by Luis, Maria
As always, there are many more but here is just a sampling! If you’re thinking . . . that seems rather fascinating and I want to know more, you are always so welcome to reach out! Pretty much, nothing makes me happier =)
Much love,
Maria
Sneak Peek of Tempt Me With Forever
Curious to know where it all began? The Put A Ring On It crew first was spotted in Tempt Me With Forever, the fourth book in my NOLA Heart series. All books can be read as standalones—and a certain twin of one “Owen” from Hold Me Today is the hero of this book! Keep reading for a sneak peek, where Beauty Influencer Lizzie Danvers is determined to prove that bad boys can’t be tamed, and she’s found the perfect man for the job . . .
“You here for the butterfly?”
At the sound of his gruff question, she turned around, and Gage felt his gut clench with unexpected lust. Owen hadn’t had the right of it; this woman wasn’t cute, she was gorgeous. The sort of breathtaking that had you questioning your sanity. The sort of breathtaking that made you wonder what the hell you could say to get her into your bed, her slim legs wrapped around your waist, and her breath hot and fast against your neck.
Damn.
Blue eyes lit with nervous anticipation as she rubbed her hands together. The motion jostled her bracelets. And, if her shirt weren’t so loose, he’d have had the opportunity to see if all that rubbing and jiggling affected her breasts too.
“I am,” she said with a bright smile—straight white teeth, lips painted the color of a ripe plum. He wanted to see the color mussed, kissed into nonexistence, and discover the true shade of her lips.
Get a grip, man.
Right. Right.
He ran a hand through his dark hair. This is what he got for spending the last few months with only his right hand. Between work with S.O.D., and then spending every free moment helping Owen here at the parlor, Gage hadn’t had a night to himself in what felt like forever.
Or a day, either.
He lived two lives, and neither of them left room for casual sex, which was the only sort of sex he engaged in.
Swallowing his lust, Gage motioned for her to step up to the vintage bar. “Let’s get your paperwork settled.” He pulled one of the already prepared clipboards from the pile, and then slid it over to the woman, a pen on the side. “This your first tattoo?”
She slipped her purse from her shoulder, dropping her head to sift through the contents. “It is,” she said, placing a gold wallet on the bar. “I’m turning over a new leaf. Doing something new with my life, and I figured that a butterfly is—”
“Metaphorical?”
Her stunning blue eyes leapt to his face. “Yes!” she exclaimed, either ignoring his dry tone or oblivious to it. “That’s it exactly. I mean, I know I could have gone with something a little more original, but—” She crooked her finger at him, and he fell for it, leaning in close as she mock-whispered, “I’m deathly afraid of needles. Silly, isn’t it?”
The cop side of his brain wanted to say that her aversion to needles was a good thing. In the fourteen years that he’d been on the force, he’d witnessed way too many drug overdoses to count.
But this woman . . . Gage inched his gaze down to those plum-colored lips of hers. Yeah, women like her weren’t in that world; they didn’t exist in the underbelly of his beloved hometown. And so he only smirked and said, “You’ve still got time to rethink this. Once we start, trust me when I say you’ll only look ridiculous if we stop midway through.”
She cocked her head to the side, surveying him with a single look. “Good thing I’m getting it done on my butt, then, right? No one will know if I cry mercy. No one but me and . . . you.”
Gage laughed, loudly. “Want me to offer you a strip of leather to bite down on?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Does that cost extra?”
“I’ll make it free just for you.” He tapped his hip, drawing her gaze down to his worn Levi’s. “Leather belt meet to your satisfaction, princess?”
Her reaction surprised him.
Instead of blushing like any of the other women who waltzed into Inked, this one planted her hands on the marble, bit her bottom lip, and saucily whispered, “Where do I sign up?”
Heat raced up his spine, and a strangled laugh stuck in his throat.
Damn, but he liked her. Liked her spunk and the teasing glint that appeared in the form of twin dimples in her cheeks. Gorgeous and witty—if Gage had a type, and usually he didn’t, this woman would be it.
He wondered how long she was in town for. She had West Coast written all over her, though her accent didn’t have a hint of California sunshine. “Let me grab your license,” he said, for once thankful that records were a necessity.
Her long lashes fluttered down as she fished around in her wallet, pulling out both her I.D. and a black Amex credit card. Gage checked back a low whistle. Either this woman was a high-roller or she was related to someone with a lot of money.
Subtly he checked out her ring finger. Empty.
Good news.
“Here you go.” She gave him another bright smile and slid the I.D. across the marble with the tip of her manicured finger. “Do you by any chance have a restroom I can use?” She lifted her purse and gave it a little shake. “I brought a pair of shorts to change into, considering the placement of the tattoo.”
She winked playfully.
Gage’s cock hardened.
Jesus, five minutes in her company and he was panting after her like a teenager.
“Yeah.” He jerked his chin toward the hallway off to the right. “First door on your left. Can’t miss it—there’s a mural of a Roman bath on it.”
“Great!”
Her heels tip-tapped against the floor, and just before she would have left his sight, she twisted around, hand on the wall, one foot rubbing the back of the other enticingly. “You can leave the belt on the bar for me,” she said, a slow smile tugging at her lush lips, and then she disappeared.
Gage squeezed his eyes shut and dropped his head.
Either he was that desperate for the touch of a woman or his next client was about to make him come in his pants.
Not once in eight years since Owen had opened Inked on Bourbon had Gage ever wanted to take a patron home. He lived by certain codes of morality, and fucking someone who had just paid him, however indirectly, was on his list of things not to do.
Not today.
Today, he was going to find a way to get that woman’s number and take her out for dinner. After that, he planned to feast on her body. Every single inch of her.
The sound of shouting caught his attention, and he opened his eyes. A second line paraded down the street, plastic go-cups in hand, Mardi Gras beads strung around their necks, and a marching band trailing behind the partiers. A motorcycle cop pulled up the rear, helmet on and leather jacket zipped up to the neck despite the warm September weather.
Gage caught the man’s finger-salute and returned it with a brief wave—most of the NOPD knew he worked at Inked when he wasn’t on a tour of duty, and they often came in to get tatted themselves.
He glanced down, eager to discover the woman’s identity.
Surprise hit him when he saw “Louisiana” stamped across the top. Her photo was demure—no plum lipstick, that’s for sure. He saved her name for last. Height: five-five. Weight: one-thirty-five. Eyes: blue. Hair: brown.
He skimmed up, and stopped dead.
Elizabeth Danvers.
Lizzie Danvers.
Oh, fuck no.
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Buy or read Tempt Me With Forever via Kindle Unlimited now!
Acknowledgments
I can’t say thank you enough to everyone who helped make Hold Me Today what it is today. Of all my books, this one challenged me the most—and forced me to lean on my friends and team more than ever before!
Najla—you rock, girl! Thank you for not even batting an eye when I came (crawling) to you and asked that we recover the entir
e series before it had even released. I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but you’re stuck with me for life!
Kathy—Nick & Mina (and me) owe you everything. Thank you for pushing me to give this couple the HEA they truly deserved. Without you, Hold Me Today would not be the poignant romance I always envisioned it to be.
Brenda—I don’t know what I would do without your friendship! Thank you—more than anything—for being my backbone when the doubts creep up.
Viper—no book could make it to editing without your eyes! I’m so glad to have met you, and I know that the latter half of this book thanks you greatly for your feedback!
Ratula—girl, I love you more than anything. Thank you for reading and offering feedback as I wrote my heart out. Let’s put it this way: Nick owes you his entire life, LOL.
Dawn and Tandy—you are the reason this book sparkles as it should!
Dani—I can’t express how grateful I am that you took a chance on me. Thank you for believing in my work, and for giving me invaluable guidance! Nick and Mina thank you too =)
To my besties/family/awesome-sauce friends Tina, Sam, Terra, Jami, Amie, Jess, Joslyn, and to my girls in 30 Days to 60k and Indie AF, this author journey would be so much less exciting without you. Also, I’d probably never get anything done without you pushing me along.
To my VIPers and to all my friends in BBA, just know that every one of you has changed my life for the better. Also, without you, there’s a good chance that the Put A Ring On It series would still be languishing away on my laptop! Thank you for wanting Owen’s story, and thank you for still loving me when I decided to give you two other heroes before we get to Owen, LOL.
To my family, Greek and Portuguese, I adore each and everyone of you. And if you happen to see your name while reading this book, I plead the fifth in advance!
And, lastly, to you Dear Reader, for picking up this book and giving me a chance. Thank you for allowing me the chance to live my dream—my very own permanent longing—as a storyteller.
Much love,
Maria
Also by Maria Luis
Nola Heart
Say You’ll Be Mine
Take A Chance On Me
Dare You To Love Me
Tempt Me With Forever
Blades Hockey
Power Play
Sin Bin
Hat Trick
Body Check
Blood Duet
Sworn
Defied
Put A Ring On It
Hold Me Today
Freebies (available at www.marialuis.org)
Breathless (a Love Serial, #1)
Undeniable (a Love Serial, #2)
The First Fix
About the Author
Maria Luis is the author of sexy contemporary romances.
Historian by day and romance novelist by night, Maria lives in New Orleans, and loves bringing the city's cultural flair into her books. When Maria isn't frantically typing with coffee in hand, she can be found binging on reality TV, going on adventures with her other half and two pups, or plotting her next flirty romance.
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