Friday First Kiss #19:: Capturing the Marshall’s Heart by Linda Carroll-Bradd – Historical Western Romance
The moment I crack open a new book, I always rush through the beginning, the budding relationship between the hero and heroine, and anticipate that spontaneous moment when one of them makes their move. The First Kiss. The first turning point in every story.
Every week here on the blog, I’ll be sharing First Kisses from my books and those of other authors.
This weeks Friday First Kiss comes from Capturing the Marshall’s Heart by Linda Carroll-Bradd.
“You thought I was a bank robber, yet you jumped into bed with me.”
“Guilty as charged.” He reached out a hand and caressed a voluptuous, bare breast. “You were irresistible, no matter which side of the law I thought you are on.”
For a moment, she closed her eyes and savored the roughness of his callused thumb in the valley between her breasts. Then her eyes popped open. “Are?”
A grin slid along his lips and he winked. “I meant to say were.” He leaned close, his gaze intent on her lips.
Out of habit, she turned her head and offered her cheek, her hands twisted in the bed sheets.
“Look at me, Jazzy.”
His raspy words drew her attention and she connected with his lusty stare.
“No games and no playacting. Right now, this is you and me in this bed—Jazzy and Slade.” His gaze caressed her lips then rose to meet hers. “I’m going to kiss you…on the mouth. Next, I’m going to taste your lips. Then I’m going to open your mouth and taste your tongue.”
Oh, my stars! Just listening to him made her nipples bead and an ache throb between her thighs. She shivered.
“Relax.” He lowered his head and briefly brushed his lips across hers.
His actions were gentle and the sensation against her mouth was as soft as a rose petal. The ladies were right—letting a man kiss your lips gave away a bit of your heart. But doing so warmed her from the inside out like hot cocoa on a winter’s morning. As her resistance relaxed, so did her tight hold on the fabric.
He skimmed gentle fingers along her neck and kissed her again and again, lingering longer with each contact.
The sensation was as heady as fancy French champagne. Jazzy pressed against his lips and was rewarded with a groan from Slade. After a moment of hesitation, she raised a hand to twine her fingers into the hair at his neck. The luxury of touching him for her own pleasure was new. She enjoyed it wholeheartedly.
This time, when his lips captured hers, she almost forgot to breathe. He nibbled, he ran his agile tongue along her teeth, then delved inside the warmth of her mouth. She’d only kissed two boys in her life and neither had kissed the way Slade did. His kisses heated her blood and made her lightheaded. She couldn’t think, she could only react—and that doubled her excitement.
Slade broke away from her mouth and touched his lips along her jaw. “Touch me, Jazzy. I like the feel of your hands on me.”
The familiarity of those words hit her hard. She stilled, then trailed her hand down his chest, slowing to caress his stomach and then stroked down toward his erection.
He grabbed her hand and placed it on his chest, covering it with his much larger one. “I like your hands other places, too. That comes later.”
A man who took his time…a man who enjoyed kissing…a man willing to delay his own pleasure.
The muscles under her hand were firm and warm, part of a solid, reliable man. But she was looking for adventure and a new life. Although, there was certainly something to be said for dependable.
Capturing the Marshall’s Heart
by Linda Carroll-Bradd
Jessimay “Jazzy” Morgan boards a westbound stagecoach, intent on building a respectable future with the money earned in Miss Veronica’s Pleasure Emporium. Polite society is more taxing than she’d imagined, especially when her first thoughts of a handsome stranger center on the fee she’d likely get. When she finds him in her boardinghouse room, she can’t resist a little playacting. During a sexy night with the marshal, her needs are tenderly considered and she loses a little bit of her heart. The next day, the stagecoach is robbed and the women kidnapped. Jazzy is crushed at leaving a beaten Slade behind. Planning an escape against huge odds is tough, but confessing her past to a respectable man like Slade is almost impossible.
Boarding a westbound stage in San Antonio, US Marshal Slade Thomas realizes three of the female passengers resemble the wanted poster for a bank robber. The audacious behavior of one woman draws his attention and his suspicions lead him to search her room. When she returns, he can’t resist her playful nature and a rousing night of passion ensues. The next day on the stagecoach neither knows what to say to the other. Then bandits attack, steal the valuables and the women, leaving the marshal badly injured. When Slade tracks down the kidnapped women, he must choose between capturing the bandit and saving Jazzy. A choice between his duty and his heart.
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About Linda Carroll-Bradd
As a young girl, Linda was often found lying on her bed reading about fascinating characters having exciting adventures in places far away and in other time periods. In later years, she read and then started writing romances and achieved her first publication–a confession story. Married with 4 adult children and 2 granddaughters, Linda now writes heartwarming contemporary and historical stories with a touch of humor from her home in the southern California mountains.
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