...And Keep Her: Lovers and Other Strangers, #8

Also by L.C. Giroux

Fall Into His Arms

More Lovers and Other Strangers Series Books

Pay Back 

His Deception

Lovers and Other Strangers Boxed Set:

The Boston Stories

Second Chance at Salvation

All In

Where’s My Cowboy?

Lovers and Other Strangers Boxed Set: Salvation New Mexico

Skater’s Girl

...And Keep Her 

Love Stranger than Fiction

Lovers and Other Strangers Boxed Set:

Seattle

Just Her Type

Plan Brady

This Day Forward

Series Short Stories:

Wild Child

The Day Before the Night Before Christmas

Cupid Must Be Irish

...And Keep

Her

Lovers and Other Strangers Book Eight

L.C. Giroux

www.lcgiroux.com

Copyright © 2012 by L.C. Giroux.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

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...And Keep Her/ L.C. Giroux—1st ed.

Author's Note:

This book is the eighth in the Lovers and Other Strangers series. No one is more surprised by this than I am. When I started writing His Lady Godiva, book one, I hadn’t planned on writing a series and wasn’t even sure if anyone would want to read about a um, confused, more than slightly repressed, wheelchair bound surgeon. It wasn’t exactly going to show up as a category anywhere that is for sure. But people embraced it and there was a character in that book that demanded his own story so Pay Back, book two got written and well, I’ve been busy ever since.

If you read the last book, Skater’s Girl, then you know where this book starts. A quickie in the back of a limo between the best man and the maid of honor. The most fun part of being a writer is messing with your character’s lives. Well, Steve and Audi need to have their lives thrown in a blender. I think they’d agree the results were worth it.

I urge you to sign up for my newsletter, relax I don’t send out bunches of them, but when I do I usually include links to free stories.

You can find the sign up here: http://www.lcgiroux.com

L.C. Giroux

... And Keep

Her

Prologue

Steve yanked the now soaking-wet pirate shirt over his head. After wadding the stupid shirt up, he wiped off the rain still clinging to him and shook out his hair. With that done, he could finally look at the woman in the limo with him. She was too tiny to be a goddess: a fairy princess, maybe? The candy apple red hair, heavy black eyeliner, and facial piercings all said punk rocker but the contrast of the white muslin gown with the leather straps made her mesmerizing. She seemed to be excitement incarnate. She sat shivering in the soaked dress. He tried to ignore the fact the fabric was now see-through. He knew he was failing miserably. He closed his eyes when the very hard, dusty rose nipples started having the expected reaction in his body. Who was he kidding? Someone like her didn't want anything to do with guys like him. Boring, stable but so what, ordinary in every possible way, brown haired, brown eyed, even his name was ordinary—guys like him.

He had been almost dumbstruck when he'd seen her walking down the aisle. Having a sister, he knew there were girl rules for not showing up the bride but how could she help it? Mimi was great; he really liked working with her and she made Eric happy but she paled in comparison to this woman. Hell, just about any other one would. The air crackled around her. Maybe she was magic? Maybe that is why when the sky opened up, he had reached over and grabbed her hand. He ran toward the limo, figuring that's where Eric and Mimi would head, too. If she had pulled away, he'd have let her go and that would have been the end of it. But she hadn't; she'd run with him.

The shirt he had taken off was wet but at least it was heavier than the dress she had on. He held it out to her.

Here. He tried to give it to her. She pushed his hand away.

Hold me, she moaned, and then she threw her arms around his neck and scrambled into his lap, burying her face in his neck.

Whoa!

***

It was done. Mimi was married and now she was completely alone. The thought rolled over and over in her brain. She was happy for her sister, thrilled actually. Eric was a great guy, funny, could take care of Mimi. She was happy for the two of them, really. It was just the months on the road, no sleep, bad food, and now this throat infection she was almost over. That had to be why she wanted to cry. Well, people cry at weddings, don't they? God, she was so cold her teeth were chattering. And this damned dress was useless for warmth.

Of course, the hunk who had dragged her in the limo looked plenty warm. He and Eric had been kind of silly, standing on the cliff waiting for them. Eric at six foot four and this guy at what, maybe five foot eight? They looked like the Odd Couple, beyond just their heights. Eric was all tattoos, long hair, and pierced ears and this guy looked like your incredibly hot executive. He had close-cropped brown hair that made her want to run her hands through it, brown eyes a girl could lose herself in, and a mouth that made promises she was dying to find out if he could keep. And that was just from the neck up; everything below his shoulders was sculpted and hard. Um, hell yes, everything. Eric was scrawny-looking next to this guy. The stupid shirts Mimi had made them wear hung on Eric but this guy's was tight through the shoulders. That he worked out was obvious the minute he'd pulled the shirt off. Oh, damn. Could she volunteer to lick the rain off him?

Shit, she really needed to get laid. It was fundamentally wrong that she was called a rock star by the press and she never had sex because the thought of doing it with the roadies or some fanboy was a total turnoff. Of course, she was never in one place long enough to have an actual relationship, anyway. She didn't need his damn shirt. She needed to connect with another human being so she didn't feel so alone. She knew he'd be warm, and God, he smelled so good. Could safe and stable have a smell? His arms around her made her feel as if she wasn't going to fly into pieces. Her lips on his skin felt so good and right. Better was his on her skin. Everywhere he touched, her skin warmed. His kisses were like being bathed in warm honey.

Fuck, yes, she panted.

Steve—my name is Steve.

She would scream if he stopped kissing her, touching her. For the first time in ages, the cold that had taken residence around her heart was thawing.

Audi. She gasped as his thumb grazed her nipple.

Wait! Mimi's sister?

No more talking. She clamped her mouth to his and started playing with his tongue. He found her lip piercing and then he sucked it into his mouth. Oh God, she needed his warmth. She turned so she straddled his lap and knelt in front of him. He got the hint and his lips closed over one of her aching nipples. She almost collapsed with relief and laced her hands behind his head to make sure he didn't go anywhere. Damn, he was good at that! She was so flat she almost never bothered with a bra, and would have been fine with it except her sister had gotten an extra visit from the titty fairy, so once they had both hit puberty, she ended up feeling pretty inadequate. Her lack of jiggle didn't seem to be deterring him any.

She felt him tugging on the skirt of her dress and managed to get off it enough so he could get his hands under it. Mmm, warm hands, strong fingers, knew just how to take his time. She should lock the doors. The thought evaporated when he skimmed his thumbnail along the edge of the silk bikini panties she was wearing. She shuddered. All thought was replaced by the word, NOW. She pulled away from him and ran her hands over his chest, scratching her nails lightly in his chest hair. She watched his eyes half close. He liked that? Then he'd really like this. She flicked at his nipple and it peaked. She couldn't resist and nipped at it gently with her teeth.

God damn, yes! She lifted her leg so she wasn't astride him anymore. He looked wild eyed at the separation of their bodies, which made it hard not to smile. Being so short finally had an advantage; she half stood in the car, reaching under her dress to pull her panties off. He stared at them on the floor like he'd hit the lottery. He may have growled; it was hard to hear over the rain. Then she pushed him to his back. He pulled her with him when he went but she managed to scramble away.

Need to get these off. She popped the button on his jeans. They were so tight from his erection, she was half afraid of hurting him when she worked his zipper down. She finally got them and his boxers, regular boxers—who wore those anymore?—off. God, he could pull off the compromising paparazzi shot in the back of a limo well. He also didn't seem to have a problem with her being on top when she flat out mounted the man.

God, yes! they both yelled. His hands and mouth went back to work as her eyes rolled back in her head.

Audi—protection?

Pill. Don't stop!

Can't.

He felt so good inside her. No idea how big he was but damn, he hit all the right spots. She gasped when she felt his hand shift from her thigh to her mound and his thumb found her clit. God, she was so close already. They ground against each other. Her fingers scratched at his chest while his thumb made magic circles. Thank God, a man that didn't rub like he was trying to start a fire.

Suddenly light burst in the car.

Shit! Steve yelled. She was too far gone to figure out what was going on. She heard the car door slam behind her.

Please don't stop. Her voice sounded so needy.

Can't. Oh God, Audi! She would have toppled over backward with the force of their combined orgasms but he cradled her in his arms, pulling her against his chest as she moaned and shook. After a minute or two, she started coming back to some kind of awareness.

The light?

Eric and Mimi.

Shit. How much did they see?

No idea. Then the banging on the window started and Eric was asking if they were going to be awhile...

Figures. She waited till Steve got himself decent and then she hit the button to lower the window. She pulled her best rock star glare out. Not a God damned word, either one of you. I mean it. Which made them both laugh like hyenas.

Chapter One

Eric got in and pushed him over so he ended up on the same seat as Audi, who looked anywhere but at him. He figured she'd have second thoughts but he didn't think they would be happening already. Crap, Eric was never going to let him forget this, not that he would if he could.

So, Steve, Audi, you two getting to know each other? Eric was obviously biting the inside of his mouth to keep from laughing.

Asshole, he said under his breath. He snuck a peek over at Audi but she was just staring out the window. The limo hit a pothole and everyone went flying. Audi's hand ended up grazing his crotch and he thought he'd black out for a second. He tried to think of something to head off him getting hard again. He couldn't want her that badly already; hell, they had just had—well, he had had—a mind-blowing orgasm. She sure acted like she had, too.

Eric leaned over and swiped something off the floor. Now he was biting both sides of his mouth. If he got stuck like that, he would look like a chimp for the rest of his life. Might be a damned improvement.

Looks like someone lost something, Eric said while twirling a pair of silk panties on his finger.

Gimme those! Steve grabbed them and stuffed them in his pocket. Audi didn't even look over; she still hadn't said anything.

He couldn't believe the woman he'd spent the last hour making lo—having sex with, was Audi Ferguson, aka Rawdy Maudi, lead singer of the Harridans. Rock stars, even ones like her—maybe especially ones like her—didn't sleep with accountants, even if they are chief financial officers. If Eric didn't stop grinning at him...he would just ignore the jerk. He would talk to Mimi, except when he glanced over at her she was watching Audi stare out the window with a concerned look on her face. Fuck. That could not mean good things. Okay, time to punt.

So, the sun should be out for the carnival. The kids would be wrecked if it got canceled.

Audi, I was hoping you could do some acoustic stuff, just a song or two.

He wanted to kiss Mimi right now.

Wha—I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention.

I asked if you'd be willing to do an acoustic song or two?

Audi didn't really answer, just kind of shrugged. How could the woman look so lost and vulnerable when she had been so commanding less than twenty minutes ago? Remembering the look on her face when she was tearing