Once Upon A Setup (Meet Cute Romance), Page 5

  That almost instant acquiescence fired his blood, had him wanting all of her in fast, greedy bites before starting all over again. But he’d been waiting too damned long for this, so he forced himself to slow down, keep the tone slow and easy, with just a hint of an edge to remind her that he wasn’t the mild-mannered music producer he played on stage.

  He’d wanted this, wanted to taste her mouth in private, before they crossed that line in whatever fashion Nate deemed appropriate for the show. She tasted of the lemon water she’d been drinking all night. There was nothing of the timid Betty Haynes about her now. She was the one who dove deeper, pulling him under with a sexy little moan that had his control fraying.

  Myles had just enough sanity left to remember where they were. In an alley, only a few dozen feet away from their entire cast of co-stars and a good portion of the entire town. With his last shreds of control, he eased back. Piper stared up at him, cheeks flushed, lips wet and red. Her breath wasn’t altogether steady. As he watched, awareness seeped back in for her, too. Before she could say anything—like This was a mistake—Myles spoke. “Tyler and Brody aren’t the only ones who make a good team on stage and off.”  

  For the first time since he’d met her, Piper Parish was speechless.  And it was pretty damned adorable.

  He chucked her under the chin and stepped back before he dove back in where they’d left off. “I’ve got a late night to put the paper to bed properly, but I’ll see you at rehearsal, Betty. Meanwhile, I’ll be dreaming of March 20th. And so will you.”  

  Whistling, Myles walked away, leaving his lovely leading lady staring after him.

  Can I Ask You A Favor?

  These days, it's harder than ever to get a new book noticed. Many of the promotional opportunities out there require a minimum number of reviews—10 at the low end, 50+ at the high. If you enjoyed this book, taking just a minute of your time to click the star rating and write a few words would help me tremendously, and allow me to continue to bring you the stories you enjoy. Just click the link below. (And, of course, if you really loved the story and want to tell Everyone you have Ever Met, please do!)

  Thanks so much,

  Kait

  P.S. You can find out about my new and upcoming releases—including the upcoming novella that concludes Piper and Myles’ story—by signing up for my newsletter: https://eepurl.com/gQvcX

  Find out more about me at my website https://kaitnolan.com

  Keep turning the pages for an excerpt from Be Careful, It’s My Heart, the companion novella about Tyler and Brody. Or try To Get Me To You, the first book in the Wishful series, for free anywhere ebooks are sold.

  Other Books By Kait Nolan

   

  Wishful Series

  To Get Me To You (Cam and Norah): Available for FREE!

  Be Careful, It’s My Heart (Brody and Tyler)

  Know Me Well (Liam and Riley)

  Just For This Moment (Myles and Piper): Coming early 2016

  Something’s Gotta Give (Judd and Autumn): Coming summer 2016

  Meet Cute Romance

  Once Upon A Snow Day

  Once Upon A New Year’s Eve

  Once Upon An Heirloom

  Once Upon A Coffee: Available for FREE!

  Mirus Series:

   

  Genesis (an omnibus including, Forsaken By Shadow (Mirus 1.1), Devil’s Eye (Mirus 1.2), and Blindsight )

  Riven

  Whisper of Shadow (Also available in the Magical Mayhem anthology)

  YA:

   

  Red

  Whisper of Shadow

  The best things happen while you’re acting…

  The historic Madrigal theater, in the heart of downtown Wishful, is about to close its doors forever. A last ditch fund-raising effort, a production of White Christmas, is probably the only thing that could bring Tyler Edison out of retirement. She fell in love on that stage, but when Brody Jensen abandoned her, she lost the heart to sing and dance for the crowd. Maybe it’s time to take that back…

  It seems like pure chance when Brody’s job, which has taken him all over the world, brings him back to his little hometown to oversee his boss’s latest secret project. Brody’s looking for closure, planning to sell the house his parents left him and finally put his past, and his memories of Tyler, behind him. What better way than to be a part of this last show?  Even though his leading lady is surely long gone…

  Put on your dancing shoes, auditions start at six o’clock.

  Excerpt Be Careful, It’s My Heart

  “Okay, let’s see where you are, Brody,” called Nate. “‘The Best Things Happen While You’re Dancing’, from the top.”

  Tyler lifted a finger for them to wait and put her head together with Mitch Campbell over some plans for their inn backdrop. Brody knew the architect from way back. He was Cam’s cousin, a few years older than him, Tucker, and Cam. Mitch had volunteered to head up set construction for the show, which meant wrangling all the untrained help.

  More power to him, Brody thought. He didn’t envy the man that job. He did envy the easy smile Tyler shot Mitch before clapping him on the back and moving to take up her position on stage. She’d smiled at him like that once upon a time.

  She didn’t smile now as he crossed the stage. Her face was set in a carefully neutral expression. Fine. He could be every bit as professional as she could. Brody reached for her, curving one hand around her waist, the other taking her free hand. They fit. They’d always fit.

  Somebody queued up the music. Tyler glanced down as if checking the position of their feet, which was ridiculous since she knew exactly where her feet were in the pitch black dark. The faint trace of color high in her cheeks gave her away. So she wasn’t as unaffected as she wanted him to believe. Brody could see the thrum of her pulse at the base of her throat, felt the answering echo of his own as she lifted her head again, focusing on his eyes.

  She was stiff at first, resisting his lead. They stumbled a few times. He missed several steps. Then she did. And then the song was over, and she was frowning, knowing they botched the number.

  “Okay, try it again, and this time, Tyler, remember you aren’t doing an impression of a fence post. Loosen up,” ordered Nate.

  She took a moment, closed her eyes as if to center herself, then nodded. With a roll of her neck, she shook out all her limbs. Brody felt the difference in her posture as soon as she took position again. The music swelled, and they locked eyes. On cue, they began to move, and at last, at long last, he felt like he was home. Everyone and everything faded except the music and the woman in his arms.

  He led, spun, dipped, and by the time she broke away into a quick shuffle tap, her eyes were sparking with fun and her cheeks were flushed with exertion. Brody found himself grinning, improvising in response, as he couldn’t remember this section of choreography to save his soul. He watched her, starting to follow her lead, mimicking, mirroring as they came back together and whirled around the stage. And at last they ended, Tyler in a deep dip over his knee, her face flushed and smiling, her chest heaving.

  “Excellent!” called Nate. “You’re remembering how to move together.”

  Something hot and dark flashed in Tyler’s eyes. Brody tugged her up, into his arms, and held her a moment too long, letting the awareness, the heat sink in. No, he hadn’t forgotten what it was to move with her—on stage or in the dark. Neither had she.

  Her breathing faltered and she tugged away like he’d shocked her. She looked flustered and wary, which she’d never been at any point in their courtship. It was kind of adorable. Brody was wise enough to repress a smile.

  Eight years had done nothing to dim the chemistry between them. She clearly hadn’t expected that and didn’t know what to do with it, so the default response was retreat. But before her brain had kicked back in, she’d been smiling, having fun, just like they used to. He could work with that.

  Pick up your copy of Be Careful, It’s My Heart to
day!