by Jean Oram
“I don’t think you would ever fail at showing me your love, Tristen.” She took a step back, clenching his hands so tightly it made the one that had punched Mistral Johnson ache. Had that been only yesterday?
“Trust me, I could fail. I have before.”
“You won’t. I trust you, Tristen. You have already shown me in so many ways.”
He swept her curls from her shoulders. He’d pulled her back into bed that morning and she hadn’t had the time to do it up. “Do you really trust me?”
“With my life.”
“Then trust me when I tell you you’re beautiful.”
Her eyes glimmered with tears and her throat bobbed as she swallowed hard.
“Trust the fact—even if I never say it again—that you are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and that you always will be.”
She let out a self-conscious laugh and bit her bottom lip. He ran his thumb over the pinched flesh, tugging it out from her teeth’s grip. “Trust me?”
Finally she nodded, a blush spreading across her pale cheeks.
“I love you, Mel.”
This time he would do it right.
* * *
Melanie felt as though her heart was going to explode into flowers and rainbows from all the love she felt inside. She’d just totally busted some balls in chambers and Tristen was all over her like she was the sexiest thing in the world.
His world.
And his world was a world she wanted to live in for the rest of her life.
Nothing could feel better. He’d called her beautiful and meant it. But most importantly, she believed it. He didn’t think she was a Sasquatch and he was man enough to handle her splendor and size.
When he told her she had a place, was important, beautiful, and loved, she felt it. Believed it. Trusted it.
He was one-of-a-kind. And hers. All hers.
She felt a rush of adrenaline as a crazy idea flipped through her mind. She could propose. Right here in the parking lot where people were walking to their cars, murmuring to each other about her little showdown. It felt as though she’d just kicked a hornets’ nest and her life was finally going to go on that big ride she’d always wanted to take. So why not have her love life take off on that ride, too? She didn’t want anyone else by her side as she took on Rubicore and the municipality. At night. In the morning.
Him. Only him.
Tristen was the man who could be by her side through it all, helping her. Not taking over, but trusting her to make her own moves, and clearing obstacles when she needed help. Because of him she knew what path she needed to take in order to save Muskoka. Plus with the tax break he had assisted in wrangling, her sisters had decided that would count toward Melanie’s portion of the debt.
She’d done it. She’d finally contributed to the cottage. And it was all due to the wonderful man in her arms.
“I love you, Tristen.” She squinted against the gorgeous August sun. She loved the way the light picked up the highlights in his short hair. He was handsome. Strong. Supportive. Everything she never believed she could ever have.
He bent his head to meet hers, kissing her in a way that had her arms wrapping around him and her legs wishing they could do the same.
“You don’t know who you are messing with!” shouted an angry voice.
A breeze picked up and Melanie kept kissing Tristen, not wanting to break the moment, not wanting to be distracted or to find a way to chicken out on asking him to be hers forever.
The shouter repeated himself, closer this time. The clinking of chains and the sound of heeled boots crunched on the gravel. Tristen had her out of his arms and pinned behind him in an instant.
From there, she couldn’t see the man yelling at them. Ezra and Kane eased up beside her, their friends flanking them. She scooted to Tristen’s side, frustrated by how he kept trying to hold her back.
If they were calling her out, it was her battle, and she wanted to see who she was dealing with.
“You don’t know who you have messed with, Melanie Summer.”
It was Mistral Johnson, his face black-and-blue from Tristen’s punch. His cronies were lined up in their spiffy suits and pointed, polished shoes, ready to do his dirty work.
“And vice versa!” she cried. Tristen hushed her with a low voice, as though trying to calm a spooked animal, but she added, “You can’t just walk over people and the planet because you have more money.”
“You’re on the wrong side and your sister is going to pay.”
Melanie’s heart seized painfully. “Which one?” she called, her voice stronger than she felt. Inside, she wanted to hide her face in Tristen’s shirt and let him take care of it all.
“Daphne is going to pay.”
“Hey, now,” Tristen called, stepping forward, away from the row of cars behind them. “This is nothing personal, boys. Just business.”
The bikers took Tristen’s cue, stepping into a line, with Melanie blocked behind them, a united front against Toronto’s business sector.
“I think it is personal,” Mistral replied. “You’ve embarrassed us and shamed us with that stupid charity case of a camp. Slamming us in the papers. This is my chance to shine and prove that the company’s worth something and you’re over here insinuating that we burned down that crappy old cottage on Heritage Row. You’ve got all of Muskoka pissed at us for trying to bring prosperity and tourists to the area. And now this crap-case legal thing? We’re going to bury you.” He took a step nearer, body angled so he could escape Tristen’s wrath if he got too close. “You won’t think you’re so great when you go down in flames.”
“This has nothing to do with you and everything to do with fairness and proper proceedings. Laws. Bylaws.” She squeezed between Tristen and Ezra, feeling safe.
“Daphne knew I was part of Rubicore. She encouraged this, and now she’s going to pay.”
Melanie watched them take off, her breathing coming hard, as though she’d sprinted to get here. “Daphne. We have to get to Daphne before they do.”
Tristen, expression grim, shared a silent look with the surrounding bikers, and Melanie wondered what she’d gotten her family into. And whether they were going to survive it.
The End
Keep reading to find out what happens next with Daphne and Evander in Love and Danger.
Hello Summer Sisters Readers!
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The Summer Sisters Tame the Billionaires
One cottage. Four sisters. And four billionaires who will sweep them off their feet.
Love and Rumors ~ Hailey Summer believes she can cover her past mistakes by using her photography skills as a member of the paparazzi. The only problem is that movie star Finian Alexander has his own ideas on how she can use her abilities and it might just involve both of them in the tabloids—together.
Love and Dreams ~ Business woman Maya Summer continues the quest to save the cottage by providing an executive retreat for her business world hero, Connor MacKenzie. The only problem is that the real-life version of Connor is not the man she’s always dreamed of and every time she turns around, she’s further from saving the cottage, and further from merging with Connor and making a difference.
Love and Trust ~ Melanie Summer puts her legal mind to good use as she struggles to find loopholes to not only save the family cottage, but also prevent a disruptive development across the water. She can’t do it alone and must convince the former land developer Tristen Bell to put on his old suit—one he promised he’d never wear again—and help her out.
Love and Danger ~ Hippie sister Daphne Summer is forced to take shelter in the shadow of ex-military man Evander de la Fosse when things in Muskoka get out of control. The bodyguard represents everything she hates…or does he? Find out in the explosive finale to this series of sisters, as well as discover the healing power of love.
http://www.jeanoram.com/books/summer-
sisters/
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Jean Oram is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author. She grew up in an old schoolhouse on the Canadian prairie, and spent many summers visiting family in her grandmother’s 110-year-old cottage in Ontario’s Muskoka region. She still loves to swim, walk to the store, and go tubing—just like she did as a kid—and hopes her own kids will love Muskoka just as she did when she was young(er).
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What’s Next?
Read book 4, Love and Danger, in the Summer Sisters Tame the Billionaire series and find out what happens to Daphne.
Love and Danger ~ Hippie sister Daphne Summer is forced to take shelter in the shadow of ex-military man Evander de la Fosse when things in Muskoka get out of control. The bodyguard represents everything she hates…or does he? Find out in the explosive finale to this series of sisters, as well as discover the healing power of love.
Click here to download Love and Danger and start reading now.