Happy Valentine’s Day, all. The most romantic day of the year. Who has exciting plans they’d like to tell me about? I’m all ears!

In honor of V-Day, I thought I’d share part of the Valentine’s Day scene from my August release, MORE THAN WORDS. I can’t post the whole scene, because of spoilers, sorry! I hope you enjoy this little nibble. 🙂

“Lock up, would you, I’m going to do a read on the till.” Calli ran the daily sales report, eyes bugging at the numbers. “Holy crap, Cait, we sold as much today as the Saturday before Christmas.”

“Love is in the air. That, and the promise of hot Valentine’s Day smexing.” Caitlyn stood, hands on hips, surveying the disastrous state of Romance U after their banner day. “It looks like the place has been ransacked—by dozens of horny men and women.”

Calli laughed. That about summed it up. “Let’s leave it until tomorrow.”

“Whoa. You feeling sick, boss? You never leave the store a mess. Never.” A perfectly waxed and shaped eyebrow lifted in Calli’s direction. “You’re planning on bailing. I’m onto you, Cal. You think you’re going to wiggle out of our plans and spend Valentine’s night cleaning the store.”

Busted. “Yeah, about that…” A handful of panties bounced off her blouse.

“Start folding. You’re coming with me tonight. No bailing, no wiggling. Not this time.”

“I’ll go next time, I swear.”

“Great. But that doesn’t change the fact that you’re going tonight.”

Half the table was already in order—Caitlyn’s half. The woman was a panty-straightening machine.

“It’s Valentine’s Day. You should be hooking up with some hottie, not dragging your pathetic older sister out for an unromantic dinner.”

“Since I don’t have one of those, I’m not.”

“You don’t have a hottie on the go? That’s a first.”

“Nice. You make me sound like a man-eating slut…which I am, more or less.” Caitlyn snagged the pile of lacy boy-cut panties and shooed Calli from the table with a wave of her long, hot-pink fingernails. “I have a hottie lined up for later, don’t you worry. What I don’t have is a pathetic sister. Just one who needs to come with me tonight, so hurry up with all your paperwork. We’ve got primping to do for our eight o’clock reservation.”

* * * * *

Leaving her apartment after dark got easier each time. With Caitlyn’s nonstop chatter distracting her, it’d been a piece of cake. The Caitlyn Yates effect.

The restaurant Caitlyn had chosen for their sister-date was in the old factory district by the river. A trendy spot, all of the brown-brick buildings had been converted to shops, restaurants and bars, high-end services. The remodeled facades screamed pricey. The packed parking lot told Calli people were okay with that.

“You doing okay?” Caitlyn hooked an arm around Calli’s. “You’ve got that spacey look. Is this too much, too soon?”

“No—no, I’m fine. I was guestimating what the price per square foot might be for one of these units, what the lease terms are and if this area will continue to boom or if the popularity will wane in a couple years.”

She didn’t laugh, but Caitlyn’s smile stretched as wide as physically possible. “You really are fine, aren’t you?”

The inky sky with its sparse dotting of stars didn’t wrap her in a blanket of terror. Voices from patrons in the parking lot didn’t make her jump out of her skin. “I think I am.”

“Perfect.”

They entered through a set of heavy double doors. Whoever owned The Stacks had done a fantastic job. They’d preserved a lot of the building’s character, incorporating some of the old printing-press equipment into the restaurant’s theme, both as décor and repurposed pieces. The original high ceilings over the bar and stage areas contrasted with the false beams that’d been added to make the dining sections more intimate and cozy. Lots of metal and concrete fixtures lent to the industrial feel. Rich accent colors, textured fabrics and dropped pendant lighting with colored-glass shades added warmth in all the right places.

“This is incredible.”

“Just wait, it gets better,” Caitlyn said as they slid into their seats. “First of all, the food is unreal. I had the chicken marsala a couple of nights ago—my mouth had three orgasms.” The too-cute-for-his-own-good host chuckled under his breath, a big mistake around a predator like Caitlyn. She made no bones about checking him out, head to toe. Even licking her super-glossy lips at him before dismissing him by looking the other way.

“He was cute. Kind of had that Mediterranean loverboy vibe you like.”

Caitlyn shrugged and flipped through the menu. “I’m not here to pick up.”

“Whoa…” For effect, Calli grabbed the table with both hands. “I think the world just tipped on its axis.”

“Ooh, my sister the smartmouth is back. You’re buying me an eight-dollar martini for that dig.”

To think, she’d wanted a way out of this evening. Thank god Caitlyn had bullied her into coming. Calli reached across the table and squeezed her sister’s hand. “I’ll buy you a pitcher of martinis, dinner and dessert. Thank you. For everything.”

“I love you, Cal. I’ll do any- and everything in my power for you—remember that.”

They talked and laughed through dinner. She’d missed so much the past two years, but no more.

The last spoonful of dessert called to her from the edge of the table where she’d pushed it. She ignored it. No room for one more bite in the body-hugging skirt she’d chosen. “Oh my god, I’m stuffed. I bet I consumed ten thousand calories. I may have to cut this skirt off because I doubt I’ll get out of it otherwise. But I did have multiple mouth orgasms, so I guess it’s a fair trade.”

The lighting dimmed and the background music faded. A new smile spread across Caitlyn’s face. Satisfied, almost devious.

“The live music is about to start. Maybe you can work off some of those calories later.”

If Caitlyn thought she could get Calli onto a dance floor, she’d definitely had one too many Tanqueray martinis. There was taking control of her life, and there was making an ass of herself while attempting to have rhythm. Calli was in for the first one. Full stop.

“I’m not dancing.”

“Okay,” Caitlyn said.

Hmm. Agreeable enough, but that smile hadn’t gone anywhere. What the heck was her sister up t—

“Hey, everybody. Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Calli’s breath caught. No need to turn around, she’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“I’m Travis Graham, and I’ll be serenading you diehard romantics tonight.” Somebody in the restaurant wolf-whistled. The mic amplified Travis’ sexy laugh. “Some of you may not need serenading, by the sounds of it.”

Goose bumps rippled over her skin as the first notes from Travis’ guitar drifted over the speakers. He was playing. Not pulse-pounding rock with Black Box and not in a huge club, but he was playing.

“He’s really good. Better than he was with the band, in my opinion.” Caitlyn’s words burst the silence at the table. “It was fate that I found him. Or coincidence, take your pick. I was here on a date and voilà, your boyfriend took the stage.”

“Coincidence. And ex-boyfriend.”

“Semantics.”

“He is good.” The guilt over his injuries wasn’t gone, probably never would be, but somewhere inside, the tension she’d been holding on to eased. Now she needed to hold back the tears. “He’s why you brought me.”

“Well, duh, yeah. It’s a nice place, and I love being able to go out to dinner with you again, but when I heard him singing the other night, I knew it was time for you to stop moping and fix things.”

“I’m not moping, I’ve even been dating.”

Caitlyn rolled her big blue eyes extra-exaggeratedly. “Puh-leaze, I’ve seen you get more excited about a cup of hot tea than the guy you’re dating.”

Fine, so Joe had been gap-filler. That didn’t mean Travis hadn’t moved on with somebody else—or multiple somebodies—or that he forgave her for ruining his career with Black Box. And it sure didn’t mean he wanted her back.

“Did you talk to him—does he know anything?”

“I doubt he even saw me. But does he know that he’s in love with you…? Now that’s a hell yes, judging by the song he sang the other night.”

Hope had no business swelling in her heart. “He sang a song about me…was my name in the lyrics?”

“Listen and find out.”