Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Temporarily Yours
    Temporarily Yours
    Temporarily Yours
    Ebook113 pages1 hour

    Temporarily Yours

    By Cara Carnes

    3.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Bess Sutton is used to going unnoticed. She spends her days temping and doing whatever's necessary to put her life back together. The last thing she needs is attention—especially from the sexy billionaire bad boy Landon Gaffrey.

    Landon Gaffrey's used to getting what he wants, however he wants it. Too bad the sexy little imp of a temporary employee working in his office has other ideas. He didn't become one of the most successful billionaires around by giving up.

    When things heat up, they soon realize their hook-up isn't a temporary thing. Will two people from seemingly different worlds be able to make it work?

    Publisher's Notation: This work previously appeared in the Office Seductions anthology

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHeartscape Publishing, LLC
    Release dateMay 8, 2018
    ISBN9781386770589
    Temporarily Yours

    Read more from Cara Carnes

    Related to Temporarily Yours

    Related ebooks

    Short Stories For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      One Man’s Tale Of Spousal Abuse

      Mar 27, 2021

      IN HIS debut book “Beautiful Monster”, Jay Badenhorst chronicles the years of abuse he suffered at the hands of his wife whom he loved dearly. The tell-all book sheds light on men as the victims of abuse, and how Badenhorst’s dreams of a “forever lov

      3 min read

    • Article

      Spreading a Little Peace on Earth

      Oct 28, 2021

      Spreading a Little Peace on Earth
      4 min read

    • Article

      Hollywood, Ending

      Feb 13, 2018

      Hollywood, Ending
      7 min read

    • Article

      Prohibition

      Sep 10, 2021

      It had been ten days since my last fix. I knew what I was going to do was wrong, but unless you knew the yearning that your body exerts, the internal pull which strangles your very soul into submission, then you cannot judge me. Yes, it was wrong. Ye

      15 min read

    • Article

      Kane and Abel

      Feb 10, 2024

      I boarded the train in Council Bluffs. The cargo headed for Cheyenne included a large sum of cash meant to be the payroll for a large mining operation. Any train moving large sums of cash and passengers with all their earthly belongings was a target.

      9 min read

    • Article

      Love, Lust, and More

      Feb 12, 2020

      Fleetwood Mac was singing She is dancing away from you now, and I squirmed in my seat. Kabir was rubbing my thigh as he drove, a gesture I once thought was reserved for me. Bah! I also used to think he only took naked selfies in bed with me, but then

      11 min read

    • Article

      Blue Ticket

      Jun 26, 2020

      Blue Ticket
      4 min read

    • Article

      Dirtnap

      Dec 15, 2019

      I was staying at Jean’s apartment in LA for two months to escape an especially dire Oregon winter and to test how much weight our relationship could bear. We had been conducting a long-distance romance for nearly a year then, back-and-forth visits an

      24 min read

    • Article

      The Space In Between

      Feb 14, 2023

      The Space In Between
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Duplex

      Jun 9, 2020

      I moved to Los Angeles to sing. When was this? August? June? I was twenty-nine, and those were shapeless months, when the days blended together and I refused to pull them apart. My landlord was unusually close to her adult son. His name was Jeffrey,

      21 min read

    • Article

      Identity Crisis

      Feb 2, 2019

      Identity Crisis
      8 min read

    • Article

      The Fortune Teller’s Confession

      Aug 10, 2022

      White obscured the man as he waddled down the old dirt path, which was disappearing under the snowfall. I brought the axe down one last time before I paused, stepping back in reflex as the wood split, each half tumbling in an unpredictable direction.

      12 min read

    • Article

      Crushed by MY OWN CAR!

      Oct 1, 2020

      Smiling for the photographer, I was so proud of myself. Aged 21, I’d recently quit an event planning course to pursue my dream of becoming a personal trainer. Growing up, I’d always been inspired to look after and nourish my body by my parents, Amy a

      3 min read

    • Article

      Righteous

      Jan 22, 2019

      Righteous
      8 min read

    • Article

      Prey

      May 10, 2021

      As I drove slowly towards the mob of angry protestors and my meeting with 200, I thought of 199. The ashes of a once hard man, staring at me with wide eyes that pleaded for hope like a dog begging for treats. I’d somehow found a way to give him that

      41 min read

    • Article

      Fear Can Your Friend

      Feb 15, 2022

      Fear Can Your Friend
      2 min read

    • Article

      Deer Crossing

      Dec 24, 2021

      Deer Crossing
      4 min read

    • Article

      On the Road

      Sep 25, 2019

      On the Road
      4 min read

    • Article

      Prey

      Mar 10, 2024

      As I drove slowly toward the mob of angry protestors and my meeting with 200, I thought of 199. The ashes of a once hard man, staring at me with wide eyes that pleaded for hope like a dog begging for treats. I’d somehow found a way to give him that h

      41 min read

    • Article

      After the Hurricane

      Aug 27, 2020

      After the Hurricane
      4 min read

    • Article

      Longer on Moon

      Sep 22, 2022

      Longer on Moon
      19 min read

    • Article

      The Leather Coat

      Apr 4, 2024

      The Leather Coat
      6 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reads

      Dec 30, 2019

      Summer Reads
      7 min read

    • Article

      Bone Memories

      Dec 1, 2018

      I BROKE MY ankle on a Friday evening in January, exactly three months after moving to America. Eight weeks after that, in a related but different kind of fracture, I would see my father for the first time in fifteen years. I should have seen the firs

      12 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Temporarily Yours

    3.5/5

    21 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Temporarily Yours - Cara Carnes

      Temporarily Yours

      Temporarily Yours

      Cara Carnes

      Heartscape Publishing, LLC

      Contents

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      Chapter 9

      About Cara

      1

      Bess

      The snow apocalypse had struck Austin in a big way. Two days without pay was all I could afford, which was the only reason I was risking my neck, and my ass, slipping and sliding alongside the barren highways like a certified loon. In all honesty, I wasn’t a loon .

      Okay, I was a desperate loon.

      It was eight in the morning, which meant I was already half an hour late. My boots skated along the patches of ice coating the grass. Too bad the buses hadn’t run today. I navigated toward the shoulder of the road and peered forward. Wind whipped across my face despite the hoodie I’d put into position.

      My Texas blood wasn’t acclimated to this vile mess. How did northerners manage? I contemplated the foolishness of willingly living in icy environments as I trudged onward. My entire body burned from a shivering numb. It was the only way I could describe how it felt, to be so, so cold, your skin burned.

      Twenty-two degrees. That’s what my phone had said when I struck out from my one-bedroom apartment forty minutes ago. It shouldn’t have taken so long to walk to work; I only lived a few miles down the road.

      But the streets were slick and every time I fell slowed me down several minutes. I didn’t like pain; falling hurt like hell. Suddenly, a sleek, black BMW wheeled onto the shoulder a few yards in front of me. Startled, I took a step forward without looking.

      Pain rattled my knees as I landed on them. Hard. I stifled my frustrated curses. At least my ass and elbows hadn’t taken another hit to the pavement. Please tell me he didn’t see me fall. The vehicle idled, but the driver’s side door was open.

      Great.

      Eyes closed, I willed my thudding pulse and quickened breath to calm the heck down. Landon Gaffrey was the last person in the world I needed to see right now. Okay, that wasn’t true. My bitch of a boss, i.e. his CFO, was at the top of the list.

      Are you okay? The gravelly voice slid through me like a shot of warm whiskey.

      I dared a glance to my left. Boots—the Commando kind, not cowboy—filled my vision. Black denim. My body tightened, a slow burn awakening within me.

      Being able to handle dressed-up Landon had taken me the entire eight weeks of my stint at Unicorn Systems. I’d yet to fully kill the kick of awareness, the riotous burst of arousal and carnal thoughts I experienced every time I saw him. I wasn’t ready for a dressed-down version.

      Landon crouched beside me. Thick thighs bulged beneath snug, black denim, and a dark gray Henley spanned across a wide chest. The black leather jacket completed the bad-ass, sexiest man alive vibe he exuded.

      Dark hair, long enough to be branded rebellious, but short enough to be acceptable in Austin’s thriving business world, tumbled around his face. His full lips were set in a grim expression which accented the twitch in his square jawline. The chocolate gaze I’d fantasized about, the one which always seemed to hold a secret, was focused on me.

      Embarrassment crawled through my system, but the cold froze any red burn in my face. My breath huffed from me in fat clouds of puffy air, mingling with his.

      Are you okay? He repeated the question with a hint of command I felt through my entire body.

      I closed my eyes and shamefully imagined that voice, the husky gravel booming in my ear, in another time and place; one far more pleasurable. One where I’d enjoy being on my hands and knees.

      But fantasies were for the nighttime, when the crawl of inky darkness seeped loneliness into every crevice of me. Landon Gaffrey was out of my league; so much so, his sleek BMW-driving ass never should have been on this stretch of highway. Sure, he drove to work, but I always assumed he’d be coming from the main road, the one off the freeway.

      I’m fine, just clumsy.

      Deft arms curled around me. Landon’s scent assailed me, a foreign presence in my nostrils—one I’d inhaled covertly many times as I scurried past his office to meet with my boss. I inhaled deeply, hoping he didn’t notice the clutch of my breath as I held him against me as long as possible.

      Pathetic, but true. I was so into Landon it would disgust him if he knew.

      Let’s get you up, he whispered against my cheek.

      That’s when I realized he’d already stood and was leaned down, arms under mine and semi-around my chest. My nipples tightened beneath my shirt. He hoisted me up with an ease I hadn’t expected. I wasn’t a skinny girl, not by any stretch of the imagination. I had extra padding just about everywhere, which was probably good since I’d spent a lot of time on my ass, knees, and many deviations thereof the past forty minutes.

      I smiled and pretended to look at him but focused on the spot just to his left. It was a trick a friend had taught me since I sucked at eye contact. Thank you, Mr. Gaffrey.

      "So I was right. You do work for me. I thought you looked familiar."

      I’d passed by his office at least a hundred times the past few weeks, but he didn’t need to know that. I nodded, motioning toward the direction I was heading. I’d better get going. Thanks again.

      His jaw twitched. You think I’ll get back in my ride and let you keep walking to the same place I’m going?

      I gulped as shock, and a hint of anger, flashed through his voice. He looked back from the direction I’d come.

      How far?

      Excuse me, sir?

      How far have you walked? Where’s your car?

      I usually take the bus. The crawling burn of shame singed the cold and slid up my face. The admission rattled what little grip I had on my hardly-ever-there confidence.

      I’d once had a good life; a nice apartment and cute little sedan. Then I’d gotten taken for a ride by my loser ex. Two years later, and I was still paying for the mistake.

      Get in, he ordered.

      I curled my toes in my hiking boots and eyed his ride. The black car was low to the highway. I’d wondered what it’d be like to sit in it, be important enough to merit being there. At his side.

      My belly burned as the awareness simmered there, becoming a slow thud of need I had no business feeling. This wasn’t Landon interested in frumpy, pathetic me. It was him being polite to an employee.

      But I wasn’t an employee. I’m a temp, not an employee. I’ll be fine.

      You temping at my place doesn’t have anything to do with this conversation. I’m not leaving anyone, especially a woman, alone on the side of an icy road to walk to work. He cupped my chin, forcing my gaze to him.

      Heat spread through my skin where he touched, a spark that ignited a new level of awareness. Jesus. He was gorgeous; the kind of gorgeous a woman could get lost in for an eternity. Were he mine, I’d stay wrapped around him as long as I could; especially on cold mornings like this.

      Whoever let him crawl from their bed this morning was an idiot. The punch of jealousy struck me center mass, as it always did when I wondered who got to be the one he wanted at his side. In his bed, wrapped around him.

      Come on.

      He navigated me to the passenger’s side of his car with an ease that made the awkward, self-deprecating me surface. I’m a clumsier fool than I realized. You make this look simple.

      I’m from up north; I grew up walking in these conditions. He opened the vehicle door.

      The scent assaulted me again, wrapping around me like a warm blanket as I sat. My

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1