More Than This

By Alexa Milne

Sometimes life gives you more than this.

Two years after whistle-blowing on irregularities in the company she worked for in the US, businesswoman Veronica Smith runs into Cassandra Forster, the woman with whom she had an intense affair back in New York.

Cass pushed all Ronnie's buttons as well as her boundaries, and the relationship was becoming something more before Ronnie left without an explanation. When they pick up where they left off, Ronnie finds she still wants more...but does Cass feel the same?

Cass wants an explanation. Being with Ronnie had begun to mean more than great sex, but then Ronnie left her high and dry. Cass' feelings haven't changed, but can she trust Ronnie enough not to hurt her again? Can she trust herself to let someone into her life?

Over a weekend and a wedding, the two women finally talk and discover they have more in common than the ability to meet each other's desires. But can they take this second chance life has given them to have more than this?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pride Publishing
• Release date: Mar 17, 2020
• ISBN: 9781839430183

Alexa Milne

Originally from South Wales, Alexa has lived for over forty years in the North West of England. Now retired, after a long career in teaching, she devotes her time to her obsessions. Alexa began writing when her favourite character was killed in her favourite show. After producing a lot of fanfiction she ventured into original writing. She is currently owned by a mad cat and spends her time writing about the men in her head, watching her favourite television programmes and usually crying over her favourite football team.

Book preview

Author

Pride Publishing books by Alexa Milne

Single Books

Sporting Chance

Stay

Not Every Time

Comfort Zone

A Bell Rings

My Highland Cowboy

Two for the Road

The Call of Home

Choosing Home

Returning Home

Staying Home

Anthologies

Right Here, Right Now: The Matchmaker

MORE THAN THIS

ALEXA MILNE

More Than This

ISBN # 978-1-83943-018-3

©Copyright Alexa Milne 2020

Cover Art by Claire Siemaszkiewicz ©Copyright March 2020

Interior text design by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Pride Publishing

This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Pride Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Pride Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2020 by Pride Publishing, United Kingdom.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors’ rights. Purchase only authorised copies.

Pride Publishing is an imprint of Totally Entwined Group Limited.

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this stripped book.

Sometimes life gives you more than this.

Two years after whistle-blowing on irregularities in the company she worked for in the US, businesswoman Veronica Smith runs into Cassandra Forster, the woman with whom she had an intense affair back in New York.

Cass pushed all Ronnie’s buttons as well as her boundaries, and the relationship was becoming something more before Ronnie left without an explanation. When they pick up where they left off, Ronnie finds she still wants more…but does Cass feel the same?

Cass wants an explanation. Being with Ronnie had begun to mean more than great sex, but then Ronnie left her high and dry. Cass’ feelings haven’t changed, but can she trust Ronnie enough not to hurt her again? Can she trust herself to let someone into her life?

Over a weekend and a wedding, the two women finally talk and discover they have more in common than the ability to meet each other’s desires. But can they take this second chance life has given them to have more than this?

Dedication

A huge thanks to everyone who encouraged me to try something different and to Farah, Cath and my editor, Rebecca, who read this through and helped make my words better.

Trademark Acknowledgements

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

All of my Life: Richard Carpenter

Facebook: Facebook, Inc.

i360 Tower: The West Pier Trust

Kindle: Amazon.com, Inc.

Twitter: Twitter, Inc.

Y.M.C.A.: Jacques Morali, Victor Willis, Henri Belolo

Chapter One

Veronica

It had been two years since I’d seen her. Cassandra Forster, there in the flesh, as perfectly turned out as always. Every so often during the meeting, she glanced at me, but gave no indication we’d known each other in the past. Today, she wore a deep purple fitted dress with buttons up the front, a dress that hugged every curve. Shit, those curves. I couldn’t see a line of any sort impacting the smoothness of the fit. The highest of black stiletto heels graced her feet. Her legs were encased, as always, in black. She hated tights, so they were probably hold-ups with those lace panels at the top stretched around her thighs. Wet welled between my legs at the thought of her pale flesh. Her long dark hair, lying straight and loose down her back, shone.

I shut my notebook. And that’s everything, I think, unless anyone has anything else to add? I glanced at everyone, hoping no one would say anything. No one did.

Thank you all for coming. I’m sure the merger will be a success. We’ll set up teams for each section within the next week. People stood, scraping their chairs back to leave the room, chatting as they exited.

This was my first time in charge of a merger meeting since my promotion to partner in the company. I needed this to go well. The last person I’d expected to appear was Cass, especially in the role of personal assistant to the CEO of one of the companies we represented in the negotiations. Melanie Kneale was renowned for her impatience with subordinates, and I couldn’t see Cass putting up with her style of management for long…unless…

I pushed the thought away and shuffled my papers, waiting for the room to clear, even though I was desperate to get back to my office, away from her, away from our past. Or at least, I told myself I was. Before I’d had to leave abruptly, I’d begun to think that maybe we could have more than what we’d had, satisfying though it had been, but I had no idea whether she’d felt the same.

And now, it would be so easy to get lost in her again. I breathed a heavy sigh of relief, watching her leave. I grabbed a mug of black coffee and, once back in my office, closed the door then sat in my chair staring out of the window. After a few minutes, I heard a noise behind me. I swiveled. Somehow, I knew it would be her. She closed the door behind her and stood waiting.

I’m the boss. I’m in charge here. I needed to believe those words. Hello, Cassandra. Has Ms. Kneale let you off her leash? Do I sound confident? I need to sound confident. I clutched at the arms of my chair and gazed at her, hoping maintaining eye contact