“This was my first taste of Brighton Walsh and it won’t be my last.” ~ Under the Covers
Talk about a surprise for me. First this is the classic new adult without a crazy twist, which is usually not my preference. Then, there’s the heroine’s profession. She works as a waitress at a dive restaurant/bar where her uniform doesn’t cover much. One step away from having to work at a strip club. I’m really not a fan of that. But somehow, this book managed to allow me to overcome all those road blocks. I think the key is two genuine nice characters. You can’t help but root for them!
Cade is a dream man. He’s a good boy, caring about his family, tries to do more for others than for himself…And he’s a chef! I’m sold! The perfect example why good guys still get the girl and make our hearts melt. And all of that is wrapped up in his bad boy exterior, he’s a tall, muscled and tattooed guy. Still in culinary school and trying to get the position of his dreams at a restaurant, along with taking care of his sister and niece, are his two biggest cares in life. Until he meets Winter.
Winter has had a rough life and is now trying to stay afloat financially any way she can until she gets her degree and can move on with her life. She’s determined to doing it all on her own. She’s also very closed off to everyone around her. She was a bit of a harder nut for me to crack. I guess because of my own feelings that she should’ve done this or that different, I didn’t immediately connect with her. But you gotta admire her fire and tenacity. She doesn’t take shit from anyone and has 100% focus on her goals.
These two had chemistry from the get-go. Their courtship (or Cade’s harassment, however you want to look at it) was so adorable! The book did stall for me a bit around the middle. The push and pull was nice but it was starting to lose me a bit. But I was overall really impressed with the writing. Ms. Walsh managed to take a simple story, without crazy bells and whistles of drama, and keep you interested and wanting to know how it turned out. And of course, she made me fall in love with Cade every step of the way.
This was my first taste of Brighton Walsh and it won’t be my last. I’m excited already about the next one in the series!
*ARC provided by publisher
In this emotional and sexy New Adult debut from Brighton Walsh, the only thing more frightening than commitment is hope…
Aspiring chef Cade Maxwell is immediately, viscerally attracted to Winter Jacobson. But it’s not her mouthwatering curves he’s drawn to—it’s the strange emptiness in her eyes. When Cade saves her from a drunken customer with grabby hands, he’s shocked at her response…
Winter doesn’t need Cade’s help. After a lifetime of getting by on her own, she’s happy to rely on herself. She’s exactly seventy-six days away from graduating college, and if she can hold it together that long, she’ll finally be able to rise above the crappy hand she was dealt.
But now, every time she turns around, Cade is there, ready to push her, smile at her, distract her from her plans. Winter knows she can’t afford to open up—especially to a man she’s terrified to actually want…
Excerpt
I bend my knees so we’re eye level and tug on her hand until she meets my gaze. “I don’t know what we could have. It might be nothing. But I’ll be honest . . . I haven’t felt like this in a long time, and that’s enough for me to know I want to see where it goes. Can’t we just see where it goes?”
With a deep sigh, she says, “I’m not right for you, Cade.”
“How about you worry about if I’m right for you. Let me decide the other.”
And then before she can stop me, before she can utter another word of opposition, I slide my hand up her arm, over her shoulder, until it’s wrapped around her neck. With my other hand, I swipe a piece of hair back with my fingers, and then lean in, brushing my lips against hers. After only a moment, I pull back just enough for her to be able to tell me to stop. When nothing comes, I close the distance between us once again, taking her bottom lip in between mine. I brush my tongue against it, coaxing her mouth open, and she breathes this sexy little gasp as I slip inside. She tastes like cookies and wine, and I want to fucking devour her.
She grips my shirt with both hands, clutching me to her, and I stop holding back and press every inch of my body against hers, groaning as my cock presses fully against her. The moment a whimper comes from her, I know she feels it. And I can’t muster up any embarrassment, because I want her to feel it. Even with all her brass balls and fuck-everything attitude, something tells me she needs reassurance, so I give it to her. In every stroke of my tongue against hers, every brush of my thumb along her jaw, I show her how much I want her.
When her chest is heaving, her lips parted and swollen and so fucking hot, I trail kisses down her neck, seeking out every inch of skin that’s uncovered. Her head thumps back against the wall, one of her hands gone from gripping fistfuls of my shirt. Instead, she’s holding my head to her, and I don’t want to stop. I want to kiss and lick every inch of her, slip my hands under the material of her sweater, unbutton her jeans, and not stop until I feel her soft wetness against my fingertips.
But the knowledge that she’ll regret it if I don’t stop forces me to slow down.
I pull back, loosening my grip on her and putting an inch of space between us. I kiss the corner of her mouth, her cheek, and then her ear. Against it, I whisper, “Don’t say no.”
There’s a beat of silence. Two. Three. And then she says the sweetest word I’ve ever heard.
“Okay.”
OUT NOW!
CAGED IN WINTER: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | GoodReads
TESSA EVER AFTER: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | GoodReads
[about-author author=”Brighton Walsh”]
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Thanks for the review and author intro Francesca
Thanks for the review, book added to my wishlist.