Secrets and Seductions (26 page)

“Sweet Leah. I’m lost without you.”

“You can’t own me, Mac.”

“I don’t mean it that way, but if you aren’t mine to cherish, to adore, to create a family with, to be with forever, then I am a sad lost cause who didn’t figure it out until it was too late.”

“And you get it now?”

He lifted his gaze heavenward for a moment, then those same bedroom eyes she had come to love so much, returned to look at her. “Oh yeah, I get it. I love you so much I ache.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I thought I had. The chocolates, flowers…”

“But not in words. I needed you to say those three little words.”

“Oh, Leah, sweetheart, I do. I love you, Leah Grainger.” He took her hands in his, warm to the touch, a touch she remembered so well. “So what do you say?”

“That depends on the question.”

“We’ve been married,” he said with quiet solemnity.

Her stomach lurched. “And are about to be divorced.”

His hands tightened on hers. “I want to put all the wrongs right. Curtis screwed up. Our grandfather began a legacy that hit too many road bumps. It needs smoothing out.”

“You want to do this for them?”

“No. I want to do it for you. For us. With you, I know what real deep love is, not something half hearted. I want you to love me, and I want to live your passion at the farm with you. I want to be beside you and help you and raise Charlee with you. Will you let me?”

Oh, how she loved this man. She’d never let him go. Ever. “Depends,” she said with a teasing smile through her own tears.

“Anything, sweetheart, anything you want. I’ll build you a mansion fit for a princess.”

“I don’t need things.” Funny how the land and house once seemed so important. Now, contentment didn’t come from owning something. She turned toward the ruins that were once her home. “But there are two things I do need.”

“Name them.”

“Your love.”

“You got it. Forever and ever.”

“Good, because I love you too, Mac Grainger, and want you for ever and ever. And,” she said, wondering how he’d take the other little bit of news, “we need a baby carriage.”

A slow, simmering incredulity washed across Mac’s face, followed by a wave of joy and love, wonderful emotions she wanted to see forever mirrored in the most beautiful eyes of the man she loved. “You’re pregnant? How?”

Bubbling laughter followed his surprise. “You ask that?” She reached over, took his scarred hand and rested it on her stomach. “I just found out. I was going to tell you.”

“A baby,” he murmured. His eyes closed and then flicked right back open. “Oh, sweetheart, a family. You, me, Charlee and a baby. I love you, Leah. Will you please, please stay married to me?”

“Forever, darling. You’ve got us forever.”

About the Author

In books, Author Jane Beckenham
discovered dreams and hope, stories that inspired in her a love of romance and happy ever after. Years later, after a blind date, Jane found her own true love and married him eleven months later.

Life has been a series of ‘dreams’ for Jane. Dreaming of learning to walk again after spending years in hospital. Dreaming of raising a family and subsequently flying to Russia to bring home her two adopted daughters. And of course, dreaming of writing.

Writing has become Jane’s addiction
—
and it sure beats housework.

You can contact Jane via her web site
www.janebeckenham.com
or email her at
[email protected]

Look for these titles by Jane Beckenham

Now Available:

Romeo for Hire

He’s the One

Virginity is overrated.

He’s The One

© 2010 Jane Beckenham

Taylor Sullivan doesn’t trust Cupid, but she plays one for a living. As a successful wedding consultant, she creates a couple’s ultimate fantasy—even though she’s never managed to create her own. And when her clients start asking her for wedding night advice, she’s sensible enough to know when to enlist help.

Cade Harper knows two things about women. They either abandon him, or use him as a walking bank. He doesn’t do commitment, and marriage is a dirty word—witness the string of broken hearts he’s left in his wake. Yet Taylor’s business proposition intrigues him. In exchange for one night of no-strings passion, she’ll develop a promotional plan for his business. Who could say no?

Never one to buy anything sight unseen, Taylor tests the waters with a kiss. In an instant she has the only answer she’s ever wanted—that Cade is the one she wants.

As business starts tumbling into pleasure, Cade finds himself falling hard and fast.

It’s a fantasy come true—if they can turn heartache into forever…

Warning: Contains explicit, straight-to-the-heart sex between a hopeless romantic heroine and an abandon-all-hope hero. No need to dress up for this party—just curl up with a glass of bubbly and a box of tissues!

Enjoy the following excerpt for
He’s The One:

“Virginity is overrated.” Easy words? She’d said them often enough.

Yet when Taylor Sullivan whispered them, the swell of panic threatened to take hold.

She had to do this.

It was time.

Taylor exhaled every emotion she’d bottled for the past twenty-four hours, ever since she’d seen him: Mr. Perfect-for-the-Job.

As she stood outside the bar, her bravado waned and panic set in. Who wouldn’t panic when they were about to make an off-the-wall suggestion to a stranger?

She gripped her assistant’s arm. “I can’t. This is a mistake.”

“No, it’s not. You said so yourself, he’s the one.”

“What do I know? I mean,
who
is he?”

“Cade Harper. Bad boy made good—and one sexy hunk. Is that enough for you?” Nita gave her a suggestive grin.

Oh, yeah
.

Taylor wiped her sweaty palms down the sides of her skirt. “The fairy godmother sure did hand out good looks at his bassinet.” He’d been the best man at a wedding she’d planned recently. Haloed by the light streaming in from the stained glass window, he’d taken her breath away.

But now, twenty-four hours after that wedding, as the throbbing beat of music threaded its way out onto the kerb where she and Nita waited, Taylor’s wayward nerves vaulted into overdrive. “I should never have told you.”

Nita shrugged. “Probably not, but, hey, I get those calls too.”

“But you can answer them,” Taylor countered.

“So, what are you going to do about it?”

Taylor bit down on her bottom lip, chewing it as if it afforded her the luxury of time. “I don’t want a relationship.”

“Who said anything about a relationship? This is a fling. A one-nighter. Get you past first base, so to speak.”

First base! Taylor swallowed the lump that choked off her breathing. The icy chill that slid along her bones had absolutely nothing to do with Auckland’s balmy May evening breeze.

Her fingers grazed the side of her handbag and snapped back as if scalded when she remembered exactly what her bag contained.

Condoms!

An appropriate reminder: preparation and safety first.

She could do this. She could. She grabbed Nita’s arm. “Okay. Let’s go.”

Nita stalled mid-step. “What? You expect me to come too?”

“I need you. I can’t do this on my own. I need…”

“Cade Harper is who you need, Taylor. You said so yourself. Cade’s a love ’em and leave ’em sort of guy. Now go.” Nita gave her a push toward the entrance and waved goodbye.

Love and leave. Definitely perfect credentials. Cade didn’t know it yet, but he was the answer to Taylor’s prayers.

Battling the raw panic lodged in her gut as every second edged her toward turning and running, Taylor surveyed the patrons. Her hands shook. She wanted to forget the idea. Forget sex. Forget Cade Harper. If she could.

Instead she focused on the entrance, and her pulse quickened.

The best man. How appropriate.

Cade hadn’t been at the wedding rehearsal; otherwise she would have noticed him. But at the wedding, dressed in a black tuxedo that molded his broad shoulders and a crisp white dress shirt with diamond stud buttons, he absolutely stood out and, within seconds, she’d made her decision. He was perfect for the job.

Squaring her shoulders, Taylor shoved the bar door open. For a moment, she stood motionless, eyes adjusting to the dim lighting, the noise and heat hitting her in an undulating wave.

This was it.

Taking a deep breath, she clutched her bag and ventured in.

A single length of hand-chiseled wood operated as a bar and spanned one end of the room. Behind it were a medley of liquors and an ornate mirror etched with the slogan of a famous beer. Tables and chairs dotted around the room were mostly already taken. In one corner, a jukebox emitted ear-piercing rock music. In another corner, an eager group of players surrounded a pool table.

All of this was of little consequence to Taylor, because all she could focus on was her quarry—Cade Harper.

He stood behind the bar, a cocktail shaker in one hand and a salt-crusted margarita glass in the other.

Tawny, sun-bronzed hair tapered over his collar, and an unruly tendril dipped across his forehead, seemingly refusing to be controlled. He looked good. Very sexy.

No tuxedo tonight, but a black T-shirt with the sleeves rolled back, stretched taut over biceps that flexed and…

Oh, God.

Definitely a bad boy.

Taylor wiped a hand across her brow and her tongue over suddenly parched lips. The temperature had escalated several degrees in one blazing second.

Partially hidden by a potted ficus, heart dancing an erratic beat, she watched Cade.

“Can I help you?”

Taylor spun around. “I…”

The voice belonged to a female version of Cade. She had the same coloring and the same dark eyes. Taylor glanced toward Cade over the woman’s head. “I’m here to see Mr. Harper,” she mumbled.
Mister! Good grief!
She wanted to have sex with this man, and she called him mister!

“Cade?” his replica responded, eyebrows quirking upward.

Taylor nodded, relieved the woman didn’t ask any questions, and wondered at the same time what her reaction would have been if she’d said, “It’s about sex.”

“Follow me.” The young woman crooked her finger toward Taylor, turned and wove her way between tables. With trepidation and anticipation colliding inside her stomach, Taylor hurried after the woman.

“Cade.”

“Yeah.” He handed the margarita to a customer, and Taylor’s gaze followed the salt-rimmed glass. It shimmered under the overhead lighting, and she found herself licking her lips, almost tasting the delicious salt.

“Lady to see you.”

The moment Cade turned,
everything
changed.

Cade Harper. Bad boy. One sexy guy.

Taylor’s voice stalled in her throat, and she knew, when his smiling eyes captured hers, she was in way over her head.

Cade wiped his hands on a cloth and again Taylor’s gaze followed. Long, lean fingers. Fingers that would touch…
Oh, boy!

He smiled. “You wanted to see me?”

She nodded and felt herself drowning in that smile. His dark eyes twinkled, a swirl of gold and chocolate brown. Just like Hershey Kisses
.

Kisses!

Yep. She was definitely going under.

“Lady, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve got a bar to run,” he said, grabbing a knife and cutting a lemon into wafer-thin slices.

Taylor shook herself.
Okay. Come on. Just say it.
“I’ve got a favor to ask.”

“Ask away then,” he said, not looking up.

Taylor burned and eyed the milling crowd. “Actually, it’s a proposition.”

He definitely looked then, and his gaze focused on her. He placed the razor-sharp knife on the cutting board. His mouth quirked at one corner, smiling, gaze assessing. “Sounds intriguing.”

She’s a dreamer. He’s a realist. Somewhere in the middle is love—and danger.

Where Dreams Begin

© 2011 Phoebe Conn

After her husband’s death, Catherine Brooks is ready to go back to work—almost. She volunteers at a shelter for homeless teens, Lost Angel, thinking it will ease her return to the classroom. There’s nothing easy about irascible shelter manager Luke Starns, though. His cool detachment rubs her the wrong way, especially when he warns her not to get too attached. Still, the soft heart she senses beneath his stern exterior keeps her coming back—and his face pervades her thoughts.

It’s not that Luke finds Catherine’s easy charm and free spirit unappealing—quite the opposite. Life on the streets is hard, and discipline is the only ladder that’ll get and keep these kids out of trouble. He knows what it’s like to care too much, only to have the rug yanked away. He tells himself he’s simply trying to save her the same heartache.

Yet Catherine has him rethinking his approach to life. Just as he lets his guard down, though, a murderer begins stalking the mean streets near the shelter, putting everything they care about at risk. Including their lives.

Warning
:
This book contains a gritty setting, a serial killer in a red satin dress, and a couple who think sizzling sex is the only kind worth having.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Where Dreams Begin:

On Wednesday, Catherine visited the charity thrift shop and dropped off the clothes and shoes she and Joyce had sorted. By Thursday morning, her garden looked beautiful, and she’d run out of excuses to stay away from Lost Angel. She drove on over to Hollywood, but she was determined to avoid Luke Starns and felt certain he would do his best to avoid her.

Pam again put Catherine to work opening the mail, and when she finished, she carried the stack of new flyers over to the hall to post. She’d nearly completed the task when a slender girl in a fuzzy pink sweater and tight jeans came up to look over her shoulder. Catherine turned to smile and found the girl had the remarkable prettiness of Alice in Wonderland, with startling blue eyes and long, blonde hair.