The Substitute Bride: Making Memories Of Us (Lois Stone)

Haley sneered, "Are you pretending as if nothing has happened? How cruel can you be to say this? How dare you insinuate that nothing has happened? Then what is this?" she asked, pointing at the bruises punctuated all over her body by the previous night's frenzied sex.

'How could he ask me to forget what has happened?' she thought bitterly.

"Lucas, how could you be so cruel to me for the sake of that wretched woman? Can she love you as much as I do? Can she drive you to such levels of ecstasy and passion as I do? She hasn't let you touch her, has she?"

She had done everything in her power to get what she wanted and was determined to win this battle.

"Haley, don't you understand? I always regard you as my sister."

What he meant was that she could only be a sister to him.

Chances of her ever becoming a lover or a wife were nil.

The only woman in his heart was Ayla.

It didn't matter that he could not get her body, but his heart belonged only to her.

"Am I right?"

Haley looked at him and commented, "If a woman doesn't surrender her body to you then it's a clear indication that she doesn't love you!"

"What nonsense! The two of you are like chalk and cheese!"

He liked Ayla's innocence and kindness as much as he disliked Haley's scheming character.

Ayla could shower him with an abundance of warmth that made him long for a home with her.

Haley couldn't offer him anything close to this in a thousand years.

Although Haley had helped him in countless ways when he was suffering in Thailand, that was not the kind of love he sought.

Haley stared at him and said, "I won't force you; but I don't want you to meet that woman now, okay? Please can you stay and accompany me today?"

His heart melted like butter when he saw tears streaming down her cheeks.

She didn't usually break down so easily.

"Are you still hesitant? This is my only condition.I do not expect you to take responsibility for me or to marry me.All I request is that you should spend just one day with me, please."

settle for second best.She would need more time to plan how to worm her way

He nodded in agreement.

face.She knew exactly what she wanted from this very complicated relationship: a child from

the Clark

she had designed were ready for inspection.The Clark Group was

what do you think? Do they

on the mannequins and examined them

awe as she seriously examined the dresses.He had never imagined that Ayla, who majored in secretarial profession, would blossom into a professional designer in a span

had brought a beautiful woman

the past two years.She was a very

the sofa, observing Ayla as she checked the

too good to

all the

her designs? Had anyone else designed the dresses, he would have found

help but

earlier, then there would have been no

keep them apart, but it seemed

time around, she would not allow Ayla to ruin her

her head,

her to accidentally prick her finger

sudden pain made her

gaze and said,

as

really going to do

past two years that they had

tolerated the fact that he still nurtured a space in his heart for

resembled Ayla

infatuation and would even help him investigate those women who looked like

that deep in her heart, he

would just admire their resemblance to Ayla from

prayed that

a dream short

before he could forget Ayla, she mysteriously reappeared, ruining the peace they had shared for two

Do you find anything wrong?" Brian asked