Grooves mark the space between her dark winged brows. Her eyes are stunning in their shape and intensity, even if I can’t place the precise color in the fading light.
“I can take you back. Someone like you shouldn’t be out here alone.”
Her frown deepens. “Someone like me?”
“You’re at least a mile from the retreat. You have no supplies and no provisions. Someone without a healthy fear of the wild outdoors, at this hour or any other, shouldn’t be out here alone.”
“I don’t need rescuing, okay?”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Another asshole from the city with too much ego and not enough sense. “Let’s go. I’ll take you back.”
Slowly she moves to the edge toward her clothes, never taking her eyes off me. “Look away, please.”
I laugh. “I’ve seen a lot more than you’re about to show me.”
Her eyes widened and her nostrils flare. Without another word, I turn casually to give her privacy that seems pointless after what I just witnessed. A minute later, the sound of her sneakers scraping against the rock prompts me to turn. She is fully dressed, and I allow myself a moment to appreciate her body with clothes on. Her jeans hug her thighs nicely, and her breasts look fuller in the tight shirt.
I dislodge the thoughts around that assessment before my cock starts misbehaving again. I haven’t been with a woman in a long time, and even though I despise everything this one probably stands for, I can’t help that the beast in me wants to tear her clothes off and bury myself inside her until we both come. Repeatedly.
I mutter a curse under my breath before turning and heading swiftly down the path.
A few minutes pass and I don’t need to look back. I hear ragged breathing and branches cracking under her careful footing—signs she is struggling to keep up. She has no business in the woods. Why Lou and Vi keep luring these idiots to this beautiful place is beyond me. People like her will never belong here. They’ll never appreciate this place the way they should. A week in the mountains is a fashion statement for most of these people, and I just want them out of my woods and off my mountain so I can enjoy what I came here for. Solitude. Peace. A simple life. A quiet dip in the springs without some sexy little city girl cluttering up my thoughts with her sweet pussy…because I’m pretty sure it’s sweet, and oh so tight.
I halt in my tracks and spin. The brunette nearly barrels into me. I catch her by the shoulders when she tips off balance. Somehow she feels smaller in my arms, just a little bit of flesh covering the delicate structure of her frame. Her wet hair dampens her shirt, drawing my attention to that lovely rack again. Goddamn, this woman is a distraction I didn’t ask for.
“You can get there from here,” I say gruffly.
Her eyes go wide again. “I can?”
The moonlight glints on her skin. If she’d worn makeup, the springs had washed it away, leaving her natural and bare. She’s definitely pretty. A pert nose and a little bow of a mouth. There’s nothing exotic or stark about her features, but she’s someone who looks perfectly gorgeous with no effort.
I release my hold on her and jab my thumb in the direction behind me. “It’s just a few yards down the path. You’ll see the lights, and they will lead you the rest of the way.”
“Thank you,” she says softly, almost too softly to hear if not for the near silence of the woods at night. Gone is the tone she’d given me earlier. How she’d gone from rapture to claiming that she didn’t need rescuing, I didn’t know. But maybe that had been fear talking.
I wince, because I don’t like the idea of being feared. I’d never hurt her, or anyone. Even if I didn’t want them in my woods. “You don’t have to thank me.”
“Yes, I do. You could have left me there, or…”
“Or?” I lift an eyebrow, challenging her to say it out loud.
True enough, I could have done all the things I couldn’t stop thinking about right now. I could have gotten myself between her silky thighs, plunged into her, stretched her pussy around me, and satisfied her in ways those pretty little fingers never would.
But she doesn’t say any of that. She doesn’t say a word. She only gazes up at me, and for a second I wonder if she can read my thoughts, if somehow this unexpected depravity radiates off me. Then her hands slide up the front of my chest, and I almost forget how to breathe.
“What’s your name?” Her voice is a whisper now, like she’s hiding from her own words.
When had a woman touched me last? I can’t fucking breathe.
“Good night.”
I push past her, forcing my legs to move me back up the trail. I have to get the hell away from her.
* * *
Continue Reading Misadventures of a City Girl
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Misadventures with My Roommate
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Misadventures with a Rockstar
* * *
Visit Misadventures.com For More Information!
Message from Helen Hardt
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading Shattered. If you want to find out about my current backlist and future releases, please like my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HelenHardt and join my mailing list: http://helenhardt.com/signup/. I often do giveaways. If you’re a fan and would like to join my street team to help spread the word about my books, you can do so here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hardtandsoul/. I regularly do awesome giveaways for my street team members.
If you enjoyed the story, please take the time to leave a review on a site like Amazon or Goodreads. I welcome all feedback.
I wish you all the best!
Helen
Also by Helen Hardt
The Sex and the Season Series:
Lily and the Duke
Rose in Bloom
Lady Alexandra’s Lover
Sophie’s Voice
The Perils of Patricia (Coming Soon)
* * *
The Temptation Saga:
Tempting Dusty
Teasing Annie
Taking Catie
Taming Angelina
Treasuring Amber
Trusting Sydney
Tantalizing Maria
* * *
Daughters of the Prairie:
The Outlaw’s Angel
Lessons of the Heart
Song of the Raven
* * *
The Steel Brothers Saga:
Craving
Obsession
Possession
Melt
Burn
Surrender
Shattered
Twisted (December 26, 2017)
Unraveled (February 13, 2018)
* * *
The Cougar Chronicles:
The Cowboy and the Cougar
Calendar Boy
* * *
Collections:
Destination Desire
Her Two Lovers
Non-Fiction:
got style?
Discussion Questions
The theme of a story is its central idea or ideas. To put it simply, it’s what the story means. How would you characterize the theme of Shattered?
Discuss the differences among the Steel brothers—specifically, how Ryan is different from Jonah and Talon.
Ryan talks about the “darkness” that shrouds both Jonah and Talon, but not himself. What might this darkness be, and why doesn’t Ryan share it?
Discuss the contradiction in Ruby’s character. On the one hand, she’s a co
mpetent police detective and knows how to take care of herself. On the other hand, she’s scared to death of men.
Both older Steel brothers are very dominant in the bedroom. Do you see this happening with Ryan? Why or why not?
Where do you think Mills and Johnson are?
Discuss literary devices used in the story. Any foreshadowing? Other devices? What is the significance of the story’s title?
What do you think really happened to Juliet and Lisa?
What new things do we learn about Wendy Madigan in Shattered?
Discuss the future lawmakers club. What more do we know now? What might their rings signify?
Was it fair of Marjorie to ask Ruby to get a strand of Ryan’s hair? Why or why not?
How did you feel to watch Jonah and Melanie and Talon and Jade exchange vows?
Do you think Bradford Steel is alive? Why or why not? What might his story be?
How do you think Wendy got pregnant with Ryan? Did she trap Brad? Did she use in vitro fertilization?
Acknowledgments
While Shattered begins the story of Ryan and Ruby, I hope all of you were happy to see the previous two couples exchange their wedding vows. Jonah, Melanie, Talon, and Jade certainly deserve their happily ever after.
Ryan is different from his brothers. Though he does possess some of the Steel darkness, he’s more optimistic and jovial than either Jonah or Talon. We learn things in Shattered that might begin to explain this, but there are more secrets to come… As for Ruby, I had so much fun easing her out of her shell. She and Ryan made a splash together, and I hope you all loved reading it as much as I loved writing it.
Thanks so much to my amazing editors, Celina Summers and Michele Hamner Moore. Your guidance and suggestions were, as always, invaluable. Thank you to my line editor, Scott Saunders, and my proofreaders, Jenny Rarden, Chrissie Saunders, and Amy Grishman. Thank you to all the great people at Waterhouse Press—Meredith, David, Kurt, Shayla, Jon, Yvonne, Jeanne, Renee, Dave, and Robyn. The cover art for this series is beyond perfect, thanks to Meredith and Yvonne.
Many thanks to my assistant, Amy Denim, for taking care of business so I can write. I couldn’t do it without you!
Thank you to the members of my street team, Hardt and Soul. HS members got the first look at Shattered, and I appreciate all your support, reviews, and general good vibes. You all mean more to me than you can possibly know.
Thanks to my always supportive family and friends and to all of the fans who eagerly waited for Shattered. I hope you love it.
Thanks to my local writing groups, Colorado Romance Writers and Heart of Denver Romance Writers, for their love and support.
You all know I can’t resist a cliffhanger. I hope you’re excited as I am to continue Ryan and Ruby’s journey!
About Helen Hardt
#1 New York Times, #1 USA Today, and #1 Wall Street Journal best-selling author Helen Hardt's passion for the written word began with the books her mother read to her at bedtime. She wrote her first story at age six and hasn’t stopped since. In addition to being an award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance and erotica, she’s a mother, a black belt in Taekwondo, a grammar geek, an appreciator of fine red wine, and a lover of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. She writes from her home in Colorado, where she lives with her family. Helen loves to hear from readers.
http://www.helenhardt.com
http://www.facebook.com/helenhardt
Table of Contents
Title Page
Table of Contents
Warning
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty–One
Chapter Twenty–Two
Chapter Twenty–Three
Chapter Twenty–Four
Chapter Twenty–Five
Chapter Twenty–Six
Chapter Twenty–Seven
Chapter Twenty–Eight
Chapter Twenty–Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty–One
Chapter Thirty–Two
Chapter Thirty–Three
Chapter Thirty–Four
Chapter Thirty–Five
Chapter Thirty–Six
Chapter Thirty–Seven
Chapter Thirty–Eight
Continue The Steel Brothers Saga with Book Eight
Don’t Miss Misadventures!
Chapter 1
Also By Waterhouse
Chapter One
Also By Waterhouse
Message from Helen Hardt
Also by Helen Hardt
Discussion Questions
Acknowledgments
About Helen Hardt