Out of the Blue Read online

  The right bet…and the wrong bed! Don’t miss this fun and sexy classic romance from New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis!

  For Hannah Novak, running a bed-and-breakfast with her two best friends was adventure enough. But they didn’t feel that way. They wanted to devote the summer to serious man hunting—loser cleans toilets! Fine for them, but Hannah was, uh, inexperienced. How could she seduce anyone?

  Then out of the blue came Zach Thomas, looking for a bed…and breakfast. Hannah had always thought the rugged cop was the sexiest man alive, and, bet or no bet, she wanted him. So she checked him in—to her own room—with every intention of checking him out!

  A sexy contemporary romance.

  Previously published.

  “Why are you in my bed?” Zach demanded

  “It’s...my bed,” Hannah responded breathlessly.

  “No...this is my bed.” He spoke slowly, thickly, as if he wasn’t quite awake. “Or at least it’s the one you gave me. I think. Am I in the wrong bed?”

  No, he was in exactly the right bed. And now that her initial nervousness had worn off, Hannah was becoming aware of several things.

  One, he smelled good. Really good.

  Two, he felt good. Really, really good.

  And oh yeah, as far as she could tell, he was nearly naked.

  To test, she arched up, just a little, because wow, he felt incredible. She wasn’t really trying to take advantage of him, at least not until he woke all the way up—okay, maybe she was, just a little. She encountered...yep, more sleek skin and tough muscle.

  No clothes.

  At her movement, he’d gone completely still. And she could feel him become ever more...awake!

  Dear Reader,

  Ever fantasize? Okay, silly question. Well, in Out of the Blue, three best friends run a B and B and share a simple fantasy—to find a man. Any man, as long as he’s smart, funny and sexy. In fact, they make a bet to see who can be the first to get one.

  But my heroine, Hannah Novak, has a little problem. How is she to go about getting a man when she has absolutely no experience in the matter? But then Zach Thomas shows up, the town’s sexiest bad boy, and she figures he’ll know what to do. Only, he has no intention of letting Hannah seduce him to win a bet!

  This story is my first for the Wrong Bed miniseries in Temptation. These books—with their sexy, sassy heroines and unique story lines—have always been some of my most favorite reads. And don’t forget to watch for other Wrong Bed books in the coming months!

  Happy reading,

  Jill Shalvis

  Books by Jill Shalvis

  HARLEQUIN TEMPTATION

  742—WHO’S THE BOSS?

  771—THE BACHELOR’S BED

  HARLEQUIN DUETS

  28A—NEW AND...IMPROVED?

  42A—KISS ME, KATIE!

  42B—HUG ME, HOLLY!

  OUT OF THE BLUE

  Jill Shalvis

  CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  PROLOGUE

  ZACHARY THOMAS PLANNED to spend the entire next week in a prone position. Either on the sand with the warm sun over his face, in a hammock with the warm breeze brushing his limbs, or in a bed with a warm body beside him, it didn’t matter.

  Better yet, give him all of the above.

  But he had to get there first, to Avila, before the exhaustion claimed him.

  Ten years ago he’d left that town as the wild rebel. Today he was going home, still a rebel at heart, but now he was a cop as well.

  He’d never thought it would happen, but after so long, he was really going back.

  Home.

  More figuratively than literally, since his childhood house no longer belonged in the family. It’d been sold long ago, his elderly parents having retired to Arizona. But in his mind, the popular beach town of Avila would always be the place to come home to. The place of sun and surf, fun and laughter.

  God, he was exhausted, his body aching, and in the tight confines of his Jeep he stretched his travel-weary limbs the best he could. Every inch of him protested the four-hour drive north.

  No doubt, working undercover all year, tracking a drug ring in the armpits of Los Angeles, had been tough on his body.

  So had getting shot.

  But thankfully he was healing, more and more every day, and the case was over. Bad guys in jail, lawyers’ pockets full, and his Chief one very happy man.

  Off to his left, the Pacific Ocean sparkled a deep jade as the sun touched the horizon. With all the windows down, he could smell the salt air, could almost hear each individual wave as it hit the shore.

  Home, he thought again with a rueful smile. Once upon a time, he hadn’t been able to get out of the small, sleepy town fast enough. There hadn’t been enough excitement and thrills to be had, but for now, while he was healing, slow and lazy was exactly the speed he craved.

  Maybe after he’d slept for a few days he’d test his still-sore side and go surfing, something he hadn’t done in years.

  One thing he didn’t have to do was work, not for one more week, when his leave time would be up. He’d already had nearly two months off, but he could drag it out even longer if he needed; everyone would understand. Being shot took a lot out of a cop.

  But Zach loved his work, and wanted to get back to it. It was his life. His only life, he admitted ruefully, given the hours and energy he put into it. Besides, the wild, hustling, packed L.A. still gave him a rush.

  At the moment though, even his bones hurt, and he had to wonder if he’d really be ready to go back so soon. A ruptured liver and two shattered ribs were harder to get over than he’d even imagined.

  Maybe he was just tired. In fact, his eyes were so gritty he could hardly see, and just concentrating on driving was almost more than he could handle. All he wanted right now was a good meal and a bed.

  Actually, skip the food, he’d head straight for the sheets, with or without the warm female body.

  The Norfolk Woods Inn sign finally came into view, just seconds before the quaint, character-ridden old lodge did. At the sight, a burst of pride went through Zach for what his baby sister and her friends had created. The log cabin itself was beautiful, warm and inviting and cozy—the very thing he’d run from so many years ago.

  Alexi. He missed her. They visited too infrequently, and only when she made the trip to Los Angeles around his work schedule. It’d be good to see her. She’d give him a room and let him sleep around the clock, the entire week if he felt like it. He could contemplate the cosmos, catch up on television.

  Hell, he could watch the grass grow.

  After the life he’d led for the past year, it sounded decadent. Slow. Leisurely. That it was the opposite of everything he’d ever wanted didn’t escape him, but for now it was perfect.

  As he pulled up, half dead on his feet, he realized that things were not going to go quite as planned.

  The No Vacancy sign was lit.

  CHAPTER 1

  BUSINESS AMONG FRIENDS was rumored to be a bad idea. Before today, Hannah Novak would have denied this, but now, in her third attempt to bring order to a very important goal-setting meeting, she had to wonder. “Come on, guys. Let’s do this.”

  Alexi, her best friend and business partner, nodded and bit back her laughter. “You’re right, let’s get serious.”

  “Only if we have to.” Tara, second-best friend and also busi