What happens in Vegas is supposed to stay in Vegas.
Takedown, an all-new accidental marriage romance by Evelyn Sola is available now!
ABOUT THE BOOK
MELLIE
I was not a gambler. No way. I’ve built an existence free of risk and adventure. From my career to a small life with my closest family. I was not going to do anything to jeopardize my heart. But when my neighbor and number one menace to my safe plans showed up in Vegas, I did what every adventurous (not!) woman would do. I got drunk and married the man.
ADAM
Then, I went and married Mellie Dupree. That woman I’ve been chasing for two years is now my wife. She claims she doesn’t remember our wedding, but I was there, and I know she’s not telling the truth. Then again, neither am I.
Excerpt
The color drains from her face and she takes a step closer to this Damien asshole. My wife actually takes a step closer to another man. As if it’s his right to protect her and not mine.
“Your date, Mel?” I ask. Her eyes dart from me to Jason, as if she’s silently asking him for help. Jason answers. He steps between us and turns to me.
“Don’t start any shit, Flynn. Goodnight.” He points towards the door, but I don’t move.
“Forgive me, but I have a bit of a problem with my wife going out on a date with another man.” For the first time, I noticed Mel’s holding a single red rose, and it drops to the floor at my announcement.
“What?” Jason says, confused.
“Cutie,” the asshole says. He has the nerve to give my wife a nickname. That’s strike one. “You’re married? Your profile said single.” He raises both hands and takes a step back. Then, he looks at me again, perusing my body. He bites his bottom lip and looks me directly in the eyes. “Are you into getting cuckolded?” He takes a step closer to me, clearly liking what he sees. “Do you do more than watch? I hope so.” He lowers his voice to a husky whisper. Mel’s mouth opens in shock, and she takes a step back.
That’s strike two.
“I knew you didn’t invite me in here just to meet your brother.” He drops his voice and inches closer to Mel. The sly grin on his too thin lips make it clear what he’s thinking.
That’s it. That’s strike three.
I push off the wall and come to my full height. Damian steps back when I slowly approach him. “Damian, is it? That’s a no to your first question.” I smile when I see the fear in his eyes as I get closer to him. He steps away until his back hits the wall. Idiot. Now he has nowhere to run. I step closer, lift him off his feet by his neck and pin him to the wall.
Jason rushes over. “Let him go, Flynn.”
I ignore him. In fact, I squeeze the fucker’s neck just a little bit.
“Adam, stop!” It doesn’t help to calm my anger when I see my wife wringing her hands over this useless piece of shit.
“If you ever so much as breathe the same air as my wife again, I will rip your fucking heart out of your chest. Got that?” When he doesn’t answer, I squeeze his neck again, lower my voice and say,“I asked you a question.”
“Yes,” he croaks out.
He starts to kick at me, but I look into his eyes and arch an eyebrow. He stops immediately.
“Does that make me sound like a man who will watch as another man fucks his wife?” My voice is so low that only he can hear me. He swallows and shakes his head, unable to form a single syllable. “Good. I guess that answers your second question.” I lower my voice further. “Now, get the fuck out of here before I snap your neck.” His eyes bulge right before I let him go. He starts to cough, but before Jason can reach for him, he runs to the door. I follow and shove him out.
After I close and lock the door, I turn back to Jason and my wayward wife. She stands there, mouth and eyes wide open. I make sure to squash the rose given to her by that other man. I hear a shriek before she runs across the room. I grab her wrist before her hand connects with my face, but she pushes out of my hold and starts to pummel my chest with punches. I grab both wrists, turn her around and hold her back against my chest.
“Let her go,” Jason orders, coming closer. “Right now, Flynn.” So, I do, and as soon as she’s able, she turns and attacks me again.
“You bastard,” she yells. “You fucking bastard. I’m going to chop you up into pieces and throw your worthless body parts into the Charles.” She punches and kicks until Jason grabs her and stands between the two of us.
Jason holds a hand towards Mel, a silent gesture to ask her to shut up. She stops talking, but she’s like a cornered animal, ready to strike again at any moment.
“Why do you keep calling Mellie your wife?” His brown eyes are shrewd as he looks at me and waits for my answer. I pull the marriage certificate out of my pocket and hand it to him.
His eyes widen as he looks at it. When he’s done, he hands the piece of paper to his sister, not saying a word. He crosses his arms and waits for her to talk.
The instant she gets her hands on the marriage certificate, she rips it to pieces, walks over, and throws the pieces of paper in my face.
“I don’t know what he’s talking about. That’s a fake,” she says to Jason. “Please do what I asked you to do this morning and evict him. He’s turned into a full on stalker.” She glares at me before turning back to him. “He scares me.”
I snort so loud, it turns into a laugh.
“You attacked me twice, and you’re scared of me? Since when?”
“You think a few punches was an attack? Just wait. I’m going to slice your face when you sleep tonight, just like I should have done the other night.” She lunges for me again, but Jason wraps an arm around her waist, lifts her off her feet, and pulls her away.
“What the hell is going on in here? Jason, are you coming back to bed?” Jason’s wife, Alex, stops short when she sees me. She looks around the room, sighs, and walks towards Mel.
“Did he chase your date away again?” She shakes her head and says, “This has got to stop. She is not your property, Adam.”
“Never said that, but she is my wife. I’m sure you’d have stopped it too if Jason brought home another woman.”
Alex stands still and looks around the room. She turns to Mellie, runs a hand through her curly, dark hair. “What the hell did he just say?”
“I’m waiting to hear Mellie’s take on that,” Jason says.
“I already told you he’s lying.” My wife crosses her arms. I’m not sure if she’s defiant or deep in denial.
“I’m lying?” I ask her. “Out of the two of us, you’re saying I’m the liar?”
“As if I would ever marry you.” Mel scoffs and like a petulant child, she turns her head away from me.
“I’m disappointed in you, wife,” I say to Mel. “You’ve always been a pathological liar, but this is low even for you.”
“So, just so we’re clear, you did not marry Adam in Vegas?” Jason asks his sister.
“As if I would ever,” she scoffs. “I’m not attracted to him.”
She doesn’t disappoint. I knew she’d fight me, but the outright denial is unexpected. It hurts that someone who promised to love, honor and cherish is now denying those sacred vows.
“Well, this marriage certificate says otherwise. And that kiss we shared on New Year’s Eve? That wasn’t a kiss from someone who isn’t attracted to me.” I pull out another marriage certificate and hand it to Alex. She puts a hand to her mouth in shock as she reads it. “And you put this on my finger." I hold up my left hand and show them the platinum wedding band. She tries to reach for that certificate too, probably to rip it, but Jason holds her back.
“Go ahead, rip it. I have more. But you can rip them all, and it won’t erase one fact. We’re married.” I pull out my phone and hand it to Jason. “Press play,” I tell him. Mel lunges for the phone, so Jason hands it to Alex. She touches the screen, and my wife’s voice fills the room.
“I, Melanie Elyse Dupree, take you, Adam Finnegan Flynn, to be my lawfully wedded husband.” Mel lets out a loud scream, and she breaks free of Jason’s hold. He tries to grab her arm, but she runs across the room, jumps on me, and goes for my neck. Jason grabs her waist, but she manages to wrap her hands around my throat and squeeze. It takes no effort for me to pull her hands off. Jason lifts her away, but she’s like a crazed animal, doing her best to get away from him and come after me again.
A Boston native, wife, mother, and wine enthusiast. If she's not writing, thinking about writing, you will find Evelyn with a book in her hands. While a new publisher, she's been writing for years, and she will continue to write for many years to come.
Evelyn is obsessed with assertive and confident men who will stop at nothing to get their woman. Her stories are filled with love, passion and humor.
She currently lives in Chicago with her husband and two daughters.
This was a brand new author for me and I absolutely adored this book even though its not one I would typically read. I like to read light stories, where the characters flirt and fall in love but nothing too deep. This story sounded interesting and though I had never read this author before, it sounded romantic. But it is deep and I am not spoiling any of the surprises and plots in this story.
While it does stand alone its also part of what I can gather is two series, meaning it features characters from the authors other books and series. In the beginning I felt a bit lost as there were lots of names mentioned and I had to re-read the pages a few times to make sure who was who and how they were related to each other. Once I got past that I fell in love with the author and her characters. I seriously adored them and their story.
This is the story of Adam, who has lusted and loved and chased Mellie who is his sorta neighbor. He is white and Irish and a vice principal at the local school but also was once a fighter and sill fights and trains athletes for fun.
Mellie is a black woman who is the sister of Jason and who is living with Jason and his wife Alex and daughter. Adam is a tenant and rents a place in their home. The minute he met Mellie he fell hard for her. But she refused to date him. When they both end up in Vegas for a wedding, they also end up MARRIED.
This story was really a deep story and I absolutely loved it. It features many friends and some of the relationships are complicated and are definitely not perfect but the friends really care for each other through all of lifes ups and downs.
Its a story about life, love, friendship, family, forgiveness and cutting the bad out of your life when you have to. Most of the relationships in this story are interracial and its something the book does touch on as Mellie never imagined herself with a white guy, but sometimes our hearts are colored blind.
Adam and his mom, Molly are awesome. I mean seriously this guy chases Mellie for over two years and he never gives up. And he really listens to her and helps her really grow up and he really sees her. He is willing to do anything for her and I love how he has her back no matter what.
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