Hitched (Imperfect Love Book 1) (14 page)

BOOK: Hitched (Imperfect Love Book 1)

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Chapter Twenty-One

Noah

I’ve been standing on the beach for fifty minutes. Beads of sweat dot my forehead, but they’re not from the sun. That set ten minutes ago.

“Where is she?” Sterling hisses under his breath.

“She’ll be here,” I say through gritted teeth, checking my watch yet again.

After everything we’ve built . . . living together, working together . . . it all feels so fragile and pointless if Olivia doesn’t follow through today.

Guests are starting to look at each other, and hushed whispers rustle through the small crowd.

The officiant shifts her weight, looking as uncomfortable as I feel. Then she leans in toward me. “I’m terribly sorry, but I have an appointment in twenty minutes. I can’t wait much longer.”

I nod and look to Fred. His features are twisted with worry. When he tips his chin toward Camryn, she scurries off toward the house. I take off after her, stepping into the footprints she leaves in the sand.

We head straight for the bedroom. The house is dim, and the feeling that something fundamental has changed rips through me. The door is still shut, and I’m afraid of what we’ll find when she opens it. Afraid of what it will mean.

Finally, Camryn opens the door. Everything is quiet for a minute.

“She’s gone,” she says, her voice shaky.

I swallow down a wave of emotion and look around the room. Olivia’s makeup and toiletries are still scattered on the vanity, but she’s not in the room.

I stare out the window at the sun setting over the ocean, and let out a heavy sigh. “She’s gone.”

What in the hell could have possibly happened since I last saw her? She was ready. Everything seemed fine. I notice the contract is no longer sitting on the vanity table. She’s taken it with her. I’m not sure what that means.

I turn to face Camryn. “What happened? You were the last person to see her. Was it nerves?”

Camryn shakes her head. “She seemed fine.”

I push my hands into my hair. I don’t fucking like surprises, and I’ve never been stood up before. But getting left at the altar? This is beyond any anger and panic I’ve ever felt.

I want to go out drinking and find some random girl so I can fuck out my aggression. And I know Sterling would be game. But then I think of Olivia’s shy smile and her sweet honeysuckle scent and the way her lips part when I kiss her . . . silently begging me for more.

“Fuck this,” Sterling says from behind me. “We’re leaving. Come on, Noah.”

His hand closes around my arm and starts tugging me down the hall. I know he has the exact same thought I did about thirty seconds ago. Booze. Girls. Massive hangover tomorrow to mask the pain of today. But I know nothing could blot out this memory.

If it weren’t for this ache in my chest—this empty spot she’d begun to fill—I’d leave and never look back. But part of me needs to know the next chapter in our story.

I’ve fantasized about Olivia for the last twenty years. She’s the girl I squirted with the water hose when I was young, the woman who gave me butterflies in my stomach when I was older.

And now, just as I’ve started to think of her as mine . . . she’s gone.

Hitched, Volume Two

Arranged marriage? Check.

Cocky new husband? Check.

It's a marriage of convenience—one I’m determined to keep strictly professional. I can't be stupid enough to fall for this sexy playboy's charm or advances. I have to be strong, even if he is my husband.

Except he has a huge cock with an even bigger ego, and his main goal in life seems to be getting me to stroke both. The arrogant bastard is like sweet, sugary candy for my libido. I know he’s bad for me.

But I want to devour every wicked inch of him.

With his sexual prowess and experience, I know he’ll be explosive in the bedroom. And since we’re stuck together for the foreseeable future—keeping up this marriage charade long enough to turn the company profitable again—I deserve something to look forward to at the end of a long workday, right?

What could one little taste hurt?

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank the following ladies who played an important role in helping me bring
Hitched
into the world: Alexandra Fresch, Hang Le, Natasha Gentile, Rachel Brookes, Danielle Sanchez, and Pam Berehulke. I’m so grateful to have each of you on my team.

A big thank you to Crystal Patriarche and the BookSparks Team.

And to John. Always John.

About the Author

A
New York Times
,
Wall Street Journal
, and
USA TODAY
bestselling author of more than twenty titles, Kendall Ryan has sold more than 1.5 million e-books, and her books have been translated into several languages in countries around the world. She’s a traditionally published author with Simon & Schuster and Harper Collins UK, as well as an independently published author.

Since she first began self-publishing in 2012, she’s appeared at #1 on Barnes & Noble and iBooks charts around the world. Her books have also appeared on the
New York Times
and
USA TODAY
bestseller list more than two dozen times. Ryan has been featured in such publications as
USA TODAY
,
Newsweek
, and
In Touch Weekly
.