Blog Tour~ Last Kiss by Laurelin Paige
LAST KISS
By Laurelin Paige
St. Martin’s Griffin
Synopsis:
Emily Wayborn has made a decision. She might not fully trust handsome
and deadly Reeve Sallis, but he is the one person that gives her what she
needs. With Reeve she can finally be herself. Submitting to him is the only
thing keeping her grounded as the rest of her life falls apart. But the
hotelier is a master at keeping secrets and as she continues her quest for
answers, someone is making sure she doesn’t find them.
Time is running out and she is questioning everything she thought she
knew about friendship and love. She must now make an impossible choice that
will determine if she will survive with her heart...or her life.
Excerpt
92 l a u r e l i n p a i g e
or the man leaning against the side of the house until I
was almost on top of him.
“Oh, hi! I didn’t
see you there.” I sounded flustered and on edge. “Sorry to have surprised you.” The
man’s head tipped toward
me. “Emily, right?”
he asked, as he exhaled a puff of smoke.
I squinted at him, trying to place him, but I couldn’t. In fact, I was certain I hadn’t seen him before. He had to be one of the ranch guests, which didn’t explain how he knew me. “That’s right,” I
said tentatively. “I don’t think we’ve met.”
He tilted his head as he took another slow draw from his ciga-
rette. “Nope. We haven’t.” Even in the dark, I didn’t miss the hun- gry way his eyes groped my frame.
He took a step toward me, and I readied myself to run. Just then, the front door slammed open. I looked up to the porch to see a couple of Reeve’s men leaving the house. W hen I
turned back, the man wasn’t there anymore. I
glanced around and caught sight
of him circling around behind the building.
A man didn’t run off that easily if he hadn’t had ill intent.
I shivered. I
wondered if all of the guests
were that creepy. No
wonder Reeve was wary of
them. Suddenly, I
wanted to run and tell him about the encounter.
Then, at the top of the stairs, I noticed his door was shut, which meant he was in there. But what if he wasn’t alone? What if the con- versation with Amber at dinner had led them
to his bedroom?
Before I let myself get worked up, I
looked to Amber’s door. It
was shut too. It was the first time I’d seen it closed since her arrival, and my mind jumped to a hundred different possible conclusions. Maybe she was exercising her new babysitter-free status. Maybe she
was puking again in the bathroom and wanted privacy. Or she was making out with one of the ranchers. Or crying over whatever Reeve had said to her after I’d left them.
Or she wasn’t in there at all.
I could easily knock on her door to find out, but I wasn’t sure I
l
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s 93
could face her if she answered, and I was absolutely sure I couldn’t take it if she didn’t.
Hoping I would be better equipped to handle the situation after
a good night’s sleep, I retreated to my own room with a sigh of res- ignation.
Though it was late enough to go to
bed, my emotions were too
frazzled for sleep. And I
was cold. My evening walk had set a
chill in my bones that lingered even in the warm house. W hile I wished it was Reeve warming me up, a hot shower would be just as effec- tive at raising my body temperature and would also calm my nerves.
I stripped, tossing my clothes onto the chair in the corner of my room, then went to start the shower. I turned the water on without getting in, sticking my hand
under
the stream until it was hot enough. Then I
crossed to the linen closet at the other end of the bathroom and picked out a couple of towels. When I shut the door, I turned back toward the shower and nearly jumped out of my skin. “Reeve!” I
patted my breastbone, trying to calm the thudding
in my chest. “Goddammit, you scared the hell out of me.” Between
his sneaky arrival and the lurking cowboy outside, I wouldn’t have
been surprised if I
was on my way to a heart attack.
His lip curled up with amusement.
I scowled. “I’m glad you think sending me to an early grave is
funny.” But I wasn’t really irritated by his arrival in the least. I
was glad, and I was certain the accelerated tempo of my heart rate had as much to do with his appearance at
all as it did with the element of surprise.
He leaned his hip against the vanity and folded his arms across
his chest, a position that highlighted both his broad shoulders and toned biceps. “You like it when I keep you guessing,” he said dis- missively, not an entirely inaccurate statement, though it was a bit
discomforting that he knew it so well.
“And I like you on your toes,” he added, his eyes dark as they slid the length of my body. I felt them like silk as they caressed over
9 4 l a u r e l i n p a
i g e
the slopes of my breasts, down the plane of my stomach, zeroing
in on the landing strip above my pussy. Suddenly I’d warmed up quite sufficiently, the pool of moisture between my thighs as hot
as the steam gathering in the room.
I met his scrutiny with ogling of
my
own, biting my lip as my eyes landed on the large bulge at the front of his pants. He was bare- foot, and I tried not to wonder if that meant he’d been undressed once already in the evening. Tried not to wonder if it was his first or second erection of the night.
Bringing the towels in front of me as a
much-needed barrier, I
mirrored his crossed arms. “W hat are you doing
here, anyway?” He shrugged. “You wouldn’t come to
my bed so I had to come
to yours.”
It was surprising how easily happiness bubbled in my chest. Teasingly, I
threw his words from the night before back at him. “This isn’t my bed.”
He was already walking toward me. “It’s close enough.” The towels fell to the floor as he seized my hips and turned my back to
the counter. His mouth captured mine, greedily stealing my breath and sense of reason with his lips and tongue.
God, I was hungry for him. I
roved my hands over his
chest, wanting to touch all of his body at once, delighting at the hard muscles that met the underside of my palms. He was solid every- where. A wall of strength and potency that could so easily over-
power me. I was weak in his presence, incapable of anything except to yield.
A warning bell sounded in the back of my head, though, urging me to get my wits together and address . . . something. It was dif- ficult to remember what exactly when his hands were on my breasts, squeezing and pinching. The bite of pain sent jolts of electricity through my nervous system, signals that my brain read as pleasure. Pleasure I couldn’t resist.
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The Book Fairy Reviews's Reviews
Drama, mystery, danger, passion, and envy those are the words that best describe this series. Control and manipulation are other words that come to mind. A love triangle that Emily never wanted to be in. Yeah triangles had been prevalent in her life with Amber but this time it was different.
Emily, Reeve and Amber all fighting for control over the other, who would win in the battle for love.
This was an exciting read filled with plot twists that would lead you to believe who was really manipulating the drama in their lives.
Reeve dominating, passionate and so in love with Emily, but not willing to force her to love him. Oh don't get me wrong he tries to get her to realize the truth, but manipulations have to be overcome before Emily can embrace her truth.
More than a romance this book held a mystery that had me begging for more. I needed to turn the page faster. Then when I got to the end reading the last lines, I cringed because I didn't want it to end. I need more of Reeve and Emily, craving to have other answers, wanting more of his power and vulnerability.
Revelations and so much more await, more than a LAST KISS
Emily, Reeve and Amber all fighting for control over the other, who would win in the battle for love.
This was an exciting read filled with plot twists that would lead you to believe who was really manipulating the drama in their lives.
Reeve dominating, passionate and so in love with Emily, but not willing to force her to love him. Oh don't get me wrong he tries to get her to realize the truth, but manipulations have to be overcome before Emily can embrace her truth.
More than a romance this book held a mystery that had me begging for more. I needed to turn the page faster. Then when I got to the end reading the last lines, I cringed because I didn't want it to end. I need more of Reeve and Emily, craving to have other answers, wanting more of his power and vulnerability.
Revelations and so much more await, more than a LAST KISS
About the Author
Laurelin Paige is
the NY Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Fixed Trilogy. She's a
sucker for a good romance and gets giddy anytime there's kissing, much to the
embarrassment of her three daughters.
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