The Happily Ever After Search Read online

  “Tell Kai, hi for me, Roy.” Roy’s head snapped towards Raiden at the sound of his voice and he dropped his phone. “Roy, you come anywhere near my wife and you’ll pay!” Raiden hissed before storming off. He wanted to take Tai upstairs and finish what he tried to start last night.

  “This isn’t over, Raiden!” Roy called, but Raiden didn’t turn back around. It was over. Tom and Devon would be made aware and something told Raiden that Kai was changing and would back him on this.

  “Everything all right?” she asked when he stopped in front of her.

  “Roy is up to something, stay away, and if Kai stops you, listen to him.” She looked confused but didn’t verbally respond she just nodded.

  “Come on, sweetheart, I want to make love to my wife.” He knew the trigger his words had on her when the look of playful seduction that screamed ‘bring it on, playboy’ laced her face. She was in his arms immediately and being hauled off to their room. His wife, carrying his child, in his arms was his whole world and they were the most precious people in his life.

  Tai

  His determination as he carried her off to their room, was hot as hell. The anticipation from last night, mixed with the fact that tonight they were husband and wife. “Slow down, playboy, we have forever now.” She licked her lips as he set her on the feet.

  “You licking your lips makes slow impossible,” he said as his lips touched the exposed portion of her neck. She moaned when his hand traveled up her back and began to untie the corset of her dress.

  “Mmmm....playboy,” she breathed out.

  “Tonight, Tai, you’re mine, tomorrow night, you’re mine, forever, you are mine.” His words were a whisper, his breath tickling her skin as he spoke.

  Her dress fell to the floor, followed by his tux. She barely registered any of that because Raiden was nipping at and kissing her skin the whole time. “Playboy, I’m ready. Make love to me.”

  “With pleasure, sweetheart,” he breathed out, pushing her on the bed. He lay over staring at her with love as his pushed his cock inside of her.

  “Ah,” she gasped, she hadn’t had him in over three weeks and damn did her feel good. “I missed this,” she moaned.

  He kissed her lips and she was lost in him, he was her Prince Charming, her happily ever after.

  Five Months Later

  Raiden

  “If you can get Kai to come here and tell us everything, we will remove Roy. I just don’t get it,” Elder Tom said slapping Raiden on the back.

  “I’ll try, he’s pretty stuck on Gloria and from what I know, his father kicked him out.” Tom nodded at Raiden’s words.

  “How are you doing?” Raiden understood the question. His dad, Lee had passed away two months after Tai and Raiden tied the knot. The last few months weren’t easy, but having Tai in his corner and knowing things were progressing nicely with their child helped. He also still had a father figure in his life, Dale moved in right before the wedding and Raiden and Tai were happy he was around.

  “I’m doing good. Tai and I found out today that we’re having a little girl.” Tom smiled.

  “That’s great, Raiden.” He too had become like a father figure to Raiden and maybe more importantly, Kai.

  “You’ve talked with Kai?” Raiden asked.

  “Yes, this girl, Gloria, is important to him.” Raiden nodded because he did indeed know that Gloria Keller completed Kai Lukas. This, of course, pissed off the Lukas family.

  “Need to get going.” Tom nodded.

  Tai had texted him a little bit ago and said she was going to have surprise for him when he got home. He was anxious for his surprise, he imagined her in black and red lingerie waiting in bed for him as he drove home to Aishan.

  Tai

  She had just hung the pink streamers along their headboard. When a knock came to the door. “Come in,” she called.

  “What’s all this, baby girl?” He dad taking in the room.

  “Well, since we’re having a girl, Raiden said I could name her, and I thought of the perfect name. I’m surprising him. I hope he loves it.” Her dad walked to the bed and picked up the notecard she had sitting there to give Raiden.

  “Melanie Lee.” His parents’ names. “Oh, baby girl, this is beautiful, he’ll love it.” She smiled sadly.

  “I hope so, we only just lost Lee, and it hasn’t been too long since his mom’s death just over about a year and a half. I just don’t want it to be too soon,” she sighed.

  He kissed her cheek and winked. It was his way of silently voicing his approval and she knew he believed Raiden would love the gesture and the name for their baby girl.

  “Sweetheart?” She heard him call as her dad left the room.

  “Upstairs, playboy.” She called back. She heard him tromp up the stairs and smiled as he stopped in the doorway of their room.

  “Pink?” he questioned amused.

  “We’re having a girl, playboy, and I have a present for you.” She sauntered over to him and handed him the notecard. He looked down at the name scrawled across it.

  “Melanie Lee, my parents.” She nodded. “Oh Tai,” he choked out.

  “I love you, Raiden.” He grabbed her placing a hard, hot, kiss to her lips.

  “I love you, thank you for everything.” The tears cascaded down her cheeks, down his cheeks and she knew the search was over her happily ever after was standing in front of her and it was all she needed to survive.

  All my life I never gave my heart...

  I was always going to marry him...

  I didn’t love him, but...

  He’s my best friend.

  AND NOW....Well now everything has changed.

  ~Bethany

  Bethany always thought she would be marrying Raiden when that time came. He never was one who was going to settle down, so Bethany just assumed the arranged marriage planned when they were sixteen was always destined to happen. But that all changed when Raiden found Tai. Bethany is now free to open up her heart and Tai’s ex, Jordan, is proving to be sweet, loving, and respectful of her hesitations. The only problem is Bethany just doesn’t know how to give herself over to love.

  Jordan is a moron. He knows that. He cheated on his fiancée, Tai, with her own mother. When he goes to Aishan to bring her back from certain trouble, she declines. Needing his own break to clear his head, he chooses to stay. That was how Bethany entered his life and he now completely understands what Tai means when she says she wasn’t his one, because Bethany...Well, she is. She is bound up by duty and responsibility though, and having a hard time accepting that it no longer exists. Jordan now must convince her to search for her heart, just as he is searching for his.

  Prologue

  Mistakes

  Bethany

  It wasn’t really her mistake. At sixteen years old her parents, along with Raiden’s parents decided that they would make it so that if Raiden didn’t find his soul-mate and get engaged by whatever time frame was presented to him and there we a lot of circumstances that would apply that he would marry her. Raiden was a great guy and Bethany cared deeply for him, but she never loved him, not like that, anyways.

  “Bethany, date a little, you never get out.” Raiden sat at his usual table as Bethany poured his drink.

  “I can’t date, Raiden. You go through women like there is no tomorrow. What happens if I fall in love and then poof you need to get engaged and have no one lined up!” She hissed. For the last several years they had been having the same conversation.

  “I wouldn’t be a bad husband,” he teased. Bethany slapped him. “Ouch.”

  “You’re an ass, but no, you wouldn’t make a bad husband. But if I’m your wife I won’t be in love with someone else. I can’t do it, Raiden.”

  “Okay Bethany, I get it. I promise Bethany. I won’t let it come to that, if you find someone, I’ll find a way to make sure you’re free,” he sighed.

  “Raiden, you deserve happiness.” Bethany said.

  “We both do, Beth.” He smil
ed at her.

  Bethany turned away she had to get back to work. Raiden was right, of course, they both did deserve happiness. She just wasn’t sure that would be a reality. Marrying Raiden wouldn’t be a bad life, just not exactly what she wanted. She wanted be loved with so much passion that she wouldn’t be able to see straight. That was something her and Raiden would never have with each other. However, until he settled down, no one was getting in.

  Jordan

  He had been engaged not even a full week, yet tonight, he wasn’t sharing the bed with her. He was sharing a bed with her mother. How did he allow this to happen?

  He was alone. Tai was working, relatively speaking he was happy, but his proposal was somewhat forced. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to marry Tai, but he was assured that they were meant to be, so he proposed. A knock at the door interrupted his trip to the buried depths of his heart as he searched for answers.

  “Meredith?” What was Tai’s mom doing there? She had been visiting him a lot. They’ve been having a ton of conversations, ones that led him to buy a ring and propose to her daughter, but now he was confused.

  “Up for some company?” she winked and slowly untied her long trench coat revealing nothing.

  Jordan blinked back his surprise as she entered his apartment. He was being pushed towards his bedroom. He tried to protest, but had no words. “I want you, Jordan, for one night. Before you commit to my daughter.” Jordan gulped. Was she being for real? But he didn’t stop her and willingly he fell into bed with his fiancée’s mother.

  “Fuck!” he hissed.

  “What, Jordan, tell me, hun, what’s wrong?” She smiled sweetly. Jordan scrubbed his hands over his face.

  “What are we doing, Meredith? You wanted me to propose to Tai, I did and now this.” He was confused how he allowed for this. Sex with Tai’s mother, he was a moron, a fucking moron.

  “It’s okay, Jordan, Tai won’t know. I know you love her, but she’ll be busy with wedding stuff. I can keep you warm till your wedding.” He was shocked, but he didn’t protest. He kissed her and for the second time that night had sex with Meredith Coretti, his fiancée’s mother.

  The Freedom Search

  (The Search Series #4)

  Gloria & Kai’s Story

  11/18/14

  The Mother Daughter Search

  (A Search Series Novella)

  12/8/14

  Perspective Shift

  (The Shifting reality Series #1)

  Luke and Katrina Spin-off

  12/29/14

  Trust Shift

  (The Shifting Reality Series #2)

  Luke and Katrina Spin-off

  1/20/15

  Shifting Their Forever

  (The Shifting Reality Series #3)

  Luke and Katrina Spin-off

  2/20/15

  I am a Paranormal/Fantasy Romance Author

  I’m twenty-nine years old. I am a Navy Wife and a mother of two. My daughter was born December 4, 2010 and my son was born July 18, 2013. My husband and I have been married for almost seven years, but we have been together since our junior year of high school and we have known each other since 8th grade, yes a long time.

  I am a Florida girl at heart, but since getting married I have lived in Washington, South Carolina, and our latest move Connecticut. I hold a B.A. in Multimedia Journalism with a minor in Political Science from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida.

  Writing is something I love and since I am blessed to be a stay at home mom I thought I would try my hand at getting the stories in my head out and see how far I could go. I tried a few years ago to go through a Literary Agency, but it went nowhere. The self-publishing market was just starting to get hot so I self-published two books mainly for family and friends. I then discovered the world of New Adult. I wanted to stick with my paranormal roots and began thinking up story ideas that took on not only a paranormal element, but a fantasy element as well

  My Motto: Not your average Fairy Tales

  So, that is me in a nutshell. I am a little crazy and simple and I love my life and my family.