He was the perfect husband. Until he wasn’t.
When Shelly’s marriage ends in divorce, she’s left completely devastated and feeling like she’s never going to find love again.
Until she meets Eric.
Shelly can't believe her luck. The first person she meets after (reluctantly) joining online dating, and he’s handsome, caring, everything she ever wanted and more. From romantic dates to expensive gifts, it’s as if she’s in a dream.
But just when Shelly thinks she’s finally found her happily ever after, she begins to realize that all is not as it seems. As the cracks start to develop, perhaps Eric isn’t the perfect man she thought he was. Will her dream become a nightmare?
Also by Buffy Andrews
The Christmas Violin
The Moment Keeper
Our Fragile Hearts
A Year of Second Chances
The Perfect Husband
Buffy Andrews
ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES
Copyright
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2018
Copyright © Buffy Andrews 2018
Buffy Andrews asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
E-book Edition © June 2018 ISBN: 9780008254421
BUFFY ANDREWS
lives in south central Pennsylvania with her husband, Tom, and Wheaten Cairn terrier, Kakita.
By day, she works for USA Today Network as its Regional Engagement Manager for the Northeast.
By night, she writes middle-grade, young adult and women’s fiction.
Some of her fiction ideas pop into her head at the most inopportune times, such as during a sermon or in the shower or when she’s supposed to be listening in a meeting. She’s written all over church bulletins, jumped out of the shower more than once to write down an idea and turned meeting handouts into storyboards.
If you see her out and about, don’t be surprised if you see her pull out the notebook she keeps in her purse. She’s forever taking notes she’ll use later. After all, life is full of wonderful details to capture.
To those caught in a psychopath’s web of lies and deceit, I pray that you’re able to escape and find peace, heal and be happy. You matter.
Chapter 1
I looked in the mirror and no longer recognized myself. I hated my life and had thought about taking it.
No one would miss me.
I was a zero.
Nothing.
Zilch.
Chapter 2
A Year Ago
I couldn’t believe Jackie had talked me into this. After a bitter divorce, brought about by my husband’s affair five years ago, I swore I’d never date again. But here I was going through profiles on an online dating website. I must be insane! Did I really want a man in my life? I’d been on a couple of blind dates since my divorce and both ended in disaster. The first guy spat spaghetti sauce in my face when he laughed during dinner and the second paid the bill with three different gift cards. If I ever dated a guy again, he’d have to be exceptional.
I sat on the couch with my cat Izzy curled up next to me. I started laughing and Izzy’s head popped up. ‘Sorry, girl. Didn’t mean to scare you but this guy apparently thinks wearing a blue work vest with “May I Help You?” printed on the front is sexy.’ She purred and I scratched her neck. ‘Yeah, I know. No man is better than some man.’ I looked at a few more profiles, including one bare-chested guy wearing a baseball cap with the tagline: Cowboy seeks his cowgirl. Uh, no. Not for me. Nor was the guy whose plan it was to find a ‘good woman and build an empire around her’ or the guy who noted ‘I have a washer and dryer at my house so a first date at the Laundromat is out.’