by Lynn James
Devon shook her head. “Not unless I said something that hurt you.”
Elaine smiled. “You didn’t say anything that wasn’t true.” Another step.
Devon looked her square in the eyes. “I wanted to kiss you. I needed to kiss you.”
Elaine’s smile grew. “To make a point?” She was just a step away from Devon now.
“At first…yes. But you know that when it comes to kissing you I can’t stop at just a peck. Once I touch your lips I can’t stop and…Oh God, Elaine, I’m so sorry if I embarrassed you or got you into any kind of trouble.”
Elaine pulled Devon into her arms. “Right now every man and lesbian out there wishes they were me.” Elaine gave her a crooked smile. “Hell, I think half the straight women wish they were too. You are a beautiful and amazing woman and I am so incredibly in love with you, Doctor Devon McKinney.”
“I’m so completely in love with you too Captain Thomas.” Devon smiled sheepishly and bit her lip again. “So how much trouble will you be in?”
Elaine looked steadily into Devon’s eyes so she could see the truth there. “None. And even if I were I would gladly accept it. Grace is the one who brought our personal life into the workplace and she will be the one who deals with the consequences. I’m done paying for her mistakes.”
“Enough about her, then.” Devon slid her hand into Elaine’s ash-covered hair and pulled her in for a soulful kiss. When they pulled apart to breathe Devon whispered, “I’ve been dreaming about that every single night since you left.”
“Devon, if I didn’t need a shower so bad I would make love to you right here on my desk.”
Devon smiled and ran her finger along Elaine’s bottom lip. “As tempting as that sounds, I wasn’t lying about what I told Grace out there. One of my favorite things about your job is how much I love helping you get clean after a hard day’s work.”
Elaine felt her knees weaken.
“Can you come home now or do you have to stay longer?”
“I have some reports that need to be filed, but I can submit them online. And since I’ve been gone for so long I have a few days off. What about you?”
“To keep myself from going crazy worrying about you, I worked…a lot. So I arranged to have a few days off.”
Elaine smiled. “You did, huh?”
“Yep, I figured since you were busy saving our forests you might need a little pampering when you got home.”
The prospect of being in Devon’s arms, making love, sleeping and waking up to do it all over again seemed to make her feel not so tired after all. “What did you have in mind?”
Devon hooked her arm around Elaine’s. “Why don’t you grab your gear and I’ll take you home and show you. We might even find the time to call for delivery to keep your strength up.”
“Oh God, woman!”
Devon leaned forward and purred in Elaine’s ear, “You can leave your truck here. I’ll bring you back to get it in a few days.”
“A few days?”
“You won’t need it before then.”
“I won’t?”
Devon smiled. “I’m still debating about whether I’m actually going to let you out of bed over the next few days.”
Elaine swallowed and suddenly couldn’t get the office door open fast enough. “Lead the way, my love. I’ll gladly follow you anywhere.”
Heads turned at Devon’s laughter.
Someone called, “Heading out, Cap?”
“I’m going home,” she answered as she slipped her arm around her lover’s waist and they walked out into the sunshine together.
Publications from Bella Books, Inc.
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THE GRASS WIDOW by Nanci Little. Aidan Blackstone is nineteen, unmarried and pregnant and has no reason to think that the year 1876 won’t be her last. Joss Bodett has lost her family but desperately clings to their land. A richly told story of frontier survival that picks up with the generation of women where Patience and Sarah left off.
978-1-59493-189-5 $12.95
SMOKEY O by Celia Cohen. Insult “Mac” MacDonnell and insult the entire Delaware Blue Diamond team. Smokey O’Neill has just insulted Mac and then finds she’s been traded to Delaware. The games are not limited to the baseball field!
978-1-59493-198-7 $12.95
WICKED GAMES by Ellen Hart. Never have mysteries and secrets been closer to home in this eighth installment of this award-winning lesbian cozy mystery series. Jane Lawless’s neighbors bring puzzles and peril—and that’s just the beginning.
978-1-59493-185-7 $14.95
NOT EVERY RIVER by Robbi McCoy. It’s the hottest city in the U.S. and it’s not just the weather that’s heating up. For Kim and Randi are forced to question everything they thought they knew about themselves before they can risk their fiery hearts on the biggest gamble of all.
978-1-59493-182-6 $14.95
HOUSE OF CARDS by Nat Burns. Cards are played, but the game is gossip. Kaylen Strauder has never wanted it to be about her. But the time is fast-approaching when she must decide which she needs more: her community or Eda Byrne.
978-1-59493-203-8 $14.95
RETURN TO ISIS by Jean Stewart. The award-winning Isis sci-fi series features Jean Stewart’s vision of a committed colony of women dedicated to preserving their way of life, even after the apocalypse. Mysteries have been forgotten, but survival depends on remembering. Book one in series.
978-1-59493-193-2 $12.95
1ST IMPRESSIONS by Kate Calloway. Rookie PI Cassidy James has her first case. Her investigation into the murder of Erica Trinidad’s uncle isn’t welcomed by the local sheriff, especially since the delicious, seductive Erica is their prime suspect. first in series. Author’s augmented and expanded edition.
978-1-59493-192-5 $12.95
BEACON OF LOVE by Ann Roberts. Twenty-five years after their families put an end to a relationship that hadn’t even begun, Stephanie returns to Oregon to find many things have changed...except her feelings for Paula.
978-1-59493-180-2 $14.95
ABOVE TEMPTATION by Karin Kallmaker. It’s supposed to be like any other case, except this time they’re chasing one of their own. As fraud investigators Tamara Sterling and Kip Barrett try to catch a thief, they realize they can have anything they want—except each other.
978-1-59493-179-6 $14.95
AN EMERGENCE OF GREEN by Katherine V. Forrest. Carolyn had no idea her new neighbor jumped the fence to enjoy her swimming pool. The discovery leads to choices she never anticipated in an intense, sensual story of discovery and risk, consequences and triumph. Originally released in 1986.
978-1-59493-217-5 $14.95
CRAZY FOR LOVING by Jaye Maiman. Officially hanging out her shingle as a private investigator, Robin Miller is getting her life on track. Just as Robin discovers it’s hard to follow a dead man, she walks in. KT Bellflower, sultry and devastating... Lammy winner and second in series.
978-1-59493-195-6 $14.95
LOVE WAITS by Gerri Hill. The All-American girl and the love she left behind—it’s been twenty years since Ashleigh and Gina parted and now they’re back to the place where nothing was simple and love didn’t wait.
978-1-59493-186-4 $14.95
HANNAH FREE: THE BOOK by Claudia Allen. Based on the film festival hit movie starring Sharon Gless. Hannah’s story is funny, scathing and witty as she navigates life with aplomb—but always comes home to Rachel. 32 pages of color photographs plus bonus behind-the-scenes movie information.
978-1-59493-172-7 $19.95
END OF THE ROPE by Jackie Calhoun. Meg Klein has two enduring loves—horses and Nicky Hennessey. Nicky is there for her when she most needs help, but then an attractive vet throws Meg’s carefully balanced world out of kilter.
978-1-59493-176-5 $14.95
THE LONG TRAIL by Penny Hayes. When schoolteacher Blanche Bar
tholomew and dance hall girl Teresa Stark meet their feelings are powerful—and completely forbidden—in Starcross Texas. In search of a safe future, they flee, daring to take a covered wagon across the forbidding prairie.
978-1-59493-196-3 $12.95
UP UP AND AWAY by Catherine Ennis. Sarah and Margaret have a video. The mob wants it. Flying for their lives, two women discover more than secrets.
978-1-59493-215-1 $12.95
CITY OF STRANGERS by Diana Rivers. A captive in a gilded cage, young Solene plots her escape, but the rulers of Hernorium have other plans for Solene—and her people. Breathless lesbian fantasy story also perfect for teen readers.
978-1-59493-183-3 $14.95
ROBBER’S WINE by Ellen Hart. Belle Dumont is the first dead of summer. Jane Lawless, Belle’s old friend, suspects coldhearted murder. Lammy-winning seventh novel in critically acclaimed cozy mystery series.
978-1-59493-184-0 $14.95
APPARITION ALLEY by Katherine V. Forrest. Kate Delafield has solved hundreds of cases, but the one that baffles her most is her own shooting. Book six in series.
978-1-883523-65-7 $14.95
STERLING ROAD BLUES by Ruth Perkinson. It was a simple declaration of love. But the entire state of Virginia wants to weigh in, leaving teachers Carrie Tomlinson and Audra Malone caught in the crossfire—and with love troubles of their own.
978-1-59493-187-1 $14.95
LILY OF THE TOWER by Elizabeth Hart. Agnes Headey, taking refuge from a storm at the Netherfield estate, stumbles into dark family secrets and something more…Meticulously researched historical romance.
978-1-59493-177-2 $14.95
LETTING GO by Ann O’Leary. Kelly has decided that luscious, successful Laura should be hers. For now. Laura might even be agreeable. But where does that leave Kate?
978-1-59493-194-9 $12.95
MURDER TAKES TO THE HILLS by Jessica Thomas. Renovations, shady business deals, a stalker—and it’s not even tourist season yet for PI Alex Peres and her best four-legged pal Fargo. Sixth in this cozy Provincetown-based series.
978-1-59493-178-9 $14.95
Table of Contents
About the Author
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Publications from Bella Books, Inc.