Read Bliss Series Boxed Set: The Whole Damn Harem Online
Authors: B.J. Harvey
Bliss Series Boxed Set: The Whole Damn Harem (118 page)
“A man can only hope,” Grant retorts.
“Looking for another trophy wife, Grant? Didn’t you learn anything from Olivia?” I ask.
Olivia is Grant’s ex-wife, a second runner-up Miss Montana with old money and a killer rack that captured his attention before she’d even opened her mouth. Cue a whirlwind courtship and a quickie Vegas wedding, and Grant was off the market. Or so we’d all thought. He’d soon realized that good looks and a well-known family name didn’t mean she was intelligent or could offer him anything more than great arm candy. The moment Grant realized that he wanted more, his young trophy wife was out the door.
Suddenly he signals the attention of a waitress walking past with a tray full of champagne flutes. “Excuse me,” Grant says as he swipes two glasses off the tray as soon as she offers it to him.
“Thank you,” I murmur under my breath, not looking her way. When I feel eyes on me, I turn and see the waitress hasn’t moved on. She’s standing beside us, openly staring.
I turn my body towards her. “Sorry, did you need something?”
“You’re Callum Alexander, right?”
I roll my eyes and exhale noisily before slipping my professional welcome mask back on and flashing her my most winning smile. “That’s me, and you are?”
“Lucia. Lucia Harding, but I prefer Luce.” She balances the laden tray onto her palm and holds out her other hand to me, her gaze never wavering as she introduces herself. Green eyes with a slight speckling of amber take me in as she waits for my next move. What surprises me more than anything is the way she’s seemingly unapologetic as she stands there and studies me. It takes Grant to clear his throat before I realize that I’ve been staring right back at her. Putting my hand in hers, my smile morphs into something more genuine, almost real. Something that hasn’t happened in a long time.
“Luce . . .” I keep my hand in hers and tilt my head to my right where Grant is standing. “This is my rude friend, Grant Richardson, my partner-in-crime and right-hand man.”
Her cheeks blush a light-red hue, and I can’t help but wonder what on earth she’s thinking about. Then my own mind wanders to what else could make her blush, what I could do to her to elicit such a response. A gentle squeeze of my hand snaps me out of my errant thoughts, and I realize I’m still holding her hand, but she’s not pulling hers away, either.
A strange, yet captivating moment.
I study her face. It’s as if my subconscious feels the need to commit her to memory. Her skin is like warm porcelain. A scattering of freckles adorn the bridge of her nose and cheeks, giving a hint of character that only serves to draw you in further. She’s impossible to ignore. There’s a glint in her enchanting eyes, hinting at a depth you want to dive in and explore.
She may have the appearance of an ordinary college student roped in to work the event, but one look at her and you know that she is so much more than that. And fuck me if I don’t want to find out exactly what that is.
What has me perplexed is why a simple introduction, a simple handshake, can have me overthinking the interaction.
Like it actually means anything to me
.
She’s just another woman. I could probably click my fingers and have her in my bed, naked and begging for more within the hour if I wanted to. Then again, there’s something about her, something I can tell just from looking at her that tells me she could be different from any other woman in this room. A diamond in the rough.
I find myself leaning forward into her space, watching my thumb as it brushes over the top of her knuckles as I get closer. Her breathing quickens, and her hand becomes clammy inside of my own. I blink twice as I lift my gaze from our hands into her widened eyes.
What the hell just happened there?
I pull my hand back and step back toward Grant, nodding once in the young woman’s direction to silently dismiss her before ensconcing myself in the conversation Grant is having with one of the college professors beside me. Yes, it’s an asshole move. One that I’m not proud of. Nevertheless it’s what I had to do.
There is nothing about me that could cater for a woman like her: young and undoubtedly innocent, deserving of flowers, big gestures and declarations of never-ending adoration. What I can offer is nothing more than a short physical liaison that would be mutually satisfying but emotionally dormant.
What I truly want is far more extreme, and in no way sentimental. Something that would have her running for the hills.
A minute later, I look back toward her only to be met with her retreating back as she walks away. The subtle swing of her hips is a telling sign that she knows I’m watching.
A jolt of lust shoots through me as I rake my eyes over the curve of her waist, rounding her hips and fixating on her ass. Having dismissed the idea of pursuing her further, I suddenly want a do-over. I want my charming, panty-dropping mask to slip into place so I can try talking her into something she’s probably not equipped to deal with. But the selfish man inside of me would take whatever I could get from her.
I’ve felt lust before. I’ve also succumbed to it. It’s what leads me into my dark thoughts, the idealistic fantasy to truly let go.
For someone like me, lust can be a dangerous emotion. Lust leads to want. Want leads to need. A need that leads to the undeniable struggle inside of me to resist what I truly desire.
What I truly crave.
About the Author
BJ Harvey is the International Bestselling Author of the Bliss Series. She writes contemporary romance, romantic comedy, and romantic suspense.
An avid music fan, you will always find her with headphones on while writing, and the speakers blaring the rest of the time. She’s a wife, a mom to two beautiful girls, and when she’s not writing – she’s reading.
BJ resides with her family in what she considers the best country in the world—New Zealand.
She describes her writing as a little swoon, a lot of heat, a bit of drama and a whole lot of love.
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Books by B.J. Harvey
Bliss Series
Temporary Bliss (Bliss #1)
True Bliss (Bliss #2)
Blissful Surrender (Bliss #3)
Permanent Bliss (Bliss #4)
Stranded (Christmas novella with a Bliss Series connection)
Romantic Suspense
Lost in Distraction (Lost #1)
Lost For You (Lost #2)
Lost Without You (Lost #3)
Coming Soon . . .
Crave
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