Welcome to Snog by the Sea, it's great that you've dropped by to enjoy the sound of lapping waves. the sea breeze and a good old smooch by the ocean. I'm sharing a snippet from Misconduct which is the 6th book in my HOT ICE series.
Blurb for Misconduct
Manage the Vipers hockey team! Me? Well, that’s my role now. Shame a gorgeous, cocky-assed goaltender is testing my patience. Sweet cheeks—really, is that any way to refer to the boss? Dustin “Speed” Reed certainly seems to think so.
It’s okay though. I’ll escape to my billionaire father’s paradise retreat. Except Dustin decides to jump on for the ride. Then the tension really heats up, hotter than the scorching midday sun.
I want to slap him and kiss him. Push him away and rip off his clothes. The feeling is mutual—a potent cocktail of anger mixed with lust. I know we shouldn’t. It can’t end well, especially when I’m going give him the sack as soon as I push him out of it.
But what’s the fun in having rules if no one ever breaks them? I’ll take what I can, give him what he wants and worry about balancing the books tomorrow. Surely my heart will be fine.
Snog
I stomped ahead of Dustin down by the shoreline, ignoring the sting on my knee and the ache in my chest. It wasn’t as if I cared what Dustin thought of me. I didn’t.
Plus I had a job to do, a big job, and I couldn’t be distracted by annoying players who, each hour, earned nearly as much as they weighed. Not to mention my father needed me. He’d been so desperately sick, hanging on to life at one point. I had to do this for him and make it work. It was the least a good daughter could do after all he’d provided me with over the years, including my education.
My throat tightened and my eyes stung. I marched along, staring at the horizon and the approaching sign that declared our stretch of beach as private property and trespassers would be prosecuted.
I’d be glad when today ended—what with the shock of Henri’s marriage, Dustin’s arrival and Dad’s departure, and then, to top it all, getting mugged. I’d had enough.
Yes. I’d be happy to start fresh tomorrow and hope the stars had better things planned for me.
“Hey, you okay?” Dustin asked, catching up to me.
I glanced at him. He had his t-shirt off and it was tucked into his jeans, flapping behind him. He threw a pebble in the air and caught it with a snap of his hand making his biceps tense.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Are you pissed that Henri is getting married?”
“No. I’m happy for him.”
“Oh, that’s good then.” He jogged ahead and threw the stone into the waves. “So what is it?”
“What’s what?”
He was walking backward, looking at me. “Are you in pain? Did that bastard hurt you more than you’re letting on?”
“No, no I’m fine...relieved, it could have been much worse.”
“Yeah, it could have.” He stooped and grabbed another black stone. “You should bathe that knee with some antiseptic when we get back.”
“I will.” I saw the roof of the villa come into view. Pressed my lips together and stormed ahead. Not much farther now.
“So if you’re not bothered about Henri and you’re relieved that you didn’t get seriously hurt, why have you got a face like a cat’s ass?”
“I have not.” I frowned.
“You have. You were actually quite normal for a bit back there, at the candy stall and that.”
“Normal?” I gripped the strap of my purse, didn’t look at him. “What does that mean?”
“It means you smiled.”
“I can smile, you know.”
“You just don’t like to.”
“Perhaps I don’t have much to smile about today, what with you being here.”
“Me!” He bent down, plucked a bigger stone from the sand and threw it in a perfect arc. It landed far out to sea with a fat splash. “Jesus, there’s gratitude. And I got your wallet back and everything.”
I tore my gaze away from his rippling muscles, how they moved and stretched beneath the surface of his skin as he twisted and turned.
“I’m grateful for that, it’s just...”
“Just what.” He stopped right in front of me.
I was forced to come to a halt. I studied the few curled black hairs on his sternum and then raised my eyes to the hollow of his throat, the stubble on his cheeks, his scarred bottom lip.
“Say it how it is, sweet cheeks.” His voice was stern and I sensed his patience was running out. “I can take it.”
Well, tough. My patience had evaporated days ago. Ever since the first day I’d met him. “It’s just that you shouldn’t be here at all. You weren’t invited.”
“I have a different view of that, as you know.” He slid his sunglasses over his cap and scowled down at me.
“You shouldn’t have bothered my father about this whole contract business. He’s not well.”
“I didn’t, my agent did. That’s his job.”
“He should have contacted me.”
He huffed. “Perhaps he knew he’d get as much sense out of you as he would a damn puck.”
I poked his chest. This time, instead of feeling the hard padding he wore when dressed in his goaltender getup, I felt his sun-warm skin and the solidity of his sternum beneath my finger. I tried not to let touching his flesh affect my body, but it did. There was something about his skin and the strength beneath that flicked my switches. “I told you back there,” I said as firmly as I could, “I’m here to stay. Get used to it.”
“So am I?” He grabbed my wrist, wrapped his big fingers around it and pulled my hand away from his chest.
“We’ll see,” I said, tugging.
I was surprised when he me let go and quickly made the most of it by stepping around him. I needed the sanctuary of the villa.
I’d taken five steps when I felt him clutch my upper arm and the heat of his hand burn onto my skin. He spun me quite roughly to face him. I staggered but he had a good hold and righted me with what seemed like no effort.
“So let’s fucking do this,” he said harshly. “Right here, right now.” He grabbed my other arm, pulled me close.
I caught my breath and stared up at his wild, angry face cast in shadow by his peaked cap. “Do what?”
“Hash this out. The damn contract.”
“No, that’s not how it works.”
“It is in my world. Tell me, what do I have to do for an extension with the Vipers. I want three years. I’ll go with the same conditions as I have now. Can’t start fairer than that.”
“Dustin, no, we can’t do this. Not here, not now.”
He licked his lips, leaving a wet sheen there that captured my attention. “We can. Come on, what do you want?”
I shook my head, licked my own lips. I couldn’t bring myself to say it. But the truth was I didn’t want him at all because the team couldn’t afford him. Not on his current exorbitant salary anyway. God knows what my father had been thinking when he’d agreed to that. He must have been on the whiskey or something.
I looked out to sea, watched a lone gull swoop across the surface of a crashing wave.
“Tell me,” he said again, pulling me closer still.
My breasts came into contact with his chest. A dart of longing went through me like it had in New York when he’d kissed me. How did he do that, when he was so damn furious with me it just made me want to get closer to him, physically that was. Sense told me I should run, get the hell away, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to.
“This won’t work,” I said.
“Why not?’
“Because I...I don’t want you.” I pressed my hands on his dense pectoral muscles, stared up at him.
“Why not?”
“The state I’ve inherited the team in is...” I stopped myself. I really couldn’t go into all the financial details with a player. That wasn’t fair, nor ethical. Not when I hadn’t had a chance to hash it out with Dad yet.
“The state you’ve inherited the team in?” He spoke with a guttural quality to his voice, as though he’d mixed gravel with the words.
“I can’t discuss it. You’ll just have to accept the decision.”
His nostrils flared and his lips flattened. “You mean that, don’t you? You really don’t have any intention of renewing my contract.” He paused. “Shit.”
God, I hated to see pain in his eyes. He clearly loved playing for the Vipers. And who could blame him? It was every hockey player’s dream come true.
I slipped my hands higher onto the base of his neck and rubbed the taut tendons there with my thumbs. “I wish I did want you,” I whispered.
Oh, what a lie. Because I did, just not for the team. His body, pressing against mine, the smell of his slightly malty breath and the way he was eating me up with his gaze. It all made me want him very much. In my bed.
Suddenly he snapped me tight against him, wrapped his arms around my waist and set me flush against his body.
“And I wish I didn’t fucking want you,” he said, his jaw tightening, the syllables seeming to struggle to get out from between his gritted teeth.
He wished he didn’t want me? Those words ping-ponged around my mind. What did he mean? That he did want me, the way I wanted him, even though it made no sense?
I went up on my toes and cradled the back of his head. I stared into his eyes, looking for answers. His pupils were wide despite the sunshine, and desire flamed within them. Yes, I’d been right, he did want me, exactly the same way I had to have him. Now.
I kissed him. With the same furious passion he’d inflicted on me in the hotel. For a horrendous moment I thought I’d made a God almighty mistake—his lips were still, his tongue flat. But then he melted, opened up and let me in.
He groaned, dipped his tongue into my mouth and slid his hand up my back to my hair, bunching his fingers in my casual updo.
Like before, his kiss transported me to a wild place where anything could happen. I writhed against him and was aware of his cock hardening against my stomach. It thrilled me that he was turned-on by me. Big, tough Dustin was hot for a bit of action with little old me. Bring it on.
“Fuck,” he muttered against my lips.
“Okay,” I gasped.
My HOT ICE novels are all standalone reads, so you can start with whichever book takes your fancy. If you do read them in order you'll briefly meet the hero of the next book as you work your way along the series. So to get you started on sexy hockey player erotic romance I'm going to be giving away an ebook copy of the first book HIRED!
MISCONDUCT is available from
HIRED is available from
You can find out details of all the other, award-winning, books on my dedicated HOT ICE page on my website.
This Blog is part of Snog by the Sea over at http://blissekiss.co.uk/snog-by-the-sea/.
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I love this series!
ReplyDeletevitajex(at)aol(Dot)com
I need this in my life please.
ReplyDeletedevynsmom95@yahoo.com
Congrats Kim - Hired is on the way!
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