Veiled Desire by Alisha Rai Page B

exile deep in the woods of West Virginia is due punishment, she figures, for the part she played in her mother’s death. If she’s alone, no one need know that the trauma took away her powers.
    Then she finds a bloody, fatally wounded man slumped on her porch. In an instant, her healing ability reawakens—and that’s not all. He stirs a hunger beyond her wildest dreams. But a relationship with the new chief of police? Not a chance.
    Alex Rivera isn’t sure how he survived, but he’s certain his beautiful savior did more than just bandage his wounds. Captivated by this wary angel and stunned by the depth of emotion he feels for her, he vows to discover her secrets. After all, thanks to the raging snowstorm, they have nothing to do but share body heat.
    Their sizzling attraction goes straight to their hearts. So could a killer’s bullet…once whoever shot Alex finds them.
    Warning: Contains a convenient snowstorm that throws together two wounded characters who happen to be wildly attracted to each other, a drool-worthy hero, a shotgun-toting heroine, mattress sex, shower sex, couch sex, armchair sex, some light bondage, and a really good cup of hot cocoa.
     
    Enjoy the following excerpt for Cabin Fever:
    “Either deal, or let me go do some work.”
    He shut up and dealt another hand. This game went on for much longer, and while they played, Alex teased and bantered. By the time he won with a satisfied smirk, Genevieve was in a much better mood.
    She tensed, though, certain he would continue the earlier line of questioning. Instead, he gave her a naughty grin. “So. Who’s your ideal man?”
    She blushed and contemplated forfeiting. Not because she didn’t want to answer the question, but because the answer was self-evident, and she really wanted to kiss him.
    “Let me help you.” He picked up her hand and played with her fingertips. Sensations tingled through them everywhere he touched. “We’ll skip past personality because it goes without saying that he’d be someone smart, strong and attentive to your every need.” He waggled his dark brows at her, and her lips quirked.
    “Let’s move on to looks.” He brought her hand to his head, and she threaded her fingers through the coarse silk without any coaxing from him. “He’d be dark?”
    Genevieve licked her lips. “I’ve always been partial to blonds.”
    “Hmm. There’s hair dye.” Still holding on to her hand, he brought it down his neck until it lay over his hard pec. “You’d want a bit of chest hair on him, I’m guessing.”
    God, he had the perfect amount of hair on his body, a smattering on his chest that arrowed down into his boxers. “I prefer men who wax.”
    He shuddered. “If that’s what it takes.” He drew her hand down farther to his belly. His hard, rippled, six-pack belly.
    You’ve touched him here before. Stay cool.
    Alex smirked. “You’ll want someone strong?”
    “Unnnh-huh.” She swallowed. “I mean, I really love potbellies. Paunches.”
    “I’ll start eating as soon as someone starts feeding me.”
    “I love your body,” she said in a rush, her honesty taking over.
    His hand stilled over hers. He grinned, a full-fledged, ear-to-ear kind of thing. “I’m glad,” he said simply.
    “Is it hypocritical that I don’t have a hard body, but I like that you do?”
    His thumb rubbed the back of her hand. “I work out because I like to, and I need to stay fit for my job. I’m thrilled you like the results of that work, but like I told you, I love the way you look right now. So, no.”
    That little stroking thumb was driving her crazy, to say nothing of the muscles moving beneath her palm. She could slide her hand right below the cover and the sheets, encircle his penis…
    She glanced down, and her eyes widened at the tent in the blanket. He followed her gaze and grimaced. “I’m sorry.”
    “I thought you couldn’t…”
    “I can. I probably can’t do a lot with it right now, but I can at least…get it