Officer Next Door
by Ranae Rose
Publication Date: June 2, 2014
Genres: Contemporary, Erotica, Romance,Suspense
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Synopsis
How can anyone resist temptation when it’s right next door?
Riley County North Carolina has a lot to offer: coastal views as far as
the eye can see, and men in uniform who are even more gorgeous. Home to the most notorious prison in the state, Alicia’s new hometown is crawling with men who carry their own handcuffs and know how to use them – like Officer Liam Alexander, her one and only neighbor. After catching him out of uniform, she can’t resist pausing to enjoy the show. When Liam’s Southern charm drives him across the property line, life gets hotter than the Carolina summer could possibly account for. Unfortunately, there’s a dark side to life in the coastal haven, even with an officer next door.
Coordinating special events at a historic – and supposedly haunted –
plantation is enough to have Alicia questioning her senses and her sanity, but the spirits of the past take a backseat to a pair of escaped convicts who blaze a trail of mayhem across Riley County. Not even the most intense chemistry can survive the perils that make a sunny seaside town a dangerous place to be after dark … can it?
EXCERPT - CHAPTER 1
The rising sun burnt on the Carolina
horizon like a jewel, causing the tidal mist to light up like it’d been set on
fire. It was the most gorgeous thing Alicia had ever seen, besides her naked
neighbor. The sight of him stripping down lit up the morning like nothing else
could – not even the extra-bold, extra-large cup of coffee she clutched as she
stared through her kitchen window.
Everything about him was extra-large,
too. She, however, was anything but bold.
She’d die if he knew she’d been
watching him like this for the past three weeks, ever since she’d moved in.
Guilt surged through her system just like her daily caffeine infusion, but that
didn’t keep her from enjoying the display, all that taut muscle and bare skin.
Not even close.
“Good Lord,” she sighed, to no one but
herself. DC seemed faraway already; the big city had disappeared in her
rearview mirror weeks ago to be replaced by real Southern heat and charm, two
things her new neighbor radiated in spades.
Not that she’d spoken to him much yet.
There’d been the occasional hello when
they glimpsed each other outside, usually coming to or from work. That was it,
mostly because the sight of him in uniform had a way of leaving her
tongue-tied, silenced by the guilty pleasure that struck her every time she
looked in his direction. She couldn’t so much as glance at him without thinking
about that uniform coming off in slow motion, revealing his perfect body.
Maybe it was his fault for not closing
the bathroom blinds, the ones that hung over the window directly across from
the shower.
Or maybe it was her fault for enjoying
the striptease with her morning coffee day after day, saying nothing.
Either way, she wasn’t complaining.
Close-cropped dark hair, sun-tanned skin stretched over a six foot frame of
solid muscle and an ass that appeared to be sculpted from granite, not to
mention the amazing view when his back wasn’t
to her: the vision had been seared into her memory, and it stayed with her even
after he slung a towel around his hips and strolled out of the bathroom,
disappearing from her view.
That was her cue to gulp down the rest
of her coffee and pull herself together before she rushed to the Wisteria
Plantation House. She’d been hired there as the special events coordinator, had
moved and reshaped her life around the new job, though as she drained her
coffee mug, swallowing the bitter grit that swirled at the bottom of the cup,
she was so dazzled by what she’d just seen that it was sure to be a challenge
just to coordinate her hair and makeup for the day, let alone an outfit.
Despite the sexually-charged fog her
neighbor had left her in, she managed to brush on some cosmetic staples, twist
her chestnut hair into a simple chignon and shed her robe, pulling on khaki
pants and a purple blouse. As she dressed, she pretended that the brush of her
own fingertips against her skin didn’t inspire imaginings of what it’d be like
to feel her neighbor’s hands on her body. Lastly, she slipped on sandals, a
pair with modest kitten heels that’d allow her to navigate Wisteria’s grounds
without breaking an ankle.
Or so she thought. When she finally
walked out the door with her purse slung over her shoulder and a travel mug in
one hand, she tripped over the threshold and was launched forward through the
muggy Carolina air.
She windmilled, dropping her handbag
but – miracle of miracles – managing to maintain her grip on her coffee.
The mug was a fancy one that remained
sealed until one pressed a button, freeing the flow of liquid within. As she
bent to pick up her purse and then straightened, quickly smoothing her
clothing, she realized that the anti-spill mug was the best twenty dollars
she’d ever spent.
Heat flooded her cheeks as she said a
silent prayer of gratitude for spill-proof technology. Her neighbor was
standing on the front porch of his bungalow-style house, a cute place painted a
shade of moss-green that blended right into the wooded backdrop. Judging by the
way he stared, frowning in her direction, he’d seen everything.
“Are you all right?” His voice echoed
across the few yards between them, sounding with a depth that sent a frisson
racing down her spine.
About Ranae Rose
Ranae Rose is the best-selling author of more than twenty adult romances and counting. Originally from Maryland, she grew up the daughter of a US Marine and always wanted to be a writer. Today she lives on the US East Coast with her man in uniform, young children, German Shepherd dogs and overflowing bookshelves.
Her love affair with the romance genre began as a teen when a classmate handed her a romance comic book. Instantly hooked, she read them during class behind her textbooks and under her desk. She hasn’t looked back since.
When she’s not writing or reading, she enjoys things like good coffee, travel and fitness – especially pursuing her elusive goal of getting her husband to tap out on the jiu jitsu mats (no luck so far).
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