Packin’ Heat E-Book

Ashley Bostock

• Herausgeber: Ashley Bostock
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

Hot as Hell and twice as bad…
At least that’s the first impression nanny Brandi Parker gets about the new bodyguard hired by the family to ‘oversee’ her and the children’s protection. She loves her job but living day and night —God, especially the nights — in close quarters with a sex on a stick know-it-all is wearing thin on her nerves. She can handle four little kids with running noses, screaming tantrums and broken toys, but she did not sign up for constant sexual arousal from some arrogant, tattooed hard-ass.

Some like ‘em hot. Red hot…
But not Blaze Bryant. Particularly the flaming hot red-head testing his patience. He’d given up women a long time ago after one mistake proved he wasn’t worthy of anyone’s love. Or trust. So the last thing he needs is this aching attraction to Brandi. No, he knows this is just another job and as soon as he finishes, he’s gone. He’ll never see her again. So why does that thought gnaw at his gut?

Lust filled days and heated nights…
As the nights drag on, Brandi and Blaze can’t fight the passion sparking between them. But when doubts arise and secrets surface is passion enough to hold them together? Or will they be forever separated by a scheme even bigger than Blaze realized, a mistake that might cost Brandi her life.

Leseprobe

Packin’ Heat

A Love on Target Novel

Ashley Bostock

Copyright © 2020 by Ashley Bostock

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are being used fictitiously. Any references to such are entirely coincidental and are used for merely the telling of a fictional story.

For My Dad-

You’ve instilled a huge appreciation for music in my blood. Those Oldies but Goodies that most people from my generation and onward, will never understand. They don’t know what they’re missing and I thank you! How I skip on to the next song without the current song being complete, I know I got from you.

Thank you for supporting me! Thank you for sharing my work with your friends!

Contents

Not to Miss!

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Epilogue

Irresistible Billionaires

Not to Miss!

Also by Ashley Bostock

About the Author

Not to Miss!

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Chapter One

Blake and Marilyn’s BBQ

(Not that long ago)

Brandi milled about the backyard of Marilyn’s house, trying hard to keep to herself. What was Blaze Bryant’s problem anyway? Comments like that—like she couldn’t hold her liquor—coming from someone who didn’t even know her and clearly wasn’t making any attempt to know her, had her seething.

What made her even more pissed off was how she couldn’t quit looking at his hard body, sometimes colliding into his hard stare. Her nipples peaked at the sight of him throwing a football across the yard to Blake. The sleeve of his shirt falling into the crook of his arm enough for her to see the black markings of his tattoo.

She was a sucker for tattoos.

She was a sucker for men who appeared to be chiseled out of stone, with tattoos.

Leave it to her to be attracted to an asshole. Honestly, did he think this was any way to create friendships?

“Head’s up! Head’s up!”

The football came sailing at Brandi, hitting her in the arm. “What the hell?”

Blaze stalked up to her, looking all grumpy and sexy as hell. “I said head’s up. You were in lala land.”

His smirk taunted her. Had he meant to hit her? That’s when she noticed his dimple. Unlike Blake’s noticeable from-a-mile-away dimples, Blaze had just one in the lower part of his right cheek. Holy hell.

This was ridiculous.

“I wasn’t in lala-land. I was actually thinking about something important, like my job.”

“Sure, you were. If I had to guess, I would guess you were thinking about sex.” He lowered his voice, as he bent in front of her and slowly picked up the ball. “Which is important to me, actually. But do you always get that look in your eye when you think about your job? What are you? A nanny? Maybe you are catering to more than just the children.”

She frowned and jutted a shoulder out. “Fuck you, Blaze.” How could he make her go from hot to cold in a matter of seconds? She stepped back. “For your information, I’m not like your ex-girlfriend who probably slept with your best friend.”

For just a second, she saw surprise in his eyes. Like maybe she’d hit the nail on the head with that one. “Secondly, as if it is any of your business, I have much more class than to ever do that with my boss or a married man. I don’t know what your problem with me is but leave me the hell alone.” She stuck out her tongue at him and walked off.

She was furious. How humiliating. As if catching her ogling his body wasn’t enough, she actually stuck her tongue out at him? What grown woman did that? She went inside and made herself another margarita. Swallowing the concoction, she let herself loosen up. He was goading her. Instigating a fight with her and she’d taken the bait. How dumb was she?

More importantly, why did he want to fight with her?

Blaze watched the firestorm of hair float away as she stalked into the house. Did she just stick her tongue out at him? He did just insinuate she slept around, so it was warranted. The childish action made him want to laugh though. When was the last time he’d felt like laughing?

As it was, today was as good of day as any to get under her skin. He’d never seen a woman who could be so easily provoked as her. Why he wanted to provoke her so much he didn’t care to analyze. Gorgeous as she was, he avoided women like her.

She wasn’t his type—that was a given.

He didn’t do bossy and he didn’t do redheads. Why he kept going rounds with her was for entertainment purposes only. Nothing more. He threw the ball to his brother and repeated that mantra to himself over and over.

Chapter Two

Brandi longingly gazed at the mountains. A hike sounded so nice right now. Mr. and Mrs. Kingston’s palatial estate was located a few miles north of Windsor. Sitting on a beautiful acreage just outside of city limits, one could view the expanse of the beautiful Colorado Rocky Mountains or, in the other direction, the charming town of Windsor. Brandi had worked for the Kingstons as their nanny for a few years now and she enjoyed living in the guest house behind the Kingston Estate.

The location wasn’t far away from her girlfriends, so that when needed, they could all get together fairly quickly. She’d made friends with Gabbie during college and through Gabbie, Brandi had met Amber and Marilyn. The four had quickly forged a friendship none of them had ever thought possible and had been friends ever since. They had all been lucky enough to find the men of their dreams and while Brandi would love to meet that man someday. And some day was a long way away.

She finished cleaning up Dakota’s mess the little girl had made from lunch—who was now taking a nap. Brandi was getting ready to make herself something to eat when the security system beeped, signaling someone was coming through the garage door. It was Drake—he had called to confirm she would be home when he stopped by at lunch—something having to do with work. She wiped her hands on the dishtowel and made her way toward the entryway that led from the garage bays into the terrace and then into the entryway where the family hung their coats and kept their shoes and outside items of that nature. A normal mud room for regular folks, but since it was the size of her old apartment, Brandi didn’t agree with the title.

As she got closer to the mudroom, male voices could be heard. Definitely Drake’s, but she wasn’t familiar with the other, much deeper, male voice. She turned the corner and stopped dead in her tracks. You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.

Brandi’s heart went from normal—almost half-asleep—to racing a marathon. In all of his badass, hotter than all that’s right in this world, no one notices he’s been walking with a limp, wearing a black-suit self, was the one and only, Blaze Bryant. He was a few steps behind Drake, surveying his surroundings, because in this house, who wouldn’t?

What in the hell was he doing here?

“Brandi, how’s it going?” Drake asked.

Blaze turned his attention to her and saw the same surprise as she was still experiencing reflect in his eyes. But as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared. That initial glimpse was her only indication he was shocked to have run into her, otherwise, his eyes didn’t give anything away. He watched her in silence.

“I’m good, Mr. Kingston. Dakota is down for her nap and I was just cleaning up the kitchen.”

“Very well. Brandi, this is Blaze Bryant. Diane and I hired him to be the children’s bodyguard. And by extension, yours as well.”

Brandi felt the beginnings of a headache. A bodyguard? Drake had to be kidding, right? Was this some kind of joke Blaze was playing on her because of the way she had come across at Marilyn and Blake’s barbeque? They hadn’t exactly hit it off on the right foot. More concerning though was what exactly did Drake mean by bodyguard? For her and the children?

“I’m sorry, sir. I’m confused.”

She eyed the men back and forth, Blaze giving nothing away in his features. His icy gaze burned bright with…with what, she didn’t know. Which made her question, if this wasn’t some sick joke, did he know he would be working side-by-side with her? He couldn’t have. The vibes he gave off the few times she’d seen him weren’t particularly friendly and she couldn’t imagine him choosing this job if he’d known she was working for the family.

“There is no need to be confused. Blaze will be starting immediately. He’s moving in full-time. I’ve come to show him around. You know I have a very high-profile career and with that, the lives of my family could be at risk on any given day. Which, as the nanny for the past two years, you are aware of how incidents can happen, are you not?”

This was too fucking much for her. Her body felt mushy like she was going to faint any second at the thought of having to work with Blaze on a daily basis. Him living here with them? She couldn’t fathom.

“You’re saying Mr. Bryant,” she had a hard time choking out such a formal reference, “is going to live here with us? What else will he do here?”

Yes, that sparked a how-dumb-are-you look from Drake.

“Brandi, I don’t have a lot of time nor patience for having to repeat myself. We hired Blaze as security for you and the children. What that means,” he spoke to her in the same tone he used with his four-year-old, “is that he will live at the house with us. He will go where you go. He will be with you and the kids every day. Is that clear?”

Someone take her gun and shoot her now. At the risk of being once again reprimanded by her boss, she pleaded, “But Mr. Kingston, you know very well that I’m armed. We really don’t need Blaze, err…Mr. Bryant to protect us. Besides, we’re safe in Windsor. Who could possibly want to harm us?”

“Considering what happened with your father, you know as well as I do there could be a multitude of people. Especially when Global Electronics unveils their newest product. You can never be too cautious. Anyway, I don’t have a lot of time. Come with us, I want to show him the guest house. Since there are two bedrooms and it’s quite ample living space, Mr. Bryant will be staying there with you from here on out.”

Blaze took a deep breath as he followed Mr. Kingston outside. It hadn’t been Blaze’s dream to move back to Colorado, he much preferred to get lost in the crowd of New York City. Laying low, always staying in the background, was what he enjoyed best. Sometimes it was hectic, as every now and then his face would appear in some tabloid magazine: Armed Bodyguard Protects Socialite Daughters of Hotel Mogul Hal Martin, and then underneath the photo it would always have similar captions, but something like—as they exit their father’s annual fundraising gala. For the most part, his job didn’t require him to be in the limelight. All he had to do was get whomever he was protecting from Point A to Point B, safe and sound.

He’d moved to the city when he was twenty-two. He’d worked as a bouncer for a popular nightclub for a few years while he went to college, where he’d worked for a man who was the manager to the club’s entire security team. Arnold had moved from Colorado back to Manhattan, where three of his five brothers lived and had opened his own security company. He provided secure transportation, armed guards and bodyguards, as well as general security and surveillance for anyone who found themselves in need of those services. He had called Blaze soon thereafter, asking if he’d had any interest working for him in the big city. Being the rebel that he was, Blaze jumped at the chance. He soon found himself smack dab in the middle of New York City without a pot to piss in. Not one of his finer moves as a young adult.

Arnold had done his best to take care of him. He had trained him top-notch with military-style training programs that he’d created for people who needed training but hadn’t necessarily been in the military. Eventually Blaze had taken over the training programs and trained men and women who had needed the training just like he had. Some people wanted training to keep their current skills up to par, others wanted it to simply have those type of skills at their disposal.

Now, Blaze was back in Colorado because of his goddamn knee injury, which he was pretty sure wasn’t healing like it should be. Or maybe it was but he chose to ignore it and continued to follow his normal regimen of exercise like nothing ever happened.

Being confined to this God-forsaken state, for who knows how long, and trying to lay low was not his plan. He had just gotten a position as a personal bodyguard for Drake Kingston, CEO of Global Electronics. Mr. Kingston was plenty wealthy and often a target of blackmail and threats due to his highly esteemed career position. Global Electronics was a Fortune 500 company that provided electronic components all over the world. Technology was everywhere and so was Global Electronics.

Back in New York, Blaze had gotten mixed up in a twisted ordeal, had gotten himself injured and now the only smart thing to do was come back home. Home, he used the term loosely because how could someone live here when there was not a fucking thing to look at? The only thing to see were small-ass buildings and tons of grass, wheat, weeds, fields of crops, whatever. He didn’t know what all of the sporadic fields consisted of and he didn’t really care. One thing that was certain, was that home was no longer his home and hopefully his services wouldn’t be needed here for an extended period of time and he could go back to Manhattan.

Blaze took in his surroundings, but his mind was thinking about two days ago. He’d had a meeting with Mr. Kingston and Blaze tried hopping out of his Tahoe because his fucking knee was killing him, shut the door and impulsively propped his foot onto the running board and had begun rubbing his knee. He’d ended the call he was on and had turned in time to find Brandi Parker, also known as the stunning, albeit feisty, Ginger walking toward him.

Her curly red locks of hair swayed as she walked, little kid in tow. She wasn’t tall by any means—he towered over her—but her height got lost in her pure beauty. Her blue-green eyes set off come-hither vibes he most definitely would have to ignore seeing as how she was good friends with his twin’s wife. Her chest was on the smaller side than what he preferred but something about her still drew him in like The Poltergeist. The fuck if he would ever admit that to anyone though. He’d overheard Gage teasing Brandi about her nickname being Ginger because of her stunning red hair. Thinking about their encounter at Marilyn and his brother’s barbeque, she was every bit the firecracker that was stereotypical of redheads.

She was already eyeing him with suspicion as she walked along with a boy in tow, pulling him closer into her side. Her blue-green eyes were alight with fire. Damn, didn’t she ever slow down? What was she going to bitch at him for now?

“Blaze,” she said.

“Brandi.” He didn’t want to call her Ginger. Seemed too friendly of a classification for whatever it was they had going on.

“Who are you?” the boy asked.

“I’m Blaze. Who are you?”

“I’m Drew. Nice ride.”

“Thanks, man. Is this your kid?” He knew close to nothing about her except she walked and talked with an attitude.

“No.” The kid looked incredulous. “She’s my nanny.”

“Ahh, I see.” With Brandi eyeing him and the boy enthralled by him and his ride, he felt like a science project. “What?” he asked, trying not to come off as sounding too sarcastic.

“Nothing. Let’s go, Drew. Blaze,” she said his name in one of those tones people use when they use fake air quotes around something, “is surely busy. Goodbye.”

And just like that Miss Has-Something-Stuck-Up-Her-Ass was gone.

That had been two days ago when he’d met with his new boss at Global Electronics. And now…Nothing had knocked him on his ass more than when he’d walked in with Drake and found himself staring into the depths of the blue-green eyes that belonged to Brandi Parker. Had getting injured at his old job not been enough torture? Replaying the day he’d seen her and the kid over in his mind, she had been so cold and matter of fact that watching her fumble with the dishtowel as she spoke to Mr. Kingston was almost laughable. He couldn’t help but smirk that her holier-than-thou attitude had been put on hold for her boss. Glad someone could keep her under control.

He watched the interchange between her and Mr. Kingston. She portrayed a tame kitten that he would have never imagined possible. She spoke much more formally than she would have to her friends, her voice soft and respectful. Her stance was non-confrontational. Unlike the few times he’d been around her where she was indeed a firecracker. And had this not been so humorous to watch her be…peaceful, he would have found her to be almost cute. Almost. As they continued chatting, Blaze surveyed his surroundings.

The house was located on fifty acres, just outside of town. The entryway was protected by black gates, which appeared to further surround the property. The driveway led them to the estate. A contemporary-modern home, white in color with grey trim, it was every bit as lavish as he’d ever seen near Manhattan. The driveway had taken them to the eight-car garage, where he’d parked his Tahoe just outside the double-doors. From the garage they had entered into the foyer which had a circular staircase in the corner. Along the far wall sat a utility sink and a top-notch set of a washer and dryer. The space was littered with miscellaneous shoes, coats, umbrellas and one single tiny backpack hung on a hook. A half-peeled sticker above the hook read Dakota.

Off the foyer was the family room and kitchen, which was where they stood now. Whatever Brandi had been cooking made his stomach growl. The smell of garlic permeated the air and his mouth watered as he spotted a plate of hamburger remains. He half-listened to Drake and Brandi’s heated discussion on how Brandi didn’t think they needed him as a bodyguard when he heard her say she was already armed.

He lifted his head. Her? Packin’ heat? It almost surprised him. There again, she was downright hostile at times and her carrying a handgun added to her mystique. He pushed away his thoughts of her being so enticing and focused on the fact that she owned a gun. She impresses me yet again.

She’d blow your fucking nuts off sure thing though. He wasn’t going to find out. He liked his women tame. Calm. Career-focused. Docile. Slightly funny. So far, she was the opposite of everything he looked for in a woman. The career-focused part he could possibly give her credit for. Based on their current conversation, it sounded like she had worked for the Kingstons for quite a while. Her loyalty to the children was evident in the way Drake had spoken about her as well as what he’d heard from his brother.

The kitchen was state-of-the-art: stainless steel appliances, a stove top that any local restaurant would be jealous over, and of course, not one each but two refrigerators and freezers. He made mental notes as he viewed the expansive widows running along the back of the great room and combined kitchen. All of these windows were a security nightmare but not much could be done about them considering they were permanent. Hopefully, they were wired with the security system. Something he would double-check later. Brandi’s surprised gasp quickly followed by a “what?” caught his attention.

“Blaze will be moving into the guest house with you.”

Huh?

“Mr. Bryant, if you will follow us out back, Brandi and I will show you where you will be staying.”

Blaze glanced back and forth between a fuming Brandi and a very polite, yet in a hurry, Mr. Kingston. He stifled a laugh. He had caught on quickly to her many moods. Correction. More like when she was fuming, as he couldn’t be sure she had any other mood. Especially when he was on the receiving end. When they’d both attended Blake’s barbeque a month or so ago, he’d gotten under her skin—probably not one of his nicest moments when he insinuated, she slept around—and she had the same look on her face then, as she had now. Maybe she’d gotten under his skin that day…he couldn’t remember exactly. All he remembered was that look—the way her eyes turned to steel, and she put a hand to her hip. Was it childish for him to want to do that little dance and sing nanny nanny boo-boo?

He rolled his eyes. “Mr. Kingston, if my job is to protect your children and family, I don’t see how that’s going to be possible if I’m living in a different house than you.”

“Nonsense, Blaze. You cannot work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. We have enough security with Diane and I, the cameras and the system. When you aren’t on duty I have another security company that works, not in the house like you, of course. We have a confidential agreement about what they do at night. It varies nightly. But it’s mainly during the day when everyone is out and about or here at home, where they’ve been unguarded, that I’m really concerned about.”

“Still, Mr. Kingston, it’s probably not a good idea for him to live in the guest house with me. I’ve decorated it…it’s all girly. He most likely wouldn’t feel comfortable with that, right, Blaze?”

Was she pleading with him? Seriously? Years of stubbornness won out. He enjoyed watching her squirm way too much that he couldn’t give her what she wanted.

“I’m okay with the guest house being decorated by a female. Better than what we could probably do, right Mr. Kingston?” Blaze laughed. “How about we go and check out the house in question?”

He avoided Brandi’s eyes, feeling her frigid death stare glowering at him over his shoulder. He didn’t owe her anything…so there it was, even though he couldn’t ignore the slight pang of guilt. He could already hear her stern voice giving him an earful later when their boss wasn’t around. All he cared about was getting under her skin. She could learn to take shit from someone who was more than willing to give it back to her. She shouldn’t be the only one to dish it. Did she really have enough wherewithal to take back some of what she dished out?

Little did she know, she’d met her match.

The trio walked out the sliding glass doors onto the expansive outdoor patio which was filled with two sets of patio furniture that was semi-surrounded by a built-in stone kitchen. From the slight breeze he caught a whiff of oranges...hair shampoo? It was from her. As the smell permeated his nostrils a second too long, he finally moved upwind of her.

The view from the patio was unbelievable. Yet, everything about this property was a security nightmare. The entire backyard was lined with shrubs and trees—every kind of tree known to man, it appeared. Another thing he added to his list. The wrought-iron gate surrounding the front of the property had turned into a white split-rail fence along the back of the property. Beyond the fence, nestled into the corner was, for all intents and purposes, not a guest house.

It was a single-family home and judging from the outside, could hold more than a single family.

It was a decent country style house made out of bricks and stones with a three-car garage where some damn flower planters sat smack-dab in the center of the driveway. Only a woman would do that. He bet she never shoveled snow from the driveway either. Because if she had, or if she had to mow—hell, even play ball—she would know what a pain in the ass having those planters in the center of the driveway, would be. He’d have to move them. He tried to keep his sarcasm in check as they continued along the path, the squeaky gate piercing his ears as they walked out of the border of one property and into the guest house’s walkway, and up to the front door.

He made a mental list of things that needed to be dealt with—from a security standpoint as well as from a new tenant standpoint. The squeaky gate. The flowerpots in the driveway she’d no doubt whine about and—hell, he was already making a Honey-Do list and he hadn’t even moved in.

They were going to be the roommates that hated each other.

Brandi fished her key out of the back pocket of her jeans and unlocked the door. Not hesitating, she walked through the threshold, leaving the door behind her wide open. Her citrusy smell hit him once again. He appreciated the way she strolled around with an air of confidence. She blew through the world with an I-don’t-give-a-fuck attitude. He found it unappealing to be impressed with her when she was a clear pain-in-the-ass.

“Here’s the living room, dining room and the kitchen. The master bedroom is mine, as is the master bath. Your room is right here.” She made a quick right into what she had set-up as a computer room. “I can move my computer desk out into the living room. Your bathroom is over here, down the hallway.”

Blaze swallowed more of the biting sarcasm that seemed to want to drip from his tongue every damn time he was around this woman. The place was decently decorated—some much-too-bright colors displayed here and there, but nothing he couldn’t handle. He and Mr. Kingston followed her through the living room, around the corner and to her master bedroom. He spied her canopy bed decorated with flowing white curtains. A fluffy white comforter and multiple pillows made up the bed. He couldn’t see much more into the room than that and she didn’t offer. He’d have to look at it later. The white surprised him though. It reminded him of innocence. A virginal color that was quite the contradiction to her vivid fiery hair, pale skin and smart mouth.

Images of her sprawled out spread-eagle on her virginal bed, her red hair surrounding her like a cape, and those bottomless blue-green eyes gazing up at him fixated with desire, had him discreetly adjusting his crotch and looking in the other direction. Why was he thinking that? He couldn’t comprehend why he found her utterly sexy and annoying at the same time. And living within such close quarters with her when she affected him like this and she hadn’t even touched him, how has he going to survive? He had too much on his plate to even consider getting involved with the nanny of the children he just got hired to protect. No matter how downright sexy she was.

Especially since she wasn’t his type.

“Blaze, I hope you find the accommodations satisfactory,” said Mr. Kingston.

Give me a fucking break. It’d better do. You just offered him an entire house,that is mine, for him to stay in while he has the easiest job in the world. Brandi resisted the urge to roll her eyes for about the twentieth time since Blaze showed up in the main house.

“It will do just fine, Mr. Kingston.”

Her lips thinned as he flashed a one-dimple grin at Mr. Kingston. Oh, what a smug bastard he was.