Tag: Enemies To Lovers

Blackmailed Marriage

IT’S RELEASE DAY!!!

Blackmailed Marriage is NOW LIVE and AVAILABLE WIDE!!!

How far is he prepared to go to keep his secrets?

<3 Forced Marriage
<3 Older hero
<3 Enemies to Lovers
<3 Virginal heroine
<3 Complete standalone 🙂

Blurb

Dante Gallo is pissed off.

When he gets married, he doesn’t intend to be blackmailed into it. However, Phillip Lewis has some damaging evidence. To keep his secrets, Dante must marry the man’s plain youngest daughter, Aria.

Being married to Dante is a nightmare. One that Aria intends to get away from. Even though she is terrified of this man, who is considered to be the most brutal in the Pesci family mafia, she finds the courage to confront him.

Once learning the truth, Aria is horrified. She doesn’t want anyone to be forced to marry her. All she has to do is figure out a way to get the evidence to set Dante free.

When Dante overhears a conversation about how Aria feels about him, about sex, about being married, he doesn’t like it. He is going to give them something to talk about. He will hold onto his wife, he will be proud to be married to her.

But Aria has to set Dante free. She doesn’t want him to be forced into a marriage he didn’t want. The only problem, she has fallen in love with him. Letting him go is proving to be the hardest thing she has ever done.

What will Dante do when he is given the means to be set free? Will he leave or has he fallen in love with his plain bride?

Excerpt:

“Dante,” she said, pressing a hand to her chest. “You startled me.”

“That was not my intention.”

Her heart was racing. She hoped she’d not spoken aloud about any part of her plan.

“I don’t imagine it was.” She was not going to freak out. Laughing, she couldn’t help but look toward the doorway right behind him and hope for a chance to escape. The last thing she wanted to do was make small talk.

They stood, opposite sides of the kitchen. She was still near the sink, Dante in the doorway. He wasn’t wearing a jacket anymore. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up, and he looked angry.

Aria didn’t know what had set off his anger, and she wasn’t interested in learning either. Dante, other than to do his duty, hadn’t laid a finger on her, and she wanted to keep it that way. Other women were not quite so lucky. Black eyes, lots of makeup, and of course lies—that was what she was used to hearing from them.

The silence between them was starting to make her uncomfortable. She wanted it to be over.

“I was just getting a glass of water. I’m about to go to bed,” she said.

Move. Try not to draw his attention.

Not for a single second did she think she had the power to draw his attention, but she didn’t want to have to perform more of her duties.

Go.

Dante wasn’t saying anything, but he was staring at her. She had no choice but to attempt her escape.

She moved toward him, and was just about to glide past him when he suddenly reached out, grasping her arm, and before she knew what was happening, she was pressed up against the wall. Panic swelled up inside her. What had happened? Had she done something wrong?

She heard the cruelties of people at parties saying that he would probably beat her because she wasn’t anywhere in his league. Fear traveled down her spine, and it had no thought, no care, no consideration.

She stared at him, waiting, wondering.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” Dante said.

“I don’t?”

“No, you don’t. I just want to try something. Trust me.”

Aria didn’t trust him. His reputation far exceeded him, but there was nowhere else for her to go. She felt the panic, but then Dante surprised her. The only time they had kissed was on their wedding day straight after the priest had told them the I do’s. The kiss at the altar had been chaste. To any onlooker, they couldn’t have mistaken that neither person wanted to be there.

She’d been terrified. Since then, they had not kissed.

They hadn’t even had a honeymoon, or done anything together, other than their duty. She struggled to think of it as sex … it was duty. Sex was something different to her, intimate.

All thought fled her mind as Dante’s lips took possession of her own. She expected him to be somewhat cruel, unyielding, refusing to give up and just taking. This kiss was so many different things, and yet, all of them together.

Dante’s hands went to the wall on either side of her head. At first, it was only their lips touching, and Aria couldn’t deny that it felt nice.

Slowly, his body pressed against hers, they were flush together, and something changed within her. At first, she thought she was going to panic, but then suddenly, that all evaporated, and she felt the length of his body against hers. It was nice. Strange.

And all too soon, the kiss had come to an end.

Dante pulled away, and she stared up into his brown eyes. They had the same eye color, but her husband’s eyes were slightly darker, more intense, at least to her.

Buy links Below

ASIN: B0D96TG747

ISBN: 9780369510228

Curvy Perfection

Curvy Women Wanted 32

Blurb

Ward Hildreth and Kirsty Blake hate each other. No one knows exactly why, but they always argue, fight, and just don’t get along. Ward cannot deny that he finds the curvy brunette sexy as hell. He has admired her body for a long time, but that doesn’t mean anything.

For Kirsty, she has never liked smart-mouthed Ward. He always seems to think he knows best, and he always has to have the last word. Much to her surprise, she learns of a bet that has been placed on her and Ward finally getting together. She is shocked and when she tells Ward, he is just as surprised as her. What starts out as a civil conversation, soon becomes heated, and Kirsty doesn’t know what exactly happened next.

One moment they’re fighting, the next, they’re kissing. Only that kiss … was amazing.

There is only one tiny problem, both of them want to do it again. They agree to date in secret. There are many surprises along the way through their secret dating. Ward starts to fall for her, and he loves that he is the only man she has been with. He is going to make this the best experience of her life.

When Kirsty becomes pregnant, Ward knows it is only a matter of time before everyone knows their secret, but he wants her to know his feelings. He is in love with her, and he is not going to run and hide. He wants to show everyone that she belongs to him.

Excerpt:

“So, you’ve got me all alone. Do you want to tell me what is going on?” Ward asked.

She spun around, and from the time it took her to close the door, he’d already moved closer to her. Rubbing at her temple, she let out a little laugh. “Ugh, it’s kind of complicated.”

“Complicated?” he asked.

“Well, yes, and no, ugh, I don’t know.” She nibbled her lip. “Do you … do you know of any kind of bet?”

His frown deepened. “Bet?”

“Yes, about you and me.”

He shook his head. “No, why would I know of any kind of bet?”

“Well, I was talking to my friend.” She stopped, debating if she should say who it was.

“Bethany,” he said.

“How do you know she’s who I’m talking about?”

“You and her are always hanging out. You always have. It’s not hard to come to this conclusion.”

“Oh.” She was surprised he knew, but then again, she and Bethany had been friends since long before kindergarten even started. Their mothers had been best friends, and that friendship had developed between their daughters, which again is why they had the make-ahead Saturday.

She’d loved today, and tomorrow, she and Bethany would continue in the afternoon.

“What has Bethany said about a bet?” he asked.

“It’s … I didn’t know if you had started the bet or something like that.”

“You know, I didn’t think it was possible, but you have this talent, Kirsty, for making me so confused. What bet?”

“Ugh! Apparently, there has been a bet running since high school about you and I getting together. I didn’t know if you started it as a joke.”

Silence met her response.

She stared at his chest, and no, she wasn’t admiring the peek of bare flesh she got from the open shirt he wore. Ward was dressed in jeans, and he wore a flannel shirt, which was open, over a white vest. He’d not removed the flannel shirt, but that didn’t stop her from seeing some of his chest.

What the hell was the matter with her?

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I don’t know about any kind of bet. Are you making this up? Trying to play a joke on me?”

“Me! Play a joke on you? You’re completely insane, Ward. I’m not the one who plays jokes. That is you. All you.”

“Oh, yeah, well, maybe if you had a sense of humor, I wouldn’t have to play jokes on you, to get you to actually laugh.” He took a step toward her.

Kirsty refused to back down, and she snorted. “Oh, please, I don’t need you to laugh. I laugh all the time, and it has absolutely nothing to do with you. You’re not even funny. You’re not anything that resembles a joke.”

She had no idea what she was saying, or what she was doing.

“Yeah, I think you’re lying about this bullshit bet. You and I … it was never going to happen. In your wildest dreams.”

“Trust me, Ward, you do not feature in any of my dreams. You’re not even a single thought in my head when I have … dreams.” She didn’t know what she was saying, as nothing was making sense to her right now.

She didn’t know how it had happened, but she suddenly stood toe to toe with her nemesis.

“Don’t worry, I know you couldn’t imagine having any kind of fun. You don’t want anything in a man. He must be boring as an old stick.”

“Yeah, and he certainly won’t be anything like you. I mean, what disease have you picked up lately!”

“I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?”

Kirsty wasn’t quite sure how she got from insulting him to kissing him. One moment, they were glaring at each other, not a smile between them, and the next second, his lips were on hers.

Buy links Below

ASIN: B0D45SYGS7

ISBN: 9780369505316

Bratva Bully

Blurb

Galina is about to marry a monster. A bully. The guy who made most of her high school life miserable.

Mikhail Belsky is the son of the man who rules the Belsky Bratva. He’s a dangerous man, but what he wants, he gets. When it comes to Galina, he will not allow her to marry anyone else. She will belong to him. Gone are the cruel jokes, the mocking laughter, and in its place is a man determined to have her at his side.

Mikhail has never hated Galina. He bullied her because he couldn’t have her. When he learned who Galina was meant to marry, he knew he couldn’t allow her to fall to that fate, so he gave his father an ultimatum.

If his father wanted the Belsky Bratva to flourish, then he’d get Galina, but if his father gave her to someone else, Mikhail would see to it that the Belsky name crumbled.

Galina belongs to him.

Excerpt:

In a shocking twist of events, she and Mikhail were the same age, well, a year apart. She was twenty-one, Mikhail was twenty-two, but she already knew he was considered one of the scariest men around. Rumor had it, he had his first kill at twelve years old. The circumstances surrounding that kill were a little confusing, but even still, she had looked in those eyes while he’d been threatening her, and known. His eyes were those of a killer.

For years this man had bullied her.

They didn’t go to a normal school, but one specifically for members of the Bratva, known as Belsky High. Yep, the school was owned by him, so no matter what he did or said, Mikhail was in charge. Teachers were afraid of him. They had no choice but to go to a private school, because the Belsky Bratva trusted no one. They rarely allowed outsiders in, and if an outsider went to high school with them, they were in for a rough ride.

Mikhail had hated her on sight. She didn’t know if it was because of the way she looked, seeing as she wasn’t a slender blonde, but even at a young age, she’d been … fat. Ugh, she hated that word, even her mother hated that word, and insisted she wasn’t fat, she was curvy.

She heard a lot of people talking, and knew many insisted she was fat.

Mikhail, her future husband, grabbed her hand and locked their fingers together. She had no choice but to follow his lead, as he lifted their raised hands.

The Nikitins and Belskys had always been close. Their fathers were the best of friends, and she had gotten used to Mikhail being around her home quite regularly. Mikhail was friends with her brother Peter, even though there was a five-year age gap, and Peter was the older of the two.

Boris, Mikhail’s father, was suddenly there, nudging them onto the dance floor. This was the last thing she wanted. Her smile was starting to hurt her face.

The music started up, something slow, romantic, which made Mikhail put his arms around her and pull her close. She wanted to cringe.

“I never knew you would look forward to marrying me,” Mikhail said.

There was nothing she could do while they had an audience. Her mother had told her to be very careful with her stance, especially at events like these. There were too many vultures waiting to surface, and she had no choice but to keep a smile on her face and look like the doting, loving, fiancée she’d become.

“I don’t want to marry you. Trust me, this is not for me at all.”

He leaned in close and tutted against her ear. “Come on, Galina, you don’t have to be that way. I always knew back in high school you were tempted by me. You couldn’t resist me.”

“In your dreams.”

“And now your dreams are becoming a reality.”

She wasn’t going to slap him. Her parents would be so pissed with her if she did. Mikhail was doing this on purpose to get a rise out of her.

On the night of their engagement party, her father had told her they were going to a formal event. From the moment they walked through the main doors, it had been one surprise after another.

Galina tried to ignore him, but Mikhail had always been a master at getting under her skin.

“You know what this means?” Mikhail asked.

“What?”

“That I was right when I said one day soon, I was going to fuck you until you begged and screamed for it. I was right.”

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Tags Arranged marrage, Bratva Volkov, bully, Enemies To Lovers, erotic romance, Evernight Publishing, new release, Rubenesque, Sam Crescent, Virgin

Bad Boy Bratva Volkov Coming soon Pre-order

Pre-Order: Bratva Bully

PRE-ORDER IS AVAILABLE NOW!!!

Anyone looking forward to Bratva Bully? If so, it is now available to pre-order. 🙂

Pre-Order Links:
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Blurb

Galina is about to marry a monster. A bully. The guy who made most of her high school life miserable.

Mikhail Belsky is the son of the man who rules the Belsky Bratva. He’s a dangerous man, but what he wants, he gets. When it comes to Galina, he will not allow her to marry anyone else. She will belong to him. Gone are the cruel jokes, the mocking laughter, and in its place is a man determined to have her at his side.

Mikhail has never hated Galina. He bullied her because he couldn’t have her. When he learned who Galina was meant to marry, he knew he couldn’t allow her to fall to that fate, so he gave his father an ultimatum.

If his father wanted the Belsky Bratva to flourish, then he’d get Galina, but if his father gave her to someone else, Mikhail would see to it that the Belsky name crumbled.

Galina belongs to him.

Tags Bratva Volkov, Enemies To Lovers, erotic romance, Evernight Publishing, m/f, new release, Pre order, Rubenesque, Sam Crescent

Age Gap Bad Boy New Release Sam Crescent Standalone Uncategorized

I Hate You

Standalone

Blurb

Faith Appleton doesn’t like Gabriel Finch.

He’s dangerous, scary, and getting involved with him would be the worst thing to do. When he knocks on her door late one night, he has an ultimatum. Her brother, who she is guardian of, is an addict. For drugs, he was willing to sell his sister and their home for anything he could get his hands on. To save her brother, she has to become Gabriel’s toy.

Gabriel is used to getting what he wants. From the moment he first met Faith, he wanted her, but he knew she would never fall for a man like him. He’s cold, hard, and knows only the harshness of life. To get what he wants, he is also willing to lie.

Her brother didn’t come to him offering up his sister. Nigel came to him for help. He wanted to get clean. So Gabriel will give him that, and in return, he is going to have Faith. She thinks it is just for one month. No, Gabriel has other plans. He wants to keep her, and the way to do that, get her pregnant.

Faith hates him. He’s a horrible person. A jerk. Mean. Vile. At least, that was what she first thought. Gabriel is never horrible to her. He is kind, considerate, sweet, charming, but she knows there is a deadly man inside. A man she couldn’t possibly fall in love with. He refused to wear a condom. She should hate him. But … she can’t hate him.

She has fallen in love with a man she had sworn to hate.

Excerpt:

“What’s happened?” she asked.

He’d not spoken a word. She didn’t know if this made her appear weak, but she really didn’t care. She needed him to answer her.

“How long has your brother been addicted to meth?” Gabriel asked.

Faith opened and closed her mouth, startled. She knew Nigel dabbled, and she hated how her thoughts even made it seem like she was okay with him taking drugs. She wasn’t. All she had ever wanted was the best for him, but now, that seemed almost impossible.

“I … no, he … no,” she said, pressing a hand to her stomach, and the other to her lips. What did she say? “Where is he?”

“Why do you want to know?” Gabriel asked.

“What do you mean, why do I want to know? He’s my brother.”

“Are you going to punish him? Smack him on the ass? Ground him?”

“He’s … nearly nineteen years old.” And she’d never smacked her brother.

“Exactly. He knows there’s no firm hand coming.” Gabriel looked around her sitting room.

She hadn’t put away the pictures of her parents, their family. She and Nigel hadn’t taken many in recent years. There was nothing new or exciting around her family home.

She folded her arms across her chest and glared at him. “Do you know where Nigel is?”

“Yes,” Gabriel said.

His blue gaze turned to hers, and Faith felt frozen to the spot. She had blue eyes as well, but hers were not quite as sharp as Gabriel’s. This man had seen and done a lot of bad things.

Nibbling her lip, she waited for him to speak. This was bad. Everything was telling her that this was bad.

“I was at a card game tonight and your brother came in. He was a mess. Sweating, pale, he looked like he hadn’t eaten a decent meal in weeks. He stunk bad, but he was there to beg for money. Telling me he would give me anything I wanted. In fact, he turned his attention to the whole table of men and said he needed a loan.”

Faith couldn’t believe it. Her brother begging for money.

“What did you do?” she asked.

“I asked him what he would give me in return. He said there was this house. He could give us the deeds, and when none of us showed any interest, he said he had a sister who was still a virgin.”

“What?” Faith asked. She had the deeds for the house locked tight in a safe deposit box. When Nigel began to act irrationally, she had made arrangements so he couldn’t steal the deeds and take the house from her. Their parents had paid for the house and left each of them a small trust fund. Faith still had some of hers left, but Nigel had spent through his within weeks. It wasn’t a large amount of money, which is why Faith had always been cautious about spending hers. She’d wanted it to last.

Not only had he offered them the house, he’d offered them … her.

“You can’t be serious?” she asked.

“I’m very serious,” Gabriel said, taking a step toward her.

She refused to back down.

“Did you … refuse?” she asked.

“No.”

What the hell did that even mean?

“Where is he?”

Gabriel was right in front of her now. He made no move to touch her. “Nigel is in a safe place, but he will only remain in that place if you agree to my conditions.”

What was happening? Where was Nigel? What did he mean by safe?

“What conditions?” she asked.

He smiled. “For the next month, you agree to be mine. You don’t argue. You don’t fight. You are mine, and if you think to act dumb, then know, when I mean mine, I mean, you’re mine to fuck, to play with. Your body is my toy and I can use you any way I want.”

“And if I refuse?”

She knew, deep down, refusing wasn’t an option. If she refused, it would mean bad things for Nigel.

He smiled and it wasn’t a kind smile, it was deadly.

“Nigel has been a rather difficult boy, and he owes a lot of people money. If you refuse, it’s simple, I don’t pay his debts. I’ll let them take it out on him. I’m sure a pretty boy like him would earn a good living working the streets.”

Faith looked at him. “I hate you.”

“I don’t care. I told you it would come to this. I warned you. You’ve got until tomorrow to make your decision.”

ISBN: 9780369508546

Tags Age Gap, Enemies To Lovers, erotic romance, Evernight Publishing, new release, Rubenesque, Sam Crescent, Standalone

Bad Boy Cover Art Full Length M.C My Work New Release Satan's Death Riders M.C

Toxic

Satan’s Death Riders M.C

Blurb

Rosalie knew her father was part of an MC club, a vile disgusting group of men. To protect her mother, she has no choice but to marry a man her father has chosen.

Colt doesn’t want to create peace. Satan’s Death Riders MC doesn’t settle, they do not bow down, but for now, his father has told him to marry the daughter of his enemy. He personally vows to make her life miserable. This will be a great way for him to pass the time before he gets the chance to kill her father. They claim she’s a virgin, but they’re liars. No slut of the Evil Fuckers MC is pure.

But Rosalie is nothing like her father. She’s just a pawn. Someone he can use. What will happen when she becomes more than just a pawn, more than someone he can use?

She wants her father dead as much as Colt does. Maybe they can work together. All she wants is for her mother to be free, for them to no longer live in fear. It’s an easy deal to make, but even Colt didn’t see what was coming.

Excerpt:

“Daemon is way too strong and powerful. There is no out for me. I know that. Only when he’s done with me will I find peace.” Gabrielle smiled. “But I see a brighter future for my daughter. If you give her a chance, I think you could make her a very happy woman.”

Petal hit the window. “What’s keeping you guys?”

Gabrielle chuckled. “You’re not a patient person, are you, Petal?”

“My Sunday plans have been changed so I’m feeling a little … tender.”

Colt climbed out of his car as his mother opened the door. Gabrielle walked over to Kim, and he watched the two embrace.

Petal had her arms folded and glared at him.

“I want to talk to Rosalie,” Colt said.

“And you think I’m going to allow that?” Petal asked.

“It’s fine,” Rosalie said. “I’ll be fine.”

Petal shook her head. “Yeah, maybe when you look in the mirror, you’ll see how fine you look.”

Rosalie chuckled but Petal left them alone.

He stared at Rosalie who once again had her hands thrust into the pockets of her jeans.

“What do you want?” she asked.

“To talk to you.”

“This is not part of our arrangement. Friday nights is what we agreed.”

He held his hands up in surrender. “Is it wrong for me to want to talk to my wife?”

“Colt, you and I don’t have that kind of relationship, so I’m going to say yes.” She pulled her hands out of her jeans. “What is all this?”

“An olive branch.”

Rosalie laughed. “So I tell you truth about who my father is, and all of a sudden you want to be friends?”

“I want us to be allies, Rosalie. Is that so hard to believe?”

“Coming from you, yes.”

“Look, I don’t know what your father is up to, and I can only imagine it’s not very good.” He looked toward the house and then stepped in front of her. “I’m aware of the deal you made him.”

She tilted her head to the side. “I doubt that.”

“You’ll get pregnant and he’ll leave your mother alone. It doesn’t take a genius to work out that you’ll do anything for your mother. Marry a guy you don’t know, and fuck him every Friday in the hope of getting pregnant.”

“So, now that your genius brain has figured that out, what are you hoping to do? Make a deal with me? What?”

Colt took a deep breath. This woman was infuriating. He didn’t quite believe her mother that she was a kind and gentle person. So far, she had made him do nothing but work at every single task when it came to her.

“Your father is up to something,” Colt said. “And I know you care about your mother, so I’m proposing that you trust us.”

“No. I don’t trust any of you. You agreed to this marriage, this treaty pact, or whatever it is.”

“We can protect your mother from him. The whole club. You’re trusting Daemon’s word, and you can’t always be with your mother. The club has a lot of men, Rosalie. We can protect her from him.”

Rosalie stared at him and slowly folded her arms across her chest. “And what do you want in return?”

Colt looked at her. “You’ve got to come and live with me, spend time at the Satan’s Death Riders MC, make this marriage work.”

She shook her head. “Fuck, no. Don’t you see, that is exactly what he wants. He will want me to try and get information out of you and I’m not doing that. I’m not getting between the two clubs.”

“I’ll protect you.”

“No, you won’t.” Rosalie shook her head.

“He killed my sister,” Colt said.

Rosalie stopped and turned toward him. She had been about to enter the house but he had to stop her.

“I want to see him six feet under. I want him to suffer and pay for what he’s done. He didn’t pull the fucking trigger, but he ordered the killing.”

He was right in front of her now and looked her in the eyes. Rosalie had no choice but to tilt her head back to look at him.

“He’d been trying to take me out … but I had to hold her in my arms as she died, Rosalie.”

“I’m so sorry,” Rosalie said.

“And I want to make him pay. I’ve been treating you like shit and I know I shouldn’t have. You had nothing to do with this, and for that I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have to pay for his sins.”

“And just like that, you expect me to believe this?” Rosalie asked.

“I want you to think about it. I’m offering you protection. The club, all of it. For you and your mother and for Petal.”

Rosalie looked at him and then bowed her head.

“He wants me to get pregnant. It’s been three months and he keeps telling me that if I fail, he will hurt my mother.”

He went to take her hand but Rosalie pulled away.

“Trust me.”

“How?” Rosalie asked. “How can I trust you when I don’t even know you?”

Mafia Monsters Forced Bride

Post author By Author Sam Crescent
Post date August 2, 2022
No Comments on Mafia Monsters Forced Bride

Mafia Brides 1

Blurb

Alex Greco hates her husband.

To keep the peace between her crime lord father and the Greco mafia’s boss, she’s forced to marry his son, Roman. He’s cold and has a reputation for hurting those close to him. There is no wedding night, and the first months of their marriage are awful.

Roman doesn’t want a wife, and certainly not an outsider who doesn’t know their ways. Unlike the women he’s used to, Alex thinks for herself and isn’t afraid to tell him no. He plans to prove she isn’t a sweet innocent, and he orders his friends to seduce her to show she’s not worthy of him.

When her life is endangered, it is up to Roman to save her and the peace pact between their families. By his father’s order, he has to make this stubborn woman fall in love with him.

Her husband is not as cold and callous as Alex originally thought. He’s a monster to everyone but her, and she never expected to fall in love with him.

She didn’t count on finding out he was a liar, either. His father told him to make her fall in love with him, but how far was he willing to go?

Excerpt:

Roman was taller, bigger, and it was impossible. That diary was the last one she had written in. She hadn’t taken it to his place because she had worried he’d find it. The last entries were all leading up to their arranged marriage, and of course their wedding, the night before, at least. There was no other entry because she’d been with him, with no way of talking to her diary.

Her towel gave way, and Alex didn’t grab it immediately. The protection she had fell to the floor, around her feet.

She cried out and scrambled to get her towel, only to have Roman reach for it as well. Alex wasn’t entirely sure what happened, but they somehow managed to bump heads, and she ended up on the floor, not covered, and Roman stared at her.

Panic filled her, and she scrambled for the towel and her diary. Roman seemed to still as she got both and pulled away from him.

Within seconds, it became a tug of war as Roman grabbed the diary, and she had no choice but to turn her back and immediately wrap the towel around her.

Roman had never seen her naked.

No man had seen her naked.

Her heart raced.

“Please give me back my diary,” she said, keeping her back to him.

Her face was so hot. She had never been so embarrassed in her life.

“No.” He stepped past her. She tried to grab his shirt, but she had no choice but to keep one hand on her chest.

“Please.”

Roman turned at the door. “You’re my wife, and a Greco never begs. Don’t do it.”

He slammed the bathroom door, and Alex gritted her teeth. She wanted to call her father, to ask him to demand that Roman give her diary back, but that would be involving her father in a pathetic spat.

Roman was just being a pain in the ass. She got it, and kind of understood it, even if she didn’t completely agree with him and his asshole ways.

After stepping into her closet, she opened the drawers and pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank. It was warm, and she wished she could have head-to-toe pajamas, but that would be way too uncomfortable.

Her hair was nearly dry, and stepping out of her closet, she went to her dresser to run a brush through it. Her bed looked so inviting as she stared at it. Did she want to sink into the soft covers or fight with Roman again?

She glanced at the bathroom door and decided he had already taken way too much of her attention. Sticking her tongue out, which was completely childish to do, she stepped over to her bed, pulled back the covers, and slid right inside.

The moment she lay down and stared up at the ceiling, she closed her eyes and just basked in being back home, in her bed, away from Roman … ish. He was in her father’s home, and currently in her shower or reading her diary, but that didn’t change the fact she was finally home.

Roman’s home and apartment were all his. His bachelor pad. His domain. Where another woman had decorated and made it the vision he wanted. She was a stranger in his home and in his world.

She didn’t mind not being close to anyone all her life. Having Liam as a dad guaranteed that people weren’t her friend. She lived with it, dealt with it. It was probably the only part of her life that made it easier to deal with Roman’s world.

The shower stopped, and Alex rolled over so she wasn’t facing him. She had no idea where he was going to sleep.

Growling, she shoved her blankets off and then climbed out of bed. The man was an insufferable bastard, and he pissed her off all the damn time.

She walked back into her closet and grabbed spare blankets and some pillows.

With them in hand, she stepped back into her bedroom at the same time as Roman entered.

“I’ll be sleeping in the bed,” Roman said.

“No, you’re not. That is my bed, and you’re not sleeping in it.”

He raised a brow. “Where you sleep, I sleep.”

“We don’t sleep together at your place, and it’s not happening now.”

Roman chuckled. “You’re a spoiled little princess used to getting your own way.”

“And you’re a brute and a bully used to taking what he wants. You’re not sleeping in my bed. Simple as that.”

In response, Roman eased the towel from around his waist, and Alex gasped, closing her eyes. She didn’t see anything, and staring at her husband’s naked body didn’t appeal to her, not in the slightest.

She heard rustling, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Roman was beneath her blankets on her side of the bed, with her damn diary.

Alex wanted to scream at him. “You’re naked in my bed? Your ass is, like, making an impression.”

“My ass is nice and warm. There is enough room for both of us.”

She glared at him and then moved toward the window where she had a few beanbags from her days of being a child and not wanting to use conventional chairs.

Nudging them together, she made herself a little bed, much like she had when she was a child, and then, somehow found a way to build a bed for herself.

It was so uncomfortable, not like before when she was so young. This wasn’t her bed. It wasn’t comfortable, but it would do.

With the blanket thrown over her, she got comfortable, aware of the noise the bags were making, but eventually, she got comfortable.

The light was still on, and the only sound she heard was the unmistakable sound of the pages turning.