Naughty & Nice

by J. S. Scott

  He still brought her back to her aunt's home every night. He usually became tense but he never verbally attacked. He never criticized, but he would stand erect, rigid, and Elaina knew he was never happy to take her home.

  But he did, and she gave him points in her head.

  She was immensely happy. He was going out of his way to please her, and she knew why. He wanted her. Completely. And he was trying to prove it to her.

  He was going for her.

  Totally.

  For the win.

  ****

  Three wonderful weeks later, Elaina was heading back to the bank at the end of her lunch break. She'd spent most of the hour in the small, county library with a yogurt cup and granola bar, using the internet for nothing more important than a bit of online shopping.

  She was walking past the only grocery store in town when Trevor opened the door, walked out and bumped into her.

  He reached out to steady her at the same time he realized who he had in his arms.

  His grin was infectious.

  "Hey."

  "Hey."

  They grinned at each other a moment before he spoke again with the smile still in his voice as he studied her. "Raul Vega? Seriously, Elaina?"

  A small laugh erupted from her throat. "Yeah, seriously."

  Trevor sobered. "He's a good man."

  "Yeah, he is."

  "Even though you could have had all this," he lifted his hands from her and motioned to himself like he was a chocolate donut with cream filling.

  "Right."

  They laughed and chatted a few minutes. She looked at her watch. She was going to be late if she wasn't careful. "Later, dude, I need to get back to work."

  Elaina turned away from him and kept walking as he went in the opposite direction.

  She was still smiling when she came to the entrance of the bank and saw Raul leaning against the front of the building, arms crossed, a frown on his face, watching her.

  Her insides quivered and her legs trembled from the shock of him appearing out of the blue when she wasn't expecting it. "What are you doing here?"

  She came to stand within a foot of him as he answered, "I bank here, Elaina. It's the only bank in town." His voice was strained.

  She bit her lip against the unintentional grin that began encompassing her face. She motioned with her head in the direction she had just come from and asked him, "Did you see all that?"

  His eyes narrowed on her and his lips flattened. "Yeah."

  The smile won and took over her whole expression. "Really? You saw Trevor? You saw the whole thing?"

  His nostrils flared. "Yeah. The whole goddamn thing," his voice hissed out.

  Elaina walked the last few inches toward him. She stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. She studied his handsome, virile face and the smile fell from her lips as a deeper emotion took hold of her. "I love you."

  His hands wrapped around her jaw line and sifted through her hair until he was holding her by the scalp. "Jesus. Finally." His eyes searched hers. "I love you, too."

  He leaned down and put his mouth on hers in a kiss that sealed her fate.

  Epilogue

  Five years later

  "Happy birthday, baby." It was just past midnight when Raul came up behind Elaina and wrapped his arms around her. She turned away from the twin bed and snuggled into his arms.

  He kept his voice purposefully quiet. "Is she asleep?"

  "Yeah, she finally exhausted herself."

  He reached down and around his wife to touch the soft, downy cheek of the three-year old. Her cheeks were rosy and she looked absolutely cherubic in sleep.

  He knew it wouldn't last long. She'd been giving them fits for awhile now as her terrible two's lingered. On fast chubby legs, their daughter was a little terror.

  Raul led Elaina by the hand and walked her out of the baby's room.

  He sat on the couch and pulled her into his lap and put a protective hand over her swollen belly.

  Their gazes tangled and held. "You don't look twenty-seven. You still look like a teenager. You're just as beautiful as you were the first time I saw you."

  She let out a small, disbelieving laugh.

  "I'm serious," he said.

  She lifted her hand to his cheek and flashed wickedly seductive eyes at him. "You don't have to flatter me. I'm a sure thing, Raul. Haven't you figured that out yet?"

  "A sure thing, hell." His hand absently caressed her taut belly where his next baby snuggled safely. "You put me through the ringer, baby, remember? You were never a sure thing. I sweated bullets thinking you weren't going to give in."

  Their gazes caught and held. "You were hard to resist," she said.

  "Damn straight. I had to be. I couldn't take the chance of you getting away."

  "I never wanted to get away."

  He watched her with an appreciation and love so deep, it vibrated between them.

  He leaned his forehead against hers and ran his hand down and clenched it around the silky cheek of her butt.

  He lifted her chin and his expression grew serious. "I mean it, baby. I love you so much. More than life itself."

  His eyes swallowed hers and she felt the same flutter in her stomach as she had when she first met him. "I love you, too."

  He kissed her lips and began the sweet seduction that still managed to blow her mind. He whispered in her ear, "Let me prove it."

  She kissed him back and asked, "Again?"

  "Yeah, again. Always."

  The End

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  A sneak peek of Rule’s Addiction: Book Three, The House of Rule

  (Garrett and Maria’s story)

  Copyright© 2014 Lynda Chance

  Unedited excerpt: All Rights Reserved

  About to round the corner of the landing leading to the fourth floor, Maria’s nerves jolted when she heard the sound of the door above her opening and then closing with the loud, echoing slam of steel against steel.

  She came to an abrupt halt and listened, knowing for a fact that someone was in the stairwell above her, just out of her sight.

  Silence.

  The only sound she heard was her heart beating loudly in her ears, but she knew she wasn’t alone.

  If she took two steps forward she’d be able to look up and see whoever was there. Two steps back might give her time to escape.

  Unable to slow the raging pulse that was telling her that Garrett had found her, she took two steps backwards toward the wall, preparing to turn and run down, her stiletto heels clicking loudly against the bare concrete.

  She never had a chance.

  He sprinted down the half flight of stairs before she could even grab the railing that would balance her on the way down.

  Damn stilettos. Damn her vanity for wearing them.

  His hands reached out and he caught her, dragging her backwards, and she found her back against the wall in the corner of the landing before she could even blink.

  Breathing unsteadily, she looked up into the eyes of a madman as she fought for oxygen.

  “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he raged, indomitable fury in every line of his body.

  Breathe, Maria. Just take one breath and then let it out. For some reason, she had no idea why, it never occurred to her to lie to him. “Avoiding you.”

  The look on his face seemed to say that he wanted nothing more than to shake her, but he didn’t. His fingers bit into the flesh of her upper arms, and his brows came down in a thunderous scowl of rage that was not scaring her. Hell no, the dude did not scare her. If she could just remember to breathe, then maybe she could convince herself of that truth.

  He looked down at her, his height and breadth dominating her where she stood, as a small buzzing in the back of her brain told her that it probably wasn’
t wise to take on a guy who was at least a foot taller and probably outweighed her by a hundred pounds of pure muscle. And that was without considering the pissed-off river of testosterone that seemed to be flowing through his bloodstream at the moment.

  Her eyes stayed glued to his, and as he moved several inches closer, her chin lifted and her neck arched at an uncomfortable angle to keep him in her sights as he loomed closer. All the while her heart was beating so rapidly that her head was spinning, and she was sucking in oxygen so quickly that she was beginning to hyperventilate.

  “The goddamn stairwell, Maria?” he questioned in a yell, biting the words out.

  “What . . . what?” she asked, confusion setting in.

  Lines of ice-cold fury bracketed his mouth. “Do you not have a clue? Do you not have a single working brain cell in that head of yours?”

  She jerked her head back, not caring for that question one damn bit. She felt her blood pressure rise as her eyes narrowed, a returning anger filling her bloodstream. Fuck him. Fuck his arrogance. “Watch it, Mr. Rule. You’re beginning to piss me off.”

  He leaned into her another intimidating inch. “Piss. You. Off?”

  “I promise, you don’t want to piss me off,” she challenged, ignoring the warning bells in her head.

  A yellow spiral of heat began blending with the brown of his irises, surrounding the growing black circle of his pupils, telling of his anger. “Yeah? We’ll get back to that shit in a minute,” he stated, as if her own anger was no more irritating than a fly buzzing around. “Why the fuck would you take the stairway?”

  “Why . . . why shouldn’t I?”

  He rolled his eyes heavenward and then looked back down. “Do you not give a shit about your own safety?”

  “You think I’m going to trip and fall?” she asked sarcastically, beginning to get a glimmer as to where he was really going with this.

  “Smart-ass,” he hissed through gritted teeth. “You’re going to get assaulted, that’s what I think.”

  “You think it’s dangerous in here?” she snapped, seeing no threat except the one standing in front of her.

  One brawny hand released her arm and moved unerringly, forcibly, to the hem of her dress. “I don’t know, what do you think?” Without so much as a pause, he pushed the skirt of her dress up, out of his way, the palm of his hand seizing her mound, covered only by a triangle of silk fabric. She sucked in a startled breath as an arrow of heat shot through her, immobilizing her. He squeezed threateningly as he stared down at her, the lines of his face showing both scalding anger and a growing, imposing arousal.

  Lights and whistles began going off in her head. Shit, shit, shit. This wasn’t good. Even now, she could feel her body begin to release a wet heat. Damn, he’d feel it through her panties any second now. Four, three, two, one—

  The expression on his face transformed as fire exploded in his eyes. “Son-of-a-bitch, Maria.” Lightning fast, he pushed the crotch of her panties aside and his finger landed on her clit. He began rubbing, massaging her, and shock at the sudden situation held her momentarily in place. Although aroused, his anger was still there. “What if it had been someone else? Someone who wanted to hurt you?”

  Despite her growing arousal, because of her growing arousal, Maria made a grab for his wrist to try to stop him as she struggled for words. “It’s completely safe. Only employees and guests—“

  He didn’t release her. “Bullshit, it’s not safe. I get that you trust the employees here. But goddammit, you’d have no fucking clue if a psycho checked in. Anybody could follow you in here, overpower you, hurt you. You’re going to quit taking the stairs, understand me? You want to take the fucking stairs, you take the open staircase in the lobby, not this back stairwell, you got me?”

  “You don’t tell me what to do,” she spat out, meeting his gaze straight on.

  “I’m sorry, what?” The impatient words ripped from his throat. “What the fuck just came out of your mouth?”

  “You don’t tell me what to do!” she plunged on defiantly.

  He didn’t bother to answer. His head swooped down, he nipped at her bottom lip and then forced his tongue inside her mouth, just as he began swirling his finger around her clit again. A low growl of vibration started coming from deep in his chest as he crowded her back against the wall, spreading her legs apart, pushing his lower body between them.

  Maria’s head began swimming again just as a new burst of damp heat flooded the juncture of her legs. How could he piss her off so badly and make her feel like this all at the same time? She was beyond excited, if this went on for much longer, she’d be in danger of climaxing, right here in the stairwell.

  Abruptly, he lifted his head, his mouth coming off hers. She opened her eyes and found him staring down at her, his nostrils flaring. “And what about this goddamn dress?”

  “What?” she asked, disoriented.

  “I’ve never seen it before,” he stated with a stroke of censure before switching gears on her. “Who the fuck was the dude, Maria?”

  Dress? Dude? What was he talking about? “What dude?”

  At her question, he growled in warning and his finger slid down and found her wet opening. Her heart went haywire and she tried with everything she had not to push forward, her traitorous body searching for some degree of satisfaction.

  He plunged inside without warning. She let out a semi-startled moan and heard him groan at the same time. His forehead fell to hers as he swirled his finger inside. She gave up; she pushed against him, adjusting her leg just a tiny bit. Ahh. . . there. Oh, God, that was it, that was the place.

  But he wasn’t through interrogating her yet. “The dude in the ballroom. The motherfucker who had his arm around you.”

  “No. . . nobody,” she panted, unable to think of anything but the magic his fingers were creating.

  “Don’t give me that shit. You feel me inside, baby?” He pushed harder, swirled in a larger circle around her inner walls, making her entire body short-circuit. “Let me explain it to you,” he growled. “Nobody puts their fucking hands on you again, understand me?”

  Christ. The guy was a maniac. “You . . . no. . . you can’t tell me what to do.”

  “No? I think I fucking can. But don’t worry, you’ll get used to it. You’re not going to have much of a goddamn choice.” With that, his lips fell back to hers and anything else she might have said was silenced by his mouth on hers.

  ****

  Look for Rule’s Addiction

  Available December 2, 2014

  ****

  From Lynda Chance:

  The House of Rule Series:

  Rule’s Obsession, Book One (Damian and Angie)

  Rule’s Property, Book Two (Nick and Courtney)

  Rule’s Addiction, Book 3 (Garrett and Maria) (Available Dec. 2, 2014)

  Pursuit

  The Mistress Mistake

  Marco's Redemption

  Under the Cowboy's Control

  His Indecent Proposal

  Ranchers of Chatum County Series:

  Staking His Claim

  Sarah's Surrender

  The Redwood Falls Series:

  Josh and Hannah (Redwood Falls, Book One)

  An Eye for an Eye (Redwood Falls, Book Two)

  Historical Westerns:

  The Sheriff and the Innocent Housekeeper

  The Rancher's Virgin Acquisition

  Temptation in Texas:

  The Thrill of the Chase

  Mike and Megan

  Logan and Lauren

  Logan and Lauren: A Christmas Special 2014

  The Louisiana Liaisons Series:

  Seduced by the American Millionaire

  Blackmailed Into Bed

  Bedded by the Boss

  My Love

  by

  Melanie Shawn

  Copyright© 2014 Melanie Shawn

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book. No part of this may be used or reproduced
in any manner whatsoever without permission in writing from Melanie Shawn. Exceptions are limited to reviewers who may use brief quotations in connection with reviews. No part of this book can be transmitted, scanned, reproduced, or distributed in any written or electronic form without written permission from Melanie Shawn.

  This book is a work of fiction. Places, names, characters and events are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Disclaimer: The material in this book is for mature audiences only and contains graphic content. It is intended only for those aged 18 and older.

  Cover Design by Hot Damn Designs

  Copyedits by Mickey Reed Editing

  Proofreading Services by Tiesha Brunson

  Proofreading Services by Raiza McDuffie

  Proofreading Services by Jill Grabert Estes

  Book Design by BB eBooks

  Published by Red Hot Reads Publishing

  Chapter One

  ‘Are you wearing panties?’

  A flush rose up Sophie’s cheeks as she read her husband’s text. She typed back one word, and a small smile lifted her lips as she pressed ‘send’.

  ‘Yes.’

  After setting her phone down on her mahogany desk, Sophie turned her attention back to her screen and a yawn snuck up on her. Blowing out a puff of breath, she closed her eyes for a brief moment, and then re-opened them as she tried to focus. Her work had piled up over the last few months because her new position as buyer for both Tempting, the lingerie boutique owned by her cousin-in-law, Haley, and Bella, an upscale clothing boutique owned by her sister-in-law, Amber, demanded a lot of travel. She’d been gone more than she was at home, and she wanted to get caught up before the holiday break. Her plan: to spend every second in bed with her husband.

  She’d barely opened the first email in her inbox when a loud vibration sounded, indicating a new text. Before she even saw the message, a thrill ran through her. The thrum of anticipation caused her fingers to tingle as she looked down at her iPhone, which displayed two words. The heat of her blush intensified at what she saw.