The last Triple Horn Brand book, A Long, Hot Summer, will release this coming Tuesday! If you haven’t already pre-ordered your copy, well, why the hell not?! 🙂
Take a peek at excerpt below from the second book in the series, In Too Deep. Gabe is back to check out an old flame, never expecting she’d still be free, still be beautiful, and that the attraction they’d shared would still be red hot! Too bad Lena doesn’t know who he really is, because that one little lie is gonna backfire…
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a free download of this book, or its prequel, Laying Down the Law!
Some things never change. And some things change everything.
Gabe Triplehorn can think of no better getaway from his heavy responsibilities at the ranch, than to go back to a time and place where he didn’t have a care in the world. When there was just a campground, a river and a girl.
When he gets to Red Hawk Landing, the campground and the river are still there. He just never expected the girl would still be there too. Only now she runs the place.
Lena Twohig can think of no better place to raise her young son than the family-owned campground that holds so many memories. Especially the romance with Gabe that lit up one long-ago summer like a wild electrical storm. Now he’s back, with a ranch-hardened body she knows she shouldn’t want so badly.
No amount of lies or the years that have passed can tame this tidal wave of passion.
Warning: Contains a flash flood of passion between a cowboy who knows how to pitch a tent and a woman who isn’t afraid to get a little dirty.
Gabe listened to the rustle of clothing being shed and her quick, excited breaths. When water splashed behind him, only then did he turn to acknowledge her presence. He didn’t betray any emotion over the fact she’d dumped propriety on its ass to join him—deliciously nude.
Only her breasts were visible, floating just beneath the surface of the water. The cream-colored globes were naturally full. The tips were tightened little buds. The areolas were a little larger than he remembered but still cotton-candy pink.
His cock hardened, pulsing as he imagined gently chewing on a stiff bud while her legs writhed around him.
She swam closer, but not so near he could sweep out a hand to bring her against him. She was ready to flirt but still held on to a little caution.
Gabe struck out for the first rocky ledge, and pulled himself up to sit while clear river water sluiced around his body. His cock was prominent despite the blurring stream. No way could she pretend not to be looking where she was.
Her gaze was caught, her pupils growing large as she stared at his erection.
He patted the rock beside him. “Why not join me?”
Her eyes widened, but she firmed her mouth and swam nearer.
He held out a hand, which she accepted after giving him a long, searching look. He pulled her up beside him to rest on the ledge. With her knees pulled up against her chest and her body curled, she hid most of her interesting bits. Her shyness amused and enchanted him.
That same combination of boldness and reticence had excited him as a youth. He’d wanted to make her blush with embarrassment one moment and with searing passion the next. In the end, she’d given him both.
“Tell me something,” he said softly. “Something about you.” He hoped she’d answer the questions abounding in his mind. Like why was she still here? Had she finished college? Or given up? Why was she still wearing that cheap promise ring he’d given her all those years ago?
She gave him a sideways glance. Her body still folded tightly, she wrapped her arms around her knees to hide herself.
Not that she looked anything but completely sexy. The long expanse of her back was golden and smooth. The sides of her breasts a creamy white.
She slicked back her wet hair then set her cheek against her knee as she stared back at him. “There’s not much to tell. I run this place in the summers for my grandfather.”
“And during the rest of the year?”
She lifted her shoulders. “I teach art in middle school.”
She’d wanted to study graphic design and work in a marketing firm. What the hell had happened to that dream?
“What about you?” she asked.
“I’m in cattle.”
Her eyelids dipped, and she glanced away. The tiny catch in her breath made him wonder if she was remembering a boy who’d been a rancher’s son.
“I have to ask you, because, well, it’d be a little embarrassing if you knew him…”
He let a smile curve his mouth. “Who?”
“His name was Gabriel Triplehorn. He was here years and years ago. Lived on a ranch too. Just wondered if you knew him. Your eyes kinda remind me of him.”
Gabe gave her an easy smile although inside his chest warmed. She hadn’t forgotten him. “Was he someone special?”
Her smile seemed a little brittle. “Like I said, it was years ago. We barely knew each other.”
“How well did you know each other?”
Her glance flashed, a hint of annoyance digging a line between her brows. “That’s hardly any of your business.”
“If I knew this Gabe, maybe it would be.”
She huffed a breath. “It’s not like you’d be stepping on any toes. It was a long time ago. Forget I even mentioned him.”
Gabe kept quiet, studying her face for a hint of what she was really thinking. Something about his appearance had sparked her memory, but by the tightness of her shoulders and the crimp of her soft lips, not every memory she had of him was rosy.
All his memories of her were fond ones. Had he done something, said something there at the end of that summer that had left a bitter taste in her mouth?
For the first time since he’d arrived, he wondered if he was doing the right thing. Playing this game. Perhaps he shouldn’t have given in to the temptation to extend the game after he’d discovered she wasn’t married. He didn’t understand what had inspired him to lie. Part of him had wanted to know whether the spark would still be there, without her memories of their previous entanglement swaying her. Part of him had wanted to protect himself. The moment he realized she wore his ring, something inside him had frozen for just a moment. He didn’t know how he felt about that. Likely, the ring held no meaning for her. But once, it had meant everything to him. He’d known when he left he’d likely never see her again, but he’d left his heart behind. No woman had ever moved him as much, and even though time had passed and dulled the emotions he’d felt back then, there was still a twinge of nostalgia plucking at him that scared him.
More than her beauty, more than her, he was afraid that he was ready to be in love again, and if she wasn’t the right person, he didn’t want to make a mistake.
Though why he was thinking this way left him confused. Perhaps seeing Colt so happy had changed him. Truth was, he hadn’t been in the mood to join Tommy in their usual carousing ever since the wedding. Maybe his churlishness stemmed from the fact he was envious of what Colt and Zuri had found.
Something of his thoughts must have played on his face, because Lena’s expression changed. The light of arousal began to fade. “Look, if you’ve changed your mind…” she said, bit her bottom lip and looked away.
Did she think he didn’t find her attractive now she was naked?
Gabe swore silently and pushed aside his concerns. Yes, he was worried that maybe he shouldn’t have gone into this based on a lie, but he did think this attraction was worth exploring. And his body hadn’t cooled down one bit.
Gabe leaned back to rest on one elbow and closed his eyes as the water poured over his body, rushing over his stomach and the jut of his thick cock.
He snuck a peek to watch her gaze running greedily over his male flesh and made up his mind in an instant that all teasing was done. He swung his head toward hers, catching her hungry gaze. “I won’t mind if you touch. But I left condoms on the bank.”
Her gaze searched his for a long moment, and a little smile played on her lips. She lifted her hand to uncurl her fingers. A plastic packet lay in the center of her palm.
“Are you nervous we’re moving too quickly?” he asked, giving her one last chance before he was too far gone to be a gentleman.
Her breath gusted. “I’m holding on by a thread, cowboy. I think if we don’t get past this, I won’t even remember how to breathe.” She lifted her chin to point at his cock. “Raise it above the water. I’ll put this on.”
That voice. A soft but firm command. She’d been like that back then, and he’d been eager to obey. For now, he’d let her lead since she seemed to need to be in charge.
Holding her gaze, he lay back on both elbows and raised his hips above the water.
Lena tore the packet open, stuffed the wrapper into a crevice in the rock and turned to face him, giving him a full view of her luscious body. Her fleshy frame was thicker but more beautiful than ever. She was full and rounded, her waist narrowing above generous hips. Every curve in lush proportion.
His breaths shortened as he raised his glance to meet hers. He read doubt in her eyes and gave her a smile. “Lena Twohig, you’re one beautiful woman.”
Her cheeks flooded with color. “Thanks.”
He could see the fortifying breath she took before she firmed her pretty mouth and bent over him to roll the condom down his shaft.
The sensation of her strong hand gliding down his length had him groaning, something he didn’t hold back because he didn’t want her worrying again about his attraction. When the latex clothed him, she gave him firm up and down pumps with her fist as though testing his hardness.
“What now?” he asked.
She wrinkled her nose. “Seems a little rude me climbing right on, seein’ as we’ve never even kissed.”
He liked the lazy ease of her comment and the husky texture of her voice. The sensual note was like a caress, stroking his balls. “I agree. Think we might manage to do both at the same time?”
* * * * *
Be sure to check out the snippets on these other authors’ blogs:
Lauren Dane
Caris Roane
Eliza Gayle
Lissa Matthews
McKenna Jeffries
Shiloh Walker
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Myla Jackson
Shelli Stevens
Jody Wallace
Hello, and thanks so much to Delilah for hosting me today! My name is Sidney Bristol, you might have seen me around here once or twice before, and I’m on a one-woman parade through the blogesphere!
There are a lot of the Japanese tattoo elements you see across cultures. Flowers, the phoenix, tigers and dragons, those are things you see in different cultures, the Japanese artists just put their own spin on it.
It can never be said that Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life. She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, and tattoo addict. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she splits her time between a job she loves, writing, reading and belly dancing.
Kellie shifted on the wooden bench, still restless. The evening breeze was cooler than normal thanks to a cold front blowing in. It was ridiculous that dropping into the nineties was considered a cool spell, but in the height of Texas summer, you took what you got. She swept her hair up into a knot and tipped her head back. The slight dampness of her skin, courtesy of the ever-present humidity, was a small price to pay for being able to sit outside. She’d shed the formfitting dress for jeans and a tank top and felt more like herself for it.
Cyndi Faria is an engineer turned romance writer whose craving for structure is satisfied by plotting emotional and cozy paranormal romance stories about Native American folklore, cursed spirits, lost souls, harbingers, and even a haunted coastal town. If you love a tale with courageous heroes and heroines, where their unconditional love for each other gives them strength to defeat their inner demons, Cyndi Faria invites you to enter the pages of her stories.
Stephanie Queen is a romantic at heart, a writer by nature, and has the soul of a cheerleader. She enjoys creating stories where her rose-colored world-view comes to life and the good guys always win. Spending most of her life in New England, she’s attended many of the area colleges, including Harvard, and even earned a couple of degrees along the way. Although she lost count of all the jobs she’s had before she settled on being a Novelist, her favorite was selling cookies as a Keebler Elf.
