by Katy Regnery
“I still think it’s weird,” said Valeria, grumbling as she adjusted her backpack. “Doesn’t he know about a hundred society girls he could ask to be his fake fiancée?”
Emily shook her head. “Nah. They’d all take it too seriously. They’d get hopeful. They’d hope that what started as a favor would lead to something real.”
Unlike you, her head jibed sarcastically, poking with precision at her heart.
“From what you’ve told me, he’s not exactly Prince Charming.”
Emily had explained this before, but Valeria had never lived among the English family. She didn’t understand the breadth and depth of their wealth and influence.
“Forget Prince Charming, Val. Barrett’s the oldest son of English & Sons. He buys companies for breakfast and eats them in pieces for lunch. His nickname is ‘The Shark,’ for heaven’s sake! He’s smart and driven and stupendously wealthy. For the woman who doesn’t require emotional intimacy, that’s a whole lot of diamond tennis bracelets.”
Valeria nudged Emily’s side, and when she looked up, Val smiled at Emily as she waggled her eyebrows suggestively. “Speaking of intimacy, he’s also scorching hot.”
And don’t I know it, Emily thought with a grimace.
All her life, she’d made a quiet study of Barrett’s perfection. His tall, lean, muscular body, his burnished blond hair, the clear blue of his eyes that made her breath catch when he occasionally flashed them at her. He was unbelievably gorgeous—as were all of the English brothers—except Barrett was the original. Over six feet tall with a jaw like a superhero, he was more than attractive. He was, as Valeria had pointed out so illustratively, scorching hot.
But who cares about that, thought Emily in a concerted effort to convince herself she was immune to his movie star good looks even though it was patently untrue, when he can barely offer me a smile?
“I work for him, Val.”
“I wouldn’t mind working under him.”
“Val!” exclaimed Emily, blushing as she swatted her roommate’s arm.
“Speaking as a woman and not an employee, isn’t there anything you like about him?”
Sure, thought Emily unhappily. Lots.
The oldest of five brothers, Barrett was the heir apparent to the most prestigious private equity firm in Philadelphia, and by all outward appearances, Barrett’s nickname was right on target. He was a business shark, dedicated to the financial dominance of English & Sons. But Emily couldn’t help sensing—as she always had—that deep down inside, there was more to Barrett English than business. She had long held the heart-fluttering theory, possibly incorrectly, that someone so passionate in his business life must have the capacity for other deep passions as well.
Honestly, Emily had no good reason for believing this. His behavior to her was always polite, though not especially warm and inviting. He didn’t make Emily laugh or ask personal questions about her studies or her family. When he dated someone, which wasn’t often, Emily noted that he never seemed thoroughly engaged or delighted with her and watched his short-lived girlfriends work like crazy to capture and hold his attention without success. Barrett was austere and focused, totally driven by business purposes. Further, he was reserved, old-school and buttoned-up, and in the twenty-four years Emily had known him, she couldn’t ever remember seeing him let loose. It was like he was born with an expensive tie around his neck and a leather briefcase attached to his hand.
And yet…
His reserved manners didn’t bother Emily; Barrett spoke with economy and precision, which meant that every word was well-placed and reliably exact in meaning. He was so smart it made her head spin and so well-informed she wondered how he found the time to read so much. He was strong and powerful, and Emily marveled that he’d achieved so much and was so respected in his field by thirty-two years old. The way Barrett commanded a table made her feel safe with him—like nothing would dare bother her with Barrett’s strong presence beside her—and she liked the way his business associates looked at her, like she must be something special to have wrangled the heart of Mr. English. Lately, in her more romantic daydreams, Emily imagined Barrett as a modern-day Mr. Darcy to her bookish Elizabeth, wondering how deep his still waters ran and having a notion that needling him a little might rattle him from his austerity and cast more light on his character.
And the way he made her feel…
When Emily met Barrett for their “dates,” his eyes would flash with something indefinable but sharp, almost like pain or disapproval or hunger, which made her breath catch, because it meant that—on some level—she affected him. When he introduced her to his associates as his fiancée, it made her tremble, and she often had to steady her hand before offering it to his guests. At times, she’d feel his glance linger on her profile as she sat beside him, and it made her skin flush and her heart race to feel his eyes focused so intently on her. Occasionally he’d place his hand on her lower back as he guided her to a table or their fingers would touch as they reached for their wineglasses, and butterflies would mass and throng in her tummy. The way her name rumbled off his tongue—Emily—was so decadent and low and intimate in her ears, she had to work to keep her eyes from fluttering closed in pleasure as the muscles deep inside of her body clenched with urgency.
Isn’t there anything you like about him?
How could she tell the truth? Even as a little girl, eight years his junior, she’d always liked Barrett the best, awed by his innate power and strength. But playing his fiancée with regularity over the past few months had insured that her attraction to Barrett knew no bounds. It sat quietly in wait for Barrett to make a move—any move—that would allow her to hope that his heart could be moved by hers.
That was the biggest problem of all: even with her education and perfectly respectable upbringing, Emily was the help, the gardener’s daughter, the housekeeper’s little girl. She was ridiculous for thinking—for hoping, for wishing, even for a moment—she could ever be a fit match for the heart of Barrett English.
She flinched, discomfort and a rush of panic making her feel slightly breathless, as she forced herself to face the fact that what had always been a slow-burning infatuation had heated to a boiling point over the last few months. Indeed, if Emily was honest with herself, she knew she’d fallen in love with Barrett, a circumstance that was entirely unacceptable and needed correction. Soon.
“Emily?” prompted Val. “Anything?”
Emily forced a deep breath, her heart heavy as she promised to examine her feelings more thoroughly later and decide, once and for all, what action they warranted.
“Well…” said Emily, trying to come up with something trite to appease Valeria’s curiosity without betraying her true struggles. “He always remembers to order me a glass of Riesling.”
“That’s something, I guess,” said Emily’s roommate. She walked along in silence beside her for a few minutes as fall leaves swirled around their feet. “But wait. You only drink beer at home. Do you even like Riesling?”
“Not really.”
Valeria glanced at Emily incredulously before her shoulders started trembling with laughter. “So the thing you like best about Barrett English is that he orders you the same drink every time, even though it happens to be a drink you don’t even like?”
“I guess so,” said Emily, giggling along with her friend, the silliness a reprieve from the hopelessness of her heart.
“That’s pathetic Emily,” said Valeria, unlocking the outside door to their walk-up. “But on the bright side, at least you’ll make three to four hundred dollars for your time tomorrow. How about we splurge on Chinese tonight?”
“Chinese on Barrett English,” said Emily, following her roommate up the stairs. “I like it. And let’s eat it straight out of the containers. I bet Barrett’s never done that in his whole master-of-the-universe life.”
BUY Breaking Up With Barrett NOW!
Thank you for reading
THE SUMMERHAVEN TRIO!
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or announcements about upcoming Katy Regnery books, be sure to sign up for Katy’s newsletter at http://www.katyregnery.com!
~ STILL COMING IN 2018 ~
PRE-ORDER FRAGMENTS OF ASH NOW!
ALSO AVAILABLE
from Katy Regnery
THE SUMMERHAVEN TRIO
Fighting Irish
Smiling Irish
Loving Irish
Catching Irish
THE BLUEBERRY LANE SERIES
THE ENGLISH BROTHERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #1–7)
Breaking Up with Barrett
Falling for Fitz
Anyone but Alex
Seduced by Stratton
Wild about Weston
Kiss Me Kate
Marrying Mr. English
THE WINSLOW BROTHERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #8–11)
Bidding on Brooks
Proposing to Preston
Crazy about Cameron
Campaigning for Christopher
THE ROUSSEAUS
(Blueberry Lane Books #12–14)
Jonquils for Jax
Marry Me Mad
J.C. and the Bijoux Jolis
THE STORY SISTERS
(Blueberry Lane Books #15–17)
The Bohemian and the Businessman
The Director and Don Juan
Countdown to Midnight
a m o d e r n f a i r y t a l e
(A collection)
The Vixen and the Vet
Never Let You Go
Ginger’s Heart
Dark Sexy Knight
Don’t Speak
Shear Heaven
Fragments of Ash
Coming 2018
Swan Song
Coming 2018
STAND-ALONE BOOKS:
After We Break
(a stand-alone second-chance romance)
Frosted
(a romance novella for mature readers)
Unloved, a love story
(a stand-alone suspenseful romance)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Katy Regnery started her writing career by enrolling in a short story class in January 2012. One year later, she signed her first contract, and Katy’s first novel was published in September 2013.
Forty books later, Katy claims authorship of the multititled New York Times and USA Today best-selling Blueberry Lane Series, which follows the English, Winslow, Rousseau, Story, and Ambler families of Philadelphia; the six-book, bestselling ~a modern fairytale~ series; and several other stand-alone novels and novellas, including the critically acclaimed, 2018 RITA® nominated, USA Today bestselling contemporary romance Unloved, a love story.
Katy’s first modern fairytale romance, The Vixen and the Vet, was nominated for a RITA® in 2015 and won the 2015 Kindle Book Award for romance. Katy’s The English Brothers Boxed Set, Books #1–4, hit the USA Today bestseller list in 2015, and her Christmas story, Marrying Mr. English, appeared on the list a week later. In May 2016, Katy’s Blueberry Lane collection, The Winslow Brothers Boxed Set, Books #1–4, became a New York Times e-book bestseller.
Katy’s books are available in English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Turkish.
Katy lives in the relative wilds of northern Fairfield County, Connecticut, where her writing room looks out at the woods, and her husband, two young children, two dogs, and one Blue Tonkinese kitten create just enough cheerful chaos to remind her that the very best love stories begin at home.
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Upcoming (2018) Projects
Fragments of Ash, a modern fairytale
Swan Song, a modern fairytale
Connect with Katy
Katy LOVES connecting with her readers and answers every e-mail, message, tweet, and post personally! Connect with Katy!
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