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NIGHTS OF PASSION
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
EPILOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
THE minute Kate Hayden saw Tyler James again, her world turned upside down.
Okay, maybe nothing quite so dramatic, but it sure seemed as if her axis tilted way off kilter as the gut-wrenching desire that had been a feature of their brief relationship eons ago was back, overwhelming in its intensity.
It had been six, long years since she’d last seen him so why were her hormones going haywire at the sight of him now?
She’d gotten over him a long time ago.
She’d prepared for this.
She’d psyched herself up for weeks ever since she’d seen his name on the list of ‘Odd Bods’, the rather quaint name given to the charity man auction the magazine was sponsoring, and known she had to see him.
So she was curious? No big deal. She’d been nosy her whole life and the trait served her well in her job, giving her a head-start on the next big story, helping her make a name for herself.
But this insatiable curiosity about Ty was different and she’d known it the minute her tummy had tingled at the sight of his name on the auction list.
This wasn’t just the natural curiosity of an investigative journalist. Uh-uh.
This was the intense burning curiosity of a woman who’d walked away from the best thing that had ever happened to her.
First loves weren’t supposed to last and she’d moved on a long time ago, but somehow seeing his name on that list had brought back a rush of memories, all good, and she had to see him.
She’d hoped he’d be shrunken and balding and his muscles had wasted away. Although where would the fun be in that?
She sipped her champagne, hoping the bubbly liquid would ease the sudden dryness of her throat as the guy she’d once thought she’d spend the rest of her life with strutted across the stage.
Oh, my.
The champagne momentarily soothed her thirst but it did nothing for her erratic pulse, which skipped all over the place at the sight of the sexiest guy she’d ever met standing on display to a room full of women as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Ty looked incredible, far hotter than she remembered—and she remembered a lot! If anything, the years had enhanced his rugged good looks. Fine lines radiated from the corners of his blue eyes doing little to detract from the tanned, hard planes of his face, his high cheekbones hinting at arrogance. Rich brown hair streaked blond by the sun, cut in the traditional short-back-and-sides he favoured. And those finely shaped lips…
Oh, yeah, she remembered those lips all too well, seducing her with their skill, giving pleasure, wreaking havoc.
The memories still lingered, imprinted on her brain, branded there, utterly indelible. She’d deliberately blocked them over the years, concentrating on her career, trying to build a life for herself in a new country.
Leaving Sydney for LA had been a huge decision for a twenty-one-year-old. But meeting Ty shortly after she landed in the US had made that transition a lot less scary; in fact the guy had lit her world back then.
Squirming in her chair, she took another sip of champagne. This wasn’t the time to get caught up in memories of Ty. She had to focus her attention for the next ten minutes, at least till she’d given her speech. Senior editors needed to be cool and poised, not hot and bothered while practically drooling over an old flame.
‘So, without further ado, ladies, I present our last Odd Bod for the evening. Though from where I’m standing there’s nothing odd about this particular bod!’
A soft twittering swept the room as all eyes turned to the stage. Kelly Adams, the glam local TV station presenter, gestured to the man on her right as she continued her spiel.
‘I know you’ll like what you see, ladies. Tyler James is a Navy SEAL instructor. By the way, SEAL stands for Sea, Air and Land, for those of you who don’t know, and they’re an amazing bunch of Special Forces guys. Tyler stands at six feet four with muscles to die for, has amazing blue eyes, is equipped to handle anything and likes to take charge!’
Catcalls and whistles filled the air while the man in question squared his broad shoulders and grinned, not in the least embarrassed.
‘So, what am I bid for Tyler? Come on, ladies, dig deep. The Ramirez Orphanage is a good cause that needs your help to stay open. Besides, who wouldn’t want this man doing their odd jobs for the next week? Perhaps a spot of gardening? Car washing? Cooking? Housework? Your call, ladies. I’d bid myself though I think my husband would have something to say about it. Who’ll start the bidding?’
As Kelly’s announcement sank in Kate pondered his change in career. Ty had become an instructor? When they’d first met he’d been a proud SEAL, resplendent in his uniform and bristling with macho ideals. No behind-the-scenes action for that guy. He’d been committed and passionate with a genuine love for his career. Why the change of heart?
She stared at the man on stage, questions swirling through her head.
Why hadn’t they given it a go?
Had chasing their careers rather than following their hearts been worth it?
Had growing up changed them?
Needing a distraction from her futile questions, she glanced around the table and noticed every woman’s attention riveted to the stage. Not that she could blame them, considering what was on show up there.
They were a great bunch of girls to work with, all highly talented in their own right: journalists, editors and photographers. Diane, her personal assistant, had organised this gathering in support of the magazine’s sponsorship of the orphanage. In fact, Di had been in charge of choosing this year’s worthy cause and had taken care of every detail and all she’d had to do was turn up.
As if sensing her gaze, Di turned towards her.
‘Why don’t you put in a bid, Kate? About time you had some excitement in your life.’
Excitement? Her? No way. Been there, done that and still had the SEAL scars to prove it.
To her mortification, the rest of the girls turned to look at her so she schooled her features into her best ‘I’m too busy to have fun’ look.
‘Sorry to disappoint, everyone. No time for excitement. What would I do with an Odd Bod anyway?’
Though her voice remained steady the idea of Ty trailing after her for a week did strange things to her insides.
Things she shouldn’t be feeling…or remembering…
‘My point exactly,’ Di smirked. ‘If you don’t know what to do with a total hunk like that you need more help than I first thought. Why don’t you live a little and show us you’re human after all?’
The rest of the table joined in, goading her into bidding and she shook her head, chuckling at their enthusiasm.
So Di had a point. She did bury her life in her work, determined to show that effort and dedication were the keys to success. However, being a workaholic had its downside and she hadn’t had any fun in ages. She’d been fun and impulsive once, and she was too young to be living the sensible ‘all work no play’ life. Maybe a brief catch-up off-stage with an old ‘friend’ could be an antidote to that?
What harm could placing a bid do? It wasn’t as if she’d be the only one. Just one look at Ty and every woman in the room would be reaching for their cheque books.
‘Okay, okay. I’ll do it. Sheesh.’
She held up her hands in surrender and grinned as the girls cheered. Downing the rest of her champagne in two gulps, she raised her hand high in the air and waved it like a cheerleader on a caffeine high.
‘Five hundred dollars,’ she yelled, buoyed by the alcohol and a sudden rush to do something completely out of character.
Pin-drop silence followed and rather than sinking into her chair with embarrassment she straightened her spine, head up, waiting for the moment Ty laid eyes on his bidder, eager to see his reaction, wondering if they still had a spark.
She had her answer in the next loaded second when Ty focussed that too-blue gaze of his on her, the shock of recognition registering in the imperceptible widening of his eyes across the room as they stared at each other, neither backing down, locked in an invisible battle of wills so reminiscent of the past.
Maybe it was the champagne, maybe it was the number of women packed into the room, but while Kate sat trapped under the intensity of Ty’s stare she broke out in a sweat as her body temperature sky-rocketed and she could barely breathe.
‘Do I have any further bids?’ Kelly queried, surveying the room with a grin on her expertly made up face.
Please. Someone…anyone…
Kate’s silent plea preceded complete and utter bedlam as the ladies—and she used the term loosely—in the room erupted.
Maybe her initial bid had been a tad on the high side considering the average guy had gone for around three to four hundred all night. But she’d wanted to prove a point to the girls, show them she could lighten up when needed. Unfortunately, she hadn’t counted on the speculative gleam in her ex’s eyes or the competitive nature of her fellow bidders.
‘Five-fifty!’ shouted a boppy blonde.
Kate rolled her eyes. Blondes were so not Ty’s type.
‘Six hundred,’ yelled a willowy redhead who looked like Nicole Kidman, her smug smile indicating she thought she’d won.
‘Six-fifty.’
Kate sat up and took notice of the third bidder, a sultry brunette reminiscent of Catherine Zeta-Jones with breasts that could take out a guy’s eye at a hundred paces.
Now she was Ty’s type.
Di leaned over and muttered behind her raised hand. ‘Hey, are you going to let these amateurs beat you?’
Suddenly, Kate knew that was out of the question. Fuelled by a fierce competitive streak she’d had since birth, she downed her newly topped-up glass of champagne and jabbed her hand high in the air.
‘One thousand dollars!’
Chaos ceased as curious eyes—and several eyes shooting daggers if she counted the blonde, Nicole and Catherine—focussed on her and she clenched her fists under the table, her heart pounding.
‘Going once? Going twice? All done?’
As the gavel in Kelly’s hand hit the podium with a resounding thud Kate jumped.
‘Sold. To Kate Hayden, whose magazine is our major sponsor today. Well done, Kate. Why don’t you come up here and claim your prize?’
‘You go, girl,’ Di laughed, slapping her on the back. ‘Didn’t know you had it in you.’
Numbness flooded Kate’s body as she walked towards the stage mechanically putting one foot in front of the other as thunderous applause rang out, almost succeeding in drowning out the pounding of her heart, which still reverberated in her ears.
Well, wasn’t this just peachy?
She’d envisaged a brief catch up with Ty tonight, but not like this. A short, impersonal meeting off-stage had been her goal, not an up-close-and-personal encounter in front of the whole room.
As she dragged her feet up the steps she looked Ty in the eye and tried not to crumple into a pathetic heap at his feet. Up close he was even more handsome if that were possible. His vivid blue eyes, the spectacular colour of the Pacific Ocean at Malibu on a fine day, had a quizzical edge as his glance raked over her, setting her body alight.
Damn, he was hot. Hotter than hot and she was burning up from the inside out just being this close to him.
‘You’re looking good, Katie. Long time no see.’
His deep voice flowed over her in a warm caress just as it used to and her knees wobbled, an instant reminder of her foolishness when it came to this guy.
Rattled by her reaction, she aimed for cool. ‘Yeah, it has been a long time. Amazing what I’ll do for charity, isn’t it?’
The momentary warmth in his eyes sparked into fire, the same fire that had scorched her with its brilliance on more than one lucky occasion.
‘Now, now. Is that any way to talk to your fiancé?’
‘Ex,’ she muttered, unable to keep her mouth from twitching at the teasing glint in his eyes.
Those incredible eyes…she was convinced they had the power to make her do crazy things. Why else would she be standing here like a hypnotised chook unable to look away?
Kelly’s head swivelled between them, her catlike eyes glowing with interest.
‘Well, well. Seems like these two are going to get along famously. They’re already chatting. Why don’t you say a few words, Kate, before we wind things up?’
Kate tore her gaze away from Ty’s mesmerising stare and strode to the podium, hoping that her professionalism wouldn’t desert her while her mind was a useless jumble of unexpected memories.
‘As senior editor for Femme magazine I’d like to thank you all for attending our Odd Bod Man Auction here tonight.’
Glancing at the piece of paper thrust into her hand, she continued, ‘Thanks to your generosity we’ve raised over ten thousand dollars for the Ramirez Orphanage. Well done, ladies.’
Particularly well done to her considering she’d contributed one tenth of that money to ‘purchase’ the guy she had every intention of cutting loose once this evening was over. The money didn’t irk nearly as much as the fact he now knew she’d outrageously overbid to beat every other woman in the room to have him, not once, but twice.
The smattering of applause died down and she forced herself to concentrate on finishing up the speech.
‘I’d also like to thank the men who generously volunteered their time tonight and for the next week. I’m sure the ladies will be more than thrilled to have personal Odd Bods for the week ahead. I know I am.’ Not.
There, that last remark should show him that he hadn’t affected her. Not much, anyway.
Squaring her shoulders, she turned to Ty and flashed him an uneasy smile. Once again loud applause filled the room as he blew her a kiss.
Damn it, her knees wobbled again. All it took was one stupid little gesture and she was acting as she had when they first met: star-struck, smitten and totally unable to control her reactions to him.
Leaning on the podium for support, she fixed a bright smile on her face and turned to the audience.
‘Thank you, ladies. We hope to see you at our next fundraiser.’
As she stepped away Kelly grabbed her arm.
‘Not so fast, Kate. Have you forgotten what the last step is after a successful bid?’
Her heart plummeted. She’d been hoping to escape the final humiliation every other woman who’d purchased an Odd Bod had gone through. The goofy friendship bracelets bearing a strong resemblance to handcuffs to shackle the Odd Bods to their bidders were tacky to say the least. And it looked as if she’d have to grin and bear it.
‘Come on, you two. Don’t be shy. Kate, you can remove this any time you want…if you’re game.’
With that final remark, Kelly snapped the bracelet onto her wrist, the other end already securely fastened to Ty’s, and dropped the key into his jeans pocket.
‘You’ve got to be kidding,’ Kate muttered, silently vowing she would never drink champagne again.
Though deep down she knew it wasn’t only the alcohol that had made her bid for Ty. One look into those gorgeous baby blues after all this time and she’d lost it.
Though she didn’t have feelings for him any more the thought of some other woman having him trailing after them for a week performing goodness knew what duties had been incentive enough to make her commit the ultimate folly, that ludicrous bid to end all bids.
‘No joke, I’m afraid. Looks like the fun’s just beginning,’ Ty said, swinging their bound arms into the air in a victory salute.
The applause crescendoed, accompanied by raucous hooting and laughter, and light bulbs flashed in a continuous wave as the contingent of photographers lapped up the opportunity. Kate clenched her jaw and grinned, determined to appear in control when in fact she wanted to bolt.
‘Yeah, I’m having a real ball,’ she said through gritted teeth, keeping her smile in place and giving a subtle yank on the chain binding them.
‘Just a little longer. Plenty of time to get reacquainted later.’
His subtle, husky emphasis on ‘reacquainted’ set her pulse racing and she took a deep breath, knowing the faster they got off-stage and unlocked, the happier she’d be.
She lowered her arm forcefully, pulling his down, and Ty tugged on the chain linking them, reinforcing the fact that if he hadn’t wanted to lower his arm she wouldn’t have succeeded in moving him one inch.
‘Let’s go.’
She marched off the stage, leaving him no option but to follow.
Now was her big chance.
To do what?
Exchange pleasantries? Make small talk?
Chewing her lip in frustration, Kate picked up the pace. For someone who spent her life making decisions over which words sounded better or which articles went where, she hadn’t thought this through at all.
Seeing Ty on stage was one thing, having him attached to her up close and personal another.
She’d wanted to catch up? Well, looked as if she had her opportunity considering she’d spent a small fortune to have him bound to her for a week.
Not that she’d hold him to it. They’d have a quick catch-up backstage and she’d let him go.
Yeah. That was exactly what she would do. Simple.
Then why did she feel as if fate was chuckling and the joke was on her?
Tyler shook his head. Still the same old Kate: proud, gorgeous, independent, with those bewitching hazel eyes that got him every time.
He’d enjoyed teasing her during their brief relationship, the golden flecks in her eyes sparking whenever she reacted to his banter. Those flecks had also glowed when she’d been aroused, as he remembered all too well.
He’d been floored when their gazes had locked across the room, her presence at the auction a sucker punch to the gut when he’d least expected it, and try as he might he’d found his gaze drawn to her repeatedly while she’d acted as if he didn’t exist.
Then what had that crazy bidding been about?
Damned if he knew.
‘Keep up,’ Kate said, giving a none-too-subtle yank on the chain binding them, and he bit back a grin.
She hadn’t changed at all, still the same determined woman who wasn’t going to wait for anyone, as she picked up the pace.
His gaze travelled to her butt and the way the black linen skirt clung to every sexy, provocative curve. She didn’t merely walk. She strutted and then some on long legs, showgirl legs, sensational legs that had wrapped around him so many sweet times.
The great thing about her height was it didn’t detract from her curves one iota. In his experience, tall women were usually lean with small breasts and few curves. Kate, however, was the antithesis of this stereotype. For a woman about five-ten, her voluptuous breasts and narrow waist would put an hourglass to shame.
She was a knockout, pure and simple.
He wrenched his gaze away from her butt and his mind out of fantasy land and focussed his attention on her hair, admiring the sleek, new style. Shorter hair suited her. The burgundy highlights in the chocolate-brown depths drew attention to the shiny mass that now brushed across her shoulders and he itched to run his fingers through it.
Unfortunately, it seemed moving his view higher hadn’t dampened his growing desire. If anything, the thought of her luscious locks trickling like soft silk through his fingers inflamed him further.
Looked as if he still had it bad. No great surprise there.
How many nights had he lain awake dreaming about her, wishing he could reach out and touch her? In fact, the fantasies about Kate had been one of the few things that had kept him sane during the agonising year-long knee-rehabilitation programme two years after their split, when dreary days had merged into pain-filled nights as he had tried to come to terms with the fact his knee was bust, no amount of exercise could ever repair the damage and he’d be off Team Eight, removed from active duty permanently.
Life had sucked big-time back then.
Now, it looked as if his fantasy had come to life again. So what was he going to do about it?
From the first minute he’d caught sight of her sitting at a table surrounded by beautiful women yet standing out anyway he’d been stunned. She’d been staring at him, her luscious mouth a perfect little pout, and he’d had difficulty breathing. In fact, his first glimpse of Kate after six long years had been worse than a case of the bends, and no amount of hyperbaric chamber treatment would fix what he had for her.
Lust, pure and simple, had slammed through his body, making him want to leap over tables, grab her and lock his mouth to hers, tasting her, possessing her, reminding her of how damn good they’d been together in the bedroom.
He stumbled and she cast a pitying glance over her shoulder while he sent her a cocky grin.
Staring at his sassy ex strutting in front of him had him remembering exactly how great they’d been together. Perhaps spending seven days trying to resurrect old times before facing the life-changing appointment next week wouldn’t be such a bad thing?
Yeah, that sounded like a plan.
And like any good SEAL, he always stuck to the plan.
CHAPTER TWO
KATE didn’t speak till they reached the confines of a dressing room backstage. With Ty’s stare boring holes into her back, it took her a while to figure out what to say.
Her plan to have a quick chat and catch up had sounded good at the time. However, now that she actually had him all to herself her plan had hit a snag. A big one.
She hadn’t banked on the familiar zing between them, that special something that had prompted her to propose to him in the first place. Back then he’d thought it had been a bit of a laugh and she hadn’t disillusioned him.
She’d played it down, they’d joked about being engaged, he’d attributed it to her crazy sense of humour, but deep down she’d known it hadn’t been real. They were two crazy kids in love, him fresh out of SEAL training, her fresh off the plane from Sydney. Vegas had been a hoot, hooking up with the fun-loving SEAL even more so, and it had seemed natural to move in with him back in LA.
But life wasn’t just about fun and they’d both had places to go, careers to pursue and they’d done the right thing in splitting up.
Hadn’t they?
Kate closed the door behind them, determined to make their catch-up short and sweet. Either that or succumb to a sudden hankering for a fix of seal and it sure didn’t involve going to the zoo to get it.
‘Look, I know this must seem crazy to you, me bidding and all. But I just wanted to catch up. Basically, I’ve no intention of holding you to this odd-jobs stuff. I’ll happily donate the money to the orphanage and we can call it quits, okay?’
He remained silent, a speculative gleam in his blue eyes with the barest glimmer of a smile playing about his sexy mouth.
Disconcerted by his silence and the look in his eyes, she rushed on. ‘It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Guess I just got curious, wondering what you’ve been up to. Six years is a long time.’
Could she sound any more pathetic?
Standing this close to Ty, having that intense blue stare focussed solely on her, was short-circuiting her brain. Not to mention the nerve-endings firing through her body.