Fierce Encounters Series (Contemporary Romance) Complete Collection Read online

  Fierce Encounters Series (Contemporary Romance) Complete Collection

  Published by Mia Cardine

  at Smashwords

  Copyright © 2013 Vasko Pty Ltd

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be constructed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Table Of Contents

  Fierce Encounters Book 1

  Fierce Encounters Book 2

  Fierce Encounters Book 3

  Fierce Encounters Book 4

  Fierce Encounters Book 1

  Emma Carmichael stretched languorously on the patio’s chaise lounge. The warmth of the early June sun felt good against her long legs. She stretched again, and then picked up her book. She was in the midst of reading a collection of mystery short stories, her idea of a fun summer read. One of the women at work had suggested 50 Shades of Gray, but honestly, the writing had turned her off long before anything else could turn her on.

  She’d only read a page before she realized the moving van two doors down from her. She frowned, wondering about the older couple who had lived there. Had they been sick? Had something happened? She frowned again and turned her attention back to the book.

  She timed her minutes in the sun, not wanting to burn. Her blonde hair was natural and she had the fair skin to match it. She didn’t want to get too red. She was hosting a small party in a few weeks and wanted to be golden, not crimson.

  Emma caught her breath as one of the movers hoisted what appeared to be a large trunk. He settled it on one shoulder and carried it to the door. Emma followed his every move until he disappeared from sight. She chastised herself. She normally wasn’t one to ogle a good-looking man just because he was dark and muscular. She looked for brains and an ability to commit.

  She looked down at her book for a moment, but decided instead to see if he returned for another trip. As if he’d known her thoughts, he reappeared at that moment and dove back into the van for another box. This one was odd shaped, and he handled it with care. Emma wondered what might be so precious. She was impressed with the delicacy he used to maneuver the awkward box into the house. She would definitely use these movers. Normally, boxes were lucky to stay in one piece by the time the movers were done.

  She stood up, stretching once again like a contented cat. It was time to go inside and finish her book there. She took her time, moving to the back door. She tried to excuse it as being tired from the time in the sun, but she knew that she was hoping for another glance of the moving man.

  She put her hand on the doorknob just as he came outside again. This time, he caught her eye and gave her a wink. Emma hurried inside and tried to concentrate on her book to little avail. Something had come over her. She never acted this way.

  She put the thoughts of the moving man out of her mind as she decided to shower and pick up a few things for her next get together.

  Two days later, Emma had gotten up the nerve to visit the new neighbor. She hadn’t seen any activity at the house for the past two days, but a newer sports car sat in the driveway today. She’d finished the short story collection, so she’d run out of excuses to not stop by. She picked up the plate of cookies that she’d bought and walked to the house.

  She could already see the stamp of the new owners on the house. The garage was open and gone were the years of accumulated memories that the Yungbluths had stored there. The space was now filled with more odd shaped boxes and the trunk she’d seen the day the new people had moved in. What she didn’t see was any signs of the neighbors. She sighed, steeling herself for the pleasantries and rang the bell.

  She was taken aback when the moving man opened the door. Her breath caught as she stood this close to him. He was slightly taller than her own 5’10”. Today he was clothed, wearing a pair of shorts that showed off hairy legs with thick muscular calves. He wore a button-down shirt that was casually left un-tucked. He looked like he could be going boating or out to a casual party.

  He smiled at her, apparently remembering how she’d watched him before. “Hello, welcoming committee?”

  “Something like that,” Emma said, shoving the plate of cookies towards him. “These are for you –uh, and your wife.”

  “Not married,” he said casually. He gave her another smile. “Just me – and the cat.” He pointed to an orange tabby that sat on the floor of the entryway.

  Emma wondered if he would invite her in, but at the moment, he was standing in the doorway, blocking any attempt at entrance. She wondered if he wasn’t alone. Maybe he had another woman in the kitchen – or perhaps the bedroom. “So, are you enjoying it here?”

  “So far, so good. You’re the first neighbor that I’ve met.”

  “Most of the people here are easy to get along with. No drama, everyone pretty much keeps to themselves.”

  He nodded. “Good to know. I like it that way.”

  She nodded too. She just bet he did. For some reason, Emma was suspicious of the man. His lack of manners in inviting her in and his reticence seemed part of an act. She found herself wondering what was behind that mask. With a start, she realized she’d just been standing there. “Well, I’ll be going. I just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood.”

  “Thanks. I appreciate it.” The man watched her as she walked back towards her house, not closing his door until she was out of sight. It made Emma slightly uncomfortable to know that he was so obviously checking her out.

  She was unnerved by the time she returned home. Emma realized that he hadn’t even offered his name to her. How odd. Emma felt like one of the heroines in the romantic suspense novels. There wasn’t any romance here, but something was up with this man. She was going to do some sleuthing to get to the bottom of this.

  Emma began jogging. She hadn’t done much physical exercise over the winter. She’d much rather stayed inside and read a book, so she had. It wasn’t as if she needed the exercise. She maintained her figure without much work to the chagrin of her friends. However, she had no more excuses to visit the mystery man, so jogging past his house might at least give her a chance for an accidental meeting. She knew from her books that this wasn’t how detectives learned about someone, but she felt it was all she had.

  Several days went by with no sightings at all. The front door was closed and uninviting. The garage doors were shut, hiding the odd shaped boxes she’d seen. For all of her investigations, he could easily have closed up the house and not even been around. Emma knew she’d be annoyed if she did all this work for nothing.

  To keep her mind off of the mystery man and his odd effect on her, she busied herself with getting ready for her next social gathering. She’d opted for a tropical theme, and she’d rented a few plastic palm trees for the occasion. They would go well with the sangria and the drinks in the plastic coconut cups she’d picked up at the party store.

  The night of the party was perfect. The moon was full and shone brightly over the festivities. Several of her friends from work and some of the women she’d gone to college with all attended along with their husbands, boyfriends and partners. For the few single women, she’d invited some of the young men from work, who seemed to be having fun.

  The par
ty rollicked on until near 2 am. Just before escorting the last few guests out the door, Emma had noticed the lights on at the house two doors down. As she picked up some of the coconut cups from the patio, she saw the mystery man come outside and look over at her house. He certainly can’t be annoyed by the noise level. Her friends had talked at a loud whisper after 11pm, still thinking that the Yungbluths lived nearby and would complain about the conversations.

  She did wonder what was up with him. He was unmarried and apparently if he was home at this time on a Saturday, not dating. Why would a man who looked like that be single? She definitely couldn’t figure that one out. Any of the single women at the party would have killed to meet him. So why was he single?

  She thought of her own circumstances. People said that about her all the time, but Emma was picky. She wasn’t a prude by any means, but she wanted to date someone with whom a future was possible. She found no pleasure in one night stands, which seemed to be what most men wanted. She shrugged, reminding herself that she was happy with her current circumstances.

  Emma was a bit tipsy, though nowhere near drunk. She smiled in his direction and waved at the man. She knew it was bolder than her normal behavior, but frankly at the moment, she didn’t care. It wasn’t like they’d get to know each other and become friends. He’d been almost rude in not inviting her inside and his lack of conversation that day.

  She smiled to herself now, thinking that perhaps she’d evened the score. He was alone and she was the one with friends. She hummed a tune as she cleaned up.

  After the festivities the night before, Emma was in no form to go jogging the following day. She curled up with some hot tea, which she adored even when it was warm, and her latest book. She planned on staying home and enjoying some quiet time.

  She’d nearly made it to the half-way point in her book when the doorbell rang. She was hesitant at first to answer it, thinking it would be a salesperson or a religious person trying to tell you their Gospel. She stood up, walked to the door and looked through the peephole. It was the mystery man. He just stood there, looking around at her front porch. She shrugged and opened the door.

  “Hi,” she said, standing in the doorway. She thought she would keep him outside, just as he’d done her. However, it was warm and pleasant with a soft breeze that she could feel through the screen door. “What can I do for you?”

  The man held up a pair of women’s panties. “I think one of your guests left me a present last night.”

  Emma had the good graces to blush. “Wow, uh, I don’t t know what to say.” Emma took them from him, holding them at arm’s length. She tried to remember who had left together of her single friends. Her memory was a bit hazy from the drinking. She blushed a little when she remembered giving the mystery man a wave of the hand before going inside for the evening. Not her finest moment for sure.

  “I hope they had a good time. Usually getting naked is the first step to having some fun.” He turned a bright smile on her and laughed at his own joke. When he stopped laughing, he held out his hand. “I’m Daniel, by the way. I don’t know where my manners were the other day. Probably just too much moving.”

  Emma smiled. It would be hard to not call him “mystery man” after the past few weeks of intrigue. She took a deep breath. “Nice to meet you. I’m Emma.”

  “Well, nice to meet you too, Emma. I was beginning to think that I was just going to have to call you the good looking woman next door.” He smiled with one side of his mouth, looking as if it might be a smirk.

  Emma turned bright pink. She’d never thought of herself as good looking. “Um, thanks. I hope the party didn’t keep you up last night. They were all pretty quiet. The people who had the house before you were sticklers for lights out at 11pm.”

  “Nothing like that for me. I just don’t know anyone in the area, so I’ve mostly been getting the house set-up and keeping to myself. It’s easier that way.”

  Before she thought through her words, Emma said, “Why don’t you come to my next party? It will be in two weeks, and you can meet some people who live in the area. You might make some friends.”

  Daniel gave her a grin. “I wasn’t trolling for an invite, but thanks a lot. I appreciate it.”

  Emma shuffled her feet, realizing now what she’d done. Up until a few minutes ago, she hadn’t known his name and had professed dislike of his manners. Now he was going to be attending her next party, which had a pirate theme of all things.

  Daniel dropped his head and then looked into her eyes. “I’d better get going. I still have a lot to do to the house. Thanks for the invite. I look forward to it.”

  “No problem. I’ll stop by and give you the details when I know them.”

  Daniel walked away, and Emma thought it was fair play to watch him as he went. She remembered the feeling of embarrassment when he’d done that to her. Now she was turning the tables on him.

  She tried to return to her book, but she kept drifting back to the conversation. She still kicked herself for inviting him to the party, but there was nothing she could do now. She’d never even thought to invite others from the neighborhood to these events, but now he was going to be there. Daniel. She said the name several times that afternoon, trying to get used to the sound of it.

  Daniel came over one evening to visit before the party. She’d forgotten all about her promise to stop by and give him the information about the party. She blushed a little at the realization that she’d been so enthralled with talking to him that she’d totally forgotten her promise to him. She felt a bit off. She was so efficient about her parties, and now she’d blown an invite.

  She gave him a quick tour of her home and showed him around the pool area. She loved the seclusion of the patio and pool, where she spent most of her hours reading and relaxing. Daniel eyed her as she talked dreamily about the setting and some of the book she’d been reading. He didn’t speak much outside, but seemed much more lively inside. Emma wondered about Daniel’s interests and hobbies. He didn’t seem to talk much about himself.

  The night of the pirate party came quickly. Emma had duly invited several couples to the event as usual and had against her better judgment, she’d invited several of her single women friends as well. She’d tossed in a couple of the usual single guys, just to even things out, but she worried that some of her friends would be overly interested in Daniel. She tried not to examine her feelings too much. It was only a party and she just wanted her guests to have a good time. Not more was happening. Even so, she thought that she’d done a good job with the gypsy skirt that made her look like a pirate’s maiden.

  Emma downed her third margarita on essentially an empty stomach. She’d been too busy with the finger food to give herself a proper meal this afternoon. Now her head was swimming slightly from the alcohol and lack of food. She decided to take a minute to herself. She made her way outside and sat down on the chaise. She saw the paper parrots perched on the railing. No pirate party was complete without parrots.

  The cool night air cleared her head somewhat as she looked out on the sparkling dots that seemed to float across the pool. She felt serenely happy here.

  A voice came from behind her. “I wondered where you’d gone off to.”

  Emma looked up, sure she recognized the voice. “Daniel. Yes, I just had to get away for a few minutes to clear my head. It’s a lovely night. Are you having a good time?”

  Her breathe caught as she saw him. He was wearing white pants rolled up at the cuff and an open shirt, tied at the bottom in a meager attempt at piratedom. His smooth chest was firm and muscled. She wondered when he found the time to work-out. He smiled at her. “Very much so. Your friends are a lot of fun. They’re telling stories on you.”

  Emma moaned. “Don’t listen to them. Only about half of them are true.”

  Daniel laughed. “That could be fun, depending on which half those are.”

  Emma smiled. “I can only hope for their discretion. A girl doesn’t want to give away all her secrets.
”

  “You have secrets, too, eh?”

  Emma was intrigued by the word “too.” What did he mean by that? What type of secrets was Daniel hiding? Perhaps a crazy wife in the attic? “I’ll never tell. You’ll have to find out for yourself.”

  Daniel grinned, a smile that lit up his eyes even in the half-light of the patio. “That’s a challenge that I’d enjoy taking.”

  Emma felt for a second like he might be leaning in to kiss her, when Lynnette stuck her head out the door. “Sweetie, you’re out of tequila. That just won’t do.”

  Emma flushed, realizing that they were looking in the wrong place for it. “You’ll have to excuse me for now. We can talk more in a bit.”

  “I look forward to it,” Daniel said with a gallant nod of the head.

  Emma sighed deeply and went in search of the tequila. Sure enough, it was under the counter next to the drain cleaner. Why no one could remember her storage system was beyond her. She’d seen Daniel come back inside after she left with Lynnette, but a crowd of people encouraged her to do a shot. She could hardly refuse since she was in no need of a ride home. She’d only need to walk the few paces to her room after the last guest left.

  The night went on as a blur. People were laughing and telling stories and Emma enjoyed the way that the snacks for the party were gone quickly. She’d made a cute watermelon cut-out that looked like a ship and had made buckeyes into “cannonballs.”

  Near the end of the party, Emma went looking for an aspirin for a coworker, who would definitely be needing it. She came to the door of the guest bathroom, which was closed. She knocked and no one answered. She knocked again just to be on the safe side. Still no answer. She opened the door, and saw Daniel in the candlelight of the bathroom. He was washing his hands quietly as if no one had knocked.

  “Sorry,” Emma said quickly with a blush.

  “Don’t be,” he smiled. “I was just washing my hands. Too many of the cannonballs stuck to my fingers. He held his hands out in front of him to show her.