Ace in the Hole (22 page)

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Authors: Ava Drake

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BOOK: Ace in the Hole
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“But….” He looked back and forth between Jill and Stone. “You’re sure?”

Stone stepped up to him and put his hands on Christian’s shoulders. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. I want you. And I’m willing to do whatever it takes to have you.”

His jaw dropped.

Jill chortled behind him. “I figure the best way to avoid any more scandals regarding your love life is to get you safely in a long-term relationship with a respectable man.”

He stared at Stone. “Are you
really
sure?”

“Positive. How about you? Are you all in?”

He didn’t have to think about it. Didn’t hesitate for a second. “Yes, I am.”

“Excellent!” Jill exclaimed. “I want an invitation to the wedding.”

“Heck, you can be our matron of honor
and
our kids’ godmother,” Christian replied fervently.

A slow smile of relief and wonder unfolded across Stone’s face. “Glad to hear we’re on the same page, Prep School.”

“Farm hick.”

Smiling broadly, he took one small step forward into Stone’s arms and one giant leap into their grand and glorious future. Together.

New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling author
AVA DRAKE
grew up in the heart of the rural Midwest but beat a hasty retreat to the big city and bright lights as fast as humanly possible. Armed with a pilot’s license, fluency in several languages, a large dose of daring, and her dashing good looks, she took off to travel the world.

She flew everything from single-seat private airplanes to supersonic jets and the western world’s largest airplane, the mighty C-5 Galaxy. In her adventures, she visited forty-two countries on five continents, was detained by the KGB and East German secret police, got shot at, flew in the first Gulf War, met her shockingly handsome husband, and amassed a lifetime’s worth of war stories. Along the way, she engaged in a little light espionage and met more than her share of dark, dangerous, and good-looking men.

Travel weary at last, she came home and settled down to the business of writing stories of romance and adventure, which may or may not be autobiographical. Winner of a Golden Heart and Holt Medallion for writing, Ava is a five-time finalist and two-time winner of the prestigious RITA Award for Romance Fiction. She’s also a two-time winner of RT Book Review’s Best Harlequin Romantic Suspense Novel of the Year, and is a Romantic Times Lifetime Career Achievement nominee.

Coming in August 2016

 

#15

Stranded with Desire
by Vivien Dean and Rick R. Reed

CEO Maine Braxton and his invaluable assistant, Colby, don’t realize they share a deep secret: they’re in love—with each other. That secret may have never come to light but for a terrifying plane crash in the Cascade Mountains that changes everything.

In a struggle for survival, the two men brave bears, storms, and a life-threatening flood to make it out of the wilderness alive. The proximity to death makes them realize the importance of love over propriety. Confessions emerge. Passions ignite. They escape the wilds renewed and openly in love.

When they return to civilization, though, forces are already plotting to snuff out their short-lived romance and ruin everything both have worked so hard to achieve.

 

#16

Marriage of Inconvenience
by M.J. O’Shea

Kerry Pickering has a problem. As a publicist for Hollywood bad boy Jericho Knox, it’s Kerry’s job to keep Jericho in the news. So far, Jericho’s partying and public escapades have made it easy. But Jericho has a secret, and when that secret is revealed in the most spectacularly disastrous way, it’s up to Kerry to spin it.

The team decides the best course of action is to make the public fall in love—with Jericho’s secret committed relationship. The one that doesn’t exist. Yet.

The team wants someone they can trust. Someone in the inner circle. That someone is Kerry. But what will happen when Kerry realizes that for him, the romance is no longer pretend? Can Jericho love him back, or is he just playing a role?

Don’t Miss Dreamspun Desires!

 

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Published by

DREAMSPINNER PRESS

 

5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA

www.dreamspinnerpress.com

 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

 

Ace in the Hole

© 2016 Ava Drake.

 

Cover Design

© 2016 Bree Archer.

http://www.breearcher.com

Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.

 

All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.

 

ISBN: 978-1-63477-309-6

Digital ISBN: 978-1-63477-310-2

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016907690

Published July 2016

v. 1.0

 

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Sneak Peek

Blurb

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

About the Author

Coming in August 2016

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