And without saying anything else, Cash took Brianna’s hand and walked out of the house.

  EPILOGUE

  A month later

  It was a beautiful day for a wedding celebration in honor of Cash and Brianna Outlaw. The affair was hosted on the grounds of the Blazing Frontier Ranch. Family, friends and plenty of townsfolk were in attendance to celebrate the affair.

  The couple walked around greeting their guests. Brianna got the chance to introduce Cash to a lot of the locals he hadn’t yet met. Everyone was happy to welcome him to town, especially after hearing the announcement that he would be reopening the dude ranch. They knew that would be a big boost for the economy.

  Brianna met the members of Cash’s family that she hadn’t yet met, including his sister, Charm. She and Charm became friends immediately. She also met those other Westmorelands, including motorcycle legend Thorn Westmoreland, and bestselling author Rock Mason (aka Stone Westmoreland).

  The announcement that the ranch would also be a horse ranch was met with loud cheers. There was another announcement, too. However, it was one Brianna and Cash wanted to keep between themselves for a while. They were expecting their first child. She had indeed gotten pregnant during their honeymoon.

  The happy couple were talking to Garth and Regan when Garth glanced over Cash’s shoulder and said, “Look who’s here.”

  Cash turned and saw his father had arrived with Claudia. Although Bart had called weeks ago and apologized to Cash and Brianna for what he had done, Cash hadn’t known whether or not he would come to the wedding celebration.

  Since Claudia was with Bart, Cash had a feeling she was responsible for both the apology and Bart’s appearance today. They had heard from Charm that Claudia had raked Bart over the coals after hearing about what he had done to Cash, in the past and the present.

  Cash and Brianna had accepted Bart’s apology. They just wanted to look to the future and not dwell on the past. Cash was looking forward to a long and peaceful life with his wife and family at their ranch home in Wyoming.

  Cash and his brothers knew they needed to have a heart-to-heart talk with their father about a lot of things. It was time he leveled with them about why he still felt the need to run their lives and why he still could not accept the Westmorelands as their kin, when it was obvious that they were.

  That talk would not take place today. Today was Cash and Brianna’s time to celebrate their marriage. As Cash gazed down at his wife, he was glad the marriage he’d demanded had landed Brianna right where he wanted her to be, a permanent part of his life.

  * * * * *

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  ISBN-13: 9781488070518

  The Marriage He Demands

  Copyright © 2021 by Brenda Streater Jackson

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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  Where family loyalties and passions collide.

  Harlequin Desire brings you Dynasties—delicious, dramatic miniseries that span generations, include an engaging cast of characters and sweep you into the world of the American elite. From luxury ranch retreats to the stages of Nashville, from the sagas of powerful families to the redeeming power of passion...don’t miss a single installment of Dynasties!

  Dynasties: Beaumont Bay

  What happens in Beaumont Bay stays in

  Beaumont Bay. This is the bedroom community

  where Nashville comes to play!

  Twin Games in Music City by Jules Bennett

  —available now

  Second Chance Love Song by Jessica Lemmon

  —available May 2021

  Fake Engagement, Nashville Style by Jules Bennett

  —available June 2021

  Good Twin Gone Country by Jessica Lemmon

  —available July 2021

  Dynasties: The Carey Center

  The Carey family works hard and plays harder as they build a performance space to rival Carnegie Hall!

  From USA TODAY bestselling author Maureen Child

  Available September, October, November and December 2021

  Dynasties: The Ryders

  For this perfect all-American family,

  image is everything. Until a DNA ancestry test

  reveals secrets they’ve hidden for generations...

  From Joss Wood

  Available February, March, April and May 2022

  Dynasties: The Eddington Heirs

  In Point du Sable, this empire is under siege.

  Only family unity and the power of love can save it!

  From Zuri Day

  Available July, August, September and October 2022

  Dear Reader,

  Welcome to Beaumont Bay, Tennessee—where the high rollers and celebrities come to play. This lakeside town has more than country music superstars. It has family drama, secrets, scandals and a hoity-toity, self-dubbed “first lady” of the Bay area.

  Jessica Lemmon and I absolutely loved working on this series together, and you are getting a great start with book one! Hannah Banks is country music’s sweetheart and the newest artist with Will Sutherland. They’re planning on taking over the industry and making epic chart toppers. What they don’t expect is the fling they’re going to have to keep behind closed doors.

  I’ve always loved a good twin story, and this one is no different! I couldn’t just stop with the twins, though. I had to add in working together, a heated fling that can’t leak to the press and, oh, did I mention Will has a whole host of hunky brothers? The Sutherland boys will be a huge part of this series and you are going to want to follow each of their stories!

  Sit back, get cozy and welcome to Beaumont Bay!

  Happy reading!

  Jules

  “Why the sudden interest in my brothers?”

  Hannah shrugged. “You know all about my family. Maybe I want to know more about yours.”

  “Your family has always been in the spotlight,” Will answered.

  “All the more reason for me to know about yours.”

  “What do you want to know about me?”

  Hannah reached up, sliding her fingertip between his brows.

  “I want to know why these worry lines never seem to go away.”

  “Concerned for me?”

  “More concerned for my career. I can’t have you stressed when you’re around me.”

  Her eyes dropped to his lips.

  “And you think looking at me like you want to kiss me is keeping me calm?”

  “Your ego is clouding your judgment. I don’t want to kiss you.”

  Will smiled. “No?”

  Hannah tipped her chin and smiled in invitation.

  Then he covered her lips with his.

  * * *

  Twin Games in Music City by Jules Bennett is part of the Dynasties: Beaumont Bay series.

  To Jessica Lemmon for the fun times in plotting, lake life,

  writer retreats where I invite myself to your house and all

  the laughs. I’m so thrilled to be doing this series with you.

  Twin Games in Music City

  Jules Bennett

  USA TODAY bestselling author Jules Bennett has published over sixty books and never tires of writing happy endings. Writing strong heroines and alpha heroes is Jules’s favorite way to spend her workdays. Jules hosts weekly contests on her Facebook fan page and loves chatting with readers on Twitter, Facebook and via email through her website. Stay up-to-date by signing up for her newsletter at julesbennett.com.

  Books by Jules Bennett

  Harlequin Desire

  The Rancher’s Heirs

  Twin Secrets

  Claimed by the Rancher

  Taming the Texan

  A Texan for Christmas

  Lockwood Lightning

  An Unexpected Scandal

  Scandalous Reunion

  Scandalous Engagement

  Dynasties: Beaumont Bay

  Twin Games in Music City

  Visit her Author Profile page at Harlequin.com, or julesbennett.com, for more titles.

  You can also find Jules Bennett on Facebook, along with other Harlequin Desire authors, at Facebook.com/harlequindesireauthors!

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Epilogue

  ONE

  Will Sutherland settled into the corner leather booth and watched as Hallie Banks wound her way through the tables at Rise and Grind.

  This little meeting shouldn’t already have him irritated, but it did. Will didn’t want to meet with Hallie—he wanted to meet with her twin sister, Hannah.

  But obviously, Hannah Banks, country superstar and America’s sweetheart, couldn’t be bothered with such mundane things as setting up her recording schedule for the next album or going over the tour dates and venues.

  He’d only met her a handful of times in passing at various events within the industry. Will had always found her attractive; he’d have to be dead not to. Hannah Banks could make any man do a double take and he was no different.

  As far as knowing her personally, he couldn’t really say much, but this first official meeting wasn’t going as planned.

  Her selfish way of thinking might have worked for her old record label, but now that she’d signed with Elite, she was going to have to accept the very real fact that she wasn’t in charge. He was.

  Hallie offered a soft smile and reached to shake his hand. “Good morning. Have you been waiting long?”

  Will came to his feet and gripped her hand, surprised by how soft and delicate she seemed. He didn’t recall noticing Hallie’s hands before...and he shouldn’t be noticing them now.

  He’d already found himself fantasizing about Hallie’s sister, Hannah. The last thing he needed was an attraction to twins. That wouldn’t be good for business, and being attracted to either of them didn’t fit his professional style.

  Hallie was more conservative in her wardrobe than her usual blinged-out sister. Perhaps that’s because Hallie was the manager and worked behind the scenes in a quieter, calmer setting. Whereas Hannah was in-your-face, sparkly, over-the-top...and not at all the type of woman he should have been drawn to. Yet, he found himself noticing his new star more and more.

  He needed to get his thoughts under control.

  “I just got here myself.” He gestured to the seat across from him. “Please, sit.”

  She put her bag in the vacant seat and settled into the chair with curved arms. A barista came right over to take their orders before leaving them alone again.

  “So where did you say Hannah was and why couldn’t she make it today?” he asked, hoping to get a direct answer this time.

  Hallie blinked up at him. “Oh, I didn’t say. She just asked me to meet you. After we talk, I will go over the schedule with her. She did request that she record in her home studio, so that was the main thing I’m supposed to tell you.”

  Of course. Will shouldn’t have been surprised, though. Since that horrific storm had swept through Beaumont Bay only a few weeks ago, the town was still trying to recover. It was all hands on deck in this Nashville bedroom community to rebuild the multimillion-dollar homes that had taken a hit and the few businesses that had been affected.

  The Bay wouldn’t stay down long. This lakeside community was where Nashville came to play, where all the deals were done, where the country music elite hid their juiciest secrets. And it was a town that legendary music producer Mags Dumond pretty much owned...or thought she did.

  He’d give Mags her due. She’d built up Beaumont Bay with her late husband and former mayor. It had been her foresight—and her insistence on hosting all her parties here over the decades—that had made a home, or second home, in the Bay a necessity for anyone who was anyone in Nashville.

  Will’s family had been born here, and not to a country music bloodline. Travis and Dana Sutherland were in the real estate industry and owned nearly everything...unless Mags had claim on it.

  But the Sutherland brothers had made a name for themselves in the music industry by pulling themselves up by the bootstraps...and staying out of Mags’s way for the most part. The woman had been a thorn in his family’s side for decades, but he refused to think about that now. The next step in building his family’s music empire was his new star, Hannah Banks, and finishing the renovations to the studio that had been damaged.

  The reconstruction was taking much too long, although even a one-day delay was too long in this industry. He had music to make and singers relying on him, not to mention the trickle-down effect of the tours that were already being promoted to celebrate albums that were releasing soon.

  The whole damn situation was a nightmare and Hannah Banks—the superstar he’d stolen from Mags, whom he needed to make this whole plan a reality—couldn’t find the time for a courtesy, in-person meeting. Sending her sister/manager/twin wasn’t the same.

  “I would have to check out Hannah’s recording studio before I could commit to that agreement,” Will informed Hallie. “We are going to have to start the production process next week to keep up with the deadlines. Tell Hannah I’ll be at her house first thing in the morning to check out this recording room of hers.”

  Hallie pursed her pale pink lips and shook her head. “Tomorrow morning won’t work.” She pulled out her phone and scrolled, then tapped her finger on the screen. “How about Tuesday at ten?”

  Considering this was Friday, there was no way in hell he was waiting until Tuesday. Will pulled in a deep breath and sighed. Was Hallie going to be just as difficult as the country diva? The pout of her lips said yes, and something hard and dark moved inside him.

  And that’s when he knew something was off here.

  “I’m not sure how things went when she worked for Mags at Cheating Hearts, but now that she’s with Elite, I run the schedule and say when things are going to get done.”

  Hallie’s eyes narrowed. “Is that right? Well, maybe I should’ve just stayed with Cheating Hearts.”

  Will inched forward, resting his hands on the table. “Hannah? Are you kidding me?”

  She cursed beneath her breath and Will gritted his teeth. He’d known something felt off, but he’d never thought for a second his newest artist would play such a childish game as to pretend to be her twin. No way in hell would he fall for this swapped-twin trap.

  Hannah Banks was about to learn who was in charge real quick.

  * * *

  Damn it. She hadn’t meant to let that slip. How could she pretend to be her sister, even going so far as to dress like her and wear glasses, and yet not be able to simply hold her tongue?

  Hannah squared her shoulders and stared across the table. Will Sutherland was so damn sexy, that’s why. He had her so flustered she couldn’t think.

  All of this was his fault.

  How could she keep up her disguise when all she could think about was raking her fingers through that hair to see if she could mess it up? Those lips, which were now thinned with frustration, seemed soft. Was he a good kisser?

  She hadn’t felt much of an attraction toward any man in a long time. Why did this man, of all the ones in her world, have to grab her attention? She’d hoped that pretending to be Hallie would tamp down some of the heat she felt whenever he was near.