Mid-Week Tease — He’s a Gambling Man

Hi all, after a bit of a hiatus, I’m back with a teaser from my recent release Boss Overboard.

In this scene, our hero, Paul, is being very persistent in his attempts to lure the heroine, Lydia, into more than just a working relationship. Lydia has been stubbornly resisting, so Paul, who is a gambling man, is trying a new tack.

Paul shifted his body closer, not quite touching but almost. A thud on the floor told him she dropped her bag. It wasn’t enough to warn him she would reach out to his waist, eliciting a shiver when she made contact with his bare skin. Her soft fingers curled around his side abdominal muscles, her thumb tracing the vertical groove between muscle and hipbone.

“And when I finally make my way to this spot right behind your other ear, I’ll tell you how much you’re affecting me, because I’m probably going to be hard as a diamond by then. You’ll be ready for me, too, only we aren’t nearly there yet, not by a mile. Maybe I’ll hint at what I’m going to do to you, how I’m going to soon have you begging me to take you, to make love to you. You’ll reach down and touch me, to feel for yourself the truth of what I tell you. Want to know what you’ll say?”

“No” she said breathlessly, the little liar.

“You won’t say anything but ‘mais oui’. Just two tiny syllables from your lips, with your voice, but in those two words, you’ll give yourself to me, entrust all your pleasure, all the secrets of your body, soul and mind to me.” He shifted closer, aligning his lips to hers but not touching. The only part of his body in contact with hers was his chest against her breasts, barely grazing. “Your body, however, will say more than ‘yes’.”

Lydia’s body seemed to be agreeing because he could feel her nipples straining against the fabric of her bikini top, against him, the only points of contact. She swayed forward and pressed her lips to his, and placed her other hand on the flat of his belly. She could deny she wanted him all she liked, but the physical evidence gave her away.

With the last shreds of his willpower, he played his riskiest card. Abruptly, he broke contact and stepped back. “I’ll see you at eight.” He took but a brief second to memorize the expression on her face—yearning, shock, and he hoped, disappointment—before turning his back to return to his suite, praying he’d not bet unwisely.

If you liked that and think contemporary cruise ship romance might be your thing, I hope you’ll consider picking up a copy of Boss Overboard, available at most booksellers.