think your relationship with Aaron was anything more than a passing fling. That’s all Aaron ever has—just a quick fling, a one-night stand, and then he’s through with them,” Lance retorted, disdain dripping from his every word.
Christa heard a low growl emanate from Aaron’s chest, but he didn’t dispute Lance’s mean-spirited words. He also didn’t disagree with Lance’s assessment of their relationship. She knew that was Aaron’s life before her, but they were different. He was different with her. They were a couple now.
“Aaron—tell him that’s not true. Tell him it’s different with us,” Christa pleaded.
Lance continued as if her world wasn’t disintegrating all around her. Like the very person she loved the most wasn’t being ripped from her life. Like her heart wasn’t being cut out of her chest.
“Ms. Lanes, as you can see, Aaron is offering you a very generous settlement. You will be given ten million dollars, a house, and a vehicle of your choice, and you may keep any gifts Aaron has given you. This is the only time you will be offered this generous settlement.” Lance’s heartless words and matter-of-fact tone matched the sneer on his face.
“What? Ten million dollars? What are you talking about?” Unable to stay seated a second longer, Christa rose and quickly stepped around the table to sit beside Aaron. She was close enough to touch him, to feel the heat of his body, and to inhale the faint smell of his cologne. She watched him lower his head and stare down into his lap before she spoke softly to him.
“Aaron, please look at me,” she requested. She watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down when he swallowed hard before slowly raising his chin. He turned his head toward her, his eyes indulging in a slow perusal of her body. When their gazes finally collided, she saw his emotions in the stark blue pools of his eyes before he quickly masked his feelings and his eyes became hard as nails again.
“Aaron, what’s going on? Why are you doing this to us?” Christa asked softly.
She desperately wished Lance wasn’t in the room so they could talk alone, and she could at least try to understand what was happening. She laid her outstretched hand on Aaron’s arm and lovingly stroked his skin with her delicate fingers.
“I don’t understand. I don’t know why you’re doing this. But it doesn’t have to be this way. We don’t have to do this. We can just leave now and go home together.”
“Let’s be frank, shall we? You know who Aaron is. You and he married without a prenuptial agreement. You may have fooled him for a short time, but no judge will ever give you more than what we’re offering you right now when you’ve only been married a few days. You are not entitled to half of everything he owns. If you want to fight us over it, rest assured we have the resources to keep you tied up in litigation for years, and you will not see one penny the whole time. Take the offer. Live comfortably. Move on with your life,” Lance barked.
Pain and confusion were etched on her face. I know who he is? What does he mean by that? So many questions flew through her mind at lightning speed, too many to even try to vocalize. The only coherent thought she could latch on to was those were divorce papers.
Didn’t we just walk in here holding hands? He brought me here to serve me with divorce papers, but I don’t understand why. What’s happening? The questions kept coming. They flooded her mind and made it impossible for her to make a logical decision on her own. When she sat motionless and silent for a moment too long, Lance continued.
“Ms. Lanes, it is my belief that you drugged my brother to get him to agree to marry you, and that you have continued drugging him to keep him with you for the last three days. Now that he can think clearly again, he’s agreed not to press charges against you, provided you agree to this deal,” Lance concluded.
“Drugged him? Press charges? I haven’t done anything wrong! I don’t use drugs, and I’d certainly never drug him. I wouldn’t even know where to go to get drugs, or even what to get.” Her gaze darted between the two brothers, waiting for one of them to speak words that made any sense to her. Her lips parted, her chest rose and fell in rapid succession, and her hands shook. Her mind was reeling, and she couldn’t reconcile how Aaron could think so poorly of her.
“Aaron.” The tears glistened in her eyes, spilled over her bottom lids, and poured like a torrent over her beautiful, porcelain cheeks. “You know that’s not true. You know I’d never do that to you.”
“Aaron doesn’t remember getting married. He doesn’t remember anything about the last few days with you, Ms. Lanes. These are very serious charges—you could possibly even be charged with attempted murder, if the right information was given to the police.” Lance raised his eyebrows, and his tone hinted he was considering the idea of calling the police.
“You don’t remember anything?” Christa barely spoke
the words aloud. Lance opened his mouth to speak yet again, but she cut him off. “Aaron—please say something.”
“No, I don’t remember anything about the past three days. I don’t know how we got married. How you ended up moving in with me. Nothing.” Aaron’s smooth, sexy voice finally found its place in the conversation.
Christa inhaled sharply, and her hand flew to her chest, covering her heart. She searched his eyes for any indication that this was some cruel, sick joke, but she found no humor in them. Nothing was there but what appeared to be contempt for her.
“You don’t remember asking me to marry you, Aaron?” Christa whispered to him.
“No.”
This can’t be happening, she chanted silently.
“Is this what you want?” she asked, inclining her head toward the divorce papers.
“Yes.”
She took his big hands and placed them on either side of her face, forcing him to turn in his chair to fully face her.
“When you proposed to me, you held my face like this. You said, ‘Christa, you are more beautiful to me than the purest diamond. You are more precious to me than the rarest jewel. I want to be this happy every day of my life. Will you marry me?’
“You were so loving and so sweet to me, Aaron. Even though it was already late at night, you said you were going to make Bellasara’s open so we could pick out our rings and get married immediately. You said you wanted to make me yours before anyone could come along and steal me from you. I laughed because I thought you were just being funny—acting out the scenes like in the movies.
“But when we pulled up outside of Bellasara’s and the door opened for us to enter, I was shocked beyond words. We searched through every bridal set before you found the exact ones you wanted me to have. Don’t you remember that?”
Completely Captivated Page 1