RT Nominee for Best Blaze of 2003!

ROMANTIC TIMES TOP PICK FOR AUGUST!!
4 1/2 STARS!!

STRIPTEASE
www.girl-gear ... - Harlequin Blaze
ISBN - 0373791038
August 2003

She'll bare her body . . .

Melanie Craine knows romance isn't in the cards for her. She's ambitious, and has no time for a man in her busy life. With all of the other women at the funky gIRL-gEAR.com Web site meeting Mr. Right, someone has to keep things afloat! Then, when hot videographer Jacob Faulkner films her behavior at her friend's wedding, she's livid. Determined to make him see what's beneath her attitude, she tapes herself doing a steamy striptease . . . for Jacob's eyes only.

He'll want her soul . . .

Jacob never expected Melanie to retaliate the way she did when he sent that tape! Watching her slowly remove each item of clothing from her body is the most erotic thing he's ever seen. Now that he's on board to film the gIRL-gEAR group for a documentary on successful businesswomen, there's no way he can keep things "professional." And it can't get any better when he finds out she doesn't want anything more than a sexual relationship. But will it be enough in the end?

Visit gIRL-gEAR for more on this popular series from Harlequin Blaze.

Erin Thatcher figures there's no reason she can't have a hot fling with the wrong kind of guy while she waits for Mr. Right to come along. So when she spies a magazine article about Men To Do before saying, "I do," her imagination goes wild! Her sexy but reclusive neighbor is part of her fantasies every night, and now it's time to see what Sebastian is like for real ...

Sebastian Gallo is a man obsessed. A bestselling author, he uses a pseudonym to ensure his privacy, never letting the real world in. But somehow Erin has consumed his thoughts - in his bed, in his shower - to the point where his writing is suffering. He just can't ignore the heat that exists between them whenever they meet ... but can he risk revealing his true self?

Visit MenToDo for more on this popular series from Harlequin Blaze.

ROPED INTO ROMANCE
an online gIRL-gEAR serial at
eHarlequin.com

A relaxing vacation with the winner of the gIRL-gEAR.com scavenger hunt becomes downright sticky for CEO Sydney Ford when Ray Coffey - her one-time lover - claims the prize! Now she and her fellow gIRL gEAR partners are stuck together with Ray and his friends in this exotic locale for an entire week. For Sydney, the memory of her one steamy night with Ray is distracting her from running her business. He couldn't have been all that, could he? Well, only one way to find out!

For Ray, being marooned with Sydney is sheer torture - from seeing her gorgeous body on the beach in her bikini, and out of it in his dreams! He can't understand how that one night - albeit one incredible night - has lingered for so long in his mind. It was only sex, right? One more night with Sydney should be a reality check. But Ray's beginning to worry that once simply won't be enough…

Chloe Zuniga, VP of gIRL gEAR cosmetics and accessories, needed a man to save her reputation--even though her enjoyment of the opposite sex and her potty mouth was what got her into trouble in the first place. Her old friend Eric Haydon agreed to be her "steady date" for three company events-if she granted him three wishes.

Eric just knew that he and Chloe were going to be lovers sooner or later. He simply had to figure out when and how. And once he'd done that, there was nothing left to wish for…except Chloe's heart along with her body.

The gIRL: When it comes to playing games, Webzine editor Macy Webb is the absolute best. Her latest idea for her girl-games column — an adult scavenger hunt where each half of a couple has to discover their partner's deepest secrets of mind...and body.

The gUY: Attorney Leo Redding wouldn't have been Macy's first choice for a playmate. Not that he isn't gorgeous and sexy — actually, maybe he's too much of all that. And while she's certain she can get into his head, she's got her work cut out for her getting into his bed...and staying out of love!

Ben Tannen was the undisputed leader of his group of best friends, nicknamed "The Deck." He was the Ace, of course. Heidi Malone was the Joker, and the only female among them. All four men were half in love with her - Ben maybe more than half . . .

Still, there had always been a certain tension between the Golden Boy and Heidi-from-the-wrong-side-of-the-trakcs. And when he'd offered her money for college tuition, she'd lashed out with her pride - and a bicycle chain.

Fifteen years later, Heidi still owed Ben an apology . . . and he still held an IOU. He planned to collect and prove to her that they'd make much better lovers than fighters.

Keeping up with his tiny, demanding, precious niece was more than Detective Joel Wolfsley could handle with one leg in a cast. Gangsters, yes. Babies, no. He was a sucker for his sister, though, and the munchkin's mom needed his help. Besides, his plight was the perfect excuse to get up close and personal with the gorgeous kennel owner next door.

Equals trouble!

Willa Darling took one look at the tough-talking "Big Bad Wolf" holding a baby and knew he was all bark, no bite. Joel might have needed a little help in the diapering department, but he was a family man at heart - no matter what he said. Which meant that in spite of the wild passion they shared, Willa would have to let him go ...

At the age of thirty-one, Brooke Bailey still believed in Santa Claus. She was determined to spread joy throughout her apartment building . . . whether a certain neighbor wanted it or not.

Indeed, for Dr. Duncan Cox, Christmas was his least favorite time of year - and his busiest. Around the emergency room at Mercy Hospital, he was fondly referred to as the Grinch. Still, to help his best buddy woo Brooke, he secretly filled her stocking with twelve gifts, for the twelve days fo Christmas.

Lo and behold, Duncan enjoyed her joy! Could the Grinch and Santa's Little Helper end up together in a passionate affair? Only in the season of miracles . . .

Electrician Sophie North felt as if she'd touched a live wire the first time she laid eyes on Tyler Barnes. That was to be expected, of course.

He had a heartbreaking grin, an incredible body and a thousand watts of cowboy charm. Half the women in Brody, Texas, were out to snag him. But Sophie was just passing through. And she'd sworn never to live her life at the mercy of her own passionate nature.

Nevertheless, every time Tyler came near her, her response was shocking. Which wasn't supposed to be happening.

Lightning was only supposed to strike once!

How could two little words scribbled on a business card drive a normally sane woman to be so . . . impulsive?

It wasn't Harley Golden's style to call a perfect stranger. But here she was, after one brief airport encounter, having phone sex with the obviously unforgettable Gardner Barnes.

What next? Letting him fly her off to Texas in his jet? Falling in love with a man who was already married to a ranch? Getting pregnant . . . ?

Seventeen years ago, America's premier young model, Eva Channing, ran from the glamourous world of New York fashion to small-town Texas, where she could forget her passionate, doomed affair with photographer Carson Brandt. Today, a single mom with a successful nursery business, Eva is content . . . until a magazine piece on former models brings the intensely sensual Carson tumbling back into her life.

. . . To a second chance at love

Carson has always been most comfortable expressing his emotions through a camera. The only person who ever broke through the armor around his heart was Eva. Now he's determined to uncover the reason she left without saying goodbye, and the secret behind the son who bears a strong resemblance to Carson. One look at Eva's beautiful face starts a fire deep within him that he hasn't felt in years.

It is with mixed emotions that Eden Karr has decided to leave her exciting career as a New York City fashion editor behind. Determined to raise her unborn twins alone in a wholesome community, she's moved to small-town Texas and opened a clothing boutique. Her new surroundings are a far cry from the glamorous life she misses, and she can'thelp but feel she's made a mistake. That is, until sexy carpenter Jace Morgan strides into her store.

The Country Boy

Jace's years as a big city architect had denied him the family and peace he'd always longed for. One look at beautiful Eden, and he knew he'd found the woman who could fulfill all of his dreams. The trouble is, she's still yearning for new York and his roots are now firmly planted in Texas Hill Country. Somehow, he's got to show Eden that life here with him could be rich and full, and that the growing love they share is strong enough to keep them living happily ever after ... wherever they are.

It was not the sort of investigation Logan Burke usually handled. Nowadays he was hired by your average Joe - not sleek, polished corporate players in plush Houston office suites. But it was a straightforward case of industrial espionage with one advantage - a hefty check from ViOPet Chemical Company. All Logan had to do was watch Hannah Evans, a ViOPet employee, and figure out how she was leaking valuable research secrets.

In the six weeks that he spent watching her, Logan began to feel a special bond with Hannah. For the first time in years, he actually considered dumping the case and pursuing the mark. It was not enough to view Hannah across a crowded restaurant or through the lens of a camera. He wanted to breathe her scent. He wanted to hear her voice. He wanted to find the innocence he'd given up on finding in his life again.

Hannah knew someone was following her. She didn't know who he was or why he was there, but his presence was unnerving. It was time to take action, time to let a professional call the shots. She would pay a visit to a private investigator who had come highly recommended - a Mr. Logan Burke.