by J. Kenner
“I am. We are. But I fucked up.”
“Damn right, you did.” I hear the thickness in her voice, and I know she’s on the verge of tears.
I step closer. I’m right in front of her now, and I have to force my hands to stay at my sides when all I want to do is touch her. Comfort her.
“I let my past get in the way,” I admit. “I thought about Margie and about the way she hurt me. The way she left. But she shouldn’t have been anywhere near my head. It should have just been you. Only you.”
“Then why wasn’t it?”
“Because I’m an asshole.”
She lifts her head, her expression wary. “Keep going.”
“Because I was scared.”
Her brow furrows. “Of what?”
“Of you. Of everything. Of the way you make me feel.”
She licks her lips, the anger in her eyes starting to dim. “How do I make you feel?”
“Like maybe I have a chance at forever.” I draw a breath for courage. “Like maybe I’m falling in love with you. And I think you’re falling with me.”
I hear her breath hitch. “Pierce, I—”
“No, let me finish. Jez, I know this has been fast—crazy fast. And maybe we’re both wrong, but I don’t think so. And I want to put in the time and the work to find out. More than that, I want to make it work. Mostly, I want us to stay us.”
A tear trickles down her cheek, and I reach up and gently brush it away. “I was afraid, and I hurt you. And I’m so goddamn sorry. Please, Jez. Please say you forgive me.”
She licks her lips and sniffles a little. “Your timing sucks. We don’t even have those three days. I’m leaving for LA tomorrow.”
I can’t help it; I laugh.
Her brow arches up. “That’s funny?”
“It’s wonderful,” I say. “Because you didn’t tell me to get lost. All you did was tell me you’re leaving. And baby, that’s just geography. We can make geography work.”
She says nothing, so I take a step closer, then slide my arms around her waist. “Move here. You and Del. You said you want out of LA, right? So come here. Rent a house. Buy a condo. Live with me. But give it a chance. Del’s not a struggling actress. She can live wherever she wants.”
“She’ll want LA,” Jez says, and I smile again.
“And she’s old enough to live there on her own,” I say. “There’s this cool invention called the Internet. Texting and video calls and all sorts of magical stuff. And these metal tubes that fly through the sky and get you to LA in only about four hours.”
She smacks me playfully on the shoulder.
“You shouldn’t hit in anger, you know.”
She narrows her eyes. “Maybe I’m not angry anymore.”
“Really?” I press a kiss to her jawline. “I’m very glad to hear it. Of course, I still have a lot of apologizing left.” My hands cup her waist, then start to slowly slide up, taking her T-shirt with them.
“You hurt me.”
“I know,” I say, then gently nip her earlobe.
Her body trembles under my hands, and her breath comes out in a shudder. “I think you need to apologize more.”
I step back so that I can gently pull her T-shirt over her head. “Sweetheart, I’m going to spend the rest of the night apologizing in every way I know how.”
I kiss along her collarbone, then over the swell of her breasts. I tease one of her nipples between my thumb and forefinger, then bend my head to take the other into my mouth, my cock hardening at the sound of her sweet moans of pleasure.
I stay like that, sucking and teasing, soaking in the feel and then scent of her. Then I ease back, releasing her nipple with a wet, erotic popping sound.
I straighten, then look into her lust-glazed eyes. “Enough?” I ask. “Am I forgiven?”
She bites her lower lip, then cocks her head as a tiny smile plays on her lips. “Not even close.”
“In that case,” I say, as I kiss my way down her abdomen, lower and lower towards heaven. “I’ll just have to work a little bit harder…”
Epilogue
Eight months later
I’m standing in a tux beneath a vine-covered arch at the end of a white, linen runway. Above me, the sky is painted a perfect blue. Behind me, the Pacific stretches to infinity.
From where I’m standing, yards away from the cliff’s drop-off, I can’t see the crash of the waves against the base of the cliff. But I can hear the roar of the ocean, and I breathe deep, letting the sounds and the sea air settle my nerves as the iconic music begins and the guests in front of me rise from their white, wooden folding chairs.
I look down the aisle, and it’s not until I see her that my breath comes easy again. She’s walking in time with the music, holding flowers in front of her, looking more beautiful than ever before.
I slide my hand into my pocket and finger the small treasure I’ve put there. A talisman that I hope will settle my nerves.
Closer and closer she comes until she’s standing almost in front of me. She looks straight at me, then steps off to the side, smiling so broadly her eyes crinkle.
Now she’s standing opposite me, and we’re like two bookends on either side of Delilah and Levyl, who are holding hands now, their eyes not on each other, but on the man holding the Bible and reading their vows.
They each say, “I do,” and the guests start to applaud. And as Levyl and Delilah kiss, the director standing off to the left and just out of the range of the camera yells, “Cut!”
Levyl laughs and swings his arm around Delilah’s shoulder as she leans into him. “One of my favorite scenes,” she teases, and he bends to lightly kiss her.
They’re not dating again, but they’ve rekindled a strong friendship, and their fans—and the studio—love the continuing will-they-won’t-they drama. The movie actually came about to capitalize on their renewed friendship, and Del urged both me and Jez to be extras in this movie. Supposedly just for fun, but also so that Jez and I would have a reason to fly to LA for a long weekend.
Over the last few months, we’ve been spending less time in California and more in Texas. At first, Jez was flying back and forth almost weekly so that she could work with Delilah on the basic management of Del’s career. But Del’s been grabbing the reins more, both by making more of her own decisions and by choosing and hiring a team to pick up the slack.
“Do you miss it?” I ask as I take Jez’s hand and lead her away from the crowd. “Hollywood? The ocean? The California traffic? Handling Dez’s stuff?”
“I miss the ocean,” she says. “And I miss Del. But,” she adds, as she slides into my arms, “I’m very happy with my trade-off.”
“You mean the house and the garden,” I say, referring to the central Austin house we bought last month, and into which we’ve been pouring a stream of money, sweat, and elbow grease.
“Absolutely,” she says, then rises on her toes to kiss me. “What else could I possibly mean?”
I grin, then step back, still clutching her hand. “Come with me. I want to show you something.”
I take her back to the archway. Nearby, Del and Levyl and Anissa are chatting with Connor and Cayden and Kerrie, all of whom think they flew out for my movie debut.
That, however, is only part of it.
“What?” Jez says, looking around the decorative set piece. “If you’re showing me the set, I’ve seen it already.”
“But you haven’t seen this,” I say, dropping to one knee and holding up the ring that’s been burning a hole in my pocket.
Jez gasps, her fingers going over her mouth, and I’m not sure if she’s holding back tears or laughter. Or maybe she’s just in shock.
“I don’t think I could ever find a more perfect venue for a proposal,” I say. “And since our friends and sisters are here, I’ll never hear the end of it if you shut me down. But that’s a risk I have to take. Because I love you, Jez. I think I loved you from the first moment I met you. I love your snark and your heat, your w
armth and your sense of humor. You’re everything to me. You’re my soulmate.”
She blinks, and though her eyes are watery, her face glows.
“I never thought I would say this again. I never thought I would want to. But Jezebel Stuart, I don’t want to go another minute without knowing that you’ll be my wife. Baby, will you marry me?”
My heart is pounding so hard I don’t even hear her answer. But I do hear the applause and whistles. And when Jez pulls me to my feet—when she flings her arms around my neck and kisses me hard and deep—that’s when I know her answer for sure.
It’s yes.
And as I kiss her back, surrounded by our friends and family, I can’t believe how lucky I am.
Want more? Don’t miss Cayden and Connor’s stories in Pretty Little Player and Sexy Little Sinner!
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Meet Cayden in Pretty Little Player
* * *
Bedroom games are fine … but I need a woman who won’t play with my heart.
* * *
After years in the military, I’ve faced down a lot of things, and there’s not much I shy away from. Except relationships. Because when you catch your wife in bed with another man, that tends to sour even the most hardened man against women.
* * *
When I was hired to keep surveillance on a woman with a checkered past, I went into the job anticipating the worst. But what I found was a woman who turned my head. Who made my blood heat and my body burn. A woman who made me feel alive again.
* * *
A woman who was nothing like what I expected, but everything I wanted. A woman who, it turned out, needed my protection. And wanted my touch.
* * *
And as the world fell out from under us, and everything I thought I knew shifted, there was only one reality I could hold onto—that the more I got to know her, the more I wanted her.
* * *
But if I’m going to make her mine, I’ll have to not only keep her safe, I’ll have to prove to her that I’ve conquered my own fears and doubts. That I’m done looking into the past, and that all I want is a future—with her.
* * *
Get Pretty Little Player now!
Meet Connor in Sexy Little Sinner
* * *
It was wrong to stay together ... but we couldn’t stay apart.
* * *
I’ve been with my share of women, but none touched my heart and fired my senses the way she did. Her smile enticed me. Her caresses teased me. Her body aroused me.
* * *
And yet, it couldn’t last. There were too many years between us. A gap we couldn’t breach, and we broke it off. No. I broke it off. And I’ve regretted that decision ever since.
* * *
Now she’s in danger, and there’s no one else I trust to protect her. But the more time we spend together, the more I want her back. And all I know now is I have to keep her safe—and despite both of us knowing better, somehow, someway, she will be mine again.
* * *
Get Sexy Little Sinner now!
Who’s Your Man of the Month?
When a group of fiercely determined friends realize their beloved hang-out is in danger of closing, they take matters into their own hands to bring back customers lost to a competing bar. Fighting fire with a heat of their own, they double down with the broad shoulders, six-pack abs, and bare chests of dozens of hot, local guys who they cajole, prod, and coerce into auditioning for a Man of the Month calendar.
But it’s not just the fate of the bar that’s at stake. Because as things heat up, each of the men meets his match in this sexy, flirty, and compelling binge-read romance series of twelve novels releasing every other week from New York Times bestselling author J. Kenner.
* * *
"With each novel featuring a favorite romance trope—beauty and the beast, billionaire bad boys, friends to lovers, second chance romance, secret baby, and more—[the Man of the Month] series hits the heart and soul of romance." New York Times bestselling author Carly Phillips
* * *
Down On Me
Hold On Tight
Need You Now
Start Me Up
Get It On
In Your Eyes
Turn Me On
Shake It Up
All Night Long
In Too Deep
Light My Fire
Walk The Line
* * *
Bar Bites: A Man of the Month Cookbook
Charismatic. Dangerous. Sexy as hell.
Meet the men of Stark Security.
Coming in 2019
* * *
Stark Security, a high-end, high-tech, no-holds barred security firm founded by billionaire Damien Stark and security specialist Ryan Hunter has one mission: Do whatever it takes to protect the innocent. Only the best in the business are good enough for Stark Security.
* * *
Men with dangerous skills.
* * *
Men with something to prove.
* * *
Brilliant, charismatic, sexy as hell, they have no time for softness—they work hard and they play harder. They’ll take any risk to get the job done.
* * *
But what they won’t do is lose their hearts.
Shattered With You
Broken With You
Ruined With You
MEET DAMIEN STARK
* * *
Only his passion could set her free…
* * *
The Original Trilogy
Release Me
Claim Me
Complete Me
And Beyond…
Anchor Me
Lost With Me
DAMIEN
Meet Damien Stark in the award-winning & international bestselling series that started it all.
* * *
The Stark Saga by J. Kenner
* * *
Download Now
Also by J. Kenner
Click here for a printable booklist
* * *
The Stark Saga Novels:
Only his passion could set her free…
Meet Damien Stark
* * *
The Original Trilogy
Release Me
Claim Me
Complete Me
* * *
And Beyond…
Anchor Me
Lost With Me
DAMIEN
* * *
Stark Ever After
(Stark Saga novellas):
Happily ever after is just the beginning.
The passion between Damien & Nikki continues.
Take Me
Have Me
Play My Game
Seduce Me
Unwrap Me
Deepest Kiss
Entice Me
Hold Me
Please Me
Indulge Me
* * *
The Steele Books/Stark International:
He was the only man who made her feel alive.
Say My Name
On My Knees
Under My Skin
Take My Dare (includes short story Steal My Heart)
* * *
Stark International Novellas:
Meet Jamie & Ryan-so hot it sizzles.
Tame Me
Tempt Me
* * *
S.I.N. Trilogy:
It was wrong for them to be together…
…but harder to stay apart.
Dirtiest Secret
Hottest Mess
Sweetest Taboo
* * *
Stand alone novels:
* * *
Stark Security:
Charismatic. Dangerous. Sexy as hell.
Meet the men of Stark Security.
Shattered With You
Broken With You
Ruined With You
* * *
Blackwell-Lyon:
Heat, humor & a hint of danger
Lovely Little Liar
Pretty Little Player
Sexy Little Sinner
* * *
Most Wanted:
Three powerful, dangerous men.
Three sensual, seductive women.
Wanted
Heated
Ignited
* * *
Wicked Nights (Stark World):
Sometimes it feels so damn good to be bad.
Wicked Grind
Wicked Dirty
Wicked Torture
* * *
Man of the Month
Who’s your man of the month …?
Down On Me
Hold On Tight