by J. A. Coffey
Shades of Desire
By
J.A. Coffey
Wendy Ely
Dorothy Callahan
Diane Escalera
Lena Hart
Chanta Rand
Emma Leigh Reed
Cindy Stark
Valerie Twombly
Kristina Knight
LIAR, LIAR - copyright J.A. Coffey
DANGEROUS FLAMES - copyright Wendy Ely
A DECADE FOR DARIUS - copyright Dorothy Callahan
STILL HOT FOR YOU - copyright Diane Escalera
HIS BEDPOST QUEEN - copyright Lena Hart
RESISTING DESTINY - copyright Chanta Rand
TRUSTING LOVE - copyright Emma Leigh Reed
WOUNDED - copyright Cindy Stark
SPANISH NIGHTS - copyright Valerie Twombly
MR. RIGHT NOW - copyright Kristina Knight
SHADES OF DESIRE - Copyright© 2015
Ebooks are not transferable. All Rights Are Reserved. No part of these books 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. The unauthorized reproductions or distribution of these copyrighted works is illegal. No part of these books may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any means, electronic or print, without the authors' permission.
These books are works of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writers' 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.
Table Of Contents
Ten titillating tales from USA Today, bestselling and award-winning authors. Step into the world of some of the freshest voices in romance. From spicy secrets to sweet second chances. Come find your perfect shade of desire.
LIAR, LIAR
By
J.A. Coffey
Bestselling Author
Divorced certified fraud examiner Jessica Barlow catches liars for a living. Sparks fly when she's assigned to investigate a dating website owned by a man determined to guarantee she finds love - even if he has to pretend to be a client!
DANGEROUS FLAMES
By
Wendy Ely
USA Today Bestselling Author
Sometimes good men are taught to do evil things and it takes the strength of a sheltered woman to make things right. When Gabi learns of her father, she is asked to leave for her own safety. Fine. She'll go... but she is taking her secret love with her, even if it's at gun-point.
A DECADE FOR DARIUS
By
Dorothy Callahan
Bestselling Author
Jess never forgot her first kiss, especially since it came from the guy who taught her everything she knows about antiques, her livelihood. But if she wins the priceless inheritance, Jess will risk losing Darius Covington all over again.
STILL HOT FOR YOU
By
Diane Escalera
Bestselling Author
Shay LaCosta screwed up a damn good marriage. Now she's on a mission to get a little submission, and get her hunky husband back in her bed.
HIS BEDPOST QUEEN
By
Lena Hart
Bestselling Author
Athena Lewis has a sharp mind and an even sharper attitude. Except when it comes to "Davie," the only man who's ever truly made her feel safe. Yet to protect the only family she has left, she must embark on a mission that goes against everything she believes in - and that includes using the last trick she has left. Her body.
RESISTING DESTINY
By
Chanta Rand
Bestselling Author and Debut Author of the Year
Thrown together for ninety days by a spiteful judge, womanizing attorney, Cayson Sullivan and street-smart hustler, Destiny Jackson find the only thing they can agree on is their red-hot attraction for each other.
TRUSTING LOVE
By
Emma Leigh Reed
Pregnant and running from her abusive boyfriend, Chloe Wilder takes refuge in the sleepy coastal town of Arden. Police chief, Jayden Peterson, thinks the worst crime that could happen in Arden is jaywalking. Could the real danger be the two of them falling for each other?
WOUNDED
By
Cindy Stark
Bestselling Author
Battle-worn soldier, Jerry returns home intending to avoid his ex-fiancée. The shrapnel that wounded him pales in comparison to the gash she left in his heart. Kimber lost everything when she broke off her engagement, and she'll fight to win him back.
SPANISH NIGHTS
By
Valerie Twombly
Bestselling and Award-winning Author
Armand has lost everything. His magic and his freedom are taken when an evil curse is placed on the Jinn, but a newcomer to town may be his savior. When evil emerges from the shadows, Makayla learns she must choose between her mortality and Armand's freedom.
MR. RIGHT NOW
By
Kristina Knight
Bestselling Author
Dumped by her celebrity boyfriend, unlucky-in-love author Casey Cash needs a break. But, between the male escort trying to get into her bed and the tabloid reporter intent on getting her story, Casey might have been smarter to stay in New York...
LIAR, LIAR
A Southern Seductions Novel
By
J.A. Coffey
About This Book
Certified fraud examiner Jessica Barlow catches liars for a living. After a sexless first year of divorce, she decides to branch out of the traditional dating scene to find romance at LoveLines, an upscale online dating service with a guaranteed success rate. Just when things get interesting, she's assigned to snoop on the very company that might show her a good time.
Texan horse rancher Matteo Brandt is secretly the corporate owner and mastermind of LoveLines' thirty-one point matching system. He suspects Jess might be a plant for a pending court case. She just can't be as good as she looks. He's determined to save both his company and his reputation– even if it means seducing Jess himself.
Will it be all work and no play? It's all clothes barred in this battle for truth and love.
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Chapter One
"Oh, no!" Jessica Barlow scanned the email with disbelief. They had to be kidding, right? She shook her head, feeling sick. This was some prank, pulled by someone at the office. It had to be. She was a Certified Fraud Examiner, and she'd just been assigned to scrutinize the legitimacy of LoveLines' guaranteed online matchmaking program—her first solo investigation. It should've been a dream come true. There was just one teensy problem....
Jess snatched up her cell and hit the memory button. InvestiCorp's chipper after-hours receptionist answered.
"Put me through to Maxwell. It's Jess."
The phone hummed with irritating Muzak while she waited for the line to patch through to his number.
"Jess! Good to hear from you. How's my girl? Did you get the attachment?" Max didn't even snicker. Phone equivalent of a poker face.
Jess fumed. "Whose idea was this?" How had they found out? She'd been so discreet, so careful. The
only person who knew about her situation was Suze and she was partying in Barbados with her cousin Caroline.
Maxwell paused. "Don't know what you mean, Barlow."
She took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the outline documents. "You mean to tell me this is legit, Max?"
"It's all there in black and white. Came through the wires just this week. Someone's got it out for them, bad. Her name's Alicia Lange. Some ballsy chick in the entertainment industry. The attorney's office said to make the investigation a priority—they've got a court case in less than a month."
Bad didn't accurately describe the situation.
Oh, the humiliation! How long would it take the office rumor mill to circulate that Jessica Barlow had to resort to a high priced online matchmaker to find romance? She wanted the earth to swallow her up. She pulled her blanket tighter across her shoulders. Maybe she could hibernate for the spring.
"The problem, Maxwell, is that I'm already on it. Er...in it. I..." she took a deep breath. "I'm a LoveLines client," she blurted. "And you're asking me to examine them."
This was the single most embarrassing moment in her life.
Maxwell had the good grace not to even laugh, though it was hard to say what his expression might be over the phone.
"Well? Does it work?" Max cleared his throat. "This Lange gal says 'no' but if you're having success...well, could make for an open and shut case."
"I don't know. I haven't been in the program that long." Jess bit her lip. "And it hasn't so far. Not for me, anyways."
"Well, then." He paused. "Shouldn't be a conflict of interest. Gives you some legitimacy, and it'll give you easier access to the information you need. Hell, you can write it off as a business expense."
"What? Like posing as a 'secret shopper' and see if I get the same negative results?" She rubbed her forehead. "I don't know, Max..." It was one thing to go in to a corporate office where they knew she was investigating. Quite another to pose as a client and investigate without a signed court order to proceed.
"It's up to you, Jess. The other partners didn't think you were up to this challenge, but I told them you were ready. I'd hate to see you prove me wrong." His tone was casual, but she knew a thinly veiled warning when she heard it.
She sighed. "And no one needs to know I was a member before the investigation?"
"It's litigation support, Jess. Dig up what dirt you can, but be sure it's legit. I don't want any calls about scorned clients funneling back to my office. You know what I mean. Your personal life is your own, but business is business."
"Yes, sir." She swallowed the hard lump of embarrassment lodged in her throat. "I'll handle it."
"You're my best girl, Jess. This is your shot to run an investigation. Do more than 'handle' it. Make me proud."
"Right." Jess nodded. She hung up the phone feeling more depressed than ever.
Nights like these made her wonder why Maxwell tried so hard to help her. She'd been with InvestiCorp for a year now, and she wanted to make Max proud of her, but this was beyond simple litigation support. Jess grabbed the remote and clicked on her television to fill the silence in her apartment.
Meet the man or woman of your dreams—guaranteed! The screen buzzed to life and greeted her with the latest LoveLines commercial. A bikini clad woman cavorted on a pale brown sugar beach. The television vibrated with soothing New Age music.
Jess groaned and sank further into her woven blanket. Just her luck. She rubbed her forehead. Providing litigation support was enough to drive any woman to celibacy, but it paid the bills. She needed a massage and a glass of wine. Scratch that, she needed to get laid.
At LoveLines, all your fantasies can come true—and with real people just like you! Bikini Babe turned, drawing attention to her perfectly flat abs, and flashed a toothy grin at the camera just as a hunky male model greeted her with smoothly practiced enthusiasm. Don't you deserve more?
"Yeah, right." Jess took another swallow of hot tea. "I deserve more. I deserve to look like that." All the five a.m. weightlifting before work hadn't tightened her buns to steel, but she had to admit she looked better since the divorce. Not perfect, but definitely do-able.
Your heart is guaranteed to find a match or your money back. Hunky man removed his shirt. His biceps bulged almost as much as the crotch of his navy swim trunks.
"As if guys like him are in the program!" Jess gestured with her mug, sloshing tea onto the hardwood floor.
She'd been a LoveLiner for the past three months with less than stellar results. She'd filled out the profile questions, uploaded photos and a LoveLines video clip, even clicked the little box that certified all her responses were true to the best of her knowledge. Jess loved surveys—answers were either right...or wrong. And she was sure she'd done everything right.
But while the hits on her profile had soared, she hadn't had a single successful date. Or even a hot hook-up. So much for their highly touted matching system. Her gaze drifted to the files spilling out of the folder on her desk. It seemed unlikely that internet matchmaking could guarantee success. With Maxwell depending on her, she desperately needed to get the dirt on LoveLines.
The male model gave Bikini Babe a healthy squeeze, molding her lithe frame to his body. Her breasts didn't move. She gave a silent squeal of delight, as the music thrummed in the background.
Jess sighed and clicked off the tube. Desperate was her perfect description. She'd been working too hard and she was tired. Worse than that, she was horny as hell.
An ache built up between her legs, a sure sign that it was going to be another long night. Setting her mug on the bedside table, she snagged her trusty pink butterfly vibrator—a "Happy D" gift from her best gal pal Suzanne—from her nightstand drawer. She flopped on the bed and considered surfing for the latest offering on one of the adult movie channels. Something with full frontal and good action.
It had been so long since she'd had non-mechanical company in her bed. Jess sighed. She knew what she wanted. A hunky shirtless man who knew how to fill out a pair of navy trunks pumping between her thighs. Long kisses. Slippery skin-on-skin action from someone who appreciated a real woman without plastic enhancements.
Unfortunately, duty called.
"Looks like it's you and me, Pinky." Jess sank into her down-filled pillows and flicked on her trusty companion. Pinky whirred to life, his batteries revved to full throttle.
B-b-r-r-ra-aaaang! The phone jangled, startling her almost off the edge of the bed.
She struggled to untangle her hands from her drawstrings and grabbed the receiver on the third ring. Pinky bounced to the floor and sputtered to a stop.
"We're sorry," her answering machine echoed from the kitchen. "We're not available to take your call..."
"Hello?" The receiver squawked. "Hello?" The voice was surprisingly male.
"Ha-hang on a minute." Jess shouted over the mechanical machine litany. "It's almost over." She covered the mouthpiece with her hand and swallowed hard. Who was calling her at this time of night?
The clock read 9:37 pm. Way past time for telemarketers to annoy her.
She waited for the telltale beep before speaking. "Hello, who's this?"
"Jessica Barlow?" The voice was guttural with a slight accent that she couldn't place. Jess shivered deliciously. She had a thing for men with husky voices.
"It is. Who's this?" she repeated.
"You've been selected," he began.
A sales pitch? At this time of night?
"You must be out of your mind!" she interrupted. She and Pinky had some unfinished business, and some creep with a sexy accent thought he could bypass the sales call ordinance? "Do you know what time it is?" She made a mental note to register her new phone number on the no-call list.
A long pause. "I'm sorry for the late hour, Ms. Barlow. We're calling from LoveLines. You have an account with us. We'd like to make you a special offer." The voice sounded tense. Jess imagined a manager moving in to eavesdrop on the line.
She
seethed inwardly. Her personal and professional lives were filled to the brim with scam artists. "What now? My trial subscription is almost over. You can't possibly expect me to sign on for another six months. Not unless you have access to...." Well, she couldn't say a larger expense account, could she? "To some suitable candidates." Like hunks in navy swim trunks, she added in her head.
"That is exactly what we are offering, you, Ms. Barlow. The volume of hits on your profile makes you an excellent candidate for our extended LoveLiners special program. You rank in the 'highly desirable' category. Very highly desirable." The voice was softer now. She could have sworn she heard the caller exhale. "Any man would be crazy not to want you."
Liar, Liar... she chimed in her head. Her bullshit meter was set on low dosage tonight.
"What?" Jess dragged a hand through her hair. If he could see her now in a baggy gray t-shirt and mussed ponytail, he'd run for the hills. "What did you say?"
"Er... according to our online data." The voice sounded flustered. She heard paper shuffling. "On occasion, when certain quotas have been met, we invite a select group of singles for an all-expenses paid vacation, courtesy of LoveLines."
"Quotas." Jess leaned back against the headboard. "Uh-huh. What's the catch?" She wasn't a Certified Fraud Examiner for nothing. She had a suspicious mind and she knew how to use it. The caller was nervous.
Another pause. "No catch. Your contract guarantees that you'll have a successful experience. We just want to make your fantasies come true."
Oh, she had some fantasies, all right.
But it was more likely that they wanted to coerce her into another round of matchmaking hell. "And it's just coincidence that you're offering this vacation right before my trial subscription is up?"