Lorna's Gigolo

Excerpt

Sample Chapter For LORNA'S GIGOLO by Fawn Lowery

Lorna Adams bolted upright in bed. Her heart pounded frantically. Sweat drenched her filmy nightgown, pressing the sheer material against her breasts.

“ Damn nightmares,” she mumbled.

She pushed her long hair across her shoulder, and blinked her eyes against the early morning brightness filling the bedroom.

It had been almost eight months since the car wreck but she still dreamed about it. It was Christmas Eve, an out-of-hand office party that lasted into the wee hours of the morning. She had offered Mary Fabick, an old friend from college, a ride home. It had rained earlier in the evening, leaving the mountain highway slippery and treacherous. Fog had rolled in off the ocean, and visibility was poor. While trying to execute a hairpin curve, her car slid off the roadway and struck a rock bluff, ending Mary’s life.

The nightmares had begun almost immediately, as did the self-blame. Despite her best efforts, she had been unsuccessful in making herself believe she was not at fault. If she hadn’t offered Mary the ride home, her friend would still be alive.

Lorna swung her feet over the edge of the mattress, contemplating getting up, when the telephone rang. For a moment, she merely stared at it, trying to will the caller to hang up so she wouldn’t feel compelled to answer. It was her day off, for Pete’s sake. And it was her twenty-eighth birthday.

“ Crap,” she muttered, lifting the receiver. “Hello.”

“ Happy birthday!”

Lorna smiled slightly as she recognized the voice of Amber Stone, a close friend and one of her employees at the store.

“ Thanks, but I really don’t want to be reminded of how old I’m getting. It only reminds me of how pathetic my life is.”

“ You need to cheer up. The gang from the store has just what you need. We’re sending you a little gift.”

“ Amber—”

“ His name is Ramon and he’ll be there at six o’clock.”

“ Ramon?” Lorna questioned, her brow furrowing. “Who’s Ramon?”

“ He’s your sex toy for the evening. Enjoy! Oh, and, Lorna—try not to scare him like you did that poor IRS agent last week.” Amber laughed and hung up the phone.

Lorna sat on the bed and tried to make sense out of Amber’s call. Surely she was joking. She chuckled aloud. “My own sex toy for the evening? That would really be a birthday present.”

Lorna showered, then made her way to the kitchen and fixed morning coffee. Pouring herself a steaming cup, she ventured out on the wooden deck of her beachfront home. The Pacific Ocean lay peaceful and calm, its gentle white-capped waves washing ashore with barely a whisper.

She stretched out on a chaise lounge and stared at the blue water while she drank her coffee. Down the beach, she spied Mark Louden walking his dog. He raised one hand and waved at her. Lorna grimaced and waved in return. She hoped he didn’t think it necessary to stop off for a visit. She didn’t like his dog, Pokey, a yellow lab with a penchant for humping her leg.

“ Why don’t you find a bitch in heat and let that dog have some sex, for Pete’s sake!” she once told Mark when Pokey jumped her.

“ You’re the only one he ever does that to, Lorna,” Mark laughingly remarked, yanking on Pokey’s leash in an effort to get him under control. “There must be something about you he’s attracted to.”

His remark had left her speechless but she’d vowed the very next time Pokey humped her leg, she was going to crack him on the head.

Lorna stared at the two of them on the beach hoping they weren’t coming over, until she saw Mark pull the dog in the direction of his own cottage. Relieved, she finished her coffee and tried to decide how she would spend her day.

* * * *

At six o’clock, Lorna’s doorbell rang. At first she considered not answering the door. After the third incessant ring, she put aside her romance novel and went to the front of the house.

A bright red BMW sat on the gravel drive. When she peeked through the gauzy curtain on the door glass, she could see a man standing on the front porch. Curiosity welled up inside her as she grasped the doorknob. Could Amber have been serious in sending her someone?

Lorna pulled the door open and her breath caught in her throat. Tall and dark, with a thick mop of black hair grazing his shoulders, a well-proportioned man dressed in a purple satin shirt and black spandex shorts leaned nonchalantly against her doorjamb. He straightened when Lorna opened the door, turning a chiseled, handsome face her way. He smiled slowly as his dark gaze traveled along her figure.

The heat of his gaze made her flesh prickle and for a fleeting second, she admitted she’d never been inspected so intently or with such a lusty stare. Her crotch felt immediately damp and her nipples began to peak.

“ I’m Ramon,” he said, his voice a soft caress. He bent over and picked up a sack of groceries and a leather tote from the porch floor. Facing Lorna once more, he gave her a wink with one large dark eye. “I’m here to help you celebrate your birthday.”