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The Fling
Stefanie London
They’re polar opposites… …which only makes him more irresistible! I swore off romance after my ex broke my heart, so I’m not thrilled to be home for my twin sister’s wedding. Thank god for the delicious distraction next door: the anonymous ‘Mr Suit’. After spending a sinful night with him, I discover my no-strings neighbor is the best man. We’re complete opposites, but the chemistry between us is scorching hot…as long as no one gets burned.
From USA TODAY bestselling author Stefanie London comes the second book in her scorching-hot miniseries Close Quarters! Drew Richardson discovers she’s been having a racy affair with the best man at her sister’s wedding... Will their irresistible chemistry turn into something deeper?
I swore off romance after my ex broke my heart, so I’m not thrilled to be back home performing maid-of-honor duties for my twin sister. Her bridesmaids want everything to be capital P Perfect, and the best man, Flynn Lewis, is a giant pain in the ass—if his emails are anything to go by. Thank God for the delicious distraction next door: the anonymous “Mr. Suit.”
My nameless neighbor is utterly gorgeous and oh-so-serious. After a racy night of passion at his place, the truth comes out. “Mr. Suit” and Flynn Lewis are one and the same. Flynn wants a woman who’s as serious as he is—someone who wants to stay in Melbourne. But I’m happiest heading off on another adventure. We might be complete opposites, but the chemistry between us is red-hot...as long as no one gets burned.
Harlequin DARE publishes sexy romances featuring powerful alpha heroes and bold, fearless heroines exploring their deepest fantasies.
Four new Harlequin DARE titles are available each month, wherever ebooks are sold!
STEFANIE LONDON is the USA TODAY bestselling author of contemporary romances and romantic comedies.
After sneaking several English lit subjects into her “very practical” business degree, Stefanie worked in the corporate world. But it wasn’t long before she became bored of writing emails for executives and turned her attention to romance fiction. Stefanie’s books have been called “genuinely entertaining and memorable” by Booklist, and her writing praised as “elegant, descriptive and delectable” by RT Book Reviews.
Originally from Australia, she now lives in Toronto with her very own hero and is currently in the process of doing her best to travel the world. She frequently indulges in her passions for good coffee, lipstick, romance novels and anything zombie related. For more information on Stefanie and her books, check out her website at stefanie-london.com (http://stefanie-london.com).
Also by Stefanie London (#u2ac12bc4-eac8-59e3-aed7-ffad2f0f3c78)
Melbourne After Dark
Unmasked
Hard Deal
Close Quarters
Faking It
The Fling
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).
The Fling
Stefanie London
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-09926-4
THE FLING
© 2020 Stefanie Little
Published in Great Britain 2019
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.
® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Note to Readers (#u2ac12bc4-eac8-59e3-aed7-ffad2f0f3c78)
This ebook contains the following accessibility features which, if supported by your device, can be accessed via your ereader/accessibility settings:
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To all the siblings, take care of one another
Contents
Cover (#u773987da-ea07-533c-88f8-2c4502114aa8)
Back Cover Text (#u0a551da1-1d40-5de9-b20c-779549ee8e8c)
About the Author (#ua68beab3-c048-5952-a918-530ba7a621c3)
Booklist (#ubc49851e-d407-5de7-9fe1-3785ad264d33)
Title Page (#u6922f052-2638-5f61-a601-f41bc1759848)
Copyright (#u0cf209c2-5c65-5173-a6ec-8dcc2f6b649f)
Note to Readers
Dedication (#ucd64e231-264e-5da9-ae0d-097f29b1a156)
CHAPTER ONE (#u307dd604-0b69-5112-bfdf-2ff003eb7664)
CHAPTER TWO (#u443a411a-bb16-57e5-b0f1-353a5ef4894c)
CHAPTER THREE (#u9b2897ee-d341-5431-8486-a8c2f68e877f)
CHAPTER FOUR (#u38445b85-d1ee-58b7-91ca-a1464831a679)
CHAPTER FIVE (#u6e583d1a-4930-5671-bf03-fa20a7c7c86a)
CHAPTER SIX (#u194d2eb1-1776-51f8-9f2c-4173d447d009)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINETEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-One (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-Two (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-Three (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-Four (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-Five (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-Six (#litres_trial_promo)
EPILOGUE (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE (#u2ac12bc4-eac8-59e3-aed7-ffad2f0f3c78)
Drew
“WAIT, YOU’RE SERIOUS about having a rehearsal for the hen’s night?” I stare at my sister’s bridesmaids, each more tanned and manicured than the last. Annaleigh, Sherilee and...crap, what was the third one’s name again? I’ll call her Merrily in my head until I have a chance to ask my sister.
Not that there’s anything merry about her, mind you. She’s staring at me like I’m patient zero. Is it my fishnets? Maybe it’s the fact that I was a little heavy-handed with the eyeliner today and ended up looking less Brigitte Bardot and more stripper-at-the-end-of-a-long-shift.
“Yes. We’re very serious about having a rehearsal for the hen’s night.” Annaleigh exchanges a look with the other two, as though mentally questioning how my twin sister and I share DNA.
Thankfully, Presley isn’t here tonight.
I swear I’d intended to play nice. My twin and I might be chalk and cheese, as my mum always likes to say, but I love Presley. I really do...just not her taste in clothing, men, food, music, home decor or life interests.
Nor her taste in friends, either, it seems.
“This wedding is going to be perfect.” Sherilee tucks a strand of hair behind her ears, revealing a winking stone that’s so big it must be putting strain on her earlobe. It pales in comparison to the one on her finger, however. “Capital P Perfect. That means every event before the wedding will be perfect, too. The bridal shower, the kitchen tea, the dress fittings, the makeup and hair trials, the rehearsal dinner, the Jack and Jill party and the hen’s night.”
“The Jack and what?” My head is spinning.
“The Jack and Jill party.” Merrily sighs as if she thinks I’m a small, dumb animal. “It’s a combined hen’s and buck’s party.”
“In additional to the actual hen’s and buck’s party?”
“Yes,” all three of them say at once with identical, exasperated tones.
“And you’re organising it, along with the best man,” Annaleigh says. “I’ve passed on your email address, so you should hear from him soon. All the events have been divided up. You’ve got the Jack and Jill, and the presentation for the rehearsal dinner. I’ve got...”
Oh, boy. I’ve already tuned out the droning list of tasks that lie ahead of me.
I look longingly at my beer, which sits untouched, condensation gathering on the glass, next to three flutes of prosecco. I feel like being the first to reach for the booze will be seen as a sign of weakness, like flinching in a fight. But man, I could use a drink right now.
I picture my sister’s sweet face, with her silvery-blue eyes so similar to mine—sans stripper makeup, of course—and tell myself to get my shit together. Do it for Presley! I’m an adult and I deal with snotty people all the time at work. I’m a flight attendant, after all. I can totally manage this.
When Annaleigh pauses to take a breath, I put on my brightest smile. It doesn’t crack any of the icy facades in front of me. “How do you all know Presley?”
“We work together,” Merrily replies.
“Oh, right.” I nod. Finally, something I know. “At the Wentworth Department Store.”
“Head office,” Sherilee adds. “I’m in the communications team, Annaleigh works with Presley in training and Pauline is in recruitment.”
Pauline. I make a mental note to remember Merrily’s real name this time.
“Sounds fun,” I say benignly. There’s a beat of silence and I shift in my seat.
“Presley told us that you go by your middle name, right?” Annaleigh asks, as though she’s trying to keep the conversation from stalling completely. “We’re having T-shirts printed for the hen’s night. Would you prefer Melanie or Drew?”
