Ramblings of a Book Lunatic: A Tragic Wreck by TK Leigh with Giveaway, Excerpt, Playlist, Dreamcast & Review

How can you continue living when you’re living a lie? How can you convince your body to stop feeling, your soul to stop caring, and your heart to stop beating? Haunted by her past, Olivia Adler flees Boston for a beach in Florida, leaving everyone behind, trying to shut the world out. Remaining a relative recluse in her self-imposed prison, she tries to turn everything off, wanting to feel nothing. But a new acquaintance won’t let that happen. After being away from Alexander for a month, his voice constantly ringing in her head, reminding her that her inability to confront her demons will not only destroy her, but also him, can she really be expected to want to feel again when it brings nothing but pain? Back in Boston, everywhere he turns, Alexander Burnham is reminded of Olivia… His Olivia… He tries to dull the ache left in his heart the only way he knows how… in the bed of a beautiful woman. But Alexander isn’t about to lose his Olivia. After a clue comes to light regarding Olivia’s whereabouts, can he convince her to return to Boston with him? When a force that has laid dormant for months resurfaces, can Alexander still protect her from the unknown danger? And when Alexander comes face to face with a shadow of both his and Olivia’s past, will he be able to tell her the secret that is threatening to tear them apart? A Tragic Wreck is the continuation of T.K. Leigh’s heart-breakingBeautiful Mess series.

“What, Alex? What do you want?” Olivia asked, choking the words out through her tears. She crossed her arms over her stomach, trying to keep herself warm. She felt Alexander approach behind her, the familiar electricity present.

“What do I want?!” He grabbed her shoulders, turning her around to face him. “Haven’t I made myself perfectly clear over the past several months?!” He ran his fingers through his hair.

Olivia stared at him, tears streaming down her face as she leaned against the brick building.

He slowly walked up to her and placed his hands on either side of her head, leaning over her. “You, Olivia! I want you!” he exclaimed passionately. “I want you every second of every day. I want the good. I want the bad. I want the sweet. I want the ill-tempered. I want the hot. I want the cold. I want the crazy, irrational, exasperating pain-in-the-ass girl that I love with my entire fucking heart.” He took a deep breath before lowering his voice, the look on his face sincere. “I want the sexy, beautiful woman that makes me whole, Olivia. And I am not going to stop until you admit that you love me. I know you do so stop running from it. You’ve been running from love all your life. It’s standing right here in front of you, embracing you. What are you so scared of?” He stared into her eyes as they searched his, looking for an answer. “What are you scared of, love?” he whispered in her ear.

“What do you want me to say, Alex?” she asked quietly.

“I just want you to tell me how you feel, Olivia. The truth.”

Several intense seconds passed as Alexander stared down at her, bracing for her answer. Her eyes traced over his face. His green eyes were so full of sadness. She could see the hurt all over his body. He looked good, but there was something missing from his usual spark.

“Okay!” Olivia shouted. “I love you, Alexander! Okay?! Is that what you want to hear?! You want to hear how I want to get married and have beautiful babies?! Because I do! I love you so fucking much that it hurts!” Tears continued to fall down Olivia’s face as Alexander pulled her close, stroking her hair and kissing her head, trying to calm her down.

“I’ve loved you since I saw you running that day back in August at Boston Common. And then I started to love you even more when you came and adopted Runner. I loved you so much that I ran from you. I fell in love with you even more when you came after me and found me, begging me to come home with you. And then it broke my fucking heart when I saw you with another woman because I loved you then, too.

“And every day I spend with you, I fall even more in love. And the days we’re apart, I feel like I could die from the fucking heartache because I’m missing such an important part of me. It feels like I can’t go on breathing or surviving when you’re not with me, and that’s what I’m fucking scared of. I’m scared that you’ll leave me, just like everyone else in my life that I’ve ever loved, and I’ll never survive.”

She cried into Alexander’s chest, soaking his suit jacket. “I’m scared to death to love you, but I’m more scared to walk away from you,” she sobbed out.

Playlist:

4 1/2 stars

I truly wanted this to be the final book in the series, and put the past behind Alex and Olivia. That was not meant to be. Olivia runs from Alex again, and tries to forget the pain of leaving him behind again. I seriously wanted to smack both Alex and Olivia for using other people to try and get over each other, while in the back of their minds still wanting the other. I will admit that while disappointed that Alex and Olivia didn't get their Happy Ever After in this book, I was very happy to see their growth separately, and to see that they are beginning to realize what they mean to each other. Now, there are other people involved with them and it's a bit messy. Olivia met Cam, who is a great guy. Perfect in every way, except he's not Alex. I really liked Cam, and hopefully he'll be in the next book, because a hot surfer is always good, right? This book was a roller coaster of emotions; I laughed, I cried, I wanted to reach out an smack a few people. It was a great read, and I can't wait to find out what happens in Gorgeous Chaos. The characters either made you want to love them or smack the hell out of them - and that's great writing!

Dreamcast:

T. K. Leigh, otherwise known as Tracy Leigh Kellam, is a producer / attorney by trade. Originally from New England, she now resides in sunny Southern California with her husband, dog and three cats, all of which she has rescued (including the husband). She always had a knack for writing, but mostly in the legal field. It wasn’t until recently that she decided to try her hand at creative writing and is now addicted to creating different characters and new and unique story lines in the Contemporary Romantic Suspense genre. When she’s not planted in front of her computer, writing away, she can be found running and training for her next marathon (of which she has run over fifteen fulls and far too many halfs to recall). Unlike Olivia, the main character in her Beautiful Mess series, she has yet to qualify for the Boston Marathon.