Novels by R. Lindsey

Skylar hesitated for a moment before heading to the door. It was almost 10 p.m., who the hell would be knocking this late? Skylar sighed realizing Randy must have already told Tina and it was probably her too eager to hear the whole story to wait until tomorrow."Go home Tina," Skylar snapped opening the door. She froze as she looked up at the person standing in her doorway. It was not Tina after all. "James?"XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"Skylar," James breathed. "I know it's late, but can I come in for a moment?"He waited anxiously as Skylar looked him up and down, clearly trying to decide if she should let him in or slam another door in his face tonight. He wouldn't blame her if she did. With an exasperated sounding sigh she rolled her eyes at him and stepped out of the way. He stepped past her into the dark dingy kitchen of her apartment and she closed the door behind him and slid the deadbolt into place.

Skylar blinked back the sting of tears as she stared down at the floor of the taxi. She had always been a rage crier, an attritube that had always annoyed her, but something else was fueling the tears as well. Hurt? Were her feelings hurt? And why was she so angry? It was a business transaction and she had agreed to the terms, so why did it feel like she had been punched in the gut when he reminded her of that fact? "Ma'am, your stop," the taxi driver's voice snapped Skylar back to reality. "Oh. Thanks," she mumbled handing the driver cash and opening the door. "Keep the change," she added as she climbed out of the vehicle and stepped out onto the sidewalk. As the vehicle pulled away she stood on the sidewalk in front of her crappy apartment building, the brick faded and cracking and some of the windows broken. It was dingy, musty and broken down but it was cheap and they hadn't asked for a damage deposit so it was home for now. Skylar looked down at her clothe

Skylar breathed a sigh of relief the minute her butt hit the back seat of the town car. James slid onto the seat next to her and reached for the car door. Amelia appeared out of nowhere and placed herself between the car door and James. Leaning down she smiled at the two, "I'm glad I caught you two!" James dropped his arm and made a face at his mother. "Don't make that face Jimmy, it's unbecoming," his mother waved off his disapproving glance and looked over to Skylar, "You two will be joining us for brunch on Sunday right?""Uh...well Amelia," Skylar fumbled over her response. "We will come for brunch on Sunday," James interjected, taking Skylar and Amelia offguard. "But then I've fulfilled my familial obligations for the rest of the year." Amelia wrinkled her nose at him. "What about the holidays? One month," Amelia countered. "Fine. I'll attend Christmas supper. That's just over 3 months," James conceded. Amelia pondered his offer for a moment before extending a hand, "Dea

James hurried to his family's table, sure that by now Skylar would be in need of rescue. He tensed when he noticed not only were his parents at the table, his mother still latched on to Skylar like a tick, but his younger brother Adam had come to supper with his wife Julia. He clenched his jaw. The fact that Adam was married and James still chronically single was the catalyst to his mother's rampant attempts at setting him up and encouraging him to settle down. James didn't hold it against him and Adam was probably the only family member he actually liked, but their presence could very likely add extra pressure tonight.James pulled out the chair next to Skylar and took a seat. Without thinking he reached over and grabbed her hand to give it a reassuring squeeze. Realizing what he'd done he tried to casually remove his hand but Skylar squeezed back and kept his hand where it was, shooting him a quick relieved glance when his mother turned to speak to a passing waiter. H

Skylar ducked her head as she slid into the backseat of the black town car waiting in front of Banscroft Empires. She fought off the nerves as he slid onto the seat beside her and shut the car door. This was not at all where she expected to find herself on her first day of this placement, questioning her sanity for risking a prime placement and a potential poor review if she screwed things up tonight. She could have said no. She SHOULD have said no.She smoothed out the skirt of her dress in an attempt to soothe her nerves. She needed to make sure they had their story set out. A firm plan would make this easier. More like business. She shoved her attraction toward him to the back of her mind and turned her head to look at James. "So. Let's go over this again," her tone coming across almost too aggressive in her attempt to cover up the flips her stomach was doing. James nodded. "We met a month ago at the appreciation function the company hosts every year," he started. Hi

Skylar sipped her coffee as she eyed James across the table at the bistro she had chosen as he ordered their lunch. The waitress pushing out her chest as she took the order and batting her eyelashes. Skylar rolled her eyes and took another sip. She couldn't really blame the girl though, she probably would've done the same. Though her motives would've been strictly monetary with him being loaded and likely a good tipper. The perky waitress bounced off with their order and Skylar turned back to James."Why don't you ask her? She'd probably be your girlfriend for free," Skylar smirked. She was probably crossing a line, him being her temporary boss and all, but she had him by the proverbial balls at the moment and couldn't resist milking it. The look he gave her should've made her nervous but it only spurred her on. "Those girls at the boutique probably would've too.""Keep it up and I might just also ask them to fill in for Mrs. Babbitt." Skylar laughed at the threa