Lenor Daniels swore she’d never fall for the wrong man again...
After her ex shattered her trust in the most public way possible, she built walls around her heart and poured everything into her Bed & Breakfast. She’s safe. She’s in control. And she refuses to let anyone, especially a Blake, tear it all down.
Adam Blake has lived with his reputation forever...
Reckless, wild, the one who’ll never settle. But Lenor isn’t a fling or a challenge. She’s the one woman he can’t walk away from. He doesn’t care what the town whispers, or that she keeps pushing him back. Adam knows she belongs with him, and he’ll do whatever it takes to prove he’s more than the stories people tell.
Between small-town gossip, unwanted attention from men who don’t understand the word no, and a chemistry that refuses to be denied, Lenor is caught between her fear of heartbreak and the man who makes her believe in forever. Because sometimes the most reckless choice is the only one worth making.
“You’re going to regret that in the morning,” Adam murmurs, his breath hot against my ear.
I shiver, forcing myself to roll my eyes. “What? This drink?”
“Every drink since your third.” His chuckle is low, rough. “Come on, Lennie. You’re not fooling me.”
I hate that nickname. I hate how it softens me, how it makes me remember being sixteen and sneaking glances at him in the high school parking lot.
I spin on the stool, glaring at him and his ridiculously sexy smile. “And what exactly am I supposed to be fooling you about?”
His eyes darken. “That you don’t want me.”
My breath stutters before I can hide it. Cocky fucking bastard. Except … he’s not wrong. And that terrifies me. It always has.
I slide off the stool, stumbling slightly in my favorite black spiked heels. Adam’s hands are on my waist instantly, steadying me, his thumbs brushing bare skin where my top rides up. Sparks shoot straight through me, from the point of contact spreading through every inch of me.
Fuck.
“Careful,” he murmurs.
I shove him back, desperate to put space between us. “I’m fine.”
“Sure you are.” His grin says he doesn’t believe me. “Dance with me.”
“I don’t dance.”
“Liar.” He steps closer, crowding me against the bar. His cologne—smoke and cedar—wraps around me, making my head spin more than the alcohol. “One dance, Lennie. Just one.”
I should say no. God, I should say no. Instead, I let him take my hand.
The music shifts to something slower, a beat heavy enough to rattle my bones. Adam pulls me onto the dance floor, into the middle of the crowd, and suddenly it’s just us. His arms around me. My body pressed to his. His heart thudding against my chest.
And for the first time in a year, I feel alive.
“You’re trouble,” I whisper, breathless.
“You like trouble.”
His words make my pulse skip. He tilts my chin up, his gaze burning through me, and before I can find a reason to stop him, his mouth is on mine and the world tilts on its axis.
It’s not soft and there is nothing tentative about it. It’s raw and hungry, a kiss that devours every defense I’ve built. His lips move against mine, hot and demanding, and I can’t stop myself from kissing him back. My hands clutch his shoulders, my body arching into him like it’s where I’ve always belonged.
This is Adam Blake. Reckless. Dangerous. Off-limits. But tonight I don’t care.
His hands slide down my back, gripping my hips as he pulls me closer. My thighs press against his, my body aching in ways I don’t want to think about. He tastes like whiskey and sin, and I can’t get enough.
“Let’s get out of here,” he growls against my lips.
