... the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is samstillstanding
Can you please contact melaniemilburne (at) gmail (dot) com to receive your copy of At No Man's Command.
And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Michelle Douglas...
When Officer Mitchell King - the only guy Tash Buckley's ever loved - claims she needs his protective custody, Tash is more concerned by the effect her delicious ex still has on her than the danger she might be in! Confined to his cabin, resisting her protector might prove to be too difficult
Scene set-up: Tash and Mitch have a history…a rather fraught one, but stuck at Mitch's seaside cabin they've formed a truce. On a hike through the gorgeous native coastal forest, Tash is forced to concede that Mitch has a redeeming feature or two...
‘You’ve made me forget the bad stuff,’ Tash said.
‘That was the plan.’
She moved closer and she suddenly felt more alive than she ever had before. ‘I don’t think I will ever be able to thank you properly for that.’ She lifted her hands, flattened them against his chest. She couldn’t mistake the way his breath hitched or the way his heart pounded against her palm.
‘Tash.’
Her name growled from him and she had a feeling he’d meant it as a warning, but it came out as a caress. When she stood on tiptoe to touch her lips to his, his hands shot to her shoulders as if to put her away from him, but his lips opened to hers and their tongues danced. He tasted of the sea and summer and shady glades and she forgot who was kissing who as their bodies crashed together, needing the contact and seeking more.
Eventually he held her away from him, breathing hard as if he’d been sprinting. ‘That’s not the way to thank me, Tash.’
She gripped his forearms to try and find her balance. ‘It stopped being a thank you after the first kiss.’
‘You said this was a bad idea.’
‘When?’
‘This afternoon you said friendship was all that was on offer. This morning you backed away from a kiss.’
The words emerged through gritted teeth and she could see how tightly he held himself in check. She sympathised. She hadn’t wanted him with this kind of physical ferocity eight years ago. She could see now how careful he’d been with her back then. If he’d chosen to, he could’ve created this kind of heat in her. She wouldn’t have been ready for it. She wouldn’t have known how to deal with it. But there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that she’d have succumbed to it.
He hadn’t let that happen then, but she was more than ready for it to happen now. ‘I must’ve had rocks in my head.’ Her fingers curled into the material of his shirt. ‘Besides, I understand it’s a woman’s prerogative to change her mind.’
He groaned. ‘I’m supposed to be guarding you, protecting you.’
‘Correction—you’re making sure I’m out of harm’s way. You said the danger wouldn’t follow us here.’
‘It won’t, but—’
‘Then the idea that you need to be hyper-vigilant is nonsense and you know it.’
He didn’t say anything.
‘You know there is something that could make my holiday truly unforgettable.’
‘What’s that?’
‘A holiday fling.’
He swore. It came out sounding like an endearment.
‘I know most people consider me a tough customer with attitude to burn. That translates in some circles as me being considered something of a…bad girl.’
His eyes widened. His nostrils flared.
‘The fact of the matter is the opposite is true.’ The very opposite, in fact, but she had no intention of sharing that.
His body was beautiful and utterly beguiling and everything inside her arched towards it, aching to explore it.
His eyes gleamed in the light of the rising moon. ‘Are you telling me, Tash, that you want to do something wild and reckless?’
She smiled back at him. ‘I’m glad to see you’ve finally got with the programme, Officer King.’
If you had to go into protective custody would you choose a beachside cabin like Tash gets, a remote mountain retreat, a dilapidated vineyard nestled in rolling hills, or an outback cattle station? Or maybe you'd choose something altogether different?
Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced and a smooch from Rachel Bailey's The Summer of Jake will be posted!
Smooch Graphic by WebWeaver
At this stage in my life, I don't need a hot beach or being in the outback - especially when my hot flashes act up every half hour or so. That would limit me to cooler temperatures when a hot flash might be welcome (well ... that's doubtful, but here's hoping). A mountain retreat sounds lovely, as long as it isn't in the wintertime (re the added danger) - although, if I were the heroine in a story, that would be a lovely element to add to the storyline. Oh heck. If I were a heroine, that means I would be much younger, so I could even have a high-risk pregnancy thrown into the equation too! The possibilities are endless!
ReplyDeleteSeriously, though, I never feel like the location is the most important thing in the story. To me, it is the way the author writes the words that compels me to turn the pages quickly. The location can add to it, mind you, but it isn't the be all to end all. The hero and heroine's development of love is.
LOL, Laney! If you were a heroine we'd definitely dispense with those hot flashes…and if you want a high-risk pregnancy then that can be arranged. ;-) That said, the mountain retreat does sound kinda nice, doesn't it? I agree, though. Setting isn't the most important element in a romance, but it can add an interesting dimension to the story…and I'm all for adding interesting dimensions. :-)
DeleteA beach hut would be very nice. Great smooth. Michelle. Can't wait to read your book.
ReplyDeleteI definitely have a soft spot for a beach hut, Tammy. I guess that's kinda obvious, huh?
DeleteHope you enjoy the book!
Hi Michelle
ReplyDeleteI loved this story and that smooch is very warming :-) I would be happy at any location but I did love that beach hut just the place.
Congrats on the release I highly recommend this story you won't want to put it down once you start it
Have fun
Helen
Aw, Helen, thanks for the kind words. Can't tell you how chuffed I am that you enjoyed the story. I have to say that in this current winter weather, being stretched out on a warm beach sounds like heave, doesn't it? :-)
DeleteUh oh, another title to add to my already way too long to-read list.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure that I can decide between a beachside cabin or a remote mountain retreat. Both have their redeeming features, but I'm sure that both would be capable of driving me nuts after a while too.
LOL, Lyn. If you're anything like me you could become buried beneath your to-read pile.
DeleteThe beach cabin and the mountain retreat both sing to me too…but I think the isolation would have me climbing the walls after a week or two. Unless I took that to-read pile with me. It'd keep me occupied for months! ;-)
Michelle, Blogger just ate my response but I'll repeat - that's one corker of a scene! I can't wait to get this book in my hands. As for where to retreat? I'd go wherever Officer King wanted to take me of course. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteBlogger's been having a bad day, Annie -- it's been eating my comments too. Sigh. But… So glad you enjoyed the snippet! And, yeah, it wouldn't take Officer Mitchell King too long to talk me into just about anything either. ;-)
DeleteLoved the scene thank you.
ReplyDeleteI'd choose the beach cabin every time. Just hearing the ocean would calm me.
Glad you liked it, Mary! Ah, the sound of the sea. I think it's one of my favourite sounds in the world. :-) I have to admit that the beach cabin is calling to me. :-)
DeleteGreat smooch, Michelle. I hear the waves every night going to sleep so I'd go for a mountain retreat.
ReplyDeleteI'm very jealous, Jen, you do know that, right? ;-) Still, a mountain retreat does sound pretty romantic. :-)
DeleteFabbo scene, Michelle. I do love a woman who knows what she wants. :-)
ReplyDeleteSince we're talking fantasy, I'm going to assume I'll be stranded with someone like the delectable Officer King and so I'd choose a snowbound cabin where there's a need to share body heat. To keep alive, y'know. :-)
LOL, Bron. Yeah, Tash is a woman who isn't backward about coming forward, so to speak. ;-)
DeleteOfficer King…snowbound cabin…naked? Oh, yeah! Nice fantasy. :-)
Nice kiss, Michelle. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'd pick the mountain retreat. I sunburn so easily by the water and that is not conducive to romance. LOL
Marcy Shuler
Oh, hugs on the sunburn, Marcy! I was a little carrot top as a kid so I can definitely sympathise. As a writer, I can write out those bits of unpleasantness. Mind you, there was still a lot of slathering of sunscreen, pulling on of shirts and donning sun hats. Old habits, I'm afraid. ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt seems the mountain retreat is rather popular. If I'm honest, today I'd like to be stranded at an abandoned vineyard…with a nicely stocked wine cellar. And some crusty french bread. And cheese. Is it time for lunch yet? ;-)
Ooooooh. I must read this book! Tash and Officer King are adorable together. :)
ReplyDeleteI'd choose either a beach cabin or a mountain retreat.
LOL, Rach. There's a whole lot of prickly before the adorable…but then it does get rather, ahem, steamily adorable. ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt seems beach cabins and mountain retreats are the order of the day!
I would love the beach, but maybe the vineyard would be safer.
ReplyDeleteWell now, Sharlene, I guess that depends on what you mean by safer. ;-) A nicely stocked wine cellar, a picnic blanket amidst the vines, a warm breeze teasing the air…and a determined man with a glint in his eye. Mmm, sounds kinda nice, doesn't it?
DeleteThanks so much for the win last Sunday! I am thrilled!
ReplyDeleteIf I had to go into protective custody, I'd be in a library because then I could be entertained...and bad guys don't go to the library, right? :)
Oh, yes, samstillreading! A library would be PERFECT!!! ;-)
Delete