Kate Roth's Blog, page 3

Cover Reveal : The Summer I Fell by Sonya Loveday

       
Riley Clifton can’t remember a time when she wasn’t a part of the Six, a group of rowdy boys who would do just about anything for her. Growing up alongside of six guys is never easy. Especially in high school. Falling in love with one of the Six? Even harder when Ace has a hold of her heart, and he doesn’t even know it.Jake (Ace) Aceton has loved Riley for a long time, but has kept the secret oath of the Six. Riley was off limits. At least until after graduation. When he overhears Riley admitting to her best friend, Paige how she feels about him, Ace doesn't let his chance slip by. Riley, in his mind, has always been his.When her college plan falls through, and her future is left to the hands of fate, Riley finds herself scrambling to keep up with all the changes. But that's not the hardest part. The hardest part is saying good-bye, especially to Ace.Heartache, hard lessons, and a love deeper than her Alabama roots will threaten to crumble Riley’s world as she waits for Ace’s return.Will Riley and Ace’s love be strong enough to hold them together when life tries to tear them apart?           Sonya Loveday, first and foremost is a reader, an avid one. It is of that love that brought her to the realization that this was the answer to the nagging persistent feeling that ‘there’s got to be something more’. The dream came alive in 2009 when she purchased her laptop and began the tedious step of becoming a published author. When she’s not reading, she’s writing. When she’s not writing, she’s reading. And when she’s not doing either of those things she’s sleeping, shuttling her children back and forth to school, letting the dogs and cats in and out of the house for the umpteenth time in the last hour and dreaming of a clean house.   You can find Sonya Loveday here: FacebookGoodreadsTwitterWordPress    

Cover Reveal: Sex Unlimited vol. 1 by Kathryn Perez

Title: SEX Unlimited Volume 1Author: Kathryn Perez
Release Date: July 2014 Add to Goodreads


One email set my life on an unexpected path.
Dear Candace,
I’m sure you're getting flooded with messages, but I wanted to attempt to stand out among the rest and just get right to the point. I won’t attempt to woo you in an email. I won’t try to impress you with boastful words. If you're on this site for mind-blowing sex, and a lot of it, then I would venture to say that trying to impress you with well worded niceties is of no value. Instead, I will tell you what I’m looking for and if you're looking for something similar then I look forward to your reply. 
I like to fuck hard. I like to fuck slowly. I also enjoy making love. I like to be pleasured. I love to give pleasure. I like to laugh. I like to make others laugh. I love the female body and testing its limits. I want a lover who will explore new things without shame or embarrassment. I want to make a woman come so hard and in so many ways that her body designs its own special language just for mine.
I look forward to possibly learning what you like, too.
Regards, Brisban C. 
My reply will change everything I thought I knew about SEX.


Kathryn lives in her small East Texas hometown with her husband and two children. She is a music infused writer and self-proclaimed book junkie. When she isn't listening to music, writing or reading you will probably find her watching her favorite sport, UFC. 
Kathryn is also an anti-bullying advocate and avid supporter of mental-illness and suicide awareness.

FACEBOOK | TWITTER | WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM

Cover Reveal : To Hell and Back by Leigha Taylor

To Hell and BackA Leigha Taylor NOVEL RELEASE DATE: July 21, 2014COVER DESIGN BY: Toski Covey Photography - Custom Design
https://www.facebook.com/tcpdesign
FIND IT ON GOODREADS
Synopsis
Brielle Douglas is the girl who always keeps her head down; she stays quiet, does her school work, and never socializes.  Sometimes, though, it's the quiet ones who have the most they wish they could say.

Brielle's life has been a living hell since she lost her mother to cancer five years ago.  Her abusive, alcoholic father keeps her under tight rule, and her only goal is to graduate, move on, and never look back.

When Brielle meets gorgeous ex-TV star Carson Malone, she sees it as a one-time meeting, a chance encounter, a memory to cherish.  But, when her home life goes from bad to horrific, Carson steps in to help pick up the pieces.

Learning how to trust and to be free isn't easy, but, with Carson by her side, Brie has a chance.  If only the Devil from her past stays in Hell where he belongs.


About the Author Leigha Taylor is a stay-at-home-mom.  She has three beautiful little girls who, along with her husband of eleven years, are the loves of her life.

From the time she was two and a half, Leigha has loved books.  An early reader, she devoured every book she could get her hands on, never daring to dream that one day she would publish her own! 

Leigha also has a great love for music of all kinds.  She has a passion for singing and almost never stops; she can often be heard belting out show tunes, Disney songs and anything else she just can't get out of her head!

You can find more of everything Leigha Taylor on her facebook page:
www.facebook.com/leighataylorauthor
and her website:
www.leighataylor.weebly.com


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Cover Reveal : Crazy Dreams by Dawn Pendleton

Title: Crazy Dreams (Dreams #1)Author: Dawn PendletonRelease: June 30, 2014

  Stone Tucker has big dreams. Someday, he wants to be on a country radio station. Flash forward to reality, and Stone isn’t any closer to his dream than he was months ago when he left his high school sweetheart and hometown in Pennsylvania to move to Nashville. Every one back home thinks he’s going to fail, and unfortunately, Stone has started to believe it, too.
  Enter Ember Daniels.
  Ember lost her dad years ago in a car accident, and more recently, her older sister to leukemia. She’s had her fair share and then some of heartbreak and needs to get away from the modeling life her mother has been pushing on her. A summer trip to Nashville is just what she needs to find herself. She isn’t prepared for Stone, with his hot body and overall indifferent attitude toward her.
  One night can change everything, and with seemingly endless summer nights, Ember and Stone both discover exactly what they’re looking for.

About Dawn Pendleton...

Dawn Pendleton spends her time between Maine and somewhere warm for the winter, dragging her husband and pup wherever she goes. A lover of travel, an avid reader, and a softie at heart, Dawn writes romance novels that face the dark reality of life, which is that not everyone gets a happily ever after right away.

Want to meet Dawn? Check out the list of Events she will be attending!

Website † Facebook † Twitter

Cover Reveal : Adam's List

Adam’s List by Jennifer Ann Coming June 2014

She’s ready to give up on life, hiding her depression with sarcasm and booze.
He’s quit college and is directionless with few friends to lean on.
When they discover each other, the sexual attraction is undeniable. So why does it seem impossible for them to be together?

Everyone wanted to be Jewels Peterson in high school. Naturally beautiful, exceptionally smart, talented cheerleader, life of the party, and with an All-American boyfriend to boot. One regrettable choice and fatal accident later, and Jewels found herself unceremoniously knocked off her pedestal. Now she’s in college, going through the motions, but not really living.

Adam Murphy is easy-going, charming, considerate, and crazy good looking; he’s exactly the kind of guy Jewels pictures herself being happy with. But Jewels is already involved with someone, and Adam makes it known that he’s guarding a dark secret, one that makes him the wrong guy for her. Trumped by the promise of an innocent friendship, Jewels is forced to ignore her overwhelming hunger for Adam.

After Jewels unknowingly helps Adam create a bucket list, they embark on the adventure of a lifetime that pushes their platonic relationship to its limits. But does she want to be with Adam without knowing the truth behind the skeletons in his closet, or is being with him just another pointless thing in her life?



Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21920169-adam-s-list?ac=1

When Jennifer Ann isn't writing heart wrenching romance novels with hot scenes, she either has her nose stuck in someone else's book, is curled up watching a movie, can be found taking pictures of other people (not in a creepy way), or is rocking out at a concert.

Jennifer writes New Adult books that pull at your heart strings one minute, then want a cold shower the next. She's currently getting ready to release her upcoming novel ADAM'S LIST, coming summer 2014.

Author links: http://www.authorjenniferann.blogspot.ca/https://twitter.com/AuthorJenniferAhttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8153868.Jennifer_Annhttp://www.pinterest.com/AuthorJenniferA/https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenniferAnna Rafflecopter giveaway

Bound To You by Vanessa Booke

Synopsis: Arrogant, brooding, domineering, possessive, dangerously handsome, and a playboy. These are all of the characteristics on Rebecca Gellar’s Run-Like-Hell list for men, but she’s about to meet the man who’s the epitome of these and more…

After breaking off her engagement with Hollywood actor Miles Storm, Rebecca is ready for a change of scenery in her life and in her bed. So when the opportunity to work for StoneHaven Publishing, one of New York City’s most respectable publishing empires presents itself, Rebecca doesn’t hesitate moving to the Big Apple.

Convinced she can show the owner of StoneHaven Publishing that she has the "right stuff,” Rebecca agrees to a six month trial as the personal assistant to the owner’s playboy son, Nicholas StoneHaven. This is her big chance. If she can just get through these six months without strangling Nicholas with his Armani tie, she'll be okay – easier said than done. Nicholas is the last person Rebecca thought she’d find herself pining for, especially when he hits every category under her list.

***Volume 1 in a three part Erotic Romance Serial.*** 

Warning: This book is intended for a mature audience 18+.






About the author: Vanessa Booke is a lover of poetry, Rom-Coms, the combination of peanut butter and chocolate, and all things Jane Austen. She is an avid reader and graduate from Cal State University, San Bernardino where she received her Bachelor’s degree in English Literature. Vanessa lives in beautiful Southern California with her husband Ryan and their three dachshunds Zer0, Zoey, and Zelda. When she isn’t working on her novels, Vanessa spends most of her time window shopping and taking grand adventures with her partner in crime.Vanessa loves getting emails from her readers. You can contact her at VanessaBooke@gmail.com.

You can find her on: Facebook   Twitter  Website





EXCERPT: 
The phrase resistance is futile has a whole new meaning. He pushes open my legs and strokes his hand up and down my center. As much as I want him to stop, I can’t seem to verbalize my plea. My hips meet his hand and he continues the friction of fingers. He pauses to slide up my dress baring the bottom of me. I’ve never been the type to want to have sex in public, but god does he make me want to. He skims his tongue across my neck and the act nearly sends my body into spasms. He finds his way inside my lace underwear.
“I want you.” His words set my nerves on fire. He slowly parts me, slipping his fingers inside me. His fingers rock back and forth against me as he delves deeper inside. I’m lost in oblivion. Falling father and farther down the rabbit hole and I can’t seem to stop myself. He presses against my clit and I nearly lose it. He growls lightly against my ear as he plants his lips below it. The sensation sends my head spinning. I need to stop.
Nicholas loosens his grip of my wrists and reaches down toward my breasts with his free hand. His thumb circles my right nipple and it grows hard beneath his finger. He leans forward and places it in his mouth, leaving a damp warm spot on my dress. 
“I want you to come for me, baby.”
The words aren’t said with a silent plea. No, the way he says it is more of a command. I honestly haven’t felt wanted like this since Miles. He wasn’t always a caring lover. A lot of the times he was just selfish. The thought of him sends a pang to my chest. Cheating on me was the most selfish thing he ever did. But how am I any better? Here I am, letting Nicholas touch me.
“Where’d you go, sweetheart?” Nicholas asks, breathing heavily. He caresses my cheek drawing my attention back to him.
“Stop,” I whisper. I can’t give myself up like this. He doesn’t get to see that part of me. He doesn’t get to unravel me just to watch me break. It frightens me to want him. It frightens me that someone like him could make me forget everything. Including myself.
“Wait,” he says, grabbing my waist, but I don’t. I push his hands off and yank my dress down. I don’t look back. I just push past him and run out of there as fast as I can. In the distance I can hear him calling after me. I don’t think anyone’s ever told him no, but he’ll get over it. I’m just another girl to him. Someone he thinks he can have without any conditions.

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Sway is HERE!

Now Available!

Sway BUY LINKSAMAZONAMAZON UKBARNES & NOBLEKOBOPAPERBACK
Love. Family. Business.

Talent manager, Beau Harris only cares about one of those things. His career is suddenly in a downward spiral and the only friend he has left is client and pop star, Vanessa Curtis. 

Seeking refuge from the life he’s come to loathe, Beau moves in with Vanessa to focus on her upcoming tour. Yet unexpectedly, he ends up focusing more on his budding friendship with her sister and back-up dancer, Whitney.

Finally able to open up, Beau and Whitney share with each other the vulnerabilities they’ve hidden from the rest of the world. Unable to deny that their connection burns deeper than attraction, they’re forced to confront the feelings they’ve long since given up on. But the emotional baggage, the struggle to break old patterns, and the fear of what Vanessa will think makes falling in love more complicated than they could’ve imagined.

Love. Family. Business.

Those three things now hopelessly woven together, Beau will have to fight for the happily ever after he never knew he truly wanted.

**Sway is a stand alone adult contemporary romance in the Confession Records collection. Book 1, Natural Harmony, introduces characters that reappear in Sway but these books can be read in any order.**






Natural Harmony is still on sale for 99 cents for a little longer. Meet Beau before he meets Whitney ...

AmazonAmazon UKBarnes & Noble NookKobo
Come back May 9th for the start of the Sway review tour!a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal : Hopeless in Hotlanta

Title: A Tale of Two PrettiesSubtitle: Hopeless in Hotlanta #1Authors: Dawn Pendleton & Magan VernonRelease: May 19, 2014Cover design by Sharp Designs Dawn's bio: Dawn Pendleton is a new adult author who began her writing journey in New England with her husband and their pup, though she now resides in Georgia and promptly became a Southern Belle (or so she likes to think). When she isn't staring at a blank page, willing the words to jump from her head to the screen, she's usually playing on her iPhone, reading a book, or taking pictures with her fancy camera (which she has no idea how to use).Magan's bio: Magan Vernon is a New Adult author who lives with her family in the insurance capital of the world. When not writing she spends her time fighting over fake boyfriends via social media.Dawn and Magan have been BFFs since they found out they weren't catfishing each other and decided to take a roadtrip together. Writing a book together seemed like the next logical step.Author Links:Dawn:www.facebook.com/authordawnpendletonwww.dawnpendleton.comwww.instagram.com/dawnwritesnawww.twitter.com/dawnwritesnaMaganhttps://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Magan-Vernon/215620155165079?ref=br_tfwww.maganvernon.comwww.instagram.com/maganveewww.twitter.com/maganvernonPlease join Dawn & Magan for their Facebook release party on May 19th here: https://www.facebook.com/events/828756637154089/?notif_t=plan_user_joined      

Stripped From You Cover Reveal!

Releasing June 1, 2014 You know how it ends, now see how it all began… "It doesn't matter how many women have touched this body, only one woman has ever touched this soul."Ryan Pierce doesn’t come from much, doesn’t ask for much, and doesn’t expect much. And he's come to accept that, until, Alana Remington. Alana is the girl who struck the match that lit his world on fire. She's the girl who opened his eyes to more. Who made him believe that just because you have nothing, doesn't mean you are nothing. And he loves her fiercely for it. But, just because you come together, doesn’t mean you stay together. One fateful decision rips Ryan and Alana apart and neither of them are ever the same again.For five years he's regretted that decision, but the deep seeded anger, shame and resentment has kept him from reaching out. And over those five years, a series of moments have spun Ryan's world in a direction he never saw coming. A world ruled by endless nights, infinite women and the name Jack the Stripper. A world, unbeknownst to him, that may just let two severed hearts collide. “Do you trust me?”“Of course not, I just met you.”“Then how about giving me the benefit of the doubt?”She raises an eyebrow at me, and before I give her a chance to respond I slam the shot then pull her face to mine. And as my mouth covers hers, heat rapidly spreads through my body. She’s momentarily stunned. Her body is rigid against me, but then she relaxes, parts her lips and lets the tart liquid slide into her mouth.I can’t believe I just did that. I can’t believe she just let me.After she swallows, she lets her lips linger, sucking up the taste of the sweet shot, causing my nervous system to shift into hyper-drive. We break apart slowly, but I refuse to let go of the nape of her neck. She just stares up at me with these enthralling eyes I know I’ll never be able to resist.“Do you always break the rules?” she asks.“No, not usually, but you seem to make me want to do crazy things.”“Was that crazy?”“Let’s do it again and find out.”I lick my lower lip, tasting the sweet remnants of her lip gloss before I drop another shot. I pause for just a beat before lean down and press my mouth back to hers and let the alcohol flow between us. I flick my tongue against her teeth right before I pull away. I shouldn’t like this so much, but I do. I like the way she looks, the way she feels, they way she smells. There’s something about her, something ventilating; like she oxygenates the atmosphere.I catch the cool beats to a song I recognize pumping though the air. “Do you want to dance?” I ask her.“You can dance?”“There’s only one thing I can do better.” I smirk.Alana cocks her eye brow suggestively.“Draw.” I fire back. “The only thing I can do better is draw. Dirty girl.” I tease as I grab her hand and lead her out to the dance floor knowing Mac will look after our drinks.Once we find a comfortable spot, I start to move to the smooth rhythm, leaving a little room between us so it doesn’t feel like I’m forcing myself on her. Drake sings coolly about hot love and affection as we move in sync to the beat, our bodies brushing and grazing as the music plays on, then finally coming together in a comfortable unison. I wrap one hand around her waist as I roll my hips into hers, pressing our bodies as close as they can possibly get. Alana runs her hands up my chest and hooks her arms lightly around my neck keeping tempo with the music. She moves lithely against me, inducing my heart, thoughts, and pulse to race. Fuck, I’m drowning in want for this girl. I slide my hands up under her shirt and caress the smooth, soft skin of her lower back as she nuzzles her face into my neck, her warm breath skating across my collarbone, making me instantly hard.Damn.She lifts her head and meets my stare, which I know is filled with lust and unrepentantly wanton. She bites her lower lip, our bodies still jiving to the slow seductive music. In a brazen move, I slip my hand up the back of her bare thigh and cup her ass cheek under the hem of her short shorts. She gasps as I work my fingers against her, massaging the fleshy part of her bottom. I’m absolutely aching being this close to her, touching her, stroking her, grinding against her.“Are you sure drawing is the only thing you can do better?” she pants in my ear. goodreads / facebook / twitter / website / pinterest / amazonMarissa Carmel has loved writing ever since a young age. She has a duel degree in History and Political Science, but took as many creative writing classes in college as she could. She spent most of her twenties bartending, which is where she met her husband and a multitude of interesting people. When she’s not reading or writing, she’s hanging out with her family, experimenting in her kitchen or doing yoga on the living room floor. AMAZON / AMAZON CA / AMAZON UK / BARNES & NOBLE

C.R. Everett Release Day!

I LOVED THAT ABOUT HER by C.R. Everett – SYNOPSIS
In Love, Carry My Bags, we felt Camryn Johnson’s joy and pain during her heartwrenching and heartwarming journey through life’s circumstances, poor choices, and difficult lessons. Through her relationships with both Glenn and Reese, she became the person she wanted and needed to be.Now it’s Glenn’s turn.Glenn, who feels chronically misunderstood, shares his side of the story in the stand-alone novelI Loved That About Her, revealing his own inner struggles and showing what it’s like to live at the mercy of forces beyond conscious control. These forces take him and his family to the edge when college arch nemesis, Raine Babcock, wreaks havoc on their lives. Glenn shows us that all is not necessarily what it seems, even to himself.Walking a mile in his shoes, may change hearts and minds about the bad boy from Love, Carry My Bags that readers loved to hate.Recommended for mature audiences 17+ for language and sexual situations.EXCERPT My job ticked along way better than expected. Once I was on the inside, had my clearance, and put my naturally excessive curiosity to work, doors opened. And I opened them.I popped my head into the lab walking back to my desk after an aircraft inspection. “Any little green men in here?” I asked.“Glenn,” my boss, who happened to be in the room, said. “I was just talking about you.”“Yep, my ears were burning. That’s why I stopped by. Whatcha need?” I asked.My boss looked like he didn’t know quite what to make of me, but overlooked any reservations he may have had, just like anyone else who saw my potential and took a chance on me had. For those folks, I was grateful. A flashback to my fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Emerson, came to mind. She was the only one who took the time after class to sit down with me and re-explain each day’s lesson, because sitting there in a room full of quiet kids, listening, drove me ape shit. Instead of listening, I fidgeted in my chair wondering what was for lunch, sometimes getting out of my chair for a better view out the window, especially when a plane flew overhead. Mrs. Emerson was nice. “I have one just like you at home,” she said. I’m not sure what she meant, but at the time, I was thinking “nice little boy.” During our one-on-one’s, she’d speak to me like I mattered and never criticized me for not being like all the other kids who could sit in their chairs, listen, and understand, going off to do their homework by themselves after class. We did my homework together, and she gave me M&Ms after each problem I did right. Once I figured that out, I aced almost everything because there was a good reason to do the work. M&Ms right away, not some dumb letter grade handed back on a page three days later. When she explained to my folks that I knew the material, they laid into me about why I couldn’t do it at home in my room, but they clearly didn’t understand the power of M&Ms . . . or one-on-one.“Conroy,” my boss said, “we need you in Seattle. You’re the first guy I thought of when this assignment came up—right up your alley.”I was intrigued. My ears perked up when the words “need you” hit the air. Plus the fact that he thought of me, and “right up your alley” sounded phenom. Having gotten my attention, I listened intently as boss man outlined the particulars of the job, throwing in words like “top secret” and “special clearances” and “national security.” I was all over it and would have accepted right then and there if I didn’t need to consider Camryn.“We need you ASAP,” he said.“Let me talk it over with my wife,” I said, somehow managing to stifle my excitement. I hoped she’d like the idea too.
Purchase Links

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JL4P38UAmazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk./dp/B00JL4P38UBarnes & Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-loved-that-about-her-c-r-everett/1119059229?ean=2940045799638Apple iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/i-loved-that-about-her/id852498910?mt=11Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21801037-i-loved-that-about-her
ABOUT THE AUTHOR


C.R. Everett was born in Northern Illinois and has lived in various places over the years, currently residing in Utah. For twenty years she worked in finance, but today devotes her time to writing. She lives with her husband, two kids, Shiba Inu, and cat. When not writing, she updates her website, connects with her readers, does the mom thing, or cleans up after unruly pets. In her free time she enjoys reading, usually at the gym while on a treadmill, baking, taking walks, enjoying nature, and going to Starbucks. Mocha is her favorite.Website -www.creverett.comFacebook - http://www.facebook.com/creverettbooksBlog - http://creverett.blogspot.com/Twitter - https://twitter.com/authorcreverettGoodreads -https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6564542.C_R_Everett

Love, Carry My Bags Amazon Link UShttp://www.amazon.com/dp/B009SZYJ3WAmazon LOVE, CARRY MY BAGS – SYNOPSISCamryn Johnson’s world is turned upside down when long lost love, Reese Dahlgren, re-enters her life at a pivotal point in her already challenging marriage. She faces an excruciating predicament: choose between a broken home for her daughter or a broken life for herself.After her parents' divorce, Camryn first meets high school basketball star, Reese, at the Harvard Milk Day Festival bed races. Reese hides baggage of his own…until Camryn melts his heart and learns secrets entrusted only to her. Still, the weight is too much to bear. Unable to cope, Reese unwittingly backs Camryn into a corner during his air force enlistment—love him from afar, or leave him.Enter aerospace engineering student, Glenn Conroy. Persistent and savvy, he woos Camryn during her junior year of college and wins her heart. Or does he? When Reese re-enters her life, further disrupting her tenuous marriage, Camryn turns to best friend, Megan, for advice, but refuses to believe Megan’s suggestion that she’s caught in a “simple” love triangle.Camryn unveils hidden mysteries and secrets as she embarks on a life-changing journey of revelation and forgiveness, transcending doormat qualities inherited from her mother, and in the process finds what life's struggles are really all about.
C.R. Everett's heart-wrenching debut novel takes the reader on an emotion-packed journey that lingers long after the last page is turned.
LOVE, CARRY MY BAGS – EXCERPTReese’s dad was putzing around the kitchen when we walked in. “Oh, you’re staying too,” he said, my duffel prodding his memory. “You can put your stuff in Helen’s room. Since she’s not using it anymore, you may as well.”“Hey.” Reese greeted his father.“If you want something to eat, you’ll have to fix it the old fashioned way.” Mr. Dahlgren stirred leftover spaghetti heating on the stove. “Your mother made sure I’d be living in the dark ages when she absconded with the microwave . . . . At least she left the television.” Reese and I exchanged uneasy glances.“Well, that’s a good thing because you and Reese would be bored watching the microwave together while I do my homework,” I said, grasping for the bright side. “Reese, would you show me upstairs?” I asked, conveniently escaping the awkward moment.He carried our bags up the stairs and placed mine on a low-set king-sized bed in the first room on the left. The room reminded me of my grandmother’s house with dimly lit gabled walls and a faint odor of must, the vintage green bedspread, a ‘50s remnant. “Your parents didn’t sleep together?” I asked, surprised. It hadn’t occurred to me that married people might not sleep together. Well, there were the Samuelson’s I’d heard of, but they were in their nineties and had health issues which made a shared bed logistically impractical.“They haven’t shared a room for years,” Reese said, like this was normal—at least in his parents’ household. I stood, focusing through the bed, my head, lost.“Look,” I said with reluctance, “I’ve got some homework that’s due tomorrow. Why don’t you go downstairs and spend some time with your dad?” Reese’s eyes told me he knew it was the right thing to do even though he’d rather not.“I’m so glad you’re here,” he reiterated, giving me a parting kiss then closed the door behind him. I flopped on the bed, opened Accounting II.Twenty T-squares later, Reese knocked on the door.“I brought you some water.”  He set the glass on the bedside table then sat down next to me. “How’s it going?”“I’m almost done.” I took a sip of water. “Thanks.”“Good, I could use some company down there. Dad keeps bringing up sore subjects, between channel surfing. ‘Have you spoke to your mother?’ ‘Why did she leave?’ ‘The grass isn’t greener . . . it’s damn brown for me.’ ‘Why don’t you do something worthwhile with your life?’ Stuff like that.” I put my accounting text down and climbed onto Reese’s lap. I wanted to make all his bad disappear.