.jpg)
Blurb:
Sometimes finding what you want is the easy part.
Caleb is a bionic soldier with little-to-no memory of his past. He's seeking the truth about himself and those missing memories.
Aldo's an undercover cop who just might have the answers to Caleb's questions. But if Caleb's the man Aldo thinks he is, how can he let him get away a second time?
Then there's Sally; she's an ER physician who used to be married to Aldo's late partner, Davis. Sally's not dealing with widowhood very well. In fact, it's getting harder, every day, just to find a reason to keep getting out of bed. If the truth about the men's shared past comes to light, she could lose them both. Along with her last, best reason to go on living.
This holiday season, chance will bring them together and give them an opportunity to help one another find what they each want most. But every gift comes with a price. And keeping what they've found once they've found it? Yeah, that's gonna be the hard part.
Excerpt:
Sally and Aldo were seated at the kitchen table when Caleb
joined them there. His initial reaction was disappointment. They looked so
comfortable with each other, so content. He almost hated to interrupt the
pretty picture they made—like an illustration for domestic bliss. Delicious
fragrances wafted through the air, but the food that had produced them was
nowhere in sight. There remained nothing edible on the table other than some
oranges, a plate of Christmas cookies, and two half-empty mugs of coffee. Maybe
it was too much for Caleb to expect to be included in every activity, every
meal, maybe he was nothing but an afterthought—an intruder, no matter how much
Sally insisted otherwise, but couldn’t they at least have saved him something?
Aldo glanced up just then and saw him. “Well, it’s about
time you decided to join us,” he said as he got to his feet. He grabbed the
coffee mugs and headed toward the stove. “I was starting to think you’d never
get up. And she”—he nodded at Sally—“wouldn’t let me wake you.”
Sally had turned in her seat to smile at Caleb. Now she
rolled her eyes. “It’s a holiday, Aldo. Stop fussing. Show some holiday cheer.
Besides, not everyone is as perky as you in the morning.”
“I am not perky,”
Aldo insisted. “I am never perky,
damn it, and I am especially not perky before breakfast.”
Caleb couldn’t help sympathizing. He wouldn’t ever want to
be described as perky either. He crossed to Sally’s side and bent down to kiss
her. Her lips were warm and soft and faintly sugary. “Mm. Sweet,” he murmured,
then kissed her again. “Good morning.”
“Merry Christmas,” she answered softly. Then she pulled back
and indicated the plate on the table. “It’s the cookies that’re sweet. Try
one—they’re still warm. Aldo’s outdone himself this year.”
Caleb’s eyebrows rose. “You didn’t just bake these this
morning, did you?”
Aldo shrugged. “I had time on my hands. It was something to
do.”
The cookies looked professional. Caleb would have bet money
they’d come from a bakery. He was sure they were delicious, but his idea of
breakfast involved something a little more substantial. He glanced at the other
man curiously. “You really like this cooking thing, huh?”
“Like I said, it was something to do.”
Sally rolled her eyes again. “That means yes,” she said, smiling
at Caleb again. She reached for his hand and gave it a little tug. “Come and
sit down. We’re about to have breakfast.”
Caleb’s mood brightened instantly. “You didn’t eat yet? I
thought you went ahead and ate without me.”
Aldo snorted in disgust. “Oh, now there’s an idea. Why
didn’t I think of that?”
“Caleb,” Sally murmured in chiding tones. “Of course we
didn’t. That would’ve been rude.”
“Thank you.” Caleb leaned in and kissed her again. His ears
had detected the slightest hint of a caress in Sally’s voice as she said his
name. Warmth blossomed in his chest. As he’d told her last night, he’d do
pretty much anything to keep that lilt in her voice.
“Help yourself to coffee if you want,” Aldo told him as he
returned to the table carrying the two mugs he’d refilled and some kind of egg
dish he’d retrieved from the oven.
Caleb nodded. “Okay, thanks.” Was it just his imagination,
or was the expression on Aldo’s face this morning extra frosty? He felt his
hackles rise and willed them back down. He didn’t want to be mad this morning.
He was getting tired of walking around angry all the time. Of course, he didn’t
want to be attracted to the other man all the time either. He took a deep
breath and tried for a smile. “What’s that you got there? It looks good.”
“It’s a frittata,” Aldo answered in clipped, disinterested
tones.
“It’s not just a
frittata,” Sally corrected. “It’s a delicious
frittata. He makes it every year, just for Christmas—see all the red and green
bits?”
Aldo sighed. “They’re called peppers, honey. Red and green
bell peppers.”
Sally laughed. Caleb loved the teasing note in her voice as
she said, “You’re so picky this morning. What does it matter anyway? You both
knew what I meant.”
“Well, let’s see,” Aldo answered. “When you perform a
surgery, do you refer to the specific body part you’re operating on at all? Or
do you just point and say, ‘Let’s cut out that bit there’?”
Sally shook her head. “Caleb, honey, he’s picking on me.
Tell the mean, old detective how professional I am.”
There it was again, that soft little note in her voice. He
could get seriously addicted to that. “Always.” Caleb smiled and poured himself
some coffee. “She uses all the big words too. She’s probably just dumbing
things down now so you can follow along.”
“Oh, I’m so sure.” Aldo rolled his eyes. “You can manage
bigger words than ‘bit’? You have no idea how relieved I am.” Frowning at his
plate, Aldo added, “And for the record, I make no claims for the quality of
this dish. It’s highly unlikely it will be delicious this year. I’m guessing
inedible will be closer to the mark, given how long I was forced to keep it in
the warmer—through no fault of my own, I might add.”
Sally laughed again. “Look at you. You’re such a kitchen
diva this morning! What’s up with that, anyway? You know how awesome you are.
Who’re you trying to impress?”
From across the room, Caleb watched them enviously,
marveling at how amazing they were together. Did they even realize it? And did
either of them have any idea how much they were turning him on right now—with
their smiles and their glances, their playful banter? Aldo by himself, when it
was just the two of them, still had a tendency to piss Caleb off, but put him
together with Sally? Totally different dynamic. Every eye roll, every smile had
Caleb aching to be a part of it, to laugh and play together like that. To laugh
and play together like that in bed, all three of them—oh yeah, that’s just what
he needed.
I loved this book!
ReplyDelete