Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!
Today we have a smooch from Amy Andrews but first ..... the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is Gill Bower!
Gill, can you please contact Michelle at michelle (at) michelle-douglas (dot) com to receive your prize!
And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Nothing But Trouble.
Scene set-up
Smooch Graphic by WebWeaver
Today we have a smooch from Amy Andrews but first ..... the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is Gill Bower!
Gill, can you please contact Michelle at michelle (at) michelle-douglas (dot) com to receive your prize!
And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Nothing But Trouble.
For five years, Cecilia Morgan’s
entire existence has revolved around playing personal assistant to
self-centered former NFL quarterback Wade Carter. But just when she
finally gives her notice, his father’s health fails, and Wade whisks her
back to his hometown. CC will stay for his dad—for now—even if that
means ignoring how sexy her boss is starting to look in his Wranglers.
To say CC’s notice is a bombshell is an insult to bombs. Wade can’t imagine his life without his “left tackle.” She’s the only person who can tell him “no” and strangely, it’s his favorite quality. He’ll do anything to keep her from leaving, even if it means playing dirty and dragging her back to Credence, Colorado, with him.
But now they’re living under the same roof, getting involved in small-town politics, and bickering like an old married couple. Suddenly, five years of fighting is starting to feel a whole lot like foreplay. What’s a quarterback to do when he realizes he might be falling for his “left tackle”? Throw a Hail Mary she’ll never see coming, of course.
To say CC’s notice is a bombshell is an insult to bombs. Wade can’t imagine his life without his “left tackle.” She’s the only person who can tell him “no” and strangely, it’s his favorite quality. He’ll do anything to keep her from leaving, even if it means playing dirty and dragging her back to Credence, Colorado, with him.
But now they’re living under the same roof, getting involved in small-town politics, and bickering like an old married couple. Suddenly, five years of fighting is starting to feel a whole lot like foreplay. What’s a quarterback to do when he realizes he might be falling for his “left tackle”? Throw a Hail Mary she’ll never see coming, of course.
Scene set-up
CC is walking home from a Credence street party after dancing with Wade and feeling stuff she should not be feeling especially after that very inconvenient sex dream she had about him! Wade catches up with her, scaring her half to death right into a hedge. Recovering from her ignomoy, he walks her home. Then on the front porch a spider happens and thats when things really get interesting!
Just like in her dream.
Okay so, I'm a huge arachnophobe! Are you spiders yes or spiders no? Let me know in the comments and you'll go into the draw to win a digtial copy of Nothing But Trouble!
Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced and a new smooch will be posted!
“Listen,”
he said, as she coaxed the old lock which needed a bit of a jiggle and a
certain tongue position before it would admit anyone. “Thanks for helping my
mom with this whole thing.”
The lock
gave and the door opened but CC wasn’t paying it any attention as she quirked
an eyebrow at Wade. “I
thought you were annoyed that I was spending all that time on your - let’s see
if I can get this right - mother’s crazy ass scheme to pimp out strange women
to the bachelors of Credence.”
He chuckled,
unperturbed by having his words thrown back at him. “I may have been
exaggerating for dramatic effect.”
CC’s
eyebrow kicked up. “Ya think?”
“I was
wrong.”
CC shook
her head. Wade’s ability to apologize had always been his redeeming grace. He
was man enough to own his mistakes.
“Who
knows...” He shrugged. “It might just work.”
“Could I
have that in writing?” she asked sweetly.
He
grinned down at her, the deep grooves bracketing his mouth adding an extra
layer of sexy and CC’s breath hitched. Just as suddenly, though, his smile
faded and his gaze grew serious as it trekked slowly north and zeroed in on her
bangs.
“CC...”
He put up a hand in a stopping motion. “Stay. Very. Still.”
CC
froze. “What? Why?” Adrenaline surged into her system as Wade’s hand slowly moved
towards her hair. Keeping her head still she looked up trying to see what he
was seeing even though part of her did
not want to know.
“Wade,” she hissed. “What?”
“I think
you collected a spider when you were parlaying with that hedge.”A wild surge
of fear cramped through her diaphragm. Spider.
Jesus, she hated spiders. “Don’t
move.”
Despite
wanting to jump up and down, shake her head and brush wildly at her hair like a
mad woman, screaming, “Get it off, get if
off,” she doubted she was capable of moving.
She
turned her eyeballs upwards again suddenly seeing in her peripheral vision, what
Wade was seeing. The creep of skinny legs traversing her bangs like the spider
was already setting up house.
“Oh god,
get it off!”
He
chuckled as he stepped closer, his fingers at face level and descending slowly.
Heat poured off his body but CC was oblivious to everything but the frantic
beat of her pulse rushing like a waterfall through her ears.
“Is it
big?”
“Nah.
It’s only a baby. It’s quite cute actually.”
Cute? She glared at him. Or as much as
she could with her head straight and her eyes practically rolled back in their
sockets trying to monitor the progress of her unwanted arachnid visitor.
CC
clamped her teeth together. “Get. It. Off. Me.”
He
chuckled. “Yeah, yeah.”
He slid
a hand onto her nape. Probably to stop her from taking matters into her own
hands and doing the wild, hand-flapping, spider jig which every primal instinct
she owned was urging her to do.
CC shut
her eyes tight as he reached for the uninvited creature with his other hand, not
wanting to watch as a live spider was plucked from her hair. The thought of
having to touch it herself gave her the heebie jeebies and she was grateful
Wade was volunteering.
Even if
it was his fault she’d ended up in the damn hedge.
She felt
a light brush against her forehead and squeezed her eyes even tighter, tensing
everything so tight she doubted she’d have been able to squeeze a credit card
between her butt cheeks. “Is it
gone?”
Another
chuckle, the warm fan of his breath on her face. “It’s gone.”
CC
slowly opened her eyes and unclenched, Wade coming into hazy focus, looking at
her with amusement sparking in his gaze.
“I
didn’t know you were an arachnophobe.”
She’d
already told him tonight he didn’t know everything about her, she wasn’t going
there again. Besides, his closeness, his intense gaze, the way his thumb was
stoking at her nape was more than enough to deal with at the moment.
Her
heart was beating entirely differently now. He was so big. She was so used to
seeing him, to being around him, she sometimes forgot how big he was. Hard to
ignore the span of his chest from this close, though.
She
should be moving away. She knew that. In fact, somewhere her wiser angels were
telling her just that - screaming it at her, actually. But his stubble and the
sexy indents around his mouth and the softness of his lips were dangerously
fascinating.
Their
gazes meshed for a beat or two and she couldn’t look away as his dropped, drifting
to her mouth. As if he was going to kiss her. The stroking of his thumb halted
and they just stared at each other. They stayed so still for so long, the
sensor light went out, plunging them into darkness again. CC’s breath grew thick
as the night surrounded them, her body throbbing with awareness and need.
“Cecilia,”
he whispered.
Just like in her dream.
And that
was enough. In a blinding flash CC threw out caution and almost six years of
professional boundaries, rose on her tip toes and kissed him.
He met
her half way, their lips clashing in a frantic mash, opening wide, tasting and
searching and demanding everything from the other. It was no tentative starter,
no teaser, no slow and steady. It was on fire from the first touch of mouth on
mouth and it was far sexier than anything he had done to her in her dream life.
He
tasted better, his body against hers felt better, he smelled better and he sounded better, groaning deep in his
throat. She felt that groan all the way to her toes and every hot spot in
between. His spider catching hand, slid onto her hip, hitching her closer as
the hand at her nape held her fast.
The
movement must have tripped the sensor because the portico flooded with light again
and it was like bolt of lightning had hit them, repelling them for each other,
forcing them apart, forcing them two steps back.
CC
gasped in horror. Holding her hands up in front of her she contemplated what the
hell had just happened as her heart beat a wild tango in her chest. It was no
consolation that Wade looked just as stunned.
What had
she done? She’d kissed Wade. And he’d kissed her back. This was not good.
Not. Good.
Wade
recovered first, taking a step towards her. “CC –”
“No.”
She shook her head taking a step back her hands up higher now almost level with
her ears. Whatever he was going to say, she couldn’t deal with right now. Her
cheeks were flushed and she was hot all over.
Sweet baby Jesus! He was her boss! And she wanted
to die. “I’m so, so sorry...” CC desperately
tried to come up with some justification for her actions to follow her apology.
Like being in post-arachnid shock or temporary possession by the devil. But nothing
– not even the clear and present need for exorcism - justified crossing the line
she’d just crossed. The line that she
had drawn all those years ago.
“It’s
okay,” he said, his voice calm and placating, as if she was some kind of
incendiary device primed to go off at any second.
CC shook
her head vehemently. How could be so damn composed? How was kissing him ever okay? God...she just
wanted to hit the erase button.
Yes. That was it. The erase button.
Or the next best thing.
“Do you
think,” she asked, locking her gaze with his, “it might be possible to never speak of this again?”
If they
couldn’t erase it they could at least pretend it never happened, right?
“Sure.” He
nodded, his voice still placatory. “Whatever you need.”
What she
needed was a time machine but this would have to do. “Thank you.”
Then she
turned on her heel, shoulder checking the door open as she hurried inside, her
shaky legs carrying her up the stairs and into her bedroom where she burrowed under
the covers and curled into a ball.
Sweet
mother of pearl. What she done?
What. Had. She. Done?
Okay so, I'm a huge arachnophobe! Are you spiders yes or spiders no? Let me know in the comments and you'll go into the draw to win a digtial copy of Nothing But Trouble!
Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced and a new smooch will be posted!
Smooch Graphic by WebWeaver
