Gorgeous Lies by Brittany Taylor
Dear J,
They were the shade of midnight blue.
The last place I expected to see my old college love, Jude Harding, was in the local laundromat four years after I fled the city to escape him.
Heir to Boston Royalty.
Rich beyond comprehension.
And a mouth I couldn’t help but fall for.
Jude was everything I’d always wanted and more… until life viciously and unexpectedly tore us apart.
So, when he catches me arguing with a washing machine for mercilessly eating my quarters, I can’t escape quickly enough.
Unfortunately for me, Jude isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and before I realize what’s happening, he’s the man hired to renovate my new business.
The same man I’ve been desperate to get over for years, yet can’t, despite my efforts.
But business is business, after all, and we have to work together and not allow our troubled past get in the way. All I have to do is remember the pain I felt when he chose pleasing his father over a forever with me all those years ago, because if I don’t, everything I’ve risked to rebuild my life will come undone.
I don’t trust myself around Jude. I never will.
Because the truth is, I’ve always loved him, and I always will…despite every gorgeous lie he ever told.
- File Name:gorgeous-lies-by-brittany-taylor.epub
- Original Title:Gorgeous Lies: A Second Chance Billionaire Romance
- Creator:Brittany Taylor
- Language:en
- Identifier:MOBI-ASIN:B0C6V1JDRZ
- Date:2023-08-16T16:00:00+00:00
- File Size:420.756 KB
Table of Content
- 1. Title Page
- 2. Contents
- 3. Copyright
- 4. Dedication
- 5. Content Note from the author
- 6. Preface
- 7. Prologue
- 8. Chapter One
- 9. Chapter Two
- 10. Chapter Three
- 11. Dear J
- 12. Chapter Four
- 13. Chapter Five
- 14. Chapter Six
- 15. Dear J
- 16. Chapter Seven
- 17. Chapter Eight
- 18. Chapter Nine
- 19. Chapter Ten
- 20. Chapter Eleven
- 21. Dear J
- 22. Chapter Twelve
- 23. Chapter Thirteen
- 24. Chapter Fourteen
- 25. Chapter Fifteen
- 26. Chapter Sixteen
- 27. Chapter Seventeen
- 28. Chapter Eighteen
- 29. Dear J
- 30. Chapter Nineteen
- 31. Dear J
- 32. Chapter Twenty
- 33. Chapter Twenty-One
- 34. Chapter Twenty-Two
- 35. Chapter Twenty-Two
- 36. Chapter Twenty-Three
- 37. Dear J
- 38. Chapter Twenty-Four
- 39. Chapter Twenty-Five
- 40. Epilogue
- 41. Acknowledgments
- 42. Also by Brittany
- 43. About Brittany
Gorgeous Lies, Book 1 of the Harding Brothers series, was about 23-year-old Victoria Monroe, and 23-year-old Jude Harding (later in the book, in one of Jude's inner monologues, he said he was 24. Perhaps by the time the book reached that point, chapter 18, he'd had a birthday? Who knows?).
The book started at the courthouse with Victoria about to marry another man, but she received a text message from him that had been meant for her stepsister just as they were arriving. Although her fiance, Greg, seemed to be willing to go ahead with the nuptials, Victoria called them both out on their duplicity and walked away without marrying him. While she realized she didn't love him the way she should have, it didn't stop the hurt she felt from the betrayal of her fiance and her stepsister. But still, she felt no regret in walking away from the two of them. At that moment, she knew that her heart still beat for the one man she had left behind in Boston four years earlier.
It wasn't long after she returned to Boston that she and Jude met up again, but it was only a quick meeting in a laundromat with very few words exchanged. Only a short time passed before they saw each other again, this time in the building gifted to her by her aunt. She was going to live in the second-floor apartment and turn the rest into a bookstore. Jude's BFF had been hired to do the renovations, and Jude was going to be the supervisor for the job.
Jude and Victoria had a lot of things they needed to work through before they could begin again. Too much pain, lies, heartache, betrayals, and distrust had built between them and after four years apart, it was going to be difficult to find their way through to each other.
This book was full of angst, drama, heartache, and so much more. The emotional rollercoaster's twists and turns were nauseating because they felt as if they were neverending. The pain these two characters endured, first during their fledgling relationship, then throughout the four years apart, and flowing into the new steps they were forging was overwhelming. The push/pull between the MMC and the FMC, along with the conflict with secondary characters, wasn't easy to read about. It caused so much heartache for both of them.
Both main characters had a lot of maturing to do, and it didn't show up for a very long time. The MMC, who had been a full-blown alcoholic (although he didn't acknowledge it at the time), was also addicted to weed gummies, so he was always numbing his feelings and pain when they became too much of a burden. Although he hadn't had a drink in the four years they were apart, when life became overwhelming, he fell off the wagon and imbibed too much once more.
The book was a good one to read, and I would have given it a higher rating except for the fact that it had so many unresolved issues. There was also the fact that those who hurt the two main characters the most didn't have a lot of comeuppance, so that was disappointing. So, I only gave the book a three-star rating. I am looking forward to reading the stories about Jude's two brothers. Hopefully, during one of those, some of the people will get their comeuppance.
Loved the characters, good storyline. Read this in a day!