Off Limits (Sparks in Texas Book 4) (13 page)

Logan wrapped his arm more tightly around her
shoulder. None of them bothered to seek shelter from the steadily
pouring rain. “Technically, it’s been three weeks, plus a
lifetime.”

She twisted out of his arms and narrowed her
eyes. “This better not be a proposal, Logan. I haven’t even had a
chance to yell at you properly for breaking my heart.”

“You broke her heart?” Evan asked, his scowl
returning.

Lacy threw her hands up in exasperation. “Go
home, Evan. Turn that annoying overprotective nonsense of yours on
Eryn. Poor girl.”

Evan glanced at Logan, hesitant to leave.

Logan reached out to put his hand on Evan’s
shoulder. “I won’t hurt her.”

Evan’s expression cleared. “Yeah. I know you
won’t.” And with that, he walked back to his patrol car and climbed
in.

Lacy turned to look at him. “You told Evan
you loved me before you told me.”

He grinned. “He forced my hand. Guy packs one
hell of a punch.”

His words sent Lacy’s gaze to his left cheek.
“I think you’re going to have a black eye.”

“Great,” he said with a grimace.

“Why did you leave last time?”

He looked up at the dark sky. “It’s raining,
Lace. Do we have to do this here?” They were both drenched.

“Come on.” She accepted the hand he proffered
and the two of them returned to her apartment. Once they were
inside, Lacy went to the bathroom to grab them a couple of towels.
He wiped off his chest as she used hers to dry her hair.

“Here. You’ll catch a cold if you don’t get
out of those wet things.” Logan drew her wet t-shirt over her head,
forcing himself to keep his eyes on her face. Her breasts were his
kryptonite, and they needed to talk before they continued with
anything else.

She peeled off her jeans as he did the same.
They threw their wet clothing in a heap on the floor of her laundry
room, and then returned to the living room.

Lacy grabbed a fleece blanket and tossed it
to him before getting a second one for herself. They curled under
them on the couch. Lacy didn’t resist when he tugged her legs over
his thighs so he could rub her feet.

“Jane did a number on me.”

She nodded slowly. “Yeah, I figured that much
out. It’s just…you said you weren’t brokenhearted about her
leaving.”

“I’m not. That’s not what I mean. When we
first started dating, I thought the two of us were compatible
lovers. She seemed to enjoy my rough edge, although I’ll admit I
didn’t…” He paused, trying to find the right words.

“Unleash the Full Monty?” she supplied
helpfully.

Logan laughed. “Something like that. I didn’t
want to scare her right out of the gate, so I took things slowly.
However, the more I tried to introduce BDSM into our sexual
relationship, the more she resisted. I was in love with her, Lace.
So I held back.”

“I’m not afraid of what we do, Logan.”

“I know.”

“Have you been holding back with me?”

He shook his head and chuckled. “No. Not at
all.”

“Phew.” She pretended to wipe her brow.
“That’s a relief. I’d hate to have to deal with twenty or thirty
more orgasms every time we crawled between the sheets.”

He playfully messed up her hair. “Smartass.
You realize that’s just daring me.”

“Good. That was my intention.”

Logan took a deep breath and said what had
been keeping him from her, though even as he said the words, he
knew exactly how stupid he’d been. “I can’t do vanilla. It’s not in
my nature.”

“It’s not in mine either. Not anymore. Maybe
not ever. You ruined me when I was seventeen.”

“Do me a favor, Lace. Don’t tell your brother
about that peeping Tom escapade of yours. He’ll punch me
again.”

She leaned closer and pressed a kiss against
his cheek. “I love you too, Logan. I didn’t get a chance to say
that outside.” She blushed and he wondered what she was thinking.
“Of course, I probably didn’t need to say it. I haven’t exactly
hidden my feelings from you all these years.”

“I know it’s only been three weeks, but when
I look at you, Lacy, I see a very long future.”

“Forever?”

He nodded. “I hope so.”

“I’d like that, but I’m going to need a
promise from you.”

“In addition to the ‘I Do’ one?”

She rose from the couch and grasped his hand,
pulling him to his feet as well. “Yep. I want you to promise me
that nothing…and I mean nothing…is ever off-limits between us
again.”

He laughed, shook her hand. “Deal.”

* * *

Twenty years earlier…

Logan looked over and caught sight of Lacy
sitting in the stands with one of her little friends playing with
dolls. Her hair was pulled up in pigtails and she gave him a
toothless grin. She waved, so he waved back.

“See that boy over there?” Lacy pointed to a
fourteen-year-old Logan, currently standing on first base.

Justine Matthews laid her Barbie doll on the
bleachers and looked. “Yeah.”

“His name is Logan Grady, and I’m going to
marry him one day.”

Be sure to check out other books in the Sparks in
Texas series.

Keep reading for excerpts from the first 3
books.

Writing a book was number one on Mari Carr’s
bucket list and on her thirty-fourth birthday, she set out to see
that goal achieved. Too many years later, her computer is jammed
full of stories — novels, novellas, short stories and dead-ends and
she has nearly eighty published works.

Virginia native and high school librarian by
day, Mari Carr is a
New York Times
and
USA TODAY
bestseller of contemporary erotic romance novels.

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Sparks in Texas
, Book 1

I Do
is the easy part.
Happily ever
after
? Not so much.

Evan and Annie are deeply in love, but that hasn’t
stopped tension from creating cracks in their relationship.
Determined not to fail his wife, Evan takes action before those
cracks become craters, damaging their marriage irreparably. Over
the Fourth of July weekend, he’ll reignite Annie’s passion with his
own brand of fireworks.

Stand back and watch the sparks fly.

Please enjoy this excerpt from Sparks Fly. Available
now.

“Are you searching for something special,
officer?”

The breathless quality of her voice let him
know she’d finally caught up with him.

“I need to be sure you aren’t carrying any
concealed weapons.”

She looked over her shoulder and gave him a
flirty smile. “Oh, I’m packing heat. But you aren’t looking in the
right place.”

He fought to restrain a groan. Annie was a
master at dirty talk. Then it occurred to him that this fantasy—the
cop and his criminal—was one they’d never played out. Which was
strange considering his occupation and the fact he had all the
right toys.

“Face forward, Ms. Iser. I don’t think you
understand the seriousness of this situation.”

Annie held his gaze a few seconds longer
before looking away. Her hips wiggled seductively as he moved his
“search” lower. He didn’t take the bait. He had a definite strategy
for how the night would unfold and it had everything to do with his
pretty criminal submitting to his authority.

“Have you been drinking, Ms. Iser?”

She lifted her shoulders casually,
unconcerned, unrepentant. “I may have had a glass of wine earlier.
It is a holiday, you know.”

Annie wasn’t much of a drinker, even on the
holidays, so he wondered about the wine. Was she feeling the same
pressure he was? Had she been looking for a way to relax before
seeing him again? That thought made his chest ache. He pushed it
away. Hopefully, tonight would help them mend the rifts they’d
unconsciously let grow.

He reached for her upper arm, dragging her
upright and turning her until she faced him. “Drinking and
driving?”

“You don’t really expect me to confess to
that, do you, officer?”

“Lieutenant.” The mischief in her eyes told
him she was purposely refusing to acknowledge his rank. “And I
don’t need your confession. I have a breathalyzer.”

She didn’t pretend to be worried. He loved
her spunk, the challenge in her posture. She crossed her arms,
allowing them to push up her breasts. The move drew his attention
to her hard nipples. His mouth watered for a taste of them, but it
was far too early for that. If he started taking off her clothes,
the game would end too fast.

For months, he’d viewed sex as a chore, the
two of them going through the motions with very little passion or
foreplay. As he looked at her flushed face, as he watched her chest
rise and fall with breathless expectation, he wanted to kick his
own ass for forgetting how good it could be between them.

“Don’t I have to consent to the
breathalyzer?”

He shook his head. “I’m not giving you a
choice.” He cupped her face in his hands, pulling her closer. “Are
you ready?”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond before
placing his lips on hers. He pressed them open, touching his tongue
to hers. He couldn’t detect even the faintest hint of wine on her
breath. Regardless, he kept kissing her, tasting and breathing her
air. Evan didn’t need alcohol. He could get drunk on Annie.

Finally, after several minutes, he forced
himself to release her, working overtime to maintain control, to
stay in character. “You realize you’re in quite a bit of trouble,
Ms. Iser.”

She feigned a contrite smile that didn’t fool
him for a minute. “Maybe there’s some way I can convince you to
forget all this and let me off with a warning?”

He narrowed his eyes. “Are you attempting to
bribe a police officer?”

She reached out to run her hand along his
chest, toying suggestively with his badge. “I didn’t say anything
about a bribe.”

He moved so quickly she didn’t have time to
counter or retreat. Evan turned her toward the car, grasping her
wrists and tugging them behind her back. She had just begun to
struggle when he slapped on the handcuffs. Then he bent over her,
pressing her against the hood of the car, letting her helplessness
sink in.

“What did you have in mind?” he murmured in
her ear.

He’d taken her off-guard. It took her a few
moments to regroup.

“I…” She swallowed heavily when he ground his
cock more firmly against her ass. “I…” She paused again. Finally
she said, “What do you want?”

Evan chuckled. Annie was rarely at a loss for
words. It felt good to shake up the self-assured woman. “I want it
all, Ms. Iser. Your total submission. For the entire night.”

Sparks in Texas
, Book 2

How do you protect the woman you love…when the
greatest danger is sleeping in her bed?

Sydney Sparks can’t remember a time when Chas wasn’t
part of her life—from childhood playmates, to high-school
sweethearts, to long-distance friends. Now, after twelve long
years, Chas is leaving the Marines and coming home. Sydney’s
thrilled to have him back on American soil, safe and sound, even if
his return is doing funny things to her heart.

The second he stepped off the plane and locked gazes
with Sydney, Chas refused to waste a minute more on their “just
friends” status quo. Together again, it feels as if they were never
apart, the love they’d shared as innocent teens now vastly more
intense as adults—with a sexual hunger to match.