Hunks: Too Hot To Touch
A novel of erotic romance by
Marie Rochelle
Published by Phaze Books
Also by Marie Rochelle
A Taste of Love: Richard
Alpha Male Incorporated: Under Your Protection
Closer to You: Lee
My Deepest Love: Zack
All the Fixin’
Caught
Caught 2: Anja’s Return
Closer to You: Lee
My Deepest Love: Zack
Crossing the Railroad
Desire
The Men of CCD: Loving True
The Men of CCD: Tempting Turner
The Men of CCD: Slow Seduction
The Men of CCD: Help Wanted
Lucky Charms
So Much Better
Taken by Storm
Roped Into You
This is an explicit and erotic novel
intended for the enjoyment
of adult readers. Please keep
out of the hands of children.
www.Phaze.com
Hunks: Too Hot To Touch
Copyright © 2011 by Marie Rochelle
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Edited by Judy Bagshaw
Cover Art © 2011 by Niki Browning
First Edition December 2011
ISBN-13: 978-1-60659-644-9
SMASHWORDS EDITION
Published by:
Phaze Books
An imprint of Mundania Press LLC
6457 Glenway Ave., #109
Cincinnati, OH 45211
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, Mundania Press LLC, 6457 Glenway Avenue, #109, Cincinnati, Ohio 45211, books@mundania.com.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
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Dedication
The true beauty of a woman is her ability to forgive.
Prologue
“I can’t believe this is happening to me.” Shauntie Kane watched as the water dripped down from the ceiling onto her brand new mahogany kitchen table.
For over a month now, she’d known about the roof leak, but she’d put getting it fixed at the bottom of her list because of demands from her job as an optometrist. She didn’t think it would get this serious so rapidly. Unfortunately now, her procrastination had led to a huge puddle in the center of her table which was getting larger right before her eyes.
Good God! When would she have time to call a roofer to come and see about all of this? Her hectic work schedule was booked solid and this new situation only added to her tribulations. Why couldn’t this have occurred when she was on vacation? No, it had to arise right now, when she was having her busiest time at work.
Damn, she already had enough bills to pay this month and her lucrative job as an eye doctor didn’t make a bit of difference. She hated spending extra money. From a very young age, she’d watched as her mother saved money and only spent it when necessary. Her mother’s favorite saying was ‘save a penny for a rainy day.’ She didn’t believe in wasting money; however, her need to save money was the main reason her roof was in this condition.
Shauntie could only imagine the price the roofer would quote to fix the leaky roof. Without a doubt, it would probably cost an arm, leg and another one of her body parts thrown in for good measure.
She might actually have to take a part time job on the side to foot the bill, she thought jokingly.
Sighing, Shauntie took one last look at her increasing predicament before walking into the laundry room. Looking around the room, she searched for the small white bucket she’d placed there a few days ago. It wasn’t the best, but it would give the water something to collect in besides on top of her table.
Finally, she spotted the bucket beside the dryer. Shauntie picked it up then grabbed a towel out of the dirty clothes’ hamper before she left the room. Going back into the kitchen, she wiped up all of the excess water with the towel before placing the bucket directly under the steady drip.
There, that should take care of her problem for a while.
She went back into the laundry room and tossed the soaked towel into the washing machine. Tonight wasn’t turning out as she expected at all. She should already be out of the house and enjoying her usual Friday night cocktail with her friends.
Sapphire and Emerald were probably already at the nightclub having drinks and talking about their day while waiting on her to show up. Why was she constantly the one running late when her best friends invited her out? Lately something out of the blue always seemed to come up at the last minute to keep her late at work or home.
In the last two months, Shauntie knew she hadn’t arrived to the club on time for her girl’s night, and what was worse, she was the one who arranged the get togethers.
Tonight, she’d finally hoped to change her bad habits by getting dressed earlier, but her idea hadn’t work because here she was once again still at home trying to make it out of the front door.
Of course, Sapphire and Emerald weren’t going to let her hear the last of this since she’d practically gloated about how she was going to beat the two of them there tonight.
Damn! Why did she have to brag about something she knew might not happen? Shauntie hated losing at anything and especially at something trivial like this.
She could have been at the club twenty minutes ago and won the bet if she hadn’t needed to take care of this stupid leak. What person in their right mind wouldn’t have gotten it looked at after the first sign of trouble?
However, like always she thought things would wait until she had the time to fix them on her schedule and that was never the case. This incident had taught her a well deserved lesson.
Hurrying out of the laundry room, Shauntie grabbed her stuff off the kitchen island and rushed into the living room. She did a very quick tour through her house making sure everything was locked and secured before going out the front door. She hoped her friends hadn’t been waiting too long for her because Emerald would be the first one to speak up if they had. Shauntie pulled her dark blue BMW out of the driveway and headed down the street towards the nightclub where her friends were waiting. She couldn’t wait until she took a sip of her first drink.
After the long hours she worked this week along with the two eye surgeries she’d performed yesterday, Shauntie needed something sinful to release all of the tension from her body and since there wasn’t a hot, attractive guy in the picture to do it with sex, a good drink would have to suffice.
The thought of having a couple of drinks and a night out with her girls sounded like the perfect way to alleviate the strain that had taken control of her racing mind and tired body.
Shauntie couldn’t wait until she got to her destination because she wanted to flirt with some good-looking guys and have a good time with her friends. This wouldn’t be a problem with Sapphire or Emerald at her side since they constantly had some kind of wild and adventurous stories to help take her mind off her own pitiful dating life.
Her two best friends never seemed like they were ever lacking in the boyfriend department. She couldn’t recall the last time either Sapphire or Emerald didn’t have a date planned during the week or at least on the weekends.
Yes...it had been a while since a man had shared her bed or taken part of making her glad she was a woman. But did she really have to get excited this morning when an attractive guy struck up a conversation with her at the gas station while she was pumping gas.
How sad was she? Sheesh. What would her friends say if they knew she was lonely from lack of male companionship? One thing was for sure, Sapphire and Emerald would never find out because she wasn’t about to tell them.
She didn’t want to get dragged into one of their dating schemes again. They were always trying to find her a man and all she wanted to do was relax and have a little fun tonight.
Chapter One
“Look who it is. I can’t believe my eyes. I thought you might be a hallucination until Emerald assured me you were the real thing, I’m glad that Dr. Kane finally decided to join us,” Sapphire Rhodes teased as soon as Shauntie took a seat at the circular table inside the nightclub. “I thought you were supposed to beat us here tonight.”
“You are just too funny. You need to take your act on the road.” Shauntie tossed her black purse down on the table. “I would have been here forty minutes ago if my roof didn’t start to leak again. You wouldn’t be picking on me if either of you saw the mess I had to deal with before I left the house.”
“Your roof is still leaking? I thought you had that problem taken care of last month,” Emerald Stone said as she reached for her drink. “You can’t let it go for much longer. It will only make it worse in the end and cost a lot more money to have it fixed properly. We all know how much you hate to spend your hard earned money.”
Why was Emerald giving her a lecture? She had more important things to take care of besides her roof problem. “I had two eye surgeries this month,” Shauntie said. “I wasn’t thinking about my roof. Anyways, I thought everything was fine because the leak had stopped until today.”
Jennifer Hudson’s song ‘Where you at’ played around them as Sapphire and Emerald stared at her like she had completely lost her mind. Shauntie didn’t understand why they were looking at her as if she was speaking a foreign language.
Why were they acting like she was crazy? She just couldn’t cancel patients’ surgeries to deal with a household dilemma. Life didn’t work like that and both Sapphire and Emerald should understand where she was coming from.
“Are you serious, Shauntie? A leaky roof just doesn’t go away by itself. You need to call a licensed roofer for an inspection and get it repaired.” Sapphire waved a waitress over to their table. “Your problem will only get worse if you don’t.”
An African American waitress with multicolored braids piled up onto her head came up to them with pen and pad in her hand. Shauntie and Sapphire gave the waitress their alcohol orders and then waited until she walked away before they continued their conversation.
“Please don’t tell me you’re worried about the cost.” Emerald laughed. “You have your own private practice. How can you be concerned about money? You want your house in top condition which means you might have to pay a little extra to make it happen.”
Shauntie disliked when Emerald teased her about her need to hold on to money instead of spending thousands of dollars on every sale that came advertised in the newspaper. She was very surprised Emerald had any money at all with the way she burned through it on any given day.
Crossing her legs, Shauntie leaned back in her seat folding her arms over her breasts. “Emerald, I don’t think anything is wrong with saving for a rainy day. I’m lucky enough to have a good career, but I don’t possess the need to run through my money because of it.”
“Hey, I was only─”
“Okay, you two. Stop arguing.” Sapphire jumped in preventing an unnecessary disagreement from happening. “Shauntie, I think I can help you with your roof predicament. One of my co-workers’ brother is a professional roofer. I remember her mentioning over lunch this afternoon that Nash is between jobs right now. I can give her your information to pass on to him.”
Shauntie was a little apprehensive about taking a referral from a roofer without being able to check him out first herself. How did she even know if this guy knew what he was doing? He could make her leak worse.
“I don’t know,” Shauntie answered, truthfully.
“Shauntie, all you have to do is let him check it out. If you don’t like the quote he gives you then you can find another roofer, but you have to get it fixed. You do know that, right?” Sapphire stared at her like she hoped she wouldn’t argue with her.
Sapphire was right. It was a small leak now, but the crisis would only get worse if she didn’t get it taken care of now. She would rather pay a small price now then a huge price later on. She didn’t know what she would do without her friends keeping her on the right track. It took a lot for her to spend any extra money since that incident from her past, but she had to do it for her home.
“Okay, fine.” She sighed giving in. “Give your employee my information and have her brother come by my house tomorrow morning. I can’t let this leak get worse. I’ll be home all day because I’m going to be planting new flowers.” Shauntie wanted this taken care of as quickly as possible. Hopefully, Sapphire knew a legitimate roofer who would have her issue fixed in record time.
“Are we done figuring out ways to help Shauntie out?” Emerald complained as the waitress came back with their drink orders. She placed their drinks down in front of them and left. “I came here to relax after my long day at work. Don’t the two of you want to unwind as much as I do?”
Shauntie glanced at Sapphire then looked at Emerald. “What’s wrong with you? Did something happen at work that you want to talk about?” She knew sometimes Emerald’s job as a medical examiner’s assistant got to her. It wasn’t a job that she would be able to do every day.
“I’m sorry.” Emerald apologized reaching for her drink again. “I don’t mean to be in such a bitchy mood tonight.”
Something was up with Emerald because out of the three of them Shauntie considered Emerald’s personality as the most laid back and carefree which was one of the reasons she was able to do her job so well.
“Tell us what’s wrong,” Shauntie encouraged. Uncrossing her arms she touched Emerald on the back of her hand. Emerald was usually the one in the partying mood anytime they went out for their girl’s night on the town.
The weekends were usually the only time all three of them had free to just talk about their week. Emerald was typically the one with the best stories to tell, but tonight there was definitely a different vibe to her. Something big was up with her.
“Don’t you ever get lonely?” Emerald removed her hand and wrapped it around her drink. “I mean all of us have brilliant and successful careers, but all of us are alone. Sometimes I would like to come home to a good-looking, hunky guy. You know guys who get all sweaty and dirty from hard work. I’m getting bored with the men I’ve been dating.
“Both of you know what I’m talking about, men who would rather be on their cell phones checking their stock options instead of cuddling up with me on the couch. I’m done coming second after anyone’s career. I’m no longer interested in the ‘moving on up’ type of guy.”
“You want to date a man who spends his time outside becoming one with nature?” Sapphire frowned “Why are you thinking about dumping the corporate man for the guys who work outside in front of his office?”
“Emerald, what brought this on?” Shauntie questioned, jumping into the conversation. Here she thought something was wrong and Emerald just wanted to get laid. Sometimes she thought she knew her friends and then Emerald or Sapphire would toss something like this out of the blue and make her wonder if she’d ever known them.
Sitting back in her chair, Shauntie listened to the latest pop song as she took a sip of her white wine. She couldn’t believe Emerald was interested in dating a man who didn’t at least make six figures and have a portfolio. When did her friend stop wanting to date her usual pretty boy and replace him with the working Joe? Emerald’s eyes swung back and forth between her and Sapphire with a mischievous look in them. “Come on, guys. Haven’t you ever seen one of those hot, sweaty men working outside and wondered what it would be like to be with him? I know a couple of times I’ve stopped my car and taken a long, lust-filled lingering look at a couple of the tight asses. Are you telling me that I’m the only one?”
“Yes, you are,” Shauntie answered, instantly. “I’ve never thought about dating any of them. Why would I be looking for a relationship when I get everything I need from my job?” Was Emerald really serious about this? Did Sapphire think the same thing too?
“Shauntie, can you really be so caught up in your career that you don’t miss the touch of a man’s hands on your body?” Emerald said staring at her with disbelief. “The scent of his skin right after he’s just gotten out of the shower, or better yet how his warm mouth feels as he kisses the back of her neck?
“You can’t say that you don’t. Out of the three of us, you’re the one who hasn’t been in a relationship for almost three years. You can’t continue to eat and sleep your career. I know there has to be some days you hate going home to a huge empty house. You’re a liar if you say you aren’t a little lonely and in the need of some male company,” Emerald tossed at her
Moving her drink around on the table, Shauntie wondered why tonight was turning out differently than she thought it would. Why was it becoming the ‘why didn’t she have a man’ show?
Why couldn’t Emerald get it through her thick skill? She wasn’t in need of a man because she was quite happy being alone. She didn’t need to come home and have someone there waiting for her.
Her life was going down the path she wanted this time in her life. Besides, most men she was a little interested in, more than often got intimidated by her being a doctor. More than a handful of them hated she made more money than them. They couldn’t handle the pressure of dating a professional woman and never called her out for a second date.
On those rare occasions, the men who did call her back only wanted her to buy them things or use her for networking; because those guys with the powerful jobs only wanted to move up even more within their circle of friends. They weren’t the slight bit interested in becoming involved with a woman who was their equal or to some extent more successful than they were.
For the time being Shauntie was done with dating. All she thought about these days was working and helping her clients that needed improvement to their failing eyesight. Why should she mess up her uncomplicated life now with complications? She had come to terms with the fact she might be single for the rest of her life and she was beginning to accept it. Now, Emerald had to bring up finding a man tonight and she wouldn’t let it go until she got her point across.
Emerald’s looks fitted her spunky personality from her short black hair, curvy body, cat-like eyes and her light mocha skin topped off by the a beauty mark on the right side of her cheek. Shauntie didn’t understand why her girlfriend was in search of a man.
Her friend was truly stunning and most men would love to date her opinionated friend. Sometimes Emerald was a force to be reckoned with when she put her mind to something. However, those qualities were what made her so unique because she didn’t let anyone or anything stand in her way.
Shauntie constantly thought of herself as a take charge kind of woman, but Emerald had both her and Sapphire beat when it came to getting what she yearned for. Anytime she got an idea inside of her head, Emerald didn’t release it until she achieved it and it didn’t matter how long it might take her. Emerald would get it sooner or later. Glancing to her left, Shauntie watched from the corner of her eye, her other best friend, Sapphire Rhodes play with her bottle of beer. She and Sapphire had formed a friendship in the ninth grade and it had only grown stronger over the years. Sapphire was the polar opposite of Emerald when it came to looks. She was tall, thin and so perfect that she could have made millions being a runway model; however, instead of a flashy career with a lot of fans and women craving to be her Sapphire decided her chosen career path was to become a dentist. Ever since she could remember back to her teenage years, Sapphire always dreamt and talked about going into a giving profession, so she could help people who were less fortunate than her.
Many people instantly misjudged Sapphire because of her stunning looks and thought she had a snobby attitude. However, she was so gentle and sweet which gave her the personality she needed to make a perfect and understanding dentist.
“Shauntie, what do you think about my idea?” Emerald asked, staring at her with a hopeful look on her face.
“What idea?” Shauntie inquired, confused. What had she missed?
“Shauntie, will you stop daydreaming and pay attention. You missed a good conversation. I was telling Sapphire how professional men aren’t very comfortable with us being in the same league as them. The more I’ve dated them, the more clearly this plan of mine started to form in my head. Why shouldn’t we try something new and different?”
“Are you really serious about dating a working man? Do you know any men who don’t work sixteen hour days? I’ve never seen you date a man who wasn’t at least a partner or working his way towards that goal. Can you tell me the last time you dated a plumber or window washer?” Shauntie knew that Emerald wouldn’t be able to give her an answer.
Emerald probably couldn’t count them on one hand. Her girlfriend only dated attractive and rich men who drove Jaguars, not dump trucks. She wouldn’t last two days with a man who couldn’t take her out to a fancy meal.
Why was she trying to change her ways now? Emerald had been fine up to now doing what she was doing.
“No, I can’t.” Emerald snapped, glaring at her. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t change my ways and date a nice guy who isn’t more interested in his stock broker than me when we’re out on a romantic date. Sapphire is just as tired as I am with dating money bags men too. That’s why she agreed to go along with my plan.”
Plan...what plan was Emerald talking about? One of her friends should fill her in on what was going on and fast. Shauntie wasn’t in the mood to listen to any more of this craziness. She could have stayed at home and debated where she was going to place her Christmas tree this year.
“You do know that you’re something without a man at your side?” she asked, looking at both Sapphire and Emerald. “Sure, it’s wonderful to have someone to talk about your day with when you come home from work but if I don’t have it I won’t feel like less than a woman.
“Sapphire, I don’t even know what you are agreeing to but I don’t think you should do it. You know how you are about things. You love jumping in feet first and then you change your mind at the snap of a finger.”
“Shauntie, before you shoot my plan down, at least let me explain it to you. I mean it’s really good and you’re going to love it.” Emerald grinned at her from across the table which was usually a very bad sign.
Lord, what was about to come out of her friend’s mouth.
“See, this plan is going to be foolproof because all of us will get everything we want. I swear you’re going to love it. Sapphire and I decided to find our ‘perfect hardworking man’ before our favorite holidays. Sapphire’s is New Years’ Eve, mine is Valentine’s Day and yours is Christmas which means you better get your butt moving if you want to find your man.”
Get her moving? Hold on a damn minute! She’d never agreed to anything like this? She wasn’t looking for anyone at all.
“I never agreed to do this with the two of you,” Shauntie pointed out. “I’m fine just the way I am. Don’t include me in this crazy plan of yours.”
Out of the three of them, Shauntie knew she had to be sensible person and not jump into this without thinking it through. She wanted more than a hot body in her bed. She’d vowed to herself never to go down that path again. She’d learned her lesson once and she wasn’t about to make that mistake again...not in this lifetime.
“Sapphire, are you truly serious about doing this with Emerald? Come on. You know how crazy this sounds?”
Sapphire shrugged as she pushed her untouched beer away. “I think it might be fun. For once we can be the ones hunting down a man. Emerald didn’t say we had to marry the guys by our favorite holidays, only get them in our lives. What’s the big deal?
“We only want to have a good time. I’m only twenty-eight years old and I’ve spent over half my life in school. Don’t you think it’s about time we get to have some fun? Why not try to find a sexy man to spend our favorite holidays with?”
The passion in her friend’s voice shocked the hell out of her. Sapphire was usually so laid back and reserved. Shauntie was truly speechless. She couldn’t believe Sapphire could have forgotten about him. Her best friend knew about her last bad relationship with J.T. and yet she was ready to toss her back out there to the wolves.
After everything that happened to her, she thought Sapphire would understand why she wasn’t interested in getting back out there into the dating pool. Well, it didn’t matter at all to her if Emerald and Sapphire wanted to go out man hunting. It wasn’t any of her business, but her participation shouldn’t have been assumed.
“Girls, I’m sorry. I don’t have any right to judge either one of you” Shauntie wanted to get off the topic and on to something else. She didn’t need the memories of J.T. and how badly things ended between them rushing back to her. Not after she’d spent so much time getting the asshole out of her head. “Have fun looking for your men, but I’m not going to participate.”
“Why are you always the fun police?” Emerald complained, leaning across the table. “Anytime I think of something fun and creative for us to do you constantly, and I do mean constantly, find ways to shoot everything down within minutes of the words leaving my mouth. I’m tired of it.”
“Yeah, me too,” Sapphire chimed in, shocking Shauntie causing her eyes to dart over to her friend she had known for the longest. She never thought Sapphire would jump on Emerald’s side so quickly against her.
After the stabbing insults, Shauntie swallowed hard trying not to reveal her anger but more importantly her hurt. Why had she even come here tonight? She might as well go home and enjoy her own company because she wasn’t going to stay here with her ‘so-called’ best friends and continue to get insulted.
Digging inside of her purse, Shauntie grabbed some money for her drink and then tossed it down on the table. “There’s my money for my drink. I’m leaving since the fun police is ruining everyone’s night,” she complained as she got up from the table.
Shauntie saw Sapphire and Emerald’s eyes widen from shock, but before either one of them could utter one word she stormed away from the table leaving them there to go over their plan. Hell, she would rather grab something to eat from a drive-thru and then climb into bed with a good book. Anything sounded better to her than spending another minute with Sapphire and Emerald after the way they ganged up on her. .
“Shauntie, don’t leave. We’re sorry. Sapphire and I don’t really think of you as the fun police. This is our night. Please come back and let us apologize,” Emerald hollered after her, but she just ignored them and kept walking. The thoughts of being home sounded better and better the closer she got to the door.
Chapter Two
Driving his black pickup truck up the circular driveway, Nash Wentworth admired the three- storey Victorian house that resembled something out of an Architectural Digest magazine.
Was he really at the right place?
He had worked on expensive houses before but none of them at this level. Late last night his little sister had called him waking him up out of a damn good dream to give him a referral for a new possibility for his roofing business.
Nash wasn’t about to lose a potential job opportunity, so he had gotten out of bed and dug out a pen and paper jotting down the information. However, Nash never thought the house he would be checking out this morning would be located in the part of town only the well-privileged and ultra snobby could afford.
He and his buddies constantly joked about getting called to do a job out at one of these houses in the ‘elite’ neighborhoods and here he was. Nash couldn’t wait until he told his friends about this over their Friday night beers at Pepper’s a local nightclub they loved going to after a long week at work.
This weekend at the bar Nash knew he was going to have a better story than Brian or Chance. So, they better be ready to pay up with a lot of beer and BBQ Sluggers. He was so energized about this job and the bragging rights he would get from it. Nash almost wished it was Friday instead of Thursday, but he was a patient man. He could wait until tomorrow night. This was so good he would definitely win the-most-exciting-thing-to-happen-that-week contest they had going each other.
Most of the people in this neighborhood probably thought they were so much better than him, but it wasn’t true. It didn’t matter if he worked with his hands every day; he was just as good as them. His money was green just like theirs.
Taking off his sunglasses, Nash tossed them on the passenger seat in his truck and ran his hand over his hair. Over the years, he’d found out rather quickly that possible clients liked it better when they could see into his eyes. One client had informed him anytime when he wore his sunglasses; he came off as a little intimidating because it came across like he was trying to get something over on them.
With the way the economy was going, he couldn’t afford to lose one client with the bills he had to pay. So, he left his sunglasses inside the truck anytime he was dealing with someone new. Starting up and running his own business took a lot of capital and if he was lucky enough to get this new client, it would put him over the top for the rest of the year.
Usually when his sister gave him a new referral, it usually came from one of her co-workers and everything always turned out perfectly. This job was the first job he got from her that involved someone outside of her workplace. Sitting inside of his work truck, Nash took in the scenery surrounding him from the perfectly manicured lawn to the nicely planted flowerbed at the end of the house.
A slight movement at the edge of the yard caught Nash’s eye making him sit up straight in his seat. Who in the hell was she? Did she work for Mrs. Kane?
He couldn’t believe what was right in front of his face. The most perfectly round ass he ever had seen in his life was stuck up in the air and was attached to a woman who was planting flowers in a small section of dirt by the front window.
A pair of dark blue jeans hugged the woman’s lower body like they were almost painted on making his mouth water at the gorgeous sight. He loved a nice curvy behind on a female.
Nash had been an ass man since he’d turned thirteen years old when he started taking notice of a girl’s body. Most of his friends either liked breasts or legs, but not him. He loved when a woman had a little extra in the ass department and this female had more than plenty to fill his hands as he made love to her.
If she looked this good from behind than how good did she look from the front, Nash wondered to himself. Luckily, his wish got granted a few minutes later when she stood up and brushed the dirt from her hands and the sight of her luscious body made all of the air rush from his body.
The upper part of her body was just as stunning as the rest. Firm, high breasts pressed against the front of her shirt which was tucked inside of her jeans showing off her small waist and womanly hips. If his father was still alive, he would say this woman was built like a Coke bottle.
Nothing was out of place.
Unfortunately, Nash couldn’t see much of her face or hair because of her sunglasses and big, brown floppy sunhat. His curiosity was piqued about how soon he would be able to see her face and if it would match the rest of her killer body
Nash knew he would love to stay inside his truck and stare at the vision before him, but sadly he couldn’t. Undoubtedly his client was probably inside right now peeking at him through the blinds wondering why in the hell his ass was still sitting inside of his work truck instead of at her front door. He couldn’t afford to piss off this new client before he got a chance to introduce himself or check out the job.
Hopefully, the mystery woman who was planting flowers would still be around when he left since he was considering asking her out for a cup of coffee after he was done here. As long as she didn’t blow him off anything she might agree to would be fine with him.
Getting out of the truck, Nash stood by the hood wondering what he should do. He stole a glance towards the house and then back at the woman who had resumed her original position of planting flowers.
A thought suddenly crossed Nash’s mind. What if she wasn’t here when he came back out? He wasn’t sure how long it would take to survey the roof damage to this house. He might miss out on his only opportunity to find out who she was and ask her out on a date. As much as he was dying to land this job and add it to his business he couldn’t take the chance she might actually be gone when he came back outside.
Hell, Nash knew he was extremely good at his job and possessed the credentials to prove it, so, his client could wait a few more minutes for him.
Sauntering across the freshly cut grass, Nash made his way towards the woman who caught his attention the second he pulled up in the driveway. The closer he got to her; he began to wonder why she hadn’t turned her head and looked at him.
Didn’t she hear him coming right at her? Nash got the answer to his question when he got a little closer to her. He noticed ear plugs in her ear. She was listening to music, and singing along. Nash didn’t recognize the song.
Nash didn’t want to scare her by touching her on the shoulder or back, so he decided to yell loud enough hoping she would hear him over the music. It was the best idea that he could come up with for the moment.
“Excuse me miss,” he yelled, but got no answer
Inching closer to her, Nash tried to grab her attention away from her task a second time. He was almost directly at her side and he called out to her again. “Miss, can you hear me?” He hollered louder this time. The woman screamed and practically leaped off the ground before her head swung in his direction.
“My God, you scared the hell out of me,” she snapped, standing up pulling the earplugs out of her ears.
The smoky quality of her voice rushed instantly to Nash’s cock giving him a semi-erection in seconds. Shit! Her voice was what hot, steamy nights filled with hours of sex was made for. Now Nash was dying even more to see her eyes. He wondered if they matched the smooth toffee complexion of her skin.
Nash wasn’t the kind of man to discriminate when it came to the opposite sex. He loved all types of women. Having a type never entered his mind. If he was drawn to a female then he would ask her out and see where things moved after their first date.
This woman was totally on his road to the first date status he loved so much. He could find out so much from a first date. Sometimes things worked out and sometimes they didn’t, but he never let that stop him from approaching an attractive woman when he saw one.
“I’m sorry,” Nash apologized with a quick smile. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I only wanted to know if you knew if Ms. Kane was home. I’m here to check out her leaking roof.”
Great job! Ask about your client first before you try to get a date with the hot woman in front of you. He really should pat himself on the back for that move.
“I’m Dr. Shauntie Kane,” she answered, shocking him. “I should apologize to you for not being ready to see you. My friend Sapphire left me a message on my answering machine. She told me you’d be coming by this morning and I totally allowed the time to get away from me”.
Nash couldn’t believe his bad luck.
The sexy woman he had been lusting after and wanted to ask out for a cup of coffee was his new client. He was totally shocked that Dr. Kane was outside doing her own landscaping instead of paying someone else to do it for her.
He never thought any woman who lived in this area of town would be caught dead down on her hands and knees getting one with nature, especially when she looked like Shauntie. But only a few minutes ago he’d witnessed her with her hands buried in the ground.
Nash was even more intrigued by Shauntie now than before. Something about her just made him feel like he should get to know her better.
“Sir, can you give me your name again?” Shauntie asked, removing her sunglasses. “Sapphire told me but I forgot.”
The second Shauntie’s eyes were revealed and then connected with his, who she was hit him like a ton of bricks. He couldn’t believe it. There was no way this was possible. Not after all of this time. Could he actually get this lucky and she was really standing in front of him?
It was her!
Everything around him stopped as Nash stared into the eyes of the woman he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with. He never thought he would ever see her again in his life. He had spent weeks trying to find her, but he never could and now here she was right within touching distance of her.
She’d never given him the time of day because she was involved with the asshole he worked with on a construction job. He seriously doubted that Shauntie ever knew he even had feelings for her because she only had tunnel vision for J.T.
Her large brown eyes were so dark that they almost looked black. They held an inviting gleam that no make-up could improve in his humble opinion. If Nash’s thoughts were drawn to Shauntie before, he knew he wanted to find out more about her even more now. With eyes like those, he could spend hours just looking at Shauntie while trying to figure out what she was thinking.
For months, he’d stood at the sidelines and watched in pure agony as Shauntie made one of the biggest mistakes of her life by dating his shithead of a co-worker, but he never got a chance to warn her about J.T. She never knew how that idiot was only using her until it was too late.
Nash lost count of how many times he had gone home after a hard day’s work and spent countless nights dreaming about being with her. God, how many times did he tell her good morning as she walked to work only to have her completely ignore him?
Now, it was his time to finally get Shauntie to notice him. Nash was going to do everything in his power to get a date with her. He wasn’t a big believer in fate or second chances, but after running into Shauntie again he might have to change his mind. This was too good of an opportunity to let pass him by.
Shauntie probably still didn’t even remember him and that was fine with him for the moment. All that mattered to Nash was he remembered her and how that one particular black skirt hugged her tight ass every time she walked past the construction site on her way to work. Back then, she was his dream woman and honestly, there hadn’t been another woman in his life to change his mind.
Shauntie was so unbelievable to him in so many ways. He couldn’t wait until he finally got to show her how much better of a man he was than J.T. Nash only hoped that she wasn’t already involved with someone. He took a peek down at her ring finger and noticed it was bare. The sight gave him hope that Shauntie was single and he might have a chance with her.
“Nash Wentworth,” he finally answered when he noticed Shauntie frowning at him. God, how long had he been standing there staring at her? Get it together man! He was going to ruin things before he even had a chance to get them out of the gate.
Titling her head to the side, Shauntie watched him for a few minutes. “Is that really your name?” she asked, surprised.
What was wrong with his name? Actually, he was quite fond of it.
“Yes, why?”
“With a name like Nash Wentworth, it seems like you should be playing golf at a country club instead of working on a leaking roof in the hot sun. At least, you should be the star in an old black and white Hollywood movie.”
Laughing at Shauntie’s comment, Nash realized she was actually right. He did have one of those names, but he wasn’t part of that crowd of people and truthfully, their lifestyles weren’t for him. Instead of getting close to all of those self-absorbed people, he only had his mind on learning about one woman...and she was standing directly in front of him.
“I do get that comment a lot,” Nash admitted. “How about you show me where your leak is? I’ll see what I can do for you. Hopefully, it will be an easy fix.”
“You’re right,” Shauntie agreed. “I should have shown you sooner. I hope you’re ready for the worst leak you might have ever laid your eyes on.”
“I’m ready for anything you have to show me,” Nash said. He liked how Shauntie’s eyebrow arched over her gorgeous eyes, but she didn’t comment. Instead, she walked around him and headed towards her front door.
Smiling to himself, Nash followed behind Shauntie loving how the jeans hugged her full ass even more when she moved. Oh....this job was going to be very exciting. The view of her flawless body was even better than he recalled from the past. He only hoped the leak would take a while to fix, so he could be around Shauntie longer than she expected.
Chapter Three
Shauntie hurried towards the front porch of her house trying to ignore the feel of Nash Wentworth’s jade eyes on her ass. When she looked up and saw him towering over her, all muscular and sizzling hot, she almost fell backwards in the dirt and all over her precious flowers. Why did he have to come to her house? She thought men like him didn’t exist in the world anymore. He was ideal in all the places a man should be.
Did Sapphire send Nash over here to prove a point to her? He was the type of guy she loved dating years ago when she hadn’t known any better. However, she had matured over the years and so had her taste in men. They had gotten better.
Or at least she thought her judgment might have progressed until she saw Nash Wentworth standing not twenty feet from her...looking so fine with the sun shining down on his dark hair and rippling muscles.
Over the years, Shauntie made a point to stop dating men who got her body going just from one sexy come hither look. Why should she still give them a chance with her? Nothing good ever came from it. So, Sapphire and Emerald’s plan seemed a little ridiculous to her. They might be intrigued by seeing their little brainstorm to the end, but she already knew the ending to this particular story so there was no need for her to reread the book.
Shauntie wasn’t about to allow her friends to force her into taking a step back in her life. Her interest in dating a man not in the same social circle as her ended the second she had her heart ripped out by her ex-boyfriend. The bitter pill she’d had to swallow was hard and painful. All the time they had spent together wasn’t because he was falling in love with her, but because he loved her money.
Shauntie knew one thing for sure. She wouldn’t dare allow herself to go down the same slippery road with this Nash Wentworth guy.
Sure, keep telling yourself that lie, her mind taunted. Shauntie pushed the wayward thought to the back of her head and refocused her attention on Nash. He was here to take care of her problem. He didn’t come all the way to her house for her to lose her cool and drool all over him. No matter how smoking hot he looked in those tight jeans and the black shirt.
“Come on in,” Shauntie said, holding open the door for Nash.
“Thank you.” As Nash placed his hand on the door, his hand accidentally brushed hers.
The second their hands touched Shauntie instantly felt a jolt of awareness shoot through her body. The shock was so powerful that it almost stole her breath away, but she decided to pretend it never happened. She wasn’t looking for a man and especially not one named Nash Wentworth. What was going on with her? She had been around good-looking men before and not had that kind of reaction to any of them.
“Mr. Wentworth, why don’t you follow me so I can show you where my problem is?” God, why did his name have to be as appealing as the rest of his rippling package?
“I’ll be more than happy to follow you,” Nash replied, smiling at her making his eyes light up.
Shit! Nash’s sex appeal was powerful. Shauntie knew right then and there she would have to stay on her toes so as not to fall under his charismatic spell.
“The leak is inside my kitchen,” Shauntie said as she went around Nash’s large body. “I thought it had stopped, but the leak came back stronger than before during the huge rainstorm we had the other day. I was going to put off calling a roofer and having the issue checked out for a little longer until Sapphire told me she knew an excellent roofer that she could recommend coming over and checking it out for me.”
“I’m glad Sapphire told you about me,” Nash said, behind her, his voice sending jolts of awareness down her spine. “I hope I can take care of your needs.”
“Here’s the problem.” Shauntie stopped by the half-full bucket on the kitchen table. Turning around, she ran into the middle of Nash’s hard chest not realizing how close he was behind her.
Instantly, his strong hands gripped her upper arms holding her in place. “Are you okay?” his rich voice asked as his hypnotic green eyes searched her face. “I apologize. I shouldn’t have been so close to you.”
Shauntie could barely pay attention to any of the words coming out of Nash’s mouth. She was too caught up in how good it felt to be this close to a real man. Most of the men she had been dating in the past spent too much time behind a desk to even think about walking through the doors of a gym.
Honestly, her ex-boyfriends wouldn’t be able to find the local YMCA if she gave them a map and circled the area with a red pen. Nash probably got in this amazing shape from working with his hands that he never bothered filling out a gym membership. Why should Nash bother when his physique was more perfect than a seasoned body builder? She’d heard of men having zero body fat, but this was the first time she had ever been lucky enough to be this close to someone it applied to. A body like his came from hard manual labor and not pumping air at the gym. There was a difference.
“I’m fine,” Shauntie answered when she finally got herself together. Placing her hands on Nash’s chest, she eased away from him trying not to get lost and moan at how incredible he felt beneath her hands.
“Okay, if you’re sure.” Nash eyed her like he didn’t quite believe her, but he let it go.
“What do you think could be wrong with my roof?” Water continued to drip into the bucket as Shauntie stood next to Nash. She had hoped the leak might have stopped overnight but it was still going at it when she came downstairs this morning.
“Dr. Kane─”
“Shauntie,” she quickly corrected.
“Shauntie,” Nash repeated in his do me voice sending another pool of moisture into her already damp panties.
Whoa! Shauntie fought down the temptation that Nash was throwing in her face. She didn’t have time for this and certainly not with him. What woman in her right mind would be this attracted to a man she had just met?
“Do you think my leak will be an easy fix?” Shauntie questioned, trying to get the subject back on track.
“Truthfully, a leaking roof can become a homeowner’s worst nightmare. A number of things can be wrong from flashing problems, gutters and lastly flaws in the roofing material itself.
“With a slate or tile roof if either one is missing or broken, it will easily lead to a leak. Now, with a tile roof if the underlayment is old or just worn out a leak could pop up. Also, storm damage is another thing that might make a leak happen over time.”
Shauntie hoped the leak would be a simple fix, but now after hearing Nash explain it to her, it might be a number of problems causing the damn leak. Shit! She hated this had happened to her right now. She was already overbooked with patients and wasn’t in the mood to deal with this personal problem.
“How long do you think it might take to determine the cause?” she asked, wondering if she would have to take some time off from work to get this figured out.
“I don’t want to give you a time frame until I get up there and look around. Give me about forty-five minutes and I’ll tell you what I found,” Nash told her.
Shauntie was beginning to get worried about how long it might take Nash to get the job completed. After hearing all the different causes it might be, she knew the drip couldn’t stay. Or it would definitely end up ruining the rest of her house. So, now all she was concerned about was the time frame and of course cost.
“Alright, you can take a look at the situation and then I can meet you outside.”
“Sounds like a plan to me. Let me get my ladder off the back of my truck and I’ll go up there and poke around. Hopefully, it will be an easy fix like you want.” Nash smiled at her then turned around and headed for the front door. A few minutes later Shauntie heard as it opened and closed behind him.
Taking the sunhat off her head, Shauntie tossed it on the counter and ran her fingers through her hair. She wasn’t only worried about the cost of fixing the roof. Another concern was heavy on her mind too that involved her new roofer...her surprise attraction to him. Nash had this pull about him that was hard for her to pretend wasn’t there.
Could she be around Nash for a long period of time without becoming more fascinated by him than she already was? Shauntie knew Sapphire sent Nash to her house on purpose and she was going to call her on it, but after she had a chance to change out of these gardening clothes.
Why should she and Nash both smell like sweat?
Chapter Four
“Sapphire, I know you sent him over here just to rile me up,” Shauntie accused as she peeked at Nash Wentworth outside her kitchen window. “Don’t you dare lie and tell me that you didn’t!” Damn, she didn’t know a man could have that many muscles on his body.
“Shauntie, I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. You wanted a roofer to check out your leak and I found one for you. Nash comes highly recommended and I’m friends with his sister. He knows his job. I wouldn’t have sent him to your house if he didn’t. Why are you so upset?” Sapphire questioned, innocently.
“Don’t play dumb with me. You know that he’s hot!” Shauntie tossed back not falling for Sapphire’s pitiful denial. “I have eyes. I can’t deny Nash is very, and I mean very, good-looking.”
Shauntie cringed when Sapphire’s soft laugh touched her ear. “So, you’re saying that you could date a man like him again after the way J.T. treated you? I always thought you were too good for that loser. He just seemed a little over eager to me. I should have spoken up sooner about him. If Nash was my type I would be after him in a heartbeat, but you know I like my men to be a little less muscular.”
Of course, Nash wasn’t the kind of guy Sapphire would date. He was way too big for her best friend, but Sapphire knew he would turn her head and get her panties wet.
“I don’t blame you for not telling me about J.T. If you had, I probably wouldn’t have listened to you in the first place. However, I’m not going to fall for your trick. I have better things to do with my time than go along with Emerald’s crazy plan,” Shauntie tossed back. “I can’t believe you’re actually a part of it.”
Sure, you do. Stop lying to yourself and admit you find Nash hotter than a summer day, her mind taunted.
Sapphire’s soft voice laughed at her again making her regret even calling her best friend in the first place. “Sweetie, I only sent Nash over to your house to fix your roof. I swear I had no ulterior motive. Yet, you seem like you’re interested in Nash fixing something more than your roof. If I remember correctly you haven’t had a boyfriend or a serious relationship since your favorite show ‘Will & Grace’ went off the air.