Feb 132023
 

Dissolution (Eagle Elite, book 11) by Rachel Van Dyken

A mafia romance about family, loyalty, and love, Dissolution is the powerful conclusion to #1 New York Times Rachel Van Dyken’s Eagle Elite series.

“There is always a beginning—I will be their end.”

For ten years the Cosa Nostra has ruled with an iron fist in Chicago—their reign is about to end, and I’ll be the one to bring them down.

One more job for the Italian Americans, and I’m done.

Except this “one job” involves saving the boss’s brother and sister.

When things go horribly wrong, and a price is put on all of our heads from my Family back home—I’m forced to stay in Chicago, offer not just my gun but my protective services to the young girl I saved while also making sure nobody touches her.

Myself included.

My own Family has splintered.

Half want me dead, half want me alive, and the only people willing to protect me are the very ones I hate—her included.

I’m the Grim Reaper of the Sicilian mafia, and I bow to no one, not even her, so when she asks me to teach her to fight, when she tells me she wants to be made, I give in just so I can piss off the bosses.

Only I made one mistake.

I protect her from the world.

But who protects me from her?

One more battle remains between the families in Italy and in the States.

One more battle where I’m torn between both sides.

And I’m left protecting the one girl who has the potential to wreck us all.

It all started a decade ago at Eagle Elite University—the beginning.

It will end on the streets of Chicago—with me as the end.

I, Santino Sinacore, am their end.

**This may be the end of the OG Eagle Elite, but it is NOT the end of the Eagle Elite World!**

Publication date:

February 20, 2023.

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Oct 102022
 

The Perfects by Rachel Van Dyken

Find out what happens when their perfect image breaks in #1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken’s steamy new adult romance.

Everything was perfect.
Until it wasn’t.

Until my family took on a foster girl and placed her across the hall from me. A charity case to look good and a person who should have never existed in my world.
I kissed her to get her to stop talking, and then I kissed her again because I liked the taste of her words—I liked her.
It was our secret until we got caught—that night changed everything.

We became strangers living in the same house, seeing the same ghosts of our past mistakes, but I can’t stop thinking about us, about those forbidden moments.
I pretend to hate her, I tell her I’ll never forgive her, and then Quinn, my ex-best friend, steps into the picture. I can’t tell if he actually likes her or if he has a death wish and just likes pissing me off, but what do I say? Stay away from my step-sister?
She’s mine?
I’ve already had her?
Saying that to him would expose what we were and ruin everything.
We’re all three of us living multiple lies, and eventually, I know our ivory tower of perfection is going to come crashing down.

He knows my secrets.
I know his.
And now she knows both.

She wants.
He wants.
But I always—always get what I want.

And what I want is the girl, no matter what it may cost me.

Publication date:

October 11, 2022.

May 172022
 

Office Date by Rachel Van Dyken

#1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken delivers an over-the-top, laugh-out-loud romantic comedy with this hilarious, standalone new adult romance.

I’ve known Jack my entire life.
We went from being high school enemies to making out one fateful night at college to him being a giant D and making me cry.
Now we’re both interns at the same company.
Mortal enemy interns.

So when the chance pops up to finally beat him at something, to land my dream job plus a bonus? I don’t even blink.

I’m in. All in.
I mean, how hard can it be?
The managers say it’s like the Olympics for interns. All we have to do is play a few silly games, and if we win—our futures are unicorns and free wine for all.
The only problem? Jack’s my partner, and in order to win, we will have to get along.

As the stakes get higher, so does the heat, and damn is he hot when he’s… never mind. I can focus. I can totally focus and not make out with him or end up in his bed—again.
I can do it.
For the sake of my career, I can do it.
I just need a blindfold, sage, and a lot of prayers.

My job is the only thing I have right now. My focus is strong.
But when that stupid guy smiles, all I can think about is that one kiss, followed by the second, and I wonder if my priorities are in order or if I’m falling for the enemy once again.

Apr 112022
 

The Anti-Fan and the Idol by Rachel Van Dyken is A My Summer In Seoul Novella

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken comes a new story in her My Summer in Seoul series…

Make it or break it…

Or maybe just break them?

Ai-Ri has been training under YK Management in Korea for two years without any results. She doesn’t fit the typical mold for a successful K-POP idol image, literally down to her blood type. She has six more months before college entrance exams which means she only has six months to make it as an idol before her dreams are crushed.

Things take a turn when two of the most famous male idols break away from their group and decide to form their own co-ed group, a rarity.

And wonder of all wonders, they need one more girl.

It would be the perfect opportunity, except she hates them.

They are arrogant, entitled, rich little snobs who want the world to worship the ground they walk on. To make matters worse, the only reason they came to her was because they are desperate, which means she needs to prove herself even more.

Tempers and personalities collide when she’s forced to either accept the position or give up on her dream.

But what happens when you suddenly go from anti-fan and enemy number one to stuck in a love triangle between two boys you were born to hate but are somehow falling in love with? And will the group survive the heartbreak that follows when she finally makes her choice?

**Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you’ll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

Jan 232022
 

The Godparent Trap by Rachel Van Dyken

Life’s Too Short meets The Unhoneymooners in this sparkling, steamy, and swoon-worthy novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken, in which two sworn enemies must share house, home—and maybe their hearts—when they become co-parents after a sudden loss.

Colby’s living her best life: as a popular food blogger, she gets to fulfill her dreams of exploring the globe. But her world comes crashing down when a tragic accident leaves her co-guardian of her best friend’s two adorable children. Not only does she need to put down roots—fast—but she’ll be sharing custody with the one man she can’t stand sharing a continent with, let alone a house.

Accountant-extraordinaire Rip values rules and plans. But when he loses his sister and his best friend and becomes an insta-guardian all in one night, Rip sees his organized life imploding. What he really doesn’t need is his sister’s irresponsible, flighty—albeit kind and gorgeous—best friend making it worse.

Rip doesn’t trust Colby to take their new responsibilities seriously, while Colby can’t believe Rip thinks children will thrive under his rigid control. Yet soon Rip and Colby discover they need each other more than they hate each other. Could it be possible that following their hearts is just what their new little family needs?

Publication date:

July 19, 2022

Nov 292021
 

Broken Crown (Mafia Royals Book 5) by Rachel Van Dyken

From #1 New York Times bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken comes the final bestselling stand alone in the Mafia Royals Romances… Prepare yourself…
For utter carnage…

“Light is easy to love. Show me your darkness.” —R. Queen

Jamais Vu.
When you see something, you should know but don’t remember or recognize.
I felt this my entire life when I looked in the mirror. A boy growing into a man who’s supposed to fill the shoes of his father, follow in his footsteps without question.
And lead the Five Families.

It’s not the pressure that gets me.
It’s the fact that I’m not him. And I don’t have someone by my side to help me lead. So when a powerful mafia family from Italy gives us no choice but to join families by way of an arranged marriage…
I say yes.

But that’s not where my story begins.
Because I saw her.
I fell for her.
Long before they ever made the arrangement.

She loves someone else.
I love her.
So I go along with it in order to keep her by my side, knowing she’s seeing him.
Touching him.
Loving him.
Tolerating me.

Our love story is complicated.
I give her everything in hopes that one day she’ll give me a smile, a hug, something…
Soon I’ll be the most powerful man in the Cosa Nostra. I have everything but her until the tide shifts, and I have to rescue her from the very family who promised her everything.

I used to be afraid of my namesake.
Of my future.
But now?
Now, I’m giddy as hell to rain destruction on the families who oppose my rule. Who oppose what we represent.

I’ll destroy what I love most before I let them destroy her.
My crown was broken, singed, and torn the minute I was told she was promised to someone else before me, and I’ll die before letting him have her.

You want broken? Come at me.
I dare you.

Publication date:

January 4, 2022.

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Aug 102021
 

My Summer In Seoul by Rachel Van Dyken

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken comes a standalone new adult romance set in the competitive world of K-pop.

It’s not all K-dramas and happily ever afters.

Intern with Korea’s number one record label? Yes, please.
Find out there’s a huge scandal I need to help “manage”… not so much.
Add in the fact that I don’t recognize the “superstars” of the label and think they’re interns…
And my dream job quickly becomes more of a nightmare.

But I’m in Seoul, the one place that is beginning to feel more and more like home…
Except it isn’t home, and the drama surrounding the biggest K-pop group in the world, SWT, is consuming my every moment.
Spoiler alert. They hate me.
Everything I do is wrong: wrong clothes, wrong honorifics, wrong manners.
Till the leader of SWT takes pity on me.
But pity is dangerous when it comes from someone as beautiful as him.

Every SWT member is gorgeous, perfect, and cultivated to be an idol… lethal to a girl’s heart.
And sanity.
But fame plus a perfect face and voice don’t equal an easy life. As their comeback nears, the stakes rise higher.
Suicide watch…
Angry fans…
Threats…

All I want to do is survive.
But the price for survival might mean losing my heart.
And like a character in a K-drama, I’m not sure if there will be an actual happily ever after…
Or simply a lesson learned.

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May 202021
 

Falling For The Villain by M. Robinson & Rachel Van Dyken

From Wall Street Journal & USA Bestselling Author M. Robinson & #1 NYT Bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken comes a full length, standalone romantic suspense novel.

“You’re mine.”

Her life changed the moment I gave the order. Two simple words. One powerful meaning.

I waited until I couldn’t wait anymore.

My cruelty.
My pleasure.
My addiction to her.
My need to claim her.
Own her.

I’ve always been the hero in my own story and the villain in hers.

She. Was. Mine.

I just had to prove it to her.

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May 162021
 

Office Hate by Rachel Van Dyken

#1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken delivers a laugh-out-loud romantic comedy with this hilarious, standalone new adult romance.

Have you ever hated someone so much that you actually wondered if prison would be worth it?
I have.
And I had to bear witness to Mark’s cocky smile for four miserable years watching girl after girl tumble in and out of his bed while he had nothing but scorn for me.
After we graduated college and, thank God, finally parted ways, I thought that I was done having to deal with the enemy. And then I got fired, sending me careening right into a local bar—and Mark’s bed.

My nightmare came true as we both soon realized that we would be fighting for the same job at Emory Enterprises.
We had to live together under the same roof, and as the challenges got weirder and weirder, we got closer and closer—united by the trauma that is CEO Max Emory.
When I signed up for this internship, I envisioned coffee runs, not gecko sitting—long story.
Soon one thing led to another, and somehow my enemy quickly turned into my best friend.

But what happens when the games are over? Furthermore, how do I tell the guy I used to hate that he owns my heart when I wasn’t even aware I’d given it away?

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Mar 302021
 

Fallen Royal (Mafia Royals Book 4) by Rachel Van Dyken

A mafia romance about betrayal and faith by Rachel Van Dyken, the number one New York Times bestselling author of the Eagle Elite series.

“The truth may hurt for a little while, but a lie hurts forever.”—Ryan Bigge

I grew up knowing it would happen one day.
Believing that I would fall into my father’s footsteps and become a monster of my own making.

So I fought it.
I lived.
I loved.
I teased.
And then one day… I destroyed.
And realized I loved the pain.
Obsessed over the feeling.
So I cut again and again and again.

She saw my rage, my madness, and tried to stop me from destroying myself, and I hated her for it, pushing her away past the point of no return.
Izzy Abandonato was supposed to be mine.
But there are some things people can never come back from. I hurt her, she hurt me, and now I’m living a lie. Telling the ones I love that I’m on one side when for years I’ve been forced to play both.

I’m not the hero.
I’m the villain.
And I may single-handedly bring down the Cosa Nostra—by default.

I, Maksim Sinacore, will have my vengeance.
I will win her back.
Even if it means I have to kill everyone in my path.
The pain masks the betrayal.
I never realized that one day—I’d be the very rat that I hated. That I was sent to kill. But once you’re deep in a lie—you’ll do anything to hide the truth.

She fell for the bad one.
She fell for the sinner.
So why does that make me smile?
Publication date : July 22, 2021

Oct 182020
 

MVP by Rachel Van Dyken

From #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken comes a story about losing everything only to find it again…

I was the golden boy.
America’s Quarterback.
I was everything to everyone. Always available. Solid.
I can remember how something felt wrong that day.
And I haven’t been able to get that feeling to go away.
Not when I buried my child.
Not when my fiancé looked at me like I’d been the reason for it all.
Not when I look in the mirror and scream at the top of my lungs.

Football kept me sane.
But I’ve lost everything.
And then I got a phone call.
She was in an accident.
She remembered nothing.
A gentleman wouldn’t fight for her, wouldn’t remind her of the pain.
So, I let her go.
I let her live her happily ever after and I took all the darkness,
all the pain, all the anger.
Only, the universe had a sick sense of humor.
She bumped into me.
She pursued me.
The beautiful woman I used to call mine.
She said she wanted to make me smile.
She didn’t know she’s the reason I stopped.

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Oct 162020
 

Destructive King (Mafia Royals #3) by Rachel Van Dyken

“I’m sorry for your loss.” I would rather be tortured for an eternity than hear those damn words from one more person, as if Claire, my dead fiance, was a cell phone or car keys.
How about, I’m sorry your life is over.
I’m sorry you want to die too.
I’m sorry you see her in your dreams and wake up only to relive the nightmare.
I’m supposed to be the strongest of them all. Ash Abandonato, ruler, assassin, made man, brother, friend—instead, I hurt everyone I touch in hopes that they’ll feel even a sliver of the pain that bears down on my shoulders.
I didn’t lose.
It was taken from me.
And it’s all her fault, Annie Smith.
I daydream about her death.
And then I close my eyes, and I see her soft smile. I feel her touch, her kiss—it was a mistake what we did that night, but I can’t take it back, and now she’s under my father’s protection—my protection.
My worst enemy.
The woman I’m the most attracted to.
I can’t decide if I want to strangle her or kiss her, and now that she’s stuck in my life, my only goal is to make her feel the same loss I do and destroy her in the process.
I’ll trick her with my touch.
Seduce her with my kiss.
And in the end, when my enemy is at her most vulnerable—I’ll bring down an entire Empire and continue my reign as King.
Bow down, I’ll say as I bring the Five Families to their knees.
Blood in.
Never out.
Damned.
Publication Date: January 12, 2021.

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Sep 162020
 

Mafia Casanova by M. Robinson & Rachel Van Dyken

From Wall Street Journal & USA Bestselling Author M. Robinson & #1 NYT Bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken comes a full length, standalone romantic suspense novel

Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?

Can you get anymore cliche? I’d heard that damn phrase my entire life.
Most of the time, it was when a woman was mid-orgasm—or, when I was about to take someone’s life.
You see, we all have our demons.
Apparently, my name was mine. Though it didn’t help me get my answers any faster.

I nodded when I was supposed to.
I smirked when I needed to.
I complimented when the timing was right.
Then… I’d send them to hell after giving them nothing but heaven.
I should’ve felt guilt.
I didn’t.
Because I was good at what I did.

Making people believe what I wanted them to was an art I perfected. In a world where nothing mattered but staying at the top, I made sure no one slipped through my fingers.
Except for her.
She was gorgeous.
One might say she was the female version of me.
I lost her once.
I wouldn’t lose twice.

Now was the time…

To let the games begin.
Publication Date : November 17, 2020

Excerpt Mafia Casanova by M. Robinson & Rachel Van Dyken

Panic seized my chest as the thought continued to bulldoze through my brain—through my body.
She was engaged.
Getting married.
Becoming Mrs. Sinacore.
It was my worst nightmare come to life. I’d single-handedly just lost both my brother and the love of my life in one hard blow.
More pain.
More heartbreak.
It was unfair.
Wrong.
So fucking wrong.
“That’s not fair,” she challenged, strong and determined. “What did you want me to do? Huh? Say no?”
I looked her up and down. “I think the better question is, did you want to say yes?”
“Romeo…”
“I’m waiting.”
“Please don’t make me answer that.”
“If you don’t then I’ll never know.”
In one breath, she confirmed, “You know.”
I scoffed out a snide chuckle, standing up. “I need to go.”
“You’re drunk.”
“No shit. It’s why I need to go before I do something I’ll regret.”
“And what’s that?”
“Kiss you. Fuck you. Claim you.”
She gasped, not expecting me to say that.
“See, I need to fucking go before I hurt my brother.”
“And what about me? What about hurting me?” She reached for my arm, her fingertips pressing into my wrist. “Do my feelings not matter?”
I jerked away from her touch. “Says the women who said yes to my brother.”
She winced, not trying to hide it. Though it was useless if she tried to hide anything from me.
“You’re being unfair. You’re the one who’s always treated me like nothing but a friend.”
“Tristian loves you.”
“And you, Romeo?”
She spoke with conviction, almost knocking me on my ass…
“Do you love me?”

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Jun 092020
 

Mafia King by Rachel Van Dyken (A Mafia Royals Novella)

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken comes a new story in her Mafia Royals series…

One of the first rules they give you when you’re undercover—never fall for the enemy.
I didn’t just fall for the enemy.
I became what I was supposed to hate.
What’s worse: I fell in love with one.
I live a double life, and both sides know it’s only a matter of time before I’m forced to choose.
Rebirth through mafia blood.
Or death at the hands of the very government I swore to protect.
I have one more job before my time’s up.
I just wish it was anything but babysitting a mafia princess who’s half my size but knows how to pack such a brutal punch I worry about my ability to have children.
Tin’s small but terrifying.
And I’m her new bodyguard while we all go on a much-needed vacation.
I just have to stick to the plan.
And remember rule number one.
And stop kissing her.

**Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you’ll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

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May 302020
 

Scandalous Prince (Mafia Royals #2) by Rachel Van Dyken

A mafia romance about secrets and soulmates by Rachel Van Dyken, the number one New York Times bestselling author of the Eagle Elite series.

The Woods are Lovely, dark, and deep, but I have promises to keep and miles to go, before I sleep —Robert Frost

I was born in secrecy for a purpose nobody will tell me, only that I’m mafia royalty and should be protected. I promised to take the secret to my grave until I realized the very secret that could save her would damn her in the process.
She didn’t know it was me.
She didn’t know that I had no choice and would do it again and again to save her.
I may as well as have given her the mark on her finger.
The one that shows where her loyalty must lie.
Because we don’t sin in silence.
And eventually, you have to pay up what you owe.
My need to protect her turned into a lie to save her.
And when she found out—I turned in to the very monster I was trying to protect her from.
Watching Violet Abandonato walk out of my life was like a knife to the chest, a wound that refused to heal.
The bosses sent me to save her, thinking our friendship would bring her back.
But what they don’t know is that I was the one that destroyed her innocence.
We both carry scars.
But if all I can have is her hate for as long as I breathe.
I’ll take it.
Because at the end of the day, I should burn in Hell for ever thinking Chase Abandonato’s perfect angel would pick me—over her perfect life.
“I broke you,” I confessed.
“The worst part… is that you liked it,” she snapped right back.
She wasn’t wrong.
Welcome to the second generation of the mafia, may the best man or woman, be left standing.
May God bless our tainted souls.
Publication Date: September 22, 2020

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May 152020
 

Surrender (Seaside Pictures Book 4) by Rachel Van Dyken

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken comes the next standalone rockstar romance in her Seaside Pictures series…

I’ve always been pretty bad about following the rules.
And my protégé only gave me one.
Stop hitting on his mom.
But I can’t stop thinking about her, and as a famous rockstar, I’ve always gotten what I wanted.
One week. I asked for one week of her time, where I would help Bronte get her groove back.
And then I’d walk out of her life the way I came storming in—through her front door.
The only problem is, now that I’ve had a taste, I’ve developed another addiction—her.
It doesn’t help that all of my bandmates are finally settling down and getting married, but I’ve always sworn never to surrender.
Until her.
Publication Date: June 23, 2020

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Apr 142020
 

Provoke: A Seaside Pictures Novella by Rachel Van Dyken

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken comes a new story in her Seaside Pictures series…

The music industry called me a savant at age sixteen when I uploaded my first video and gained instant fame. And then Drew Amherst of Adrenaline became my mentor, and my career took off.

Everything was great.

Until tragedy struck, and I wondered if I’d ever be able to perform again. I fought back, but all it took was a falling light to bring it all back to the fore. So, I walked away. Because I knew it wasn’t just stage fright. It was so much more.

The only problem?

Drew and the guys are counting on me. If I can’t combat the crippling anxiety threatening to kill me, I might lose more than I ever dreamed of.

Enter Piper Rayne, life coach, with her bullshit about empowerment, rainbows, and butterflies. She smiles all the damn time, and I’m ninety-nine percent sure there’s not a problem she can’t solve.

Until me.

She was given twenty-one days to fix me. To make me see what’s important. What’s real. The problem is, all I can see now is her. The sexy woman who pushes me. Provokes me.

Only time will tell if she’s able to do her job—and I can make her mine.

**Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you’ll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

Excerpt:

“Braden!” Mom yelled for me.

I made a face at my computer. “I’m going to be dead if she heard me. Also, hi, Mom. I assume you’re watching my live feed. Hey, we’re out of Pringles so—”

She stormed into my room, swatted me on the head with an empty can of Pringles, then barreled back out.

“Love you, Ma!” I called over my shoulder.

“Love you too!” she yelled.

I put my hand on my heart. “All right, let’s do this.”

I had been singing the shit out of my newest song. Within a day of its first airing, it had garnered over two million views. Actually small by comparison to my biggest hit, which had over forty million.

My channel was doing so well that my mom was able to stay home with my little sisters, which just made me feel like the man of the house—I was somehow contributing since my loser dad stopped sending child support eons ago.

I closed up for the night and headed downstairs just as the doorbell rang.

“Braden, can you get that?” Mom said from the kitchen. “I’m elbow-deep in chicken.”

“Ew, Mom, take your fetishes elsewhere.”

A curse and then, “Braden, I swear I’m going to put naked chickens in your bed if you say something about that on your channel.”

I paused for effect and then said. “I’ll think about it.”

“Braden!”

I busted out laughing as the doorbell rang again. “Hold your ass, man.”

I jerked open the door and nearly died when Drew Amhurst, Adrenaline’s front man and all-around A-list rock star stood there, sunglasses low on his nose, and both hands on his ass, smirking. “Like this, bro? Or am I doing it wrong?”

I grinned. “Did we just become best friends?”

“I’d shake your hand but you told me to hold my ass.”

“Brothers don’t shake hands.” It totally slipped from my mouth. Before I knew what was happening, Drew charged me, pulled me in for a tight hug, kissed both my cheeks like we were Italian or something, and then set me down.

“Brothers hug.”

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Apr 042020
 

Royal Bully (Mafia Royals) by Rachel Van Dyken

The prequel to the much anticipated Mafia Royals Romances…

Something dark this way comes.
He’s gorgeous, mean, and mine.
He catches me dreaming about him, and then just like my dream, he decides to make me his.
I should have said no when he asked me to swear fealty to him.
The knife clued me in first.
The blood second.
And third, it was the blessing of the most famous mafia bosses in the known world as they sat around the dinner table and told me that I had no choice but to join.
Because they knew my secrets.
And running meant I was nothing more than target practice.
I said yes, because of my bully.
And he told me he’d keep me safe.
But who keeps me safe from him?

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Mar 282020
 

The Matchmaker’s Replacement (Wingmen Inc. #2) by Rachel Van Dyken

Wingman rule number two: never reveal how much you want them.

Lex hates Gabi. Gabi hates Lex. But, hey, at least the hate is mutual, right? All Lex has to do is survive the next few weeks training Gabi in all the ways of Wingmen Inc. and then he can be done with her. But now that they have to work together, the sexual tension and fighting is off the charts. He isn’t sure if he wants to strangle her or throw her against the nearest sturdy table and have his way with her.

But Gabi has a secret, something she’s keeping from not just her best friend but her nemesis too. Lines are blurred as Lex becomes less the villain she’s always painted him to be…and starts turning into something more. Gabi has always hated the way she’s been just a little bit attracted to him—no computer-science major should have that nice of a body or look that good in glasses—but “Lex Luthor” is an evil womanizer. He’s dangerous. Gabi should stay far, far away.

Then again, she’s always wanted a little danger.

Excerpt The Matchmaker’s Replacement (Wingmen Inc. #2) by Rachel Van Dyken

I hated him.

HATED him.

Hate, hate, hate. I chanted the words to myself that very next morning as I stomped toward his ridiculously expensive house, next to the ridiculously nice lake, with his ridiculously loud red Mercedes parked out front. Jackass.

I’d be doing society a favor if I set it on fire.

Seriously.

The thing was probably filled with so much bodily fluid and disease that if he got in a car accident he’d infect the entire freeway and start a citywide epidemic.

I shuddered.

I compartmentalized Lex into two boxes.

The first box was Childhood Lex, the friend who used to hang out with Ian and me before he moved across town, never to be seen again. He used to ride with me to school, and when I was sick he gave me my own box of Kleenex—never mind that he stole it from his teacher’s desk. The point is, Childhood Lex was a keeper.

Box number two?

Asshole Lex, also known as the version I was walking toward. The Lex I met when I was eighteen, who momentarily stunned me speechless with his godlike beauty, had been a figment of my overactive, sad, hormone-riddled imagination.

On the outside? The perfect man.

With a brooding and sultry smile.

Biceps the size of my head.

Who gave me the distinct feeling that if I ran my hands over his buzzed hair I’d orgasm before he even touched me.

Whatever. I was over it. So over it.

A lot of people had stupid crushes when they were eighteen, right?

Now all I saw when I looked into his stormy blue eyes was syph or the clap, and that was being generous. The dude was a walking STD and seriously tried every nerve I had. He was an ass. Plain and simple, no sugar coating. He was the type of guy who’d tell a chick that she looked fat in a dress or who refused to share the communal breadbasket. See! He couldn’t even adhere to typical manners during mealtime! Just thinking about him had me tied up in knots.

Last year, when I went shopping and stupidly invited Ian along—which of course meant Lex had to come—I was told in no uncertain terms that if I would just stop drinking chocolate milk in the morning I’d be able to fit into a smaller size.

He’d smiled.

His dimples had deepened.

He’d even crossed his arms as if to say, Look, I did you a favor, pat me on the back.

Instead I had kicked him in the balls and tried to give him a black eye, clocking Ian in the face.

My point? Lex. Was. The. Devil.

I made a point of only hanging out with Lex when absolutely necessary, and even then I almost always had Ian as a buffer. But now that he was playing love nest with my ex-roomie, Blake? Well, I was on my own.

Lex opened the door after my third aggressive knock. Black sweatpants hung low on his hips, a vintage Mariners shirt fell open around his neck, and he was wearing black-framed glasses that made his eyes more appealing than should be legal.

“Sunshine,” he said, his smirk deepening as he crossed his burly arms over his chest.

“Dickhead.” I smiled sweetly. “New glasses? They look thicker than last time.”

“Better to see you with.” He leaned forward, his eyes narrowing into tiny slits. “There they are.” He reached for one of my boobs.

I slapped his hand away so hard my palm stung.

“Probably not the best way to treat your new male clients.” He shook his hand and turned towards the living room leaving the door wide open. Manners were completely lost on him.

Gritting my teeth, I slammed the door behind me and took off my shoes because I knew if I didn’t he’d give me hell.

He was a freak like that.

For as much ass as he got, it was shocking how much Lysol he used around the house. His clothes were never wrinkled; everything was pristine.

Even his breath.

Damn him.

He drank coffee like a Starbucks employee but never had coffee breath.

It was almost painful, staring him in the face, knowing that everything on the outside appeared perfect—but didn’t match the inside at all, not even close!

Beauty like Lex’s was dangerous and wickedly tempting, like something out of a paranormal romance novel. Sometimes, at night, when I dreamed of Lex getting hit by a car, I imagined him as a vampire roaming the streets in his favorite black sweats, shirtless, shimmering under the streetlights, just waiting for whores to line up so he could take a few bites.

A pencil flew by my head.

“Yo.” Lex’s eyebrows shot up. “We have a lot of work to do if we’re going to get you ready for the next two clients. Daydream about chicks on your own time.”

“I’m not a lesbian.”

He bit on his bottom lip, sinking back in his chair as his eyes slowly roamed from my mismatched socks all the way up to my head. “Okay, whatever you say, Gabs.”

I will not commit homicide. I will not commit homicide. “You know,” I said as I tossed my purse onto the table, “it’s offensive that you assume all lesbians dress like crap.” So what? I was wearing a ratty white T-shirt and ripped jeans, and I was pretty sure I still had mascara on from the night before. It was my Lex repellant. He hated sloppiness.

“Offensive.” He nodded. “Also true . . .” He used the spare pencil from behind his ear to slide my purse over to the farthest side of the table. “It wouldn’t kill you to wear something other than jeans and T-shirts, Gabs.” He sighed. “Say it with me: dresssss—”

I grabbed the pencil from his hand, broke it into two pieces, and handed them back to him. “I wear dresses, just not for you. Dresses are your kryptonite, especially short black ones. I refuse to be a part of your ‘shower time.’”

He snorted. “You wish.”

“Yes. Every night when I go to sleep I pray for Lex to dream of me while he jerks off because yet another girl refused to follow his instructions in bed : ‘Damn it, use the manual!’” I said, using my best imitation of Lex’s voice. I’d only heard him shout instructions to a girl once, and it had scarred me for life. What the hell are you doing? Do I look like I’m satisfied? There’s a diagram! Ugh.

Lex rolled his eyes. “Very funny, and the manual is there for a reason. Do you even know how many chicks get confused when I call out sexual positions? It’s like, get there faster, you know?”

My feelings were torn between fascination and disgust. “So,” I changed the subject. “Let’s train, because I have about ten years worth of Organic Chem homework.”

Lex sighed and held out his hand.

“No.” I crossed my arms. “I don’t need help.”

Okay, I needed help, desperately needed help, and Lex wasn’t just passably smart but a certified genius, at least when he applied himself. I refused to ask him to go over my homework just because Organic Chem was, to me, like reading a foreign language.

He cleared his throat.

I didn’t move.

Finally, he stood, slowly walked over to the end of the table, and fished the chem book from my oversized purse. “What chapter?”

“Lex—”

“If I’m teaching you Organic Chem, at least say Professor Lex.”

“Listen very closely, Lex.” I went over and jerked my book out of his hands. “I didn’t need your help last year when I almost failed biology, and I sure as hell don’t need your help now. Let’s just get this training done so I can go home and suffer in silence, alright?”

“Fine.” He dropped my book against the table and then, without warning, grabbed me by my shoulders and pushed me against the counter that bordered the kitchen. My butt hit the cupboard . “Up until now we’ve been helping people find their perfect match. Basically acting like a wingman so that the idiots of this world see the girl who’s been standing in front of them all along .”

Why was he standing so close? Did we have to be touching? I told my body not to respond to his proximity, but Lex was magnetic, even if every part of him was evil. My brain was having trouble functioning while his large palms were pressed into the tops of my shoulders.

“Okay.” I swallowed. “And now that you’re allowing guys to become clients of Wingmen Inc., I basically do the same thing. Give them confidence, help them capture the one girl who’s always seen them as the friend—or worse, who they’ve been invisible to.”

“What’s that like, I wonder?” Lex still didn’t release me. “Being invisible . . . Maybe next time a dude ignores you, take notes.”

And another insult.

“Lex.” I huffed out a breath. “Just get on with it.”

“Right.” His eyes momentarily locked on mine before he rubbed the bridge of his nose where his glasses were perched. It was not sexy. It wasn’t. Really. That. Sexy. “So whenever we take on a new client, we give them a list of questions, meet them in a public place, and then use the power of human emotions like jealousy and curiosity to get the other person interested. That’s where you come in. If another girl sees our client as desirable, he becomes desirable.”

“That easy?”

“Sort of.” Lex leaned forward. “But you can’t suck.”

“Suck?”

“At anything.” His lips hovered near my mouth. He was starting to freak me out. I wanted to run away, but I was pinned.

“Lex, if you kiss me I will bite your tongue off. I swear.”

“If I was actually kissing you”—Lex released one of my shoulders and placed a finger against my mouth—“you’d know it. This, my frumpy friend, is training.”

His lips descended.

They pressed against mine, then pulled back. “Yeah.” He shook his head. “Gabs, you’re going to need to open your mouth a bit more. Guys are stupid. They always assume that more tongue means better kissing, when the opposite is true, but you still need to have your lips parted, not locked down like Fort Knox.”

“What’s happening?” I tried to push away from him.

Lex rolled his eyes. “Gabs, believe me, this is all business. You can even keep your hand on my junk the whole time.”

“What!” I roared.

“So you know without a doubt that nothing about you turns me on.” He grinned menacingly. “Seriously, I don’t mind.”

“I do!”

“Hey!” He chuckled. “I was just trying to help.”

“Grabbing your penis is not the answer, Lex!”

“Weird, because it so often is.”

“I hate today.”

“Is it the rain?” He frowned.

“It’s not—”

“It is.”

“Stop that!” I shoved him. “Hurry up and grade my kissing skills so I can go home and study.”

“Kissing, hand holding, hugging, cuddling, laughing, winking—just a few things you need to master.” He was firing off so many horrible, body-numbing words.

“Just hurry up,” I grumbled in a defeated voice as I tried to block out the fact that he was a good-looking ass who offended me with every single breath he took.

“Ah . . .” Lex held up his hand. “One never hurries a kiss.”

“What about a passionate kiss?”

“A passionate kiss isn’t hurried, it’s frenzied. Damn, don’t you know anything?”

Heat swamped my cheeks.

“How many guys have you kissed, Gabs?”

“Plenty!” Five. I’d kissed five.

“You blush down your neck when you lie.” Lex cupped my chin and then brought his lips down against mine again. “Part.”

Sighing against his mouth, I relaxed my lips while his slid across.

He pulled back, wearing a frown of irritation. “A bit more, Gabs. Guys want access.”

I kept my eyes open.

So did he.

I didn’t want him assuming I was into it, which was probably his exact line of thinking. Only keeping my eyes open was an entirely raw experience, watching him watch me while I felt him.

I shivered.

“Cold?” That stupid smirk was back.

“Frigid.” I glared, putting myself down before he had a chance to.

“You read my mind.” He nodded seriously. “Now stop being a bitch, and let me teach you how to kiss.”

“I know how to kiss!” I don’t know what came over me—maybe it was the need to prove myself, or possibly it was just stress over the entire situation. Needing to stay in school and hating that he was the answer, I wrapped my arms around his neck and jumped, my hips colliding with his as I mauled his mouth with as much passion as I could conjure up, this time closing my eyes and putting everything I had into it.

With a growl, Lex pushed me back against the countertop. As my butt collided with the edge, his tongue plunged into my mouth and his hands dug into my hair, pulling it free from its ponytail while he changed positions his lips demanding a punishing kiss from a different angle as his he gave my hair a harder tug back.

I grasped at his T-shirt, pulling him closer and nearly falling backward into the sink.

And then, just when I was in danger of losing myself to the kiss that would probably be the best kiss of my life, I bit down on his bottom lip.

That move didn’t work out the way I’d planned, not at all. In my head it was smart. I’d piss him off, get him to pull back and leave me alone.

It did nothing of the sort.

Nothing of the sort at] all.

With a hiss he pulled back, fire blazing in his eyes. For a split second that seemed to go on for an eternity, he hovered and I waited, both of us on the edge of something. He wet his lips, I mimicked the movement, and then, like a snake, he struck. His mouth fused to mine in a punishing kiss, one that bruised my mouth while imprinting its essence on my soul.

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Mar 282020
 

The Bachelor Auction (The Bachelors of Arizona #1) by Rachel Van Dyken

Cinderella never had to deal with this crap.

Jane isn’t entirely sure that Cinderella got such a raw deal. Sure, she had a rough start but didn’t she eventually land a prince and a happily-ever-after? Meanwhile, Jane is busy waiting on her demanding, entitled sisters, running her cleaning business, and . . . yep, not a prince in sight. That is, until a party and a broken shoe incident leave Jane wondering if princes—or at least, a certain deliciously hunky billionaire—maybe do exist.

Except Brock Wellington isn’t anyone’s dream guy. A prince would never agree to be auctioned off in marriage to the highest bidder. Or act like an arrogant jerk—even if that is just a façade. Now, as Brock is waiting for the auction chopping block, he figures it’s karmic retribution that he’s tempted by a sexy, sassy woman he can’t have. But while he and Jane may not get a fairy tale ending, maybe they can indulge in a little bit of fantasy . . .

Excerpt The Bachelor Auction (The Bachelors of Arizona #1) by Rachel Van Dyken

Thick wavy auburn hair fell in disarray over his forehead. It was lush, shiny, perfect. Were guys born with hair like that? Or was his somehow chemically engineered? His full lips pressed together in a secret smile as the equally handsome man next to him said something, then erupted in laughter.

The first man stiffened, then shook his head. His broad shoulders seemed to grow tight as a drum. A slight tic in his jaw was the only clue that he was irritated or maybe outright angry.

And then his shoulders slumped as he was handed another drink and then another.

Nervous. He must be nervous. But what could a man like that possibly have to be nervous about?

He easily towered over most of the men in attendance. Suddenly his posture changed, then he smiled.

Jane felt her mouth drop open in shock.

Dazzling.

He was…like a duke or a lord or a prince from a storybook. Clearly, she read too many romance novels, but his entire presence demanded attention; screamed authority, importance, and sex. Lots and lots of sex.

Yes, his virility was a tangible thing, as if she could reach out and grasp it with her fingertips.

“What are you doing?” Esmeralda yelled in her right ear, interrupting her blatant sexual fantasy about a complete stranger. Great. That’s what her life had come to. And sadly? It was the most fun she’d had all night.

Jane turned to Esmeralda, prayed for patience, and answered. “Sorry, I was just thinking.”

“You’re so boring.” Esmeralda rolled her eyes. “No wonder you got dumped.”

Another fun fact? Esmeralda was mean when she was drunk.

The reminder of the breakup burned like acid.

It had been a year ago, not that it mattered. It still hurt that the last guy she’d dated had told her that although she was cute, she wasn’t really doing it for him anymore.

Right. Doing it.

Maybe that was because she hadn’t done anything for him or with him, and he found that lacking. But they’d only dated for a few weeks. Did normal girls do that? Put out after a few weeks? Apparently.

She wasn’t normal.

But if that was normal, maybe she was better off being strange.

“Jane, are you even listening to me?” Esmeralda whined. “Essence needs you to dance next to her for a bit. I’m tired and tipsy. I want to sit. Plus your dress blends in enough that it won’t take attention away from her.”

No way. What? What had she just said?

Jane wrapped her arms around her middle. “I’m sorry, what?”

Without warning, Esmeralda grabbed Jane’s hand and jerked her toward the dance floor, causing Jane to lose her footing and crash directly into Esmeralda’s back. Then, like a domino, she slammed back into Essence.

Jane opened her mouth to shout out an apology, but Esmeralda was already too drunk to listen to reason. With determination in her eyes, she reached for the pearls at Jane’s neck but grabbed the fabric of the dress instead.

Her poorly sewn dress ripped instantly, causing the fabric to slink past her strapless bra. A diagonal slit split up her thigh almost all the way to her hip. In an effort to cover herself, she took a step and tripped, thanks to her clunky shoes.

And then she fell to the floor.

Hard.

Her sisters watched in horror—but neither of them offered a hand. They were probably kicking themselves for forcing her to come. Esmeralda leaned over but missed Jane’s shoulder by a mile, grabbing her hair and giving it a tug, which only made Jane wince harder.

Both sisters were completely tanked.

And she was less than two minutes away from being trampled by the other sweaty bodies around her.

She glanced up.

And into the eyes of the man she’d just been lusting after.

Oh God, the humiliation was complete.

That one glance told her he’d seen it all. She swallowed back the thickness building in her throat. Of course the only time he’d notice her would be when she’d ripped her dress and nearly took out a few guests on her way down to the dance floor.

The crowd gathered around her.

And the sexy man disappeared—probably off in search of a girl with perfect hair, perfect teeth, perfect clothes.

She really should have stayed home.

Tears filled her eyes as a heel pressed into her right hand. With a jerk she tugged her hand free, struggling to get up to stand on her wobbly feet, when suddenly she was pulled to a standing position and then swept up in strong arms.

Jane’s eyes were still so blurry from unshed tears she couldn’t make out the man’s face as he carried her out of the crowd.

He smelled like heaven.

She fought the insane urge to press her face against his chest and just…close her eyes.

Because he felt safe.

Pathetic, when a stranger’s arms provided more safety than her own family. And yet he felt…right.

In a world where things for the past ten years had felt so wrong.

He felt right.

Maybe she’d had too much champagne.

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