Description: 18+
Shunned by her family back home, she followed her best friend to New York with aspirations to start over. Now broke and homeless with two guys vying for her affection, she realizes she made a colossal mistake. If she gives in to her desires, will she only be breaking the rule she set for herself, or will she also be proving she’s the disappointment her family sees her as?
Kelly Cavenaugh is a lot of things: intelligent, sexy, vivacious, and a great friend. But the one thing she’s determined to prove to herself and others is that she’s not promiscuous. So why do a spoiled rich boy with a dark past and a former Marine with a high-powered job have to come along and try to break her resolve?
Theo Roberts and Erik Murphy only have two things in common: they’re both dangerously gorgeous, and have their sights set on Kelly. Everyone tells her Erik isn’t someone she wants to get involved with, however, and Theo seems to be the total package. If Kelly allows herself to be with one of them, the choice should be easy. But it’s complicated, and she’ll find herself struggling to separate passion from reality while trying to establish her new life.
She's ready to give up on life, hiding her depression with sarcasm and booze. He's got a secret and quit college, with few friends to lean on. When they discover each other, the sexual attraction is undeniable. So why does it seem impossible for them to be together?
Everyone wanted to be Jewels Peterson in high school. Naturally beautiful, exceptionally smart, talented cheerleader, life of the party, and with an All-American boyfriend to boot. One regrettable choice and fatal accident later, and Jewels found herself unceremoniously knocked off her pedestal. Now she’s in college, going through the motions, but not really living.
Adam Murphy is easy-going, charming, considerate, and crazy good looking; he’s exactly the kind of guy Jewels pictures herself being happy with. But Jewels is already involved with someone, and Adam makes it known that he’s guarding a dark secret, one that makes him the wrong guy for her. Trumped by the promise of an innocent friendship, Jewels is forced to ignore her overwhelming hunger for Adam.
After Jewels unknowingly helps Adam create a bucket list, they embark on the adventure of a lifetime that pushes their platonic relationship to its limits. But does she want to be with Adam without knowing the truth behind the skeletons in his closet, or is being with him just another pointless thing in her life?
EXCERPT
“Taking a break already?” Theo asks from the doorway. “Afraid to break a sweat, Cavenaugh?”
Surprised by his sudden presence, I let out a quiet gasp. His dark, deeply set eyebrows looming over his hazel eyes always have a way of turning my insides to pudding. I’m not usually one to fall for a guy with a military-like haircut, and I really don’t get why Theo keeps it up considering he’s moved on from the Marines to the entertainment world. Still his sculpted mouth and sharp jaw highlighting his square face makes the look actually rather fitting.
When I saw him standing on the steps to the brownstone my first day in the city, I thought Jewels and Adam had changed their mind about hiring a moving company, because he’s so well built that I’m sure he could move a couch with the strength of his pinky. Then I realized he’s the guy I’d seen in pictures with Jewels and Adam from their trip to New York at the beginning of summer. The fact that he can volley back and forth with me without batting his dark eyelashes makes him even hotter. I’ve always considered it to be a good sign of character when a guy can keep up with my sarcasm.
I sigh under my breath. Why is my best friend always surrounded by crazy hot guys? I mean, I get that she’s a natural knockout, and she’s fun to hang around because she’s funny and sincerely cares about her friends. I get that hot guys are naturally drawn to her, but the sight of Theo’s bulging muscular arms does things to my sexual desires that should be considered indecent in public. Jewels told me she once “caught” him naked, and said that his entire body could be declared a national treasure. I lick my lips when I try to picture whatever it was that she saw.
Theo regards me with the same hot desire, one of his dark eyebrows raised. “You okay? You need...something?”
Although we’ve been alone for a minute or two before, I’m hyper-aware that we’re standing in the romantic backyard Adam created for Jewels. The private, romantic backyard where anything could happen, and the neighbors wouldn’t see. Feeling an excited pang down below, I shift my legs.
Theo’s exactly the kind of guy I should be avoiding: the self-absorbed type who works out for show, and goes through women the way I once went through men—enjoy and discard. The last time I fell for someone like him, it started the downward spiral that landed me here.
I’m not here to have sex. I’m not here to have sex. I’m not here to have sex.
Yeah, right. No matter how many times I chant the mantra, I can’t shake the image of mounting the insanely hot, former soldier-turned-television producer. The Marine Corps symbol tattooed on his calf muscle makes me wonder if there are more tattoos on his body that I could explore. With my tongue.
“Don’t you have some cars to bench or something?” I ask, irritated by his relentless ability to turn me on.
He grins, his eyes smoldering. [...]
I lick my lips again, feeling the onset of a panic attack. This is new, incredibly dangerous territory. I’m well accustomed to guys wanting to get it on with me, even some who were as delicious as Theo, but those days are over. So how in the hell do I say no to an offer like that?
About the author:
Jennifer Ann is the pen name used by Jen Naumann for NA romance novels. When Jen isn't writing heart wrenching romance novels with hot scenes or young adult paranormal, she's either chasing her children around southern Minnesota, has her nose stuck in someone else's book, is curled up watching a movie, can be found taking pictures of other people (not in a creepy way), or is rocking out at a concert.
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