You can read The Only One He Wants free below.
Blurb:
A Black couple, marriage, billionaire, whirlwind romance book. Gabrielle is a high-achiever in her career, but she yearns for adventure and freedom that seems just out of reach. The monotony of her life takes an unexpected twist when she has a chance encounter with billionaire Michael after a minor car crash!
Their passionate and whirlwind romance entices Gabrielle, but Michael presents her with an ultimatum: leave behind her career and explore the world with him. Gabrielle’s fierce independence clashes with her growing feelings for Michael, leaving her torn between self-reliance and love. As she grapples with this life-changing decision, Gabrielle must confront the true source of her happiness…
Will Gabrielle find the happiness she’s been searching for in the arms of a man who offers her a world of possibilities? And when faced with the choice between marriage and career, will she discover a path that merges the best of both worlds? Find out in this Black wedding romance story by Kalissa Lewis.
Chapter 1
A red car was slowly weaving through the streets at 8 o’clock in the morning.
It was a pleasant day in New York and Gabrielle Bassett already liked every second of it. When she had woken up she had realized that after so long it was finally a good hair day. Her raven black hair fell down in curly locks reaching her bottom. One of the things that seriously drove her up the wall was when she had to spend hours and hours fruitlessly try to fix it. Luckily, she hadn’t had to do that today. Her breakfast had been fantastic–she had turned off the eggs in time, so they were a perfect shade of white and had perfect circles of yolk in the center. The water for her shower had been the right temperature. Her working clothes had been smooth as if ironed. Everything was absolutely, utterly, definitely perfect!
A happy tune boomed from the radio. Gabrielle couldn’t help but whistle the tune. It was slowly becoming one of her favorite songs of all time. Why was that? Well, for the simple fact that it was about plus-size women.
It was true–you didn’t have to be size 2 to be comfortable and confident in your own body. Gabrielle had been preaching that for ages. In her opinion, fuller figures like hers were always in and the women who had them were always wanted by men. Marilyn, for one, had never been as slim as present-day models and had become an icon.
No. She wasn’t ashamed of her weight. In fact, she liked dressing in size 14 US. No, friend, she had no problems with that. Paradoxically, she was still one of the most fashionable people in the neighborhood and at work. She thought that people just didn’t have good taste like she did. It didn’t matter that they were skinny and could put on anything. Her careful eyes were keen on finding the best piece of clothing. Gabrielle was the most stylish among her colleagues after all, right?
The song came to the booty part in the chorus and she was screaming the words at the top of her lungs. Alone. In her red car. On her way to work.
It was indeed going to be a spectacular day.
Gabrielle parked in her regular spot a few cars from the entrance. Silencing the radio and pulling the keys, she opened the door. Her black stilettos hit the asphalt. Her black dress complemented her chocolate skin, swaying in the light wind and tickling her shins. Black sunglasses on the top of her head and a black purse completed her stylish look. What could she say–she could easily be a judge on one of those shows where they did complete fashion makeovers.
“Morning,” she told the shop assistant of the pharmaceutical company she worked in.
“Morning, girl. You’re fashion-slaying us even at forty!” the woman replied and chuckled.
“Thanks for the compliment, darling,” Gabrielle replied and entered the office. She worked as a salesperson at a pharmaceutical company where everybody talked doctor-language and she was practically the only one who knew anything about business.
As she went towards her office she said hi to several other colleagues. She noticed all of their eyes on her. After all, she was very attractive.
Opening the door to her office, she thought of the shop assistant’s words. She was in her forties. Oh God, she was almost halfway through her life. But Gabrielle wasn’t the type of person who was concerned about those things. Her motto was to live life to the fullest and to live every day as if it were her last.
However, there was a tiny voice in the back of her mind that asked if she satisfied with what she had. Her mind automatically wrote a plus-minus list. She had a wonderful daughter. Plus side. Her daughter was married to a really sweet person. Plus side. She owned a nice house. Plus side.
Gabrielle was working as a salesperson in a pharmaceutical company. Minus side.
And that minus overthrew all of the other pluses because it was the biggest, fattest minus on the list. She wasn’t pleased with her job. Nope. Not a bit. The walls of her office seemed to strangle her, suffocate her, take the soul out of her body one working day at a time. The thought that she had stepped into her forties occurred to her again. Was she going to stay in this place forever? Until she retired? Suddenly that frightened her. Gabrielle had never imagined herself like that. Stuck in a mediocre, dull job where nothing happened and the only thing she was left to do was count down the days until retirement.
She shook her head. But what was there to do? Quit and go where? Find another job? Who in their right mind would hire a woman of forty?
Sitting on her leather chair as she thought things through, she finally got to the core of the problem. She realized why she was acting so distressed right now. It wasn’t her boring job. Actually, it was the fact that she couldn’t possibly accomplish her dreams with the salary she made. And any woman that was in her prime wanted all of her dreams to become a reality.
A deep sigh tore out of her lungs. Her dream was to travel the world. As simple as that. It may sound cliché but it was true. Gabrielle wanted to make unforgettable memories and see mind-blowing places. She had always pictured herself that way: A woman roaming the world, meeting new people, experiencing new things and admiring new cultures.
Gabrielle’s heart skipped a beat just thinking about it. That put a wide smile on her lips. Every fiber of her body trembled at the thought of leaving her home for a while and traveling the planet.
“Wake up, Gab,” she said aloud, trying to clear her thoughts. The hot sun outside just made her all dreamy. Besides, where would she go with the pitiful salary she was getting? To her daughter’s and back? A holiday in Boston? She had to leave plans and dreams aside and face the reality.
It wasn’t good for people to dwell too much on dreams and what-ifs. And Gabrielle Bassett certainly agreed with that.
Her phone was beeping.
Still not fully concentrating, she pulled out her cell and realized that it was actually the office phone that was ringing. She couldn’t help but slap her forehead.
“Hello?” she picked up.
“Good morning, Gabrielle,” a high tenor was heard from the other side. She knew who it was as soon as he had spoken the first word. Her manager, of course. He always called her with those exact same words. She’d been working for quite a while at the company and every morning she was greeted with those three words.
“Morning, boss,” she replied with a smile.
“The client from Germany wants to speak with you about the headache pills. He spoke to me first and now wants you on the line. Use your persuading skills or we’ll be screwed,” he said and was off.
Yeah, very nice, boss, she thought. No pressure or anything.
Then she heard a tough German accent saying, “Morgen, Ms.”
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Gabrielle talked with him for a couple of hours. She was sweating and her lips were becoming dry and sticky. “You’re right, sir. We can get them to you, but not for that price. You’re a successful businessman, yourself. The costs are too high.”
“I don’t… I really can’t pay that much.” The voice sounded resigned.
No! No! Oh God no! Gabrielle was screaming inside. She was fried.
“I—I—I’m sure we can negotiate something, hmm? After all these are the best pills you’ll ever find and we shouldn’t just abandon our excellent working relationship, right?”
“Madam, I am—”