by Amy Andrews
Addie swallowed as her knees went a little wobbly. The man knew how to make a good argument. She shook her head, taking a step back—she couldn’t think with him crowding her.
“But what about the money, Nate? Your goals?”
“Your health scare and my mother got me thinking. People have been telling me for years that I have plenty of time, and they’re right—I’m only thirty-four. So it’ll take me longer, but…” He shrugged. “I’ll get there and if I’m not in so much of a tearing hurry, I can take a leaf out of your book. Hire some managers, take it easy, stop and smell the roses.”
He pulled a scraggily, seen-better-days, bloom from behind his back and presented it to her. He must have searched the entire garden and found the only bush with a rose still on it.
It was perfect.
But still she held on to her heart, refusing to take the flower. She wasn’t going to settle because he was making some concessions. She didn’t want to be Delphine in a few years’ time. “How do I know you’re not just saying what I want to hear? That you won’t go back to your old ways?”
“I guess you don’t,” he said, and she was pleased he hadn’t tried to whitewash her concerns with a smooth line. “And there will be times when I’ll work more than I should and I’ll slip a little because I’m a pretty driven guy, but I’m hoping you’ll be there to pull me up. Because you personify everything that’s worthwhile about not working all the hours God gave me and I want to spend as many of them with you as I can.”
Addie could feel herself weakening as he held out the rose to her again and said, “Please give me a chance to make you happy. I make this promise to you in this beautiful garden you fought so hard for, that I will spend every day putting you first.”
Addie wavered. How could she say no to that?
“I’m going to hold you to that,” she said as she reached for the rose, feeling the fight leave her as the love flooded in.
“I’m hoping so,” he said as their fingers brushed and he pulled her close.
She smiled at him then, her chest tight with emotion. “I love you,” she murmured.
He smiled back. “I love you, too.”
He lowered his head and she accepted the sweetest, gentlest kiss she’d ever known.
“Now,” he whispered, “let’s go somewhere I can get into your pants.”
Addie laughed. “Isn’t that your limo outside?”
About the Author
Amy Andrews is an award-winning romance writer who has written 29 romances for Harlequin. She wrote her first book at the age of 22 whilst unemployed and freezing her butt off in the UK, largely because it allowed her to stay in bed with her electric blanket. One 12-year apprenticeship later, she finally got “the call.”
To date, she’s sold a million books and been translated into thirteen different languages. In 2010, she won the Sexy category in the prestigious Australian Romantic Book of the Year Awards, affectionately known as the R*BY.
In what she euphemistically likes to call her spare time, she works part-time as a pediatric intensive care nurse and was on the national executive board for Romance Writers of Australia for six years, during which time she organized two national conferences and undertook a two-year term as president.
She’s been married for twenty-two years and has two teenagers who only admit to her being a writer when they have to explain to their friends why there’s no food in the house. She lives on acreage on the outskirts of Brisbane with a gorgeous mountain view.
Acknowledgments
Writing a book is a team effort, and I’d like to thank the entire team at Entangled for getting my baby out into the world. I’d particularly like to thank Heather Howland, my editor, who “got” the book right from page one and emailed me enthusiastically about it. No matter how many books you have under your belt, it’s always a thrill to have someone in your corner who loves your books as much as you do.
I’d also like to thank my own little band of supporters, my family and my writing friends who understand what it’s like to be in the grip of book fever but still love you anyway. Special thanks to Mark, Jack, and Claire—I love you guys.
I’d particularly like to thank my best friend Leah for her alpaca knowledge (any mistakes are mine). Actually, I’d pretty much like to just thank her. In a lot of regards, it’s been a tough 12 months for me personally, and her support and love has been rock solid.
Finally, I’d like to thank my fellow Entangled authors who are an incredible cheer squad—keep up the good work!
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
About the Author
Acknowledgments