Not My Romance: A Steamy Standalone Instalove Romance Read online

  Not My Romance

  AN OLDER MAN YOUNGER WOMAN ROMANCE

  _______________________

  A MAN WHO KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS, 275

  FLORA FERRARI

  Copyright © 2021 by Flora Ferrari

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The following story contains mature themes, strong language and sexual situations. It is intended for mature readers.

  Contents

  NEWSLETTER

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Epilogue

  Extended Epilogue

  Extended Epilogue

  NEWSLETTER

  A MAN WHO KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS

  BRATVA BEAR SHIFTERS

  LAIRDS & LADIES

  RUSSIAN UNDERWORLD

  IRISH WOLF SHIFTERS

  Collaborations

  About the Author

  Not My Romance

  I shouldn’t even be thinking about the silver-haired CEO with the square jawline and the intense green eyes and the smirk that just won’t quit. I shouldn’t be thinking about his six-and-a-half-foot tall muscular body… or the fantasies that just won’t leave me the heck alone.

  Kayden Kater is a forty-three years old billionaire who could have any woman he wants.

  I’m just a nineteen year old runner on the production of CEOs in Love, an introvert he wouldn’t notice in a million years. Even if he knew I existed, he’d never want me.

  But when he joins the show after a PR scandal, hoping to show the public a new side of him, it’s hard to hide how jealous I am. The contestants are beautiful, glamorous, and nothing like me.

  I’m curvy, shy, and, to top it all off, I’m a virgin.

  Kayden has his choice of five women, and none of them are me.

  My whole world is tipped upside down when, one night, he claims me off-camera.

  “I don’t want anyone else. You belong to me now. You are mine.”

  His possessive husky voice leaves no room for argument.

  But what are we going to do about the show?

  Kayden’s business is relying on it going well. I need to pay my rent. This is supposed to be my first step into the television industry, so I can pursue my dream of becoming a director.

  If we mess this up, it’s bad for both of us.

  But we can’t resist each other.

  With so much uncertainty, I only know one thing for sure.

  Life is way more complicated than reality TV.

  * Not My Romance is an insta-everything standalone instalove romance with a HEA, no cheating, and no cliffhanger.

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  Chapter One

  Kayden

  “You’ve got to do this,” Jack says, pacing up and down in front of my desk.

  My old Marine pal is in one of his no-bullshit moods, I can tell. He only paces like this when he’s on a mission. He’s tall and wide, his hair clipped short, his face hard and his nose crooked from where he broke it a few years back in a charity boxing match.

  “Do I?”

  He stops pacing and glares at me. “Yes, you do. Because otherwise, the press is going to have a field day. You assaulted a reporter.”

  I grit my teeth, shaking my head. “I didn’t assault him. And he wasn’t a reporter.”

  “Okay, you threw a paparazzi vulture’s camera at the wall. It doesn’t make any difference.”

  Running a hand through my hair, I sigh. “I see your point. But he was basically stuffing that camera down my throat. The whole thing was a setup. He had one of his buddies hiding in a goddamn bush to record it. They knew what was going to happen.”

  Jack lays his hands on the desk. “I’m not saying you did it for no reason, but the facts are the facts. The world has seen that video. It’s already affecting the stock price. You need to do something to rectify it.”

  “I don’t see how going on some lame game show is going to help anything.”

  I stand and walk over to the floor to ceiling windows, looking down on the city. It’s a cool autumn day and the sun glistens over the ocean, all the way to the horizon. It makes me want to get out there, beyond the horizon, forget about all of this and simply disappear.

  “Things were easier when all we had to think about was fighting,” I mutter.

  “You’re romanticizing the service, Kay.” Jack walks up next to me. “We had to deal with plenty of bullshit back then too.”

  “I know, but at least we didn’t have to deal with bloodsucking journalists trying to ram cameras down our goddamn throats. Seriously, Jack, I’d smash that bastard’s camera again. I’d hardly even stepped from the car before he was on me. I swear the prick turned the flash up to its highest setting.”

  “This comes with the territory,” Jack says. “Nobody forced you to start one of the most successful security agencies in the country, did they? And no one forced you to expand beyond that, to media and sales. Nobody forced you to build an empire.”

  I glance at my old friend. He’s the one who always gives it to me straight, telling me if I’m being an ass. It’s one of the reasons he suits his position as my right-hand man so well, along with a dozen other good qualities, like his loyalty and the fact I know he’s always got the best interests of the company at heart.

  “You’re right. I should stop complaining. But this show…”

  “It’s a great PR opportunity. The world has seen you like a wild animal who can’t control his temper. No offense.”

  “None taken.” I force a grin to my face. “But give me a break. One incident like this in a decade and a half of owning the company. It’s not bad.”

  “It is bad,” Jack counters. “Just because it’s not as serious as you doing this every day, it’s still a big deal.”

  “I don’t see how going on some sex show is going to help.”

  “It’s not a sex show. It’s called CEOs in Love. All you have to do is smile and be friendly and not lose your temper. Five women will each have the chance to become your one true love. It’s cheesy as hell. But who knows… maybe you’ll finally find the woman you’ve been looking for.”

  I suppress a groan. “Telling you about that was a mistake.”

  A few years back, Jack and I had gotten drunk together at a meetup with some of our old Marine pals. I rarely drink otherwise, but when I’m with the men old habits kick in. Toward the end of the night, we were hanging around on the balcony of my hotel room, just me and Jack, and
I told him something I’ve always kept secret.

  I told him how no woman has ever ignited a primal want inside of me, how no woman has ever triggered that fierce possessive fire that tells me she’s going to be the one for me.

  No woman has ever made me feel the need to own her, to claim her, to be with her for the rest of my life.

  Jack laughed and told me I was living in a fairytale if I thought that was ever going to happen. He loved his wife, he loved his kids, but it wasn’t like he’d been struck by lightning the first time he saw her.

  I dropped the subject, but my best friend enjoys reminding me of it from time to time. Probably to rub it in, like any good friend does.

  He grins. “Maybe. I was just shocked you were such a romantic. Twenty years I’ve known you, and I never would’ve guessed.”

  “It’s not that. It’s just… I don’t know how to explain it.”

  “Does it have anything to do with what happened when you were a kid?”

  I turn back to the window, looking down at the city, remembering when I was a broke kid with no idea how I was going to make my mark on the world. It still awes me that I’m up here, with all the money a man could wish for, and with all the responsibility that comes along with that.

  “Sorry,” Jack says a moment later.

  “It’s fine.”

  There’s a pause. I feel Jack watching me, but I keep my gaze on the city. I don’t like to think about what happened when I was a child, about the blood and the screaming and the hell and the pain.

  I unclench my fists with an effort.

  “Think of your employees,” Jack goes on. “I know you’ve got no interest in this show. But if we don’t fix this PR situation…”

  “But by the time the show airs, it’ll be too late.”

  “No, that’s the thing. The gimmick is its shot live.”

  “Doesn’t that make you nervous?” I joke. “What if some motherfucker tries to shove a camera down my throat again?”

  “Bro, you can act like you don’t give a damn. But we both know you’d die before you let this company collapse. We both know you care more than pretty much any CEO alive about protecting the livelihood of your employees. I was there at Reed Capital, remember when they tried to fuck with the pension funds.”

  The memory makes anger boil in my veins. “No one has the right to play with pension funds. That’s just not acceptable.”

  “And you never give yourself a bonus, just your salary.”

  I grunt. “My salary is more than most people could even dream of. I don’t need to shower myself with bonuses on top of that.”

  “So we both know you’re going to do this show.”

  “Is it going to help the company?” I ask him flatly. “I know you. You’ve worked out every possible angle. You’ve probably got charts and graphs coming out of your ass. Focus groups and the whole thing. So, in your expert and well-researched opinion, will appearing on this show help protect the employees?”

  Jack looks at me firmly. “Yes.”

  I groan and walk over to my desk, dropping down.

  Jack follows. “I’m guessing that’s not the answer you wanted to hear.”

  “I’m not sure I can fake interest in these women. That’s the problem.”

  “They’re all very attractive, apparently. One is a beauty pageant winner. Another is a swimmer.”

  I swallow my words. I was about to tell him I don’t give a damn how conventionally attractive they are.

  All my life, I’ve been searching for something… maybe a way to fill the shotgun-blast hole in my chest leftover from when I was a kid. I don’t know. I can’t explain it to myself, let alone to Jack.

  “And if you’re not attracted to them,” Jack goes on, “you will have to fake it. Just be as friendly as you can. Show the world a different side of you. And Kayden… don’t break any of the cameras.”

  I sigh, nodding. Jack is right. If this is going to help the company, I have to do it.

  “How many days do we shoot for?”

  “Two weeks,” Jack says. “The finale is when you make your selection. They want the show to end with a kiss, too. Is that okay?”

  The thought of kissing some stranger, a woman who isn’t going to be with me forever – a woman who isn’t going to give me children, who isn’t mine – makes me sick. But if it’s just one kiss… one kiss to save my company, I have no choice.

  “I guess it has to be,” I groan. “Fucking hell, Jack. This is going to be a nightmare.”

  Chapter Two

  Kyra

  “Don’t get offended if some of the crew are a little curt with you,” Lisa explains, as she leads me onto the set.

  All around us, crew members are bustling around, cameras being adjusted as men and women with clipboards and headsets rush here and there. The first scene is taking place on a well-lit stage, with five Xs on the floor to mark where the contestants will stand, and an armchair for the CEO to sit in.

  Lisa glances at me, frowning. She’s a tall imposing woman, with sharp features and gorgeous hair. Its dyed silver and piled atop her head artfully. “Are you with me, Kyra?”

  “Sorry,” I say quickly. “This is the first time I’ve ever been on a set. I’ve always dreamed of… Sorry.”

  I apologize again when I realize her frown has turned into a glare.

  “Don’t make a habit of daydreaming. As a runner, you need to be ready at all times. You’ll make the coffee and take whatever notes we need you to. You might be called on to help with the wardrobe, to run to the store for extra bulbs… anything, be ready for anything and you can’t go wrong.”

  “Okay, I will. I promise. I’m really grateful for this opportunity.”

  “Don’t let us down. That’s all I ask.” Without warning, she raises her voice. “Everybody, this is Kyra, our fresh-faced runner. She has kindly volunteered to do a coffee run for everyone. Please tell her what you’d like.”

  She leans close to me, lowering her voice. “If I was you, I’d get your phone out, ready to take notes. That will be all for now.”

  I rush around the set, my head spinning as I quickly write down everyone’s choices and their names. People speak in hurried tones, as though they’re too busy to give much thought to hot drinks. I feel my cheeks burning when I mishear one cameraman and have to clarify. My heart beating way too fast.

  But this is the first step in my lifelong desire to become a director. I need some on-set experience. I’m in an incredibly lucky position. I’ve got a two-week job as a runner on set, something I never could have hoped for before, and my boss at the restaurant has agreed to let me take my vacation in one big lump.

  Sure, it’ll mean working nonstop when this is done, but it’s worth it.

  I rush out of the studio and over to my car. As usual, my old hunk of junk sputters and coughs a few times before purring to life.

  As I drive to the coffee shop down the street, my mind wanders to Kayden Kater, the CEO who’s going to be searching for love on the show.

  My belly swims and my insides tingle when I think about him.

  I researched him online last night, finding photos of him, his stark and striking green eyes staring from countless magazine covers. He’s forty-three years old with the body of an MMA fighter, six and a half feet tall with rippling muscles covering every inch of him.

  He served in the Marines and won three medals for his bravery, and then started his company from nothing.

  Biting my lip, I remember the way my hand snaked down between my legs as I stared at a shirtless picture of him.

  It was taken on a beach at a long distance as he was emerging from the water, his muscled body catching the sunlight as water dripped down his skin.

  I couldn’t stop myself, driven by hungry desire, as I rubbed at my sex and brought myself to a body-searing orgasm. I imagined my fingers clawing down his chest, taking in how hard his muscles felt, so solid they could threaten to break my fingernails.

  And then, in t
he final moments of euphoria, my pleasure-flooded head went to silly places.

  I saw him smiling down at me, his hands in mine, as he told me he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. I saw a house filled with warmth and happiness and laughter. I saw him climbing from our swimming pool, our children clambering to him, as he met my eye with a smirk.

  I cursed myself once the orgasm had passed.

  A family together?

  It makes no sense, but I can’t deny the feeling that touches me now, as I pull into the coffee shop’s parking lot. It’s the same desire, the same insane compulsion, to somehow get the CEO’s attention.

  He’s on a show with five beautiful women, some of whom have literally won beauty competitions.

  Do I really think he’d even look at me?

  I’ll just be a nobody in his eyes.

  After getting the coffee, Lisa instructs me to sort an accommodation issue for Hallie, one of the contestants. Apparently, her hotel claims that they have no record of her booking. I’m on the phone for an hour, trying my best to assert myself with the receptionists.

  I’ve never been the best at causing a fuss, but I’m quickly learning I’m going to have to get used to it. I can’t afford to be timid in this bustling world, where results are all that matter.

  Finally, I manage to sort the issue, and then I have to run into the city to pick up a dress. When I return, the set is far quieter than before, dark except for the stage. I take the dress to the wardrobe room and then sneak to the very back of the set, my body, and mind weary from so much running around.