Boss With Benefits (A Lantana Island Romance Book 1) Read online

  Tiny solemnly clicked her glass against Rosa’s. “In victory we deserve this,” she said.

  Rosa grinned, her heart swelling with joy. “And in defeat we need it.”

  Finally, her friend was well enough for the ritual they’d started all those years ago. They were sharing the bottle of champagne Rosa had brought with her to Lantana when she’d first arrived. That was almost eight months ago, so this toast had been a long time coming. Tiny was much improved now, and besides, she was with her doctor. If the distinguished Zac Cooper thought it was okay for Tiny to have a glass of bubbles, then it had to be. He was very protective of his only patient, and in the last few months the two of them had grown close. Tiny was clearly besotted with him, though she wouldn’t admit it. If she had to bet, though, Rosa thought Tiny and Zac would be a couple before long.

  “I’d say this is victory,” said Dalton, sweeping his hand around their new living room. They’d finished moving their furniture in today, and tonight they’d spend their first night in their new bedroom. Outside the big windows, the sun was going down, and the sky was splashed with color. Another gorgeous Lantana sunset.

  “I’ll drink to that.” Rosa sipped the sweet liquid and laughed again. She couldn’t help it. What else could she do, seeing as she was standing in her new house on a beautiful tropical island, drinking champagne with her best friend and the love of her life?

  “The place looks great,” said Zac. “And I love that carving.” He gestured toward Rosa’s favorite carving of herself. Dalton had made more for her since then, but the first one he’d done in driftwood would always have a special place in her heart.

  Mind you, these days her heart seemed to be ten times bigger than its old size. She’d never known so much happiness could make it swell so much. Some days she liked to wake up early, just so she could watch Dalton sleep and think about how lucky she was. Then she’d wake him up, so she could drag him down to the beach and kick his ass. She was getting pretty good at that now. Last trip to the mainland, Dalton had surprised her with a black cloth belt she could tie around her waist. He’d presented it to her in a mock grading ceremony, as though he were her karate sensei, telling her that it matched the color of his bruises.

  Dalton slipped his arm around Rosa’s waist. “I’d say we should sit down, but I see the couch is already in use.” Crusoe was stretched out along it. No longer skinny, it looked like he was deliberately taking up as much space as he possibly could. Although they’d only moved the couch into their new living room this morning, he’d already decided it was his.

  “Take the armchair,” said Zac to Tiny, taking her arm to steady her as she sat.

  Rosa glanced at Dalton, and he met her eyes with a little smile hovering on his lips. They were both thinking the same thing.

  Dalton cleared his throat. “So, Zac. You mentioned wanting to take the Lady of Lantana out for a sail. You think Tiny might be well enough to go with you?”

  “I think so,” said Zac. “Would you like to go, Tiny?”

  “Love to.”

  Rosa shared another secret smile with Dalton. It would be nice to see Tiny happy, and although she and Dalton had been too busy to take the yacht out sailing yet, their trip on the speedboat was one she’d always remember.

  Come to think of it, she still wanted to know what had happened to Nate and Suzie. Had they found love? She liked to think so.

  She leaned into Dalton, sipping her champagne and enjoying the feel of his body against hers. Maybe it was just because she’d found such happiness that she wanted everyone else in the world to be happy too. What was wrong with that?

  Dalton kissed the top of her head. “There are some snacks in the kitchen. Want to help me bring them in?”

  She followed him into their new kitchen, and admired for the hundredth time the beautiful wooden cabinetry Dalton had made. “What are you going to do now that the house and new bures are finished?” she asked. “Because if you don’t want to go back to pirating, I was thinking you could make kitchens for a living. You’d be in high demand.”

  He pulled a bowl out of the cupboard. “Actually, I was thinking about making some furniture for our spare room.”

  “Really? I’d love that. What were you thinking of making?”

  He picked up a bag of salty snacks and poured it into the bowl. “I have a few ideas. One in particular, that’s related to something I was thinking about the other day.”

  Rosa drew in her breath. He had to be talking about the way he’d oh-so-casually mentioned their spare room was just the right size for a nursery. And making a cot would be just the kind of thing he’d love to do.

  But she opened the pantry and pulled out a box of crackers as though her heart wasn’t suddenly skipping like a stone thrown across the surface of a pond.

  “You’re getting ahead of yourself,” she said in a carefully offhand tone. “Don’t you want to make an honest woman of me first?”

  “Oh, I’m hoping to.” He pulled some cheese out of the fridge. “But I can’t just ask you here in our kitchen, however special it is to us. To tempt Rosa the Fearless into giving me the answer I want, I need to make sure the question gets asked with exactly the right kind of ceremony. Maybe I’ll do it when we’re jumping off a cliff together. Or I could arrange for some armed robbers to come to the island so we can chase them down. Of course, I’d stand back like a gentleman and let you be the one to beat them up. I know how much you enjoy that.”

  She threw one of the crackers at him, laughing. He was infuriating, and funny, and adorable. And the thought of being married to him made her heart feel like bursting. “Well, don’t wait too long to ask me,” she said with a mock frown. “Or I might beat you up.”

  “Again?” He put the snacks down to catch her around the waist and draw her to him. Kissing him was a heady drug, one she could never get enough of. And to know she’d get to do it for the rest of her life? That was hands down the best thing she could ever have dreamed of.

  “Mrs. Knight,” he said in a musing tone. “I like the sound of it.”

  “Oh?” She raised her eyebrows. “What about if you take my name? You can be Mr. Roughknuckles. Do you like the sound of that?”

  The smile he gave her was so tender, so loving, that for a moment she couldn’t remember how to breathe.

  “As a matter of fact, I do,” he murmured.

  Thanks For Reading!

  Are you wondering what happened to Nate and Suzie after Rosa sent the two sworn enemies off together on the Lady of Lantana?

  The second book in the Lantana Island Romance Series is called The Devil She Knew, and it’s Nate and Suzie’s story.

  It’s available on Amazon now.

  If you enjoyed Boss With Benefits (or if you didn’t), please consider leaving a review. Your opinion matters a lot, not only to me, but to other readers. Let your voice be heard!

  Click here to leave a review on GoodReads.

  Click here to leave a review on Amazon.

  Also by Talia Hunter

  THE RICH LIST SERIES

  How To Rock A Billionaire

  When tech billionaire Jackson Brent collides with his teenaged crush, he sees his chance to possess the woman he wanted years ago. Offering her an unusual job, he tries to force the wild rock chick to play by his rules.

  All Meghan Paige has is a beaten-up guitar and battered dreams of stardom. She desperately needs the money Jackson offers, but besides singing, there’s one other thing she’s good at — rule breaking.

  “Jackson thinks he can use his fortune to control me? Buckle up, Billionaire, I’m about to rock your world.”

  How To Boss A Billionaire

  Geena will do anything to save her business. Even bid the last of her money to pay for advice from a straight-edged billionaire asshole.

  Damien took part in the charity auction to improve his terrible image. Now he's been won by a pink-haired sex store owner.

  His new boss-for-a-week might smell like candy, but there'
s no way he'll have a taste. He's about to find out that fixing up an adult toy store can't be all fun and games.

  How To Seduce A CEO

  Hot shot CEO Marcus has decided who to hire for the top job, and it’s not Angel, no matter how tempting she might be. Problem is, he's set on hiring a sexist jerk.

  Time for Angel to turn the tables on her boss, and make Marcus realize the office underdog might just be the right person to put in charge.

  How To Master A Millionaire

  Max is anything but submissive, but he needs to act that way for his next movie role. He needs a dominatrix who can show him the ropes.

  Ally’s a broke blogger with a self-confidence problem. She’s clueless about anything kinky, but talks her way into the dominatrix job so she can get a story.

  “A romantic, feel-good read that’s laugh-out-loud funny.”

  Acknowledgments

  A lot of people have helped me get the Lantana Island series out into the world and I owe them a big debt of gratitude. Firstly, my author buddies and critique partners Michele de Winton and Trudi Jaye. My fabulous editor, Cate Hogan, is worth her weight in gold. And a big thank you to Viper and Crystal for beta reading and spotting my mistakes.

  Thank you to the Red Hots for your support, encouragement, help, and camaraderie.

  And lastly a big thanks to my family. Especially my mum who taught me to love books, and my dad who reads everything I write, even the steamy stuff, and never makes me blush.

  About the Author

  Talia Hunter likes writing about smart, funny women, and the men who set their hearts on fire. Her motto is, If you aren’t laughing, you aren’t doing it right.

  A formerly committed city dweller, she’s recently moved to the country. She’s put in a veggie garden, learned how to make bread, and is now the proud owner of a pair of gum boots. These days she spends time Googling important questions such as how to cope with a runaway zucchini crop (make fritters), and narrowing down exactly what kind of giant hairy spider might be eyeballing her from the washing tub.

  Connect with Talia:

  www.taliahunter.com

  Copyright © 2017 by Talia Hunter

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.