He’s a man trying to keep things under control. She’s a woman yearning to break free. Is this a disaster waiting to happen or a love story in the making?
Actress Cameron Madden is sick and tired of being tired. With her last movie failing at the box office and her career in question, she heads to Aspen Cove to lick her wounds. The small mountain town is the perfect place to escape the prying eyes of a critical public, the demands of her career, and the rules set by her team. Expecting a female bodyguard named Valery, she’s shocked to find the script has been flipped and Valery is a tall, dark, and annoying man who goes by Val. The first thing he does is hand her a set of rules—his rules. And she plans to break every one of them.
The last thing bodyguard Valery Armstrong wants to do is babysit an actress, but when the job comes in, he is the only one available. Saving the day and picking up the pieces is what he’s been doing since his father passed away. That single event ten years ago taught him one thing—prepare for every possibility. Before agreeing to take on Cameron, he asks himself how difficult could one woman be? When he arrives, he hands her the list, then watches as she gifts him with a heart-stopping smile—right before tearing the page to pieces. How difficult could one woman be? Cameron Madden is about to show him.
He pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to her. “These are my rules.”
She seemed to sink in front of him, but it was a momentary muscle lapse before that invisible string pulled her back up. Only this time, it seemed to drag her forward to stand in front of him. She swiped the envelope from his hand and tore open the flap. Once she drew out the single page with his rules, she let the envelope fall to the floor.
He watched as her eyes moved across the page. Second by second, they grew until he was sure they’d pop from her skull.
She raised her head and stared at him. “Are you serious?”
“Why would I give you that if I wasn’t serious?”
“It’s a page with one rule. You said rules.”
He smiled. “I don’t need more than one.”
She glanced at the paper and lifted her head. “You make all the rules?” She stared at him like he’d sprouted a horn in the center of his forehead.
“That’s my one rule. Take it or leave it.”
Her jaw dropped, and she took a step back. “What are you going to do? Leave?” She tore the page in half and let the pieces fall to the marble floor next to the envelope. “You’re not the boss, and you don’t make the rules.”
“Wrong.” He turned around, walked back to the elevator, pushed the button, and waited.
“You’re seriously leaving? How am I supposed to get to Colorado?”
He took several cleansing breaths before he spun around to face her. “Nothing has changed. You have a flight waiting at Los Angeles International Airport. It will take you to Denver, where you’ll have to get a ride to Aspen Cove. Rent a car. It’s only a few hours’ drive from there to your destination.”
She seemed to wobble on her heels. “You’re abandoning me?”
He shook his head. “I’m not. I gave you my rules, and you dismissed them. You don’t get to be the top private security firm in the country if you break your own rules, and my only rule is I make the rules.” The elevator door opened, and he stepped inside. “I’ll give you ten minutes to decide. If you’re not down in the lobby by then, I’ll leave. It’s that simple.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but the doors closed before she could get a word out.
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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.
“So I’m clear: you want me to babysit an off-the-rails actor for six months?”
When life hands you lemons, you make lemonade.
Or, at least, that’s what I’m telling myself.
My family moved, my ex took my friends when he left, and my job is suddenly uninspiring. There’s a silver lining in here somewhere, I’m sure…
It comes, eventually, in a strange package; a last-minute job that’s slightly outside my comfort zone, a long way away. Dealing with a movie star can’t be that hard, can it?
He’s hot, of course. And a mess, no doubt. Hates me and wants to be left to self-destruct alone, apparently. But it’s my job to turn it around, turn him around and when I find myself falling for more than just the job, it gets tricky.
The lights are better here, more magical, and I’m not sure if it’s his lack of charm or the prospects for the future but I can almost taste that lemonade… or can I?
Between Takes is a slow burn steamy enemies-to-lovers, boss-assistant romance. It is the first book in the Kings of Screen series. If you enjoy irresistible damaged heroes and take no-nonsense heroines caught in a workplace romance, you’ll love Between Takes.
A small voice in the back of my mind reminded me that my sweaty body was plastered against my boss. I shushed it, content to drown in his green eyes. So what if it was inappropriate? He caught me. I didn’t instigate anything.
His head lowered and, ignoring the tiny grain of self-control I still possessed, I licked my lips. His hot eyes dropped to my mouth and mine followed. His breath tickled my face, tempting and taunting me.
Shaun smirked. “If you wanted me to hold you, you could have just asked,” he muttered, our noses almost touching.
His words jolted me from the spell his concern had woven and reality set in. My body stiffened against his hold while my mind went on the defensive. A second longer and I might have taken matters into my own hands and kissed him.
“Thank you for the save, but you can put me down now.”
Morgana Bevan is a sucker for a rock star romance, particularly if it involves a soul-destroying breakup or strangers waking up in Vegas. She’s a contemporary romance author based in Wales. When Morgana’s not writing steamy rock star and movie star romances, she’s working in TV production in the UK.
When not writing, she enjoys travelling, attending gigs, and trying out the extreme activities she forces on her characters.
Childhood friends become forbidden lovers in this sexy start to the Six Gems series from Yahrah St. John.
Their fiery affair fulfills her fantasies… And puts everything at risk.
When travel blogger Wynter Barrington’s wealthy, disapproving family cuts her off, she finds comfort in a passionate chance encounter with Riley Davis, her best friend’s brother. He’s hot as hell…and totally off-limits.
And when they meet again months later, they begin a sizzling affair. Wynter knows Riley doesn’t do love and marriage, but her youthful crush is feeling more and more like a real relationship. If she’s not careful, Wynter may put more than her relationship with her best friend on the line. Can she survive falling in love with the one man she was never supposed to touch?
Riley led Wynter out of the restaurant and to the passenger side of his Bentley, waiting at the curb, and then came round to the driver’s side. Before turning on the car, he turned to her. “Are you sure about this, Wynter? Because if we do this, you need to understand that it’s only for one night. I don’t do commitments or relationships. Besides which, I just became partner at my law firm. I have no room in my life for personal entanglements.”
She understood, because she wasn’t looking for more than tonight. Her world was already topsy-turvy. Spending the night with Riley would be her choice, something she could control. She was owning her feminine power and taking what she wanted. “Yes, I’m sure. I want you, Riley, but if the feeling isn’t mutual…”
He snorted. And before she knew it, Riley’s mouth came down hard and demanding on hers. Desire rushed through Wynter as her arms slid around his neck. She returned the kiss and gave him everything. Riley growled against her mouth as he plundered its depths. His tongue mated with hers in an erotic dance that made her belly swoop and dive like a flight of doves taking off. Wynter’s mind became frenzied with a blur of sensations. If they didn’t stop, she was afraid of what she might let him do right there in the car. Slowly, she pulled away.
He frowned. “Did I come on too strong?”
She shook her head. “Not at all. You were just right, but unless you want to get cited for indecent exposure, I think it might be a good idea for us to take this back to your place.”
Riley grinned. “I think you’re right.” After giving her a heated stare, he turned on the ignition and eased the car out of the parking lot.
Yahrah St. John is the International author of forty books. She became a writer at the age of twelve when she wrote her first novella after secretly reading a Harlequin romance. Throughout her teens, she penned a total of twenty novellas. Her love of the craft continued into adulthood. She’s the proud author of thirty-nine books with Arabesque, Kimani Romance and Harlequin Desire as well as her own indie works.
When she’s not at home crafting one of her spicy romances with compelling heroes and feisty heroines with a dash of family drama, she is gourmet cooking or traveling the globe seeking out her next adventure. For more info:www.yahrahstjohn.com or find her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Bookbub or Goodreads.
