Winter's Heart
Authors: A. C. Warneke
The world ends and begins with Winter
Flynn Rogers fell in love with the actor Winter Mitchell when she was twelve and he played the 500-year-old vampire on her favorite television series. She fell in love with the man Winter Mitchell when she was twenty-one and she was hired by his fiancée to plan her son's birthday. But in the land of Make Believe things are very rarely how they appear and Flynn is going to discover that the man beneath the mask is worth selling her soul.
Winter Mitchell is living a carefully constructed illusion, a role he assumed when he had been lost amongst the wolves. Even though the world believes he's engaged to the beautiful Melissa Irish, nothing could be further from the truth. He is content living the lie until Flynn Rogers crashes into his life and she is unlike anyone he has ever known. She has no filter between her thoughts and her tongue, she's cautious yet wildly inquisitive, and he pursues her with single-minded determination, reclaiming pieces of himself that he had lost along the way.
Secrets and Passion bind them together
Lust and Deception pull them apart
And Love… Love rules their hearts.
Winter's Heart is the blazing romance that will melt your kindle and set your sheets on fire.
WINTER’S HEART
Copyright©2014 Andrea Warneke
ASIN: B00ICUPD2A
Dedication:
Winter’s Heart
is a love letter to my fans, from the ones who’ve been with me since the beginning to the ones who are just now discovering my stories. This book is dedicated with love to all of you
♥~♥~♥
Dedicated with love to the Warriors and the Protectors, the members of the U.S. Military
♥~♥~♥
Dedicated with love to Family and Friends
♥~♥~♥
Dedicated with love to the Muses
Acknowledgement:
I have an amazing group of Beta Readers, readers who have given generously of their time and support. It is an honor to know them: Angelia Fox,
Celita Collins, Colleen Reilly, Jacque Burford, Jessica Gentile, Jodi Negri, Katherine Whang, Kim Friedhoff, Lakecia Gassett. Lindsey Armstrong, Paris Lemos, and Waleska Concepcion Crespo
♥~♥~♥
Thank you from the bottom of my heart ♥
Table of Contents
“It’s time to end this pretense of a relationship,” Melissa Irish said softly, staring at the pool where their five year old son splashed around with his nanny. Turning her head, she looked at Winter with tears in her eyes, tears he knew were manufactured because she was always
in character
, which was one of the things he admired about her. “You've been growing restless and I’ve been selfish, Winter. You’ve more than fulfilled the devil’s bargain we made all of those years ago.”
“Are you sure you want to do this, Miss?” Winter Mitchell asked his friend, his house mate, his fake fiancée. The world thought that they were lovers but that was far, far from the truth
and now Melissa wanted to end it. His mind started to race with possibilities of no longer living a lie even though he had no regrets for the choice he made all of those years ago.
“It’s time,” she said, watching him closely, the intelligence she kept hidden from the world shining brightly in
her blue eyes. Reaching up, she cupped his cheek, “I want you to be happy.”
Putting his hand over her much smaller one, he gave her a reassuring smile, “I
am
happy, Miss.”
“Yes, but at what cost?” she asked. Holding her arms out, she spun in a slow circle to encompass their beautiful home, with its luxurious furnishings, extravagant artwork, and million dollar views. “This is little more than a gilded cage for you and you deserve more.”
He could make the move to his country estate permanent, something he knew his son would love. He'd take some time off from filming movies and maybe re-evaluate his life. Keeping his voice even, he asked, “When do you want to do it?”
“We’ll wait until after Storm's birthday." Looking at the little boy that was everything to Winter, she continued, “I want it to be the best party ever.”
“He’ll be six,” Winter chuckled.
“I know,” she said with an impish grin, reminding him why they became friends
after the extraordinary events that brought them together. He hoped after all was said and done they would still have their friendship. “But that doesn’t mean it can’t be fabulous.”
“Okay.” His heart pounded in his chest, in excitement and fear because he had been Melissa Irish’s faux boyfriend for almost six years. It was a role that managed to polish his ruined reputation and give him a measure of gravitas that led to meatier parts. Being with her, being a father, reminded him of his roots and brought him back to reality.
Now she was ready to move on and he realized he was, too. They were going to have to handle this carefully because the public could be fickle and if they stumbled, both of their reputations could be destroyed. “How are we going to do it?”
“Leave it to me,” she said, her eyes gleaming with a plan. “I have it all figured out.”
Flynn Rogers sat on the couch trying not to fidget because she knew she was way out of her depths. She was a lowly assistant, a glorified intern, and she had no business interviewing for the position of party planner,
er, event coordinator, for the most famous actress in America, possibly the world. If Melissa Irish hadn’t nixed every other coordinator at Gilded Dreams, Flynn wouldn’t be listening to the beautiful woman discuss what she wanted for her son’s sixth birthday, which was coming up in six months. And she definitely wouldn’t have to bite her tongue to keep from blurting out what she really thought about the actress’s ideas.
“Well?” Melissa asked, her bright blue eyes sparkling with excitement as she leaned forward, almost crossing into Flynn’s personal space. Her blond hair was piled haphazardly on top of her head, she was wearing cut off shorts and a tank top and she was still gorgeous. Add in her sugary-sweet personality and it was easy to understand why Melissa Irish was America’s darling. Flynn was surprised by how tiny the popular actress was, barely five one and weighing ninety pounds soaking wet. In comparison, Flynn felt like a hulking troll, even though she was only five-four and one hundred and seventeen pounds. “What do you think?”
“Um,” Flynn murmured, trying to figure out a way to be diplomatic. Pushing a strand of light brown hair out of her eyes, she could feel the heat climbing into her cheeks and she hated that she blushed so easily. She never should have agreed to this charade. If Diane Murphy wasn’t her mother’s best friend, and Flynn’s oldest sister’s namesake, she would have turned her boss down flat. But Diane was desperate for the account, another thing Flynn didn’t understand since Diane’s company was already the premier party planning service in the Southern California region. But she wanted Melissa’s business so Flynn agreed to this madness.
Melissa leaned forward, her eyes gleaming a little too brightly. “Yes?”
“It’s…” Flynn paused, looking over the notes she had taken, getting even more flustered every time she thought about what Melissa wanted. She couldn’t do it, she couldn’t plan this party. Taking a deep breath, she raised her chin and forced herself to meet Melissa’s eyes. “It’s ridiculous.”
Instead of throwing a fit, Melissa’s smile grew even larger and she sat back in the couch, clapping her hands together. Arching a perfect blond eyebrow, she asked, “Ridiculous? Isn’t that a bit harsh?”
“What’s ridiculous?” A deep, whisky smooth and sexy rough voice asked from the doorway and Flynn’s spine straightened so fast she was surprised her back didn’t snap in two. Turning her head, she saw the man who had been her idol for nine years, ever since she was a gawky twelve year old and he was the eighteen year old star of her favorite premium television series,
Midnight Kiss
, a show loaded with sex, violence and intricate story lines. Yeah, so it wasn’t a show a twelve year old should have been watching but her oldest sister Murphy loved it and had commandeered the television every Friday night. But now the five-hundred-year old vampire Vitali Marcos stood there looking even sexier than when he had been on T.V.
Winter Mitchell.
Six foot three of pure male perfection: black hair and insanely blue eyes, he was the epitome of every girl’s wet dream. Muscles that were sleek and defined, a six pack to die for, golden skin and dimples, and a voice that oozed sex, he was... he was delicious. In every interview she had ever read, he came across as intelligent and thoughtful, nothing at all like a lot of the young stars out there who were only about the splash and headline and not the substance. That only made him more attractive. But then he also stepped in to raise another man’s child and he willingly embraced monogamy, devoting himself to the gorgeous and vivacious, albeit slightly older, Melissa and her son. That was just the icing on the cake.
Flynn’s idea of perfection, a Slavic god who was all about family.
Even though she knew he was Melissa’s boyfriend, she hadn’t expected to actually meet him, at least not at this initial interview. Since she doubted she’d be getting the job, she hadn’t expected to actually meet him at all. He was supposed to be off filming, not that she followed celebrity news that closely. Her sister Fallon had mentioned something in passing the night before and because it was about Winter Mitchell, Flynn remembered. Naturally.
Melissa squealed, flying off the couch and bounding over to the gorgeous actor like an eager puppy instead of the thirty-something woman she was. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pressed her lithe body against his hard body and beamed, “Winter! You’re home early. Come, meet my new event coordinator, Flynn Rogers.”
Flynn shakily came to her feet, the heat in her cheeks almost unbearable. Winter smiled at her, the smile that sent teenage girls into swoons, and Flynn felt it in her belly, a deep, primal quiver. How ridiculous. Wiping her damp hand over her skirt, she held it out, proud that it wasn’t shaking, “I’m Flynn but I’m not the coordinator.”
His lips twitched at her words and she was pretty sure she was about two seconds away from spontaneously combusting. His eyes danced with laughter when he repeated his earlier question, “What’s ridiculous?”
Flynn’s eyes darted to Melissa, who stood there grinning like she was enjoying a joke at her expense. Clearing her throat, she said tactfully, “It’s really not my place to say.”
“I told her what I want for Storm’s birthday,” Missy clarified, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
If possible, Winter’s smile became even more devastating, “Really.”
It wasn’t a question.
“So, tell me, Miss Rogers,” he purred, making the primal quiver in her belly whimper. Crossing his arms over his broad chest that was plastered in all of its glory on her walls back home, he arched an eyebrow, the trademark move that made him famous when he was in
Midnight Kiss
. “What is ridiculous?”
“Well,” she drawled out, her eyes darting to Melissa before returning to the man who starred in more than his fair share of her teenage fantasies. If she was going to be fired before she was even hired, she was going to go all in. “It’s everything. You don’t have Chihuahuas….
“Poodles,” his rich voice interrupted.
“Poodles,” she corrected before letting out everything she had been holding in since Melissa sat her down and explained exactly what she wanted. “Dressed in tutus at a six year
old’s birthday party. Or ever, really. With so many running, screaming children, Chihuahuas….”
“Poodles,” he repeated, silent laughter in the word.
“Whatever,” she said, getting into her rant, forgetting her promise to Diane to bite her tongue. There was a reason Melissa Irish couldn’t find a party planner: no one was insane enough to throw yappy dogs and a horde of infants together. “They would piss themselves in holy terror. And then there’s the clown, not just one clown but a dozen. Clowns are frightening and I’m pretty sure they were put on the earth to show children that there really are much more terrifying monsters than what’s hiding under the bed or in the closet. I shudder to imagine the nightmares the children will have when you mix the cackling clowns and the yippy dogs and the massive amount of sugar….”
“Well, if you can’t do it,” Melissa said with a shrug of her delicate shoulders, her eyes sparkling with undisguised glee. “I can easily find someone else who can.”
“I didn’t say that I can’t,” Flynn said, already regretting her outburst but it was too late. Diane was going to have no choice but to fire her and she’d have to find another job that paid as well and gave her the flexibility to deal with her sister’s erratic audition schedule. Gathering up her pen and notes and bag, she looked at the insane, beautiful person and simply said, “I won’t.”
With her heart pounding in her chest, she stole one last glance at her teenage idol, wishing she had thought to ask for his autograph before insulting his girlfriend. Keeping her shoulders straight and her head high, she started to leave when Winter pulled away from Melissa and wrapped his long fingers around her elbow. She wasn’t expecting to feel it in her toes and it took everything in her to keep her gasp silent.
“Let me walk you out,” he crooned, his masculine scent of spice and mint washing over her and making her knees weak. If he was going to keep touching her she was going to be a pile of goo in about two seconds flat, which was really something, considering how close she had been to spontaneously combusting earlier. Maybe she would be like the tar fields and once lit she’d burn forever.
“That’s really not necessary,” she muttered. First of all, she wasn’t comfortable with her reaction to him and second, she didn’t want to hear him make fun of the car she drove. Yes, it was a rust bucket and looked like a good washing would make it disintegrate but it ran really well and it was reliable. Although she had to admit that it didn’t
belong in the posh neighborhood and if she hadn’t had an appointment with Melissa Irish, courtesy of Gilded Dreams, she wouldn’t have gotten past the guard at the gate.
“Trust me,” he grinned, his dimples winking at her as if they were sentient. Okay, now she was just being daft. “It is.”
He exchanged a glance with Melissa before he hauled her to the front door, probably to kick her in the ass as soon as he threw her out the door like the trash. She wouldn’t let it bother her. So he turned out to be an asshole; he was an actor and they were a different breed of human. But when they got to the entry, he didn’t kick her out. Instead, he leaned against the door and crossed his arms over that magnificent chest again. Grinning down at her, he murmured, “No one usually calls Melissa out on her bullshit. I’m impressed.”
“Yeah, well, she’s crazy,” she said, eyeing the door with longing. If he was going to give her a tongue lashing before sending her on her way she would rather just be done with it before he ruined any more of her fantasies. Realizing he had no intention of letting her go just yet, she sighed, shaking her head. “Some other fool will give her what she wants so I want to apologize in advance.”
He frowned, and looked sexy. “For what?”
“For the mess you’re going to have,” she told him, looking at him through her lashes. Maybe she could still get his autograph because after this, since he wasn’t chewing her out, she still had a chance as long as she asked nicely. It was the least she could get out of this whole fiasco because she was pretty sure her boss was going to fire her and it didn’t matter that Diane was her godmother or that she promised to look after Flynn and her sister while they lived in the Golden State. Nope. Flynn was going to have to break her sister’s heart and stomp on her dream of becoming a famous actress because she couldn’t hold her damn tongue. “Chihuahuas can pee a lot.”
He laughed and her internal organs liquefied. The way his blue eyes lit up, the flash of his straight white teeth, the damned dimples…. She was going to be a puddle at his feet and Chihuahua pee was going to be the very least of his worries.
“Poodles,” he said from out of the blue and she wondered if she said that last part out loud. No, she was almost certain she kept her fantasies to herself. “Besides, we have an excellent cleaning service.”
“Pardon me?” she asked, her brain losing cells faster than a stripper losing her panties at a bachelor party.
“She said poodles, not Chihuahuas, which you seem strangely obsessed with,” he grinned, uncrossing his arms and taking a step closer. Without thinking, she took a retreating step back. There was no way she was going to get within touching distance of him, not when he emitted such powerful pheromones she was certain
her
panties were about to melt right off her body. “And she wants you to be the party planner.”
She snorted, quickly covering her mouth with her hand as her eyes flew to his. She just snorted in front of the most gorgeous man in the universe – could this day get any worse? “I think you missed the part of the conversation where I said I wouldn’t do it.”
He brought out the big guns, tilting his chin forward and giving her
The Look
, the one that had Bethany giving him her virginity two seconds after she promised her mother she would stay pure for her husband in the movie
Reckless Hearts
. His lips became fuller as he smiled, his dimples did that winking thing, and his blue eyes delved into her soul. She had to remember how to breathe. “Please?”
How could she refuse him, especially if it meant she wouldn’t be disappointing Diane or crushing her sister’s dreams? Catching her lower lip between her teeth, she bit down, hoping to jump start her stalled out brain. “No Chihuahuas in tutus.”
