“Oh, it’s just my brother, Mason.”
“Of course it is.” I nodded in pretend agreement.
She might not be ready to tell me, but someday when it mattered, she would.
“I feel so bad, but I’ve got to go. I guess my mom and dad are having some barbeque crisis and—”
“You don’t have to say another word,” I interrupted.
Jason walked in with a glass of wine for Brandy. “Leaving so soon?”
“Family crisis,” I informed him. “With a barbeque.”
“Ah.” He nodded, setting the glass on the table.
“I’m so sorry,” she said again, but a current of excitement threaded through her voice.
Brandy had never been the kind of girl who’d fall all over herself for a guy, but there was definitely something going on.
“Don’t apologize. I swear, I totally understand. It was just nice of you to make your way out here,” I assured her as we walked to the door.
I gave her a quick hug, and she stepped outside onto the porch.
“I just can’t wait to meet this Mr. Wonderful,” I blurted out and closed the door on her just as her protests echoed into the air.
Jason wandered up behind me and glanced out the window to see Brandy already climbing into her car to go meet her mystery man.
“She’s got it bad, huh?” Jason said, his voice lowering as he caged me in, and I slowly turned around to face him.
“Not as bad as me.”
Feeling the energy run between us made me forget everything else in the world. My eyes fell to his lips and the desire to be kissed overtook my senses.
“Things always work out how they’re meant to, don’t you agree?” His voice lowered as his lips hovered so close to mine, and all I could think about was being kissed by him. “It was a quick visit, and now we’re all alone again and can start where we left off.”
My pulse began to climb as he stepped closer and desire darted through his gaze.
“I can’t imagine a better way to spend the afternoon.” And I couldn’t.
As Jason’s lips found mine, my world spun into a wonderful web of ecstasy and gratitude. I knew there were so many things in life beyond our control, but this love wasn’t one of them.
Want to read a bonus alternate ending for Beyond Control? Sign up for Karice's newsletter and it will be sent out in the welcome letter!
To read more about Brandy, Gabby, and Lily, grab the next in the series, Beyond Doubt (Book 2)!
Also available in the Beyond Love Series:
Beyond Doubt (Book 2) Brandy
Beyond Reason (Book 3) Lily
Beyond Intent (Book 4) Gabby
Beyond Chance (Book 5) Brandy
Beyond Promise (Book 6) Lily
Beyond the Mistletoe (Book 7) Emily
Keep Reading for some of Gabby’s recipes.
Recipes
Apricot Bars for the Soul Recipe
Gabby's Favorite
Apricot Bar Ingredients
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup + 1 tbl sugar
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/2 cups flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1-12 oz jar apricot preserve
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan.
Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and then add egg, continuing to mix until creamy. Gradually add flour and baking powder. Slowly mix in coconut and chopped walnuts.
Press two thirds of cookie dough into greased baking pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and lightly spread preserves over cookie bottom. Crumble remaining dough over preserves.
Bake for another 25 minutes or until cookie is a light golden brown. Once cooled, cut into bars.
24 Bars
Scrumptious Cran Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
Lily's Favorite
Cookie Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups oats (not instant)
3/4 chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare cookie sheet with parchment or use a non-stick sheet.
Blend the first 4 dry ingredients. Set aside. Cream butter, vanilla, orange zest, sugar and then add eggs, stir until completely mixed. Add flour mixture and mix until creamy. Add oats, cranberries, and pecans and stir lightly.
Drop dough about 2-inches apart and Bake 11- 13 minutes (until golden brown).
Coconut S'mallow Teasers Recipe
Brandy's Favorite
Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup coconut
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 coconut marshmallows
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Ungreased cookie sheet. Quarter the coconut marshmallows.
Stir together flour, coconut, baking soda, and baking powder in a small bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Once smooth, beat in the egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients, but don’t over mix.
Roll rounded dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets, topping each with a coconut marshmallow piece.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden.
Let stand on cookie sheet a couple minutes before removing to wire racks.
Anytime Mini Blueberry Scones Recipe
With Orange Glaze
Aaron's Favorite
Scone Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
4-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons cold butter
2 eggs
3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons milk
1-3/4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F and grease cookie sheet.
Combine flour, orange zest, sugar, salt, and baking powder in bowl. Use pastry cutter (or fork) to cut in butter until mixture resembles crumbs that are coarse.
Whisk only 3/4 cup milk and eggs and add it to the dry ingredients. Mix until barely moistened. Turn dough onto a surface that is lightly floured. Gently knead in fresh blueberries.
Divide the dough in half. Gently pat onto flat surface without overworking dough. Use circular cookie cutter and press out scones and place on greased cookie sheet or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with the remaining 3-tbl. milk.
Bake at 375°F for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown.
Dribble Orange Glaze on scones while still warm.
Orange Glaze Recipe
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
¼ teaspoon grated orange zest
2 tablespoon orange juice, + as needed
Warm orange juice in small pot. Add sugar and zest, whisking quickly until consistency is reached. Remove from heat and sprinkle over scones.
Sinfully Decadent Recipe
Jason's Favorite
Cake Ingredients
6 ounce semisweet, chopped
6 ounce bittersweet, chopped
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
4 large eggs
1/2 cup+ 1 tablespoon sugar
Directions
&nbs
p; Preheat oven to 350°F and Butter a 9 x 2 round cake pan or spring form pan and line bottom with parchment paper and butter. Dust pan with flour.
Beat together sugar and eggs with an electric mixer until a thick, pale yellow ribbon forms when beaters removed (about 7 min).
Melt butter and chocolate in a double boiler (metal bowl set over saucepan with simmering water also works), stirring until smooth. Remove from heat let cool slightly.
Fold 1/4 of egg mixture into chocolate, and gently fold the rest into mixture.
Pour batter into prepared baking pan and
Bake pan in hot water bath in center/middle of oven. Bake for 47 minutes. Toothpick will NOT come out clean, but top will appear set.
Run a knife around edge of pan and chill cake for a minimum of 4 hours, up to 12, before serving.
If not using a spring form pan, gently warming pan edges can help remove cake, but too long and cake melts.
Serve chilled with raspberry sauce.
Raspberry Sauce
12 ounce bag of frozen raspberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar (to taste)
Thaw raspberries in a fine mesh strainer. Once, defrosted, gently press the berries using the back of a spoon through the mesh into a bowl. The only thing that should remain in the strainer are seeds and minor tidbits of raspberry. Mix the raspberry puree and sugar together. Drizzle over cake.
BEYOND DOUBT
(Beyond Love Series #2)
KARICE BOLTON
Copyright © 2013 Karice Bolton
ISBN-10:0-9899317-2-2
ISBN-13:978-0-9899317-2-4
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any printed or electronic form, or stored in an unauthorized retrieval system, or transmitted in any form without permission from the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, incidents, and events either are the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover Art: AdobeStock Photos © kiuikson © pixelliebe
Interior Art: Stock DepositPhotos © Seamartini
Dedication
To my wonderful husband and mom. Thank you for always believing in me. And to my amazing readers. You've made this series come to life!
Chapter One
The elevator chimed, barely bringing me out of my morning fog, and I took one graceful step forward, tripping right into the carriage. My mishap scared the yawn right out of me, but I was met with a deep, gravelly chuckle, and my heart instantly skipped a beat. I wasn’t expecting an audience so early in the morning.
“Good morning,” a vaguely familiar voice greeted me.
Oh no! How could this be?
“Having a little difficulty staying upright?” he teased and that was all it took. I knew who was on the other side of the voice before I even looked.
I raised my head and locked eyes with him—the one man in the universe who was off-limits, my best friend’s brother. He was also the one man who’d managed to sneak into my dreams last night and take charge.
Heaven could be so cruel in the love department.
The intense charisma he projected from just one smile was enough to melt me, or anyone, in place. His features were magnificently chiseled, and his eyes held a playful curiosity as he raised a dark brow waiting for a response of some sort.
I felt a blush creep up my spine landing on my cheeks as my mind wandered to a few of the images that my memory left behind from the night before. His hands skirting along my belly, his mouth following—just to name a few. I usually loved my active imagination but not so much at the moment.
To top it off he looked out-of-this-world delicious, even this early in the morning. And that should be illegal. His dark hair was mussed just right and his black suit stretched along his chest, matching my dreams from the night before. He flashed another smile and his brown eyes immediately warmed as he took me in. Tiny little creases around his eyes formed as his smile grew larger at my apparent inability to stop gawking, or reminiscing. Either way, I got the feeling that he knew he had the upper hand, and I had to change that.
I turned around quickly and pushed the lobby button. The silver doors slid shut, and the elevator felt like it was the size of a narrow, toothpick holder as I debated what to do or say. My inclination was to hold onto the railing, but that would be a dead giveaway that he was taking my breath away. The elevator began gliding down swiftly when I became one with my words again.
“What are you doing here?” I blurted, refusing to turn to face him.
“It’s nice to see you too,” he laughed.
I felt his gaze run along my body, and with every fiber of my being, I wanted to be the good friend that Gabby deserved. I wanted to be repulsed from his adoration.
But I wasn’t.
In fact, I loved the feeling this encounter stirred inside of me. It didn’t help that the images my mind conjured the night before were on fast-forward as I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Brandy, wasn’t it?” he asked, slicing my strength in half. His voice was so masculine, and beyond a doubt, the sexiest voice I’d ever heard.
Get a grip, Brandy!
I nodded, allowing my mind to take control.
“Jerry, was it?” I asked, knowing damn well his name was Aaron. And I remembered calling it out a time or two last night in my deep sleep.
His laughter boomed inside the elevator’s tight quarters, and I was unable to hide my smile. I felt the magnificent energy run between us, and my body tingled at the thought. Of him. Of me. Of him and me. But were these feelings only brewing because I knew I couldn’t have him, and he was nothing more than a safe and casual flirt?
The elevator hit a bump right before it landed at the lobby, and I was thrown off-kilter as I took a step toward the doors.
I let out a sigh just as his fingertips gripped my arms from behind, taking me completely off guard. My belly muscles contracted as I felt his soft touch signal something deep inside me that I wanted nothing to do with.
“Glad I was so memorable,” his voice rumbled. “It was Aaron.”
“What do you think you’re doing?” I asked, spinning to face him.
“It looked like you were about to go over again,” he said, smiling innocently, his eyes piercing. “Just wanted to protect my sister’s best friend from tumbling.”
Neither of us could deny the energy that was running between us, but I was going to do my best. My friendship with Gabby was far more important than anything this could ever amount to. That I was sure of. He was trouble. I could tell by the gleam in his eye, his mussed up hair, and that look. I would only amount to a prize he could stack with the other females he’d acquired. I could sense that much about him. If there was one thing I got out of college, it was how to sniff out a player. And he was a player—among other things.
His phone rang, and his one hand let go of me as he grabbed his phone out of his pocket. He silenced it quickly, before he slid it back in his pocket and locked eyes on mine once more.
I shrugged his remaining fingers from my other arm, turned around, and proceeded off the elevator in a quick strut but not before he caught up to me.
“Where were we?” he asked, knowingly.
The magnetism he exuded was impossible to miss as he moved ever so smoothly through the lobby. I noticed all the necks turn to watch him glide after me, and I got the distinct feeling I was in over my head. I still wasn’t sure of what terrible things Gabby’s long lost brother had done, but if she said they existed, then I believed her.
“I was headed for a latte, and I have no idea what you were up to. As of now I’m beginning to feel like you’re stalking me,” I said, pushing my way through the revolving glass doors.
The sidewalk was bustling with workers headed to the many skyscrapers that were stationed in this corner of the city. I passed by a gardener and said a friendly hi as he was watering the building’s large planters. I hoped that
Aaron would get the message: the gardener was more interesting than you, buddy!
“Do you think that’s how I operate to get a woman in bed?” he asked, his lips tugging into a smile. “I tend to like my women agreeable and excited, not frightened and on the run.”
The shock of his statement did nothing but delight me, which told me my only line of defense was to pretend he didn’t exist. Besides, he couldn’t exist, not in my world.
I ignored him, trying to stifle a laugh and decided not to go to the coffee shop across the street. My plan was to shake him.
I had to shake him.
“Still going to get coffee?” he asked, his low voice vibrating my common sense right out of me.
“Yes. That was the plan,” I said, attempting to act dismissive. But that’s all it was—an act.
“Is there a problem with the Starbucks across the street?”
“I don’t like it.” I pursed my lips together and kept walking. And that was a complete lie. It happened to be my favorite near the office. They knew my name and drink before I even got to the counter.
“You don’t like Starbucks or you don’t like that particular Starbucks?”
“That particular one,” I replied, walking quicker.
“And why’s that?”
I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to face him.
So much for my plan.
“Are you always used to getting what you want?” I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Mostly.” The corner of his mouth turned up slightly, and I wanted to deck him and jump him simultaneously.
“Then what is it you want?” I asked, his eyes intense as amusement filled them.
“How about I buy you a cup of coffee and we can discuss.”
Spring Fling Trio- Beyond Love Starter Set Page 26