Second Rate Chances (25 page)

             
Lil broke the kiss first. She cradled Sam's face in her hand, studying his face. “I thought you were going to ask me to marry you,” she said. There was a hint of sadness in her voice.

             
The only thing Sam could do was smile. “Oh, it’s coming. I’m not waiting this time,” he said. “I’m thinking it’ll happen on our trip. Maybe in the security line at the airport or,” he said, his voice dropping to a seductive whisper, “when I make love to you again. The possibilities are endless.” His grin turned wicked. “Either way, it’s going to happen this time. You and me? We’re in it for the long haul.”

             
“No more giving the other space. And no more hiding,” Lil said.  “We have to be up front and honest with one another. Something's wrong? You tell me and vice-versa.”

             
Sam nodded. “Anything for you. I promise you, I'll do anything and everything for you. For us.”

             
“I love you, Sam,” she said against his lips.

             
“I love you too, Lil.”

             
“Oh, one more thing,” he said. She looked at him through her long thick lashes and tilted her head to the side. “I kind of don’t have a place to live.”

             
“That’s okay,” she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’ve got a great couch you’re already familiar with.”

             
Had it not been for the teasing tone she used, or the flirtatious smile on her face, he would have thought she was serious. He had no plans to ever sleep on the couch again.

             
They were brought together all those years ago on the green grass of their college campus. Sam realized that everything they had been through – the laughter, the tears, the separation – was all leading up to this moment now held by their love under the explosion of fireworks signifying a new year, a new beginning. For it is said that a love of epic proportions would stand the test of time from here until all eternity. For if he was the day and she was the night, one cannot be without the other.

             
Just like Samson and Delilah.

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SECOND RATE CHANCES

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

People have often told me that I live in a fantasy world. Little did they know, I was building an empire of stories in my head to one day share.
I'm a mother first, a wife second, and a writer third. I'm so thankful to have been given this chance to get my stories out of my head and onto paper.
When I'm not writing, I sell plumbing (no, I'm not kidding) and read romances that leave my heart a flutter. I know a ridiculous amount of pop culture information and can quote certain movies word for word. Music drives me to write and to also sing off key.

Connect with Holly on the following sites:

Twitter- @HollyGeauxLitly

Facebook-
www.facebook.com/hollystephenswrites

Her blog- hollystephenswrites.wordpress.com

Stay tuned for upcoming novels from Holly Stephens.

Risqué Business
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Coming late July, 2012

Sawyer Thomas lives the kind of life he’s always dreamed of. He owns his own auto body business that has expanded into three successful shops in his hometown of Houston. Sawyer isn’t strapped for cash; far from it. So when Thompson Oil & Gas starts calling him with top-dollar offers to buy the mineral rights of the land his late grandfather left him in Summit, Texas, Sawyer laughs in their face.

Layla Reynolds spends her days working in the male-dominated field of oil and gas acquisitions in Dallas. As the youngest project leader at Thompson Oil & Gas, Layla is given the biggest deal the company has ever seen. And she’s determined to show those men that a woman can succeed in a man's world. However, if they knew Layla spent her weekends slinging drinks with more sass than Tom Cruise in Cocktail, she’d only further their assumptions that a woman has no place in the oil field and is better suited as the eye candy or weekend flings they brag about every day of the week.

For some, relaxing at the end of the day might mean a long hot bath or an ice-cold beer. For Layla it means being the hottest bartender who puts on the best show for the college kids in Summit. And Layla has a rule: no mixing business with pleasure.

That is until Sawyer rides into town on his vintage Harley Davidson and his black leather jacket like he’s the king of the motorcycle circuit. There’s something about scruff and blue eyes that gets Layla’s motor running.

             
After one night together, Sawyer knows that there’s more to Summit than saving his grandfathers land, even if he's sworn not to let a great pair of legs cloud his vision.

             
But when true identities are revealed, can the spark of something wonderful offset the price on Sawyer’s land. And Layla will have to decide what’s more important; getting ahead in a man’s world, or getting the man she loves.

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