Mick smiled at her. “Always a pleasure to see you, Vivienne.” Taking one of her hands in his, he kissed it. “Take care of our boy here.”
Vivienne smiled but only Matt could see that it didn’t fully reach her eyes. He squeezed her hand and they all wished Mick a good night. “Come on, let’s go back to the rooms and get cleaned up.”
They said their good-byes as they each made their way into their own dressing rooms and promised to touch base in a few days. Matt shut the door and looked at Vivienne, who was checking her makeup in the large mirror. It didn’t matter how many times a day he saw her; she always managed to take his breath away.
“I know he’s your manager, but the sight of him annoys me.”
Matt chuckled. “No worries. We all feel that way about him at one time or another. I don’t expect you to be best friends with him. And if it’s any consolation, he doesn’t seem to notice.”
She met his reflection in the mirror and smiled, and Matt felt that familiar tug of arousal.
Reaching behind him, he quietly locked the door and walked up behind her. His hands immediately went to her hips as he nuzzled her neck.
“Mmm,” she purred. “That feels good.”
“You think so?” he asked, breathing in her sweet scent, watching their reflection in the mirror.
“I do.” She wiggled her bottom against him and grinned when she felt his reaction to her.
“Do you remember the first time you were in my dressing room?”
Her eyes went wide. “Do you?” she teased and then let out a squeal of delight when he gently bit her.
“I remember,” he growled playfully. “I opened that door to you, and you were so damn beautiful and sexy and everything I had ever fantasized about.” His hands roamed up her sides, over her ribs, and rested on the swell of her breasts. “Faded blue jeans, a tight black T-shirt…”
Her blush heated her skin, and she looked away for a minute. “Matt, you’ve told me this before.”
“I know,” he said, his voice a low rumble. Slowly, he spun her around and waited until she looked up at him. “Do you know what I wanted to do to you that night? Right there in that dressing room?”
Her blush deepened, and he knew she was thinking exactly what he was thinking.
“How about I show you?” he suggested, lowering his head to kiss and nip at the sensitive skin on her neck.
Vivienne’s head fell back as she sighed. “What if…what if someone comes in?”
“The door’s locked.”
“What about…your shower?” She was panting now and writhing against him.
“It can wait.”
“What about—?”
He stopped her line of questioning as he captured her lips and kissed her as he had that very first time—hungrily. She instantly responded to him, and it wasn’t long before clothes fell away and his words from that long ago night came true—she was his every fantasy come to life.
For more Samantha Chase check out
The Shaughnessy Brothers series
A Sky Full of Stars
On sale June 2017
Vivienne Forrester’s Black Bean and Corn Guacamole
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 (15.25-ounce) can sweet corn, drained
1/2 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and diced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper, or to taste
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, or to taste (optional)
Stir together red bell pepper, red onion, garlic, sweet corn, black beans, and avocado in a large bowl.
Mix lime juice, salt, black pepper, and cilantro into avocado mixture until desired texture is achieved.
Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy!
Vivienne’s Chicken Salad Baguettes
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and white pepper to taste
4 crispy French bread rolls
Boil and cool chicken breasts, chop into small cubes, and place in a bowl.
Finely chop the celery and add to the chicken. Season with salt and white pepper to taste.
Add the mayonnaise and honey, and mix everything together.
Warm the rolls in an oven, cut them in half before adding spoonfuls of chicken salad, and enjoy!
Vivienne’s Orange-Colored Soup
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (approximately 1 cup)
1 cup turnip, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 cup butternut squash, peeled, chopped, and seeds discarded
1 cup carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 cup sweet potato, peeled and chopped
5 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Salt, to taste
1/2 lb. thinly sliced prosciutto
Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent. Add apple, turnip, squash, carrot, and sweet potato; sauté 5 minutes. Add the broth, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Cool slightly.
When cooled, puree with a handheld mixer, food processor, or blender. Pour the pureed soup back into the pan and reheat until warmed. Add syrup, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste.
In a separate pan, fry prosciutto on medium heat until crispy (like bacon). Remove from pan and place on paper towels to cool.
Serve soup in bowls, crumble the prosciutto on top, and enjoy!
Matty Reed’s Grilled-to-Perfection Steaks
4 1¼ to 1½-inch-thick boneless rib eye or New York strip steaks (about 12 ounces each), trimmed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
About 20 minutes before grilling, remove the steaks from the refrigerator and allow to reach room temperature.
Combine salt, black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder in a bowl.
Heat grill to high. Brush the steaks on both sides with olive oil and season liberally with seasoning mixture. Place the steaks on the grill and cook until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes per side, until desired doneness.
Transfer the steaks to a cutting board or platter, tent loosely with foil, and let rest 5 minutes before serving.
Keep reading for a sneak peek at
Book five in the beloved Shaughnessy Brothers series by Samantha Chase
Prologue
The sky was full of stars. Looking up at them had Owen Shaughnessy feeling peace for the first time in days.
He had snuck out of the house and was currently standing on the small hill in the far corner of the yard—far away from the lights and noise. Part of the reasoning was so he could get a better glimpse of the night sky, but the rest was because he couldn’t bear to be around the crowd of people inside.
Today had been his mother’s funeral.
Even thinking of it made him want to cry again. And now he could do it without an audience.
Looking up at the darkened sky, Owen let out a shaky sigh. His heart hurt. Everyone said it was normal, but for once, that didn’t make him feel better.
Owen knew he was different—no one ever called him or referred to him as being no
rmal. He was smarter and far more serious than other kids, and that made him a target for bullies and those who were mean-spirited. His only saving grace was a twin brother who was popular and didn’t mind coming to Owen’s rescue on a daily basis.
Yes, he was fortunate to have Riley, and now with their mother gone, Owen knew he was going to need his brother more than ever. If the steady flow of tears didn’t start to let up, Owen figured he would get picked on at school for being a crybaby on top of everything else.
His three older brothers would look out for him too, but they were in different schools and had their own grief to deal with. Another shuddery sigh came out as he looked up and saw one star shining brighter than the others. Logically, Owen knew it to be Sirius, but his heart tried to tell him it was his mother looking down and smiling at him.
Fresh tears threatened to fall.
This was something they used to do together—stargazing. It had been his mother who bought him his first telescope, and it had been his mother who would sit out here with him on clear nights and let him talk all about the cosmos.
“Tell me what we see tonight,” Lillian Shaughnessy said.
At six years of age, Owen had already begun studying the solar system in earnest, and his mother let him teach her on their nightly explorations. “You see that star over there?” he asked, pointing toward the sky.
Beside him, his mother chuckled. “You’ll have to be more specific, Owen. It looks like there are a million stars out tonight.”
It was true—the sky was particularly clear tonight. “The really bright one,” he replied seriously. “If you look to the side of the moon, you can see it.”
“Ah,” she began, “now I see it. It definitely seems bigger and brighter than the rest of them.”
“It is. I’m going to ask Mrs. Peters if she can find me a book on the stars tomorrow at school.”
Lillian smiled. “I thought you had one of those already.”
He shook his head. “All of my books have been about the planets. I’m going to talk about Jupiter tomorrow for show-and-tell.”
“Tell me something about Jupiter,” she prompted, her tone just as solemn as his. “What are you going to share with the class?”
“You can see four of Jupiter’s moons with a pair of binoculars at night. Also, Jupiter spins fast; it only takes ten hours to go from night to day on Jupiter. And because of that, its middle has been stretched out. So instead of being round like the other planets, it’s short and fat. Kind of like when someone spins pizza dough fast to stretch it out. This shape is called an oblate spheroid.”
Lillian looked down at Owen and smiled. “Wow! Very impressive. And I liked the way you used the analogy of the pizza dough. Very clever. You gave a good visual to understand.”
He shrugged. “It won’t matter. They’ll still make fun of me for it.”
She frowned. “Why do you say that?”
Another shrug. “They all bring in stuff like frogs or their remote-control cars for show-and-tell. I’m the only one who talks about science.” He paused. “Maybe I should just bring in one of my toys or something.”
“Maybe you can bring in your telescope,” she suggested.
Owen’s eyes lit up. “Really? You’d let me do that?”
Lillian nodded. “Absolutely.”
“But…but what if something happens to it? What if someone touches it or breaks it?”
“Hmm…that is a possibility,” she said thoughtfully. “What if I brought it up to the school and dropped it off right before show-and-tell and then took it home?”
Owen studied her for a moment. “No one else’s mom brings their stuff. I’ll get picked on for that too.”
Lillian crouched down beside him. “Owen Shaughnessy, you listen to me. There is nothing wrong with you. Do you understand me?” Her tone was gentle, but her eyes were a little fierce. “You are an amazing young man with a brilliant mind. I don’t want you living your life in fear of what other people do or think. You can’t control that. You can only be the best person you can be, and if they don’t like it, then that’s their problem.”
“But Mom—”
“I’ll tell you what,” she quickly interrupted. “I’ll bring your telescope to the office and have them call you to come and pick it up. And when you’re done, you can bring it back to the office and I’ll take it home. How does that sound?”
He nodded solemnly. “Thanks, Mom.”
She smiled. “One day, Owen, you’re going to realize how amazing you are. And people are going to flock to you because of it. You’re going to make a big difference in this world. Believe me.”
Somehow he doubted it, but it was nice of her to say it. Rather than respond, he looked back up at the sky. “Did you know that Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system? Earth could fit inside Jupiter more than a thousand times.”
Without a word, Lillian stood back up and put her arm around him and listened as he told her more about what he had learned about Jupiter.
Who was going to stand out here and listen to him talk about astronomy now? It was something only the two of them did together—it was their special time.
Walking over to the shed, Owen went inside and pulled out his telescope and set it up. Maybe he’d be able to get a better look at Sirius tonight and convince his heart that it really was just a star he was seeing and not his mother looking down on him.
Although, for the first time in his life, Owen Shaughnessy wanted to prove science wrong. As much as he hated to admit it, he secretly hoped that when he looked through the lens, it wasn’t a binary star system he would see but the smiling, understanding, and loving gaze of his mother.
Chapter 1
There was a girl in Owen Shaughnessy’s class.
A. Girl.
Okay, a woman. And she wasn’t a scientist and she wasn’t awkward. She was…pretty. Beautiful, actually. Though he had no idea if she was awkward or not. She had walked into the lecture hall minutes ago, and there were only five minutes left in his talk, so…why was she here? Maybe she was the girlfriend of one of his students?
Looking around the room, he ruled that out. He seemed to be the only one taking note of her presence. He chanced another glance her way, and she smiled. He felt a nervous flutter in the region of his belly, and as he continued to look at her, her smile grew.
And now Owen felt like he was going to throw up.
He immediately forced his gaze away and looked at the notes in front of him. “Next time we’ll be discussing dust trails and dust tails—which represent large and small dust particles, respectively. Please refer to your syllabus for the required reading material.” Lifting his head, Owen scanned the large lecture hall and noted the almost universally bored expressions staring back at him.
Except for her. She was still smiling.
He cleared his throat before adding, “Class dismissed.”
There was a collective sigh of relief in the room as everyone stood and began collecting their belongings. As the students began to file past him, Owen did his best to keep his eyes down and not react to the words he was hearing.
Geek. Nerd. Weird. Awkward.
Yeah, Owen not only heard the words being murmured but knew they were being used to describe him. It was even worse considering the students in the room were all interested in the same subject he was—astronomy. So even in a group of his peers, he was still the odd man out. He shrugged. He’d learned not to let the hurtful words land—to fester—but sometimes they stung a little.
Okay, a lot.
Packing up his satchel, he kept his head down as the class of two hundred students made their way out. Or escaped. Maybe that was the better word for it. He didn’t make eye contact with any of them—he simply went about his task of collecting his papers and his belongings so the next instructor could come in and set up on time. He was nothing
if not polite and conscientious.
His phone beeped to indicate a new text, and he couldn’t help but smile when he pulled out his phone and saw it was from his twin brother, Riley.
Skype. Tonight. 8 your time.
Refusing to acknowledge how once again he and his brother were in sync with one another—Riley loved to say it was because they were twins—Owen couldn’t help but be grateful for the timing. There were just times when he needed to talk to someone—or, more specifically, Riley—and there he was.
And the more he commented on it, the more Riley would go on about twin telepathy.
It was ridiculous.
As a man of science, there was no way Owen could accept the phenomenon as fact. Coincidence? Yes. Fact? No. His phone beeped again with a second text from Riley.
Whatever you’re stressing about, we’ll discuss.
He read the text and chuckled. “Nope,” he murmured. “It was just a coincidence.”
The last of the students exited the lecture hall as he slipped the phone back into his satchel, and Owen relished the silence. This was how he preferred things—quiet. Peaceful. He enjoyed his solitude, and if it were at all possible, he’d stick to speaking at strictly a few select conferences and then spend the rest of the day doing research and mapping the night sky.
“Excuse me,” a soft feminine voice said.
His entire body froze, and he felt his mouth go dry. Looking up, Owen saw her. Up close, she was even more beautiful. Long blond hair, cornflower-blue eyes, and a smile that lit up her entire face. And that light was shining directly at him.
She wore a long, gauzy skirt with a white tank top. There was a large portfolio case hanging over her shoulder, along with the sweater she’d obviously chosen to do without in the too-warm classroom, and multiple bangle bracelets on her arm.
Gypsy.
No. That wasn’t the right word. Gypsies were more of the dark-haired variety and wore a lot of makeup. This woman was too soft and delicate and feminine to meet that description.
One More Kiss Page 29