TWO HOT TO HANDLE by Susan Lyons Jade Rousseau loves working for the Families First Foundation. The simple fact that she isn't married and single could cost her the opportunity to advance to the position as the CEO. Lacking the right man, Jade and her friends, Amarjeet and Kimberly come up with a solution. For the sake of her job, she'll find a fake fiancรฉ and in the interest of finding a real husband, she'll go on a series of one time lunch or coffee `dates' with an acceptable men. Surely finding Mr. Right won't be that hard.. Her friend wins the bid on red-hot firefighter Quinn O'Malley at the
Brave, bold, and dangerously sexy, firefighters are every
woman's fantasy. Meet three hot heroes who take scorching
desire to a whole new level...Executive Jade Rousseau needs
to find a fake fiance to parade around her company's social
events. When her friends bid on red-hot firefighter Quinn
O'Malley at a benefit auction, Jade bids higher. The man has
to be hers - and she can't wait to feel the passion...
When
fashion designer Delta Ballantyne asks firefighter Evan
Marshall to model her sexy line of men's underwear, she
can't stop the sizzling fantasies running through her mind,
beginning with sophisticated foreplay...and ending with the
ultimate climax...
Ever since Erica Donelson's ex-husband
left her, his former best buddy, firefighter Lincoln
Gabriel, has been there for her. But before long, their warm
friendship heats up to a burning lust that won't be
denied...
EXCERPT
[Jade Rousseau, the heroine,
needs a fake fiancรฉ to impress her family values employer,
and
thereโs nary a guy in her life right now. Her girlfriends
Kimberly
and Amarjeet persuade her to go to
the Raining Men bachelor auction, for charity. All the men
come out
on stage and Jade makes a list of her four top picks, all
nice conservative,
white-collar guys. Even though the one man who really turns
her on is
firefighter Quinn OโMalley. After all the men have taken
their turn,
itโs time to start the bidding. Sheโs enlisted her
girlfriends to
bid for her, because her bossโs wife is at the auction and
Jade canโt
let her see her โbuyingโ a man sheโs soon going to
introduce as
her fiancรฉ.]
Cara, the red-dressed emcee,
took the stage. โThanks again to all these wonderful,
handsome, amazing
bachelors who have participated in the auction. Itโs easy
to give
a little money to charity, but these men have gone above
and beyond.
Theyโre giving their time โ their brains and muscles and
charm โ
for tonightโs valuable cause. And they donโt even get a tax
receipt!
So letโs show them all how much we appreciate it.โ
The room exploded with cheers
and applause. โIโm so nervous,โ I murmured to Amarjeet.
โHave faith. If itโs meant
to be, then it will happen.โ Her pronouncement was
punctuated by a
hiccup.
Cara reintroduced Justin, my
first choice, and called for bids. The lights stayed on so
everyone
could see who was bidding. As the bids rose, I leaned past
Amarjeet
to whisper to Kimberly, โShouldnโt you bid?โ
โI think we should pass on
Justin and figure out how things work.โ
It wasnโt like her to be
cautious. Had Amarjeet been talking strategy to her?
The bidding for Justin heated
up, rising to over five hundred dollars, then stopped with
a flashy
redhead. And then it was the next bachelorโs turn. We
watched until
the high school teacher, my next choice, came on stage.
After a couple
bids, I hissed at Kimberly, โCome on!โ
โRight.โ She placed a bid
and someone topped it. When I hissed again, she placed
another, of four
hundred dollars. A young brunette topped it, another bid
came in, then
the brunette topped that one. Amarjeet said, โKimberly,
donโt bid
again. That womanโs determined. Itโs not worth going high
enough
to win.โ
โYouโre right. Sorry, Jade,
this isnโt your guy.โ Her giggle told me she, too, was
tipsy.
After another few bachelors,
it was the doctor. โBid on this one,โ I reminded Kimberly.
โHave you thought seriously
about his job?โ
โHeโs a family practitioner.
Whatโs not to like?โ
โHe spends a lot of time
peering up womenโs vaginas,โ Kimberly said, loudly enough
that we
both hushed her.
โItโs his job,โ I said.
โBut isnโt it kind of creepy?โ
She gave an exaggerated grimace. โWouldnโt you feel weird,
going
to bed with him after heโd spent his day doing that?โ
Surely doctors viewed the female
bodies they saw at work in an objective, professional way.
And the female
body in their personal life in a completely different
manner. Didnโt
they?
โI heard a talk show the
other day,โ Kimberly said, โwhere some doctors said they
couldnโt
do gynecology or general practice because the vagina thing
made them
uncomfortable.โ
โWell, heโs obviously not
one of them.โ
โNo, but โโ
โMoot point,โ Amarjeet
said, sounding almost smug. โWhile you two were arguing,
someone else
bought him.โ
โDamn.โ I shifted anxiously
as the winner claimed a hug from the doctor. How could I
have lost out
on three men? โIโm down to just the civil rights lawyer.
Kimberley,
you have to win him.โ He was an excellent candidate. Sure,
I hadnโt
felt enthusiastic when Iโd seen him on stage, but that was
only because
the firefighter had me so fired up. Speaking of whom, heโd
been up
after the doctor . . .
And there was Quinn OโMalley,
strolling across the stage with his distinctive brand of
male confidence
and grace.
โI wonder what the woman
who wins him will make him do?โ Amarjeet asked with a
wicked, slightly
drunken grin.
โPut out her fire?โ Kimberly
joked, her voice too loud again. Three drinks were
obviously too much
for us when all weโd eaten were a few tiny appies.
The firefighter had left his
axe behind and stood easily, legs slightly apart, hands
clasped behind
his back. The posture emphasized his muscular chest and
shoulders. Easy
to imagine him hefting a woman in his arms, toting her out
of a burning
building and down one of those long, swaying ladders.
Placing her on
the ground, breathing air into her parched lungs as his
sexy lips caressed
hers. As, under his deft touch, her body came to life. To
aroused, passionate
life.
He glanced around the audience,
a half-smile on his lips, seeming unworried about who would
win him
and what sheโd ask him to do. Vaguely I was aware of women
bidding,
of Amarjeet whispering to Kimberly, but the man on stage
was so fantasy-worthy
that I barely noticed until a new voice joined the bidding.
A voice
I recognized.
I dragged my eyes off Quinn
OโMalley to glare at Kimberly. โWhat are you doing?โ
Amarjeet said, โYou only
had one man left on your list, and heโs near the end. Women
will be
getting desperate, bids will be higher. You might not get
that lawyer.โ
โBut I donโt want this
guy.โ I stared back at the stage. Quinn OโMalley was
watching us.
Our gazes connected and I felt a zap of energy. Sexual
energy.
Kimberly giggled. โThatโs
not what your body language says. Youโre leaning forward
like you
want to leap out of your seat and jump him.โ
Quickly I sat back, breaking
that compelling eye connection, and tried to regain my
sanity. โMy
body language is irrelevant.โ
โHeโs a hero. And heโs
hot,โ Amarjeet said as Kimberly placed another bid.
โFor sure! But I want someone
more conventional. White collar job, good looking but not
so โโ
โFreaking gorgeous?โ Kimberly
put in.
โExactly.โ
โWell, thatโs too bad.โ
She waved her hand in the air.
A moment later the emceeโs
gavel fell and Kimberly said triumphantly, โBecause this is
the guy
youโre getting.โ
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