Born to Be Wild

by Berg, Patti

  “Please stay longer,” Lauren urged. “We can postpone the honeymoon a day or two.”

  “That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard, and let me tell you, I hear a lot of crazy things in Vegas. No,” Charity stated, “I’m not interrupting your honeymoon. In fact, I’m not going to take up even one more minute of your time.”

  “We’ll come to Las Vegas,” Max said, studying the beauty of her face, soaking up a few new memories to hold on to.

  “I’d love that,” Charity said. “I start a new show in a few weeks and I’ll get you the best seats in the house.”

  All too soon she was out of his arms, telling him where she could be reached, and doling out kisses and smiles before she walked toward the other guests. She stopped not ten feet away and flashed a bright smile over her shoulder. “By the way, who was the tall, good-looking guy who was watching me sing?”

  “The one all in black?” Lauren asked.

  “That’s the one.”

  “Oh, dear,” Lauren answered. “That’s Mike Flynn—the minister.”

  Charity rolled her eyes. “Well, I’ll scratch him from my list of dance partners. There’s just something about me and ministers that doesn’t quite compute.”

  Charity didn’t say another word. Instead, she headed straight for the guy standing next to Pastor Flynn and tugged the reluctant gentleman to the dance floor. Max drew his wife to his side and watched his sister until she disappeared into the crowd.

  “We can go to Las Vegas tonight,” Lauren said, curling her fingers over his cheek, kissing him lightly.

  “Is that what you really want?”

  She smiled. “Not exactly, but I love you, Max. I want you to be happy, and if that means spending time with Charity, well... I can wait a little while for our honeymoon.”

  “I don’t want to wait,” he said, smoothing a lock of wind-tossed hair from her cheek. “Not for a week, not for a day, not even till this reception’s over.”

  “The plane to Tahiti doesn’t leave until morning.

  “But the Fantasy Inn’s open all night.”

  Lauren’s eyes darted toward the patio where over two hundred guests had congregated, two hundred guests who were eating, drinking, dancing, and didn’t seem to miss the bride and groom.

  A soft, slow smile touched her lips as she gripped his fingers, lifted the hem of her silver gown, and beat a hasty retreat through the pink marble monstrosity to the sleek black motorcycle parked in the circular drive.

  Max swung his leg over the Harley, and Lauren did the same, her delectable body snuggling close to his. “I love you,” she whispered against his ear.

  Max twisted in the seat, sweeping his fingers through her hair. “I love you, too.” Then he kissed her. Softly. Tenderly.

  And Max knew, without a doubt, that this was just the beginning of the sweetest, wildest ride of their lives.

  —The End—

  For more Remington and Wilde Escapades, read Wife For A Day, Born to Be Wild, Something Wild (coming March 2013), and Stuck On You. (They don’t have to be read in order, but they’re far more fun read that way!)

  Other books by Patti BergEnchanted (A Merry Nicholas Christmas Tale - #1)

  A Christmas story for those who believe when love is involved, anything is possible. Mac O'Brien is wealthy and powerful--but since the death of his father, the magic has gone out of his life. So he makes a wish for happiness, and Merry Nicholas, his new housekeeper, breezes into his world. Merry, with twinkling eyes, rosy cheeks, and snow-white hair, reminds Mac of Mrs. Claus, and when she pulls knitting needles from her candy cane-striped carpetbag, she weaves an enchanted spell around Mac, leading him to happiness, and to the woman he's destined to love

  Wishes Come True (A Merry Nicholas Christmas Tale - #2)

  Guardian angels don't always come with wings or a halo. Merry Nicholas, aka Mrs. Claus, came with rosy cheeks and a feather duster for spreading magic, and the little old lady who delighted readers in my first romance, Enchanted, is back.

  Merry's in Bunch Gulch, Montana, this time with sophisticated romance novelist Laurie Langtry, who knows all about fictional love but nothing about the real thing. Running from bad times in New York, Laurie settles in the town she ran away from as a child and soon learns old memories don't fade away. Wishing for a hero to save her from her fears, she gets much more than she asked for--three rambunctious boys pop into her life along with their down-on-his-luck rancher dad, Jake McAllister, who's the spitting image of every Olympian-god hero she's ever created.

  With a touch of magic and the power of belief, Jake's able to save Laurie from the nightmare that's haunted her. Being a hero's one thing, loving Laurie is another. Jake's not interested in being the husband she wants--until he needs a wife.

  Laurie's found that every tale needs a happy ending, and her own love story is no exception. She's woven the plot so carefully that nothing can go wrong, and when Jake proposes, another one of her wishes comes true. Deep inside, though, she wonders if the end justifies the means, and she hopes Jake never learns what dastardly deed she fabricated to get what she wanted.

  Filled with warmth and humor, Wishes Come True is about friends, families, and sticking together when high-tailing it out of town seems like the easiest road to travel. It's about following your dreams, taking chances, and letting your heart believe.

  Haunting Ellie

  With her beautiful home and her dreams of success crushed beneath a devastating earthquake, Elizabeth Fitzgerald kisses L.A. goodbye and escapes to middle-of-nowhere Montana and the B&B her brother convinced her would be the answer to all her prayers. Little did she know that the inn she purchased sight unseen, is not only a crumbling ruin... but is haunted to boot!

  Ruggedly sexy Jonathan Winchester, mayor of Sapphire, Montana, doesn't believe in ghosts, thank heavens! He’s arrogant and annoying, but he’s the only one for miles around willing to help Ellie rebuild the old hotel. Although his shameless, hungry-eyed gaze could easily knock her off her feet, she’s been burned by one too many men in her life, and she won’t let it happen again.

  Jon’s not a man to let stubbornness stand in his way. When he wants something, he goes after it--and this time he’s set his sights on the West Coast beauty, even though she’s too involved with his unscrupulous cousin and more concerned with the plight of the inn's restless, lovelorn spirit than with Jon's yearning heart. He can deal with his cousin, and he doesn’t believe there’s a ghost haunting Ellie. What he does know is that he can win the stunning beauty over, once he locks her into his embrace.

  ... More than a century earlier, two lovers were wronged by fate - and it will take a special magic to reunite them. Together - though they don't know it yet - Jon and Ellie can generate that magic. And perhaps they'll have enough left over to start a blaze of their own.

  If I Can’t Have You

  Trevor Montgomery was more handsome than Tyrone Power or Cary Grant; more dashing and daring than Errol Flynn; he was a man every woman desired and all men envied. He was a movie star who’d enthralled millions in the 1930’s—and then he disappeared.

  Adriana Howard is rich beyond imagining, but her life has been cloaked in scandal, and she’d rather love a man on a movie screen—a 1930’s idol and maybe a murderer—than face the real world.

  He’s suspected of a brutal murder in his own time, but all he remembers is the blood, the knife, and the smell of death.

  He’s a womanizer, a drunk, and she should kick him out of her life—but he’s traveled 60 years through time in answer to one of her wishes, and she can’t resist his charms. Now she’s willing to risk anything to prove his innocence and win his love.

  Looking for A Hero

  Sometimes the most unusual things wash up on the beach, but nothing stranger or more exciting than the cutlass-wielding pirate Kate Cameron finds on her own treasure island.

  He was a mystery man...

  "Bloody hell!" Morgan "Black Heart" Farrell can’t believe the hurricane whisked
him from the deck of his galleon straight into the twentieth century--and into the arms of a honey-haired siren. What he does believe is that Kate’s tempestuous spirit and emerald eyes could entice him away from a swashbuckling life at sea. But the widow’s charms can’t erase Black Heart’s desperate need to get back to his own time--until he learns he may have brought danger with him from the past. Morgan might be a scoundrel, but he’s not about to leave while Kate needs a man to comfort and protect her.

  Who swept her off her feet

  It’s been ages since Kate had a man in her life, and she’s pretty much decided she doesn’t want another. But the moment Black Heart is thrust into her world, she finds herself falling for the dangerous, sexy looking stranger. By his own admission he’s pillaged, plundered, and taken one or two lives. But Kate has a knack for looking beneath the surface and soon realizes that maybe, just maybe, Morgan’s heart isn’t as black as the history books claim. In fact, he just might be the hero she’s looking for.

  Wife For A Day (Remington and Wilde Family Escapade #1)

  The last thing millionaire rancher Jack Remington wanted was a wife. Hell, he'd just been dumped by his fiancée and was feeling rather relieved to no longer have a noose around his neck. But Jack had one huge problem--he'd flown to ritzy Palm Beach to attend his baby sister's highfalutin' engagement ball and he'd promised her he'd be bringing his wife-to-be. There was no way Jack would let her down on the biggest night of her life.

  When a beguiling, flame-haired enchantress breezes into his hotel room with a tux and a seductive smile, Jack's sure all his troubles have come to an end. All he has to do is hire the beautiful tailor to masquerade as his fiancée.

  Samantha Jones is sure the sexy cowboy is out of his ever-lovin' mind. She's never been to a ball, never worn a fancy gown, and has no idea how to act like a socialite. She can't possibly pose as his wife-to-be, but...

  Just that morning Sam's life had gone from not so good to absolutely dismal. She'd been fired from her tailoring job at Antonio's For Men, and before the evening was over, the cops would probably be hot on her trail for "borrowing" the tux she was about to tailor for the gorgeous millionaire. On top of that, Johnnie "The Shark" Russo had been threatening to make her fish bait if she didn't pay back the money she'd borrowed. Suddenly Jack's offer sounded like something she couldn't refuse.

  Besides, it was only for one night...

  Born to Be Wild (Remington and Wilde Family Escapade #2)

  The last thing millionaire rancher Jack Remington wanted was a wife. Hell, he'd just been dumped by his fiancée and was feeling rather relieved to no longer have a noose around his neck. But Jack had one huge problem--he'd flown to ritzy Palm Beach to attend his baby sister's highfalutin' engagement ball and he'd promised her he'd be bringing his wife-to-be. There was no way Jack would let her down on the biggest night of her life.

  When a beguiling, flame-haired enchantress breezes into his hotel room with a tux and a seductive smile, Jack's sure all his troubles have come to an end. All he has to do is hire the beautiful tailor to masquerade as his fiancée.

  Samantha Jones is sure the sexy cowboy is out of his ever-lovin' mind. She's never been to a ball, never worn a fancy gown, and has no idea how to act like a socialite. She can't possibly pose as his wife-to-be, but...

  Just that morning Sam's life had gone from not so good to absolutely dismal. She'd been fired from her tailoring job at Antonio's For Men, and before the evening was over, the cops would probably be hot on her trail for "borrowing" the tux she was about to tailor for the gorgeous millionaire. On top of that, Johnnie "The Shark" Russo had been threatening to make her fish bait if she didn't pay back the money she'd borrowed. Suddenly Jack's offer sounded like something she couldn't refuse.

  Besides, it was only for one night...

  Something Wild (Remington and Wilde Family Escapade #3)

  Charity Wilde didn't come all the way to Wyoming just to be saddled with some cowboy! The headstrong and leggy showgirl only wants a quiet vacation with family before she heads back to Vegas. So why do Mike Flynn's emerald eyes make her knees go weak? Fame is just around the corner--and Charity wants to be a star...not a rancher's wife!

  Straight-shooter Mike has his own reasons for not wanting to get involved with this Wilde woman. But reason takes a back seat to passion--and the sparks flying between them are about to start one hell of a blaze! Their life goals are too different for this to work--unless a showbiz beauty and a sinfully gorgeous cowboy can somehow find another dream that includes them both. Something like...love perhaps.

  Stuck On You (Remington and Wilde Family Escapade #4)

  It's common knowledge in Plentiful, Wyoming, that bookstore owner Scarlett O'Malley imagines trouble brewing everywhere. Of course, real trouble bubbles over the day an enigmatic stranger named Logan Wolfe shows up in town. The outsider's one hunk of a guy, with a smile that could knock a redhead off her sky-high heels. But when a mysterious woman literally drops dead at Scarlett's feet and the town's wealthiest widow disappears, suspicion falls on the secretive man. Scarlett is positive Logan's up to something--but is he out to scam the people in town, or steal her heart?

  The last thing Logan wants is a screwball sleuth dogging his footsteps and digging into his past. The ex-cop came to Plentiful to escape the madness of Las Vegas and to ditch bad memories, not to have some zany redhead with a man-killer body mess with his peace of mind or history that's better off buried. But Logan can't help admiring Scarlett's spirit--or the gold stars dangling from her belly button ring. And when her wacky investigation takes a surprising turn, Logan finds himself glued to Scarlett's side, helping her look for clues, keeping her out of trouble--and maybe falling in love...

  And Then He Kissed Me (Remington and Wilde Family Escapade #5)

  Blond bombshell goes bananas!

  She's the blonde bombshell who once starred in a string of low-budget slasher flicks and is now a jet-setting, bestselling author. But one too many bites of caviar, menacing phone calls from her jailbird ex, a tabloid photographer hot on her heels, and nasty gossip about her life send Juliet Bridger over the edge. Disguising her identity, Juliet runs…straight into the arms of Cole Sheridan, a small town vet with troubles of his own.

  With a malpractice suit hanging over his head and his bohemian parents and their band of old hippie friends about to converge on his home, the last thing Cole needs is one more snag in his orderly life. But when he spots the raven-haired beauty with the curvaceous body stranded along a lonely stretch of highway, he hitches her car to his and tows one more complication his way.

  He thinks she's quirky; she thinks he's sexy but cantankerous. She's hiding something; he wants to push everyone away--until the chaos of Juliet's life catches up with her in Plentiful, Wyoming. Once more she's ready to run…and then Cole kisses her!

  That's when the trouble really begins!

  I’m No Angel

  Top 7 Reasons Why She's No Angel

  7. Easily Palm Beach's sexiest private investigator, Angel Devlin always gets her man--and bad boy millionaire Tom Donovan is at the top of her Most Wanted list.

  6. Instinct tells her that drop-dead-gorgeous Tom has something wicked up his sleeve, and she's going to get up close and personal to find out just what.

  5. Her list of nocturnal activities includes lifting a wallet while seductively skimming her hands over her victim's rock-solid chest and performing a bewitching lap dance at a seedy underground club.

  4. There's nothing sweet or innocent about Angel--she's as sharp as the steel stiletto she wears strapped to her shapely thigh.

  3. Her motor is "dress to thrill." A tight skirt, a hint of cleavage, and a pair of kick-ass Jimmy Choos will make a man open up and divulge all sorts of little secrets.

  2. Angel is devilish, devious, and sexy as sin.

  1. She's the first to admit she's no angel, but it doesn't stop Tom from falling head over heels in love with the mischievous blonde.

  Sinfully
Scottish (My Scottish Summer Anthology)

  When cook book author Emily Sinclair travels to Scotland looking for scandalous places to photograph her "sinfully delicious" desserts, she stumbles across Dunbar Castle, an ancient gothic stronghold rich with infamous legends and hidden secrets.

  She also stumbles across the castle's laird, Colin Dunbar, a lusty and luscious Highlander who's not about to give Emily permission to photograph the interiors of his castle, unless she gives him something very special in return.

  Oh what maddening fun Emily has as Colin gives her a taste of what life is like with a man who's Sinfully Scottish!

  About the Author

  USA Today bestselling author Patti Berg began penning stories while in elementary school, when she wrote the script for a puppet show that she and her friends put on in the children's ward at a local hospital. Thirty years later, one of her dreams came true when the first of her many warm and lighthearted novels appeared in bookstores.

  Scared of dogs until the age of fifty, Patti now goes out of her way to pet every dog she gets close to and would happily bring home all the puppies in the pound if her less impulsive husband would only let her. He’s had less success keeping her from saying yes when family, friends and others ask her to volunteer. Give her a cause, and she’s there to help.

  Patti lives in southwestern Idaho with her husband of thirty-six years and a huggable Bernese mountain dog named Barkley. To learn more about Patti or to contact her, visit her website at www.pattiberg.com

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  Something Wild (Excerpt)The high pitch of a horse’s neigh and the pawing of hooves against the frigid earth interrupted her thoughts. She listened intently, her head jerking toward the barn where she thought the sound had come from. Had a coyote gotten inside? Was something else disturbing the horses? She jumped down from the railing, missing a mud puddle by inches, and cautiously peered inside the dimly lit barn.