THE GABARDI WIFE
Alexi's story, though, is the first one and was fabulous to write. Plus I really like the cover!
This week you can download it for FREE on Amazon.
So if you want a sweet, free romantic read, then here's the link on AMAZON In the meantime, here's an excerpt:
HOLLY STEPPED THROUGH the doors of the busy High Street bar and acknowledged that inside she was a mess.
The kind of mess that no amount of positive thinking or mantra-repeating
was going to put a dent in.
She glanced around the interior, searching for Alexi, hoping he’d
decided not to show, and was on his way back to London and away from her.
Forever.
But no. Her spirits slumped as she spotted him at a corner table, his
face in profile as he scrolled through his phone.
Of course, he wasn’t going to give up. Gabardis never gave up. And
Alexi especially because she knew that he had a point to prove and apparently,
she was part of that proving.
What the point was, she couldn’t be sure. He wasn’t a cruel man.
He wasn’t a bastard. She’d never have fallen in love with him if he was and she
sure as heck would never have married him in that picturesque chapel on that
European island where royalty, so it was claimed, had said their vows.
But something had changed him and getting him out of her life for
good was the only way she had of hanging onto any thread of sanity.
Of course, she breathed in, there was so much more to it than
that.
She warily threaded her way through the tables to the corner, and
he glanced up as she approached, and rose to his feet.
She took the seat opposite and was about to take her bag from her
shoulder when she hesitated. There was no need to get too comfortable because she
wasn’t planning to be here for long.
She clasped her hands on the table in front of her, Alexi took his
seat, and she took stock of herself. A bit jittery, nerves clanging wildly.
Heart pounding a bit too fast. In other words, pretty good going so far.
She looked across at him. His dark gaze rested on her, unreadable
and strangely relaxed.
Her resolve faltered.
Alexi Gabardi was like no other man she had ever met. Supremely
confident, supremely skilled—her chest squeezed tight at the graphic memory of
his hands gliding over her naked body—and supremely made. His body was sleek,
hard-packed muscle, and his face, with its taut cheekbones, beautifully sculpted
mouth and dark-chocolate eyes, was portrait-worthy. She’d sketched it enough
herself to know.
Now that the shock of seeing him on her doorstep had faded, she
realised she may have underestimated what this encounter with him could do.
Chemistry, she acknowledged as apprehension pooled in her stomach,
still sat between them, seemed to even smother the air around them. She imagined
alarm bells were clanging as a warning.
She said, “So what did you need to talk to me about, Alexi?”
His gaze studied her, shifting only when the waiter approached the
table with a bottle and two glasses.
Alexi gave his thanks, indicated he’d pour, and when the waiter
had left, he said, “Have you eaten?”
“Yes.” She gestured to the menu in front of them. “But you go ahead
and order for yourself if you like.”
He reached for the bottle and half-filled her glass. “I’m not
hungry,” he said. “At least, not yet.”
He turned to his own glass and said, “You know, of course, why I’m
here.”
His eyes gleamed with a disturbing light, as he set the bottle
back down on the table.
Yes, she knew why he was here. Much as she’d rather his end of it had
been handled from London, she knew.
She nodded. “You have obviously received the papers.”
He gestured for her to try the wine. “The timing was fortuitous.”
He took a sip from his own glass. “An opportunity to combine a new business
venture here in New Zealand with a personal visit to see my wife.”
His wife. But not for very
much longer. She said, “You didn’t have to waste your time by seeing me
personally but since you have, I can answer any questions you might have. Did
you bring the papers with you?”
(end)
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