His eyebrows jumped. “Really? Great.” He smiled, though I couldn’t decide if it was forced or nervous. Maybe both. “We’re leaving at six thirty, so just meet me in front of the house.”
“Sure,” I said. “I’ll be there.”
He left the barn and left me standing there wondering just who the hell he was and what he’d done with Dustin King. First he was looking down his nose at me and telling me to steer clear of certain horses, and now this? Offering to let me work with his horses and inviting me out this evening?
Shaking my head, I went back to work. I wasn’t so sure about socializing with Dustin, but now that the offer was on the table, I did like the idea of getting off the ranch for a little while. I’d made all of two trips off the property since I got here, once to the grocery store in town and once to run an errand for John. Apparently, it was possible to get some cabin fever when the cabin in question was thirty-five wide-open acres of horse country.
After I’d brought the horses in from their pastures and made sure everyone was fed, I went back to my side of the duplex to get cleaned up. It occurred to me as I looked through my clothes in the old oak dresser that I should have asked Dustin what people customarily wore to this place. I hadn’t been to any country bars before—I assumed that was what country club meant in this context—and for all I knew, this could have been a jeans-and-a-cowboy-hat place, or the women could be wearing giant square-dance skirts. Not that I’d feel any less out of place either way.
And whatever the dress code, I hadn’t packed many clothes to begin with. Most of what I brought with me was for wearing around the farm. Jeans. T-shirts. Heavier clothes in case I was still here when that bitter Eastern Washington winter rolled in.
At least I’d grabbed a few favorite earrings and bracelets; they had some sentimental value, and I guess I must have been afraid someone would take off with them if I left them in the house. And I did have the foresight to bring a handful of button-up blouses on that off chance I decided to go someplace that didn’t involve dust and mud. But were any of those appropriate for the place we were going tonight?
I glanced up at the mirror above the dresser and laughed. Was this really me? Fretting over having nothing to wear? Wow. That was new.
But then, so was going out with someone who was this confusing. And attractive. And unreadable. And…attractive.
I grabbed a pair of jeans and a halfway decent white blouse. Once I’d showered, changed clothes and covered up the fading bruise on my face, I scrutinized myself in the mirror again.
“Is that really what you’re wearing?”
I bit my lip, and something in my stomach twisted as I avoided my reflection. There was nothing wrong with this, was there? I mean, it was a country-western bar. Jeans and boots would be fine.
“Amy, I really think you should—”
Shut up, Sam. Just shut up.
I put back my shoulders and stared down my reflection. This was as good as it was going to get tonight, so hopefully it was good enough for Dustin.
That thought made me jump, and I held my own gaze in the mirror.
Good enough for Dustin? Since when did I care?
But then I thought about how he might look tonight, cleaned up and clean shaven, all straightened up and pressed in that way good-looking cowboys did so damned well, and yes, yes, I did care. If only for tonight, even if it meant I really had gone irretrievably off the deep end, I cared.
The most potent lover she’s ever had…and the morning sickness to prove it!
Reilly’s Wildcard
© 2013 Anne Rainey
Blackwater, Book 4
Lucy Rice knew that a night of uninhibited passion with sex-on-a-stick Reilly Jennings would leave a lasting impression on her body. But never in a million years did she expect to see a plus sign appear on that little white stick.
Pregnant? She can’t believe her eyes. When a second test confirms it, Lucy admits the truth. She’s about to be a one-night-stand mommy. How’s that for luck?
Reilly never wanted the responsibility of fatherhood, much less tie himself to an infuriating, headstrong woman like Lucy. Still, his sense of honor won’t let him abandon his baby like his biological parents abandoned him. Yet it isn’t long before he’s captivated by the coming baby—and the mother carrying it.
Lucy is rocked with all sorts of conflicting feelings for the father of her child. Unfortunately, she’s been down that road before, and it left her a blubbering mess. Not again. No way, no how. Except Reilly seems hell-bent on keeping her close. Maybe it’s the hormones, but Lucy’s beginning to forget why that’s a bad idea…
Warning: This title contains a tender and romantic man bent on proving he can be more than a good time, and a woman in serious need of the love of an honorable man.
Enjoy the following excerpt for Reilly’s Wildcard:
Lucy reached out to him, and a familiar warmth seeped into her. What was it about Reilly that made her feel as if she’d known him her entire life? “Annabelle was too young to go through what she did. The older I got, the angrier I became. At first I was mad at my mom for dying on us and leaving us with Dad. Irrational, I know.”
“I think it’s a natural reaction, given the circumstances.” A beat of silence filled the air before he asked, “Where is your dad now?”
Reilly’s calm, gentle voice and feather-light touches over her fingers relaxed her the way nothing else ever had. She couldn’t remember a time when she and David had talked like this. Why was it so easy with Reilly? It scared her that she was opening herself to him so quickly.
Lucy thought of his question and cringed. “We don’t really speak. After Annabelle joined the army and I went off to college, Dad pretty much washed his hands of us. I tried to reach out at first, but you can’t make someone love you. They either do or they don’t.”
Reilly frowned. “His loss, if you ask me.”
“That’s pretty much the way I look at it.” Her voice trembled. The emotional topic or Reilly’s nearness? She had a sneaking suspicion it was a little of both.
He leaned closer and murmured, “I’m glad you came to the restaurant tonight.”
“Me too,” she whispered as her breathing increased and her temperature spiked.
Reilly angled his head and touched his lips to hers. It was a barely there caress that had Lucy craving so much more. She moaned and pressed more firmly against his mouth. A growl emanated from his chest; then his tongue teased at hers. Lucy closed her eyes and drifted into the kiss, tasting the delicious flavor of Reilly. She cupped his lean jaw in her hand, relishing the roughness of his five o’clock shadow against her palm.
He lifted an inch and said, “God, you are so beautiful, Lucy.”
She wanted to reply, but he stole her words with another scorching mating of lips. Her pulse beat a wild rhythm, and she suddenly took control, sliding her tongue into his mouth, licking at the wet warmth she found there. Reilly groaned and pulled away. Had she done something wrong? When he stood and stared down at her, dark desire etched into the rugged features of his face, a thrill of excitement raced up and down Lucy’s spine.
“Are you sure about this?” Reilly asked, his hands fisted at his sides.
As an answer, Lucy took hold of the right strap on her dress and tugged it downward. The left one went next. Soon her lace-covered breasts were exposed.
“I must be dreaming,” Reilly murmured as his hot gaze traveled her length. “That’s the only explanation.”
“That goes for both of us,” she replied. As Reilly licked his lips, Lucy’s nipples tingled and pulled into tight peaks beneath the see-through fabric.
She stood and slid the side zipper down, watching as Reilly froze in place. A blazing inferno roared out of control inside her. For the first time in her life, Lucy felt desirable and uninhibited. She let the dress fall to the floor and stepped out of it. Reilly slowly moved closer. He reminded Lucy of a great, prowling leopard.
“How can you say that your
sister is breathtaking when you’re standing in front of me in nothing but a pair of baby-blue lace panties and bra? Sexy high-heeled shoes and all that dark, shiny hair spilling down your back, caressing your pretty ass?” He shook his head. “Not touching you is killing me here, sweetheart.”
His words tore away the last of her reservations. “So touch me.”
He cursed under his breath and seized her hips, pulling her close. Lucy lost her balance and tipped forward, landing against him.
“I want you so bad it hurts,” he groaned.
“It’s the same for me,” she confessed as she flung her arms around his neck and nestled her pelvis into the rigid length beneath his jeans. “But I don’t even know where to start. It’s been too long, and I’m…” Lucy didn’t know how to put into words the fact she felt that this was all so new to her. The relationship she’d had with David had never been terribly passionate. The sparks flying between her and Reilly now were in a class all their own.
He hummed his approval. “That’s okay, because I’ve got plenty of ideas. Hell, you have no clue what I want to do to you right now,” he whispered against the shell of her ear. “Be sure, Lucy.”
“Please,” she protested, “if you stop now, I just might clobber you.”
He chuckled. “Not a chance.” He dropped to his knees in front of her and rubbed his face against her belly. “Mm, your skin is silky soft.” Reilly slipped his arms around her and cupped her ass in his hands, squeezing and fondling. He effectively held her still while he plied her tender flesh. “You’re so goddamn sexy.” He reached up and pinched her nipple. Lucy whimpered. “I could come in my pants just staring at you.”
As he looked up at her, Lucy’s cheeks heated. Reilly slipped his fingers under the waistband of her panties and inched them down over her hips. When they pooled at her feet, she stepped out of them, her thigh muscles quivering as her need mounted. She released a breath she hadn’t even known she was holding and asked, “Shouldn’t we take this to the bedroom?”
“Soon,” he answered. “First, spread your legs for me. Show me how much you want me.”
Lucy did as he commanded. There was no possible way she could deny him. When Reilly touched a finger to the dark curls at her cleft, Lucy nearly exploded.
“Ah, that’s it, sweetheart.” Reilly stroked her clit. “Damn, you are hot for me, aren’t you? So nice and wet.” He looked deep into her eyes, as if desperate for her to submit to him entirely. She nearly begged him for more, but his fingers searched and parted her sex, and Lucy’s thoughts scattered. When he slipped a finger inside her wet heat, Lucy flung her head back and cried out, helpless to the craving this man provoked in her. She abandoned all sense of modesty, dug her fingers deep into Reilly’s hair and pulled him closer still.
“Yeah, that’s what I like,” he said in a low voice. “I want you all wild and eager for me.”
Reilly was merciless in his ministrations. He held her still with one powerful hand while the other palmed her mound. Lucy pulled his head toward her in a silent plea for his mouth to replace his fingers.
“No,” he softly warned, “tell me what you want. Say it.”
“Reilly,” she pleaded, knowing damn well she was unable to actually form complete sentences at this point.
“If you want my tongue inside you, you’re going to have to ask me nicely.”
Lucy cursed and tugged at his hair, but the man wasn’t budging an inch. “Stop teasing me,” she cried.
“I want to kiss your pretty little pussy, sweetheart,” he murmured. “I want to taste that sweet juice so badly, but I want to hear the lovely words from you first. That’s not so much to ask, is it?”
Her face burned as she attempted to form the words he wanted. “I want your mouth on me.” Lucy took his dark, fiery gaze as a sign that she should continue. “I want your tongue thrusting inside me, and I desperately want you to push me to the floor and take me as hard and as fast as you want. For as long as you want, until we’re both limp and sweating. I want you, Reilly, and I’m not going to stop wanting you, that’s for damn sure.”
Silence gathered between them for several heartbeats, and then: “Jesus, woman.”
The Princess and the Porn Star
Lauren Gallagher
She’s got the moves. He’s got the heat. Will their hearts catch the rhythm?
Rachel Taylor’s manager has to be kidding. A porn star dancing beside her in her next music video? She didn’t claw her way back from near obscurity in the pop music world only to become a laughingstock all over again.
Yet the moment she meets Lee, a.k.a. the infamous Buck Harder, their chemistry sizzles. There’s much more to the man behind the stage name than the obvious attributes that make him so successful, and soon she’s fantasizing about sharing more than just a stage.
In only a few steps, they find a perfect, dance-floor groove hot enough to melt the camera lens. But when the video’s release blows up in their faces, her record label exercises an obscure but ironclad clause—stay away from each other. Or else.
Meeting in secret seems the most delicious solution. But they can’t hide this kind of heat for long…and when the paparazzi sniff them out, she realizes choosing to stay with the man she’s fallen for could cause her to fall off the pop music map—permanently.
Warning: Let’s just say there’s a reason Buck Harder went into his line of work, and it ain’t his pretty smile. Wink wink.
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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B
Cincinnati OH 45249
The Princess and the Porn Star
Copyright © 2013 by Lauren Gallagher
ISBN: 978-1-61921-590-0
Edited by Linda Ingmanson
Cover by Angela Waters
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: May 2013
www.samhainpublishing.com
Table of Contents
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Epilogue
About the Author
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