Sheltering Dunes (Provincetown Tales Book 7)
Page 26
“I’m happy to,” he said.
She hadn’t thanked him for herself, but he probably knew that. If he was anything like Flynn, he understood the meaning behind the words. She wasn’t sure of all that had happened, but she knew where she was, and what Carmen had done. Flynn would have needed someone.
“Did he hurt you?”Mica said, returning her gaze to Flynn.
“No.” Flynn sounded rusty and worn. “Just you. You surprised him and after he…shot you, he took off.”
Mica swallowed. The nightmare wasn’t over. “He got away?”
“Oh no,” Flynn said quickly, and Mica’s dread evaporated. “They got him.”
“Dead?”
“No, arrested.”
That might be better. Mica felt around her body—tape on her chest, plastic tubes sticking out of her side and her arm and her leg. Breathing hurt and her throat was raw. “How long have I been here?”
“Almost three days,” Flynn said. “You had surgery. They took the breathing tube out last night, and you’ve been sleeping on and off since then.”
“How about you?”
Flynn stroked Mica’s hair. “I’m just fine, now.”
“You should go home, rest.”
“I will. In a little while.”
Mica squeezed Flynn’s hand. “Remember, you’re not supposed to lie.”
Flynn grinned. “A little while is open to interpretation, so technically, I’m not lying.”
On the other side of the bed, Matthew laughed. “I hope to talk to you again, Mica, when you’re feeling better.” He waved to Flynn. “Good luck with the new position.”
Mica’s stomach dropped. “What new position?”
“My brother spoke to the bishop. The church in town needs an assistant priest. The job’s mine if I want it. I’d still keep my EMT post too.”
“Do you want to?”
Flynn rubbed her throat. “Yes, I do.”
“And do you get to wear that sexy collar?”
Flynn laughed. “Yes.”
“Then I’m all for it.” Mica loved the shy excitement in Flynn’s face. Heat raced along her spine and her mind wandered to an image of lying with Flynn, limbs entangled and supple flesh beneath her palms. She wanted her, in her heart and in her body. “When can I get out of here?”
Flynn laughed quietly and stroked her arm. “A few days. A week. You had a lot of surgery. The doctors tell me you’re going to be fine. A hundred percent.”
“Good—can I…can I stay with you a while?”
“A while? How about forever?” Flynn kissed her hand. “Remember the I love you part? That means we’re together, all the way…if you want.”
Mica’s breath stopped. A swell of expectation, so foreign, so wonderful, flooded her. “What’s happening with Carmen?”
“Last I heard, he’s ninety-plus certain to testify against Hector. That will put Hector and the others away. Dell—Detective Mitchell—feels pretty certain once they start arresting the leaders, getting some of the other members to turn informant will be easier. You’re going to break that gang, Mica.”
“Until then,” Mica said, “I might not be so safe to be around.”
“I don’t want us to put our life on hold waiting for anything.”
“I don’t want you hurt,” Mica whispered.
“I won’t be.” Flynn leaned down and kissed her. “I just need you.”
“I need you too,” Mica whispered. “But what if—”
“Baby,” Flynn murmured, “we can figure it out when you’re feeling a little stronger. Sheriff Conlon—Reese—has some ideas about how to protect you.”
“Like what?”
“No one knows the name you’ve been using here,” Flynn said slowly. “As far as Carmen, or Hector, knows, Mia Gonzales is dead.”
Mica’s chest tightened and she winced.
“What is it?” Flynn asked. “Does something hurt?”
Mica shook her head. “I can get behind letting everyone think I’m dead, even my family—at least for now. They’ll be safer if Hector thinks I’m dead. But I’m not going into that program.”
Flynn’s brows drew down. “What program? You mean witness protection?”
“No way,” Mica said. She wasn’t leaving, not unless Flynn wanted her to. Flynn was all that mattered.
Flynn rubbed Mica’s fingers against her cheek. “Damn right you’re not going into witness protection. You’re not going anywhere at all. You’re staying here with me, where you belong.”
The tightness in Mica’s chest eased. Flynn wanted her. Flynn loved her, and she loved Flynn. She did belong somewhere, finally. “If you’re here, that’s where I belong.”
About the Author
Radclyffe has written over thirty-five romance and romantic intrigue novels, dozens of short stories, and, writing as L.L. Raand, has authored a paranormal romance series, The Midnight Hunters.
She is an eight-time Lambda Literary Award finalist in romance, mystery, and erotica—winning in both romance (Distant Shores, Silent Thunder) and erotica (Erotic Interludes 2: Stolen Moments edited with Stacia Seaman and In Deep Waters 2: Cruising the Strip written with Karin Kallmaker). A member of the Saints and Sinners Literary Hall of Fame, she is also a 2010 RWA / FF&P Prism award winner for Secrets in the Stone. Her 2010 titles were finalists for the Benjamin Franklin award (Desire by Starlight), the ForeWord Review Book of the Year award (Trauma Alert and writing as LL Raand, The Midnight Hunt), and the RWA Passionate Plume award (The Midnight Hunt). She is also the president of Bold Strokes Books, one of the world’s largest independent LGBT publishing companies.
Coming in March 2012: NIGHT HUNT
Book Three in L.L. Raand's Midnight Hunt series.
Lara, a dominant wolf Were and one of the elite centuri guards, has only one mission—to protect the wolf Alpha, Sylvan Mir. When Lara makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Sylvan, a Vampire detective saves her life only to change it forever in ways no one can anticipate.
Sylvan, driven by primal instincts to protect her pregnant mate, grows more powerful, and more deadly, than any Alpha Were in centuries. While Sylvan rallies her allies, Vampire and human, to fight extremists, radical groups, and members of their own Praetern coalition in a war to preserve the autonomy of all Praetern species, Lara fights a private battle with her own dark urges—a battle which, if lost, will make her a more dangerous adversary than any Sylvan has ever faced.
Books Available From Bold Strokes Books
Sheltering Dunes by Radclyffe. The seventh in the award winning Provincetown Tales. The pasts, presents, and futures of three women collide in a single moment that will alter all their lives forever. (978-1-60282-573-4)
Better Off Red: Vampire Sorority Sisters Book 1 by Rebekah Weatherspoon. Every sorority has its secrets…and college freshman Ginger Carmichael soon discovers that her pledge is more than a bond of sisterhood, it’s a lifelong pact to serve six bloodthirsty demons with a lot more than nutritional needs. (978-1-60282-574-1)
Lucky Loser by Yolanda Wallace. Top tennis pros Sinjin Smythe and Laure Fortescue reach Wimbledon desperate to claim tennis’s crown jewel, but will their feelings for each other get in the way? (978-1-60282-575-8)
History’s Passion: Stories of Sex Before Stonewall edited by Richard Labonté. Four acclaimed erotic authors re-imagine the past…welcome to the hidden queer history of men loving men not so very long—and centuries—ago. (978-1-60282-576-5)
Detours by Jeffrey Ricker. Joel Patterson is heading to Maine for his mother’s funeral, and his high school friend Lincoln has invited himself along on the ride—and into Joel’s bed—but when the ghost of Joel’s mother joins the trip, the route is likely to be anything but straight. (978-1-60282-577-2)
Holy Rollers by Rob Byrnes. Partners in life and crime Grant Lambert and Chase LaMarca assemble a team of gay and lesbian criminals to steal millions from a rightwing mega-church, but the gang’s plans are complicated by an “ex-gay” conference, the FBI, and a cor
rupt reverend with his own plans for the cash. (978-1-60282-578-9)
Mystery of the Tempest: A Fisher Key Adventure by Sam Cameron. Twin brothers Denny and Steven Anderson love helping people and fighting crime alongside their sheriff dad on sun-drenched Fisher Key, Florida, but Denny doesn’t dare tell anyone he’s gay, and Steven has secrets of his own to keep. (978-1-60282-579-6)
Three Days by L.T. Marie. In a town like Vegas where anything can happen, Shawn and Dakota find that the stakes are love at all costs, and it’s a gamble neither can afford to lose. (978-1-60282-569-7)
Swimming to Chicago by David-Matthew Barnes. As the lives of the adults around them unravel, high school students Alex and Robby form an unbreakable bond, vowing to do anything to stay together—even if it means leaving everything behind.(978-1-60282-572-7)
Hostage Moon by AJ Quinn. Hunter Roswell thought she had left her past behind, until a serial killer begins stalking her. Can FBI profiler Sara Wilder help her find her connection to the killer before he strikes on blood moon? (978-1-60282-568-0)
Erotica Exotica: Tales of Magic, Sex, and the Supernatural, edited by Richard Labonté. Today’s top gay erotica authors offer sexual thrills and perverse arousal, spooky chills, and magical orgasms in these stories exploring arcane mystery, supernatural seduction, and sex that haunts in a manner both weird and wondrous. (978-1-60282-570-3)
Blue by Russ Gregory. Matt and Thatcher find themselves in the crosshairs of a psychotic killer stalking gay men in the streets of Austin, and only a 103-year-old nursing home resident holds the key to solving the murders—but can she give up her secrets in time to save them? (978-1-60282-571-0)
Balance of Forces: Toujours Ici by Ali Vali. Immortal Kendal Richoux’s life began during the reign of Egypt’s only female pharaoh, and history has taught her the dangers of getting too close to anyone who hasn’t harnessed the power of time, but as she prepares for the most important battle of her long life, can she resist her attraction to Piper Marmande? (978-1-60282-567-3)
Contemporary Gay Romances by Felice Picano. This collection of short fiction from legendary novelist and memoirist Felice Picano are as different from any standard “romances” as you can get, but they will linger in the mind and memory. (978-1-60282-639-7)
Nightrise by Nell Stark and Trinity Tam. In the third book in the everafter series, when Valentine Darrow loses her soul, Alexa must cross continents to find a way to save her. (978-1-60282-238-2)
Men of the Mean Streets, edited by Greg Herren and J.M. Redmann. Dark tales of amorality and criminality by some of the top authors of gay mysteries. (978-1-60282-240-5)
Women of the Mean Streets, edited by J.M. Redmann and Greg Herren. Murder, mayhem, sex, and danger—these are the stories of the women who dare to tackle the mean streets. (978-1-60282-241-2)
Firestorm by Radclyffe. Firefighter paramedic Mallory “Ice” James isn’t happy when the undisciplined Jac Russo joins her command, but lust isn’t something either can control—and they soon discover ice burns as fiercely as flame. (978-1-60282-232-0)
The Best Defense by Carsen Taite. When socialite Aimee Howard hires former homicide detective Skye Keaton to find her missing niece, she vows not to mix business with pleasure, but she soon finds Skye hard to resist. (978-1-60282-233-7)
After the Fall by Robin Summers. When the plague destroys most of humanity, Taylor Stone thinks there’s nothing left to live for, until she meets Kate, a woman who makes her realize love is still alive and makes her dream of a future she thought was no longer possible. (978-1-60282-234-4)
Accidents Never Happen by David-Matthew Barnes. From the moment Albert and Joey meet by chance beneath a train track on a street in Chicago, a domino effect is triggered, setting off a chain reaction of murder and tragedy. (978-1-60282-235-1)
In Plain View, edited by Shane Allison. Best-selling gay erotica authors create the stories of sex and desire modern readers crave. (978-1-60282-236-8)