Sweet Agony (Sweet Series Book 1) (22 page)

Johnny

By

Abbie Zanders

Copyright ©2015 Abbie Zanders

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

Carpe Diem is more than just a catchy phrase to Stacey Mallory. At least it was, until the near-fatal accident that took the use of her legs and changed her life forever.

Stacey would do anything to dive once again into cool blue waters from a towering cliff, or feel the wind in her face as she opens up the throttle of her sleek, sporty motorcycle.

To dance under the moonlight in the arms of a strong, sexy man.

To escape her new reality, Stacey reinvents herself as Salienne Dulcette, the reclusive author of steamy erotic romances, and lives life vicariously through her characters. Writing about life isn’t the same as living it, but until her miracle comes through, it’s all she has.

Johnny Connelly is loving life. His construction business is booming, he’s surrounded by family and friends, and there’s plenty of women willing to keep him company.

So why does he feel like something’s missing?

When his sister’s college roommate comes to town for a visit, Johnny thinks he may have found that answer. Stacey is smart, sassy, and sexy as hell. She manages to do what no other woman has – she not only lights a fire in his blood, but she touches his ragged soul in the process.

Johnny knows he can reawaken Stacey’s passion, but is it enough to make her realize what’s really important?

Excerpt:

The music changed.

Stacey’s eyes popped open. She’d been dozing on and off to the soft rock station, her body relaxed, her mind subconsciously turning the lyrics of each song into a story. At some point, the easy love ballads had switched to pounding bass and screaming guitars.

Why had the music changed? And when?

Now alert, Stacey strained her ears to hear over the music. It was faint, but it definitely sounded as if someone was moving around out there. Her heart began to pound, brutally aware that she was buck naked and immersed in a hot tub – not exactly the best position to be in for receiving unexpected company.

Unexpected was the operative word. Her imagination began to run wild as she lifted herself to the edge of the tub. What if it wasn’t company? What if someone had broken in?

Stacey turned off the jets and listened intently. The clink of a bottle, the clank of a dish. Someone was in the kitchen, but not trashing the place. Her worries eased down just a notch. It was probably just Lina coming to check on her, she thought, reaching for the towel hanging from the arm of her wheelchair. Besides, an intruder would never have made it past the state of the art security system Lina had shown her…

Oh, crap. She had remembered to activate that after Lina and Kyle had left, hadn’t she? She’d thought about it, but she couldn’t remember actually doing so. She’d been so eager to start working on the opening scene of her book and had been distracted.

The fluffy white towel wasn’t cooperating. She tugged again; it was stuck. With her panic rising at the fear of being caught au naturel, Stacey gave it a desperate, hard pull. The towel came loose, but the brake lever on her chair disengaged in the process. Stacey watched in abject horror as her chair began to roll away. She lunged for it, but it was too late. Her wet bottom slid along the smooth edge of her tub and she plopped right back into the water, watching helplessly as her wheelchair came to a stop behind one of the potted palms.

Now what the hell was she supposed to do?

Think, Mallory, think. The way she saw it, she had two options. One, lift her big ass out of the tub and skooch her way across the decorative hardwood to the chair and one of the terry robes, hoping no one came looking for her while she did. Or two, wait it out like a naked, sitting duck and hope it was Lina who eventually walked through that door.

Right.

Stacey kept her eyes on the door and began to ease out of the tub. She’d no sooner swung one leg onto the decking when the door handle began to turn. There was no way she as going to make it.

She flicked the jets back on and the tub lights off, then slid back into the water up to her neckline. Between the lack of light and the turbulent water, she might be able to hide her regretful decision to bathe naked. As an extra precaution, Stacey pulled the towel under the water and covered her girlie bits the best she could.

And then promptly forgot how to breathe, because it wasn’t Lina who entered.

It was a huge freaking Viking god.

He filled the doorframe. Long blond hair touched his broad, broad shoulders. Full male lips graced a strong, hard-angled face. Bronzed, muscled arms extended from the snug, short-sleeved T straining across a well-defined chest.

Stacey sank lower until the water touched her chin. With the familiar blonde hair and stunning green eyes she could make out even from where she was, he had to be one of Lina’s brothers. Stacey was going to have a stern word or two for her friend next time she saw her. Over the course of their friendship, she’d heard a lot about Johnny and Michael, but never, in all that time, had Lina ever mentioned this insane level of masculine perfection, and the photos she’d proudly shown had been of a much younger boy who hadn’t yet reached this level of supreme manliness. That had to break some unwritten girlfriend rule somewhere.

He didn’t see her at first. He walked in a few steps and set what was left of a six-pack on the bench closest to the door. Then he bent over (good Lord the man had a damn fine ass!) and untied his boots. He wasn’t going to…

… oh hell yes he was. After toeing off his boots, he grabbed the hem of his shirt and began to lift. A ripped set of washboard abs was revealed. Once again, Stacey forgot to breathe.

Talk about a dilemma! Carnal instinct warred with logic. Did she keep her mouth shut and enjoy the spectacular show? And it was a spectacular show. She’d seen professionals that didn’t look as good as he did without even trying. Each movement sent a delicious rippling effect over his upper body as his muscles worked in perfect harmony to remove that pesky cotton and reveal all… of… that.

Her other choice, of course, was to break the spell he was unknowingly weaving and announce her presence.

Beneath the water, she squeezed her thighs together, hard, and tried to rein in her rampant hormones. This was Lina’s brother. She had to do the right thing.

“Um, excuse me?”

He stilled, his faded jeans already halfway down his delectable ass. Those powerful green eyes, trimmed by thick dark lashes, turned her way.

She smiled, or tried to. Her mouth didn’t seem to be working properly. “I’m Stacey.”

He blinked. Once. Twice. Then rose slowly back into an upright position. Her eyes flicked down to where his fly was open and his zipper was down, a gorgeous trail of dark golden hair disappearing behind a black Hanes waistband. It was impossible to tell for sure, but if pressed, she’d guess boxer briefs.

She licked her lips and forced her eyes back to his face. It wasn’t exactly a hardship. “I guess Lina didn’t tell you I was coming.”

Why was he staring at her like that? Why wasn’t he saying anything?

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Shock Advised

By

Lani Lynn Vale

Copyright ©2016 Lani Lynn Vale

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

Taima, a.k.a. Tai, is the last person people come to for help. He’s the fuck up…the bad boy…the guy that only looks out for himself.

Which couldn’t be further from the truth.

He’s fought hard to become the man he is today. He’s a hero in the public’s eye. A firefighter that the young all the way to the old turn to for help at the lowest point in their lives.

What people don’t know, though, is that he’s no hero. He’s the reason his sister is dead, and he’ll spend the rest of his life trying to right that wrong.

Then one split second decision has him coming face to face with Mia Darling. The woman changes his life, making him reevaluate everything he thought he had figured out, and showing him the tenderness he never knew he needed.

Just like always, though, his luck runs out.

When the smoke settles, Mia’s gone, and Tai realizes there’s no way he can live the rest of his life without her. He’ll show her just how hard a bad boy will fight to get his woman back, and he’s not opposed to fighting dirty.

Excerpt:

“Okay…,” Masen started. “Tell them that I like whiskey.”

I blinked turning only my head to glare at her.

“You can’t start off with ‘I like whiskey’,” I said. “You have to start off with something like…,” I hesitated, “I’m a country girl, looking for a God fearing, country boy that loves to get dirty, but doesn’t hate getting cleaned up, either.”

“Okay,” she said. “But make sure you put that I like beer in there, and I’m not a martini kind of girl.”

“Maybe I should just tell him that you’re an alcoholic,” I muttered.

Masen punched me.

“Alright,” I muttered, typing with my tongue between my teeth as I let my fingers carry me away.

“And make sure you tell him that I like to read, so he won’t get disappointed,” Masen urged.

“Why would he be disappointed?” I asked, knowing the answer.

Masen was an avid book reader, and it wasn’t uncommon for her to get so lost in her fictional character’s world, that she would ignore her real life world in the process.

I smiled.

I’m a country girl, looking for a God-fearing, country boy who loves to get dirty but doesn’t hate getting cleaned up, either. I’m not interested in partying and staying out all night, unless it’s wrapped up in a blanket, standing in front of a bonfire with a beer in my hand. I need a man that’s not offended by my mouth, because when my Dallas Cowboys are losing, I tend to lose control of it.

I’m a simple girl at heart that loves being on horseback, four wheeling and reading. And by reading, I mean binge reading many, many books a week. I love reading. I love to get lost in a fictional character’s world. I need a man that’s willing to let me be me, but who’s also willing to whisk me out of that fictional world and demand I spend time with him. I need somebody to be my other half. Be the Johnny to my June. The peanut butter to my jelly. The cheese to my macaroni.

If you think that’s you, I’d love to meet you.

Sincerely, a book nerd, country girl searching for her country boy.

“There,” I said. “How’s that?”

Masen read and slowly her mouth split into a large smile. “That’s perfect.” She hesitated, “But it sounds like you just wrote that for yourself, not me. I don’t like the Dallas Cowboys. You know I’m a Raiders Girl.”

I snorted. “You’re not going to find a Raiders’ fan in Texas, sweetheart,” I said. “Trust me.”

“Okay, I’ll add it to my site…but this better get me some hot, sexy cowboys,” she said, pointing her now empty wine glass at me.

I grinned.

“I bet you get a reply within two days,” I said, holding out my glass.

She reached for the wine bottle, filled both glasses up and grinned. “You’re on.”

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