Cover Copy
Total honesty or hot sex. Will their love survive both?
To ward off his sexual frustration, Red Gallagher rides his motorbike up the coastal highway pushing the limits of speed and endurance.
When he crashes at the front door of local witch, Rhian Gallagher, she takes it as a sign the Fates have listened to her plea to end the man drought in her life. Determined to take the shy scientist under her wing and into her bed as soon as possible, Rhian patches him up after his accident.
Will the explosive sex between them be enough to convince Red his scientific view of the world can be reconciled with Rhian’s witchcraft?
CONTENT WARNING:
Sexy, sizzling erotic romance…and the odd magic spell or two.
Red Hot
By Ann B. Harrison
Red Hot
Copyright © November, 2012 Ann B. Harrison
Edited by Annie Seaton
Cover Art by Annie Seaton
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 © November, 2012 Ann B. Harrison
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.
The author acknowledges the copyrighted or trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction: Ducati, Corvette.
Dedication
To my girls, Annie, Effie and Tricia. Thanks for all of your advice and help.
For Johhny. I love that you take me away camping so I can work undisturbed when life gets in the way.
Thank you.
Table of Contents
Cover Copy
Red Hot
Dedication
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Other Books by Ann B. Harrison
About Ann B. Harrison
Chapter 1
Carrick Patrick Douglas, or Red, as he was more often called because of the bright auburn head of hair he sported, gritted his teeth and slowly pulled up the zip on his black leather bike pants. The bulge in his boxers was uncomfortable beyond reason and short of taking himself in hand, the best way to ward off an erection of major proportions like this one was on the back of his Ducati at breakneck speed. The tight twists and turns down the coast road heading toward Monterey would keep his mind off his fucked up sex life, or more to the point, lack of it.
He leaned down to pull on his boots, angling his body to cause himself the least discomfort, and clipped the fasteners up his calves on one boot, then the other.
His leather jacket was hanging neatly in his closet. Taking it from the coat hanger he glanced at his bed. The sheets were a tangled mess from his latest wet dream, the one where his laboratory assistant had him tied to the stainless steel bench naked while she used her microscope in the most inventive way. He pulled his jacket on and walked away.
He stopped at the door, a curse on his lips. Grunting deep in his throat he turned back and made the bed, fluffing up the pillows and angling them just right for effect, cursing his OCD quirks. Disgusted with himself, he stormed from the room. He had never been yelled at for not making his bed when he was a kid because he couldn't bear to see the mess left behind if he didn't. Everything had its place in his room and that was how he always left it. Try as he might, Red couldn't change the way he was.
It was in his nature to be neat and precise, something that more often than not came back to bite him in the ass in some shape or form.
The keys were on the post by the front door. He picked up his wallet, grabbed his helmet from the shelf, and walked out. To make himself feel better, he slammed the door behind him and instantly regretted the childish action. A quick glance showed he hadn't broken the antique glass his mother had prized.
The sleek red Ducati was sitting in the driveway of his San Francisco home. Tucking his hair behind his ears, he put his glasses in their case and placed them inside his jacket pocket. Red pulled down the helmet, doing up the chin-strap before swinging a leg over the seat of the powerful machine. He inserted the key and hit the ignition. The rumble of the motor sent deep pulses through his leather pants to the sensitive skin of his crotch and reminded him of the reason for his ride today. He kicked the foot peg up and turned the bike toward the road.
He looked both ways before he gunned the Ducati out onto the street. Leaning forward on the bike, he debated which way to go. The route down through town was interesting and on a Saturday morning there was bound to be plenty to see, but if he hit the direct route to the highway he would be out of town sooner. The wide open roads of the coast called to him and he headed down the motorway. He whipped across both lanes, dodging between cars and tourist buses and pushed his bike over the speed limit. The thrill of being ticketed added to his adrenalin rush.
His mind wandered as he followed the road through the salad growing area and small cropping farms. He ignored the exit signs, and gunned his bike again to take the winding ocean road. The smell of the salty air filled his lungs. He breathed deeply; glad to be out of the lab and away from the vision of his latest unfulfilled wet dream. His gorgeous assistant was soon to be married and no longer available but that didn’t stop him lusting over his Cara.
When he had first hired her he told himself he would ask her out once he got to know her better. But each time he tried, he got tongue tied and walked away. She was friendly enough and they got on well at work but that was different from taking their friendship to a personal level. By the time he had convinced himself to try again and ask her out, she was already talking about some guy she had met.
It was his own bloody fault, Red knew that. He shouldn’t have been so slow. His shyness bugged him and more often than not he missed out because he couldn’t pluck up the courage to make the first move. And to top it off, she had walked in yesterday with a glow surrounding her and proudly wriggled her fingers in front of him. The huge diamond made him sick to his stomach. He’d plastered a smile on his face when he gave her his best wishes. Disappointment fired through his gut and Red mentally kicked himself for his non-existent dating skills. She was a great assistant and he didn’t want to lose her so he pretended it didn’t matter to him.
Most days he watched her sashay to her work station, his lab coat hiding how much she still affected him. Why couldn’t he get the guts up to hit on someone instead of hiding behind his microscope? It wasn’t like he was ugly or inept. Even he could admit he was easy on the eye. His hair was a strange color for a guy, dark copper, and would no doubt look great on a chick flowing over her shoulders, naked ones preferably. He kept it a little bit long over his ears and tended to hide under his bangs. His was tall and athletic and physically fit. All of the workouts did nothing to still his libido but he figured he might get lucky one day and wanted to be toned and ready.
But no matter what he did, he knew he still looked like the nerdy scientist he was. Plain dark-rimmed glasses with milk bottle thick lenses covered his deep green eyes and gave him a bug-like appearance. He knew it put the chicks off and had tried numerous times to have his eyes corrected but to no avail. The strange shape of his eyes made them unsuitable for any of the current surgery available. The eye specialists were hopeful there might be something for him in the future.
The road wound smoothly up the coast and t
he wind flicked his hair around his collar. The cliff dropped sharply into the ocean pounding the rocks at the bottom. The view was unbelievably serene and clear over the sea for miles. Something about this stretch of road always eased the tension from his shoulders.
His mind started to drift again when a small brown shape stepped into the path of his bike. His breath caught in his throat and before he could think about it, Red leaned his bike over on its side, headed toward the bank away from the cliff edge. A roar filled his ears and he lost control of the heavy machine. Rough stones tore his leathers and the pain built up like fire raging through dry grass. The last thing he heard was his own voice groaning in defeat and the sound of scrapping metal along the asphalt of the road.
Red lay stunned on the hot road. He turned his head from the bright sun glaring into his eyes and winced as the pain raced through his body.
Fucking great, I go for a ride to starve off the lack of sex and end up with a busted ass instead. Where is the justice in that?
A cool soft hand wiped his brow and he forced his eyes open. Someone had removed his helmet and everything was foggy without the special visor. He did a quick mental check of painful spots. His head wasn’t one of them thankfully but his ass was on fire from the contact with the road and his elbow screamed in pain.
“Shush now, just relax. Don't struggle so, you are safe with me.”
Red tried his best to relax under the soft hum of her voice and the strange sensation of floating came over him. His blood pressure was probably through the roof. He debated whether it was all a dream, in which case he could roll over and stay where he was to sleep it off. The pain racking his body made him more than aware it was not the case and he had to move or risk getting run over when another vehicle came this way. He sighed and tried to open his eyes again. Without his glasses or his made-to-order helmet visor, he couldn’t see clearly. The foggy vision leaning over him appeared to be smiling. Her blond hair fell over her shoulders, cascading down to tickle his jaw, distracting him momentarily from the pain. The smell of fresh flowers and honey filled his nostrils and sent his body into overdrive.
Willing himself to stay calm he tried to lift himself up on his arms.
“Arrgh.” Red fell back and rolled to one side, clutching his injured arm with his good hand. His breath came in short pants as he tried to control the pain surging through him.
“Let me see that.” The vision reached out and ran her fingers lightly down from his shoulder to his fingertips. She prodded around his elbow, moving his hand at the same time, ignoring his groans of pain. “It doesn’t appear to be broken, possibly a bad sprain though I'm thinking.” The sound of her voice washed over him and brought back memories that had lain buried in his past. “Would you be liking for me to heal this for you?” she asked, a faint Irish lilt to her voice, holding his hand in hers.
“Are you a doctor?” His voice was rugged even to his ears and he wished he could sound a bit more enthusiastic but the pain overrode any niceties he should have used.
“Of a sort, yes.” Her soft laughter made him more aware of her holding his hand and he resisted the urge to pull away from her. “Should I try then?”
“I would hardly turn down help now, would I?” Red grimaced as another burst of pain shot through his elbow and he broke out into a cold sweat. He leaned back and closed his eyes, breathing through his mouth. When his pulse rate settled and his thoughts slowed Red opened his eyes and watched her. She lifted his hand and laid it down across his chest, and then brought her palms together. Holding them to her face, thumbs on her chin, she whispered words Red couldn’t hear clearly. Then she rubbed her hands briskly together and ran them up and down his arm before gripping his elbow firmly. The heat from her hands radiated through his leather jacket, warming his arm until it was almost unbearable and then dropping to a soothing warmth once again.
“There now, that should do it.” She leaned back and held a hand out to help him up. Red gripped her fingers in his and pulled himself into a sitting position. He sat quietly while his head swam and then he checked his arm.
He prodded his elbow. Finding it normal and almost pain free, he looked at her. “What kind of doctor are you?”
“Not the type you are used to, I'm sure.” She laughed.
Red squinted and tried to get a clear picture of her. He gave up and reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and withdrew his glasses case. With a sigh of relief that it wasn’t damaged, he opened it and took out his thick glasses.
Red brushed the hair out of his eyes and slid them on. He blinked a couple of times and when his vision cleared, he looked over at his mystery woman. She sat on her heels on the road, smiling serenely in the sunshine as he floundered for the right words. Long blonde hair flowed around her shoulders and she waited for him to speak.
“What...I mean who are you? And why are you out here in the middle of nowhere?”
“I have a cottage just over the crest of that hill behind me. The weekends are my time alone when I can get away from the city and work.” Her full red lips curved into a seductive smile and his balls ached. “Is your arm feeling better now then?”
“What did you do?” He looked at her from under his hair, not sure if she was smiling because she was nice or if she was amused by the nerdy guy who had landed in a heap at her feet. He flexed his elbow and found it almost pain free. It was a shame his jacket hadn’t fared so well.
“Just a little bit of natural healing, one of my skills. In the city I have a veterinary practice but out here I like to be as Mother Nature intended, free and worthy to share the gifts bestowed upon me.” She stood up and reached down to take his hand.
Red looked into her deep blue eyes before accepting. She seemed genuine and outgoing. He lifted his hand into hers and let her help pull him to his feet.
A small brown creature darted from behind her long flowing skirt and pranced around their feet.
“That’s the bloody thing that made me lose control on the road.” He glared down at the baby deer now burrowing into the floral fabric around her legs.
She reached down and with her hand under its body, picked it up. “‘T is a baby deer, I found it alongside its Mam on the side of the road last night when I drove along the coast. Poor thing had been run down and this little babe was frozen and hungry. I'm sorry. I didn’t realize it was so far from me. They have no fear of traffic because there is so much open space and wilderness out here.”
Red turned to look at his bike. His jaw clenched as he imagined the carnage inflicted on his pride and joy. He limped over to where it lay in the grass on the side of the road.
He rubbed his hand over his butt and fleetingly wished she had done something about his burning ass. He grunted, annoyed with the rips his fingers found in the leather.
Another pair for the rubbish bin.
He gritted his teeth as he crouched down to inspect the damage. There was a deep scratch along one side of the tank where the metal had made contact with the road and one foot peg was buckled beyond repair but that appeared to be all. He stood it up and pushed it to the side of the road. With a flick of his foot, he set it on the stand before he ran his hands lovingly over the black leather seat, thrilled, at least, it hadn't been ripped.
“‘T is more rewarding to run your hands over a woman's body than something so cold and hard, I would have thought.” The woman walked over to stand close to him. The fresh smell of flowers and honey wafted from her long wavy blonde hair, enveloping his space. “I'll never understand a man's need to own a piece of machinery like this and lavish so much attention on it.”
“Not all of us are lucky enough to find a woman who wants our attention.” Red cast a sideways glance at her and willed his embarrassment not to show on his pale skin. “At least I know I will always be able to get away on this.”
She laughed at him; a soft, musical sound that hit him in the gut.
“A man as handsome as yourself should have no trouble getting the woman of his dr
eams, surely. Just look at you with your dark auburn hair and deep green eyes.” She cocked her head to one side and let her gaze travel over his face. “You can't tell me you would rather spend time riding this piece of machinery than making love to a flesh and blood female.”
Heat flared in his cheeks and once again cursed his genetics. It was easy to understand why he had been nicknamed Red in school. He blushed as easily as a girl and it plagued him every bloody day. It wasn’t a wonder he couldn’t pluck up the courage to ask a girl on a date, especially a pretty one. His body betrayed his feelings for all the world to see.
“Oh I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to be embarrassing you. My tongue gets away on me. It's my Mam's fault.” A small throaty laugh came from her seductive red lips. “She was the same you understand, couldn’t keep her words to herself either. My Da says it's why I'm still not married, no man wants a wife who speaks before she thinks.” She looked down at the fawn in her hands and ran a painted fingertip from its nose to the soft rise of its forehead. She stroked the small animal around the ears and its eyes closed beneath her touch obviously under her spell. “Can I offer you a cup of tea to settle your nerves before you ride that big machine again? I would hate you to be on it feeling anything less than one hundred percent well in case you come off it again.”
Red looked for any sign of attitude or condescension and finding only concern on her face, he nodded. “Thanks, I’d like that.”
“You can leave your bike here if you have a mind to. It should be safe enough for a while or push it over yonder rise and onto the driveway if you like.” She turned and led the way with the fawn clutched to her side. Red kicked the stand up on the Ducati and followed her pushing the heavy bike.
Tucked into the side of the hill hidden from the road was a small dip leading to a lush patch of greenery in its own secluded valley. A small stone cottage stood in the midst of a miniature forest. It looked as though it had erupted from the earth when Mother Nature was busy shaping the hills and valleys along the coast. Flowerbeds were strewn haphazardly on the ground amongst the trees and around the cottage, flooding the area with a riot of summer color.
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