âYouâve never slept with anybody till me, Trudy?â
Tru thought the self-satisfied grin tugging her lips was heart stopping, and when she lowered her head to his chest once more, he felt the curve of her smile on his bare skin. âDoes heavy petting count?â
He shook his head. âNo. Are you really telling me that before tonight, youâd neverâ¦â
âNow I have.â With that Trudy traced a heart on his chest and drew an arrow through it.
He loved that she did that. She was amazing. She meshed with him on an intellectual level, and in bed she was insatiable. Now she was as cuddlesome as a kitten. âWhy didnât you tell me?â
âAre you grilling me, Truman Steele?â she teased, squinting playfully as she fished around her ankles, pulling up a sheet to cover their naked bodies. âIf so, I warn you Iâm a force to be reckoned with.â
âSo Iâve discovered.â
âMaybe you should call for backup,â she quipped.
He kissed her lightly, affection that surprised him swelling his heart and spreading warmth through his limbs. âNo backup,â he warned. âI want you all to myself. Iâm not sharing.â
Dear Reader,
Ever since my miniseries BIG APPLE BABIES was released a few years ago by Harlequin American Romance, Iâve received letters from you, asking for another New York-set trilogy. And where better to introduce these sexy BIG APPLE BACHELORS than in Harlequin Temptation, where brothers Truman, Rex and Sullivan Steele can take a stand with Harlequinâs hottest heroes?
The men youâre about to meet are New Yorkâs finest. They hail from a great city with legendary heart that I love, and which I called home for many years. Because books are written long before publication, this fun-filled trilogy was completed before September 11, 2001, but I hope it pays tribute to those who serve and protect. Every other month this summer youâll meet a man from the NYPD, who I hope will deliver the Temptation promise: loving fantasies, pleasurable escape, sizzling sex and a happy ending!
With best wishes,
Jule McBride
Meet all of New Yorkâs finest in the BIG APPLE BACHELORS miniseries!
Truman is The Hotshot
Rex is The Seducer
Sullivan is The Protector
âMA WON THE LOTTERY?â Truman Steele was still unable to believe it. The jackpot had been growing for weeks, and because it was June first and another hot, steamy New York summer was right around the corner, people had been amusing themselves by speculating about the lucky winner on subways, street corners, and around office watercoolers. Every day, the TV news depicted long lines outside delis and street kiosks where people waited to buy tickets, and the New York News had been running man-in-the-street interviews, asking people what theyâd do if they won the huge windfall.
Truman had told himself heâd buy a fishing boat, maybe vacation in Vegas and invest in blue-chip stocks, but now that he might actually get a third of the money, he wasnât so sure. He needed to rethink his game plan. Wearing the NYPDâs standard-issue navy uniform, he stretched his long legs, then put one hand on his holster and paced to and fro in his oldest siblingâs childhood bedroom. Sullivanâs room was where the three brothers had retreated to mull over family crises since time immemorial.
Not that winning fifteen million dollars was a crisis, exactly. At least not yet, thought Truman, releasing a throaty whistle. âI must have bought thirty tickets.â
âMe, too,â confessed Rex, whoâd kicked off dirty sneakers so he could lie on a neatly made twin bed so small it was hard to imagine Sullivan Steele ever occupying it. The only brother to work undercover, Rex was a master of disguises. Heâd come from a stakeout looking homeless, sporting a scraggly black beard, baggy, oil-stained jeans and a questionably perfumed trench coat, which heâd thankfully left outside.
âYou buy any tickets, Sully?â asked Rex.
Sullivan shook his head. âWaste of money,â said the oldest, thrusting his hands into the pockets of gray suit trousers. âAt least I thought so.â
âWhat were you going to do if you won, Rex?â asked Truman.
Vanish and start a whole new life, thought Rex, picturing himself wearing white, rolled-up trousers while combing a beach for shells. His throat constricted as he glanced away. Unlike his brothers, Rex had never wanted to be a cop, although he rarely admitted it, even to himself. Rex was still haunted by how scared heâd been as a kid every morning when their father holstered his gun and left for work. Heâd always waited for the evening Augustus Steele wouldnât make it home for dinner, and because Rex wouldnât put another kid through that worry, heâd long ago decided that having a family and working for the NYPD didnât mix. He finally shrugged. âI donât know. Fifteen millionâs a lot of dough, little brother.â