Summer’s here and things get busy and sometimes with vacation and spending time with family… things can get away from us. So I’m on vacation in beautiful Mt. Tremblant with my husband, sons, and a couple of friends, and I realize that the blog post I was to do for Delilah’s blog is this week, NOT next week. Oops!

Well, you’re probably as busy as I am, so I figure you’ll be happy with short, right? So here’s an excerpt from Heat, which came out yesterday. Enjoy!

HEAT

With passion so blazing hot, you don’t want to put this fire out…

When Rikki’s first love dies in the line of duty she vows to keep her heart guarded and never give it away again.

After moving to a new town for a fresh start, she is given the opportunity to show off her photography skills and shoot a sexy fireman calendar. Although taking the job might bring up painful memories, she knows this is her best chance at fulfilling her dreams of becoming a professional photographer.

While out with her new roommates, Rikki meets Simon and Carter and feels an instant spark of attraction… to both equally gorgeous and tempting men. This is the same intense feeling she had the first time she fell in love. But how can she feel that way about two men?

When she arrives at the firehouse to shoot the calendar, she is surprised to find that Simon and Carter are firefighters so she immediately pulls back on their growing flirtation. But Simon and Carter are men who know what they want, and they want Riki. As the chemistry between them ignites Rikki finds it hard to resist falling prey to her steamiest fantasies.

Now she has to choose between keeping her heart safe… or taking a chance on love… and possibly losing everything.

Buy Link:
https://books2read.com/u/mdKVdX

* * *

Excerpt:

“From the two gentlemen at the bar. They said to say welcome to Muldone.”

Rikki’s gaze shot to the bar, and the man she’d been gazing at before smiled and nodded. Then she glanced at the man next to him and—

It was like a punch to the gut. That same intense feeling as she’d had when she’d seen the first man. That this was the man she was meant to be with.

This guy had the same type of physique as the first. Tall, muscular. Very strong. His hair was a soft brown, and wavy. She imagined it would feel soft to the touch. And his eyes seemed very warm.

His gaze shifted from his friend’s to hers  for the first time and—Wham! Instant electricity.

Oh, God, how could she have the same feeling—this very special and intense intuitive feeling—for two men?

Of course, she couldn’t. She was just reading things wrong.

The two men stood up and started to walk her way. Her heart fluttered, then started pounding faster as they approached the table.

“Hello. My name is Simon,” the first man said. “And this is my friend, Carter.”

“Hi,” Carter said.

Simon held out his hand and she shook it. At the first touch, sparks flared through her body, playing havoc with her senses. Then she shook Carter’s hand, and had the same wild reaction.

“Hi, uh . . . I’m Rikki.”

“May we join you?” Carter asked.

Ordinarily, she would make some excuse to send them away, but she was too befuddled and found herself nodding.

“I . . . uh . . . thanks for the drink.”

Simon smiled. “Our pleasure.”

“How did you know I just moved to town?”

Carter laughed. “Rhonda on the bar knows her clientele. She told us.”

Rikki nodded and took a sip of the icy drink, and the sweet flavor of peaches exploded on her tongue.

“It’s delicious.”

“So did your party break up,” Simon asked, “or will the others be coming back?”

“I’m not really sure. I’m not used to coming to places like this, but I think they might have moved on.” She could see Tina sitting at another table, and Mel leaning in close to the woman he was talking to at her table.

“So the guy just ditched you?” Simon asked.

She shrugged. “He’s not my boyfriend or anything. In fact, I barely know him. We just live together.”

At Simon’s arched eyebrow, she added, “He’s my new roommate. All three of them are. But I just met them when I moved in a few days ago.”

“Well, since they’ve moved on, do you want to go somewhere quieter where we can talk?” Carter asked.

Anxiety quivered through her. These guys were definitely moving faster than she liked.

“Don’t look so panicky,” Carter said. “I just mean we could move to a booth on the back wall. With the overhang, it’s quieter and we won’t have to fight with the music to hear each other.”

“Oh.” She glanced to the wall and saw a few booths were open. “That would be okay.”

She stood up and grabbed her purse and her gift from Anna. Simon picked up her drink and he and Carter followed her to one of the booths. As soon as she sat down, she noticed the difference in noise level.

“You’re right, this is better,” she said.

The two men sat across from her in the rectangular booth.

“I’ll just let my friends know where I am.” She grabbed her phone and texted Tina.

Way to go, Tina texted back with a winky face.

“So where did you move here from?” Carter asked.

“I was in Ashton. That’s the small town in Ohio where I grew up. But I got laid off from work and so I decided to start again someplace new.”

“And you came here because of the great scenery?” Simon asked.

“It is a beautiful spot. I hadn’t realized how pretty it was here or how much of a tourist destination  it is. I came here because a close friend from college lives here and I thought it would be fun if we lived in the same place again.”

“Friends are important.” Carter’s smile caused his eyes to twinkle.

“You two are good friends I take it,” she observed.

“That’s the truth,” Simon said.

“Yeah. We share everything.”

The glitter in Carter’s eyes sent a shiver of excitement through her. As if he’d just told her that he and Simon both wanted to be with her. To kiss her . . . undress her . . . make love to her. Together.

Oh, God, the thought of being with one of these big, muscular men was enough to steal her breath away. But the thought of being with both of them . . .

Of course, she was just being silly. Because of the weirdness of her intuitive feeling that she was meant to be with Simon. And with Carter. She was misinterpreting things. They probably shared an apartment and maybe a car and . . . whatever else guys shared on a regular basis.

Not women.

Not her.

Remember the mention of free books?

You can get free stories by signing up for my mailing list.  This gives you a chance to sample my writing to see if you enjoy it. If it’s not your style, you can unsubscribe anytime. No worries! 🙂

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Also, you can get a free anthology of 7 sizzling stories called Summer Nights. Perfect for your summertime reading!

Get it here: https://www.instafreebie.com/free/AbcL2

About Opal

As a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of erotic contemporary romance, Opal Carew writes about passion, love, and taking risks.  Her heroines follow their hearts and push past the fear that stops them from realizing their dreams… to the excitement and love of happily-ever-after. Her books have won several awards, including The National Readers’ Choice Award, The Golden Leaf Award (twice), The Golden Quill (3 times), CRA Award of Excellence, and Silken Sands.

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