Free December Heat by Joanie MacNeil

arms, her heart beat faster than it usually did when she exercised.
    “You taste like fish,” she said after she’d caught her breath.
    He grinned down at her.
    “And you, Sweetheart, taste like heaven.”
    Heaven. The kisses they’d shared in his bedroom tasted like heaven. Lord, she was losing it.
    “You’re a wicked man, Jake Harrigan.”
    His grin broadened. “And you wouldn’t have me any other way.” His deep mellow voice caressed her, teased at her heart, her senses.
    She was going to have to watch herself here. Jake was too close, too charming, too convenient. And she was too vulnerable.
    As for furthering her friendship with Jake. That would be inviting trouble with a capital T.

 
    Chapter Six
     
     
    Jake secured the boat to the iron ring in the old tree stump and propped his fishing rod against it. No fish today, but he’d enjoyed the morning out just the same.
    It didn’t matter that he couldn’t keep the fish he’d caught. Already there were enough fish in Nic’s freezer, she’d told him, because she needed to trim off another kilo or two and eating lots of fish would speed up her metabolism.
    He’d told her she was perfect the way she was. And she’d smiled at him. The smile had reached her eyes, causing his gut to twist. Again he reminded himself Nic was off limits for half a dozen good reasons.
    Loud music drifted from the direction of the house. Nic usually didn’t play her music very loud. He’d often wondered why not when there were no close neighbors.
    Joe Cocker’s distinctive, gravely voice filled the air. The words, “You Can Leave Your Hat On” drifted to him in the warm sunshine. A fairly suggestive song, not Nic’s taste at all, he was sure of it. The erotic, sensuous images of a woman in the act of undressing played in his mind. Jake’s thoughts flicked back to a scene in a movie he’d seen some time ago. Though he couldn’t remember its title, the images the steamy scene evoked caused a hike in his temperature. What was Nic doing?
    Curious, he headed toward the direction of the music which seemed to be coming from beneath the house. Usually the door was locked and Jake assumed a storeroom was tucked underneath. Today, the door stood open, and he estimated the room ran the length and breadth of the cottage and then a bit more. The far wall must have been dug into the side of the slope.
    His heart almost exploded when he saw Nic, who seemed unaware of his presence, despite the mirrors around the wall. From where he stood just outside the room, he could observe and remain unobserved.
    Nic moved in time with the music, every move calculated and smooth, erotic.
    He’d never seen her like this, using her body in a way designed to turn a man on, set him on fire. She wore three quarter length skin-tight black pants that showed every dip and curve of her body, and a brief figure-hugging cropped top which also left nothing to the imagination. Her bare midriff added to the allure of her outfit and her lithe, rhythmic movements.
    J ake’s breath caught. His body tightened, reacting in a way that made his personal resolve to keep things simple seem ridiculous and impossible. He was mesmerized. By the music. By Nic and the rhythm of her body. Just where she planned to shed those extra couple of kilos he couldn’t tell.
    Only then he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Someone else was in the room. A figure stepped into his vision. Some guy he’d never seen before, in soft black jeans and black too-tight muscle top. He was dark-haired, quite reasonable looking, at least a head taller than Nic. But that wouldn’t be hard, she was only a little thing. Nic danced and slithered against this stranger, wound her legs around his, he put his hands on her, touching her in a way and in places Jake could only dare to dream about.
    His fists clenched. He knew it was an act. But that wasn’t the point. It looked too real. He felt sick to his stomach. What would Mark think? Had