Beard in Mind, an all new
standalone in the bestselling, romantic comedy Winston Brothers Series by Penny
Reid, is available NOW!
All is fair in love and auto
maintenance.
Beau Winston is the nicest, most
accommodating guy in the world. Usually.
Handsome as the devil and twice as
charismatic, Beau lives a charmed life as everyone’s favorite Winston Brother.
But since his twin decided to leave town, and his other brother hired a stunning
human-porcupine hybrid as a replacement mechanic for their auto shop, Beau
Winston’s charmed life has gone to hell in a handbasket.
Shelly Sullivan is not nice and is never
accommodating. Ever.
She mumbles to herself, but won’t
respond when asked a question. She glares at everyone, especially babies. She
won’t shake hands with or touch another person, but has no problems cuddling
with a dog. And her damn parrot speaks only in curse
words.
Beau wants her gone. He wants her out of
his auto shop, out of Tennessee, and out of his life.
The only problem is, learning why this
porcupine wears her coat of spikes opens a Pandora’s box of
complexity—exquisite, tempting, heartbreaking complexity—and Beau Winston soon
discovers being nice and accommodating might mean losing what matters
most.
Excerpt:
She’d taken
the sofa, in her own house, and given me the bed. That didn’t make a lick of
sense.
I crouched
next to her, threading my fingers into the silky hair at her temples.
“Honey.”
“Mmm.”
I bent to
whisper, “Shelly.”
“Hmm?”
“I’m going
to carry you to your bed. I’ll take the sofa.”
“Mmm.”
I grinned at
her soft noises, at the untroubled expression on her face, and how her
brow—even in sleep—still looked regal and stern.
Sliding my
arms under her legs and shoulder, I picked her up. And, unfortunately, that
woke her up.
She jerked
in my arms. “What are you doing?”
“I’m taking
you to the bed.”
“Don’t do
that.”
“I don’t
mind, I’ll take the sofa.” Our mouths were just inches apart, and hers was
distracting.
She
squirmed. “Put me down.”
Sighing
unhappily, I did. I set her on her feet next to the couch. The blanket pooled
at her feet and I stepped back to give her some space. It was dark, but I could
see her just fine, and that meant I had to force my eyes to remain above her
neck. The woman was wearing two pathetic scraps of fabric as pajamas. A thin
little tank top and shorts. That’s it.
I set my jaw
and turned to the side, waiting for her to walk past.
“Where are
you?”
I glanced at
her and realized she couldn’t see at all. She didn’t have a hand out, but the
way her eyes were moving about the room gave away her blindness.
“I’m here.”
I didn’t touch her, because if I did, I wouldn’t want to stop.
Shelly
turned her head in my direction and took a deep breath. Still she didn’t reach
for me. I didn’t know the specifics of what to expect after her Friday session,
but I recalled Dr. West saying something about Shelly doing self-guided ERP
exercises over this week.
“Can you
see?” She licked her lips, her voice sandpapery. “Because I can’t see at all.
It’s so dark.”
“I can see.”
Unbidden, my eyes dropped to her body, to the swell of her breasts, the panel
of bare stomach, the curve of her hips. Pinpricks of heat raised over my skin
and I curled my hands into fists.
She shuffled
forward and I caught her before she bumped into me, setting my hands gently at
her waist.
“Let me take
you to your room.” My voice was rough, for obvious reasons.
Saying
nothing, she brought her hand to my forearm, her body gently colliding with
mine. And then her hand on my arm slid up my bicep to my shoulder.
“Shelly.” I
was running out of breath.
“I like
this.”
“What?”
“Touching
you.”
Oh
fuck.
I held still
and endured her hands moving over my body, down the front of my shirt, stopping
at the hem, then pushing it up.
“Take this
off.”
I did. I
pulled the T-shirt over my head and let it drop to the floor.
We stood
there, facing each other in the dark, not touching. Despite the session on
Friday and the progress that had been made, I realized she wasn’t quite there
yet. Dr. West was right, Friday was just a step, the first step. Shelly wasn’t
able to initiate contact. Not yet.
Her hands
balled into fists and she swayed forward, her breath struggling little
puffs.
If anything
was going to happen tonight, I had to initiate it. I had to be the one to touch
first.
God, how I
wanted her. How I wanted her above me, beneath me, surrounding me. But how
could I?
“I know why
I hesitate,” her voice was breathless, “but why do you hesitate?”
“Lots of
reasons.”
“Give me
one.”
“I don’t
want to you use you.”
“I wish you
would.”
That pulled
a laugh from me, just a small relief from the mounting tension. My eyes moved
over her body, an undeniable impulse to devour the sight of her, her legs,
stomach, chest, then up her neck to her lips.
“You asked
me on Saturday if sex was a big deal for me, or if it was you. The answer is
both.”
She held
very still, and I got the sense she was holding her breath, straining to
listen.
“You are a
big deal to me. I don’t want a fling. I don’t want a flirtation. I want
promises.”
“What can I
promise you?”
That you’ll love me. That I’ll be your
priority.
She shifted
her weight from foot to foot. A spike of anxiety that she might leave me like
this had me acting without forethought. I lifted my hands to her waist again
and immediately, her fingertips skimmed over skin of my lower stomach in
response, making my muscles tense in hot anticipation. She grew more assertive
as she caressed my sides, abdomen, ribs, chest, shoulders, and then back
down.
Shelly
stepped closer, a hint of thrilling contact between her breasts and my torso,
and all the words and worries melted from my mind, died on my tongue,
suffocated by the feel of her body, and the possibility of this
moment.
Her finger
hooked in the waistband of my jeans. “Take these off.” Her hand turned, her
fingers and palm cupping me over my zipper.
Instinctively, I pressed myself into her touch even as I grabbed
her wrist.
“Beau, I
promise—”
She didn’t
get to speak, because I kissed her, hard and wild, unbuttoning and unzipping my
fly with one hand and bringing her palm inside my boxers with the
other.
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Meet Penny Reid:
Penny Reid
is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the Winston Brothers and Knitting in the
City series. When she’s not immersed in penning smart romances,
Penny works in the
biotech industry as a researcher. She’s also a full time mom to three
diminutive adults, wife, daughter, knitter, crocheter, sewer, general crafter,
and thought ninja.
Connect with Penny:
