COVER
REVEAL:Taste of Summer
By
Beverly Preston
Laugh,
cry and fall in love in the newest
standalone within the
Mathews
Family Series.
Meet
Ryan and Carrie in Taste of Summer releasing July 21st, 2015 !
Blurb
Most people know Hollywood heartthrob, Ryan Summer, as Ryan, no last name required. But
once upon a time, he was just Summer to Carrie Ann—before a decade of
blockbuster hits skyrocketed his success into superstardom.
Summer was smart, gorgeous, and cocky as hell. Nothing was out
of his reach. Not even Carrie Ann Lowell. He was the love of her life—until he
shattered her heart. Their breakup left more than a profound rift in her soul.
It crushed her.
When Carrie Ann’s college flame forces his way back into her
life, his dirty-talking, bold self-assurance re-ignites a passion she thought
had long since been extinguished. Carrie Ann didn’t
believe in second chances.
Not
even for him.
No
matter how deliciously tempting.
With
sparks flying and hidden truths unraveling, will Carrie Anne be able to deny
her desires to save herself from another heart break?
Excerpt
Carrie Ann tugged the earbud free from her ear, tossing the
handsome young man a small smile. “Sorry, I couldn’t hear you. What did you
say?”
He crossed a lanky somewhat defined arm in front of her,
casually gripping the handlebar of her bike. “I said, you must be exhausted—”
Before she could reply he continued, “—from running through my mind all day.”
Surely she must’ve heard him incorrectly. He was probably
fifteen at most sporting a baby face and a patch of ten whiskers on his chin.
Her brows tucked into a furrow. “Excuse me?”
A dose of youthful overconfidence drifted over his mouth in
a sharp grin. “I seem to have forgotten my number. Can I have yours?”
“My phone number?” Carrie Ann scanned the near vicinity, row
after row of workout equipment, for the practical jokester responsible for the
madness. “Ha ha. Very funny. Who put you up to this?”
Her amusement only encouraged the boy’s macho bravado. “No
one put me up to anything. I need a date. I just got into LA and I’ve got this
Red Carpet event—”
“A date?” she scoffed at the ludicrous suggestion. Though
she looked young for her age, Carrie Ann was still all of thirty-four years
old.
“Yeah, you know. A date. You, me, hundreds of fans screaming
as we stroll down the Red Carpet.” His voice cracked emphasizing the words Red
Carpet…for the second time. A self-absorbed twinkle gleamed in his brown eyes
as if he expected her to melt and drop to her knees right there in the gym.
“Kid, you’re barking up the wrong tree.”
“I’m totally serious. My uncle has this movie premier and I
can’t just bring anyone.” A chunk of blond hair fell on his forehead and he
flipped his head to the side. My date needs to be…hot, and well, you’re the
hottest girl I’ve seen since I got to LA.”
She sneered at the absurdity. Silliness turned to annoyance.
Carrie Ann switched gyms a few months back, paying out the nose to invest in
her fitness and more importantly her privacy. Her last gym was more crowded
than a cattle call casting session.
Carrie Ann rolled her eyes. She moved around him, gathering
her workout towel and reaching for her bag. “Look kid, you seem real sweet,
but—“
“You’re right about one thing.” A familiar voice, deep and
perfectly modulated, approached from behind. “She is the most beautiful woman you’ll ever lay eyes on. But, you’re
reaching for the stars with this one, Drew. She’s a heartbreaker.”
An ice cold tickle ascended up her spine raising the hair on
the back of her neck. Her head snapped, glancing over her shoulder, colliding
with a pair of rich amber eyes from her past. Without breaking eye contact,
Ryan Summer strolled right into her personal space sporting athletic shorts, a
fitted muscle shirt and a killer smile.
Nowadays, most people knew the Hollywood
heartthrob as Ryan. Just Ryan. No last name needed. But after nearly a decade
of blockbuster hits and infamous relationships that skyrocketed his success
into superstardom, to Carrie Ann, he was still just Summer. Her old college
flame.
“Funny, I could say the same about you,” she countered his
jab, marshalling a bit of annoyance in her tone to combat the rush of heat
spreading to her already pink cheeks.
A sexy smile caught the curve of his wide firm mouth.
“Hello, Red.”
“Hello, Summer.” Carrie Ann tossed a trivial nod toward the
teenager. “Who’s this? Your new apprentice?”
“Apprentice?” Moving a step closer, he dragged his fingers
through the short cropped layers of sandy blond hair. “This is Mark’s boy. Do
you remember my nephew, Drew?”
“Your brother’s boy?” she questioned in surprise. Avoiding
the view of his bicep curling into the size of a softball, Carrie Ann ran a
quick scan over the young man at his side. “Whoa, you had to be four or five
years old the last time I saw you.”
“I don’t remember meeting you.” Drew’s eyes flickered with bemusement and
optimism.
She extended her hand. “I’m Carrie Ann. I knew you when you
were—“
“You’re Carrie Ann? The
Carrie Ann?” The boy spun toward his uncle, his blue eyes broadened in
disbelief. “The One?”
Her stomach twisted hearing the title. A flash of
perspiration instantaneously flooded her palms. Before she had time to renege
on the clammy greeting, Drew clasped her hand, giving it a polite shake.
A low rumble of laughter simmered in Summer’s chest and a
rosy shade of red burnished high on the bridge of his nose. He nodded, “This is
The Carrie Ann. The One who got away.”
No matter how many years had passed, it never got any easier
to see him. Each time she did, she suddenly found it harder to breath.
The pounding of her heart quickened as her gaze slipped over
his rugged well-defined features. A three day scruff accentuated the slight
dimple at the bottom of his chin. The
disheveled layers of hair were wet from exertion near his temple and nape. Time
had been very good to him.
She felt the warmth of his hand close around the back of her
bare arm. The early morning stubble of his beard brushed against her cheek as
he leaned closer pressing a small kiss near her temple. Carrie Ann squirmed at
his nearness, ducking to the side attempting to put some space between them.
“I’m…I’m all sweaty,” she insisted breathily.
“It’s okay,” he
murmured softly in her ear. The heat of his breath brought chill bumps to the
damp skin near her neck. “I remember enjoying you all sweaty.”
Ryan’s golden eyes locked onto hers, anchoring her feet to
the floor. The penetration of his stare momentarily tied her tongue in a knot,
turning the awkward moment even more difficult. Carrie Ann hadn’t bumped into
Ryan in at least three years and she hadn’t seen him covered in sweat in ten.
An image of him, gloriously naked, flashed in her mind and her thighs.
Frustration mounted as her body willingly betrayed her.
Carrie Ann’s jaw set rigid contemplating the idea of
flipping off her hooha for its insubordination.
“That was a long time ago,” she snipped abruptly.
“Seems like only yesterday to
me.”
Series
Reading Order
No More Wasted Time (bk 1)
Now ONLY $0.99
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1ujwsOJ
B&N: http://bit.ly/XXj8Br
Shayla’s Story (bk 2)
Now ONLY $0.99
Amazon: http://amzn.to/Y34mt7
The Perfect Someday (bk 3)
Now ONLY $1.99
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1qrsCM5
Surviving Broken (bk 4)
Now ONLY $1.99
Amazon:http://amzn.to/Zc1xHD
B & N: http://bit.ly/1t9I8OE
About the
Author:
Beverly
Preston
#1 Bestselling Author,
Beverly Preston has been a stay at home mom for 21 years, although she prefers
the title Domestic Engineer. Along the way, Beverly
If Beverly
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