Lili Valente – Read Books Online Free Ebooks good best novels to read

Lili Valente – Read Books Online Free Ebooks good best novels to read http://www.books2020.com Thu, 23 Apr 2026 23:00:48 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 http://www.books2020.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/favicon.png Lili Valente – Read Books Online Free Ebooks good best novels to read http://www.books2020.com 32 32 The Secret Baby Power Play (That Steamy Hockey Romance #4) Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/the-secret-baread-online-power-play-that-steamy-hockey-romance-4-read-online-lili-valente Thu, 23 Apr 2026 23:00:48 +0000 https://www.books2020.com/the-secret-baread-online-power-play-that-steamy-hockey-romance-4-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Funny, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Series: That Steamy Hockey Romance Series by Lili Valente
Advertisement

Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 455(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >95

Sleeping with my teammate's sister? Rookie mistake.
Getting her pregnant? Career-ending penalty.

They call me the Guru—the guy who never loses his cool, never breaks the code, and definitely doesn't knock up his best friend's little sister after one perfect, reckless night.

But judging by Beatrice's new baby bump, six months ago, I did just that.

Now she's back in New Orleans, gorgeous, glowing, and determined to do this solo. She doesn't need my money, my help, or my suddenly inconvenient feelings.

Too bad. Because I'm not the kind of man who skates away from the woman I haven't been able to stop thinking about since the moment she left.

So I show up. I prove I'm not just the guy who got her pregnant, but the friend who listens, the partner who's got her back, and the lover who knows exactly how to make her forget why she ever thought romance might be dead.

And if keeping us a secret protects her peace? Fine. I'll play along.

But secrets have a way of hitting the ice when you least expect it. And when ours does, I'll have to prove to her brother, my team, and the woman I'm falling for that I'm not just chasing a win.

I'm playing for forever

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

Chapter One

BEATRICE NIX

Six months ago…

My big brother’s getting married.

My wild, party-loving, only-dates-cougars-on-the-rebound-due-to-suspected-commitment-issues brother is going to marry an amazing woman and live happily ever after.

I’m so happy for him.

So, so happy!

So happy that I haven’t stopped crying since he called me to tell me that Charlotte said yes…

What’s wrong with me?

I sniff, speeding my steps down a quieter street in the French Quarter, grateful for the spring breeze on my face. I have no idea where I’m going. I just had to get away from the noise, the people. Away from all the shiny surfaces outside the bar, reflecting what a mess I am.

I love Charlotte. Seriously love her. If someone told me I had to choose between Baylor, the brother who’s had my back my since the day I was born, and this woman, who came into my life just a few months ago, I would struggle to decide where my loyalty should lie. She’s been ten toes down for me from day one, even when things with my ex got seriously ugly. She never wavered or made me feel like a burden. She simply opened her heart and her home and took me in.

Charlotte is an incredible human being who loves my brother with every bit of her big, beautiful soul, and he feels the same way. Thanks to the love they’ve found, Baylor is an even better man than he was before. There’s no doubt in my mind that their marriage will be one for the ages.

So why is there a boulder in my throat?

Am I jealous? Is that it? Deep down, am I that petty?

“If so, then you’re a horrible person,” I mutter, words slurring as I swipe at the tears still leaking from my eyes. I’m tipsier than I almost ever get, but a hurricane on an empty stomach will do that to a girl. Food was on the way to the table, but I left before I could take a single bite of my fish tacos.

Thank God.

Thank God, I stepped outside the bar to take that call. Thank God, I texted my friends an apology for bailing early when the sniffling began, and started walking. If anyone else had seen me like this, I would be even more ashamed of myself.

Seriously, what is wrong here?!

Baylor and Charlotte basically saved my life. Not only did they help me escape Kai with minimal fallout, but they also provided shelter, support, and connections to the New Orleans music community. Hell, Charlotte even sang backup on the first solo release of my career.

They did everything in their power to smooth my transition from dysfunctional coupledom to peaceful single lady life. From a member of a mid-list band to a potentially mainstream solo artist. My first single, The Labor of Leaving, is still charting months after its release, and my forthcoming solo album has been named one of the year’s most anticipated releases by several well-respected industry publications. If I don’t seriously fuck something up, I’m on the verge of being famous.

Only I never wanted to be famous.

I wanted to make amazing music, live a happy life, and find someone incredible to share it with.

And so far?

Well, so far, aside from the new album, I’ve made formulaic music, lived under the thumb of a controlling asshole, and what I know about “true love” could fit inside a thimble.

I know it’s precious.

I know it’s rare.

And I know I might never find it.

Since the split with Kai, I haven’t been able to get laid, let alone anything more. I only started dipping my toe into the dating pool a little while ago, and meeting people is next to impossible when you spend most of your time in a recording studio, but still…

I’ve been on enough dates to know that men feel as foreign to me as the opposite sex did when I was a teenager. That’s how I ended up with Kai in the first place. He was problematic, yes, even back then. But he was also the first boy who seemed to “get” what it was like to be a woman, to see me as a main character, too, not a sidekick in his dude-centered adventure. I thought maybe that was because he was older than the other boys I’d dated—twenty-one to my seventeen.

Over a decade later, the hypothesis gave me comfort on my way out the door. Maybe finding connection would be easier the second time around, now that my dating pool was full of proper adults.

But after six months of disastrous first dates, I now suspect most men are simply dumb.

No, not dumb. That isn’t quite right.

They’re not dumb, they’re…willfully ignorant. Most haven’t bothered to educate themselves on what it’s like to navigate the world as a woman because they don’t have to.

They don’t have to be afraid of walking outside at night, or losing control of their reproductive systems, or being told they’re inherently inferior because they were born with girl parts. So, they don’t care.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >95

Advertisement The Penalty Box Affair (That Steamy Hockey Romance #3) Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/the-penalty-box-affair-that-steamy-hockey-romance-3-read-online-lili-valente Thu, 26 Feb 2026 08:20:15 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/the-penalty-box-affair-that-steamy-hockey-romance-3-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Contemporary, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Series: That Steamy Hockey Romance Series by Lili Valente
Advertisement

Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 92972 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >98

What do you do when the hot younger hockey player you swore you’d stop banging is the perfect revenge date to your ex’s wedding?
Pretend to be a couple. Obviously.

I was going to take the high road. I really was. But Nix needs image rehab before management benches him, and I need a plus-one who proves I’ve moved on to bigger and better things. (Especially the bigger part…)

Besides, we’re adults. We can pretend to be hot for each other without actually getting it on in the great outdoors.

Again. Right before one of my employees strolls through the garden gate and catches us on the back porch…

Oops.
Okay, so mistakes were made.
And made again. And again.

But it’s hard to remember why this is a bad idea when Nix is so…perfect. So funny, smart, and protective. So hot and hot for me in a way that makes a girl think she gave up on love a little too soon.

I’m two fake kisses away from asking him to be the real thing when a family emergency blows our plan to pieces. Suddenly, it isn’t just our hearts on the line.

His career hangs in the balance, my life is under a microscope, and one wrong step could mean we're both in the penalty box for good

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

One

Baylor Nix

Einstein once said, “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity…and I’m not sure about the universe.”

And I’ve just proven him right.

By being stupid.

Really fucking stupid…

The conference room door closes behind me with a sharp click that might as well be the sound of my coffin lid snapping shut.

Why couldn’t I just apologize? Beg for forgiveness? Be a good “team player” and kiss whoever’s ass needed to be kissed to get my own ass out of trouble?

I don’t know.

I’m not built that way, I guess. I was built stubborn, determined, with a strong sense of justice, and an even stronger aversion to saying I was wrong when I know I’m right.

I stand in the hallway, breathing in the scent of industrial cleaner and the tang of ammonia from the rink down the hall. The air feels too thin, like I’ve just skated five overtime periods without a breather, and my dress shirt is sticking to my back.

Turns out being repeatedly reminded that I’m one more “incident” away from becoming a cautionary tale makes me sweat. A lot. But hey, at least I’m not out of a job.

No official suspension.

The words should be a relief, but they’re not.

I was also gifted/cursed with the ability to read between the lines and hear the subtext in every polite conversation. What they really said was—We’re watching you, bucko. One more slip, one more outburst, one more toe out of line, and you’re done.

Keely’s voice still echoes in my head, that careful PR tone she uses when delivering bad news wrapped in corporate speak, “I understand where you’re coming from, I really do. But the optics are problematic, Baylor. Regardless of intent.”

And then Coach Merwood chimed in, his dwarf-lord beard bristling as he rumbled, “Get your head on straight, son. We don’t live in a society that condones vigilante justice. You’re putting the entire team’s reputation at risk. Control your temper, or you won’t be here to defend anyone.”

The way they’d all looked at me, like I’m a liability instead of a player who’s logged more ice time than half the defensive roster.

My throat goes tight, and a low-grade nausea roils through my gut that has nothing to do with the stale coffee I slugged down at the start of the meeting.

Six days until the season opener. Six days to be invisible, angelic, the picture of restraint. Six days for the press to hopefully forget that I was the guy who put that wife-beater in the hospital because I couldn’t walk away from a woman getting her face rearranged behind a club on Bourbon Street…

Management made it abundantly clear that my “history” is a problem. Three fights in two seasons, the suspension I took last year for going after the enforcer who cheap-shotted Grammercy, and now…this.

Never mind that the bastard I beat deserved every bruise.

Never mind that his wife just sent me a thank-you email with a photo from her new apartment, where she feels free and safe for the first time in nearly a decade.

I’m still the problem.

Aristotle said a man should pursue virtue for virtue’s sake, but he never had to answer to team owners worried about their brand image.

I start down the hall, determined to be gone before management finishes their meeting.

The Voodoo’s side of the arena is clearing out fast, my teammates headed home for the weekend after a grueling final week of training camp. I can’t wait to join them…as soon as I change into something that doesn’t make me feel like I’m suffocating. Grammercy and Blue said slacks and a dress shirt would show management that I gave a shit about their lecture.

I give a shit, all right.

Just not in the way they want.

I want to do the right thing, not the politically correct thing—and not always the legal thing, if I’m being completely honest—and that’s…

Well, that’s my cross to bear, I guess.

My phone buzzes in my pocket. I tug it out, glancing down to see a text from Parker—Had to head out early to meet Makena. Hope management didn’t bring down the hammer too hard. Text me later, okay? And don’t forget about the party tomorrow night. We’re going to have so much fucking food, dude. We need everyone to show up hungry and eat their share. You’ll be there, right? For sure?

I slide my cell back into my pocket with a sigh.

As if I could forget about his engagement party, even if I wanted to. No, his party has been top-of-mind since the day the invitation popped into my inbox.

Because his party is being thrown by none other than Charlotte Delaney.

Charlotte…

As I round the corner toward the locker room, the memories begin to flicker on my mental screen, the way they always do. It’s been three months since that night in June, and simply thinking her name is still enough to make my chest ache and my dick thicker.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >98

Advertisement Grump Hard (Silver Bell Falls #1) Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/grump-hard-silver-bell-falls-1-read-online-lili-valente Sun, 07 Dec 2025 21:07:00 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/grump-hard-silver-bell-falls-1-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Billionaire, Chick Lit, Contemporary Authors: Lili Valente Series: Silver Bell Falls Series by Lili Valente
Advertisement

Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 63917 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 320(@200wpm)___ 256(@250wpm)___ 213(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >67

He hates Christmas. She's the ultimate fruitcake fan. This is war.

Billionaire Luke Ratcliffe is trapped in small-town Vermont for the holidays, forced to honor his late grandfather's dying wish. His survival plan? Avoid the locals, skip the festivities, and definitely don't get caught breaking into the town hall to destroy the town's hideous Christmas tree topper.

Too bad pet photographer Holly Hadley has him on tape.

Now Silver Bell Falls' resident sunshine enthusiast has blackmailed him into being her Grinchy holiday assistant: Tree lightings. Gingerbread competitions. Wrangling cats, dogs, and a chipmunk (don't ask) into Santa hats for the camera.

It's Luke's version of hell.

But somewhere between the forced holiday cheer and Holly's infectious laugh, the ice around his heart begins to thaw. She sees the man who's forgotten what it feels like to belong somewhere. To someone.

Can Sunshine and Scrooge really live happily ever after? Or is this mismatched holiday love doomed from the start?

Grump Hard is a re-imagining of the novella, The Grumpy Billionaire who Stole Christmas. The first two chapters are the same, but the following 50,000 words are brand new! This longer, steamier, full-length novel gives Luke & Holly an even more satisfying happily-ever-after and launches the Silver Bell Falls holiday series!

(Look for new books from Silver Bell Falls every November, just as it starts to smell like snow...)

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

One

Luke Landon Ratcliffe

* * *

A billionaire with a bad attitude about the holidays.

(And just about everything else…)

* * *

“Silver Bell Falls. More like Silver Hell…” I sink lower on the sleet-dusted park bench in Silver Bell—Hell—Falls town square, glaring at the massive tree twinkling by the gazebo.

Tomorrow, the decorating committee will cover the monstrosity in gaudy, oversized ornaments. By tomorrow night, the entire town will have gathered to sing carols, swill hot chocolate, and pretend there’s a reason to believe there might someday be peace on earth.

I know better.

One of the most successful subsidiaries of my multi-billion-dollar conglomerate manufactures electrical wiring for nuclear arms facilities. If there were a reason for hope, the company would be on the verge of bankruptcy.

But business is booming.

“Pun fucking intended,” I slur to the tree, lifting my cup of spiked eggnog in a grim toast. “You, energy-wasting bastard.”

“Easy there, Holiday Monster, or you’ll set the tree on fire with your eyeballs.” My brother, Elliot, appears at my side, his messenger bag swollen with whatever maple-flavored, flannel-covered, Vermont-themed garbage he picked up at Kathy’s Kountry Store.

“That’s another thing I hate.” I intensify my glare at the “holiday magic” vomited all over the gazebo, the tree, and the businesses surrounding the square. Even the Victorian town hall on the hill behind the graveyard is so covered in garland and giant bows, you can hardly make out the historic architecture underneath. “The deliberate butchering of the English language. Neither Kathy nor her Kountry—with a K—store are cute. If I were in charge, people who called country stores, ‘kountry’ stores, would be dragged out into the street and pelted with snowballs.”

Elliot clucks his tongue. “Yet again, you choose violence. Why must you always choose violence during the holidays, big brother?”

“Fuck off,” I grumble.

“I will not,” he says. “It’s the happiest time of the year, and we’re honoring our grandfather’s dying wish by spending the season together in the beautiful home he left us.” He thrusts his arms into the air. “And we all like each other! How many brothers and sisters with crap parents like ours can say the same?” He pats his bag with a grin. “And I have enough Santa-shaped cookies, chocolate drizzled peppermint popcorn, and triple maple fudge to keep all four of us wasted on sugar until morning.” He nudges my shoulder. “Now, come on. We should head back up the mountain before the weather gets any worse. Ashton and Bran will be worried.”

Elliot glances over his shoulder at the mansion high above town, where our younger siblings are busy decking the halls, even though Christmas isn’t for another month.

“Snow we can handle, but they’re predicting sleet before midnight,” he continues, as I slug down another gulp of eggnog and wish my sister weren’t an interior decorator, highly skilled in blanketing sixteen-thousand-square-foot estates in wreaths and reindeer. “We might lose power before the night is over.”

My lips curve in a grim smile. “Then we should stay here, where they have a generator to keep the fairy lights glittering every second between now and whenever they’re finally giving up on Christmas these days. January 3rd? The 15th? Valentine’s Day? When do these monsters finally un-deck the halls and let the rest of us weather the winter in peace? The Fourth of Fucking July?”

“You’re going to freeze to death if you stay here,” Elliot says dryly, ignoring my rant. “A suit is hardly winter clothing, you forgot your hat, and your heart is at least five sizes too small.”

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >67

Advertisement All I Want for Christmas is a Fake British Boyfriend Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/all-i-want-for-christmas-is-a-fake-british-boyfriend-read-online-lili-valente Wed, 29 Oct 2025 22:17:21 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/all-i-want-for-christmas-is-a-fake-british-boyfriend-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male Authors: Lili Valente Advertisement

Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76664 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >80

I came to London to plan a Christmas gala—not to end up half-naked under a streetlamp with a gorgeous stranger. And definitely not to find out, once the photos go viral, that he’s a member of the royal family.

Now I’m a tabloid punchline, my client’s panicking, and my perfectly planned holiday has gone straight to scandal.

The solution? Pretend we’re dating until the cameras lose interest.
Simple. And nothing Emily Darling, social-media whizz, can’t handle.

Except Oliver isn’t the snotty aristocrat I expected. He’s funny, kind, unfairly sexy—and a Christmas nerd just like me.

We’re supposed to be faking it, but somewhere between the cocoa and the carols, London starts to feel like magic…and Oliver starts to feel like home.

But when a new viral headline makes me question everything, I find myself at Heathrow with a boarding pass, a broken heart, and a question only the man shouting my name across the terminal can answer—Is love really all around?

All I Want for Christmas Is a Fake British Boyfriend is a sparkling, laugh-out-loud, deep-feeling holiday rom-com full of fake dating, royal mayhem, cheeky kids, cheekier grandmothers, puppies in need of adopting, and the kind of love story that makes even a Grinch believe in miracles

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

Chapter One

EMILY KATHERINE DARLING

A woman determined to live out her

wildest “Love Actually/Bridget Jones/The Muppet Christmas Carol” fantasies with the

best Christmas in London EVER!

(If she doesn’t have a nervous breakdown first…)

The businessman in 12B is glaring at me like I’m the Grinch who Stole His Peaceful Transatlantic Flight, and I’ve been aboard the plane all of ten seconds.

To be fair, I did just smack him with my giant purse while wedging my emotional support binders into the overhead compartment. But it’s not my fault that Premium Economy has less than premium storage capacity.

“Sorry, so sorry,” I mutter as I Jenga a Louis Vuitton bag, a battered ukulele, and some kid’s stuffed panda to make room for my roller bag.

What part of “reserve the overhead bins for rolling luggage” didn’t these people understand?

Gah! If only people would follow the rules, life would be so much easier.

And I would be sweating soooo much less.

The plane is approximately eight thousand degrees, my wrinkle-resistant Nan Baylor blazer is already doing its best Shar-Pei impression, and the Valerian Root capsule I took in the airport bathroom to “relax me for the flight” has done nothing except make my tongue feel chalky. Meanwhile, my phone is buzzing like a swarm of bees, and the businessman is clearly not pleased to see me laying hands on his ukulele.

Or maybe that’s his stuffed panda.

If so, he should keep it on his lap or tucked beneath the seat in front of him, where it belongs.

I finally wedge my rolling bag into place and collapse into my window seat, pulling out my phone to see a string of new texts from Maya.

Maya: Did you remember the emergency binders?

Maya: Remember, technology hates you and likes to explode when you touch it. Especially when you’re nervous. If your laptop dies again, and you don’t have the binders, we’re screwed, Em. Seriously screwed.

Maya: If you forgot them, tell me ASAP, and I can overnight them to your hotel. Yes, it will cost a small fortune, but better safe than sorry. We have to nail this one and stick the landing.

Maya: Don’t freak out, but I just found out that Willow and Stone is pitching Fletchers, too. Apparently, they pulled in a favor from Willow’s godmother in Kent, who knows someone who knows the people who used to plan the Fletchers’ holiday gala in the 80s. God, I hate them so much! Who do they think they are? Trying to take OUR gig!?

Maya: I mean, sure, they planned a Met Gala afterparty that went viral…

Maya: But that’s only because Beyoncé showed up!

Maya: BEYONCÉ, EMILY! HOW DO WE COMPETE WITH BEYONCÉ? We’re going to go bankrupt, aren’t we? Why did Titan have to sell to an evil global conglomerate ten days after we signed the lease on a new office? TEN DAYS! If we’d known we were losing our biggest client, I would not be sitting in this stupidly fancy office right now. I hate it here!!

Maya: Except that I love it because this view of the Brooklyn Bridge, welcoming the dawn while I sip espresso, is giving me life.

Maya: But I also hate it because I hate uncertainty and risk. But we’re still genius party planners and businesswomen, right? You’ll land the Fletchers’ gig, I’ll lock down the Rousseau wedding in the Hamptons, and we’ll be sitting pretty for another year. Right?

Maya: This will be fine.

Maya: So fine!

Maya: FOR THE LOVE OF MY HOLIDAY SPIRIT AND SANITY, JUST TELL ME THAT IT WILL BE FINE AND YOU DIDN’T FORGET THE BINDERS!

I type back: Hey, just finished boarding. The binders are tucked safely into the overhead bin, and I couldn’t be more prepared if I were triplets. Relax! We’re going to be fine.

I think…

The “fine” part remains to be seen—losing our biggest client to a soulless conglomerate that doesn’t believe that Instagram-perfect parties are good for their bottom line has been a serious blow—but I’ve been preparing for this meeting with one of London’s oldest, swankiest department stores for six weeks.

My PowerPoint has thirty-seven slides with embedded video montages from the viral Brighton wedding that landed me the interview in the first place. I’ve memorized the names of every Fletchers’ executive, their assistants, and their assistants’ dogs. I know that James Landford-Fletcher, the CEO of events, prefers Earl Grey to English Breakfast and that his wife collects Royal Doulton porcelain figurines. I’ve studied British charity gala traditions in general (and the Fletchers’ holiday gala in particular) like I’m cramming for the citizenship test.

Which, considering how much I want to live in the U.K. someday, is pretty much a matter of life or death.

I’m as ready as someone who has never had a pop star show up at one of her parties can be.

Hopefully, that will be enough…

The plane lurches into motion, and I grip my armrest, already counting the hours until I can stress-eat my weight in Cadbury Dairy Milk. Not only is the U.K. a beautiful, majestic, historically significant place I adore, it’s also home to the Fruit and Nut bar, a sugary treat that heals all wounds.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >80

Advertisement The No Touch Roommate Rule (That Steamy Hockey Romance #2) Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/the-no-touch-roommate-rule-that-steamy-hockey-romance-2-read-online-lili-valente Sun, 12 Oct 2025 20:52:33 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/the-no-touch-roommate-rule-that-steamy-hockey-romance-2-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Contemporary, Erotic, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Series: That Steamy Hockey Romance Series by Lili Valente
Advertisement

Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94883 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >99

What to do when the sexy hockey player you’ve been avoiding suddenly becomes your roommate? Make “no touch” rules. Obviously.

I’ve spent months dodging Leo Parker’s attempts to score a second date. Yes, he’s gorgeous. Yes, he plays for the Louisiana Voodoo. Yes, he kisses like it’s an Olympic sport. But he’s also six years younger than I am and—plot twist—I used to babysit him when he was twelve.
But when a hurricane destroys my restaurant (and the storage closet I’ve been sleeping in), Parker swoops in with the perfect solution. Move in with him. Temporarily. With RULES:

No sex
Clothes stay ON in common areas
Hugging, but only before 5pm

But living with Parker means watching him do everything without a shirt on. Hearing him moan over my cooking like it’s foreplay. And discovering he’s not just a pretty face—he’s funny, generous, and seems to like me…just the way I am.
Soon we’re roadtripping to food festivals, winning crawfish mating-call contests (don’t ask), and breaking every rule. Repeatedly. I’m starting to think this sweet, sexy man might be My One.

There’s just one problem: When it comes to men, I’m cursed. And a blast from the past is about to remind us why falling for each other might be the worst rule we’ve broken yet

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

Chapter

One

PARKER

Ihate weddings.

And love.

And tuxedos.

Okay, fine! I love weddings and love, and I’m honored to be one of my best friend’s groomsmen. I’m just cranky about romance at the moment.

And I look incredible in a tux, but fuck…couldn’t Grammercy and Elly have had this renewal ceremony indoors in the air conditioning instead of out in Maison Monteleone’s courtyard?

I get that this is where they met, yada yada, but we’re only two days into June, and Louisiana is already as hot as my big, saggy balls after a five-mile run.

I’m probably tremendously fertile and will make super-talented, good-looking babies someday, but my balls really are too much.

At the moment, they’re flat-out swampy, right along with the rest of me.

Sweat pools at the base of my spine, soaking through my dress shirt and into the tux jacket that feels like a torture device in this heat. Even with fans set up to stir the air, the humidity is intense.

But of course, Blue isn’t sweating. Not a fucking drop. The Voodoo’s star defender is built like a refrigerator and stays just as cool. He’s probably meditating the perspiration away. Or just willing himself not to sweat with the force of his Yoda vibes or something.

“Why aren’t you sweating?” I mutter. “Are you an alien?”

“Stop fidgeting,” he murmurs, barely moving his lips.

“I’m not fidgeting,” I whisper, tugging at my bow tie. “I’m suffocating. There’s a difference.”

I’m also suffering.

Because right there, across the aisle, the woman I’ve been dying to share air with since October is completely ignoring me. Probably because I’m sweaty and gross, but I can’t help it! I’ve always been a sweater. Allegedly, my mother took me to a dermatologist when I was just four months old. She was that concerned about how sweaty my feet were, especially considering I didn’t wear shoes at the time.

But I have talcum powder and very good deodorant.

Even for my balls.

Ball deodorant is a thing these days.

When this drip fest is over, I will still smell fresh as a fucking daisy—a fact I could explain to Makena, if she would speak to me.

Or look at me.

Or acknowledge my existence in any way.

I narrow my eyes across the aisle, willing her to glance my way, to see that I’m still hot and kissable even when drenched in sweat, but she’s locked in on the happy couple.

I follow her gaze to see Grammercy beaming down at Elly like she hung the moon and discovered the cure for cancer, all while giving him the best blow job of his life. Beautiful, sure, but so over the top it’s enough to make a chronically single man set things on fire.

And isn’t a vow renewal a little much? Considering they’ve only been married eight months? But since their actual wedding was just them and the justice of the peace, they wanted to celebrate with friends and family. Hence, a hundred of their nearest and dearest packed into this courtyard, sweating through formal wear, while Elly and Grammercy stare at each other like there’s no one else in the room.

“Eloise Thibodeaux Graves,” Grammercy says, his voice carrying easily through the hushed crowd. “How to tell you what you mean to me? I worked for hours on these vows, but couldn’t find the perfect thing to express how grateful I am to have you as my best friend, my partner, and my girl. Not in English anyway, so I’ll just say… C’est toi. Toujours toi. La vérité de ma vie, et la gardienne de mon cœur.”

Fuck.

French.

He always has to whip out the French and make the rest of us seem like idiot cavemen with no game.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >99

Advertisement The Fake Husband Play (That Steamy Hockey Romance #1) Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/the-fake-husband-play-that-steamy-hockey-romance-1-read-online-lili-valente Sat, 16 Aug 2025 22:25:31 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/the-fake-husband-play-that-steamy-hockey-romance-1-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Billionaire, Contemporary, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Series: That Steamy Hockey Romance Series by Lili Valente
Advertisement

Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 103621 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >109

What’s a girl to do when her longtime hockey crush offers her a marriage of convenience?
Say YES. Obviously.

I’ve spent three years lusting after Grammercy Graves on my (supposedly anonymous) hockey romance podcast—breaking down his stats, his plays, that panty-melting Cajun accent...

The entire internet knows he’s my dream guy. What they don’t know? I’m a broke single mom who just lost her job—and the health insurance my daughter needs.

When Grammercy finds me crying in a supply closet at a team party, he offers the wildest
Fake marriage. Real benefits. One year.
No strings. No S-E-X. Just shared coverage and a room with my name on it.

But he’s so good with my daughter. So generous, so funny, so kind.
And when it’s just the two of us? He treats me like I’m someone special.

Like I’m his.

Soon, every kiss for the cameras turns into a kiss we can’t stop, and it’s getting harder and harder to remember this is all pretend.

There’s just one secret that could ruin it all—my podcast, the one that proves I wasn’t telling the whole story when we first “met.”

When he finds out, will he walk away…
Or make my wildest fangirl fantasies come true?

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

Prologue

WHEN YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW…

What’s it like to have your entire world turned upside down with a single glance?

Let me tell you.

It’s a hot night in October, magic-hour light drenching Magazine Street like it wants to lick every inch of New Orleans until it’s stickier than it is already. I’m stopped at a red light when I see her—dark hair, red dress, cardboard box in her arms. She’s coming out of an office building, looking tired in that bone-deep way that makes you want to ask a person who hurt them.

Then punch whoever it was in the face…

I would punch people for this woman, I realize. That’s instantly a given, though I’m known in the league for being a lover, not a fighter.

But for her?

Fuck, she’s so beautiful.

So sad.

So…mine?

It’s a crazy thought. Absolutely out of bounds.

But I swear, something happens to me in that moment. It’s not love. I’m not that off my rocker, there are no stalker-flavored Netflix shows in my future, thank you very much. But…it’s something intense. Real. A bone-deep recognition.

Like every cell in my body suddenly wakes up and shouts, “It’s you. Finally.”

Then, cars honk behind me.

The light’s turned green.

I pull away, but inside, I’m already making plans. I drive through this neighborhood every day. I know that building. I can find her again.

I have to find her again.

For the next few days, I’m a man possessed. I drive by that office complex every day. Sometimes twice a day. I tell myself I’m just taking different routes to practice, but I’m full of shit.

At night, I dream about her. Brown eyes full of secrets. The elegant curve of her neck. The way she looked carrying that box like it held the weight of the world. I wake up with my heart beating fast, wondering if I’ll ever see her again.

Surely, I wouldn’t be so stuck on this woman if there weren’t a reason for it. Even before that night at the party, something in me is already insisting that Fate has something to do with all this.

Then, in the middle of schmoozing sponsors at the first big event of the NHL season, I hear crying from a supply closet.

And when I open the door…there she is.

Magazine Street Girl, with mascara running down her cheeks.

“It’s you,” she whispers, the same words that ran through my head the first time I saw her, and that does something to me that I can’t fully explain.

I thought I had life all figured out. I had the world on a string—Stanley Cup ring in my first pro season, top-tier player in a brand-new team, back in my hometown, ready to build a legacy. Then Elly smiled just for me, and suddenly it was her. Just her and the baby girl she’d die for.

Just this family I knew—knew—was supposed to be mine.

You think I’m crazy? You think love only happens the way you expect it to happen? You want magic, but not too much magic, not the kind that forces you to rethink everything you thought you knew to be true?

You think a man can’t see forever in a stranger’s tired eyes?

That’s okay. I wasn’t a believer, either.

Not until Elly.

Now, I’d do anything for this woman.

And before this is over, I’ll prove it.

I’m not giving up on her, on us, no matter what the world throws our way.

Chapter

One

ELOISE “ELLY” THIBODEAUX

Excerpt from the LOVE ON ICE PODCAST

- EPISODE 127 Red Flags and Power Plays,

Recorded in October.

(Theme music fades.)

Welcome back to the Love on Ice podcast, where we break down the latest NHL gossip on and off the rink. I’m your host, Luvvy Puck, coming to you from…my bathtub. (The acoustics are great in here, don’t judge.)

(Sound of shower curtain rustling, followed by a quiet laugh.)

Tonight, we have red flags, green flags, and what happens when a player you love goes viral for all the wrong reasons.

I’m looking at you, Trevor Morrison of the Seattle Storm, who apparently thought taking a woman to Boobie Bob’s Lobster Shack was appropriate first-date behavior.

Lovies, I’m no prude. I’m from New Orleans, for goodness’ sake—we have a proud tradition of flashing our tatas for Mardi Gras treats.

Still, I feel confident saying that most women don’t want boobies in their face on a first date. But Trevor’s fatal mistake came when he asked this poor girl to split the bill even though she’s in nursing school. On scholarship.

Which she shared during the date. But maybe he was too distracted by all the “lobster” to remember…

Either way, your fifty-fifty play took this from a red flag to a full-fledged dating penalty, Trevor. Do better.

[Womp womp, penalty sound effect.]

Moving on to green flags! And our favorite Engagin’ Cajun, star of the New Orleans’ Voodoo expansion team, Grammercy Graves…

[Dreamy sigh sound effect.]

Picture this: Our boy, a microphone, and a bilingual reading of The Day the Crayons Quit at the Children’s Literacy Fair.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >109

Advertisement Pucking the Grump – Bad Motherpuckers Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/pucking-the-grump-bad-motherpuckers-read-online-lili-valente Thu, 12 Jun 2025 17:15:13 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/pucking-the-grump-bad-motherpuckers-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Contemporary, Drama, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Advertisement

Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 74956 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >80

Three things you should I’m a pro on the ice, a smartass in the locker room, and head-over-skates for the coach’s daughter.

She’s grumpy, gorgeous, and completely off-limits, and not just because her dad is a legendary hardass who will separate my nuts from the rest of me if he finds out about us. Remy is the hardest-working woman in hockey, determined to leave the admin world behind and start a coaching career of her own. She has goals. Rules. Boundaries. Walls around her heart more impenetrable than the glass around the rink.

We’ve been sneaking around for over a year, but after one too many "this can’t happen again" close calls, she’s ready to end things for good.

Problem is, I’m not.

Somewhere between late-night texts, weekend road trips, and falling asleep with my secretly vulnerable girl on my chest, I pucked around and became this woman's biggest fan.

Now, I want everything her rough childhood has her too scared to believe in—teamwork that lasts a lifetime and love that was never part of the plan.

And when the final buzzer sounds, I want this woman next to me. Forever.

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

Chapter 1

Remy Lauder

Like most Type A overachievers, I have a strict “no sex in the workplace” policy. A policy that Tyler Stone is currently breaking for the third time this month…

With me. On my desk. Again.

I should really stop letting this happen.

And I will.

Any minute now…

“We have to stop,” I whisper as Stone’s lips trail down the side of my neck, his teeth grazing my skin in a way that makes my toes curl. “I mean it. We can’t keep doing this.”

“That’s what you said last time,” he murmurs. “And the time before that.” His hands glide up my thighs, bunching my pencil skirt around my waist as he steps between my legs, pressing his body closer to mine.

Damn, his body…

If only he weren’t built like a Viking lumberjack with zero respect for personal space and a talent for making office furniture groan. With those broad shoulders, strong hands, chiseled abs, and that little smirk that says he knows I’m two seconds from giving in every time I try to push him away—he’s legitimately irresistible.

I’m a lifelong athlete, a coach’s daughter, a coach myself, for fuck’s sake!

I pride myself on discipline, strategy, and keeping my head in the game. But the second this man walks in smelling like fancy soap and bad decisions, my executive function goes right out the window.

Tyler Stone is my kryptonite, which is why we made rules about where and when it was okay to give in to our mutual lust-jones for each other.

It’s also why I keep breaking those rules…

“But this time we got caught, so we should definitely put this off until a later date.” I try to sound firm, but my fingers are already threading through his dirty blond hair.

“We didn’t get caught,” he scoffs, lifting his head from my neck to fix me with those impossibly blue eyes. “We helped two people who were locked in a bathroom get out of the bathroom. Two people I happen to be close friends with, who would never spread gossip about us, even if they suspected we’d been about to fuck when we were so rudely interrupted. But they don’t suspect a thing. So, we’re fine, Bossy. Just fine. I promise. Now, relax and let me get you naked. You’ll feel better when you’re naked.”

His smile is equal parts charm and mischief, the same grin that first got me into trouble eighteen months ago.

But back then, I didn’t know Stone was coming to play for the Badgers, for my team, which shortly thereafter became my father’s team. Sleeping with a player from my own franchise would have been problematic enough, but once my controlling, hyper-protective father became their head coach?

Forget about it.

I ditched Stone immediately, deleted his number, and made plans to pretend I’d never been taken up against a wall by the Portland Badger’s new star forward.

Then Stone showed up at my office door a few weeks after training camp started last year, looking like a wounded puppy. A really sexy wounded puppy who just wanted to make me come my brains out…

My capacity to make logical decisions has been on vacation ever since.

“I’m not getting naked with you,” I maintain.

“Fine, half naked.” He shifts even closer, until the thick ridge of his erection brushes against my thigh. “I can still do bad things to you half-naked. I’m gifted like that.”

I laugh, despite myself. “You’re insane, is what you are.”

“And you love it,” he replies, the humor in his voice giving way to something deeper, more intense.

My breath catches as his fingers tease up the soaked panel of my panties. “Stone, I’m serious this time… I really am…”

“Then tell me to stop like you mean it, and I’ll stop.” His voice drops to that low rumble that makes my pussy throb every bit as much as the thumb gently circling my clit. “I’ll walk out that door right now if you really want me to, Bossy. You know I’m a man of my word.”

That’s the problem. He is a man of his word. Stone is many things—irreverent, cocky, playful, even ridiculous at times—but he’s honest to a fault and has always respected my boundaries. The real ones, anyway.

Which makes it so much harder to say what I should say right now.

If I tell him to go, he will, but I really don’t like the thought of heading home without taking the edge off. Stone is trouble, but he’s also medicine. I wouldn’t be managing the stress of my jam-packed schedule half as well without his regularly and generously administered orgasms.

“Fine, the door,” I manage, breath coming faster as he increases his delicious pressure. “Just double check that it’s locked.”

“Yes, ma’am.” His slow smile is pure victory. He steps back, but not before pressing one more lingering kiss to my lips and giving my clit a pinch that makes me gasp.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >80

Advertisement Puck Sweat Love – Bad Motherpuckers Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/puck-sweat-love-bad-motherpuckers-read-online-lili-valente Thu, 01 May 2025 18:18:21 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/puck-sweat-love-bad-motherpuckers-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Contemporary, Sports Authors: Lili Valente Advertisement

Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72589 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 290(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >77

The NHL’s grumpiest goalie just met his biggest weakness—his sunshine-y, totally off-limits yoga instructor…

After clawing my way back from a rough few years, I’m finally getting my second chance in the league. The only thing standing between me and a legendary comeback? My own cantankerous attitude—and the blood pressure to match.

Enter Stephanie Love—yoga guru, human ray of sunshine, and the last woman I should be thinking about kissing. She’s here to help me chill the hell out before training camp.

Instead, she’s making it impossible to keep my cool.

One downward dog, and I’m done for. It’s the way she moves, the way she laughs, the way she sees right through my broody bullshit.

I can’t afford distractions, especially not a big-hearted woman who deserves better than a broken goalie with a bad reputation.

But the more I fight it, the clearer it becomes—this game was rigged from the start.

She’s my new dream, now…and I’m about to break every rule to make her mine

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

CHAPTER 1

TANK

There’s an art to being trapped.

I should know—I’ve spent most of my life perfecting it.

Trapped in other people’s low expectations. Trapped in regret. Trapped in a cycle of self-sabotage that nearly destroyed everything I’d worked so hard to achieve.

And now literally trapped in an overflow equipment storage room that reeks of moldy jockstraps and broken dreams.

“This is why people invented inventory systems,” I mutter, shoving aside another box of ancient practice jerseys with more force than necessary. “And dumpsters.”

The pain that shoots through my bum shoulder is almost satisfying.

Almost.

The Badgers’ overflow storage is a disaster zone. No organization, no system, just hoarder-level chaos piled to the ceiling in a dimly-lit concrete bunker at the old end of the complex. When I agreed to track down enough child-sized pads for tomorrow’s workshop, I was feeling charitable.

Now, I’m back to cranky and annoyed—my default settings. But the sooner I get this shit into the guest locker room, the sooner I can go home and unwind with the craft beer of the night.

Thank God, I didn’t turn out to be an alcoholic, as well as a pill head. A beer on the roof of my apartment on a warm summer evening is a peak experience for me at this point.

Which is probably pathetic, but who gives a fuck?

I’m too tired to care. After back-to-back private coaching clients from seven a.m. to ten and working the youth camp the rest of the day, I’m beat. Even as a teen athlete, a day like today would have sent me to bed early. Staring down the barrel of thirty, I’ll be lucky to make it through ten minutes of my podcast of the moment before I’m out cold.

I push deeper into the room, past towers of helmets from the 80s and overflowing stick racks, searching for the elusive box of junior goalie gear. The farther I go, the darker the shadows and the narrower the path through the madness.

I’m trying not to take that as a sign that this quest is cursed, when I hear it—the distinctive clunk of the heavy equipment room door swinging shut behind me.

The door that I was careful to prop open because I know it locks automatically and can only be opened with a code punched into the keypad outside…

“No. No, no, no.” I spin around, stumbling over what feels like a bag of rocks as I lunge across the room. Just a few seconds later, my hands slam against the solid metal. But, as I feared, the ancient son of a bitch is locked up tight. “Fuck!” I curse through clenched teeth.

“Is anyone out there?” I call in a louder voice. “Hey! Can anyone hear me? I’m locked in the overflow equipment room! I’m locked the fuck in. Hello?” I pound on the door until pain vibrates up my forearm, shouting the entire time, but when I finally pause to take a breath, I’m met by silence.

The bunker is practically soundproof and all the camp kids and coaches cleared out an hour ago. I pat my pockets, hoping for a miracle. But as expected, my cell is still in my locker, where I put it when I arrived this morning in an attempt to be a good example for all the screen-addicted nine-year-olds. Cursing again, I glance down at my watch, stomach sinking as I see it’s nearly seven.

Later than I thought…

Chances are, even the maintenance staff has gone home for the night, and I’ll be stuck in here until tomorrow morning.

I drag a hand through my hair.

Fabulous. Trapped like a goddamn rat.

As a former addict, I’ve been in tougher spots—way tougher—but not since I cleaned up my act a few years ago. Since then, I’ve made a point of staying out of trouble. I’m Tank LiBassi, elite goaltending coach, dedicated athlete, youth center volunteer, and a man with his sober gaze fixed on getting back to the NHL.

Now, I’ve finally done it. Thanks to a stellar tryout at a special session last month, I start training camp with the Badgers in just a few weeks as their starting goaltender.

I should be happy, chill, relaxed for the first time in years.

But something inside me is still on edge, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Maybe this is it. This is the shoe,” I mutter.

If so, this isn’t so bad. I had a late lunch and am reasonably hydrated. And at least it’s summer. In a Portland, Oregon winter, this concrete block of a room would get frigid overnight, but it’s August.

I’ll be fine.

Assuming I don’t need to piss.

Or something more offensive than piss…

I slump against the wall, sliding down until I’m sitting on a pile of molded towels, I can’t understand why anyone thought were worth keeping. The thickening darkness wraps around me, the silence broken only by my own breath.

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >77

Advertisement Baby I’m Yours – Forbidden Billionaires Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/baread-online-im-yours-forbidden-billionaires-read-online-lili-valente Wed, 19 Mar 2025 15:57:57 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/baread-online-im-yours-forbidden-billionaires-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Billionaire Authors: Lili Valente Advertisement

Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 90337 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 452(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >96

What to do when a bossy billionaire makes an aggressive bid to get you knocked up with his baby?
Say no, and return to your perfectly normal, baby-free life.
Or you could do what I did, sign the Bossy Jerk’s illicit contract, and sell yourself into sexy servitude.
Clearly, mistakes were made…
Now I’m tangled up in a dizzying mixture of business and pleasure with Hunter Mendelssohn, the sexiest man to ever pull my hair while delivering multiple Os. This is supposed to be simple—He wants a very devoted, very pregnant fake fiancee to convince his dying mother their family line will live on. I want a baby with no baby-daddy in the picture, and Hunter has promised to vanish once his mother passes. If we abide by the contract, we both get what we want, no harm, no foul.
But nothing about being with Hunter is simple. Not our explosive chemistry. Not the irreplaceable way he makes me feel. And certainly not the way my heart melts every time I wake up cradled in his arms.
I’m falling hard for this damaged man, but when wounds from his past tear us apart, I’m sent running back to my small town with a secret.
A shocking secret that will change both our lives forever

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

one

ELAINA MURPHY

A woman discovering that being left

behind sucks as much as she expected it would…

It’s a gorgeous day.

Just completely fucking gorgeous…

And I’m miserable.

Completely fucking miserable…

It’s the sun’s fault.

Damned sun…

There it is, hovering above the ocean like a huge orange asshole, bathing the craggy Maine coastline in a haze of pink and gold that I know would have made my mother cry. She loved beach weddings. She would have loved this one, even if my friend Sydney is visibly pregnant.

Mom preferred people do things in order—dating, marriage, then babies—but she loved Syd. She would have been so happy to see her saying “I do” to the man of her dreams and Gideon watching her walk down the aisle like she’s the best thing that ever happened to him.

Hell, the best thing that ever happened to the world.

He’s so in love with her, it’s ridiculous.

And beautiful.

And gross.

Love is gross. I hate it. I don’t ever want to be in love again. I’m glad that I haven’t been on a date since I buried Mom four months ago, let alone found anyone to shack up with in my apartment above the cat café. The cats are all I need. Just cats and new scone recipes and a steady stream of nights alone watching reality television, interspersed with the occasional Zoom book club meeting.

Now that all my girlfriends have moved to New York to be with their sexy boyfriends and husbands, we can’t do book clubs in person at the café anymore. But that’s fine. Who needs hugs or shared food or laughter that isn’t filtered through a screen?

Not me.

This is fine.

Better than fine.

A twisted part of me is even glad that Mom’s gone, and I don’t have weekly dinners at her place on my schedule anymore. I miss her so much but seeing her in pain all the time at the end was killing me. She’d always been so strong, so independent, raising me alone while running her own dry-cleaning business and volunteering at the church every time they opened the doors. Barbara Ellen Murphy was a powerhouse, then she was a desperately sick woman who hated not being able to get out of bed, and now…she’s gone.

I bite the inside of my cheek as I pop the top on my second beer and try to talk myself into joining the dancing. It doesn’t matter that I’ll be the only one dancing alone. Dancing is still fun.

Right?

“Fuck if I know,” I mutter, blaming the aforementioned piece-of-shit sun for the tears that sting into my eyes as I take a pull on my IPA.

“El?” My bestie, Maya’s, sweet voice pulls me from my thoughts. “You okay?”

I glance over to find my oldest friend reaching for a lemonade from the ice bucket full of drinks on the refreshment table and force a smile. I will not ruin this day for anyone else. I will continue to hide my despair until they’re all gone and I’m alone in my apartment, where I can have a good cry.

Or a primal scream. Or whatever feels most fitting after a day pretending that I’m fine with being the one happily ever after forgot.

“Yeah, just zoning out a little. It’s been a long day,” I say, my fake smile stretching wider as Anthony, Maya’s silver fox boyfriend appears behind her, touching a gentle hand to her hip as he reaches past her to claim a beer.

She glances at him over her shoulder, just for a second, but that’s all it takes for them to exchange one of their deeply-in-love smiles. They are also grossly in love and so sweet and good to each other it’s honestly a little nauseating. They only got engaged a couple of months ago, but they have the energy of people who have been devoted for ages.

They were just…meant to be, and I’m happy for Maya, I really am.

But I’m also lonely. And sad.

And a little jealous, a shameful feeling I do my best to push aside as Maya says, “It has been a long day. But the ceremony was perfect. You did such a beautiful job. You make public speaking look so easy.”

My smile softens, starting to feel more natural on my face. “It’s not public speaking if everyone in the audience is a friend.”

“Oh, yes, it is,” she insists. “If you ask me, that’s even worse. I’d be way more worried about making a mistake in front of friends than strangers. At least with strangers, if something goes wrong, you never have to see them again.”

I cock my head to one side. “Yeah, I guess. I’ve never thought of it that way.”

“But if you had made a mistake, it would have been fine,” Maya hurries to add. “I mean, if it had been my ceremony, I wouldn’t have cared. Right, Anthony? We wouldn’t have cared. I mean, on such a happy day, what’s a little mistake?” She glances back at him again, asking in a softer voice, “I’m doing a great job of convincing her to marry us on Tuesday, aren’t I?”

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >96

Advertisement Pretending I’m Yours – Forbidden Billionaires Read Online Lili Valente http://www.books2020.com/pretending-im-yours-forbidden-billionaires-read-online-lili-valente Sun, 02 Mar 2025 13:35:52 +0000 http://www.books2020.com/pretending-im-yours-forbidden-billionaires-read-online-lili-valente Genre: Alpha Male, Billionaire, Contemporary, Forbidden, Insta-Love, Virgin Authors: Lili Valente Advertisement

Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 90899 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >96

What to do when the male "escort" you hired to take your virginity turns out to be a jaded billionaire playing games with your body...and your heart?

As a card-carrying Good Girl, I'm the last person anyone would expect to end up in a "Reverse Pretty Woman" situation...

I'm the sweet, shy one, not the type to hire an escort to show her the ropes in the bedroom. I'm also not the type to lie to my family, sneak away to New York City for a week of no-holds-barred pleasure, or enjoy being told what a "good girl" I am when I get down on my knees for a gorgeous, commanding older man.

All I know for certain is that every night with Anthony, the man I hired to be my first everything, is better than the last. He isn't just a sex god who brings my every fantasy wildly to life, he's smart, romantic, protective, and seemingly as affected by the chemistry between us as I am.

In just a few days, I'm falling hard for my fake boyfriend.
Even crazier? Anthony says he wants more, too.
More of my time, more of my body--and he's willing to quit the escort business to give the connection growing between us a real shot.

Soon, we're making plans for a future beyond our steamy week between the sheets.

But what happens when I realize the man I've been falling for isn't a sex worker, at all, but a jaded billionaire who's been lying to me from the start?

Can our love survive learning our time together truly has been one giant game of pretend?

*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************

prologue

She’s perfect…

She’s perfect…

So fucking perfect I can’t imagine letting her go in a hundred days, let alone just a few more nights.

I have to tell her who I really am, and hope like hell she can find it in her big heart to forgive me.

But not now, not when she’s asked for a blow job lesson and is proving to be a magnificent student…

“Perfect,” I manage, my voice tight and every muscle in my body straining to stay still as my girl strokes my cock, knowing this “lesson” will end with her bent over the bed and me taking her hard from behind if I don’t remain in control.

She destroys me, this woman.

Destroys me and heals me and makes me want things I thought were beyond my reach before she blew into my life.

“And now I come down on my knees?” she asks, already dropping down in front of me, the feel of her breath warm on my thigh enough to make my cock leak faster. “And explore this way?” She leans in, brushing her lips back and forth across the sticky head of my cock before licking the pre-cum away, making me gasp. “Okay?” she asks.

“Brilliant,” I murmur, my voice thick. “You’re a fucking natural.”

“What’s next?” she asks.

“Take your time, and keep following your instincts,” I encourage, my fingers tangling in her hair as she presses another kiss to me, then another, her confidence growing with each one.

She swirls her tongue over my sensitive tip again, bolder, more insistent, and I shudder. “Now I take you inside my mouth?” she asks, her voice trembling but eager.

“Fuck, yes. God, Maya,” I say, my voice rough and my fingers tightening in her hair as she takes the first inch of me into the heat of her mouth. “God, you’re incredible. You’re driving me crazy.”

Her cheeks flush, but she doesn’t stop. Her movements become more assured as she takes more of me into her mouth, her tongue sliding against the underside of my cock in a way that makes my vision blur.

“Now use your hand,” I grit out. “Wrap it around the base to reach the part you can’t get with your mouth.”

She does, wrapping her fingers around the lowest part of my shaft, her strokes in sync with the movements of her mouth. The combination is almost too much, and again, I have to fight to keep my hips still.

She glances up at me, her eyes wide and hungry, clearly enjoying giving pleasure every bit as much as she enjoys receiving it. The sight of her like this—beautiful, eager, and completely focused on owning me with her mouth—nearly undoes me.

“Fuck,” I murmur, my thumb brushing against her cheek. “You’re so good, baby. You’re so fucking good. Just slow down a little, beautiful. If you don’t, I’m going to finish way too fast.”

She follows my guidance, her movements slowing but still sexy, deliberate. Her tongue swirling against me as she works my cock with her mouth, her innocent enthusiasm for the task is a turn-on like no other. She moans softly, the vibration sending a jolt of pleasure through me, and I can’t help fisting my hand tighter in her hair.

“God, Maya,” I rasp, taking control of her head as I thrust a little deeper. “Can you take me like this? Is that too much? Can you relax your throat for me, baby?”

She moans and obliges, making my head spin.

“Perfect, so perfect,” I chant, thrusting into her faster, unable to hold back any longer. The pleasure builds, hot and insistent, and I know I’m not going to last much longer. “Maya,” I murmur, my voice tight. “I’m close. If you don’t want me to come in your mouth, pull back now.”

She doesn’t pull back; she simply moans and sucks me more insistently as I piston between her lips and her hand strokes me in perfect sync. The sight of her, the feel of her, the soft, muffled sounds she makes as she takes as much of me as she can manage and then more—everything pushes me closer to the edge until I shatter with a guttural cry.

My release crashes through me in sticky waves of pleasure as I come down her throat, something primal in me celebrating the sight of her swallowing me down.

Finally, long seconds later, as I’m spiraling down from the high, she pulls back, her cheeks flushed as she lets my cock slip from her lips.

“B plus?” she asks softly, her voice uncertain despite the smile tugging at her lips.

I reach for her, pulling her into my arms and kissing her deeply, pouring everything I can’t put into words into the kiss.

“A plus,” I murmur against her lips. “You’re a sex goddess. I just wish I were still hard so I could give you the fucking you deserve.”

“I can wait,” she whispers as she leans into me, her arms wrapping around my neck. “But I want you to fuck me. That made me so wet, Anthony. I had no idea it would turn me on so much. I want you so much right now, it’s crazy.”

<<<<1 2 3 11 21 >96