Jake felt a warm body besidehim.
It had been years â eleven, to be exact â but Caley Lambert was exactly as heâd remembered her. His gaze drifted down to her lips, soft and full and slightly parted. She was all woman now â sexy, soft and warm. And she was sleeping in his bedâ¦
Jake leaned over, touching his lips to hers. She obviously wanted something to happen. It was a pretty bold moveâ¦but Caley had never been known to wait when she wanted something. And he could only hope she wanted him as much as he was starting to want herâ¦
âJake,â she whispered.
The sound of his name on her lips was like fuel on a fire. His desire surged and he kissed her again, deeper, harder this time. This was Caley, the girl heâd wanted all his life. She could be his nowâ¦
But as he settled above her, an uneasy feeling came over him. Something wasnât right.
âCaley. Open your eyes.â
Her lashes fluttered, and a moment later she was looking at him, first in confusion, then in absolute shock.
Heâd known it was too good to lastâ¦
KATE HOFFMANN
has been writing stories for Mills & Boon since 1993. Sheâs written over fifty books for Mills & Boon, including the popular MIGHTY QUINNS series. kate lives in a small town in Wisconsin with her cats and her computer. Besides writing, she works with school students in theatre and musical activities. She also enjoys golf, movies, music of all kinds and genealogy research.
Dear Reader,
Iâve always had a soft spot for stories about childhood sweethearts. And when I was working on this idea for THE WRONG BED series, I thought about twisting that concept a little and giving you a hero and heroine who werenât quite sweethearts but still managed to carry a pretty big torch for each other.
Jake and Caley come back to the small lake community where theyâd spent their summers to serve as best man and maid of honour at a Valentineâs Day wedding between their two siblings. The book is set in my home state of Wisconsin. And since Wisconsin can be pretty cold in February, I had to find new ways to keep my hero and heroine warm â and then hot. But I have to admit, it was a pain dealing with all those layers of clothes.
I hope Your Bed or Mine? keeps you nice and warm wherever you are.
Happy reading,
Kate Hoffmann
1
HUGE SNOWFLAKES drifted down through the night sky, spattering against the windshield of Caley Lambertâs rental car. She watched through tired eyes as the wipers slapped them away, the rhythmic sound lulling her toward complete exhaustion. Her eyelids fluttered and she felt herself drifting, then reached down and opened the window.
The chilly night air was a slap to the face and Caley drew a deep breath. The flight from New York had been late getting into Chicago and by the time sheâd arrived, the airport hotel had given away her room. Left with nowhere to sleep, sheâd decided to drive the two hours to her parentsâ lake house rather than waste time searching for a room.
It wasnât so much an urge to get home that sent her into the midst of a snowstorm, but the fact that Caley just hated wasting time. After eleven years of living in Manhattan and seven years of working the cutthroat world of public relations, sheâd learned to be very efficient with every minute of her day. She didnât waste time on anything that couldnât get her ahead in the world professionally. She worked out because the gym was a good place to network. She belonged to seven different professional organizations because all those names looked good on her résumé. And she had worked sixteen-hour days for seven years because that was the way to get herself a partnership.
âSo what am I doing in North Lake, Wisconsin?â she muttered.
Her younger sister, Emma, had called a few weeks ago, insisting that Caley come home for the week before Valentineâs Day. Emma had a very special event planned at the lake house, but she refused to give any details, only that every one of the Lamberts should be in attendance. Caleyâs parents had been married on Valentineâs Day thirty years ago, so it hadnât been difficult to guess at the purpose of her sisterâs plans.
An electronic version of Mozartâs âEine Kleine Nachtmusikâ interrupted Caleyâs thoughts and she glanced over at her cell phone sitting on the passenger seat. Snatching it up, she looked at the caller ID, then tossed it back onto the seat. Brian. Heâd called at least twenty times since sheâd left New York for a business trip in San Francisco a few days ago. So far sheâd avoided answering.
She and Brian had been exclusive for nearly two years and heâd planned to come to North Lake with her and meet the family. But at the last minute, heâd canceled, begging off because of work commitments. It was at that moment Caley realized her relationship with Brian had become a waste of time. Between out-of-town business trips and busy schedules, theyâd spent three nights together in the past monthânot much considering they lived in the same apartment.