Hijinks Page 9

  She shivered remembering how much she enjoyed riding with him and going by the upward curl of his lip, he knew what she was thinking. She planted both of her hands on his chest and shoved. "I'm not going anywhere with you. I need to work."

  Instead of letting her leave, he dipped and grabbed her around her thighs, throwing her over his shoulders. Disoriented and upside down, she grabbed on to the back of his jeans and kicked her feet. "Damn you, put me down."

  He slapped her ass. She screamed, hating the way the desire to escape him fled. Each step away from the lounge marked by an exhale pushed out of her body as she bounced on his shoulder.

  Raul stopped and heaved her off his shoulder and into his arms, letting her slowly slide along his rock hard body until she stood on solid ground again. She held on to him as the world righted itself and she was no longer dizzy.

  Her reflection shone in his dark obsidian colored eyes. She looked away out of guilt.

  In the past, she'd begged, bargained, used, lied to earn her way back into Raul's good graces, and failed miserably. In her desperation to save their relationship, she'd made a fool of herself and found herself escorted onto a bus heading out of town and fearing for her life.

  That fear kept her from returning to Southern Oregon, home to the Lagsturns Motorcycle Club. Back to the one man she loved.

  Not that she regretted her time with him, never that. She'd go back in a heartbeat if it was safe to stay with him. It was the guilt of keeping secrets from Raul that she regretted. She wasn't good enough for a man like Raul Sanchez, and she'd never be able to tell him what forced her into hiding from the world.

  Raul hooked her neck, bringing her attention back to him. "I'm going to get on my bike, and you're going to climb on behind me."

  That's when the truth hit her upside the head. Whatever Raul asked her to do, she'd do her best to make sure she made him happy. Because in her heart, she could never tell him no...and that was part of their problem.

  She swallowed hard, glancing down the line of riders waiting for her to follow their president's orders. God, she missed them. "Fine. Let me get my clothes and bag first."

  He walked over to his bike, opened his saddlebag, and tossed her a pair of jeans and his leather coat. "There's no time. We need to roll."

  She shoved her legs in his jeans and held the waist. He helped her on the back of his bike. Before she could question him, he sped off into the night. She wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes. For now, she'd take what she could from him. When he calmed down and allowed her to talk, she'd ask him to let her go, for both their sakes.

  —Available at all e-retailer book stores—

  Sneak Peek – Healing Trace by Debra Kayn

  Joan sat on the leather loveseat across from her drug-induced patient. Trace's lips parted and puckered with every breath he exhaled. She bid her time while he slept, watching those lips. Relaxed in sleep they were plump, moist, and all too alluring.

  Appearance wise, he was much different from the type of men who usually grabbed her attention, and he fascinated her more than she wanted to admit. She crossed her legs. She'd had friends talk about the magnetism of the bad boy over the typical nine-to-five man and until now, she'd never understood the pull.

  Physically, Trace was gorgeous. His attitude challenged her to draw him toward her, hoping she could break the wall he put up.

  Not that she was desperate for a man, or wanted the stress of adding a relationship into her life. She glanced away from her patient. Trace was all too infuriating and bad tempered when awake, so in his sleeping state it made sense that she'd find him more attractive.

  She forced herself to concentrate on the magazine that lay opened on her lap. The chance at working with someone closer to her own age, rather than a geriatric patient must be throwing her for a loop. It hadn't been that long since she'd had a boyfriend, a date, sex.

  Taking care of Trace was a personal test. Nothing more.

  She glanced at him again. His arms were thick, strong, and she suspected the lower half of him would be in the same kind of shape. She caught her lower lip between her teeth. He was possibly the best-looking man she'd ever seen. If she wasn't here as a professional, in a business type of situation, she'd be tongue-tied and clueless about what to say to him.

  "Is it part of your job to sit and watch me sleep?"

  The magazine slid off her lap, and she bent over to pick it up. Her cheeks grew warm, and she was thankful for her long, curly hair curtaining her face. She was supposed to care for the man's health, not be paid to ogle her patient.

  She cleared her throat and hooked the stray strands of hair behind her ear. "You're awake."

  He stretched, and the blanket slid off his cast. She hurried over and covered him, but not before peeking at the solid thigh above the cast and below his boxers.

  He squirmed his way into a sitting position. "Why don't you go do...something."

  "Like what? I'm your nurse for the remaining time you're laid up, and then I'm going to help you get back in shape." She sat back down. "Everything I should be doing involves caring for you and making sure you're comfortable."

  Trace snorted.

  "Am I expected to cook your meals too? Brody didn't say anything about that, but it'll be no problem. It'll give me something to do while you rest. I'm sure he'll fill me in on all my duties when he comes back to the house for dinner. He seemed very concerned about you getting the best care possible." She leaned forward as a thought occurred to her. "Do you have to...do you have a need I could help you with?"

  "My...needs?" He stared at her.

  "Yes. If you need help getting to the bathroom, or need help bathing, shaving..."

  "Shit. This is unreal." Trace's head fell back on the couch and he gazed up at the ceiling. "Brody!"

  Joan squeaked, and covered her chest with her hand to keep her rapidly beating heart from bursting out of her body. "He's not here."

  "He will be."

  "No. I don't think so. He dropped me off at the door earlier and said he'd be back at dinner time." She scooted to the edge of the cushion. "To be honest with you...this is my first in-home care job. I'm sure once I find out exactly what I'm expected to do, we'll get along fine."

  Trace simply gaped at her. She gathered the small pillow from behind her, and hugged it to her stomach. The way he pierced her with his gaze unsettled her. This wasn't going as well as she'd hoped.

  "Is there something I can get you?"

  "No."

  "Are you in pain?"

  "No."

  "You don't talk much, do you?" She tittered out of pure nervousness.

  She let her gaze wander around the room, while keeping him in her peripheral vision. This job was going to be more difficult than she originally thought. He wasn't an easy patient, which was okay.

  She was used to cranky men who didn't want to be coddled. Although, she had to admit it was easier to manipulate an eighty year old man to follow the doctor's orders. She didn't think this particular man would be easy to sweet talk into doing what she asked.

  "What are you doing?" he asked.

  She flinched. "I'm just looking around the room. You have a beautiful home."

  Trace grunted.

  "Would you like to talk? You can tell me how you broke your leg?" Determined to make their working relationship polite, she used the manners her dad taught her and forced a smile.

  "No reason to fill empty space with useless chatter." The deep baritone voice could've come from the couch because in her mind, Trace made no effort to acknowledge her.

  She rubbed her lips together. His rudeness wasn't going to make her lose her temper. "We're going to have to figure out how to get along eventually. Six weeks in each other's company is a long time..."

  He glared at her. For the second time, she noticed the dark silver of his eyes, deep and cold, almost harsh. She shivered and pulled the pillow tighter against her abdomen.

  "I'm guessing Brody set all this up." H
is voice matched his cool demeanor. Even with the edge in his attitude, the gravelly undertone set her heart to pattering.

  "Yes." She rose and took a step closer to the couch, to him. "It's time for another pain pill. If you'll excuse me, I'll make you a bite to eat too. Often times, the medicine will make you nauseous and food will help you handle the side effects better."

  —Available at all e-retailer stores

  Author Bio

  Top Selling Romance Author, Debra Kayn, lives with her family at the foot of the Bitterroot Mountains in beautiful Idaho. She enjoys riding motorcycles, playing tennis, fishing, and driving the men crazy in the garage.

  Her love of family ties and laughter makes her a natural to write heartwarming contemporary stories to the delight of her readers. Oh, let's cut to the chase. She loves to write about REAL MEN and the WOMEN who love them.

  When Debra was nineteen years old, a man kissed her without introducing himself. When they finally came up for air, the first words out of his mouth were...will you have my babies? Considering Debra's weakness for a sexy, badass man, who is strong enough to survive her attitude, she said yes. A quick wedding at the House of Amour and four babies later, she's living her own romance book.

  Website: www.debrakayn.com

  Twitter: www.twitter.com/DebraKayn

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/DebraKaynFanPage

  Debra Kayn's Backlist

  Breathing His Air – Bantorus Motorcycle Club

  Aching To Exhale – Lagsturns Motorcycle Club

  Soothing His Madness – Bantorus Motorcycle Club

  Melt My Heart (antho), Laying Down His Colors – Bantorus Motorcycle Club

  Archer, A Hard Body Novel, book 1

  Weston, A Hard Body Novel, book 2

  Biker Babe in Black, The Chromes and Wheels Gang, book 1

  Ride Free, The Chromes and Wheels Gang, book 2

  Healing Trace

  Wildly, Playing For Hearts, book 1

  Seductively, Playing For Hearts, book 2

  Conveniently, Playing For Hearts, book 3

  Secretly, Playing For Hearts, book 4

  Surprisingly, Playing For Hearts, book 5 (releases April 2014)

  Chantilly's Cowboy, The Sisters of McDougal Ranch, book 1

  Val's Rancher, The Sisters of McDougal Ranch, book 2

  Margot's Lawman, The Sisters of McDougal Ranch, book 3

  Florentine's Hero, The Sisters of McDougal Ranch, book 4

  Suite Cowboy

  Hijinks

  Resurrecting Charlie's Girl

  Betraying the Prince

  Love Rescued Me

  Double Agent

  Breaking Fire Code