Belles Bookin' It Promotions
Hi! Two southern girls here to help out the Indie authors we love by promoting their books. We started doing this because of our love for books and all things related to the world of fiction and romance. It never gets old. If you need us, give us a shout! Always up to meet more amazing people behind the stories. XOXO, Your favorite Belles ;)
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Friday, January 29, 2016
ALEXA LOVED by TR Cupak SALE BLITZ
ALEXA LOVED SALE BLITZ
After her parents died during her senior year of high school, Alexa Morgan is completely alone in the world—except for her best-friend-turned-boyfriend Devin, identical twins Becca and Jessa, and Sebastian, a mysterious associate of her father’s. Upon graduation, Alexa wants nothing more than to move on with her life, go to college, and forget all the hard and hurtful things from her tragic past. But when her first love, Ethan, shows up at her graduation—it kicks off a whirlwind of events that threatens the good and stable things she’s worked so hard to achieve. Ethan and Alexa shared one night of passion before he disappeared, leaving her bewildered and confused. But now he’s back, declaring that he loves her and that the only reason he left was to protect her from his malicious stepmother, Olivia. In her heart, Alexa knows she loves Devin, but her attraction to Ethan is so strong she can’t help but be drawn in by their shared chemistry. Meanwhile, the threat of Olivia lurks around the edges, casting a menacing shadow over everything and everyone Alexa loves.
Alexa Loved Excerpt:
Although it feels like time has completely stopped it most definitely has not. I am completely oblivious to how long Ethan and I have been standing outside my hotel room when we are startled apart by the sound of a very pissed off, deep, familiar voice.
“What the fuck is going on, Lexi?” Devin’s heated voice booms through the open hallway making me cringe and my body turn to stone at the sound. I’m still partially wrapped up in Ethan’s arms but when I finally detangle myself completely out of his hold, I step to the side of him so I can see Devin. I get a pretty good view of him too since he’s standing only a few feet behind Ethan with hate evident in his normally kind eyes. I know shock is all over my face as I stare at Devin as if he’s just a figment of my imagination. Ethan hasn’t moved a muscle. His back is to his enemy yet he chooses to stay facing me. It takes another few seconds before I finally take notice to what Devin is wearing. He has on running shorts and running shoes. His body is glistening with sweat and his face is red as if he was actually outside running in the Miami heat.
What the hell? My emotions are all over the place. Confused, scared, hurt, happy. I swear on my parent’s urns that Devin was just in bed with the twins. How is he standing here like he was actually out for a run and why can’t I find my damned voice to ask that very question? Suddenly I hear the twins’ door to their room open. I turn my attention behind me just as a random guy, who looks like he could be Devin’s fraternal twin brother or doppelganger, exits the twins’ room. My mind automatically fishes for the memory of my conversation with Jesse. Once I replay what he had said privately plus all of the banter with his buddies, I can see how a drunken person could mistake Mr. Random for Devin. The twins’ guest is wearing gray boardshorts and flips flops and steps out carrying his black T-shirt in his hand. He stops when he sees the three of us standing here. I’m sure we’re quite the sight to see. Me, with red watery eyes and airplane stale clothes, Ethan who has not moved but his irritation is quite evident, and Devin who looks as if he is ready to kill Ethan. The stranger who appears to be very much hung over but oozes sexual satisfaction gives us a half smile, says “Hey” to Devin, and inches past the soon-to-be war zone towards the elevator. It’s usually females you see doing the walk of shame but this morning it’s this wonderful guy, this wonderful guy who isn’t Devin. Shit. Devin.
“Answer me, Alexa.” Devin’s voice is seething and it makes me snap my head back around to face him. I glance briefly at Ethan and I see his eyes are screwed shut, jaw tense, the vein in his neck is pulsing, and his fists are clenched at his sides. Well shit. I can’t explain this because I don’t fully understand it all myself. I look back to Devin who is staring at me with so much anger and hurt that it takes my breath away.
Devin takes two steps closer and Ethan’s eyes snap open. Before either one can do
anything I step between both of them. I’ve been in this position once before and just like the last time I have no idea what I could or would do if these two decided to throw down. I take another step towards Devin. He just stares down at me waiting for his answer.
My voice is quiet when I finally speak to him. “Devin, I can explain part of this but I can’t explain Ethan being here because I don’t have that answer-yet.”
“Do you think I’m fucking stupid, Lexi?” There is so much pain evident in his voice that my tears start to spill again.
“No, Devin. I don’t think you’re stupid. Can we please go into our room and talk privately?” I know I sound pathetic but that’s probably because I am. I just want to be alone with Devin and figure out this craziness.
Just when I think Devin is going to concede and go into our room with me I feel one of Ethan’s hands settle on my hip and that one tiny gesture sends Devin flying over the proverbial edge. Everything happens so fast that all I feel is my body being shoved out of the way like I’m a ragdoll. I trip over my bags and my head slams against a solid surface and everything goes black.
Alexa Loved (Book 2, Alexa Series)
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Wednesday, October 14, 2015
**BLOG TOUR STOP*** Alexa Loved by TR Cupak
***Blog Tour***
Alexa Loved (Alexa Series Book 2)
by: TR Cupak
After
her parents died during her senior year of high school, Alexa Morgan is
completely alone in the world—except for her
best-friend-turned-boyfriend Devin, identical twins Becca and Jessa, and
Sebastian, a mysterious associate of her father’s.
Upon
graduation, Alexa wants nothing more than to move on with her life, go
to college, and forget all the hard and hurtful things from her tragic
past. But when her first love, Ethan, shows up on her doorstep—the night
before she’s supposed to meet Devin in Miami—it kicks off a whirlwind
of events that threatens the good and stable things she’s worked so hard
to achieve.
Ethan
and Alexa shared one night of passion before he disappeared, leaving
her bewildered and confused. But now he’s back, declaring that he loves
her and that the only reason he left was to protect her from his
malicious stepmother, Olivia.
In her heart, Alexa knows she loves Devin, but her attraction to Ethan is so strong she can’t help but be drawn in by their shared chemistry. Meanwhile, the threat of Olivia lurks around the edges, casting a menacing shadow over everything and everyone Alexa loves.
I’ve only seen where Ethan’s room is from the outside so I have to guess which door is actually to his room. There are three to choose from along the hallway. By process of elimination I go for the last door since his room appeared to be at the end of the house. I knock softly just in case I’m wrong. If I don’t hear an answer to my knock then I’m pretty confident I chose correctly since Sebastian said Ethan had enough drugs injected into him that it could have put an elephant to sleep. I knock once more before turning the knob and opening the door.
His room, like my room, is only lit by the moonlight. His slider is closed but the curtains are drawn, allowing the little bit of light to outline the silhouette of his body that is partially sprawled out, face down on the bed. It’s as if they just dumped him there and didn’t care if he was comfortable.
“Jerks,” I whisper, making my way over to Ethan’s bed. I’m sure he tried their patience and fought like hell until the medication kicked in but they didn’t have to leave him like this.
I remove his flip-flops that are haphazardly hanging off his feet from being dragged in here. I then grab his feet at the ankles and rotate him just enough so that his entire body is all the way onto the bed. Damn, he’s heavy. It took a little more effort than I thought it would and the comforter twisted with the rotating motion. There’s nothing I can do about that so it will just have to stay crumpled under him.
Since Ethan hasn’t even stirred I take a chance and roll him onto his back so he’s further onto the bed and I won’t have to worry about him falling out of the bed if he rolls to his left; although something tells me he won’t be moving any time soon. I glance down at his feet; I don’t have a foot fetish by any means but he has pretty feet for a man. I wonder if he gets pedicures. What the hell am I thinking? He’s fine, he’s sleeping peacefully and I just need to get out of here.
Just as I turn towards the door Ethan makes a god-awful sound, as if he’s being tortured. I freeze right where I stand and don’t move a muscle.
“Please don’t. Please don’t touch me there. No, stop,” he whimpers in his sleep.
.
T.
R. Cupak was born and raised in the California Bay Area. She now lives
in a quiet town south of where she grew up with her husband and their
shih tzu Harley. She is obsessed with cars, especially fast ones, and
enjoys her music louder than anyone should. When she's not at work or
busy writing, you can find her curled up, reading and enjoying a
fabulous glass of wine or a Dirty Shirley.
Despite her lifelong love of literature, Cupak lost touch with her creative side in her early twenties. Her passion for reading was rekindled six years ago, however, and in 2013 she
started journaling. This practice helped Cupak hone her creative aspirations, and soon she saw her characters come to life. She has rediscovered her passion for storytelling and wants to share her words with everyone who wants to read them.
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
*~*~Release Day Blitz*~*~ Alexa Loved by TR Cupak
Alexa Loved
by
TR Cupak
RELEASE DAY BLITZ
October 6, 2015
After her parents died during her senior year of high school, Alexa Morgan is completely alone in the world—except for her best-friend-turned-boyfriend Devin, identical twins Becca and Jessa, and Sebastian, a mysterious associate of her father’s.
Upon graduation, Alexa wants nothing more than to move on with her life, go to college, and forget all the hard and hurtful things from her tragic past. But when her first love, Ethan, shows up on her doorstep—the night before she’s supposed to meet Devin in Miami—it kicks off a whirlwind of events that threatens the good and stable things she’s worked so hard to achieve.
Ethan and Alexa shared one night of passion before he disappeared, leaving her bewildered and confused. But now he’s back, declaring that he loves her and that the only reason he left was to protect her from his malicious stepmother, Olivia.
In her heart, Alexa knows she loves Devin, but her attraction to Ethan is so strong she can’t help but be drawn in by their shared chemistry. Meanwhile, the threat of Olivia lurks around the edges, casting a menacing shadow over everything and everyone Alexa loves.
Although it feels like time has completely stopped it most definitely has not. I am completely oblivious to how long Ethan and I have been standing outside my hotel room when we are startled apart by the sound of a very pissed off, deep, familiar voice.
“What the fuck is going on, Lexi?” Devin’s heated voice booms through the open hallway making me cringe and my body turn to stone at the sound. I’m still partially wrapped up in Ethan’s arms but when I finally detangle myself completely out of his hold, I step to the side of him so I can see Devin. I get a pretty good view of him too since he’s standing only a few feet behind Ethan with hate evident in his normally kind eyes. I know shock is all over my face as I stare at Devin as if he’s just a figment of my imagination. Ethan hasn’t moved a muscle. His back is to his enemy yet he chooses to stay facing me. It takes another few seconds before I finally take notice to what Devin is wearing. He has on running shorts and running shoes. His body is glistening with sweat and his face is red as if he was actually outside running in the Miami heat.
What the hell? My emotions are all over the place. Confused, scared, hurt, happy. I swear on my parent’s urns that Devin was just in bed with the twins. How is he standing here like he was actually out for a run and why can’t I find my damned voice to ask that very question? Suddenly I hear the twins’ door to their room open. I turn my attention behind me just as a random guy, who looks like he could be Devin’s fraternal twin brother or doppelganger, exits the twins’ room. My mind automatically fishes for the memory of my conversation with Jesse. Once I replay what he had said privately plus all of the banter with his buddies, I can see how a drunken person could mistake Mr. Random for Devin. The twins’ guest is wearing gray boardshorts and flips flops and steps out carrying his black T-shirt in his hand. He stops when he sees the three of us standing here. I’m sure we’re quite the sight to see. Me, with red watery eyes and airplane stale clothes, Ethan who has not moved but his irritation is quite evident, and Devin who looks as if he is ready to kill Ethan. The stranger who appears to be very much hung over but oozes sexual satisfaction gives us a half smile, says “Hey” to Devin, and inches past the soon-to-be war zone towards the elevator. It’s usually females you see doing the walk of shame but this morning it’s this wonderful guy, this wonderful guy who isn’t Devin. Shit. Devin.
“Answer me, Alexa.” Devin’s voice is seething and it makes me snap my head back around to face him. I glance briefly at Ethan and I see his eyes are screwed shut, jaw tense, the vein in his neck is pulsing, and his fists are clenched at his sides. Well shit. I can’t explain this because I don’t fully understand it all myself. I look back to Devin who is staring at me with so much anger and hurt that it takes my breath away.
Devin takes two steps closer and Ethan’s eyes snap open. Before either one can do anything I step between both of them. I’ve been in this position once before and just like the last time I have no idea what I could or would do if these two decided to throw down. I take another step towards Devin. He just stares down at me waiting for his answer.
My voice is quiet when I finally speak to him. “Devin, I can explain part of this but I can’t
explain Ethan being here because I don’t have that answer-yet.”
“Do you think I’m fucking stupid, Lexi?” There is so much pain evident in his voice that my tears start to spill again.
“No, Devin. I don’t think you’re stupid. Can we please go into our room and talk privately?” I know I sound pathetic but that’s probably because I am. I just want to be alone with Devin and figure out this craziness.
Just when I think Devin is going to concede and go into our room with me I feel one of Ethan’s hands settle on my hip and that one tiny gesture sends Devin flying over the proverbial edge. Everything happens so fast that all I feel is my body being shoved out of the way like I’m a ragdoll. I trip over my bags and my head slams against a solid surface and everything goes black.
T. R. Cupak was born and raised in the California Bay Area. She now lives in a quiet town south of where she grew up with her husband and their shih tzu Harley. She is obsessed with cars, especially fast ones, and enjoys her music louder than anyone should. When she's not at work or busy writing, you can find her curled up, reading and enjoying a fabulous glass of wine or a Dirty Shirley.
Despite her lifelong love of literature, Cupak lost touch with her creative side in her early twenties. Her passion for reading was rekindled six years ago, however, and in 2013 she
started journaling. This practice helped Cupak hone her creative aspirations, and soon she saw her characters come to life. She has rediscovered her passion for storytelling and wants to share her words with everyone who wants to read them.
Alexa Loved (Alexa Series Book 2)
Alexa Crushed (Alexa Series Book1)
Will be free from 10/06-10/16
Hosted By:
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
**More Than Lies BLOG TOUR** NE Henderson
More Than Lies
by
NE Henderson
**BLOG TOUR STOP**
"Why the fuck was that prick bringing you home?"
After Mason made it known yesterday morning that I'm sleeping
with Jared, you'd think Shawn would know the answer to that question. He
probably does. He just wants me to verbalize it. I'm not going to.
"Leave it, Shawn." I twist around and pin him with a stare. Next, I
toss the tequila back, but this time my eyes widen. Ok, maybe my buzz
wasn't so much gone like I originally thought.
Wow. That was stout.
"How much have you had to drink?"
"Enough that I should be in bed." What's with the twenty questions?
More importantly why does he even care? From what I saw earlier tonight,
or last night really, Shawn and Mason left with the brunette trash from
Level. I don't have to guess what they left to go do and I certainly
don't want to imagine it.
"So, let me get this
straight. You, drunk, got onto the back of Cole's bike? Are you fucking
crazy, Tara?" He doesn't wait for a reply. "Or do you have a death
wish?"
"Neither, are you done now?" His palm
smacks the side of the refrigerator before turning. Moments later, I
hear the door to the half bathroom down the hall slam closed.
I turn back around, pour yet another glass and down it. I'm going
to pay for this when I wake up and it's going to be so much worse than
yesterday morning's hangover. Screw it. If I'm going to do it in the
first place, might as well do it right.
"You
know, it's only a matter of time before Holly has him back in her
grasps. You don't stand a chance with Shawn; you never have." Cassie's
catty bitch-ass voice assaults my ears. Sometimes she's worse than
Amanda. I put up with Mandy’s shit because she is dating my best friend,
but it'll be a cold day in hell before I deal with this bitch’s crap.
Without giving it a bit of thought, I turn and leap forward. She needs a
good butt kicking. I'm not a fighter. I know I can take her if I tried,
but I don't actively seek out confrontations. My mother would flip her
lid, so I do what's necessary to avoid that at all cost.
Before I reach her, a set of massive arms grab me by the waist,
pulling me backwards and against his hard chest. "Get. Out. Of. My.
House." Shawn bites each word out through clenched teeth. I know they
aren't directed at me. Even if I weren’t looking at her shocked
expression, I'd know they are aimed at Cassie Winston.
"What?"
"What?"
"I don't think he stuttered, Barbie?" Okay, Barbie is usually held
for Holly, the queen bitch herself, but I had to. Sue me if you don't
like it. I don’t usually act like this, but I’ve had a fair share of
alcohol tonight.
"You won't disrespect her, or
anyone else that lives here. Last time I checked, you don't live here…
so leave." His words are still a bark. Shawn can come off quite scary at
times. Frankly, Cassie looks like she is about to pee her pants.
Inside, I'm loving it. This is so much better than me punching her. "Or I
could let Tara go, but I don't think you want me to. Trust me, she will
crush you.
"I will? Hell, I don't know if I
will or not. I've never hit another person in my life. I'm bigger than
Cassie, sure, in every way, but I'm not going there.
The snootiness crosses her face again. It's the same one my mother
wears around me. She should have been my mother's kid. I'm certain her
and my mother would get along much better than my mother and I do. "Yes,
she would.
"Oh that bitch went there. Yes, I
have issues with my weight. I'm not over weight, I don't think, but I’m
not thin or skinny by any means, and it doesn't matter how much I work
out, I'm never going to be a small size. I love to cook and I love to
eat the food I cook. It's just not in the cards for me. Doesn't mean I
like it, but she doesn't have a right to throw it in my face, especially
with Shawn standing here.
I try to jump
forward, but Shawn's hold on me tightens. "Leave. Now." Another bark,
only this time his voice is deeper. It's a warning.
"Whatever." She turns, exiting the kitchen followed by the house as quickly as her feet will move.
Once I hear the door click closed he releases me, and as he steps
backwards the warm flannel shirt I'm wearing, Jared’s shirt, is pulled
off my body. I turn, facing Shawn. What the heck is that about?
"Go take a shower?" My jaw drops. He rips the shirt down the middle, making two un-wearable pieces. What the flyin...
The material is disregarded and lands on the tile floor.
I plant my hands on my hips in a defiant gesture. He's not about
to order me around. I might take that crap from my parents, but I won't
from anyone else. "Excuse me?"
Shawn wastes no
time. He springs forward in an instant, making me step backwards until
my back collides with the wall. He continues to close in, placing his
palms on the flat surface of the wall next to my face and leans in. "You
smell like him and I don't fucking like it.
"Oh tough shit."
Because you smelling like a cheap whore is so much better," I lash
back. I don't waste my time either. I take both of my hands, placing my
palms on his chest and pushing as hard as I can. It might not have come
across as a shove, because his body didn't move away from mine as much
as I intended it to. "Piss off, Shawn." With those last words I leave
the kitchen, taking myself up the stairs to my bedroom for a shower… and
not because Shawn ordered me to, but because I do in fact stink.
If I weren't as drunk as I am right now, I might have stopped to
analyze what just happened between us, but I don't. I'm going to
struggle enough just getting out of my clothes to shower tonight, or
this morning, or whatever the hell time of the day this is.
Mother effin' jerk, he is.I wish I could scream it at them, but no one will listen to me. Instead, they choose to ignore me by making me into something I’m not. I try to make them happy, but no matter how hard I try it’s not good enough. I make good grades. Hell, I was top of my class senior year, but things happen. We make sacrifices for people important to us. My parents wouldn’t understand that. Instead, they say I could be better. I’m the good girl to everyone else, but to my parents I fall short. To most I have curves, to them I’m fat. I just want them to be happy with my imperfections. You know what? I’m tired of giving and getting nothing in return. Screw them.
The only one that I want to see me for who I really am…is him.
TARALYNN EVANS has always been the good girl, forced to befriend people she cares nothing about. She tries hard to be what them and everyone else expects her to be, but what’s the point when it’s never enough to gain their approval? She’s over lying to make others happy or self-sacrificing to spare their feelings. For once, she just wants to be herself. She wants to feel human, tired of being a puppet.
When tragedy strikes her in the worst way, she finds herself bargaining in distress, trying to find reason and rationality in what’s set before her, but will he give in when in most cases the good girl never gets the bad boy?
Ink, sex, lies, loyalty.
Those are the things that define me, and my life. I do me. Nothing else matters. I don’t need anyone’s approval, nor do I seek it. I’m comfortable with the man I am. The only thing that haunts my dreams are those sapphire eyes that remind me of midnight. I will shut it down every single time. I can’t have her. She deserves more than what I’m after. The problem is that sometimes life is a bitch. That curveball was nowhere in sight, but now that it’s been thrown…my life may never be the same.
SHAWN BRADEN has always been the bad boy. He’s always had the love and support of his parents no matter what he does. He knows he can have any girl he wants. Too bad he never wants them more than once. What he truly wants is the one thing he’s never admitting to, not even to himself. What happens when he starts seeing past the facade she’s put on for years and shows him the real girl that is hiding inside? Will he fall against his will, or will she become nothing more than every girl before?
MEET N.E. HENDERSON
Hi, I’m Nancy,
I’m
a mom, wife, writer, obsessed reader, and fiction whore to the chore.
I’m an introvert. It takes me a minute to warm up to people, but once I
do, you’ll probably never get me to shut up.
I
live in the south, Mississippi to be exact. I love warm sunny days and I
despise cold and raining weather. I have a love/hate relationship with
my Bull Terrier, Xena. The little winch thinks my husband belongs to her
when he most certainly does not; he belongs to me.
I
love to read possibly even more than I love to write. That can be a
problem when I have fictional people taking up room inside my brain and
screaming to get out. They don’t understand why I can’t give them my
full attention.
In
my free time, I love riding my Can Am Maverick and finding new off road
trails. I’m a city girl, married to a country boy, who likes to get a
little dirty and sometimes muddy. Even though I don’t do it often, I
love roller coasters. The steel coasters that is. I hate the wooden
ones.
Readers, connect with me. I love hearing from you and reading your reviews.
xoxo,
LIMITED TIME RELEASE SALE of $0.99 until Sept 30th. [Regular Price $3.99]
★ STANDALONE (Book 1 in a series of standalone’s)
★ 445 pages
★ Dual POV
Hosted by:
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
More Than Lies Release Day Blitz
*Release Day Blitz*
More Than Lies
NE Henderson
No one is perfect.
I wish I could scream it at them, but no one will listen to me. Instead, they choose to ignore me by making me into something I’m not. I try to make them happy, but no matter how hard I try it’s not good enough. I make good grades. Hell, I was top of my class senior year, but things happen. We make sacrifices for people important to us. My parents wouldn’t understand that. Instead, they say I could be better. I’m the good girl to everyone else, but to my parents I fall short. To most I have curves, to them I’m fat. I just want them to be happy with my imperfections. You know what? I’m tired of giving and getting nothing in return. Screw them.
The only one that I want to see me for who I really am…is him.
TARALYNN EVANS has always been the good girl, forced to befriend people she cares nothing about. She tries hard to be what them and everyone else expects her to be, but what’s the point when it’s never enough to gain their approval? She’s over lying to make others happy or self-sacrificing to spare their feelings. For once, she just wants to be herself. She wants to feel human, tired of being a puppet.
When tragedy strikes her in the worst way, she finds herself bargaining in distress, trying to find reason and rationality in what’s set before her, but will he give in when in most cases the good girl never gets the bad boy?
Ink, sex, lies, loyalty.
Those are the things that define me, and my life. I do me. Nothing else matters. I don’t need anyone’s approval, nor do I seek it. I’m comfortable with the man I am. The only thing that haunts my dreams are those sapphire eyes that remind me of midnight. I will shut it down every single time. I can’t have her. She deserves more than what I’m after. The problem is that sometimes life is a bitch. That curveball was nowhere in sight, but now that it’s been thrown…my life may never be the same.
SHAWN BRADEN has always been the bad boy. He’s always had the love and support of his parents no matter what he does. He knows he can have any girl he wants. Too bad he never wants them more than once. What he truly wants is the one thing he’s never admitting to, not even to himself. What happens when he starts seeing past the facade she’s put on for years and shows him the real girl that is hiding inside? Will he fall against his will, or will she become nothing more than every girl before?
"Why the fuck was that prick bringing you home?"
I wish I could scream it at them, but no one will listen to me. Instead, they choose to ignore me by making me into something I’m not. I try to make them happy, but no matter how hard I try it’s not good enough. I make good grades. Hell, I was top of my class senior year, but things happen. We make sacrifices for people important to us. My parents wouldn’t understand that. Instead, they say I could be better. I’m the good girl to everyone else, but to my parents I fall short. To most I have curves, to them I’m fat. I just want them to be happy with my imperfections. You know what? I’m tired of giving and getting nothing in return. Screw them.
The only one that I want to see me for who I really am…is him.
TARALYNN EVANS has always been the good girl, forced to befriend people she cares nothing about. She tries hard to be what them and everyone else expects her to be, but what’s the point when it’s never enough to gain their approval? She’s over lying to make others happy or self-sacrificing to spare their feelings. For once, she just wants to be herself. She wants to feel human, tired of being a puppet.
When tragedy strikes her in the worst way, she finds herself bargaining in distress, trying to find reason and rationality in what’s set before her, but will he give in when in most cases the good girl never gets the bad boy?
Ink, sex, lies, loyalty.
Those are the things that define me, and my life. I do me. Nothing else matters. I don’t need anyone’s approval, nor do I seek it. I’m comfortable with the man I am. The only thing that haunts my dreams are those sapphire eyes that remind me of midnight. I will shut it down every single time. I can’t have her. She deserves more than what I’m after. The problem is that sometimes life is a bitch. That curveball was nowhere in sight, but now that it’s been thrown…my life may never be the same.
SHAWN BRADEN has always been the bad boy. He’s always had the love and support of his parents no matter what he does. He knows he can have any girl he wants. Too bad he never wants them more than once. What he truly wants is the one thing he’s never admitting to, not even to himself. What happens when he starts seeing past the facade she’s put on for years and shows him the real girl that is hiding inside? Will he fall against his will, or will she become nothing more than every girl before?
After Mason made it known yesterday morning that I'm sleeping
with Jared, you'd think Shawn would know the answer to that question. He
probably does. He just wants me to verbalize it. I'm not going to.
"Leave it, Shawn." I twist around and pin him with a stare. Next, I
toss the tequila back, but this time my eyes widen. Ok, maybe my buzz
wasn't so much gone like I originally thought.
Wow. That was stout.
"How much have you had to drink?"
"Enough that I should be in bed." What's with the twenty questions?
More importantly why does he even care? From what I saw earlier tonight,
or last night really, Shawn and Mason left with the brunette trash from
Level. I don't have to guess what they left to go do and I certainly
don't want to imagine it.
"So, let me get this
straight. You, drunk, got onto the back of Cole's bike? Are you fucking
crazy, Tara?" He doesn't wait for a reply. "Or do you have a death
wish?"
"Neither, are you done now?" His palm
smacks the side of the refrigerator before turning. Moments later, I
hear the door to the half bathroom down the hall slam closed.
I turn back around, pour yet another glass and down it. I'm going
to pay for this when I wake up and it's going to be so much worse than
yesterday morning's hangover. Screw it. If I'm going to do it in the
first place, might as well do it right.
"You
know, it's only a matter of time before Holly has him back in her
grasps. You don't stand a chance with Shawn; you never have." Cassie's
catty bitch-ass voice assaults my ears. Sometimes she's worse than
Amanda. I put up with Mandy’s shit because she is dating my best friend,
but it'll be a cold day in hell before I deal with this bitch’s crap.
Without giving it a bit of thought, I turn and leap forward. She needs a
good butt kicking. I'm not a fighter. I know I can take her if I tried,
but I don't actively seek out confrontations. My mother would flip her
lid, so I do what's necessary to avoid that at all cost.
Before I reach her, a set of massive arms grab me by the waist,
pulling me backwards and against his hard chest. "Get. Out. Of. My.
House." Shawn bites each word out through clenched teeth. I know they
aren't directed at me. Even if I weren’t looking at her shocked
expression, I'd know they are aimed at Cassie Winston.
"What?"
"What?"
"I don't think he stuttered, Barbie?" Okay, Barbie is usually held
for Holly, the queen bitch herself, but I had to. Sue me if you don't
like it. I don’t usually act like this, but I’ve had a fair share of
alcohol tonight.
"You won't disrespect her, or
anyone else that lives here. Last time I checked, you don't live here…
so leave." His words are still a bark. Shawn can come off quite scary at
times. Frankly, Cassie looks like she is about to pee her pants.
Inside, I'm loving it. This is so much better than me punching her. "Or I
could let Tara go, but I don't think you want me to. Trust me, she will
crush you.
"I will? Hell, I don't know if I
will or not. I've never hit another person in my life. I'm bigger than
Cassie, sure, in every way, but I'm not going there.
The snootiness crosses her face again. It's the same one my mother
wears around me. She should have been my mother's kid. I'm certain her
and my mother would get along much better than my mother and I do. "Yes,
she would.
"Oh that bitch went there. Yes, I
have issues with my weight. I'm not over weight, I don't think, but I’m
not thin or skinny by any means, and it doesn't matter how much I work
out, I'm never going to be a small size. I love to cook and I love to
eat the food I cook. It's just not in the cards for me. Doesn't mean I
like it, but she doesn't have a right to throw it in my face, especially
with Shawn standing here.
I try to jump
forward, but Shawn's hold on me tightens. "Leave. Now." Another bark,
only this time his voice is deeper. It's a warning.
"Whatever." She turns, exiting the kitchen followed by the house as quickly as her feet will move.
Once I hear the door click closed he releases me, and as he steps
backwards the warm flannel shirt I'm wearing, Jared’s shirt, is pulled
off my body. I turn, facing Shawn. What the heck is that about?
"Go take a shower?" My jaw drops. He rips the shirt down the middle, making two un-wearable pieces. What the flyin...
The material is disregarded and lands on the tile floor.
I plant my hands on my hips in a defiant gesture. He's not about
to order me around. I might take that crap from my parents, but I won't
from anyone else. "Excuse me?"
Shawn wastes no
time. He springs forward in an instant, making me step backwards until
my back collides with the wall. He continues to close in, placing his
palms on the flat surface of the wall next to my face and leans in. "You
smell like him and I don't fucking like it.
"Oh tough shit."
Because you smelling like a cheap whore is so much better," I lash
back. I don't waste my time either. I take both of my hands, placing my
palms on his chest and pushing as hard as I can. It might not have come
across as a shove, because his body didn't move away from mine as much
as I intended it to. "Piss off, Shawn." With those last words I leave
the kitchen, taking myself up the stairs to my bedroom for a shower… and
not because Shawn ordered me to, but because I do in fact stink.
If I weren't as drunk as I am right now, I might have stopped to
analyze what just happened between us, but I don't. I'm going to
struggle enough just getting out of my clothes to shower tonight, or
this morning, or whatever the hell time of the day this is.
Mother effin' jerk, he is.
MEET N.E. HENDERSON
Hi, I’m Nancy,
I’m
a mom, wife, writer, obsessed reader, and fiction whore to the chore.
I’m an introvert. It takes me a minute to warm up to people, but once I
do, you’ll probably never get me to shut up.
I
live in the south, Mississippi to be exact. I love warm sunny days and I
despise cold and raining weather. I have a love/hate relationship with
my Bull Terrier, Xena. The little winch thinks my husband belongs to her
when he most certainly does not; he belongs to me.
I
love to read possibly even more than I love to write. That can be a
problem when I have fictional people taking up room inside my brain and
screaming to get out. They don’t understand why I can’t give them my
full attention.
In
my free time, I love riding my Can Am Maverick and finding new off road
trails. I’m a city girl, married to a country boy, who likes to get a
little dirty and sometimes muddy. Even though I don’t do it often, I
love roller coasters. The steel coasters that is. I hate the wooden
ones.
Readers, connect with me. I love hearing from you and reading your reviews.
xoxo,
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