Showing results by narrator "Erik Bloomquist" in All Categories

Alicia Simmons rarely lets anyone get too close. So crushing on a hot wildlife expert via videochats in her classroom is completely safe. The long-distance flirtation means no expectations - and no expectations means no disappointment...or hurt. And when Ranger tells her he's visiting her neck of the woods, spending a few days - and nights - with him doesn't sound too dangerous, either. Sure, when the fling is over, she'll have to pick up the pieces of her heart. But at least he'll be safe from the beast inside her. Except Travis Ranger isn't coming for a fling. He's coming for Alicia.

I expected to wake up tangled in my husband's arms. His wicked hands dragging me back into bliss. Instead, I'm barefoot on a freezing cot and I'm dressed like a trauma surgeon who lost her shoes. This sucks and I'm scared. The cotton sheets and silk robes are gone, replaced by chains, shadows, and a cast-iron door. At first, I thought it was Radomir. That two-timing bastard must have found out I was going to leave him. But the truth is far worse. I've been kidnapped. Not by just anyone—but by the monster from my nightmares. He wants what's locked inside my mind.

My dream? Escape this hellhole and become a songwriter in L.A. My reality? My scumbag father emptied my bank account and bet me in a poker game. Not just to anyone—but to Radomir Molchanov. The King of Vegas. The sinfully drop-dead gorgeous owner of the Diamond Hotel and Casino. Oh, and the cold-blooded head of the Molchanov Bratva. Radomir has claimed me—body and soul. His touch sets me on fire, his icy gaze sends shivers down my spine, and his cruel smirk reminds me that he owns me.

The moment I set eyes on Gabbi Sterling, I know she's mine. Unfortunately, she doesn't agree. Her brother owns my team. Her best friend told a little white lie. And my girl is giving me nine kinds of hell. Right up until we get lost in the woods together. Now, it's up to me to get her out safely. There's just one problem. I have a concussion and no clue where we are.

Running a ranch is hard enough, so Makena Laine doesn't need any complications in her life. But the development company that's determined to take her land isn't giving her much choice. So when she stops alongside the road to assist a cowboy with a broken-down truck, she isn't looking for more trouble, no matter how gorgeous. Ethan Grimmson is bigger than any man has a right to be, doesn't say much, and - if she's honest - he's also a bit scary. Yet considering that she's in danger of losing her ranch...maybe scary is exactly what she needs. And Ethan's got teeth and claws....

Backed by an extensive research project that looked at over 150 studies and articles, featured extensive interviews with over 150 executives, and analyzed over 250 global organizations, this book clearly breaks down the three environments that make up every single employee experience at every organization around the world and how to design for them. These are the cultural, technological, and physical environments. The Employee Experience Advantage guides listeners on a journey of creating a place where people actually want to show up to work.

After a devastating accident crushed my dreams, I ended up back in my hometown teaching kindergarten. I was trying to make the best of it. That is, until the world I had to leave behind, showed up in my classroom in the form of a five-year-old little girl. Her father living the exact life I almost had. Adam Jacobson is known as the bad boy of rock. While he and his band tour the world, they leave a trail of mayhem. What no one knows is behind the music is a caring, straightedge man with a secret-a daughter who the world is about to discover.

The beautiful, ethereal creature ran across the road on my way home one night. I nearly hit her and ended up wiping out in the process. A little dazed, I ran after her . . . And found her in the woods. Dirty and cold from living on the streets for weeks—but still so breathtaking, I was sure I was dreaming her. Delaney is deaf, scared, and on the run from her uncle. But now that I've found her, I won't let anything hurt her ever again.

Time is the ultimate scarce resource and thus quintessentially a topic for economics, which studies scarcity. Starting with the observation that time is increasingly valuable given competing demands as we have more things we can buy and do, Spending Time provides engaging insights into how people use their time and what determines their decisions about spending their time.

When my best friend, who's away on a mission, asks me to find out why his sister isn't answering her phone, there's no way I can say no. He once saved my life from an attempted suicide. Turns out, Nicole had been too busy with work to replace her phone after it broke. With my band, Pushing Limits, taking a few days off from their biggest tour yet, my helping Nicole around the house seems like the perfect way to spend the break. What I didn't expect was for the chemistry between us to be explosive.

Sure, I'm bored out of my mind at times—boring job, boring dates . . . boring life. But I'm over Nolan Krenshaw. At least . . . I've tried to move on and get over him. When Nolan's career is suddenly on the line, I'm the one he turns to. I tell myself the only reason I'm helping him is so I can officially put him behind me. Of course, it's a lie. He was all I ever wanted, until he broke my heart. This time, I'm not stupid enough to believe that he would ever put me first.

At twenty-one, I had been prepared to give up my dream of touring with a rock band to become a father after getting my ex-girlfriend pregnant. But when she told me she'd gotten an abortion, I was devastated. Now five years later, I bump into her little sister, who I haven't seen since high school, while she's grocery shopping with four-year-old Logan. Sparks flare between Callie and me that didn't exist before. But soon I grow suspicious when I realize her deaf "son" is the same age as my own child would have been.

When I skipped town six years ago to pursue my music career, I wanted to start a new life and escape the memories of my broken family. The one thing I knew I wouldn't be able to forget was Hailey Wilkins—my best friend and the girl I left behind. Now my days are filled with my band's nonstop touring, late-night recording sessions, and eager groupies. But when I hear that Hailey is in a coma, I drop everything to be by her side.

Well . . . for everyone but herself. And lately, it isn't just her dating life that has her fuming in frustration. A misfortune has just landed Gemma without an apartment, so when a chance encounter with a real estate tycoon hands her a shiny new apartment at a price she can afford, Gemma takes it without another thought. It isn't until she is dragged naked from the shower that Gemma finds out this apartment is already taken . . . by the person she hates the most. Knox Rook has met his match.

Marius Winter doesn't walk the road of the shaman-warrior alone. He has powerful allies in the Other Realms and in ordinary reality. His spirit guides are a Lakota war-chief and medicine man, First in Front; Tigre, a powerful feminine spirit who appears as a white tiger; and Burt, a spirit raven who channels an old Jewish bookie from the Bronx. Now, Marius is targeted by a powerful sorcerer. In the battle for the souls of his friends and lover, he must storm the gates of the underworld and fight through the Seven Demi-Demons of Hell to the deepest dungeons to confront Belial himself.

Sometimes, beauty covers a whole lot of ugly. That was one of the many valuable lessons I learned the summer I lived in Creswell Springs with the Angel's Halo MC. They taught me about responsibility and respect—not just for others, but, more importantly, for myself. I liked to think I came home a better person. Someone who wasn't just pretty on the outside anymore. And then I met Zak. Golden eyes. Chiseled jaw. That deep, gravelly voice mixed with a slight Russian accent that did something to me no man ever had before.

Jack Sullivan is a man of few words. His cold emotionless countenance shields any glimpse of the human being within. If he didn't hire me to help his daughter, I'd suspect the man sold his soul for success. He's classically handsome. Confident. Scratch that. He's one cocky mo-fo. Admittedly, I don't have the best track record at picking decent guys, but I'm pretty positive this brooding billionaire with a massive ego is one flashing red warning light.

You can never escape your past. And Zach and Luke Calem are tired of running. With Blackheart in the rearview, they arrive at their new home with The Family in Northern Ireland. Luke tries to stay away from the queen but finds it an impossible task. Leveraging his influence, he keeps the people closest to him safe, yet struggles to reconcile the person he desires to be with the role he must evolve into. Meanwhile, Zach will do anything to keep his brother from falling apart—except confront his own inner demons.

Written by Wall Street Journal best-selling author S. J. Scott, Happier Human provides a detailed examination of the strategies and ideas that actually make people happy. Each idea is supported by a wealth of research into why it works. Plus, it also includes a simple action plan for turning these ideas into permanent habits that people can incorporate into their busy lives.

Zoey Handler is ready to put an end to her decade-long rivalry with Gordon Meyers. They've traded top spot between valedictorian and salutatorian for years, but all that's over now. Right? But after a crazy graduation speech prank gets out of hand, suddenly their rivalry turns into all-out war. Time to make peace with a little friendly payback. Step one? Make him believe they're now friends. Step two? Show him the time of his life at an epic graduation party. Step three? Don't fall for his tricks. Step four? Absolutely, positively, do not kiss him again.