Nine Perfect Strangers By Liane Moriarty Novels & Stories

After catching my husband, Jaxson Larkin, cheating on me for the third time, I end up developing aphasia. Out of guilt, Jaxson spends a month teaching me to communicate using "One" and "Two". "One" means yes, and "Two" means no. No matter what Jaxson says to me, as long as it involves Sasha Fuller, I only answer with "One". When he says Sasha is in poor health and wants to borrow the amulet that my mother left behind to bring me blessings, I answer "One" without hesitation. When he says he wants to postpone our wedding anniversary to celebrate Sasha's birthday, I reply with "One". Even when he brings a pregnant Sasha into our home, I still answer with "One". I even thoughtfully pack

She giggled at the thought. And Shean finally released the burning heat of lust throughout her being. There seems to be a mysterious and blazing emotion that motivates her to release her screaming desire. She raised one arm to his nape and quickly pulled the man against her. On tiptoed, she gently draws near her lips to the stranger, who was for a moment has hesitation.

I had to get the hell out of Dodge, quickly. I managed to ease out of bed I shared with two strangers, whose names I still didn't know. Thank God they were still hot as hell when the beer goggles came off. It didn't take long for me to locate my dress, but I never found my shoes. I gave up once I saw my clutch, and therefore, my cell phone. Looking on the kitchen counter, I lucked out finding Left's junk mail for "current resident," and thus my current address. I wasn't brave enough to call Carmella, and I sure as hell couldn't call Kappy for this walk of shame, so I did the next best thing. Uber. And escaped without a trace and no way for anyone to initiate further contact. All I wanted to

I couldn’t see his face in the dark, but his scent; pine, motor oil, and something dark and electric slammed into me. The mate bond hit me so hard my knees buckled. A spark exploded behind my eyes, every nerve screaming MINE. I jerked away like I’d been burned, stumbling back, heart hammering. I couldn’t see him, only the glint of a moonflower pendant hanging at his throat, but I felt his stare burning into me. Guilt clawed my throat. Liam was waiting for me. I couldn’t cheat on him. I wouldn’t break his heart. I felt the burning eyes of the stranger lingering on me as I finally ran out of the graveyard…

I felt like I could no longer hold back as the tingling sensation continued to escalate. “Why hasn’t she picked up the phone yet? I need to turn it to turbo mode.” That fool had not noticed that his girlfriend had been pinned down on the ground a short distance away. The vibration escalated. I felt a wave of warmth course through me. Inside the haystack, the man was focused on what he was doing, as though determined to explore every hidden corner. Just a few meters away, Samuel continued to pace back and forth. The situation only made me feel even more nervous.

"No, you're Jenna. You've finally returned." Tears streamed down her face in thick rivulets. "I'm so sorry for letting you suffer for nine long years. But now, you have me, and all my love is yours. You don't need to be afraid anymore. That little wretch is gone. She got exactly what she deserved, just like that monster…" Fear coursed through Anna, making her body quake. She flailed in a desperate and weak frenzy, as if she might crumble into pieces. Mom rose, carrying a bowl of her ever-greasy stew. "Jenna, just drink a little…"

My eyes drift downward, and there it is, tucked into the middle of the page with the quiet confidence of a fact that doesn’t care whether I was ready for it. And I looked down at the paper where they wrote siblings and it was Ryan Mallon. I stopped breathing for a second. Not intentional, my body just forgets. The name pulses, heavy and undeniable, and I feel it land somewhere behind my ribs. Ryan Mallon. A name that belongs to long nights and unfinished conclusions, to a case that never sat right no matter how many times I told myself it was done. I read the line again. Slower. As if the words might rearrange themselves out of pity.

The man hung his head low, his fingers buried deep in his hair, carefully considering where I might have gone. As his eyes wandered, they suddenly fell upon the trash can nearby. Those pink fragments looked so familiar that the moment he saw them, he felt like he couldn't breathe. He slowly crouched down, not caring that the cream stains would dirty his sleeves. He picked up the pieces from the trash can bit by bit. Then, he carefully assembled them back together. There were exactly 99 reconciliation vouchers. He remembered five years ago, when he had looked at those vouchers and sincerely promised me, "Cecilia, don't worry. I'll never give you a reason to use them."

“I know something is off. That’s not Laurel upstairs. Her mannerisms are all wrong. Her habits. Her eyes. The handwriting style on Morel's school note last week did not resemble Laurel's handwriting. I squeezed the stair railing harder while my blood turned to ice. Dr. Shawty urged me to lower my voice while scanning the area quickly. You may be correct but you shouldn’t accuse people like that. It’s more complicated than you think.” My legs trembled. He was going to tell her. He was about to expose me! “Complicated?” Lillian scoffed. “My son’s been living with a stranger! My grandson addresses a woman as ‘Mommy’ whom he just met and who remains unaware of his bedtime schedule. I couldn’t li

"Why don't you go get something to eat, and I'll see you in a bit." Jane stared hard at Red's hourglass shape and heart-shaped behind as she headed into the entrance tunnels looking for Tarloh. Jane sighed contentedly, but her contentment was short-lived. As she climbed up to the upper platform, she saw a few bloodstains remaining from the previous night's fight . . . some red and some green. The bodies had all been removed and the subway car that Jane had used as a weapon had been pushed to the side. 'I did a lot of this,' she thought. She noticed some of the Strays glancing at her out of the corners of their eyes. 'Are they afraid of me? Do they trust me? Do they know about me and Red? How