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That Thing Called Love
Susan Andersen
He's the last man on earth she should want…For a guy she's fantasized about throttling, Jake Bradshaw sure is easy on the eyes. In fact, he seriously tempts inn manager Jenny Salazar to put her hands to better use. Except this is the guy who left Razor Bay–and his young son, Austin, whom Jenny adores like her own–to become a globe-trotting photojournalist. He can't just waltz back and claim Austin now.Jake was little more than a kid himself when he became a dad. Sure, he'd dreamed of escaping the resort town, but he'd also truly believed that Austin was better off with his grandparents. Now he wants–no, needs–to make up for his mistake. He intends to stay in Razor Bay only until he can convince Austin to return with him to New York. Trouble is, with sexy, protective, utterly irresistible Jenny in his life, and his bed, he may never want to leave….
He’s the last man on earth she should want...
For a guy she’s fantasized about throttling, Jake Bradshaw sure is easy on the eyes. In fact, he seriously tempts inn manager Jenny Salazar to put her hands to better use. Except this is the guy who left Razor Bay—and his young son, Austin, whom Jenny adores like her own—to become a globe-trotting photojournalist. He can’t just waltz back and claim Austin now.
Jake was little more than a kid himself when he became a dad. Sure, he’d dreamed of escaping the resort town, but he’d also truly believed that Austin was better off with his grandparents. Now he wants—no, needs—to make up for his mistake. He intends to stay in Razor Bay only until he can convince Austin to return with him to New York. Trouble is, with sexy, protective, utterly irresistible Jenny in his life, and his bed, he may never want to leave....
Reviewers love New York Times bestselling author
SUSAN ANDERSEN
“A smart, arousing, spirited escapade
that is graced with a gentle mystery, a vulnerable,
resilient heroine, and a worthy, wounded hero
and served up with empathy and a humorous flair.”
—Library Journal on Burning Up
“[A] fast-paced, charming romance
with plenty of heat and cool dialog.”
—RT Book Reviews on Burning Up
“A sexy, feel-good contemporary romance....
Palpable escalating sexual tension between the pair,
a dangerous criminal on the loose and a cast of
well-developed secondary characters make this a winner.”
—Publishers Weekly on Bending the Rules
“This start of Andersen’s new series has fun and interesting characters, solid action and a hot and sexy romance.”
—RT Book Reviews on Cutting Loose
“Snappy and sexy.... Upbeat and fun, with a touch of danger and passion, this is a great summer read.”
—RT Book Reviews on Coming Undone
“Lovers of romance, passion and laughs
should go all in for this one.”
—Publishers Weekly on Just for Kicks
“Andersen again injects magic into a story that would be clichéd in another’s hands, delivering warm, vulnerable characters in a touching yet suspenseful read.”
—Publishers Weekly on Skintight, starred review
“A classic plot line receives a fresh, fun treatment....
Well-developed secondary characters add depth to this zesty novel, placing it a level beyond most of its competition.”
—Publishers Weekly on Hot & Bothered
That Thing Called Love
Susan Andersen
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Dear Reader,
I am so excited about my new series. This first Razor Bay book stars Jake Bradshaw, a man who’s made a lot of mistakes, and Jenny Salazar, the take-no-crap woman who holds his full attention. And I got to plunk the fictional resort town down on Hood Canal, an area that holds a lifetime of memories for me.
Most people hear the word canal and picture man-made waterways. This canal is actually a natural sixty-five-mile saltwater fjord in western Washington. I was just a baby when my folks discovered it. Every summer for two weeks, I ran wild with my brothers and cousins, swimming in icy, superbuoyant water until my fingers and toes were pruney, playing until the sun sank behind the soaring Olympic Mountains, roasting marshmallows and hot dogs over blazing bonfires. When I was nine, my folks bought land on the beach and built a little cabin on it. This, to me, is the most beautiful, peaceful spot on earth.
It’s likely a no-brainer to tell you I consider Razor Bay a character in its own right. So trust me when I tell you it’s my dearest wish that you enjoy it, too, alongside Jake and Jenny and the folks of Razor Bay.
~Susan
This is dedicated, with love, to my friends in the industry, both old and new.
To
Jen Heaton, who, despite a crazy busy life, always carves out time to brainstorm with me, to haul me back on track and make my work better, and is just an all-around really good friend
To
The M&Ms—Meg Ruley and Margo Lipschultz— my wonderful, marvelous, world’s best agent and editor
To
Robyn Carr, Kristan Higgins and Jill Shalvis, for daily posts, a host of laughs and shared tears
And to
all you readers, without whom I’d be writing this stuff just for myself. Thank you for your loyalty, lovely emails and Facebook friendships
Plus a special thanks
to
the brilliant Robin Franzen, R.N., who allowed me to have my chicken pox and excuse it, too.
Contents
PROLOGUE (#u6bcd7659-a9b4-5fe9-ba66-fc063b822da8)
CHAPTER ONE (#u2a13b8ce-5608-5c29-8b60-e9b46ebd9e80)
CHAPTER TWO (#u50d84e6d-8411-5111-8e1d-0fe0d2c72bf3)
CHAPTER THREE (#u64820e59-e133-5953-b394-1a87052bfedf)
CHAPTER FOUR (#u60fe423c-bf75-59f2-b104-7bbe6682aef0)
CHAPTER FIVE (#u0b43d0d9-78da-5b2c-ba18-606c402b423d)
CHAPTER SIX (#u414d4094-986a-5a47-b0d9-05a6b6b43479)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINETEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE (#litres_trial_promo)
EPILOGUE (#litres_trial_promo)
EXCERPT (#litres_trial_promo)
PROLOGUE
February 23
Razor Bay, Washington
“JEEZ, JENNY, are they ever gonna go home?”
Jennifer Salazar heard the half angry, half plaintive query beneath the rise and fall of conversation coming from the dining room. Outside, gusts of wind, howling down out of Canada, chased rain from the Olympic Mountains rising across the water to ping and rattle against the venerable old Craftsman on the bluff.
Turning around from the momentary break she’d taken to watch raindrops fracture into prisms against the leaded glass porch light, she looked down the hallway.
Thirteen-year-old Austin stood between her and the doorways to the kitchen and dining room. He was curved in on himself, and his newly wide shoulders in that grown-up black suit coat looked out of proportion to the rest of his verging-on-skinny body—even hunched up around his ears as they currently were.
Moving quickly, she reached out to pull him into her arms. He hugged her tightly in return.
“They will,” she assured the teen. “And pretty soon, I imagine, given how fast the weather is turning.” She pulled back to smile into his tense face. “But Emmett was an institution, pal. People want to pay their respects.”
Austin was the closest thing she had to a brother, but lately she hadn’t known quite how to deal with him. It killed her to see his pain as he struggled with the loss of the grandfather who’d raised him. Emmett Pierce’s death had tromped on the heels of Austin’s grandmother’s, who had preceded her husband just a few short months ago, blasting the barely turned teen with a double whammy.
But he was so volatile these days. A well-adjusted kid one minute, unhappy or angry the next. And he rarely shied away from mouthing off the rest of the time. Emmett and Kathy had spoiled him shamelessly, up to and including buying him a brand-new Bayliner Bowrider—a boat she’d argued against—for his thirteenth birthday.
“I swear I’m gonna pop the next person who calls me ‘you poor boy,’” he muttered. “And Maggie Watson pinched my cheeks like I was four years old or something!”
She didn’t know whether to commiserate over the misguided insensitivity or laugh at the indignation in his voice. “I imagine they just want to express their sympathy but don’t know what to say.”
“And they think I do? I mean, am I supposed to say it’s okay or somethin’ when they tell me Gramps’s in a better place? ’Cause it isn’t. Plus, what genius thinks I’d jump at the chance to be ‘you poor boy’ to a bunch of people who’ve known me since birth? And I’m sure as hell not gonna talk about how it feels to lose him.” His voice cracked and he cleared his throat angrily. “My feelings are— They’re...”
“Yours and no one else’s,” she supplied with an understanding nod when he stalled. She had experience with the phenomenon. She’d only been a few years older than he was now when her own world had fallen apart.
“’Zactly,” he mumbled.
Realizing she’d stepped back to give her neck some relief from looking up at Austin, Jenny dug at the bunched muscles in her nape and gave him a rueful smile. “I’m still not used to you being bigger than me—let alone so much bigger. The last time I checked you had maybe three, four inches on me. But I’m wearing four-inch heels today and you’re still way taller!”
For the first time since Emmett’s passing last week, Austin flashed her the wholehearted smile that until recently had been his default expression—the endearing grin that crinkled his pale green eyes and carved little crescents around the corners of his lips. “I hate to break this to you, Jenny, but crickets are way taller than you are.”
“Why, you little smart-ass.” She smacked his arm, but refused to be sidetracked. “When did you get to be, though? I swear you weren’t this tall yesterday.” She had begun to fear he might, in fact, turn out as height challenged as she. Heaven knew she wasn’t thrilled to have ended up a scant five-two in a default thirty-two-inch-inseam world—and that only if she practiced really excellent posture. She couldn’t help but think the same outcome for a boy would be even harder.
But considering the kid had apparently grown three or more inches overnight, her worry would probably be better directed at something that actually required it.
Austin’s momentary good humor visibly fading, he merely shrugged at her question. “What’s gonna happen to me now, Jenny?”
