One Hot Weekend. Katherine Garbera

      Phone sex? Sophia thought wildly

      She had only been teasing Mitch but now she didn’t know where to begin. In the past, Mitch had always taken charge in the bedroom. “Are you naked?” she finally ventured, clutching the receiver.

      “Just about. I’m wearing a pair of jeans. You?”

      “Just a T-shirt,” she said. One that had belonged to Mitch but she couldn’t bear to throw out.

      “What are you wearing underneath it?” he asked, his voice clearly on edge.

      “Nothing.”

      He groaned. “Babe, you’re killing me.”

      “Good,” she said, laughing. “Take off your jeans and climb on the bed.”

      “Only if you do the same.” A moment later her breathing grew deeper. “Sophia?”

      “I’m there with you, straddling your hips. You’re so hard…”

      “Harder than ever before,” he agreed. “And you’re so wet….”

      Sophia moaned and lay back on the pillows. She heard Mitch panting on the other end of the phone. She wished she were in bed with him right now. Wished she could feel his heat surrounding her…that she was no longer alone.

      Dear Reader,

      I’m so excited about One Hot Weekend. Though this is my first book for the Harlequin Blaze line, I’ve written several Silhouette Desire books. I love romance and the feeling that comes with falling in love.

      Mitch Hollaran is a man with a mission, and that mission is revenge. He’s spent the last ten years rebuilding his career and trying to forget the woman who betrayed him—Sophia Deltonio.

      Sophia has carefully hidden her passionate nature behind a winning career as an Assistant District Attorney—until Mitch sends her a reminder of their past steamy relationship. She soon recognizes this is the opening move in a very dangerous game of forbidden desire.

      I hope you enjoy reading One Hot Weekend as much as I enjoyed writing it!

      Katherine Garbera

      One Hot Weekend

      Katherine Garbera

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      For Matt, who is always my hero

      Acknowledgments:

      There are so many people to thank. My trail to Blaze was a long one and along the way I had a lot of helping hands—first Birgit Davis-Todd, who took some time at the beginning to talk to me about Blaze and what the line was going to be. Julie Leto, who took time on the phone with me and offered some sound advice. Tony and Lori Karayianni, who gave a nudge when I was ready to give up on Blaze. Brenda Chin, who brainstormed ideas with me. And when I finally had an idea that would work for Blaze, I wasn’t sure I could do it. Thanks especially to Eve Gaddy, who told me to stop whining and write the book!

      Contents

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Chapter Twelve

      Chapter Thirteen

      Chapter Fourteen

      Chapter Fifteen

      Chapter Sixteen

      1

      SOPHIA DELTONIO WAS at the top of her game. And everyone knew it. As she strode down the long hallway past the offices of the other assistant District Attorneys in Orange County, Florida, they all looked up and smiled at her. She’d just won a very difficult case, one she knew would impress Joan Mueller, her boss.

      She paused in front of the door with the brass nameplate. Sophia Deltonio, Assistant District Attorney. If she played her cards right, it would read Deputy District Attorney in a short while. She then opened the door to her outer office.

      “Hey, boss lady. Great job in court,” her secretary Alice said.

      “Thanks.” She took the messages Alice handed her and entered her office. On the credenza were an assortment of balloons, flowers and a prank gift basket of condoms and crotchless panties from the other ADAs.

      She’d just finished prosecuting the panty-raider, as he liked to be called. He’d stolen over one hundred thousand dollars in lacy underwear and sex aids from a local adults-only store. The things she did to keep the world safe from crime, she thought with a wry smile.

      In the middle of her desk was another basket, which stopped her cold. It wasn’t exactly a basket but a small faux metal washtub. It was wrapped in cellophane and tied with a black velvet ribbon. The ribbon set off a chain reaction inside her.

      A lifetime ago, she’d worn a ribbon like that around her neck every day. It’s just a coincidence. She dropped her briefcase and moved closer to her desk.

      There was a card taped to the cellophane and she could see a ring of Corona beer bottles inside there. Oh, this wasn’t good.

      She never drank anything but Pinot Grigio anymore. She almost didn’t want to open the card but that was foolish. It was just a card. It had no power over her.

      As she studied the cream-colored envelope, a shiver of anticipation moved down her spine. Her hand shook but not from fear. A tingling awareness rippled through her.

      This is so stupid. I’m thirty-two for chrissakes and in control of my life.

      The handwriting wasn’t familiar to her. Of course, it wouldn’t be familiar. “Stop being ridiculous.”

      Mitch Hollaran had been out of her life for a long time and he wasn’t suddenly going to show up again. She used her French-manicured nail to open the back of the envelope, and pulled out a card. Instead of the standard FTD one, the thick vellum bore the monogram of a prestigious Los Angeles law firm.

      Her stomach sank. She opened the card and inside was the handwriting she recognized—bold, brash and filled with the kind of passion a girl could die from knowing.

      See you in court.

      There was no signature, just a scrawled M. But then she didn’t need a signature to know it was from Mitch. She sank down on one of the guest chairs and closed her eyes.

      Memories of the man she once knew and of the passion they’d shared assailed her. The Corona incident had happened right before they’d broken up. Too poor to be able to afford a winter vacation, they’d stayed in their apartment near the Harvard campus where they both were studying law, with the thermostat cranked up to eighty, listening to blues music and making love for four days.

      She seldom let herself think about that life. She was a different woman now. She was in line to become the Deputy D.A. in Orange County. All of Orlando knew she was a woman to be reckoned with inside the courtroom and out.

      And she no longer indulged the sensual side of her personality. She’d learned the hard