by Box Set
“We’ve been at it for hours,” Nikki Chu, a slender, but out-of-shape Asian woman huffed and puffed. “Hate to say it, but I’ve already gotten my ten thousand steps for the day.”
“What’s ten thousand when you can go for twenty? Where’s your spirit for challenge?” Carol grabbed the push rims, the circular wheel that extended from the tires of her wheelchair, and turned one forward and the other backward so she could spin in a circle. “Come on, girls. Let’s jam.”
She spun and lifted up in a wheelie while bobbing her head and wiggling her shoulders. “No let up. Move that body. Move. Move.”
“I have to watch my pulse rate.” Her sister-in-law, Jolie, rubbed her nonexistent baby bump. Not only was she newly wed, but she was also newly pregnant and used her OCD, or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, as an excuse to loaf.
“Sorry, no excuses, whatsoever.” Carol wagged her finger. “Not until the third trimester. Anyone else chickening out?”
She wheeled around Leanna Rivera, a cake and pastry chef who owned a bakery, and Sherelle Edwards, a caterer of environmental friendly food.
“We’re good.” Leanna bounced and jogged in place, or rather, her prominent boobs bounced and brought the rest of her body along with her. Meanwhile Sherelle snapped her fingers, popping and locking her arms, elbows, shoulders and neck. She was the only one who didn’t look like she broke a sweat.
“Great, let’s hit it.” Carol got in front of the Bumblebees and pushed and pulled her wheels to the frantic beat. Now that her broken back had healed and she was done with rehab, she was able to propel herself and did not need anyone to push her chair or help her get in and out of it.
Her injury was at the thoracic level, somewhere below T7 or 8, which meant she had the full use of her arms and hands, but no control of muscle movement below her waist.
The music thumped with a loud, fast beat, and Carol twisted and turned in her chair, whipping her neck and cracking her shoulders. Sherelle and Leanna bopped and kicked, twisting their lithe and perfect bodies to the hip-hop rap.
Carol closed her eyes and let the sweat run down her face. She worked her muscles harder and put all her energy into the dance routine.
She could never forget what happened that horrible day when she slipped on ice and fell off a cliff. She’d been stupid and foolhardy that day, insisting on the climb despite the tricky conditions. It had been going well, too, until she found herself tumbling down the side of the mountain.
Gut grinding fear ripped and clawed through her body as she slammed and bounced down the rocky face of the mountain. Pain exploded like a million dentist drills whirring through every nerve ending. When she hit the bottom of her fall, she wasn’t sure whether she was alive or dead.
Did the dead feel pain?
Could the living not move?
Lying on her shattered back, blinded by the sun and waiting for help had been the longest, most horrifying moments in her life. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she dreaded the truth.
She was paralyzed. Frozen in time. Trapped. The active life as she knew it was over.
Later, she learned that she had tumbled like a rag doll down the entire face of Baldy bowl – roughly 1,000 vertical feet. Thanks to her climbing helmet, she’d escaped brain damage and death, but she’d lost all sensation and control below her waist.
Carol shuddered at the flashbacks that still plagued her and threw herself into dancing. The hip hop music pulsed and boomed as the rappers spit out their lyrics. Carol let herself go. She raced across the studio, spinning and popping wheelies, throwing her head back and forth. Let the lazy half of the Bumblebees sit out. They didn’t appreciate what they had: a pair of legs that still worked, beauty, sexiness, and most importantly, a normal life.
Terri and Jolie were married to hot and fit men, and Nikki flirted with every man she could bat an eyelash at. Leanna always had one or two guys sniffing around, although she wasn’t serious about any of them. As for Sherelle, she didn’t date—but that was by choice. She thought most guys were dweebs, and she never could tolerate fools.
Which left Carol as the only one going to the Bumblebees’ Christmas Gala without a date, not by choice.
The music stopped in an instant. Carol’s stepsister, Marisa Monroe, had turned off the sound system. She stalked toward her, displeasure written on her face, as she pointed to her watch. “Your time’s up. We have to take you to the bathroom.”
Grrr … Marisa was a nurse, and after Ken moved out to marry Jolie, she’d moved in and decided Carol couldn’t be trusted to take care of her own health.
“I’ve been sweating. I’m sure I don’t need to go,” Carol said, as the rest of the Bumblebees took deep drinks out of their water bottles.
Since her injury, she could no longer feel the urge to go to the bathroom, and she relied on scheduled pit stops to keep her systems functional.
“We wouldn’t want you to get an infection.” Marisa pushed on the back of Carol’s wheelchair.
Carol locked the brakes to prevent it from moving. Why, oh, why, had she let Marisa move in? It wasn’t as if she needed a housemate. When she was first injured, brother Ken had lived with her. He did the housework and driving, while she cooked and took care of herself. Now, after more than ten months, her arms were muscular enough that she didn’t need help getting in and out of the shower or moving herself from her chair.
She not only drove with hand controls, but also did her own groceries. But Marisa seemed to think she couldn’t do anything.
“Stop being stubborn,” Marisa said, pushing harder.
Sherelle stepped forward. “Carol doesn’t need your help. Why don’t you go find someone else to worry about?”
“We’re ready to dance some more,” Nikki said, switching on the music.
Jolie, Terri, and Leanna wedged Marisa away from the wheelchair as Carol spun back onto the dance floor.
Marisa stomped back to the sound system and shut the music again.
“Marisa!” Carol shouted. “Stop being bossy. Why don’t you go back to your guest?”
She nodded toward a pregnant woman who had been sitting with Marisa, taking notes on the dance routine.
“Mom told me to watch over you,” Marisa said. “Remember that infection you got when Ken took you surfing and you lost track of time?”
“Well, I’m not on a beach,” Carol said. “I can go any time.”
“Why not now?” Marisa insisted.
“Why not?” A deep male voice sounded as the double doors to the studio flapped open. A predatory looking man, dark-haired and bulging, sauntered in like he owned the studio. He took off his sunglasses and let his eyes rove from female to female, skipping over Carol. It figured he would pass over the only woman in a wheelchair.
Seven pairs of female eyeballs, eight if she counted the visitor sitting at the side, rolled toward the stranger who flaunted himself in a skintight t-shirt and a pair of skinny jeans.
Tall, dark, and hot didn’t even begin to cover it.
Marisa immediately forgot her nursing professionalism and smiled at the intruding hunk. “How may I help you?”
“Nick Wolff, from Bad Boys for Hire, here about the Toy Drive you’re doing for Wheelympics,” the hotlicious hero sandwich replied.
Wheelympics was an adaptive sports program for young wheelchair users, and Carol was the volunteer who was in charge of the party.
“That would be me,” Carol wheeled toward him, only to be headed off at the pass by Leanna who jutted her ample chest toward the musclebound man.
“What can I do for you?” Leanna said in a sweet, syrupy voice. “I’m Leanna Rivera.”
“Wait, wait,” Nikki blinked rapidly and fanned herself. “Talk to me, Nikki Chu. I’m president of the Bumblebees.”
Terri pushed herself between Nikki and the scrumptious stranger. “Terri Slade. I’m the sergeant at arms.”
“Well, I’m vice president,” Jolie chimed in, sweeping her flaming red hair over her shoulder. “J
olie Becker Cassidy.”
Only Sherelle stood back with her eyes narrowed. She was the treasurer and had control of the purse. The Bumblebees needed someone wise as the banker.
Carol was inclined to agree with Sherelle. Men who worked for escort services were so full of themselves they were like ticks on a hound dog’s ear. The god-man in front of her preened and puffed at the attention of her friends. What an immature dick.
She hadn’t expected someone quite so young when she’d called Bad Boys for Hire and asked for a Santa impersonator for a children’s party.
No matter how tempting this delectable dish was, she couldn’t have him ruin the toy drive with his overactive sex appeal. Look what he was doing to their rehearsal!
Carol’s mouth watered, and she swallowed her drool as she steeled herself. She was the secretary, and the girls had shoved the job on her, so she was within her rights to force her wheelchair into the midst and park right in front of the hired help. “Listen, there must be a mistake. I asked for a Santa impersonator, not an exotic dancer.”
The man held out his hand, looking down at her. “Nick Wolff, at your service.”
Heat flushed Carol’s cheeks at the way he drawled the word “service.”
She lifted her hand and found herself eye-level with his belt buckle. Slowly, her eyes traveled from below his belt, wandered up his well-defined abdominals, skittered over his pectorals, and tickled his collarbone, grazed his cleft chin, and brushed over his smirky lips, to the dark, hooded bedroom eyes.
In slow motion, or so it seemed, she grasped his offered handshake.
Even though she wore half-fingered leather gloves, electricity sparked and zapped, flushing the upper half of Carol’s body with a web of tingles as Nick’s strong palm enveloped her firm handshake.
“Uhm … If you have a Santa suit, you’re hired,” Carol heard the words tumble from her mouth. “But no stripping. It’s a kid’s party. Got it?”
“Any stripping I do will be in private.” Nick zeroed his sexy gaze straight through Carol’s eyes, and a faint sensation zinged down through her belly and tickled between her legs. Was it even possible for her to be aroused?
Carol’s eyes widened as she held Nick’s mesmerizing gaze. What was he doing to her? Did he have the magic touch? For the first time since she was injured almost a year ago, she felt a slight throbbing lower down.
Holy moly! She was still alive!
[End of Excerpt - to read further, please buy Bad Boys for Hire: Nick from Amazon ]
Reading List
Romantic Suspense
Chance for Love Series
Broken Build, Build engineer Jen Jones falls in love with the man whose life she ruined.
Hidden Under Her Heart, A young nurse, Maryanne Torres, struggles with a difficult decision over an unwanted pregnancy.
Knowing Vera, Playgirl Vera Custodio belatedly discovers that her father might have killed her boyfriend's mother many years ago. [2015 Angie Ovation Award Winner]
Contemporary Romances
Sánchez Sisters Series
Taming Romeo, Medical student Evie Sánchez is recovering from heartbreak when she runs into the boy she left behind.
Claiming Carlos, Restaurant manager Choco Sanchez finds herself caught between two hot men, an epic food fight, and a war to save the restaurant.
Jewells in Love Series
Whole Latte Love, Carina Chen, a career-oriented young woman, has no time for distractions—especially the sexy, guitar-playing barista she rooms with.
Jingle Belles Christmas Series
Christmas Flirt, Bad girl Lacy Reed gets more than she bargained for when her naked selfies turn up on her boss’s phone.
Santa’s Pet, A brilliant girl genius plays elf to a substitute Santa and turns both their lives upside down when he is charged with a sex crime and she loses her company to hackers.
Bad Boys for Hire Series
Bad Boys for Hire: Ryker, Terri Martin gets caught in the middle of a motorcycle club vendetta when she tries to hire a biker for her birthday date.
Bad Boys for Hire: Ken, After Jolie Becker is left at the altar, her friends secretly hire a handsome beach bum to cheer her up.
Bad Boys for Hire: Nick, This Christmas, paraplegic Carol Cassidy is caught between the naughty and the nice: a hired Santa and a disabled firefighter.
The Remington World
The Remingtons: Leap, Laugh, Love, A pro surfer on holiday after being attacked by a shark gets tangled up with an Army Ranger on leave with a mission.
The Remingtons: Blush of Love, A hot New Year's Eve date with bad boy Gunner Gibson leaves Safire wondering if it's love at first blush or something more sinister.
Sweet Romances
Christmas Stray, A couple grieving for their son is snowed in with a stray puppy and a little boy. Is there room in their hearts for a Christmas miracle? [Gold Award Winner, 2016 Readers’ Favorite]
Deck the Hearts: A Christmas Creek Romance, Can Holly’s jolly Christmas spirit help Grinchy Gordon Gills save the town of Christmas Creek?
Her Christmas Chance: A Christmas Creek Romance, A woman with cerebral palsy and her tomcat disagree about the attractive ex-con living next door. Will a dose of Christmas magic reach through his dark secrets?
A Veteran’s Christmas Series
A Father for Christmas, Sweet romance between a homeless veteran and a single mother whose daughter asks Santa for an unusual gift. [Gold Award Winner, 2015 Readers’ Favorite]
A Pet for Christmas, A veteran suffering from PTSD fights to return from Afghanistan and give his family their Christmas wishes.
A Wedding for Christmas, A female soldier from Tyler’s past and the man who fathered Bree conspire to pull Kelly and Tyler apart before their Christmas wedding.
Have A Hart Romance Series
Christmas Lovebirds, Can two little lovebirds and Christmas cheer open Melisa’s heart to giving Rob another chance?
Valentine Hound Dog, A fashion designer and her basset hound puppy convince a burned ex-firefighter that beauty is never skin deep and neither is love.
Spring Fling Kitty, A stray cat shows a fire chief and his fiancée’s sister that doing the wrong thing is sometimes right when it comes to love.
Blue Chow Christmas, Brian and Cait are in love, but they both have secrets that could blow them apart. Can two lost chow-chow sisters open them up for true love and commitment?
Sports Romances
Played by Love, A soccer star dons nerd glasses to score a anime fangirl who won't date jocks.
Roaring Hot! A playboy motorcycle racer hires an aspiring actress when he is challenged by his grandmother to bring a real girlfriend to her birthday party.
Intercepted by Love (Boxed Set), A quarterback hiding from his Super Bowl losing interception meets a small town librarian with an active fantasy life. (Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, Book 4, Book 5, Book 6)
Rattler’s Baseball Series
Playing the Rookie, A rookie pitcher and a sports intern on the rebound connect to get over their exes.
Playing Without Rules, A ballplayer's girlfriend hides his daughter from him because she fears he's like his abusive father.
Playing Catch, Catcher Kirk Kennedy has never met a puzzle he can't solve. Until he meets bartender Jeanine Jewell. What he finds knocks his balls out of the park and could very well end his days behind the plate.
Sapphire Falls World
Going Haywire, Vampires, zombies, and wolves, oh my! Honey’s vacation with her ex-husband goes haywire when he tries too hard to get her back.
Going Toe to Mistletoe, Candi’s fed up with love and down on her luck. Troy gives advice to the lovelorn, but it hasn’t done his love life much good. Will a small town Christmas wedding open their hearts to love?
Laguna Beach World
Lucky in Laguna, Scriptwriter Lucky Lenigan regrets writing dog walker Tally Tallahan into a reality show as another man’s love interest.
Historical Romance
> Michal’s Window, The young Princess Michal loves her father's enemy, the upstart David who becomes king.
Many Thanks
I hope you enjoyed Brittney and Ben’s story. What an emotional journey! Initially, when I started the book, I envisioned it as a light-hearted romantic comedy. But then, deeper topics came up and had to be explored further. The slut-shaming is unfortunate, but happens in real life. When Brittney was judged for what she wore, I felt I had to deal with it in a way that was respectful and illuminating. Other issues like online privacy or lack of it is a pervading theme. These days, we may not have Big Brother watching us the way George Orwell imagined in 1984, but we most certainly have a horde of strangers with cell phones only too eager to record and post our images and videos online to shame us with whatever they believe we are not doing well. Then there are peoples breaking into online sites to shame people. Our society has become disrespectful of other people’s privacy and feels a constant need to point fingers. I hope Brittney and Ben’s story resonates with you and together we can do our part to keep communications civil to our fellow human beings.
My beta readers and members of my reader’s club are the most fun and supportive group, ever. Thanks to Terri Merkel for being the club cheerleader and spreading good wishes and cheer throughout the day. Thank you, Amber McCallister, my personal assistant, for helping me organize reviews and blog tours. And many, many thanks to beta readers who gave me suggestions and responses that made my story better: Jessica Cassidy, Neena Martin, Corissa Palfrey, Sherelle Ellis, Patricia Shepard, Rachel Williams, Deborah O'Connor, Martina Arguijo, Amber McCallister, Aleen Davis, reggaewoman, Terri Merkel, Chantel Rhondeau, Yomari Suarez-Rivera, Rebecca Austin. Much gratitude goes to my awesome proofreader, Kimberly Dawn, who always manages to find the tiniest error.