🥵NEW RELEASE🥵
SPOTLIGHT TOUR
THE IMPERFECT MARRIAGE (THE DAVENPORTS) BY L. STEELE
Release Date: June 4, 2024
The Imperfect Marriage
In KU => https://readerlinks.com/l/3978123
Paperback => https://readerlinks.com/l/3978125
Special Edition Illustrated Cover => https://readerlinks.com/l/4160348
REVIEW: THE IMPERFECT MARRIAGE (THE DAVENPORTS) BY L. STEELE
EXCERPT
“Marry me."
Another gasp runs through the crowd. It fades away, and there’s silence. My heart seems to swell until I’m one thump from exploding into a ball of smoke—poof—I’ll be gone. No one will know I’m here. No one will pass judgement on me. No one need know I’m considering marrying a complete stranger to secure my future and that of my family. No one need know I had almost agreed to marry him in church when he’d proposed because I’d been so attracted to him.
I open my mouth to whisper my assent but what comes out is, "It’s often impossible to hum while holding your nose." Why are you spouting facts unrelated to the situation at hand? Why don’t you fall silent when you’re nervous or surprised? Why, oh, why do you have to recall random trivia and worse, say them aloud to try and stay calm?
The man blinks slowly.
"Also, most people find it impossible to lick their own elbow." I nod, then wince. This is when he stares at me like I’m crazy like so many others have when I begin to spout weird facts in a bid to cover up my nervousness.
I begin to turn away, when that stern mouth of his twitches. "Is that right?"
Did he smile? He almost smiled. What if I could make him smile, for real?
"It’s physically impossible for pigs to look up into the sky," I peer at him from under my eyelashes.
One side of his lip lifts. His eyes light up with an amused light. Yes! I resist the urge to fist pump.
"And you must be aware, I can’t say yes to you," no matter how much I am tempted.
"Why?" His gaze grows intense. The silver in his eyes flare. Everything else around me fades. My senses light up as my vision focuses on him. All I can see is his features. Him.
Also, that’s a good question. Why can’t I marry you, even though my instincts scream I’m doing the right thing in ignoring how it seems to the world and follow what feels right for me?
I clear my throat, "Firstly there’s the fact that I don’t know you.”
"That can be rectified." His voice is confident.
What the—? I gape at him, then begin to laugh. “You can’t be serious,” I say between guffaws.
“I never joke,” he says with such precision I know for a fact he’s telling the truth. I want to say something about how he could do with some laughs in his life but who am I to say anything when my entire life has turned into the stuff of party conversations?
My own laughter dies. I stare at him and he peruses my features with an intensity I’ve never been subjected to before.
How am I so attracted to him? Afterall he is the father of the man I almost married? This is wrong any which way you look at it. Something of my resolve must reflect on my face for he nods, then straightens to stand back up. Once more, I have to tilt my head back to see his face. Once more, I’m struck by how tall he is. How broad, how big and solid and dependable. How he invites trust. How... he’d never leave me stranded at the altar... how he definitely would not break up with me through a text message sent to his bridegroom. My scalp tingles. My toes curl. All the air in the room seems to have been sucked out. The voices around us fade. I want to look away from him, but I can’t. I feel discombobulated. Like I’m watching this scene unfold from far away. Is this an out of body experience?
"This is real. I am here. So are you. And you’re going to marry me." His voice rings with conviction.
I shake my head, open my mouth to speak, when—
The Imperfect Marriage
In KU => https://readerlinks.com/l/3978123
Paperback => https://readerlinks.com/l/3978125
Special Edition Illustrated Cover => https://readerlinks.com/l/4160348
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