Sexy Wreck

Chapter 1

Miranda Kerr as Axelle Knight (see photo above)

Zeke Matthews took a long swallow of his beer in honor of the relaxing three-day weekend stretching ahead of him, and nearly choked on the drink when he caught sight of Axelle Knight, the one woman he'd spent the past four months turning down and trying to avoid. Standing at the bar as she ordered a drink, she waggles her fingers at him in greeting and smiled in a way that made him feel like a hunted man.

You can run but you can't hide...

He all but heard those words conveyed in that determined look of hers, and his body warmed with a familiar lust he'd been fighting since the moment he'd met her, followed closely by annoyance. That she'd ventured into such a public place as Andrew's Sports Bar to fight for her cause was enough to put him on full alert, and it didn't surprise him that she'd enlisted his hellion cousin, Fiona Matthews, to help persuade him into agreeing to be a part of Axelle's beefcake calendar project.

He thought he'd finally convinced the pint-sized bundle of fortitude that he wasn't interested in posing half-naked for her Outdoor Men photoshoot. Since he knew she had a deadline to meet, he'd assumed she'd found another willing victim and he was off the hook. But having been the recipient of that purposeful gleam in those green-hued eyes, Zeke knew, without a single doubt, that the delectable Axelle still had her sights set on him.

Christ. While he admired her tenacity to go after what she wanted and found her brazen pursuit too much of a turn-on, she was setting herself up for another dose of rejection, because there was no way in hell he was going to change his mind. He was doing her a huge favor by saying no. While she might think he was exactly what she wanted for her magazine, he was far from model material.

Frustrated by the entire situation, along with his unwanted attraction to Axelle that made everything all the more complicated, he returned his attention to his table mates and eyed them suspiciously. "Who the hell tipped off Fiona that we'd be here tonight?" he demanded, because that was the only way Axelle could have found him so easily.

Three pairs of curious eyes glanced toward the bar, where he'd pointed his bottle of beer. His brother Zion sat next to him on the left, then there was Rafael, Zion's good friend and business partner, and their cousin Jefferson, older brother of Fiona.

Rafael, who'd been fighting his own battle of the sexes with Fiona, shook his head adamantly. "Not me, man. The last think I would do is invite the wild child to crash our little party and ruin my perfectly good evening."

Zeke believed him, though the fire and challenge in Rafael's eyes spoke a tale of its own. Rafael wasn't altogether upset about Fiona's appearance. Not that he'd ever admit to the attraction that sizzled to life whenever the two were in the same room.

Zeke's gaze shifted to Zion, and his older brother held up his hands in defense. "Hey, I haven't spoken to Fiona all week."

Which left Jefferson, and judging by the sheepish look on his cousin's face, Zeke rightly assumed the man was responsible for this interesting turn of events. "Fess up, Jeffy-boy." Zeke said.

Jefferson shrugged. "Okay, so I was leaving the office today and casually mentioned I was coming here for a drink with some friends. When Fiona asked who with, I wasn't about to tell a lie."

"Your honesty is a refreshing and noble trait." Zeke drawled wryly, giving his cousin a hard time. "Next time, lie."

Rafael and Zion chuckled in amusement.

Jefferson leaned back in his chair and absently stroked his finger along his jaw while regarding Zeke speculatively. "Why do get the feeling that your problem isn't so much with Fiona, but that hot little number she's with?"

Zeke downed the rest of his beer and motioned t the bar waitress for another one, wondering if he ought to order a chaser to go with it. "Because she's the photographer who's been dogging me for the past four months to do that damn beefcake photoshoot for charity, and she's having one hell of a time taking no for an answer."

His male counterparts offered nods of understanding and grunts of sympathy, and a moment later Fiona and Axelle were strolling across the establishment toward their table, each with one of those fancy, designer martini drinks in hand.

Despite himself, Zeke took int he long-sleeved, pink cotton shirt that clung to Axelle's petite curves and the snug jeans that outlined the gentle fare of her hips and the rest of her compact body. He'd noticed more than once that she had small but firm breasts, maybe a handful by his experienced estimation, and that was being generous, considering he had large palms and long fingers. Not that he'd ever get the opportunity to test the weight and size of those luscious mounds in his hands, except in his dreams. Oh yeah, in those nightly fantasies he'd caressed those soft breasts of hers, and a whole lot more

"Hello, boys!" Fiona said cheerfully. "Mind if we join you?"

"Yes" Zeke and Rafael echoed at the same time Jefferson and Zion said graciously, "Not at all."

The women opted to ignore Zeke and Rafael and accepted Jefferson and Zion's invitation. Dragging two chairs up to the table, Axelle flanked Zeke on one side with Fiona on the other, which put Fiona conveniently right next to Rafael. Fiona, with her stylishly cut black hair and exotic silver eyes, slanted Rafael a smug grin full of her brand of sensual torment. He met her gaze unflinchingly, the instantaneous spark of awareness between the two of them nearly tangible.