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Tyla Walker

Legally Yours

Legally Yours

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What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas – unless it’s a fake marriage!

Cassandra expected to get married to her fiance David, but when he leaves her stranded at the altar, she meets Liam – a much hotter white boy who is in the same predicament. They hatch a plan to get back at their now exes…

They’ll marry each other!

What was meant to save face and their pride starts to bloom into real romance, and after six months, it’s not just the contract that might be broken…

But Cassandra’s heart.

She really fell in love with her fine fake husband, but is it too late to get him back – for real? One thing is for sure.

Fate will always find a way.

Look Inside!

Chapter 1

Cassandra

 

            When I transferred to the Anderson Modeling Agency, I was looking for a career. I never imagined I would find a husband there, too. Sometimes things happen for a reason, I guess, and now that reason is on his way to my bachelorette party because he obviously can’t spend a night without me.

         I look at the ring on my finger and smile. Modeling has been fun, but it was only ever a way to earn enough for myself and my family. Being part of a big New York agency meant I was able to do that. Though I didn’t expect to fall for one of the managers there, I did, and things have changed.

Now that I have David, I’m actually looking forward to leaving that part of my life behind me as I embark on a new one with him. Quitting modeling isn’t the negative move that many assume it is. I’m ready for a calmer, quieter life away from the stress, the photoshoots, and the bookings.

         Building a home, and maybe even a family, is my focus now. Not only that, but I get to fulfill my goal of purchasing a convenience store for my parents with the money I’ve saved so that I can rest knowing they’re taken care of financially, too.

         For the past two years, I’ve been selective about my projects, happy to pass over many of them as I slip slowly from the limelight. He’s my future now, and that’s all that matters to me.

         “There he is!” shouts one of the girls as David appears in the hotel suite. “Time we left you two lovebirds to it.”

We’ve been going for hours – brunch, dinner, cocktails, and then the club, and it’s only now that I’m looking at the moon out of the window that I realize it must be far past midnight. I’m feeling the effects of all that liquor, while the remaining group of bachelorettes start to disappear, one by one.

That doesn’t include my best friend Emma, who smiles as David enters the room. It’s so good to see him here, but I’m so exhausted and more than a little drunk now, so I just rest my eyes for a second as I curl up on the sofa.

“Looks like the party went well,” he says.

“Oh, we’ve shown her a good time,” Emma quips back, her grin practically audible.

“I bet you have,” David replies. The way he says it turns my stomach and sharpens the edges of my mind that the alcohol has dulled.

“You look good tonight,” Emma says, her voice thick and low with desire. It’s an effort for my eyes not to fly open as I listen to this exchange – surely this can’t be what it sounds like!

“Shhh, she’ll hear you,” David mock whispers conspiratorially. My stomach hits the floor.

“She’s asleep,” says Emma. “All those margaritas mean that we can make the most of this hotel tonight.”

No!

Surely this can’t be happening. I want to get up and scream at them, but I can’t move. I am frozen with sadness, fear and anger, and in complete disbelief that this is even possible. My best friend and my fiance – how could they do this to me!

Reluctantly, I peer out from behind tired eyelids, and that’s when I see her kissing him. It’s the final dagger to my heart, or so I think. I’m trying my best to remain still, but my hands refuse, shaking with shock and emotion.

“Maybe,” he says, his voice full of lust. “But it’s her bachelorette, after all. I’m going down to the bar for a nightcap. Join me if you can, though.”

She kisses him again, and he leaves, which means I’m left with her. I hear her stride towards me, and I swallow hard. I am determined to hold myself together, which is the hardest thing I’ve ever done given that I feel as if I’m being ripped apart.

I continue pretending to be asleep, but I can sense the way she’s looking at me, as if her eyes are burning my skin with their glare. But I won’t let her know that she’s gotten to me. I don’t feel like I have much dignity left at this point, but I need to hold on to something.

“Aw! My poor best friend. It's your wedding day tomorrow! Do you think David will marry you?” She laughs like some villain from a movie, then walks away, leaving me shaken and bereft.

It’s like some bad cosmic joke and seems so unreal I actually question if someone has slipped something into my drink – because how is this even possible? I’m about to get married, I’ve given up my job, and the person I’ve done that for is cheating on me with my ‘best friend’.

Her laugh is still ringing in my ears. Who is she? Could I really have gotten it so wrong? I’ve never been the strong type, like so many in my industry, but I never realized I was such a pushover and so easily fooled.

I’m not sure if I’m angrier with them or myself. My mom has always said I’m too trusting for my own good. That it’s good to be kind and she’s proud of me because of it, but there are people out there who will take advantage. Well, she was right.

If I could, I’d get up. I’d follow and scream at her, or at least demand to know what’s going on. But I just don’t have it in me, and it seems obvious, anyway. All along I thought my life was mapped out since becoming engaged to David, when in reality it’s all been a lie.

         It’s only when I know she’s gone and I’m completely alone that I allow the dam to break, the tears flooding down my face like never before. My heart is hammering, and my breaths are ragged as I try to make sense of this.

            I truly thought Emma was my best friend. She has never been anything but kind and caring towards me – the last person I would expect to betray me. Well, not quite the last person. That would be David. Looks like I’ve never been more wrong in my judgment in my whole life.

         Two people who have never shown me anything other than love and care are not the people I thought they were. Meanwhile, I’m left here betrayed, destroyed, and alone, while my best friend and the person I am supposed to spend the rest of my life with meet up together downstairs.

         How could I have been so stupid?

 

Chapter 2

Liam

            I can’t say that Las Vegas is my favorite part of the country – all that fakery mixed with tacky touches done in bad taste and the gratuitous displays of wealth makes me want to pull at my own teeth. Give me New York any day.

         As CEO of a modeling agency, it’s my prerogative to know what constitutes good taste. As someone with more money than I could get through in ten lifetimes, I also know how best to use and show it.

         Strange, then, that I should be traveling to such a place to get married, but that’s the position I now find myself in – though certainly not by choice. There aren’t many people I’d make such sacrifices for, but my mother is one of them.

         Gravely ill with a heart problem, the last thing she can tolerate is stress of any kind and, as she’s frequently made reference to, I’m one of the potential main causes of such feelings. Being single is not something she thinks is good for me now in my thirties. I have everything else – money, status, a career.

There’s only one thing left.

         Convinced I need to settle down, she’s made it her mission to see that I do just that. And, according to her, she knows the right person for the job. I’m not usually given to taking advice or instructions from others but when it comes to my mother, that’s another matter.

         “I know you and Eunice will be a good match,” she says to me over the phone as I leave for the airport. “And I know it’s not been easy making decisions like this, but trust me, it will be for the best.”

There’s such hope in her voice that it’s hard not to get carried along with it. “Maybe you’re right,” I say to her. In business, I trust my instincts, and that’s carried over to personal matters, too. But when it comes to marriage, I have neither the knowledge nor experience.

         “I just wish I could be there to see you both share your vows. I mean, it’s not exactly what I had in mind when I thought of my son getting married but still, I’d like to be there.”

         “Me too, Mom.” In reality, the only people at the wedding I’m about to attend – my own wedding – will be Eunice and I, aside from the officials. It’s not the way I would have imagined it either, but that’s what Eunice chose, much to my mother’s disappointment.

         Maybe Eunice has got a side to her that I don’t know about after all. A Las Vegas wedding isn’t my thing – in fact, it couldn’t be further from it!  But it does intrigue me about my arranged fiance. And at least we have one thing in common – a large part of her request to get married in this way was because she didn’t want the fuss of a large wedding, opting for a smaller, quieter affair when we return.

         “But there’s the church wedding in a month, remember,” I offer her, trying to make her feel better about the situation. “It’s probably best if you get some rest before then, anyway. What are the doctors saying?”

         “Everything is fine,” she says. “I’ve got the best people, remember?”

         I know this, of course. With access to the leading cardiologists on the east coast, I can at least rest knowing that she has the best care available to her. When it comes to looking after her, I’ll make sure she has everything she needs and more. Including my compliance when it comes to this marriage.

“Sure, well, that’s good. Look, my car’s going to be here any minute, so I’ll speak to you soon, okay?”

         “Make sure you do – I want to hear all about it,”  she says enthusiastically. “Give my love to Eunice…and make sure you send me some pictures!”

         “Will do, speak soon,” I finish before hanging up. It’s a relief to know that she’s doing well, and the coming nuptials seem to have made all the difference to her health. I just hope they make me as happy.

         Eunice is a childhood friend, someone from a similar background who knows my family well, but I've never been as sure about this as my mother seems to be. There was never a spark between us, despite spending so much time together when we were younger.

         But I don’t want to let my mother down. If this is what it takes to make her happy and keep her well, then it’s the least I can do. As she’s reminded me over and over again, marriage isn’t like the movies – it’s something that you have to work at. Something that grows with time.

         There’s no time to dwell on those things now, though. I’m about to fly out to get married. Whatever happens, I’ll deal with it, the same way I do everything else. This time tomorrow, I’ll be a married man with a wife and once I’ve put my mind to something, I’ll do everything I can to make sure that it works.

         You don’t get to be in the position I’m in without hard work, determination, and the desire to win. These are the things that make me who I am. The marriage will work out because it has to. Failing or losing just isn’t an option – never has been.

         My phone buzzes, alerting me to the fact my car is here. Collecting my things, I make my way down, feeling an unusual sense of apprehension.

Marriage.

It’s not what I expected to feel, though given my thoughts about the match I can hardly be surprised. If anything, it’s the strangeness of being suddenly vulnerable. Not an emotion I’m used to at all.

I’m heading to Las Vegas to meet my soon-to-be wife. Not something I ever thought would run through my mind, yet here I am. I can’t be a hundred percent sure of the match, even though my mother is. But the odds are good, and so that works for me.

Eunice is at least dependable – it could always be worse.

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