An Offer from Mr. Wrong by Niobia Bryant

Author:Niobia Bryant
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-03-26T17:17:05+00:00

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Barefoot with a glass of brandy in hand, Lincoln stood on the deck outside his master suite looking out at Carbis Bay Beach less than a thousand feet away. His glass one-story home was on a secluded enclave of the beach, offering him beauty, privacy and seclusion. The afternoon sun was high but there was still a nip in the air that he found invigorating. He needed to feel something besides the grief. It was constant.

He took a lingering sip of the drink and enjoyed the burn of it down his throat.

Not even the sands and turquoise waters offered any calm. And beneath the surface, he was fighting back anger. At himself. At the doctors. For a moment at God. And at his mother for not revealing her cancer diagnosis to him. For not taking treatment. Not fighting for her life.

“Damn,” he swore, taking another sip.

One of many since he got the call the day before. One of many more to come.

He tipped his head back to drain the glass.

“Lincoln.”

He lowered the glass and looked at Bobbie walking up the stone path pulling a roll-away suitcase behind her. The very sight of her was like water for thirst. He crossed the deck and came down the wooden steps to reach her. “You’re here,” he said, pulling her body into a tight embrace as she brought her hands up his back.

Even through the woven cotton of the white shirt he wore, he felt goose bumps race across his body at her closeness.

“You’re barefoot,” she teased.

“I’m home,” he stressed. “How was your trip?”

“I flew private,” she said, looking up at him with her chin settled against the groove between his biceps. “And then hired a car service to drive me here. So yes. I am here. And how are you?”

Lincoln looked down into her face, with her bright eyes filled with concern for him and her mouth as tempting as ever. The desire to kiss her filled him as the wind blew her wild hair and the smell of the sea blended with the scent of her honey. It felt good to have her close. In his arms. And his life.

“Thank you for coming, Bobbie,” he said, refraining from tasting her mouth as he respected the limits set by their friendship.

His grief needed that more than their attraction.

Lincoln pressed a kiss to her forehead before letting her go and taking the handle of her suitcase to pick it up. “Are you hungry?” he asked, looking down at her profile.

“Starving,” she said. “How about you? Have you had anything but bourbon?”

“Ever the detective,” he teased with a shake of his head as they climbed the stairs up to the deck. “You miss nothing.”

She just wrapped her arms around one of his and leaned her head against it as he slid open the glass door and offered her to enter first. When she released him to do so, he missed their connection.

“Lincoln, your home is beautiful,” she said, turning in the center

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