Bound

I didn't think the whole "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" thing was true... until I found out my memory and my marriage license had been there for the past fifteen years. DALTON My family is old money and my life has been mapped out since before I was born. Become a lawyer, buy a house, get married, carry on the family name-all of that good stuff that comes with this kind of upbringing. I have the job and the house, but instead of the marriage, I'm happy playing the field with a close-knit group of friends. Finding out that I've been secretly married for half my adult life was a plot twist I didn't see coming. Carter Emerson Royce IV is everything I used to want to be. I haven't seen him since college, and now he's asking me to come to New York and pretend we're the perfect picture of domestic bliss. Considering the history between us, it's the least I can do. *** I'm one divorce away from the life of my dreams, and I'm not going to ruin that by doing something stupid like falling in love with my husband. IVEY All I need to do is to win over the co-op board for the most upscale building in New York so I can secure keys to the penthouse I've wanted for years. It should be easy, but when they ask about my marital status and produce a marriage license from Vegas, my plans are thrown out the window. I've spent fifteen years trying to not think about Dalton Fox, but we're about to get up close and personal again whether we like it or not. The plan is simple-pretend we're really married and in love long enough for my application to get approved, Dalton goes back to LA a single man, and I go on with the rest of my life. Except it doesn't take long for us to learn there's more between us than history. Dalton and I are compatible in more ways than one, and the spark between us is very bright and very real. His life is in California and mine is in New York. Being legally bound doesn't mean anything, but the way Dalton makes me feel has to count for something. He doesn't just see the darkest parts of me, he mirrors them, he touches them, he...loves them. Soon it becomes clear, the penthouse isn't the only thing at stake. The rest of our lives-and the future of our marriage-are too. cw: off page abuse of main characters, subtle parental and social homophobia