A successful musician in an indie rock band, Evan Spencer takes the summer off and returns home to Cinnamon Bay, hoping the R&R will inspire him to write some new songs. He never expected to run into Juliet Clarkson on his first day back in The Bay. The Juliet he remembers was a paint-and-clay-covered kid with braces and frizzy hair. Now she’s a successful potter, and the most compelling woman he’s ever seen.
Juliet Clarkson has been in love with Evan … well, forever. She pined for years over the soulful-voiced best friend of her older brother. Swooned when she heard his guitar. Dreamed of him noticing her one day. And when that day happens, Juliet doesn’t know if she’s still dreaming, or if all her dreams are finally coming true.
But when tragedy strikes close to both their families, Evan is forced to give up his carefree summer in Cinnamon Bay and be the stand-up guy that an orphaned baby needs. Good thing Juliet is there to help. Sparks fly instantly, and soon their romance is real, all-consuming—and people are talking wedding bells.
But when the opportunity of a lifetime comes knocking, offering him and his band the fame they’d always dreamed of, he has to make a decision. Which is the dream come true—the life onstage he and his band know best? Or the unexpected new life he’s building in Cinnamon Bay with Juliet?
After the shock wore off and the electricity in her limbs started to settle, along with her rapidly beating heart, she lifted her head to find the rock star of her dreams standing there behind the counter with a very cocky grin on his face.
She rolled her eyes, but her heart rate only picked up again. “You’re on my playlist.”
“I feel like the innuendo is just right there, but I can’t figure out how to spin it.” He stepped closer, his eyes taking in every inch of her. Every clay-covered inch of her.
“I’m too tired to think of one.” She already knew that her hair was coming out of the pencil she held it up with. She’d been tucking and blowing the strands off her face since they weren’t quite long enough to stay tucked behind her ears.
She hadn’t bothered with makeup besides a little mascara, and that was probably falling under her eyes by now since she’d been wearing it for nearly fourteen hours.
“I’ve never seen you in action,” he said softly. “Never seen the artist at work.”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, stand back because the clay tends to fly.”
“Was there a scene about this in a movie?” he asked, not taking a step back but rather several steps forward.
She eased her foot on the pedal, and the wheel slowed down and eventually stopped.
“There is.” She jerked her head toward the bathroom. “Ghost with Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg.” Her brows pinched. “How do you not—” But she stopped herself when his expression turned coy. “You knew. You were just teasing me.”
His smile made her insides get all tingly. “I might be Oblivious Evan, but I’m not an idiot.”
Her cheeks grew warm, but that didn’t keep her from grinning at him. He was right behind her now. She had to tilt her head up to look at him. His gentle, sexy brown eyes bored right into her, turning her into a puddle.
“My mom came over to watch Hope for a bit,” he said, grabbing a stool and setting it right behind her, sitting down and leaning against her back. The heat of him and the way his legs bracketed hers was enough to make every one of her synapses fire at the same time.
This was literally her ultimate fantasy.
Not only had she watched Ghost more times than any preteen ever should, but she had fantasized about Evan Swayzeing her also probably more than she ever should have. Probably more than was healthy.
Normally, she felt really close to her mom when she was working on the wheel, but she was really hoping her mom had decided to go for a walk along the beach or The Boardwalk right about now.
He was wearing a fitted black T-shirt with a slight V-neck that had made her jaw drop and her mouth pool with saliva when he put it on this morning.
His fingers started at her elbows and slowly moved along her arms until his big hands covered her clay-caked ones. “Show me how to do it,” he said, his breath warm against her ear.
She smiled and pushed her foot down on the pedal just enough for the wheel to start spinning slowly.
Just like she’d imagined it, just like in the movie, his fingers slid through hers, both of them now covered in clay just like hers.
She’d centered the piece. Now it was time to start shaping it.
“What are you making?” he asked, kissing her neck.
“I didn’t have a plan,” she said. “Sometimes I just sit down at the wheel and let the muse find me.”
“Mmmm,” he hummed. “I’m the same way with the guitar.”
“You were working on something when I left …” She guided their hands up a little, then together they stuck two fingers each, his on top of hers, into the center of the clay and began to press out.
The eroticism, the symbolism of what they were doing with their fingers and how it all looked and felt was not lost on her in the least.
Pottery could be extremely erotic. Everything was done with the hands; everything was wet and smooth and involved pressing down with your fingers. She’d certainly found herself aroused on more than one occasion watching a pottery video, even when the view was of just the person’s hands.
A Canadian West Coast baby born and raised, Whitley is married to her high school sweetheart, and together they have two beautiful daughters and a fluffy dog. She spends her days making food that gets thrown on the floor, vacuuming Cheerios out from under the couch and making sure that the dog food doesn’t end up in the air conditioner. But when nap time comes, and it’s not quite wine o’clock, Whitley sits down, avoids the pile of laundry on the couch, and writes.
A lover of all things decadent; wine, cheese, chocolate and spicy erotic romance, Whitley brings the humorous side of sex, the ridiculous side of relationships and the suspense of everyday life into her stories. With single dads, firefighters, Navy SEALs, mommy wars, body issues, threesomes, bondage and role-playing, Whitley’s books have all the funny and fabulously filthy words you could hope for.
As a senator’s daughter, Kennedy Blackwell has everything, or so it seems. But on her wedding day, a shocking secret changes everything, and Kennedy’s fortunes turn on a dime. Instead of offering their unconditional support, her parents turn their backs on her, proving once and for all that her father’s goal of becoming president is more important than his own child. Forced to start over, Kennedy relies on a pact she and five friends made to each other back in junior high. She also enlists the help of the “entertainment” from her bachelorette party, a handsome handyman-by-day, exotic dancer-by-night.
Wade Roberts faces his existence one crisis at a time. Everything bad in his life has directly resulted from a poor decision or the actions of a member of the Blackwell family. So, when the senator’s daughter calls asking for help, he’s torn between assisting her or making her “pay.” Soon tangled up in the Blackwell family drama, he finds himself being framed for an unspeakable crime. Wade must step up and prove his innocence and his love for a woman who deserves more than he can offer.
Can two people who start with nothing end up with everything?
She blinked and focused on her future husband standing at the end of the aisle. He looked as nervous as she felt. There was even a green hue to his complexion, probably a side effect from his bachelor party. Unlike Emily, he could toss the booze back with little effect, but last night they must have really tied one on.
She made her way toward him with knocking knees and trembling hands.
When the minister asked who gave this woman and her father answered, a ball of emotions welled inside her. Who’d thought those words were a good idea? It was like she was being traded for political favors when the only exchange between father and future son-in-law was the promise of box seats for next year’s games.
She took Logan’s hand in front of the officiant, who talked about the sacred vow of marriage and what love meant. They recited traditional promises to love, honor, and cherish until death do they part, but neither met the other’s eyes. Logan looked past or through her to her bridesmaids. She stared at a piece of lint on his shoulder.
“Does anyone here have a reason to object to this marriage?” The minister’s voice boomed, leaving no doubt everyone heard him.
Kennedy ran through an entire list of reasons to object in her head. She still had time to change her mind, but when she looked at Logan and saw the same fear she felt, a small giggle escaped her mouth. They both had wedding jitters. That was normal.
At that moment, he looked at her the way he had when they first met. Despite the anxiety and feelings of doom, she was the luckiest woman in the world.
The congregation sat silently as the minister waited the obligatory several seconds for anyone to object. He cleared his throat. “I now pronounce you—” “Wait!” Emily said loudly enough for everyone to hear, though her voice cracked. “I can’t let you marry him.”
International bestselling author of more than thirty novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.
Kelly has sold more than a quarter of a million books worldwide, and in 2021 she was awarded a Readers’ Favorite Award Gold Medal in the Contemporary Romance category for A Tablespoon of Temptation.
As a member of Cross Security, Mason Hawk is a tormented man on a mission…some might say he has a death wish. No case is too difficult. Nothing if off limits. He delivers his own brand of justice. Solitude is his only reward. For fifteen years he has hidden the secrets he ran from at age seventeen. He shut everyone out when he became a Navy SEAL and he honed his skills to become the monster he believes he is. He’s a man with demons that run deep and dark. No one gets in. That is until she walks into his life and brings him to his knees. She’s beautiful, smart, and perfect. Like beauty and the beast, he believes she could never love a man like him.
Kai Wailani has lived the perfect life. She has a loving family, has surfed all over the world and is on top of her game at the U.S. Airforce, but she wants more. When she joins Cross Security, the only man stopping her from achieving her goal is a gorgeous wall of muscle who goes simply by Hawk. He’s dark, dangerous, and yet, he can make her smile with a single glance. He’s a force when he walks into a room and he wants nothing to do with her.
Like fire and ice, the dance begins. They are enemies. They are lovers. There are so many secrets. Can Hawk and Kai trust each other enough to find their happy ending or will their passion end them both?
As I’m walking through the lobby of my hotel, the concierge smiles brightly at me. She’s cute, sweet, and is always happy to see me. I’ve thought about asking her to join me for a drink on numerous occasions, but then a certain raven-haired beauty flashes across my mind and the thought dies away. I’m not interested in starting anything up with another woman and my dick seems to agree with me. As cute as Lisa is, she just doesn’t do it for me. No one does except the woman I stupidly pushed away. It’s for the best, I remind myself. I’m caught up in my pity party when I realize Lisa is talking to me.
“Enjoy your evening, Mr. Hawk. Your wife arrived a short while ago. I’ve sent a courtesy bottle of champagne up to your room.” She is so excited that she is almost bouncing in place.
I stop dead in my tracks. “Excuse me?” I ask as I look over at the girl who now has a nervous look on her face.
“Umm… your wife… she arrived about an hour ago.” She slaps her hand over her mouth and her eyes go wide. “Oh no, I forgot it was supposed to be a surprise and now I’ve ruined it. Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry.” She looks like she is about to be sick. “Please don’t tell her I ruined her surprise,” she pleads.
“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart, trust me, I’m still surprised. I won’t spoil it by telling her you told me.” My voice comes out a bit more growly than I intended. I mean, who can blame me, I just fucking found out I have a wife and I definitely don’t fucking remember getting married. I wonder who I’m married to as I double-time it to the elevator. I’m in the penthouse; the clients aren’t sparing any expense when it comes to proving their father was murdered, and since I am here for the long haul, they were gracious enough to make sure I was comfortable.
When the elevator doors open to my floor, I take a quick look around before I walk up to my door, pull the gun out of the holster under my jacket and load a bullet into the chamber. There’s no one out here and everything looks to be in order, but training kicks in and I prepare for whatever lies behind that door.
This job has been pretty uneventful, but things are about to get a lot more interesting. I slip my card into the slot on the door and the lock snicks open. It’s quiet, but not quiet enough. I’ve no doubt whoever is inside definitely knows I’m here now. Pushing the door open, I slip inside. The sound of soft jazz floats through the air. The place is dark except for the warm glow of flickering candles coming from down the hall. The familiar scent of wildflowers and the sea have my cock hardening as soon as I’m through the door. I know that scent, I breathe it in like it’s a lifeline to the promised land. It’s her scent… what the fuck is she doing here.
I click on the safety and holster my gun as I walk down the hall. She comes into view as I round the corner. Goddess, angel, seductress is all I can think as I take her in, sitting on the sofa, bathed in the warm glow of the candles that surround her. She’s fucking breathtaking. Her dark hair cascades over her shoulders and tumbles down her back like an inky waterfall. Her golden body is wrapped in soft pink silk that shimmers in the candlelight. Her head is resting back on the sofa and her eyes are closed. She hasn’t noticed me yet, or if she has, she isn’t letting on that she has.
I clear my throat as I lean my shoulder against the wall, watching her. Her eyes fly open and instantly lock on mine like two pools of molten chocolate that hold me captive. Her luscious lips curl up slightly at the corners at the sight of me, but she doesn’t say a word, she just sits there waiting for me to speak.
Nancy Carolyn Brown is an author of contemporary romance, fond of writing love stories about hunky badass men endowed with massive hearts, and strong heroines with just the right mix of sweet and sass… flaming hot chemistry and thrilling nail biting suspense is always guaranteed!
She loves cosmos and chocolate and a swoony good book with a strong storyline.
She lives in sunny southern Alberta, Canada with her high school sweetheart husband and naughty Bengal cat. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys the simple things in life like spending time with family and friends, reading and running with her favorite playlist blasting in her ears.
