Join these authors on Facebook!

MonaVie Drink It ~ Feel It ~ Share It Change your life today!

CODE NAME: BIKINI
by Christina Skye
ISBN: 9780373772094  

ORDER THIS BOOK! 
(this link opens a new browser window)

Ex-cop Gina Ryan traded in her Smith & Wesson to follow a dream. Now she's creating decadent desserts aboard a luxury cruise ship in the Caribbean. But a gorgeous passenger is about to send her perfect world up in smoke.—

Trace O'Halloran is a hard-edged navy SEAL, under strict orders to take some high seas R & R. There's a shipload of women in bikinis eager to help him unwind, so why can't he take his mind off the stubborn pastry chef with an attitude the size of Montana?

When a dangerous assassin from Trace's past appears, Gina and Trace must join forces to save the ship's guests. The clock's ticking, and they'll need every weapon at hand— from body armor to chocolate ganache!

CHAPTER ONE

 “Someone’s targeting you.  Do you want to roll over and play dead or fight back?”

“You’re really into this stuff, aren’t you?”  Gina shivered a little. 

“It’s what I am.  What I do,” Trace said flatly.

Gina heard the edge in his voice.  “I think I’ve heard enough.”

“Since you asked for suggestions, you get the whole enchilada.”  The SEAL’s eyes narrowed.  “I’d say there’s someone inside passing information to your competition.  It may be someone very close to you.”

She shivered a little in the wind and then felt Trace’s linen sport coat slide around her shoulders.  Still warm with the heat of his body, it enveloped her in the energy of the man in a way that was palpably intimate.  She caught the smell of citrus and leather. 

  The faint male scent of him.

Here, she thought blindly.  Here was the need, like rain after months of dry days.

Here was the hunger, sprouting through urgent, parched earth.

Because she wanted to touch his hard jaw, she closed her hands and turned away.  Forgotten on a deck chair, a paperback book shot across the deck.  Carried by the wind, it struck her ankle.

She stumbled, wincing.  “That story packed a real punch.  It was one plot I didn’t see coming.”

Trace picked up the book and shook his head.  “Another military author writing about war when he’s never been farther than Arlington and the beltway.”

“That bothers you?”

Trace tossed the paperback one hand to the other.   “If I had my way, I’d choose fairness.  Since fairness usually isn’t an option, I’ll settle for accuracy.”

Gina raised an eyebrow.  “Uh-oh.  Is that a chip I see on your shoulder, Lt. O’Halloran?”

“Yes, ma’am.  I’m told that I have a definite chip in residence.  Of course, it’s been there so long I wouldn’t know what to do without it.”  He pulled his jacket tighter across her shoulders as the wind picked up.  In the process, his hand grazed her breast.

Gina shivered.  Neither moved, struck by an aching awareness that made them feel alone beneath twilight sky and racing waves.  Caught in a racing shimmer of nerve and need, she would have done anything to feel more.

But he had warned her clearly.  He was tough and temporary.  She’d seen enough to know that he was a professional who got the job done, no matter the risks or the odds.  That kind of man would never get too close, and he’d walk away without a backward glance.

So why did she suddenly want to be pulled against that rugged body, to lose herself in the anonymous crush of his strong arms?

Because strangers didn’t ask questions.  A man like this would have no expectations of a shared future.   He wouldn’t press her or make demands.

Hot, detached sex.  Amazing, impersonal sex.  That’s what he’d want.

And right now that sounded wonderful to Gina.  She didn’t have time or energy to play games, explore his interests and build a gradual relationship.  All she had was now.

So instead of moving away, the way she had planned, she leaned in closer, surprising herself as much as him when she felt her breast meet his open palm.

His mouth tightened.  “What are you doing?” he said roughly.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“Obvious enough.  But why?”  He looked down at his hand, fingers open, unmoving against her blouse.  A muscle moved at his jaw.  “This isn’t you, Gina.  You’re a white-picket fence, three-and-a-half-kids kind of woman.”

“Was,” she said, feeling a little dizzy and a little frightened.  “I used to think I needed those things.   Now I know I don’t.”

“You don’t play fair, you know that?”  He took a harsh breath.  He seemed to use raw force of will to step away from her.  His hands rose slowly, settled at her shoulders and then tightened.  “What happened to make you change?”

Gina leaned into the wind, feeling it cut across her shoulders.  “I…grew up.  It happens to everyone, I’m told.”

His finger rose to cup her cheeks.  “Not if it means settling for less than you want.”

She watched him pull his jacket tighter around her, turning his back to block the wind.  “I’m not asking you for your life story.  So why are you questioning me?”

“Because this all feels… wrong.”  He frowned.  “Because you look tired and just a little wobbly.”

She was definitely feeling tired and more than a little unsteady on her feet.  She hadn’t been sleeping well, hadn’t been able to relax for weeks.

“So carry me back to your cabin.”  She linked her hands behind his neck and let herself soak up the heat of his body.   “Ply me with wine and talk me into bed.  You might get lucky tonight, Navy.”

He muttered beneath his breath.  “I’m not going to take advantage of you when you’re tired and distracted.”

“If I want this, it’s not taking advantage.”  What did a woman have to do to get seduced?

 “Want what, Gina?  Say the words.”  His voice fell.  “You want hard, impersonal, sweaty sex all night in my bed?  Lock the door, anything goes—you’re okay with that?”

She gripped his jacket, feeling her hands tremble, trying to hide her jolt of nerves.  She fought a wave of unsteadiness and raised her chin, defiant.  “I just said that, didn’t I?” 

“Yeah, you said it.  But I’m not buying.  Something’s going on.  Hell, you’re so cold you’re shaking.”

“Fine, you’re not interested.  Goodbye, adios, sayonara.”  She felt a little disoriented.   More than a little drunk, too, even though she’d had next to no wine.  “In that case, I’ll just find someone else.”  She blurted out the words, seeing the deck dim in the gathering darkness.  She swayed slightly, but pushed away his steadying hand.  “Don’t need any help.  You deliver a nice, clean brush off, Lieutenant.”

“This isn’t a brush off, damn it.”

The back of her head throbbed.  The pain was different from anything she’d had before.  When she moved, she felt slow and clumsy, like someone trying to push through Jello.  What was wrong with her?

“Look at me.”  The voice was too rough, too close.  He held her chin, staring at her face.  “How many fingers?”

“Fifty.”  She shoved at his hands.  “Go away.  You brushed me off, remember?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Don’t know.”  The words slurred just a little.  “C-cold, I think.  Maybe…flu.  Need to go.”   She stared around her, blinking.

Twilight had bled into night.  The sun was a thin line of gray in the west trapped by black water.

Rubbing her forehead, Gina tried to drive away the knife points of pain at her neck.  “Just for the record, this has been a really r-rotten date.  Probably my fault.”

She faced the wind, gripping his coat when the wind picked up.  “Your fault.  You asked all the questions, made the lame excuses.”   Things felt blurry,  and when Gina rubbed her forehead it felt like slow motion.  “Don’t feel so good.  In f-fact—“

He caught her as she fell.

ORDER THIS BOOK! 
(this link opens a new browser window)

More Previews

Special Offers for Authors on book promotion and web design

Join us on Facebook!

Get 2 BOOKS + a mystery gift  from  eHarlequin.com

 

AUTHORS

The Romance Club Home Page