The Ultimate Romance Box (6 Bestselling Romance Novels)

by Eckhart, Lorhainne

  Leaning forward, she used her tongue and lips to give him further pleasure, but that only seemed to incite him more. Soon she stood naked in front of him while he moved back to scan her with such a passionate gaze that his hands trembled while he removed the rest of his clothes.

  His protruding maleness made her anticipation heighten and her longing intensify. The yearning in her eyes must have spurred him on because he groaned, swept her up and fell back onto the bed where he took a few seconds to pull off the barrettes that restrained her hair.

  Tingles began from the tips of her toes and traveled to where his magical fingers caressed her hair. Soon his lips searched her neck and shoulders, and then made love to her tender breasts. Warm hands stroked her arms and hips, ending up cupping her bottom. Surges of sensation built all the while he made beautiful love to her grateful flesh.

  Sheri tried to be interactive but other than stroking him wherever her hands could reach; she pretty well became the giver placing him in the role of taker. Not that it seemed to bother him whatsoever. He made achingly sweet love to her body, and if his whispers and moans of passionate Spanish were any indication, her man was ecstatic.

  Finally, his lips came in search of hers and he shifted so that he now lay on top of her, between her spread legs. By this time, she felt ready to burst. Tingles of pleasure attacked everywhere, concentrating in her lower body with more force. A familiar sensation had begun to build and if he didn’t soon fill her, she would have an orgasm without him inside enjoying her body’s reaction. The rhythmic contractions that gave them both such pleasure wouldn’t wait forever.

  “Miguel, I can’t take… Please, hurry my love.” She wiggled suggestively letting him know of her readiness.

  “All in good time, mi amor.” He kissed her with such hunger that any intelligence she still retained died under the onslaught of her greed. More! Oh more.

  Pulsations struck her most sensitive areas where the wetness overflowed and waited to welcome him home. Enough! Her hands searched and found his hard shaft. Not one argument followed as she guided him to where her body waited with a warm, wet welcome.

  A forceful push and he surged into her sensitized heat. His plunges incited and fuelled her to reach higher. Writhing, her moans harmonizing with his, they found their rhythm until the breath-taking sensations triumphed.

  Afterward, damp and lazy, they lay in each other’s arms kissing and petting, soothing and loving.

  Miguel leaned over her and propped his head with his hand. “How much time we’ve wasted, mi esposa—”

  “What does esposa mean, Miguel?” Sheri gently rubbed her fingers over his face, enjoying the knowledge that she could touch him as she pleased and he would relish her tenderness.

  “It means ‘my wife’. I like calling you my wife. It feels good to know you truly are my woman and the mother of our childre—”

  “Oh my—Lord love a duck! I can’t believe I’m so darn dumb.” Sheri bolted upright in bed, and at the same time flung her mass of golden curls back over her shoulders. With her face alight, she faced him. “Miguel. Would you like a large family? More children?

  Reacting to her excitement, Miguel sat up also. She grinned at him while he searched her features and then returned her smiles. “We can adopt if you so desire. In fact, we can give a home to lots of children, as many as you like. Whatever will make you happy… What? Why are you smiling at me that way?”

  “I would love to adopt. But that wasn’t what I meant. Would you like more of our own children?” She watched as he rifled his hands through his long strands of black waves, bewilderment plastered across his features. “God Sheri, I forgot all about you not knowing.” He rubbed his hands over his face and again through his hair. Then he reached for her, cupping her cheeks in his warm palms. “Of course you’ll want more children. And you can have as many as you want, but not our own. You see, when I was held hostage in the jungle, they tortured me. The animals made sure I’ll never be able to father more children. I’m so sorry. I—”

  “No. You don’t understand. What I’ve just remembered is that when I talked to Philip about the twins, he told me that the vials that held your semen, your banked deposits had never been destroyed the way you were the led to believe. They’d actually mixed up the names and Felipe’s were the ones destroyed. Yours are safe. I’m sure that’s what he said, and until now, I’d forgotten. All this time, I also believed you couldn’t have any more children.”

  “Is that why you would give up custody of Rafael and Carrie-Anne to me? Because you thought I’d never be able to father anymore babies?”

  “Partly. But mostly I couldn’t take them away because, over the last while, the only time I saw you happy was when you were with them.

  “And that matters to you?”

  “More than anything.”

  “Then as long as you stay with me and be a mother to my children, I’ll be happy forever.”

  Afterword

  Thank you so much for reading The Surrogate’s Secret – my first Contemporary Romance.

  I loved writing this story and I hope you enjoyed reading it. If so, I would ask you for a favor. If you purchased this book at Amazon, please take a few minutes and leave an honest review.

  Authors enjoy hearing that readers like their stories, and hopefully, others will read your words and choose to buy the book because of your sentiments. If so, that would be real sweet!

  Amazon Page

  Other Works by Mimi Barbour

  Vegas Series

  Action–packed thrillers!

  Partners

  Roll the Dice

  Vegas Shuffle

  High Stakes Gamble

  Spin the Wheel

  Let it Ride (Available fall of 2013)

  The Vicarage Bench Series

  Spirit travel at its best!

  She’s Me

  He’s Her

  We’re One

  Vicarage Bench Anthology

  Together Again

  Together for Christmas

  Angels with Attitude Series

  Angels playing cupid!

  My Cheeky Angel

  His Devious Angel

  Loveable Christmas Angel

  Single Titles

  Christmas Runaway

  Mimi’s Mix

  The Vicarage Bench Anthology

  A Three Book Set

  Imagine having to share your body with an invading time traveler.

  Dr. Tobias Andrews, guardian of the magic, assists each trapped spirit—but not until every story’s happy ending is assured.

  In She’s Me: chubby, shy Lucy McGillicuddy who lives in a small English village in 1963 is forced to share herself with 2006 top model Jenna McBride. This experience teaches them both valuable lessons that enable them to finally accept true love.

  In He’s Her: schoolteacher Carrie Temple has to make space for Vegas casino owner Rhett Parks, whose spirit invades her heart as well as her mind, and won’t leave. At first she desperately wants him to get out, but soon she can’t bear for them to be apart.

  In We’re One: Vegas nightclub star Crystal Davis wants nothing to do with men until she’s seduced by Ashley Parks while they flee from a killer. Ashley traps her spirit inside of him to keep her safe, but she soon convinces him to trust her—it’s his safety they need to worry about.

  Three soul mate stories to that just keep getting better.

  To purchase The Vicarage Bench Anthology on Amazon, click here.

  Mimi’s Mix

  A book from each of Mimi’s Series

  Partners:

  When attractive Las Vegas detective Aurora Morelli makes a friend, she takes the relationship very seriously…and if anyone hurts that person, they’re going down! While Aurora may be slim and dainty on the outside, she has the heart of a lion, and when angry, the manners of a she-cat. The sick schmuck who dared attack her partner is now her prime target, and nothing or no one will stand in her way—except maybe her new partner who arrive
s in town seeking vengeance on the same culprit.

  Kai Lawson, a Bruce Willis lookalike, annoys her. From the very beginning, nothing seems to go right between the two of them, leaving Aurora to question if they should even be working together—especially after he shoots her—and not accidentally! Constant screw-ups on the job and the undeniable attraction building between them makes reaching her goal seem almost insurmountable…almost!

  His Devious Angel:

  Without the angel forcing him to brake, Liam could have killed the gorgeous girl who ran in front of his car to save a little boy. He owed the rescuer big time and would pay his debt no matter that she acted cranky and became more difficult with every meeting. After all, how hard could it be to walk a bunch of mangy mutts?

  Men are scum and no one can tell Sadie any different. It’s why she stays away from them. Until a crazy, hotshot soldier runs her down with his convertible. Now because she’s bruised and sore, she’s stuck having to accept his help in her elite dog-walking business. Just her luck that some of the expensive pets go missing, and Liam decides the puppy-mill rumor needs to be investigated. And once they’re forced to spend more time together, mutual attraction spirals out of control.

  He’s Her:

  A casino owner from Vegas, Rhett Parks, was relaxing on a bench in a small English town. To his dismay, a young woman interrupted his sanctuary. A minute later, his body was out cold on the ground and he was taking up residence inside of the intruder - schoolteacher Carrie Temple - and without her permission.

  Her first words get out didn’t solve anything because he had no idea of how he got in. During the next few weeks they fought each other, taught each other and began to love each other, not an easy accomplishment considering the situation, but doable, as Rhett proved too sweet, naïve Carrie.

  They became involved with strange Dr. Andrews who assured them he had the answers to solve their problem, but Rhett’s brother Ashley, who they turned to for help, was absolutely certain, that the man they were putting their faith in, was a charlatan and a quack.

  To purchase Mimi’s Mix on Amazon, click here.

  About the Author

  Mimi Barbour lives on the beautiful east coast of Vancouver Island and fills her days with writing and promoting her work. The rest of her time is spent in her garden, doing minimal housework and visiting with her husband while he cooks their dinner.

  “The favorite part of my job is meeting the characters from each new book. Designing them the way I want and having them act however I think they should. It’s thrilling, especially when most of my make-believe folks are so very interesting. They’re fun and surprising, and in most cases, people I would love to interact with in reality.”

  Contact Page

  My website: http://bit.ly/mimibarbour14

  Or my blogspot: http://mimibarbour.blogspot.com

  Or follow me on twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Mimibarb

  Or on Facebook…

  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mimi-Barbour-Fan-Page/203964072966134

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either 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 Surrogate’s Secret

  COPYRIGHT 2013 by Mimi Barbour

  ASIN: B00DYPA5ZS

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Contact Information: mimi@mimibarbour.com

  Cover Art by Steven Novak

  Edited by Christine Kirchoff

  Oceans Between Us

  By

  Helen Scott Taylor

  *

  Copyright © 2012 by Helen Taylor

  Cover design © Helen Taylor

  *

  The right of Helen Taylor to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

  This is a work of fiction. All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Copyright owner.

  Acknowledgement

  Thanks must go to my trusty critique partners Mona Risk and Joan Leacott who always give me useful feedback on how to improve my stories. Special thanks to my editor Pam Berehulke who went above and beyond the call of duty on this one and made some tremendous suggestions.

  Chapter One

  "I demand to see my son." Dino struggled to moderate his voice when he really wanted to shout into the phone.

  "I'm sorry, Mr. Rossellini. That's just not possible. The baby belongs to the couple who adopted him."

  Frustration made Dino pace across the office to stare out the dirty window at the busy London street below. "But I'm his father. How is it possible that you can give him to someone without my consent?"

  The woman from the adoption agency released a long-suffering sigh that hissed down the phone line. "I've already told you, sir, there was no father listed on the birth certificate. If we'd had your name, you'd have been contacted before the adoption went ahead."

  Dino cast a dark glance at his manager who returned his gaze with a sheepish smirk. Freddy had kept Rachel's pregnancy a secret from him on purpose.

  He turned his attention back to the unhelpful woman on the phone. "Had I known about my child, I would never have allowed this to happen. You will please get him back from these people." Even as the words came from Dino's mouth, he knew in his heart his son was lost to him. How could the British authorities allow a child to be adopted without the father's permission? This would never happen in Italy.

  "That's just not possible, Mr. Rossellini. According to the law, you no longer have any rights to the boy. I wish I could help you, but I can't."

  "I'll appeal to the court," he said, trying to think of a way to make her take him seriously.

  "That won't do any good. If you consult a solicitor, he'll explain the relevant law. The child now legally belongs to the couple who adopted him."

  Dino turned away from Freddy and lowered his voice, hating that the architect of his heartache would hear him beg. "Just let me see my son once, please."

  "I'm sorry, Mr. Rossellini. I can't."

  "A photo, then."

  "No, sir." The woman's voice softened. "I really am sorry, but you can't have any contact with the baby or the adoptive parents. There's nothing more I can say."

  Pain stabbed through Dino's chest. He pressed a hand over his heart, struggling to draw breath. For a moment he feared he might cry right here in front of Freddy. How could Rachel have done this to him? They were no longer a couple but he'd thought they were still friends. Surely she'd known he would love his child and want to give him a home. But Rachel was vulnerable, easily manipulated by Freddy.

  Dino put down the phone and leaned his hands on top of Freddy's smoked glass desk, staring him down. "Why did you hide Rachel's pregnancy from me?"

  "Dino, mate, I had your best interests at heart. Think of your career. How could you tour if you had to look after a baby?"

  "I would have married Rachel. We'd have found a way to manage."

  "It's selfish to expect Rachel to tie herself down with a baby. She didn't want a kid holding her back when she has the world at her feet." Freddy laughed. "Believe me, you had a lucky escape. Not every woman would have agreed to adoption."

  Cold seeped into Dino's muscles as if every scrap of warmth had b
een sucked out of his world. He'd let Freddy dazzle him with promises of wealth and fame. He’d lost sight of what was really important in life, family, loyalty, and love. He'd even let Freddy talk him into performing over Christmas so he'd missed his usual visit home to see his parents for the holiday season.

  "Where is Rachel?"

  Unease flitted across Freddy's face. "She's recovering. You shouldn't see her right now. Not until you've cooled off."

  Dino had no intention of seeing his ex at the moment. But he wanted to be sure she was all right. She was emotionally fragile at the best of times. Freddy wouldn't care how she felt as long as she fulfilled her contractual obligations, and the money kept rolling in. Bloody Freddy didn't care about anything except his percentage.

  "You've got a month before you're due in New York. Why not get started on the new recordings. It'll take your mind off things."

  Dino stared at the mottled pink carpet, his mind fading to gray. A shiver ran through him and curled icy talons around his heart. He hadn't known it was possible to hurt this much without physical injury.

  "Dino, mate. You all right?"

  Dino grabbed his bag and headed for the office door. He couldn't face a soulless London hotel room. He had to get out of the city, had to outrun this pain, this guilt that swamped him like a choking smog. His baby boy had come into this world and been passed on like an unwanted package. He wasn't sure he could ever forgive himself for letting this happen.

  ***

  Wind buffeted the front of the house, whistling through gaps in the casement windows while rain pelted against the glass. Maria Gardener wiped her face on her sleeve and examined the wall she had just painted. She angled her head, trying to see if she had missed anywhere. It was only midafternoon, but the awful weather meant it was prematurely dark, and she'd had to turn on the light. The golden wheat color glowed, fresh and clean. The greasy finger marks were gone. The guesthouse entrance hall would be ready to start next season spotless and welcoming.