Surf, Sea and a Sexy Stranger. Heidi Rice
Praise for Heidi Rice:
‘Heidi Rice is simply brilliant when it comes to writing sharp, sassy and sexy romantic novels!’
—cataromance.com
About HOT-SHOT TYCOON:
‘The amusing opening spins into an emotional and heartfelt story.’
—romantictimes.com
About PUBLIC AFFAIR, SECRETLY EXPECTING: ‘I was actually breathless while reading this book…It’s a sensual ride you won’t want to lose the opportunity of reading.’
—www.thePinkHeartSociety.com
She could smell him—that tantalising hint of seawater and pine soap—feel electricity crackling along her skin at his nearness. He hadn’t moved away but stood as still as she, just out of reach.
She glanced back down. Wow, he was magnificent—and obviously as interested in her as she was in him.
‘I hate to rush you.’ He tucked a knuckle under her chin and lifted her face, his thumb rubbing across her bottom lip. ‘But if you’re not annoyed, could you tell me what you are? Exactly?’
She grinned, the charge of excitement making her erogenous zones do a happy dance. She’d been looking for someone to use. And this guy had to be the perfect candidate. He was surly, intense, gorgeous, and the complete antithesis of what she was looking for in a life partner. And he clearly wanted to use her as much as she wanted to use him.
What was she waiting for?
Reaching up, she looped tentative arms round his neck, stretched up onto tiptoes and tried to look as if she knew what she was doing. Seduction was virgin territory for her. She’d always let the guy set the pace before—usually after several tame dates and lots of hand-holding. Which had probably been her first mistake.
Time to seize control of your sex-life, Madeleine Westmore.
Surf, Sea and A Sexy Stranger
By
Heidi Rice
About the Author
HEIDI RICE was born and bred and still lives in London, England. She has two boys who love to bicker, a wonderful husband who, luckily for everyone, has loads of patience, and a supportive and ever-growing British/French/Irish/American family. As much as Heidi adores ‘the Big Smoke’, she also loves America, and every two years or so she and her best friend leave hubby and kids behind and Thelma and Louise it across the States for a couple of weeks (although they always leave out the driving off a cliff bit). She’s been a film buff since her early teens, and a romance junkie for almost as long. She indulged her first love by being a film reviewer for ten years. Then a few years ago she decided to spice up her life by writing romance. Discovering the fantastic sisterhood of romance writers (both published and unpublished) in Britain and America made it a wild and wonderful journey to her first Mills & Boon® novel.
Heidi loves to hear from readers—you can e-mail her at [email protected], or visit her website: www.heidi-rice.com
Recent books by the same author:
UNFINISHED BUSINESS WITH THE DUKE
PUBLIC AFFAIR, SECRETLY EXPECTING
MILLS & BOON
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To my boys, Joey and Luca, because you’re amazing and I love you lots.
With special thanks to Elaine for making Maddy’s beach rescue convincing.
Chapter One
‘THAT guy’s got to be the world’s worst surfer,’ Maddy Westmore murmured in disbelief as she shivered under her lifeguard’s jacket. The sleeting October rain made it hard to focus but she couldn’t pull her eyes away from the tall athletic figure clad in a black wetsuit about sixty metres out in the tumbling surf. She watched with guilty fascination as he squatted on his board, steadied himself, straightened.
Then she sucked in a breath as he wobbled precariously.
The poor guy had been surfing—or, rather, attempting to surf—for well over an hour, in the sort of miserable Cornish weather that had given Wildwater Bay its name back in the seventeenth century. She’d been studying him for most of that time. The methodical way he paddled out, waited for the biggest wave and then mounted his board. But he’d yet to ride a single breaker for more than a few seconds. She had to admire his perseverance, but she was beginning to question his sanity. He had to be frozen through to the bone by now and close to exhaustion—despite the muscular build displayed by his suit—and the undertow on this stretch of beach was no joke.
‘I dunno,’ said Luke, her fellow lifeguard, in his broad Australian accent. ‘He’s got good form. Gets onto the board all right.’
Maddy’s breath gushed out as Bad Surfer crashed backwards off his board for what had to be the hundreth time.
‘No balance, though,’ Luke finished dispassionately, flipping up his collar. ‘You wanna call it?’ he added hopefully. ‘Beach is closed in ten minutes anyway and that storm front’s gonna hit any second now.’
Feeling a rush of relief as the surfer clambered back onto his board, Maddy scanned the rest of the beach in the gathering gloom. Only a couple of hardy boogie-boarders remained inside the yellow flags they’d set up to mark the lifeguarded area. Otherwise the beach was deserted. And with good reason. North Cornwall hadn’t had a great summer this year, but the weather had gone rapidly downhill as winter drew near. Even the hard core surfers had called it a day hours ago. All except one. Who was giving hard core a whole new meaning.
‘Sure—’ she raised her voice above the gathering wind ‘—let’s put him out of his misery.’ Crossing to the lifeguard truck parked on the sand between the flags, she grabbed the loudhailer out of the cab, already anticipating the Extreme Hot Chocolate she was going to wheedle out of her boss, Phil, when she started her afternoon shift at the Wildwater Bay Café.
The booming sound of her voice as she called in the remaining boogie-boarders and the surfer whipped away on the wind, but the boarders responded instantly. Staggering out of the surf, they hurried across the acres of sand, making a beeline for the café. The pair waved and shouted a greeting as they passed—no doubt anticipating their own Extreme Hot Chocolates.
‘Crikey, he’s still at it.’
Hearing Luke’s incredulous comment, Maddy spotted the surfer’s black board with its distinctive yellow lightning stripe bobbing back out towards the main swell.
‘He’s nuts. He has to be,’ she whispered. Either that or he had a death wish.
The