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An Excerpt From: AMETHYST RAIN
Copyright © ALISON PAIGE, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc.
“Two weeks?” Katie scoffed at Jenny’s comment. “Try going two years without sex.” It hit her a half second after she popped the chunk of green pepper into her mouth. Dear Lord. She’d actually said that out loud.
Her wide-eyed gaze flicked to Jarrod, who’d stopped mid-slice, the tomato and knife still in his hands, then to Mark sitting beside her, his sexy mouth curling into a smile. She scanned the rest of the kitchen—Sandy, Tim, Jenny and Frank—all eyes were on her, all activity frozen as though someone had hit a giant pause button.
“Well…” she said, squirming. “Not really two years. Closer to one year. Well, one and half years. Okay, one year and eight months. But I’ve been really busy. I hardly noticed.” Liar!
“That’s a damn shame,” Mark said.
She sighed. “I know.”
Jenny, Katie’s best friend, started snickering first, but within seconds the entire kitchen echoed with laughter, including her own. So far this weekend at the lake with her friends had been great, a few carefree days before she had to report for duty at Fort Drum. It would’ve been nicer if she hadn’t felt like the odd one out.
Jenny and Frank had been dating since their freshman year of college, but Sandy and Tim were still in that dreamy-eyed, can’t-get-enough touching, kissing and screwing-each-other stage of their relationship. As a member of the orgasmicly deprived population, Katie naturally found it incredibly annoying.
Even Mark and Jarrod seemed to hit it off, palling around with pre-dawn fishing, riding dirt bikes and beer runs to the local sports bar. Total guy time. And as appealing as the thought of sandwiching herself between the two beefcake buddies was, Katie didn’t want to rain on their testosterone party. Besides, she didn’t have the guts to even suggest it. Not that the couple would be interested.
A small spot of soothing warmth radiated against her chest and almost without realizing it she fingered the amethyst pendant her nanna gave her a few weeks ago, sliding it back and forth on the silver chain.
“Ooo, that’s pretty,” Jenny said, leaving the chili to simmer on the stove. She crossed the kitchen to the breakfast bar where Katie and Mark sat on stools watching the more domestically inclined people toil over dinner.
“Thanks.” Katie leaned forward, keeping the tension on the chain loose while Jenny held the silver heart-shaped locket with the nugget of amethyst in the center. “My grandmother swears it’ll protect me. She picked it up on that seniors’ cruise she took to Greece last year. Bought it off a gypsy. The amethyst is supposed to have some kind of special powers.”
“I’ve heard that,” Sandy said, glancing over her shoulder while she tossed the salad. “Amethysts have all kinds of powers attributed to them—protection, success, good luck, even the power of seduction.”
Katie’s cheeks warmed. Yeah, she’d heard about that last one too. It’s why she’d worn the necklace this weekend. Even though it hadn’t been two whole years since she last had sex, it felt like it—and then some. The campgrounds and rental cabins around Lake Ontario were supposed to be a great place to hook up with someone for a meaningless weekend summer fling. At least that’s what Jenny told her when she’d suggested the farewell get-together at the cabin. Just a relaxing weekend and an opportunity for Katie to blow off a little sexual tension before she reported for duty.
So far Katie had seen a whole lot of trees and water in their secluded corner of the lake but not much in the way of hook-up possibilities. Unless she was willing to cross species and make it with one of their furry four-legged neighbors hiding in the woods. She wasn’t that desperate…yet.
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