Everythingâs hotter in Texas
Workaholic Manhattanite Renee Gainey is in Texas for her sisterâs wedding, and waiting for her is none other than Jeremiah Richards, the irresistible cowboy Renee is not allowed to have. Her sister would freak out if there were sexy shenanigans going on right before her nuptials! But what single maid of honor could resist the best man when heâs a red-hot Texan?
As the wedding draws closer, the burning attraction between Renee and Jeremiah consumes them both. Soon theyâre finding ways to sneak out of wedding duties to satisfy their cravings for each other. In her sisterâs spare room. Up in the barnâs hayloft. Every chance they can get. But once the wedding is over, Renee is going back to New York. Hopefully, with her heart intact...
Dear God, heâd kissed her...
Any self-control Jeremiah could have used to pull away dissipated when she leaned into the kiss, her tongue sliding against his, sending tendrils of heat through his entire body.
Before he could deepen the kiss, though, she pulled away. Her breath was heavy and her eyes wide, and he realized what had just happened.
âThat was so bad,â she moaned.
He grimaced. âThe kiss was bad?â he asked, unable to help himself.
She shook her head even more furiously. âThe kiss was too good. Thatâs what makes it so bad.â
âSo you liked the kiss?â
She looked at him through her fingers. âThatâs not helping. Thereâs no way we can do that again. Jessica will flip if she finds out.â
âIâm not going to tell her about it. Are you?â
âNo way,â Renee responded immediately.
âSo,â Jeremiah said slowly, picking his words with care, âif neither of us tells her, and she doesnât see us, is there any reason why we canât do it again?â
Dear Reader,
So much has changed since my first book, Her Sexy Vegas Cowboy, was published: my husband and I started traveling full-time; we welcomed our sweet baby, Annabelle, into the world; and I completed my second Harlequin novel, which you hold in your hands. Quite a bit of it was typed one-handed on a phone while caring for a newborn. Lucky for me, she was a pretty good sport about the whole thing and let me bounce ideas off her.
Once I finished Her Sexy Vegas Cowboy, it was clear that Jeremiah would need his own story; with his humor and constant optimism, heâs my kind of hero, and I wanted to hear more from him and whether or not he would ever find his own happily-ever-after. In addition, the first âfanâ email I received from a reader (shout-out to Caitlin!) asked if I was planning on writing a book about him.
I struggled with this book at first, though. I wasnât sure who the heroine was or where the story would be set. After going through a lot of (bad) ideas, I realized the story had to happen right before Jessica and Aaronâs Texas wedding, and then it became obvious who Jeremiah would fall forâthe sister of the bride. After that, everything fell into place.
The antics of Renee and Jeremiah made me smile, giggle and sigh. I hope it is the same for you and that you enjoy reading about these two as much as I enjoyed writing about them.
Cheers,
Ali Olson
ALI OLSON is a longtime resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, where she has been teaching English at the high school and college level for the past seven years. Ali has found a passion for writing sexy romance novels, both contemporary and historical, and is enthusiastic about her newly discovered career. She loves reading, writing and traveling with her husband and constant companion, Joe. She appreciates hearing from readers. Write to her at authoraliolson.com.
For my baby girl, Annabelle. Youâre going to read this one day. Thatâs going to be a very weird day.
1
âJESSICA, ITâLL ALL be fine. You just need to stop worrying,â Renee said in her most soothing voice, trying to calm her sisterâs newest anxiety issue. She couldnât help but roll her eyes, though, and was glad her sister couldnât see her through the phone.
âI know youâre rolling your eyes at me over there,â her sister chirped back, âbut this is important. What if the whole thing is a disaster? Iâve been planning for months for every possible problem, but I never expected this.â
Renee sighed. âStew is a nice guy. Youâre just freaking out because you havenât met him yet and itâs a little weird to think of Mom having a boyfriend. What do you think heâll do, scream obscenities during the ceremony? Take off all his clothes and bathe in the potato salad at the reception?â
She snorted, picturing her motherâs slightly stuffy boyfriend doing anything of the sort. âBesides,â she continued, âI thought your wedding was going to be super low-key. Youâre having it at your house. How much could there possibly be to plan, or to screw up? You said you were keeping it casual.â