Belong To Me: Hotel D, #2

By Nika Stone

Can a do-gooder tech genius convince a feisty globetrotter that his home is where her heart belongs?

As a travel influencer, I'm the definition of an independent woman. Fearlessly going wherever whenever is my motto. So when tech billionaire/wannabe philanthropist Sean Reid comes into my life, the spark that flares between us is only mutually convenient, nothing more. Commitment is the last thing on my mind. His gorgeous green eyes and extremely talented hands, however, tempt me to reconsider.

Just when I start to believe, we have a chance at something more between us, Sean betrays me in the worst way. Can we find our way back to each other, or are we doomed to go our separate ways?

Belong to Me is the second book in the Hotel D Series. These short, steamy stories feature mature couples who know what they want in the bedroom and out! Each book can be read as a standalone.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Heartbound Press
• Release date: Aug 11, 2022
• ISBN: 9798223073000

Book preview

Mala

Ihave got to get out of here.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s wonderful to see my big sister happy. And Aesha is surely happier than I’ve ever seen her. We’re at her favorite restaurant, at a party she thought was for her birthday. Instead, her boyfriend Theo popped the question. She said yes, of course, and now she’s gliding around the room, hand in hand with her brand new fiancé.

Holy shit, my sister has a fiancé. How the hell did that happen? She swore she’d never get married again. But here she is, glowing like a fucking flashlight, showing off the ring to all of the cousins and parents and aunties and uncles, making it clear to the whole world that she’s entirely, insanely in love with this man.

And Theo’s no better. He’s gaga over her. The man would literally drink her bath water if she asked him to do it.

They’re so gross, the both of them. Totally in love with one another. All this lovey-dovey sweetness is giving me a headache.

To be fair, that might also be the three — no, four — no — the several cocktails I’ve had since this party began. Delicious, but I will be feeling those tomorrow. Right now, it’s time for me to pull an Irish exit, as my friend Siobhan says. The aunties are one drink away from looking at my unmarried ass and asking questions I have no desire to answer. I grab my wrap and head for the door.

My nephew Riz catches me just before I get there.

Sneaking off again, Auntie Em? He is the model of tween ennui, tossing his floppy hair to the side, with his arms folded across his teeny little preteen chest. He gives me a side eye that would daunt a lesser woman.

Watch it, bub. I’m more like the Wicked Witch. I kiss my gorgeous boy on the cheek. Cover for me with Nana and Nani, eh?

It’ll cost you. The saucy twinkle in his eye reminds me so much of my sister. She was feisty even when we were young.

What is this, extortion? I ask in mock indignation. And your mother’s a lawyer. Are you really going to shame her with this life of crime you’re leading?

"Nana and Nani are your parents, but you’re dodging them," he points out. Kid’s got me there.

Such disrespect, beta! How dare?

Smart boy that he is, he doesn’t take the bait. He merely gives me a raised eyebrow, and holds out his hand. I crack up.

Fine, fine, I say, handing over the gift I had meant to give him anyway. Here’s your stinking game card. I guess I don’t know anyone else with an Xbox.

He thanks me profusely, and I even get a hug. That’s practically an I love you coming from a kid who is entirely too cool for school. My cold, dead heart is slightly warmed.

I slip through the door of the private dining room and shut it gently behind me. Whew. I take a deep breath and lean back against the old-growth fir door, enjoying the quiet. I adore my family. They’re loud, opinionated and unapologetic about any of it. But all that love and togetherness is making me tense. I need to find a quick release for all that pressure. When I get back to my condo, I am so pulling out the ‘friends with bennies’ roster to see who’s up next.

Mala.

Shit. That gravelly voice and ridiculous Scottish burr can only be one person. I thought I’d gotten away clean.

Fuck me, I mutter.

Any place you want, any time you like, gorgeous.

That shouldn’t make my nipples tighten or my nether regions throb. But between the accent and the alcohol, I’m a hot, horny mess. Scowling, I turn around to face my nemesis.

That would be the 31st of never, thanks, I lie, as I walk away.

Wait.

What do you want, Sean?

That’s, right. Sean. As in Sean Fucking Reid: tech bro, sometime philanthropist, and asshole gazillionaire. Just standing there, with his six feet tallness and his green eyed-ness and his absurdly taut abs. The so-called Ginger Genius of the Pacific Northwest.

You know what I want, lass. His eyes rake over me. I growl at him in response. Shockingly, the force of my scorn does not instantaneously make him wither and die.

You’re right, I do. Remind me why I should care?

Because Theo is my best friend in the entire world, and he’s marrying your sister.

He’s your only friend, I point out. Which makes him a freaking saint.

Which means, he corrects, that you and I will be spending a lot of time together, as maid of honor and best man.

What the fu — did I agree to that? Sounds like bullshit. Why would I agree to anything that meant I had to spend more time with this … this… pfft. My brain can’t even come up with an adjective scathing enough for my least favorite human.

But then the memory hits me. Somewhere around the third — or was it fourth?— toast to the happy couple. Our Uncle Yasir had started to tell the story about Aesha and me accidentally setting their shed on