Exes working together in a wedding business? What could go wrong?
EVIE Having inappropriate dreams about my ex-husband is problematic. The fact that he’s applied to be the business partner in my wedding business – and is an infuriatingly savvy businessman – is even more so.
Our marriage ended because we were both more married to our jobs than each other, but now I can barely look at Lincoln without imagining him naked. How the hell am I supposed to work with him?
LINCOLN My ex-wife, Evie – aka Evil (thank you, random autocorrect) – runs the most successful bridal shop in the whole of the Finger Lakes region and she needs a business partner. Happy coincidence because I need a steady income. ASAP.
I also need to stop noticing Evie’s curves. And her smile. And everything about her that makes me want a second chance.
“I think you’re blowing it out of proportion,” Gage says as he dips another fry in ketchup. “You were married to the woman. Naturally you’re going to be affected by her.”
“I was married to her. Was being the key word. We’ve been divorced for four years and I haven’t exactly lived the life of a monk.” I shake my head at my brother across the wide wooden table. “This felt different.”
“Look, it’s not like you jumped her from across the desk or anything, so I don’t know what you’re worried about.” Gage’s been saying some version of this since I brought up my unexpected reaction to Evie earlier. Our waitress at Donnelly’s had already brought us a beer and I thought hiding behind a pint would make it easier for me to pretend it was no big deal. Turns out I’m terrible at pretending, and Gage can see through me like I’m a plastic shower curtain in a girl’s dorm. “Besides, you’re the one who keeps saying this is business, it’s not personal. Just make sure to keep it professional.”
“You’re right.” It’s easier said than done, because between Evie’s sex dream and my inconvenient hard-on, it feels very personal. “I need to keep my eye on the prize.”
“Get involved with her again at your peril,” says Gage, taking another French fry. “We’ve called her Evil for a reason.”
“I called her Evil because of a random autocorrect.” A random autocorrect turned into bad joke my and brothers ran with it.
“Hey, if the shoe fits…” Gage shrugs.
“I was bitter and angry she didn’t fight for us, but neither did I.” I take a swallow of my beer then drop my voice as I say, “It was self-preservation on both of our parts.”
“The old, ‘it’s not me, it’s you’ scenario?” Gage puts his elbow on the wooden table. His hair is too long and flopping over his eyes, but he just blows it out of the way and says, “Look, man, if you don’t think you can do this, we’ll come up with something else. Evil’s not the only way we’re going to be able to pay Dad’s medical bills.”
“Isn’t she? What else do you suggest? I guess we could take turns selling plasma, but I don’t know what the requirements are for selling bodily fluids. I’ll have to check.”
“I can talk to my boss at work and see if I can pick up some extra shifts. Maybe it’s time to give up the farmer’s market for a little while? Cake a Diem can wait.” Gage shrugs like saying those words doesn’t make him die a little inside. His job as a produce manager at Wegman’s, the local supermarket, is great, but it’s as far from his dream job as you can get. The only reason he’s kept the job as long as he has is for the store discount so he can buy baking supplies. I convinced him to create a name for his business, complete with a banner and business cards, and judging by the amount of time he spent picking the perfect font for his banner, he’s way more into it than his day job.
“You just started Cake a Diem. You can’t throw in the towel on it before you’ve gotten the name out there.” I shake my head. “I’m the one who’s unemployed. If anyone’s going to take one for the team, it’s going to be me.”
“So, what? You’re going to get back on a plane and live out of a suitcase again?” Gage finishes the last fry with a flourish. “Maybe finding another consulting gig is viable as a short-term solution, but what about when Dad’s able to get out a little bit? The first thing he’s going to want to do is go fishing and someone’s going to have to go with him. Let’s face it, it really needs to be you.”
Gage and I both laugh. Our father is an avid fisherman and, try as he might to get his sons to enjoy his hobby, we all hate it. I just happen to hate it less than Eli and Gage do. “Bennett’s Bridal it is then,” I say. “I’ll make it work.”
Brenda writes contemporary romance to make you giggle and swoon. When she’s not writing, she enjoys hiking, running and
Brenda is a USA Today bestselling author living in the English countryside. Originally from New York, she’s lived in the UK long enough to gain dual citizenship, but still doesn’t understand Celsius. However, she has learned the appropriate use of the word “pants”. And how to order a proper bacon bap/barm/buttie. Because, well, bacon.
Brenda writes contemporary romance to make you giggle and swoon. When she’s not writing, she enjoys hiking, running and reading. In theory, she also enjoys cooking, but it’s more that she enjoys eating and, try as she might, she can’t live on Doritos alone.
In the Kingdom of Kaloma, women are forced to marry by the age of 26. It’s the law.
In the remote village of Sevens, at the northernmost point of the kingdom, there lives an impoverished family with four daughters and a son. Without the means to make love matches, the daughters are trapped by their circumstances.
When one daughter discovers a golden key deep in the Whitling Woods, it may have the power to change everything…
Auri Fareview, practical and realistic, does what she can to serve her family. When she finds a golden key that could be the answer she needs to save her sisters from the unjust Kaloma Marriage Laws, she discovers the treasure might be more than she bargained for. Enchanted, it doesn’t just come with a price attached, it’s also home to an imprisoned god, who wreaks havoc on her body, her heart, and her soul. And those aren’t practical matters. He has the power to break her.
Nixus Uraiahs has lost track of how long he’s been imprisoned by the spell on the key. There have been six key-keepers, all of whom have failed to break the spell to free him, and Nix knows he’s the reason why they haven’t. So, he will hold this 7th key-keeper accountable to the bargain of the spell: three wishes and a price for each. There’s no hope in her freeing him, however. Nix knows she’ll be like all the key-keepers who came before her. Except Auri approaches her wishes differently than any of the others, and Nix begins to see her as more than just a key-keeper. She intrigues him, proving her strength, surprising him, and enchanting him. Though he’s entrapped by the enchantment placed on the key, Nix realizes his heart is at risk of being captured by the seventh key-keeper. That is a risk he can’t afford to take knowing his villainy is just a single wish away.
He knew he shouldn’t but asked anyway, “Would you tell me about them?” He followed her, a few steps behind.
“What would you like to know?”
Everything, he thought, but didn’t give it the substance of his voice. “Your parents?”
“Scarlett and Tomas Fareview.”
“They must be amazing.”
“Why would you say that.”
Flustered, Nix turned to smell a flower. “Well…” He stretched the sound, trying to find a reason that didn’t start with because you’re amazing, which would sound like a lie, and ended up saying, “You are unique.”
She grinned. “Unique. I like it. Yes. They are amazing. They met, fell in love, and settled in Sevens. That’s the village where we live.”
“You smile when you talk about them.”
“Well, they are… my life,” she said and continued walking. “I have three older sisters. Jessamine is the oldest, then Tarley and Brinna.” She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. It was a different kind of smile, unguarded. He could see it was because she was talking about her family. “Then me. And I have one brother, Mattias. He’s the youngest.”
“And how old is Mattias as the youngest?”
“Eighteen.”
He considered the state of her skirt and boots when he’d met her. “And you all live together in Sevens?”
She nodded.
“How old is your oldest sister?”
“Jessamine? Twenty-seven.”
“And no one has left?” Nix thought this strange.
She shook her head and continued walking. “It isn’t because we are opposed to the idea, but with respect to marriage, none of us want anything less than what our parents have. Our parents adore one another. The other factor is that living in Sevens—and my parents’ refusal to leave it—has made it difficult to meet anyone and to make a living to find the means to leave.” She stopped under an archway where peach roses grew over to the other side, reaching out to touch one.
Nixus noticed a red ribbon tied around her wrist. It would have seemed an insignificant trifle, except it was wrapped with a swirl of golden magic. “What is this?” He reached out and touched the ribbon with a finger. The magic kissed his skin with a warm caress. Positive magic as opposed to the alternative, which heightened Nix’s curiosity.
Auri looked surprised by his touch, her eyes jumping from where he’d touched her to his face. That blush he liked worked its own magic against her skin, and she grabbed ahold of her wrist. “This? A gift from my mother. Just a ribbon. She gave each of us one.” She paused, then added, “We don’t have a lot of extra, not with seven of us. It’s just a ribbon–”
“It appears to be more than that–”
She tilted her head, and her brows bunched. “What do you mean?”
Nix could tell she didn’t know it was spelled, and just by looking at it, he couldn’t tell what it was for. As far as he knew, Auri’s mother had taken it to a local witch who’d cast a protection spell for each of her children. He didn’t remark on the magic and instead said, “It’s obviously very important to you. That makes it a very special ribbon.” She smiled, looking away, and twisted the ribbon around her wrist. “Yes. You’re right.” She started back down the path.
Maci Aurora has been writing stories since she was a child. When she was eleven, she fell in love with reading Sunfire Historical Romances about girls who made a difference in their lives and still fell in love. In high school, a friend introduced her to Lavyrle Spencer and Judith McNaught, and from there, her writing journey was cemented in telling stories about love. Having already published many novels (all of which are threaded with romance as upper YA and New Adult titles) under the pen name, CL Walters, Maci Aurora wanted to write stories that offered the same attention to story and characters but with additional steam.
Maci writes in Hawaiʻi where she lives with her husband, their children, and their fur-babies.
Noah aka NOS2321: Gamer. Weeb. Up-and-coming rock star. And gay. Encouraged by his anonymous pen pal, XES6969, Noah takes the leap and comes out of the closet—no instructions needed—accidentally sending his father to the hospital during his reveal. Despite his horrible dating track record which included two girls (because it was required that he at least try) and one boy (because he had to start somewhere), Noah believes in happily ever after. That belief gets tested when he falls for Evan Santiago.
Evan aka XES6969, believes in sacrificing yourself for those you love. Learning NOS’s identity hadn’t been his fault. Except he carries the lie which begins to fester, trapping him into silence. When a stray football brings them together, Evan no longer wants to keep silent. And when he learns that Noah is interested too, he takes a chance at love, risking everyone he’s tried to protect, including himself.
As if the cosmos decided to force me to drool, Evan Santiago rode into the lot on his motorcycle. He wore a helmet with the visor down, hiding his face, but I didn’t need to see to know. The guy was all tight muscles and badness. He parked two spots away from my light blue jalopy with the word WEEBS 2 on the license plates and stickers of Kirito, Asuna, and Zero Two on the windows around my car. He dropped the kickstand and gracefully swung one powerful leg over the seat as he got off the bike. He pulled off his helmet and shook his deep black hair to perfection and crouched to get his satchel out of one of the saddlebags on the bike. His tee lifted, revealing a sliver of pale skin at his back.
Damn. When had I started looking at Evan Santiago this way? I blinked away the moment and turned to the empty seat beside me. I caught sight of Sasha approaching the secret love of my life, having silently crept out of my car. I hadn’t even heard her close the door! Her little skort swayed over toned legs.
The slut.
Was I really thinking she was competition? Was I competition?
Evan acknowledged her and she said something to him. He lifted his eyes in my direction—the color of green flames—forcing me to lose my breath. No. Evan couldn’t see me through the glare of the windshield. Nope. But that look still held me in some sort of trance. As if an invisible line had jettisoned out of his eyeballs and wrapped around my chest, crushing me.
Yeah, too much anime for me.
Then he suddenly looked away, and the crushing sensation lifted. I inhaled sharply, filling my lungs with much-needed oxygen.
Man-whore.
Why was I thinking of someone else when I had Carlos? That was not a good sign.
Sasha took Evan’s arm, and they walked into the school together as if they were a couple. Were they a couple? The idea of them together left me confused. Nothing new, really. Just another normal day in the life of me. Evan was not interested in me. Despite the burning looks he gave me. Certainly, I was misinterpreting them. Maybe the guy had a bad case of acid indigestion. Or I had a bad case of TMI—too much imagination. With an audible sigh, I headed into the school alone.
If I had to draw an abstract version of my high school, it would be a prism of varying stars and stripes. I was a stripe, while people like Evan Santiago were stars.
Elizabeth is the Latinx author of speculative fiction novels for teens. Her YA contemporary debut, My NOT So Anonymous Best Friend, is slated for release on 4/29 by Evernight Teen.
Before she started writing, Elizabeth got her undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice. She then went on to work in foster care programs, mental health facilities, and youth organizations within the Latinx Community, providing services to youth and families.
She now spends her time writing romance, binge watching anime, and spending time with her family.
