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The Work Wife is yours TOMORROW, February 26th and will be available through Amazon (Kindle) for purchase ($3.99) or you can read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited.

Are you excited to dive into Charli + Oliver’s world? Just 24 more hours to go…

Until then here is the last chapter in the free sneak peek series!

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

All rights reserved © 2019

Oliver

My eyes linger on Charli as she stands in line with her sister and Meg, one of our waitresses and probably Charli’s closest friend at the restaurant. Well, besides me, that is. I watch as she bypasses the crystal tray of mimosas and goes straight for the pan of fluffy Belgian waffles. She piles them high on her plate before topping them with fresh cut strawberries and whipped cream. Charli is not shy about the foods she loves. I gotta say, the chef in me genuinely appreciates her hearty appetite. I’ve learned in her year tenure at the restaurant, waffles are her favorite, and because of this, I include them on the menu at every single one of our brunches.

“Ol.”  Ainsley’s voice draws my attention, and I angle my body toward where she sits at my side. “The food’s great.”

I smile at her compliment, even if it’s forced, because her praise is undeserved. Ainsley is the world’s pickiest eater, and she rarely, if ever, eats the food I prepare. Case in point: Her plate is comprised of exactly one scoop of fruit salad, a single slice of sourdough bread—no butter, no cream cheese, no nothing—and an assortment of olives. “Thanks, Ains.”

Charli, Julia, and Meg return to the long banquet table and sit opposite us.

It’s quiet for a few moments as we all dig into our food. I keep stealing glances at Charli while she eats, because her face is so expressive. With a single glance, I can tell instantly if she loves or hates something.

When she cuts a piece of sausage and pops it into her mouth, her eyes roll back a little, and she moans. “OhmyGod. So good.” The ecstasy in her voice is almost vulgar, and if we weren’t in a restaurant surrounded by thirty other people, if my fiancée wasn’t sitting right next to me, I might find it a turn on. Fuck, okay, I do find it a turn on, and it’s a problem. A big fucking problem.

“You like it?” I ask, even though it’s obvious she does.

“Yeah,” She lifts another bite to her mouth. “Andouille?”

“Good girl.” My eyes sparkle. “I added a bit of Cajun seasoning this time.”

“Yum.”

Leaning forward, I snatch a piece off her plate.

“Hey!” She swats me with her fork. “Get your own.” Chuckling, I grab another piece from her plate, and this time she almost stabs me with her utensil, but deep down I know it’s an idle threat. We’ve shared food a million times before. It’s one of the things I love about her. If she likes something, she wants everyone else to like it, too.

“Aww,” Julia quips. “You guys are so cute.” The look that Charli gives her sister is murderous. I’m not naïve. Yes, I can be clueless, I can be self-absorbed, I can be an asshole, but I kinda sorta have an idea that Charli has a crush on me. Or, at the very least, is attracted to me.

I truly don’t mean this the way it sounds, but a lot of girls are into chefs. I’m not sure if it’s the crisp white jacket or that cooking is an aphrodisiac or what it is exactly, but it doesn’t make it any less accurate. If I wanted, I could have any number of girls at the ready. The problem is, Charli is the only girl I’ve ever imagined things going further with. Sure, between us there’s been some innocent, harmless flirting, but for the most part, she’s rather conservative with me, almost as though she’s afraid what could—what would—happen if we both let our guard down.

She’s right to be worried.

“I still can’t believe how much you and your sister look alike.” Ainsley gestures between the two sisters.

Both Julia and Charli scrunch their noses. Julia speaks first. “You think?” She shakes her head. “I don’t think we look alike at all.”

“Yeah,” Ainsley continues. “You both have wide, blue eyes. Same oval face, same slim nose.” Ainsley turns to me. “Don’t you think?”

Suddenly all sets of eyes are on me, awaiting an answer. Truthfully, I don’t think Charli and Julia could be more different. Charli is healthy, voluptuous, with full, round breasts and curvy hips. Her hair is a few shades darker than her sister’s, and her eyes are a touch bigger, wider, and more mysterious. But the real distinguishing factor is the beauty mark above the right corner of Charli’s lip.  I’ve never seen anyone with such a prominent mark. I’ve thought about pressing my lips to that delicate spot more times than I care to admit.

Julia, in comparison, is waiflike. She’s very thin, and if I’m honest, looks almost skeletal, like she could use a good meal. Or twenty. Her eyes are the same color, but her hair is lighter, almost a mousy brown. Don’t get me wrong, she’s pretty, attractive even, but if this were a beauty competition, Charli would win by a landslide.

“Ol?” Ainsley nudges me with her elbow and repeats the question. “Don’t you think they could pass for twins?”

Clearing my throat, I give the best answer I know how. “I have no idea.” I shrug. “What do I know? I’m a guy.”

Ainsley chuckles, and I say a silent prayer that the conversation drops. But not even five minutes later, I’m greeted with another bullet.

“I keep telling her,”—Julia leans in toward Ainsley—“she’s got to start dating again.”

Meg raises her hand. “I agree.”

“See, Meg gets it!” Julia smacks her fist on the table before her eyes sweep around the room. “There has got to be at least one hot”—Julia brings her eyes to mine and enunciates the next word—“single guy here that we can set her up with.”

“Jules!” Charli whisper hisses. “What are you doing?”

“Getting you laid.” Julia reaches for her champagne flute.

“Enough.” Charli’s hand wraps around her sister’s tiny bird arm. “I can’t date someone I work with.”

“Why not?” Her sister’s attention flutters around the room before landing on Simon. The twenty-one-year-old dishwasher. “What about him? He’s hot.”

I can’t stop my gaze from sweeping over Simon. Kid’s a punk. With his spiky, jet black hair, murky green eyes, and tribal snake tattoo—he’s not Charlotte’s type at all. At least, I hope he isn’t.

Julia turns in her seat. “Meg, what do you think?”

Meg see-saws her hand back and forth. “Decent.”

“No,” Charli affirms, barely sparing Simon a glance.

“Why not?” her sister repeats.

I force shallow, even breaths despite the jealousy simmering in my veins. For fuck’s sake, leave it alone, Julia.

Charli rolls her eyes in exasperation. “Because it’s unprofessional.”

My mind dissects the reason why Charli disagreed. Not because of Simon per se, but because they work together.

Maybe she thinks he’s attractive.

Maybe she’s into younger guys.

Maybe…I’m being a jealous shit.

“Because if it doesn’t work out, things could get messy. Because if Don finds out, he’d be pissed—”

“Don loves you,” Julia interrupts.

This is true. Don does love Charlotte and regales everyone with the story of how she got her start at Mecca. Apparently, Don’s wife, very much pregnant at the time, ordered Chinese food from a local shop. His job was to pick it up before returning home. Unfortunately, Don didn’t have any cash on him, and the joint only accepted cash as payment. Charli was there to pick up her own order, and seeing Don’s crisis, paid for his order, ultimately saving him from a very hungry, very hormonal wife. He gave Charlotte his business card and told her if she ever needed a job to give him a call. Six months later she called, and the rest is history.

“You know Don won’t care,” Meg chimes in again, nodding her head toward Simon. “I say go for it.”

Why the fuck is Meg encouraging this? She just got scratched off of my Christmas list.

My stomach tightens, and I can feel Charli’s eyes on me, imploring me for help, but I don’t dare look at her, because I’m afraid of what she’ll see reflected in my own. Anger. Protectiveness. Jealousy. I stab the potato on my plate with more force than necessary.

“What about Jim?” Ainsley’s suggestion is such a curveball that I choke on the bite I just swallowed. She looks at me expectantly before popping another olive into her mouth.

“Jimbo?” I scrunch my nose. “You want to set Charli up with my best friend?” My eyes widen to match the doubt of my voice. “My recently divorced best friend?”

“Sure, why not?” Ainsley shrugs. “I think they’d get along great.”

My eyes find Charli’s for a brave moment before looking away. “Jimbo works all the time.” I take a swig of my grapefruit juice, hoping the bitterness will wash away some of my unease. “Besides, he’s too old for her.”

Charli’s face reddens—a mixture of fury and embarrassment—as she holds up her hand. “Guys, enough.” She ticks her fingers. “One, stop talking about me like I’m not even here. Jesus.” Her eyes cut to Julia, then Meg, and finally Ainsley. “Two, I don’t do blind dates. Sorry. Not sorry.”

My muscles, which up until this point I didn’t even realize were tight, loosen. I can feel the tension drain from my body, and my chest deflates with a solid puff of air.

Ainsley, however, is undeterred. “It wouldn’t be a blind date, silly.” She grabs another olive. A black one this time. “We could all go out together. I’m home for the next week. I’m sure we can arrange something.” She looks at me, a genuine smile on her face. “What do you think? The four of us? Will be fun, yeah?”

Fun? No way. Hell is a more appropriate word. My teeth grind together in agitation. “Just let it go, Ains.”

Confused, Ainsley looks from me to Charli, then to the other girls. Charli shrugs and shakes her head. Meg is busy looking at her phone, but Julia holds my eyes, a mischievous smile stretching across her lips. She knows.

There’s an awkward pause, a strange moment suspended in time, before Charli reaches for her sister’s champagne flute and drains the glass in one single swig. Her voice is confident, assured, when she speaks. “All right, I’m in.”

“Yeah?” Excited, Ainsley leans forward in her chair.

“Yep.” Charli nods, face stoic. “Text Jim.” My eyes flash to hers, and I hold her stare, as she says, “I’d love to meet him.”

The Work Wife releases tomorrow,  February 26th! Purchase for $3.99 or read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!  Until then, add to add to Goodreads:

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