Winter Solstice (6 page)
She’s a rock star, he’s not. That doesn’t stop them from making beautiful music…
Love Song
© 2009 S. L. Carpenter
The lights, the crowds, the shows—the success that comes with topping the rock charts seems bright and glittering. For Ami, lead singer of the mega-hot band Haunted, it’s anything but. She’s tired of being “on” every waking second. There’s never any time to breathe, and the pressure is driving her toward becoming a dangerous cliché—the drunken musician.
Desperate to regain control of her life, she runs, looking for space. For peace. For herself. What she finds is Edward.
Having a famous rock star staying in his home, Edward is enchanted and stunned. How could a woman like her be drawn to his simple, down-to-earth lifestyle? There’s only one thing he can offer her: a willingness to help with no strings attached.
Slowly, in Edward’s arms, Ami gets back in touch with the woman she remembers. The one who loves music. Laughter. The touch of a lover’s hands on her body.
But the real world won’t let her hide forever. The consequences could cost her her hard-won peace…and her muse.
Enjoy the following excerpt for
Love Song:
The next morning Ami woke up and stumbled down the hallway, her hair a matted mess and the baggy shirt hanging loose over her small frame. She yawned and scratched under her breasts as she walked into the kitchen. On the small table was a note.
Have a few errands to run. Be back soon,
Edward
Ami rubbed her eyes. She couldn’t remember the last time she slept that good. She decided to peek around a little. Not to be nosey but just look around a bit to get the lay of the house.
There were photos on the wall of a couple with a few kids. She assumed it was Edward’s parents and the family. Beside them was a photo of Edward with a pretty woman at a park or something. Smiling, Ami saw that they looked happy.
She didn’t see any kid’s toys or anything like that so she figured there weren’t any around. She found the little kitchenette area and a coffeemaker. “Thank God.”
She made a small pot of coffee and grabbed a small laptop computer she saw resting on an end table.
Hopefully, they have the Internet.
Ami sat with her legs pulled against her chest sipping a cup of coffee. The sun shone through the kitchen window across the table. Warmth crept through the room, and Ami sighed with pleasure.
As she opened the computer and did a little surfing she saw a small flashing icon at the bottom. It was a pop-up.
Clicking it, she found herself at a porn site.
“Aha, somebody has been naughty.”
Edward must have still been logged on because it read, “Welcome back Eddie Z”.
She browsed around a little and laughed at the photos and streaming porn.
“What do men see in all this… Holy shit! That guy is deformed.” She sat up a little to get a better look. “That can’t be… I guess it is.”
“Knock, knock. Anyone home?” Ami looked up and saw an elderly woman at the door. She was the woman she had seen in the photos.
“Come on in.”
Startled the woman looked around. “Um, Edward isn’t back yet?”
“He said he was running some errands. I’m Ami, his, um, friend.” Ami figured she was probably quite an odd sight, wearing not much clothing and sitting in a man’s kitchen.
“Hello, I’m Ellen, Edward’s mom. He mentioned he had a guest this morning. He had to run into town to get some groceries for me. I come over every now and then to give Edward some breakfast. He can’t cook an egg without messing it up. Just like his father.”
“Yeah, I got his note.”
“You are his, ummm, how do I put this?”
“I’m just a friend. He let me stay here last night. I apologize. He offered me a place to crash for a couple days. I can leave if you want.”
“Well if my little Eddie said you can stay it’s fine with me. It’ll be nice to have someone around to chat with instead of just Eddie and his dad.”
Ami nodded. “Thank you.”
“You hungry?”
Ami shrugged. “I’m okay. I usually just have an energy bar and some cappuccino in the morning.”
“Don’t be silly. You’ll wither away without a decent breakfast. I brought over some muffins I’d made for his father. Help yourself.” Ellen put a small basket on the table and the fresh smell of the muffins filled the room.
“Oh wow. Okay, thank you.” She took a warm muffin and broke it in half. Taking a bite she smiled ear to ear. Ami was used to people waiting on her but this was a genuine act of kindness. It felt great to have someone be nice with no ulterior motive, no other reason than to be kind.
Ellen stood and walked to the sink. “Well I’ll let you get ready. I’ll be next door if you… Jesus Christ, look at the size of that man’s penis!”
Ellen stepped back. “I haven’t seen anything that big since we took the horses out to stud.”
Ami laughed. “I was just surfing and this silly porn site popped up. I saw this and wanted to, um, do a little research.”
“Well, ahem, have fun with your research. I need to go cock some—I mean
cook
some stew.” Laughing, Ellen walked out the back door.
There’s only one man she needs to believe in. Him.
If You Believe
© 2009 Crystal Jordan
Unbelievable, Book One
When it comes to her love life, the name of Aubrey Mathison’s coffee shop says it all: “Bean There, Done That”. There’s only one harmless man in her life right now—the homeless one parked outside the shop. Except the crazy things he says keep coming true.
She has to laugh at “You'll meet your soul mate today”, though. Divorce taught her that men as gorgeous as sexy police chief Price Delacroix are not to be trusted. She’s totally up for a one-night stand, but more than that? No, thanks.
Price bears his own scars from the past, but he knows instantly that Aubrey is his. How to convince her he wants more than to be her personal jungle gym? Cut her off. That means no more mattress gymnastics—until she starts seeing things his way.
Aubrey is just as determined Price’s campaign to wear down her resistance is going to fail, no matter how wickedly determined he is. Until her resident prophet spouts a new prediction: her soul mate’s life is in danger…
Enjoy the following excerpt for
If You Believe:
Mr. Crazy Man was back. He hummed a little before speaking again. “Dogs are bad luck for you today.”
Shit. She hunched her shoulder and spun away. “Thanks.”
If she went her normal route home, she’d have to pass by the dog park that made up a corner of the town square. Maybe she would try a different way. Just for the change of scenery. Change was good for the soul, wasn’t it? If she went by the dog park, it just seemed like too much self-fulfilling prophecy.
Taking a left off the main path where she usually took a right, she wandered into the older district of town that had great Victorian houses. She’d always loved that style of architecture, but Scott had wanted modern. Now that she lived alone, it just seemed like too much upkeep. And maybe it was because she was afraid it would put her one step away from crazy cat lady to rattle around in a big old house like that. She turned the corner onto her street. She had four blocks left to go.
“Woof.” Her blood ran cold at the deep bark that came from behind her. A lot of people walked these streets in the evening. And took their dogs with them.
A kid of about twelve had lost the leash on his Great Dane. The air went whistling out of her in what might have been a high-pitched squeak.
It wasn’t that she believed Jericho or anything, but the fire thing had kind of creeped her out. Watching that pony-sized excuse for a dog running at her made her blood run cold. Anyone would freak out. It had nothing to do with Jericho’s warning. Nope. Not a thing.
She backpedaled as fast as her legs could carry her just the same. The back of her ankles hit something that yelped and the next thing she knew she was going down hard on the pavement. Her back arched when her tailbone made sharp contact with the ground and all the breath rushed out of her lungs. Curling into a fetal position on her side, she wrapped her arms around her knees and tried to remember why she didn’t want to die right then.
When she opened her eyes, a pointy little muzzle snapped in her face as a dachshund yapped. Dog breath,
blech
. She groaned and pushed into a sitting position. A strong arm wrapped around her back to cradle her against a wide chest.
Price Delacroix
.
“Don’t move, Aubrey.” His deep voice rumbled, and that was all it took to get her hot and bothered. Her sex dampened at the sound of his rich, deep tones. The way he smelled. The hardness of his muscles against her body.
Thank you, Jesus.
“I’m fine.” She tried to pretend the breathiness of her voice was just from having the wind knocked out of her. The way her nipples tightened and her muscles softened told her it was a lie.
“You took a hard fall. Stay there.” His words were almost harsh, but his touch was gentle when he brushed her hair away from her face. She fought the urge to lean her cheek into his palm. Everything about this man made her react.
Her original assessment that the two of them were destined to burn up the sheets was dead on. She really wanted to try him on for size. She’d bet he fit just fine. “I’m really all right, Chief.”
“Price. You’ll call me Price.” His other arm slid under her bent knees and lifted her as he stood.
She squeaked and clutched his shoulders. His soft T-shirt bunched in her fingers as she held on tight. “Don’t drop me.”
A wicked grin flashed over his face before he focused on her eyes. Some of her panic must have shown because he cuddled her closer. “Not a chance, sugar.”
“Is she all right, Chief Delacroix?” Mrs. Chambers, the biggest gossip in town, reined in her wiener dog and stared at the two of them.
“Oh, she’s fine. Ma’am.” He dipped his head in a nod, dismissing the older woman while he turned to walk up the driveway in front of the big Victorian on the corner. She sighed in envy when she saw it.
She glanced over his shoulder at Mrs. Chambers. An avid gleam entered the older woman’s eyes as he mounted the porch. Pitching her voice low, Aubrey had to warn him. “Look, I know you’re new in town, but Mrs. Chambers—”
He nudged the front door of his house open, and then kicked it shut behind them. “Will spread it all over town that I carried you into my house? And will probably embellish it by saying that I practically stripped you on the sidewalk and fucked you against the street lamp.”
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