by Kendra Riley
TRUE LOVE
DOWN UNDER
INTERNATIONAL ALPHAS
KENDRA RILEY
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Summary
When Sara Wright won a place on a scholarship down in Australia she was both excited and scared.
She had never even met anyone from Australia before and it seemed like a whole new world to her.
However, it wasn't long before she fell for the charms of a fun loving Aussie named Zac.
At first they appeared to be complete opposites but it soon became apparent that opposites attract.
Was Sara about to find true love down under? Or was there more to her mysterious lover than meets the eye?
Download this steamy interracial romance now. It features a hot love scenes, a HUGE twist you will never see coming and surprising but happy ending!
Copyright Notice
True Love Down Under © 2018, Kendra Riley
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.
Contents
Chapter1
Chapter2
Chapter3
Chapter4
Chapter5
Chapter6
Chapter7
chapter 8
chapter 9
chapter 10
chapter 11
chapter 12
chapter 13
chapter 14
Chapter1
She would have missed her flight, were it not for her father’s mad driving skills. Her mother chose not to send her off, knowing she would cry seeing her daughter leave on that six month long sojourn. It was only six months, she thought with a small smile. Her siblings were in school, and she was glad she needn’t bother formally saying goodbye. She was a bit awkward like that. Twenty-three-year-old Sahara “Sara” Wright was now headed for Australia (on economy seating) from California.
It hadn’t been easy, getting her on that flight, but it had been a life-long dream of hers, something born out of her early interest for nature and wildlife. It was something she had worked on since high school, without an inkling that she would win that scholarship to Australia, and a possible grant back on American soil.
Her eyeglasses slipped off her nose bridge, as she had chosen to wear her spare ones for the flight. Sleeping would be difficult. She was too excited, although she tried to keep the excitement down. I shouldn’t be jinxing this, she thought, wanting to do everything by the book for good measure.
Her economy meal was decent, and she had unlimited juice and water, should she need it. She thought she needed wine to calm herself further, but that would mean a few extra dollars—around forty, which was something too ostentatious, even for her.
She shifted in her seat, glad no one was beside her. She would make use of the extra space and lie down if need be. Wrapping her blanket around her tightly, she pressed on a screen to track their current whereabouts. She was eight hours away from her point of arrival, eight hours away from something fresh, something new to her senses—and her palate, hopefully.
Sara looked out the window, watching the clouds slowly turn dark, as if the night rolled along with them while they flew. She found herself getting impatient, a rarity, or maybe it was her anxiety for the unknown. Everything else would be unknown, except for her line of work, except for what she wanted to be.
A few seats away, she heard the whispers of the flight attendants, whispering behind the curtain that separated them from the passengers. They wanted to take turns in Business Class, even if two were already assigned there. Sara leaned back, reclining her seat to stretch her back and neck.
“He’s the one on the left, right?” one attendant giggled.
“Yes,” another replied. “I told you he was a hottie.”
“He’s not just a hottie, he’s like the most eligible bachelor since god knows when,” a third attendant chimed in, “and it’s my turn to serve him snacks.”
“He likes champagne.”
“I’ll give him a whole bottle!”
They all laughed in hushed tones, enjoying their girly talk while the majority of the guests were asleep. Sara shook her head, amused. People said and did things to amuse themselves, and she was no exception. She sang in the shower to perk herself up, but she sang in secret, glad that her roommate had different working and schooling shifts. Her family knew about it, but it still embarrassed her. She was the only one who couldn’t carry a good tune in the family, and they wouldn’t stop teasing her about it.
Not wanting to hear more of their talk, she concentrated on watching a movie instead, some random movie about an overgrown mutant-looking pig and a little girl taking care of it. Talk about conservationism, she thought. Sara was an ovo-lacto-vegetarian, unlike the majority of her classmates who had been wanting for her to go full on vegan. Her mother’s cooking was too good to pass, and so were her mother’s pastries, the majority of which needed eggs and milk.
The movie passed by in a blur, and she wanted to avoid counting the hours left for her arrival. She decided to check on her reports, all neatly compiled in folders on her laptop. She reread a few of her mini-theses, reminiscing on the grades she had gotten with flying colors. She had always been an achiever, the designated class leader since kindergarten, the president of whichever club she fancied herself to be in.
Initially, she had thought of going into journalism, but a love for animals came during a trip to the zoo in elementary. Everything changed for her there, and she saw the passion and dedication required, something that matched her personality well. Being a homebody, her family had been skeptical of her choice.
“There’s so much risk involved, safety…” her mother, Letitia, had said, “you’ll be sent on expeditions. Do you call those expeditions?”
“Sara, think about it,” her father said, “I always thought you’d end up teaching in the same university as I have.”
“Her head’s in the clouds,” Jamal, her eighteen-year-old brother told them with a laugh.
“I think I’ll do great. There’s a first time for everything,” she replied defensively.
“Her head’s underwater, if she wants to work with crocs,” Jamal quipped.
It could be underwater soon enough, she thought. Her interest in the animals of Australia came a year ago, when the zoo she was doing an internship for had been loaned a few creatures unique only to the land down under, and quokkas and platypuses had quickly become her favorites to name a few.
Wildlife biology was a far cry from just typing up stories and coming up with something the public clamored for. She was the voice of the animals she focused on. She also took courses on conservationism, no mean feat considering how minimal her salar
y was projected to be.
It dissatisfied her parents, thinking she would have done so much better with a desk job, a teaching fellowship, or something that held further esteem, but she wouldn’t hear of it. She was in it for the long term, and seeing wildlife, or any animal for that matter, healthy and happy—that made her happy as well.
Her youngest sister, Tamara, joked that she would find an Aussie boy worth bringing back home to meet the family. “Will you at least date? It’s not like you’re ugly or anything,” her sister had commented.
Dating was the last thing on her mind. She just wanted to get a scholarship, graduate, and maybe get a grant for further studies and research. She had dated only once in college, the only serious relationship she had ever had. He was a year higher than her, pursuing a political science course, with hopes of taking up law.
It would never have worked out, she thought, the moment they amicably broke up. In fact, it took her a year to realize, that while they liked each other, they didn’t really love each other. It was a disappointing moment for her, to learn that she could love animals more than she could love a boyfriend.
After that breakup, she no longer sought relationships actively. If it came, or not, she didn’t mind, as long as she had work and she was making a difference with the environment. Her aunts had joked she would end up a spinster; too bad for the genes, they teased. She had learned to ignore their teasing. After all, that was what family did, right? Besides, having a relationship did not equal the prestige of her line of work.
She closed her eyes and willed for time to pass quickly.
Chapter2
He groaned and stretched a bit in his chair. There was plenty of room for him, being in business class and all. The moment he opened his eyes, a flight attendant was already hovering close to him.
“Would you like anything, sir?” she asked him with a brilliant smile.
“Uh, water. Is dinner coming along?” he asked her.
“Yes, of course, sir. It will be served in ten minutes. Let me just get your water. Excuse me.”
He smiled at her, thanking her. He had just been to California, staying there for a week, to check on a few properties he wanted to acquire and a few deals to be made. He had stopped by a zoo in the process. He didn’t quite like the zoo he had visited, but he knew there was room for improvement. Perhaps, he could touch on that topic soon with the corporation.
He decided to take a walk around the airplane, knowing he had a couple more hours to kill, and he was tired of reading reports. There was a reason why he refused to take any business related courses in college, opting for mining engineering and natural sciences, something that he could take to a whole new level.
Zachary Turner was twenty-six years old, the youngest and only son of Clark and Lillian Turner. His four older sisters were all married, based in Australia, part of the company’s board of directors. His father liked to keep it all in the family, he knew, and he was no exception to that. They had wanted to groom him to be the future CEO, but his father gave up on that hope when Zac got to college.
He crossed paths with a flight attendant who smiled flirtatiously, and he smiled back. It wasn’t in him to be rude, and he rarely lost his temper. A smile was free, as was good service. He didn’t quite like being in business class, but the miles were free, so he went on with it. He had travelled to the far reaches of the globe, all in search of adventure, but Australia was always home, specifically Melbourne.
His adventures had grown sparse as of late, and he knew his days were numbered, with what his father called “childishness”. Zachary couldn’t ignore that any longer. He was past college years, the only son to the Turner Corporation, so he knew that he would enjoy whatever time he had left, before the boring, real world took over.
He couldn’t very well turn his back on his father. He, along with his sisters, had been provided every available comfort since infancy. It was only right that he helm the company well, should his father retire early on or should the board of directors demand it. The sixty-eight-year-old was still sharp, and the man still worked out six times a week. He had hoped his own father would buy him time…
Zachary stopped, seeing a figure plopped against three seats. The passenger had taken the liberty to lie down on the empty seats beside her, and he couldn’t help but smile. She had bothered to cover her eyes, but not the lower half of her face. Her lips looked a bit dry from the cabin air, but they were full-looking, sensual lips, he thought. She was dressed comfortably, her blanket nearly falling to the floor. Lucky her, he thought. He had difficulty sleeping on flights, even if he had had years and thousands of miles flown under his belt. It was also why he enjoyed a glass or two of alcohol during every flight—sometimes a whole bottle.
This sojourn to Kakadu was going to be one of his last adventure trips, a part of their company’s corporate social responsibility. Their family had one of the largest mines in the world, in good proximity to the national park. He had been responsible for their clean mining initiative, wherever it was possible. It cost their company millions, but it was necessary. His mother had been adamant about sustainability, so this whole initiative was also in memory of her.
He found his way back to business class, feeling blood rush to his legs. Ah, better, he thought. He was excited to be back home, if only for a while. There were nieces and nephews to dote on before that weeklong trip to Kakadu. First stop home, he thought.
*
The moment she got out of the plane, she regretted wearing her sweatpants. They were probably called sweatpants for a reason. The air was humid, and her shirt clung to her back, sweat forming all over her. It was summer, she remembered, despite it being November. It was called Down Under for a reason, she thought wryly.
Would she manage? She knew these would be new people to adjust to, but she adjusted fine. She hoped she wasn’t too aloof. It was part of her look, and they teased her back at university for it. Resting bitch face, they said. She wanted to look nicer when emotionless at least, but perhaps it was all part of her countenance, her genetics. She could do nothing about it, except maybe smile randomly, just to show people she wasn’t mean or anything. It would also mean the possibility of looking crazy. You just don’t smile at people you don’t know, or smile at people you aren’t introduced to, right?
Everyone was nice to her as soon as she landed. Sara found herself enjoying the friendliness, surprisingly. She didn’t feel awkward about being nice. Maybe it really depended on how the approach was. She found their accents adorable, too.
She walked past immigration, and they were as nice as the ground staff. Things were beginning to get promising. Good start, Sara, she told herself. No resting bitch face here. She walked down long hallways, a few escalators, and elevators, finally getting to ground floor. Searching for her designated ride, she was on her tiptoes, when someone bumped past her. She nearly stumbled, but held onto her bag’s handle.
“Geez,” she muttered.
The man who bumped into her looked back. “Oh, shoot, really sorry there, Sheila.”
She was going to protest that her name wasn’t Sheila, but then she recalled it was Australian slang. She looked up to frown and found she could barely do so. She took a deep breath in. He was one of the most beautiful creatures she had ever seen, if not, the most beautiful man. His blonde hair was a bit unruly, and his eyes were playful and as blue as the oceans surrounding Australia. He was tall, lean, and slightly tanned—that golden sheen on his skin looked wonderful… She cleared her throat, but found that she was unable to say anything.
He gave her a quick smile and then turned his back once more, waving to someone in the crowd, holding up a sign. It said “Metropolitan Zoo Research”. Her eyes narrowed. That was the zoo she was supposed to be in. Then she saw her name on the white clipboard. The man holding it waved back at her enthusiastically.
She walked towards him, her backpack slipping from her shoulder, and she lugged this behind her, clothes for a month in there. She foun
d herself standing beside the man who had bumped into her earlier. She stared at him for a moment, realizing he was way taller than she was. There was only one name on the board, but the stranger who bumped into her greeted the man who was holding it.
“G’day, Miss Wright, I’m Danny Porter,” he said, tipping off his brown cap with the Metropolitan Zoo logo on it. He was a bit paunchy in the middle, and he had chubby, reddish cheeks that almost reminded her of Santa Claus, sans the white and poufy beard. “Hey, Zac, how was the flight?” Danny continued, looking at the man beside her.
“Great flight, I’m hungry again, though,” the man named Zac replied. “You hungry, Miss Wright?”
She finally frowned. “Who are you?”
“He’s the o—”
“I’m Zac, part of the Met Zoo research team,” Zac interrupted Danny Porter. He flashed a brilliant smile revealing his incisors, a clear indicator he ate meat. He extended a hand, and she took it reluctantly, shaking it.
“Your handshake is like a dead fish’s,” he remarked.
Should I be offended? She thought, not knowing what to say. Dead fish? I don’t eat fish, but I’m guessing you do…
“Let me take your bag for you, Miss Wright,” Danny told her with a smile. “Follow me, please.”
They walked for a couple of minutes, before reaching a white van emblazoned with the same logo as Danny’s hat. The guy named Zac waved his palm, to let her in first. Danny put her luggage into the luggage compartment the same time Zac did his, and then they chatted animatedly as the ride began.
Sara was quiet, observing the surroundings and trying to ignore the discomfort rising in her. She didn’t quite like the fact that the semi-rude bloke was working in the same zoo as she was, and it was clear he had been there first. Was he her superior?