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    • 3 Stars
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FIX HER UP (HOT AND HAMMERED #1) by TESSA BAILEY

June 10, 2019

 

ABOUT THE BOOK:

 

Georgette Castle’s family runs the best home renovation business in town, but she picked balloons instead of blueprints and they haven’t taken her seriously since. Frankly, she’s over it. Georgie loves planning children’s birthday parties and making people laugh, just not at her own expense. She’s determined to fix herself up into a Woman of the World… whatever that means.

Phase one: new framework for her business (a website from this decade, perhaps?)

Phase two: a gut-reno on her wardrobe (fyi, leggings are pants.)

Phase three: updates to her exterior (do people still wax?)

Phase four: put herself on the market (and stop crushing on Travis Ford!)

Living her best life means facing the truth: Georgie hasn’t been on a date since, well, ever. Nobody’s asking the town clown out for a night of hot sex, that’s for sure. Maybe if people think she’s having a steamy love affair, they’ll acknowledge she’s not just the “little sister” who paints faces for a living. And who better to help demolish that image than the resident sports star and tabloid favorite?

Travis Ford was major league baseball’s hottest rookie when an injury ended his career. Now he’s flipping houses to keep busy and trying to forget his glory days. But he can’t even cross the street without someone recapping his greatest hits. Or making a joke about his… bat. And then there’s Georgie, his best friend’s sister, who is not a kid anymore. When she proposes a wild scheme—that they pretend to date, to shock her family and help him land a new job—he agrees. What’s the harm? It’s not like it’s real. But the girl Travis used to tease is now a funny, full-of-life woman and there’s nothing fake about how much he wants her…

 

MY REVIEW:

 

Romantic comedies are very difficult to pull off but Tessa Bailey works her magic again in ‘Fix Her Up’! With a mix of her trademark heat and smart banter, this book was pure enjoyment from start to finish. Light, funny, verrra sexy and with surprising depth, this was one of the best romantic comedies I have read in a while.

This book features the fake-dating trope done right. Georgie has had a crush on her older’s brother’s friend Travis for years. Travis is back in his hometown after suffering an injury which ended his professional baseball career. He might have a shot at a sports commentator job if he can only get rid of his wild playboy image. Georgie and Travis have amazing chemistry but she doesn’t think she has any real chance with him.. She’ll always be just a kid to him.

“I’ve seen naked men. Tons of them.” On the internet, God bless it. “You used to be a nine point five, but you’re slowly bottoming–ha into a seven.”

“Really? Because I can feel you staring at my ass.”

“Oops. I thought that was your face.”

If you have read any Tessa Bailey then you know she writes some very dirty-talking Alpha males and Travis is no exception. OMG!! But the characters are all very well-written and the romance between Georgie and Travis is a slow-burn. This novel has a solid story and I loved all of the supporting characters. Romantic comedies are difficult to write well but ‘Fix Her Up’ is fresh and sexy and very funny.

“I’m going to take a shower, all right?” He ran his fingers along the curve of her shoulder, pressing a thumb to the side of her neck and massaging. “I’m going to feed you before I introduce you to God.”

I also adore this cover! Sometimes you just need a fun and light adult romance and this book fits the bill to a “T”. Happy reading!

(ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

Categories : 4 Stars, Contemporary Romance, Reviews, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Sports Romance Tagged : Fix Her Up, Hot and Hammered, Tessa Bailey

CAPTIVATED by TESSA BAILEY and EVE DANGERFIELD

June 22, 2018

 

Title: Captivated
Authors: Tessa Bailey & Eve Dangerfield
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 11, 2018
Synopsis

Secret aspiring comedian Autumn Reynolds is a girl gone…not wild exactly. More like lazy. Since her boyfriend abandoned her in New York City for a bunch of improv groupies she’s had two priorities; sucking the nitrous out of whipped cream cans and making sex comics about her mysterious landlord.


Blake hates people—and sunlight—with good reason. Imagine his surprise when he finds himself lusting after his upstairs tenant, a sunny, Australian people pleaser down on her luck. Turns out his ability to terrify with a single scowl comes with an advantage. Autumn seems to like it. A lot. As evidenced by the prisoner-captive comic Blake was never meant to see.  


As they embark on a three-date arrangement the rules are clear; filthy, ground breaking sex, no feelings or commitment required. When chemistry is this strong, though, attachment follows. As Blake and Autumn attempt to negotiate their New York romance, their prior histories and secret dreams come to the foreground. How long can these polar opposites remain Captivated, when all signs point to disaster?

 

ADD TO GOODREADS
Purchase Links
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS

 

 

 

 

My Review:

Not sure I’ve read a dirtier or funnier book! Loved it! This writing duo can’t be beat.

I literally laughed my way through this fun, sweet, SEXXXY and warm-hearted story from beginning to end. Autumn is an Australian living in New York City. She followed her former boyfriend there as he tried to chase his dreams of becoming an improv comedian. They break up and she plans to move back home once her work visa expires.

Except that she has some serious fantasies about her big, silent, brooding beast of a landlord. Blake stays cooped up in his apartment and hates people. He is the complete opposite of Autumn: she is funny and outgoing and genuinely likes helping people while he is quiet and can’t be bothered having a civil conversation with anyone. In other words, he is a swoony, sexy hero and he wants to do very bad things to Autumn! Oh, and did mention he also restores old books? Yep. The perfect hero.

Blake’s limp, combined with his abnormal size, made navigating the cluttered apartment difficult. He’d watched in stunned silence, though, as Autumn moved gracefully in front of him, toeing items out of his path, silently making things easier for him. Caring for a stranger without thinking, or asking to be acknowledged. It had annoyed the living shit out of him. Where did this girl get off giving him the assistance he didn’t ask for?

In one of the most awkward introductions ever, Autumn accidentally writes a note to Blake on the back of a porno drawing she created featuring herself and…Blake! The drawing illustrates her deepest fantasies and once Blake sees it, he cannot stop thinking about Autumn.

She turned to him, her eyes the size of hubcaps. “I’m having a Beauty and The Beast moment.” “I suppose that makes me the beast.”

“No.” Autumn laid a hand on Blake’s arm and he held his breath. “No, of course not,” she said. “You’re actually… that is to say… I don’t just go drawing myself tied up for any old landlord, you know?”

Turns out they both share the same fantasy but before they begin their role play, Blake asks to take Autumn on three regular dates so they can get to know each other. He does not want to scare her – his size alone is intimidating! – and so begins the sexy times.

He pulled her flush against him and it was unlike anything she’d ever felt before. Ian was taller than her, pretty much everyone was taller than her, but Blake was enormous. Being held by him was like being held in a cage, a gentle, living cage. With another man it might have felt oppressive, but as Blake kissed her deeply, all she felt was warm and safe and turned the fuck on.

Everything in this book is 100% consensual. I loved the premise of this book and I ADORED Autumn! Funny, smart and exuberant, she was a true original. And Blake: damaged, smart and sexy, he is one of the sexiest heroes ever created by Ms. Tessa Bailey! These two authors tougher are pure gold.

As she drank her drink in that same companionable silence, she realized it didn’t matter because what he said paled in contrast to what he did. He’d taken her to a five-star restaurant, asked her about comedy and come to her workplace to apologize for being a cocklord in person. Those things talked. They said he thought she was special, interesting and worthy of his time. Their sex spoke, too. The connection between their bodies was so fluent, it could have served as a UN interpreter.

‘Captivated’ is a totally kinky but very sweet book that was an absolute pleasure to read! If you aren’t familiar with Eve Dangerfield, give her books a try. They are fantastic.

Love isn’t just saying words, Autumn thought. What we feel is real.

 

 

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 ten years and
six-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
INSTAGRAM
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
GOODREADS
Eve Dangerfield
Eve Dangerfield has loved romance novels since she first started swiping her grandmother’s paperbacks. Now she writes her own sexy tales about complex women and gorgeous-but-slightly-tortured men. Her work has been described as ‘the defibrillator contemporary romance needs right now,’ and not by herself, or even her mum, but by OTHER PEOPLE.

 

 
Eve lives in Melbourne with her boy, a bunch of semi-dead plants and a rabbit named Billy. When she’s not writing she can be found making a mess.

 

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GOODREADS
AMAZON

Categories : 4 Stars, Contemporary Romance, Reviews, Romantic Comedy Tagged : Captivated, Eve Dangerfield, Tessa Bailey

GETAWAY GIRL by TESSA BAILEY

March 28, 2018

Title: Getaway Girl
Author: Tessa Bailey
Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: March 26, 2018

Blurb

This unlikely
getaway driver never expected to help
the mayor escape…
After a six-year
absence, Addison Potts is back in Charleston to stir things up. And what better
place to make her villainous return than her estranged cousin’s wedding? Only,
the nuptials hit a snag when the bride doesn’t show, leaving Addison to play getaway
driver for the jilted groom. A groom whose heartbreaking smile and deep,
southern drawl she should not be noticing…
Elijah Montgomery Du
Pont is the future mayor of Charleston. From his military career to city hall,
every detail of his life has been meticulously planned. Until now. His only
respite from life’s sudden upheaval is Addison, his new, improbable best
friend. She makes him happy. Grounds him. And public disapproval be damned,
he’s not willing to give her up. But with an election on the line and public
pressure rising, Addison—and the cruel hand of fate—might not give him a
choice.

ADD TO GOODREADS
Purchase Links
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS

Excerpt
“Well…” I
stop to clear the rasp from my voice. “If there’s no picture of us together, we
should take one.”
“Good
idea.” He crooks his finger at me, unwittingly sealing his fate. “Come here.”
I put my
jacket on downstairs when I thought we were leaving, but I take it off now,
simply letting it fall. “I want you in the mayor’s chair.”
His eyes
stray to my pooled jacket, then tick to mine. “You what?”
“In the
picture. I want you sitting in the chair.”
“Oh.
Right.” He slides out the brown leather, high-back executive chair and drops
into it. “What about you?”
My bravery
slips. Whose wouldn’t? This powerful, gorgeous man sits before me, outlined by
the city he’s been elected to run. His thighs are thicker than my waist, his
sleeves caught up around his elbows. A strong man. A man of conviction who will
not be seduced unless he really wants to be.
Or is driven
out of his mind and can’t resist.
Before I
can second-guess myself, I move between his outstretched thighs and ease myself
onto his lap. “Addison.”
I send him
an innocent look over my shoulder. “Yes, Captain?”
His chest
rises and falls. Once. Twice. “Take the picture.”
The fact
that I’m playing with fire stops psyching me out…and begins to excite me. Maybe
it’s the gravel in his tone…or the big fists that come to rest on the desk.
No…it’s definitely the way he presses his nose to my hair and inhales. As if
I’m not going to notice. But I do. I do and it makes me braver. Makes me throb
between my legs.
“The
picture, Addison.”
“Sorry.” I
lean across the desk where I set my purse, taking my time digging through to
find my cell before pulling it out, searching for the camera app. All the
while, his muscles bunch beneath me, harder and harder…and that’s when I feel
it. His erection lifts under my backside, so thick and glorious, I bite my lip
to stop from crying out. I want to, though. I want to sob at the proof that
he’s physically attracted to me and at least I have that much.
My hands
are shaking as I lift the camera, my instincts screaming at me to grind down.
Elijah’s breath is pelting the back of my neck. Other than that he’s completely
still, though. But when I flip the camera around to selfie mode and get my
first look at his face, there isn’t a jury on the planet that would rule him
unaffected. His eyes are closed, nostrils flared, mouth open against my hair.
“You’ve got five seconds,” he says. “Take it, or—”
“Or what?”
Elijah stands up and takes me with him, my ass pressed to his lap, feet
dangling off the ground. As if I weigh nothing more than a child. It only lasts
for a couple mind-blowing seconds, though, before he settles me on the ground
behind his desk. His heat begins to leave me and I sense my chance slipping
away, so I twist around to face him. Still mere inches away from me, he pauses
with his head tipped forward, hands flexing at his sides. “We could be more
than friends.” After easing myself backwards onto the desk, I snag his necktie
and tug him closer, guiding his hips between my open thighs. “Just for
tonight.”
His laugh
is more like a rough expulsion of air, the scent of bourbon hitting me. “That’s
not how things work,” he says, his palms scraping up my thighs, twisting in the
hem of my dress. “Goddammit, Addison. You’re not supposed to tempt me like
this.”
Tempted.
He’s tempted. My blood cells crash together. “I don’t always do what I’m
supposed to,” I murmur, leaning up to bring our mouths close, a breath
separating them. “If I wasn’t your friend, would you kiss me right now?”
His eyes
fasten on my mouth, seeming darker than usual. Predatory. “You felt what you
did to my cock, sugar. You know the answer to that.”

Author Bio

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 ten years and
six-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.
Author Links
WEBSITE
INSTAGRAM
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
GOODREADS

Categories : Contemporary Romance, Release Blitz Tagged : Getaway Girl, Tessa Bailey

New Release + Excerpt: FOLLOW by TESSA BAILEY

October 29, 2017

FOLLOW
By Tessa Bailey

Synopsis:

 

He wants her soul. Too bad she already sold it.

Family is everything to gambling den darling, Teresa Valentini. Blood comes first, especially before men. So when her brother lands himself in hot water, she’s willing to do whatever it takes to save him. And showing up topless in her unwitting savior’s motel room is turning out to be the furthest thing from a hardship…

Will Caruso is the bad boy of New York’s financial scene…and he just found out the very thing that drives his success is a damn lie. Now, he’s exchanged his high-stress life for the open road, no one but his Great Dane…and half a million Instagram followers to keep him company. When a mysterious beauty arrives, her secrecy prods his suspicions, even while she tempts his lust to the breaking point.

Teresa met Will under false pretenses, but the bond consuming them is real. They’re strong enough to overcome a little betrayal…aren’t they?

 

Excerpt:

 

Tits. There are tits in my room. Really fucking nice ones.

I’m so distracted by their unexpected appearance—any red- blooded man with working testicles would be—that I don’t take in their owner right away. And all the other equally amazing shit that’s going on. The sexy brunette has one foot propped on my bed, her hands paused on her calf where she’s been applying lotion, before I so rudely interrupted her by walking into my own room.

A gruff bark from Southpaw prompts me to double check the door. But I do it fast—we’re in the right place—because as I mentioned, there’s a really fucking nice pair of tits in my room. Sue me for wanting to memorize the shape and color of her tight, rosy nipples before she screams and covers herself.

Which she doesn’t exactly seem inclined to do.
 “Can we help you?”
 Up until now, a big waterfall of dark hair has been hiding the woman’s face from me. But at my greeting, she tosses that thick mane back…and reveals features that accomplish the impossible. It nudges her tits into second place for most incredible body part in the room.

Hearing male voices approach in the hallway, I kick the door shut, surprised by the fact that I already don’t want anyone else looking at her. “You going to tell me why you’re in my room, woman? Or just stand there looking hot?”

 

About the Author:

 

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 ten years and six-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.

Categories : Book Launch, Contemporary Romance, Release Blitz Tagged : Excerpt, Follow, Tessa Bailey

Book Promo + Excerpt: DISORDERLY CONDUCT (THE ACADEMY) by TESSA BAILEY

August 30, 2017


You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone…

Police academy cadet Charlie Burns can’t believe his luck when the gorgeous blonde he meets in a bar murmurs those magic words: “Nothing serious, ’kay?” Mind-blowing, no-strings sex with Ever Carmichael—it’s the holy grail of hookups for a guy who’s too busy following in his law enforcement family’s footsteps to think about getting serious. Charlie’s all about casual…that is, until Ever calls it quits and his world tilts on its axis.

Ever knows that when you control the relationship game, you can’t get played. But for the first time, she wants more than short-term satisfaction. Step one: end her fling with commitment-phobic Charlie. Step two: sacrifice herself to the ruthless NYC dating scene. Yet everywhere she turns, there’s Charlie, being his ridiculously charming self. No online match or blind date compares to the criminally hot cop-in-training, but they’re over. Aren’t they?

If love is a four-letter-word, why does the idea of Ever seeing someone else tie Charlie up in knots?  Now he’s desperate to win her back…and a little date sabotage never hurt anyone, right?

About the Book

Disorderly Conduct
by Tessa Bailey

Series
The Academy

Genre
Adult
Contemporary Romance

Publisher
Avon Romance

Publication Date
August 29, 2017

Get Your Copy Today!
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Excerpt:

 

“NYPD. Open up…”
Ever opens the door, but I can only see a sliver of her goddess figure because the chain is still on.

“Oh. Is something wrong, Officer?”

“As a matter of fact, there is.” I tug my ever-present notebook and pen out of my back pocket, pretending to consult the first page, which sucks,
since it means taking my eyes off her for a second. “We’ve gotten several complaints about the smell of chocolate coming from this apartment. You
know anything about that?”

Ever bites her lip and throws a guilty glance over her shoulder. “Maybe. What’s it going to take to make this go away?”

I lean forward, close enough to hear her breath go shallow through the crack. “What’s it going to take?” I drop my eyes to her exposed stomach
where a rhinestone sparkles from its place of honor in her belly button. “We can start with a thorough inspection of the premises.”

 

About Tessa Bailey

 

Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans, and laptop, and drove 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 and daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.

Author Links

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This promotion is brought to you by Pure Textuality PR.
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Categories : Adult, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance Tagged : Disorderly Conduct, Excerpt, Tessa Bailey

CROSSING THE LINE SERIES by Tessa Bailey: Spotlight & Excerpts

June 10, 2016

I am thrilled to be celebrating NYT Bestselling author Tessa Bailey and her sexy, scintillating Crossing the Line series today! Book four, RAW REDEMPTION, comes out on June 20th, and to get ready for the final compelling conclusion to this beloved series, I am excited to share today details ands steamy excerpts from each novel. 

Sit back, relax, and enjoy these four sexy snippets from the Crossing the Line novels! 

 

risking_it_all_cover

Risking It All (Crossing the Line, #1)

About Risking It All:

She’s gone rogue.Seraphina Newsom isn’t looking for vengeance…she wants justice. Three years ago, Sera’s brother was ruthlessly gunned down by one of Brooklyn’s most dangerous mob kingpins. The investigation has stalled out, deemed “too dangerous” by the police commissioner. So to track down the evidence she needs to take down her brother’s killer, Sera turns in her hospital scrubs, joins the NYPD, and goes undercover. Unsanctioned. Alone.

He’ll live to keep her safe.

With his father behind bars, Bowen Driscol has reluctantly taken over his family’s sprawling South Brooklyn crime operation. New York’s finest have other plans. By threatening the safety of his sister, they “convince” Bowen to extricate a rogue cop who’s in over her head. But when he meets Sera and feels that deep, damning shiver of desire course through him, Bowen knows there’s only one way to keep her safe without blowing either of their covers…by claiming her as his own.

ON SALE NOW FOR 99¢!

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Excerpt from Risking It All:

“Listen to me, if I wanted to fuck you, I’d end anyone or anything who got in my way. Nothing would stop me. Not a locked door. Not some lowlife. Nothing.”

“If?” she repeated, embarrassment cooling her desire. “You don’t want to?”

His laughter was harsh. “Want to? Want to?” One of his hands loosened its grip to drop down and grasp the bulge in his pants. “I didn’t even know it was possible to ache this bad. It hurts to breathe, baby.”

The heat came rushing back in full force. “Then I don’t understand.”

“I can’t. We can’t.” He pressed his forehead to hers. “See, I’m wondering if keeping my hands off you will buy my way out of hell. God knows I’ll have experienced the worst hell has to offer already. You think he’ll make me go through it twice?”

The suffering in his voice lacerated her. There was so much more going on here than sexual frustration, although there was definitely a healthy dose of that. He seemed to think there would be consequences for getting physical with her. But that didn’t make any sense. Since when does a man who rules streets with fear care about consequences for anything? This man took what he wanted and damn the outcome. Right?

Without thinking, she took the hand he’d dropped and brushed a stray piece of hair off his forehead. His body went liquid, melting against her for long moments while she held her breath. “Aren’t there other ways to buy yourself out of hell?”

“Not for me.”

***

UiS_500

Up In Smoke (Crossing the Line, #2)

About Up In Smoke:

Never start a fire you can’t control…

Connor Bannon is supposed to be dead. Dishonorably discharged from the Navy SEALs, he’s spent the last two years working as a street enforcer in Brooklyn for his cousin’s crime ring. Through a twist of fate, he’s now in Chicago, working undercover to bust criminals. But when a cute little arsonist joins the team-all combat boots, tiny jean shorts, and hot-pink hair-Connor’s notorious iron control slips.

Erin “she’s getting away” O’Dea knows two things. She hates authority. And… Nope, that’s it. When she’s forced to operate on the “right” side of the law, her fear of being confined and controlled blazes to the surface. The last thing she expects is a control freak like Connor to soothe her when she needs it most. Worse, something behind the sexy ex-soldier’s eyes ignites a dangerous inferno of desire. One that invites Erin to play with fire. And one that could get them both killed…

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Goodreads

 

Excerpt form Up In Smoke:

Connor broke away, allowing them both to suck in oxygen. “Stay. I’m sorry. Stay.” He bent his knees to bring them eye to eye. His spoke of torture, but he was trying to hide it. “Look at me. I can handle this. I want you here. Don’t leave.”

“I don’t know if I can handle it,” she whispered.

His heavy breaths ceased. “What do you mean?”

She drew out a lighter from her back pocket and ignited the flame. It cleared her head a little, allowing her to search for the right words. Words that wouldn’t sound crazy. “I like touching you. It makes me feel really…good. And there isn’t a whole lot that makes me feel good, you know?” Her throat closed up. “I wish you could touch me, too. I don’t think I can stay here knowing I’m hurting you by making myself feel good…and I don’t think I can stop touching you. It feels like a must.”

A flare of panic flashed across his face. “I shouldn’t have said what I did earlier. You just caught me off guard.” He massaged his forehead with four fingers. “Did I scare you? Is that why you’re really leaving?”

“No.” She shook her head. “No.”

“Okay. Jesus. Okay.” He was silent a moment, but gears were turning behind his eyes. “You need to touch me and I need you to stay. Let’s give each other what we need. All right?”

Why was this so damn confusing? She’d only met this man yesterday and they were already tangled up in her web of fucked-up issues. He should want to be clear of her, shouldn’t he? No one else had ever bothered with her this long before. “Why? Why do you need me to stay? I—”

“I won’t rest,” he growled. “I’ll think about you somewhere, scared like you were last night, and I’ll go fucking crazy.”

Her heart lurched, dislodging her pride. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time. If the only reason you want me here is to play nursemaid to the crazy girl, that’s not going to work for me.”

“You know there’s more to it. You know.” He visibly centered himself with a deep breath, appearing to debate with himself. “I’ve got my own skeletons, Erin. They don’t rattle so much when you’re around. Your touching me…it makes me hot. But it soothes elsewhere.”

She knew her expression was pathetically hopeful, but couldn’t find a single shit to give. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he repeated. “I’m not going to lie, Erin. Yes, I want to sleep with you like hell. But only if it’s healthy. Would you trust me enough to go slow? A little at a time?”

Her pulse hammered out of control. “You touching me?”

Connor watched her closely. “When you’re ready. Not before. Never before.”

This is where she should climb down the fire escape and vamoose toward the street. A weight pressed down on her rib cage, making it difficult to draw a breath. It felt like the point of no return. But Connor’s eyes grounded her.

Safe. He’s safe.

“Okay, baby. Slow.”

His body drained of tension. “Thank you.” He leaned in and brushed their lips together, gently, reverently. “First, we talk.”

***

BoilingPoint_500

Boiling Point (Crossing the Line, #3)

 

About Boiling Point:

Falling for a con man is the most dangerous game of all…

Con artist Austin Shaw’s been in disguise so long he’s not sure where his fake identities end and he begins. Now that he’s been strong-armed into working for a specialized undercover unit working with the Chicago police—criminals with unique “skills”—the last thing he needs is to risk his iron control. Especially when it comes to a certain stunningly sexy hacker who tempts him with every look of disdain.

Polly Banks will never, ever trust a con man. On the trail of a ruthless crook who destroyed the only family she’s ever known, Polly is unnerved by the shadow who follows her every move. The one who makes her pulse pound and breath short with lust. Austin. He’s infuriating, enigmatic, and pure sex appeal, and she’s determined to resist him.

But an untrustworthy man of disguise can become anyone he wants…including a man that Polly must trust if she’s to escape their dangerous game alive.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Goodreads

 

Excerpt form Boiling Point:

“Drop the gun.” He issued the order through clenched teeth. “I find the idea of hurting you distasteful.”

She twisted her body, an attempt to regain control of the Beretta. “I can’t believe you don’t have the decency to put your dick away before charging at me.”

Call him sick, call him whatever you liked, he liked Polly talking about his dick in any capacity. Look at it. Want it. “I’m the furthest thing from decent.”

“No shit.” They were breathing heavily, inches from each other’s mouths. And hell if the swollen bastard between his thighs didn’t react favorably to having her close, even though she might have come there to murder him in cold blood. Pity, his cock didn’t deal in semantics.

“One last chance, Banks. Drop the gun or I’ll take it away from you.”

She pretended to think about it. “See, I’m not really in the mood to cry uncle.”

“Are you in the mood to cry Austin? Now that could be interesting.” She attempted to jerk the Beretta away again, giving him no choice but to dig his thumb into the pressure point on her wrist, releasing her grip automatically. “There now.” Keeping his attention trained on Polly, he placed the gun out of her reach on an overhead shelf. “That wasn’t so difficult, was—”

Her freed fist drilled him in the stomach. A grunt burst past his lips, but masculine pride kept him standing upright. Well, masculine pride and another fist flying in his direction, this time at his head. He shot a hand out to intercept the punch, using the grip to drag Polly off the sink and twist her arm behind her back.

“Aiming for this moneymaker face, sweet?” He clucked his tongue. “Now that’s just cruel.”

“Let me go,” she demanded, her voice vibrating with anger. Although he detected more embarrassment than anything else. He’d never seen her anything but confident. Ready for a challenge. It didn’t sit well that he’d scored her pride, so he let go of her arm. He had questions that needed answering, though, so as soon as he refastened his pants—not an easy feat when his cock still stood at attention—Austin pressed her body back against the sink, blocking both avenues of escape with his arms.

“How did you find my address? I’ve made it impossible.”

Some of her confidence returned in the form of a chin lift. Jesus, he would’ve liked to see that chin pointed toward the ceiling as she wailed for more tongue. “You should know by now that nothing is impossible for me.” Intelligence glimmered in her eyes. “I know you asked Derek to pay you by money order. I tracked the last several serial numbers to four different check-cashing places in the neighborhood.” Her shrug appeared grudging. “That was smart, not using the same place consistently. But I was able to pinpoint your general location down to a three-block radius, nonetheless. This building is the only one not run by a professional management company, and the most likely to rent without a proper credit check and accept cash deposits.”

It took an effort, but Austin managed to hide the chest-expanding awe she’d inspired. “And my apartment number? How did you manage to glean that information, my hot little sleuth?”

“I’m not your anything, Shaw.” She narrowed her gaze. “And your buzzer has the name I.M. TheTits on it.”

 ***

RR_500

Raw Redemption (Crossing the Line, #4)

About Raw Redemption:

Loving her might cost him everything…

Disgraced cop Henrik Vance is having a shit year. Banished to a derelict undercover squad, he’s been tasked with hunting down the daughter of Chicago’s most dangerous criminal. His obsession with saving the beautiful girl destroyed his career. And this time, it might cost his life.

Ailish O’Kelly doesn’t need a hero. She’ll save herself from her father’s violent criminal dynasty, thank you very much. Unfortunately, the sexy as sin cop who crashes her hideout isn’t hearing reason—especially not after the kiss that becomes much more.

His boss wants her as an informant. Ailish wants Henrik to keep whispering filthy things against her skin. But she knows too well the evil they’re up against, and when it comes down to protecting the man who owns her body and soul, she only has one choice…

PRE-ORDER NOW!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Goodreads

Raw Redemption (2) #DONE #1

Excerpt from Raw Redemption:

Henrik’s sigh blew her hair back like a stiff gust of wind. “While I’m with you, Ailish, I’m working. There are lines I can’t cross.”

Even knowing it was a little evil, nothing could suppress the pop of excitement in her belly. She was alone with a man—a gorgeous man—who wanted her. But had to keep his hands off. It was a tease’s paradise, and they were both screwed. Or not screwed, depending on your point of view.  “We can’t sleep together.”

“No.” He dropped his needful gaze to her breasts again. “We can’t.”

She executed her best nonchalant shoulder shrug. “Oh.”

“You’re smiling again.”

Ailish couldn’t stifle her chuckle. Man oh man, she really liked this big ol’ man, and they’d only just met. He deserved a fair warning about what he was getting himself into. “Henrik, you should probably put as much distance between you and me as possible. I really like that you want me. And I probably won’t be able to help trying to keep it that way.” She drew a lazy circle on his abdomen with her index finger, watching in awe as the ridged muscle shuddered under her touch. “For instance, I’d love to tell you I’m wearing cheap white panties and you can see clear through them in the right light.”

His body did this kind of heave, right at Ailish, flattening her backside against the sink. Their mouths were suddenly so close, she could feel his hot puffs of breath on her lips, feel his chest lifting and falling where it met her breasts. “I don’t like hearing that you’ve talked to other men that way.”

“I haven’t,” she whispered. “I don’t. I usually just—”

“I do not want to know.”

Henrik made a subtle move, just a downward roll of his hips that dragged his erection over the crotch of her leggings. But it wasn’t really subtle at all because he stopped right over her clit and nudged forward. She nearly jumped out of her skin, it was so unexpected, her body’s deluge of need so extreme. “H’oh boy.”

His mouth sifted through the hair covering her ear. “Tease me as much as you want. Just don’t try to send me packing again. Are we clear?”

“I told you I don’t like being ordered around.”

He rasped the stubble of his jaw against her neck. “You’d love the way I do it.”

***

 

Categories : Book Launch, Contemporary Romance Tagged : Crossing the Line, Excerpt, Raw Redemption, Tessa Bailey

Review + Excerpt: Too Hot to Handle (Romancing the Clarksons #1) by Tessa Bailey

May 20, 2016

TOO HOT TO HANDLE - Tour banner

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.

TOO HOT TO HANDLE - cover

Amazon ** Barnes & Noble ** iBooks ** Kobo ** GooglePlay

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.

 

TOO HOT TO HANDLE - Tour Teaser 2

 

 

 

Tessa Bailey - headshotAbout 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

REVIEW:

 

Tessa Bailey is one of my favorite contemporary romance writers so I know that pretty much anything she writes, I am going to love. No one writes a steamy sex scene quite like Ms. Bailey. So I loved what she did with the story of Rita Clarkson, who has just accidentally burned down her mother’s award-winning restaurant. On top of that, it was her mother’s dying wish that Rita and her siblings – who aren’t exactly close – travel to the East Coast to swim in the ocean on New Year’s Day.

The Clarkson bunch is headed off on their road trip when their truck breaks down in the middle of New Mexico. The oh-so-hot Jasper enters enters the picture and offers them a ride into town and help with the local mechanic. So now the Clarkson family is stranded in the middle of nowhere. Yes, Jasper and Rita have instant chemistry BUT once again, Tessa Bailey surprises with Jasper: he’s trying to make something of his life and live down his bad-boy reputation, and low expectations that everyone has of him.

What if— to Rita—he could be Jasper, the decent soul and sparkling conversationalist? Standing right in front of Jasper was a woman without any preconceived— or hell, conceived— notions about him, and he couldn’t recall the last time that had happened.

Rita and Jasper were amazing!! But Rita is worried about her future and can’t stop thinking about life without Jasper. She thinks he is just a temporary diversion but Jasper is so much more than that! He is shocked that he actually wants to spend time with Rita and can’t stop think about her. Tessa Bailey always creates such terrific characters and Rita and Jasper were no exception. I LOVED their scenes together – Jasper is TOTALLY Alpha – and adored the alternating POV’s. You know you will always get an incredibly hot and sexy story with Ms. Bailey and add to that the wonderfully unique Clarkson family, then you have a great recipe for a funny, sexy and heartwarming story.

Here’s the thing. I swore off women. But then you came pedaling into town with this mouth, those eyes and the way they see everything… and fuck yes, I want to kiss you. I want to do all manner of things to you.”

Too Hot to Handle is a very enjoyable start to the new series involving the Clarkson family!!

4 Stars

(ARC provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.)

TOO HOT TO HANDLE - Tour Teaser 1

 

EXCERPT:

“Believe this, Rita. I think you’re gorgeous as sin and I need your mouth on mine.”
Rita nodded, meshing their wet lips together in the process. “I want to believe that. You might have to help me.”
“Thank Christ.”
Their mouths slanted and somehow—somehow—that feast of lips and tongue and teeth was even more potent than the night before. His knee rammed into the bike—almost as if his leg had tried to buckle—shooting pain up his right thigh, but it vanished under the pleasure. Vanished into vapor. The stroking, hot, abandon of Rita. They were both breathing through their noses so as not to break the voracious mouth-fucking they were engaging in, and that shouldn’t have been so all-out sexy. But it sure as shit was. They were attacking each other with seeking tongues and open lips, playing chicken to see who would give in first.
When her hands slipped under his shirt and pulled down on his belt buckle, putting pressure on Jasper’s cock, he cursed into her mouth, securing his fist in her hair like a goddamn barbarian. And she liked it, too. Why else would she be tugging on his belt, encouraging him to rock into the notch of her pussy? Too far. This was going too far. Any farther and they’d end up somewhere naked.
She’d leave the encounter with no doubt of his experience, because, hell, Jasper knew every button to press, when to change rhythm, when to be forceful or pull back. Knew it all. But Rita wouldn’t look at him the same way afterward. She’d see the local tramp, like everyone else.
She’d leave. And he’d have failed in his one attempt to be more to someone.
Jasper tore his mouth free, releasing a gruff exhale into her neck. “You have me ready to bust in my jeans, beautiful. I was smoother than this in high school.”
“That’s a scary thought,” she breathed out in a rush, her fists still curling in his shirt. “Was that the other half of your apology for last night? B-because I have to say, it was pretty effective.”
“At the risk of sounding arrogant, Rita, I haven’t even moved my hips yet. You’ve barely gotten a preview of how thoroughly I can…apologize.”
“Don’t leave me in suspense,” she whispered, those golden-brown eyes going as big as salad plates.
Don’t do it. You’ll have a hard-on for a decade. “If you agree to go out with me tonight, I’ll rub that wet, aching seam of yours with my own ache.”
Rita’s head fell back on a whimper. “Fine. Yes.”

 

Tessa Bailey’s TOO HOT TO HANDLE – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:

May 19th

A Literary Perusal – Review & Excerpt

Book Angel Booktopia – Review & Excerpt

Bookaholics Reading Haven – Review & Excerpt

Booklovers For Life – Guest Post

CherryRed’s Reads – Review & Excerpt

Krista’s Dust Jacket – Review & Excerpt

Lit. 4 Ladies – Excerpt

Reads All the Books – Review & Excerpt

Romance Playlist – Review & Excerpt

SBB Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Shayna Renee’s Spicy Reads – Review & Excerpt

Sultry, Steamy Reading – Review & Excerpt

Take Me Away To A Great Read – Excerpt

The Book Cellar – Review & Excerpt

The Book Disciple – Review & Excerpt

The BookWhisperer – Review & Excerpt

The Bookworms Obsession Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Lusty Literate – Review & Excerpt

The Reading Cafe – Review & Excerpt

Total Book Geek – Review & Excerpt

Vi3tbabe – Review & Excerpt

May 20th

Alphas Do It Better Book Blog – Excerpt

Book Lovin’ Mamas – Review & Excerpt

Chelles Life in Books – Excerpt

Ellesea Loves Reading – Excerpt

Hot Pressed Books – Review & Excerpt

Jack of All Trades, Master of None – Excerpt

JOJO THE BOOKAHOLIC – Review & Excerpt

Pink Lace & Silver Buckles Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

She Hearts Books – Review & Excerpt

Socially Awkward Book Nerd – Excerpt

The Book Bellas – Review & Excerpt

The Literary Gossip – Review

May 21st

A Brit and a Yank – Excerpt

A Fortress of Books – Guest Post

Becky on Books – Review & Excerpt

Beneath The Covers Blog – Excerpt

Book Lit Love – Review & Excerpt

Bookaholics Not-So-Anonymous – Review & Excerpt

Hart’s Romance Pulse – Excerpt

I Love Romance – Review & Excerpt

Kick Back & Review – Review & Excerpt

Kris & Vik Book Therapy Cafe – Review & Excerpt

Liz’s Reading Life – Excerpt

Shannon’s Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Book Sirens – Review & Excerpt

Wicked Babes Blog Reviews – Review & Excerpt

May 22nd

Aly’s Miscellany – Guest Post

Evermore Books – Excerpt

Kimmy Loves to Read – Review & Excerpt

Nose Stuck in a Book – Excerpt

Renee Entress’s Blog – Review & Excerpt

SnoopyDoo’s Book Reviews – Excerpt

The Fairest of All Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

May 23rd

Best Book Boyfriends – Review & Excerpt

Book Reader Chronicles – Review & Excerpt

Books 2 Blog – Excerpt

Books by Migs – Review & Excerpt

Bridget’s Book Bungalow – Review & Excerpt

Four Chicks Flipping Pages – Review & Excerpt

My Book Filled Life – Review & Excerpt

my midnight fantasies – Excerpt

Nice Ladies, Naughty Books – Review & Excerpt

Novel Addiction – Review & Excerpt

Obsessive Reading Disorder – Review & Excerpt

Oh My Growing TBR – Review & Excerpt

Romanticamente Fantasy Sito – Review & Excerpt

Smut Book Junkie Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Southern Belle Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Stephanie’s Sexy Reads – Review & Excerpt

May 24th

Alpha Book Club – Excerpt

bi n i b i n i – Review & Excerpt

Books Over Sleep – Excerpt

BooksPieAndCoffee – Review & Excerpt

G & T’s Indie Café – Excerpt

Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Jax’s Book Magic – Review & Excerpt

KatyaRath – Review & Excerpt

kimberlyfaye reads – Review & Excerpt

Miss Riki – Review & Excerpt

My Girlfriends Couch – Review & Excerpt

My YA NA Book Obsession – Review & Excerpt

Okie Dreams Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Once Upon a Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Ramblings From This Chick – Guest Post

Romantic Reads and Such – Excerpt

Short and Sassy Book Blurbs – Review & Excerpt

Talking Books Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Eater of Books! – Excerpt

The Phantom Paragrapher – Review & Excerpt

The Readdicts – Review & Excerpt

Toot’s Book Reviews – Excerpt

True Story Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

WickedGoodReads – 2 Reviews & Excerpt

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Categories : 4 Stars, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Tessa Bailey, Too Hot to Handle

Cover Reveal: Worked Up (Made In Jersey #3) by Tessa Bailey

April 25, 2016

We are loving this cover for Tessa Bailey’s WORKED UP, the third novel in Tessa’s bestselling romance Made in Jersey series. WORKED UP is being published by Entangled Brazen in August 2016. Check out the sexy cover below and add it on Goodreads today!

 

WORKED UP - cover

ABOUT WORKED UP (Made in Jersey #3):

New Jersey factory mechanic Duke Crawford has watched his loved ones’ marriages fail, time and time again, so he’s not interested in a relationship. Who could have guessed Samantha Waverly, a fellow commitment-phobe—and his new boss’s off-limits sister—would make him question his dedication to bachelorhood? And get him good and worked up in the process…

 

Add it to Goodreads here!

MADE IN JERSEY Series

 

And don’t miss the first three books in the Made in Jersey…

CRASHED OUT - cover

CRASHED OUT (#1)

✦ Amazon ✦iBooks ✦ Barnes & Noble

 

ROUGH RHYTHM - cover

ROUGH RHYTHM (#1.5)

✦ Amazon 

 

THROWN DOWN - cover

THROWN DOWN (#2)

✦ Amazon ✦iBooks ✦ Barnes & Noble 

 

 

Tessa Bailey - headshotAbout 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

 

 

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Categories : Contemporary Romance, Cover Reveal Tagged : Made in Jersey, Tessa Bailey, Worked Up

THROWN DOWN (A MADE IN JERSEY NOVEL) by TESSA BAILEY

April 10, 2016

THROWN DOWN BY TESSA BAILEY REVIEW, GUEST POST, AND EXCERPT TOUR

Thrown Down Tour

Vaughn and River were the high school sweethearts everyone expected to fail. And they did. But not because of any shortage of love. Oh no. The town bad boy and the bubbly class president had that in spades. What they didn’t have was the truth—or the ability to defeat the forces that kept them apart. Vaughn never left River completely, however, because the night he left town for good, they conceived a child. Now Vaughn has returned to earn back his family—and River’s love—any way he can.

Thrown Down Synopsis:

He has one last chance to deserve the girl of his dreams…

Overachiever River Purcell was never supposed to be a struggling single mom, working double shifts just to make ends meet. Nor was she supposed to be abandoned by her high school sweetheart, breaking her heart into a thousand jagged pieces. Now Vaughn De Matteo is back in town, his sights set on her…and River is in danger of drowning a second time.

No one believed Hook’s resident bad boy was good enough for River. Not even Vaughn himself. But he’ll fight like hell to win back the woman he never stopped loving, to keep the daughter he never expected, and convince himself he’s worth their love in the process––even if he has to rely on their fierce and undeniable sexual chemistry.

But even as River’s body arches under his hungered touch, the demons of the past lurk in the shadows. Waiting for Vaughn to repeat his mistakes one last time…

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B014CS5NDE/?tag=sbcnll-20

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/thrown-down-tessa-bailey/1122566776?ean=9781633754478

throw down cover

EXCERPT:

Forty-nine months and three days.

That was how long it had been since he’d seen her.

Vaughn swayed to the right, his shoulder slamming up against the wall. Then he kind of just hung there, counting forward and backward from one to ten. Not helping. Not helping. His stomach pitched at the sight of River walking through the drunks, like a nurse walking among the wounded on a battlefield. She could still knock his lights out on sight. Not that he’d doubted it for a second. But God, if it were possible, she’d grown even more beautiful over the last forty-nine months. Her blond hair was tied up in a ponytail, a pencil stuck through the base, in a way he remembered well enough to make his throat go raw. In a short black skirt and fitted white T-shirt, River tried to look the part of indifferent barmaid, but didn’t pull it off.

Not by a stretch.

Eyes Vaughn knew were just a shade darker than cornflower blue flitted to each table, and her fingers tugged on the skirt’s hem self-consciously every time she approached a new one. When she fumbled with the notepad, recovering with a nervous laugh, a choked sound left Vaughn. “Riv,” he whispered.

She looked up so fast, he might as well have shouted. The sudden impact of having River’s focus on him after such an extended period of time without it released a rushing sound between his ears, blocking out the sad lounge act…and apparently someone asking if he needed a table. Because when Vaughn snapped back to reality, a man he towered over by at least a foot was in his face. Snapping his fingers.

“I wouldn’t…” Vaughn shook his head to clear it, experiencing a resurgence of anger, this time for having his attention diverted from where he needed it to be. On River.

“I wouldn’t advise snapping your fingers in my face again.”

“Why’s that, huh?”

A toss of blond hair snagged Vaughn’s gaze as his angelic ex-girlfriend zigzagged through the crowd, drawing more than just his notice. Ah no, quite the opposite. She was putting on an unwitting show for every man in the room, attracting lecherous looks by virtue of being her beautiful self, light in a dark tunnel, same way she’d always been.

Finger snapped in front of his face. Again. “This is my place and I asked you a question.”

“This is your place?” Vaughn asked. God, one hour back in Jersey and already his accent had thickened from water to oil. “You hired River Purcell to clean up tables?”

“That’s right.”

Vaughn plowed a fist into the underside of the man’s jaw, watching him fall backward onto the sticky concrete floor with detachment that slowly morphed into satisfaction. So much for calm, he thought, shaking out his right hand.

About Tessa:

10916377_394985460677232_5282589425052637583_o

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.

Categories : Blog Tour, Contemporary, Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Tessa Bailey, Thrown Down

Release Blitz: THROWN DOWN by TESSA BAILEY

April 3, 2016

THROWN DOWN BY TESSA BAILEY IS NOW AVAILABLE

Thrown Down Now Available

He has one last chance to deserve the girl of his dreams…

Overachiever River Purcell was never supposed to be a struggling single mom, working double shifts just to make ends meet. Nor was she supposed to be abandoned by her high school sweetheart, breaking her heart into a thousand jagged pieces. Now Vaughn De Matteo is back in town, his sights set on her…and River is in danger of drowning a second time.

No one believed Hook’s resident bad boy was good enough for River. Not even Vaughn himself. But he’ll fight like hell to win back the woman he never stopped loving, to keep the daughter he never expected, and convince himself he’s worth their love in the process––even if he has to rely on their fierce and undeniable sexual chemistry.

But even as River’s body arches under his hungered touch, the demons of the past lurk in the shadows. Waiting for Vaughn to repeat his mistakes one last time…

throw down cover

 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B014CS5NDE/?tag=sbcnll-20

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/thrown-down-tessa-bailey/1122566776?ean=9781633754478

About Tessa:

10916377_394985460677232_5282589425052637583_oTessa 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.

 

Categories : Contemporary, Release Blitz, Romance Tagged : Tessa Bailey, Thrown Down

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