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Back First Comes Love Save as PDF
Chapters (92)
  1. First
  2. Love Connection
  3. Zero
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. Six
  10. Seven
  11. Eight
  12. Nine
  13. Ten
  14. Eleven
  15. One Month Later
  16. Twelve
  17. Thirteen
  18. Fourteen
  19. Fifteen
  20. Six Months Later
  21. Sixteen
  22. Seventeen
  23. Eighteen
  24. Nineteen
  25. Twenty
  26. Twenty-one
  27. Twenty-two
  28. Twenty-three
  29. Twenty-four
  30. Six Months Later
  31. Twenty-five
  32. Twenty-six
  33. Twenty-seven
  34. Twenty-eight
  35. Twenty-nine
  36. Thirty
  37. Thirty-one
  38. Thirty-two
  39. Thirty-three
  40. I Have Never
  41. One
  42. Two
  43. Three
  44. Four
  45. Five
  46. Six
  47. Seven
  48. Eight
  49. Nine
  50. Ten
  51. Eleven
  52. Twelve
  53. Thirteen
  54. Fourteen
  55. Fifteen
  56. Sixteen
  57. Seventeen
  58. Eighteen
  59. Nineteen
  60. Twenty
  61. Twenty-one
  62. Twenty-two
  63. A Christmas Date
  64. One
  65. Two
  66. Three
  67. Four
  68. Five
  69. Six
  70. Seven
  71. Eight
  72. Nine
  73. Ten
  74. Eleven
  75. Twelve
  76. Thirteen
  77. Fourteen
  78. Fifteen
  79. Sixteen
  80. Seventeen
  81. Eighteen
  82. Nineteen
  83. Twenty
  84. Twenty-one
  85. Twenty-two
  86. Note from the Author
  87. Sneak Peek – To the Stars and Back
  88. Two
  89. Three
  90. Four
  91. Also by Camilla Isley
  92. About the Author

“I’m not paying you five thousand dollars to have one meal with my family. You have to come with me to my hometown in Connecticut for a week.” His eyes widen, and I already see him ready to backtrack and call everything off. But I can’t let him. I’ll never find someone as perfect. I mean, he even rides a bike! So I edge another sheet of paper toward him. “And as per the final part of our agreement, these are all the brands we’re shooting Super Bowl ads with, and that I could get you castings for.”

Diego stares at me with an appalled look, followed by a questioning side glare of who-is-this-crazy-person-I’m-having-lunch-with? Then he lowers his eyes to the list, and his expression switches to mmm-these-brands-are-really-cool-and-how-many-people-watch-the-super-bowl-again?

I’ve just delivered an exemplary carrot-and-stick performance. He’s in.

“I still think moving in together is too much,” Diego says, a tad too loud.

The ladies to my left look up at us open-mouthed for a second, and then snicker between themselves. And even our server seems to have a satisfied little smirk on her face as she deposits our plates on the table. Wow, this man can really bring female rivalry to a whole new level.

“Maybe,” I say, pointedly lowering my voice. “But I can’t risk either of us slipping up in front of my family, not even on the smallest thing. And what are you complaining about? I’m offering you a free stay in Manhattan for two weeks.”

Before he has time to come up with a thousand plausible reasons not to move in with the crazy cat lady, I push my point. “And anyway, I’m at work twelve to fourteen hours a day, so we wouldn’t clash too much. And you’d be free to come and go as you like, with no more long commutes. From my apartment, you can get everywhere in Manhattan in fifteen minutes on the subway. You can go to your Santa gigs, or go to castings, or whatever it is you do all day.” I still read doubt in his eyes, so I end with a cocksure, “It’s non-negotiable.”

I try to keep a straight face as panic rises in my throat. If he bails, I’m fried. I will have to confess my lies to my mom and suffer the greatest humiliation of my life.

He stares at me for a second, back at the brands list, and then sighs. “Ah, hell.” He grabs his beer and takes a long sip. “In for a penny…”

The air leaves my lungs, and I relax for the first time since I got here. At least now I know I have a potential second career as a poker player.