Undone, Volume 1 (11 page)

“Yes, one month.
We’ll fake having a whirlwind romance. Ice skating at Rockefeller
Center, candlelight dinners, you name it. It’ll all be fake, but
that doesn’t mean we can’t still have some fun on the side.” He
smiled at me. I didn’t smile back.

He continued. “Anyway,
I’ll propose to you on New Year’s Eve at my big show in Vegas.
And then one month from now, around the middle of January, you’ll
break up with me. The average girl, breaking my heart in front of a
bunch of cameras. It’ll be huge.”

I stood up. Had he just
told me he was going to propose to me on New Year’s Eve? As in ask
me to marry him? And then I’d break up with him? Maybe he was
insane, completely unhinged. Maybe I’d missed all the signs, too
awestruck by his good looks and star status.

“I probably should
have had you sign the NDA first. I can tell you’re surprised.” He
exhaled, his hand up to his brow once again.

“I don’t even know
what an NDA is.”

“A non-disclosure
agreement, standard stuff. You agree you won’t discuss this with
anyone, no tell-all interviews, books, etc.”

“What the hell are
you talking about, Ash?”

“Listen, I probably
should have brought this up earlier. But you know this thing with
Mandy Monroe?” I nodded, listening with one foot proverbially out
the door. “It’s made me look real bad and I need to clean up my
image. Make people think I’m not an asshole.”

“So, you want to date
me?”

“Just pretend to date
you,” he clarified. “You’re perfect. I can’t even believe I
ran into you. You’re so sweet and average, a piano-teacher and a
librarian.”

Oh. My. God. I was such
an idiot. Here, I’d actually thought Ash Black liked me. That he’d
met me and somehow been swept away by little old average me. But he
only wanted me to play pretend with him, to clean up his image.

“I’ve got to go.”
Powered by humiliation, I pushed past him and looked for my coat.
Where had he put it when we came in? I’d been too amazed by the
view, too blinded by everything around me to see what was actually
happening.

“No, don’t go,
please.” He got in front of me, both hands up at my shoulders. “You
don’t like this idea?”

“No! It’s insane.”

“Where do you want to
go, Ana? Cabo? Bali? I’ll take you. You want to go sky diving?
We’ll do it. I’ll make it fun for you, I promise. Give you gifts,
jewelry, whatever you want.”

“Ash.” I shook my
head. This was all ridiculous. I couldn’t believe I’d actually
thought he’d liked me. And I’d just let him finger-fuck me on his
couch.

“What’s the
matter?” he asked, bewildered. He really had no idea why I’d have
any reservations. He’d been so sure of himself.

“I thought you liked
me.” My voice came out like a whisper and I hated the way it
sounded, all young and vulnerable and pathetic. But it was true. It
was how I felt.

“I do! I like you, I
do.” His empty words rolled down and away like marbles. Like hell,
he did.

“Because I’m so
wonderfully average.” I would have liked to have sounded light and
amused, as if this were a hilarious story I couldn’t wait to tell
my roommates. But this one I might not relish sharing, the day I’d
met a rock star and been stupid enough to think he actually liked me.
Then he’d fingered me until I came and told me I was so average I
was perfect to hire as his fake girlfriend to improve his image.
Awesome.

“Ana, you’re
perfect.”

I looked at him, now
knowing my skepticism, my doubts, my ‘this can’t be happening’
feelings should have been what I’d trusted.

“I’m sorry this all
came out wrong.” He fumbled for words. “I’d honestly love to
hang out with you for the month. And I really need you. I’m
desperate.”

I’d desperately
needed him, about five minutes ago on the couch when I’d
practically humped his hand. How many times would I make a fool out
of myself if I allowed myself to spend anymore time with him?

“No sex,” he
offered, seeming to read my mind. “We’ll put it in a clause. No
sex, no touching even if you don’t want to.”

“I can’t, Ash. I’m
sorry.” Why was I apologizing to him? He’d wanted to use me to
improve his image, stage something fake to make him look like less of
an asshole. What an asshole.

There was my coat,
draped over a chair by the door. I bee-lined to it and put it on.

“Wait,” he called
after me as I reached for the doorknob. “I have an idea.”

I turned toward him,
giving him a moment. I shouldn’t have. I should have kept on
walking, but I was too damn polite.

“Didn’t you say
something about the library you work in shutting down? How you’re
out of money?”

I nodded. “We’ll
find out in January. They don’t have enough money to keep all the
branches open.”

“I’ll pay for it.”

“What?”

“I’ll pay to keep
it open. Set up a fund to cover all operating expenses for the next
ten years.”

Really? He’d keep the
library open? “It’s a lot of money. I don’t even know how much,
but it’s a lot.”

He looked at me and I
realized he could do it. It wouldn’t even put a dent in his wealth,
would it? Holy shit. “Really?”

“Really.” He stood
before me, looking dead earnest. “I’ll put it in writing, get
everything put in place.”

I thought about it. One
month of pretending for years of that library branch staying open.
How many years had he promised? “How about twenty?”

“What’s that?”

“You said ten years
of operating expenses. I’ll do it for twenty.”

“Done.” He struck
out his hand for a shake. I should have asked for thirty.

“And no sex?”

“No sex.” He put
his hands up, signaling no contest. Those hands that did such
wickedly good work. Could I really be considering this?

“I promise, I’ll
make sure you have a good time,” he pleaded with me. “You’ll be
backstage at all my shows. We’ll put you up in the best hotels. Who
do you want to meet? Anyone famous? I can introduce you.”

You, I thought but
didn’t say. He’d been my celebrity crush for who knew how long.

“Please, Ana.” He
looked deep into my eyes, his voice husky as he added, “I need
you.”

Inwardly, I melted. I
didn’t stand a chance against this guy. Outwardly, I thought I
maintained my composure. All business. “All right.” I stuck out
my hand for a deal-sealing shake.

“All right?” His
face lit up with delight and even the brief touch of his hand to mine
sent a single down my spine.

“OK then.” I
quickly took my hand away.

“I’ll have my
lawyer send you all the paperwork tonight. You’ll need to sign it
ASAP.”

“All right.”

“And tomorrow my
family has a huge holiday party. You’ll have to come.”

“OK.” I felt numb,
wrapped in cotton. This wasn’t actually happening. I wasn’t
actually agreeing to be the pretend girlfriend to rock legend Ash
Black, starting tomorrow? Cabo, Bali, jewels, what had he promised me
again?

“Thank you. You’ve
made me very happy. I’m a lucky man.” He kissed my hand, giving
me that panty-melting intense look again as he drew up to his full
height and bid me goodnight.

I looked up at him, his
dark inviting eyes, his mouth-watering lips. Even though I knew it
was all fake, he only liked me because I was so boring and average
I’d somehow sell him back to the public’s good graces, I still
felt a pull. And I’d just agreed to put myself in close quarters
with him for the next month. We’d have to go places together,
flirt, hold hands, maybe even kiss for the cameras. A whole month of
being so close to those fingers I now knew for certain could bring me
nearly mind-shattering bliss.

Uh oh.

“I’m going to enjoy
this month very much, Anika.”

“OK then.” I opened
the door and walked out into the hallway.

“Good night,” he
called after me. I gave him a feeble wave and walked toward the
elevator, but it wasn’t until I stepped inside and headed down that
I started to breathe again. You couldn’t hold your breath forever.

How was I going to make it through
an entire month? What trouble had I gotten myself into now? I had to
focus, remember why I was doing it. Even if all I could think about
there in the elevator was how I’d felt with his fingers stroking
me, coaxing me, making me forget everything but him.

THE
END

Thank you so much for reading
Undone,
Volume 1
! I hope you enjoyed the start of this wild ride!
I’m thrilled to share the story of Ash and Ana with you. I’ve got
a lot planned for the coming months.
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Keep reading for a
sneak peek at the next volume in the series,
available
here

It’s image
rehab, plain and simple. A month of fake romance to convince the
press that bad boy rocker Ash Black has fallen for a good girl
librarian. It should be easy. It’s anything but.

Ash

New York City. Vegas.
Paris. A whirlwind tour for our whirlwind romance, every step, smile
and kiss photographed from every angle. It’s all going according to
plan, rehabbing my bad boy rock star image by falling hard for a
sweet, wholesome librarian.

There are all kinds of
reasons to keep my hands off her. The no-sex clause in our contract.
Paparazzi around every corner. She doesn’t trust me because she
thinks I’m a player, and she’s right.

But I’m done playing
by the rules. I’m rock star Ash Black and I’ve never been good at
doing what other people tell me. I’m done mugging for the cameras.

I want her alone, all
to myself, where the only rules are the ones I dictate. When it’s
just us, there’ll be nothing fake about her begging me to let her
come. I’m a musician, baby, and believe me, I’m going to savor
the sound of her every pant, gasp and moan.

Ana

It’s just a show, a
month-long façade. I need to keep my head in the game, my heart
under wraps and my body out of reach of his wickedly talented hands.

He’s not making it
easy for me. Every time I watch him perform, I go weak in the knees.
Every time he romances me over a candlelight dinner, I melt. And the
few moments he’s caught me alone, he’s started a fire in me
unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. It’s roaring, licking,
burning me up.

I’m not good at pretending. And
with the heat he’s building in me, I’m not sure how long I’m
going to last. One month can feel like forever when you’re so close
to exactly what you want but not allowed to touch it. Sooner or
later, a girl has to reach out and touch.

NOTE:
Undone
is a three-volume hot adult romance. It’s the second story in the
Beg for It
series
about the dominant, alpha males in Ash’s family and the strong,
sexy women who make them finally meet their match.

Chapter
1

Ana

Saturday morning I lay
in bed, no sign of the sun peeking through the shades though it was
already nine o’clock. On this cold, cloudy December day I wasn’t
in a hurry to rise. Tonight I had a big holiday party to go to, the
annual Kavanaugh family bash. I needed my beauty rest.

Plus, I had some stuff
to think about. Like the way it had felt last night when Ash had
touched me. It was a marvel, the way his fingers felt against my
skin, such a mix of rough and gentle. His touch was magic, awakening
erogenous zones I hadn’t even known existed. The back of my knee?
My hair? My waist? I mean, sure, it had felt good when Stan had put
his hand at my waist. Solid and steady. But Ash? When he’d reached
his hand down and wrapped it around my curves, it made me feel so
delicious. He touched every inch as if he couldn’t believe how
perfect I was. Every stroke felt like a prelude and a promise of more
to come. As if he could coax any sensation he wanted from me,
feelings I’d known nothing about.

My whole body had sung
to his touch, sighing into him, as if I were an instrument he played.
As if I’d been waiting my whole life to feel his hands. As if
everything up until then had been shadow play, mere pretend
approximations of the real thing. I’d given myself orgasms before,
but those were like miniature playthings in comparison to how he’d
made me feel. They were like the fake plastic food you pretended to
bake when you were a kid, compared to sinking your teeth into a
fresh-baked morning bun for the first time.

When he’d slid his
strong fingers into my wet, slick folds I’d nearly come instantly.
He had me so aroused, my clit so swollen, the way he pressed and
circled, flicked, then plunged his fingers up inside of me. I’d
never felt anything so good.

I didn’t want to get
up, not yet. I knew myself. The minute I rose out of bed, I’d start
feeling nervous again. All those reservations and concerns waiting on
the sidelines, offering reasons A-Z why this arrangement with Ash was
a very, very bad idea would all start clamoring for the mic. He’s a
jerk! You’re going to hate having every second of your life
photographed! How are you going to explain this to your parents? And,
most challenging of them all, how did I expect to spend an intimate
month with him without anything like what had happened last night
happening again?

Because it had felt so
good. And now I’d agreed to spend a month pretending to fall in
love with him, in a ‘whirlwind romance’ as he’d put it. He’d
say things to me with that low, sexy voice of his. I’d probably
even hear him sing. He’d mentioned he had a New Year’s
concert—the one he was going to propose to me at. What would it be
like to see him perform all those songs I loved? To be backstage for
it all?