She's playing hard to get…to win - Tough Love (Ultimate #3) by Lori Foster

Vanity Baker loves a good, clean match, but she's not above playing a little dirty. She's wanted Stack "The Wolf" Hannigan from day one. Seems as though the best way to corral the famously commitment-phobic fighter is to insist on keeping it casual. And her plan works—deliciously well—until Stack's past steps out of the shadows. 

Description:

She's playing hard to get…to win the MMA fighter of her ultimate fantasies in a sultry new novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster 

Vanity Baker loves a good, clean match, but she's not above playing a little dirty. She's wanted Stack "The Wolf" Hannigan from day one. Seems as though the best way to corral the famously commitment-phobic fighter is to insist on keeping it casual. And her plan works—deliciously well—until Stack's past steps out of the shadows. 

Stack learned early to stay free of attachments. But with sexy, forthright Vanity, he's the one always left wanting more. Then his troublemaking family comes back into the picture, threatening everything Stack cares about—Vanity included. Suddenly he realizes they're much more than friends with benefits. He's ready to go to the mat for her…but will it be in time to protect the woman who's tamed him for good?

“Foster brings her signature blend of heat and sweet to her addictive third Ultimate martial arts contemporary. Foster ably tosses out red herrings and also seamlessly lays the foundation for the next book in this series. This luscious tale will appeal to Foster’s legion of fans and attract new ones—even those who aren’t fans of professional fighting.” - Publishers Weekly

EXCERPT

Stack frowned over her raised voice. “Calm down.” Her quick glare befuddled him. “Look, all I’m saying is that you’re shaking. And your arm is burnt and—”

“And you made promises.” While looking at her arm, she added, “Sexual promises, so don’t even think of dodging out on me.” She winced when she saw the burn. “Damn it. It wasn’t hurting, but now that you’ve pointed it out, it is.”

“I wasn’t…” All her attention remained on her arm, so he gave up trying to explain that he’d only made an attempt at nobility. No way was he “dodging out,” as she’d accused.

The burn on her arm didn’t look serious. Slightly bigger than a quarter, it was red, angry, but only slightly blistered. “I can take care of that for you once we get to your place.”

“What will you do?” She held her arm to her chest protectively.

Stack felt the crooked grin pulling at his mouth. The woman would brave a car fire, dismiss any danger, but at the thought of him patching her up, she grew wary. “I have a first aid kit in the trunk,” he explained, hoping to soothe her. “We’ll put some ointment on it and wrap it, that’s all. You can take some ibuprofen for pain.”

Her shoulders relaxed. “Oh, good. Nothing too awful.”

“Nothing awful at all,” he promised. But the way she continued to study him prompted him to add, “You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, right?”

“It’s not that, it’s just…” She looked at her arm again, then deliberately dismissed it. “Before we do that, I need to shower.” She licked her lips. “And so do you.”

A hint? “You’re sure you’re okay?”

“Positive.”

Thank God. “Then how about we shower together?”

As if she’d just been waiting for him to offer, she smiled. “That would be wonderful, thank you.”

Thanking him? This time Stack couldn’t choke back the laugh.

“What?”

He shook his head. Telling her she was the first woman to thank him for sex wouldn’t be a good idea.

She scowled and repeated with more insistence, “What?”

Again he took her hand, then lifted it to his mouth and kissed her palm. “Like your enthusiasm, that’s all.”

“I am enthusiastic.” She shifted her hand so her palm cupped his jaw. He’d shaved before the wedding, but now, as her thumb moved back and forth, he heard the rasp of new whiskers. “It seems like I’ve been waiting for this forever.”

Yeah, no kidding. “You’re the one who set the stipulations, darlin’.” Hell, the second she’d propositioned him, he’d been ready. But she’d spelled out the rules—most importantly that they had to wait until the night of Cannon’s wedding to seal the deal. Something about her not wanting to take the chance that they’d get together, hit a snag, and she’d end up without a date to the wedding after all.

As if she expected him to annoy her right off. As if having him as an escort to the wedding was more appealing than having sex with him.

What had burned his ass the most was her assertion that in the meantime, they should both carry on as usual, dating others, sleeping around, as if they hadn’t made an intimate deal.



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About the author:

Since first publishing in January 1996, Lori Foster has become a USA Today, Publisher’s Weekly and New York Times bestselling author. Lori has published through a variety of houses, including Kensington, St. Martin’s, Harlequin, Silhouette, Samhain, and Berkley/Jove. She is currently published with HQN.

Lori hosts a very special annual “Reader & Author” event in West Chester, Ohio. Proceeds from the event have benefited many worthy causes, including the Hamilton County YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter, the Animal Adoption Foundation, The Conductive Learning Center for children with spina bifida and cerebral palsy, and The One Way Farm, Children’s Home.

Each year Lori donates all proceeds from one book to charity. You can see the benefit romance books here:

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