A Bride For David: A Bennett Family Novella

Book 2: Bennett Family Series

by Elizabeth Castle

Genres: Contemporary Romance; contemporary romance; steamy short stories; steamy novella; short romance

Synopsis

A Bennett Family Short Story

A workaholic chemist. An obsessively organized public relations expert. An intense romance that neither expected.

David Bennett cares about one thing: his work. So when marketing and public relations expert Juliet is brought in to turn the company's image around, he's willing to let her try. But when she takes over his lab and tries to turn him into the face of the family's business, he is anything but thrilled.

Juliet Torrance jumped at the chance to leave her London home and come to sunny California at the request of an old business associate. She isn't looking for a relationship, but she can't seem to stop her attraction to her boss's cousin-in-law. There is more to David than his surly exterior. And when Juliet sees glimpses of it, she is willing to work at making him into the man of her dreams.

But when their budding relationship is on the verge of falling apart, it's up to David to show Juliet he is everything she needs him to be.

Note from author: “This is a short story, or novelette if you prefer, approximately 13,000 words. David's story came a few years after This Time Love. I never intended to go beyond the first book, but he just wouldn't leave me alone and became my first short story. This book can be read as a standalone but is considered book 2 of The Bennett Family series. Please note this is an open-door romance. I hope you enjoy.” – Lizzy Castle

Release date: March 20, 2021

Publisher: In The Air Publishing

Print pages: 114

Content advisory: Open door romance.

Sample

Chapter One

“And I think David will be perfect.”

David Bennett heard his name spoken in a soft British accent and scowled at the woman at the front of the room.  “David is perfect for what?”

Juliet Torrance, who had gotten used to David ignoring pretty much everything going on around him during any type of meeting, ignored him in turn.  “The campaign is all about transparency.  Showing the lab and how things are made will be a great way to show not only consumers but potential clients what they are getting when they buy products from Brown Chemical Labs.  They’re getting products made by a family, a family just like theirs, and one that cares about what goes in and on their bodies.”

David scowled at Juliet.  The woman got on his nerves.  She’d been with the company two months, but it seemed much longer.  His cousin Evelyn and her husband Sebastian had convinced everyone she was just what the company needed.  Sebastian had worked with Juliet when he’d lived overseas and said she was the best.  The board agreed that bringing in someone from the outside to help revitalize the company’s image was the best plan.

At the time, David had simply agreed so he could get back to his lab.  He might hold a fifth of the family company’s shares, and he might be on the board, but as far as he was concerned, whatever his family did with the company was fine by him, so long as he had full control of the lab and the work he did.  Once upon a time, he’d had to care, but with Sebastian firmly in control, he’d gratefully stepped down from active management to focus on what he cared about.  His lab.

But now that Juliet Torrance was here, he was anything but pleased with the decision.  She was forever poking around his lab, asking all sorts of questions.  She had a tablet and stylus that she carried with her everywhere she went and took notes constantly.  But when she invaded his space, he told her in no uncertain terms where she could go with her precious tablet and her incessant questions.

What ticked him off was that she pretty much ignored him while he raged at her.  Her pretty blue eyes always held a sparkle of mischief, her wavy blond hair always framed her perfectly oval face, and her lush lips were always shaped into a hint of a smile, as if she was secretly laughing at him.  She was classically beautiful, but all he saw when he looked at her was a pain in his backside.  As of yet, he had not found a way to stop her or discourage her.  She would nod, make some kind of remark in that soft voice of hers, and then go about what she came to do.  She was a steamroller in a tiny blond package.  She was barely over five feet, but she was quite a force to be reckoned with.

David shifted uncomfortably in his seat.  “I said, David is perfect for what?”

Juliet simply raised an eyebrow at him.

Evelyn piped in.  “You’re the driving force behind our brand.  The products you work on and create every day are what keep Brown alive.  The past year and a half has been rough.  Clients and customers are not sure they should trust us.  We want to show them who we are and what we do.  To that effect, Juliet has constructed several campaigns to show them those things through print and video marketing.  Sebastian and I will work on the financial side.  You will work on the production side.”

David looked over the slide on the projection screen.  It seemed Juliet had not only taken notes with her tablet but pictures as well.  Mockups of him in the lab, along with an ad campaign message, finally got his attention.

“No way.”  David rose from his seat.

Sebastian stood from his seat at the head of the table.  “I think this is exactly what we need.  Andrew has been quite vocal in the press, despite the fact he’s behind bars.  He’s taken it upon himself to start a smear campaign.  As much as I hate to admit it, he has been somewhat successful.  He’s been playing the martyr from his wheelchair, acting like he’s an innocent victim.  Certain members of the press have been spinning the story to make it look like we manipulated the situation and that we’re at fault for what happened to him.  And when people know someone was able to successfully embezzle money from you, their faith in your business practices waver.  We need you to help undo that.”

David scowled at his cousin-in-law.  “How exactly am I supposed to do that?”

Juliet took back command of the meeting and waved at her presentation.  “You’re going to be the new face for the brand.  We’ll clean you up a bit, get you a new lab coat that doesn’t have ten years of stains on it, and show the world how much Brown cares about what is in our products.  You’ll walk them through the lab, the processes, and the outcomes.  You’ll show them we are fully committed to quality control in our labs and only deliver the safest products to the market.”

David was starting to panic.  “You want me to do what?”

Juliet let out an exasperated sigh.  “Get used to the idea.  You can’t wiggle out of this one.  You’re an attractive, mature male, and with the right spin, we can play you off as one who’s caring and compassionate while being dedicated to his work and the products you create.  Women buy a lot of products, and they’ll trust a middle-aged man with a killer smile.”

David’s voice got rough.  “Middle-aged?”

Sebastian stopped the tirade he knew was coming.  “Sorry, David, but you’re our man.  The other option would be to hire another chemist, one who wants to play this part.  But something tells me you’d hate that idea even more.  And we can’t just hire an actor.  People would find out and be furious with us for deceiving them.”

David turned his attention back to Sebastian.  “Why not put you, Evelyn, and your baby in the campaign?  Heck, you could get Kimberly and John and their two kids, and Leslie and Philip and their kid.  Just slap a bunch of cute babies and toddlers in the ads and you’ll have those same women wrapped around your fingers.”

Juliet turned her presentation off and picked up her tablet.  “You’re missing the point, David.  But that doesn’t surprise me since you haven’t paid attention to a word I’ve said in the past hour.  You and I will meet first thing Monday and start going over the script and what I need you to bring for the videos.  We’ll start with the photos.  I have a stylist who can make anyone look good.  We’ll have to tackle that mess you call hair and get you a decent shave, but otherwise, I think just a little makeup and some new clothes will do the trick.”

David ran a hand through his hair.  Okay, so yeah, he needed a haircut.  And yes, he probably could stand to shave.  But listening to Little Miss Britain dismiss him so thoroughly rankled.  “Sorry, I’m growing a beard.  It could be a good look for the campaign.”

Evelyn’s and Sebastian’s snickers were heard clearly in the quiet room.  David ignored them.  Juliet was glaring at him; for once, her eyes were shooting fire and her lips were pursed.  Good.  He got up and left.