Blurb:
When Ivy Callahan returns to her hometown as
mayor, she doesn’t expect much to have changed. But now her ex-fiancé is the
town planner, the biggest business is closed, and the only store interested in
Celebration, NY is a Megamart. On top of it all, the liaison for the big, bad,
box store is Marcus Weaver, her childhood crush. And he’s still as dangerously
delectable as ever.
Marcus unwillingly spent his teens
in Celebration with his vindictive, drunken uncle. As far as Marcus is
concerned, the town’s only use is to cement his rise up the corporate ladder.
He needs that Megamart opened, and Ivy is his ticket. But the sexy, stubborn
mayor could also be his downfall.
As the unemployed townspeople put on
the pressure, Ivy needs to do something. With a fresh downtown-renewal project
in the works, Ivy could stop Marcus and his Megamart before they kill the
town’s spirit. But with sparks flying between Ivy and Marcus, they each need to
decide what’s more important: their careers or their hearts.
Excerpt:
“Did I scare you?” he
asked.
“Ya think?” Ivy
straightened her gray pencil skirt with nervous fingers.
He crossed his arms. “I
have no idea what you’re thinking.”
Good, because it’s X-rated.
“I’m
going to rent this house, so I need to go shopping.”
“Again?” He laughed. “I
followed you around holding bags of stuff for hours yesterday.”
“I need to shop for furniture.
Unless you want to picture me sleeping on a bare floor using my coat as a
blankie, I suggest we get moving. And let’s use the back door.”
Marcus frowned. “Why?”
The doorbell rang.
Shit. Perfect timing.
Leaning against the
kitchen doorway, Marcus put his tongue to a corner of his mouth, grinning.
“Oh, I’m not leaving
now,” he murmured.
Ivy felt panic rising,
but all she could do was stare at his sculpted lips. And that tongue. He swiped
it across his lips.
“Uh…” she began.
Marcus looked toward
the ceiling as if deep in thought. “Who could be at the door, Ivy?”
She crossed her arms
and shot him a dagger-filled look. He knew exactly who was out there. “Hmmm,
what a mystery.”
The doorbell rang
again, and Ivy shuddered. She just wanted Preston to go away.
“Sure you want this
house? Looks like you just saw a ghost,” Marcus commented.
Ivy’s shoulders
slumped. Fuck it. “I saw my ex-fiancé. Out the window. And I really
don’t want to deal with him.”
Marcus raised his
eyebrows and laughed. “Ex-fiancé? I didn’t know about that. Who is he?” He
pushed away from the kitchen door and walked the few short steps into the
living room. He paused by the front door and reached for the deadbolt.
“Shall I open it, or do
you want to do the honors?”
Panic spread through
Ivy’s stomach, and she sprinted toward him as fast as she could. Ouch. Her
brand-new heels were cute but also the spawn of the devil. Wiggling her toes,
she slammed a hand against the door and shifted her weight from one foot to the
other.
“Don’t,” she spat out.
“Why are you being such a dick?”
He laughed. “Wow.
Nobody’s called me that since the tenth grade.”
“I find that hard to
believe, actually.” She lifted her chin. “Since you obviously feel entitled to
do whatever the hell you want without thinking of anyone else. Well, it won’t
fly with me, so watch it.”
All traces of humor
left Marcus’s eyes, and he bent down until his forehead almost touched hers.
His breath fanned across her face as he said in a deadly quiet voice, “Get this
straight. I don’t need anyone’s advice. Least of all from a woman like
you.”
“What do you mean, like
me?”
Marcus reached out and
splayed a hand on her side and gently squeezed her rib cage. His fingers
brushed the side of her breast. He brought his other hand to her chin and
lifted it.
“A woman like you,” he
repeated, “who is so distracting, I can’t think straight,” he breathed against
her lips.
Uh-oh. Bad idea, Ivy.
Step back.
She froze. One tiny
movement and their mouths would be fused together. She bit her nails into the
smooth fabric of his dress shirt and waited.
Buy Links:
About the Author:
After spending twenty years in professional theater
as a costume designer, with a few of those years also spent as a college
instructor, Laura abandoned the nomadic lifestyle to sit in a comfy pleather
office chair at a beat up ginormous second hand oak desk and write. The result?
Romance novels! Her favorite thing ever since she was, oh, about twelve. She
writes contemporary, light novels and enjoys creating quirky characters and
funny dialogue. Still, the love story is the focus and Laura has a huge soft
spot for a sappy, happy ending. She lives in North Carolina with her husband
(true love is real!) and her adorable, high energy four year old son who is
currently obsessed with pirates. When not playing mamma pirate, she loves
hearing from readers and you can find your favorite way to say hi via the
social media buttons on her website: www.laurasimcox.com
Where to Stalk Laura:
8/26: Deal Sharing Aunt
8/30: Fantasy Floozies
9/4:
Melissa
Kendall
9/5: In the Name of Books
9/16: Read
Love Blog
9/20: Bootheel
Cotton Patch
9/23: My Erotic Notions
9/24: You
Gotta Read Reviews
9/25: Becky
on Books
9/26: Rose&
Beps Blog
9/27: In Shadows
9/30:
Ramblings
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