The Tenth Girl Read online

  I make it to my seat with seconds to spare, my lungs almost collapsing in on themselves and my hair a disheveled mess, but I’d made it nonetheless.

  “Way to cut it close.”

  Annabelle turns to me in her seat, a smug smile on her face.

  I lean over and hug her, pinching her cheek as revenge for the smart remark. “Good to see you, too, sis.”

  Anna had decided to attend the same college as Cain, so I got to see her a lot. We’d actually become very close since becoming stepsisters, and when I wasn’t trying to get Cain to decorate the apartment with me, Anna helped. She called it training as she was trying to graduate with a degree in interior design.

  Yes, our apartment. Cain had begged and begged, and I’d finally given in to moving in together about eight months ago. I had to admit, it was easier than driving back and forth from Haven to Austin three times a week, and I was basically living with the man anyway.

  Living together was … better than I’d expected it to be. Cain had not only come a long way as an athlete, he’d made leaps and bounds as a boyfriend. He cooked us healthy meals, pretended not to be interested when I watched television shows on Bravo, and once a week we picked an audiobook to listen to together. We’d sit on our couch with a glass of wine and listen to the narrators tell us a story. Some books were old, and some were new. But at least once a month we listened to portions of Great Expectations. Just for nostalgia’s sake.

  We made love like our alone time was going out of style, and Cain had started talking to me about marriage and babies. Who the hell would have thought, the bad boy jock I saw climbing out of a soft-top Jeep all of those years ago would be talking about white picket-fencing me?

  I wasn’t ready for all of that … but someday I would be. And I’d only be ready for it with Cain.

  “Here we go.” I breathe as the players run out of the tunnel.

  Our seats are in the family section, the same place they always are. I never miss a game, unless a stupid flight gets delayed. Cain’s college jersey was sported on my back. It was authentic, except for the tiny piece of fabric on the inside of the left sleeve. A part of his high school jersey, the one I’d worn when the team had won state. I’d had it sewn in as my own little good luck charm.

  And there he is, running alongside his teammates, his face forward and focused. I know, from knowing him inside and out, that he is blocking it all out.

  Until, for one split second, he looks up into the stands and catches my eyes.

  Those vibrant green charmers hold mine, he grins, and then as quickly as it happened, he is all business once again.

  That look is reserved only for me. The only thing that could break him out of his focus.

  The only one.

  About the Author

  Author of romance novels such as Red Card and Privileged, Carrie Aarons writes books that are just as swoon-worthy as they are sarcastic. A former journalist, she prefers the stories she dreams up, and the yoga pant dress code, much better.

  When she isn’t writing, Carrie is busy binging reality TV, having a love/hate relationship with cardio, and trying not to burn dinner. She lives in the suburbs of New Jersey with her husband, daughter and dog.

  For more information:

  www.authorcarrieaarons.com

  [email protected]

  Also by Carrie Aarons

  Privileged

  In a world of wealth and power, the rules of love and war are nothing as they seem.

  Nora Randolph never wanted a life of luxury. But when her mother falls in love with the heir to the British throne, their small-town lives are uprooted and every little girl’s fantasy becomes her reality. All too quickly, she learns the dangers of running in circles with the world’s elite, especially when she attracts the attention of Winston Academy’s resident golden boy.

  Asher Frederick has known nothing but favor and fortune. The son of London’s most influential family, his future has been written in stone since infancy. But a tragic childhood loss redirects his course, and revenge has been boiling in his blood for years. When innocent and unaware Nora lands in his path, it’s as if the universe hands him the ammunition to finally drag his enemy through the mud.

  But as his plan for vengeance gets more twisted, so do his feelings for Nora. And as her immersion into the upper crust dives deeper, she struggles to keep the secret she’s been guarding for eighteen years.

  Heavy lies the crown, and when the ultimate betrayal blindsides her, will either of them survive the consequences that come crashing down on their heads?

  As Long As You Hate Me

  Kara

  High school sweethearts. What a load of bull.

  He might have been my first love, but it never meant I wanted to hear lyrics containing my name, love story, and *cringe* how I lost my virginity peddled out for the masses to digest.

  Seven years later, and I’m still being haunted by his photo in every magazine, his music on every radio station. I thought breakups meant that you never had to see the person again. Especially when they ripped out your heart and made hamburger meat with it.

  But when a chance encounter ends up going viral, I’m tied to him in a way I’ve always dreaded. And the last person on earth I’d want to spend an hour with, much less a lifetime, makes me an offer I can’t refuse. I might just be desperate enough to take it.

  Dean

  The girl in the song is real. And she’s made me a rich man.

  I’ve been dedicating choruses to her for a decade, she’s the muse she never wanted to be. Off of our love, I’ve become famous … and a complete egomaniac.

  When another one of my flings goes off the rails, and lands me in hot water with the media, my recording label is less than thrilled. And so comes the marching orders from my agent; devise a scheme to transform into a squeaky clean good guy.

  Coming face to face with her is something I’ve only dreamed about. If not to win her back, then to at least apologize for the ways I’ve exploited her. Instead, I rope her into my madness, proposing a deal only a masochist would accept.

  All the Frogs in Manhattan

  You know how Cinderella had the whole glass slipper, pumpkin carriage, fairy godmother thing?

  Yeah…with foot-destroying stilettos, Uber, and a Twitter horoscope, my life is far from a happily ever after.

  In fact, instead of Prince Charming, I end up dating every slimy, scaly, brainless frog in the kingdom of Manhattan. And by frog, I mean all of the stereotypical bad guys that Mom and Lifetime movies warned you about.

  The meathead player.

  The mommy's boy.

  The namedropper.

  The cheapskate.

  If they suck at relationships, I’ve probably kissed those cold, clammy lips in the hopes of finding love. Until one day, when one man with commitment issues offers to help me find the Romeo to my Juliet.

  But what happens when the frog, who was never supposed to turn into a prince, kisses you at midnight? Ok fine, he propositioned me for some afternoon delight after brunch, but not everything can be straight out of a fairytale.

  Red Card

  She spent five years planning a future that will never exist. He spent five years trying to erase a past he can’t forget.

  London is Leah Watson’s fresh start. When she secures the perfect internship during her study abroad semester, with an infamous celebrity public relations firm, she is determined to forge her own path - one that is nothing like her life back in Oklahoma. That plan is tested when British football’s bad boy, Killian Ramsey, decides that she's the one he wants and he's playing for keeps.

  Will she put her future on hold — again — for the type of man she swore she'd stay away from?

  Killian is one bloody good football player. After a tragedy shattered his entire world, the cocky and arrogant face he puts on for the media is a complete lie. When he meets Leah, his heart starts to beat for the first time in years. But when the feelings get too real, his perfectly constructe
d facade starts to slip.

  Will he risk it all to be with her — taking whatever penalties are thrown his way — or will he play it safe?

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