by MK Meredith
A HEATED TOUCH OF ACTION
A SCRIPTED FOR LOVE NOVEL
MK MEREDITH
CONTENTS
Praise for MK Meredith
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
* * *
Copyright © 2019 by MK Meredith. All rights reserved,
including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact the Publisher.
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MK Meredith
P.O. Box 1724
Ashburn, VA 20146
Visit my website at www.mkmeredith.com.
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Editor KR Nadelson & Jessica Snyder
Cover Design Kerrie Legend
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ISBN: 978-1-7328980-4-2
Manufactured in the United States of America
PRAISE FOR MK MEREDITH
“A HEATED TOUCH OF ACTION is a fun, sexy, emotionally poignant story that resonates deeply! The interaction with the colorful secondary cast added wonderful diversity-and joy and laughter-to the storyline and the Cleo/Jimmy story ARC made me swoon!”
~ Epic Romance Reviews
“A HEATED TOUCH OF ACTION was the perfect amount of angst & heat & made me feel like a voyeur who was invested in seeing it through. I loved every minute of it!”
~Dawn Y.
INTRODUCTION
Hello!
I am so thrilled to share my happy ever afters with you, and I hope you love this book! If you haven’t yet, enjoy your introduction to the wonderful town of Cape Van Buren with LOVE ON THE CAPE FREE (on all retailers). Once you fall in love with Larkin and Ryker (they’re irresistible! LOL!), you won’t want to leave.
Which makes me so excited to offer you the opportunity to meet Blayne and Jamie!
Just sign up to my mailing list at the end of the book, and I’ll send HONOR ON THE CAPE to your email for download to your favorite reading device.
BTW…all of my series are connected.
Hugs, loves, & peanut butter!
To Kameron…
You are such a gift.
CHAPTER 1
“Would you quit pacing, darling? Sunday brunch is all about relaxation, a bit of a treat to prepare you for the week.”
Raquel Gallagher patted her perfectly coiffed bun and took a sip of her Bellini. “At the rate you’re pacing, we're going to need to replace the flooring instead of enjoying the bubbles.” She raised her champagne flute. “Now, that would be a shame.”
Belina Cutler, Bel to anyone who wanted to remain alive, dropped her shoulders on a sigh. “This seminar has to be perfect, and every photographer I’ve interviewed has been either drunk or wanting to be.” She sighed. “Or so far out of my budget I can't see it with a telescope.”
She swung around to face her family and friends.
Sunday brunch at Martin and Raquel Gallagher's house began shortly after Addison Decker got engaged to Raquel's nephew Roque Gallagher on Christmas Eve. It first started as a way for the families to get to know each other more deeply, but it continued when they realized they sincerely loved one another’s company.
Besides, the boys really needed to be kept in check. Left to their own devices, well…
Addi and Roque’s story was so romantic she’d want to puke if it wasn’t for the fact that the two were perfect for each other and fought like hell to get where they were.
Bel eyed Raquel, aka the Mother of Malibu, in suspicion.
With Bel's own brother, Gage, married to Addi’s sister, Samantha, their family had grown from three to infinity in a heartbeat.
Her brother, A-list movie star-turned-director Gage Cutler, guffawed from his cozy seat in the corner of Raquel’s cream velvet couch, Sam tucked against his side with the doe-eyed gaze of a woman in love. “Bel, relax? Raquel, you don't know what you're asking. She's coiled tighter than a nun at an orgy. Always has been.”
“Ew! Why are brothers so gross?” Bel narrowed her eyes at him, but he simply raised his Bellini in the air.
“You need a drink.”
She rolled her eyes. “I'd like to keep my job, thank you very much.”
It wasn’t a secret that Pepperdine University had a few strict rules for its faculty. No drinking was one of them.
“Well, they should change that rule. You’re a psychology professor with a specialty in love, who doesn’t believe in it, and that should automatically set you up for a pass.”
Their father, Dean Cutler, otherwise known as DC, strolled into the living room, looking as if he had stepped out of the pages of Silver Fox Digest, with a Bellini in his hand. “You have more excuses than I have paperwork. You won't have a drink because you're afraid if you relax, even for a second, that a bomb is going to go off.” He dipped his head toward Gage. “And your brother has a point.”
Bel made a face at her father and sent an imploring look to Sam.
“Are you sure you made the right choice marrying into this family?”
Sam snuggled closer into Gage's side. “I’ll take my chances.”
Bel grabbed her father's drink and took one large sip, trying to swallow down the twinge of envy.
Love wasn’t very important to her on a personal level, but the seminar she was developing would elevate her professionally, exceeding the goals of her five-year plan.
If she could get it finished on time, make it the best they’d ever seen, and bring it in under budget.
Easy peasy.
A loud groan rolled up her throat, but she fiercely pushed it down. Her family didn’t need any help being right.
Though she studied love, dreamed about love, and wrote about love, there was no way she would ever dip her toes in that crazy pool. She had plenty of reasons to be skeptical.
When the deepest of loves, that of a mother and child, didn't even work out, then the chances of a successful connection outside of the first few months of excitement were dismal at best.
“You need to live a little, loosen up,” her father said gently. “I worry about you.”
“I am fine.” She shook her head at him. What was it going to take to convince him and her brother that she didn’t need the same rush of adrenaline in life that they did to be happy?
She loved her job and her family. And honestly, there was so much good in her world that there was no reason to rock the boat with something that didn't have a guarantee.
Gage pushed up from the couch. “I have some great friends. I could set you up.”
The laugh that popped out of Bel’s chest was anything but ladylike, and the look of surprise on Raquel's face was worth it every time. “Oh, I bet, like your idiot friend who felt the need to ration my eggnog at Christmastime?”
The doorbell rang, and Gage’s grin stretched even wider as he clapped his hands together. “This is going to be f
un.”
A knot formed in her gut. “What did you do?”
Raquel walked toward the door, her long-sleeved, sheer tunic floating behind her giving her an ethereal quality that those who knew her could see right through. She was known as the Mother of Malibu for a reason with her feisty, mother-knows-best attitude that kept them all in check.
After what had happened with Sam and Gage, and now Addi and Roque, there was talk that what she thought she knew best was who they all should fall in love with.
God help them all.
Bel’s plan was simple: Steer clear of anyone her friend pushed her way. The last thing she needed while developing her seminar on love was a manipulated fabrication of the ailment. Ready to reject whoever stood on the other side of the door Raquel pulled open, Bel swore, “Son of a bitch.”
Standing in the large arched doorway, looking like a cross between a Hell’s Angel and a Greek god, was the sexy-as-sin troublemaker responsible for her recent restless nights.
Jimmy Callahan.
J immy observed the scene before him like any seasoned photographer would. The subject matter, the lighting, the stunning blond staring at him as if he alone were responsible for kicking the neighbor's dog or some other similar crime.
He would have laughed if seeing her pull her willow-thin frame up to her full height didn't push his protective tendencies into overdrive and cause his dick to grow hard. The two sensations did not mix.
The protective bit was something he wished he could let go of, but seeing fear in his little niece's eyes one too many times when he had to leave her with her mother had instilled in him an incurable case of white knight syndrome.
And the other, well, it was a weird reaction to the woman since he’d accidentally insulted her Christmas Eve, the night his friend Roque proposed to Addi Dekker.
His normal charm had deserted him, and he had fucked up in a way he’d wanted to forget.
And quickly.
Though his eyes wanted to linger, he forced them past her sweet curves to his buddy walking up behind her. “Hey, jackass, I see you didn't warn her like you promised you would.”
Gage laughed, giving him a slap on the shoulder with a squeeze and a shake. “You know it already. A warning would have made her run.”
“If you guys say one more word as if I'm not standing right here, I'm going to throttle the both of you.”
The stern tone of her voice left him with a curious sensation. Kind of like being threatened with having to go to the principal's office and really wanting it to happen.
Clearing his throat, he accepted Raquel's hospitality and joined the group in the living room. His eyes fell on Addi, and he let loose a sigh of relief.
A friendly face with a familiar wicked grin. Roque Gallagher was indeed a lucky man. Thank God the dummy had figured it out before it had been too late and was now engaged to the beautiful, cheeky woman.
Addi jumped up with a cry of delight and threw her arms around his neck. “Jimmy! I wasn’t expecting to see you here today.”
He gave her a squeeze, then released her back to Roque’s side.
Bel didn't even try to hide her snort of disgust. “You like him?” Her question was laced with humor, but Jimmy didn't quite believe it.
Addi nodded with her usual sparkle. “Like him? Jimmy and I go way back.”
It had only been a few months, but he wasn’t about to correct a friend in the middle of a glowing referral.
“I love this man.” And she emphasized it with another solid hug before pulling him into a conversation with her and Roque. But Jimmy couldn’t turn his attention from Bel and did his best to pay attention to both.
He watched as she walked to the large islands that separated the kitchen from the great room with an unconscious sway of her hips. She straightened up Raquel's papers, the salt and pepper shakers, and champagne flutes. He held in the grin that threatened. He’d bet his next project on the fact she was spinning underneath her calm exterior.
Raquel slapped at Bel’s hands. “Darling, what are you doing?”
“Anything to try and give myself time to figure out why in the world Jimmy Callahan is here at our Sunday brunch?”
He didn’t mind the jab. He deserved it after his ridiculous move at Christmas. But he couldn’t help it. It was as if his brain got tied along with his tongue when she’d walked up.
Gage leaned his hip against the island, sliding his glass over for a refill. His sister made a face but replenished it anyway.
The two were tight. Like Jimmy and his brother used to be.
Pain slashed through his chest as sharp as ever. It always surprised him. No matter how long it had been, that knife never dulled.
Gage did not hide how devoted he was to his family. That was something the two of them had in common.
Gage swallowed half his glass, then smacked his lips on a sigh.
“I love stirring things up a bit. Besides, my little sister needs a push sometimes.”
Bel rolled her eyes and appealed to Dean Cutler. “I need a push? Do you believe this guy? If it hadn't been for us pushing his sorry ass, Sam here might have been with a more well-adjusted, better-looking man right now.” She threw an apologetic smile toward her sister-in-law. “Sorry, sister.”
Sam's eyes lit with humor. “You guys sound like Addi and me with Luca.”
Jimmy recalled running into Luca a time or two. He was a bit newer on the scene as a studio attorney. Between him, Sam’s screenwriting, and Addi’s romances both on the big screen and in novels, they were quite the impressive family.
Roque poked his wife in the ribs while Sam’s eyes lit on Gage, and Jimmy felt way out of place. He couldn’t think of a relationship he’d had that had gotten even close to that kind of affection.
The fact that part of his discomfort was out of envy could go to hell.
Ready to get on to the fireworks, he placed his portfolio onto the countertop.
He opened it and pulled out some of his most recent work. A great sense of satisfaction filled his chest when Bel's eyes slid to the collection. Her interest was immediate.
“Take a look at that,” Gage said, gesturing toward the photos. “This guy is going places, make no mistake.”
She looked Jimmy over with a determined expression, reminding him of Christmas Eve when she grabbed the whole pitcher of eggnog from him. That hadn't been one of his smoother moments, only offering her a tiny amount and implying that she was watching her weight.
Hell, his motorcycle helmet weighed more than she did, and the unbidden image of her wrapped around his head instead of the fiberglass was way more appealing. Pushing the surprising and unwanted thought down, he met her challenging gaze.
“You know a referral from my brother isn't a promising start, don’t you?”
“Hey!” Gage said.
“From what I understand, you are working on developing a seminar about the different kinds of love in relationships, and you need beautiful, unique photography that translates the different kinds of love, all while on a tight budget. Correct?” He tapped at the glossies under his hand. “Take a look.”
As she moved closer, her scent drifted to his nose. It was a satisfying combination of rose and something earthy and sweet. He wanted to dip his head, take a deeper breath, but organized the photos side-by-side instead.
He didn't know what the hell it was about this woman, but there was no doubt she was a whole heap of trouble in a sexy little package.
“They’re beautiful. But I think I'll pass. I'm more of a sure-thing kind of girl.” She looked him up and down with curiosity rather than disdain. “And I know everyone has their story, but the only sure thing I'd say about you is that you’ve been in trouble once or twice in your life.”
Her answer was so unexpected that he burst out laughing. Gage joined him with a shake of his head.
She wasn't wrong. He and his brother had probably seen the inside of a cell one too many times, but it was always stupid stuff that landed th
em there. And the notion that they were invincible, and their crazy ideas were actually good ones.
The thought of his brother twisted his gut as usual, and he shook it off.
He watched Bel as she stood chatting with Addi. There was something brimming just under the surface that he wanted to set free, no matter how many times logic told him hell no. She intrigued him, making him curious about her strengths and her weaknesses.
His biggest weakness was somebody in need—whether they knew it or not—and this woman’s smart mouth.
“So, Bel,” he said, interrupting Addi’s story about the day Roque almost caught her in the shower at the bungalow. “Don't you ever take a risk?” Addi paused, and Bel turned his way.
He immediately felt it like a kick to the stomach.
“Excuse me?”
“I asked you a question.”
“And?” She faced him, shoulders square.
No way in hell was he backing down. “Do you ever take a risk or not?”
She laughed and glanced at Addi with a can-you-believe-this-guy look. “I prefer logic and reason over some juvenile need for an adrenaline rush. I’ll save that for you idiots.” She nodded toward him and her family with a smirk that made him study the shape of her lips too closely.
“It’s not about an adrenaline rush,” he said.
“I don’t buy it.”
“It’s need, a drive or desire. When I want something, I go for it, especially when I know it's something worth fighting for.”
For a split second, he wasn't sure what—or rather who—he thought was worth fighting for, and the sudden dilation of her pupils showed that she didn't either. Hell, she looked like she was about to take off in a sprint to save herself like a rabbit confronted with a fox.
“Relax.” He glided his hand along her upper arm and couldn’t help the chuckle when she stiffened.
