Release Day; Fight Me

By Real Talk Book Talk - December 04, 2014

Fight Me Rivers Edge Book 2

By Lacey Black

Release Date: December 4, 2014

Jake Stevens has it made. A local police officer with an open invitation to any number of beds around town, Jake has no desire to settle down with any of the ladies he entertains by night. After watching his best friend fall in love with his little sister, Jake is certain that love and marriage just aren’t in his cards. Heck, he’s not even playing with the same deck. After Jake encounters a blast from the past one night, he finds himself swimming in uncharted waters. For the first time, Jake has found a woman he can’t get out of his mind. The kicker? The woman wants nothing to do with him. Erin Anderson returns to the small Missouri town of Rivers Edge for a job after a twenty year absence. Erin spent years loathing the memory of Jake Stevens for his cruelness back in seventh grade. Now, Jake appears to be the same self-centered player he was in junior high, and no one seems to be able to push her button the way the cocky, yet devastatingly handsome cop does. Between circumstances that keep thrusting them together and Jake’s persistence to annoy her, Erin struggles to fight her growing feelings for Jake. But, can Erin get past the hurt she felt all those years ago at the hands of a young Jake? Can Jake show Erin that what they have is worth fighting for?

*This book is intended for an audience of 18 or older due to graphic sex scenes and language.

**Can be read as a standalone.

Cover by Gin’s Book Notes

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1zMNxQ7

Excerpt

We don’t speak the entire ride back to my place. I still hold the melted bowl of ice cream in my hand when he pulls into my driveway and parks behind my Bug. I have no idea what he’s thinking. I’m sure he’s just dying to get this crazy, overly emotional girl out of his truck. “Well, thank you for the ice cream. I guess I’ll see you around,” I say as I turn towards the door to hop out. “Wait,” Jake says. The snow is coming down hard now and it’s hard to see my front steps. “Please don’t go.” Jake’s voice is raw with emotion. He sounds almost pained. I don’t want to turn and see his face. I know that if I turn around, I might actually believe whatever it is he is about to say. “Please look at me, Erin.” I take a deep breath and slowly turn around, steeling myself for the reaction I know is coming. When my eyes lock on his, I can’t fight the tears that spring in my eyes. His eyes are so full of pain and hurt. It’s too much. I need to get out of this truck. “I need to go inside.” “Erin, I’m...I’m so fucking sorry for what I did back then. I have no excuse for why I did it. I was just a stupid kid who was trying to get a rise out of you; trying to get you to notice me.” “Notice you? Why would you want me to notice you?” “I wasn’t lying at dinner that night when I told you I was trying to get your attention. I liked you.” “So you humiliated me and embarrassed me? Why? So I’d like you? Do you have any idea how messed up that is, Jake?” “I didn’t say it was logical. I was a kid. A kid who was used to getting exactly what he wanted, when he wanted it. I went about it the wrong way. I’m sorry.” “Well, you’re sorry. Great. Thank you.” I turn and open my door. “I’m going inside. Thank you for the ice cream, again. Have a great life.” “Wait!” he yells as he whips open his truck door and meets me around the front of the truck. “What, Jake? You’ve apologized. You don’t have to be nice to me anymore just to make yourself feel less guilt. I forgive you. You’re free.” I blink rapidly in the falling snow. It’s hitting and melting on my face, my hair, my coat. “Is that why you think I’ve been nice to you? I’ve been hanging out with you because I’ve felt guilty for what happened twenty years ago?” “Isn’t it?” I quip. “No!” I turn to walk towards my house, but Jake grabs my arm and spins me back around. My body crashes into his like it’s being slammed into a brick wall. He’s a foot taller than me so my face basically hits him straight in the pecs. “I’m tired, Jake. I don’t want to fight with you anymore.” “I don’t want to fight with you either, Erin.” Jake strokes his thumb up and down my numb cheeks. His fingers feel warm against the frostiness of my exposed skin. “Then what do you want?” I ask, my eyes pleading with him. For what, I’m not sure. “I want...I just want...you,” he whispers the last word as his full lips descend onto mine.

Author Bio:

Lacey Black is a Midwestern girl with a passion for reading, writing, and shopping. She carries her e-reader with her everywhere she goes so she never misses an opportunity to read a few pages. Always looking for a happily ever after, Lacey is passionate about contemporary romance novels and enjoys it further when you mix in a little suspense. She resides in a small town in Illinois with her husband, two children, and a chocolate lab. Lacey loves watching NASCAR races and should only consume one mixed drink because she’s a lightweight.

Lacey welcomes the opportunity to chat with her fans.

Email: laceyblackwrites@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlaceyblack

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthLaceyBlack