The Billionaire's Fake Fiancée by Annika Martin
Release Date: April 28th
The Billionaire's Fake Fiancée, a sexy romantic comedy by New York Times bestselling author Annika Martin.
I’m no Prince Charming, and the last thing I want is a Cinderella.
My instructions were simple: scour the city for a fake fiancée who’s not my type at all. Have her on my jet Monday morning, dressed appropriately for a yacht vacation.
I need a woman believable enough to convince a certain client that I’ve changed my playboy ways…yet nothing like the supermodels and socialites I usually have on my arm.
Somebody too annoying to tempt me—no emotional entanglements, thank you very much. This is business only.
If she’s unfazed by my looks and wealth, all the better.
Should be easy. Right?
Apparently not, because my people go and hire Tabitha. My hairdresser.
What were they thinking? Yes, I said annoying, but I didn’t mean her, the most frustrating woman in the world.
Tabitha is sunshiny. She has a pet hamster. She loves Hello Kitty, and she gets under my skin like nobody else.
As if that’s not bad enough, the minute we step on deck, she thinks that certain people on the yacht are up to something shady—based completely on her soap opera knowledge.
She won’t listen when I tell her she’s being ridiculous.
But as the days go by, I find that we’re actually having fun. And our fake kisses are heating up. And suddenly her wild theories aren’t sounding so strange after all…
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Excerpt:
“We need a practice kiss.”
My gaze falls to her lips and my mind goes blank. “Did you not read the contract?” I bite out. “This relationship is to be purely platonic.”
“Oh, I know. And before you think I’m jonesing to kiss you, please know, I’m just trying to do a professional job at this, and the kiss is important. Because I can tell you right now, when people do the fake engagement ploy and get busted, it’s often because they’re forced to do a first kiss in front of suspicious people. Everybody can tell a first kiss.”
“Have you been involved in other fake engagement situations?” I ask.
“No, but, you know, it’s a thing. Trust me.”
“It’s a thing?” I ask, incredulous.
“Well, on soap operas,” she adds.
I groan. “Jesus Christ, save me from your ridiculous soap opera wisdom.”
“What? There is a lot of life wisdom in soap operas.”
I give her a hard look.
“And the fact is, with people who have never kissed, there’s a lot of trepidation. They’re like, How do I start off? Where do I put my hands? Which way should I tilt my head?”
“Those are not questions that would cross my mind during a kiss. Ever.”
“Please. Spare me from the knowledge of what crosses your mind when you kiss a woman,” she says. “I’m just telling you, people aren’t stupid. They’re capable of recognizing a first kiss. We need at least one practice round. Unfortunately.”
I swallow. Somewhere down on Wall Street, trading is in full swing. I have rates to check, reports to analyze, spreads to monitor, but the idea of pulling her to me and kissing her crowds all of that out. My hands flex.
A practice kiss. I can’t think of a worse idea. “We’re not a couple who enjoys public displays of affection.”
She does her playful wince. “Okay, buuuuuut…what happens when they toast our engagement? We can’t exactly shake hands.”
Will people do that? Gather around and expect us to kiss in front of them? I focus on the window. The whole idea here was not to be tempted or distracted.
“If I decide we need a practice kiss,” I inform her, “then and only then will we have a practice kiss. And I’ll do the kissing.”
“It has to be more than a peck,” she says. “Just in case that’s what you’re imagining.”
“Rest assured, a kiss from me would be the opposite of a peck.”
“The opposite of a peck,” she echoes, as though she finds it funny.
“The polar opposite.” My gaze has gone back to her lips. They’d taste like some sort of sugary berry. Her dark hair would be thick and cool in my grip, her ass soft and firm. My mind won’t stop spinning on kissing her, now.
“I’m trying to help you pull this off,” she says. “Think of the times you’ve had a first kiss. The wild rush of it. The buzz of it. It’ll be so obvious.”
I frown. Who the hell has she been sharing these mind-altering first kisses with?
“Don’t worry, I get this is business,” she says. “You’re not at all the type of guy I go for, either.”
“No? Do tell—what type of guy do you go for?”
“For one, he would scoff at the idea of a private jet. And he would never wear or even possess cufflinks. Or if he did, there’d be a string attached to the cufflinks because he would’ve made them into an awesome toy for little Seymour. That would be a guy for me.”
“Sounds like a loser,” I growl.
Annika Martin is a new author to me and why I have not come across her books before, I have no idea. This was a well written and entertaining read that had me riveted from the first to the last chapter.
The writing was strong and the characters were easy to relate to and I found myself totally invested in Rex and Tabitha ’s story. This is a feel good book that left me with a smile on my face, it was also steamy and passionate. Rex ticked the boxes for me, hot as sin and an alpha who set my heart racing.
Rex is in need of a fiancee in a hurry to accompany him on a two week cruise and he is shocked to learn that his team have recruited his hairdresser, Tabitha to play the part. Tabitha on the other hand has to take a couple of weeks off work thanks t an injury so she agree to play the part.
This should be a straightforward proposition but it soon becomes complicated when the attraction between Rex and Tabitha becomes more real than fake. Tabitha also believes that she has a little “Jane Marple” in her and believes that something sinister or shady is happening on the yacht they are on. Could she be right or is it her overworked imagination?
As circumstances bring them together, the chemistry between them intensifies; I loved that how passionate and explosive Rex and Tabitha are. I also enjoyed the banter and fun between Rex and Tabitha and it made for an entertaining read.
What will happen when all is revealed? I enjoyed the banter and fun between Rex and Tabitha and it made for an entertaining read. If you are looking for a book that is hot, spicy, romantic and humorous, then look no further.
This is the first book I have read by Annika Martin and it certainly won’t be the last because after reading this entertaining romance I’m left wondering why this author hasn’t crossed my path before now and I will certainly be looking at her previous works as soon as time permits.
Rex needs a fiancée and I mean he needs her like yesterday !!! but he is shocked to find out its Tabitha his hairdresser that has been recruited by his team to play the role, to accompany him on a two week cruise playing the part of his adoring fiancée....
Tabitha has time on her hands as she is off work with an injury so what has she got to lose.....
Problem is the chemistry is not an act and when feelings come into play all bets are off!!!
This book ticked all my boxes, I laughed at the banter and I smiled at the antics these two got up to, the chemistry is sizzling and Rex and Tabitha are adorable so all in all a fun entertaining read.
Meet the Author:
Annika Martin loves fun, dirty stories, hot heroes, and wild, dramatic everything. She enjoys hanging out in Minneapolis coffee shops with her writer husband, and also likes birdwatching at her bird feeder alongside her two stunningly photogenic cats, especially when she should be writing. She’s heavy into running, music, saving the planet, taking long baths, and consuming chocolate suckers. She’s worked a surprisingly large number of waitressing jobs, and has also worked in a plastics factory and the advertising trenches; her garden is total bee-friendly madness and her most unfavorite word is nosh or possibly fob. A NYT bestselling author, she has also written as RITA award-winning author Carolyn Crane.
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