Blurb:
Pureblooded sylph Ophelia Flynn has a secret. She’s
married to her neighbor. They’ve been married nearly ten years, but no one can
ever know. She’s tired of the lie, and of hiding her feelings, but she’s
trapped.
Her entire life has been built around a single,
infuriating piece of paper.
Half-salamander Batson Crosse isn’t any more thrilled
with their living situation than his wife. All he wants is to tear down the
walls between them, but he doesn’t know if she feels the same. Disregarding the
contract could do more than cost his parents their mysterious alliance—it could
cost him Ophelia.
Their marriage comes into question when the couple is
faced with an unexpected betrayal. Lines are drawn and old hatreds pulled into
light as Batson and Ophelia find themselves forced to fight for the very
marriage once forced upon them.
But is that really what they want? Or are they better off
free?
Excerpt:
Ophelia
rubbed her fingers absently over the soft sleeve of her robe the next morning,
watching from her seat at the small dining table as Batson finished plating
their breakfast. He’d pulled on sweatpants but hadn’t bothered with a shirt,
and since he hadn’t run a comb through his hair, the mop of brown on his head
was even messier than usual. The combination was sinfully sexy. She smiled
quietly to herself. It was the rare moments like these that almost made her
forget their complicated lives. They almost never got to be so domestic. In
truth, that was probably what made it the hardest.
If it could always be like this … it might
be okay.
“Here
you go,” Batson said, setting a plate of steaming, delicious-smelling food
beside the cup of coffee she hadn’t yet touched. He set his own plate across
from her, next to his cup, and claimed his seat.
“This
looks amazing,” she said honestly. “I can’t believe how hungry I am.”
Batson
had two fingers curled around the handle of his cup when he paused and lifted a
brow in her direction. “You don’t want me to comment on that, do you?”
“Huh?”
Ophelia flushed. “No, I do not.” She ducked her face in an effort to hide the
stupid, strangely juvenile grin threatening her lips. This morning felt …
different, somehow. She couldn’t put her finger on it. Perhaps she was just in
a particularly good mood.
He
chuckled and for a moment, they focused on the meal and each other’s company.
He was half done with his breakfast before he quietly said, “So, I was thinking
of heading up the mountain for the weekend.”
Ophelia
paused in the process of cutting through egg. “Oh?” He didn’t usually camp this
time of year. But if it was just a weekend trip, it wouldn’t be too big of a
deal with his job—she imagined his parents wouldn’t put up a fuss over short
notice.
Batson
lifted his gaze from his plate. “It’d be better with some company.”
Oh. She lowered her fork as a sharp
stinging pain shot through her chest. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I promised Alice
I’d be around if she needed me.” Ophelia swallowed as the bigger reason reared
its ugly head. “Besides, there’s … the rule.”
A harsh
rush of air escaped him and Batson sat back in his chair. “Who would fucking
know? It’s not like I report in about everything we do, and I know you don’t,
either.”
Sure, he
was probably right. On some level, she’d known that for a long time. But… “We signed the contract, Batson.”
His
fists clenched over the table. “Screw the goddamn contract,” he said tightly.
Ophelia
looked up at him with widened eyes.
He
exhaled again and looked away. “Fuck.” He pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Look, if it’s that big a deal, we could cheat a little. Tomorrow night, I
could sleep on the ground. Hell, I could sleep in my damn scales if it’ll make
you feel better.”
She
cringed at the thought. It hadn’t taken her long at all to figure out how much
he disliked his alternate form. Every nature being had one and his, as his race
implied, was a literal salamander. Well, it looked like a normal salamander.
They could still breathe fire. That’s
beside the point. “I would never ask you to do that.”
“I
wouldn’t fucking care,” he said. “You’d have the airbed all to yourself.
Bullshit obligation met.”
Her lips
twitched despite the conversation. “We both know that’s not quite what it
means.”
“Who
gives a crap what it means?” he returned. “There’s no small print, no
subtitles, no layman’s translation.”
She bit
her lips and lowered her gaze. They’d argued over the contract sporadically
before but never in the sense of trying to get around it. More in an almost
desperate need to blame someone else for why, exactly, they’d let it get to
this point in the first place. This argument was different. Everything felt
different. She didn’t know how to handle it.
“Shit,”
Batson muttered. “Lia, don’t cry.” His chair scraped back. “I’m sorry, okay?
I’m not mad at you.” He knelt beside her and rested a hand on her thigh, beneath
the robe. “I’m mad, yeah, but not at you.”
Ophelia
drew a breath and met his searching stare. She tried for a small smile. “I’m …
confused,” she admitted. “Every time I think I understand things, it feels like
something changes.” She reached out and slipped her fingers into his hair. She
didn’t know why, but she loved his hair. It was surprisingly soft and cool, the
complete opposite of the rest of him. “That’s not always a bad thing, it’s
just, I don’t always know what to do about it.”
He
frowned and pulled her to her feet, into his arms, shoving her robe behind her
as he held her close. “You’re definitely not coming, huh?” He phrased it like a
question, but the defeat in his voice assured her he knew the answer.
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About Rose Wulf
Reader’s Choice Award Winning author Rose Wulf is a giant
romance fangirl. Hot, protective, occasionally barbaric heroes and spitfire
heroines are her favorites. Rose has been writing for as long as she can
remember and has no intentions on stopping anytime soon! The bonds between
characters have always captivated her, and as an author those are Rose’s
favorite things to play with—not always to the relief of her fictional babies!
Behind the scenes Rose is a quiet personality. She enjoys
spending her non-writing time with her German Shepherd, Shadow, her mom, and
her friends. Be it a fun game of Cards Against Humanity or a relaxing movie
night, Rose believes everything is better with company. As for her own romance,
she’s still searching for her hero—and hoping that, when she does find him,
he’ll be willing to cook!
Where you can find Rose:
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