Hard to Hold (17 page)

“Hey, look at me,” Colton said softly.

Maddie raised her head and found herself trapped in his black gaze.

“I think all of that’s a fine idea,” he said, “so long as it doesn’t exclude me.”

“Does that mean you’re still interested in me?” she asked, suddenly shy.

Colton chuckled. “Oh, yeah. In fact, I don’t think I’ll be letting you out of my sight anytime soon. I’m still on vacation, and I thought maybe once we get Jamie settled, you might consider spending the next week or so with me at my cabin.”

“I don’t know,” she hedged, pretending to consider. “I’m not much good at fishing.”

“I can show you everything you need to know,” he assured her with a grin, “but something tells me we won’t be doing much fishing.”

“I like the sound of that,” she replied. “In fact, I think you’ll need to give me a new Shoshone name, because my days of running are over.” She leaned forward to kiss him, taking care not to disturb his wound.

“I’m not fragile,” he growled, and wrapped an arm around her and pulled her more fully across his chest. “And I’ve been dying to kiss you since you came into this room. Tell me again.”

“Tell you what?” she asked, breathless.

“That you’re falling for me.”

Maddie laughed softly. “Past tense, Colton. I’ve fallen for you, hard, and there’s no way I’m letting you out of my sight.”

“Sounds like a pair of handcuffs might be in order,” he said. “Just out of curiosity, how attached are you to Elko? Have you ever considered coming out to California? I hear they’re in desperate need of some good accountants.”

Maddie stared at him. “You’re not kidding.”

“Nope. Your brother is at Caltech in Pasadena, which is just a couple of hours from where I live in San Diego. Wouldn’t you like to be closer to him?”

“I’d like to be closer to you,” she admitted.

“Then come and stay with me,” he urged softly. “See if you like the area, and then we can talk about living arrangements. I have a nice place near the water, but I’d understand if you want your own place. You’d have no trouble finding work. Like I said, there’s always a need for certified public accountants.”

“I’d like that,” she said, too overwhelmed to say more.

“Hey, you okay?”

“Yes,” she assured him, smiling.

“Then come closer,” he said, just before he drew her down and covered her mouth with his.

Maddie leaned into the kiss, happier than she could ever recall being. Jamie would recover. She wasn’t going to be arrested, nor lose her job. Her immediate financial worries were a thing of the past, and she had the means to help others who struggled with addiction issues. But most important, Colton was alive, and he wanted to be with her.

Neither of them noticed when the door opened and two nurses peeked in. The women sighed in delight at the sight of Maddie being passionately kissed by the handsome U.S. marshal, and then quietly closed the door.

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from A SEAL’S SALVATION by Tawny Weber.

We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Blaze story.

You like it hot!
Harlequin Blaze
stories sizzle with strong, heroines and irresistible heroes playing the game of modern love and lust. They’re fun, sexy and always steamy.

Enjoy four new stories from Harlequin Blaze every month!

Connect with us on
Harlequin.com
for info on our new releases, access to exclusive offers, free online reads and much more!

Other ways to keep in touch:

Harlequin.com/newsletters
Facebook.com/HarlequinBooks
Twitter.com/HarlequinBooks
HarlequinBlog.com

1

Ten Years Before

“G
ENNA
,
YOU
’
RE
CRAZY
.
You don’t have to do this.”

“Of course I do. You dared me.” Genna Reilly gave her best
friend a wide-eyed look. The one she used whenever she wanted to appear extra
sweet and innocent.

The sweet part was usually an act. The innocent part was pure
truth, though. But fingers crossed, tonight was going to change that.

“I didn’t dare you. Dina did. You could just take the truth
instead. C’mon, I’ll even ask a different question,” Macy said, her desperate
tone matching the intense worry in her eyes. She grabbed both of Genna’s hands,
hanging on tight as if her body weight could anchor her to this spot. Since
Genna was a lean, mean five-ten and Macy topped out at five-two, as anchors
went, the girl wasn’t very effective.

“That’s not how the game is played,” Genna said, carefully
extricating her hands, not wanting to hurt Macy but desperately wanting to be
gone already.

She’d had no idea tonight’s slumber party would turn wild. Oh,
sure, the potential was there. That’s why they always had sleepovers at Dina’s,
because her mom fell asleep by ten and didn’t do spot breathalyzer inspections
like Genna’s dad. It was easy to sneak out and do fun things. Like play truth or
dare.

She’d figured on a fun weekend with three of her best friends,
one of the last leading up to graduation. But she’d had no idea it would be this
fun.

She needed to do this. Now, while the anticipation was still
zinging through her system, making her feel brave enough to take on the world.
Or, in this case, to take down the sexiest bad boy of Bedford, California.

She wanted Brody Lane.

But he had practically made a career of ignoring her
existence.

Time to end that.

Class vice president, squad cheer captain and the daughter of
one of the most influential men in town, at seventeen Genna was no stranger to
attention. Her exotic looks, long silky black hair and sky-blue eyes ensured
that she got plenty of male attention, and not only in her high school classes.
Nope, even though they were three years her senior, her brother’s friends were
always staring and flirting with her, too.

But she wasn’t interested in any of them.

Not the boys in school.

Not the guys her brother ran with.

Not until he’d started hanging out with Brody last winter.

For the first time in her charmed life, Genna was smitten.
Hooked. Hot....

Over a guy who was deemed off-limits. Not only by her parents,
who were ridiculously overprotective. But by the town itself, all of whom
considered the Lanes just this side of the devil’s minions, and Brody as a
hell-raiser with an overdue ticket to prison. Heck, even her brother, Joe, had
told her not to be stupid when he’d caught her checking out Brody’s butt.

And Brody? He looked right through her as if she were made of
cellophane. It wasn’t as though she expected everyone in the world to adore her.
But the guy could drool a little when he saw her in shorts, couldn’t he? Or at
least stare when he showed up to give Joe a ride and found Genna in a bikini,
strategically washing her car.

But did he?

Noooo.

The guy acted as though she wasn’t even there.

Genna wasn’t the contrary sort. She’d never had to be. But no
matter who told her or how many times, she couldn’t get Brody Lane out of her
head.

So tonight, thanks to Dina’s dare, she was going to do
something about it.

“Genna,” Macy pleaded, as if she were peeking into her best
friend’s thoughts. “Don’t do this.”

“And be known as the girl who doesn’t meet her dares?” She’d
rather be known as an ax-murdering floozy who wore designer knockoffs and ugly
shoes.

“Maybe Macy’s right,” Sylvie said quietly, always ready to jump
in as the voice of reason. “This isn’t like daring you to stand up in Mrs.
Bellevue’s class and sing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ while shaking your tail
feathers. If your dad finds out, he’ll kill you.”

“He’ll kill us,” Macy intoned wisely, knowing full well that
Sheriff Reilly was just as likely to punish any possible accomplices as he was
the actual perpetrator.

“My dad’s not going to find out,” Genna said dismissively, the
negligent wave of her hand stirring a tiny breeze in the sultry night air. Her
father was too busy keeping the peace and freaking out over Joe’s latest
escapade to pay any attention to what his little angel did.

“I hear he’s wild. He likes kinky stuff.”

She assumed Dina was talking about Brody now and not her
dad.

“What kind of kinky stuff?” Twisting her carefully streaked
blond hair around one finger, Sylvie sounded somewhere between fascinated and
terrified.

Genna wasn’t between anything. She was smack-dab solid in
determination. And feeling hot, of course.

“I dunno. But I’ll bet Genna can tell us tomorrow.” When Dina’s
loud giggle earned her three glares, she slapped both hands over her mouth. But
she didn’t stop laughing.

It was just nerves over being on the rougher side of town
combined with a little too much hard lemonade. Or maybe she really thought it
was funny that Genna was going to put all her virginal skills to use and seduce
one of the baddest of the town’s bad boys.

“I don’t kiss and tell,” Genna decided. That sounded
mysterious, didn’t it? And kinda sexy. Besides, she figured any kissing she did
deserved to be savored. Which meant kept to herself, where the gossips and
tattletales couldn’t whisper it around.

“You mean you don’t kiss or do anything else,” Dina corrected,
rolling her big blue eyes.

“Dina,” Macy moaned, wringing her hands in a way that proved
Genna’s assertion that her friend took far too many drama classes. “Don’t
encourage her. She’ll do something crazy.”

“Oh, c’mon. It’s not like she’s really going to jump the guy,”
Dina retorted. As usual, she’d picked the scariest dare she could think of when
they were playing. She’d had no idea it was also her friend’s secret dream.
“This is Genna. She’s gonna go in there, because it’s a dare and she can’t
resist those. She’ll try to flirt, Luscious Lane will do his brick wall
impersonation and it’ll all be over.”

“The dare was to kiss Brody Lane,” Sylvie pointed out quietly,
casting a nervous glance toward the golden glow emanating from the garage light
twenty feet away. “Genna’s not going in there unless she’s gonna follow through.
You know that.”

Genna stood a little straighter, her chin a smidge higher at
that character evaluation. She liked being known as a girl who followed
through.

She looked toward the garage, the silhouette of a man working
on a motorcycle. Since Brody’s dad, Brian, was working behind the counter and
probably three-quarters to drunk at the bar next door, that meant it could only
be his son in there.

Time to put up or shut up.

“If I’m not back in ten minutes, head home,” she instructed,
fluffing her hair and slicking a coat of Racy Red on her lips, then tucking the
tube into the back pocket of her jeans. “I’ll call you in the morning.”

Before they could launch into warnings, cautions or any more
stupid arguments, Genna hurried off. Her sandals made slapping sounds all the
way to the garage like some kind of early-warning seduction device. She shot a
quick glance back at her nervously huddled friends, then figuring that warning
Brody wouldn’t serve her plans, she slipped off her shoes.

Barefoot, she tiptoed up the last few feet of sidewalk and
carefully peeked around the open doorway.

And there he was. Brody Lane, in all his bare-chested glory.
Black hair, as stick-straight as her own, fell across his eyes as he bent over
the Harley. Facing away from her, she had the perfect view of his denim-clad
butt. And oh, what a butt it was. She wanted to touch it. She wanted to run her
hands down the hard planes of his back, glowing gold in the poor garage
lighting. Then she wanted to curl her fingers over those biceps. Rock-hard arms
were so sexy in a guy, she decided then and there.

Genna fanned herself. Because, oh, baby, he was sizzling.

She took a deep breath, hoping it did intriguing things to her
form. When a girl wasn’t blessed with a whole lot on top, she learned these
little tricks.

Then she stepped through the doorway.

She knew it was impossible given the distance, but she swore
she heard a chorus of gasps from her friends. Not looking back, she stepped over
the threshold, leaning her shoulder against the door frame; she rested one hand
on her hip in a seductive pose she’d seen in a magazine.

And waited.

Nothing.

Genna rolled her eyes. Even when he didn’t know she was there,
he ignored her. This definitely had to change.

“Hey, Brody,” she called out, relieved when her voice only
shook a little. “How’re you doing?”

His body went still; his head turned. His eyes, golden-brown
like a cat’s, narrowed.

Slowly, like a dream, he straightened away from the bike, the
light glinting off that sleek golden skin. So, so much skin. Her gaze traveled
from the broad stretch of his shoulders down his tapered waist to his jeans,
slung low and loose on his hips.

Her mouth went dry. Oh, wow.

“Genna?” He cast a glance behind her, then back with an arched
brow. “Joe isn’t here.”

She knew that. After the third screaming match with their
father that week, her brother had torn off on his motorcycle before dinner,
heading for the highway. To see one of his girls, Genna figured. Leaving the way
clear for
her
to pay a visit to his best friend.

“I’m not here to see Joe.”

Not the answer he’d been expecting, if his frown was anything
to go by.

“Then what’s up?” he asked, grabbing a rag and sliding the
wrench through it before placing the tool in its spot in the big red toolbox.
The area around him was as an oasis of tidy organization compared with the chaos
of the rest of the garage. His space versus his dad’s, Genna figured.

At her continued silence, he took a step closer, then stopped.
She almost pouted. It was as if he’d heard a signal warning that she was there
for something naughty.

“You have a problem with your BMW?” Frowning now, he gave her a
quick once-over. Not in a sexy way, more as though he was worried she was
hurt.

Genna’s heart sighed. Wasn’t he sweet?

“Nothing’s wrong,” she said, having to clear her throat after
pushing the words through a mouth as dry as the Mojave. “So how’re you doing? Is
something wrong with your bike?”

It was all she could do not to wince at her own inanity.
Seriously, Genna? That’s the best you can come up
with?
She gave herself a mental slap upside the head as if it’d knock
her back to normal. Normal Genna had no problem talking. And she’d spent the
last three months practicing her flirting skills for an opportunity like
this.

One where it was just her and Brody. Alone. Together.

Time to put all that practice to good use.

“You came to ask about my bike?”

“I came to visit with you,” she corrected, taking another one
of those deep breaths. His gaze didn’t drop to her chest, though, so she let it
out. No point hyperventilating. It wasn’t going to make her breasts any
bigger.

“Why?”

“Why not? You’re a friend of my brother’s. You’re over at our
place all the time.” An exaggeration, since he’d been over maybe three times in
the last year. Sheriff Reilly didn’t care for troublemakers on his property. But
that was beside the point. “You never visit with me, though. I figure it’s
because Joe’s such an attention hog. My mom says he takes the title ‘son’ in the
wrong way, figuring the whole universe revolves around him.”

She grinned, waiting for him to join her. When he just stared,
those gold eyes intent and cautious, she dimmed the smile a little. Obviously
friendliness wasn’t something he was overly familiar with. No point scaring
him.

“And tonight I was out and about, and saw a light on.” She
gestured to the bulb swinging overhead with its halo of moths. “Since Joe’s not
around, I figured why not stop by and say hi.”

“If Joe were here, you wouldn’t have bothered?” He looked
around, then spying the portable phone, grabbed it. To call her brother?

Genna’s lips twitched. Wasn’t he the gentleman? That’s what was
so fascinating about him, though. He didn’t play the games boys her age did.
From what she could tell, he didn’t play games at all.

“Do you ever smile?” She wanted to see those lips turn upward
and his gaze light up almost as much as she wanted to feel his mouth on hers and
his eyes filled with desire.

He didn’t respond. Just tucked his phone into his back pocket,
crossed his arms over that sexy chest and stared.

“You gonna tell me why you’re here? You lose a bet or
something?”

Won a dare. But he didn’t need to know that.

“I’ll tell you as soon as you smile,” she teased, stepping
farther into the garage. She was hit with the scent of hot concrete, metal and
oil she associated with car repair, and something else. Something earthy and
appealing.

Soap. And man. Her belly quivered and her thighs trembled.

“Genna.”

The sound of her name on his lips sent shivers through her,
eliminating every niggling doubt or cautionary concern.

Leaving only excitement and desire.

“Actually, I’m here to seduce you,” she blurted out. As if her
words were gasoline on a fire, the already sultry air flared even hotter.

Good.

She was ready to get hot and wild.

* * *

S
HIT
.

Brody Lane had been in trouble plenty of times in his life. So
many, it’d be easier to count the times he hadn’t been in trouble.