[Wipes my teary eye with a tissue]How does an author begin to say thank you to so many people? ~To every reader who has made it this far with my book. I want to say, from the bottom of my heart, a big thank you. For taking your time to read my first book, your efforts, time, and money đ€, all played a big role in Thane's and Andera's story. Thank you for reading through my errors, be they grammatical, wrong spelling, or typos. Thank you for making me a proud author, and I couldn't be happier. I love you all dearly. I hope you enjoyed reading it, as much as I loved writing it.If you did, please leave a review. Your feedback matters to me.Once again, Thank you â€ïž_____Stay tuned for my second book coming soonđ I look forward to sharing more stories with you all.
ANDERA. TEN YEARS LATER.It all started with our divorce.Lies. Betrayals. Regrets. Revenge.And somehowâredemption.It led us here.Ten years later, to where weâre supposed to be. Together.Timmy and I are curled under a wide umbrella, tucked into two folding chairs with a cooler between us. The shade casts long shadows across the sand.âDaddy, stop it,â Tiffany whined.She stood not too far from the shoreline in a sundress, her hair in a ponytail; Thane continued leveling a death glare at the teenage boy who approached Tiffany. Timmy and I shook with silent laughter. The poor boy fled before he could say Hi to Tiffany.âI donât like him,â Thane said flatly. His face softened when Tiffany pouted.âYou don't like any boy who tries to talk to me,â she grumbled. Thane shrugged, utterly unapologetic. He tickled Amelia, our youngest.âAll these boys aren't deserving of my princesses.âAmelia giggled, her gray eyes shining with mirth. âYes, Daddy. Tiffany and I are princesses.â she squea
THANEI have watched the sunset over the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the golden light shining on iron and stone.I have stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, wind roaring in my ears.I have walked the ancient corridors of the Colosseum in Rome and touched the walls with centuries of history.I have traveled to places many dream of being, and seeing the beauty of the earth. Lakes, mountains, islands, the seven wonders of the world.I have seen it all, but nothing, none of that, took my breath away; none of it brought this burning sting to my eyes the way she did.Andera.My Andera. The eight wonder of the world, in a dazzling white dress, glassy eyes, and a smile that could melt down diamond. And she's mine. Mine to Love, mine to protect, for as long as we both live.My world had beauty before, my world had power and all that money could buy.Now it has meaning.The pastor cleared his throat, bringing our attention back to his. "Do you, Thane Malone Reinhardt, take Andera Cam
Andera's PovI pressed the heels of my palm into my burning eyes; sleep had eluded me; each day, I sat here, waiting for him to come back.My father came by yesterday. He tried telling me to leave and go home for a break, but I didn't agree to it. I'm not leaving this hospital without Thane. I took his hand in mine, his skin getting paler by the day. Five days, that's how long it's been since he entered into this coma.âCome back to me Love, please,â I whispered against the constant heaviness in my heart. âI need you, our children need you.âFive soul-crushing days of sitting by Thaneâs bedside, listening to the beep of the heart monitor, praying for something to change.After Imogen stabbed him, Thane passed out. When we arrived here, the doctors told us that he was stable. That the blade missed anything vital. That he would wake up âsoon,â But their âsoonâ wasnât soon enough.Five days was way too long to use that word.My father was paranoid about the Imogen situation, it turns
Andera's PovThane stared at me with those eyes, eyes full of apology, pain, and a kind of helplessness that pierced deeper than a blade could. His hands trembled around the gun like it weighed a thousand pounds.âAndera.â my name left his lips in a soft whisper, I let his voice wrap around me; this would be the last time I hear him say my name like that. My heart didn't believe it-she refused to accept it.Behind him, Imogen smirked, She was enjoying seeing Thane break. All I could do was watch the man I love reduced to this, to choose between my life or our children.A tear slid down his face, and my heart tightened more, it was difficult to breathe.I gave him a bittersweet smile, âItâs okay,âMy lips trembled when Thane shook his head. There was no way out of this. Either I die, or both my children die. âIt's okay,â I whispered again.But it wasnât. God, it wasnât.So this is how my life ends? I was never going to walk down our garden aisle with my biological father, I was neve
Thane's pov.My emotions skidded to a halt. âImogenâHer name left my mouth in a whisper. The one behind the threats is my sister? My blood?âIt can't beâ The word scrapped against my throat, barely louder than a breath.Imogen stepped out of the shadow and in front of Andera. Outside, the clouds shifted casting the moonlight on her bored expression.I opened my mouth to speak, nothing came out but a sound that was half denial, half despair.âIt's not possible.â I shook my head, I refused to believe that my sister would do this to me âTell me someone put you up to this, Imogen.âShe scoffed, folding her arm across her chest. âYou seem surprised Thane. Did you not see this coming?â âWhat?! You're family, Imogen. You are my sister. How?â She laughed, a sound that was full-on vicious with zero mirth âHow come everyone thinks you're so smart when in reality, you're stupid and foolish.âImogen flickered her lighter again and then extinguished the flame with her fingers.My eyes dart
Thaneâs Pov11: 48 pmI stared at my watch, my eyes burning from the effort not to blink. I tapped my finger impatiently against the dashboard, Two more minutes till midnight.I couldnât sit still. I couldnât breathe properly. Knowing that Andera, Timmy, and Tiffany were in there sliced through me like a blade Nine hours.Nine goddamn hours since that text turned my world inside out.Come on, come on, come onMidnight.I shoved out of my car and sprinted towards the half-finished construction site, every muscle in my body screaming at me to go faster.All I wanted was to bring in the whole goddamn Seattle Police Department, storm into this building, tear it apart with my bare hands if I had to, and save my family,But one wrong move...All it would take is a wrong move, and this fĂșcker could kill them.The thought hit me so hard I nearly dry-heaved. Knots twisted in my stomach; I couldnât even bear to picture it in my mind.I couldnât lose them.I wouldnât.The last nine hours have b
Andera's Pov The first thing I felt was the cold.My eyelids were heavy; it was an effort to open them; even when I did, I couldn't see past the darkness that wrapped me like a dark curtain. My head throbbed, heavy like lead. The harsh cold hit me again, racking my body with shivers.Reality hit my hazy mind like a brutal wave.The accident and kidnap.My kids.âTimmy! Tiffany!â I screamed past the burning parchedness in my throat. My voice echoed off the walls, bouncing back to me.âAtlas! Timmy!! Tiffan..âA cough so violent wrenched free from me, squeezing my organs, clogging my throat.Water, I needed water.I coughed again, and blood spluttered to my thighs; the dull ache in the side of my head returned, but it wasn't bleeding anymore; the wound must have coated.I reached out to touch it, but my hand didn't move; I tried again, but nothing; it was then I regained consciousness of my body enough to know I was tied down to a chair, my ankles were bound, and my hands tied behind m
Thane's Pov. The meeting dragged longer than it should have. Much to my Asian client's disdain, I kept glancing at my watch, thinking of Andera, Timmy, and Tiffany at the bakery and all the family time I was missing out on. Thankfully, the wedding was a stone's throw away, after which we'd go on our honeymoon - the twins included, to a place far removed, deep in the mountains. I heaved out a sigh of relief when we rounded things up. Something had been gnawing at me the entire meeting. I brushed it off as the feeling of missing out, but now that the meeting is over, I realize it's because Atlas didn't check in with me. He was supposed to give me information once they reached the bakery, and departed too. Andrea had also said she'd call me on her way back. I haven't received her call, and she should have been back by now. I called once. No answer. Twice. Nothing. By the third ring, my gut twisted sharply. I stood from my chair when the call ended and reached out to Paul âPostpon