Welcome to the crazy world of Caroline and Susanne, sisters, authors, loons. If you’re new to our books then woohoooo we’re so excited to have you here and would love for you to join our tribe on Facebook too!! And if you’ve travelled through our book worlds before then, well, shhhh don’t tell the newbies that we’re gonna rip their hearts out and eat them raw. I mean there will definitely be some fun times along the way and if all goes well, you’ll defo get a HEA. Things ALWAYS go well in our books, right guys? Yup. So enjoy this book, we have literally poured a piece of our soul into it and a few tears too. It’s the best intro to this story we could possibly give you and we really hope you fall in love with Rogue and her boys just as much as we have.
This novella is set ten years before The Harlequin Crew Series and book 1 will be releasing this November 2020 – you can preorder Sinners’ Playground now right here!!!
P.S.
If you didn’t think we could manage a cliffhanger on a novella, oh-ho! think again. We’ve softened the blow with a special gift at the end of the book though, so take a deep breath, pull up your big girl panties, and step into your new dark paradise, Sunset Cove…
M averick:
Hey, baby girl, you wanna come be naughty with me?
My heart leapt as I read that message, a blush rising in my cheeks as I chewed on my bottom lip and rolled over in my bunk while I typed out my reply.
Rogue:
Baby girl? Seriously? You start calling me that then I'm gonna start calling you big daddy.
Maverick:
I can get onboard with that
Rogue:
Sugar puff, then
Maverick:
How about stud like in those old movies?
Rogue:
I'll give you stud muffin, but I'll go no further (the muffin is because of your fluffy centre)
Maverick:
There's nothing fluffy about me, beautiful. Now, are you gonna let me get you into trouble today or am I gonna have to come drag you out of your pretty flowery bedroom?
I shuddered at the mention of this horror show I lived in, glancing up at the frilly flowery shit that was all over the room I shared with three other girls in this so-called home. Apparently the woman who ran this place, Mary Beth, thought that girls liked flowers and boys liked cars – even though she only housed teenagers. What a freaking psychopath. If this was the best the state could afford then they really needed to think about upping taxes.
Rogue:
Of course I'm coming. Give me five minutes to escape the dragon.
I shoved my shitty brick of a cell phone into the back pocket of my denim shorts and scrambled upright, ignoring the way the springs squealed as I moved.
"If you sneak out with those boys again, I'm gonna tell Mary Beth," Rosie warned from the bunk below mine, her prissy little attitude begging for a good slap.
I reached up to the shelf above my bed, grabbed the flick knife I kept there, an elastic for my long, dark hair and finally snagged myself the chocolate bar I'd hidden behind a few books.
I jumped out of my bunk and landed on the threadbare carpet, ignoring the two mousy girls in the bunk opposite mine as they sensibly averted their eyes then I flicked my knife out and pointed it at Rosie.
"What did I tell you the last time you threatened to turn me over to that old witch?" I growled, pointing my knife at the shabby teddy bear she slept with.
"If I get you in trouble with Mary Beth then you'll cut off teddy's head and feed it to me," she breathed, clutching the thing and looking at me like I was a monster. "But I think you're full of baloney and-"
I snatched the bear and held the blade to its throat. "One more word and we'll see if I'm full of shit or not. Now. Are you going to be telling tales?"
Rosie shook her head in horrified silence and I tossed the bear back at her with a roll of my eyes.
"You're fifteen, Rosie. Maybe it's time you grow the fuck up and find some friends of your own to go running with. Because I'm getting seriously tired of this jealousy shit."
I pocketed my knife and quickly pulled on my black boots - I was pretty sure the things were actually old military boots and I freaking loved them. They were my best thrift shop find to date and I was quite happy to never wear any shoes but them ever again. I looked like a badass about to go stomp some zombie heads in – or possibly like an idiot wearing boots in the summer but I didn’t give a shit because they were the coolest thing I owned.
I eased the door open, glancing out into the dark hallway. It was five past nine but Mary Beth was a total nazi for early bedtimes because she liked to sit and get stoned while watching old re-runs of Sex and the City. She liked to think of herself as a total Miranda, whatever the fuck that meant. I didn't know why the rest of us had to suffer for that. I was perfectly happy to rock up here at some time past midnight every night, fall asleep and then fuck off again the moment I woke up. But apparently she liked to play pretend at looking after the kids in her care when it came to certain things and the nine o'clock lights out wasn't negotiable. Not that I ever hung around long after making a show of heading to bed, but still.
I crept down the hallway, hopped over the squeaky floorboards and opened the door which led to the closest boys' room without bothering to knock. They knew the drill by now.
"Hey, Rogue, big night tonight?" Clive asked hopefully and I gave him a dismissive glance.
The dude was a year older than me and you'd think being seventeen would mean he'd have a bit more of a clue about how to sort his own life out. Apparently he'd just decided he wanted a piece of mine instead though. He was one of those kids who got an early growth spurt but instead of embracing it he’d adopted a hunch and his dirty blonde hair was always falling in his eyes and making me wanna get the kitchen scissors on it.
"Sure," I replied vaguely.
"Mind if I join?" he asked predictably. The guy was a level five clinger with no shame.
"Not a chance in hell," I replied which was actually pretty polite for once because he was seriously getting on my last nerve.
"Can you grab some jelly beans if you see them somewhere?" Jake asked me, shifting aside and pushing the window open for me while ignoring my interaction with Clive.
"I got you," I assured him. I'd just steal some somewhere and if I couldn't tonight then I'd do it tomorrow. It was the price of my freedom and their silence and I was happy to pay it. Jake would beat the shit out of any of the other guys if they didn't go along with the arrangement so this way, we all got to win. Well, me and Jake did anyway.
"I'll just tag along," Clive insisted.
I huffed irritably but just ignored him. Maverick would have his bike anyway so Clive could follow me down the road if he liked but he wouldn't be coming any further than that.
I squeezed out of the little window and onto the top of the porch outside before tiptoeing along the creaky wooden roof while hugging the wall all the way to the apple tree at the far end of it.
Clive was still trying to get out of the window when I reached the tree and jumped for the familiar branch before swinging to the one below it and then letting go, dropping to the grass with a solid thump.