 by Alexa Land.jpg)
Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
It wasn’t just that my ex cheated on me. He also humiliated me and treated me like dirt. But I know how to get back at him.
All I have to do is catch the eye of Malcolm Sterling—my ex’s dad, who happens to be a sexy, single silver fox. Since we’ve never met, he’ll have no idea who I am when I make my move. My goal? Arrive at a swanky, upcoming family wedding on Malcolm’s arm, and make my ex totally regret his life choices.
But Malcolm may prove to be more than I bargained for--and he just might have a plan of his own.
Payback is a lighthearted gay romance full of bad ideas, a sketchy plan for revenge, a misguided main character, and a smoking hot older man with a few tricks up his sleeve. It’s set in the world of Alexa Land’s Firsts and Forever Series, and it can be read as a stand-alone.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
1
Daniel
Once upon a time, I had a boyfriend named Bradley Sterling.
He turned out to be a lying, cheating douchebag.
That’s where my story begins.
“You know, a lot of people get cheated on,” my friend and housemate Hal pointed out, as we both worked up a sweat on a pair of exercise bikes. “Me, for example. He broke my heart, and I’m still not over it, but it never occurred to me to seek revenge on my ex-boyfriend.”
“But maybe if you had, you wouldn’t still be carrying around that heartbreak. Revenge can be extremely cathartic.” I pedaled harder and pushed my damp, blond hair off my forehead.
“Yeah, but I’m worried you’re going to end up getting hurt if you go through with your plan.”
“That already happened. I caught my boyfriend balls deep inside his boss, and he fucking smirked and chastised me for taking so long to figure it out. I spent almost a year of my life with this guy and thought we’d probably get married, but in the end I was nothing but a joke to him. It’s not possible to be hurt more than I already was.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, Daniel. It really is awful. But explain to me again how dating his dad is going to get back at your ex.”
“Brad totally failed to see my value. What better way to demonstrate exactly what he lost than by showing up on his dad’s arm, looking devastatingly handsome at that fancy, upcoming family wedding? It’s like, oh, you didn’t appreciate me? That’s okay, because your daddy does.”
Hal asked, “So, how far are you willing to take this? Is your goal to become Brad’s stepfather and spend his inheritance?”
I chuckled at that and shook my head. “I’m not that vindictive. All I want is to be Malcolm Sterling’s date to his sister’s wedding. But if Brad believes it’s more than that, even better.”
My friend slowed his pedaling and sat up straighter. “Wait, his dad is Malcolm Sterling? As in, the songwriter and composer?”
“You’ve heard of him?”
“He’s famous.”
“Kind of. I know he’s had a lot of success in his field, but composers and songwriters mostly work behind the scenes. They’re not exactly household names.”
“The first time I heard of him was when he won an award for a film score. He’s also written songs for some of the biggest names out there.” Hal leaned forward again, resting his arms on the handlebar as he pedaled faster. “It actually might be tough to get near him. Rich and famous people tend to be pretty cut off from the rest of society.”
“I have a plan for that.” Since I was starting to gasp for air, I asked, “When can we be done with these bikes?”
“I’ll be at this another half-hour. You can stop if you want to, though. And maybe you should, since you’re turning alarmingly red.”
I dramatically melted off the bike and landed spread-eagled on the gym floor. “As much as I wanted to keep up with you, it’s impossible. I bow down to your superior fitness and overall hotness.” Hal was a former model, and he worked out as hard now as he did when he got paid to look good. We’d already done an intense workout before hopping on the bikes, and my entire body was protesting.
“You need to go at your own pace and do what feels right to you.”
“What feels right to me is being a slug and never going to the gym. But if I want to make my ex regret his life choices, I need to look hot as fuck when I show up at that wedding. My skinny little spaghetti arms and chicken legs aren’t going to cut it.” A couple of people stepped over me on their way to the locker room, and as they shot me looks of disdain, I called, “Yes, that’s right, I’m workout road kill. I’m sorry if my lifeless corpse is an inconvenience to you.”
Hal ignored all of that and asked, “So, what’s your plan for getting close to Malcolm Sterling?”
I sat up and used the hem of my shirt to wipe my face. “He recently returned to San Francisco after spending the last couple of years in New York, and a friend of his who posts literally everything on social media is throwing him a big welcome home shindig. I plan to crash the party and shamelessly throw myself at him.”
“What if he doesn’t take the bait?”
“Why wouldn’t he?”
“Well, for starters, because you’re his son’s ex-boyfriend.”
“But he won’t know that,” I said. “Brad had some sort of falling out with his dad about a year ago. Since they were barely speaking during our entire relationship, it’s not like I would have come up in conversation. That’s also why I doubt Brad will be at the party.”
“Okay. But what if you’re not Malcolm’s type?”