by Nic Tatano
"And yet after all that you challenged him again. A guy half a foot taller, seventy pounds heavier and incredibly strong."
He smiles and runs his hand across my cheek. "And look who won. David beats Goliath again."
"You know, that gives me an idea for a nickname for you."
"What?"
"Slingshot."
He shrugs. "I'll take it under advisement. By the way, young lady, the next time I tell you I want to get strong for you, please don't argue with me."
I put out my lower lip in a pout and give him my sad little girl look, which I know he can't resist. "Yes, Sir. I'm sorry I was a bad girl."
He shakes his head and smiles. "Dammit, I hate when you go all Strawberry Shortcake on me. You know I can't stay mad at you when you hit me with that."
I shoot him a big smile. "Just my way of controlling you. You may have beaten a guy built like Thor but you're no match for a hundred and fifteen pound redhead."
"I know, and it pisses me off that I'm powerless against you. So fine, you're forgiven. Though I don't expect you to obey on anything else."
"You got that right, Mister. But seriously, getting back to what happened, Ryan. After you sent my father's engrams into his mind. There was this side of you I've never seen. You had this look, like, I don't know. A gunslinger. All the rules were off the table. Trip died right in front of us and you didn't blink. It's not like you see people die every day. Or have a hand in it. I never knew you could be so tough. You've always been such a kind, gentle person."
"Jillian, for such a smart girl you sometimes really miss the obvious."
"And that would be?"
"You're worth fighting for and protecting. Regardless of the odds. And when it comes to you, there are no rules and I won't fight fair."
My eyes get misty as I smile and give him a soft kiss, then rest my head back on his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. Mom's right. The boy I grew up with is now a man.
One worth fighting for.
And what I felt for Trip isn't half of what I feel for Ryan right now. The electricity is off the charts. The dreams that tortured me are gone, erased forever from my memory.
Harder for a guy, my ass.
"You know what, Ryan?"
"What, Sparks?"
"I think I've got things backwards. The hundred and fifteen pound redhead is powerless against you."
"About damn time." Ryan reaches over and strokes my hair. "Hey, with all that's been going on I haven't had the chance to do any holiday shopping. So what do you want for Christmas, Sparks?"
I lean up and rest my chin on his chest as I look at him. "Got everything I want right here."
Also by Nic Tatano…
The Adventures of Jillian Spectre
Nic Tatano
I've always been a writer of some sort, having spent my career working as a reporter, anchor or producer in television news. Fiction is a lot more fun, since you don't have to deal with those pesky things known as facts.
I spent fifteen years as a television news reporter and anchor. My work has taken me from the floors of the Democratic and Republican National Conventions to Ground Zero in New York to Jay Leno's backyard. My stories have been seen on NBC, ABC and CNN. I still work as a freelance network field producer for FOX, NBC, CBS and ABC.
I grew up in the New York City metropolitan area and now live on the Gulf Coast where I will never shovel snow again. I'm happily married to a math teacher and we share our wonderful home with our tortoiseshell tabby cat, Gypsy.
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About HarperImpulse
HarperImpulse is an exciting new range of romance fiction brought to you from the women’s fiction team at HarperCollins. Our aim is to break new talent from debut authors and import the hottest trends from the US, bringing you the very best in romance. Whether that is through short reads for your mobile phone or epic sagas that span the generations we want to proudly publish romance fiction that gets everybody talking.
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Writers, we are simply looking for good stories! So, what are you waiting for? To submit, e-mail us at [email protected].
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