Off the
Beaten Track
by Lucy Felthouse
When workaholic Libby Strong’s friends
and family make her take a long overdue holiday, she’s not impressed. A week of
lounging by a swimming pool and doing nothing is not her idea of fun. In an act
of rebellion, she books a day trip, touring in a jeep. When her guide arrives,
Libby’s astonished to discover she’s the only patron going on the trip. But as
hunky Demetrio takes her off the beaten track and deep into the beautiful
Portuguese countryside, she soon leaves her worries behind and hangs on tight
for the ride of her life.
Available from:
~ * ~
Excerpt:
Libby huffed and puffed as she made her way up the steep slope
leading to the rear exit of the hotel complex. She swore the builders had had
secret CCTV cameras installed so they could watch people suffer their poor
planning for years to come. At least it was early. Had it been lunchtime, she’d
surely have passed out with the heat.
Ah well, Libby thought as she finally reached the road, it’ll be
worth it. This trip is going to be amazing.
As she stood on the mercifully flat pavement and got her breath
back, a thought niggled at her. Nobody else was here. Panicking, Libby wrenched
open her bag and pulled out her paperwork. She examined it, then a glance at
her watch confirmed she had both the right date and time. So where was
everyone? Yes, she was ten minutes early but surely the others should be here
by now? Looking down the slope she’d just ascended, Libby frowned as she saw it
was deserted. Everywhere was deserted.
Fuck, she thought, perhaps they were all here earlier and they’ve
gone without me!
The rumble of an engine distracted Libby from her worries.
Turning, she saw a jeep trundling down the road towards her. She watched
hopefully as the driver pulled the vehicle up beside where she stood and
reached into the passenger seat.
Picking up a clipboard, the man glanced down, then at her, and
said, “You are Libby Strong?”
She nodded.
The man grinned widely, revealing dimples in both cheeks, and
hopped out of the jeep. Walking around the vehicle to where she stood, he held
out a hand.
“I am Demetrio. Your guide for the day.”
Libby took his hand and shook it. It was warm and strong. Much
like the rest of him, she suspected, as she gave him a subtle once over. He was
tall, with black curly hair to his shoulders, luscious brown eyes and olive
skin. A white t-shirt bearing the holiday company’s logo covered his top
half—though without obscuring his impressive biceps—and he wore longish tan
colored shorts on the bottom. A pair of non-descript white-ish trainers and
faded red cap completed his outfit.
“I’m Libby,” she said, even though he already knew her name. She
was just being polite. “Pleased to meet you.”
They broke off the handshake and Demetrio smiled again, then moved
to the passenger side of the jeep and pulled open the door.
“Please,” he said, gesturing she should get in.
Libby did as she was told, but couldn’t help asking the burning
question.
“Where is everyone else?”
Demetrio waited until she was safely in the passenger seat, closed
the door and made his way to the driver’s side. He got in, then turned to her.
“There is nobody else. You are only person on this trip. You get
best views!”
He laughed then , the flash of white teeth against olive skin
resulting in an unexpected jolt in Libby’s nether regions. She studied his
profile for a few seconds, then grudgingly admitted to herself that Demetrio
was, in fact, very attractive. Despite the fact she was a red-blooded woman,
she rarely noticed such things.
Like most people, she’d come on this holiday to recharge her
batteries. Unlike most people, she’d been practically forced into it. Libby was
somewhat of a workaholic, which left her little time for anything else. It was
this fact which had cost her her last relationship. The long working hours,
frequent rain checks on their dates and her lack of interest in any kind of
affection, let alone sex, had finally caused James to walk away.
Libby had barely noticed. She’d just carried on working, and
working…until her friends and family had finally intervened. They’d booked the
holiday to Portugal, arranged with her boss for her to have the time off, and
basically given her little choice but to go.
~ * ~
Bio:
Lucy is a graduate of the University of Derby, where she studied
Creative Writing. During her first year, she was dared to write an erotic story
- so she did. It went down a storm and she's never looked back. Lucy has had
stories published by Cleis Press, Constable and Robinson, House of Erotica,
Noble Romance, Ravenous Romance, Resplendence Publishing, Summerhouse
Publishing, Sweetmeats Press and Xcite Books. She is also the editor of Uniform
Behaviour and Seducing the Myth. Find out more at http://www.lucyfelthouse.co.uk. Join
her on Facebook and Twitter, and subscribe to her
newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/gMQb9
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