Loving Your Lies by Piper Shelly
Publication date: January 2013
Genres: New Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Publication date: January 2013
Genres: New Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Julian is drop-dead gorgeous, annoyingly provocative, and he’s fast becoming her best friend. But he also has a secret that makes the little hairs on her arms stand on end…
My name is Jona Montiniere, and that’s pretty much the only good thing to say about me.
I’m seventeen, I’m snarky, and I’m a crap-load of trouble. Or so they say. But what did they expect from me really, when they dumped me in an orphanage at age five? That I’d grow up to become the new first lady? Nah, I think it’s much more fun to raid Camden Market in London with my friend, Debby. She’s cool. She lives on the street. I learned so much from her.
The only thing she missed to teach me was how to tend to a vineyard. And yeah, that’s what I’m going to do for the next 6 weeks, courtesy to this darn judge, who sent me off to France after I was caught stealing again. Fair enough, the vineyards are okay, and so are my aunt and uncle, who I haven’t met up ‘til now. What isn’t okay, and I mean it, is that I have to live in the same house with my mother, that god-awful dragon, who spurned when I was only a child. And now she wants me back? Demands my forgiveness? Why, because she’s about to die of cancer? Uh-uh. Sorry, but that’s not gonna happen. I want no contact with that woman, thanks.
But what’s Julian got to do with all of this? About my age, he’s too young to be my mother’s lover. So why doesn’t he leave her side? Ever. He’s different, as in the paranormal kind of different, but he’s sa-woon-worthy gorgeous. He obviously has secrets, but he’s also get-under-my-skin charming. In short, he’s a riddle to me. But he likes me, and that’s scaring the shit out of me. I sure won’t let anyone come too close.
So now I’m wondering only two things: How did he manage to hold me in his arms after only three days? And how the hell do you keep an angel earth bound?
My name is Jona Montiniere, and that’s pretty much the only good thing to say about me.
I’m seventeen, I’m snarky, and I’m a crap-load of trouble. Or so they say. But what did they expect from me really, when they dumped me in an orphanage at age five? That I’d grow up to become the new first lady? Nah, I think it’s much more fun to raid Camden Market in London with my friend, Debby. She’s cool. She lives on the street. I learned so much from her.
The only thing she missed to teach me was how to tend to a vineyard. And yeah, that’s what I’m going to do for the next 6 weeks, courtesy to this darn judge, who sent me off to France after I was caught stealing again. Fair enough, the vineyards are okay, and so are my aunt and uncle, who I haven’t met up ‘til now. What isn’t okay, and I mean it, is that I have to live in the same house with my mother, that god-awful dragon, who spurned when I was only a child. And now she wants me back? Demands my forgiveness? Why, because she’s about to die of cancer? Uh-uh. Sorry, but that’s not gonna happen. I want no contact with that woman, thanks.
But what’s Julian got to do with all of this? About my age, he’s too young to be my mother’s lover. So why doesn’t he leave her side? Ever. He’s different, as in the paranormal kind of different, but he’s sa-woon-worthy gorgeous. He obviously has secrets, but he’s also get-under-my-skin charming. In short, he’s a riddle to me. But he likes me, and that’s scaring the shit out of me. I sure won’t let anyone come too close.
So now I’m wondering only two things: How did he manage to hold me in his arms after only three days? And how the hell do you keep an angel earth bound?
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AUTHOR BIO
The quick-and-dirty:I’m a cool girl with a passion for writing.
The genres you’ll find me hanging out at are contemporary and paranormal YA, but I’m also snooping into some adult paranormal right now. All of them romances…of course.
The nitty-gritty:
I’m an Austrian lass—totally uncomplicated and up to anything fun.
I grew up in Vienna, not by free will but because my parents decided to move there when I was only 4 years old. I. Hated. The. City. Everything about it. So right after graduation I moved back to Upper Austria, where I settled down with a nice husband and an awesome laptop.
I’ve been a storyteller all my life. Already in kindergarten, I came up with the most exotic fantasies and tales. My teacher would call me a liar. I call it the cornerstone of my writing career.
People always told me you can’t make a living with being an author. So when my first novella PLAY WITH ME came out and shot straight to the stars within the first week, I was totally dumbstruck. Took me a while to realize what was happening, LOL.
And the personal stuff:
At the (awesome) age of seventeen, I met the love of my life. But he was a playboy, and I was so not going to be his next trophy. It took him another four years of fighting for me until I finally decided to give that “couple-thing” with him a shot. I’m now married to this man. ;-)
We have an eleven-year-old son, and together we travel a lot…although I sometimes wish the trips were shorter because I can’t wait to get back to my laptop and my many stories. Unless we’re in Disneyland. No stress to go home then…
If you still want to know more about me, my FAQ page is the right address for you. ;-)
http://pipershelly.com/faq/
Author Links:
Website: http://pipershelly.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorpiper
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Excerpt:
Julian landed softly like a cat. He straightened and rubbed his palms on his rear. “Job done.”
“Jeez, you scared the hell out of me.”
“Sorry about that. But you know,” he took a step toward me into my room, “I’m majorly proud of you. Climbing up that ledge was very brave.”
“You think?”
He nodded. For an awkward, long moment we stared at each other. When the silence became unbearable, I coughed. “So, what does it look like up there in the nest? Are there more young birds?”
“There are three. Why don’t you come out and see yourself?”
An outraged laugh ripped from my throat. “Very funny.”
“No, seriously. I think you should try to get over that fear.” His face was stern, meaningful, but encouragement shone in his eyes. He grabbed my hand and tugged me. “Come on. Marie gave you the prettiest room in the house with this beautiful balcony, and you don’t even appreciate it.”
“I—that’s not true.” I wanted to defend myself, to protest—to his statement and to how his soft touch on my hand made me move. “I love the room.”
Julian tugged a little harder. I stumbled one step forward, then another.
“Wait, I can’t do this.” My knees trembled when he tried to pull me out onto the porch engulfed by darkness.
“Of course you can. Just hold onto my hand and do as I say. I’m holding you.”
I couldn’t say what convinced me in the end, his gentle tone or his warm blue eyes. But before I could think straight again, my right foot shoved over the threshold and landed shakily on the dark painted boards. The wood felt warm against the bare sole of my foot, but it creaked eerily under my weight. Please don’t crack. Please don’t crack. My quavering left leg followed.
“Very good.” Julian smiled. I drew encouragement from it. He tightened his hold of my hand then laced his fingers gently through mine. “Now turn around. No need to look over the railing right away.”
“Huh?” My breathing went on high speed. I winced.
But he didn’t give me time to think. With a soft shove, he directed me around until I faced the outside of my room.
“Oh my god, what are you doing?” I squeaked out in panic.
“I’ll guide you. Trust me.” Julian switched on the dim balcony light. Then he took my other hand, too, and pulled me away from the wall. “I won’t let you fall.” His voice held the seal of a promise.
With some reluctance, I made one step after another to his subtle pull. Hysteria blurred my vision. I closed my eyes and followed blind.
“Breathe, Jona.”
Inhale. Exhale. Trembling breaths pushed out hard.
“You’re doing great. We’re almost there.”
“There? Where? At the slide to hell?”
One more step, then Julian stopped and wrapped both his arms around my middle. He leaned against the railing, feet planted far apart for a better stance. He cradled my back against his chest. “You did it. Just look what a grand first step you made.”
“Hopefully, it won’t be my last.” Reluctantly, I opened my eyes and face the façade of the house tinted in soft porch light some seven feet away. My jaw dropped to my chest as amazement washed over me.
Blimey, all I wanted was to get back inside. But Julian’s hold of me felt solid and secure. I knew he would keep his promise, and only for that reason I stood rooted.
“Now, eyes up there.” With my hand wrapped in his, he lifted his arm and pointed one finger to the top of the roof.
I zoomed in on the small nest right under the eaves. Three tiny round heads popped over the edge, the mother bird towering watchfully over her spawn.
It was lovely. Not just the sight of the nest built under the eaves, but also how much care shone in the mother-bird’s eyes when she hovered over her children.
“I always wished to have someone look at me that way,” I whispered without thinking.
“Like the bird?” I felt Julian staring at me from the side. “You might not have noticed, but there is someone in this house who looks at you exactly like that.”
I huffed and rolled my eyes. “Yeah, the dragon, right.”
“I’m not speaking of your mother.”
My brows knitted together, and I tilted my head to glance at him from only a few inches distance. “Who then?”
“It’s Marie who tries to pull you into her embrace.” Julian’s thumb drew small circles on the back of my hand, sending little shivers up my arm. “She’s pleading for allowance, don’t you see?”
“Allowance for what?”
“To love you.”
The truth tugged at my heart. Aunt Marie did everything possible to make me feel at home and welcome. But with so much hatred for my mother, I couldn’t let anyone else’s love intrude me.
Hypocrite. There I stood, dreaming of someone who’d replace my loneliness, and yet I was about to break the heart of the only person who’d tried to make this dream come true. But I couldn’t allow my aunt to break through my shield. Not when those who I opened up to tended to leave me in the end anyway.
“She offered to spend the day with me alone tomorrow.” It eluded me why I told him this, but suddenly Julian seemed like someone I could be honest with. Someone like Quinn. “And she gave me so many beautiful clothes.”
“Sadly, you didn’t put them on tonight.” He tugged at the hem of my T-shirt to mock me. “But she knows how to welcome someone, doesn’t she?”
“She does indeed.” A low chuckle ripped through me. “Very much to the contrary of you.”
Out of the corner of my eye I caught him arch a brow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
By his voice I could tell he was smiling.
“Well, you weren’t the most charming person in the world when we first met. With all the bantering and such, no wonder you don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Who says I don’t have a girlfriend?”
“Well…you. I mean, you said you weren’t my mother’s lover. And I don’t see any other girls around.” I bit my lip. Shit. There was probably another woman waiting for him somewhere. Someone nice and young, not god-awful like the dragon. Suddenly an invisible boa slithered around my chest and did what it was supposed to do best. It constricted.
When I spoke next, I sounded anything but confident. “So…do you?”
“No.” He dragged out the word and laughed softly.
No girlfriend! The snake evaporated and was replaced with a bunch of excited butterflies. I wanted to squash them with my fist. This really shouldn’t make me so happy. The pounding of my heart annoyed me something awful. Especially when he must have caught it with my ribcage pressed so snugly against his warm chest.
Out of a habit when I felt insecure, I resorted to my snappy tone. “See, that might be different if you were a little nicer to girls to begin with.”
“It might,” he whispered. And then his lips brushed my ear as he spoke. “And yet, here I stand, holding you in my arms after only three days.”
I sucked in a sharp breath and lowered my gaze to my bare feet. I shouldn’t be here, in this house. Nor in his arms. And most of all, I shouldn’t enjoy it as much as I did. Ready to rip out of his embrace, my spine stiffened as did every muscle in my body.
Julian’s arms wrapped a little tighter around me. “Shh,” he breathed. “You’ll just scare the birds.”
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