Synopsis Veronica “Roni” Guard is an undercover cop trying to bust a drug ring. Unfortunately, she runs into her ex-boyfriend, Mateo Vargas, at an illegal street race in the California desert. He just happens to be a pretty big criminal himself. That’s why they split originally. No matter how much chemistry they have between them, a cop and a gangster are not a good match. Roni Convinces Mateo to help her with her case, his reluctance derailed by the one thing that always worked between them–sex. Yes, he’ll help her. But on one condition. In his world, she belongs to him, and him only. Will Mateo’s possessiveness unravel Roni’s case? Or, worse, blow her cover? And if they get out of this alive, is there a future for them together?
Excerpt
"What are you doing here?"
I gave him a onceover. He was an interesting guy. A total thug according to law enforcement, but an absolute gentleman when we'd been together in the past. We'd dated a few times, nothing serious, just long enough for us to get naked and sweaty together. And God, was he glorious in bed. Then I'd realized who he was and he'd realized I could arrest him and that was that. All things considered, I felt pretty damn lucky that he hadn't dropped me into the bottom of an open construction site. That tended to happen with Vargas family enemies.
A small smile worked its way onto his face, then disappeared far too quickly. "Stop smiling at me and answer the question."
In fairness, I hadn't realized I was smiling. He had this amazing golden God effect on women, and knew it. I'd felt it too many times to pretend it hadn't happened, and I'd seen way too many other women respond the same way. For some reason, despite his edict that spending time together was bad for my health, he still showed up at the same clubs that I liked to frequent.
"I'm working."
He stepped closer and my breath caught in my throat. He stopped too far away for me to touch, but close enough that I could feel the energy emanating from his body. That was part of his charm. He was wild, with his impulses barely controlled.
"Working?" He chewed on the word like he couldn't quite believe I'd said it. "Roni, you think this is a joke? Crimson won’t let you live if he figures this out.”
"That's true of most undercover assignments." I shrugged like Crimson didn't scare the living shit out of me. He did. Between him and Luis, I was two seconds from pissing myself. I'm all badass and shit, but those guys are real life gangsters. I'd spent too much time looking at their jackets to not know what I was doing when I agreed to take this assignment.
He covered the last few feet separating us and cupped my cheek in his hand. "Then tell me what’s worth dying for?"
BIRTHDAY WISHES - The List Series
SynopsisMari meets Luca on an adult website. She’s still smarting from a divorce and only looking to explore her desires. They create wish lists of their sexual fantasies and agree to work through them together. No strings, no attachments, nothing but pleasure, and Mari anticipates their first meeting with impatience. But through a miscommunication involving a private text message and Mari’s nosy brother, Luca ends up at her 30th birthday party, before their planned rendezvous. Much to her surprise, they seem to connect better than she expected, and in ways she hadn't expected. He’s strong, commanding, but also gentle and respectful and he makes her ache in ways she never thought possible.
But when Luca later expresses a desire for something more than just casual sex, Mari’s impulse is to run the other way. After all, her failed marriage is evidence that she really shouldn't go much deeper. Can Luca convince Mari otherwise? Can he help her see that he’s her ultimate birthday wish come true?
Birthday Wishes is Book 1 in The List Series and contains mature adult themes, including graphic and explicit sex.
Excerpt
“It really is your birthday,” he said, a question in his tone, but not the words.
“Yes. Thirty as of eight this morning.” I refused to be one of those women who lied about her
age. I may not like getting older, but I wouldn’t let it turn me into a harpy clinging to long gone
youth. I was thirty. I’d worked hard to make it through those years, and I wasn’t going to deny a single one of them.
“When you said you wanted to work on your birthday wish list, I thought you meant it
metaphorically, not literally.” He led me smoothly through a song change. He was so
comfortable on his feet I couldn’t help but wonder what it would take to unravel him just a bit.
“Nope, no metaphors here.”
“Had I known, I would have wrapped the package a little better.”
I looked at his crotch reflexively and pictured his cock with a ribbon and bow tied around it. “It’s not too late, you know.”
He placed a finger under my chin and tipped my head up. “Your mom is watching us.” He was
totally laughing at me. Busted checking out my date’s goods by my mom. Unfortunately, my
eyes needed to stay above the waist for the rest of the evening.
“Fabulous. One more thing for her to ask about.”
“I created family problems by coming here?”
“Problem is too strong a word, but since my divorce. . .” I let the sentence hang. How could I
explain my mom’s interest without making her look like a pushy nut job? In fairness, she was a
little bit of a nut job, but I think that was just my biological clock ticking. I couldn’t hear it yet,
but somehow it’d tapped into my mom’s system instead of mine. Children were not high on my
list of concerns, but grandchildren topped hers.
“Until your brother explained, I thought you were the one who gave me the address.”
“I figured. Ricky likes to play. He didn’t mean any harm.” I gave my baby brother a raft of shit
at any available opportunity, but just like any older sister, I’d be damned if I let someone else
judge him harshly. It was my job to defend.
“He cares about you.”“Mmm.” What else could I say? Admitting we liked one another is not something Ricky and I
would ever do willingly. “You should tell me something about yourself,” I said, “like what you
do for a living.” My mom was going to ask and I couldn’t just say I don’t know, Mom. I want to
fuck him, not marry him.
ALL WRAPPED UP - The List Series
Synopsis
With every moment they spend together, Luca shows Mari how good they could be together. Will Mari run away from her emotions, or does Luca have her all wrapped up?
All Wrapped Up is Book Two in The List Series and contains mature adult themes, including graphic and explicit sex.
Excerpt
Instead of calming my nerves like I'd hoped, the wine was only making me drunk. To hell with it. I poured my fourth glass for the evening and topped off Rachel's as well. No point in being drunk alone when I could be drunk with a friend. She just needed to actually start drinking.
“So, tell me how this changes things for you.” Rachel had asked that question at least twelve times. The wording had been different each time, giving me a variation on a theme, but no actual break from the topic that had initially rattled my nerves. “I mean, it does change things, right? It has to.”
“Shut up and drink your wine.” I was done with asking her nicely to switch topics. She was like a damn dog gnawing on the bone that was my relationship with Luca.
“You like him. I know you do.”
I nodded and took another drink of wine. I had passed the sipping stage two glasses ago. I more than liked him, but that didn't mean I was ready to share an address with him. My phone whistled to tell me I had a text message. I silenced it without looking. The odds were high that it was Luca again. He'd been sending me sexy, sweet messages all week.
“I don't understand what the problem is.” Rachel sipped her wine and followed it with a bite of cheese. She was doing her part to savor the wine slowly, rather than jumping head first into a wine hangover like I was doing.
“Luca was supposed to be a fun distraction, not a relationship,” I tried to explain one more time. Rachel looked at me like I was brain damaged. Hell, maybe I was. We'd passed the point of a fun distraction months ago.
“Mari, it's not like you're some bitter, dried-up hag whose only option is to grow old with your ten cats. Yes, you went through a divorce. Are you really going to tell me that you are incapable of having a relationship because of it? Because that is about the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Luca is a good guy. You know this. Stop freaking out.” If she'd been sitting a little closer, she totally would have jabbed me with her finger. From the opposite side of the table, all she could do was gesture emphatically. I was grateful.
“I really like the way things are between us,” I said. Luca was fun and sexy and sweet and everything I wanted in a man. I had been terrified all that would change because we'd said out loud that we wanted to add strings after our initial meetings, which had involved lots of really hot sex. That’s supposedly the only thing both of us wanted in the beginning, but then things got a little more complicated. So far, change hadn't happened, but that didn't mean things wouldn't change the second we signed a joint lease.
“Who wouldn't? That man is. . .” Rachel fanned herself and smiled with a happy, faraway look in her eyes. She was enjoying my boyfriend a little too much for my comfort. “He’s like your very own Prince Charming.”
She nailed it with one dreamy comment. My relationship with Luca was straight out of an X-rated Disney movie. He was too perfect. So far we’d kept our relationship neatly contained to weekends only. What would happen if we expanded our time together to all day, everyday?
Meet the Author
Braxton Cole lives in the Pacific Northwest where she spends most of her time holed up in her office writing stories. When she’s not writing, she can be found riding her bike, hiking the fabulous local trails, chasing her kids, or wishing that her thumb was a little more green. She has a bad habit of killing what she tries to grow, but hasn't given up hopes of one day being a successful urban farmer.
Braxton writes erotic romance because romance is the stuff that makes life great, and sex is fun. The two belong together, both in life and in fiction.
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