Adored by You - Signed Paperback

Chapter One: Paige

“She can’t be serious.” I pulled my sunglasses down, eyeing each member of my team, looking for signs they were messing with me. They stood in a loose half-circle around me, their solemn expressions and black business attire in stark contrast to the sparkling pool and unobstructed view of LA behind them.

“She is,” my manager-slash-father said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“But when we talked that day at lunch, she said I was a front runner,” I protested.

Sharon, my agent, shrugged. “You still are. I’m just not confident she’ll choose you over the other front runners.”

I hid my eye roll with my dark sunglasses and leaned back, retreating into my egg-shaped wicker chair. “I don’t understand how I’m supposed to branch out if no one can see me in any role other than Dr. Young.”

“You realize that ending your time on the show means ending it for everyone else too, right?”

My lips twitched as I stared at my dad. I’d started calling him by his first name a few years ago when his role as my dad had been all but replaced by that of my manager. “That’s what they tell me, Rich.”

“And that doesn’t bother you? Putting that many members of the cast and crew out of a job?”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “I don’t think it’s fair to put that on me.”

“Paige, grow up,” he shot back. “You’re the whole show. Dr. Lacey Young is Young, MD. If you leave, there is no show.”

The other members of my team shifted their weight uncomfortably. My publicist and personal assistant didn’t have any skin in the game when it came to which jobs I took, but my manager and agent each earned ten percent of my annual contract with the show. It made sense that they’d want me to sign on for season nine, whether I wanted to or not. There was no guarantee my next job would come anytime soon, especially considering the news that yet another director didn’t think I was the right fit for the leading role in her movie.

I adjusted my position in the chair, grateful for the breeze coming through the holes in the wicker cocoon around me. “I work with very talented people on Young, MD. I have no doubt they’ll be able to find work after the show ends. And if one of these directors would take a chance on me stepping out of this role, we’ll find work for me, too. But keeping the show going until it dies a sad death is probably bad for my career don’t you think?”

“The ratings are still great, Paige. The show isn’t dying a sad death,” Rich said.

“Oh, so it’s just me then? Great.” I picked up my paper fan and unfurled it with a snap, instantly calmed by the cool air it provided as I moved my wrist from side to side. The egg chair was usually my favorite spot to relax in my paradise of a backyard, but my team was ruining it with their negative vibes.

Molly, my best friend and personal assistant for the last six years, snorted from behind Rich. She covered her mistake with a coughing fit, and I was reminded again why I love her. My dad took himself and his job as my manager too seriously sometimes, and Molly knew better than anyone how I felt about him and my time on the show. She encouraged me to follow my heart and branch out, and her presence in the conversation gave me the strength to stick to my guns.

I sat up straight. “Let’s get back to the movie. Is there any way we can sway the director into picking me for the role?”

Rich and Sharon looked at each other, and I could see the unspoken words between them with that one look. But screw them. They were only thinking about their bottom line and I knew it. After eight years on Young, MD, I needed a change. If they wouldn’t support me, I’d leave anyway, and there were plenty of other people in the business I could find to manage my career and find me jobs. People who cared about what I wanted and not just what they wanted from me.

“I may have an idea,” Joy, my publicist, spoke up for the first time.

I grinned at her. “Tell me.”

“The director’s son is a Marine,” she said. “A Marine asked you to the Marine Corps Birthday Ball last year. Do you remember?”

My smile faltered as images of Noah’s bright smile flashed through my mind. “Yep.”

“Why don’t you reach out to him and see if the offer stands for this year’s ball?” she asked.

Rich frowned, looking back and forth between us. “What’s this about?”

“It’s just a thing Marines do,” Joy explained. “They invite celebrities to the ball for bragging rights. Plus, you know, it’s good PR for the celeb. Mila and Justin have done it.”

“Timberlake?” he asked.

She nodded. “The one and only. I never understood why you had me ignore him last year, Paige. I thought his invitation post was so sweet.”

Rich narrowed his eyes at me. “Because it wasn’t just any Marine was it?”

“Nope.” I retreated into the egg-shaped chair again, wishing the darn thing had a door so I could slam it shut on this conversation.

Joy stepped forward. “I’m just saying, I think it would give you an edge if you showed your support for the military like that. Taking time out of your busy schedule to go to the ball with him, you know? Plus, he was in San Diego, which happens to be where the director lives and is where the movie is being filmed.”

“How serendipitous,” I deadpanned.

“Indeed,” Rich agreed. “You didn’t tell me about the invitation.”

I shrugged. “Didn’t know I had to.”

He didn’t have an answer to that, so he turned back to my publicist. “It was a good thought, Joy, but she ignored him last year because she knows I don’t want her anywhere near that moron.”

Quirking a brow, I leaned forward. That wasn’t exactly true. But it was interesting that even after eight years, my dad was still firmly anti-Noah.

“I’m sorry,” Joy blurted, “I didn’t realize you knew him, Paige.”

“It was a long time ago,” Rich replied for me, waving a hand. “She doesn’t anymore.”

“Purely from the business angle, it’s not a bad idea,” Sharon said. She looked at her watch as if her time was running out for this meeting. She was a top agent in the industry and likely had other clients to see. “If she really wants to do the movie, that might be her best shot at standing out from the other front runners. Military moms are a proud bunch. She’d likely appreciate the gesture of support.”

“Well, if that’s the only thing that’s going to secure the part, I guess she’s not doing the movie,” Rich said as if it were obvious.

I pulled my sunglasses off and looked directly at Joy. “Set it up.”

All around me, the reactions from my team varied. Rich barked out a bitter laugh, tossing his hands up in surrender before walking away. Molly did a subtle fist pump in the air, likely proud of me for standing up to my dad and doing what I wanted to do. Joy, quick-to-action as always, flipped open the case on her iPad and started tapping on the screen. Sharon held out her hands as if to say, “That settles it,” and pulled her phone out, following my dad into the Spanish-style villa.

“I found him,” Joy said, looking up from her iPad. “Sergeant Noah West. He’s stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. Do you want me to direct message him or do you want to do it?”

I looked at Molly. As one of the only people in my world who knew about Noah West and what he meant to me, I needed her opinion before I answered Joy.

“I think you should do it,” Molly said. “Especially since you didn’t even respond to him last year. It’s probably better for you to DM him personally, rather than have your publicist do it. At least, you know, if you want him to say yes.”

“Solid point,” I said. My hands shook as I reached for my phone beside me on the plush cushion. I opened my social media app and hit the search icon, then took a deep breath and looked up at Joy. “What’s his username?”

“West Case Scenario.”

I snorted, pulling up his account. “Got him.”

My breath caught in my throat as I scrolled through the photos of Noah West. He had definitely aged well in the last eight years. I’d intentionally stayed away from his profile all this time because I knew how much it would wreck me to watch his life unfold and not be part of it. Even when Joy had told me about the birthday ball invitation last year, I’d resisted the urge to look once she’d told me his name. Hopping on his feed for the first time ever was like opening up the floodgates.

Memories washed over me as I scanned the photos. I opened a close-up of his face, my eyes landing on his full lips. I was instantly transported back in time, remembering how soft his lips were even if it was the fiercest of kisses. His bright blue eyes reminded me of the way he used to wink at me from across the room, letting me—and everyone else—know that I was always on his mind. And even though it had been eight years, I’d be lying if I said thoughts of him never crossed mine.

“What are you going to say?” Molly asked, breaking into my thoughts.

I looked up to find that Joy had left at some point during my stalking of Noah’s feed. Now that it was just me and Molly, I relaxed. “Um, how about, ‘Hey, Noah, how have you been? I know it’s been a while, and I know I ignored your ball invite last year, but can I go with you this year? It would be really great for my career.’”

Molly wrinkled her nose. “Hmm. Maybe not.”

“Do you really think it would help me get the part if I went with him? Or am I just opening up a can of worms for nothing?”

She bit her lip, glancing at the house behind me, then came over and sat on the short table in front of my chair. “Paige, this is Noah we’re talking about. If you ask me, he’s the reason every relationship you’ve had in the last few years hasn’t worked out. You’ve got him up on this pedestal of being the one who got away. I think it’s time you take him down so you can move on with your life.”

Harsh words from my closest friend made me zone out on the LA skyline that stretched out behind her, not wanting to admit she might be right. “Do you really think so?”

“Yeah, I mean, I know there were a few jerks thrown in there,” she fake-coughed the name Chase, “but I think some part of you is still holding on to Noah and it’s not letting you move on. Even when you date a really great guy, something always gets in the way … and that something might be your rose-colored memories of Noah.”

“So, what, you think going to the ball with him will show me he’s not as amazing as I remember?”

Molly reached out and patted my knee. “I think it’ll show you he’s just a guy, Paige. He’s just a guy you dated when you were eighteen and it’s okay to let him go. Plus, you know, there’s the added benefit of being seen with him to get you in the director’s good graces.”

“Like killing two birds with one stone?”

“Exactly,” she replied.

❤️ Celebrity Romance

❤️ Second-Chance Romance

❤️ High School Sweethearts

❤️ Military Hero

❤️ Fame and Love

San Diego Series:

📚 Forever with You - Vince & Sara

📚 Back to You - Spencer & Ellie

📚 Away from You - Matt & Olivia

📚 Christmas with You - Cooper & Angie

📚 Believing in You - Jake & Ivy

📚 Memories of You - Brooks & Cat

📚 Home with You - Owen & Rachel

📚 Adored by You - Noah & Paige

Related Standalone:

📚 Trusting in You - Eric & Lucy

Note: Chronologically, this one fits in between books 5 & 6 of the Kailua Marines series. These worlds all collide, so if you’d like to read them in chronological order, that’s how it goes! :)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ my favorite so far!

"Adored By You features a marine and a Hollywood star who were high school sweethearts. Reconnection is the fresh start they need to begin the rest of their life’s. Unfortunately they have to face some unnecessary drama that comes with the fame and fortune of being in Hollywood!"

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Writing from Military experience shows!!

"I am big fan of military romance. I like this author's books so much that I purchased all of them after I read one. After being raised as a "military Brat", then being in the military myself, I could relate to so much. These books have been well written, and real life. So much depth into the lifestyle of military. Thank you for not writing a normal romance, where it's just surface stuff."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great Military Reunion story

"This was a great book – not only the story of Noah and Paige but it was crafted as a great ending for the series. The author pulled together a way to have a Friendsgiving event that is a reunion of the characters from prior books. What a great idea to peek back into their lives!!! An excellent book and I recommend it"