by Lizzie Shane
“Just don’t tell her my father was a liberal and we’ll all be fine.”
He squeezed her gently, the two of them admiring their first Christmas tree together—it looked a little sparse, not as many ornaments as it had originally featured thanks to Wicket—but they could get new ones every year, building the tradition. They had forever, after all.
“You doing okay with all this?” he asked softly. “The wedding stuff isn’t overwhelming?”
He’d gone with her to Dr. Rosenthal a couple times, and even gone on his own twice. Trying to learn how to be what she needed. Dr. Rosenthal had given them a system of checking in with one another, so she never had to be afraid to tell him when things were getting to be too much. And knowing that they were in it together, compromising, taking things at their pace, whatever they decided that was—just knowing that made it so it never felt like too much.
They were a team now. Making it official was only the icing on the cake.
“Ask me again when my mother wants to go dress shopping.”
Things had been reasonably good with her mother lately. And the rest of her family. She spoke with Aiden and Scott almost every week and even had awkward conversations with her mother every Sunday. The emails she sent to her father these days were signed with her own name. No more lies. That was her new motto. Even Charlotte had come around—though they both carefully avoided the topic of Tug and Candy was already trying to figure out some way to schedule the wedding so he wouldn’t be able to attend.
She turned in Ren’s arms on the wide couch, facing him instead of the tree. “I may go bridezilla on you. I may beg you to elope to Vegas. The wedding may spiral out of control and make me crazy, like most things involving my family do, but no matter what happens, I can’t wait to marry you.”
He smiled and leaned to kiss her, murmuring against her lips. “Neither can I.”
After all the lies, she’d finally found something true. Something that had been there all along, waiting for her to see. Love snuck up on her like that. Thank God she hadn’t seen it coming because she probably would have run in the other direction and missed out on the best thing that ever happened to her. She’d certainly tried. But no more running now.
Ren was her forever and she was going to hold on tight.
THE END
About the Author
Contemporary romance author Lizzie Shane is a Golden Heart winner and two-time finalist for Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA® Award. Born and raised in Alaska, she still lives in the frozen north when travel doesn’t call her away and uses the long winter months to cook up happily-ever-afters. She also writes paranormal romance under the pen name Vivi Andrews. Learn more about Lizzie and her books at her website or follow her on Facebook.
Thank you for reading Little White Lies! If you enjoyed it, remember you can always leave a review to help other readers find it, and don’t miss Dirty Little Secrets, Aiden and Samira’s story, coming in the summer of 2017.
Also, be sure to sign up now to receive Lizzie’s New Release Newsletter so you don’t miss any of her release announcements and exclusive sneak peeks.
Other Books by Lizzie Shane:
Reality Romance
Marrying Mister Perfect
Romancing Miss Right – 2016 RITA® Finalist
Falling for Mister Wrong – 2016 RITA® Finalist
Planning on Prince Charming
Home for Christmas (A Reality Romance Holiday Novella)
Courting Trouble
The Bouquet Catchers
Always a Bridesmaid
Little White Lies
Dirty Little Secrets – Coming Summer 2017
The Decoy Bride – Coming January 2018
MARRYING MISTER PERFECT
(Reality Romance, Book 1)
Sometimes it takes a reality television show to show you the love that’s right in front of you…
To Louisa Tanner, Jack Doyle is perfect—heart surgeon, loving single father, and best friend a girl could have—so it’s no surprise when he’s tapped as the next Mister Perfect for the reality dating series Marrying Mister Perfect. But watching her secret crush romancing gorgeous women on national television? That flat out sucks—even if he will never see her as more than a pal.
Jack is skeptical of reality shows as a path to love, but drastic measures are needed to shake him and Lou out of their rut. His friend deserves better than being his live-in nanny and will never chase her dreams if she is busy taking care of him and his kids, so he vows to take the show seriously and find a new wife.
But the more stunning women he woos on command, the more he begins to realize the only woman he wants just might be the one he left back home. How can he seduce his best friend without jeopardizing their friendship? Especially when the cameras are always rolling…
ROMANCING MISS RIGHT
(Reality Romance, Book 2)
They aren’t in it for love… but love has it in for them.
Marcy Henrickson isn’t looking for love as the latest Miss Right on the reality dating show Romancing Miss Right. She’s realistic enough to know the odds of finding true love on national television are astronomical—but the chance that the exposure will boost her next book onto the New York Times Bestseller List? That’s a risk worth taking. And if she’s the one picking from the handsome Suitors, how can she possibly get hurt?
The last thing Craig Corrow wants is to fall in love. San Diego’s Favorite Bad Influence is looking to transition from local radio shock-jock to national television host and a reality dating show is his ticket to fame and fortune. He’s there to stir things up and Miss Right is just another pawn in his game plan…
Until he meets Marcy and she isn’t the fake reality princess he was expecting. She’s all too real—and so is the way he feels about her. But when he’s faced with a choice between love or money, can this bad boy give up his villain ways and get the girl?
Finalist for the 2016 RITA® Award for Best Mid-length Contemporary Romance
FALLING FOR MISTER WRONG
(Reality Romance, Book 3)
Between ‘I will’ and ‘I do,’ there’s room to fall.
Caitlyn Gregg just agreed to marry ‘Mister Perfect’ on national television. There’s only one problem: as soon as the cameras stop rolling on their whirlwind reality show romance, she realizes she doesn’t love him. Returning home to Colorado as the show begins to air, she has only her doubts for company—until she accidentally sets her apartment on fire and finds herself in the arms of oh-so-sexy firefighter Will Hamilton.
Sparks fly—and not just from her singed apartment—but Caitlyn is engaged to another man and is contractually forbidden from talking about the engagement, breaking it off, or seeing other men until the show’s finale.
Will doesn’t know what to make of Caitlyn’s hot-and-cold routine, until he turns on the TV one night and sees her being wooed by another man. Thinking she must be gunshy after what is about to be a very public break-up, he tells her they can take it slow… but their insane chemistry has other ideas.
Falling hard for Will is against all the rules and every week she dreads Tuesday, knowing any episode could be the one that drives him away. When the truth comes out, will Caitlyn lose the man of her dreams because she already said yes to Mister Perfect?
Finalist for the 2016 RITA® Award for Best Mid-length Contemporary Romance
PLANNING ON PRINCE CHARMING
(Reality Romance, Book 4)
What would Cinderella do?
Wedding planner Sidney Dewitt is always the fairy godmother, never the heroine of her own love story—until she’s selected for the reality dating show Marrying Mister Perfect. It might finally be her chance to ride off into the sunset, but when she sneaks out of her room on the night before the show begins to catch a glimpse of her prince, the man she meets is far from Prince Charming.
The jaded—and recently divorced—host of a television show celebrating love and marriage, Josh Pendleton doesn�
��t believe in fairy tales anymore. He’s done with love and getting involved with a Suitorette is the fastest way to destroy his career, but there’s something about Sidney he can’t get out of his head.
On a show where everything is staged, could this be real?
COURTING TROUBLE
(Reality Romance, Book 5)
She’s trying to live down her reputation. He’s trying to live up to his.
Elena has always been impulsive, until one wild night on a reality dating show earns her a reputation she can’t escape. She wanted to be famous, but now she’s infamous and determined to redeem herself. No more impulsive Old Elena. New Elena is going to be respectable and sweet if it kills her—and her first task is attending the wedding of the woman who beat her on the show.
Secret Service golden boy Adam Dylan never wanted fame, but when he’s caught on camera saving the daughter of an A-List actress the video goes viral and he becomes America’s favorite hero. But there’s more to the story than the media hype. Now a sought-after celebrity bodyguard, he’s determined to earn his heroic reputation—even if that means nothing more glamorous than working security at a celebrity wedding.
When one of the wedding guests doesn’t want to take no for an answer, Adam comes to Elena’s rescue. It’s been a long time since anyone has stood up for her, but her reputation can only drag him down. Elena knows she should keep her distance, but it’s oh so tempting to give in to her wild impulses just one more time.
ALWAYS A BRIDESMAID
(The Bouquet Catchers, Book 1)
She’s all heart. He’s all business.
Parvati Jai knows better than to pin any romantic hopes on Max Dewitt. She may have had a crush on her best friend’s older brother since she figured out what boys were good for, but she’s looking for Mister Forever—not a workaholic entrepreneur with a romantic attention span that tops out at two weeks. Yet with her business failing, her newly-engaged best friend vanishing into a love bubble, and even her teenage niece announcing she’s getting married, Max becomes the one person she can rely on—and the idea of a little fling with him becomes even more tempting.
Max knows his little sister’s best friend is off-limits…until Parvati confesses she once had a crush on him and he can’t help seeing her in a new—and very intriguing—light. He’s never been good at letting people past his charming facade, but something about Parvati makes him want to let down his defenses.
But even if he lets himself fall for her, how can he convince a woman who knows all about his love-‘em-and-leave-‘em ways that he finally wants forever?
And look for Aiden and Samira’s book, Dirty Little Secrets, coming Summer 2017.