Four Weeks Till Forever
Page 20
* * *
Meredith Lloyd placed her hands over the seat belt buckle as the private jet hit the runway. Her entire body tensed, twitchy as a sprinter at the starting line. As soon as the plane stopped, she jumped to her feet.
“Eager to see your son?” the cabin attendant teased.
“Yes. It’s been so long.”
Meredith gathered her purse and laptop bag, stuffed with extra paperwork, as the attendant opened the door. The air in northern Virginia was colder than that in Houston. Meredith pulled her coat closer as she hurried down the steps.
She hated the days away from her son Eric, but she couldn’t move him to Houston either. He loved his school and his friends, not to mention his favorite uncle had moved to the area. He’d be crushed if she took him to a new city.
She would never do that to her son.
Her gaze zeroed in on the waiting champagne-colored Mercedes. The driver, Nancy Elgerton, gave her a wide grin. Now there was a lovely sight. With a responding grin, Meredith broke into a trot—
“Merry.”
—and stumbled, her heavy laptop bag unbalancing her further. A pair of strong, masculine hands righted her before she pitched head-first into the asphalt.
“Wasn’t expecting me?”
She looked up at the unforgettable face of Daniel. Tall and muscular, with the same shade of brown hair that her late best friend Judy had had, he was the only one who called her Merry. His sharp blue eyes seem to know her innermost secrets as he stared down at her. Her mouth dried, and her heart pounded, pumping so much blood into her head. Don’t panic. Maybe he doesn’t know everything…yet.
“What are you doing here?” she finally managed.
“Helping myself to some of your time, since you won’t see me any other way.”
Huh? She blinked a few times to clear her thoughts as sweat filmed her back. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Really.” His voice was drier than the sub-Saharan desert.
Suddenly realizing he still had his hands on her, she pulled back and hefted the laptop bag. “If you want to see me, make an appointment.”
“Tomorrow morning at nine.”
“But it’s Saturday.” She and Eric had started a new tradition of going over to her mother’s for brunch.
Something like relief mingled with contempt and condescension crossed Daniel’s handsome face. “Too precious to get out of bed before noon on the weekend? How do you plan to fix The Lloyds Development?”
She sucked in a breath. Her family business was struggling at the moment, but it was low of him to question her abilities like this. “That’s unfair.”
“Then meet me at nine tomorrow. I don’t have the time or inclination to play your game.”
Just like that her entire body went cold. He couldn’t know, could he? She stood stiffly, making sure there was enough distance between them. “Fine. Send me the location.”
“Your number?”
“What?”
“Your number. I’m not dealing with your worthless assistant anymore.”
She rattled off her cell phone number. He didn’t have to be nasty about her assistant when it was probably just a miscommunication. This was one of the busiest times of the year for Meredith. “Happy?”
“For now. We’ll talk more tomorrow.” He walked away and disappeared into his limo. It pulled away in a stately fashion.
Nancy got to her just as her knees buckled. “Are you all right?” Nancy asked.
Meredith stared back at her, numb and unable to comprehend. Her heart thundered like a galloping Arabian, and she fought to take in air.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t try to stop him from talking to you. I thought you knew him.”
The deep anxiety in Nancy’s voice snapped Meredith out of it. This was Nancy’s first month as her driver, and she really needed this job. Meredith’s over-protective brothers had thought it was ridiculous of her to hire a mother with no chauffeuring experience. If she were a betting woman, she’d wager a million bucks that her “nothing’s too good for my family” brother Gavin had already hired somebody to spy on Nancy’s performance. Meredith wasn’t going to let Nancy and her four teenage sons suffer over her brothers’ over-the-top concern.
Meredith forced a smile. “I’m fine. He’s a brother of an old friend.” Somebody she’d never thought to see again. Ten years ago, the notion had left her joyless. Now that he was back in her life, she could feel dread unfurling in her belly.
Eyes searching, Nancy inclined her head and stared. The look probably worked well on her kids. Even Meredith wanted to squirm under the gaze.
“Come on. Let’s go,” Meredith said, clearing her throat. “I’m anxious to see my son.”
She had to hold him in her arms.
——
If you want to know when Merry in Love out, send a blank message to new-from-nadia@aweber.com or go to my website at www.nadialee.net to sign up for my new release alert!
Titles by Nadia Lee
If you want to receive notices about my latest books, please join my new release alert at nadialee.net or send a blank message to new-from-nadia@aweber.com!
——
The Pryce Family Series (Hearts on the Line Spin-Off)
Book 1: Four Weeks Till Forever (Mark Pryce & Hilary Rosenberg)
Book 2: Untitled (Iain Pryce’s Story - coming December 2014/January 2015)
Book 3: Untitled (Vanessa Pryce’s Story - coming February/March 2015)
Book 4: Untitled (Shane Pryce’s Story - coming April/May 2015)
Book 5: Untitled (Dane Pryce’s Story - coming summer 2015)
——
Hearts on the Line Series
Book 1: Vengeful in Love (Alex Damon & Natalie Hall)
Book 2: Reunited in Love (Ethan Lloyd & Kerri Wilson)
Book 3: Redemption in Love (Gavin Lloyd & Amandine Monroe Lloyd)
Book 4: Sweet in Love (Pete Monroe & Brooke de Lorenzo)
Book 5: Forever in Love (Blaine Davis & Catherine Fairchild)
Book 6: Merry in Love (Daniel Aylster & Meredith Lloyd)
——
Ever After Series
Book 1: A Happily Ever After of Her Own (Retelling Beauty and the Beast)
Book 2: One Kiss (Retelling Frog Prince)
Ever After Bundle: Books 1 & 2
——
Other Titles
Ashwyn: Cinderella Retold with an Erotic Twist
The Last Slayer
How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook
——
If you want to receive notices about my latest books, please join my new release alert at nadialee.net or send a blank message to new-from-nadia@aweber.com!
About Nadia Lee
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Nadia Lee writes sexy, emotional contemporary romance. Born with a love for excellent food, travel and adventure, she has lived in four different countries, kissed stingrays, been bitten by a shark, ridden an elephant and petted tigers.
Currently, she shares a condo overlooking a small river and sakura trees in Japan with her husband and son. When she’s not writing, she can be found reading books by her favorite authors or planning another trip.
To learn more about Nadia and her projects, please visit www.nadialee.net. To receive updates about upcoming works from Nadia, please visit www.nadialee.net to subscribe to her new release alert.
Four Weeks Till Forever
Copyright © 2014 by Hyun J Kyung
Barnes & Noble Edition
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without the prior written permission from the author except i
n the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.
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