Bad Apple Series Series by Kristina Weaver

Irina He’s gorgeous. Rich. Perfect. And the best liar I’ve ever met. So I’m right in the middle of the morning feeding frenzy at my bakery, happily plumping up my fellow citizens (so they’ll match me, of course), when I look up and into the most beautiful clear blue eyes I’ve ever seen. And they belong to this gorgeous angel of a man who just smiles down at me and waits for me to collect myself, because my jaw is somewhere on the floor and I’m helplessly frozen in place... moreIrina He’s gorgeous. Rich. Perfect. And the best liar I’ve ever met. So I’m right in the middle of the morning feeding frenzy at my bakery, happily plumping up my fellow citizens (so they’ll match me, of course), when I look up and into the most beautiful clear blue eyes I’ve ever seen. And they belong to this gorgeous angel of a man who just smiles down at me and waits for me to collect myself, because my jaw is somewhere on the floor and I’m helplessly frozen in place. I mean, the man is just breathtaking. And what do I say once I can speak again? Lord help me, I offer him my pie. His response is even more surprising than his sudden appearance: “You are beautiful.” And then he freaking asks me to dinner! Me, by the way? So not beautiful. For one thing, I’m way too curvy, and this guy looks like he should be dating supermodels. Also, I’m covered head to toe in flour, and I’m wearing my extremely unsexy polka dot apron. So it looks like I’ll be dining with an unbearably hot stranger in an unthinkably expensive suit, and the worst part is…I can’t help thinking he’s the one. Which, obviously, is impossible. Misha She’s beautiful, sweet, and genuine…but I can’t let that stop me. I must admit, Irina’s sweet loveliness will make what I have to do a little bit harder. Men like me aren’t exactly known for their gentleness, but even I feel like I’m doing something wrong. See, we aren’t meeting by chance. I know exactly who she is…and what the land her bakery sits on is worth to me. The plan to steal this innocent girl’s dream away from her is really starting to come together. I’m not going to leave the pretty little thing destitute or anything, but I will take what I need from her. This is business, after all. And yeah, maybe just a little bit pleasure, too. Whatever it takes. NOTE: This is a short story, and is the first part of a 5-part serial. Cliffhanger ending. less

Irina,/b> Love is not all it’s cracked up to be and I think romance may be dead. There’s nothing worse than seeing a married man kiss a woman who is not his wife. At least I thought that would be the worst, until I walked in on that married man and saw him tongue bathing a woman I know isn’t his wife because I just so happen to be lucky said wife. That hurt. A lot... moreIrina,/b> Love is not all it’s cracked up to be and I think romance may be dead. There’s nothing worse than seeing a married man kiss a woman who is not his wife. At least I thought that would be the worst, until I walked in on that married man and saw him tongue bathing a woman I know isn’t his wife because I just so happen to be lucky said wife. That hurt. A lot. I mean I may not have been married to Misha Novac for that long but I certainly loved the man, so much in fact that it almost broke me to walk away. I should have known the man wouldn’t just let me go for ‘no reason’. Misha is a total Neanderthal when it comes to me and he sees nothing wrong with expecting me to forgive him and just trust him because he wills it so. I would have given him a total what for and kicked him right back to the curb when he came pounding on my door. I so would have, love be damned. But someone’s trying to kill me, me a bakery owner with two cats and no beef with anyone, not even the cat who keeps trying to rip my throat out. Why would anyone want to kill me? Misha Failure is not an option, not when my life depends on winning my wife back I may not be the world’s best husband and I may be an emotionally barren wasteland after losing someone I loved more than life but Irina is the light in the darkness I have lived in and losing her is not something I will allow. I need her to chase the shadows away and bring her beauty into my world. I need to win her back. I’m a self-made billionaire. I control some of the most dangerous Russian crews in New York City and I never lose. Even if I have to cheat to win my prize. less

Irina How do you love a lie? When I find out that my husband Misha had a daughter and that she died, it’s painful. Painful because it hurts me to know what he must have suffered to lose a child and painful because he never once told me. It’s just one more lie in a string of lies that have driven me away from him and honestly, I don’t know if the love I feel for him is enough to survive a marriage that’s all about me loving him while he keeps me at arms-length. I love him... moreIrina How do you love a lie? When I find out that my husband Misha had a daughter and that she died, it’s painful. Painful because it hurts me to know what he must have suffered to lose a child and painful because he never once told me. It’s just one more lie in a string of lies that have driven me away from him and honestly, I don’t know if the love I feel for him is enough to survive a marriage that’s all about me loving him while he keeps me at arms-length. I love him. I’ve let him know in every way possible. Now it’s up to him to make the next move because if not, were over. Misha Have you ever lost before the game has begun? She will never understand what I feel or how I came to be the man I am. I know it’s my fault because I keep the wall I’ve erected between us up at all times. I can’t help it. I need the wall to keep the pain, the emotions at bay. At least that’s what I told myself until one mistake drives Irina away and I realize that living without her is no life at all. All my plans and deceptions have come back to bite me in the ass and now that I realize how deeply I love my wife, it may be too late to save the love I’ve discovered I need. I think I’ve lost her for good and in so doing sentenced myself to darkness. less