Included in this collection:
Fresh Catch
Take a vacation, they said. Get away from Silicon Valley's back-stabbing and power-grabbing. Recharge the innovative batteries. Unwind, then come back stronger than ever.
Instead, I got lost at sea and fell in love with an anti-social lobsterman.
There's one small issue:
Owen Bartlett doesn't know who I am. Who I really am.
***
I don't like people.
I avoid small talk and socializing, and I kick my companions out of bed before the sun rises.
No strings, no promises, no problems.
Until Cole McClish's boat drifts into Talbott's Cove, and I bend all my rules for the sexy sailor.
I don't know Cole's story or what he's running from, but one thing is certain:
I'm not letting him run away from me.
Hard Pressed
Dear Jackson,
I'm leaving you this note because I know you're very busy and I don't want to waste the town sheriff's time. Lord knows I've already wasted enough of it.
Thank you for taking me home last night and...everything else. I made you a basket of wild blueberry muffins for your trouble. That seemed like the appropriate baked good for getting naked in your living room.
I wasn't myself last night. I didn't mean to kiss you or fondle your backside or ask all those intimate questions. Thank you for pretending to enjoy it.
It was very noble of you to sleep on the couch while I was starfished on your bed. I couldn't help but notice it's quite large. The bed, that is. I swear, I didn't notice anything else when I let myself out this morning.
As you know, Talbott's Cove is a ridiculously small town and there's no chance we can avoid each other. Not that I'd want to avoid you, of course, but I'm not sure I can look at you without thinking of the forty different ways I made a fool of myself.
Instead of avoidance, let's try to be friends. We'll forget all about last night...if that's what you want.
Please burn this note after you read it-
Annette
p.s. I whipped up some cinnamon buns, too. Please enjoy them. I'm not sure why, but I couldn't get buns out of my mind today.
Far Cry
Brooke Markham needs a man. A real good man.
But she's not looking for a keeper. She's too busy kicking ass, running an empire, and caring for her ailing father to spend time with men who want annoying things like relationships and commitment and...conversation.
Brooke knows what she wants and it's not a future with the growly barkeep.
JJ Harniczek needs money. A whole lot of money.
He's determined to launch his distillery, expand his tavern, and put Talbott's Cove on the foodie tourism map. But there's no way he's asking Brooke for a dime. Not before he takes her to bed and definitely not after.
JJ knows where he's headed and the blonde bombshell isn't about to change that.
Not until she changes his entire world.
Rough Sketch
Smart, successful, and sitting pretty at the top of her game, Neera Malik has it all figured out.
Save for the small issue of Gustavo Guillmand.
The artist with a cult-and Instagram-following has a problem and it's not his preference for shirtless selfies.
No, he has an attitude problem, a minding his own business problem, an infuriatingly sexy problem.
They can't stand each other and they can't stay away from each other.