Million Dollar Marriage Excerpt
Will Wang says, “Teams,
you have the choice to participate in the next challenge. If you decide to,
you’ll receive a minimum of seventy thousand dollars! All you have to do is say
YES!”
I shrug and call out,
“YES!”
Will laughs. “Hold on,
buckaroo. There’s a catch you might want to know about. And that brings us to
the main premise of the show. John Phillips, are you out there? Please, join me
on the podium.”
A man in a suit stands
up, and the crowd parts to let him through. He jogs up to the podium, shakes
Will’s hand, and stands beside him.
“John is here for a very
special reason. A very special ceremony, if you will.”
The cameras are focused
on our faces, and I know something is up.
“Yes, in fact, John happens
to be a justice of the peace.”
The crowd gasps. Next to
me, Penny’s body stiffens.
“Yes. In order to
participate in the next challenge and any challenges going forward, you and
your partner must be man and wife!”
Louder gasp. The screens
overhead focus in on the shock of the contestants. Penny’s trembling. Ivy looks
pissed. Ace is hurling out f-bombs into the air. The Indian girl has sunk to
the ground and is covering her face in her palms. It’s chaos.
Me? I’m calm as can
be.
It’s called Million
Dollar Marriage. Did they think marriage wouldn’t factor in?
I’m in.
“You will need to spend
the rest of the time living with your partner as a unit. You’ll do everything
together for the duration of the contest. There will be challenges that test
your endurance, your strength, and your ability to work together as a couple.
If you win, you’ll each get two hundred and fifty thousand dollars and the
opportunity to have the marriage annulled, should you choose. BUT, if you
decide to stay together as lawfully married, you’ll together receive the grand
prize of ONE MILLION DOLLARS and an all-expenses-paid honeymoon package!”
I look around. All the
couples are yin and yang. It’s like they ran our personality tests through a
machine and picked out the person we’d be least compatible with.
“Now, we understand this
is a big commitment on your part, so we’ll give you and your partner five
minutes to talk things out and decide what you’d like to do. Please note that
once your decision is made, it is final, and you will be married here, on the
spot, before you board a flight to where the real competition will
begin.” He winks at the losers’ wall. “If you drop out now, you’ll go home with
fifty thousand dollars, but if you decide to continue on, you’ll earn seventy
thousand and the chance to compete for even more! Time starts . . . now!”
I turn to Penny. She’s
hugging herself and won’t look at me. “Hey. I’m in.”
She doesn’t say
anything.
I wave a hand in front
of her face.
“Are you crazy?” she
finally says, staring at me. “I’d never marry you.”
***
About the Book
Title: Million
Dollar Marriage
Author: Katy Evans
Release Date: July 23,
2019
Publisher: Montlake
Romance
Summary
If someone had bet
Nell a million dollars that she would be saying “I do” to a complete stranger
on national television, she’d have called them crazy, but with her crushing
student loan payments sending her deep into the red, she’s out of options. This
should be nothing more than a business transaction—until she sets eyes on her
groom, and everything changes.
The game is on the instant Luke spots Penelope “Nell” Carpenter. He’s out for
the money, yes, but getting a little dirty with Nell doesn’t sound too bad
either. Everyone knows he’s not the marrying kind, so it’s a good thing it’s
just for show. God knows he’s the worst guy his pretty wife should pick for
real.
They have nothing in common, but if they want the grand prize, they’ll have to
beat out eight other couples. Proving that total opposites attract should be
easy enough…as long as they don’t fall in love in the process.
Author Biography
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