NSFW content: please note that our ‘hot toddies’ series contains explicit language and (very) adult situations.

Here in Australia, the weather is getting colder. We’re dragging out the blankets and brewing up the cocoa, but it’s not doing the job. We need something hot.

Luckily, Escape artists have come to the rescue. They’ve provided some of the most scorching scenes from their books for us to enjoy. As the cold winds blow outside, we’ll be heating up with some ‘hot toddies’.

Winter is coming. And so our are heroes and heroines.

From Bound by their Love by Nicole Flockton

‘Second thoughts?’ he asked as he reached across and unclipped her seatbelt. His arm brushed her breasts, her nipples tightening in response.

Feeling brazen she reached out and ran a hand down the front of his trousers, feeling the evidence of his desire. ‘No, you?’

Jeff’s response was to growl low in his throat as he stepped away. The sound travelled down her spine, sending sparks of fire through her nerve endings. ‘You’re playing with fire, Angel.’

Greta laughed and stepped out of the car, the action bringing her flush against him. ‘Didn’t you know? I like fire. I like the heat and burn of it.’

‘Enough.’ Jeff reached past her and closed the door, then pushed her back against the warm metal. ‘I can show you all the fire you want. But I’d prefer to do it without an audience.’ He swooped in, taking her lips in a hard swift kiss. It was over before she could take it any further. He turned and walked away, leaving her panting against her car.

Giving herself a mental shake, she followed him into the depths of the resort. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the muted light of the lobby after the bright sunshine.

‘Where’s your room?’

‘This way.’ She grabbed his hand, all but dragging him through the lobby.

Her villa was close to the main building but it could’ve been ten miles away. The anticipation to have Jeff take her was overwhelming.

Finally they reached her door. Greta fumbled in her bag looking for where she’d put the key. The purse slipped when Jeff’s arm slid around her stomach, pulling her against him. Through the layers of clothes she could feel his erection. It was impossible to stop the shiver of anticipation shaking through her.

Her fingers closed over the card and she pulled it out, sliding it into the slot. The green light flared. Jeff’s hand moved from her stomach to the door handle, flinging it down and pushing the door open in one slick movement.

He propelled her forward before turning her in his arms in a blur of movement so quick she lost her breath.

‘I have to have you,’ he said as his hands moved to the zipper of her dress. ‘It’s going to be hard and fast but it will be the ride of your life.’

She bit her lip against the urge to cry out. Yes, hard and fast. Her purse dropped to the floor with a thump.

Cool air flowed across her exposed back. With a quick shimmy the dress fell from her shoulders and pooled at her feet. Greta couldn’t help but smile at the hiss of breath coming from Jeff. She was pleased she’d put on her sexy lingerie that morning.

She bent to take her shoes off.

‘Don’t.’

Greta looked up from beneath her lashes, her hand on the buckle of her sandal. ‘Don’t what?’

Jeff pulled his shirt from his pants and she caught a glimpse of a lightly tanned stomach. She wanted to see it all. ‘Don’t take your shoes off. Do you have any idea how sexy those shoes are?’

Greta straightened. His words were unexpected and a little scary. Standing there in only her shoes, bra and panties she felt exposed.

‘What?’

‘I saw you standing in the gift shop,’ Jeff paused as he divested himself of his shirt, throwing it to the ground. ‘So beautiful and confident. Your dress a powerful colour and your shoes like nothing I’d ever seen before. Delicate yet alluring.’

His explanation didn’t sound sinister, but still she wondered if this was a good idea.

‘Oh.’ What else could she say? She’d never had a guy tell her he wanted her because of her shoes.

A warm hand cupped her cheek. Jeff had moved until he was standing right in front of her. She kept her eyes firmly on his tanned chest.

Why did this encounter feel so different to all her other ones? Why did it feel like she was about to wade into uncharted waters? Why did all thoughts of work and her career seem so far away?

Heat emanated from him, warming her front and weakening her knees. He was impossible to resist and she needed to stop trying to make sense of what was happening between them. It was one afternoon.

‘Greta,’ he whispered her name. She looked up at him. ‘Fate threw you in my path. I hadn’t planned on going to the pearl farm today, but something compelled me. And that something led me to seeing you.’

She melted against him, laying her head on his chest. The thumping of his heart beneath her ears reassured her all would be okay.

Words weren’t needed between them. As if by an unspoken consent, they’d reached an agreement to take things slow. Savour each other and the joy they could bring to one another.

Jeff’s hands smoothed slow circles on her exposed skin. With each movement the tension within her dissipated, giving her the confidence to take charge.

Greta turned her head a fraction and kissed his warm flesh. She trailed her lips over his chest, her hands reaching down to the waistband of his trousers. In seconds she had the belt undone and was tackling the button and zipper of his pants. Slowly she lowered the metal tab, her fingers brushing his hard length, her lips now caressing his rough jaw.

‘You’re killing me here, Angel,’ he muttered, before grasping her chin and lifting it, bringing their lips colliding together. Desire went from a small smoulder to a fully-fledged five-alarm fire in seconds.

From Nicole Flockton comes the intense, emotional conclusion of her bestselling Bound trilogy…