Margo Bond Collins's Blog, page 147

Fairy, Texas Excerpt (No Strings Attached Blog Hop + Giveaway)

Welcome to my entry in the No Strings Attached Blog Hop!

This one is easy! To enter to win, simply click on the Rafflecopter link and leave some way for me to contact you if you win–an email address, a Twitter name, a Facebook link. You get the idea.

The prize for this stop is an advance reading copy of Fairy, Texas, my new YA Paranormal Romance/Mystery forthcoming from Solstice Shadows Publishing on February 4, 2014.

Fabulosity Reads will be promoting the cover reveal for Fairy, Texas later this month. In the meantime, enjoy the blurb and excerpt below and feel free to add Fairy, Texas to your Goodreads bookshelf. Then enter to win and HOP!

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Blurb

Fairy, Texas. A small town like any other.

Laney Harris didn’t want to live there. When her mother remarried and moved them to a town where a date meant hanging out at the Sonic, Laney figured that “boring” would have a whole new meaning. A new stepsister who despised her and a high school where she was the only topic of gossip were bad enough. But when she met the school counselor (and his terminal bad breath), she grew suspicious. Especially since he had wings that only she could see. And then there were Josh and Mason, two gorgeous glimmering-eyed classmates whose interest in her might not be for the reasons she hoped. Not to mention that dead guy she nearly tripped over in gym class.

She was right. Boring took on an entirely new dimension in Fairy, Texas.

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Excerpt

“Okay, girls,” Coach Spencer yelled above the chatter around me. “We’re going to get warmed up for this year with a little run around the outer track.” She gestured toward a field off to the right of the building. I could see a dirt track wending its way along the edge, disappearing into a copse of stubby trees and scrub brush at the far end. “Four laps,” Spencer added. A general groan went up, and I was glad that the discussion at lunch had distracted me from eating too much. Late August in Texas is hot.

“Well?” the coach said. “Get going!”

We started off at a trot toward the field, many of the girls around me still complaining. For a moment, I considered hanging back with the crowd, but Andrew had told me that Spencer coached the girls’ track team. I wanted to impress her. So I stretched my legs out as I hit the track and settled in to a long stride, my breathing still easy.

The afternoon sun beat down on my head. I watched the small grove grow closer, anxious for some shade. By the time I hit the bend in the track that led into the thicket, I was yards ahead of the rest of the runners—so when I rounded the curve and tripped over the body, I was all alone.

It didn’t take long for everyone else to catch up, but it seemed like an eternity as I scrambled back, crab-like. It took a moment for my brain to translate the messages my eyes were sending it—the images coalesced slowly, like one of those magic pictures with the 3D images inside.

He had been stretched out spread-eagle across the trail, head and feet half-concealed in the brush on either side. Blood pooled around him, sticky and half-dried at the edges. His shirt had been ripped open and a slash opened him from his throat to his stomach.

As the other girls rounded the bend, I realized that the high, keening noise in the background was the sound of my own screaming. As soon as I realized it, I stopped, but several of my classmates picked up where I left off.

My hands and knees were coated with blood where I had landed; my skin was tacky with it. I crawled over to the nearest bush and vomited.

Coach Spencer shoved her way through the girls and stuttered to a stop, her hand to her mouth. “Oh, God,” she said. “It’s Cody Murphy.”

______________

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Spotlight: Emblem of Eternity by Angela Corbett

Eternal Starling
Book 1

A love so strong, even eternity can’t separate them.

Evie Starling has lived a relatively uneventful life hanging out with friends, gossiping about boys, and driving her 1966 Mustang. All of that changes when she moves to Gunnison, Colorado, to start college and meets two mysterious men.

For centuries, Alex Night and Emil Stone have yearned for Evie—but they each have their own reasons for wanting to be with her. When both men claim to be her soul mate and tell her about an unbelievable past, Evie learns that she’s not the person she thought she was. Soon, Evie finds herself in the middle of an age-old battle between the Amaranthine Society—the soul protectors, and the Daevos Resistance—the soul destroyers. With a past she doesn’t understand, and a future rife with danger, Evie has to decide who she can trust. But Alex and Emil aren’t the only ones who want Evie, and her soul is about to become the rope in an eternal tug-of-war.

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Eternal Echoes

Book 2

She thought she stopped the evil.

She thought she was safe.

Everything she thought was wrong.

Almost four months have passed since Evie Starling learned she was a Tracker and helped defeat a Daevos Clan that was taking others like her—but that wasn’t the end of the abductions. As an unknown evil emerges, Evie vows to help solve the mystery of the missing Trackers, regardless of the risk.

With new powers she doesn’t understand and can’t control, she turns to Alex and Emil, her two soul mates, for help. But her feelings for them both are tearing her apart.

As the world around her is thrown into chaos, Evie is confronted with what could be a destiny-altering truth. Will she accept her history, her memories, and her role in this life, or choose to ignore the echoes of her past?

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Echoes Excerpt by Angela Corbett

(Emblem

of Eternity trilogy, Book 2)



I took a deep breath as I came

out of the memory. I was getting better at keeping my flashback reaction less

noticeable, but I still steadied myself against the gate. Alex noticed. “Are

you okay?” he asked.

            I nodded,

my breath less ragged. “I’m fine.”

            “Are you

sure?” He came over and stood behind me, a commanding presence. His hands were

a gentle weight on my arms as he turned me toward him. At first, he seemed to

be looking for signs of distress, but as our eyes caught and held, I knew his

thoughts were in other places, and mine were headed there, too. His hand

slipped feather-light over my arms and down until they rested above my hips.

            Like I was

having some sort of out-of-body experience, I watched as my hand went up to his

face, tracing the line of his jaw. “We shouldn’t be doing this,” I said in a

very unconvincing way.

It wasn’t that I didn’t mean

what I said. I did. And I still had enough blood flowing to my brain to

vocalize it. But I was having a hard time convincing my rational side I

shouldn’t be making out with Alex. Especially when my rational side was

practically screaming that I’d kissed Emil last night and to be fair, I should

also make out with Alex. My rational side told me I wouldn’t want a

double-standard. My rational side had lost its mind.

            “Why?” Alex

asked, inching slowly closer, his eyes dark in a way that made my legs feel

like pudding.

            There were

so many possible answers to that question, with reasonable arguments why we

shouldn’t proceed, that I wasn’t sure which to choose. I started with, “What if

the bracelet doesn’t work?”

            Alex

glanced down at my bracelet, giving a very slow smile I could only describe as

predatory before eying me like he was preparing for an attack. Apparently a

couple of centuries of sexual frustration will do that to you.

“It will,” he answered, still

moving toward me.

            “How can

you be sure?”

            Alex’s

mouth curved slightly in a smile part rapacious, part entertained. “I’ve been

waiting a long time for a

relationship with you, Evie. And for everything that comes with it. I wouldn’t

have given you the bracelet if I wasn’t sure it would work. I gave it to you

because I intend to put it to use.”

            Sheesh!

Judging by his dark, focused gaze, I knew he wasn’t kidding.

            “I don’t

think it’s a good idea.” I shook my head, like that would emphasize my argument

and stop his sultry advances. It didn’t.

His arms went around me tight,

pulling me to him. My chest crushed into his, the hard planes of his stomach

obvious even through our clothes. He stared down at me, not loosening his

embrace. My breath was shallow as I stared back, wondering how long it would be

until we both lost all common sense. He moved his lips over my cheeks, the soft

skin brushing wispy strokes over my face. When he got to my ear, he took the

soft pad in his lips and nipped lightly, then whispered one word. “Why?”

Why? Why what? Had there been a

question? I fumbled around in my head for what we’d been talking about. Oh.

That’s right. Bad idea. This is a bad idea. Why is it still a bad idea? What

was my list again? I did more fumbling and found one. “What about Emil?”

I felt Alex tense, his shoulders

becoming taut under his shirt. “He’s not invited to this conversation.”

Geez! Alex had always been

overbearing, but apparently when it came to sex, he was not only overbearing,

but alarmingly primitive. Again, I attributed the aggression to decades of pent

up frustration.

“Don’t you think he’ll be

pissed?”

Alex kept kissing down my neck,

and I moaned. His hands moved around to my stomach, unzipping my coat. He

quickly discarded it on the ground.

“We all agreed to the rules,”

Alex said, his hands moving lightly under my sweater, inching it up ever so

slightly. I’d never been addicted to anything, but imagined this was how

addiction started. A little at a time. Alex pulled my sweater over my head,

then kept kissing back up my neck and along my jawline. “We’re not doing

anything wrong.”

I looked at where our hands

were, and the clothes slowly making their way to the ground. We were about to

be doing things that were wrong in a very good way. “I guess it depends on your

definition. Emil would think this is seriously wrong.”

The muscles at Alex’s jaw

ticked, his eyes glittering with a combination of passion and anger. “I told

you,” he said, moving swiftly, one arm sliding under my thighs, the other

around my back. He lifted me, cradling me in his arms, and walked down the row

of stalls to an empty stall at the end of the barn. Fresh hay was scattered in

large mounds, creating a soft bed on the ground—albeit a scratchy one, but

better than the dirt floor. He laid me down gently in the hay then straddled

me, the years of want and need, written across his face. “We’re not talking

about him.” With that, he was on top of me, the kiss aggressive. I could feel

my soulmark burning, and my bracelet seemed to be giving off heat as well. If

this kept up, I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole barn burst into flames.

Angela Corbett graduated from Westminster College with a double major in communication and sociology. She started working as a reporter when she was sixteen and won awards for feature, news, and editorial writing. She has also done freelance writing. In addition to writing, she works as a director of communications and marketing. She loves classic cars, traveling, cupcakes, and U2. She lives in Utah with her extremely supportive husband and their five-pound Pomeranian, Pippin, whose following of fangirls could rival Justin Bieber’s.

She writes YA/NA titles under the name Angela Corbett, and adult titles under the name Destiny Ford.

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

PODs by Michelle Pickett

by Michelle K. Pickett

Publisher: Spencer Hill Press

312 pages



Seventeen-year-old Eva is a chosen one. Chosen to live, while others meet a swift and painful death from an incurable virus so lethal, a person is dead within days of symptoms emerging. In the POD system, a series of underground habitats built by the government, she waits with the other chosen for the deadly virus to claim those above. Separated from family and friends, it’s in the PODs she meets David. And while true love might not conquer all, it’s a balm for the broken soul.

After a year, scientists believe the population has died, and without living hosts, so has the virus. That’s the theory, anyway. But when the PODs are opened, survivors find the surface holds a vicious secret. The virus mutated, infecting those left top-side and creating… monsters.

Eva and David hide from the infected in the abandoned PODs. Together they try to build a life–a new beginning. But the infected follow and are relentless in their attacks. Leaving Eva and David to fight for survival, and pray for a cure.

______________

Excerpt

He flinched at the sound of my voice, snapping his laptop shut. Looking over his shoulder, he smiled. “You look beautiful in the morning, Eva. Your blonde hair messy and falling around your face, your eyes— not quite blue, but not quite green— sparkling in the morning sun… or the simulation of the sun,” he said with a crooked grin.

“Stop joking around. What were you just looking at?” I’d seen the picture on his laptop before he’d shut it. People running around their POD, a look of terror in their eyes. I reached out and opened the lid of his computer. My arm brushed against his, sending goosebumps racing across my skin. I had to concentrate to remember what I was asking about. The screen was nothing but static. “They cut off another one? Who?” I let go of his computer and started to pull my hand away. He grabbed it, folding it into his own, threading our fingers together. He grazed his lips over my knuckles.

Oh. Wow. Do that again.

My insides swirled out of place and did things I’d only read about in my mother’s racy romance novels.

“Yes. Someone I know from class. You don’t know him. And who says I’m joking?”

“What?” He was difficult to understand on a good day, but that early in the morning, seeing him in nothing more than blue pajama bottoms, his lips moving against my fingers as he talked, it was nearly impossible.

“You told me to stop joking around. I wasn’t joking.”

My heart was beating so hard and fast in my chest, I was sure he could hear it. I pinched the bridge of my nose between my fingers. My fingernails bit into my flesh.

Say something, Eva! Do Something— anything. Just… something. “So…” I started, only to be interrupted by my yawn. Except yawn, idiot! Kiss him… wait… what?

“What’s your theory on the PODs being cut off? Do you think there’s that many people testing positive for the—”

He stood, turned toward me, cupped his hand around the back of my neck and pulled my lips to his. That shut me up. Shock slammed into me, quickly giving way to pleasure, and pleasure to urgency.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, threading my fingers through his silky hair. David’s hand moved from the back of my neck to cup my cheek, his thumb caressing my skin. The other one moved to the small of my back, pulling me tighter against him. He kissed me long, deep. It was sinfully erotic feeling his bare skin under my fingers.

When he tore his lips away, he looked in my eyes. My first instinct was to turn away, but both his hands cupped my cheeks. He bent his head and grazed his lips over mine before looking at me again.

“I’ve wanted to do that since the first day I saw you. And each day I’ve known you it’s been harder and harder not to.”

“Well, what took you so long?”

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Praise for the Amazon

Bestselling PODs:



“5 Stars! I

loved this book. I have been kind of bogged down with dystopias lately, but

this was amazing. It was so cool to see life before the ‘event’, to see Eva

wrestle with her choices and then, to watch her change as she lived inside the

PODs…Yes, there are zombies. Yes, there’s a little romance. But I think, at its

heart, PODs is a coming of age story about Eva and how she grows from a girl

into a strong, decisive woman during this period of absolute destruction. And

Pickett writes it beautifully.” ~ Sherry Ficklin, author of “ Extracted “

“I was blown

away by this debut novel from Michelle Pickett! Rather than feeling like I was

reading a book, I actually sometimes felt like I was actually watching the

characters’ lives progress; it was kind of weird! The emotions that Eva felt

were so raw and real, and I think Michelle really captured the emotions that

one would be feeling in a post-apocalyptic world…PODs may very well be one of

the next big things in YA, so I am very happy to have been one of the ones that

was part of the beginning of it all! Congrats Michelle on your YA debut and I

am looking forward to more by you!  I gave PODs a

well-deserved 5/5 stars!  ” ~Phil book reviewer at

Stack of Hardbacks



“5

glowing, sparkling stars for this one!…I absolutely adored every character

Michelle introduces us to. This book isn’t just about a romance, or two people

fighting some battle. This book allows us to get to know several, amazing,

diverse characters who all grab your heart (even a few who have attitude

issues). They all held such an important place in the story… Now for the plot.

Holy crap!… Michelle did a flippin’ fantastic job giving us each piece of

this puzzle… I won’t go into details about what happens after they are

removed from the POD but O-M-G! The action never stops…This book seriously

needs to be a movie. I could picture every detail and already see it playing

out on screen. PLEASE SOMEONE MAKE THIS HAPPEN!”  ~Jessica of Total Bookaholic

Buy Links:

Spotlight: Broken Pieces by Dawn Pendleton

HAPPY RELEASE DAY!!!

It’s been a rough year for Gabby Peterman. Her best friend’s dad died six months ago, her other best friend has leukemia and isn’t doing well, and her marriage? After three years, it’s more of a joke than a relationships. Despite all the odds, she’s managed to stay strong for the people around her, supporting them through all their trials. But when death strikes again and one of her closest friends disappears, Gabby loses it.

On the verge of a mental breakdown himself, Wolfe Landon will do anything to win Gabby over. But first, he’s going to prove to her just how much he cares and loves her, because losing her will rip out his heart and soul.

AVAILABLE TODAY ON…

Amazon † iTunes † Barnes & Noble † Kobo † Smashwords

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Dawn Pendleton is a New Adult & Young Adult author living in Maine with her husband and pup.

Right now, she’s working on two manuscripts simultaneously. It’s a difficult task for her, but one she’s certain will pay off in the end.

Want to meet Dawn?

She is also one of the featured authors of the New Adult Sleepover Weekend. You can find all the details here.

Website †  GoodReads †  Twitter †  Facebook 

Cover Reveal: Fairy, Texas

Fairy, Texas. A small town like any other.

Laney Harris didn’t want to live there. When her mother remarried and moved them to a town where a date meant hanging out at the Sonic, Laney figured that “boring” would have a whole new meaning. A new stepsister who despised her and a high school where she was the only topic of gossip were bad enough. But when she met the school counselor (and his terminal bad breath), she grew suspicious. Especially since he had wings that only she could see. And then there were Josh and Mason, two gorgeous glimmering-eyed classmates whose interest in her might not be for the reasons she hoped. Not to mention that dead guy she nearly tripped over in gym class.

She was right. Boring takes on an entirely new dimension in Fairy, Texas.

______________

Add Fairy, Texas to your Goodreads shelves!

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Cover Reveal: The Upside of Being Let Down

 The Upside of Being Let Down -PROMO Blitz

by London Casey

Date Published: 1/7/2014

New Adult Romance



The fact that AJ’s sister is a stripper has been the bane of AJ’s existence for as long as she can remember. Every guy that has showed interest only wanted to get closer to her sister. After being kicked out of college, and subsequently out of her apartment, AJ heads to the strip club for some sisterly advice.  Instead, she lands in the apartment of a cute stranger who seems way too eager to help.



Bryan is a regular guy looking for the simplicity in life.  A strip club is definitely not his idea of simplicity, but he is pleasantly surprised at who he finds not prancing around on stage.  In the middle of a strip club his eyes are glued to a woman that is fully dressed and thus begins a rollercoaster romance that he never saw coming.



When a risky dare is set in motion, an earth shattering truth is unraveled and AJ no longer knows who she can trust.  Can Bryan prove that he loves AJ and help save her bond with her sister before it’s too late? 



London Casey

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Cover Reveal: Alliance by Aubrie Dionne

Alliance (Book #3)

by Aubrie Dionne

Young Adult

“Saving him meant saving her colony…”

Lyra Bryan has been saving people her whole life from a chick in the ventilation pipes to her mentally ill brother when his mind drifts back to Old Earth. She meets her match when she finds a gorgeous alien man aboard the arachnid ship. Captured after a failed attempt to save his people, his spirit is broken, craving only vengeance. To save her colony, Lyra must save his body and soul.

Lyra’s lifemate, Tauren, is jealous of her obsession with the alien man and will do anything in his power to break them apart. While they travel to the arachnid’s home world to defeat the mother brain once and for all, they must set aside their differences and work as a team. But, can Tauren be trusted?

Check out the first two books in the series…

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Spotlight: After Alex Died

After Alex Died – Week Blitz

Dakota Madison

New Adult Romance

Date Published: 11/28/2013



Add to Goodreads



“Don’t be someone who defines her life by someone else’s death.”



Dee Dee DeMarco’s brother, Alex, was funny, free-spirited and creative. He was also gay. Tormented by bullies, Alex killed himself on his 15th birthday. 



Two years later, and now in college, Dee Dee believes getting a summer job working with a college-prep program for disadvantaged high school students is a stroke of luck, until she discovers that the guy assigned to co-lead her group is Cameron Connelly, a star basketball player and one of the bullies who tormented her brother to death. How can Dee Dee possibly spend the entire summer working so closely with one of the boys she blames for her brother’s death?





EXCERPT

I could feel my heartbeat quicken as I entered the auditorium. The kids were talking and messing around as they waited for the class to begin. The other counselors, with the exception of Cameron, were also seated in the audience with the kids. Cameron was standing at the podium with Dr. Jones.

When Cameron saw me walk in, he winked at me. I didn’t know whether to slap him or hug him. Therein was the problem. 

Dr. Jones waved her arms to get everyone’s attention. “Quiet everyone. We have a special presentation today. Cameron is going to talk to you about bullying and how it impacted his life.”

“Who would bully him?” one of the kids cracked and the other kids laughed.

“Enough,” Dr. Jones reprimanded. “I expect you to give Cameron your attention and utmost respect.”

Cameron took the podium. “Thank you, Dr. Jones. I’m here today to talk about bullying. Not because I was bullied when I was your age but because I was a bully. And it ruined my life.”

When I looked out over the sea of faces, all eyes were trained on Cameron.

“I thought I had everything. I was one of the school’s first string basketball players. We were all-state champions. I already had a full basketball scholarship to Penn State. I was popular. I had tons of friends. I could get a date with any girl in the school. And I lost it all.”



Dakota Madison



Authors Links

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Buy  at Amazon








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Unfiltered (Adult Romance) by Payge Galvin & Ronnie Douglas

Title: Unfiltered & Unlawful

Author: Payge Galvin & Ronnie Douglas

Series: Unfiltered #1

Genre: Adult Romance

Expected Publication: January 15, 2013

After a night-shift shooting of a drug dealer in The Coffee Cave, thirteen strangers each walk out with more than $100,000 in dirty money, a pact never to meet again, and the chance to start over …

Until that night, Sasha “Sugar” Kovac spent her days selling coffee to the co-eds at ASU Rio Verde and her nights trying not to run back to her ex…or join the throngs of girls lusting after her friend, Adam.

But why should Sugar give in to the Harley-riding tattoo artist when his longest relationships haven’t lasted more than a weekend?

Sugar’s life takes a turn for the dangerous when someone comes looking for the people connected to the Cave shooting and the cash they split. To protect herself and those she cares about, Sugar has to get out of town –and fast.  When Adam insists on coming with her, Sugar finds herself holed up in a tiny house with a hot man, a stash of cash, and a lot of secrets.

Can Sugar protect both her life and her heart when temptation is so close? Or is the past she’s fled going to catch up with her?

“A full-throttle read that’s dangerously sexy and exciting. I can’t wait to see what happens next!”  – Jeaniene Frost, NY Times bestselling author of the Night Huntress Series

————————————————————————-



Excerpt





Chapter 1




First there was

sex, and then came death. I just had no idea that the two were so tangled

together until everything fell apart so spectacularly.  I was at work at The Coffee Cave on Saturday

night trying to ignore thoughts of the sex I couldn’t have—and consequently

craved even more than the drugs that I used to need more than my next gasp of

air. 

I’d been off the

poison for going on five months and away from my ex, Tommy, for the same time.

The difference was that I still slipped up on the sex-with-Tommy front. It was

stupid, but I wasn’t ready to let go of the way we were without words or

clothes between us.  Neither was

Tommy.  If we had let go of the lingering threads of our two-year relationship,

I’d be all over the beautiful tattoo artist who was smiling at me as I started

a fresh pot of his favorite coffee. 

Adam was the

fantasy, the man I pictured when I allowed myself to dream of the happily ever

after I’d never get.  I settled for

calling him my friend, and being the eager recipient of his smiles and

confidences.

“You know I’ll

drink whatever you have brewed,” Adam said, his deep blue eyes crinkling at the

corners .

“And you know

you’re happy that I make the coffee you actually prefer.” I grinned at

him.  I wasn’t flirting. I tried my

damnedest not to do that with him. I was pretty sure that I was the only woman

in Rio Verde who tried not to flirt

with him.

Adam Bradbery was

six feet of taut muscle and gorgeous ink. With his smoothly-shaved head and

five o’clock shadow, he was the kind of guy who had nothing but bad habits, but

he was actually a bit of a food purist. He made me want to give up more of my

lingering bad habits. I’d already given up cocaine because of the conversations

we’d had.

Adam flashed me

another perfect smile and said, “Thanks. I do prefer the organic Kona. Shade

grown, toxin free. It’s better for you.”

“Uh huh. I’ve

heard the speeches a few times already, Adam. Toxins are bad; organic is

good.”  I smiled at him though. I didn’t

mind his speeches even a little. I didn’t mind anything about Adam. He was my

ideal for what I wanted if I ever had a normal relationship: strong, smart,

healthy, and sexy.

His was the kind

of build that made women sigh and men pause. Adam looked intimidating even in

his most gentle moods. He had the sheer size that often meant that he didn’t need

to raise a fist to stop a fight.  He had

no fat anywhere on him.  Adam was all

muscle, and his spa-perfect skin was liberally decorated with tattoos.  Even out in the desert sun, his art still

looked crisp. The man knew how to take care of his body, and it showed.  He was a bit intense about his health. No

drugs. No cigarettes. He lived on an organic diet.  He was also committed to meditation and a rigorous work-out schedule of

boxing, weightlifting, and running. 

Somehow, Adam managed to be bad-ass and supremely healthy all at

once.  He drank a little, but his only

true vice was indulging in naked relationships with far too many of the ink

bunnies who loitered in his path.  Sex

was Adam’s one big weakness.  It was easy

to see why. Looking at him for longer than a minute was enough to make me

consider taking a turn in his line of all-too-willing partners.

Unfortunately,

Adam was also Tommy’s cousin, so Adam and I were firmly in the friend

zone.  There were perks to being his

friend, of course. We had conversations, lunches, shared a drink after work

most weeks. Being the only girl in his life that was around for more than a

night was the biggest perk. I knew that the rest of the girls were fleeting,

but I was a part of his life—and it would stay that way as long as we didn’t

fall into bed.

I still looked. A lot. Whenever I had an excuse, like

right now, I let my gaze roam where my hands and lips couldn’t.  I dreamed of him, and I fantasized about what

life would be like if I wasn’t such a mess and he was willing to do

commitments.  That was all it could be:

dreams and fantasies. 

As I tried to keep

my thoughts from my expression, Adam repeated his regular question of late: “When

are you coming by Sinners to finish the piece?”

I shrugged as I

stacked clean mugs on the counter.  I

glanced around the shop at the two drunk girls who seemed to be having a heated

conversation in a low voice, the customers studying or staring at their

laptops, and my co-worker Cass who was staring at Dillon, the hot musician

singing to the motley crowd.  There were

no distractions to save me from the conversation.

It wasn’t that I

didn’t want to get my tattoo done,

but I had my reasons for putting it off. “Not sure,” I muttered.

“I’ll be at The

Tiger tonight if you want to look at your schedule with me,” he offered.

I nodded, glancing

again at one of the drunk girls who looked like she was going to spew at any

minute.  Cass was glaring at the girls as

if willpower alone would prevent vomit. 

The only thing keeping her from getting rude was the way Dillon’s voice

kept distracting her. He was like that: the voice of either an angel or a

devil. 

“I don’t know,” I

told Adam, who was standing with his hands on the counter and his gaze on me.

The truth was that

I wasn’t sure I could handle seeing him tonight, especially at the local dive

bar. He never picked up his fling of the moment in front of me anymore, but

sometimes I thought that only made it harder to remind myself that he was off

limits.  My eyes traced over the light

gleam of sweat of his tattooed biceps and the way the torn black t-shirt clung

to his chest and abs. Every inch of his body was so lickably gorgeous that it

was hard not to sigh. Adam was built to be sighed over.  The shaved head, bright blue eyes, and

sculpted muscles combined to make him damn near irresistible.  I had resisted though. Even though I was

single again, I resisted. He was a friend when I’d been in desperate need of a

shoulder, even bringing me soup when I was sick and alone one weekend.  Despite his revolving bedroom door, Adam was

definitely one of the good guys.

That didn’t mean

he wasn’t dangerous. I’d seen him throw down in more than a couple fights.

Being a tattooist sometimes meant dealing with an unsavory crowd. Being Tommy’s

cousin often meant dealing with a bad element. 

Adam handled the worst of them like an off-duty MMA fighter . . . which

made him risky in a whole different way for me. I liked men who could handle

themselves in a brawl.  Hell, I liked

everything about him.

I quickly looked

down at a burn mark on the counter before my staring was too obvious. I wished

my hair wasn’t all pulled back in a braid. It was harder to hide my face

without my hair to use as a shield.  I

wasn’t going to ruin our friendship—or Adam’s relationship with Tommy—by thinking

about Adam’s perfect mouth or his obscenely muscular body. Okay, I wasn’t going

to ruin it by letting him know I

thought about it. I couldn’t really stop thinking

about him, not entirely. I’d tried.

“As soon as I

can,” I said. “I promise. I want to get my tattoo finished. I just can’t right

now.”

I didn’t tell him

why. I knew he thought it was about money, and I let him think that.  It wasn’t like I had much money to

spare.  I would for this, but that wasn’t

the real problem. The tattoo I’d started in January—a series of cherry blossoms

and branches that spanned my right side and would eventually stretch under my

right breast and ease along my hip—was something I’d wanted for years, but we’d

reached the part of the piece that was on my chest, and I couldn’t handle being

stretched out topless on Adam’s table while his beautiful hands held me in

place.  It was difficult enough when he

was working on my side and back.  The one

session we’d had where he’d started the outline on my chest had sent me running

out the door.

Friends. Friends was good. Friends meant

I couldn’t allow myself the tremors I felt when his eyes and hands were all

about me.

A banging noise in

the back drew my attention. I didn’t even want to ask who was having sex in the

bathroom again. I knew we were a bit of a dive, but really? Sex in the coffee

shop bathroom? It was vulgar.

“We can work

something out, Sasha,” Adam suggested, once more pulling my attention to him. 

“Not right now.” I

loved the way he said my real name. No one else used it.  Everyone had started calling me Sugar since I

took up with Tommy a couple years ago. He had introduced me as Sugar Sweet when

I met people, and they mostly figured it was what I wanted to be called. So,

Sugar became my name. It was even what I called myself.  Adam refused to use it. To him, and him

alone, I was still Sasha.

He gave me a

strange look that I couldn’t read. On someone else, I’d have said it was

jealousy, but Adam and I weren’t like that. 

We were friends.

“Are you back with

Tommy?” he asked.

I shook my

head.  My New Year’s Resolution this year

was to get my shit together.  Tommy

wasn’t willing to do the same, so we split up. Most of the time we even stayed

split up.  Not all the time though. Staying

clear of drugs was easier than staying away from Tommy.

“I’m not with

anyone,” I told Adam. I met his eyes as I added, “I’m not back on the shit

either. Five months.”

Adam nodded. “Just

asking. I know it’s hard, and you’ve been doing great.” He paused and gave me a

proud look. “You’re strong enough to do anything you want, Sash. Tommy’s good

people, but you don’t need mixed up in the shit he sells.”

I caught Cass

watching us then.  She was always quick

to suggest I should work out my issues with Tommy by overdosing on the

lusciousness that was Adam.  She didn’t

understand that I didn’t want to throw Adam’s friendship away over a few days

of sex, and even if I did want to, I couldn’t see Adam doing that to Tommy.

Seeing Cass made all of my arguments to her rise up in my mind.  It helped.

“I’ll call you

soon. Promise,” I told Adam.

He paid for his

coffee—black, no sugar or cream, nothing fancy other than the beans themselves—and

then dropped a ten-dollar bill onto the counter.  Before he turned away he added, “You don’t

have to avoid me because you’re too stubborn to let me do your art on credit,

you know?”

“Sinners Ink

doesn’t accept credit,” I reminded him.

“The shop doesn’t, but I would for you,

Sasha.” He looked at me with the same smoldering gaze that made all the ink

bunnies drop to their knees if he gave them half a chance.

“I don’t need credit.”


“The option’s on

the table if you change your mind. If you aren’t coming by for art, we can

still grab a drink or whatever.”

“I’m sure you’ve

been busy, and I don’t want to get in the way of your social life,” I

said.  He was a great friend, and I

didn’t want to screw it up by hanging around all the time like I was one of the

ink groupies or the girl who chases away all his hook-ups.

“You’re never in

the way,” he said. He shook his head, turned, and left.

I watched him go,

wishing things were different. He was beautiful, sweet, and covered with the

kind of tattoos that made clothing seem like a crime. For as long as I’d known

him, he was also with a different girl every week, and he wouldn’t poach

Tommy’s territory even if I ever admitted that I wanted poached. There was no way anything could happen with Adam.

Not now. Not ever. Neither of us was looking for a relationship.  He screwed ink bunnies, and I still made late

night visits to Tommy more often than I should.  I just needed to keep some space while I got

my head around the fact that he was off limits. 

Our last few tattoo sessions had made that detail absurdly hard to

remember. The man was gifted with his hands even when he was just doing his

job.  It was embarrassing how close I’d

come to whimpering simply by being tattooed by him.

————————————————————————-



About the Authors




PAYGE GALVIN has always wanted to be a writer.  She also loves

spending time with her friends, so after a few cosmos at the pool with her

friends, the idea for UNFILTERED was born.  Together the group wrote

thirteen books about thirteen strangers who share a dark secret…and who all

want to find love (because, really, who doesn’t?).





VERONICA DOUGLAS has a

weakness for trying new things. Some of those have been rather unwise (going

for a Harley ride in the rain while wearing nothing but a bikini and boots) and

some have been much wiser (writing a book series with thirteen friends). But

it’s all been a lot of fun.





You can follow Payge on Twitter at @PaygeGalvin

or Ronnie at @ronnieadouglas, or keep up with all the latest news on the

Unfiltered series at http://www.unfilteredbooks.com.

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