genre: contemporary
ISBN#:
length: novel
Price: $5.95

Available Now: http://www.nobleromance.com/ItemDisplay.aspx?i=7 

Blurb:

Laid off from her accounting job, Annie Gadbaum has to find a new source of income. Tired of the stuffy corporate life and ready to make some big changes, Annie takes a position as a bartender at a nightclub while she figures out what to do. She throws herself into her work, dressing the part and enjoying the party atmosphere more than she ever thought she would.

Nightclub owner, Ridge Warrick, longs for a stable relationship with the kind of woman he can bring home to his mother. So why is he so attracted to the fiery-haired Annie?  She’s captivated him, but she’s the wrong kind of girl.

Note: This is a revised and slightly expended edition of a book previously published as “Bad Girls Do It Better Vol 4. The Wrong Woman”.

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Excerpt

Ridge gestured to the chair in front of his desk, focusing in on her words. A great crowd.  He didn’t want a crowd. Instead, he imagined her standing at the foot of his California king-sized bed. Dressed only in a tiny pair of thong panties and those boots, his petite bombshell would sway to the music, delivering a private striptease just for him. Aware she’d sat and was looking at him, Ridge pulled his thoughts away from the carnal. Damn, if she knew what I was thinking it’d be a sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen. Focus, man. Focus.

“Everything’s fine.” He shuffled papers on his desk. “I just wanted to spend a little time talking to you. You’ve worked for me for a couple of weeks. You’re doing well with the customers. I wanted to make sure you were settling in all right. Is there anything I can do to make your job easier?”

She gave a tiny gasp and her gaze settled on his mouth. She licked her lips, her tiny, pink tongue moistening her full, lower lip. “No,” she said after several moments. “Everything’s going great. I really appreciate you giving me a chance. I know it’s been a while since I tended bar, but I guess it’s like riding a bike . . . you never forget how to do it. I really like working here.”

Focus on that, Ridge thought. I’ve got a good employee. I don’t want to do anything to mess this up. It’s been a while since I had a steady bartender, and one the customers liked, too. “Great. I’m glad to hear it. The hours aren’t too long, are they?” Thinking of her going home alone in the wee hours of the morning, even if the streets weren’t exactly bastions of crime, made him uneasy. Not for the first time, he thought about offering her a ride home, or at least following her, but he doubted he’d drive her back to her house, or if he did, that he’d remain in the car.

“No, everything’s fine.” She clasped her hands in her lap.

 Was she anxious to get home?  Did she have a man waiting for her? “Good. I know this probably seems awkward, but I don’t feel like I’ve had a chance to get to know you. I like my employees to feel like they can consider me a friend, as well as someone who signs their paychecks.” He opened a folder and glanced over her crisp resume. Printed on heavyweight ivory paper, it screamed professionalism. “You used to be an accountant, right?  So what do you think of your new career?  They’re certainly different, aren’t they?”

Annie grinned. Her smile lit her face. “A little, yes. I must admit, I like being a bartender. I meet new, interesting people every night. I feel like I touch people. When I was an accountant it was all about the numbers. Cold, impractical, calculating. I prefer being around people, having this feeling that I’m involved in their lives, even if all I’m doing is serving drinks.” She shook her head. “You’re going to think this is silly, but I feel like I’m needed, and it’s a nice feeling.”

Ridge fought against a surge of lust. He needed her. Dear God, did he need her . . . naked, with those slender limbs wrapped around him. Instead of voicing his desires, he managed a smile. “Not silly at all. So you don’t see this as just a transitional position?  Something to pass the time until you find something bigger and better?”

“Is that what this is about?” Annie suppressed a grin. She’d been valued as an employee before. She worked hard to do her best, and it showed. To think Ridge worried about her leaving was a boon to her ego. No, she wouldn’t leave. She liked her work, and she liked looking at Ridge. She doubted he would make a move past the employee-employer relationship barrier, and she wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize her position. She needed this job too much. But if an opportunity came up, if he were to make the first move, she couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t respond.

After all, she was trying to change her image, and the party girl she wanted to be would jump at the chance to spend a little one-on-one time with a man like Ridge. She’d been watching him for months, had noticed him even before she’d lost her accountant job and had applied to work in his bar. Something about him appealed to her on a very basic, primal level. He, and he alone, filled her fantasies. She saw him every single day, but he was off-limits. Perhaps that was part of the appeal, part of what fueled her desire to have him.

“I just, uh, want to make sure you’re happy in your position. I like to hire, and keep, good employees.” Ridge’s suave words stroked more than her ego. His talk of her position brought several to mind. With him, probably good old military position would do, but she could imagine herself riding him, or having him take her up against a wall, or even come at her from behind while she hung onto the bar.

Annie fought the heat coiling inside her. Warmth pulsed its way to her cheeks, and she hoped he attributed the blush to his compliments. “That’s very nice of you. I assure you that I’m very happy here.” She stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I should be heading home.” Clutching her purse in one hand, she moved toward the door.

Ridge got to his feet. He stepped around his desk, before resting a lean hip against the dark wood. “Annie.” He reached for her, his fingers skimming her bare arm.

Shivers darted through her, and she found herself pulled toward him like iron filings to a magnet. Her lips went dry. Something about this meeting seemed off, and for a moment, she wondered if he might attempt to kiss her. No, Ridge seemed too much the professional to even consider starting something with one of his employees. But she wished. Oh, how she wished.

“Yes?” She licked her lips, noticing how Ridge’s gaze seemed riveted on her mouth.