Double Dating with the Dead (24 page)

Can't get enough of Karen Kelley's books?

Try these other great titles!

Beam me up, hottie…

Sex with the perfect man is overrated, especially if your Mr. Perfect is a robot, and you know there's something better out there. Can Mala help it if “out there” is
way
out there? Her grandmother, an intergalactic traveler, left a diary behind describing the exceptional lovemaking talents of Earth men. So Mala decides to head for Earth and see what the fuss is about…

 

When the local conspiracy theorist insists he's seen a UFO land out near Devil's Bend, Sheriff Mason McKinley rides out to investigate. But instead of little green men, he finds the sexiest woman he's ever laid eyes on. Though Mala's odd behavior—an obsession with the naked channel, straightforward offers of sex—might have something to do with amnesia, what red-blooded American male wouldn't feel lucky? Still, Mason doesn't want to take advantage of a lost soul…however much she wants to be taken advantage of…

The truth is way out there…

Kia can't imagine why her cousin Mala left planet Nerak—utterly perfect in an ever-so-slightly boring kind of way—to go in search of Earth men. At least, not until she meets a virile, muscular human intent on rescuing her (how quaint!) from a bar brawl. And while at first Kia just wants undercover cop Nick Scericino to help locate her cousin…well, it would be a shame to come all this way without finding out whether everything really is bigger in Texas…

 

Nick knows trouble when he sees it. And right now, trouble is sitting at the bar—black-clad, sexy as hell, and about to mess up his sting operation to take down some Russian mobsters. Could she have mafia connections? Kia's certainly not like any woman he's known—flat out demanding sex, and following through with a sensational romp that leaves his mind blown and world rocked. Other options: a) she's crazy, or b) she's not kidding about being an alien. In which case, he's in even deeper trouble. Because the only thing worse than falling wildly in lust with someone who's not playing with a full holodeck is the thought that she'll soon be leaving for a galaxy far, far away…

Take me to your leader. Come to think of it, just take me.

Planet Nerak was perfect—no disease, no darkness, no hunger—until an expedition to Earth brought back an unwanted guest. Enter one talented Nerakian named Lara, sent on a special fact-finding mission in the vast region called Texas. Fortunately, a warrior (he calls himself a “cop”) named Sam Jones has offered to help. Unfortunately, Sam's skill at sex is quite distracting—as are plenty other earthly delights, like the dangerously addictive substance called chocolate. Temptations such as these could seriously compromise Lara's—ahem—research…

 

Crazy, that's what Sam is. What sane man would voluntarily isolate himself in the Texas woods with an alien, not to mention a female one with a superiority complex, legs that won't quit, and a penchant for walking around buck naked? Between bragging about her home planet and levitating, Lara wastes no time getting on Sam's last nerve…and even less time getting into his bed. Talk about going where no man has gone before. Of course, when you're from Texas, nothing—not even an entire planet—is going to stop you from getting what you want.

GHOST OF A CHANCE

Reporter Nikki “The Barracuda” Scott will sink her teeth into anything. So when her editor sends her to get the lowdown on bad boy football star Cal Braxton, Nikki's game to rough it on his family ranch. She just isn't prepared for exactly
how
rough. Still, the nasty outhouse, noisy animals, and resident ghost won't put Nikki off…especially once she sets eyes (and hands, and mouth) on her subject. If there's a juicy story here, Nikki intends to devour it…

 

So, the lady thinks she's gonna get the scoop on him? Cal's had his fill of scheming females—hell, his conniving ex-fiancée is the very reason he's hiding out. Then again, if all journalists were as hot as Nikki, he might consider being more open with the press. Too bad she won't be around for long. If the chores and “rustic” conditions don't frighten Nikki off, her haunted accomodations surely will. Tough it turns out Nikki doesn't scare easily. Now Cal's the one who's scared—of falling hard…

Set Phasers to Sizzle…

Special agent Roan Hendrix is a straight shooter with weapons and women, so he doesn't appreciate it when his boss throws him a curve. But what a curve. A half-human, half-Nerakian who needs a one-on-one crash course in how best to channel her powers. And while Roan's usually a master at separating business from pleasure, one glance into Lyraka's green eyes is enough to spark scorching fantasies of seriously close encounters with the tall, tanned temptress…

 

Lyraka's trying not to mind the way Mister Macho Special Agent keeps barking orders, but it's impossible to ignore Roan's rough-and-ready appeal. The sensitive ponytail guys Lyraka grew up with didn't have a clue how to handle her outsized sex drive, but Roan looks like he'd be up to the task in every way. Better still, he never got the memo that Lyraka's human side makes her—ahem—“special talents” even greater than the average Nerakian's…

And don't miss the first book in Karen's new series, THE JAGUAR PRINCE, coming next month!

 

EASY BIG FELLA…

 

Zoo worker Callie Jordan knows something primal when she sees it: take, for instance, the naked man sitting at the foot of her bed. He's the same (naked) guy she saw after hours at the zoo. But now he's in her apartment, and just happens to have turned into a black-as-night jaguar. The average person would be in a blind panic; Callie certainly intends to be—once she finishes processing what this incredibly hot lunatic is telling her…

 

It seems Callie's visitor, the one who prefers skins to shirts, is Prince Rogar—from a place far, far away. Oh, and Callie is from the same place, has the same nifty shapeshifting powers, and is destined to be Rogar's lifemate! It figures the first hot guy ever to show a bit of interest turns out to be certifiable. Then again, Callie's seen Rogar's powers (plus some other choice things) firsthand—and testing her new roomie's powers of persuasion would be the ultimate walk on the wild side…

T
his wasn't happening. Callie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “You're not real,” she repeated over and over until she could feel herself beginning to relax.

The naked hottie was only the last fragment of a delicious dream she'd been having. Right before she went to sleep, hadn't she wished he would magically materialize in her bed?

She relaxed and smiled. It had been a great dream. The way he'd touched her, nuzzled her neck, pressed his naked body against hers. It had been one long, sensuous dream. That was probably why she'd apparently gotten rid of her hot granny gown sometime during the night. Okay, now she was back to normal. No more fantasies that a hot, sexy man was in her bed. The idea was ludicrous.

Deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. She was wide awake now. She opened her eyes.

He was still there, sitting on the end of her bed, staring at her with what appeared to be…amusement? He laughed at her! He was in her house, her bed, and he laughed at her!

Callie sat up, the cover fell to her waist. His gaze dropped. She grabbed the sheet and pulled it against her chest. “Get out! Who are you? How did you get into my house? Where's my gown?”

One eyebrow arched. “Are you always this emotionally unstable?”

“Emotionally…” she sputtered.

“Unstable,” he slowly and distinctly repeated.

“I am not emotionally unstable!” Oh God, she was arguing with the serial killer. She took another deep breath, then exhaled once more. She needed to stay calm. “If you don't leave right now, I'm going to call the police.”

Oh, yeah, now he really looked nervous—not! He didn't even flinch. Just sat there staring at her. And why wouldn't he? He probably weighed around one-eighty. She would be no match for him.

Maybe if she kept him talking, he wouldn't kill her right away. She'd once read somewhere that if you could befriend your abductor, then he would be less likely to kill you. Not that he'd abducted her, but he had apparently broken into her home. God, she hoped this worked.

“How…uh…did you find me?” Surely someone would've noticed a naked man following her car. For the first time in her life, Callie wished her rattletrap car went faster.

She frowned. How had he followed her? Her car wasn't that slow. He probably had his own car. He'd waited for her to leave, then followed.

So, he drove around naked. And no one noticed this?

“Does it matter how I came to be here?” he asked.

“I guess not.” If she knew where he came from, then maybe she could talk him into going back, though. “Where are you from?”

“New Symtaria.”

“Never heard of it. Is that a suburb of Dallas?” New ones were cropping up all the time.

“It's in another galaxy.”

All righty. “Another planet?”

He nodded, still looking amused about something.

“And you are?”

“Prince Rogar.”

She nodded. Delusional. Probably escaped from the state hospital. This was worse than she ever could have imagined. Not only was he naked, but he was a nut. Automatically, her eyes strayed downward. She swallowed, then quickly jerked her gaze to a safer place. She had to stop looking…looking at him…down there. It wasn't like she'd never seen a naked man before.

This was ridiculous. She needed help and all she could think about was staring at his…his nakedness. She had to call the police or something—911. Her cell phone was in her purse. From now on, she was keeping it on her bedside table. If there even was a from-now-on in her future. Okay, keep him talking.

“And why are you here?” She smiled. At least she tried to pull it off as a smile even though her stomach rumbled, and her hands were sweating, and she was probably going to throw up any second.

“To take you home.”

She looked around. “I am home, so…bye-bye.”

He grinned and she noticed his teeth were pearly white, and he had a nice smile. Ted Bundy probably had a nice smile, too.

“You're part Symtarian,” he continued.

“Okaaaayyy…” He thought she was from another planet, too. This was worse than she could've imagined.

“When our planet was dying, some of the people were sent to other places. An expedition went in search of a new planet to call home. Some of our people were forgotten, and became integrated with the aliens. Now we're searching for them so we can bring them home.”

“And you're doing it without clothes.”

“It happens when I shapeshift.”

“Well, of course, I should have guessed.” The guy was a raving lunatic. “And what form do you take?”

A fog began to roll across her bedroom. She glanced nervously around, then looked at her crazy guy. Her mouth dropped open as he slowly began to change.

The prince dude gritted his teeth and downed his head. His skin changed from flesh to short black hair with barely visible spots. He stretched out across her bed, his hand curling into a fist, becoming a paw.

Oh, God, she was crazy. Now she would never get her chance to work with the big cats—except in her warped mind. It wasn't fair.

The fog rolled in thicker until all Callie saw were patches of black fur, a glimpse of golden eyes boring into her. She couldn't move. She tried, but her legs wouldn't budge.

The fog slowly dissipated.

The black jaguar from last night lay across the end of her bed, panting slightly. It met her gaze, and seemed as though it was gauging her reaction.

She opened her mouth, then closed it when no words came out. The cat purred from deep in its throat. She swallowed past the lump in hers. What if the jag was real? Maybe she wasn't crazy. Oh, yeah, now she felt better. She was going to die. Then again, she might already be dead and this was hell.

Whatever it was, the jaguar was still stretched across the foot of her bed.

The room began to tilt, then grow dark, and she knew without a doubt, she was about to faint. She'd never fainted in her life.