Laural Merlington

The Marriage Game Laural Merlington

When Samantha Rainford - newly wed to Douglas Cosmo Rainford III - returns home from her honeymoon to find divorce papers waiting, she's shocked and heartbroken. Then she discovers that she's not the first to be abandoned - she's one of four (or maybe more) ex-Mrs. Rainfords - and decides it's time to put into practice that old truism: Don't get mad, get even. With the help of her longtime girlfriend Slick, a glamorous fashion model, Sam gathers together a highly unlikely team: Mrs. Kayla Rainford, an architect who moonlights as an exotic dancer; Mrs. Zoe Rainford, a plumber; and Mrs. Olivia Rainford, a former cheerleader and cartoon artist. Sam and Slick flunked out of FBI training school, but they still learned a few things there - like how to plan a mission. And the fivesome is determined to do whatever it takes to bring down Douglas Rainford III. Whatever it takes means attending a top-secret private special-ops training camp in the North Carolina mountains, where Sam meets fiercely disciplined ex-CIA operative Kollar Havapopulas. Six feet three and handsome as a Greek god, "Pappy" is the best at what he does - transforming civilians into highly skilled fighting teams. What he's less adept at, however, is telling a woman how he feels, and before long he discovers he's developing some very warm feelings for Samantha Rainford - an attraction that seems fated to be a total disaster. Two personalities as strong as Sam and Pappy are sure to strike sparks, but will the fire that burns between them consume everything in its way?