How much does this man think I charge for butter and sugar and—
“It was good meeting you.” He gathers his axe and toolbox and the pink bakery box, then lumbers toward the door before I can muster any words like “wait” or “your receipt” or “please bend me over the counter.”
The door swings shut behind him, and seconds later, a truck engine growls to life. I realize my mouth is still hanging open, so I close it and watch a faded blue and white pickup rumble down the street.
What the hell just happened?
***
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Hottie Lumberjack
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And since I promised a glimpse of Show Down, it’s time to deliver. While it’s still a work in progress, here’s an exclusive, unedited glimpse at the opening chapter of Lauren and Nick’s story coming later this year…
Your exclusive sneak peek at Show Down
CONFESSIONAL 753
Judson, Lauren (Producer: Juniper Ridge)
You want me to share one of my worst memories? Nice, Gabe. How about you punch me in the tits while you’re at it? Oh, stop looking like that. I’m a woman. I have tits, okay? Being your sister doesn’t negate that biological fact. If you want to get technical, you’ve got three sisters who all happen to have—
Stalling?
I don’t know what you mean.
Prologue
TWO YEARS AGO
I sip from a flute of Veuve Clicquot, careful not to smudge my lipstick. It’s Friday night at Evolution, the most exclusive club in West Hollywood, and tonight we’ve got a VIP suite.
“Hey, gorgeous.”
My hot-as-hell boyfriend nuzzles the words against my neck, and I lean in to soak up his heat. Then I draw back to watch those electric cocoa eyes skim my body. I bought this strapless Oscar de la Renta in lush velvet knowing he’d love it. The heat in his gaze tells me I wasn’t wrong.
I seldom am. If tonight goes how I’m thinking, Nick’s about to swap the boyfriend title for fiancé.
“Hey, stranger.” God, he looks good. I skim my fingertips over his clean-shaven jaw. “Having fun?”
“Oh, yeah.” He dips his palm into the curve of my waist, and I fight the urge to drag him into the nearest coat closet. “I love you in red,” he murmurs.
“Is that so?” I know this, of course. I know most things about Nick, since tonight marks one year since our first date. “Glad you like it.”
“Mmm.” He kisses my neck again and I let my palms take a lovely trip from his shoulders to his forearms, tracing muscles built by years of slinging tools on job sites. These days, he spends more time bossing other people with tools, but the fact remains—Nick Armbrust knows his way around a tool chest.
And my chest, but I’m getting distracted.
“Alexis is looking for you,” he says, and it takes me a sec to go from fuck-me-against-the-wall, to let’s-talk-about-your-sister.
“She caught me in the ladies’ room a minute ago.” I love Nick’s sister, so shifting gears is easy. “She looks amazing.”
Nick grins. “Mama’s pestered her for years to leave her hair natural. She wasn’t so sure about going full afro.”
“It looks great.”
“She said she had something for you?”
“Mmm-hmm.” I don’t tell him that something was a pair of Farrah Rochon paperbacks. Alexis and I agree it’s best to let her brother think we’ve spent the past year swapping stock tips or shoes instead of romance novels. “Is she pregnant again?”
“What?” Nick squints at the corner table where Alexis is feeding a bite of crostini to her hottie husband. “Why would you think that?”
“Watch.” On cue, Abe touches his wife’s belly beneath the table. The two share a private smile that makes my ovaries ache. “See?”
“Huh.” Nick dots a kiss behind my ear. “We should put in our order for another niece.”
“Or nephew.” Delight ripples through me at his slip of the tongue. We. A good indication I’m right about tonight’s plans.
“I love seeing our families together.” His gaze moves past his sister to the tight knot of Judson offspring in the corner. Dean, Cooper, Lana—all five of my brothers and sisters are here somewhere.
A few feet away, my parents huddle in conversation with Nick’s mom and dad. My soon-to-be-in-laws? I hate to be presumptuous, but all signs are there. “I can’t believe you managed to get everyone in one place.”
Nick laughs warm and low. “There’s something to be said for just asking for what you want.”
I shiver, recognizing the quote he gave Business Week last month about the success of his construction firm. Tonight, I hear it with fresh ears.
If Nick’s about to ask me something, the answer is an unequivocal yes.
His dad says something that makes my mom laugh, and I catch myself smiling. Our parents met before we did, since Angela and Darius Armbrust are prominent entertainment lawyers, and my parents are—well, Laurence and Shirleen Judson. Enough said.
Though not enough has been said about why Nick summoned us here this evening. I’ve asked him for weeks, but all he’ll say is that it’s a surprise. That he had some things to line up before sharing his plans with anyone.
I sip from my champagne flute and order myself to keep my voice casual. “You went all out for this soiree.”
“It’s a big occasion.” He winks and there go the damn butterflies in my stomach.
I know I should play it cool. That’s what I’m known for, after all. Entertainment Weekly dubbed me the “She Shark,” a reference to my cool poise on set. What the hell does that mean, anyway? They’d never write that about a male producer.
But it’s true I’m cool under pressure. Always have been, though maybe not where Nick’s concerned. One look at him and my kneecaps melt like butter.
“I heard what you did for Lana.” Nick brushes my hair back from my face. “Pretty badass.”
I frown. “What did you hear?”
“That you kneed that actor in the balls for grabbing her ass at a fundraiser.”
Goddammit. Hollywood is getting too small.
“Repeat that to anyone, and you’ll get the same.” I keep enough sweetness in my voice so he knows I’m teasing, but he must see steel in my eyes because he inches back a little. “Seriously, Nick—don’t repeat that.”
“It’s true, though.”
He didn’t put a question mark at the end, so I don’t bother answering. “No one fucks with my family.”
Nick’s chest rumbles as he chuckles. “And I dig that about you, girl.”
“Thanks.” I think. Speaking of family— “I’m going to go say hi to Mari, okay?”
Nick spots her in the corner and waves. “She just getting here?”
“She came straight from taping a demo for Shrink to the Stars. Want to come find out how it went?”
He kisses me again before releasing my hand. “You go ahead. There’s something I need to do.”
The way his fingers just skimmed the breast pocket of his suit has me speculating about that something. Is my ring in there?