Novels by Jennifer

"I did?" Rhys asked, still teary. He shook his head. "I don't know what I did wrong." She smiled bitterly. "You used me." "I didn't." "You did," she said, anger slipping into her voice. Even drunk, he was still denying it. "You slept with me and made fun of me with your friends. I saw you that day in the rain with those boys. You said I was good for fucking, but you could never love me." His eyes widened, then narrowed. "I would never say that." "But you did. Think carefully. I want to know why you did that. I trusted you, Rhys. I loved you, and you hurt me like that without a second thought." Her eyes stung with tears as desperation crept into her voice. Rhys shut his eyes, as if it was all too much to take in. She scoffed and shook her head. Was he too ashamed to look at her now? She started to sit up and leave his room, but his arms caught her. He shook his head weakly. "Those boys were not my friends. They were part of a gang from my old neighborhood. They came looking f

When Hermione woke up, it was already dark outside. She grabbed her crutch and stood up. The pain in her ankle had reduced significantly thanks to the painkillers she had taken. She went out in search of Rhys and found him by the small bar section of the yacht, close to the dining area. He was holding a glass in his hand, and a bottle of whiskey sat open beside him, half empty. "Rhys," she called out as she approached. He slowly raised his head and turned. He was drunk, she could tell from the way his eyes drooped and his face flushed. "Hey, you're awake," he said. He glanced at her feet and frowned. “You're not supposed to be walking." "It doesn't hurt with the crutch," she replied, taking a seat next to him. She ignored his gaze, picked up a glass herself, and poured a modest amount of whiskey before downing it. She winced as it burned, then went for another sip. The night was quiet and the sound of the yacht sailing across the water was all that could be heard. It felt me

The next afternoon, Rhys informed her that their luggage had already been delivered to the yacht and they could go to the port straight from the hospital. After changing into fresh clothes, Hermione was discharged and was given a crutch to walk. On their way out, they encountered Markus, who was coming in with fresh roses. He paused when he saw them. Rhys's face immediately soured. Hermione's eyes flashed with anger. Why was Markus being so annoying? "What are you doing here, Mr. Vancroft?" Rhys cocked a brow. Markus looked between them, then at Hermione's leg, which she was supporting with the crutch. "Have you been discharged already? I came to give Hermione some flowers and also apologize for my actions last night. I did step out of line," Markus said. "You're still stepping out of line," Rhys replied. Markus raised his hands in surrender. "I'm not here to make trouble. But don't you think it's a little early to be taking her home? It's—" Rhys's hands clenched at his s

The rain subsided a bit, and Rhys carried Hermione on his back before heading out to look for a way out of the woods."Thank you," Hermione said, lying weakly against him."For what?" he asked."Not abandoning me to start an Amazon tribe on my own."The tension had eased between them.Rhys snickered as he carefully made his way down the steep path."As tempting as that sounds, I don't think you'd last very long. You were raised prim and proper, after all.""I thought you had faith in me." She smiled."I do. But I also believe the only time you've ever touched dirt was the day you fell during our paintball game on our first date."Hermione's smile turned somber for a moment before she laughed softly. She admitted defeat. "It hurts that you're not wrong.""Of course I'm not."She sighed. "My dad never let me play much as a kid. I'd seen other teens playing paintball online, but I never really got a chance to go, and I didn't have anyone to go with. That was my first time knowing what re

The rain hadn’t let up yet after some time had passed. Hermione started shivering, and when Rhys noticed, he pulled her into his embrace to share some of his warmth, wrapping his arm around her. She felt a bit better, but the cold still bit fiercely, and the pain in her ankle was only getting worse. Still, she tried to hide her discomfort from Rhys. She didn’t want him to go out alone looking for a way out. What if he fell into a ditch in his haste? She couldn’t let that happen. She was still counting on him for that early retirement. She lifted her head, glancing at his face. His eyes were closed, and his head rested against the wall behind them. She saw his jaw and the faint stubble growing on it. She felt an urge to run her fingers through it but stopped herself. There was also a faint frown on his face as her brow scrunched together. Thunder clapped again in the sky, and she felt him flinch, his hold on her tightening. He’s done that three times now. “Are you afraid of the th

"Hermione, I want to show you something."She looked up from where she'd been absently digging at the dirt with a stick. They'd been here for almost two hours now, riding a golf cart across the massive property, and still nowhere near finished.He'd led her through the site, pointing out where the main lodge would go, the villas, the spa. She'd listened, asked questions, and made suggestions. For a while, they'd almost sounded like partners.They'd stopped where the land encroached into the woods, not yet cleared. Rhys wanted to preserve some of the vegetation, so that was still under discussion.It was a massive project. And he was clearly passionate about it.Not wanting to disturb him, she'd found a tree stump to sit on, doodling nonsense in the dirt with a stick. Thankfully, the day wasn't too sunny or she would have been sweating buckets.Now that he finally had time for her, she felt a small flutter of excitement.She stood and walked over."What is it?"He took her hand. "I wan