Vicki Thompson - Talking About Sex...

“Ms. Thompson does a wonderful job of blending the erotic with romance that is sometimes tender, sometimes funny, and always exciting.”

—Diana Risso, Romance Reviews Today

“Vicki Lewis Thompson has reached a whole new dimension in laughter. A big…bravo! ”

—A Romance Review

“When you pick up a book that bears the name of Vicki Lewis Thompson on the cover, you can expect a great read. She…will make you laugh, cry, need a cold shower and most important fall in love.”

—Fallen Angel Reviews

“Vicki Lewis Thompson never fails to deliver a book filled with intense chemistry, sexy heroes, and just a little bit of naughtiness.”

—Missy Andrews, Fallen Angel Reviews

“Ms. Thompson continues to set the romance world on fire and keep it burning.”

Diana Tidlund, WritersUnlimited.com

Blaze ™

Dear Reader,

When I was a little kid in Tucson the local paper published rhymes as part of the weather report. One of mine got accepted. Sky is blue. I am not. I love the sun. I love the hot.

A few (ahem) years have passed since then, but some things never change. I still love the hot, whether we’re talking about the heat rising from the desert floor or the heat rising from a Harlequin Blaze novel. To set a Blaze—pun intended—in my hometown of Tucson was a no-brainer.

For one thing, it’s so toasty in southern Arizona that we don’t have to bother with layers upon layers of clothes. I’m sure you can see the obvious advantages to that! Plus there’s something about the starkly beautiful landscape that inspires lusty, primitive emotions. At least, that’s my excuse, and it seems to work for my characters, Jess and Katie.

So come spend some time in my favorite city in the world and let me tell you a story. Oh, and you might want to bring one of those little electric fans. It gets hot down here.

Warmly,

Vicki Lewis Thompson

TORONTO • NEW YORK • LONDON

AMSTERDAM • PARIS • SYDNEY • HAMBURG

STOCKHOLM • ATHENS • TOKYO • MILAN • MADRID

PRAGUE • WARSAW • BUDAPEST • AUCKLAND

To my parents, Doc and Randy.

Thanks for bringing me to Arizona.

ISBN: 978-1-408-93209-4

Talking About Sex…

© Thompson Vicki Lewis 2005

First Published in Great Britain in 2008

Harlequin Mills & Boon Limited

Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, including without limitation xerography, photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

This ebook is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated, without the prior consent of the publisher, in any form or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

All characters in this work have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises II B.V./S.à.r.l.

® and TM are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Arizona author Vicki Lewis Thompson’s natural element is heat. Her first publishing success while still in pigtails was a weather rhyme for the local newspaper: “The sky is blue/but I am not/I love the sun,/I love the hot.”

Small wonder that some years later Vicki sold her first romance to Harlequin’s steamy Temptation line. After writing nearly eighty books for Harlequin and other publishers, the best-selling author still gravitates toward the heat, including Harlequin Blaze titles.

A finalist numerous times for Romance Writers of America’s RITA award, Vicki has won the Desert Rose’s Golden Quill Award and has been honored by Romantic Times and Affaire de Coeur. Vicki also became a New York Times best seller when her book Nerd in Shining Armor from St. Martins caught the fancy of Kelly Ripa, who promoted it through her Reading with Ripa Book Club in 2003, with many successful Nerds following.

Prior to selling her first book to Harlequin and finding her bliss, Vicki tried on other careers for size. Teaching English proved too restrictive when she discovered she didn’t like being trapped in a classroom any more than the students did. Journalism seemed like a better idea, except that she kept getting assigned to scary stories like rattlesnake milking or parachute jumping.

Finally, her husband suggested she write a romance, which she took as a fine testimonial to their life together. Even better, the career was a perfect fit. Writing romances provides freedom from a schedule without fear of imminent death!

Besides writing, which she’s quite passionate about, Vicki’s favorite activities are traveling and laughing. Marriage to her indomitable husband, He Who Journeys Without a Map, has provided ample doses of both. Now that the kids are grown and Vicki has a laptop, she’s finally positioned to combine all three of her passions. The trip has just begun!

CONTENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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

COMING NEXT MONTH

JESS HARKINS WAS TOO OLD for fix-ups. But he’d forgotten that fact in a moment of insanity and now was stuck with the woman sitting in the passenger seat of his Jag. Suzanne Dougherty, friend of a friend, billed as lots of fun and just your type…wasn’t.

They’d struggled to make conversation over a very expensive dinner at Anthony’s and were currently en route to the Flying V for dancing because it would be an insult to take her home at nine on a Friday night. God. Why hadn’t he nipped this idea in the bud?

Gabe should have known better than to set him up with somebody like Suzanne. The guy had been Jess’s construction foreman for five years. Plus they’d hung out watching sports and had spent a bunch of Sunday afternoons hiking their favorite mountain trails. Gabe should know by now what kind of woman Jess would like.

Maybe Gabe wasn’t a great judge of character. Or maybe his girlfriend had pushed him into setting up the blind date. In any case, it wasn’t working.

Suzanne reached for the power button on his sound system. “Let’s listen to the radio.”

“Good idea.” Anything to fill the awkward silences.

She punched the button. The minute she did, he remembered where he’d last set the dial…and what came on after the nine-o’clock news Monday through Friday nights.

“Hi, there! Crazy Katie for KRZE, ‘crazy’ talk radio in Tucson, home of that marvelous phallic symbol, the saguaro cactus! It’s Friday, October seventh, and we’re Talking About Sex!”