Lahat ng Kabanata ng Secret Marriage To My Brother's Best friend : Kabanata 241 - Kabanata 250

Trevor didn’t just turn me down back then. He completely humiliated me by taking another girl out to dinner the same night—merely two hours after I confessed my feelings to him. I haven’t dated anyone since then, but Trevor has been all over the blogs with his extravagant dating life. And scandals.Remembering the ache that sliced through me as I watched them kiss from my bedroom’s window that night revives the anger I felt rippling through me.Trevor’s eyes bounce around the café, then he looks at me again. “I’m excited that you’re here, Gracie. You know this place better than anyone else, so you’ll make it look easy for me.”“Easy?” I scoff and fold my hands over my chest. “You’re joking if you think I’d be anything but easy on you, Trevor Hawkins.”His full laugh bounces off him like a rippling tide and warms my insides immediately with its rich undertones. Just like coffee, the sound sparks something in me and makes me shiver.“I mean it,” I say, silencing the stir inside me as he

That scary tingle returns to my heart as I watch her attend to the customer who troops in and walks to the coffee counter. Did I make the right choice coming back here? Or will my plan end in a disaster with the one woman I never want to hurt hating me in the end?***My first day as owner of Espresso Books didn’t go as planned. There’s a total of six staff here besides Gracie and her friend Natalie. Three are baristas, one is a cleaner, and the other two are book sales reps.Gracie does all of their jobs anyway and I was here early enough this morning to realize that the book sales reps troop in whenever they want.“This is bad for the business spirit,” I scold as we hold a meeting that morning. Gracie isn’t listening to what I’m saying. I sense her hostility stems from the fact that she’s still annoyed at the way I ended things six years ago.I never meant to hurt her, but I had to. Pushing Gracie away protects us both from unnecessary heartbreak. I know this…So why do I keep lookin

“Oh,” he gasps, then nods with a smile.“Sure you want to hang around for that? You’re quite popular and all. There’ll be lots of people fawning over you if they meet you here.”“I doubt anyone will be paying attention to me,” he answers.I nearly scoff at that cocky statement. Trevor knows every girl will fawn over him. He gets their attention all the time, anyway.“Right,” I say as I get up and walk away with my laptop. I’m aware of his eyes following my every move.Natalie leans over the counter when I get there. Her eyes hold a gleam as she asks. “What are you two always talking about?” She’s swiping a dry napkin over the counter as she looks at me, and I feign a smile.“Nothing,” I lie in a shaky voice. “He’s just being Trevor.”“You two seem pretty cozy,” she continues with a knowing smile. Natalie’s voice drops a notch as she continues. “With the way he’s been looking at you, someone would think he has a crush on you.”An unexpected laugh spews out of me with a rocking force th

GracieLove changed me, Sophie…Your love made me better. Tears cling to my eyes as I read the final chapter of a novel I’ve been struggling to finish for the past two days. I love Sophie and Dave’s story. It’s the kind that makes you want to keep flipping each page of the book without a care in the world.It’s a peaceful afternoon, and the café has barely had any customers all morning. Natalie sits across my table and focuses on her phone while the other employees are reading. I love the quiet afternoons because I can get a lot of reading done.Trevor hasn’t been here all day, thankfully. His absence also helps me stay calm and in control. I’m a hot mess when he’s around, and it’s worse that he doesn’t even notice anything about me.A deep sigh vibrates through me as I flip my book’s page over and continue reading. A second later, Natalie draws in a loud gasp that catches everyone’s attention and murmurs, “Holy…” She doesn’t complete her sentence as I lift my head to look at her. She

GracieThey both turn to me, their eyes wide with the shocked look etched into their faces. My chest heaves with the force of my breathing, and I nearly forget to breathe when Trevor’s eyes narrow down on mine.“You!” I continue, sucking in a deep breath to keep my chest from caving. I point at Trevor and don’t bother hiding the grimace on my face. “You know there’s no way I’m getting married to you,” I say to him, then tilt my head to one side. “Keep your proposal.” I face Jace next and wag a finger at him. “Come with me.”Jace follows me into Espresso Books' inner office. He slams the door after him, then levels me with his furious look.“What are you thinking, Gracie?” Jace questions as he closes the distance between us in quick strides. “You know Trevor. He’s not the kind to ever take anything seriously. I love him, but we both know he’s crazy sometimes, and a fake marriage with him will only end in disaster for you. So what are you thinking?”My brother’s brows furrow together in