The alarm went off, blaring in my ear, and I groaned as I slapped my hand down on it. I stared at the time, sighing as I registered it was Monday and we really did have to get up.Going back to work was rough. Being on vacation had been a heaven of sorts, and reality was brutal, making me appreciate every moment away that much more.Granted, it wasn’t all bad—Lila was with me. My wife.“Come on, get up,” I said as I yawned, swinging my legs over the edge of the bed and stretching.She whimpered, face down in her pillow. “Only if you promise Starbucks.”I snickered. “Trust me, baby, I don’t want to leave this bed either. And I promise we’ll stop.”Her head tilted up and she huffed, blowing the wild strands of hair from her face. She was pouty and grumpy, making her fucking adorable and my urge to hug her ferocious.With a growl and a graceless stiffness, I jumped on top of her. She squeaked, trapped beneath me. I nibbled at her neck, biting like an animal, making her writ
Later that day, I worked my way through an easier case file, when my email pinged with a new message from Lawrence, the prosecutor in Adam’s case. My eyes scanned over the message, and I cursed. Not news I needed to hear after such a wonderful week in paradise.My knee bounced as I stared at the screen. The news was fucking up all of our hopes. It seemed that a dark cloud was now crashing down on us. I stood, throwing the door open and walking as fast as I could down the hall. I slammed my hand down on the open door, startling both the occupants of the large office.Lila stared up at me. “Nate?”“We need to take a break.”My agitation must have been obvious, because she nodded and locked her computer. She looked over to Owen as she grabbed her jacket and swung it on. “I’ll be back.”My fingers tangled with hers as soon as she reached me, and I practically dragged her down the hall. I pressed the call button for the elevator over and over, but she didn’t say a word. One fin
“That’s it, Nathan!” Jared, my instructor, said, slapping his padded, gloved hands together. “Again.”Left, right, left, elbow, knee—breathe and repeat. Ten times each side. I was counting in the front of my mind, but in the back I was going over everything Noah had told us over dinner.Dirty cops were being bribed by Marconi to turn a blind eye and destroy evidence in a new case against him. He’d hired men to follow around those involved in the case, including me. The longer I thought about it, the more my anxiety grew, because they could already know about my marriage.I’d put Lila in danger.I punched at Jared’s gloved hand, channeling the crippling fear that was starting to creep in. Over and over, harder and harder I threw my body against him. My muscles protested, but I couldn’t stop—I needed the outlet before I spun out. I couldn’t hear anything but the thoughts rattling around in my head.Would they come after us? Would I be able to protect Lila? What happened if I
Ever since we’d talked to Noah, I’d been on edge. My life was turning into a happy place again, but the threat I lived with for years was reawakening, trying to ruin it all. The vibrating anxiety pumped through my veins again, and the beast inside me prowled, growling at me to take Lila and run.Matters were made worse when an old, familiar tingling sensation from someone watching me reared their forgotten head. I wasn’t certain, but it wasn’t the first time since the New Year it’d happened, and now I knew why.Lila’s eyes watched me, probably waiting for me to burst. Not that I could blame her—I knew I was losing control. I could only guess how I looked on the outside. It was so bad that Darren wanted me to try meditation.Meditation.Fuck that. They only meditation I needed was my dick in Lila’s pussy. It was the only way to calm my ass down. Unfortunately, getting off inside and on my wife wasn’t providing the relief it used to. I wasn’t getting the mind-wiping hours of
I chuckled to myself, earning a quizzical look from Lila.“What?”“Your hair is a beautiful fucking mess.”She reached up and her fingers combed through it, trying to straighten it and get out the knots I’d made. My wife looked thoroughly sexed—a look I loved to see her wear. Unfortunately, we were at the office and had to at least look presentable before we opened the door to the sixth floor conference room.The quiet little corner became our occasional afternoon delight spot. With the trial closing in, we both needed the physical reassurance and calm that came from touching each other.“I was thinking about having roasted chicken breast and red potatoes for dinner.”I thought it over as I pushed the tails of my dress shirt back into my slacks. “Sounds pretty good. Maybe some salad as well. My stomach hasn’t been right since that weird Indian place Drew took us to on Monday.” She smiled, laughing to herself. “What?”She shook her head. “Nothing.”I threw my jacket back
When the alarm went off, neither of us moved to turn off the blaring sound. We stared at each other, gathering up the strength to leave the bed. Knowing that as soon as the alarm was silent, we had to get ready.She sighed and curled against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, wishing I could keep her there—that she didn’t have to go through what was coming.The volume of the alarm grew to an almost deafening level, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I slapped down on the snooze button to shut it up.Five more minutes.I went back to my position of trying to pull her inside me. When time was up, we reluctantly separated and moved to get up.A low pressure front had come through overnight, and we both groaned in pain. The first steps were rough—my leg didn’t want to move right. Another reminder of what lay beneath the scars all over my body. Lila was the same, and her hand covered the opposite wrist.My whole body ached and was stiff. Mornings like this sucked and made an
As I was led into the courtroom, I couldn’t help but look around. I locked onto Adam, and he actually looked reserved. After everything Lila told me, I scoffed at his act. It was probably advice from his lawyer—to look repentant in front of the jury.They’d dressed him up in a suit, shaved him, cut his hair—anything to make him look like a good boy. It was the way he held himself and the expressions on his face that gave him away.It was odd being on the other side of the bench. I was used to being in front of the judge, not beside him. I took a deep breath to even myself out and looked at Lawrence. My hands gripped the chair in an effort to keep me calm as I braced to go through the usual retelling of events from my eyes.Lawrence walked to the center of the floor. “Why were you going over to Delilah’s house that night?”“We were going to have dinner.”He looked around the room, trying not to focus solely on me. “Did you eat together every night?”“Yes.”“Did you notice
We sat at a table in Lila’s favorite hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant a half hour later. I ordered her a margarita—a well-deserved drink after the morning we’d experienced. We were supposed to be having a celebration of our victory, but instead we sat in the booth with a somber aura, and I was icing my aching knuckles.She was lost in thought, but not vacant or detached. I was happy with that, and the fact she didn’t need my help but only my presence to pull her from the debilitating fear that took hold of her thanks to that asshole father of hers opening his mouth.She blew through her first drink in minutes, and I found myself shoving the chips and salsa at her before I had a drunk on my hands. After all, I had plans.“Baby, you need to slow down.”Her eyes flipped up, almost as if she was just noticing me, and her lips twitched. “Sorry, it’s just been a…day.”I nodded. “Lots of highs and lows.”She blew out a breath and dipped a chip in the queso I ordered. Her teet
Welcome to the Cameo HotelI get what I want.When I walked through the door of the Cameo Hotel I didn’t expect such a beauty to be working the front desk.The effect she has on me is intense, and I make her life a living hell because of it.I love her spirit, her internal defiance when completing the most inane task I assign her. My two week stay has turned into unending, just to be near her.She’s under my every command if she wants to keep me happy.There’s one last thing I want.Her.Find out more hereBecoming Mrs. LockwoodEvery girl has dreams of meeting Prince Charming, or at least I know I did.A fairy tale-like meeting of love at first site.Real life and fairy tales are very different.I’m just a small town Indiana girl that had a chance encounter with one of Hollywood’s golden boys. You may think you know where this story goes—not even close.Life is different. Marriage is hard. It’s even
K.I. Lynn is the USA Today Bestselling Author from The Bend Anthology and the Amazon Bestsellers, Breach and Becoming Mrs Lockwood. She spent her life in the arts, everything from music to painting and ceramics, then to writing. Characters have always run around in her head, acting out their stories, but it wasn’t until later in life she would put them to pen. It would turn out to be the one thing she was really passionate about.Since she began posting stories online, she’s garnered acclaim for her diverse stories and hard hitting writing style. Two stories and characters are never the same, her brain moving through different ideas faster than she can write them down as it also plots its quest for world domination…or cheese. Whichever is easier to obtain… Usually it’s cheese.WebsiteFacebookTwitterInstagramGet my Newsletter
Special thanks to:My husband, David, for putting up with me and the madness of writing.To Massy, the voice of clarity in my chaotic mind and one who understands it all. Forever my twifey and BFF.To Crystal, my pervy twin, for everything.To Nyddi, for her support, friendship, and big heart.To all the fans. Thank you for loving Nathan and Lila, and for joining them on their journey. Your support, pimping, and love for the series keeps me going. Words can never express my gratitude and love to you all.
Year 7…The house was an odd and eerie quiet. So much that I could actually hear the ticking of the clock above the mantle.Lila was out with Anna and Jackson in an effort to wear them down some for my parents and nephew. They were going to babysit for the night while we went out to celebrate our anniversary.Seven years.Seven years ago, I pledged my love and life to my Lila.Laying on the couch, my leg ached, stiff from being stuck in the same position for so long. I stretched it while trying not to disturb the bundle on my chest. My little Kayla was curled on me, her soft, sweet breath blowing across my skin. I leaned down and kissed the soft spot on her head and marveled at the miracle that she was. Only three months old, and she already had us all wrapped around her tiny fingers.My eyes flickered around the room, and I took stock of how much my life had changed over the prior nine years. In that period of time, I had moved from a large, quite literally empty
Year 6…The week had been long and tiring. Then again, every week was beginning to be like that. Anna and Jackson were in so many activities there wasn’t a night in over a month we were home at a regular time.I rubbed my face and glanced over to the clock with a sigh. The day was minutes from being over, and my to-do list was barely checked off.Closing up, I settled my desk, readying it for the next day to start the cycle over again.“Night, Nathan,” Angie, my shared secretary, said as I stepped out of my office, locking the door behind me.“Night.” I set a file in her inbox. “Don’t stay too late.”“I’ve got to pick the boys up from their dad’s, so no worry there.”I swung by Lila’s office and waved to Owen. The poor guy looked swamped as usual. I was surprised that he continued on with the position for so long. Perhaps he, like Lila, found a sort of peace in the chaos. The more stringent requirements, double checking everything.He had a little one of his own
Year 4…“Lila, have you seen my other shoe?” I asked, holding up my one running shoe.She bounced Jackson in her arms, rubbing his back to get him to burp. “No.”There was a little giggle coming from under the bed, and we both looked in the direction of the sound.I smiled and gestured with my head to the bed. “Oh, I wonder where it could be. Maybe it’s in the closet.”Another giggle.“In the bathroom?” Lila suggested with a wide smile and a shake of her head as she tried not to laugh at our toddler.A loud laugh—my daughter thought she was so sneaky.“Maybe…” I laid down on the floor and reached. “It’s under the bed!” Screeches of laughter as I grabbed hold of a toddler leg. “Gotcha!”She wasn’t very far under, and I was able to pull her out. I tickled her sides, making her squeal before reaching back under for my shoe.Anna smiled wide, little giggles coming from her. “Again!”I stood and pulled Jackson from Lila’s arms so she could finish getting dressed.
Year Two…“Oh my God, look how adorable you are!” Caroline held Anna high up in the air, then brought her little baby belly to her mouth and blew on it, making Anna squeal in delight.Our little bundle arrived without issue, just an exhausting delivery, with my hair and Lila’s eyes. At nine months old, she was already exhibiting signs of the rambunctious child she would grow into.Lila smiled at them. “You say that every time you see her.”“Can’t blame her. She got her looks from her mom.”I turned in my seat. “Drew, are you saying I’ve got an ugly mug?”He gave a snort and shook his head. “You still have women in the office chasing your ass. So, no. Just saying Lila is beautiful.”I pointed my finger at him. “Hey, that’s my wife.”Lila rolled her eyes and swatted my arm before going over to Drew and giving him a hug.“Thanks, Drew, I needed that.”“Needed that? Is Nate falling down on the job?” He gave me a mock glare, and I flipped him off.She shook her he
Year One…After a six-month search, Lila and I found a home in Carmel—land of the roundabouts—and had settled in to suburban living. With the lives we’d led, it was quite an adjustment. Being neighborly was a foreign concept for Lila, leaving some of our neighbors a little put off.She wasn’t the stereotypical suburban housewife like many of the nearby residents.There was a good chance we would never fit in well, but it didn’t bother me. She was all I needed.We had a beautiful lot overlooking a small lake. It made for wonderful nights sitting on the deck, watching the sun set.I stared at her, my eyes wide in surprise at her sudden burst of anger. My wife was livid—pissed beyond belief at me—and I had no idea why. Her face resembled the same shade of red as the Twizzler dangling out of my mouth. I held up my hands in surrender, never having seen the she-devil before me, and I had no idea how to handle her.“Why?” Her hands were balled into fists at her sides, sh
Two months after the end of Reciprocity…The glare-down entered its fifth minute with neither of us backing down. My jaw twitched. Lila’s jutted forward. A bottle of wine sat between us on the counter. The kitchen was a disaster, we both looked wrecked, and we hadn’t had sex in five days.Five fucking days.Weeks of small spats were building, and the blowout was bound to happen at any moment. What bothered me, what hurt the most, was the reason why my wife and I were having such difficulties.It wasn’t because of someone coming after us, my overbearing protectiveness, or her family. No, it was us.Us.Me.Her.The reality of life without looking over our shoulders.Who were Nathan and Delilah Thorne?What did they like? What did they do in their spare time? Hobbies?The only hobby I had was fucking her, and that wasn’t happening lately because one or both of us was constantly angry at the other for sometimes unknown, irrational reasons.Sex was no longer pro