Temporary Wife Temptation

by Jayci Lee

  “Natalie...”

  “How could you say you love me when you don’t even trust me?”

  “I never believed you betrayed me. I trust you with my life...with my heart.” Garrett took a step toward her with his hand outstretched, but stopped short when she backed farther away. “I lied to myself because I needed an excuse to push you away. I saw what losing my mother did to my father. I swore never to love like that—to love someone so much that losing them meant losing myself. Then, I met you—beautiful, brave and so kind. I knew there wasn’t a wall high enough to keep you out of my heart, and it scared me to death. I was so afraid of being hurt that I broke your heart instead.”

  “Yes. You did.” She breathed in and out through her nose and spoke to a point above his shoulder. “But I understand. It doesn’t make it hurt any less, but I think I understand. Maybe it’s better this way. You ended whatever was between us. We should move past it and go on with our lives.”

  “No. I don’t think you understand.” Anguish drenched his eyes and his Adam’s apple worked to swallow. “If you did, you wouldn’t tell me to move on and live, because there is no life for me without you.”

  “But nothing has changed.” Hurt, hope, anger and love screamed in her head and pulled her in opposite directions. “You broke my heart once, and I won’t be able to survive a second time.”

  “Everything has changed.” His face was a mask of pain, but his voice was deep and true. “With you gone, everything lost meaning. The company, my family’s legacy, the CEO spot. Those things are nothing more than duty and responsibility. Something I have to do for the benefit of others. Nothing gives me joy or satisfaction. Don’t you see? I’m nothing more than a shadow without you.”

  He put one foot ahead of the other and cautiously approached her as though she was a bird ready to take flight. Natalie shook her head and retreated until she backed into a wall. But this time, Garrett didn’t stop until he stood in front of her. He didn’t touch her but his gaze roamed her face, desperate, naked and frantic.

  No wall or barrier hid him from her, and she saw him. At last, he bared every part of himself, down to his very core. He was exposed and vulnerable, raw and true, and terrified and powerful—the only way a person in love could be.

  “You...love me?” she said, body shaking so hard that her teeth were chattering.

  “More than life.” He lifted a trembling hand and brushed the pad of his thumb across her cheek. Only then did she realize she was crying, and so was he. “But I fought it. God, I fought it. Cancer took my mother, but I pushed you away from me. I know I hurt you and I don’t have a right to ask this of you, but if you give me a chance, I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

  “The rest of your life?” She was dreaming. She had to be. He didn’t want her, or her love, did he?

  “The rest of our lives. Forever.”

  “You didn’t want forever. You didn’t want me.” She looked away from him, biting her lip.

  “Because I was a coward and a fool. Please, Natalie. Look at me.” He cupped her cheek and turned her to face him. “I love you, Natalie. You are my heart.”

  “Do you...?” But she couldn’t hold back the wrenching sobs any longer. Helpless in the face of her sorrow, Garrett gently ran his hands down her arms. “Do you really want to spend the rest of your life with me?”

  “I can’t live without you.” He enveloped her in the warmth of his arms. “I was too afraid to admit to myself that I was in love with you, but I was desperate to hold on to you. I had the earrings made for you because I needed a way to ask you to stay with me. To tell you I didn’t want our marriage to end.”

  “And I wouldn’t take them.” Her heart cracked and bled. “I didn’t know.”

  “Of course not. How could you?”

  “But then, why did you...?” She couldn’t finish the sentence, their final encounter too painful to recall.

  “When you refused the earrings, I was so terrified of losing you that I pushed you away. That way I could at least control how my heart was broken. But now I know. Even if my heart and soul shattered into a thousand pieces tomorrow, I would rather live one day to the fullest, knowing you are mine.” Natalie watched in disbelief as Garrett went down on his knee and withdrew a small box from his blazer. He opened it to reveal the engagement ring she’d left behind. “Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

  A small sob tore from her and she gave him a watery smile. “I’m already your wife.”

  “But I need to know, will you be my wife now and forever? To love and to cherish?” His voice broke with the depth of his emotion. “Because I believe in love and marriage and forever. All of it. I believe in us.”

  Natalie smiled at him, not quite able to believe what was happening. To ensure it was all real—that he was real—she cradled his beautiful face in her hand, and with a shuddering sigh, he turned his head and kissed her palm with aching tenderness. Then, still holding her hand, he rose to his feet.

  “I want you to have everything you’ve ever wanted. As promised, the VP of Human Resources position is yours. You could transfer to New York at the end of the month as planned.”

  Confusion drew her eyebrows low and she searched his face. “But you’ll be in Los Angeles.”

  “No, I need to be where you are. If you’d let me, I’d like to come with you.”

  “But your family, your life, the CEO appointment you worked so hard for... They’re all in Los Angeles.”

  “My life is with you and our daughter,” he said with a stubborn set to his jaw. “Besides, I don’t even know if I’m the new CEO. I left in the middle of the board meeting when I found out where you were.”

  “You idiot.”

  She was angry he’d jeopardized his dream, but if she’d wanted proof of his love, she couldn’t ask for anything stronger. Even so, he was an idiot. She grabbed his lapels to shake some sense into him, but changed her mind. Instead, she jerked him close and kissed him senseless until they needed to come up for air.

  “That kiss.” He sounded as breathless as she felt. “Does it mean what I think it means?”

  “Only if you think it means I love you.” Her voice shook with joy. She had held those words in check too many times. “I love you so much. I’ve loved you since you made me sit and watch you sign those damn HR documents. So, yes. I’ll be your wife and we can be a real family...from now until forever.”

  Garrett seemed to stop breathing for a moment. Then a smile radiant with love spread across his face, and he captured her lips in a possessive, savoring kiss. When they at last drew apart, he held her face between his hands as though he couldn’t stop touching her.

  “I’m not sure if I could let you out of my sight right now, so don’t mind me if I follow you around like a shadow,” he said in a low, gravelly voice.

  “Please do.” Her heart filled with joy, and she burst out laughing. “I don’t mind at all.”

  “Good.” Garrett gathered her close and bent to kiss her again, but she put a hand on his chest to stop him.

  “But if you lost the CEO seat, I’ll kill you with my bare hands.”

  “That’s not important right now.”

  “Like hell it isn’t.” Natalie crossed her arms over her chest and arched an eyebrow. “But I agree. For now, all that matters is that we’ll be together. We’ll figure out everything else.”

  “God, I love you.”

  “Say it again,” she whispered, afraid she might wake up from this dream.

  “I love you, Natalie.”

  “Again.” And again, and again.

  “I love you. More than life.”

  Smiling up at him with the brilliance of her glowing heart, Natalie kissed her husband, knowing she’d never grow tired of hearing those words.

  * * *

  If you loved

  Tempo
rary Wife Temptation

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  by Jayci Lee!

  Coming in September 2020

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  Prologue

  “And the estate, businesses, and all holdings will go to Miranda Dupree.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Sophie Blackwood refused to stay silent. She didn’t know exactly what to do, what to say, but she couldn’t just sit there and do nothing.

  How in the hell did her father’s ex-wife—his very young ex-wife—manage to sweep the entire inheritance? She was nothing but a gold-digging socialite.

  Unacceptable.

  Sophie and her father had never been close, but to will everything to the much younger woman who was no longer even his wife was a slap in the face.

  Buckley “Buck” Blackwood continued to disappoint her even in death. Sophie glanced over to the woman in question who actually had the nerve to look surprised. Please, like she hadn’t dug her claws so deep into Sophie’s father... She knew this moment was coming.

  Sophie shifted her focus to her brothers who were equally as stunned at the will that their father’s lawyer, Kace LeBlanc, kept right on reading from, listing off each item, as if giving everything to an ex were perfectly normal.

  Well, Sophie didn’t have to stay and listen to this nonsense. She loved her brothers, but there was no love between her and Miranda.

  Sophie was surprised her narcissistic step-monster didn’t have a whole camera crew here to document this portion of her life. Being one of the star of Secret Lives of NYC Ex-Wives—New York’s version of The Real Housewives—seemed to rule Miranda’s life. The woman always had a crew following her, documenting every aspect of her glittery, flashy lifestyle.

  This whole scenario really grated on Sophie’s last nerve.

  Miranda already had millions. She didn’t need all of this other stuff from Buck—not the money and not the ranch. Granted, Sophie didn’t need it, either, but damn it, she and her brothers were blood relations. Weren’t they entitled to something?

  Did nobody see the vindictive woman Miranda truly was? There had to be a way to prove she wasn’t all high and mighty like so many believed. Sure, the reality show portrayed her as a nurturing, loving woman... Sophie didn’t believe that front for a minute.

  Channeling the growing pit of anger in her gut, she met Kellan and Vaughn’s furious stares as she exited the study of her father’s estate.

  The only people she cared about were her brothers. They were a team, they always had been. And she knew they would work together to get this travesty of a will overturned. But right now, she was too furious to think, or to concentrate on what their next steps should be. She just needed to get away from her father’s house, where she’d never been happy and where she’d just had to sit through a new betrayal. Most people would have been remorseful after a parent’s passing, and part of Sophie was sad. Buck was her father, but he’d always been a hard bastard to love. Turns out, that hadn’t ended with his death.

  As Sophie made her way out into the bright, sunny day, she slid her sunglasses off her head and onto her face. She needed a break. She just wanted an escape even if for just a few days. Royal, Texas, was such a beautiful town and Sophie absolutely loved it here. But like every small town, it was a hotbed of gossip, and this latest bombshell her father had dropped on them was bound to be the talk of the town for weeks. Everywhere she went, people would be whispering, speculating. The thought made her skin crawl.

  But gossip can work both ways, she realized after a moment’s reflection. If she played her cards right, maybe she could turn the situation to her advantage. All the talking everyone would be doing about the scandalous Blackwood inheritance would lead to lots of talk about Miranda, too. If Sophie could uncover anything—a scandal, or a secret, or maybe whatever bit of leverage Miranda must have held over Buck to get him to disinherit his own children—maybe she could use it to get the will overturned.

  Sophie pulled out her cell as she settled behind the wheel of her sporty car. Time to get started.

  Copyright © 2020 by Harlequin Books S.A.

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  ISBN: 9781488062735

  Temporary Wife Temptation

  Copyright © 2020 by Judith J. Yi

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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