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It’s time again for the #MFRWsteam bloghop sponsored by Marketing for Romance Writers. There’s lots of steamy, spicy goodness on display. Check it out here: http://mfrwsteam.blogspot.com.

Here’s a steamy snippet from Christmas Rekindled, my new contemporary Christmas romance set in a neighborhood bar in my hometown of Tacoma, Washington.

Available on all major (and several minor) online booksellers. Get your copy today! https://books2read.com/b/3JjPxP

In this scene Charlie, arrives at River’s apartment for their first—ahem—sleepover. His charm and vulnerability are starting to get under her skin, but she tells herself their connection is only physical. Silly girl.

River opened the door before she could knock and gifted her an adorable, sleepy grin. In plaid flannel pajama pants and a soft gray Henley shirt, he was dressed to put her, and himself, at ease, not to seduce. Was that funny tickle in her stomach relief or disappointment?

He shuffled backward on bare feet. The sight of his neat, blunt toes pulled a rush of warmth to her cheeks.

“Aren’t you cold?” She stepped inside. “The floors were always icy in here.”

He wrapped her in a tight hug. “Thoughts of you kept me warm. Besides, Dawn installed insulation under the floor last year.”

The new floors helped, and so did the little gas fireplace flickering merrily, but it was River’s toasty, muscly body that warmed her right to her marrow.

When he released her, she toed off her boots and hung up her coat and bag before following him to the squashy velour loveseat. Only big enough for two, it forced her to curl up against him. At least the dancing flames gave her somewhere to direct her gaze, other than his too-pretty-to-be-real face. No way she could concentrate while staring into those mesmerizing hazel eyes.

He set his broad, warm hand on her knee, and electricity zinged up her thigh. Talk first. She laced her fingers through his to keep his palm from sliding higher. “River, I need to be clear. I—”

He leaned in and nuzzled the sensitive spot behind her ear. His breath heated her skin. “Just let it happen, Charlie. We both want this. If you have to leave after Christmas, we’ll figure it out.”

What if I can’t leave? What if Anna needs me and Dad needs me and you need me and I have to give up everything I’ve built in Portland? What if I end up stuck in Tacoma because I’m too in love with you to leave?

She gave her needy inner child a mental smack. What’s with the falling in love bullshit? This was just some grown-up fun between two consenting adults. Why deny herself the one bright spot in this grim holiday season? Especially with his magical tongue dancing over the curve of her ear while his hands slid up her sides, his thumbs brushed her breasts…

With a gasp, she gripped his wrists and pulled his hands away from her hungry body. “Promise me, no pressure.”

The firelight danced in his brandy-green irises. “Charlie, I won’t ask for anything you don’t want to give. That’s a promise.”

She released his hands, closed her eyes, and exhaled deeply. His fingers tunneled into her hair and massaged her scalp. Dad, work, Marvin, Anna, all her troubles dissolved as he patiently worked her over, loosening her for the pleasure to come.

She didn’t mean to moan. It just slipped out.

“Charlie,” he murmured into her hair as he scooped her legs onto his lap. His erection nudged her thigh, and he angled his hips to press it closer still. Arousal flared in her core, making her skin hypersensitive. His hands slid under her sweater and over her back and sides. Each feather-light touch relaxed her, heated her, melted her resistance.

Consequences be damned, this is the best idea ever. Merry Christmas to me.

He peeled her sweater off and tossed it away.

“Now yours.” She lifted his shirt, uncovering pale golden skin. She’d had a tiny taste the night before, but now she intended to feast. His chest was solid beneath her greedy palms, smooth and firm and sprinkled with coarse tawny hair. She trailed kisses over his flaring collarbones, his beautifully defined pecs, the wiry happy trail that disappeared beneath the waistband of his soft flannel pants, now tented by his erection.

His stomach rose and fell rapidly beneath her lips as she reached for the drawstring at his waist, then grunted in frustration. This loveseat was too cramped for a thorough exploration of River’s body.

She shoved a hand through her mussed mane. “You got a bed in this place?”

Get your copy today! https://books2read.com/b/3JjPxP