Beacon Hill Beauties
Is "once a rake, always a rake" really true? Romance writer Sally Rubino writes about rakes and lives in the idyllic Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston. Should Sally take back Gabriel O’Brien, the real life rake who broke her heart and still lives around the corner? Or should Sally allow herself to fall for Gabe’s dashing millionaire cousin Dominick Patterson from abroad? Join Sally and her best friend, lingerie model Kimmie Jones, as they explore love and its dirty secrets. Take a globe-trotting journey from the golden-domed nest of Boston, to epicurean Paris, to the wild safari of South Africa. These best friends will stop at almost nothing to help each other learn how to maneuver the maps of their own hearts. But can Kimmie help Sally find the treasured love she deserves? And can Sally help serial dater Kimmie settle down once and for all?
Genre: Contemporary
Length: 33,754 words
BEACON HILL BEAUTIES
Denise Hereford
EROTIC ROMANCE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Erotic Romance
BEACON HILL BEAUTIES
Copyright © 2014 by Denise Hereford
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62741-921-5
First E-book Publication: June 2014
Cover design by Christine Kirchoff
All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
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DEDICATION
To Darlene and Bo for your friendship.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
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
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
About the Author
BEACON HILL BEAUTIES
DENISE HEREFORD
Copyright © 2014
Chapter One
“Thank you so much for coming. What’s your name?” Sally asked a petite elderly lady wearing a yellow linen dress and gold sandals. The thought of this particular patron reading her steamy love scenes amused Sally.
“My name is Jacqueline MacDowell.”
“Nice to meet you, Jacqueline. I love your name,” replied Sally.
“Oh, what a dear you are. I have enjoyed all of your books so far. Perhaps you could make one of your future character’s names Jacqueline?”
“Sure. That would be my pleasure.” For some reason, Sally relished the thought of making this particular fan happy.
Jacqueline’s smile could have lit up the entire store at night. Sally signed the book,
To Jacqueline—My future heroine.
Best,
Sally Rubino
After thanking Sally for the book, Jacqueline hugged it close and walked away beaming as proudly as a Mass lottery winner.
And there he stood at the back of the line behind half a dozen people. Gabriel O’Brien looked extremely fit and handsome wearing a blue dress shirt that brought out the sapphire in his eyes. Sally felt her heart race at the sight of him.
What was he doing here?
The last time she had seen Gabriel was a month before at Louisburg Square in Beacon Hill where he lived. Sally lived several streets over but avoided the well-known Square so as not to run into him, although it offered the fastest route from her studio on Garden Street to her favorite grocer DeLuca’s on Charles Street.
Seeing him then had wrecked her nerves. Afterward, she had taken the red line to Quincy. She had visited a tea room and confessed to a psychic named Joy that she, a mixed Italian girl, was still madly in love with the blonde Irishman who had broken her heart.
“You two were like Romeo and Juliet,” Joy had alluded. “From very different backgrounds. But this Gabriel, he has fear of commitment.” Joy shook her bejeweled index finger. At that cliché’ comment, Sally had started to feel cheated until Joy added, “And he hurt you…at the worst time.”
With tears stinging her eyes, Sally blurted out, “Yes! He broke up with me on Christmas Eve two years ago when I thought he was going to propose.”
“Jesus, Mary
, and Joseph.” Joy had crossed herself and shook her head.
Now, all of this time later, here Gabriel waited in line to get a copy of Sally’s latest romance novel, Ravished by a Rake. How appropriate. Gabriel O’Brien, the rake who ravished Sally’s heart, wanted to get a signed copy of her book.
The rest of the people in line became a blur to Sally until she finally faced her real-life rake. She tried hard to steady her shaking hand that held her favorite pink breast cancer awareness pen.
“Hello, Sally,” Gabriel said kindly. He looked deep into Sally’s large eyes.
Sally bit her lip, nervous from Gabriel’s intense gaze. Gabriel’s good looks made women swoon. Sally knew too well, however, that Gabe had a phobia of commitment akin to someone jumping off a cliff with no parachute.
“Hi, Gabriel.” Sally hoped nobody could see her heart breaking again just looking at this man. The memories of shock and pain came flooding back to her. Why didn’t she completely hate him? Her best friend Kimmie had correctly diagnosed her as too nice. Well, Sally did not want to hurt anymore because of it. Sally held back the tears—she had to appear strong.
“Congratulations on your new book. Would you please sign it?”
“Oh. What’s your girlfriend’s name then? I’m sure it’s not for your mother.” Sally’s own sarcasm surprised herself. Sally knew Gabriel’s mother Mildred O’Brien never liked her. Why did that little Italian girl from the North End want to associate with blue-blooded Irish stock anyways?
“I do not have a girlfriend, Sally. The book is actually for me. Please,” Gabriel softly requested.
“Really?” Sally couldn’t stop herself.
Gabriel smiled and shook his head. “Believe it or not, I like your books. And I am really sorry, about everything.” Sally felt her stomach clench. Did he actually just say sorry for what happened? Well, two years for an askance apology seemed like little penance compared to her suffering.
“I didn’t know you read my books,” Sally managed to say. She picked up a book and signed it just like a gift tag.
To: Gabriel
From: Sally
It overwhelmed Sally to see him. Yet when he inspected his signed cover, Gabriel looked pleased rather than disappointed by Sally’s impersonal autograph
“Thanks, Sally. Can I buy you coffee after this?” he asked as she signed a book for the young lady who was next in line.
“Um, I don’t think that is a good idea. Besides, I have plans.” Sally went with the usual safety net. Yet staring into Gabriel’s azure eyes again made her heady. Her knees became wobbly noodles under the table. She ached remembering how his strong arms held her close to his warm chest when whipping cold winds whacked the windows. Stop it, Sally! she quietly chided herself.
Gabriel nodded but looked disappointed. “Look, I understand. I don’t blame you for still being angry with me. But I can’t believe I haven’t run into you lately. You still live in that tiny studio on Garden?”
“Yes, the size of your closet. Next,” Sally said. This time, she tried hard not to see Gabriel O’Brien at all, not even in her peripheral. She nodded and greeted the next customer with a warm welcome. Sally couldn’t believe how audacious she had sounded. Her best friend Kimmie would be proud.
A few minutes later, Sally realized Gabriel O’Brien was gone again.
Then an hour later, Sally’s best friend and blonde-goddess Kimmie Jones from Southie showed up beaming proudly as she waited in line with others for Sally’s autograph. Men gawked at Kimmie’s long legs, and her tight purple tube dress accentuated her perfect curves.
“Hey, Sal, what’s wrong?” Kimmie asked right away.
“Guess who showed up here an hour ago?”
“Who?”
“He-we-do-not-speak-of.”
“What the hell?”
“Shh,” warned Sally. She didn’t want the customers to hear Kimmie’s beautiful, foul mouth.
“What was he doing here?”
“Let’s talk about it over lunch, after I sign a few more.” Sally looked at her watch and the short line. “Just five more minutes. Here…” She gave Kimmie a pre-signed copy of the book with the words on the special acknowledgment page that read: For Kimmie, my best friend forever.
Kimmie gasped. “Awww, Sal! I’m so proud. Thanks so much.” She gave Sally a hug and wiped away a tear. “I gotta go to the bathroom…my eyeliner.” Sally couldn’t help but smile as Kimmie pranced off in her high heels toward the restroom to fix her raccoon eyes.
After the book signing, the best friends went to the dessert restaurant Finale by Downtown Crossing. They shared a large piece of chocolate cake. “What nerve he has, approaching you years later out of nowhere. What did he want?” asked Kimmie.
“He told me he liked my books and that he was sorry,” admitted Sally.
“Sorry? That’s it? The bastard.” Kimmie cut off a tiny nibble.
“He said he understood if I was still mad at him. He sounded like he meant it, Kimmie.”
“Whateva.” Kimmie savored the miniscule bite and chewed it very slowly. “Mmm. This tastes delicious, but don’t let me eat anymore after one more bite, Sal.”
“Now it’s my turn to tell you to be nice to yourself. Eat a few more bites, Kimmie.”
“Okay, I’m ruined,” agreed Kimmie. “But tell me, what else did he say?”
“He mentioned he doesn’t have a girlfriend.”
“Sure.” Kimmie rolled her eyes.
“I’m still surprised about that.” Sally thought of Gabriel often, something she didn’t want to tell even Kimmie.
“Hell. You still want him back,” bemoaned Kimmie. She frowned. “Have I taught you nothing? You are too nice. You need to be more of a bitch like me, Sal.”
“I know.” Sally nodded and cut a large chunk of the chocolate cake with her fork. She let the icing melt slowly on her tongue. Chocolate really did make her feel better.
“A moment on the lips, forever on the hips,” warned Kimmie.
“Well, I am going to eat what I paid for,” said Sally decidedly.
“I’m not just talking about the cake, Sal. All that man would have to do is kiss you, and you would sleep with him, wouldn’t you?”
“I hope not,” offered Sally.
Kimmie raised her eyebrows. “I just don’t want you to get hurt again. You know what I’m saying?”
“I won’t,” replied Sally. But she had trouble believing herself. Seeing Gabriel today was like opening Pandora’s Box for a second and closing it back. His eyes could mesmerize her with one look. No other man had ever made her feel that way before Gabriel or since. She had tried dating but found herself constantly comparing each date’s features and attributes to Gabe’s. It drove her crazy. So she stopped dating altogether and plunged herself even more into her writings, which had now led to seeing Gabe again. Oh, the irony.
Chapter Two
Gabriel O’Brien needed a cab. He had drunk too many Stellas at the House of Blues in Cambridge. If he made it to the T station, he would probably fall onto the tracks.
“Come on. Let’s get a cab,” suggested his ruggedly handsome South African cousin Dominick Patterson. The Pattersons, from his father’s side, dealt in the diamond mining business.
“Right.” Gabe nodded heavily. The two men did not have to wait a full minute for a yellow cab once Gabriel held his hand up.
“Louisburg Square,” Gabriel told the driver, who raised an eyebrow in approval. Gabriel opened the door for Dominick to slide in and followed suit.
“I can’t believe I let her go, man,” Gabe admitted. “We used to be so right.”
Dominick shook his head. “You weren’t ready. You did her a favor rather than propose and break up with her afterward.”
Gabe hung his head from a mixture of drunken stupor and wounded pride. “I told her I was sorry, even asked her out for coffee. She rejected me.”
“Well, what do you expect? You broke up with her on Christmas Eve. That was bloody horrible
timing. Then, you wait years to apologize to her in a bookstore and ask her out for some coffee.”
Gabe shook his head. “It was more than that. I stood in line for her. And I read her books,” gushed Gabe.
“You actually read them, bra?” Dominick asked doubtfully. Bra was a South African term form for a friend like a brother, even more appropriate for the cousins.
“Yeah, and you know what’s funny? I think that she writes about me, man. It’s like I’m reading about myself in these male characters she calls rakes…”
“I know what rakes are,” interrupted Dominick. “You are indeed a rake who has gone off the deep end. I would say, just grab another drink, but obviously you’re already wasted.”
The taxi pulled up to the square of brick townhouses with black shutters, scrubbed steps, and gas lights that illuminated American flags. “We’re home. Let’s get you inside,” Dominick announced. He paid the driver a generous tip and helped his tipsy cousin up the steps.
“Wait.” Gabe stopped at the top of the steps. “I need to see her. Let’s go.” Gabe stumbled down the steps.
“Not a good idea, Gabe. Leave her alone and give her time to think about things,” rationalized Dominick.
“Come on.” Gabe kept wobbling down the uneven brick walkways and turning corners until he got to Garden Street. Dominick watched with a disapproving look as Gabe went up the little steps and lifted the cover to the buzzer buttons.
“She’s probably asleep. It’s midnight,” cautioned Dominick.
“It’s early. Thursday is the new Friday, right?” Gabe buzzed for apartment 1A.
Buzz! Sally sat up in her daybed by the window that was street level. She opened her sleepy lids. Did she hear a buzz for her apartment? She looked at the clock and rubbed her eyes. The clock read 12:06 a.m.
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