Текст книги "Playing With Fire"
Автор книги: Alison Bliss
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Текущая страница: 20 (всего у книги 20 страниц)
Epilogue
“You sure you don’t need any help?” Cowboy called out from the living room over the low rumblings of our family and friends.
“No, I’ve got it.”
I placed the leftover sheet cake into its box, but before closing it, I swiped one finger across the corner, scooping the white frosting, and popped it into my mouth. A low moan escaped my lips as I sucked the icing off. Delicious.
When I turned to grab a napkin, I realized I wasn’t alone. Cowboy stood in the doorway, his eyes focused on me and one brow raised, as if he caught me red-handed. “Very unladylike,” he reprimanded.
But his smirk told on him.
“And you loved it.”
“Damn straight,” he replied, then continued standing there with his eyes burning with uncontrolled intensity.
For a moment, all I could do was stare back. Even after a year of marriage, it amazed me how his watchfulness still affected me. Warmth crept up my neck, as if my body was a thermometer and heat from his pointed gaze caused my mercury to rise. Then his eyes flickered down to my chest and my swollen nipples hardened.
“W-what are you doing?”
“You mean, besides looking at my beautiful wife?”
I glanced down and caught sight of the bulge in his jeans. Just my luck. His wick was lit. “Yeah, right. We both know what that look of yours leads to.” I crossed my arms over my chest, hoping the disarming gesture would slow his roll. “Put away the weapon of massive proportions,” I told him, lowering my tone to a whisper. “We have guests.”
Cowboy groaned. “This is going to kill me, you know?”
I smiled. “You’ll live.”
He stepped into my space and cinched his arms around my waist. “You sure about that?” he asked, dusting his lips across mine and then nipping gently.
My ragged breath caught in my throat and my pulse raced. The force of attraction between us bonded us together in a way I couldn’t explain and it still blew me away. Cowboy’s high libido was definitely going to be problematic over the next—
“For the love of God, Cowboy!” Bobbie Jo exclaimed from the doorway, holding an empty plate. “You think you could give the poor woman a few weeks before you start trying to sex her up again? She just had a baby, for goodness sakes.”
Maybe Cowboy should have felt deeply ashamed for his behavior, but he just chuckled. “Can I help it if she tastes so sweet?”
The sugary aftertaste still coated my tongue. “Frosting,” I explained to her. “He was just helping me put away the leftover cake.”
“Well, I just came to tell you we’re leaving. I’m sure you’re exhausted and would like to get some rest.” Her eyes cut to Cowboy and narrowed slightly.
Cowboy raised both of his hands in the air and smiled innocently. “Hands off, I swear.”
I rolled my eyes at him and gave her a quick wink. “Don’t worry. I know how to handle this cowboy if he gets too frisky.”
We walked into the living room, where most of our friends and family had gathered quietly in a semicircle around Dan. He must’ve sensed us approach because he turned and grinned wide. “Sure is a hefty little guy, isn’t he?”
Seeing our newborn son sleeping in Dan’s arms made me smile. “He’s beautiful, isn’t he?” Then I cringed at my words. Crap. It slipped out.
Cowboy came up behind me, placed his lips near my ear, and whispered, “Who’s the fucking doofus who passed the baby to the blind man?”
I elbowed him into silence and motioned to the others standing around Dan. Every one of them were on guard, watching for any little mishap that could possibly occur. I had no doubt our son was perfectly safe and secure.
“He’s healthy and has a good, strong name,” Dan said. “That’s all that matters.”
Everyone smiled at that. When we’d announced we were naming our son Daniel, the old man automatically assumed we’d named our child after him. He had no clue we actually named him after a little boy named Danny who wanted to be a fireman and never got the chance to fulfill his dreams. Or that it was also my father’s middle name. None of us had the heart to correct him.
“Here ya go, little fella,” Dan said softly. “Go back to your mommy.” Then he handed our baby boy to Bobbie Jo.
We all bit our lips to keep from laughing, but no one said anything. Bobbie Jo shrugged and gently laid Daniel in a nearby bassinet, patting him lightly to get him back to sleep. Seconds later, he was out again.
“Thank you for throwing us a welcome home party,” I said, tearing up a little. “It was very sweet of you.”
“No problem,” Bobbie Jo said, offering me a hug. “Any woman who can convince Cowboy to give up his bachelor status deserves a hell of a lot more than a party.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Cowboy cut in. “Just wait ’til the right guy comes along and you find yourself in the same position.”
She smiled and gazed over at Austin playing on the floor with Lily. “Not going to happen,” she said. “There isn’t a man out there who can undo the damage Jeremy caused when it comes to my low opinion of men.”
“Hey!” Jake, Ox, Judd, and Cowboy said in unison.
“Sorry. You know what I mean.” Bobbie Jo laughed as she strolled over, lifted her son into her arms, and headed for the door. “Anna, if you need anything, let me know.”
Emily picked up Lily and carried her toward me. “Same goes for me, sweetie.” She gave me a quick hug, then strolled out the door.
Jake, Ox, and Judd shook hands with Cowboy, then each gave me a kiss on the cheek, congratulating us on our new addition. Then they all stepped out, as well. Dan was riding with Ox and Judd, yet he was the last to walk through the door, tapping his cane in front of him. We followed him only as far as the front door, but I was worried about him falling off the porch.
“Watch your step, Dan!”
Ah, damn. Cowboy stifled a laugh while I covered my face with my palm. I needed to stop saying things like that. But Dan just shook his head and continued down the porch stairs, not bothering to respond.
Jake pulled his black Silverado out onto the road, but stopped as Emily motored down the window and leaned out. “Oh, hey, Cowboy! I almost forgot today is May first,” she said, giggling. “So much for Bachelor of the Month. Guess who’s not getting any for the next six weeks?” She grinned as they drove away with the sound of Jake’s laughter echoing behind them.
Cowboy’s eyes narrowed. “Think Jake would care if I kicked out her two front teeth?”
“Cowboy!”
He flashed me a grin. “Oh, come on. You know I’m just kidding.”
“Still, you shouldn’t say things like that,” I said in a chastising tone and turned to walk inside. “It’s not nice.”
“Oh, like what bigmouth said was any nicer?” Cowboy stepped inside and kicked the door closed with his boot. “They’re never going to let me live this down. I’m going to be harassed daily by those assholes for the next six weeks. I should know. We did the same thing to Jake after Emily had Lily.”
I reached up behind my head and unclipped my hair, letting the red strands tumble around my shoulders, then removed the glasses from my face and set them on the counter. Smiling sweetly, I sauntered toward him, grasped him by the collar of his shirt, and pulled him close. “I’m not Emily. As I told you once before, I know how to use my mouth.”
He smirked. “Dear God, I love it when you talk dirty to me.”
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Acknowledgments
There’s always so many people to thank and never enough space to do it in. But I’ll try.
To my husband, Denny, and my boys, Matthew and Andrew, thank you for your encouragement, support, and for ordering pizza on the nights I’m working. To my mom, my dad, Annita, Becca, Amanda, April, Andrea, and the best mother-in-law I’ve ever had, Terry, thank you for being there when I needed someone to listen to my ramblings.
A huge thank you to my critique partner, Heather Boey, for convincing me that Anna was a perfect heroine in her own right. This story wouldn’t have seen the light of day had you not given me the confidence I needed to follow my heart.
Big hugs and kisses go out to my other amazing critique partners who gave me awesome notes, great advice, and all the smiles—Carol, Joy, Sam, Sonya, Rebecca and the two gals who make up Elizabeth Hayley. Also, big thanks to Samanthe Beck, who is a gem for giving me a fantastic cover quote and for not turning me away when I sent her one of those “out of the blue” emails.
Thank you to my adorable super-agent, Andrea Somberg for always being there for me and for listening to me ramble on the phone. It’s okay, I know I do it. Thank you to Robin Haseltine for your hard work and, most importantly, your friendship. I’m still jealous of this lake view you speak of. Huge thanks to Candy Havens for jumping in with both feet, helping to polish up this diamond in the rough, and making it sparkle. Also, thanks to my cover artist, Louisa Maggio, and anyone else at Entangled who helped bring this book to the published world.
A group hug goes out to my fantastic five PAs (Barbara Campbell, Dana Leah, Crystal Wegryznowicz, Cindy Yocum, and Tessa Walters) as well as the other awesome members of my Pure Bliss Street Team. Not only do you guys support my books, but you also promote positivity, laughter, and friendship within our group. I adore you all and want you to know there’s no one else I’d rather eat checkers with. Home of the romantically insane lives on!
A very special thanks to Stacey Z. Thornton for choosing Hunter Wells as the sheriff’s name in the character naming contest. Couldn’t have picked a better one myself.
Last but never least, thank you to all the bloggers, reviewers, and readers who have helped spread the word about my books! Much love to you all!
About the Author
As the youngest of five girls, Alison Bliss has never turned down a challenge…or been called by the right name. Her writing career may have started out as a dare by one of her sisters, but Alison hasn’t put her pen down since.
She grew up on a small island off the Texas Gulf Coast, where most of her childhood vacations consisted of camping or hunting trips to the deer lease. Although she’ll always be a Texan at heart, Alison currently resides in the Midwest with her Iowa farm-boy husband and their two sons. With so much testosterone in her home, it’s no wonder she writes “girl books.”
Alison is an animal lover, a closet video game enthusiast, and believes the best way to know if someone is your soul mate is by canoeing with them because if you both make it back alive, it’s obviously meant to be. She’s an avid romance reader who enjoys penning the type of books she loves to read most: fun, steamy love stories with heart, heat, laughter, and usually a cowboy or two. As she calls it, “Romance…with a sense of humor.”
To learn more about Alison Bliss, visit her website at http://authoralisonbliss.com, where you can sign up for her newsletter to keep up with her latest book news. You can also email her at [email protected] or connect with her on social media. She’d love to hear from you!
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