âI shouldnât have come to your bedroom,â Colin said
âThen why did you?â Lani asked, sitting up. The comforter slid down to reveal more than Colin could handle.
His brow furrowed as he quickly raised his eyes to search her gaze. âYou neededââ
âYou. I needed you.â
âYou were having a nightmare. Anyone would have doneââ
âNot anyone. You.â
Colin sucked in a harsh breath. In the pale light, his eyes darkened. âLaniâ¦â
âTouch me.â
She could hear his ragged breath, could feel his struggle for control. âIt wasnât supposed to be like this,â he murmured. âIt was supposed to be uncomplicated. Easy.â
âI know,â she whispered, sinking her fingers into his thick, silky hair. âI know.â
Even as he reached for her, he said, âThis is going to make it harder.â
âWell, I hope so,â she whispered.
Dear Reader,
I would rather clean toilets than talk about myself, which leaves me in a bit of a quandary when it comes to writing you a satisfying reader letter. But since the heroine in The Bachelorâs Bed cleans toilets for a living, it all sort of works out. While running her cleaning service, Lani dreams of things like marriage and commitment, but she hasnât found a way to make that happen. (I, on the other hand, found my Mr. Right and we have three wonderful little girls.)
When our hero (who never cleans toilets) asks Lani to be his fictional fiancée, she figures pretending is better than nothing, andâbecause heâs smart and funny and has a jobâshe agrees. But we all know that true love is a sneaky emotion. It also conquers all, thankfully, which is what I love about romance.
I hope you enjoy how love works its magic in The Bachelorâs Bed. Let me know what you thinkâyou can write to me at P.O. Box 3945, Truckee, CA 96160.
Happy reading!
Jill Shalvis
âYOU FORGOT to take the cash I left out for you.â
At the low, unbearably sexy voice in her ear, Lani hugged the telephone closer. They werenât strangers, not by a long shot, but neither were they familiar enough with each other for her to joke about what the mere sound of his voice did to her insides. Shakily, she let out a breath. Her heart raced, and to combat the funny, weightless feeling that such a severe attraction caused, she leaned back in her squeaky office chair, lifted her tired, worn-out feet up to her desk and closed her eyes.
âMs. Mills?â
âYes, Iâm here.â He couldnât know sheâd recognize his voice anywhere. She sighed and opened her eyes as she straightened. It wasnât right to fantasize about a client, no matter how much that client occupied her thoughts. Truth was, he probably occupied the thoughts of every woman in this small mountain town of Sierra Summit. Not that there wasnât plenty to do in the quaint, lovely place, but Colin West was such absolutely perfect fantasy material.
âYour money for your house-cleaning services,â he repeated patiently. âYou left it on the counter.â
âI know. Iâm sorry,â she said, embarrassed. At the time, sheâd been flustered because heâd been watching her with a silent intensity that she didnât understand as sheâd prepared to leave his house.
âNo need to apologize, theyâre your earnings.â
Again, that quiet yet steely tone. She was intelligent, she knew she couldnât love someone she didnât really know, but she could lust.
He was a man who knew what he wanted and how to get it, and if rumors were to be believed, he rarely ever let anything get in his way. âRuthless and aggressiveâ was what they said about him, but Lani believed it was only a front.
To her, he wasnât frightening or even dangerous, but he was magnetic and passionate and fiercely private.
He also intimidated the hell out of her.
Theyâd known each other for one year. Lani had provided services for him once a week since theyâd met, and though she had hoped their relationship would have risen above this stilted awkwardness by now, it was clear she was the only one who wished it so.
Sighing again, she shoved back all her secret yearnings and desires. âIâll pick it up when I come next week,â she said. âThank you.â
âYouâre welcome.â The husky timbre of his voice deepened, and for just a second, Lani thought that maybe it did so with equal yearning, but that was silly.
She was a nobody to him, less than a nobody. What she made in a year, he considered less than pocket change. Her office was smaller and more cramped than the walk-in closet of his huge bedroom.
He probably didnât even remember her first name.
âNext week then, Lani,â he said softly.
She hung up the phone, stared out the tiny office window at the Los Angeles Crest Mountains and smiled dreamily.
He did know her name.
âNext week,â she whispered to herself.
THE FOLLOWING WEEK when Lani drove up to Colinâs house, it looked dark. Disappointment filled her.