Make Me Melt

Make Me Melt By Karen Foley


Hot to the touch…

Twelve years ago, a teenage Caroline Banks slipped into Jason Cooper’s bed, intending to seduce him and all of his tattooed hotness. She failed. Since then, she’s wrapped herself in remote iciness, keeping her distance from both him and her home. But then Jason—now a mouthwateringly sexy U.S. Marshal—shows up suddenly with the news that Caroline’s father has been shot and she is now under Jason’s protection.

Caroline never knew just how much she tempted him. And now, even with her aloofness, Jason can barely keep himself under control. Because that heat—that fiery sexual attraction—is stronger than ever. His job is to keep her safe, and not let himself fall into the flames. But the fire started so long ago won’t be contained any longer….



“Until this thing is over, you don’t go anywhere without me…”

Caroline felt a chill wash over her. “You’re scaring me, Jason.”

To her surprise, he took her by the shoulders and turned her toward him, dipping his head to look directly into her eyes. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, okay? As long as I’m with you, you’re safe.”

Before she could respond, he pulled her against him, enfolding her in his arms. Desire hit her like a sledgehammer, and she drew in a ragged breath, tightening her hold on him.

“Caroline…” His voice was a husky rasp against her ear.

Lifting her face, Caroline met his eyes. For just an instant, she saw the raw hunger in his eyes, and his expression gave her courage. Fixing her attention on his mouth, she told herself she would give him one kiss, just to thank him for everything he’d done. There was no harm in a simple gesture of gratitude, was there?

The kiss was so deep and so carnal, that Caroline’s legs went a little weak, and she melted into him, welcoming the hot, slick slide of his tongue against hers.

As he bent her slightly back over his arm and feasted on the sensitive skin of her throat, Caroline forgot almost everything except the way he made her feel.

And in that moment, she realized that her life wasn’t the only thing at risk….





Dear Reader,

I’ve been intrigued by U.S. marshals ever since I first watched Timothy Olyphant portray badass deputy marshal Raylan Givens to smart, sexy perfection in the television series Justified.

While U.S. marshal Jason Cooper may not have grown up in the hardscrabble coal-mining community of Kentucky, his own upbringing was just as tough, and helped to forge his outlook on life—protect those you love at all costs. Even if they don’t want your protection.

Caroline Banks has never forgotten—or forgiven—Jason’s harsh rejection of her when she was just a teenager. But now that she’s all grown up, she realizes her attraction to the sexy marshal is just as strong as ever. When someone targets her for murder, she knows that Jason is the one person who can keep her safe. But how is she going to resist him, especially when he seems determined to keep her close, day and night?

I hope you enjoy Jason and Caroline’s story!

Happy reading!

Karen



For Susan. Your courage and strength are an inspiration.





1


Twelve Years Earlier

ONE OF THE things that Caroline Banks liked best about Jason Cooper was that he was so different from any other guy she knew. He wasn’t at all like the boys she went to high school with, or even like the Stanford University law students who frequently came over to the house to help her father handle his caseload, in the hopes of obtaining a judicial clerkship. Despite their ambitions and their wealthy families, they were all just boys.

Jason was unique.

Her dad, a superior court judge, apparently thought so, too. After Jason had made numerous appearances in his courtroom for various juvenile offenses, Judge William Banks had made an offer to the then sixteen-year-old: stay in school and get good grades, and he would help Jason attend college. The alternative was juvenile detention and—once he turned eighteen—the very real possibility of hard jail time. If he messed up even once, the offer would be withdrawn.

That had been five years ago, when Caroline had been just eleven years old. She still remembered the defiant, angry boy that Jason had been back then. At sixteen, he’d been taller than most boys his age, but he’d looked half-starved, and he’d sported visible scars on his face and body. But when she’d asked her father for details, he’d simply pinched her cheek and told her there were some things a little girl didn’t need to know.

Now Caroline lay in the darkness of the guest bedroom and listened as the footsteps outside the room drew closer. She glanced at the bedside clock. Nearly one in the morning. She’d been battling her nerves for more than two hours, waiting for Jason to come upstairs and wondering if she’d have the nerve to remain in his room until he did. She’d had a crush on the reformed bad boy for as long as she could remember, and although he might act as if he didn’t know she existed, Caroline knew better.

He’d just graduated from UCLA School of Law, and her father couldn’t have been prouder than if Jason had been his own son. William had invited his protégé to stay with them at their beach house in Santa Cruz, in order to celebrate his success and discuss his future plans. Caroline hoped Jason would be blown away by how adult she looked; after all, she was now almost seventeen. That afternoon, she’d deliberately joined her father and Jason for lunch on the patio, wearing nothing but a string bikini. Her father had caught sight of her over his newspaper and scowled.