Intoxicate, Book # 4 in the Explosive Series
Can be read as a standalone
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Day: January 29, 2015
Marry me.
Two words Kalli Montgomery never expected to say out loud to Xavier Cruz, even though she's been in love with the sexy, single father for as long as she can remember. Unfortunately, she hasn't just been friend-zoned for the past ten years. No, even worse, he's treated her like a little sister, no matter how hard she tried to prove she could be so much more. When she agrees to spend the summer as the caregiver for his daughter, Lily, she knows it's her last chance to finally make him take notice.
As unexpected circumstances threaten to disrupt his home life, Xavier's desperate to keep his family together. He'll do whatever it takes, even if it means marrying a woman he doesn't love. For Xavier and Lily, Kalli will do just about anything, even at the risk of getting her heart broken in the process.
Little does she know, sometimes love isn't quite as unrequited as one may think. Xavier sees her-he always has. And the vow he made all those years ago never to go there with his best friend's little sister is wavering, and it's wavering fast. When they come up with a plan that leads to wedding bells, it's a no brainer.
This marriage of convenience has one rule: absolutely no falling in love.
Easier said than done. Throw together a girl who believes rules are meant to be broken, and a man whose whole career revolves around following orders and you get a recipe for disaster. What could possibly go wrong?
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Shooting a glare at him, I throw my hands up in exasperation. “Are you telling me that this whole anticipation thing is one-sided? Is it that easy for you to resist? I really need to step up my game.”
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Excerpt
Shooting a glare at him, I throw my hands up in exasperation. “Are you telling me that this whole anticipation thing is one-sided? Is it that easy for you to resist? I really need to step up my game.”
Xavier’s eyes fall to my lips for a quick moment before he looks back up at me. I see the desire in his expression, and without him even saying a word, I know he wants this, too. So why is he making me wait?
“You have no idea how much I want to kiss you right now. How many times I’ve thought of doing just that. Every time you were curled up against me on the couch, I wanted to kiss you. Every morning when you showed up, I wanted to kiss you. Every time you said goodnight to Lily and then slipped out my door? I wanted to kiss you before you left. It’s not a new development. The first time I ever saw you, Kalli, I wanted to kiss you. And I’ve wanted to ever since.”
His admission floors me. He’s told me before that he “saw” me, but I had no clue it was from the very beginning. I’m not really sure how to process it. In fact, he beats me to the punch.
“So now you know. This will be just as hard for me, but it will be so damn worth it. Because when you’ve wanted something for as long as I’ve wanted you? It’ll be the best feeling in the world when I finally get it.”
“Our first kiss will be that epic?”
“A first kiss to rival them all,” he quips, grinning at me. He holds his arms out wide. “Now, we’ll start with a hug and work our way up.”
“I feel like I’m sixteen again,” I tell him as I wrap my arms around his waist.
His hands come down to my back and he gives me a big squeeze, my head pressing against his firm chest. I love this feeling of being in his arms, him holding me close. There’s nowhere on the planet I’d rather be than right here with him. As much as I want him, I know he’s right. I don’t care when it comes. Because when it does, our first kiss will be unforgettable.
His chest rumbles as he chuckles. He squeezes me tight one last time before letting me go. “And it’s only just the beginning,” he tells me. “Have a good night, crazy girl.”
My Review
**ARC received in exchange for an honest review.**
**ARC received in exchange for an honest review.**
"What could possibly go wrong?" Famous last words. When I read them it made me nervous. Because what could go wrong? Just about everything and anything.
If you've read any of Tessa's books you know that she can write awesome men. She even managed to turn one of her worst characters (See Branson in "Conflagration") into one of my favorites. But Xavier? Good lord, Tessa outdid herself this time. He's a single dad who has committed his life to raising his daughter. SWOON.
The book opens after Kalli and Xavier secretly get married in Vegas. The next morning the rest of the gang finds out, which results in Kalli and Xavier telling the story of how two people who have been holding back their feelings for each other for TEN YEARS (in fairness to Xavier, Kalli was only 16 when the first met), ended up married.
And it is an amazing story. It's a story about relationships. Xavier's relationship with his mother, who dropped everything to help him raise his daughter. It's about his relationship with his daughter Lily. I basically melted every time those two interacted. Kalli's relationship with Lily. And of course his relationship with Kalli. Xavier is the real deal y'all. He's sweet, patient, caring, loyal, passionate, a good friend, and a fantastic father. Oh and also a bit of a dirty talker, which is always good. And when he does it in Spanish...YOWZA!! Towards the end of the book Xavier reflects on his "aha!" moments and I found them to be a very good summary of the man himself:
You know that commercial where people are reliving that “aha!”moment in their lives when everything changed? The sweet epiphany that has the sun looking brighter, the sky bluer, and all your senses heightened?
I’ve been lucky enough to experience two of those moments in my lifetime. The first was when Lily was placed in my arms when she was only minutes old. Staring down into the face of this beautiful, scary, hopeful tiny little being who was counting on me changed my life forever, and it’s been evolving ever since.
The second? The second aha moment of my life was when I finally told the woman of my dreams just how much I love her. It wasn’t enough that I’d admitted it to Kale already. She needed to hear them, and I needed to say them. As soon as the words escaped my lips, it was as if years of pent-up frustration, want, and need melted away, leaving me to wonder why in the hell I’d fought it for as long as I had.And then a little later in the book:
Until I met Kalli, I wasn’t living. I was only existing. Even though I tried to resist, she came into my life and awoke emotions in me that had been so dormant I had no longer known I’d possessed them. Slowly but surely, she crept in and took hold of my heart, bringing it back to life.
And this is when I have my third aha moment. Sometimes, it’s okay for love to be selfish. Possessive. Mine certainly is when it comes to my wife.Going back to that original question of "What could possibly go wrong?" Surprisingly, not much. Yes, there was a little hiccup in their relationship, but it was dealt with pretty quickly. Besides that, this book was pretty drama free, which was very refreshing. Yes, I love me an angsty, drama filled story, but it is nice to have a practically drama free read.
Author Bio
I'm a twenty something book junkie who is also obsessed with sports. Bengals, Buckeyes, Reds are my teams! I work for the government during the day, hang out with Air National Guard on the weekends, and have been married to my own book boyfriend for over seven years. We currently live right outside of Dayton, OH with our two cats. If I’m not writing or looking through tons of photos of hot men, all in the name of research, then you can probably find me curled up with my Kindle, ignoring the rest of the world. I love my sports almost as much as I love my books. My other obsessions include red wine, hot men, country music, and all things Grace Potter.
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