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You Can’t Buy Love by Melanie A. Smith
Release Date: August 11th 2020 by Wicked Dreams Publishing
Series: Life Lessons #3
Pages: 220
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Money can’t buy happiness, but neither can pride …
Julianna Magnusson is tired of working her tail off at her thankless job as a nurse practitioner for the cardiac unit at Rutherford Hospital. Tired of having little to no time for her own life. But most of all, she’s tired of pretending that she’s happy about it all. So when her boss insists she attend the annual hospital charity gala, spending a ton of money on a dress to impress a bunch of stuck-up snobs doesn’t exactly sound like her idea of a good time.
Still, ever the dutiful employee, she makes an appearance. Only to meet a handsome stranger named Noah who stops her from drunkenly confronting the man who owns the hospital about all the issues at work. Then Noah does so much more, giving her a night of passion that she’ll never forget. Still, Jules has no intentions of taking it further. As timely as meeting him was, Noah is many things she’d never want in a man: Clearly elitist, arrogant, and bossy, he’s nothing more than a one-night stand.
Which was a great plan until he turns up at her hospital with a mind to shake things up in a way that could affect her career and her decision to write him off, igniting an epic battle between them as the chemistry that sparked the initial attraction transforms into a battle of wills. Their clash could jeopardize everything Jules has worked for — or, if she can look past her own pride, it might lead to everything she needs. In the fight between what we think we want and what life has in store for us, what wins?
{EXCERPT}
“Beautiful, isn’t it?”
Wondering how I already know his voice so well, I turn with a smile to see Noah settling his arms on the balcony next to me.
“How’d you find me?” I ask.
He straightens up and gives my dress an obvious once over. “You’re hard to miss.”
I let my hair shift into my face. I’m both flattered and a little shy again all of a sudden.
I feel his hand slip under my chin, lifting my face to look up into his.
“You can try to hide behind that gorgeous mane,” he says, running his thumb along my jaw, “but red dress or not, you were born to stand out, Julianna.”
“We should get inside,” I mumble. My eyes dart to the glass doors behind us, to the crowds of people filing into the ballroom. “Dinner is starting.”
He considers me for a moment, not moving an inch.
“Meet me after. Right here.”
“You’re awfully bossy,” I remark, my lips curling into a smile despite myself.
“Are you saying you don’t want to?” he teases, his hand sliding from my face, down my shoulder, over my arm to hold my hand in his.
I give his hand a small squeeze before withdrawing, frankly overwhelmed by how drawn to this man I am. I’m not used to noticing men or being attracted to them, much less actually wanting to act on it.
“I’m not sure yet,” I reply.
He tips his head back and laughs. “Oh, I think you are. But you’re not a risk-taker, are you?” His heated gaze is borderline cocky as he watches me. “I’ll be here at ten. I hope you are too.” But something about his tone is so sure that I can tell he thinks I will be, which is underscored when he doesn’t say another word before walking back into the foyer. I lose sight of him quickly as he slips into the crowd.
Melanie A. Smith is the best-selling author of The Safeguarded Heart Series and other contemporary romance fiction. Originally from upstate New York, she spent most of her childhood in the San Francisco Bay Area before moving to Los Angeles for college. After that, she spent almost fifteen years in the Seattle Area, and now lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas with her family.
A voracious reader and lifelong writer, Melanie’s writing began at a young age with short stories and poetry. Having completed a bachelor of science in electrical engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a master’s in business administration at the University of Washington, her writing abilities were mainly utilized for technical documents as a lead engineer for the Boeing Company, where she worked for ten years.
After shifting careers to domestic engineering and property management in 2015, she eventually found a balance where she was able to return to writing fiction.
Melanie is also a Mensan and enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, and driving with the windows down and the stereo cranked up loud.
A voracious reader and lifelong writer, Melanie’s writing began at a young age with short stories and poetry. Having completed a bachelor of science in electrical engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a master’s in business administration at the University of Washington, her writing abilities were mainly utilized for technical documents as a lead engineer for the Boeing Company, where she worked for ten years.
After shifting careers to domestic engineering and property management in 2015, she eventually found a balance where she was able to return to writing fiction.
Melanie is also a Mensan and enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, and driving with the windows down and the stereo cranked up loud.
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