Gunnery Sergeant Jake Sanders made it through the war in Afghanistan, but he's struggling to survive the peace at home. Still scarred by his experiences overseas, Jake now spends most of his time working out and tending to his brother's bar and grill. He's not looking for a girlfriend and avoids intimate relationships . . . until he meets the bar's gorgeous new manager.
Ex-ballerina Sophie Agnés couldn't take her eyes off Jake the moment she saw him—he was, after all, sleeping half-naked in her new office when she arrived on her first day of work. The chemistry between them is immediate, and soon it's not clear who is seducing whom. But Sophie fears that something is keeping Jake from opening his heart to her. And a man with dark secrets may not be the right man for her after all.
Excerpt:
Jake leaned against the office door with a smirk and crossed his legs at the ankles. Fire built in her eyes at his obstructing her exit. He wondered what would send her into a blaze. “Yesterday when you were nursing me, I thought you were an angel.”“I was. If it was up to those guys out there, you would’ve had makeup on your face and your finger nails painted.”
She shifted. “I’d love to continue this conversation but I really need to leave, Jake.”
He laughed because she was so right on the truth. They would have done that and probably much more. “What about Trixie?” he asked her. A shy smile formed on her lips while an impatient hand pulled her purse strap tighter on her shoulder. Jake shook his head. “You knew there was no Trixie.”
“You deserved it.” She began to pace the room with jerky movements. “Your brother told you I was starting and now you’re trying to get me off the subject of my ex. Thanks, but I need to go. Move.”
He didn’t budge when she tried to get by him. Jake knew the need to get pent-up aggression out, so he let her shove him, smack his arms and hiss vulgar threats. “Do you know how to ask?”
“Move, damn it!”
She became increasingly more volatile with slaps and swears while Jake used his hands to protect himself. “Sophie,
I’m going to ask you nicely to stop.” When she kicked him in the shin, Jake controlled himself from pushing her to the floor. “I understand you’re upset and I don’t mind you taking some of that out on me, but that hurt.”
Sophie growled at him, “I wouldn’t have to hurt you if you’d just move.”
“You need to calm down--”
“I do not need to calm down. I need to leave.” She tried kicking him again but Jake dodged it.
“Wow, you’re feisty. I’m going to ask you again to stop or I’ll stop you.”
“Yeah, right. Move, damn it!” She pushed at him with both hands and before she could get any more physical, Jake stopped her. He cuffed her wrists above her head with one hand and pinned her back against the door. The move left only mere inches between their vibrating bodies.
“Sophie, do you need help getting the stuff? Or maybe someone to come along and make sure you don’t do anything stupid?” When her eyes narrowed at him, Jake repeated the questions.
“I can control my temper very well, and there is nothing heavy I need to get, now let go of me.”
Jake tilted his head to the side and examined her still body. Lust shot through his loins for the woman before him. In reflex, he moved a little closer. “You know most woman would be frightened by me doing this to them.”
“Don’t even think about it, Jake.”
The warning he saw in her eyes had him thinking twice about placing that hand on her ribcage and slowly moving it up to mold her breast. It had been so long since he’d felt the pull of a woman that the urge became almost uncontrollable. Almost. With little control left, Jake reminded himself that he really didn’t need further complications in his life. Especially, the female kind.
“Would you like me to go along and scare the crap out of him? I don’t even have to do anything physical.” He saw her processing the information so he added, “It would make up for yesterday. Plus, I won’t have to worry about getting a call that you need bail money. That would ruin my day.” Without thought, his eyes roamed her curvy body.
By the way she held herself he became certain she’d been a ballerina. Where she rested on her toes, they were pointed. Her body was stretched up farther then would be comfortable for someone without training and she held her head with an unmistakable eloquence.
“Okay,” she said with a husky tone. “Now will you please let me go?” When he did, she socked him in the gut with her right fist. Despite his toned abs, the air rushed out of Jake’s mouth.
“What the hell was that for?”
“Today and that flower comment. Also, don’t ever touch me like that again.”
The seriousness in her face was real and Jake found himself too shocked to say a word. Years of training in combat situations and this woman planted a right hook to his gut that he never saw coming.
“Okay, Jake. Let’s go.” She picked up her purse and sashayed out of the office. Jake stood where he was for a moment processing the fact that a woman just got the best of him. In disbelief he was struck dumb. Empty to all thought except, next time be more alert and thankful she’s not the enemy.
About the author:
Once Rebecca Rose picked up her first romance novel she knew her destiny was typed on those pages. She lives to find romance in ordinary life doing everyday things, by believing you just need to be conscious enough to look for it. While being slightly dyslexic has created some challenges for her, she feels compelled to write about the characters living in her head.
With multiple books out, she is a full-time writer with a nagging muse who even talks obsessively in the car. That is of course, when the voice can get a word in edgewise with her three children and husband of 17 years.
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