With a Twist Read online

  * * *

  Red Sage Publishing

  www.eredsage.com

  Copyright ©2011 by Heather Peters

  First published in 2011, 2011

  * * *

  NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.

  * * *

  CONTENTS

  TO MY READER:

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  About The Author

  * * * *

  * * * *

  * * * *

  An eRedSage Publishing Publication

  This book is a work of complete fiction. Any names, places, incidents, characters are products of the author's imagination and creativity or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is fully coincidental.

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or any portion thereof in any form whatsoever in any country whatsoever is forbidden.

  Information:

  Red Sage Publishing, Inc. P.O. Box 4844 Seminole, FL 33775

  727-391-3847 eRedSage.com

  With A Twist

  An eRed Sage Publication All Rights Reserved Copyright (C) 2010

  eRedSage is a registered trademark of Red Sage Publishing, Inc.

  Visit us on the World Wide Web: www.eRedSage.com

  ISBN: 9781603105835; 1603105832 With A Twist Adobe PDF

  ISBN: 9781603105866; 1603105867 With A Twist MobiPocket

  ISBN: 9781603105873; 1603105875 With A Twist MS Reader

  ISBN: 9781603105859; 1603105859 With A Twist HTML

  ISBN: 9781603105842; 1603105840 With A Twist ePub

  Published by arrangement with the authors and copyright holders of the individual works as follows:

  With A Twist (C) 2010 by Heather Peters

  Cover (C) 2010 by Rae Monet

  Printed in the U.S.A.

  ebook layout and conversion by jimandzetta.com

  With A Twist

  By Heather Peters

  TO MY READER:

  You'll want to read With a Twist because it's based partly, on something that happened to me a long time ago. Being a divorced woman at 42 after 23 years of marriage, I was pretty much in the dark about men; I'd been brought up Catholic, and only had one man in my life: my husband. During my separation, I met a 27 year old handsome guy, a very sweet former Navy jet mechanic, with dark brown bedroom eyes, who helped me program a new computer. He was the cousin of a dear friend, and I fell for his bad boy looks, his tattoos and attitude. But he treated me as if I was on a pedestal. We liked each other a lot, but unfortunately, and to his credit, he wouldn't approach me romantically because I wasn't divorced yet. By the time I did get my divorce many months later, we'd lost touch. I lost that chance of just having maybe one night with this guy. I never forgot him, and it's been 12 years since I've seen him. But I did catch him on Facebook, and friended him; our exchange was polite, but nothing more. I wrote With a Twist to fulfill my fantasy of the older woman and her younger soul mate. Ava Denotti is that woman, and Shane Sullivan is my vision of a love that was never fulfilled.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  Chapter One

  "Another Caribbean Cosmo with a twist for the birthday girl, and keep them coming."

  Shane Sullivan's gaze turned toward the owner of the whiskey-tinged voice as he sat deep in the shadows of the bar, mesmerized by the stunning brunette who'd been at the center of his carnal dreams for the past two years. The dark haired beauty perched on a nearby bar stool with her legs crossed, those ‘fuck me’ stilettos with the ankle straps making him so hard the zipper on his jeans cut into his skin.

  Her sexy body created a vision that included all kinds of dark, forbidden intentions. His cock jumped to attention, reminding him of his recent celibate state. Great, just great. Ava Denotti was still gorgeous, and he found himself reacting the same way as when he'd first laid eyes on her.

  Shane took a long pull from the bottle of cold beer while his eyes drank in every facet of her. A stunning woman from dark brown waves that framed her beautiful face to the crimson dress that left nothing to the imagination and outlined a full-figured body created for pleasuring a man. And he wanted to be that man. Her heels were black as midnight, and visions of those legs wrapped around him while he fucked her all night shot steamy signals to his groin.

  His eyes moved upward, and settled on rounded breasts that would fit his hands and then some. A full-lipped mouth, now pouted, would circle and suck his cock until he shot his load down her throat. Shane imagined what it would feel like when, not if, those lovely polished fingers gripped him inside her heat in the midst of some mind blowing sex.

  Her right hand was shaking slightly where she held the martini glass. She appeared a little tipsy, which he found hot and seductive.

  Shane's eyes continued their journey, slowly sliding from those erotic heels to her shapely calves and up to the tiny opening of her bodice, showing just the hint of flesh. Ava Denotti had no idea how sexy she looked sipping that drink.

  How would she react when he tunneled his fingers through her thick hair? How hot would her pussy be after she wrapped her legs around his waist, and that smoky voice begged him to pleasure her?

  Slow down, boy. You're getting way ahead of yourself.

  In the meantime, he secretly willed her to look his way, and as if she'd read his mind, slowly she turned and settled a pair of moss green eyes on him. A bullet of desire shot right though his solar plexus.

  He'd discovered that Ava was celebrating her birthday. That information came from the pretty bartender, Elena, who suggested Shane treat the birthday girl to a drink. He readily agreed. Maybe his dream of finally getting closer to Ava would come to fruition now that she was divorced. He didn't dare approach her two years before, while she was still married to the son of a bitch who ran away with Shane's ex-fiancee, Brittany. Placing the empty bottle on the table, he rose and headed toward her.

  Let the games begin.

  The birthday girl patiently waited while Elena made liquid magic with the liquor. She mixed the ingredients in a shaker, added shaved ice and blended Ava's favorite drink.

  After pouring the completed concoction into a martini glass, Elena added a splash of lime, a twist of lemon and slid the drink in front of Ava.

  "Here you go boss, happy fortieth."

  "Shit, don't remind me,” Ava muttered. She saluted Elena with the glass and took a generous sip, savoring the delicious blend of fruit and liquor. With any luck at all, a few more of these babies and she wouldn't remember what day it was.

  Ah, too late. How could she forget the day she officially turned into a cliche? Forty, the big 4-0, she mused. Perched on a corner bar stool, she wondered why on earth she'd dressed up to sit in her own bar. True, she loved her stunning black lace number that did little to hide her generous curves. Maybe she'd worn it because her ex-husband, Richard, or Dick the Prick as she now called him, told her the dress was too tight because of the extra weight she'd packed on since the divorce.

  Screw the cheating sack of shit.

  She struggled to fight the ugly memory of Richard, her asshole of a husband. Swallowing another sip, she hoped she'd be too drunk by the end of the evening to care abo
ut much of anything. So she allowed the exotic drink to do its job, closed her eyes and waited. Ah, here it comes, she thought with a smile, and welcomed the sensation as the alcohol induced buzz she'd hoped for finally made its appearance.

  She attempted to forget the humiliation that lingered from Dick's infidelity. The extra weight continued to haunt her, even after her ex had run away with his assistant, the bleached blonde, busty bimbo, Brittany. Ava scoffed at the ridiculous alliteration. The twenty something assistant having the illicit affair with the forty-something married boss. Talk about a cliche. And the wife is always the last to know.

  Swallowing a deep sigh, Ava spun around to face the crowd at the bar she owned with her younger brother, A.J. She sipped and smiled, savoring the laughter and conversation taking place in their small, yet thriving establishment. With a Twist enjoyed a steady and faithful clientele. They not only served alcohol, but A.J. always managed to cook up appetizers so innovative and tasty that customers came to the bar just to sample his original fare. Ava always said her baby brother was a frustrated chef. They hired local bands to play on the weekends to attract the college crowd. Business was good. Her personal life was in shambles.

  Several ceiling fans whirred lazily while the jukebox in the corner played the Black Eyed Peas. Nearly all ten tables were still occupied even at this late hour, and Ava could hardly hear herself think from the noise, but she loved it. She'd grown used to the sounds of people gathering at this place for a long time. Thankfully, With a Twist was the one thing her ex hadn't been able to steal from her when he left.

  When her parents retired to Florida, it was A.J. who took charge of the business and assured Ava they would continue to make the bar a success. Besides being a great brother and clever businessman, he was a charmer with the ladies. Tall and handsome with a boyish smile and warm personality, he attracted some of the women who came to the bar like bees to honey.

  Glasses clinked and laughter filled the air as Ava observed the flow and mix of humanity much as an audience member enjoyed an interesting play. She observed the young newlywed couple, Rich and Kelly, as they huddled at the other end of the bar, sharing kisses and whispers. Or Amanda, the young woman who stood alone at the front entrance, probably waiting for a date who would never appear. Ava's colorful friends, Jay and Chad, looked well groomed, buff and handsome as always. Discretely the men held hands under their table. Others sat alone, nursing their drinks in an obvious attempt to forget their troubles.

  Ava swallowed a last sip and placed her glass on the cocktail napkin covering the mahogany horseshoe surface. She dreaded the short walk to the tiny apartment above the bar where she'd been living since the divorce. She'd since purchased a small condo nearby and would be moving in soon. Alone, forty, divorced, overweight and drunk was definitely not the way to remember this milestone. After all, forty was the new thirty, so she was told.

  If this is the new thirty, it's so overrated.

  Some of the Saturday night crowd began to thin out and head toward the exit, some bound for greener pastures. A.J. had already called cabs for some of the more inebriated regulars. Others went their separate ways. Some would get lucky tonight. Others would go home alone and wake up with a bitch of a hangover.

  Time to call it a night, or a decade, Ava thought. She'd made her appearance, downed a few and now it was time to end the pity party. Maybe she could sneak away before Elena targeted her with another ‘you poor thing’ look.

  No such luck.

  "Did you ever see a dream walking?"

  Ava's silent thoughts dimmed when she followed Elena's wide-eyed stare to the young man who walked toward them.

  Man wasn't the right word. God, maybe deity or idol was more like it. A young Adonis with bad boy written all over him. Not to mention a gorgeous tattooed sleeve.

  He approached with the confident gait of a man secure in his own skin. And boy, she'd bet the farm his skin was sizzling with white hot testosterone. Ink black hair touched his collar and framed a face that housed warm summer blue eyes, a full lower lip that begged to be nipped and a nose that had been broken at least once. These small details had every set of female eyes in the bar turned toward him. Overworked jeans hugged long legs and apparently housed the body of an athlete. Ava's breath hitched and her tummy did somersaults when his crooked smile took aim and pierced her like an arrow.

  Breathe, Ava, in and out. That's it.

  He looked vaguely familiar, but his identity eluded her. Where had she seen those dreamy eyes before?

  No, if he'd been here before, you'd remember him. Ava prided herself that once a person graced her establishment she never forgot their name or face. This man had never been in her bar before tonight. She'd have recognized him, no doubt about it.

  Who was he?

  Elena's soft purr brought her out of her silent musings. “He's a hottie, Ava. If you wish hard enough, he could be your birthday present. I have a feeling that under those incredibly well fitted jeans he has a nice long birthday candle for you to blow. . . out."

  Ava shook her head, and couldn't help a soft chuckle. “You have a very vivid imagination. He probably wants to know if I have a daughter.” Yet she found herself hoping her lipstick wasn't smeared.

  "He probably wants to rip that incredibly sexy dress from your body with his teeth and devour you like cotton candy."

  Dream on, Ava mused with a frown. “You need to stop reading those romance novels, sweetie. They're frying your brain.” She shook her head. “Anyway, he's too young for me and I'm too fat for him."

  Elena placed her palms down on the bar and leaned into Ava, keeping her voice low. “Why don't you simply take him upstairs and fuck his brains out? After all, it is your birthday."

  "And why don't you put the moves on him?” Ava asked. “He seems to be your speed, young and handsome. You're not dating anyone at the moment. You're cute and make a mean Cosmo. Take some of your own advice and kidnap him."

  Elena leaned back and looked stunned. “Me? No thanks. Ah, I, ah—"

  "Speechless, huh? Yeah, I thought so,” Ava scoffed. It was no secret that Elena had the serious hots for A.J. When on earth were the two of them going to stop behaving like children and go out on a damn date?

  Ava scoffed. “It's after midnight so technically my birthday is over. And why are you so hell bent on getting me laid?"

  Elena's eyebrows wriggled. She took Ava's empty glass. “Because no woman should turn forty and not have a young stud like him fuck her brains out. It's an unwritten law, Ava."

  Ava swallowed. “I wish."

  The young bartender tilted her head, and wiggled her eyebrows again. “I've heard some birthday wishes do come true."

  Ava swallowed hard as Mr. Sex on a Stick approached. He flashed a naughty smile that nearly knocked her from the stool. And was that a tiny gold hoop in his right ear?

  She couldn't help but stare when his smile took her breath away. A wet dream wrapped around an orgasm waiting to happen. His mouth could charm the devil from the depths of hell. His body was so close, the warmth of his jeans seemed to seep through her dress and burn. She caught a scent of spice and something else.

  Sin.

  "Hello, Ava.” My God, he does know me. Her frown brought another bone melting smile from him. “You don't remember me, do you?"

  Refresh my memory, I beg you. Gosh, is this what happens when you turn forty? Your brain turns to mush? Other parts of her body responded in kind. Her nipples puckered in response, and a tiny throb settled at the center of her pussy.

  His voice was smooth as warm syrup. Did she detect a hint of Ireland in his voice? Ava had an ear for accents. Owning a bar, she always paid close attention to her customers. And in this town, which was a melting pot of cultures and nationalities, she knew a brogue when she heard one. “You seem to know me, but. . . I'm sorry,” she managed to croak, “Have we met before?"

  "So you don't recognize me?” He settled a large palm over his heart. “Ava, I'm deeply wounded.” His
voice was playful and charming.

  That particular arm exploded in color in the form of a beautiful tattooed sleeve. From elbow to wrist, the intricate design of some sort of tribal tattoo wrapped around his bare muscular limb. Visions of a tight, possessive caress while he kissed her senseless bombarded her nerve endings, combined with erotic visions of large hands palming her breasts and sucking her nipples into oblivion. Elena was right.

  I so need to get laid.

  His voice became playful as he leaned in and feigned a frown. “Okay, here's a hint. Two years ago I attended a very crowded company Christmas party at your home with my fiancee, Brittany Smith."

  At the mention of the woman who'd had an affair with her husband, Ava sobered. She all but fell off the bar stool as realization dawned. She covered her mouth with shaking fingers. The light bulb above her fuzzy brain finally illuminated. “Shane?"

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  Chapter Two

  He took her hand and cradled it inside his own, and Ava experienced instant warmth. “That's me, Shane Sullivan, Britney's former fiance and now very happy single man. It's good to see you again, Ava."

  Ava took note that he'd made it a point to inform her of his availability. But what would he want with her? A forty-year old divorcee with a weight problem? Oh, what the hell? What was a little harmless flirting with this gorgeous guy?

  Ava stared at the black Tee shirt tucked into jeans worn with age and comfort. He embraced her hand a little longer than appropriate, yet she didn't mind.

  What would it feel like to have those large hands caress and touch her breasts, to have those long fingers buried inside her pussy until she exploded into shards of ecstasy.

  "It's good to see you again, too, Shane.” Her voice came out in a croak.

  "Can I buy you a drink?” Yes, definitely a touch of the Irish in that lyrical voice.

  "This just happens to be my bar, so in honor of seeing you again, the drinks are on me."