Table of Contents
Dedication
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
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Epilogue
About the Author
Discover more category romance titles from Entangled Indulgence… How To Lose a Fiancé
An Accidental Date with a Billionaire
Besting the Billionaire
The Billionaire in Her Bed
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2019 by Victoria Davies. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact the Publisher.
Entangled Publishing, LLC
2614 South Timberline Road
Suite 105, PMB 159
Fort Collins, CO 80525
[email protected]
Indulgence is an imprint of Entangled Publishing, LLC.
Edited by Candace Havens
Cover design by Bree Archer
Cover photography by Studio Firma/Stocksy
ISBN 978-1-64063-837-2
Manufactured in the United States of America
First Edition July 2019
Dear Reader,
Thank you for supporting a small publisher! Entangled prides itself on bringing you the highest quality romance you’ve come to expect, and we couldn’t do it without your continued support. We love romance, and we hope this book leaves you with a smile on your face and joy in your heart.
xoxo
Liz Pelletier, Publisher
Since this is a book about sisters, who else would I dedicate it to but my own? I’m so lucky to have an incredible sister who has cheered me on our entire lives. This one’s for you, ducky.
Chapter One
Holly waited for the ax to fall on a sunny patio, surrounded by smiling faces.
I guess there are worse places for life to take a nosedive off a cliff.
Beneath the white linen tablecloth, her leg jiggled with agitation. She stopped the telltale movement and tried to pull herself together. It didn’t help at all that the tight, unfamiliar dress she wore turned her deep, calming breath into a shallow inhale.
What am I doing here?
This meeting was way too far outside her comfort zone to work.
But if I fail, everything falls apart.
She closed her eyes, wishing for her usual glasses and not these contacts that stung. She was caught between a rock and a hard place with no way out. All because of her sister.
Lillian has a plan.
She had to believe her twin had something up her sleeve. Why else would she run away in the middle of the night, leaving her only sibling behind to face their father’s wrath?
Despite the warmth of the sun, a shiver ran down her spine. Her father had been in fine form last night when he’d discovered Lillian’s absence. The twins had long ago learned to avoid John Abbott whenever they could. The man might be a business mogul to rival any other, but when it came to family, all he cared about was what his daughters could do for him.
But this time he’s pushed Lillian too far.
Because it wasn’t just their father Lillian was running from. It was her fiancé as well.
“Can I get you anything to drink, miss?” the waiter asked, appearing by her side.
Holly forced a smile. “Thanks, but I’m waiting on someone. I’m fine with water until he arrives.”
The waiter nodded and refilled her glass before moving on to the next table. How she wished leaving with him was an option.
Instead, she sat in borrowed clothes she hated and waited to meet a man she dreaded.
Who buys a wife in this day and age?
The answer, it appeared, was Julian Worth. The billionaire CEO had built his empire from the ground up. The man had a knack for predicting the market and the skill had made him several fortunes at least. What he lacked, however, was the blue blood that would make him accepted in the highest circles of New York’s elite.
Blood that flowed in her veins.
The plan had been a simple one. Combine two massive corporations under the banner of one by joining two families. Julian would get the connections being attached to the Abbott name would provide and in turn, the Abbotts would have a new son-in-law who turned everything he touched to gold.
Something they sorely needed.
And therein lies the problem.
If this were just an issue of John marrying off her elder sister without her consent, then the solution would be easy. They’d pack up their lives, say goodbye to their father, and strike out alone. But this wasn’t just about Lillian.
While they spun a good tale, the company was struggling. They never seemed to have enough cash flow, and if nothing changed soon, they were going to cut some jobs. The idea of her grandparents’ legacy floundering tore her heart. And doing a round of layoffs? Her grandfather would roll in his grave.
All those jobs are on the line.
Which was why she was here.
Julian was set to meet his future wife today and with Lillian off doing whatever the hell she was up to, Holly was left with a choice. Either they confessed that Julian’s fiancé didn’t want him and called the whole thing off, letting their company collapse even further at the expense of their employees. Or they tried to buy some time while they looked for Lillian. John made his view of the decision utterly clear.
And Lillian just happened to have a double.
I always wanted to be Lillian, right?
Obviously, she should have been more careful what she wished for.
Lillian would never have left her without a damn good reason, and if there was one person in the world Holly trusted, it was her sister. So today she could pretend and buy Lillian some time to fix this for all of them if that’s what her sister needed.
At least, in theory.
Sighing, she fished her compact out of her purse and checked the mirror for the tenth time since she’d sat down. Lillian might be her identical twin, but they’d still found ways to differentiate themselves. Today, all that had been erased. Her blond hair was now expertly curled to mimic Lillian’s style, rather than her usual straight locks that brushed her shoulders. Under the table, her feet were squished into sky-high heels she prayed didn’t cause her to break an ankle before the day was done.
Even the tight, cobalt-blue dress was far more brilliant than she was used to. She’d walked into the restaurant with a designer bag on her arm and sunglasses shading her blue eyes that were just a slightly different hue than Lillian’s. Heads had turned as she’d followed her server through the small patio ringed by trimmed hedges for privacy.
That’s one thing I could get used to.
For the first time, she wondered if she’d done too good a job escaping her father’s notice. In hiding from him, had she hidden from everyone else, too?
; Now in her borrowed clothes, there was no sticking to the sidelines and the shadows. Here she was on display.
Lillian would love this. She’d view it as her due. Channel her.
Even if she’d never in her life been able to pull off a convincing impression of Lillian. Her sister’s vibrant personality was just too dissimilar from her own. Now that all needed to change.
Just take it a minute at a time. Get through this brunch and then regroup.
Easier said than done.
Even with her doing her best not to fidget, her fingers drifted to her necklace. It was a simple gold chain with a letter on it. She had one with an H, and Lillian had one with an L. For today’s charade, she’d taken her sister’s, and it was unsettling to feel the unfamiliar shape. Still, the habit calmed her nerves enough to stay in her seat.
Holly had just checked her watch again when the laughter at the table in front of her died. Glancing at the four women seated there, she realized they’d all shifted to stare at the door.
Curious, Holly glanced in the same direction.
And cursed her sister all over again.
A man strode forward like he’d just stepped out of her naughtiest fantasy.
He was tall, walking with an innate confidence she could never mimic. His jet-black suit wrapped around a honed body that made her fingers itch to touch him. Was his body as rock-hard as it appeared?
But it was his face that chased all logical thought from her brain. He looked like a fallen angel with his wavy black hair framing a chiseled jaw. Dark eyes locked on hers, sending electricity shooting across her skin as he approached. There was nothing hesitant in his appraising stare.
This had to be Julian Worth. Her sister’s future husband.
Be Lillian. Be Lillian.
Her sister wouldn’t drool at his approach. She also wouldn’t have lost the power of speech at the mere sight of him. No, Lillian would be sharpening her claws, ready to take the man down a peg.
But I’m not her.
Adrenaline pumped through her veins. Beneath the table, her leg jiggled again. Her mind was blank, and Julian was only two tables away now.
He moves like a shark.
Gliding through the minnows around him as he zeroed in on his prey.
There’s only one way to respond to a bully.
Not that she ever chose to stand up to them. But Lillian would.
Taking a deep, calming breath, she reached up to take off her sunglasses and the limited protection they offered. Lillian would never cower, so neither could she. Not if she was going to play this part convincingly.
She arched a brow as he approached and made no other move.
Was it her imagination or did his lips twitch in response?
Finally, he closed the last of the distance between them and stopped by her chair.
“Lillian Abbott, I presume,” he said, holding out his hand.
She rose to her feet, noting that even with her wearing her sister’s heels, this man towered over her.
Was everything about him designed to intimidate me?
Because it was freaking working.
“Julian Worth,” she replied.
The one man who could doom or save them all.
Chapter Two
Her hand slipped into his automatically, but the heat that snaked up her arm at the touch was alarmingly real. Dropping the handshake, she surreptitiously rubbed her palm on her dress, trying to get rid of the unwelcome feeling. Attraction was not a possibility. He wasn’t hers. She was just borrowing her sister’s life for a little while.
“Please,” Julian said, gesturing to her seat as he slipped into the one across from her.
She sat a little harder than intended, her perception of distance skewed with the unfamiliar shoes and new contacts.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said.
“Busy day?”
“Something like that.”
She waited for more of an explanation, but there wasn’t one.
He’s not used to explaining himself. Not even with a woman he thinks he’s going to marry?
Her eyes narrowed.
Lillian would make him pay for that. Her put-downs were always biting but polite, leaving her targets wondering if they’d heard her words correctly.
But Holly didn’t have such a gift. She reached for her menu and pointedly ignored him as she perused the food choices she’d already read and reread while she waited.
The silence raised the hairs on the back of her neck, but what else could she do?
Lillian, you so owe me for this.
Eventually the weight of his stare had her closing the menu and returning her attention to her date.
“I don’t suppose you passed a waiter on your way in. I’m ready to order.” There, that sounded like her sister. Cool and imperious.
Again, his lips twitched as he raised a hand into the air.
A waiter was by her side in a heartbeat.
“Are you ready to order, Mr. Worth?” the man asked.
“Ladies first,” Julian said.
“Eggs Benedict,” she said, handing over her menu. “And tea, please. Earl Grey with milk.”
“At once, miss. And for you, sir?”
“Coffee. Black.”
“Would you like anything for brunch?”
“No.”
The waiter nodded and raced away to get their drinks.
“You could have warned me if you didn’t want to eat,” she said.
He leaned back in his chair. “When you’d taken such care to pick your order? Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Her hands fisted in her lap. She hated being caught off guard. It was the reason she poured over every document to cross her desk. She was always the one with the answers.
But this man was different. She didn’t know what to make of someone who’d started merging his company with another’s before even meeting the woman he was supposed to marry. It was the action of a man who didn’t give a damn about marriage as anything other than a business tool. And to get into business with her father, of all people? For Julian to propose this deal, he had to be as unscrupulous as John was.
Which made him the last man on earth she wanted to have anything to do with.
All I have to do is distract him for an hour or two, and then I’m done with this.
Good deed accomplished. Jobs protected for the time being.
She just had to get through one brunch.
“If you’re in a hurry to get back to the office, please don’t let me stop you,” she said.
“Trying to get rid of me?”
“I was attempting to be considerate,” she replied. “I understand if it’s a word you aren’t familiar with.”
Where the hell did that come from?
Lillian would have been proud, but Holly tensed, waiting for a rebuke.
Julian’s half smile widened into a grin. “You’ll have to buy me a dictionary next time.”
“With your billions, you can buy yourself the entire library.”
“I already have two.”
“What to get for the man who has everything. I can see birthdays are going to be a challenge.”
“I’ll give you a hint. I’m a sucker for anything sweet.” He forward in his chair. “Of course, we could always agree to forget about birthdays all together. Keep things simple.”
That smile flashed again, the one that made her blink at the transformation it brought to his expression.
Don’t get pulled in by a pretty face. Remember, this man is not your ally.
They might need to protect their workers, but Julian had very different reasons for pursuing this alliance. He wanted Lillian because she had the blood to be his perfect business wife and an inheritance even a billionaire would appreciate.
It’d been the crux of their entire lives. Lillian was the Abbott heir. The family finances might be struggling, but their grandmother had been smart enough to leave her personal inheritance to her first-born grandchild on the occasion
of her marriage.
It was Holly’s bad luck there had been two children instead of one.
Beautiful, bold Lillian had a trust fund to match her larger than life personality.
Whereas she had been a runner-up from the second she was born.
Shaking her head, she tried to push away the depressing thought to focus on the man before her.
Follow his advice right now and keep things simple.
She cleared her throat. “Do you really think a marriage can be so easy?”
“Most marriages don’t have the luxury of starting off on such a candid footing.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
He shrugged. “We both know this is a business arrangement. That gives us the opportunity to approach this union honestly and ask for what we want to make our life together work. I’m not opposed to living as separately as you’d like.”
Be still my heart.
“Cynical, aren’t you?” she asked.
“I prefer to say I’m a realist,” he replied. “You must be as well, to agree to this.”
If only you knew.
“So your idea of a successful marriage is one where we never see each other?”
“Society is full of them.”
He wasn’t wrong. It’s just she never wanted to join their ranks.
What a dark future Lillian is headed for.
Her gaze slid away from his, focusing on the black shirt button at his throat. Such a lonely arrangement would be her idea of hell. After a lifetime of being ignored, Holly couldn’t imagine a worse fate than to be married to someone who didn’t even see her.
I’m glad it’s not me on the chopping block.
What a selfish thought, considering how Lillian had always gone above and beyond to protect them. Even now, she was out there trying to find a solution to this engagement. And what was Holly doing?
Smiling at a man my sister never wants to see again.
If only she could do more.
“There’s more to marriage than just shared last names,” she said carefully.
He rested his elbows on the table. “I’m all ears. What’s your idea of how our marriage should work?”
She hesitated. It was hard to know how far to push. If this marriage had to go through, Lillian might actually be all right with separate lives. Hell, she might prefer it.
Betraying the Billionaire (Abbott Sisters) Page 1
