When a perfect new love is shattered, two hearts will do anything to pick up the pieces. In this sizzling novel from the author of Stone Walls, irresistible heat leads to sensual thrills—and a secret that changes everything.

Two years ago, Nick Farley was undercover as a bartender in Chicago. The tough-as-steel FBI agent was working all the angles to build a case against a local crime syndicate, but even his intense focus was no match for the sight of Angela Cavallo’s plump pink lips pulling on her drink. All Nick got was one night—the longest, hottest, sweetest night of his life. It could have been the beginning of something real. But instead, she’d walked away—and Nick had watched her go.

Angela has made some mistakes in her life, but Nick wasn’t one of them. Nor was the baby boy he doesn’t know about. But Angela has been running from a stalker for so long that she’s forgotten how to feel safe. So when Nick suddenly reappears in her life, Angela faces a moment of truth. She wants to trust him and reveal her secrets—her life and that of their son may depend on it—but first she needs to know that Nick can handle her past, and promise her the one thing she most craves: a future together.

***

***

 

A.M. Madden is a USA Today bestselling author, as well as 2016 eLit Gold Medalist for Best Romance Ebook, and 2016 Ippy Award Silver Medalist for Best Romance Ebook.

A.M. is a wife, a mother, an avid reader of romance novels, and now an author.

“It’s all about the HEA.”

A.M. Madden is the author of the popular Back-Up Series, as well as several other contemporary romances. She also writes the True Heroes Series for Random House.

Her debut novel was Back-up, the first in The Back-Up Series. In Back-Up, A.M.’s main character Jack Lair caused readers to swoon. They call themselves #LairLovers, and have been faithful supporters to Jack, as well to the rest of his band, Devil’s Lair.

A.M. truly believes that true love knows no bounds. In her books, she aspires to create fun, sexy, realistic romances that will stay with you after the last page has been turned. She strives to create characters that the reader can relate to and feel as if they know personally.

A self-proclaimed hopeless romantic, she loves getting lost in a good book. She also uses every free moment of her time writing, while spending quality time with her three handsome men. A.M. is a Gemini and an Italian Jersey girl, but despite her Zodiac sign, nationality, or home state, she is very easy going.

She loves the beach, loves to laugh, and loves the idea of love.

A.M. Madden, Independent Romance Author.

http://www.ammadden.com

Copyright © A.M. Madden, Author, All rights reserved.

A.M. Madden is a Goodreads Author and can be contacted on Facebook, twitter, or at am.madden@aol.com

***

 

 Review

I don’t think I’ve ever been more frustrated by one of Bella Jewel’s couples like I was with Danny and Skye. It took them so long to get their shit together and stop fighting what they’ve always wanted to mean to each other and witnessing the pain and heartache they caused one another along the way, only made it worse for everyone involved…not to mention it about sent my iPad flying across the room.

I completely understood where Skye was coming from when she said being an old lady and part of the club terrified her. A lot of shit had gone down lately to make her question whether or not getting in deep with Danny was something she could handle. But she ran away without thinking of the repercussions…without questioning who she really was and how she truly saw her future. Everybody but her could see what Skye was denying, but she had to see it for herself, which cost her to lose a lot of herself and the love that Danny felt for her.

Danny’s not completely blameless in this situation. All he’s known is the biker lifestyle and it’s ingrained in his blood, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but he’s never truly stopped to see things from Skye’s perspective, so even though he’s not the one running scared, he’s pushing Skye away without even realizing how deep her fears go.

The most frustrating part about Danny and Skye’s story is the fact that they thought they could move on and start over with someone else. It didn’t make any sense to me, and it made me question how much they truly loved one another when they denied how they truly felt by having someone else fill a space that would never be anything but empty as long as they kept fighting and drifting apart.

For most of the story, Skye truly doesn’t see or understand where she belongs, but she’s bonded to the club – that lifestyle and all that goes with it defines who she is and it’s a link that will never be broken regardless of how much she thinks she needs it to be in order to be safe…in order to accomplish the things she wants to and see all that the world has to offer.

The kind of love that Danny and Skye share is not something that can instantly fade or be replaced with someone else; both of them were so blinded by the pain they felt from not being chosen by the other one that it led them both astray, but they kept coming back to one another, and even if it only added to the hurt and made things even more confusing, it proved that the soul mate kind of love is one that will never truly accept anyone else but the one it’s chosen from the beginning.

Manacle was an extremely frustrating read for me, but to be able to bring out those kinds of emotions from a reader speaks to Bella Jewel’s writing and character creation. I absolutely love the biker world Jewel constructs and the next generation of biker babes and alpha males continues to enthrall readers just as much as their parents’ stories did.

A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

4 Poison Apples

 

Amped by Tina Reber will be released this summer!

Are you ready for another sexy Trenton Brother?

Add Amped to your TBR at:  http://bit.ly/1TBWDfn

(Blurb to follow at a later date)

 

Teaser excerpt

“Everyone has a demon inside them. That voice of self-loathing, of questioning our purpose and worth. But everything in life has balance. A counterbalance. The light in the darkness. Every breath we take, each choice… We all struggle, Jason.

Every day. You aren’t the only one. But that’s what life is all about. Of counting our blessings. Of seeing the moments of beauty that are right in your face. But you’re too busy feeling sorry for yourself and allowing the cowardice of others to blind you.”

He scoffed. “Cowardice?”

“You think there’s bravery in suicide? Or this slow death of yours? It’s a copout. You want to label yourself as brave, you fight—every second of the day if you have to. You never, ever give up. You fight until the end.”

About the Author

I had my first library card at the age of four. My mom was a part-time librarian at the Coplay Library in Coplay, Pennsylvania for 29 years, where I spent a good portion of my time growing up attending “story hour” every day after school.

I always chose the hot pink colored carpet to sit on to listen to the amazing stories that were read to us and eventually begged my parents to install the same hot pink carpeting in my bedroom. That’s when I learned that “wall to wall” carpeting DIDN’T mean that my walls would be covered in hot pink carpeting too. It was a sad day.

My education and background is in Business Analysis, Corporate Training, Banking, Accounting, and IT Design – but that was just to pay the bills. Creative, artsy stuff – from jewelry design to painting and writing – have always been my passion.

I live a quiet, drama-free life in Pennsylvania with my husband, our nine year old son who is growing like a weed, a Keeshond that sheds like crazy, two very lively mini Schnauzer puppies, and an Eclectus Parrot who thinks he’s a dog and mommy’s boyfriend – named Percy.

 

COVER REVEAL

COAST (Kick Push 2) – by Jay McLean

Series: The Road #3, Kick Push #2

Cover reveal date: May 23, 2016

Release Date: June 7, 2016

BLURB

One life-changing summer.

One boy.

The boy.

The boy who offered me safe touches and heart-stopping smiles – smiles he shared with his son.

We filled our days with porch-step kisses,

filled our ears with laughter,

filled our hearts with love.

Deep, soul-aching, desperate love.

But love is misleading.

It’s an invisible, fleeting moment.

Somewhere between false adoration and pure hatred comes an emotion, a vulnerable need, a single desire.

It lives within the ones who miss it, who crave it,

who know better than to expect it.

Love is relentless.

Even when that love turns to hate, turns to loathing,

turns to pain.

Love should heal you.

But it can also break you.

Believe me, I know…

Because I’m Becca Owens – a broken girl…

…And he’s Josh Warden – the boy who broke me.

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PREORDER LINKS

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ALSO AVAILABLE IN THIS SERIES

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AUTHOR BIO

Jay is an avid reader, writer, and most of all, procrastinator. When she’s not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, or devouring some tacky reality TV show. She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her smile, make her hurt, and make her feel. For publishing rights (Foreign & Domestic) Film, or television, please contact her agent, Erica Spellman-Silverman, at Trident Media Group.

AUTHOR LINKS Facebook | Fan Group | Web | Twitter | Instagram | Newsletter

GIVEAWAY 

$50 Amazon Gift Card

http://gvwy.io/27eo9s7

From New York Times Bestselling author Tessa Bailey comes the first novel in her hot, new Romancing the Clarksons Series.

When Rita Clarkson’s Suburban takes its last breath on a New Mexico roadside, rescue roars up on a Harley in the form of smooth-talking honkey tonk owner, Jasper Ellis, a man as mysterious as he is charming. Rita’s cross-country journey to New York City–with her three estranged siblings in tow–is only beginning, but now that Jasper has found Rita, his plans do not include her leaving.

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When rescue looks like a whole lot of trouble . . .

The road trip was definitely a bad idea. Having already flambéed her culinary career beyond recognition, Rita Clarkson is now stranded in God-Knows-Where, New Mexico, with a busted-ass car and her three temperamental siblings, who she hasn’t seen in years. When rescue shows up—six-feet-plus of hot, charming sex on a motorcycle—Rita’s pretty certain she’s gone from the frying pan right into the fire . . .

Jasper Ellis has a bad boy reputation in this town, and he loathes it. The moment he sees Rita, though, Jasper knows he’s about to be sorely tempted. There’s something real between them. Something raw. And Jasper has only a few days to show Rita that he isn’t just for tonight—he’s forever.

Review

I absolutely love the premise of Tessa Bailey’s new series Romancing the Clarksons.  It spotlights two pivotal storylines at the same time, one dealing with family bonds and the other focused on a love story between one of the family members and his/her love interest, intersecting the plot lines in a way that they feed off of each other and also allowing their separation by the end of the story because enough progress has been made in both areas to promote a new sibling to take the helm for his/her story and continue to strengthen the once disconnected relationship of the 4 Clarksons children.

Too Hot To Handle is the first in the series, and it’s responsible for bringing the Clarksons together as well as setting Rita Clarkson on her new path, providing a fresh start for both her and her potential suitor, Jasper Ellis. Both characters feel like they’ve never measured up to expectations; in fact, both feel like absolute failures because Rita’s career as a chef has all but burnt out and Jasper’s seen as “Hurley’s resident tramp,” only able to provide women with a good time but not worth anything more than an orgasm because he’s incapable of anything else.

The Clarksons’ journey cross country from California to New York was set in motion by their late mother’s last wishes in hopes that her children would crash together once again in a way that lasts and provides them all with a new perspective on their lives and the choices they make, and even though the beginning of their journey is filled with tension, anger, and drama, it’s also created a path for the siblings to get to know who one another is now and who they hope to be in the future.

Rita and Jasper meet by chance, but their attraction is palpable from the start, and even though Hurley wasn’t supposed to be a stop of the family’s trip to New York, fate, or their mother, intervened and in the short amount of time Rita spends with Jasper forces them both to take stock of who they are and what they want and then find the courage to go after it.

Like I said at the beginning of my review, the overall scope of the series intrigued me from the start, but the interaction between characters and the introspective look into who the characters truly are and the reasons behind their personalities and actions fell a bit short for me. I don’t know if it had to do with the fact that the story is written in third person, which for the most part I don’t mind as long as I truly feel the characters are clearly shown to me, or if Tessa Bailey’s objective is to slowly reveal the characters’ pasts, and why the Clarksons all went their separate ways all those years ago, but I found the storyline dragging at times, and other times, I really couldn’t get a sense of why the characters acted and felt the way they did.

The dynamics between Rita and Jasper did work for me for most of the story, and I’m totally fine with insta love connections, but where I felt tripped up a bit was how quickly it became all about their sexual chemistry and interactions after Jasper was trying so hard to prove he was worth more than a good time. I get that he’s a man and that Rita was quite persuasive, but I guess I just wanted them to both realize their worth before allowing their bodies to take over.

Just because I wasn’t completely sold on Too Hot To Handle doesn’t mean I won’t continue with the series because I feel pretty invested in what’s going to happen to the Clarkson siblings, especially since readers are only given small glimpses into what’s going on in their lives.

I’m most intrigued to find out what makes Belmont the man he is and what that means for any possible relationship Bailey puts in his path.

A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

3/3.5 Poison Apples

Excerpt

“So, you see, Jasper? Just because we have one more day…”

Yeah, that was his cue to move. He let the school acceptance letter flutter to the nightstand and went to stand in front of Rita. “Yeah, I heard. You’re leaving. But I need to straighten something out right now.” He took hold of her hair, winding it around his fists. The position put her at eye level with his lap, which was exactly where he needed her to be, in a minute. But just then he kept her head tilted back, needing those eyes up. “Don’t you need me back? Did you actually ask me that, Rita?”

“Hard to tell,” she whispered, her lips appearing stiff.

“That right?” Keeping one hand twisted in Rita’s hair, Jasper unzipped his jeans with the other. “Would you like a clear answer?”

Her nod was subtle, thanks to his hold, but her parted lips and stained cheeks gave him the answer before she spoke it out loud. “Yes.”

His dick was almost embarrassingly engorged as he took it out of the restraining denim. His growl of agony snapped Rita’s spine straight on the bed, those big eyes riveted on the swollen, aching wet-tipped flesh he presented. And damn if a little more fluid didn’t seep out at her awed reaction. “Still hard to tell if I want to bang you, Rita?”

“No,” she breathed.

“No, it ain’t,” Jasper rasped. “It’s pretty obvious I want to strip you naked, fuck you mindless, and leave you whimpering in a pile of sweaty sheets, no idea if you want round two or a week to recover. Isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“Good, beautiful. As long we’re on the same page.”

Pretty sure he would die from the agony of stuffing his turgid cock back into the jeans, Jasper managed the feat, nonetheless. Not without a few pained groans, however. Rita was staring up at him in total shock from her position on the bed’s edge, which he half loved, half detested. They’d learned a lot about one another tonight, but he appeared to have overshadowed some of that progress with his naughty presentation. Best to get an agreement out of her before she wondered who the hell she’d let walk into her motel room.

Jasper crouched down with a grimace to plant a kiss on Rita’s mouth. “Now, I’m going to see you tomorrow, Rita. Whether you come to me or I show up here, that’s your call, beautiful.” Another, slower, wetter kiss that made him ponder the merits of standing back up and seeing if Rita would unfasten his jeans again and give that same kiss to his cock. That’s your cue to leave, man. “It’ll be early in the morning when I come looking. Or when you show up.” He gripped his erection. “Either way, I’ll still have a nasty need to come in Rita’s name.”

About Tessa Bailey

Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans and laptop, driving cross-country to New York City in under four days.

Her most valuable life experiences were learned thereafter while waitressing at K-Dees, a Manhattan pub owned by her uncle. Inside those four walls, she met her husband, best friend and discovered the magic of classic rock, managing to put herself through Kingsborough Community College and the English program at Pace University at the same time. Several stunted attempts to enter the work force as a journalist followed, but romance writing continued to demand her attention.

She now lives in Long Island, New York with her husband of eight years and four-year-old daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.

Website ** Facebook ** Twitter ** Goodreads

 

 

 

Excerpt

ARE YOU READY TO RAGE?

“What you don’t seem to understand is all that matters right now is standing right fucking here,” Nolan said, his voice thick and deep. His eyes were the darkest I’d ever seen them, glimmering with wicked intent. One side of his full lips curled upward in a devilish smirk. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. I was consumed by him. Or at least, from the way he continued to fuck me with his eyes, I knew I was about to be.

Nolan took a step forward and I took two back. Our little dance made him chuckle, the sound coming from deep within his throat. With just that little laugh my insides clenched so hard I gasped. Nolan’s smirk grew into a knowing smile. His eyes darted to the space between my legs where my shorts had ridden up, exposing every inch of my shaking thighs.

He licked his bottom lip, tracing it with the tip of his tongue. My inner battle raged on between wanting to run away from him, and wanting to run straight into him. Although, it wasn’t like it mattered which option won out in the end. The pier was narrow, and Nolan was blocking my only way out.

He reached down and unbuckled his belt, sliding it out through the loops. Folding it in half, he snapped the leather together. The sound an echoing crack through the damp night air.

Our dance continued as he took another step toward me and I again retreated. “Since you don’t seem to feel the same way, let me tell you what’s going to happen right now,” Nolan started.

“I’m going to make you come on my fingers.” Step. “On my tongue.” Step. “And around my cock.” His last step closed the space between us. My back hit the railing, trapping me between the end of the pier and his hard wall of a chest. My breathing became even more labored, my chest rising and falling in quick succession against his. Pressing against my stomach I could feel the heat of his hard cock through the worn fabric of his jeans. My nipples hardened as the ache in my core grew into need. “I’m going to fuck you. Hard. And I’m not going to stop fucking you until you realize that this shit between us is all that matters.”

That’s when I realized there would be no escaping this time.

From him.

From this.

From us.

Are you ready to meet Rage?

All the Rage is a Stand Alone Book

Pre Order All the Rage by T.M. Frazier for a June 7th release exclusively on iBooks!

All the Rage: http://apple.co/1YJhg9B

Blurb

They call me Rage.

My real name is like a shadow, always close behind, but never quite able to catch up.

I fly under the radar because no one ever suspects I m capable of the kind of brutal violence I commit each and every day.

You see, I m a girl. I m nineteen.

And I’m a killer.

This life is all I know. It s all I want to know. It keeps the s**t buried that I need kept buried. It allows me to live without thinking too much.

Without dwelling on the past.

Until him.

It all changes when an ordinary boy becomes my next target.

And my first love.

I have to choose.

The only life I’ve ever known has to die, or he does.

Either way, I’ll be the one pulling the trigger…

All the Rage is a STANDALONE

About the Author

T.M. (Tracey Marie) Frazier resides in sunny Southwest Florida with her husband and three feisty fur kids.

She attended Florida Gulf Coast University where she specialized in public speaking. After years working in real estate and new home construction, she decided it was finally time to stop pushing her dreams to the back burner and pursue writing seriously.

In the third grade she wrote her very first story about a lost hamster. It earned rave reviews from both her teacher and her parents.

It only took her twenty years to start the next one.

It will not be about hamsters.

Stalk Her: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Goodreads.

Dax and Beck are LIVE!!!!
Go ahead and one-click.

myBook.to/ohg-amzn
http://mc-author.com/ohg-apple
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http://mc-author.com/ohg-google
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When there’s no peace after war…
When there’s no solace after death…
When there’s only pain and suffering…
Anxiety and loss…
All you can hope to find is something more…
Something that makes you whole and complete
Something that puts you
On Higher Ground

Review

Protect. Heal. Love. Belong.

These are the guiding principles that have allowed Beck and Dax, despite everything that has happened to them, to create a life together…to heal some of the fractures that their respective pasts created…to chase some of the demons away and feel a sense of coming home with every embrace, every kind word.

But, even though Beck and Dax are now on solid ground, there’s still work to be done; there’s still hurts to be healed and fears to be handled. A sense of belonging and a sense of family is what brought Beck and Dax together, and those same ideas will sustain them as long as they communicate and push back at each other when one of them shuts down or the memories become too much to bear alone.

Melissa Collins has taken her readers on quite the journey with Beck, Dax, and Violet. There were times in the first book where I couldn’t fathom how they could wade through all of the misery and darkness that plagued them in order to make it out okay and together. But Collins created strong and courageous alpha males who refused to give up the fight even when the struggle seemed far too great, and those characteristics continue to be at the forefront in their follow up story as they “figure out their pasts” in order to “chase their futures.”

I loved that Collins continued Beck and Dax’s story, and in On Higher Ground, readers witness how solid the bond is between these two men, and even though there are hurdles to work through, there was never a doubt in my mind that they would fight tooth and nail, against each other’s self-loathing and doubts in order to have the future they want – one where they’re a family with their sugar pop, their friends, and even a few people they never saw coming.

You and I, we’re not tied to the ground

Not falling but rising like rolling around

Eyes closed above the rooftops

Eyes closed, we’re gonna spin through the stars

Our arms wide as the sky

We gonna ride the blue all the way to the end of the world

To the end of the world

Dax and Beck, both personally and as a couple, have been through hell and back, and while they still bear the scars and the burdens of the past, they found a way to stand strong and walk through the chaos and the devastation together, creating a united front that allows them to have a solid foundation and the determination to soar even higher.

Melissa Collins continues to consume with her fantastic storytelling and complex characters. Beck and Dax aren’t perfect; in fact, their flaws are a point of contention on numerous occasions throughout their story, but Collins beautifully illustrates, through every touch, every gentle/strong word, every sexual embrace, how and why they belong to one another and why that regardless of how many times things fall apart, they will always “pick up the pieces and rebuild it stronger than before.”

A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 Poison Apples

 

AND DON’T FORGET… ON SOLID GROUND IS ON SALE!

On Solid Ground is where it all began, and you can start today for only 99 pennies!

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***GIVEAWAY***

We have an awesome Amazon Kindle Fire to giveaway!

Some of my author friends have also donated ebooks to the winner!

All you have to do to enter is go to this blog post! GOOD LUCK!

***The giveaway is open to US residents only. If you enter and win and are not a US resident, your prize will be forfeited.

 

A heart-wrenching new military romance from USA TODAY bestselling author Carmen Jenner.

Available exclusively on Amazon and KU

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1TgTU7v

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1TiqZDz

Amazon CA: http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01FOQJ780

Amazon AU:  http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01FOQJ780

Blurb

Jake Tucker is broken. At twenty-two, he went into the Marine Corps a naïve, troubled youth. Nine years and four tours later, Jake finds himself back on US soil, though his mind remains firmly planted in the sands of Afghanistan with the men he left behind.

Wounded, chewed up and spat out by war, Jake has only his dog, Nuke, PTSD, and survivor’s guilt to keep him company. He’s lived every day for nine years wondering when it will be his last, but there’s little comfort in the fact that he’s still standing when his platoon isn’t.

Ellie Mason doesn’t have time for broken. She’s too busy trying to put food on the table. And keeping up with the demands of her autistic son, Spencer, is sometimes like fighting behind enemy lines. As if navigating the minefields of single parenthood isn’t enough, Ellie finds herself drawn to the quiet Marine who’s just as lonely as she is. But she’s loved damaged men before, and it left her wounded.

Set against the picturesque backdrop of Fairhope, Alabama, Ellie and Jake find themselves running toward the sound of chaos.

Love is war.

Only the strong survive, and surrender is inevitable.

Excerpt

“You been drinkin’, Jake?” Obviously, I already know the answer, but I ask anyway because I need to get him talkin’. I don’t like the way his eyes seem to look right through me.

The corners of his mouth turn up in a bitter grin. “Yeah, I been drinkin’.”

I pick up the bottles of pills strewn all over the floor and set them on the counter. “How many of these did you take?” I snap.

“None.”

I discard the pills in the trash because they wouldn’t do no good after they’ve been rollin’ around in glass. “You shouldn’t drink when you’re on meds.”

“It don’t fuckin’ matter anymore.”

I snap my gaze back to his and grit my teeth. “It matters to me.”

“Why?”

“Because I care about you,” I say. “We care about you.”

His eyes get all squinty and he slurs, “You don’t even know me.”

“Is that what you think?” I snap, losing all patience with him. “That I don’t know the man I’ve been letting into my house? I know you, and the Jake Tucker I know—the Jake Spencer knows—is not this Jake.”

He smiles that twisted grin again, and so help me, I’ve never wanted to put my hands on a person in anger so much in my life. I want to slap that smirk right off his beautiful face.

“Maybe this is the real Jake; maybe I’m just another asshole you hardly know tryin’ to get in your panties.”

I stare at him in shock, and I won’t lie, it takes a moment to recover, but like any southern woman worth her salt, I’m a master in the art of backhanded compliments and southern charm. “Then you clearly ain’t as smart as I thought you were, ’cause this Jake? He don’t stand a chance of getting anywhere near my panties, but the other may have. Looks like now we’ll never know.” His cocky smile falters. “Now, stop feeling sorry for yourself and get up.”

He laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “What do you know about it? You can’t even see what’s right in front of you.”

“Oh I see it,” I huff. “I’m real familiar with how mean a bottle of Johnnie Walker can make a man.”

“That the reason you never talk about why Spencer’s daddy ain’t around?”

“Yeah, that’s the reason,” I say folding my arms over my chest. “Because, it’s a long painful road that I walked away from and one that I don’t wanna have to revisit. And considering where you been, Jake Tucker, I thought you might know something about that.”

“What’s his name?”

“It don’t matter.”

“It matters,” he says through his teeth. “Believe me, it matters.”

“Why? You gonna go to Charleston, find him, and beat the crap outta him for hurtin’ me? The best thing you can do for me is to not become him.” I take a deep breath and wonder why we’re talkin’ about me at all when there’s clearly more important things going on right here. “Why didn’t you show up at my house yesterday? And why are you drinking in the middle of the day?”

“Day, night, it don’t matter. The nightmares don’t stop unless I’m three fuckin’ sheets to the wind.”

I sigh and grab the washcloth from a rack. Running warm water over it, I wring out the excess and crouch down to his level. “Give me your hand.” He shakes his head. “Give me your goddamn hand, Jake.”

He doesn’t extend it out to me, but he doesn’t pull away either when I grab his forearm. I get a good glimpse of the damage he’s done. He don’t need stitches, far as I can tell.

I gently start wiping at the mess and get to my feet a few times to rinse out the washcloth. As the blood is washed away, his scars become more pronounced. This is the first time I’m seeing him in a shirt that doesn’t have long sleeves. It makes me want to cry because his skin is a patchwork of pain. It tells a story of hate and unimaginable cruelty, but there is splendor in it, too. There’s a tale of courage, survival, immeasurable strength, and beauty in the face of such ugliness. They tried to destroy him, and they failed.

I trace my finger over the deepest scar on his forearm and blink back tears. Jake’s whole body stiffens. I decide it’s best not to push him any further by touching him again, but that don’t mean I’m going to go easy on him either. “So, you got any rubbing alcohol? Or did you drink that too?”

Excerpt

“Why haven’t you found a woman to love yet, Jake?”

I stiffen. Her question catches me off guard. I don’t know how to reply to that. I have found someone, but she deserves better than to spend her life with a freak.

“I like being alone.” That was a lie. “Who in their right mind would have me?” is what I want to say, but I don’t. I don’t tell her how much I loathe myself, or that I wish I was dead, or that at night I lie awake wondering if this was part of Aasif Bashir’s plan in disfiguring me—that he’d hoped that one day I’d roam the earth a free man and yet never know the freedom of a woman’s touch again.

I don’t tell her that I hate being alone because I can never shut off the voices or quiet the sounds of war that ring in my ear long after the dust has settled and the blood has dried. I attempt to fill the void with distractions: Nuke, Ellie, Spencer, pouring myself into something physical until my limbs shake from misuse, but it doesn’t mask the stillness. That’s always waiting for the moment I shut everything off. And it never becomes any less haunting.

“I hate it,” she says, as if she’s echoing my thoughts. “Being alone. When you climb into bed and everything’s so still you could hear a pin drop? There’s something in that silence that screams all my greatest fears.”

“What are they?” I say, too quickly.

“My fears?” she asks with a sigh. “That I’ll be alone forever. That Spence will grow up and leave like all kids do, or that he’ll enlist and my life will be filled with endless days and nights of that sound. Of nothing.”

I feel like she just cracked open my skull and pulled the words from my head, but two hearts as lonely as ours? Well, that’s a dangerous thing. Deep down I know as much as she does that I’m no good for her, and yet I’m still too selfish to push her away.

“You shouldn’t be alone,” I whisper.

“Neither should you.” She leans back into my embrace, and I kiss the top of her hair because I never dreamed I’d be lucky enough to do that again to any woman, let alone to this angel who came crashing into my life and made all the pain that came before her seem worth it.

I survived war, I survived torture at the hands of the Taliban, but I won’t survive Ellie Mason, not with my heart still intact.

About the Author

Carmen Jenner is a thirty-something, USA TODAY and international bestselling author.

Her dark romance, KICK (Savage Saints MC #1), won Best Dark Romance Read in the Reader’s Choice Awards at RWDU 2015.

A tattoo enthusiast, hardcore lipstick addict and zombie fangirl, Carmen lives on the sunny north coast of New South Wales, Australia, where she spends her time indoors wrangling her two wildling children, a dog named Pikelet, and her very own man-child.

A romantic at heart, Carmen strives to give her characters the HEA they deserve, but not before ruining their lives completely first … because what’s a happily ever after without a little torture?

Stalk Her: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Published titles to date:

Welcome to Sugartown (Sugartown Series #1)

Enjoy Your Stay (Sugartown Series #2)

Greetings from Sugartown (Sugartown Series #3)

Now Leaving Sugartown (Sugartown Series #4)

REVELRY (Taint #1)

KICK (Savage Saints MC #1)

TANK (Savage Saints MC #2)

Finding North