One
Cold Night
Fearless
3
Aliyah
Burke
Genre: Romantic suspense
Publisher: All Romance eBooks
Date of Publication: July 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-945193-09-5
Word Count: 50000
Cover Artist: Erin Dameron Hill
Book Description:
Heat sizzles during the winter…
John Prince has been undercover
for the ATF for over two years when his cover is blown. His rescuer comes in
the female form and goes by Leena. Their attraction is hot enough to melt the
snow outside but he has to wonder: are the ones who set him up for death still
after him?
Leena Parsons prefers dogs to
people. Regardless, she can’t leave the man she finds in an icy river to die,
so she takes him home. During their days and nights together, she learns about
the man betrayed by his own. She falls for him and when danger arrives again,
she puts herself in harm’s way to ensure that he isn’t killed.
He lied to her about his last
name, thrust her into danger, and yet through it all she stayed at his side.
When it is all over, will he be able to hold onto the woman who found him one
cold night?
Excerpt:
Leena shivered
and burrowed her hands further into the oversized men’s jacket, ducking her
head further below the upturned collar. The snow whipped around her, biting
exposed skin with a hungry ferocity.
“Come on, Argo,”
she muttered. “Unlike you, I don’t relish being out here.” Like he could see
her—or respond in words, she shrugged. “Not at night anyway. Especially at a
rest area.”
The winds
carried his deep bark to her and her shoulders sagged. I know what that means.
There would be no return trip to the van until she went to see what he wanted.
“Argo, hier!” she pitched her voice to carry over the wind and pelting snow.
She stomped her
feet, wishing once more she was back in the van and on the road, headed home.
The trip had been a long one, good, but long. From the darkness he appeared
like a rocket who’d locked in her trajectory, snow flew out from his bounding
strides. He executed a perfect sit before her as if there weren’t all that snow
under his ass.
“Good boy,” she
praised, before giving him her unique release command. “Wazzu.”
He barked again
and backed up now that he’d been released. His intentions plain. Her heart
broke for a moment; he looked so much like his father. Her heart dog. Another
bark followed by a spin and two bounces in the other direction.
“I’m coming. Two
legs, not four here.” She struck out after him, cursing as the land dipped down,
causing her to slide through the knee-deep snow. Her dog led her to a thick
copse of trees where he barked at a log, lying partially in the freezing river.
She brushed a
wet curl away from her face. “Seriously? You wanted me to see you bark at a
log? I should kill you. Let’s go.”
He ignored her
and stepped closer to the water. Her mouth dropped open when he grasped
something in his jaw and yanked. Shit, that’s a person.
She scrambled
over by Argo, driving him back with a single word. It was a man, the blowing
snow had partially covered him and his lower body still lay submerged in the
icy water.
“Shit.” She
shifted and bent to grasp him beneath his arms, then pulled. By the time she
got him free of the water, she was panting. He wasn’t small by any stretch. His
body riddled with burn marks, wounds, and absolutely no clothing.
Without thought,
she shrugged out of her coat and covered him. On her, it went past her calves.
On him, it barely hit his knees.
“What the fuck
happened to you?”
“Leave me,” he
rasped before he collapsed, completely unconscious.
“Sure, because I
was raised to leave half frozen naked men alone. I don’t suppose you’re just
pretending to be unconscious, are you?” Of course not. “Fuck me sideways, this
is going to suck.” She bent back down and got to the arduous task of moving him
to safety.
It took her
nearly twenty minutes to drag him up to her van that thankfully she’d parked
close to where she was coming up. The wind had picked up along with the snow,
making her all the more pleased to have Argo with her. The parking lot was
vacant on her end, everyone else having parked near the restrooms.
Per her norm,
she’d chosen an empty area so the dogs she travelled with wouldn’t be around
everyone. Especially when she let them stretch their legs. She paused, digging
in her pants pocket for her keys, then unlocked her van.
“This is how
serial killers get into your life, Leena. You bring them in.” She opened the
side door, immediately saying, “Blibe.” The three dogs there stayed as ordered
and she returned to the unconscious, still naked man lying in a heap.
Her own strength
waning, she grunted and groaned as she maneuvered him into the vehicle.
“Usually I’m having sex when I mutter and grunt this much. Or I think I do,
haven’t had any in a while so I’m not sure how it goes.”
Once inside the
van, she reached and closed out the cold once Argo had jumped in. At least
until he shook. Her dogs were interested in her newcomer but she moved them
aside as she took him to the bench seat converted to a bed in the back. She
reached around him and removed the jacket, doing her best to ignore his cock
that lay against his leg.
“Maybe you’re
not all cold.”
She drew back
the blankets and nearly lay him back but a moment of hesitation for the
injuries on his back were a problem that needed addressing. Reaching over him
to the rear of the van, she grabbed the first aid kit she always carried from
where it rested in its spot. Then set about cleaning his injuries.
“Someone sure
did a number on you, man.” Shallow cuts, deep cuts, burns, and more bruising
than she cared to think about. She worked swiftly to be able to get him under
the blankets.
More thoughts of
his cock filled her as she moved it aside to clean the gash on his inner thigh.
Thoughts she brushed away.
He groaned as
she lay him on his back. “I know it hurts and I’m sorry. Either side will hurt,
not much I can do about that. You’ll be warm in just a bit.”
He lay on her
electric blanket and below three others heavy blankets. Scrambling to the
front, she started the ignition then returned to adjust the heat to the lowest
setting on the blanket. Unsure of how long he’d been submerged in the water,
she didn’t want it totally hot, that would be hella painful when feeling
returned. Better to do low and allow the warmth work its way up.
“Heat from both
sides.”
She covered him
again and watched as the two bitches lay on either side of him before her
youngest dog curved his body around the man’s feet.
She stuffed the
cleaning supplies in the trash and reached for her bag. After drawing out a dry
sweatshirt, she hesitated a second before she scoffed at herself.
“Just got done
touching his naked body, the man’s unconscious, and I’m hesitant about
stripping in front of him.” She removed the sodden item and draped it over the
crate against the side. Then pulled on the dry one. Then she shucked the snow
pants, leaving her in dry jeans.
Her stomach
rumbled, reminding her it was time for some food. “I know, I know.”
She glanced at
the bed and smiled, he wasn’t visible with the dogs around him. “No heat like
dog heat. Come on, boy.”
She went back to
the driver’s seat and slid over the fabric. Her full size van may not have been
new but it was all hers and ran superbly. Argo hopped into the passenger seat,
turned two circles, and lay down on the bed she’d created for him there.
Rubbing his head, she hit the windshield wipers.
“You’re taken
care of, now it’s my turn.” He grunted. “Almost home, boy. Just a few more
hours.”
He yawned and
closed his eyes.
About
the Author:
Aliyah Burke is an avid reader
and is never far from pen and paper (or the computer). She loves to hear from
her readers and can be found on Facebook or Twitter at @AliyahBurke96.
She is married to a career
military man. They are owned by four Borzoi, and a DSH cat. She spends her days
sharing time between work, writing, and dog training.
For more information on other
books by Aliyah, visit her website:
http:// www.aliyah-burke.com
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Posts
1 comment:
Post a Comment