Sunday Smooch

Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!


Today we have a smooch from Million-Dollar Amnesia Scandal by Rachel Bailey, but first ...

the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is -- Clare Scott!


Congratulations, Clare! Can you please contact Natalie Anderson at

natalie (at) natalie-anderson (dot) com

and she'll send you a copy of Walk On The Wild Side.

And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Million-Dollar Amnesia Scandal by Rachel Bailey...

Truth, Lies and Seduction...

An accident left April Fairchild with no memory, ownership of a multimilliondollar hotel and the nagging sense something wasn't quite right in her life. It also brought her intensely sexy businessman Seth Kentrell, whose late brother had left her the property. Seth believed her a gold digger - and how could April deny it, when she couldn't even remember her name? Now Seth was ready to play hardball to get the hotel back.

But April knew enough to refuse to sign over the property until her memory returned. And if that meant Seth needed to persuade her... well, that was something she could enjoy! At least until the whole truth came out...

[Set up: April Fairchild is a world famous jazz singer and pianist, but she can't remember any of it. Seth has just found and shown her footage of herself playing the piano which has brought back patchy memories of her music. He's taken her to a piano in the hotel's ballroom and for the first time since she lost her memory, April is sitting at a piano, playing.]

When she finished the piece, more music crowded into her mind and she set that free too. Long and smooth. Fun and energetic. Sad and haunting. Some, she simply played; others, she sang the words—whatever felt right. And it all felt right, felt satisfying in a place deep inside that she’d forgotten existed.

As she launched into an Ella Fitzgerald number, she looked up and saw Seth watching her, a burning heat in his eyes. He leaned back against the wall, hands deep in his trouser pockets, legs crossed at the ankles. The pose of a relaxed man. Yet he was far from peaceful. He radiated tension. She’d been vaguely aware that some hotel staff members had drifted in and formed a small crowd for her performance, but she only had eyes for Seth. For all that heat. She wanted it closer. All of it. 

She segued into Fever without thinking much about it and his navy blue eyes burned hotter.

As her fingers touched the final notes of the song and the sound faded, she paused. She and Seth hadn’t broken eye contact for endless minutes and the air crackled with their attraction. The staff burst into claps and cheers for the impromptu concert.

Seth cleared his throat. “Okay, everyone back to work.” The command had the staff moving quickly, but Seth didn’t move a muscle. Her heart hammered at her ribs as the staff shuffled out, some smiling their gratitude to her, one giving her a thumbs up. It seemed to take an eternity, and all the time, Seth’s gaze was locked on her.

The moment the last person left, Seth strode the distance to her, slamming the ballroom door closed on the way past. April watched his progress, hardly daring to breathe. When he reached her, without a word or any preliminaries, he drew her up from the stool and his mouth came down on hers with a fierceness she welcomed with everything inside her. She wound her arms behind his neck, securing him, demanding everything he had to give. 

His lips moved with urgency, his tongue claiming her, wanting her. Had she ever been desired this much? She couldn’t imagine it was possible. The body heat emanating from him soaked through her clothes, down into her bones. Her skin tingled at every point that his hands, mouth or body touched. 

All she could think about was the feel of his broad back beneath her fingers, the curves of his hard muscles, wanting more, more. The clean forest scent of him blended with something darkly alluring, and filled her head. His fingers stabbed through her hair and massaged her skull, and in this moment she belonged to him, wholly and completely.

His hands slid down to her waist and he effortlessly lifted her high, onto the baby grand. Leaning down to preserve contact with his lips, she opened her thighs, and at the same moment that he stepped forward, bunching her long, soft skirt up and pressing against the core of her. She moaned, helpless to do more than kiss and be kissed. 

His mouth moved to the side of her lips, to her cheek, and she took the opportunity to gulp in the air her lungs had been screaming for, but she locked her ankles behind him to make sure the break didn’t become permanent. 

“I can’t stand it,” he murmured next to her ear. “I want you so badly I can’t stand it.”

To be in the draw to win a signed copy of Million-Dollar Amnesia Scandal, leave a comment, and perhaps tell us what pieces of music you think April could have played here besides the ones she did. I.e., what song / music is the sexiest? :)


Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced -- and a smooch from Rebel With A Cause by Natalie Anderson will be posted!