When Andrei Ivanov returns home to clean up his twin's mess, he doesn't expect his stay to be long or eventful. But then his father makes him an offer he can't refuse, and he has no choice but to turn to the one woman he can't stand—Holly Anderson. She's everything he hates in a woman: incredibly spoilt, short-tempered and too damn self-absorbed. And the biggest red flag? She's his frenemy's little sister and comes with a giant warning label. But with the body of a goddess and the untamed spirit of a gladiator, she tempts him beyond measure and makes him want to break all his rules and risk it all… Holly Anderson didn't become a national treasure through talent alone. Hell, she's had to work hard and fight everyone and everything, including all kinds of temptation. So when Andrei walks into her life, dangling a too-good-to-be-true deal right before her eyes, she knows she should shoot him down and send him packing. But down on her luck and dreaming of a big comeback, she throws caution to the wind and signs on the dotted line, jumping headlong into her long-held fantasy… Against the sweeping backdrop of Rock Castle's underworld, smoky boardrooms and awry business deals, what begins as a harmless con soon spirals into stolen moments of fleeting kisses and lingering caresses, taking this unlikely duo down a dark and thrilling path where desire and danger constantly collide and heartbreaking choices must be made.
View MoreAlone at last, the mask of false calm and cheerfulness Holly had worn throughout the intervention finally slipped off, the emptiness hitting her as hard as the sudden fatigue washing over her. She sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her phone from the charger, her heart squeezing in her chest when she saw the time. 11:15 AM. If it was any other day, she'd be at the Institute, warming up at the barre. But it wasn't any other day, and she was in her brother's guest room, contemplating her bleak future. If it weren't for her sheer stubbornness about getting a second opinion, she'd have nothing to do— The phone buzzing in her hand startled Holly out of her gloomy thoughts. She stared at Cooper's name flashing on the screen, debating whether to answer his call. Her heart said no. But her head said yes. She might need servicing soon. Since her social life sucked, and her list of potential bedmates was equally dismal, she'd best not burn that bridge. So she quickly hit 'answer' before
"About earlier," Holly said, taking Eden's hands. "I'm sorry for what I said about you and Liam." "It was the truth," Eden smiled, her warm brown eyes twinkling behind her dark-rimmed glasses. "It's just that Liam and Andrei were once close, and I hate how everyone always vilifies him. He's not a terrible man." "Oh God, are you in love with him?" Holly shook her head, but denying it was kind of pointless. Eden could see right through her. Sighing, she asked, "Does he know?" "I told him last night. I never would have, though. I mean, it's not something I thought about until I woke up in his bed and touched his scars—" "You touched his scars?" Eden gasped, drawing curious stares from Willow and Lois in the kitchen. But she was too caught up in their juicy chat to notice. "Oh, wait, does that mean you saw him naked?" "Keep your voice down!" "Fine, but answer my question. Did you see Andrei naked or what? You must have if you touched his scars. He had to be naked!" "Seriously, y
A stunned silence descended over the room following Liam's announcement. Seconds stretched into a minute and then two before he spoke again, "That's why I called you here today. So we can help Holly." "When—" Willow stammered, but quickly shut her mouth, seemingly at a loss for words. "Why? How?" Eden asked in a small voice. Lois brought her up to speed on Holly's condition, as if she wasn't in the room or able to speak for herself. But at that moment, Holly honestly couldn't. The only thing she could do was to sit in silence and listen to the sound of her shame echoing all around her. Two years ago, before she made prima, she promised everyone it was the last time she'd cut herself. Of course, she hadn't kept her promise, and her condition worsened somewhat after her fallout with Lola. But she'd hoped and prayed her parents and siblings would never find out— "Is it true?" Clarke asked, breaking through her thoughts. "Is it true you've been self-harming?" Holly could only nod,
"Great! Just great!" Liam shook his head at Willow, glaring at her. "This is not the right way to approach an intervention! Linda said we should ease her into it!" "Whoa!" Holly shrieked, bursting into horrified laughter as she sprung from her seat, pain racking her body at the abrupt movement. "Who exactly asked for this intervention?" Sure, she'd gone on a bender two nights ago, ended up in Andrei's bed and kissed Cooper in full view of the paparazzi. But they were all minor incidents. Nothing as scandalous as half the shit Willow had done. Like that one time she lied to everyone about holidaying in Clifton Bay when, in fact, she was in Belize at some nudist beach with an oil tycoon twice her age she'd met on Hot Connexions, and whose only saving grace, in Holly's humble opinion, was his bank balance— "Oh, you poor thing, come here!" Willow opened her arms again. But Holly pushed her away. As close as they were, she didn't want her coddling, especially when Willow had just admitt
While Andrei went about his morning, making his grand plans, across town in Green Point, Holly lay in bed, staring at the digital clock on her nightstand. It was just after 8:00 AM, and if it was any other Tuesday, she'd be at the Institute by now, where she'd spend six, sometimes seven hours drifting between classes, rehearsals and dress fittings. But now that her knee had fucked out on her, there'd be none of that today. Wracked by an overwhelming sense of hopelessness and grief, Holly wanted nothing more than to stay in bed and hide under the covers until her life made sense again. But she couldn't bring herself to do it; she wouldn't get a second opinion by wallowing in self-pity. So she dragged herself to the en suite bathroom to start her day. She flipped the switch, gasping at her reflection when the overhead light flickered to life. She didn't need anyone to tell her she looked like death warmed over. Her pasty complexion and gigantic panda eyes were doing an excellent job
"Everything okay?" Ivan asked when Andrei jumped in the back. "How do you swipe right on someone again?" he asked. Platitudes and niceties were wasted on him. "Swipe right?" Igor scratched his head. "Where?" "On the Hot Connexions app." "If you haven't declined the match-up, you should still be able to swipe right on your connection," Ivan clarified. Andrei threw his phone at him, "Swipe right on Holly Anderson!" Igor slammed the brakes hard, jerking all of them forward. If their seat belts weren't on, Ivan, with Andrei's phone, would have flown straight through the windscreen. And Andrei couldn't allow that. Not when he was so close to a brilliant plan. He held out his hand, and Ivan returned the phone while Igor waited for an explanation. And when it didn't come willingly, he forced it out of him. "Why are you swiping right on Holly Anderson?" "Because she's the only woman who swiped right on me," Andrei replied simply as he scrolled through his phone and accessed the
Andrei thought heading home, having a few drinks, and sleeping it off would do the trick. But it didn't. When he woke up the following morning with a mother of headaches, he was still hopping mad. An hour later, all showered, dressed up and slightly sober thanks to Helga's nasty ass hangover cure, he felt almost human again. Almost. But his rage was nowhere close to cooling. When he jumped in the car a little while later, Ivan and Igor barely spoke after their usual greetings. They'd known each other all their lives and could read the other like a book, so one look at him told them to keep their wisecrack comments to themselves. "Where to?" Igor asked from behind the wheel as they paused at a four-way stop. "Glen Eagles!" Andrei replied. Wordlessly, Igor indicated, switched lanes, and took a left to connect them to the highway. Not a single word was uttered between the three men for the duration of their drive to Glen Eagles; the uncomfortable silence swirling in the car was f
Andrei returned to the study, and while he waited for Liam, he checked both his mailboxes, Aero's and the family's. Nothing was burning on Aero's side, but too many pots were with the family. Juan had heard through the grapevine that they had decided not to do business with him. In a lengthy email, he expressed his outrage at Andrei for making him fly to the shithole third-world country for nothing. But he was enjoying the safari, so his trip wasn't a total waste after all. Andrei read and reread the email, trying to figure out the most diplomatic way to respond. But nothing his tired brain came up with sounded remotely civil. So he shelved Juan, promising himself he'd handle him later. There was no doubt in Andrei's mind that Mikhail or one of his men had whispered into Juan's ears about their proposed exit plan. He'd deal with his cousin and his men later, too, he decided as he moved on to his father's email next, his blood running cold at the message. The meeting with the Petrovs
"What did you do to her? You'd better not have touched her!" Andrei shoved Liam off, growling at him as he fixed his clothes, "Get your shit together. What the fuck do you take me for? She came to my penthouse, drunk as a skunk, trashed my clothes and fell asleep. I took care of her, and you're welcome!" "Look, Drei," Liam said, addressing him by his nickname for the first time in a long while. "I'm sorry. It's just that she's my baby sister and going through a rough patch. I'm sure you heard about her injury." "Well, you might want to keep her on a leash. I'm not the one you should be worried about!" Andrei shrugged off his apology, still pissed out of his mind that Liam had the nerve to put his hands on him. He was damn lucky they were old friends and business partners. Otherwise, he would have put a bullet right between his eyes. Nobody fucking touched his Armani suits. Well, nobody except Liam's bratty sister, of course. The same woman at the centre of their conflict. "Wha
"Absolutely not! We've talked about this, Papa!" Andrei Ivanov grunted irritably as he lowered his towering frame on the burgundy camelback sofa in the den of his ancestral home in Glen Eagles, north of Rock Castle. Surprisingly, Pavel, the Ivanovs' longtime butler, dressed in a dark suit and not a hair out of place, remained unfazed by the tension in the room. The same way Andrei's father, Nikolai, sat unperturbed behind his vintage desk as he gazed back at him, "Yes, you will cancel your flight." Massaging his temples to stave off a looming headache, Andrei explained—yet again—why he couldn't cancel his flight the following evening, citing every excuse he could think of. When that didn't work, he doubled down and lit a cigarette, taking long, deep puffs before addressing his father again in a much firmer tone, "You've known about my move to Moscow for a while now. It's happening, with or without your approval. I suggest you get on board fast!" "I'm sorry, but I can't do that," Ni
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