by Kat T. Masen
Kat T. Masen
Chasing Fate
An Enemies-to-Lovers Romance
The Dark Love Series Book 5
Kat T. Masen
Copyright 2020 Kat T. Masen
All Rights Reserved
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to real events, real people, and real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, organizations or places is entirely coincidental.
All rights are reserved. This book is intended for the purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the express written permission of the author. All songs, song titles, and lyrics contained in this book are the property of the respective songwriters and copyright holders.
Disclaimer: The material in this book contains graphic language and sexual content and is intended for mature audiences, ages 18 and older.
Editing by Nicki at Swish Design & Editing
Proofing by Kay at Swish Design & Editing
Book design by Swish Design & Editing
Cover design by Outlined with Love Designs
Cover Image Copyright 2020
First Edition 2016
Second Edition 2020
All Rights Reserved
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Triangular relationship
•consist of two friends, one of which has introduced a romantic partner into their life, causing a feeling of alienation for the ‘abandoned’ friend.
I screwed up my perfect bachelor life in one single night.
After that, I end up crashing at my cousin Charlie’s house with her family, which means kids.
It gets worse…
Charlie doesn’t care for my single life.
She has it in her head I am a heartless playboy—Noah Mason will never commit to a woman.
My only saving grace is Kate, Charlie’s best friend.
Kate is everything I need in my life right now—she’s sexy, intelligent, and willing to have unadulterated fun.
And we’re having the time of our lives.
That is until Kate dares me to commit to only one woman.
My so-called victim—a Hollywood movie star.
But I have to get past a roadblock first—her personal assistant.
Commitment is one thing, falling in love is another.
And I refuse to lose the bet.
There’s only one small problem…
Am I chasing the wrong woman?
Note: This title was previously published as Mister Rebound. It has undergone extensive rewriting and has a new cover.
Blurb
Table of Contents
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
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Other Books by Kat T. Masen
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About The Author
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“Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it’s all over.”
~ Gloria Naylor
KATE
The name Eric flashes across the screen. I take a deep breath, then another. When it comes to Eric, patience is a virtue.
“What?”
The word stumbles out of my mouth too quickly, my mood suppressed and not caring for the idle chit-chat Eric is known for partaking in.
“Is that all I get?” he complains in his high-pitched tone. “You’re on babysitting duty this week. I can’t take that hostility on top of everything else.”
Eric had recently broken up with Tristan over his own insecurities. Tristan went to Dubai to film a movie, and Eric was adamant Tristan would cheat on him. Despite Charlie and me trying to convince him he was in his own head, Eric acted on impulse and broke it off the day before Tristan left. It’s been precisely thirty days since that happened, and Eric has been nothing but a sad and pathetic excuse of a human being. There’s miserable, and then there’s Eric Kennedy.
Between Charlie and myself, we are babysitting him emotionally. This week is my turn, and I already miss the peace from his over-dramatic retelling of how much comfort-eating he’s been doing and how the scales refuse to lie to him.
“I’m sorry,” I apologize, closing my eyes momentarily to get a grip on myself. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
“You and me both. What’s up your puss, or shall I ask who is up your puss?”
“Nothing,” I respond, flatly. “I mean no one. Can I call you back? I’m just about to leave the office. It’s been a hell of a day.”
It is a lie but a much-needed one. I need to clear my head, and Eric is the last person I want to speak to.
“Fine, reject me, just like everyone else. ‘I’m just a poor boy, nobody loves me’…” he cries.
I groan into the speaker. Eric breaking out into song brings out the worst in him. His desperate need for my attention only accelerates my need to head home to a bottle of much-needed wine.
“Listen, drama queen. I’ll call you back when I’m liquored up and immune to your melodramatic mood.”
“Thanks, doll. Speak soon.”
The line goes dead, the silence like pure bliss.
It’s late, just after seven. The office is practically deserted with only the sounds of the cleaners hovering with their equipment while they work in silence. It’s not unusual for me to stay back, seeking solace in work rather than go home to an empty apartment.
The sound of my phone pings, alerting me to a text message. With frustration, I curse openly at Eric and his desperation during his so-called emotional breakdown only to see another name on the screen.
My chest begins to hitch, the heaviness of the text message impossible to ignore in front of me. Taking a deep breath, I allow the air to give me the confidence I need to shield me from the humiliation I’m almost sure to feel.
Dominic: There’s nothing left to say.
My eyes dart over the words, half-expecting them to change into something less hurtful. Slowly, my shoulders curl over my chest, followed by an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach.
I spent a week waiting for any sort of respons
e from him. Anything at all to show me he at least cared for me in any kind of way. I conjured up different scenarios in my head, like what he’d say as far as him busting into this office demanding to strip me down to nothing so he could devour me.
Yet everything my warped mind begins to envision is everything he’s not.
I tried to play with fire, I got burned, and his text cements just that.
This moment is exactly how he said it would play out. Just somehow, over the last two months, I allowed myself to become someone I am not. I isolated myself more so than usual, detached my emotions from reality, almost as if I were walking in someone else’s shoes.
Eric, being assertive even in his own mess, questioned me multiple times, but I always found a lie worth telling to protect our friendship. At least that’s the story I led myself to believe.
Every lie I spun became easier as if the truth no longer existed. I’d done things, out of character, out of my comfort zone, trying to latch onto someone who, from day one, made his intentions perfectly clear.
Yet, I craved something more, foolishly allowing my emotions to walk silently beside my tough exterior. I blamed society with all its ageist bullshit of ticking clocks and whatnot. I narrowed down my ache to experience intimacy with a man because of my circle, watching my friends and family on their journeys to find love and happiness.
Placing my phone down on the desk, I go through a few contracts in desperate need to steer my mind onto something else before I make a stupid decision like respond back.
There are a few emails that need answering, and one from Lex’s assistant trying to sync dates of our travel schedule over the next few months. There’s a summit in London Lex insists I attend since many of our stakeholders will be present. Going back home seems fitting. It’s been over a year since I last set foot in London, and boy, do I miss my family.
But going back home will invite my family to ask questions about my personal life, which apparently, is their business. My mother, God love her, has always been a traditionalist. Marriage, babies, everything I don’t have. I was never one to really want to settle down, nor does the idea of babies entice me. Sure, I love my goddaughter, Amelia, and the other children I spend time with, yet I equally enjoy handing them back at the end of the day.
Around me, that’s where everyone’s journey has led them—happiness with a chosen person and extending their love by growing a family.
Lex and Charlie are happy, expecting baby number three and well-settled into their family life on the West Coast. Even Adriana found love with Julian. The universe works in mysterious ways with them, but nevertheless, they are in love and have just brought their daughter home from South America. The last I’d spoken to Adriana, she was the happiest I’d ever heard her, and despite my own opinions on Julian, he has made her happy, and it isn’t my place to get involved in their relationship.
Back here on the East Coast, it’s been a while since I caught up with Nikki and Rocky. The last I had heard, things were dicey between them. Again, not my place to get involved, especially since I have no wisdom to impart on the subject of infertility.
And perhaps my decision to remain single isn’t without reason. Love appears wondrous and satisfying, yet with that comes heartache. Lex and Charlie have had their fair share of ups and downs, and unfortunately, I was caught in the crossfire without even knowing it at the time.
Adriana and Julian—I don’t even know where to begin with how difficult that was.
As for Eric, his choice could’ve easily been avoided if he thought with his heart rather than his stupid head.
Then there’s me, always the single one in the group who everyone feels sorry for, which results in not-so-subtle blind date setups on more than one occasion and the constant pressure to find the ‘one.’
Yet, in their presence, I wear a façade. Everything was okay, and I was fine with not being in a relationship despite their concern over my non-existent love life.
The last four years changed everything about who I am and what I want in life.
My career and ambition have become an egotistical addiction. Ever since Lex promoted me so he could move to Los Angeles, I’ve made it my mission to show everyone exactly who is the new boss. I spent years shadowing Lex, watching him dominate the energy around him. He spent every waking hour becoming the mogul he had intended to be, and it paid off nicely. I’m not stupid, even though business associates thought it was a joke when Lex left the Manhattan office in my reigns. Nasty comments were said behind closed doors, the chauvinistic assholes didn’t know I had the intelligence or capability of filling Lex’s shoes.
And so, I was out to prove everyone wrong.
I busted my ass, worked myself into the ground all to prove a point. Somewhere, amid of all the chaos, my ego began to thrive on it. I almost enjoyed the fear I instilled inside the office, and as expected, people took notice and sharpened their work ethic around me. In order for me to succeed, I needed a team that would do their job plus go beyond what’s expected of them.
I’d become Lex—ruthless, assertive, and zero fucks given because I held power.
Between us, Lex was never shy to tell me I had changed, praising me for my ability to push through the negativity and grow our business despite the challenges I faced being a woman amongst a boardroom of men.
Perhaps, it was his encouragement that drove me further. He was happy to slow down, focus on his family. I, on the other hand, refused to slow down because slowing down will land you exactly where I am now.
Humiliated.
Because I’ve got feelings for a man who has no interest in me.
Dominic Kennedy.
Eric’s older brother.
The phone begins to ring again. Seriously, why can’t everyone just leave me alone to process my thoughts? I let out an annoyed rasp glancing at the screen, questioning whether or not I should answer since mother hen has expressed her worry over my state of mind over the last few days.
“Hey,” is all I manage to say.
“Okay, so not answering my texts will send me into early labor,” Charlie rambles, equally annoyed in her tone with my uninterested greeting. “Is everything okay? The last time we spoke—”
“The last time we spoke, I was fine, and you made a big deal out of nothing.”
“Kate,” she forewarns. “You’re not okay. Just admit it.”
“I can’t admit it.” I lower my voice, aware of the hurt in my tone. “He told me, Charlie, he told me he wasn’t the relationship type. Not only that, but he also explained his lifestyle to me. There were never any secrets.”
“It doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. You’re human.”
“Am I? I don’t even know who I am anymore.”
“Listen… I think you need to get away and spend some time here. You’re all alone, and nothing good will come of that.”
“I can’t. Work, merger…”
“I’m sure Lex won’t mind.”
“No, Charlie, you know I won’t mix business with pleasure,” I remind her.
“Hey, every one of us has had a romantic meltdown and needed time off. Even Lex. Get your ass on a plane, and I’m not taking no for an answer.”
I think about her suggestion. It’s been a while since I’ve visited, and maybe I do need to get out of the city and breathe fresh air. Although, Los Angeles is hardly fresh air with that godawful blanket of smog that lingers and the sun which isn’t compatible with my English skin.
I’d have to face Eric, yet on the bright side, he’s known to drag friends into some unwanted shenanigan, which will ultimately take my mind off things. Lately, it has been all work and no play.
“But you’re busy being knocked up, and didn’t you say your cousin, Noah, is staying with you?”
Although I haven’t met him, it’s as if I know Noah inside and out. Ever since Eric caught wind of him moving to LA, he has been relentless in his pursuit to hook us up. Eric stalks his social media accounts, sending me picture after p
icture and disturbingly, found some website which morphed two faces to show you what your child would look like. Granted, the fake kid was cute, but Jesus Christ, Eric needs to get laid.
“He’s not here yet. And don’t worry about me. I’m worried about you.”
“I know you are,” I say quietly. “I’ll speak to Lex and see if I can swing a week in LA. I’m not making promises, though.”
“I think you’re safe. He hasn’t gotten laid in a week since he’s been in Houston, so I’m sure I can convince him.”
“Thanks for the update on your sex life.” I laugh, followed by a long-winded sigh. “God, Charlie, when did I become so…”
“Fucked up?”
“I was going to say a dog’s dinner.”
“You know, I’ve known you four years, and your British slang still stumps me.” Charlie laughs. “Meaning?”
“A mess.”
“Ah,” she says, catching on. “It happens to the best of us.”
“I just…” I search for the words to relay the feelings I’ve buried deep inside. “I don’t know who I am anymore. I miss the old me. So carefree, happy to date or not date. I enjoyed life and everything it had to offer, never afraid to take a risk on something amazing. And would it hurt to find a man who just wants to have fun without the melodramatic strings attached?”
“Are you saying Eric is not that?” Charlie asks in a sarcastic tone.
We both laugh, a simple sound which has been missing in my life of late. Eric is many things, call him high maintenance, and he will argue he isn’t, only to storm out of the room cursing and making a scene.
“I just want to be me,” I finally admit. “And be around someone who appreciates the real me. I’m not looking for a husband, just someone I can have fun with and enjoy life.”
“It’ll come, Kate,” Charlie says encouragingly. “When you least expect it with the person you least expect it with.”
Maybe she’s right. When it came to relationships, Charlie was always spot-on with her advice.
