Moonlight Kisses

Desire is more than skin-deep

It’s just Sage Matthews’s luck that the man stirring her dormant passions wants to buy her cosmetics company. Cole Sinclair inherited the kind of success Sage is working hard to build, and after almost ten years away, he’s back to save his own empire. Takeover bid: denied. But in the bedroom, their rivalry morphs into sizzling chemistry. And Sage is falling dangerously fast for the wild streak beneath Cole’s designer suits.

Sage’s up-and-coming company is a thorn in Cole’s side. If they can’t agree to terms, both will be eliminated by the competition. From Nashville to sultry Milan, he’s using all his seductive powers of persuasion. But the kind of partnership Sage craves takes compromise and trust—and the courage to go beyond the surface to find what’s real...

“Now I want it even more.”

Sage slammed her eyes shut and swallowed hard, silently willing the parts of her body shifting into overdrive back into neutral. She should have stayed behind her desk with her legs tightly crossed, because this man was on the verge of talking the panties right off her.

When she opened her eyes, his gaze was locked on her lips.

“Is this your idea of keeping friends close and enemies closer?” The mocking tone she’d hoped for fell flat, and her question echoed in her ears like a breathless pant.

“You’re not my enemy, Sage,” Cole murmured. “You’re a challenge.” He brushed his knuckles down her cheek. “And I do love a challenge.”

If she’d been clearheaded, a snappy comeback would have been on the tip of her tongue. However, her brain had taken the backseat in her headspace, allowing a wave of longing to take the wheel.

“That lipstick is beautiful on you.” His eyes never leaving her lips, Cole swiped the pad of his thumb across a sticky spot near the corner of her mouth. Sage stood mesmerized as he slowly licked the sugary glaze from his thumb, while her imagination conjured up illicit images of him licking her everywhere.

“What’s it called?” he asked.

“‘Taste Me.’”

“You just read my mind.” Cupping her chin in his hand, Cole leaned in and brushed his lips against hers.

Dear Reader,

At some point, we’ve all thought, “Life would be a lot easier if everyone was just like me.”

That’s exactly what Espresso Cosmetics CEO Cole Sinclair finds in rival cosmetics company owner Sage Matthews. Only nothing comes easy as Sage proves to be every bit as cocky, stubborn and competitive as he is.

I enjoyed the interaction between Cole and Sage as their sexy game of one-upmanship progresses to grudging respect, friendship and, finally, love. I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did writing it!

All my best,

Phyllis

Phyllis Bourne

www.millsandboon.co.uk

PHYLLIS BOURNE is a native of Chicago’s South Side and began her writing career as a newspaper crime reporter. After years of cops and criminals, she left reporting to write about life’s sweeter side. Nowadays, her stories are filled with heart-stopping heroes and happy endings. When she’s not writing, she can usually be found at a makeup counter feeding her lipstick addiction. You can find her on the web at www.phyllisbourne.com and facebook.com/phyllisbournebooks.

For Byron

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Epilogue

Copyright

Chapter 1

“Who put the scowl on your face?”

Cole Sinclair looked up from the newspaper he’d been absorbed in to see his stepfather standing in his office doorway.

“No, don’t tell me. Let me guess.” Victor Gray raised a finger in a halting gesture. “Stiletto Cosmetics.”

Folding the business section in half, Cole slung it across his desk in disgust. “How’d you guess?”

“If you’re frowning, it usually has something to do with them.”

Cole pushed away from his desk and began to pace in front of the wall of windows offering a panoramic view of downtown Nashville. He’d known when he’d returned to his hometown that reviving his family’s troubled cosmetics company would be a monumental task.

The widely held opinion that Espresso Cosmetics was old-lady makeup was firmly entrenched. Moreover, an upstart cosmetics company had set up shop in town, grabbing both headlines and Espresso’s dwindling customer base.

“The media’s handing out good press to Stiletto like candy on Halloween,” he muttered. “Meanwhile, we can barely get a reporter to return a phone call.”

Victor hovered in the doorway. “They’re just capitalizing on their fifteen minutes of fame since that singer mentioned them on television. It won’t last much longer.”

Cole wasn’t so sure. Stiletto had been generating buzz on the web even before pop star Crave gave them a shout-out on national television. He stopped midpace to glance out the window. An electronic billboard in the distance stood out against the gray January skies. It flashed continuous images of a cheeseburger with toppings stacked nearly as high as Espresso’s aging eleven-story building.