Melanie Schuster - Chemistry of Desire

“That was nice of you, babe, but never thank me for telling the truth. You can feed me,” he added pointedly. “Especially if you plan on taking advantage of me again.” He let go of her just enough to move her hair out of the way so he could kiss her neck, which he did with great skill and desire.

“You’d better stop that if you plan to eat, because I can assure you I have plans for you,” she said in a sultry voice.

He turned her around so they were facing each other and he pressed the lower part of his body into hers. “On second thought, I can wait a little while longer for food, but I still need to eat. Have you ever made love in a kitchen?”

attributes her love of writing to her love of reading. She was lucky enough to be born to parents who were avid readers and she learned to read before she started school. She is still a voracious reader of all genres, that is, when she’s not on deadline! When she’s not writing, she enjoys painting, shopping online for rare books, making jewelry and sewing. She also loves to cook, and is working on a very special cookbook based on her novels. She lives in Michigan with her very sassy and slightly spoiled dog, Sadie.

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Dedicated with love to Evette Porter

and ShaShana Crichton. Thanks for everything, always.

Dear Reader,

For all of you who wanted to know more about the delectable Todd Wainwright from Model Perfect Passion, this one’s for you! And it will also answer any questions you had about Ayanna’s grumpy sister, Emily, from A Case for Romance. Emily was a grouchy, antisocial workaholic who got a whole new outlook on life, as well as a new appearance, thanks to her BFFs. But it might have been a bit too much of a change for a man who already thought she was perfect from head to toe. He was already attracted to her, but the new version scared him off. Love and understanding, along with communication, conquer all for this seemingly mismatched couple.

Thank you all for the prayers and love you’ve been sending my way. I love and appreciate all of you more than I can say.

Stay blessed!

Melanie

I Chronicles 4:10

Many thanks and much love to my ride-or-die readers

and friends. Thanks for believing in me

and supporting me every step of the way.

A special thanks to Betty, Louise, Kimmi-Kim, Nicole,

Patsy, Pam and “Miss Begina”. No one can do it all

without a support system and

you ladies make my hard road much easier.

Love you all!

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

The hallway of the middle school was quiet, much quieter than it was during the normal school day. There were only a few students left taking part in after-school activities. Two girls were lingering outside the gym, eavesdropping for all they were worth. One was tall and rail thin, and the other was so short she could have been in elementary school. They were standing as still as possible and listening to every word being spoken in the gym, which wasn’t hard because the words echoed loudly in the corridor due to the poor soundproofing.

The first voice was the coach of the girls dance team, Mrs. Carter. “Emily, you need to find another after-school activity. You’re just not suited for dance.”

A second voice chimed in. This time it was the assistant coach, Mrs. Johnson. “You just don’t have the feminine grace to succeed in dance. You would do better in soccer or basketball, something like that.”

“I don’t understand,” Emily said, her voice clear but slightly shaky. “I can do all the dances and I don’t forget the steps. I know all of the moves we’re supposed to do, so why can’t I dance?”

“Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should,” Mrs. Carter said condescendingly. “I’m sure you thought you could do this because your older sisters were such lovely dancers, but this just isn’t for you.”

“But I can do it,” Emily protested. “I can show you.”

Mrs. Johnson cut in. “We’re not trying to hurt your feelings, but our decision is final. Get your things and get on home. Think about something else you’d like to participate in, because you’re not getting on the dance squad. You are so different from your sisters, it’s like night and day. They’re so petite and graceful, and you’re just not. Face it, dear—you’re just too big and clumsy-looking for this. Find another activity.”

The two girls looked at each other with anger and indignation. Emily was their best friend, and nobody had the right to be so mean to her. They heard the door to the locker room forced open as Emily went to get her things. They also heard the two women continue to talk to each other.

“I don’t know how that girl could be related to Attiya and Ayanna. They got all the beauty in that family, and that’s the truth,” said Mrs. Carter.

“They took after their mother,” Mrs. Johnson agreed. “That Emily looks like a big ol’ bear next to them. It’s a good thing she gets good grades, because she has nothing else going for her. It must be hard being the big ugly one in a pretty family.”

“Too bad for her,” Mrs. Carter agreed. “Turn off the lights and let’s get out of here.”

The two girls waited until the lights went out in the gym before running into the locker room to get their friend. The teachers left by the side entrance and didn’t even notice that Emily was still in the locker room. The girls got there just in time to see Emily wiping away angry tears.

“I’m not going out for the dance team,” she mumbled. “I’m not going out for anything. I’m going home.”

“Don’t listen to those old bats,” said the short one, who was named Alexis. “They’re just old and senile, and they don’t know what they’re talking about.”

The tall one, named Sherri, agreed. “You should tell your mother and get them suspended without pay, because they have no right to say those things to a student. It’s discriminatory.”

They were trying to make her feel better, but it didn’t really work. She’d been hearing the same kind of things from people since she was a little girl. Nothing she ever did was good enough, because she didn’t look like her sisters. It wasn’t her fault that she was tall and sturdy instead of little and gorgeous. So she was done trying to be like them. From now on she was going to be the smartest girl in the family, since she couldn’t be anything else. And she had something else to look forward to, according to Sherri.

“Don’t worry about it, because tomorrow I’ma put a worm in their desks. That’ll fix the old hags.”