Twenty Times Tempted: A Sexy Contemporary Romance Collection

by Petrova, Em

  He rubbed his hands up and down her arms before drawing her close. “Are you okay? The baby okay?”

  “Yes, we’re fine. I’m a little shaken but nothing I can’t handle.”

  “Did you mean it?” Walker asked.

  “Mean what?”

  “That you’d give up everything for me?”

  A smile spread across her face. “Of course. That is, if you want me.”

  He drew her close. “Baby, how could I not? I’ve never wanted anyone so bad. I knew you were trouble from the moment I set eyes on you. I knew you’d make me break all the rules.”

  “Are you glad you did, though?”

  “Damn right I am.” He cupped her face and gazed into those blue eyes that had captured him from the beginning. “I’d break every rule over and over again for you. For you and the baby. I want you both, Waverly.”

  She leaned up to brush her lips across his. “I think we’d like that very much.”

  Epilogue

  “There’s something about a man with a baby.”

  Waverly chuckled and glanced over to where Justice was looking. Jake looked perfectly at ease with the three-month-old in his arms. Her heart melted a little when he eased Lilly closer and patted her back. Who would have thought a rough, tough soldier could be such an amazing father?

  Well, she supposed she could, but only after meeting Jake. He had been amazing throughout the rest of her pregnancy and once Lilly was born, he had immediately taken to the role as her father. No one would ever know he wasn’t her dad and as far as they were both concerned, he was.

  “He’s definitely a natural,” Waverly agreed.

  They watched Jake with the rest of his friends for a few moments. All the men seemed enamored with Lilly and it was quite amusing to see them all talk to her and handle the tiny child. The summer BBQ at the Fox was busy with patrons and there were soldiers everywhere. She suspected a few of the waitresses were very happy with that, though Justice seemed to be ignoring Rocco at the moment.

  “Have you heard from your father?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t expect to either.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not. I might not be living in a luxury apartment but I have so much more now. I hope I never hear from him again but if I do, I’ll have the strength to stand up to him.” She gave Justice a nudge. “I have you to thank for that.”

  “Hey, don’t give me all the credit. I think Walker is the main reason you stuck it out.”

  Now that Waverly was working as assistant manager at the bar, she had grown even closer to Justice, and made more friends locally. With the support of Walker and everyone else, North Carolina had truly begun to feel like home.

  Jake headed her way and passed Lilly into her arms. “I think she could do with a sleep. We’d better get her home.”

  Waverly let Lilly burrow into her and couldn’t resist taking a sniff of her hair and drawing in her scent. Thank goodness she’d found the courage to leave her old life and start a new one or she would have missed out on all of this.

  “I didn’t think she’d last all day.” She put a hand to Jake’s arm. “You can stay if you’d like, I don’t mind.”

  He shook his head. “And pass up time with you, I don’t think so.”

  Justice grinned. “Have fun you two, I’ve got some hungry soldiers to feed.”

  Jake and Waverly strolled down the street to the apartment. They were still looking for a house to buy but for the time being, the apartment was big enough for the three of them. Once they were inside and Lilly was settled, Jake took Waverly in his arms.

  “Do you know how fucking hard it is to keep my hands off you?”

  “It’s only been a morning, Jake!”

  He grabbed her ass. “Yeah, but you’re wearing the cutest dress I’ve ever seen and you look amazing. Every guy there was watching you.”

  She shook her head and grinned. “I didn’t notice every guy. I only cared if you were looking.”

  “Oh, I was looking, baby. I was looking all the time.” He fingered the strap of her summer dress. “Now why don’t you take that thing off and I’ll do a lot more looking.” He kissed her neck. “And touching.” He kissed the curve of her breast. “And tasting.”

  Waverly flicked down one strap then the other. “Look and touch and taste all you want,” she said, shimmying out of her dress. His eyes flared with appreciation. “I’m all yours, Jake.”

  “Yes, you are,” he said with a grin, hauling her close again. “Yes you are.”

  THE END

  Find more Phoenix James here.

  Find J.A. here.

  LOVE’S BATTLE

  J.A. Bailey & Phoenix James

  Chapter One

  Abigail opened the drawer and set about counting her supplies. The US Army was strict about making sure every bandage, pill and roll of medical tape was accounted for. It was the nurses’ jobs to do an inventory at the end of every day.

  A huge yawn came up from what felt like the toes of her ballet flats and creaked her jaw when it released. She clapped a hand over her lips. Not very ladylike. I need to get more than three hours of sleep tonight.

  The quiet in the triage unit lulled her—and worried her. Often the place would slow down to the point where she didn’t think she’d have anything to do the rest of her shift.

  Then all hell would break loose.

  Eyes watering from her yawn, she blinked at the rolls of gauze she was meant to be counting. The scuffing noise behind her brought her head up.

  And her breath caught as a gorgeous soldier came limping in with the help of a buddy.

  “Got a casualty for ya, Miss Abigail,” the friend said with a wide grin.

  They were grubby. And smelled.

  She sighed internally as her gaze wandered down to the man’s foot, held off the floor. The worst was getting a private’s stinky boot and sock off to see what type of injury they were dealing with, but it was her job.

  “Here, get him to the table.” She was met by pinched eyebrows and a glare that sent a shiver through her.

  She didn’t like the way the hurt Army guy looked at her. As if accusing her of causing the pain. His dark brows were drawn and his square jaw set. Mud was smeared across his broad chest, right over his olive drab T-shirt, and his camo fatigue pants were torn at the knee.

  “I got it, Henry. Thanks for the help,” the man all but growled.

  His friend tried to help him onto the pristine white examination table, but the wounded man waved him away.

  She assessed everything about her new patient, including his surly attitude and the thick veins riding down each muscled forearm. Not to mention that he wasn’t the one who smelled—he smelled like clean soap.

  He was a sexy one, for sure, but she wasn’t into soldiers. During her year of working here in Fort Bragg, she’d seen some amazing men. But seeing and touching were two different things.

  Henry circled around her and the table as if to help where he wasn’t wanted.

  “I said I got it!” the man snapped at his comrade.

  The good-natured of the two held up both hands and stepped away to allow him to hop onto the table.

  “Thanks for bringing him in,” Abigail said in her calmest voice to soothe over whatever sting he’d received from the injured man.

  Henry grinned and saluted her.

  “Get outta here, Henry.”

  “Don’t mind Private First Class Gunner’s attitude. He always sounds as if he’s about to bite.”

  The glare Henry received from the man said he might actually bite.

  Abigail hid her smile and came out with a clipboard and a pen. “Name.”

  “Gunner, Robert.” He shot off his number, which she recorded carefully on the form.

  “What’s your reason for being here today?”

  He groaned, swiped his hat off his head and slapped it on the table beside him. Dust rose up from it. “Pretty sure my boot’s full of blood.”

&n
bsp; Her eyes flew open wider and she hurriedly set the clipboard down alongside his hat. “Oh my. What happened?”

  Henry opened his mouth to say, but Gunner leveled a glare at him that sent him back out the door with a wave.

  Gunner issued a loud sigh. “He means well but…”

  “You’re in pain. You’re not in the mood.”

  “I’m not in that much pain. It’s just a cut.”

  “What did you cut it on?” When she looked over his boot, she saw the leather gashed wide open.

  “Wall of Terror.”

  She blinked. She’d heard of it, of course. A wall several stories tall with barbed wire at the top and spear-like objects to avoid on the downside.

  “I’ve heard it’s a right of passage. It means you’re crossing over into the next level of your training as a soldier,” she said. She started to carefully unlace his boot.

  “I’ve completed it four times before this. I never expected to get hung up let alone have my foot flayed open.” He shook it and blood drops splattered on the white floor.

  She winced. “Okay, we definitely need to get this boot off—fast. I need to see how badly you’re bleeding.”

  She grabbed a pair of sharp scissors used to cut off clothing. She held them up and said, “You should lie back for this. I don’t want you passing out.”

  “At the sight of blood?” He made a masculine noise that fed straight into her libido. Her nipples hardened, and she quickly looked away from his handsome face. Rugged features and hazel eyes thick with gold flecks. A heartbreaker, this one.

  “This is my job and you have to listen to me, Private First Class. Please lie back and let me work.”

  At her hard tone, he only smiled. Damn, he could smile the panties right off a nun.

  She pursed her lips. “I mean it.”

  “Fine, okay.” Amusement tinged his tone, and she realized he might not be all growls and fangs. Once he was horizontal, she set about cutting off his boot. The minute the sides that were haphazardly holding the raw edges of his wound together eased off, blood trickled freely.

  “Crap.”

  “Is that a medical term, Doctor?” His deep voice held more amusement.

  “I’m a nurse trained to deal with things like this.” With all possible caution, she got his sock cut free, revealing a wide, jagged cut.

  “Not that I had any doubts before, but this definitely needs stitches.” She bit into her lower lip. “Let’s get the bleeding stopped, and then I’ll call in the doctor.”

  “You won’t be stitching me up?” he asked, leaning on his elbows to stare at her. When his gaze latched onto her lips, she realized she was biting them again. He stared for what felt like a full minute.

  “Bad habit,” she blurted out and felt a hot blush climb her face.

  “Hm.” His noise came out as a sexy grunt.

  She dipped her head and inspected the open wound. The blood was slowing a bit now, but the cut itself needed cleaned out. “I take it you’ve had a tetanus shot recently.”

  “Yeah, when I entered basic and another round of shots when I went off to Syria.”

  “Good, because it will be one less thing I’ll have to do to hurt you. Hold onto something, Soldier. I have to clean this out.”

  The second the antiseptic wash hit Gunner’s wound, a hiss of pain left him. He clamped it off—no way was he going to wimp out at a little scratch like this. And definitely not in front of a beautiful little nurse like Abigail.

  To distract himself from the blistering pain in his foot, he focused on the top of her head. Thick brown hair with golden highlights that appeared to be natural, a kiss from the sun. Her hair parted on one side, and something about the line of vulnerable flesh of her scalp switched on his protective instinct.

  Not to mention the way she bit her lip, smashing that soft, plump flesh…

  Damn, he couldn’t get a woody while she probed at his cut.

  She issued a quiet noise.

  Dammit—he could and would get hard.

  “Am I hurting you?” she asked.

  “Hell yeah.”

  “I’m sorry. I need to see what we’re dealing with here. It hasn’t gone deeper than the subcutaneous layer.”

  “I take it that’s a good thing.”

  She flashed him a smile that instantly stretched his cock to full length. God, she was a damn beautiful woman. And she was holed up in this building all day seeing to soldier’s injuries? A sweet little thing like her should be sitting back with a cool drink in her hand, being pampered.

  She straightened and looked him right in the eyes. “I’ll just bandage it to stop the bleeding then call in the doctor to stitch you up.”

  “You won’t leave my side, will you?” He gazed deeply into her eyes.

  “We’re required to remain to assist the doctor.” Blue eyes, as clear as the midday sky.

  “Good.” He flexed his foot, and blood trickled down his instep.

  “Don’t move while I get it bandaged, okay?”

  He watched her bustle around the small room gathering supplies. A roll of gauze and some small scissors. A silver tray, which she set several items on that the doctor would use to stitch him.

  “I promise to get some pain meds into you as soon as I call for the doctor. I’ll be just a minute.”

  “A minute’s too long,” he said, thinking of her being out of his sight for that long.

  Her brows drew down, two delicate sweeping arches that met over her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’ll be just a minute.”

  She left the room, and he watched her go, latching his attention onto her tight ass in scrub pants.

  “Helllloooo, Nurse!” he said under his breath. He didn’t usually go after women on base. It was too much of a hassle when he ran into them after a one-night hookup. He didn’t even dip his wick into the waters at the Fox Hole, the local bar where he and his buddies hung out. But for Abigail, he might make an exception.

  A few grunting noises and the door flew open. A tall man came in, doubled over and holding his stomach.

  “This room’s taken, man,” Gunner said.

  “Fuck off,” the guy said.

  Gunner recognized that voice. “Knox?”

  His friend raised his head and gave Gunner a long, angry stare that told him the grudge between them wasn’t ended just because they were in the same room together.

  A week ago down at the Fox Hole, they’d learned they’d both fucked the same woman, and it wasn’t the first time this had happened. Their tastes ran the same, and Gunner was getting damn sick and tired of it. He and his buddies might share the battlefield, but he drew the line at sharing pussy.

  If Gunner’s foot weren’t out of commission, he would have jumped off the table and had a go at the private. “Why don’t you fuck off instead?”

  “I’m looking for triage. Can’t you see I’m in pain here, douche-bag?”

  “Whoa. Who are you? You look to be in pain.” Abigail was suddenly back, hurriedly whipping back the adjoining curtain to reveal another bed. As she wrapped her arm around the guy’s shoulders and assisted him, Gunner narrowed his eyes. Jealousy was rising like a green fog inside him.

  She hadn’t helped him. He’d only had Henry, and the guy had body odor.

  “Knox, Jason. I think I have a fever.”

  “Lie down and let me see.” She ignored Gunner in favor of a fever? He was bleeding out here. She hurriedly grabbed a thermometer and took Knox’s temperature. “Yes, you do have a fever of 101.3. What’s hurting you?”

  “Stomach. Has been since yesterday, but after breakfast it was real bad.”

  “Anyone with a brain knows to avoid the ham,” Gunner grumbled.

  They both shot him a serious look.

  “I haven’t eaten for…two days. Excruciating pain.”

  Abigail pressed her palm to his forehead and looked into his eyes. “I’m getting the doctor right now.”

  On her way past Gunner, she skimmed her fingers over his arm, right d
own to the back of his hand. Her ticklish touch twisted his insides up, and his cock throbbed despite the pain in his foot.

  “I’ll be right back, okay?” she said to him, and he hoped like hell it was to take Knox out so they could be alone.

  A second later a doctor came in, followed by another one. They checked out Knox, said things like rapid breathing and pulse, and wheeled him out, bed and all.

  “What the hell’s the matter with him?” Gunner asked Abigail, who looked torn between staying and going. No matter what the beef between them, he didn’t like seeing Knox in pain.

  “We won’t know until we run some tests, but I’d take a guess at appendicitis.”

  Gunner released a whistle. “Poor bastard. But what about me?”

  “Oh I’ll find you another doctor to do the stitches. Give me another minute.” This time when she passed him, she didn’t stroke his arm. But she did give a little ass wiggle as she disappeared through the door whether she knew it or not.

  Damn, he was going to have to break his own rule by hitting the bar and picking up one of the Army skanks who hung around there if this continued. He had a terrible case of blue-balls, and there was only one treatment.

  A one-night stand would be more his speed than a dinner and movie, though. He wasn’t a man to be tied down to one woman, especially when he could be sent back to Syria at the drop of a boot.

  When Abigail came back, she seemed flustered. She buzzed around the room, grabbing everything from warm blankets from a unit in the wall to some vials of something from a locked cabinet. She stuck the cluster of keys back into her pocket and met his gaze.

  “The doctor’s on his way but I’m supposed to prep you.”

  “Prep away, sweetheart.”

  She shot him a look, and he saw she was more frazzled than he’d originally thought. Seeking to ease her, he smiled.

  She blinked. Her lips fell open.

  Hell, she looked ready to pass out.

  Grabbing her by the arm, he looked into her eyes. “Feeling all right?”

  “Yes, of course. Don’t be silly.” She stared down at his big fingers wrapped around her delicate arm. The skin of his hand was tanner, more callused. And she was as pale and delicate as a flower petal. She pulled her arm out of his grasp and moved to the foot of the bed.