Playing
with Fire
Game Time #1
By Alix Nichols
Genre: Contemporary Sports Romance
Release Date: May
10, 2017
Synopsis
He was
supposed to look after her, not kiss her senseless…
Au pair
Uma is all kinds of wrong for single dad Zach. Raised in a conservative Hindu
family, Uma is his son’s nanny, a twenty-three-year-old virgin, and a guileless
ingenue to boot.
Zach
knows all of that.
Then
why can’t he rein in his lust for her?
If
there is one man Uma should not be attracted to, it’s the
father of the adorable five-year-old in her charge. Once burned twice shy, Zach
is the captain of a pro water polo team and a wealthy entrepreneur who can have
any woman he wants. No strings attached.
Small
wonder he goes all out to shun Uma!
But
when, with the help of a bottle of fine wine, Zach confesses all the dirty
things he’d like to do to her, Uma astounds him by saying she wants that, too.
What’s
a man to do but oblige?
Besides,
it’s not like it’s the end of the world. They’re both sensible,
level-headed adults. They’ll just have a bit of fun and then go back to normal,
as if nothing happened.
As
if feelings weren’t already getting in the way.
Excerpt
After Sam has shut his eyes, I
tiptoe out of his room and downstairs to the kitchen. We keep a box of
delicious artisanal chocolates in one of the cabinets above the sink, and my
intention is to treat myself to one as a consolation prize for not having laid
eyes on Uma since this morning.
Making as little noise as I can
and without turning the light on, I open the box. A lonely champagne truffle
stares at me from the bottom.
The last one.
I’ll have to buy a new box
tomorrow. Given how much both Uma and I love these chocolates, I’ve been buying
a box every week since Uma discovered the shop on a quiet street behind the
market square. We keep them hidden not to tempt Sam, and help ourselves to one
or two every night after he’s gone to bed.
“My preeecious,” I whisper to the
truffle in Gollum’s voice.
Uma giggles behind my back.
I didn’t hear her come in.
“So, what do we do now?” she
asks, looking up at me. “Clearly, we’ve both sneaked in here with the same
gluttonous intentions, but there’s only one truffle left.”
“I got here first,” I say.
“Only by a second!” She pouts. “I
really need that chocolate at this particular juncture in my life.”
“Me, too.”
She puts her hands on her hips
and jerks her chin up. “That’s not very chivalrous of you, Zach.”
“Just because you’re a woman
doesn’t mean you always get your way.” I arch an eyebrow. “Besides, chivalry
was made redundant in the sixties.”
“OK, forget chivalry—what about
fairness? I’m a featherweight next to your… King Kong weight. As a pro athlete,
it would be sporting of you to withdraw from the competition.”
I guffaw at her resourcefulness.
“Nice try, Uma. But not a chance.”
She huffs in frustration.
“Well,” I say. “At least, now
you’ve seen my true colors and how thin my veneer of gallantry is.”
“Yes. Whatever.” She pinches her
chin. “Can we cut it in half?”
Tenacious little thing.
I almost give in, but sparring
with her is too much fun to put an end to it by showing mercy.
“Hmm…” I tilt my head to the side
and peer at the tiny cocoa-powdered confection as if I were considering her
proposition. “Nah. It’s too small.”
“So, you’re really going to eat
it now all by yourself?”
I nod. “Exactly. And you can
console yourself with a Toblerone.”
She pulls a face. “How can you
even compare industrial milk chocolate to this… fountain of flavor and
well-being?”
“Fine,” I say, smiling. “Don’t
eat a Tob—”
She snatches the chocolate from
the box and darts out the door into the garden. I drop the box and run after
her.
She shoves the chocolate in her
mouth.
“Cheater!” I narrow my eyes in
what I hope is an intimidating glare. “You’re going to pay for this.”
She bolts, trying to get back
into the house.
I block her way, towering over
her. Uma retreats, turns around, and runs to the other end of the garden. I
follow, hot on her heels. She doesn’t shriek, no doubt, so she won’t wake up
Sam, whose window is open above us.
For two or three minutes, I chase
Uma around the garden in silence. I’m faster, but she’s nimbler. Besides, I’ve
no clue how I’m going to make her “pay” for her theft, so I’m not really
putting my heart and soul into the pursuit. On our third round, Uma ducks under
my arm and hightails it into the house, across the kitchen, and toward the
stairs.
She’s hoping to make it to her
bedroom and lock herself in.
Not happening.
Accelerating, I close the
distance between us. She scrambles up the steps. I grab her shoulders from
behind, putting an end to her delusion that she can outrun me. Giggling, she
tries to break free. I wrap my arms around her to hold her. She stops
thrashing. I pull her into me, tightening my hold. She stops laughing.
For a few moments, neither of us
moves or makes a sound, pressed against each other, panting.
Her chest heaves underneath my
forearms.
I press them lightly against her
little breasts, her nipples…
My heart throbs in my ears.
A caveman’s impulse to sling her
over my shoulder and carry her somewhere private where I can have my way with
her surges up somewhere in my gut, both shocking and tantalizing me. To resist
it, I plant my feet firmly into the step and refuse to move a single muscle in
my body.
With Uma one step higher on the
staircase, her nape is perniciously close to my face, making my struggle harder
than it already is. Her silky black hair is gathered into her usual bun that’s
gotten messy from all the running.
I stare at her delicate neck.
Want to kiss it.
Dying to kiss it.
Can’t.
Because… reasons… good reasons…
if I could just recall them.
There!
She’s Sam’s nanny.
That’s good, but not good enough…
She’s my friend’s almost fiancée.
She’s inexperienced and clearly not thinking straight right now.
Very good. I relax my embrace
enough for her to duck and slip away.
Only she doesn’t do it.
Instead, she leans back into me.
Coming
Soon
#2 Playing for Keeps
Meet
the Author
Alix Nichols is
an unapologetic caffeine addict and a longtime fan of Mr. Darcy, especially in
his Colin Firth incarnation. She is a Kindle Scout and Dante Rossetti Award
winning author of critically acclaimed romantic comedies.
At the age of six, she released her first rom com. It featured highly creative
spelling on a dozen pages stitched together and bound in velvet paper. Decades
later, she still loves the romance genre. Her spelling has improved (somewhat),
and her books have topped the Amazon charts around the world. She lives in
France with her family and their almost-human dog.
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