A Better Man
Sunshine Creek Vineyard #1
By:
Candis Terry
Releasing
March 29, 2016
Avon
Avon
Sunshine Creek Vineyard Series
A Better Man
In Candis Terry’s first novel in her Sunshine Creek Vineyard series, the handsome Kincade brothers convene to rescue their legacy-but the last thing they expect to find is love….
Sooner or later…
Hockey star Jordan Kincade wasted no time ditching Sunshine Creek for the NHL, but his sports career has overshadowed everything else-a truth Jordan confronts when his parents’ deaths bring him home. Now his little sister Nicki is flunking out of school, and only one teacher can help Jordan save her-the shy but incredibly sexy Lucy Diamond, the same girl whose heart he broke years ago. But he’s determined not to make the same mistake twice. If only Lucy would give him the time of day.Love has a way of catching up with you.
Lucy has no intention of drowning in Jordan’s deep blue gaze again, even if he seems to have turned over a new leaf. Still, his devotion to his sister is impossible to ignore. As they team up to salvage Nicki’s future, Lucy soon discovers that Jordan’s sweet caresses and lingering kisses might just be everything she needs.
Today, she was a different person.
Stronger because of the things she’d lived through. Smarter because
she’d found a way to survive and come out the other side in a happy
place. She knew exactly where she belonged, and that was teaching and
helping students like Nicki. Which was why, right now, she was going
to pull on her big girl panties and face the boy who had disappointed
her head on.
Lucy managed to pull herself
together as Jordan removed his sunglasses and slid them to the top of
his head. His smile lifted a masculine pair of lips that somehow
managed to look cruel and sexy at the same time.
The boy had turned into a man times
ten.
Tall and broad shouldered, his chest
looked a mile wide. Judging by the smooth ripples beneath his snug
shirt he was packing muscle, not pounds. Jeans, worn and frayed at
the stress points, accented his long muscular legs and trim waist.
His longish nearly black hair gleamed beneath the overhead lights.
And his sharp blue eyes focused intently on her.
It was all she could do to keep her
heart at a normal pace and her legs solidly beneath her. If ever a
man could be described as delicious, Jordan Kincade would be a menu’s
specialty of the day.
Too bad he was such a jerk.
“Ms. Diamond?” He came forward
and stretched out his very large hand. “Jordan Kincade.”
And clearly he didn’t remember
her.
Lucy smiled as a funny little tickle
moved through her chest. Maybe this was going to be fun after all.
Rarely was she ever given the upper hand or the opportunity to have
even the slightest edge.
When he moved closer his warm palm
engulfed hers and her triumph died with a sizzle.
Close up she got a better look. She
inhaled his sexy scent of worn leather and warm man. Every square
inch of her female DNA perked up like it was party time. She hated to
disappoint the little darlings but today was all about helping
someone else.
“Please.” She kept the handshake
brief and formal before she disengaged and motioned toward the chair
in front of her desk. “Have a seat.”
He glanced at the standard school
chair with a you’ve got to be kidding me lift of his brows. When he
sat down, the orange plastic chair creaked and seemed ridiculously
small beneath the scope of his height and muscles.
Lucy took her own seat and noticed
that the difference in chairs made her tower over him and seemingly
give her another advantage. But when he leaned back and crossed an
ankle over a knee, he appeared completely comfortable.
So much for one-upmanship.
“I apologize if I seemed taken
aback just now.” She opened the folder and pulled out Nicole’s
progress report as well as several exams and the few assignments
Nicole had actually turned in. Late, of course, but complete
nonetheless. “I expected your brother Ryan.”
“He had business at the vineyard
and sends his regrets.”
She couldn’t help notice how very
deep and smooth his voice had become. Like hot buttered rum on a cold
winter night. He had the kind of voice a woman could imagine
whispering sweet nothings in her ear while he caressed her in places
that tingled beneath his touch.
“I understand.” Snapping out of
the fantasy, she imagined the enormous scope of duties Ryan Kincade
must need to tend to after the death of their parents. Her heart sank
a little further for the family. Especially for Nicole, who was so
young and really needed the love and guidance of her mom and dad. “I
hope you’ll accept my condolences. And I sincerely apologize for
having you come down at this sorrowful time to deal with what might
seem insignificant but—”
“Anything regarding my sister is
important, Ms. Diamond. Now more than ever.” His brows dipped in a
no nonsense fashion. “So don’t judge me when you don’t even
know me.”
Oh, she knew him.
Knew he was the type who’d make a
promise then shatter it without ever looking back.
But that was then, and this was now.
“My apologies, Mr. Kincade. That
was certainly not my intent.”
His piercing eyes perused her face
for a long, uncomfortable moment and she had to admit that the look
did something funny to the beat of her heart.
Especially when with a slight tilt
of his head he asked, “Why do you look so familiar?”
“Do I?” That erratic heartbeat
kicked up another notch as she let go a chuckle to cover up what was
really going on inside. “People say that all the time. I guess I
just have one of those faces.”
She pushed Nicole’s schoolwork in
his direction. “If you’ll take a look at these projects, you’ll
see that even though she didn’t complete the assignment exactly as
it was defined, Nicole has an enormous gift.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s a
lie.”
“Excuse me?” Irritated, Lucy’s
gaze shot up to the slight smile curling his lips. “How can you say
that without even reading anything? I guarantee your sister has a
multitude of talent.”
“I’m not talking about my
sister’s work. I’m talking about you just having one of those
faces.” He uncrossed his long, muscular legs and leaned forward
without even looking at the papers she’d put in front of him. “So
now I’m wondering why you sidestepped my question.”
Good God the man was intense. There
was something in the combination of that nearly black hair that fell
over his ears and his nape in perfect waves and those deep blue eyes
that seemed almost otherworldly. She could imagine how he’d
intimidate an opponent on the ice.
And it had nothing to do with his
size.
But as far as admitting who she
really was? Not going to happen. No need to dredge up a bad memory
when all she really wanted was to help his sister.
“I apologize.” Her heart beat
erratically as she avoided the intensity of his gaze. “But I would
like to stick to the subject of your sister’s grades—or lack
thereof—that may prevent her from graduating with the rest of her
class. I genuinely care about her which is why I noticed a problem
way before the loss of your parents.”
“And now you won’t even look at
me,” he said. “Why is that?”
As he leaned in, his intoxicating
scent came with him. Normally such things didn’t affect her. Well,
at least not with her colleagues who tended to wear either too much
aftershave or worse, too much body odor. Jordan wore his masculine
scent like a sexual promise and Lucy swore he should come with a
warning label.
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