The Fighter (The High Rise, Book 1) (28 page)

She used to be perky, fun, and full of life—everything I
hated about girls and their bullshit exterior. People called her
bubbly; I called her “fake-as-hell.”
The edgy, dark, lonely girl in front
of me was not the Olivia Brennan I knew from high school—far from
it, actually. I knew the story—the whole town knew the story, we
witnessed it all. It happened in the blink of an eye and the girl
we knew was gone.
But I refuse to watch it anymore—I
can’t stand it. I’m going to fix it—fix her. It’s time I showed
Olivia her way back…Back to the girl she used to be.

W
aiting for Love (Waiting #2) by Dawn
Stanton

Professor Garrett Hanlon -
Fantasies about him have
consumed me since the first day of class. The fact that he’s my
professor doesn’t seem to matter at all. There’s something between
us, an attraction so powerful, so intense, that I can’t seem to
keep my distance, even though I know I should…even though I know,
he wants so much more from me than I’m willing to give. Is being
with him worth ruining my entire academic
future?
Jeff Walsh - We have a “friends with
benefits” relationship, and it’s been working well for us…until
now. He’s the quarterback of the university’s football team, and
we’ve known each other since the first day of sophomore year. We
have a lot of fun together, but is it fair for us to continue this
way when all I can think about is Professor Hanlon and the way he
sets my body on fire with a simple touch?
I feel as though I’m on the verge of
something special, something amazing, something that comes along
once in a lifetime. If I could only find the courage to choose….but
what if I take the chance, make the choice, and it brings me
nothing but heartache?
Is falling in love really worth
risking it all?

Friction (Oath Keepers MC Book 5) by Sapphire
Knight

T
wist
 
Gone.
 
I lost my mind that
day.
 
I arrived home, to my wife’s
sweet color, stripped. Her body motionless, slain in a puddle of
blood, her delicate skin, riddled with multiple stab wounds. The
brutality of the rape was horrendous. My precious little girl lay
in the middle of the floor, pillow securely duct taped on her face.
Her tiny body, left unmoving. I’ve never screamed so savagely,
wishing I was dead, before in my life.
 
Hope.
 
I’ve long given up on any
light in my life, jaded. I wasn’t expecting to be blinded with
friction, by a fucking ray of sunshine.
 

Sadie
 
Confused
 
I had no idea what to do with my life or my baby’s. I trusted
the wrong man, who turned out to be a ghost, disappearing, leaving
me scattered. I head to my brother’s club, in hopes of leaning on
the only shoulder I’ve ever known.
 
Strength
 
What I find instead, is a
hunter. A fiercely loyal, broken man, just waiting for his next
kill
.

Acknowledgments

To my fantastic
beta readers, Franca, Mel & Sam, Thank you for everything!

To Amy &
the Hellbenders, I love you guys! You make everything so much more
fun (and crazy) since you’ve come into my life! Keep being the
awesome lovelies that you are! <3

TC Matson,
Without your encouragement I think I’d be in the fetal position… on
the floor… in the corner. Thank you for being the best cheerleader
ever! You’re an amazing friend and I can’t wait to laugh at your
baby hands and feet in person some day :P Yeah, yeah, spit &
shin kick away ;) Lobe you gobs xo

Anne Mercier,
Thank you for always making time for me. You’ve got to be the
busiest person I know but you’re always willing to help a gal out.
Love ya! Dallas 2016 or bust! <3

Dawn Stanton
& Janelle Schindler, Thank you for not only promoting my books
but also checking in every now and then to make sure I’m still
alive and kicking. I’ll return the favor on your next book ;)

Amy Dunlap,
Thank you, thank you, thank you, woman! You’re the best PA ever!
You get me & know how to keep me going. I’m wondering what I
did before you *snorts* Love ya gobs & heaps!

Erin Spencer,
Thank you for always hooking me up at the last minute. I’m thinking
you’re starting to figure out my MO now so I’m past the shocking
you stage. Thank you for being supportive with your sweet voice on
my messenger : ) Love you tons!

To the many
bloggers who’ve spread the word about my books, thank you x a
zillion. Know that you are appreciated GOBS!

And to the readers,
this is all for you. Thank you <3
.

Gable
(The Powers That Be, Book 1)

Chapter 1

Summer, two
weeks before class:

You know that
feeling you get when you meet someone and feel as if you’ve known
them for a lifetime? As if you’re just connected in some way?

Yeah, that
didn’t happen the first time I met Gable Powers. Matter of fact, I
didn’t like him one bit.

Oh, I know
about all the Powers boys now. I actually knew about them by the
first day of school since it seemed as if every woman on campus
couldn’t stop talking about how each brother was just as gorgeous
as the next, and things like, “Omigod! The Powers brothers are
so
hot!” or “Aren’t they just
the
cutest you’ve ever
seen?” were proclaimed almost everywhere I went the entire first
week of school. From listening in on these chicks wax rhapsodic
over these brothers, if they were anything less than Nick Bateman
clones, well, then I’d be highly disappointed. But from their
conversations, I learned the Powers were from Seattle, all of them
went to Hallervan, Zeke was a senior who played on the football
team, Lochlan was a freshman who was some kind of computer genius,
Ryker was a sophomore wrestler and Gable was a junior. I had yet to
figure out what his superpower was, but I can honestly say that
when I first met him, I couldn’t have cared less.

My
up-close-and-personal with Gable Powers left me less than thrilled,
and when I finally figured out who he was and said something later
about it to my new roommate, I got a stare of disbelief which made
me roll my eyes.

So here’s how
it all went down.

I’d answered
an ad in the
Seattle Times
for a roommate. On my way to meet
Amy (fellow sophomore who’d eventually become my new roomie), I’d
had a flat tire and had to pull over in an area of the city I was
unfamiliar with—hell I was unfamiliar with the entire friggin’
place—and, of course, it’d been raining. As a farm girl, I knew how
to change a tire, had no problem changing a tire, but per Dad’s
instructions, I called AAA and stayed in my car waiting for someone
to show up, kind of feeling like a wuss for doing so. I knew I
could’ve done it and been on my way in no time but I decided to let
Dad parent me for a change. Not that he wasn’t a good father; it’s
just that I was majorly independent.

Needless to
say, I was a little surprised when a black pickup truck stopped
behind me and a guy got out, almost immediately after I’d hung up
with the auto service. I mean, I’d heard AAA was fast, but come on.
The guy had come to the driver’s side and when he’d tapped on the
window of my little Honda, I’d seen the full sleeve tattoo on his
muscular arm and my eyes had bugged out.

See, I’m from
a small town in Idaho where everyone thinks tattoos are Satan’s
markings, which I know is ridiculous and is one of the many reasons
I couldn’t wait to leave that shitty little place, but I regret
saying that when I’d seen his arm, I’d been a little on edge. The
guy had stood there in the pouring rain while I contemplated what
to do as I checked out the rest of him. He appeared to be over six
feet tall and his entire body was ripped. Dang. I could see his abs
all bumpy and defined through the wet white t-shirt that clung to
him, and his rain-soaked jeans were stuck to what appeared to be
muscular thighs. I’d then felt bad for ogling him as he stood there
getting drenched, so I finally rolled my window down an inch and
he’d bent to ask if I needed help.

And, my God,
was he beautiful.

I stared at
him as rain dripped from his straight nose to the ground. It
drizzled down his high cheekbones where it met his strong,
stubble-covered jaw, trickling to his chin before finally slipping
off. The long curls of dark hair that framed his tanned face were
dripping wet also, but it was his light brown eyes that held my
attention, so expressive and soulful, lined in long, sooty lashes
that were spiked from the rain. Damn. He was a total friggin’
hunk.

“I’ve called
Triple A, so no, thank you,” I’d yelled over the rain through the
cracked window.

He’d given me
a sexy half grin, which made butterflies bounce off the walls of my
stomach. “I could probably have it fixed before they even get their
truck started.”

I’d twisted my
mouth to the side not really knowing what to do. I mean, if I
agreed to let
him
fix it,
I
may as well just do it.
“Uh, that’s okay.”

“Seriously.
You wouldn’t even have to get out, Rebecca. Just pop the trunk and
I’ll take care of it. You won’t even have to lift one of your
pretty, little fingers.” The smug look he’d given me made me frown.
A lot.

“Rebecca?” I
asked wondering what he was talking about.

“Of Sunnybrook
Farm. You know, all clean and wholesome. Prissy,” he’d replied with
a twinkle in his eye as he grinned fully now, his straight white
teeth making him even more attractive.

What the hell?
I’d grown up with two older brothers and I was anything but prissy.
I could drive a tractor for chrissakes! “No, really, it’s fine,” I
said through gritted teeth.

“Oh, c’mon.
Can’t have a helpless little lady like yourself out here all alone,
you know. What are you, like fifteen?”

I blinked at
how rude he was being which was when Kim Kardashian, Jr. had walked
up holding an umbrella and wearing the shortest shorts I’d ever
seen. The crop t-shirt she wore had so much cut off that I could
see her braless boobs hanging out from under it and couldn’t help
but gape at how provocatively she was dressed. Then she’d whined,
“What’s going onnnnnn, Gable? God! These helpless little Daddy’s
Girls are so annoying!
I
could’ve changed the tire by
nooooow! Leave the rich bitch alone and come onnnnnn!”