Between The Sheets (A Naughty Box Production Book 1) Read online

  Between The Sheets

  A Naughty Box Production

  Published by Hot Ink Press

  This Book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, duplicated, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  ©Text Copyright 2014 Hot Ink Press and each Individual Author

  Cover By Rue Volley

  All rights reserved

  This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious and are products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual events, or locales or persons, living or dead are entirely coincidental.

  Contents

  The Wish

  Vertigo

  No Regret

  The Contract

  Bewitching Time

  Venus Envy

  The Wish

  By Kim Carmichael

  Published by Hot Ink Press

  An Imprint of

  Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing

  This Book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, duplicated, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  ©Text Copyright 2014 Kim Carmichael

  Cover By Rue Volley

  All rights reserved

  This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious and are products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual events, or locales or persons, living or dead are entirely coincidental.

  Chapter One

  The two-lane road twisted up the mountain high and steep matching the coil forming in Emma Hollingsworth's stomach. Each turn took her closer to her goal, but further away from her good sense, but she’d run out of options.

  After driving for three hours, she checked the directions once more. She had no way to program her navigation system to guide her to the small turn off after she could see the tops of the pine trees. The woman told her to follow her heart and her instinct.

  At one last turn she gasped. The world seemed to open up in front of her, the sky stretched in an endless ocean, and over the edge were the tops of the trees, as if she floated over a forest. Without thinking she glanced to her left, spying a small dirt road, easy to miss unless one went with their heart and their instinct.

  She winded up the narrow path and stopped her car in front of what appeared to be an old fashioned cabin in the woods. The simple log building was the type one might find in a storybook and which could house a fairy or witch. She only hoped it was the former.

  "I have to do this." She slammed the car into park and stepped outside, instantly wrapping her arms around herself in an unsuccessful barrier against the cold. She shielded her eyes to study the building with no identifying sign or address except for a shining star on the top of the roof. The little glowing beacon represented her last hope, and without second-guessing her next move, she climbed the stairs and opened the heavy wooden door.

  A bell signaled her arrival. She took off her sunglasses, taking in the small room. Shelves were stacked high with unlabeled bottles holding everything from white tablets, to leaves, branches and even feathers. Every available surface seemed covered in jars, sacks or canisters and at the front of the store stood a long pristine white counter as one would find in a candy store.

  "Miss Hollingsworth?" A sweet woman's voice called to her.

  Emma peered over a mountain of products to find a little old black-haired lady dressed all in white in the corner behind the counter. "Yes."

  "Don't be shy. You're going to have to learn how to not be so shy."

  Even with the woman's guidance, she tiptoed to the counter.

  With a smile, the old lady approached, clasped her hands in front of her and tilted her head from side to side. "Interesting."

  "What?" Emma pressed her hand to her chest.

  "You're very sweet and very pretty, an unusual combination for a request such as yours."

  "You said you would help me." The woman couldn't back out, Emma had nowhere else to go. She clutched the edge of the counter.

  The woman pursed her lips. "Tell me about him."

  How did one describe Leland Ryan? Her heart sped up and she swallowed in order to get right words out.

  Her cell phone rang. "Oh." Emma put her hand on her purse. "I didn't silence the phone."

  "I would answer, it has to be him. That's why you didn't turn it off. What if he called?" The woman motioned her forward, giving her permission to answer.

  No, she never silenced her phone, not because anyone called her, but because he might call her. The woman sensed it. Emma read the name and answered. "Hello."

  "Miss Hollingsworth." Leland's voice took over the speaker and she held it away from her ear. "I need you."

  One side of the woman's mouth turned up in a knowing smile.

  "All the paperwork for the Gordon patent is on your desk with the note reminding you that I wouldn't be in today. Also, I put your pen in your top drawer left side next to your crystal letter opener." She took a breath to continue.

  The woman raised her eyebrows.

  "Miss Hollingsworth."

  "Yes." She exhaled.

  "Is there some grand reason why you never let me ask my question before answering me?" He grunted into the phone.

  She remained silent.

  "Miss Hollingsworth!"

  "Yes, Leland." She swallowed to moisten the back of her throat.

  "Why aren't you answering now?"

  "I wanted to make sure you finished your question." She let out a nervous laugh.

  "I did."

  She held one finger up to the lady. "I answered because I knew why you were calling. What was it that you wanted to ask?"

  He paused.

  She didn't dare breathe waiting for his answer.

  "I wanted to know where the Gordon file was, wanted to know where I put my pen and wanted to know where you were," he said. "But you seemed to have answered everything."

  The woman nodded as if she discovered something.

  Emma's cheeks heated and she pressed her palm to her face. "If there isn't anything else, I must attend to this personal matter."

  "Of course. Goodbye, Miss Hollingsworth."

  "Goodbye." She hit end on the phone.

  "Forget my question, I have the answer." The woman let out a deep laugh and stared right into her eyes. "Tell me what you want."

  "I told you over the phone."

  "And I told you that you will have to be less shy." She shook her head. "Aren't lawyers supposed to be more forceful?"

  Yes, they were. Thankfully, Leland did the work in the courtroom. Emma licked her lips and inhaled. "I want him."

  "Wasn't that easy?" She held out her hand. "You seem to follow instructions well, so I assume you brought what I told you?"

  Once more she reached into her purse. Her fingers touched on the plastic bag which she pulled it out and gave it to the woman.

  The old woman held the bag containing a straw and some of his dark hair up to the light. "Something his lips touched and some
strands of hair. Very good." She got a metal tray and positioned the items. "Yours I can collect right here." Without a warning she pulled a few hairs out of Emma's head.

  "Ouch!" Emma touched the spot sure she must be bald. "I brought my brush."

  "You can't plan everything. Now give me your lipstick." Again, the woman held put her hand out.

  "My lipstick?" She surrendered the tube.

  The woman twisted it until the column of sheer beige appeared. "This will have to do, but do you, me and your man a favor, and get a nice shade of red the night you execute your plan."

  "He's not my man." She clenched her hands together.

  "Not yet." The woman corrected.

  The woman scurried around the shop, grabbing a bottle here and a vial there. The process was almost exactly as she’d pictured. Powders were measured, tablets ground between stones, and dropper bottles dispensed multi colored liquids. She burnt both her and Leland's hair in a small ceramic dish and scraped the ash into a red glass vial, and she used the thin straw to stir her concoction together.

  "Now, here comes the magic." The woman took a gilded envelope out of a drawer. She opened the flap and with a pair of tweezers pulled out a piece of transparent gold paper. "Put the film to your lips and say your wish. Remember you can't wish for love. We can only open up the possibilities."

  With her heart going off in a million directions, Emma pressed the film to her lips. "I want Leland to want me like he's never wanted another woman." She swore the little piece of nothing heated, but before she could be sure the woman plucked it away from her.

  The woman put the paper on a crystal dish and added a drop of clear liquid. The film transformed into powder, and she slid it into a gold metal vial. From under the counter she pulled out a red velvet pouch and put both vials inside along with a little card. "Make sure you give yourself plenty of time alone with him. Once ingested, the effects can last for hours and men tend to become a bit goal oriented. From the sound of things your man already is." She pressed the pouch into Emma’s palm. "The instructions and the warnings are inside the pouch. Don't read them until you are ready."

  "Warnings?" Emma wrapped her fingers around the velvet.

  "Why is it that everyone thinks they can mess with the universe with no chance of danger?" She laughed. "One last thing, the wish you cast will only be potent for twenty-four hours, make sure you use it before then."

  "One day?" She hid the pouch in her purse.

  "It’s magic. No one said magic was stable." The woman kept her palm out.

  Emma put several hundred-dollar bills into woman's hand. "I suppose."

  "Remember what I said. This isn't a time to be shy." She bowed her head. "I would get stared if I were you. You haven't much time."

  "Thank you." Emma rushed out. Maybe wishes could come true.

  Chapter Two

  "Miss Hollingsworth, where have you hidden yourself?" Leland Ryan's voice boomed through the law offices of Ryan, Howe and Carter.

  Emma held up one finger and continued reading the patent application he’d assigned her to go over line-by-line, down to every last period.

  "Miss Hollingsworth!" His voice amplified as if he were yelling through a bullhorn. "I need you."

  Everyday the man said he needed her, but it wasn't in the way she wanted. Nothing was ever easy. She had tried everything to get him to notice her for more than his fact finder.

  All her life she had struggled for everything. Her degree, her position, in fact every single thing she possessed she strived for and won. For once it was time to take a shortcut rather than the long and winding road.

  "I know he's the Senior Partner, but does he forget you're an attorney as well?" Shannon, their paralegal, brushed by her in the file room and touched her shoulder. "Do you regret offering to stay late now?"

  "He has a big case at the end of the week." She blinked to keep the tiny print in focus. "I don't mind helping him." Her stomach and her heart fluttered in unison, she loved being by his side.

  "It's after hours." Shannon patted her. "Not a time to spend with the angry ogre of law."

  "I don’t mind." Emma fought the urge to shrug the woman away. "We have a deadline." Truth be told, she relished the nights she worked late with Leland.

  "You should have girls night out with us." Shannon elbowed her. "I always invite you. You never know what can happen, or who could happen. You never want to go with us."

  In an attempt to hold back her words, Emma swallowed. The one so-called happy hour she spent with the girls ended with her sitting in the corner of a bar sipping club soda and making sure everyone got home without breaking any laws. She was a patent attorney, not a policewoman.

  "Maybe we need to make it matchmaker night and find you a man." Shannon giggled.

  At last she lifted her head. Her luck with men was as good as her luck with friends. No matter how hard she tried, men weren't attracted to her. She had one last option left, but time was running out. It had to be used tonight and she didn't know if she could go through with her plan, or if it would work.

  "Or is it a woman you want?" A huge smile took over Shannon's face. "We have a pool going on in the office. If you tell me, I'll split the winnings with you."

  As an attorney she should come pre-equipped with snarky comebacks, but the words never came, and she kept her mouth closed. Maybe patents didn't require sharp wit.

  "There you are." Leland appeared at the end of the row of file shelves and pointed at her.

  She sucked in her breath at the sight of him.

  Leland filled up the corridor. Tall, broad with combed back almost jet black hair, strong features and dark blue eyes, he stood in his a tailored black pinstriped suit, white shirt and red tie like a superhero ready to tear open his jacket and reveal his true identity.

  "Is it a necessity that I scour the entire office building in search of you?" With a stack of papers in his hands, he marched toward her, his focus darting between her and Shannon.

  "Goodbye." Shannon rushed in the opposite direction.

  He shook his head. "You always make me come to you."

  Her throat dried out as she breathed in his scent. Rather than cologne, he smelled more like soap and success. "I was right here." Though it was after five o'clock, his skin remained smooth, as if is beard wouldn't be as disobedient as to grow during work hours.

  His eyes narrowed. "I needed to ask you a question."

  "I found the Fleishman folder." She held up the thick legal sized folder. "I was reading the details, but didn't finish yet. However, I did find—" She bit her lip.

  "Miss Hollingsworth." He tilted his head. "When someone says they need to ask you a question, you normally ask what that question is and allow the person to ask the said question."

  She stared at the knot in his tie. His tie always remained perfectly straight, but she never saw him touch it. "What was the question?"

  "Did you locate the Fleishman folder?" A small grunt escaped the back of his throat.

  She glanced at the file and back up to his tie before finally reaching his face. He had to be deep in thought because his eyes seemed darker than usual. "Yes."

  "Miss Hollingsworth." His wide chest raised and lowered when he inhaled, but his tie stayed perfectly positioned.

  "Yes, Mr. Ryan." She hugged the file to her chest.

  He tapped his foot. "Since we're staying late, I thought we could order in some sort of meal."

  Her heart swelled, too timid to beat. No, he wasn't asking her out, but it was as close as she ever got with him. What some perceived as the law ogre, she saw as a man who knew what he wanted. A strong, vital man who needed a woman who would appreciate him.

  "That sounds reasonable." She wished he would tell her how to proceed to get what she wanted.

  “You are always willing to be there for me.” He jutted his jaw out, picked the top item off his stack of papers and thrust a flat rectangular white box at her. "Here's a small something for you. An account gave it to me, a
nd I thought of you."

  She paused before taking the offering. "What is it?" Should she be happy for the gift? What she wanted didn't come in this box or bag unless she counted the one at the back of her desk drawer with an expiration date fast approaching.

  He didn't move, didn't speak.

  "May I open it now?"

  Still, he didn't budge.

  She lifted the top off the box revealing a set of tan leather gloves. "My hands are always cold in the winter." She ran her finger over the fine leather.

  "Yes, hence the gloves. Please get everything set up. We need to cover a lot of things. I need to take charge of this case. Every attorney must remember to take charge at every opportunity." He nodded and walked away.

  She pulled her shoulders back. "Every attorney must remember to take charge at every opportunity." She peeked down the hall to make sure he left and ran toward her office. With his words echoing in her mind she vowed to go through with her wish. If it worked, her wish would be a miracle.

  Chapter Three

  Once Emma ordered the food and set up for their meeting, she returned to her office, pulled out her bottom desk drawer and dug down deep until she found what she wanted. Her only opportunity was upon her.

  She untied the red velvet pouch and pulled out the small instruction card the magic woman put there. A month ago, after several long nights of working with Leland, she decided something must be wrong with her chemistry.

  One desperate night an Internet search on pheromones and aphrodisiacs led her to a multitude of websites and message boards offering nothing more than wives tales and snake oil, but then she got a private message the woman in the mountains telling her she could help with her exact situation.

  While she worked in a profession that dealt only in facts and technicalities, for once she let blind faith lead her. The woman not only offered testimonials but her approach made sense in a quasi-scientific way.