Catching Heat
Feeling the Heat
Book 3
Alison Packard
Genre:
Contemporary Romance
Publisher:
Carina Press
Book
Description:
Life has
taught Angie DeMarco that all baseball players are womanizers, and her
incredible one-night stand with sexy San Francisco Blaze back-up catcher J.T.
Sawyer seemed to prove it. Determined not to give in to their sizzling
chemistry a second time, she’s kept her distance ever since, focusing on her
accounting job with the team. But now she’s laid off…and pregnant.
J.T. was
hurt by Angie’s rejection, but with one more year with the Blaze, he has no
time for love. He needs to spend the off season training hard so he can
negotiate a better contract with a new team at the end of the year. But when
Angie shows up on his doorstep, he‘s overwhelmed by wanting to not just do
right by her but pursue a relationship with her. Hoping for a second chance, he
proposes.
Angie
agrees to marry J.T. on one condition: the marriage will be purely a business
arrangement. But as Angie spends time with him and his family, and J.T.
neglects his training to spend time with her, what begins as a union in name
only slowly grows into something more—something that looks a whole lot like
love and friendship.
Excerpt:
Just after nine, J.T. left Matt and Kelly at Kamu’s and headed back to
his condo. Across the street, Blaze Field was dark, but the Blaze apparel and
memorabilia shop outside the stadium was open and doing brisk business. He
wasn’t surprised at the turnout, the fans were still reveling in the team’s
World Series win—buying up anything that had World Series Champs emblazoned on
it.
Although he’d reached the pinnacle of his sport, the victory was
bittersweet. His playing time had been minimal and his only significant
contribution had been a double in game six—the game that had clinched the
Series. That double had scored the go-ahead run and for a few exhilarating
hours he’d felt like he’d made a difference. Damn it. He wanted to feel that
way all the time. More than anything he wanted to move beyond being a back-up
to guys like Rick Taylor and Matt. The problem was, he’d mistakenly assumed his
natural talent would be all he needed. Not true. Matt had opened his eyes to
that.
After entering the lobby of his building, J.T. rode the elevator up to
his floor. Although the condo was nice, he wouldn’t miss it. His house in
Sacramento was a lot more spacious and had a big backyard, complete with a pool
and hot tub. His older brother, Jake, owned a gym and had agreed to train him
during the off season. Jake assured him he would put him through his paces and
knowing his brother, there would be torture involved. That tub would come in
handy to soak his sore muscles.
The moment he stepped out of the elevator he saw her. A flood of hot,
rough sensations slid down his spine as she turned and those mesmerizing eyes
of hers locked with his. His breath caught in his throat and he silently cursed
himself for still being affected by her. It had been that way since the first
moment he’d laid eyes on her and from the telltale thundering of his heart, not
much had changed.
Quickly gathering his scattered wits, he strode toward the woman who,
for the past couple of months, had been extremely successful at avoiding
him—the woman who had shared his bed for one extraordinary night and was gone
before sunrise.
Angie DeMarco.
J.T. wasn’t sure why she was standing at his door and didn’t speculate
on the reasons as he approached her. Her arms were crossed over her chest,
obstructing his view of the ring he still hadn’t seen but knew she’d started
wearing a few weeks after their night together. His gut tightened. He shouldn’t
care that she was engaged—they barely knew each other. It hit him then that he
didn’t know much about her, yet he was intimately acquainted with almost every
inch of her slender yet curvy body.
Halting in front of her, he didn’t say a word. Instead he let his gaze
wander over her face. Her skin was porcelain smooth, her cheekbones high, and
her mouth, with its slight upward tilt at the corners only hinted at the
beautiful smile he’d coaxed out of her that night so many weeks ago. Her dark
hair spilled around her shoulders in wavy corkscrew spirals that almost begged
to be touched. It was soft. It ticked him off that he remembered not only that,
but every single thing about the night they’d spent together.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, more harshly than he’d intended. A
twinge of guilt hit him but he quickly got over it. They’d had a one night
stand—end of story.
Angie loosened her arms from over her chest to push her hair back.
Something she did quite frequently. “I—I need to talk to you.” She paused, bit
her lower lip and continued, “It’s important. May I come inside? I don’t want
to talk about it in the hall.”
“Why not?” He fished for his keys in the pocket of his jeans. “This
should be interesting,” he muttered as he unlocked the door and hit the light
switch by the door as he moved inside. “Sorry about the mess. I’m packing up to
head home.” He waved a hand toward the boxes still strewn around the room. Some
of them were packed and taped up, but a few were still waiting to be filled.
“When are you leaving?”
“Sunday morning.” He closed the door to find Angie standing with her
back to him, surveying the disaster that was his living room. It was the
perfect opportunity to check out her ass, showcased to perfection in the snug
black pants she wore. When she turned, he forced his gaze upward to meet hers.
She had the most beautiful eyes he’d ever seen—a startling blue that reminded
him of the aquamarine gemstones that glittered in the necklace his mother wore
on special occasions.
“Sacramento, right?” Angie fidgeted with the strap of her purse on her
shoulder, then clasped her hands together in front of her. She seemed nervous.
Why?
“Yes.” J.T. set his keys on the table next to the entry. “So why are
you here?”
“Now that I’m here, I’m not quite sure how to say it.” She paused and
took a deep breath before exhaling. Her face had turned pale and there were
dark shadows underneath her eyes. Whatever she had to say seemed to be weighing
heavily on her. But what could it be? Was she sorry for avoiding him for weeks?
Was she sorry she’d gotten engaged?
Angie let out another breath. “I’m pregnant.”
My Review: 4 1/2 stars
I really enjoyed reading about Angie and J.T. They were an unusual couple, in that they'd only been together once. Ok, twice, but just the one night. I thought that Alison presented this in a fantastic way, showcasing all the insecurities of both Angie and J.T. Then bringing out the other side of them, the vulnerabilities that occur when you're in close quarters with someone. I thought it was interesting that again, both J.T. and Angie had fought their feelings for each other for so long. I loved J.T.'s family, they were everything that Angie had been brought up not to believe in. I loved that J.T. fought for what he wanted, even though he didn't know Angie that well, he fought for a place in her life permanently. I loved that Angie gave him a chance when all of her past said not to. I could have cheerfully kicked her Mom out on her ass for the stunt she pulled, not to mention the crap that she kept feeding both her daughters. It's no wonder Angie had issues with someone always telling her that what she wanted wasn't good enough. I really loved the end of the book where both Angie and J.T. laid all their cards on the table to each other and exposed their vulnerabilities truly to each other. Sometimes it takes almost losing what you want to make sure that you open up completely and make sure that they know they are wanted. Alison did a great job keeping me interested in the story and creating some great characters - all of them - that caught my interest to the end of the book. I'd even want to read more, if she'd like to write about the other brothers. I'm certain Justin and Jake would have great stories to tell. Either way, I will look into the other books in this series.
About the Author:
Originally
from the San Francisco Bay Area, Alison now lives in Southern Nevada where
she’s still getting used to the blistering summers and slot machines in every
grocery store.
When not
working at the day job that pays the bills, keeps a roof over her head, and
supports her book and chocolate habits, she spends most of her free time
writing. But when she takes a break, she enjoys reading, watching movies, and
spending time with her family and friends.
Website: http://alisonpackard.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alleyfics
Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/alisonpackard/
Thanks for the review and for hosting a stop on my blog tour! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book and, yes, I do plan on writing about J.T.'s brothers...(I'm working on Jake's story now). :-) Thanks again! Have a nice weekend.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that you are writing about Jake! Looking forward to it! :) Have a great weekend!
DeleteLove the cover looks sweet the book description was good to.
ReplyDelete