Winters' Thaw Read online

  Winters’ Thaw

  Dalton Diaz

  Book three of the Cougar Challenge series.

  OR nurse Elizabeth Winters is forty-one, divorced and determined to figure out what all the fuss is about sex. Her ex spent over twenty years crushing her sensuality and it is long past time for release. Literally, dammit! In her quest, she befriends a group of women her age who admit having a passion for younger men—and thus begins a challenge…

  Thirty-year-old engineer Kevin Springer loves solving puzzles and “Elle” has him aching to fit the pieces. The more he gets to know her, the more intrigued he becomes, especially in bed. He quickly realizes he wants more than her offered no-strings-attached, wild sex, but convincing her to take a chance on a relationship isn’t going to be easy.

  An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication

  www.ellorascave.com

  Winters’ Thaw

  ISBN 9781419924675

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Winters’ Thaw Copyright © 2009 Dalton Diaz

  Edited by Helen Woodall

  Cover art by Syneca

  Electronic book publication November 2009

  The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.

  With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.

  Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

  WINTERS’ THAW

  Dalton Diaz

  Dedication

  To Ashlyn Chase, who always says, “Sure you can!” (And for introducing Sherry.)

  Huge thanks to Jeff Stewart for sharing his tattoo expertise.

  Quirky Ladies Rule! www.thequirkyladies.com

  Acknowledgements

  To the ladies of the cougar club, I salute you. I’d like to thank Ciana Stone for the series premise, the invitation to join the series and the blog design. She has been the driving force behind this collaborative effort. Mari Freeman came up with the blog title, Tempt the Cougar, which was inspired. Mari Carr, Lynne Connolly, Desiree Holt and Samantha Kane have been a wonderful group of friends and professionals to work with. Thank you all for the opportunity and the support.

  Author Note

  You’ll find the women of Cougar Challenge and the Tempt the Cougar blog at www.temptthecougar.blogspot.com/

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

  Band-Aid: Johnson & Johnson Corporation

  Ibanez: Hoshino Gakki Ten, Inc.

  Penthouse Forum: General Media Communications, Inc.

  Spanx: Spanx, Inc.

  Chapter One

  Ladies, I’m going out tonight! Another nurse mentioned that her husband plays in a band at a local bar just outside of Boston and I’m going to check it out. They’re doing a Saturday night 80s theme, so at least I’ll like the music. I haven’t been to a bar in ages and never to meet men but it’s still a good place to go, right?

  Elizabeth

  Elizabeth Winters sat at a table in the bar, ignoring her glass of god-awful house red, wishing she’d had time to wait for an answer to her email. Because the answer was clearly no, bars were not a good place to meet men.

  People congregated in groups. Even couples who came in the door together soon met up with their group. There were a few single guys dotting the barstools but there were reasons they were alone. Like the guy who had to be approaching sixty who kept winking at a small posse of young women as he pointed to his chest. His T-shirt read, Free Mustache Rides. Not only was he gross, his lip was bare.

  No thanks. She’d already done the clueless man thing by marrying one who didn’t know what to do with his penis. This guy probably couldn’t find it, let alone use it right.

  Bar life was depressing and she had no desire to be a club member. This was not a good fit. Thank goodness she sat with the wives of band members, or she would have stuck out like a sore thumb.

  It was bad enough standing out like a sore pinkie. The bartender hadn’t carded her as he had everyone else at the table and he’d ma’amed her twice, the jerk. So what if the others had gone out “retro” shopping for the right outfit and she’d simply pulled it out of the back of her closet? She still fit into the damn miniskirt, with Spanx or without. It just happened to look better with.

  As soon as the band took a break, she’d thank her coworker Sara for the invite and scoot on home where she could enjoy a better glass of wine and slip into something more comfortable. Something she could breathe in would be nice.

  “They’re good, aren’t they,” Sara gestured toward the band, shouting the statement over the music.

  “Yes, they are,” Elizabeth said and she meant it. They not only sounded great, the four guys had dressed for the eighties theme with tight ripped jeans and variations of puffy shirts with vests. The lead singer sported a rolled up bandana around his thigh.

  Not a bad fashion effort considering she’d learned they were four engineers who worked together. They were all good-looking men but the bass player was exceptional and he had the long, hard body to carry off the look. She was too far away to determine his eye color, or the exact shade of the thick, wavy hair that fell halfway down his neck. Wait, was that actually a bolo tie around his neck?

  Yum. She’d bet he looked good in anything he wore. Or in nothing at all.

  Too bad. He would be the perfect man for the Cougar Challenge set forth by the ladies on the Tempt the Cougar blog. Younger, gorgeous and if he caressed a woman with the same confidence he stroked his bass guitar, great in bed.

  She glanced around the table wondering which one of the women was his wife before placing her money on the cute blonde a few seats down. The only couple she could link for sure was Sara and James.

  Did hot bass guy and cute blonde have a wild sex life? Now that was a lot of fun to contemplate! So was the fact that she intended to be in the wild sex boat soon enough. She just needed to be in the right place at the right time and it would happen for her.

  But timing was everything and it wasn’t going to happen tonight. For that to happen she needed eligible men around. Just one would do. Really. She wasn’t greedy.

  The last note of their first set still hung in the air when Kevin Springer turned to his buddy James. “What’s the deal with the hottie sitting with your wife?”

  “I’ve never met her before tonight. All I know is that she works with Sara.”

  “Then have Sara introduce me,” Kevin said. It had been a long time since a woman had made his blood sizzle with a simple look. Longer still since he’d remained at boiling point after a few sentences were exchanged.

  If that was the case with Sara’s friend, he was damn well going to swear off bar pickups. It wasn’t exciting or worth it anymore. Hell, he hadn’t even slept
with the last one and she was stalking their shows.

  “It’s getting to you, being the only single guy in the band, huh?” James said, taking his time unplugging and winding up the mike cord. All they needed was some drunken yahoo getting hold of the mike during their break.

  “Right. Because there’s nothing about married life that sucks.” Shit. Kevin didn’t need to wait for the silence to figure out that was a stupid thing to say. James had been married all of three months. He’d find out the truth soon enough.

  “Sorry, man,” he clapped James on the back. “I guess it is getting to me. I’ll approach her on my own but it would probably make her more comfortable if I go through Sara. I’d really like to meet her.”

  “I’ll bring you over there but then you’re on your own. Sara’s still not thrilled with you for hooking up with her cousin Julie after the wedding.”

  “What?” Kevin was floored. “We made out but she ended up getting drunk by the end of the night. I didn’t sleep with her.”

  “You didn’t call her either.”

  “Because she lives halfway across the country,” Kevin defended himself. “How does Sara know about this anyway? You guys were long gone.”

  “Julie’s been calling her, acting like she got dumped.” James shrugged.

  “Shit. That’s ridiculous.”

  “Yeah. Look, I know the score but women see things differently and I don’t want Sara upset.”

  Damn, there went his plans for the night. “No worries,” Kevin assured his friend. Well, he was kind of pissed but not at James or Sara. It was being hit upside the head with the drama of a breakup, for a relationship that never existed.

  Oh yeah. Beware the drama queen. That was his motto.

  “You sounded great tonight.”

  Kevin turned around to find Glenda, his own personal stalker, at the foot of the stage. Perfect. Somebody up there had a wicked sense of humor.

  “There’s a coffee shop still open around the corner,” she continued. “We could—“

  “Glenda, look, I appreciate your coming to our shows and all but…” he trailed off as her eyes narrowed, then just as quickly filled with tears. It was surreal, like she was getting her emotions from a cue card.

  He was wondering how to handle it without causing a scene when he saw Sara approaching the stage with the woman he wanted to meet, no doubt to introduce her to James.

  He looked back at Glenda, whose chin was actually quivering. It made him feel like an ass because fake or not rejection hurt but the thought of going through this after every show was more than he could take. Hell, it was the exact reason he’d declined to spend more time with her after a few hours in her company. Unfortunately, flat out telling her he wasn’t interested hadn’t done the trick.

  So maybe taking himself off the market would? It could backfire but what the hell. It was worth a shot.

  “There you are, sweetheart!” Kevin hopped down, ignoring Glenda’s sound of surprise. He met the two women halfway. “Help me here, please,” he stage whispered to Sara’s friend. “Quick, what’s your name?”

  “El—”

  But there was no time to let her finish. Glenda was rapidly approaching with no sign of tears or quivering chin. The cue card instructed her to shoot daggers from her eyes.

  Great. Now he was involving someone else in their little drama but it was too late to change course. “Elle, honey, I’d like you to meet Glenda, the band’s number-one fan. Glenda, meet my girlfriend Elle. And I know you’ve met Sara.”

  “Seriously?” Glenda didn’t even try to keep the disbelief from her tone. On closer exam yeah, Elle was a bit older than he’d thought but not much.

  Elle looked startled but he wasn’t sure if it was due to his actions or the tactless slam from Glenda. He got his answer when Elle seemed to grow a good inch as she stared Glenda down. “Excuse me?”

  Kevin grew too, though not in height and significantly more than an inch. Damn! Everyone else faded into the background as he watched the potential drama fizzle and Glenda march away with a sound of disgust, head held high.

  “Sorry, bud,” Kevin said to James, who had come up behind him. “No go on the no-fly zone.”

  James sighed. “I figured as much.”

  Chapter Two

  The bass player was even more gorgeous up close, though Elizabeth still couldn’t tell the color of his eyes. They were dark but they weren’t brown. And yes, he really was wearing a bolo tie. She guessed his age to be about twenty-nine or thirty. His hair was brown, though not as dark as hers. There was a bit of length to it where she usually preferred the clean-cut look, but it suited him. It would definitely suit her to run her fingers through it.

  He was a player. That much she knew after two minutes in his company. He also wasn’t married to the cute little blonde back at the table or that whole scene would have been unnecessary. To say she was intrigued was putting it mildly.

  The only damper was the warning look in Sara’s eye but James whispered something in his wife’s ear and before Elizabeth knew it, she was alone with the bass player. Whose name she didn’t even know.

  For that matter, would he keep calling her Elle? Her gut reaction was to correct him like she corrected those who called her Liz or Beth but this was different. Elle sounded slightly mysterious and it fit the moment.

  He fit the moment. She had to make her decision and make it fast. Either she was a part of the Tempt the Cougar blog and ready for the Cougar Challenge, or it was time to walk away from it all, clearly not as ready as she’d thought.

  What had the other ladies said when she shared her insecurities?

  “Just do it. What do you have to lose?” Sage advice from Autumn.

  “Don’t let the scumball ex-husband of yours dictate the next twenty years too,” Stevie’s demand echoed.

  “You deserve to lust and be lusted after. If a younger man does it for you, don’t assume you don’t do it for him too,” Monica had added.

  The advice was sound. She was already alone and her sexual self-esteem needed a boost. She had nothing to lose and everything to gain. If she needed proof, all she had to do was look at how well jumping in had turned out for the women on the blog who had already met the challenge.

  She slowly turned back towards the younger man in question, half expecting to find him gone. He wasn’t. He was watching her.

  “So,” she gave her new alter ego a shot, “honey, what’s your name?”

  He smiled. “It’s Kevin. Kevin Springer. Do you want to go to the back hall? I’d love to talk to you and it’s a little quieter there.”

  The crowd was thick and with the band on break, recorded music blared through the bar’s speakers. It would be nice to not have to yell at each other. “Sure.”

  He led her down a little passageway to the left of the stage, stopping between two closed doors marked “office” and “storage”. She’d assumed he meant the hallway off the bar that led to the bathrooms but this was much better. No foot traffic and no speakers.

  It was a confined space and when they stopped she had her back to the wall and nothing but Kevin Springer in her vision. She had been right about his eyes. They were green. Not just any green but a deep emerald green. Wow.

  The whole package was drool-worthy.

  “So,” she looked directly into those incredible eyes, “is this where you ask me if I come here often?”

  He laughed. “Nope. Not my style.”

  “Really?” she countered. “How do you usually go about picking up women in bars?”

  “Depends.” He gave a shrug. “I could joke around about it but the truth is it’s not necessary to do a whole lot when you’re up on stage. There are usually a couple of women hanging around after the show and I’m the only one in the band who’s not married.”

  “Good to know. Girlfriend? That cute blonde at the table with us?” She had to be sure. Rescuing a guy from unwanted attention was one thing, but she had no interest in being the other woman in any
way, shape or form.

  “Nope. She’s hooking up with our sound guy. You?”

  “No.”

  “Good to know,” he shot back at her. “But how about a boyfriend, or a husband?”

  “Neither of those either.” She laughed. “You?”

  He smiled and shook his head. Oh man, the guy had a dimple on the right side. She loved a wicked sense of humor and she was a sucker for dimples.

  “Okay,” Elizabeth said. “Now that that’s settled, let’s go back to your technique for picking up women in bars. What do you look for?”

  He thought about it for a minute before answering. “Bar pickups are all about attraction and chemistry. The first part is easy. Let’s face it, we wouldn’t be standing here together if we didn’t both pass.”

  He found her attractive! Who cares if she already knew that, hearing him say it was pretty darn sweet. “And the chemistry?”

  “That remains to be seen.” The side of his index finger began to stroke her bare arm. “But I have a feeling it’ll rate pretty high.”

  He wanted to kiss her. Holy cow! She realized she couldn’t remember the last time she’d been kissed with any passion. The thought of doing it now, with this man, was both exciting and intimidating.

  “Wanna find out?” Kevin leaned closer, looming over her by nearly half a foot.

  His entire hand now stroked the skin on her upper arm and she felt surrounded by him, yet completely safe. God, he even smelled good! All earthy male with just a hint of sporty deodorant.

  He waited there, hovering not six inches from her face, those green eyes staring straight into hers as he waited for some form of permission.

  Elizabeth took a deep breath and slowly closed her eyes.