Erin Nicholas's Blog - Posts Tagged "blue-collar-hero"
My Best Friend's Mardi Gras Wedding
My Best Friend's Mardi Gras Wedding is now the start to a six book series with a spin-off coming in 2021!
Start it now!
“I have a wedding to go to. Actually, a whole wedding extravaganza,” she said. She rolled her eyes. “It’s a multi-day thing. It’s my best friend’s wedding. And I could use…a date.”
The way she paused in front of a date made him curious. “Just a date?”
She wet her lips. “Well…”
For a moment, he was distracted by those lips. Unable to help himself, he lowered his head again and kissed her. She sure as hell didn’t push him away. She fisted the front of his Boys of the Bayou T-shirt and got up on her tiptoes.
The kiss was long and sweet, but eventually, she pulled back. She stared up at him as if a little dazed. He knew the feeling.
“So, this date,” he prompted, not moving back out of her space one millimeter.
She smiled, as if she’d forgotten what they’d been talking about before the kiss.
“Right. Well, I need a date, yes. But not just any date. It has to be you and you have to be…”
“I’m in. What do I have to be?” There was no way in hell he wasn’t going to this wedding, and whatever else, with her. A chance to spend a few days with her? Hell yes, he was in.
“You have to act like you’re crazy about me,” she said, softly. Almost sheepishly.
He laughed at that. “I think I can pull that off.”
She smiled, but said, “I mean, actually, seriously into me. Like we’ve got a relationship. Like we’ve been talking regularly over the past year. Like you’re…my…you know…”
“Your you know what?” He loved the blush on her cheeks and the way she was stumbling over her words. Victoria Kramer clearly didn’t realize that he’d do anything she needed him to do.
She blew out a breath. “My boyfriend.”
“Done.” Could he play her crazy-about-her boyfriend for a few days? Probably too well.
“Yeah?” She looked so sweet and adorable looking up at him as if he was her knight in shining armor.
“Fuck yeah.” He softened his voice too. “Tori, I’ve been thinking about you for almost a year. I went to that bar four times last night. I’ve been pissed off and frustrated all damned day that I didn’t see you. I’ve mentally mapped out a route from here to Iowa. Even though I don’t even know where in Iowa you’re from. I am feeling crazy here, and I’d love to get to know you better, and if you’re here for the next few days, I’m right there with you.”
She seemed to need a moment to take all of that in, but she finally let out a breath, in obvious relief. “That’s…amazing. Thank you.”
“But…” he said, as everything sunk in and he was able to think about something other than how much he wanted to get her naked. Right now. “…why do I need to play the boyfriend-of-a-year role? I mean, I’m happy to,” he added. “But sounds like there’s more to this story.”
She nodded. And winced. “There is.”
“Is there an ex who’s going to be there or something?” Oh yeah, he’d love that. He’d be happy to show some loser that he never should have let her go…and keep him far from her over the next few days.
“Not that, exactly.”
“You need to keep your grandmother from setting you up with some guy you have no interest in?” That he could also absolutely do. In fact, if his job here, in any way, involved him keeping her away from other men, he was definitely in.
She smiled. “Not that either. I um… Last night, when I went to the bar and was so excited to see you…I saw someone who reminded me of you and I um…kind of…kissed him.”
Josh processed that, and the stupid surge of jealousy he felt. “You kissed another guy last night?”
She nodded. “I thought it was you.”
He frowned. “How?”
“He was built like you. And you both have beards. And it was in Bourbon O. And he saw me and clearly recognized me. Oh, and he was wearing a mask,” she added quickly.
Okay, yeah, that was important information. That helped a little.
“So, I thought it was you and I…kissed him.”
“And what does that have to do with this wedding?” Josh asked, feeling like he was still missing something.
“Uh…” She bit her bottom lip, then squeezed her eyes shut and said, “It was the groom.”
Oh. Yeah, that could be a problem.
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Start it now!
“I have a wedding to go to. Actually, a whole wedding extravaganza,” she said. She rolled her eyes. “It’s a multi-day thing. It’s my best friend’s wedding. And I could use…a date.”
The way she paused in front of a date made him curious. “Just a date?”
She wet her lips. “Well…”
For a moment, he was distracted by those lips. Unable to help himself, he lowered his head again and kissed her. She sure as hell didn’t push him away. She fisted the front of his Boys of the Bayou T-shirt and got up on her tiptoes.
The kiss was long and sweet, but eventually, she pulled back. She stared up at him as if a little dazed. He knew the feeling.
“So, this date,” he prompted, not moving back out of her space one millimeter.
She smiled, as if she’d forgotten what they’d been talking about before the kiss.
“Right. Well, I need a date, yes. But not just any date. It has to be you and you have to be…”
“I’m in. What do I have to be?” There was no way in hell he wasn’t going to this wedding, and whatever else, with her. A chance to spend a few days with her? Hell yes, he was in.
“You have to act like you’re crazy about me,” she said, softly. Almost sheepishly.
He laughed at that. “I think I can pull that off.”
She smiled, but said, “I mean, actually, seriously into me. Like we’ve got a relationship. Like we’ve been talking regularly over the past year. Like you’re…my…you know…”
“Your you know what?” He loved the blush on her cheeks and the way she was stumbling over her words. Victoria Kramer clearly didn’t realize that he’d do anything she needed him to do.
She blew out a breath. “My boyfriend.”
“Done.” Could he play her crazy-about-her boyfriend for a few days? Probably too well.
“Yeah?” She looked so sweet and adorable looking up at him as if he was her knight in shining armor.
“Fuck yeah.” He softened his voice too. “Tori, I’ve been thinking about you for almost a year. I went to that bar four times last night. I’ve been pissed off and frustrated all damned day that I didn’t see you. I’ve mentally mapped out a route from here to Iowa. Even though I don’t even know where in Iowa you’re from. I am feeling crazy here, and I’d love to get to know you better, and if you’re here for the next few days, I’m right there with you.”
She seemed to need a moment to take all of that in, but she finally let out a breath, in obvious relief. “That’s…amazing. Thank you.”
“But…” he said, as everything sunk in and he was able to think about something other than how much he wanted to get her naked. Right now. “…why do I need to play the boyfriend-of-a-year role? I mean, I’m happy to,” he added. “But sounds like there’s more to this story.”
She nodded. And winced. “There is.”
“Is there an ex who’s going to be there or something?” Oh yeah, he’d love that. He’d be happy to show some loser that he never should have let her go…and keep him far from her over the next few days.
“Not that, exactly.”
“You need to keep your grandmother from setting you up with some guy you have no interest in?” That he could also absolutely do. In fact, if his job here, in any way, involved him keeping her away from other men, he was definitely in.
She smiled. “Not that either. I um… Last night, when I went to the bar and was so excited to see you…I saw someone who reminded me of you and I um…kind of…kissed him.”
Josh processed that, and the stupid surge of jealousy he felt. “You kissed another guy last night?”
She nodded. “I thought it was you.”
He frowned. “How?”
“He was built like you. And you both have beards. And it was in Bourbon O. And he saw me and clearly recognized me. Oh, and he was wearing a mask,” she added quickly.
Okay, yeah, that was important information. That helped a little.
“So, I thought it was you and I…kissed him.”
“And what does that have to do with this wedding?” Josh asked, feeling like he was still missing something.
“Uh…” She bit her bottom lip, then squeezed her eyes shut and said, “It was the groom.”
Oh. Yeah, that could be a problem.
★彡 Grab it for FREE now! 彡★
Apple: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-Apple
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2WdUj36
Nook: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-BN
Kobo: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-Kobo
Google Play: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-GP
Paperback Amazon: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-PB
Paperback BN: http://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-BN
Audio Amazon: https://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-Audio...
Audio Audible: https://bit.ly/MardiGrasWedding-Audio...
A hot, grumpy-sunny, opposites attract, sexy small town rom com!
Gotta Be Bayou
Spencer Landry was a lot of things. But simple wasn't one of them. He wasn't easy to define in any way. He had come into her life very unconventionally as the friend and cousin of her best friend's boyfriend. Max and Spencer had had immediate chemistry and a definite flirtation when they'd worked together.
Then they'd gone months before seeing each other again at Charlie and Griffin’s wedding. Where they’d flirted again. There’d been a kiss, and a hot make-out session that probably would've turned into more if he hadn't been too drunk.
Then he’d showed up on her doorstep the next day to apologize for being a cocky asshole. And had further cemented the fact that he was a cocky asshole.
But a cocky asshole who was really good in bed.
And now he was here. Not just here—and not here trying to win her over, or even try to get her into bed again—but he was here 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨.
Yes, a bomb threat was kind of a big deal. But there was definitely something about him that seemed… wound up. More than she would expect a typical FBI agent to be at a potential victim's house. Especially when all was well. She'd like to think that all law enforcement cared about all victims, but she knew better. If nothing else, they were objective. Spencer Landry did not seem objective right now.
And it was making her heart beat fast.
He seemed legitimately freaked out. He'd used those words. And that was doing something to her. Something stupid.
It was softening her up.
“You're going to stay with me until we find this guy?” She took a deep breath. “This seems like a terrible idea.” An idea that she kind of liked.
Which made it a really terrible idea.
“It makes a lot of sense. You are a target, and the guy is still out there walking around. Until we find him, it makes sense for you to have someone
protecting you.”
“Is this standard operating procedure?”
“I would prefer if you didn't ask me questions like that.”
Well, that wasn’t an answer. “Because it's a secret operating procedure?”
“Because I don't want to answer the question.”
Ah. She had no idea what standard operating procedure for the FBI was in cases like this, but she was not that interested in delving into the details, maybe for the first time in her life. Maybe because she would find out that it𝘸𝘢𝘴 standard procedure. Which would take some of the stomach-flipping-this-is-kind-of-exciting-that-Spencer-wants-to-protect-me stuff away. Or maybe she would find out that it was not standard procedure, which would make things more confusing.
One of the reasons Max was an outstanding investigative journalist was because details were her catnip. She always wanted to know more about every situation. Who, what, when, where, and why were how she lived her life. But she was going to let this one go. That told her a lot about how she felt about Spencer.
“Well, you seem to have a hard time with how I 𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘭 and being close to my bedroom and seeing me in a towel.” She liked all of that. Maybe because seeing Spencer tortured was fun. Maybe because it had been a long time since she’d affected a man who affected her right back. But probably because torturing Spencer was fun. “So this could be awkward,” she pointed out.
“We’re going to Autre,” he said simply.
She frowned and processed his answer. “Autre? Why?”
“Because you don't live there. You're not from there. It would be hard for someone who doesn't know you well to trace you to that town. And because you’ll be surrounded by people I trust implicitly who can help watch your back.”
“I need a whole army of people watching my back?”
“It won't hurt.”
Autre, Louisiana, was a little town down by the bayou. Spencer's family was from there. She wasn’t completely clear on his direct tie to the town, but she knew some of his cousins lived there. She’d met them at the wedding where Spencer had kissed the hell out of her and they'd barely kept their clothes on.
It was only about a twenty-five-minute drive from New Orleans. It was a charming little town, and the people there, especially the Landry family, were an interesting, rowdy, fun, and loving bunch.
Would she feel safe there? Absolutely.
Was this a complete overreaction on Spencer's part? Definitely.
What did it mean that Spencer was overreacting about her safety? She had no idea.
“So we’re going to go to Autre together? Because you think that's the safest place for me to be so that you have help protecting me. And you're going to stay there with me?”
Spencer nodded. “Pretty much.”
“How are you going to work on this case while we’re there?”
“I won't be working on this case. Conflict of interest.”
She frowned. “How is it a conflict of interest?”
“I'm sleeping with the target.”
She ignored the way her pink panties said 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘰! “You are not. You have in the past, but that was before she was a target.”
“I'm going to be staying in very close confines with her.”
“I’m adding presumptuous to your list of character flaws,” Max said dryly.
Get it here!
Amz: https://amzn.to/3yxeyNW
Apple: https://apple.co/3sMehDN
nook: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-nook
Kobo: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-kobo
GP: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-GP
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-Goodreads
Spencer Landry was a lot of things. But simple wasn't one of them. He wasn't easy to define in any way. He had come into her life very unconventionally as the friend and cousin of her best friend's boyfriend. Max and Spencer had had immediate chemistry and a definite flirtation when they'd worked together.
Then they'd gone months before seeing each other again at Charlie and Griffin’s wedding. Where they’d flirted again. There’d been a kiss, and a hot make-out session that probably would've turned into more if he hadn't been too drunk.
Then he’d showed up on her doorstep the next day to apologize for being a cocky asshole. And had further cemented the fact that he was a cocky asshole.
But a cocky asshole who was really good in bed.
And now he was here. Not just here—and not here trying to win her over, or even try to get her into bed again—but he was here 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨.
Yes, a bomb threat was kind of a big deal. But there was definitely something about him that seemed… wound up. More than she would expect a typical FBI agent to be at a potential victim's house. Especially when all was well. She'd like to think that all law enforcement cared about all victims, but she knew better. If nothing else, they were objective. Spencer Landry did not seem objective right now.
And it was making her heart beat fast.
He seemed legitimately freaked out. He'd used those words. And that was doing something to her. Something stupid.
It was softening her up.
“You're going to stay with me until we find this guy?” She took a deep breath. “This seems like a terrible idea.” An idea that she kind of liked.
Which made it a really terrible idea.
“It makes a lot of sense. You are a target, and the guy is still out there walking around. Until we find him, it makes sense for you to have someone
protecting you.”
“Is this standard operating procedure?”
“I would prefer if you didn't ask me questions like that.”
Well, that wasn’t an answer. “Because it's a secret operating procedure?”
“Because I don't want to answer the question.”
Ah. She had no idea what standard operating procedure for the FBI was in cases like this, but she was not that interested in delving into the details, maybe for the first time in her life. Maybe because she would find out that it𝘸𝘢𝘴 standard procedure. Which would take some of the stomach-flipping-this-is-kind-of-exciting-that-Spencer-wants-to-protect-me stuff away. Or maybe she would find out that it was not standard procedure, which would make things more confusing.
One of the reasons Max was an outstanding investigative journalist was because details were her catnip. She always wanted to know more about every situation. Who, what, when, where, and why were how she lived her life. But she was going to let this one go. That told her a lot about how she felt about Spencer.
“Well, you seem to have a hard time with how I 𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘭 and being close to my bedroom and seeing me in a towel.” She liked all of that. Maybe because seeing Spencer tortured was fun. Maybe because it had been a long time since she’d affected a man who affected her right back. But probably because torturing Spencer was fun. “So this could be awkward,” she pointed out.
“We’re going to Autre,” he said simply.
She frowned and processed his answer. “Autre? Why?”
“Because you don't live there. You're not from there. It would be hard for someone who doesn't know you well to trace you to that town. And because you’ll be surrounded by people I trust implicitly who can help watch your back.”
“I need a whole army of people watching my back?”
“It won't hurt.”
Autre, Louisiana, was a little town down by the bayou. Spencer's family was from there. She wasn’t completely clear on his direct tie to the town, but she knew some of his cousins lived there. She’d met them at the wedding where Spencer had kissed the hell out of her and they'd barely kept their clothes on.
It was only about a twenty-five-minute drive from New Orleans. It was a charming little town, and the people there, especially the Landry family, were an interesting, rowdy, fun, and loving bunch.
Would she feel safe there? Absolutely.
Was this a complete overreaction on Spencer's part? Definitely.
What did it mean that Spencer was overreacting about her safety? She had no idea.
“So we’re going to go to Autre together? Because you think that's the safest place for me to be so that you have help protecting me. And you're going to stay there with me?”
Spencer nodded. “Pretty much.”
“How are you going to work on this case while we’re there?”
“I won't be working on this case. Conflict of interest.”
She frowned. “How is it a conflict of interest?”
“I'm sleeping with the target.”
She ignored the way her pink panties said 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘰! “You are not. You have in the past, but that was before she was a target.”
“I'm going to be staying in very close confines with her.”
“I’m adding presumptuous to your list of character flaws,” Max said dryly.
Get it here!
Amz: https://amzn.to/3yxeyNW
Apple: https://apple.co/3sMehDN
nook: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-nook
Kobo: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-kobo
GP: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-GP
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/Gotta-Be-Bayou-Goodreads
