CRUSH
Authors: Lacey Weatherford
Rave
Reviews for CRUSH
“
Crush
is my absolute favorite book that
Lacey has written to date. She has weaved into the pages betrayal, deception,
obsession, love, secrets, suspense, drama, twist and turns around every corner.
This is not your typical high school crush book—it is a coming of age
book that mixes jealousy, drug use, conformity, and love. I highly recommend
purchasing this book!”
~Lisa
Markson
,
Mommy Reads Too Much
“
Crush
is an unforgettable, stimulating
romance that will have you reeling in astonishment when the unthinkable strikes
in Cami's world! Which of these characters will come out of this deceitful
web carefully designed by this wonderfully talented author, Lacey
Weatherford! I give this book my thumbs up!”
~Jessica Johnson, Book End 2 Book End
“Wow,
what an amazing story. Once again Lacey Weatherford has done it. I
would rate this as a must read book.”
~Becky
Warnick
,
Avid Reader
“Once
again, Lacey Weatherford has delivered a romance so exhilarating, you’ll be
left in a puddle of swoony sighs.
Crush
has it all – romance, suspense, angst, humor . . . not to mention amazing
one liners from a guy so deliciously sexy, it’ll leave you breathless and
blushing for hours to come! I don't just have a crush . . . I have an
addiction!”
~Belinda Boring, The Bookish Snob
“I absolutely loved,
loved,
loved
, this book! Lacey takes us on an
electrifying ride—there were so many times I could feel my heart beat
faster in anticipation wondering what was going to happen next!
Crush
is a 5 star page turner full of
passion, secrets and intrigue...A MUST read!!!”
~Holly
Malgieri
, I Love Indie Books
“I love
the cover for
Crush
by Lacey
Weatherford and I went into reading it with the idea that it was going to be a
hot, contemporary romance. I’m happy to tell you that whilst this is indeed
the case, the book is about so much more. The romance was present but
there was also something else going on and this made for one of the best books
I’ve seen from Lacey. It’s a great story and one that needs to be read. I
dare you to fall in love with
Crush
.”
~
Lynsey
Newton, Narratively Speaking
“I love a good romantic
novel laced with suspense and danger and
Crush
is
all that and more. Perfectly paced and plotted, there was no lull in the
action. Weatherford has crafted what I consider to be the perfect book and I am
looking forward to many re-reads in the future.”
~Melissa
Simmons, Girls Heart Books
“
Crush
is AH-MAY-ZING. Sparks were flying off the pages throughout
the entire book. The romance isn't the only thing going on, it has many
different levels to it. I absolutely loved the plot—I was amazed once all
the pieces started coming together. I
soooo
did not
want this book to end!”
~
Tishia
Mackey, Paranormal Opinion
“Jenny:
What a delicious and engrossing read this was! I really did enjoy
it! The anticipation kept me eagerly flicking the pages and it kept me
riveted until the end!
Gitte
: Lacey absolutely has a
knack for creating storylines with depth and her characters are real, credible
and relevant. I got sucked in right away again and couldn’t put it down.
This was a FAB YA story!”
~
Jenny &
Gitte
, Totally Booked
“Weatherford has a
distinctive writing style with the ability to create storylines with depth and
realism; her characters are real, believable and relatable. If her name
is on a book I immediately want to read it, regardless! Crush is yet another
success for the amazing author!”
~Tammy Middleton, Tam’s Two Cents
“So
far I've loved everything
Lacey's
ever written, but I
generally prefer fantasy to contemporary. So, I expected to love it, just not
quite as much. Hah. I was wrong. This is probably
Lacey's
best novel yet. Whether or not you like contemporary YA, you'll like
Crush
.
It was fun, serious and adventurous all at once.”
~Natalie Richards, Songs and Stories
“Lacey has a way of creating
stories that speak to your heart.
She really knows how to capture her readers with every story she writes.
It's real, it flows perfectly and flawlessly and I really feel like I'm there
experiencing the journey along with the characters. If I could give
Crush
more than FIVE stars, I would no
questions asked, but alas I can only give it FIVE so that would have to
suffice!”
~ Anne
Brewer, YA Romance Author
“Wow,
what an amazing story. Once again Lacey Weatherford has done it. I
would rate this as a must read book.”
~Becky
Warnick
, Avid
Reader
CRUSH
Moonstruck Media -
Arizona
Copyright © 2012
Lacey Weatherford
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Published by
Moonstruck Media
Edited by Irene Hunt,
Third Eye Tight Editing Services
Arizona
Kindle Edition
Without limiting the
rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in
any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and
the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of
fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the
product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.
The author acknowledges the trademarked
status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of
fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these
trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark
owners.
This book is
available in print and
ebook
format.
Other
books by
Lacey
Weatherford
Of Witches and Warlocks
series:
The Trouble with Spells
The Demon Kiss
Blood of the White Witch
The Dark Rising
Possession of Souls
Chasing Nikki series:
Chasing Nikki
Finding Chase
(Available December 2012)
Anthology:
A Midsummer Night’s Fling
Acknowledgments
Crush was
a story that popped into my head suddenly and took over. After continuously
struggling to put it on the back burner so that I could finish the projects
scheduled ahead of it, I finally gave in and listened to the advice of my
business partners,
Bels
, and Kam. They said if the
story was eating at me that badly, then I should just write it.
I’m glad
I listened to them! This tale literally poured out of me in a matter of days
and was sent off to my editor a whole month ahead of schedule. So thanks to
them, thanks to my family for not growling at me while I wrote on our vacation,
and of course, thanks to my editor, Irene, for all her help and amazing
suggestions.
Another
one bites the dust!
Love,
Lacey
Dedication
For my “
besties
”
from high school:
Barbara, Kim, and Deanna.
Here’s to the memories of all the awesome
crushes we had!
***
For my cousin, Chris
Napier.
You are missed!
CRUSH
By Lacey
Weatherford
Prologue
Cami-
It was magical. We danced and swayed to the
music as fake snow fell from above, catching the glitter of the giant silver
disco ball as it spread the flickering mood lighting around the gym. Despite
the Winter Formal’s snowflake theme, the room was hot from the crush of bodies,
but no one, including me, seemed to care. It was beautiful, and I was
thoroughly enjoying this night out with Clay, my best friend in the whole
world.
There was a small commotion off to my right,
and I saw Jordan Henley stagger toward me. My first thought was to wonder who
spiked his punch. He abruptly lurched forward, falling against me.
“Cami, help me. Please,” he said in a desperate
sounding whisper, spitting on me as he spoke.
“Get off her!” Clay yelled in disgust, shoving
him.
Jordan fell—his head hit the floor with a
resounding crack that vibrated under my feet. My loud, horrified scream pierced
the air. The dancing teens stopped and scattered outward in cries of disbelief,
forming a wide circle around the twitching boy in the center. I was frozen to
the spot until Clay grabbed me, yanking me backward as well.
Teachers rushed forward, pushing through the
packed crowd trying to discover what was wrong with the school’s champion
running back. He was foaming from the mouth, his eyes rolled back into his
head.
“Somebody help him!” I screeched out.
“Call an ambulance!” one of the teachers
yelled, and several students produced their cell phones all at once.
Jordan suddenly gurgled and gagged then quit
moving. The teacher, Mr. Russo, laid his head near Jordan’s mouth before
quickly straightening and checking for a pulse.
“Get these kids out of here!” he ordered the
rest of the faculty as he ripped open the buttons of Jordan’s shirt.
Several girls started crying as he placed his
hands on Jordan’s chest and started doing compressions . . . but
I could tell it was too late. Jordan Henley was already dead.
Chapter
One
Cami-
Three
months later
“Can someone please tell me the ruling for
comma placements in this particular sentence?” Mrs. Stuart tapped the board
with her old-fashioned, stick pointer as she peered over the top of her small,
gold wire-rimmed glasses. Her gaze floated around the classroom, looking for a
volunteer as she absently reached up to pat her French twisted gray hair.
I raised my hand from the back of the classroom
and she stopped on me, smiling.
“Anyone besides Miss Wimberley?” she amended.
I lowered my arm quickly, accidentally hitting
the edge of my binder, which was hanging off my desk. The action caused it to
pop up and fall to the floor. The three rings burst open, and papers scattered
everywhere.
Laughter twittered through the previously
silent classroom, and my face flushed in embarrassment as I slid to my knees,
hurriedly trying to gather the mess.
“Attention! Please!” Mrs. Stuart’s voice
snapped, directing everyone to look back at her. “Mr. Wilder, please help Cami
pick up her things.”
I groaned internally.
Not Hunter
, I thought.
My humiliation was complete. It was bad enough
almost all my classes were seated alphabetically, bad enough the computer had
somehow managed to put him in four of my seven periods when he’d moved in a few
weeks ago, bad enough he’d risen to immediate ‘in’ status and was now
considered the hottest, coolest—and maybe the worst—partier in
school. Despite the two of us being from entirely different social classes, him
the king of stoners, me the queen of nerdy chic, I still managed to have a
crush on him—a crush I did my absolute best to hide from
everyone . . . especially him.