Sweet Talk Boxed Set (Ten NEW Contemporary Romances by Bestselling Authors to Benefit Diabetes Research plus BONUS Novel)

by Novak, Brenda

There wasn’t a return label, nothing to indicate where the package had come from. The gifts inside the box were addressed, variously, to the children and to her.

  The holidays couldn’t come soon enough. Whitney wasn’t known for her ability to wait on anything, but for her niece and nephew she would.

  Why go back downstairs to those wretched people? A nap seemed so much better. Whitney fell asleep within minutes — that hadn’t happened in a long time — and immediately began dreaming of a man she didn’t even like, and much less wanted to dream about.

  Chapter Nine

  “I’ve only been on horseback a few times. You promise she won’t buck me off?” Whitney glanced doubtfully at the mare, who was acting all too innocent as she munched on her hay.

  “It’s a perfect day for a short ride, Ms. Steele. The winter landscape is pure and clean,” Mr. Smotter told her. “You said you wanted to do this.”

  “That was yesterday,” Whitney told him. “I was caught up in the excitement of watching Ally’s face light up when she got a lesson.”

  “I’ll be with you the entire time. You have nothing to worry about,” he assured her. “Besides, Penny is fifteen years old, and very gentle. She’s perfect for a rider like yourself.”

  “Okay. I’ll do it.” Whitney had decided not to let her fears stop her from living her life. “But I will hold you to your promise. If she bucks me off, I will remind you every day of the rest of my stay here that you were wrong.”

  “And if that were to happen, which, I assure you, it won’t, you would be more than justified in doing just that,” he said with a rare smile.

  Just as she got comfortable in the saddle, she heard the voice that seemed to haunt her at every turn.

  “Mr. Smotter, my father needs you. I’ll attend to Ms. Steele,” Liam said.

  “Of course, sir,” Mr. Smotter replied. “I’ll return quickly,” he told Whitney.

  “We can reschedule for another time. I’m perfectly fine with that,” she told him. Hey, maybe she was going to get out of this ordeal without looking like a wimp.

  “Nonsense. I will take Ms. Steele on a ride.”

  Mr. Smotter turned and left without another word. If Liam said he was doing something, apparently, there was no questioning it.

  That didn’t sit too well with Whitney. “I really wasn’t that excited to go out. The ground is covered with snow — obviously — and I’m certainly no expert horsewoman. I don’t need to waste your time with this.” She began to swing her leg over to dismount.

  Liam’s hand shot out to stop her. The feel of his fingers squeezing her calf sent a sharp pang of electricity through her

  “I insist,” he said. He took the halter of a stallion one of the groomsmen had brought up to him.

  Here’s what really shocked her. She was speechless as her mare began moving behind Liam’s stallion as they went out of the stable.

  Neither of them spoke as Liam led her on a slow gait through the snow-covered pastures. Slowly, slowly, slowly. Finally, Whitney couldn’t stand the silence a second longer.

  “Did you and your brother grow up here?”

  Liam remained silent for a few heartbeats, and Whitney was beginning to think he wasn’t going to answer.

  “Yes. It was a good place in which to grow up. This side of the country offers a lot of opportunities.”

  “And you obviously had a lot of land to play on,” she said with a forced laugh. “Pretty impressive when you live on the East Coast.”

  “Granted. Still, I’ve never quite understood my father’s obsession with owning property. So much of it.”

  “Maybe because he likes the freedom it gives him,” Whitney told him.

  “The man you’ve met is far different from the man I grew up with. I don’t think it’s about freedom. I think having the home and land makes a statement,” Liam said.

  “Why do you say that?”

  She had been at Frederick and Liam’s place for only a week, and so much confused her. She had no doubt in her mind that Frederick loved his grandchildren, that he deeply missed the son he’d lost, and that he hoped for his other son to quit being so bitter. But she didn’t understand Liam at all.

  “It’s nothing,” he told her as they and their horses went around a bend.

  Another mansion, all kitted out with stables almost as impressive as his father’s, loomed before them.

  “Where are we?”

  “This is my place.”

  “What do you mean? I thought you lived with your father.”

  He led the horses toward the barn, and there was nothing Whitney could do to stop it from happening.

  “I’m thirty-four years old, Whitney. Do you honestly believe I would still be living with my father?”

  As Liam jumped down, a man suddenly appeared and took the reins of his horse.

  “I just…well, I assumed you lived there because you’re there so often, eating with us, and…I don’t know. You’re just always there,” she finished lamely as he held out a hand to help her dismount. “I really shouldn’t get off. I need to get back to the kids.” She absolutely didn’t want to go into this man’s home.

  “The children are fine, as you well know. I need to make a few phone calls, and you need to warm up before we head back to my father’s house.”

  How could Whitney argue with that? “I could just stay in the barn while you make the calls. It’s warm in here, and I can brush the horses down.”

  “You can brush your mare when we return.”

  He moved a few inches closer, and unless Whitney wanted an all-out fight with this man, she had little choice but to go with him. He would have plenty of staff in his house, she was sure. It wasn’t as if the two of them would be alone and he could have his wicked way with her.

  That gave her only a small measure of comfort, but she gave him her hand, this time more prepared as the tingling zip, the electricity shot through her body at his barest touch.

  They went quickly toward his house, nothing else spoken, and then they were out of the cold. He ushered her down along a hallway, still holding the hand he’d grabbed when helping her from the horse.

  He only let go of her when they entered a large room with a burning fireplace, the warmth drawing Whitney immediately to it. Still, a shiver traveled down her spine when he let his hands rest on her shoulders, and she had to fight not to turn around and propel herself into his arms.

  “Consider taking off your coat. We’re going to be here a little while.” Liam’s breath brushed across her ear as he slid his hands down her arms.

  “I’m still a little cold,” she said, barely able to get the words past the tightening in her throat.

  He reached around her and began slowly unzipping her jacket. Her eyes were drawn to the movement as another shudder passed through her.

  Liam pulled the coat off, sliding it down her arms and then tossing it to the side. It landed on a couch.

  “I’ve waited long enough to do this.”

  That was her only warning before he drew her around, then yanked her against his body. And now his lips were pressing against hers.

  It took only milliseconds before she felt her lips parting, before he claimed her mouth and made her knees shake with the intensity of the kiss he was sharing with her.

  Liam’s hands moved down from her shoulders traveled to her back, and landed on the top of her nicely cured behind. He couldn’t help himself, and he followed the same journey up and back down again.

  The kiss was all-consuming, and when he broke away, leaning back only a couple of inches so that when her eyes opened, she could clearly see the need burning in his, she wanted nothing more than to pull him back to her.

  “Let’s go upstairs, Whitney. This has been inevitable since the moment I first laid eyes on you.”

  It took a few moments for his words to sink past the lust-filled haze she was in, but when they did, she stiffened all through her body, and her hand came up and pushed against his chest.

&n
bsp; He didn’t fight her when she pulled away from him, and she was grateful for that.

  “Nothing is inevitable, Liam. Nothing,” she said, her body still trembling but her temper helping her words to come out. “And I’m most certainly not the kind of woman to jump into bed with a man just because he thinks it somehow inevitable.”

  “Why would you fight it? I can feel the way your body’s reacts to me,” he told her. His eyes weren’t angry, but curious.

  “You kiss me once and then assume I’m ready to jump into your bed? What sort of world do you live in?”

  “The real world, Whitney. If you don’t want me, then that’s one thing, but it’s more than clear that you do.” He finally moved away to a cabinet in the corner. Pulling out two glasses, he poured them each a drink.

  “I’m the one living in the real world, Liam. You live in some sort of fantasy land where you get everything you want at the snap of two fingers. And I’m not enjoying being here in your sad world. I would like to go back now,” she told him as he approached.

  Just then a boom of thunder exploded right over them, or what felt like it, and the lights went out. A shiver of fear ran through her as she looked at Liam in the gray light coming in through his windows.

  “It doesn’t look like we’re going anywhere for the moment,” Liam said, his smile of victory perfectly clear.

  “I think I’d rather face a storm than face the evening in here with you,” she said, surprised when she said those words aloud.

  “You would probably be safer,” he told her before setting down his glass and moving back toward her.

  Whitney had no idea what to do. She only knew that if he touched her again, she just might melt right into his arms, so she panicked and did the only thing she could think of — turned and ran.

  She didn’t make it far before Liam caught up to her, and when he hauled her into his arms, his look was perfectly clear. He was willing to use any and all means to seduce her.

  She hoped she had the strength to resist.

  Chapter Ten

  “Where were you last night, Auntie?”

  Whitney rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one hand and used to other to try to contain a very wiggly niece. She wasn’t a morning person on the best of days, and really not a morning person when she’d spent a night of tossing and turning.

  She’d somehow managed to resist falling into Liam’s bed the night before, but she would never know exactly how. Such temptation…

  He’d kissed her to the point of making her knees grow weak, and her blood had been boiling, and then the power had flashed back on and the phone had begun ringing. When Frederick sent Mr. Smotter over to his son’s house to see whether she was okay, she’d run away like lightning.

  But she hadn’t been able to escape before seeing the look in Liam’s eyes, a look that promised her they weren’t yet finished with whatever he’d decided to start with her. Just thinking about it again sent her into a near panic.

  “Auntie? Hello? Are you okay?”

  “I’m so sorry, Ally. I zoned out. I just didn’t sleep very well last night. You see, I got stuck in the storm, and then the thunder kept me awake…” She trailed off at the innocent look on her niece’s face. Why was she trying to explain herself? Ally wouldn’t and shouldn’t have a clue about the kiss her aunt and uncle had shared.

  Just the thought of that horrified Whitney even more.

  “You promised to make a snowman with me today; remember?”

  “Yes, of course I do, baby girl. Why don’t you go and get snow clothes on? I’ll take a shower. Then we’ll have some breakfast and go outside.”

  Ally jumped from her bed, more than happy to accommodate her aunt now that she knew she was getting what she wanted. Whitney threw herself back on the pillows on her niece’s bed and took several deep breaths. She couldn’t keep staying with this family. It was messing with her mind.

  But the thought of taking away the kids when they were doing so well made her heart ache. And the thought of leaving them there, even though she knew they would have a much more privileged life than she could give them — well, even knowing that, the idea almost made her heart stop.

  Closing her eyes wasn’t the best idea, though, because the second she did, all she could see was Liam’s face moving toward hers as he prepared to kiss her.

  “No. This isn’t going to happen. Today I won’t have inappropriate thoughts about Liam Felton. Not once,” she said as she climbed from bed.

  Whitney finished her shower, dressed with warm clothes for the nasty day, and walked down the quiet hallway to search for Ally. She saw a group of staff at the large windows on the rear side of the house, and her curiosity drew led her to the spot. One of them servants turned at the sound of her footsteps and gave her a welcoming smile.

  “Come join us, Ms. Steele,” the woman said.

  Whitney walked to the window and looked outside. It took her a moment, but she spotted Liam and Brayden riding on horseback in the lower pasture. Her heart swelled with joy when she saw Brayden’s face blossoming in a beautiful smile.

  He looked so at ease down there with Liam, and he looked like a budding young man instead of the angry little boy he’d become this last year.

  All her worries really were unnecessary. It was more than clear that she’d made the right choice in bringing the children to their grandfather’s home, even if her heart was breaking a bit each day at the thought of losing them to this family.

  No. It wasn’t about her, it was about their happiness and safety, and if being with their lost family was best for them, she’d somehow be able to accept that. She’d do anything to make sure her sister’s two children had the best possible life, filled with love, laughter, and opportunity.

  “It’s so good to see him smiling,” Whitney whispered.

  “Yes, I agree with you, Miss. It’s also nice to see that smile on Mr. Liam’s face. It’s been a very long time,” the maid said with a sheen of tears in her eyes. “I shouldn’t say this, but he’s been given so much responsibility since his brother left, and he’s taken that on his shoulders with no complaints. I haven’t seen joy on his face in a long time. He really does like having you and the children here.”

  “Oh, I’m just along for the ride. This is all about the kids,” Whitney said with a laugh she didn’t feel.

  “You’ve brought a brightness to these cold walls, and it’s unlike anything else has in many, many years,” Mr. Smotter said as he joined them.

  Whitney hadn’t even heard the man approach. A blush spread over her cheeks.

  “You have all been so kind to me since I got here. I couldn’t ask for anything more than that. Thank you so much,” Whitney told them, and she fled.

  If they’d said anything more to her, she might have fallen apart. And with Christmas not that far away, and with the happiness of her niece and nephew on the line, she didn’t have time to fall apart.

  Right now she needed to find her niece, and she needed to build a snowman. If she focused only on the small stuff, took each moment one at a time, she might just be able of making it through all this.

  Doubtful, but she was determined to do it anyway.

  Chapter Eleven

  “I forgot to tell you about the fundraiser that will be held here in three days,” Liam announced at the midday meal. “Of course it’s formal, with all that implies, and there will be music and entertainment.”

  “What’s a fundraiser?” Ally asked.

  “It’s an event where you get to dance and dress up in a very pretty gown,” Whitney answered.

  “Ooh, that sounds like fun! Are you going to dress up too, Auntie?”

  Whitney was at a loss for words. She had nothing to wear to such a fancy event, and even if she had, she wouldn’t know how to behave. She’d most likely trip on her own two feet as she entered the room. No. It was lucky that someone as lowly as she was would never be invited.

  “Of course your aunt will go,” Liam said, making Ally smile
.

  Whitney wasn’t smiling; in fact, she sent him a menacing look. If she and Liam found themselves alone again, she’d certainly give him a piece of her mind. The starchy man kept laying down the law, and it was absurd. Quite absurd. She’d tell him that in her best imitation of a cultured accent.

  “Dancing and fancy clothes doesn’t sound all that fun,” Brayden said with a sneer, though Whitney could see he was intrigued by the idea. Appearing too interested in anything wasn’t what cool boys did.

  “You will really enjoy yourself, Brayden, if you allow yourself to,” Liam told him. Brayden looked at him skeptically, but his uncle went on. “Just give it a try. If you hate it, we can sneak out early,” Liam assured him.

  That seemed to do the trick. Brayden’s frown disappeared.

  “In the meantime, young man, perhaps you’ve had too much time on your hands,” Liam told him. “I think it would be wise to introduce you to new pursuits, some of the things that your father and I did when we were your age.”

  “Pursuits? What do you mean by that?” Brayden asked, suspicion clear in his tone.

  “Do I get to do them too?” Ally asked at the same time.

  “Of course you do, Ally, and Brayden, you’ll enjoy most of what I have planned,” Liam said before his lips twitched.

  “This doesn’t sound good.” Brayden turned toward Whitney with a look of panic.

  She wanted to rescue him, but she had to be practical. Having something to do could keep the children happy, keep them from getting into trouble, and keep them from missing their parents so dang much.

  “You’ll have several lessons a day, on different subjects, so you’ll be able to choose what you enjoy doing the most. Brayden, you’ll start piano lessons right after this meal is over, and, Ally, you’ll learn to do ballroom dances. And then you will both switch. We also have fencing and shooting scheduled.”

  Brayden groaned at the thought of having to learn dancing, but he seemed surprisingly intrigued with the piano lessons.

  “That all sounds like fun,” Ally said, much more willing to go with the flow since she was always up for trying new things.