From the Blurb:
“I’m not going anywhere until I’ve slept in your nice warm bed. If you haven’t got an electric blanket, I’ll expect you to warm me up personally.”
Who is the man with the gun? Friend or foe? Enemy or lover?
Ethan
I saw my way out and took it. I never dreamed it would be complicated by someone as distracting as Gabriel.
Gabriel
I thought my cabin was safe in a snowstorm until he arrived. Shivering, blue with cold and armed with a gun. The hottest thing to ever happen to me.
Horror writer Gabriel’s worst nightmare is about to come true…
Alaska is home to Gabriel Black two months of the year when he retreats to his isolated cabin to write. But with his relationship on the rocks, life is treating him badly. He doesn’t think things can get any worse when a storm strikes, keeping him snowed in, but he’s wrong.
His solitude is invaded by armed intruder Ethan, his origin a mystery. Ethan is an enigma, a man surely on the run, maybe a dangerous criminal, but Gabriel is drawn to Ethan’s broken spirit and damaged soul. Ethan is so much more than he first appears and Gabriel wants to know what he hides.
Heat ignites between Gabriel and Ethan and the lines between captive and captor soon start to blur. What secrets is Ethan keeping and will Gabriel be prepared to risk all for him?
“I guess I’m not an effective captor if I arouse rather than terrify you.”
Possible Spoilers:
Themes: enemies to lovers, forced proximity, crime, forced captivity, guilt, love at first sight, angst, hurt/comfort, suspense
Genre: Dark and gritty contemporary crime romance
Warning: Strong language and sexual scenes. See front of book or author social media for more warnings.
Excerpt:
Gabriel heard the door open and did his best to turn his hot, wet face away. Ethan touched the back of his head, fingers lingering in his hair in something approaching a caress.
“Come on, pull yourself together.” Ethan’s soft tone belied his hard words.
Gabriel bit his lip, scrubbing his eyes with a damp tissue. Ethan leaned over him and released the cuff, leaving the bracelet dangling from the radiator. Gabriel didn’t react. He remained seated on the floor. What did it matter? He had nothing to escape for anymore. Chasing Jack would be fruitless. Better to stay here and let Ethan do whatever he wanted.
“Why are you wasting your time on someone who’d sleep with your friend? You deserve so much better.”
Riled, Gabriel lifted his tear-streaked face. “Like you, you mean?”
Ethan flushed, his face etched with confusion. “No. Not me. Why would I mean me?”
“Because I didn’t imagine the way you kissed me.”
Ethan stepped back as though Gabriel would make another grab for him. He folded his arms. “You kissed me.”
“And you returned it.”
Ethan shook his head. “You’re mistaken.”
“I’m not.”
Ethan cocked his head to one side. “I do know that you’re playing me, Gabriel. I know that.”
Gabriel frowned. Ethan seemed to see deep inside him. It had started out that way, sure. Now he didn’t know. His heart was broken, but it didn’t stop this awful compulsion for Ethan. “I’m not playing you.”
“You’re lying,” Ethan said.
Gabriel climbed to his feet. His sorrow warred with his arousal. He thought wickedly of revenge. A rebound fuck. He didn’t have to be the victim. He could show Jack just how much fun he could have without him. Jack was gone. Gabriel’s life had to carry on. He took a step toward Ethan which resulted in his captor instantly reaching the gun from the waist of his jeans.
Gabriel regarded him. “Are you that afraid of me, Ethan, that you still need that thing?”
Ethan’s expression was stony. He made no reply.
“Are you afraid of what I might do to you?” Gabriel used a silky, seductive tone. He saw Ethan swallow.
“Step back,” Ethan said.
Gabriel shook his head. “Stop pretending. We’re both grown-ups here.”
Ethan’s face went even more scarlet. Gabriel was getting the upper hand. “You don’t know where I’ve come from or what I’ve done, Gabriel. Doesn’t it bother you?”
Gabriel took another step closer. “Stop changing the subject.”
Ethan’s glance moved down to Gabriel’s lips, lingering, and Gabriel could have sworn the thoughts in his captor’s mind were the same as those swarming through his own.
He closed the gap between them and hooked an arm around Ethan’s neck. Ethan strained away from him, but the movement was half-hearted. His lips parted, trembling as though in anticipation, and his eyes fluttered shut as Gabriel kissed him.
The contact between them was as electric as the first time. Ethan drew in his breath. He cupped Gabriel’s head in both his hands and pulled him closer. His mouth opened like a flower seeking a bee and Gabriel delved inside the moist, hot cavern with his tongue, tasting and caressing.
The kiss became fevered within seconds. The gun clattered to the floor. Ethan slid his hands down Gabriel’s back. Then he lifted him under the ass and turned, still kissing Gabriel, placing him on the edge of the kitchen table.
Gabriel’s pulse surged in excitement. The kiss broke. Ethan pushed Gabriel’s knees open and stood between them. He grabbed the edge of Gabriel’s sweater and stripped it from his body in a swift movement. Keeping his gaze fixed on Gabriel’s eyes, Ethan moved his hands slowly over Gabriel’s chest, lingering on his nipples, which he stroked erect with his thumbs. Gabriel arched under his touch. Ethan leaned into him and kissed his neck, using lips, teeth and tongue and moving across Gabriel’s throat in a way that drove him out of his mind. He panted for breath, dropping his head back to give Ethan better access and he slid his hands up Ethan’s sweater to caress the smooth slope of his back.
Ethan shivered under his touch, his spine flexing like a cat being stroked. Gabriel couldn’t wait any longer. His hands found Ethan’s belt, working on auto-pilot, desperate to get Ethan naked. He fumbled at it with shaking fingers, managing to release it before he worked open the button on Ethan’s jeans and drew down the zipper.
Ethan breathed heavily against his neck. His hands closed on Gabriel’s hips tightly as Gabriel pushed a hand inside his jeans, caressing his hot, hard flesh through the thin cotton of borrowed boxers.
He gave a little moan, his mouth catching Gabriel’s at the corner before he bowed his head to look down at Gabriel’s hand stroking him through his underwear. Gabriel pushed his hand slowly inside, gaze on Ethan’s face.
Ethan gripped his wrist hard, painful against Gabriel’s bruises.
“Stop,” he said. His lips were kiss-swollen, his pale face high with color. “I can’t.”
Gabriel smoothed his fingers gently over Ethan’s cheek. “What’s wrong? I want you.”
Ethan shook his head. He jerked away from Gabriel’s touch and snatched up the gun from the floor. Then he fled through the living room, taking the stairs two at a time.
Gabriel heard the bathroom door close. Slowly, he slid off the kitchen table. He put his fingers to his burning lips, still tasting Ethan.
Captured is currently available for purchase and on Kindle Unlimited.
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