Kipp Llewellyn, the proverbial poor little rich boy, can have whatever he wants, except the one thing he wants most: his father’s love. When the opportunity arises to obtain it, Kipp jumps at the chance, even though it means breaking a date with “Ham,” the man he’s sure he’s falling in love with. However, the opportunity turns out to be an arranged marriage with his father’s biggest competitor. Even worse, Kipp discovers his proposed groom is Hyde Wyndham, the man of his dreams. Having lived in a gilded cage his entire twenty-one years, Kipp refuses to settle for anything less than love and walks away from both his father and his future husband. Hyde didn’t achieve his position in the financial world by taking no for an answer, however, and he’ll do whatever it takes to make Kipp realize he’s wanted for himself, including wooing the young man he intends to marry, prenuptial agreements be damned. He’s certain he’s succeeded, until Kipp learns something that puts an insurmountable barrier between them. Will Hyde be able to overcome Kipp’s doubts, and will Kipp realize that some things are worth the sacrifice?

Two Lips, Indifferent Red

They’d been the best six months of my life.


The dining room was a large, airy space with murals of seascapes and landscapes on the walls. There were about a dozen round tables, but only a fraction of them were occupied.


Granddad’s table was next to a window that looked out onto the garden. From where he sat, he had a view of the paved walkway that wound its way through masses of flowers. Benches were placed at strategic spots so the occupants of Promise Hospice could rest when they needed to and still enjoy the landscaping. Whoever had been hired to plot out that space had done an amazing job.


“Maybe I’ll look into classes in landscape and garden design,” I murmured to Hyde.


“If that’s what you’d like.” As we crossed the floor to join my grandfather and my brother, I could feel the warmth of his palm on my lower back.


Chapter 49