Hi lovelies! Come check out this exclusive excerpt of "The Kiss on Castle Road" by Lauren Christopher. Also, be sure to enter the giveaway for your chance to win a digital copy of this new book. Good luck!
The
Kiss on Castle Road by Lauren Christopher + Exclusive Excerpt + Giveaway
Natalie
has always been the fun Grant sister: the one with the constantly packed
suitcase and the zest for life. But this carefree existence is wearing on her.
When her oldest sister, Olivia, invites her to Lavender Island for three
months, Natalie jumps at the chance to look after her niece, prove she’s not
irresponsible, and take a much-needed vacation from men.
Her
“mancation” takes an unexpected turn when she spots a group of sick sea lions
and calls on microbiologist Elliott Sherman for help. Elliott is everything
Natalie is not—quiet, studious, and geeky. Yet there’s a simmering sexiness
under those glasses that she’s quick to notice. And Elliott finds himself taken
with her gorgeous free spirit. Despite their chemistry, outside forces threaten
to keep them apart—including a secret Natalie has never shared. Can the allure
of Lavender Island and its quirky residents open her heart and lead her to
lasting love?
Natalie
pushed aside her gut reaction toward jealousy and told herself she was being a
better person if she could help Elliott out here.
“Okay,
you can do this,” she said. “I could tell she was interested in you. What’s
your next plan?”
“I
don’t have a next plan. I didn’t even know I was moving to a next plan.”
“Well,
what’s your standard second-date plan?”
“I,
uh . . .” His hand flew into the air in exasperation. “I don’t know. You tell
me. What’s a good plan?”
She
forced herself to look at this selflessly, and to forget about how sexy he
looked with his tie loosened around his neck like that and the start of a five
o’clock shadow across his jaw. “Okay, she mentioned your place, so she’s
clearly ready to move things along. I think maybe dinner in. And serve a sexy
dessert.”
“A
sexy dessert?”
“Something
like strawberries and cream.”
“You
find strawberries and cream sexy?”
“It
doesn’t matter what I think. It’s kind of a standard message. Strawberries
equals sexy.”
“Do
I do something with the strawberries?” His mouth quirked up on one side.
“You
could do something with the cream,” she snapped.
His
smile slipped a little, and his Adam’s apple bobbed in a visible swallow.
What
was wrong with her? She didn’t like making him feel uncomfortable. But she also
didn’t like the slimy jealousy slithering through her veins right now and
didn’t know how to handle it. But she could. She was determined to be selfless.
She
took a deep breath and tried again.
“And
feel free to touch her throughout dinner.”
Elliott
glanced back up at her. “Does this involve the strawberries?” He cleared his
throat.
“No.
Touch her body, I mean. Her hand, her thigh. Depends on what you have access to
during dinner. It sort of starts the whole foreplay process early.”
“During
dinner?”
“Of
course. How good are you at foreplay?”
Elliott
took a nervous swig of bottled water and looked away.
“Elliott?”
He
shook his head.
“Are
you okay?” Was his throat closing up again?
“I’m
okay,” he choked out.
“Is
foreplay not your forte?” Natalie moved across the rock so she was positioned
in front of him. If they were going to be friends, she could put this all on
the line. It might be nice to speak for all womankind, actually, and instruct
at least one good man on the art of dating and sex. She tucked her pajama legs
underneath her. “It should be easy. Women have many erogenous zones, and you
can touch any of them—some during dinner, and then . . . Well, some you should
wait until you’re naked.”
Elliott
swallowed again.
She
crossed her legs tighter against her body. “Do you need me to tell you where
they are?”
“I
could use a refresher,” his voice rasped.
“Do
you want the during-dinner ones first, or do you want to skip right ahead to
the while-naked ones?”
“We’d
better start with dinner.”
“Are
you a pretty quick study?”
A
wicked smile slowly turned the edges of his mouth. “I always ruined the curve.”
Now
it was her turn to catch her breath. She gulped and finally got hold of
herself. “All right then. Wrists.” She pointed. “Inside elbow.” Pointed again.
“And behind the knee. You can touch those spots during dinner. Try one, and if
she doesn’t pull away, feel free to try one more. Don’t go with more than two
or you’ll seem desperate. Wrists are easy. You can gently stroke while you’re
talking to her at dinner. Kind of like this.” She grabbed his hand and
positioned it on the rock as if it were on a tabletop, then rubbed her thumb
across it as she looked into his face. “See? You don’t even have to watch what
you’re doing.”
He
stared at her fingertips. “Women like that?”
“Some
do. Erogenous zones are different for everyone. If that doesn’t get you far,
you can try behind her knee, although this works best if you’re sitting side by
side, like watching TV or something.” She scooted around so she was next to him
and put her legs out in front of her. “Like this.” She grabbed his hand and
pressed his fingertips into the back of her knee. This was one of her personal
favorites that no man seemed to ever get, so she was pleased to share the
knowledge. For womankind and all.
“Here?”
Elliott pressed once, then stroked gently, then . . . mmm. Natalie had to force
herself to move away as his strokes began sending tingles through all her nerve
endings. He definitely got it.
She
cleared her throat. “Mmm, okay. Very good. Then. There we go.” She moved
farther away and took a couple of quick breaths. “Okay, then there’s kissing,
too. With clothes on, you can still kiss those same places, like wrists again.”
She held hers up. “Or back behind the ear, or along the back of the neck.” She
moved her braid and pointed.
“Should
I try that?” He was staring at her neck.
“Now?”
He
nodded.
“On
me?”
He
nodded again.
Elliott
turned toward her. Next thing she knew, he had his legs bent on either side of
her and had her sitting between his knees. He gently moved her hair. She could
feel his breath on her neck, right beneath her pajama collar, and she waited,
holding her own, shivering a little in anticipation as he leaned closer.
“Here?”
he mumbled.
He
placed a delicious kiss at the slope of her shoulder, and a large shiver went
straight into her scalp. Damn. Dr. Sherman had some kissing skills. “A little
higher,” she choked out.
Another
kiss followed the first, this one at the base of her neck. Goose bumps covered
her arms and ran up to her neck, but she hoped he couldn’t see them in the
dark.
“Here?”
he mumbled again.
“A
tad higher,” she managed to squeak.
A
third kiss landed in just the right spot—her favorite spot—right at the hollow
behind her ear. The kiss was warm, with just enough tongue to make it almost
seem like a lick, and enough to send goose bumps all over her body and a pull
into every sexual nerve ending she had. She couldn’t help but close her eyes
and enjoy it this time, and she fought the moan that wanted to escape her
throat.
“Good?”
Elliott asked softly.
“Yes.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lauren Christopher
Lauren
Christopher is the author of the Sandy Cove series, which includes The Red
Bikini and Ten Good Reasons. She has been a 2015 Holt Medallion finalist and a
2012 Golden Heart finalist. A professional writer for more than two decades,
she has worked on projects ranging from NASA video scripts to restaurant
reviews to feature stories on the origins of Santa Claus. A graduate of UCLA
with a degree in English, she resides in Southern California with her husband
and three children.
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