And when I slid between her legs, she clung to me, her breaths quickening. I rolled my hips against her, and we both moaned in unison. It felt so right.
So very much like home.
Pulling back, I grinned down at her and whispered, “I got you, and now you’re all mine.”
“Silly man,” she said, her voice husky and low. “You got me long ago. And I’m not going anywhere. This thing we have? It’s forever. I promise.”
“I promise to love you forever,” I vowed. I kissed her then pulled back. “And ever.” My hand crept between her thighs, and I ran my thumb over her slit, not stopping till I pressed against her clitoris. “And ever.”
Another promise I knew neither of us would break.
And I knew we were here, together, because of some kind of divine destiny. Call it providence. Fate. Whatever the hell you called it…
It had gotten us here.
If our parents had never gotten married, if she had never become my stepsister, we likely would never have met. Something had happened when the universe threw us together. She saved me; there was no denying that. But I saved her, too. Whoever we would have been, we were better for being in each other’s lives.
Together, we found out there was another way to live. That we didn’t have to be what everyone else wanted us to be. Because we’d fallen in love, we discovered we could be what we wanted to be, and we showed each other we could be that person….
Against all odds.
This was our real start. Our real lives. Our new story. The ending hadn’t been written yet, but I had a pretty damn good feeling where we were going. And how it would all play out. I saw a lifetime of happiness, trust, love, and family.
A life we were meant to live together.
And a happily-ever-after.
This one goes out to my girl, Jay Crownover. Thanks for all the brainstorming and for listening to me ramble on and on and on and on….
Acknowledgments
A special thanks, as always, goes out to my husband, Greg. You’re the real hero in my life, and I wouldn’t be able to give this whole writing career my all if I didn’t have you by my side, cheering me on.
A huge amount of love is being sent out to my kids. I love you all, and hope you live out all of your dreams to their fullest…and then more.
To the rest of my family, and to my writing and non-writing friends (you know who you are), thanks for all the support and love you give me. And thanks for not being angry when I forget to call you back because I’m too busy writing or editing.
To Louise Fury, my agent, and my own lioness, Kristin, thank you for your tireless dedication to me and my work. Having you two in my corner makes all of these crazy dreams of mine come true, and I’m forever grateful for that.
To Sue, thanks for all the emails and for taking a chance on me! I’m so glad we finally get to work together, and I have a feeling it’s going to be the start of a beautiful relationship!
And, of course, a huge, huge thank-you to all of you, my readers. Without you, I definitely wouldn’t be so blessed as to be able to do this. To live out my dreams.
THANK YOU.
BY JEN MCLAUGHLIN
Out of Line
Out of Time
Out of Mind
Fractured Lines
Blurred Lines
Between Us
Losing Us
Bad Romance
Dare to Run
PHOTO: SALENA BORSUK
JEN MCLAUGHLIN is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of sexy books with Penguin Random House. Under her pen name, Diane Alberts, she is also a USA TODAY bestselling author of contemporary romance with Entangled Publishing. Her first book as Jen McLaughlin, Out of Line, released September 6, 2013, and hit the New York Times, USA TODAY and Wall Street Journal lists. She was mentioned in Forbes alongside E. L. James as one of the breakout independent authors to dominate the bestselling lists. She is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.
Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal-clear water. She lives in northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, husband, schnauzer mutt, and three cats. Her goal is to write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non–romance reader will know her name.
jenmclaughlin.com
Facebook.com/DianeAlberts6
@DianeAlberts
The Editor’s Corner
As the seasonal colors change with the leaves on the trees, so does our lineup of new Loveswept romances…and we’re sure you’ll love them all!
Adore MC romances? You’ll love Rachael Johns’s Fire Me Up. Sports fans won’t want to miss New York Times bestselling author Sawyer Bennett’s Cold Fury Hockey series continuing with Ryker and debut author Sophia Henry introduces her Pilots Hockey series with Delayed Penalty. Then it’s off the ice with Samantha Kane’s new NFL title, Broken Play. Baseball fans everywhere will want the next in the Boys of Summer series by Katie Rose, The Heat of the Moment, while readers who devour MMA stories will go for Loveswept debut author Sarah Robinson’s Breaking a Legend. And if your taste for fighters is not squelched just yet, Raven by Ashley Suzanne has a twist that will shock you and yet melt your heart—prepare yourself for an emotional ride.
For those sports enthusiasts who take to the slopes, Extreme Risk’s next installment, Slashed, by New York Times bestselling author Tracy Wolff is here! Fabulously fun and flirty author Cassie Mae begins a new series, All About Love, that will have you laughing out loud, then sniffling, maybe both at the same time with the first book, Doing It for Love. Lastly, a sexy Regency historical novella from Lavinia Kent, part of her Bound and Determined series, Sarah’s Surrender.
All affordably priced and found wherever eBooks are sold, Loveswepts are stories you’ll always remember that can be easily stored on your digital shelves to be read over and over again. Until next time…
Happy Romance!
Gina Wachtel
Associate Publisher
Read on for an excerpt from Raven Fight or Flight