Page 1 of Roses for Rosie

Chapter 1

Rosie

“Joseph runs his rough hands over my alabaster skin making me tremble with desire. I take a shaky breath in and let my head fall back, opening myself up to him. He pounces, moving his mouth to my throat and nibbling the tender skin there, his tongue licking the heat from my pounding pulse and devouring me whole. I am his to do with what he pleases. I am helpless under his spell.

“He lays me down gently on the bed, covering my body with his, dwarfing me under his muscular frame. The trail of kisses he leaves down my neck and between my breasts sears me to the core. My skin is on fire, tight with need.

“He looks deep into my eyes and reads the desire written on my face. When he looks at me like that, I am stripped bare of every inhibition. I forget the rules and let desire guide me. My hands tangle in his hair, pulling his mouth to mine. I part my lips, inviting him in. His tongue caresses mine in an intimate dance,” I read.

The rest of my book club sits in rapt attention, inhaling every word like they are starving. Some of us are. Starving for romance that is. The small town of Jamesville doesn’t offer much in the way of eligible men, especially not men who live up to the standards set by our favorite author, Adam Smythe.

“Should I continue?” I ask.

“If you do, George might get lucky tonight,” Susie responds, fanning herself with her copy of the book.

The rest of the group laughs. Susie’s husband, George, is a nice enough guy and they have been together forever. None of us believe for a second that he is capable of making her heart race the way Adam’s books do though.

“Where are the men like Joseph?” Joanne laments. “All the men I know are only interested in beer, football and afternoon naps with their hand down their pants. They wouldn’t know what to do with a beautiful woman if she stripped right down in front of them and begged for it.”

“Bumbling fools! They don’t have a romantic notion between the lot of them.”

“Ten minutes tops in my house. And I mean from the time he looks me up and down and says, ‘how about a little something, something?’ to the time he rolls off,” Susie adds.

“I bet he knows how to treat a woman,” I say, gazing at the image of the author printed on the book jacket. Ice blue eyes pierce my soul right through the camera lens. The contrast with his dark hair and trimmed beard is striking. How does his picture make me feel like he is staring right through my defenses and seeing the real me? The me I don’t let anyone but my very closest friends see.

“He couldn’t possibly write about it the way he does if he can’t do it,” Susie muses. “What do you think it would be like to take a tumble with him?”

We all dream our own private fantasies for a moment. Suddenly I’m transported to the penthouse suite of the Bellagio. Red rose petals are spread over silky sheets. Adam strides across the room in a tuxedo which was tailor made to fit him toward me dressed in a tiny red silk teddy and four-inch stilettos. There’s a predatory look in his eye, like he’s ready to eat me for dessert.

His gaze roams over my exposed skin, stopping at the cleavage spilling over the top of the teddy. He sheds his clothing as he advances. First, his jacket slips from his shoulders and falls to the floor. Then, he loosens his tie and tosses it onto a chair in one fluid motion. With one hand he unbuttons his shirt revealing more dark silky hair with each inch he exposes.

My breath catches in my throat. He’s even more stunning in person than he is in his author photo.

He finally reaches me and claims me for his own. His mouth covers mine possessively, his tongue explores my mouth and brands me as his. His hands move quickly from my shoulders, down my arms, to my lower back, finally sinking to grab the cheeks of my ass and pulling me toward him.

As soon as our bodies touch, I feel his desire pushing against my stomach. I fumble with his belt and let his pants fall to the floor before dropping to my knees to worship him. I take his hard length into my mouth as far as it will go as he sucks in a quick breath.

Power surges through me as I start to move, taking him deeper and then teasing him with my tongue as I release him momentarily before coming back for more. His fingers are digging into my shoulders, holding me closer.

He groans and empties himself as I lick my lips.

“Earth to Rosie,” Joanne calls from a distance.

I shake my head and return to the present, still licking my lips, flushed from my full-on fantasy. I feel the wetness between my legs and a pulsing need for contact. If Adam can do this to me from a hundred miles away, what would it be like to really be with him?

“Oh, um, right, what?” I reply, blushing to the roots of my hair.

“Anyone want to guess where Rosie just went?”

“It certainly wasn’t the children’s section,” Joanne answers, glancing over her shoulder across the bookstore to where we keep the board books and Harry Potter.

Working at Nooks and Books bookstore is the best job I have ever had. The owner, Vivian, is a dream to work for. She is one of my best friends and the best boss ever. But it’s more than that.

It’s the books, so many of them that I can’t even count them all. They beckon me to sit down in one of the soft cozy chairs in the middle of the store and read them. All of them. Romance, fantasy, mystery, thriller, historical fiction. I’m not picky, put a book in my hand and I’m lost.

It’s the cat, Sammy, who lives in the shop and suns himself in the window all day long. The only thing which can cajole him to move is the shifting patch of warmth which moves across the bay window as morning turns to afternoon. He’s ready to purr at the slightest touch and will let you pet him all day long.

It’s the town. Small town life isn’t for everyone, but I love it. I’ve lived here all my life and wouldn’t give it up for the world. Everyone knows everyone and you can’t walk a block through town without someone stopping to chat with you.

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