Blurb:
One beautiful bastard of a groom.
The most beautiful bitch of a bride.
A panty-ripping office hook-up turned true love everlasting.
Wedding bells can’t chime soon enough for Chloe Mills and Bennett Ryan. Chloe, exasperated and stressed by all the last-minute to-do’s, is on the verge of saying “I do” to eloping. For his part, Bennett’s so worried about being distracted by Chloe’s body that he makes a no-sex-until-the-wedding-night rule that only seems to be making things worse by continually backfiring on him. As their crazy families descend for the big day – only a few of them actually trying to be helpful – the fiery lovers are about to test whether the couple that argues together can keep it together long enough to exchange rings, and not just heated words.
Rating: 5/5 stars
Side Notes:
- Genres: Contemporary Romance, Fiction
- Highly recommend for 16 years and above
- Book (novella) 3.5 in the Beautiful Bastard series
- TW: Explicit language, Sexually graphic scenes
- Romance Tropes: Workplace romance, Love-Hate relationship
Book Quotes:
- “We’re married. I’m your safe place. I’ve always been your safe place.” I slid my hands into his hair, pulling gently and knowing he was right. I’d been my best and worst self with this man, and he only loved me more the more real I was with him. No place was safer for me than with Bennett.”
- “Remember that thing I alluded to on the plane?” he asked, eyes glued to her. A tiny smile played at her lips. “Jog my memory, Player Will.” He squeezed his eyes closed, took a deep breath before looking back at her, and said, “Marry me?”
- “Jesus Christ, is everyone on something because I want some of whatever it is,” Will grumbled, reaching for George’s arm and looping it through his.”
- “I promise to be faithful, loyal, and put your needs above all others . . . this is my vow to you, Chloe, my only lover and my equal in all things.”
- “Tonight,” he growled, returning to my neck. “Tonight I’m going to consummate this marriage so fucking hard you’re going to walk with a limp on that beach in Fiji.”
- “I think your mouth is its own Greek god. Tongueseus.”
- “And there isn’t a chance in hell I’d miss seeing you walk down that aisle. I’ve fought way too fucking hard for you.”
- “Bennett Ryan was a swoony fucking bastard, and tonight—stupid chastity rule or not—I was going to ride him like a horse.”
- “A little. But I’ve wanted to ask every day, and every day I get scared.” Holding up his hand before she could misinterpret his words, he hastily added, “Not because I’m not sure. But because I want you to be as sure as I am.”
- “I’m about two seconds from pulling you into the bathroom and forcing you onto your knees, so if you blow up at me or flip out about the dress or ring or the flooded lawn now, you will only convince me you need a dick in your mouth, and you’ll completely derail the agenda for our wedding day: pictures, dancing, food, dancing, cake, long hard fucking. Watch what you say next, Ryan.”
- “It was clear that Chloe, even down to the last moment, was working something out. Her eyes were closed, her face arranged in a look of concentration as she sifted through her thoughts. Just as clear was the moment she figured it all out. Lifting her head, her eyes moved up the aisle to me, and it was as if time stopped and everything else fell away. I could feel myself smile, then see it reflected in the way her entire face seemed to light up, and I did the only thing I could think. I whispered the words, “Come here.”
- “Laughing, I said, “We’re married. That’s insane. Who let this happen?” He didn’t even break a smile. Instead, his eyes grew heavy, his voice even lower. “I’m going to disrespect the fuck out of you later.”
- “We never did lose what we found in this room,” he said, bending now and kissing my shoulder. “In fact, we turned it into the happiest hate-love of all time.”
- “You’re making fun of your bride on her wedding night?” His expression straightened and his brow smoothed as I ran my greedy hand down his chest. “Of course I am.” “What kind of monster are you?” I teased, lightly scratching his stomach. His answering smile tilted up one half of his perfect mouth. “The kind that’s going to fuck you so hard it’ll look like your legs were put on backwards.”
- “Say please.” Sitting up beneath me abruptly, he growled, “Chloe, please choke on my dick.”
- “You’re a demon,” I said. “I feel like a bride guarding my virginity before the wedding.” “Well, then feel free to give it up, Ryan,” she said, pushing up onto her toes to kiss me.”
- “Did you have a nice self-infllicted bathroom orgasm? Finally, he admitted, “Yes.”
- “Tonight needed to be a sneak attack. I had to seduce my fiancé, and in order to do that, I had to play dirty.”
- “It’s going to be fine, Bennett,” she was saying, words delivered in a way I’m sure I was supposed to find comforting, but only resulted in pissing me off. When things went wrong you screamed at someone. You became the loudest and squeakiest wheel; you let everyone know that anything less than perfect was unacceptable. You slammed doors and fired people. You didn’t stand there in your little blue Chanel suit and pearls and tell the cyborg bride and clueless groom that it would be fine.”
- “I am one day closer to being your husband. After that I will never deny you again.”