Admittedly, I’m an a**hole. Okay, that might give you an unfair opinion of me if taken out of context. So let me explain myself.
Every guy knows the Bro Code. It’s kind of a package deal with the thing swinging between our legs. You can’t have one without the other. And the highest of all the Bro Codemmandments is do not—under any circumstances—have sexual thoughts about your best friend’s sister. And no, there is not an amendment clause for when she’s beautiful, smart, witty, and can kiss you breathless in under three point five seconds—yes, I counted. I’ve asked around the Brommunity and apparently that rule is deemed unbreakable. Which brings me back to my first point—I’m an a**hole.
In my defense, I didn’t know she was his little sister when she moved into the apartment next door. I also didn’t know when she was ripping my shirt off in her living room—don’t get the wrong idea, she just wanted to wash it. And I definitely didn’t know when aforementioned kiss had me stumbling over my words, her tongue, and my own two feet. But that’s as far as it went—and will go! I swear. From this point forward, we are just Good Neighbors.
About the Author:
J.P. Nicholas has the great misfortune to be A Male Romance Writer. Turns out, men are also hopeless romantics, given half the chance, and Nicholas’ fascination with love began long before he could write. His parents–high school sweethearts who are still mad for each other–left him enamored with the idea of true love, and its ability to transform and redeem even the most jaded soul. Nicholas lives to capture this magic, lust, and passion on the page; his characters known for their sizzling chemistry and chest-squeezing plot lines.
When J.P. Nicholas isn’t tapping away at his laptop, he can be found in his home state of Florida, binge-watching This Is Us with his girlfriend, or devouring Italian food with his family. His latest novel, Just Pretend, is a friends-to-lovers drama and the first in his new Sandy Heights series, to be released in June. Get in touch with the author via Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, or his website.
Zeus is the cruelest man in the city. And he’s the only one who can save me.
If I don’t sell my body at one of his infamous parties, I’ll be forced into a nightmarish arranged marriage.
But he won’t accept any offers. Not until he’s had me for himself.
I thought I chose the right man to help me escape.
I was wrong.
About the Author:
Amelia Wilde is a USA TODAY bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance and loves it a little too much. She lives in Michigan with her husband and daughters. She spends most of her time typing furiously on an iPad and appreciating the natural splendor of her home state from where she likes it best: inside.
Have you ever noticed how the mesh bits in lace look like the intersecting bars of a prison cell?
I did. Five minutes ago. As I was sat on the edge of a strange bed in a strange room, in a strange wedding dress, with a strange perfume smothering my senses like a designer rag.
My fingers won’t stop playing with the delicate trim on the bodice. It’s as if I’m trying to find a weakness in the yarn so I can plan my escape.
It’s beautiful.
Beautifully oppressive.
It’s a Dorian Gray mirror gone askew. The material is stupidly fussy and over-detailed, and it makes me look about twenty years older than I am. Still, at least it covers the bruises…
“Come, Ielena. The car is waiting for you.”
Marie enters the room clapping briskly, as if the force and sound will unchain my heavy heart from the bed and propel me to my feet. Her face is a painted mask of encouragement, but it reminds me of a colombina I bought in Venice once. The initial dazzle concealed the flaws. The cracks in the porcelain grew wider and more obvious as the truth clawed its way to the surface.
That was the day I learned that nothing is what it seems.
Marie’s claps grow louder in my ears. “Up! Up, lazy girl! What are you waiting for?”
A knight on a white horse?
A miracle?
Reluctantly, I stand for her inspection. I’m not sure when or how Marie first entered my father’s life, but her presence is more front-and-center than my mother’s these days.
I loathe her.
She’s brittle and calculating, and our relationship is a Ping-Pong match of mutual hostility. Unfortunately, since Karina disappeared, Marie’s winning most of the shots. She’s subtle about it, though. Her words are well-fed piranhas. They’ll take tiny bites here and there, leaving me stung and permanently unsettled.
She stops in front of me, a smoky swirl of coral-pink chiffon, and I brace myself for more teeth.
“Oh dear.” She casts a critical eye over my wedding dress. “Oh dear, oh dear… Still, it’s the best I could do at such short notice. You have no idea the strings I had to pull to get you something suitable in time.”
If she expects me to thank her for it, I’d rather choke on the lace.
Her assessment moves up to my face and she tuts out even more disapproval. “Good grief. Your make-up is abysmal. Antoinette!” Her maid appears in the doorway like a dutiful pet. “She needs less rouge on her cheeks. And that red lipstick is wrong. She looks like a whore, not a virgin bride.”
There goes my one shot at individuality.
Is this really happening? Has it really only been twenty-four hours since Papa announced I was to marry a man I’d never even met? A one-minute, formally worded deposition slotted in between his business meetings. He takes longer to peruse menus in restaurants.
Come to think of it, it’s the longest conversation we’ve ever had.
“Dressing table,” barks Marie, giving me a not so gentle shove in that direction.
Gritting my teeth, I allow myself to be ‘de-whored,’ by Antoinette. On the plus side, marriage means leaving Marie behind. Even she wouldn’t dare disrespect the wife of Luca Zaccaria…
I should have known she wouldn’t go out without a fanfare, though.
“I don’t see why we’re bothering with this charade,” she mutters, driving an extra pin into the base of my chignon and scraping my scalp on purpose.
“What do you mean?” I catch her eye in the mirror, instantly wary of the cruel green glint that I find there. “This is what my father expects of me.”
I’m rewarded with a cold smile for my curiosity. “I mean why go to so much trouble to look the part when the ceremony room will be empty.”
“But Signor Zaccaria’s family will be in attendance.”
I’ve read all about mafia families and the eight billion aunts, uncles and associated offspring who get wheeled out for occasions such as these. Kind of like a Bratva wedding when a sibling’s disgrace hasn’t double-booked the venue.
Her eyes widen for a beat, and then the chill in her smile drops a couple of hundred degrees. “What makes you think you’re marrying into La Famiglia, child? What makes you think you’re good enough for one of Zaccaria’s precious sons? Your sister has polluted you, like she’s polluted your father’s reputation, and today you will pay the price for her disgrace and his resurrection.”
My stomach lurches. She’s right. My father never actually confirmed who my groom was.
I assumed.
I just assumed.
“Who am I supposed to be marrying?” I whisper.
She shrugs, as if the detail is insignificant. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
“I don’t believe you! He wouldn’t do this! Where’s Papa?” I rise to my feet, but her bony fingers clamp around my upper arm to stop me.
“Sit down, stupid girl.” I wince as her grip tightens; her coral pink nails digging crescents into my skin. “Your father has no desire to see you. He left for Paris an hour ago.”
My mouth snaps shut when I realize I’m gaping at her. “But he’s walking me down the aisle! I’m playing the role of the good Bratva daughter for him… The least he can do is guide me through the scene.”
“Be quiet!” Her mask cracks, just like my colombina did, but this time spite comes pouring out. “The only things accompanying you to that altar, child, are shame and solitude. You are all alone in this world now, Ielena. Your sister has deserted you, and your stupid mother is soaking your memory in gin.”
I have Maxim.
Please tell me I still have Maxim.
“Let go of me, Marie!”
“All alone,” she mouths back.
Shrugging her off, I sit back down at the dressing table. My hands are shaking as Antoinette pats away the last of the red Chanel before smoothing on a dash of Vaseline, and then painting my lips a pale mauve.
Even that seems wrong. I need a shot of color confidence to bring my fair skin and frozen expression back from the brink, not something that’ll fade me out even more.
I’m only a half-measure, remember?
An image from yesterday slams into my mind, one with raging battlements of contempt in his eyes.
Aiden Knight.
The man I couldn’t stop thinking about all of last night. The beautiful cruel memory who tempted my fingers between my thighs at the break of dawn.
Karina’s voice is in my head suddenly, telling me to hold on to my rainbow, no matter what. We made promises to each other the night she left. The kind you cross your hearts with, schoolgirl style, and keep until you die die die.
“Are you finished?” I catch Marie’s eye in the mirror and hold it. Screw her. Screw my father. They could marry me off to a beggar on the street and I’d still find a way to paint us gold.
She scoffs and nods.
“Good,” I say, firing back a Ping-Pong shot of my own.
I was right to feel that sense of satisfaction earlier. I’m not some little girl she can push around anymore. My new groom may not be Luca Zaccaria, but my father’s choice for me would have been tactical. He’ll be a man of standing in the criminal world.
“Good?” she mocks. “You won’t be saying that in an hour’s time.”
“Aren’t you going to wish me luck?”
Without waiting for an answer, I rise to my feet and sashay from the room as elegantly as my badly fitted shoes—thanks again, Marie—will allow.
Heart pounding, I make my way down the elegant marble staircase, feeling like Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With The Wind, but with the whole world, not Rhett Butler, declaring that they don’t give a damn about me anymore.
I reach the lobby to find the tall, stoic figure of my father’s Brigadier waiting for me. There’s another man standing there, too. He has his back turned, his black-suited shoulders blocking out most of the light from a nearby window. I’m so relieved to see Maxim I barely glance at him.
“You’re here!” I take the last couple of steps too fast and nearly lose my footing.
I knew he wouldn’t abandon me as well.
He turns at my voice—eyes hooded, expression bleak. “Issa.” He catches me as I stumble into his arms. “Careful, zvezda moya.” He sets me right before sweeping his gaze downward. “Why, you look beautiful.”
“You’re the sweetest liar.” I step back to break his embrace, embarrassed by my lack of poise. What’s worse, there’s a masculine scent in the air that’s aiding and abetting that emotion, whipping up memories I’d rather forget. “Marie chose the dress so you can draw your own conclusions from that.”
“Tsch, Issa,” he chides. “She chose well.”
“Liar, twice over,” I say with a shy smile.
“She’s right, it’s hideous,” drawls a deep voice in perfect Russian. “But it’s nothing a bottle of Saint-Émilion couldn’t fix.”
Colors.
All the damn colors.
The same man from the bar and my late night fantasies is smirking down at me, his cerulean-blue oceans churning with the same derision. My lungs stutter and lose function as I finally place the scent in the air.
“You,” I gasp out.
“Me,” he says flatly.
“W-what are you doing here?”
“My presence was requested so it’s a good job I had another suit to wear.”
I can’t seem to process his words. It’s not just the size of him that’s throwing me off kilter. Those oceans are shark-infested, and I’m the bloody bait.
My head swings to Maxim for answers, but the scars on his face offer me nothing so I find it swinging back to him. It’s magnetic. I couldn’t stop it if I tried.
“Monsieur Knight,” I say, pulling myself together. “How lovely it is to see you again.”
He barks out a rough laugh. “You could strip paint with the acid in your voice, princess. Your insincerity is corrosive.”
“Who knew a gentleman could be so vulgar,” I counter quietly.
“Who knew you had the brains to come to that conclusion all by yourself.”
“Have you two met before?” Maxim looks confused, trapped here in our blazing crossfire.
Aiden Knight cocks his handsome head and grins at me, but his eyes are like chips of ice. “Let’s just say we had a difference of opinion over some home truths and a bottle of red yesterday.”
Instantly, myheart is a drum and bass beat inside my chest. I hate how British men have the whole archetypal bastard thing down to a fine art. His accent is a poisoned arrow with a fin-shaped fletching of contempt. He’s dressed in black Armani again today, though he’s swapped the black dress shirt for white.
Colors. Colors. He wears them like a warning.
His necktie is a brilliant crimson, the same red as the lipstick I chose for myself until Marie instructed Antoinette to scrub it off. He’s stolen it. How dare he! I find myself hating him more for that than I do for his insults.
“Is it true Papa left for Paris an hour ago?”
I mean to direct it at Maxim, but I can’t seem to tear my gaze away from my nemesis. He’s coolness personified, with the kind of hard arrogance that hazardous men exude. I don’t like the way he’s looking at me either, as if I’m a cornered fox and he’s the Master of the Hunt.
“Why? Are you worried he took his credit card with him?”
“That’s enough, Knight!” growls Maxim.
I blush right to my roots as my father’s confidante proceeds to curse in both French and Russian at my English invasion. It’s a bi-language of reproach, but Knight just shrugs it off. Clearly, his ninety-nine problems don’t include Bratva Brigadiers who’d be more than happy to use his head as target practice.
Is this man completely impenetrable or just plain indifferent?
“Jesus, you talk a lot of shit, Maxim,” he says in a bored voice, cutting him off mid-flow. “If you’re quite finished, her chariot awaits.”
Her?
I watch him stalk through the open front door, down the stone steps and into one of the waiting Escalades without so much as a backward glance at me.
Who is this vile, rude, arrogant man?
I meet Maxim’s heavy stare with unspoken questions in my eyes. “Marie told me I’m not betrothed to Luca Zaccaria anymore.”
“No, zvezda moya.”
“Then, who?”
“Issa—”
“Please, Maxim,” I beg. “If our friendship means anything, I need you to be straight with me. Who the hell am I marrying today?”
My only ally in this world curses and swipes a hand across his jaw. It’s as if he’s disinfecting his next words for an unclean revelation. I then watch in mounting, escalating, soul-crushing horror as his gaze shifts to the vehicles outside. Or rather, to one in particular…
Catherine Wiltcher is a bestselling author of ten dark romance novels, a former TV producer, and a self-confessed alpha addict. Her writing is best described as sinfully sexy, and her characters always fall hard and deep for one another.
She lives in the UK with her husband and two young daughters. If she ever found herself stranded on a desert island, she’d like a large pink gin to keep her company. Cillian Murphy wouldn’t be a bad shout either…
The What If Guy, an all-new sexy romantic comedy standalone by #1 New York Times Bestselling author Lauren Blakely is releasing in Audio on July 21st and eBook on July 24th!
THE WHAT IF GUY is a sexy single dad standalone romance you can escape into!
It should be an easy rule to follow – don’t bang your boss…
But I didn’t know who he was when I met him.
And the first time I saw him, our connection sounded like the stuff of romantic legends — that whole “their eyes locked across a crowded room” moment that turned into more.
I didn’t believe it. . . . until it happened to me.
Fine, the charming, clever, sexy-as-sin guy in the tailored suit was only trying to buy the same Snoopy lunchbox (as a gift!), but still, our eyes totally locked, and my lady parts definitely tingled as we vied for the prize.
Naturally, I did what any badass business woman would do. Negotiated for the lunchbox, then found my what-if guy online and made plans to see him the next night.
One night only — that was the deal we made.
But one fantastic night had us both changing our minds in the morning. And making plans for another.
Until I walked into the office to learn he just bought my company.
And here’s the biggest rule of romantic legends — no matter what, don’t bang your boss.
Especially if you’re already falling for him.
THE WHAT IF GUY is a sexy standalone you can escape into!
About the Author:
A #1 New York Times Bestselling, #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling, and #1 Audible Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s sweet, sexy and witty. She also writes red-hot, ultra-steamy romance for her Lauren Blakely After Dark line. She’d love to give you a free book today!
Genre: Contemporary Romance Release Date: July 10, 2020
BLURB
Is it too late to correct the biggest mistake of my life?
While drowning in a mess of sorrow and grief, I lost the only woman I ever loved. I didn’t realize what I’d done until it was too late.
Thea still owned my thoughts, my dreams, and my heart. I never expected to see her again, much less have to work with her for almost the entire summer.
I should’ve fought for her years ago, and after how much I hurt her I probably don’t have the right to now.
But I can’t stop until she’s mine again.
No Reservations is a continuation of characters from No Vacancy but is a total STANDALONE. If you like second chance love stories that make you cry, overheat, and swoon with a broken but lovable wise-cracking hero, this is the book for you!
Stephanie Rose is a badass New Yorker, a wife, a mother, and lover of all things chocolate. Most days you’ll find her trying to avoid standing on discarded LEGO or deciding which book to read next. Her debut novel, Always You, released in 2015, and since then she’s written several more—some of which will never see completion—and has ideas for hundreds to come.
Now Available!!! I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review
✮ BLURB ✮
Is it too late to correct the biggest mistake of my life?
While drowning in a mess of sorrow and grief, I lost the only woman I ever loved. I didn’t realize what I’d done until it was too late.
Thea still owned my thoughts, my dreams, and my heart. I never expected to see her again, much less have to work with her for almost the entire summer.
I should’ve fought for her years ago, and after how much I hurt her, I probably don’t have the right to now.
But I can’t stop until she’s mine again.
No Reservations is a continuation of characters from No Vacancy but is a total STANDALONE. If you like second chance love stories that make you cry, overheat, and swoon with a broken but lovable wise-cracking hero, this is the book for you!
My Review:
WOW! It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed a second chance romance the way I did with this one.
Regret, suffering, sorrow, love! These are the words I would sum up for the story of Dominic and Thea. They belong together, they are good for each other. Life happens and they drift apart.
But life or fate rather has a better plan install for these two.
It was a good read, tugged at my heart strings the more we got into the book. I didn’t want the story to end.
It was great to see how far the two previous characters from No Vacancy came as well and have them apart of the book. It also helps that I read the first book, it made me appreciate Caterina and Joe’s charaters more.
If you love romance books that tug at your heart strings, then get this book. It was a great read.
Zeus is the cruelest man in the city. And he’s the only one who can save me.
If I don’t sell my body at one of his infamous parties, I’ll be forced into a nightmarish arranged marriage.
But he won’t accept any offers. Not until he’s had me for himself.
I thought I chose the right man to help me escape.
I was wrong.
About the Author:
Amelia Wilde is a USA TODAY bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance and loves it a little too much. She lives in Michigan with her husband and daughters. She spends most of her time typing furiously on an iPad and appreciating the natural splendor of her home state from where she likes it best: inside.
Is it too late to correct the biggest mistake of my life?
While drowning in a mess of sorrow and grief, I lost the only woman I ever loved. I didn’t realize what I’d done until it was too late.
Thea still owned my thoughts, my dreams, and my heart. I never expected to see her again, much less have to work with her for almost the entire summer.
I should’ve fought for her years ago, and after how much I hurt her I probably don’t have the right to now.
But I can’t stop until she’s mine again.
No Reservations is a continuation of characters from No Vacancy but is a total STANDALONE. If you like second chance love stories that make you cry, overheat, and swoon with a broken but lovable wise-cracking hero, this is the book for you!
A GUY WALKS INTO MY BAR by Lauren Blakely Releasing in Audio August 17th and eBook August 21st Cover Designer: Helen Williams Cover Model: Chad Hurst Photographer: Michelle Lancaster – @lanefotograf
From #1 New York Times Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely, comes an all-new sexy and IRRESISTIBLE M/M stand-alone romance, releasing in audio August 17th and eBook August 21st!
Get ready to fall in love with a sexy, witty British bartender and the cocky, charming American hockey star who walks into his bar!
A sexy, passionate, utterly addictive standalone MM romance from #1 NYT Bestseller Lauren Blakely!
Every bartender should follow one simple rule—don’t go home with the customers.
That’s been easy for me to stick to, until the night a cocky, confident, and sinfully charming hockey star walks into my bar. This sexy athlete is too hard to resist, especially when he makes it clear how much he wants the “sarcastic, witty, hot AF” guy behind the bar—also known as me.
Still, I’m not keen on breaking my own rules since I know where that can lead—no place good.
But when that man makes his case with one bone-searing kiss on the streets of London, I throw resistance out the window.
What could go wrong with a hot, dirty, no-strings-attached fling before he leaves town in five days?
Trouble is, soon our nights together lead to days, to long conversations, to getting to know each other, and to something I never expected—falling ridiculously hard for a man who’s getting on a plane to America when I live a world away.
My life is here. His is there. And no amount of falling or feeling will change that one big problem.
Warning: contains hot hotel sex, loads of dirty talk, PDA all over London, and two sexy, witty, charming alpha heroes…
Audio News!
Releasing in audio August 17th, Lauren is thrilled to share that her first M/M romance
is performed in duet narration by two of her go-to leading men and narrators—Shane East and Joe Arden!
With a full supporting cast playing their friends and family, this amazing audiobook also includes ten narrators to give listeners more of what they’ve been asking for—another full cast audiobook from Lauren Blakely!
A #1 New York Times Bestselling, #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling, and #1 Audible Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s sweet, sexy and witty. She also writes red-hot, ultra-steamy romance for her Lauren Blakely After Dark line. She’d love to give you a free book today!
Zeus is the cruelest man in the city. And he’s the only one who can save me.
If I don’t sell my body at one of his infamous parties, I’ll be forced into a nightmarish arranged marriage.
But he won’t accept any offers. Not until he’s had me for himself.
I thought I chose the right man to help me escape. I was wrong.
About the Author:
Amelia Wilde is a USA TODAY bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance and loves it a little too much. She lives in Michigan with her husband and daughters. She spends most of her time typing furiously on an iPad and appreciating the natural splendor of her home state from where she likes it best: inside.
Hey Candi! What are you reading??? 