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Guarding His Heart
Synithia Williams
Scoring for LoveSizzling-hot basketball star Kevin Koucky plans to end his career with a bang by posing au naturel in a magazine feature. When photographer Jasmin Hook agrees to take the assignment, she never expects the risqué photo shoot to end with a sensual slam dunk. But the handsome athlete comes with children and an ex-wife—emotional baggage Jasmin can’t handle. Little does she know that Kevin always plays to win…
Scoring for Love
Sizzling-hot basketball star Kevin Koucky plans to end his career with a bang by posing au naturel in a magazine feature. When photographer Jasmine Hook agrees to take the assignment, she never expects the risqué photo shoot to end with a sensual slam dunk. But the handsome athlete comes with children and an ex-wife—emotional baggage Jasmine can’t handle. Little does she know that Kevin always plays to win...
SYNITHIA WILLIAMS has been an avid romance-novel lover since picking up her first at the age of thirteen. It was only natural that she would begin penning her own romances soon after—much to the chagrin of her high school math teachers. She’s a native of South Carolina and now writes romances as hot as their Southern settings. Outside of writing she works on water quality and sustainability issues for local government. She’s married to her own personal hero, and they have two sons who’ve convinced her that professional wrestling and superheroes are supreme entertainment. When she isn’t working, writing or being a wife and mother, she’s usually bingeing on TV series, playing around on social media or planning her next girls’ night out with friends. You can learn more about Synithia by visiting her website, www.synithiawilliams.com (http://www.synithiawilliams.com), where she blogs about writing, life and relationships.
Also By Synithia Williams (#uaaee1d1d-9f66-529d-a955-ac55901217d5)
A New York Kind of Love
A Malibu Kind of Romance
Full Court Seduction
Overtime for Love
Guarding His Heart
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Guarding His Heart
Synithia Williams
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-08487-1
GUARDING HIS HEART
© 2018 Synithia R. Williams
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.
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www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
He’d dressed casually in white linen pants and a light blue button-up that fit his muscled body just enough to make her mouth water.
“Those are beautiful,” she said, eyeing the flowers but really thinking about the width of his shoulders and taut flatness of his abdomen.
He held the bouquet out to her. “I may not live here permanently, but I’m still a Southern gentleman. My grandmother would skin me if I didn’t bring flowers to my date.”
Jasmine chuckled and took the flowers from him, her heart skipping a little at the mention of this being a date. The sweet fragrance wrapped around her the way she wanted Kevin’s arms to embrace her. “Is your grandmother the only reason I got flowers?” she teased.
She turned and took the flowers over to the dresser. There wasn’t a vase in the room, but there was a vanity pitcher and bowl on the dresser. She grabbed the pitcher and put the flowers inside, setting it next to her bed.
“That, and when I saw them, I thought of you. Bright, colorful, happy.”
Dear Reader (#uaaee1d1d-9f66-529d-a955-ac55901217d5),
There are a lot of negative stereotypes about men with multiple kids. My goal with Guarding His Heart was to show a positive image of a blended family. Kevin may have come across as a playboy in the other books, but I hope you see there is more to Kevin. He’s devoted to his family and has a great capacity for love—something he has to realize as his feelings for Jasmine grow.
Jasmine is fun and spunky. Her personality immediately jives with Kevin’s, but she has her own concerns to get over before she can accept the love Kevin offers. She’s a complicated woman with a unique set of needs that Kevin isn’t afraid to step in and help with.
I hope you enjoy Guarding His Heart. I’m hard at work on the final Scoring for Love book. Get ready for Will Hampton to settle down.
Sincerely,
Synithia
To you for picking up this book and taking this ride with me.
Acknowledgments (#uaaee1d1d-9f66-529d-a955-ac55901217d5)
Thank you to Chenille, Sam and Cindy for sharing your experiences living with juvenile diabetes and being in a relationship with someone with the condition. I hope I gave an accurate reflection in this book with Jasmine and Kevin’s relationship. Thanks to the editorial staff at Harlequin Kimani Romance for helping me flesh out the characters of this story. Finally, writing a book is hard. I couldn’t have finished this book without the support of a great set of writer friends. Whether for virtual hugs, words of encouragement or listening to me rant, the Divas are always there. You ladies are much appreciated.
Contents
Cover (#ueda0bf3e-c83a-5c5c-822a-aee48d6b3bf6)
Back Cover Text (#uf465105f-1eb6-5f87-8bd7-e059b9723dc7)
About the Author (#ucef0b743-497d-5b7f-8044-aa29cf8b43e6)
Booklist (#u0fc31cbb-3e66-52e0-b1af-9d0343fdbed5)
Title Page (#ua7632194-99e1-56b9-bc7d-6ecc8afc1820)
Copyright (#u435fe7fa-b09f-51c1-8155-4f2963bfe36f)
Introduction (#u08bedd3c-4071-58de-b0c3-69d2742b519c)
Dear Reader (#u19315aad-e219-549b-9b62-aa58590c640c)
Dedication (#ud64795ec-96d1-5ae3-b5e5-3e93f12f1a74)
Acknowledgments (#u6dc2ebcc-55eb-5085-8190-e46321c90cca)
Chapter 1 (#ua885a4f1-0e98-576e-81b8-8d6d83ffe2e0)
Chapter 2 (#ue99bdb85-0891-5bc0-99a7-b717a2331da3)
Chapter 3 (#u8a0e75eb-1c71-5810-90ee-16df11babd58)
Chapter 4 (#u05f75bf4-fc3a-541e-b0fd-06052ba5b0f7)
Chapter 5 (#u338dd72e-a866-51e2-846e-ae4cd9f55a0c)
Chapter 6 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 11 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 12 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 13 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 14 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 15 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 16 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 17 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 18 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 19 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 20 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 21 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 22 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 23 (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 1 (#uaaee1d1d-9f66-529d-a955-ac55901217d5)
Kevin Koucky had no problem getting naked.
Getting naked in a cold studio, in front of a crowd of mostly strangers, as part of the photo shoot for Sports Fitness magazine was an entirely different situation. He glanced at his publicist across the studio. Rod gave Kevin two thumbs-up while his always enthusiastic grin covered his thin face.
Kevin answered with a half smile. Rod had been raving about this photo shoot ever since the magazine had called with the offer. Kevin’s naked body was about to grace the cover of a magazine hitting every magazine rack in the country. The “Bodies in Motion” issue, which paid homage to the various fitness levels of professional athletes, was the magazine’s most popular of the year. The cover spot was given to someone considered to be at the top of their game. Kevin had played professional basketball since he was eighteen and was proud of being considered an elite athlete chosen for the cover. Even if nature was slowly siphoning away his abilities.
The representative for Sports Fitness walked over to him. The petite brunette had a friendly face underlaid with a fierce focus toward ensuring he was comfortable as they prepared for the shoot.
“Okay, Kevin,” she said. “Jasmine is here, and she’s ready.”
Kevin looked at his wrist to check the time. Realized a second later it wasn’t there because he was butt naked in a cold studio. They’d been waiting fifteen minutes for the diva photographer to make her way uptown and complete the shoot. He’d never meet Jasmine Hook before, but she was already getting on his nerves. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with an artist who had a self-importance complex and believed coming to a photo shoot late somehow increased her demand.
“Oh, she finally decided to show up,” Kevin said, not bothering to hide his annoyance.
The representative’s grin tightened. “Well, she had another appointment before this that ran long and then got caught in traffic.”
Kevin looked skyward. “Yeah, I’m sure her time photographing models and actors provides her with plenty of perfect excuses for being fashionably late.” He’d heard enough about Jasmine to know she was the most sought-after fashion photographer in the nation. Why she was chosen for this shoot probably had more to do with her name than anything. He wouldn’t be surprised to find she was just as self-absorbed and obsessed with fashion as the people she photographed.
“You’d be surprised how much I’ve learned photographing models and athletes,” an amused female voice replied. “Especially the naked ones with an attitude.”
Kevin tightened the towel wrapped around his hips and turned in the direction of the voice. The smart retort died in this throat. The woman who’d spoken snatched his voice with just the sparkle in her eye.
She was tall. He’d guess five-ten or -eleven. At six foot four, he was a sucker for a tall woman. Ankle-high boots added more inches to her. Her short hair was highlighted with royal blue streaks in her bangs. A loose white shirt stopped at the waistband of skintight black jeans in the front and hung longer in the back. The studio lights glinted off the diamond studs in her ears where multiple piercings also included a hoop at the top of her left ear. Where else was she pierced? He took in the rest of her tall, curvy body and no longer worried about the effect of the room’s cold air on his anatomy.
“Jasmine Hook, I presume,” he said with an upward tilt of his lips that usually made women grin and giggle.
She raised a brow and smirked as if she knew he was giving her his killer smile and found it unimpressive. “Your presumption is correct.” She zipped open a black bag on the table next to her and pulled out a camera and various gadgets.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” Emphasis on finally. She was sexy as hell, but he wasn’t ready to let go of the fact that she’d arrived late.
“I know. Most people find my company pleasurable.” She winked and lifted one shoulder.
Her eyes were brown and beautiful. Not much makeup as far as he could tell, just a darker brown liner along her lids and mascara on long, dark lashes. Blood pounded in his veins like a basketball on concrete. Sexy and smart-mouthed. Jasmine was getting hotter by the second.
“I don’t doubt that.” He strolled over to her, everyone else in the room temporarily forgotten. “Were you late because someone else was enjoying your pleasurable company?”
“Yes and no. In my defense, I tried to get here sooner, but the man I was with didn’t know when to quit.”
The beginnings of disappointment stirred in his chest. He should have known a woman this alluring was taken. “And is that man your man?”
Her low, husky chuckle ran over his body like teasing fingertips. “Are you trying to find out if I have a man?” She checked her camera, then set it on the table.
Kevin’s body hummed with the thrill of potential. “Would you have a problem if I were?”
Her gaze swept over him quickly. “I don’t know yet.” She crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side. “Okay, Kevin, what are you looking for from this shoot today?” Her voice lost the flirtation as she subtly switched to a professional tone.
