Melting the Ice
Authors: Jaci Burton
PRAISE FOR JACI BURTON’S PLAY-BY-PLAY NOVELS
THROWN BY A CURVE
“The behind-the-scenes inside look at sports and the men who make up the teams is inventive and unique in this series. Garrett is a flesh-and-blood man, not an icon, and Alicia is a strong, confident professional in her own right.”
—
Heroes and Heartbreakers
“I think the Play-by-Play series is one of the strongest sports romance series available.”
—
Dear Author
“As usual, Jaci Burton delivers flawed but endearing characters, a strong romance, and an engaging plot all wrapped up in one sexy package.”
—
Romance Novel News
PLAYING TO WIN
“Burton knocks it out of the park . . . With snappy back-and-forth dialogue as well as hot, sweaty, and utterly engaging bedroom play, readers will not be able to race through this book fast enough!”
—
RT Book Reviews
(4 ½ stars)
“Has all the characteristics that have put this series high on my must-read list—strong and independent women, emotional depth, personal transformation, and let’s not forget smoking hot athletes with rock-hard abs (this is definitely one time you can judge a book by its cover!).”
—
Fresh Fiction
“An engaging tale . . . Readers will enjoy this heated football romance as the two-minute drill begins.”
—
Midwest Book Review
TAKING A SHOT
“[Jaci Burton] delivers the passionate, inventive, sexually explicit love scenes that fans expect . . . However,
Taking a Shot
isn’t just about hot sex. Burton offers plenty of emotion and conflict in a memorable, relationship-driven story.”
—
USA Today
“Ms. Burton has a way of writing intense scenes that are both sensual and raw . . . Plenty of romance, sexy men, hot steamy loving, and humor.”
—
Smexy Books
“For this third Play-by-Play entry, there’s no shortage of volatile, steamy sex, but the story development is the key to this thoughtful tale.”
—
RT Reviews
CHANGING THE GAME
“This book is wonderful from beginning to end, even for those who are not baseball fans.”
—
RT Reviews
“
Changing the Game
is an extraordinary novel—a definite home run!”
—
Joyfully Reviewed
“A strong plot, complex characters, sexy athletes, and nonstop passion make this book a must read.”
—
Fresh Fiction
THE PERFECT PLAY
“The characters are incredible. They are human and complex and real and perfect.”
—
Night Owl Reviews
“Holy smokes! I am pretty sure I saw steam rising from every page.”
—
Fresh Fiction
“A beautiful romance that is smooth as silk . . . One hell of a good time, a romance to remember [that] leaves us begging for more.”
—
Joyfully Reviewed
“Hot, hot, hot! . . . Romance at its best! Highly recommended! Very steamy.”
—
Coffee Table Reviews
“The romance sparkles as the sex sizzles.”
—
RT Reviews
FURTHER PRAISE FOR THE WORK OF
JACI BURTON
“Realistic dialogue, spicy bedroom scenes, and a spitfire heroine make this one to pick up and savor.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“Jaci Burton delivers.”
—Cherry Adair,
New York Times
bestselling author
“Lively and funny . . . intense and loving.”
—
The Road to Romance
“An invitation to every woman’s wildest fantasies.”
—
Romance Junkies
“As always, Jaci Burton delivers a hot read.”
—
Fresh Fiction
“Burton is a master at sexual tension!”
—
RT Reviews
Titles by Jaci Burton
Wild Rider Series
RIDING WILD
RIDING TEMPTATION
RIDING ON INSTINCT
RIDING THE NIGHT
WILD, WICKED, & WANTON
BOUND, BRANDED, & BRAZEN
Play-by-Play Novels
THE PERFECT PLAY
CHANGING THE GAME
TAKING A SHOT
PLAYING TO WIN
THROWN BY A CURVE
ONE SWEET RIDE
MELTING THE ICE
Hope Novels
HOPE FLAMES
Anthologies
UNLACED
(with Jasmine Haynes, Joey W. Hill, and Denise Rossetti)
EXCLUSIVE
(with Eden Bradley and Lisa Renee Jones)
LACED WITH DESIRE
(with Jasmine Haynes, Joey W. Hill, and Denise Rossetti)
NAUTI AND WILD
(with Lora Leigh)
NAUTIER AND WILDER
(with Lora Leigh)
Specials
THE TIES THAT BIND
NO STRINGS ATTACHED
WILD NIGHTS
HOLIDAY GAMES
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) LLC
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014
USA • Canada • UK • Ireland • Australia • New Zealand • India • South Africa • China
A Penguin Random House Company
This book is an original publication of The Berkley Publishing Group.
Copyright © 2014 by Jaci Burton.
Excerpt from
Straddling the Line
by Jaci Burton copyright © 2014 by Jaci Burton.
Excerpt from
Hope Ignites
by Jaci Burton copyright © 2014 by Jaci Burton.
Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity, encourages diverse voices, promotes free speech, and creates a vibrant culture. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. You are supporting writers and allowing Penguin to continue to publish books for every reader.
Berkley Sensation Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group.
BERKLEY SENSATION® is a registered trademark of Penguin Group (USA) LLC.
The “B” design is a trademark of Penguin Group (USA) LLC.
eBook ISBN 978-1-101-59570-1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Burton, Jaci.
Melting the ice / Jaci Burton.—Berkley Sensation trade paperback edition.
pages cm
ISBN 978-0-425-26298-6
1. Women fashion designers—Fiction. 2. Male models—Fiction. 3. Man-woman relationships—Fiction I. Title.
PS3602.U776M48 2014
813'.6—dc23 201304221
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley Sensation trade paperback edition / February 2014
Cover photo by Claudio Marinesco.
Cover design by Rita Frangie.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
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CONTENTS
Praise for Jaci Burton's Play-by-Play Novels
Titles by Jaci Burton
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY-ONE
TWENTY-TWO
TWENTY-THREE
TWENTY-FOUR
TWENTY-FIVE
TWENTY-SIX
TWENTY-SEVEN
TWENTY-EIGHT
TWENTY-NINE
Dear Reader Letter
Excerpt from
STRADDLING THE LINE
Excerpt from
HOPE IGNITES
For those who have found love in the strangest places, in people who are polar opposites in terms of profession and interests, and believe that happily ever after comes from finding common ground.