Fans of Eloisa James & Julia Quinn discussion

When he strolled into the kitchen en route to Dallas and eyed the fried chicken sizzling in the cast iron skillet, he rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

“Hey,” he said.

Heroine jumped. “You scared me.”

“Sorry. Dinner about ready?”

“Yes.”

She forked the chicken off the skillet and set the pieces on a plate lined with paper towels. Hero carried the corn and potatoes over to the booth and sat down.

“We don’t play until tomorrow, so the band and the crew are going out tonight. Dallas has one of the best cowboy bars around. My manager rented it and has invited some locals. Come celebrate with us.”

Her eyes narrowed as she brought the chicken over to the booth. “I don’t know. I’m not really into the bar scene.”

While he wasn’t surprised, he wasn’t giving up. “Ah, come on. You need some fun.”

He didn’t think it was good for her to spend so much time alone. Hero reached for the chicken immediately. Swore at the heat. Blew on the piece hovering near his mouth and took a bite. The juices hit his taste buds, and the crunch of the breading was so succulent that he chewed slowly just to savor it.

“God, this is incredible.”

Heroine wiped her hands on her apron. “Glad you like it.”

“You got any cornbread?”

“No, I have buttermilk biscuits in the oven.”

His gaze traveled over her slim behind as she opened the stove and bent over to take them out. Well, he didn’t want to bribe her, but he wasn’t throwing in the towel just yet.

“I looked up that thing you study.” He almost laughed—he knew perfectly well what she was studying, but he was so used to playing the fool that it came more naturally sometimes. “Cultural anthropology. This bar is gonna fascinate you. It’s all about social customs and culture.”

“I’ll bet,” she said, and he could almost hear her rolling her eyes. The potatoes made him groan when he tried them, and that familiar sense of peace spread through him. He couldn’t say why, but eating her food made him feel at home—a place he’d never felt off stage other than at home.

“Hey, watch it over there. You’re sounding a little hot and bothered.”

He made a humming noise. “Honey, I am hot. For your food. What’d you put on the corn?”

“Cajun seasoning. You strike me as someone who likes spice, despite the whole rib incident. Now, what were you saying?”

Right, what was he saying? “The bar, Cowboys Red River, has a mechanical bull. We all take turns riding it. Men and women. The one that lasts the longest gets a special reward.”

Heroine’s mouth parted, but she edged closer, setting a plate of steaming biscuits on the table. “A mechanical bull? So what’s the prize?”

“Well, for the men it’s a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black. The prize for the ladies hasn’t changed since my first tour.”

“And that would be?”

His all-time favorite. “A kiss from me.”

Her sexy lips curled into a frown. “That seems like a raw deal compared to the Johnnie.”

He wiped his mouth with a napkin. “You’ve never kissed me before. Trust me. The men are getting the raw deal.” And wouldn’t he love to prove that now? But he wouldn’t. He liked her and respected her. Plus, she was his cook, and he didn’t want to mess that up. Even if she was proving more tempting than expected.

She shoved her hands into her apron pockets, her eyes fairly dancing. “You could always kiss them, too.”

Hero chuckled. Wasn’t she cute, smirking in her white apron? “You have to see the bull. It’s pretty funny watching people trying to hang on.”

Heroine just smiled as she fixed herself a plate. Even though he’d told her she could eat with him, she’d declined. So far he hadn’t pushed. “All right then. Sounds educational. Leave the plates out when you’re done. I’ll clean up later.”

As she left with her food, Hero bit into a biscuit and moaned. If he were a marrying man, he might be tempted to get hitched to Heroine just to keep her feeding him for the rest of his life. But he wasn’t ever getting married. Was never planning on letting another woman have the chance to control and manipulate him day in and day out like his mama did to his daddy, and to him growing up. And Heroine was definitely the settle-down type. They’d just have to be friends, and wasn’t that a first for him with a woman?

***

Hours later, after admitting defeat when Hero wouldn’t end his campaign for her to join the festivities, she was leaning against a wooden beam in the dark, smoky Cowboys Red River bar. Hero stood at the entrance to the ring with Hero’s friend, who was in charge of the stopwatch and writing down the final time per rider.

As she was weaving her way through the crowd, a hand grabbed her arm. When she looked over her shoulder, Hero tipped back his black Stetson. “Your turn, honey.”

Stuck, her eyes swept to the ring as another woman took a dive off the bull. “Not in a million years,” she told Hero.

His hazel eyes twinkled, even in the dim light of the bar. “Come on. I promised you some fun. Riding a bull is something everyone needs to check off their bucket list.”

The music changed to something twangy, and she had to raise her voice to be heard. “I don’t have one.”

“Well, you should.”

A lush blond appeared at Hero’s side. “What are you doing with her, Hero?” The distasteful once-over she gave Heroine made Heroine straighten her spine. Okay, so she didn’t want to be like Hero’s bimbo fans, but being found wanting because of it ticked her off. “Come back and party with us,” the woman pleaded, sliding her hand up Hero’s chest. “Hero’s friend’s almost ready to announce the winner. I think I might be the lucky girl tonight.”

“I’ll find you in a minute, Blondie,” he countered, not paying any attention to her hand tickling the skin above his collar. “I’m trying to talk Heroine here into giving the bull a ride.”

Blondie gave her another haughty glance, making Heroine feel like she was back in high school, being insulted by the popular girls. “This pathetic little thing, Hero? Why, I bet she couldn’t grip the bull for two seconds with those chicken legs.”

“Shut up, Blondie.” His hand stopped her exploration of his skin. “She’s a friend of mine.” And somehow, hearing him say that was all the incentive she needed. The woman’s insult to her legs was not going to be ignored.

“Okay, let’s give this a go then.” She strode forward, weaving around the women who surrounded the bull, wrinkling her nose as it was assaulted by a cloud of different perfumes. “Hero’s friend?” she called. He looked up from the clipboard. “Time me.”

“You’ve got it, honey,” he said and gave her a wink. Seconds later, the contraption tipped forward and started to rock. The bucking increased. Heroine’s thighs screamed, but she kept chanting a few more seconds, a few more seconds. Finally her grip slackened, and she went flying.

The breath whooshed out of her lungs when she hit the mat. She lay there for a second, stunned.

Hero was gaping at her.

Hero’s friend held out the stopwatch. “Seven seconds! Jesus, Heroine. You won!” She’d won? She couldn’t remember ever winning anything! She was looking around for Blondie to give the woman a smirk when she realized what winning meant. Oh no. A kiss from Hero Superstar. Her boss.

Hero grabbed the stopwatch from Hero’s friend’s hand. “You’re kidding me?” Yeah, he was probably thinking the same thing. Kissing her? It was totally off limits. He’d said so himself that night in Diner Heaven.

Hero’s friend slapped his white hat against his thigh. “Says right there. It’s a record. Maybe it’s because she’s such a little thing. We’ve got a winner,” he called out more loudly, pointing at her.

Protests started to pour in from the Cleavage Covey. Heroine gave them all a cheeky grin and a mock bow and then decided to hustle out of there. If she left, he wouldn’t have to kiss her. Be better all ‘round.

“Hey, sweetheart, you come back here.” Hero’s friend swung her around before she made it two steps. “You’re the winner. That means you get the prize.”

Her gaze flew to Hero. He stood against the bull pen, kicking at the black mats surrounding the beast. Yeah, he didn’t want to do this anymore than she did.

Heroine pulled away, her heart beating faster. “That’s okay, really. I don’t want the prize.”

“Don’t work that way, honey,” Hero’s friend said, dragging her forward while women continued to call her inventive names from the sidelines.

She pulled back. “You only want this for your PR campaign, admit it.”

He just laughed and continued pulling her along. “I’ve never seen a woman so hesitant to kiss you, Hero. Maybe it’ll teach you some humility.” His hands propelled her into Hero.

There was no smile or wicked gleam in his eyes when he pulled her to him. In fact, his face was totally blank.

“You’d better be careful, partner. She’d as soon bite you as kiss you.”

“Look, it’s just a kiss,” he murmured. Right. She was making too much of this, wasn’t she? But she hadn’t kissed a lot of men, so it didn’t seem insignificant to her.


“Fine,” she said. “Just do it.”

His mouth twitched at that. People whistled and screamed and heckled all around them. Her face grew hot. He lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. The touch was electric, and she jumped, bumping their noses together.

“Settle down,” he growled, caging her waist with his hands.

She started laughing, a strange impulse that seemed to come out of nowhere. “That had to be the worst kiss on the planet.” What had she been so worried about? Patting his chest, she took a step away.

His hands gripped her hips again and yanked her close. Her breath rushed out when she found herself pressed full length against his rock-hard body. Those hazel eyes gleamed down at her as they scanned her face. “Can’t have you impugning my reputation.” It was a pretty impressive word, she thought, and then he pressed her back a few steps until she hit the fence, throwing all thoughts aside. He yanked off his hat and threw it. Uh-oh. Laughing had been a bad idea.

“I didn’t mean—”

“Shut up,” he commanded and cupped her face, fitting his mouth to hers. Oh no. The intimacy of it stole her breath. His lips were soft, his body hard as he leaned against her, ducking at the knees to fit his pelvis against her own. A delicious spurt of desire flashed through her belly, and the surprise of it made her open her mouth.

His tongue swept lazily inside, engaging hers in a wicked dance. Her heart rapped against her ribs, and she became lost in sensation. His mouth. The hands tickling her waist, slipping under her T-shirt to stroke her skin. Her hands slid up his chest on instinct, as much to hold on as to touch him. A moan erupted from deep within her, and primal heat flooded her body.

The man kissed like he ate. With slow, determined, sensual enjoyment. No one had ever kissed her this way.

No one.

When he tugged on her bottom lip, ending the kiss, she leaned in instead of stepping away, caught up in the sensual storm he’d created. Hero indulged her, taking the kiss even deeper, giving her the connection she craved. His hands slid down her bottom, and the hard line of his desire brought her back to her senses. The crowd was shouting and laughing over the buzzing in her head, and a few people were pointing at them.

Camera flashes made her blink. Yeah, they probably couldn’t believe she was kissing the infamous Hero Superstar.

Realizing she was still clutching at Hero’s shirt like she had the bull, she pushed away. He staggered back, his mouth parted in surprise. Darting through the laughing hordes, she made her way to the front of the room.

When someone kissed women all the time, he was bound to be good at it. But it didn’t mean anything to him.

Even if it had rocked her world.

Sounds good. Definitely haven't read it.

Thanks for sharing :-) ♥

No idea, but it sounds fun!

Another to add to the want to read list! I have no idea what it is.

Haha sounds awesome!

I'm clueless on this one.

This sounded good, so I cheated... It's now on my TBR pile :)

I know I haven't read this one. I think I'd remember bull riding in a bar. At least I'm hoping I would! LOL

Hmmm. I think I might have read this. Must try to remember.

This is from Country Heaven by Ava Miles. It's the first in the Dare River series :)

Nope haven't read that. I will have to give it a look

Just added it. I haven't read a lot of romance with country music singers :-) ♥

I've heard of her but never read her. Thanks for the recommendation!

Manda wrote: "I've heard of her but never read her. Thanks for the recommendation!"

I just got it. It's free...which makes it even more appealing ;-)