by Nina Lindsey
© 2020 Nina Lindsey. All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-73403-387-8
Cover designed by Najla Qamber Designs
www.najlaqamberdesigns.com
Published by Snow Queen Publishing
The uploading, scanning, and distribution of this book in any form or by any means—including but not limited to electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of the author and copyright holder is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized editions of this work, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.
Love Walks In © 2019 Nina Lindsey. All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-7340338-3-0
And I Love Her © 2019 Nina Lindsey. All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-7340338-2-3
Love Me Tender © 2019 Nina Lindsey. All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-73403-388-5
Welcome to Bliss Cove, a seaside town where love sweeps in on the ocean breeze.
Stay at the Outside Inn, have dinner at the Mousehole Tavern, take a walk on historic Mariposa Street, buy handmade lotions at Naked, and pick up a chocolate-loaded cookie from the Sugar Joy bakery. Don't forget to stop by Moonbeams for a tarot-card reading about your One True Love!
While you are here, enjoy the spicy-sweet Bliss Cove romances of powerful, compelling heroes and the women who capture their hearts forever.
Visit Bliss Cove by signing up for Nina Lindsey’s newsletter. You’ll receive the exclusive WE FOUND LOVE free.
Click here for your copy of WE FOUND LOVE!
Please check your spam folder, if you don’t receive the confirmation email.
Enjoy your stay!
This Bliss Cove Boxed Set contains the following three novels.
LOVE WALKS IN
Bliss Cove #1
Shaking off her past mistakes and fickle reputation, Aria Prescott is determined to start a new life with her latest venture, the "Meow and Then Cat Café." Though the café is in the town's most rundown neighborhood, Aria will let nothing stop her from success.
Then property developer Hunter Armstrong shocks the Mariposa Street shop owners with a buyout offer that threatens to destroy the old district. Aria refuses to let the ruthless businessman intimidate her into selling her beloved café, even if Hunter's dark, glowering sexiness secretly makes her want to purr.
Aria and Hunter are soon locked in a fiery, tense war over the fate of Mariposa Street. But when Hunter starts falling for this sexy town sweetheart, he discovers that winning the battle might mean losing his heart.
AND I LOVE HER
Bliss Cove #2
An expert on the hot, wild tales of mythology, Callie Prescott leads a meticulously tidy life. And that, thank you, is exactly how she wants it, despite her family's pestering that she's a control freak who needs to have fun.
Jake Ryan fights bad guys, jumps out of airplanes, and escapes disasters...on film. But when a scandal engulfs his career, he takes cover in his hometown of Bliss Cove while he puts out the fire. No one knows his true identity until a chance encounter with Callie ignites powerful flashbacks of their high-school years together.
Despite the threat of exposure, Jake wants some close-up action with the brilliant, beautiful professor. Callie's structured life has no room for a sexy, muscular hero...until Jake shows her how thrilling it is to have fun and lose control (a little).
Jake and Callie surrender to a hot affair and the possibility of love. But with dangerous secrets, a public scandal, and a mother's scheming plots, can Jake ever win the starring role in his leading lady's heart?
LOVE ME TENDER
Bliss Cove #3
Rory Prescott is desperate for a place to stay before she leaves Bliss Cove for her lucrative new tech job. Tavern owner Grant Taylor is desperate for a date to his brother's wedding before his mother tries to marry him off next.
Grant makes Rory a deal—he'll let her stay in his cottage if she'll pretend to be his girlfriend. Though the two friends bicker over everything from her love of gummy worms to the horrible singing fish he has on the tavern wall, "pretending" to like each other isn't a stretch.
As they share close quarters, argue about cell phones, and exchange more than one hot kiss, their fake relationship soon becomes passionately real.
But Grant's family battles and Rory's impending career move shut down any possibility of a happy ending. Their sexy, tender romance is about to crash and burn…unless they're willing to risk everything for love.
Love Walks In
A Bliss Cove Novel #1
Prologue
“Bliss Cove.” Hunter Armstrong twisted his mouth around the town’s name, which brought up sticky-sweet images of flower boxes, beach parties, and ice-cream cones. Things that had nothing to do with his life of glass office towers and retail complexes. “Never heard of it.”
“Good.” His boss gave a dry, humorless laugh.
Hunter folded his arms as he stood at the thirty-first-story window of the Imperial Properties conference room. An expansive view of the Manhattan cityscape, pierced by high-rises and skyscrapers, spread out toward the Hudson River.
“We intend to keep Bliss Cove a secret.” Bruce Sinclair, founder and CEO of Imperial Properties, thrust his thick finger at the presentation screen displaying a picturesque photo of a downtown street. “It’s useless little town right in the middle of a perfect stretch of California coastline waiting to be exploited—”
“Explored, Dad.” Juliette Sinclair, president of Imperial’s East Coast operations, arched a plucked eyebrow and met Hunter’s gaze with a “he’ll never learn” look of amusement. “Bliss Cove is a small town in a pristine location that’s accessible to both southern and northern California residents.”
She tapped a button on the computer. The photo on the screen changed to a map of the Pacific coastline. “It’s a stroke of luck that no other developers have found it yet. That makes it an excellent place to start expanding Imperial’s West Coast properties.”
Hunter studied the map. Bliss Cove sat alongside the ocean midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, with acres of redwood forests to the north and farmland farther east.
“What’s the project?” he asked.
Juliette advanced the slide to a photo of a narrow cobblestone street lined with rundown buildings.
“This is Mariposa Street.” Bruce gave a derisive huff. “It’s the main street of a shithole district the town doesn’t care about, but it’s in a phenomenal location right near the beach. We’re going to build the Oceanview Plaza here, an upscale multi-use complex of shopping, entertainment, restaurants, and commercial buildings intended to pump life into the whole town.”
Juliette clicked forward to slides of modern steel-and-glass buildings—retail, condos, a megaplex movie theater. Despite the artistic renderings, it was still much smaller than Imperial’s usual projects. Hell, it was minuscule compared to the ten-acre, five-billion-dollar complex of office space, hotels, retail, and apartments that Hunter had just completed in the Hudson Yards district.
He’d worked at Imperial Properties for twelve years, having started shortly after graduating from Harvard. One of the largest property development companies in the nation, Imperial had offices in seventeen cities and managed over three-hundred-million square feet of commercial space. A retail complex in a “useless little town” w
as hardly an impressive addition to the company’s portfolio.
“What’s the status of the project?” he asked.
“The former director fucked up the negotiations.” Bruce shook his head in disgust. “He couldn’t get the building owners to sell, and then he leaked the plans to the residents. I fired him, but by then, the damage was done.”
“But the damage is not irreparable.” Juliette crossed her arms over the front of her Gucci jacket. “The Mariposa Street buildings are owned by the shop owners, probably because they were able to buy them for peanuts. They haven’t been cooperative about selling to Imperial. So we sweetened the pot and are ready to approach them again.”
“That’s where I come in,” Hunter surmised.
“You’ve done an exceptional job finishing up Manhattan Row.” Bruce clapped a heavy hand on Hunter’s shoulder. “This may seem like a step down, but I need your negotiating skills and expertise to close the Mariposa deal.”
“This is several floors down from Manhattan Row.” Hunter edged out from under the other man’s hand.
Juliette tilted her head, her sharp blue eyes gleaming. “Believe me when I tell you this project may look inconsequential compared to Manhattan Row, but it’s a little jewel.”
“I don’t like little things.”
“Yes, well…” Juliette slid her gaze over his chest and shoulders, her red mouth pursing. “You don’t exactly have anything little, do you, Hunter?”
Ignoring the unsubtle remark, he studied his boss. “I want the Tokyo Cityview project.”
“I need you in the US.” Bruce pulled himself to full height, which was still several inches shorter than Hunter. “Juliette is the only other person I’d trust with this deal, and she’s busy finishing our hotel in Atlanta. Close this deal for us, and I’ll promote you to the president of Imperial’s West Coast operations.”
Hah. Well played, Bruce.
His boss knew Hunter had been gunning for that promotion. Reaching the company’s highest executive level was another piece in the puzzle he’d designed back when he was a kid, planning a future that was the opposite of the shitty life he’d been living.
“Get this done.” Bruce extended his hand. “The promotion will put you in a perfect position when the board of directors appoints a new CEO. Of course, you’ll have Juliette to compete with…” he threw his daughter a smirk, “…and I’ll need to retire first, but it never hurts to lay the groundwork early.”
“No, it never hurts.” Juliette gave Hunter a tight smile.
Smothering a rustle of guilt, Hunter shook Bruce’s hand.
“You don’t have a lot of time,” Juliette said. “According to that hick town law, the Mariposa building owners have to vote collectively to sell their properties. Eighty percent majority wins. That’s twelve out of fifteen votes. The association’s next meeting is a month from now.”
“They can’t officially sign the contracts until the vote,” Bruce added. “But you should have no trouble securing verbal agreements. We just need to keep them happy until they mark their ballots.”
“Consider it done.” Hunter started toward the door.
“Hunter.” Bruce’s bushy eyebrows pulled together. “Aren’t you going to ask what will happen if you fail?”
“I never fail.” He left the room.
Juliette laughed, a hard abrupt sound echoing behind him.
Returning to his office, Hunter stopped at his assistant’s desk. “Margaret, get me a Monday flight into San Francisco, a car rental, and a hotel in a town called Bliss Cove, south of Santa Cruz.”
“Certainly.” She adjusted her glasses and peered at the computer.
Hunter glanced at his Rolex. Only four-thirty, but he was taking Victoria Davenport to the Rainbow Room tonight. She was potential marriage material, even if her father was a slumlord who illegally subdivided his properties to maximize profits.
“I’m taking off for a few hours.” He strode past Margaret’s desk. “I’ll be back tonight around ten.”
“I won’t,” she called after him.
Hunter went into his office and started packing up his briefcase. A light knock came at the door. Juliette entered, the epitome of cool poise.
“Congratulations.” She stopped in front of his desk.
“I haven’t closed the deal yet.” He tossed a stack of folders into his briefcase.
“You will.”
“Compared to Manhattan Row, this will be like playing with Legos.” Hunter snapped his briefcase closed. “What else is Imperial planning for Bliss Cove?”
“That will be up to you, I suppose.” Leaning forward, she rested her hands on his desk. “Why else would Dad insist you be the one to close the deal? It’s clear he wants you to be CEO of Imperial when he retires.”
“What about you?”
“Oh, I’m in the running. I’m just not the front runner.” She rolled her eyes and straightened. “I’ll spare you the garbage about both nepotism and glass ceilings. Since it looks like you’ll be running Imperial soon, I wanted to assure you that you will also have my full support. I’d be happy to help you with the Mariposa deal in any way you’d like.”
Hunter nodded his thanks and picked up his car keys. “Anything else?”
“Would you like to have dinner tonight?”
Wary, he lifted his head to look at her. She’d given off plenty of interested vibes over the years, but she’d never made a direct move.
She met his gaze. A hint of uncertainty gleamed in her eyes.
“You have a project you need to talk about?” he asked.
“No. God.” She expelled a breath, her jaw tensing. “I’m asking you out socially. On a date. You do know what a date is, don’t you?”
“Thank you for the offer, but I have plans tonight.”
“Look, Hunter, it’s not that complicated.” Juliette huffed out a laugh and ran her hands over her hips. “We’ve been working together for a long time. We both hold top executive positions in a company my father started. Together, we can expand Imperial Properties and turn it into an international leader in property development.”
She picked a nonexistent piece of lint off her sleeve. “And if we get to know each other outside of work and discover that we also get along personally, we have the potential to be a very powerful couple.”
It wasn’t a bad proposition. Juliette was intelligent and beautiful. She had an exceptional handle on real estate and property development. She checked all the boxes Hunter had when imagining a future wife. She’d lock in another piece of his puzzle.
“Think about it while you’re in California.” Juliette moved away from his desk. “Consider it a business proposition.”
“What else would it be?”
She stared at him for a second before another laugh burst out of her. “Of course. What else would it be?”
Turning on her heel, she started for the door. “You know, Hunter, it’s okay to actually feel something once in a while.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Think about that, too.”
She strode from the room just as Margaret entered.
“I’ve made all the arrangements.” Margaret waved a photograph of a large white house at him. “One of the Oceanview investors had asked to meet with you, so I set up an appointment with him before you leave San Francisco for Bliss Cove. Which, by the way, looks really cute.”
Hunter sighed. He didn’t do cute. All the more reason to get this job done as fast as possible so he could return to his real life.
Chapter 1
Good things came in large, thick envelopes. At least, that was what Aria Prescott had always believed. Wedding invitations, college acceptances, Christmas cards, love letters.
But this?
She sank onto a chair in her darkened café, crumpling the brown envelope in her fist. The formal letter was clipped to a stack of papers made heavier by the copious use of legalese—clauses, conditions, title. Financial terms.
D
ropping the letter, she looked through the brick-and-glass partition separating the lounge from the front room of the café. Evening light illuminated the painted Meow and Then sign on the window. A chalkboard menu hung on the wall behind the counter. Wooden shelves held cat toys and cat-themed merchandise.
She’d created this. For the first time in her life, she’d gone the distance, gotten the job done, seen the plan through. She couldn’t—wouldn’t—let anything change that now.
Jumbo butted his fuzzy head against her arm.
“Sorry, sweetie.” Stroking the tabby cat’s ears, Aria got to her feet. “Thirteen orders of chicken bites in gravy coming right up.”
Cats of all sizes stirred from various lounging positions around the room. Tails swishing and ears perked, they padded over to the row of food and water dishes.
Pushing the letter out of her mind, Aria retrieved cans of chicken from the storage cabinet and prepared dinner for her thirteen charges. A few of them meowed and slithered around her legs, while others sat waiting regally for their meal to be served.
A one-eyed cat with patchy fur, a torn left ear, and a sharp fanged tooth poking out of his mouth crouched under a table.
“Come on, Fang.” Aria clicked her tongue at the old cat, who glared at her. “Yummy chicken.”