Because He's Perfect Read online

  Because He’s Perfect

  A charity anthology with all proceeds being donated to the Movember Foundation

  Alice La Roux

  Ally Vance

  Anna Blakely

  Anna Edwards

  Claire Marta

  Danielle Dickson

  Dani René

  Elle Boon

  Jo-Anne Joseph

  KA Sands

  KL. Humphreys

  Lexi C Foss

  Lexxie Couper

  Maria Macdonald

  Morgan Campbell

  Murphy Wallace

  Renee Harless

  Samantha Lewis

  Tracie Delaney

  Victoria L. James

  Foreword by Carrie Ann Ryan

  Photography by Christopher John

  Photography by David Wills

  Cover Model Sean Brady

  Cover Model Christopher John

  Graphics by Charity Hendry

  Contents

  Foreword - Carrie Ann Ryan

  Renee Harless

  Screw Up

  Tracie Delaney

  Worth the risk.

  Dani René

  Inhibition

  Jo-Anne Joseph

  The Cure

  Danielle Dickson

  Nap King

  Maria Macdonald

  Suck & Sweet

  Samantha Lewis

  Diary of a Teenage Queen

  Murphy Wallace

  Order. Control. Deceit.

  Anna Edwards

  Don’t Sugar Coat It.

  Lexi C Foss

  Chase

  Ally Vance

  Deep Breaths

  Claire Marta

  Love in the Dark

  Anna Blakely

  Unexpected Risk

  Victoria L. James

  Faith No More

  KL Humphreys

  The Missing Piece

  Alice La Roux

  Broken Reflection

  KA Sands

  Pencilled Hearts

  Lexxie Couper

  Tremble

  Morgan Campbell

  The Heart of the Matter.

  Elle Boon

  Royally Twisted

  The Movember Foundation

  Thank you

  Copyright © 2019 by Alice La Roux, Anna Blakely, Ally Vance, Anna Edwards, Claire Marta, Danielle Dickson, Dani René, Elle Boon, Jo-Anne Joseph, K A Sands, K.L. Humphreys, Lexi C Foss, Lexxie Couper, Maria Macdonald, Morgan Campbell, Murphy Wallace, Renee Harless, Samantha Lewis, Tracie Delaney, Victoria L. James, Carrie Anne Ryan.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission from the authors.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

  Warning: This book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. This book is for sale to adults only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase.

  Disclaimer: Please do not try any sexual practice without the guidance of an experienced practitioner. Neither the publisher nor the author will be responsible for any loss, harm, injury, or death resulting from the use of the information contained in this book.

  Cover Design by www.CharityHendry.com

  Photography by CJC Photography & David Willis

  Models: Christopher John & Sean Brady

  Formatting by Anna Edwards

  Because He’s Perfect/ Various -- 1st ed.

  I am a romance writer. An author, a reader, and a woman. When I first started this life, this crazy life where everything has to do with writing and coming up with words, and big heroes with even bigger egos, and heroines that can stand up to them and even fight back, I never knew that this is where I would end up.

  I know it might’ve started as a pipe dream for a lot of authors, to be able to write these words and come up with these characters that speak to them. But in the end, here we all are.

  And for many of us, including myself, I know I couldn’t have done it alone.

  My husband, Daniel, stood by my side every step of the way when I wrote my words.

  He wasn’t a perfect hero, but then again, not even those in books are perfectly perfect.

  He was my bearded, broody, swoon-worthy hero.

  I’m very blessed that, no matter what step I took in my career, I knew he would be by my side. He was the one who held me as I cried because I couldn’t figure out the next scene. He was the one who didn’t laugh at me when I read to my computer, moving my lips without speaking so I could actually find that typo I knew had to be there—they always are.

  He didn’t laugh at me when I had to act out action scenes with the cats.

  Okay, he might’ve laughed at that.

  But he was always there. I know many romance authors whose men have always been there for them.

  The good men in our lives are important.

  The men in my life are important. They, along with the rest of my family, have held me up when I thought I might falter. When I did falter.

  When we write books, we throw ourselves into the action, into the emotion, into the heat. We build these heroes that to some may seem perfect, but we know that there are jagged edges, layers upon layers that create the character. Each of these heroes has to pull in not only the heroine, but perhaps even the town or the team around them. They need to hook the reader and show us that they are this three-dimensional being that is not only worthy of that happily ever after, but one who demands it.

  Creating these different heroes and the various facets of them is a big part of why I love being an author.

  I have written characters and heroes that aren’t perfect. In fact, I don’t think any of my characters are truly perfect.

  I’ve read some amazing stories, some by authors in this set, where the heroes are not perfect.

  Because life isn’t perfect.

  Our real-life heroes are not perfect.

  I think I know more than some that life isn’t fair, and that nothing is quite flawless. I lost my husband to ITP and a brain bleed that couldn’t be fixed because of a platelet disorder. He was thirty-two years old. That is way too young to lose your life, way too young to lose your HEA.

  But life isn’t fair, and it isn’t perfect.

  But we’re not looking for perfection. Not really. We’re looking for something real.

  The stories in these following pages contain heroes that are looking for something real while going through their own issues.

  The heroes in our lives and in our books aren’t there just to make us swoon. They’re there because they’re part of the big picture, because they are real to us.

  I was blessed to have over ten years with my husband. Ten years with my wonderful, sometimes imperfect, bearded, broody hero.

  And I know I would’ve done anything for even ten minutes more.

  This anthology was assembled to raise funds for Movember. To help raise awareness for men’s health issues.

  Because the men in our lives are important. A
nd they deserve to be healthy and happy.

  Nobody is perfect, but then again, maybe we don’t really know what perfection is.

  So, hold your hero close, and read the following pages, knowing that while we may not think these heroes are perfect, we’ll still fall in love.

  Because, in the end, they are perfect.

  Carrie Ann Ryan

  NYT Bestselling Author

  For more information on Carrie Ann Ryan, you can check out her website

  https://carrieannryan.com

  Chapter One

  Sofie

  With one final tug, I yank the skirt over my growing hips until it finally settles into place and I’m able to pull up the zipper. I’m really going to have to find a personal trainer in this small town, my negligence at working out is going to start biting me in the butt. Walking over to my desk, I mark it down in my planner on my to-do list: get fit.

  Standing in front of my full-length mirror, I tuck the cream-colored silk blouse into my bright red skirt, twisting and turning to view my new curvy body at all angles. Can’t say that I hate my new curves, it’s very much so the opposite. I’m fully embracing them, I just know that I need to keep myself healthy because diner food is quickly catching up on me.

  I lean into my master closet and grab my strappy black shoes, my confidence heels I like to call them, and I carry them out of the room and place them by the front door. I may have lived most of my life in heels and ballgowns, but that doesn’t mean I want to wear them longer than necessary. My hotel heiress mother taught me early on that one does not inflict pain upon themselves without intention. I’m sure most of my friends would have heard that statement and believe my mother was speaking of something mental or emotional. But no, she very much so meant with one’s wardrobe, especially concerning shoes and large jeweled necklaces.

  I fill up my travel mug with coffee and take one final look around my penthouse. Or as close to a penthouse as you can get in this town. It spans the entire top floor of a four-story building. I bought all six apartments and combined them into one. I barely had to dig into my trust to cover the expense. But I love the space. It’s warm and colorful, and home.

  My parents, owners of the prestigious Milan Hotels, a chain passed down through four generations, have never understood my desire to live in a town where the maximum population is around three thousand. Make that three thousand and one if I include myself. They had expectations of me performing my role as heiress and socialite to the utmost of my ability. And I had. I went to college to gain access to my trust and then spent a few years gallivanting around New York, Los Angeles, and London without a care in the world. Until my best friend, Blake, called me and asked me for help. She is one of the most caring and strongest people that I know and without asking for any more information, I sold my apartment in New York and hopped on the next flight down here.

  I owed it to her. In college, I had urged Blake to do something reckless,and it almost got her kicked out, but in the end, everything worked out. She’s now blissfully happy with her boyfriend Zack, and they’re working together at Blake’s marketing company.

  Which is where I work, another thing that leaves my parents baffled. My older brother is slated to take over the hotel chain, and I was poised to live happily as the Milan Hotel princess. But I actually find my job exciting. Interacting with people is what I’m good at, and today, I get to prove myself to Blake and Zack.

  They’re counting on me to get a new client to sign on with them for representation. An up and coming software development company. If I nail this, as I expect to, Blake has agreed to move me from assistant to account representative. She also mentioned that there would be a pay increase, but I bucked against that. I have more money than I can handle for the rest of my life. I told her to put it back into the business and she laughed, literally spit coffee in my face as she broke down into hysterics. Of course, if I do get the job, I’ll simply take the paychecks and set them aside and anonymously invest them into her business since she won’t ever let me invest money on my own.

  The alarm on my phone pings and I shake myself free from my internal musings to grab the matching red blazer of my suit and strap on my heels.

  “Here goes nothing,” I murmur to myself as I practically skip down each step, the thrill of a new conquest spurring me onward. My Mercedes SUV purrs to life as I start the engine, tossing the dossier of C.D. Developments onto my passenger seat. The majority of my previous night was spent trying to dig up information on the CEO, anything that may help tilt him into our favor. But I came up empty-handed. That meant all I could find was the owner's name and nothing else. Not even an old college photo he was tagged in on social media.

  How nice it must feel to be invisible every once in a while.

  Traffic lurches this morning as I head across the highway toward the next town over where CD Developments is located, thankful that I left myself ample time to arrive. Because as I approach the building, I see that I only have about ten minutes remaining before my meeting. And my mother taught me to never ever show up late. To her, five minutes early is considered late.

  Pulling into the parking deck, I drive around the three floors not finding any open spots; my worry starts to grow. I’m not one to get nervous, but a lot is riding on me landing this contract. Not just for the job, but for Blake and Zack. This would be a huge boost to the business.

  The parking spots are all full and as I pull out of the deck, luck must be on my side because a spot opens up right in front of the main steps leading to the building’s entrance. I may not have driven in New York often, but if I learned anything, it was how to parallel park. I easily maneuver my large vehicle into the tight space in one try and give myself a mental pat on the back for my success.

  With six minutes to spare I grab my folder, exit the car, and follow a group of people into the building. It seems as if 9 a.m. is the starting time for most of the employees seeing how crowded it is. Of course, I realize that C.D. Developments only occupies two floors of the building.

  The people shuffle around me quickly, faster than the Southern speed I’ve picked up since I’ve been living here. It almost reminds me of being back in the city. When the elevator doors open the mass of people shove their way into the open car, leaving barely any space for another passenger.

  “Can you hold the door?” I shout, with a smile of course. You never know who may be occupying the space. I pick up my speed but notice the large man in front doesn’t put out his hand to hold the doors open or press the button to do the same. He’s about to let the doors close. Too bad the man also has to be sexier than anyone I have ever met in my life. And I’ve dated models and actors.

  As they begin to close in front of me, I make it just in time to shove my bag between the doors causing them to open back up. A collective groan sounds around me, but I ignore them.

  “Thanks for holding the door open. That was very kind of you,” I say with a sweet sarcasm I’m sure the group can pick up on. I can’t see anyone behind me since I’m standing about an inch from the door, but I expect the man that refused to wait for me is rolling his eyes.

  I hear a growling sound, and if I could turn around, I would, just to hear what animal someone has brought into the workplace. But I have a suspicion that the sound is coming from the man directly behind me. He’s close enough that I can smell his cologne.

  “You should have waited for the next one. There was a reason I didn’t hold the door,” he bellows, just low enough for me to hear. His words are slow and contrite, as if he’s carefully planning each consonant and syllable. The sound of his voice prickles across my skin as his breath wisps passed my cheek.

  “Well, you should have been a gentleman and waited.”

  “I’m no gentleman, princess.”

  Before I have a chance to give this asshole a piece of my mind the doors open and the majority of the group, including the sexy asshole, pushes passed me to exit, tossing my body left and right.

  I wi
sh I could have taken a better look at him, but I shake my head free of the mystery man when the doors begin to close, and I find myself standing in the elevator with two other people.

  The car rises once more then stops almost immediately, depositing me on the executive floor of C.D. Developments.

  Taking a deep breath, I let the cool air fill my lungs as I mentally prepare myself for the meeting.

  “You’ve got this,” I whisper to myself as I step toward the reception desk where I give the young man my name and he directs me to a small seating area.

  Chapter Two

  Carter

  I step free from the elevator as quickly as possible. I don’t even have a reason to be on this floor, but if I don’t get out now, I’m liable to say something I regret to the stunning woman that put a hitch in my morning or screw her against the side of the elevator.

  The rest of the patrons in the car know not to speak to me. It’s not that I’m an asshole normally, but I make it a point not to speak with anyone if I don’t have to. I take my time to weigh my words wisely, something I worked to master as I got older.