Some of you may remember Alex, Sawyer Bennett’s first Cold Fury story – this is book 3, following Garrett.Β It is a fantastic series and you guys have to check it out – there is so much more going on than just a sports romance!
(I hate to say it, but if you haven’t read Alex or Garrett and you don’t like spoilers you probably shouldn’t read any further.Β There is a cliffhanger in Garrett that is spoiled by the below.Β Just skip to the bottom so you can enter the context for some great prizes!)
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Zack
Cold Fury Hockey # 3
by: Sawyer Bennett
Releasing June 9, 2015
Loveswept
Blurb:
New York Times bestselling author Sawyer Bennett goes for a hat trick with the latest romance in a sexy series about cool-as-ice hockey players and the women heating up their lives.
Warning: The following contains spoilers from a cliffhanger in Garrett.
Rising star Zack Grantham has been stuck in a downward spiral of grief that has put his career on hold. Back on the road with the Carolina Cold Fury, still crippled by emotional baggage, and now a single dad, heβs in need of some serious help with his son. But while the nerdy new nanny wins his sonβs heart, Zack isnβt sure heβs ready for a womanβs touchβeven after getting a glimpse of the killer curves sheβs hiding under those baggy clothes.
Kate Francis usually keeps men like Zack at a distance. Though his athleteβs body is honed to perfection, he refuses to move on with his lifeβand besides, heβs her boss. Still, the sparks between them are undeniable, tempting Kate to turn their professional relationship into a personal one. But before she makes a power play for Zackβs wounded heart, Kate will have to open him up again and show him that love is worth the fight.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23834720-zack?ac=1
Goodreads Series Link: https://www.goodreads.com/series/125350-cold-fury-hockey
Buy Links: AmazonΒ |Β B & NΒ |Β iTunesΒ |Β KoboΒ |Β Publisher
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Excerpt:
As soon as I get out of the club and into the silence of my car, I dial Delaney.
She answers on the first ring. βYou scared the shit out of me. Are you okay?β
βYeah,β I murmur as I start the engine and wait for my Bluetooth to connect. When I hear the subtle click telling me sheβs on speakerphone, I put the car in drive and say, βJust driving aroundβ¦thinking.β
I hear her blow out a gust of sympathetic frustration, but her voice is gentle. βOkay. Just get home.β
βIs Ben okay?β I ask.
βHeβs fine. Sleeping. Have you gone over the applicants I picked out for you?β
My hands tighten on the steering wheel, and a tiny pain shoots through my wrist, a pain Iβd never admit to the team doctors, so I ignore it and tell her, βNot yet.β
βTomorrow,β Delaney says sternly. βYou have to make a decision tomorrow.β
βI know,β I mutter, realizing that the time for dragging my feet and procrastinating is over. βI promise. Tomorrow.β
βOkay,β she says softly. βThatβs good.β
I donβt say anything else, my mind already starting to shut down. I abhor the thought of culling through her final recommendations for a nanny for Ben. Because that means this is finalβ¦that Gina is really dead and Benβs mommy is definitely not coming back. In my mind, itβs putting the final nail in her coffin.
βI love you,β Delaney says, almost desperately, into the phone.
I bite my lipβ¦hard, and feel my tooth slice down into the delicate flesh. βBack at ya,β I say, my voice harsh and raspy.
Words of love to my older sisterβthe woman who has been my rock-solid support the last four months since Gina diedβunable to materialize. I disconnect the call and stare blankly out the windshield. Iβm practically on autopilot as I drive home.
Out of the silence of my car, an unbidden, sarcastic snort bursts forth from me, and then I start snickering to myself.
Home.
What a fucking joke.
My five-bedroom house on Marchand Street feels like a prison, the walls closing in on me and causing me to seek out strippers named Candi Apple at midnight. I canβt escape my memories there, my guilt devours me as I look at Ginaβs pictures throughout the house, and every day, rather than rise above my pain, I get swallowed up in it a little deeper. I hate that fucking house now, and Iβve pretty much resolved myself to sell it. Maybe moving will help leave the ghosts behind and give Ben and me a fresh start.
If it wasnβt for Benβ¦
Beautiful, blond-haired, blue-eyed Ben.
The spitting image of Gina.
My little boy, who seems to have bounced back fine after losing his mother, giving me toothy grins and cuddling with me on the couch at night. If it wasnβt for himβ¦
No, I donβt even want to think about where Iβd be if it wasnβt for Ben. Let me just appreciate the fact that I have the most wonderful child in the world, and itβs only because of him that I at least have some sort of desire to want to feel again.
While I canβt seem to feel outside the bounds of pure and unconditional love for my child, it doesnβt mean I want to be this way. Iβm smart enough to know that Ben will look to me for guidance on how to live this life without Gina, and Iβm savvy enough to know that if I donβt get my shit together, for his sake, I stand a really good chance of fucking his head up.
So I try the only way I know howβby seeking out the Candi Apples of this worldβand dig down deep for something to interest me in this life outside of my child and my hockey career.
Taking a deep breath, I pull onto the outer belt line that circles around Raleigh, and let it out slowly. Yeah, tomorrow I need to start the process of removing my head from my ass. I also know the first step is to do as Delaney says and make a choice from the final applicants and hire a nanny for Ben. Once I start back at practices next week, Iβll need someone to help me with him.
Delaney has been down here in Raleigh for the past week, interviewing prospects and checking out references. Sheβs narrowed it down to a choice of three, and while I really donβt want to care about whom to pick, I know that for the sake of my son, I need to be satisfied the person I do choose is right for the job. I trust Delaney implicitly, but I also know that I need to show some interest . . . at least for her peace of mind. The day after tomorrow sheβll head back to Manhattan, where she works as a financial analyst, and I canβt let her leave with undue worry over me and Ben.
It pisses me off that I have to hire a nanny. It feels like Iβm replacing Gina . . . hiring a new mommy for my boy. Deep down, the rational side of me knows this isnβt true. While Iβve been able to handle Ben just fine on my own for the last four months while I recovered from my wrist injury, there is no way I can be a single parent to Ben when much of my career is spent on the road. I will need someone to be with him full-time when Iβm gone, and it has to be someone trustworthy.
So Iβll do my duty tomorrow and give the applicants thoughtful consideration. Then Iβll make my decision and start the process of introducing a new woman who will become a provider and mother figure to my son.
That thought causes pain to shoot through my chest, and while I know itβs unfair, a little part of me already hates this woman because she will be taking Ginaβs place in that respect.
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Author Info:
USAΒ TodayΒ and New York Times Best-Selling Author, Sawyer Bennett is a snarky southern woman and reformed trial lawyer who decided to finally start putting on paper all of the stories that were floating in her head. Her husband works for a Fortune 100 company which lets him fly all over the world while she stays at home with their daughter and three big, furry dogs who hog the bed. Sawyer would like to report she doesnβt have many weaknesses but can be bribed with a nominal amount of milk chocolate.
Sawyer is the author of several contemporary romances including the popular Off Series, the Legal Affairs Series and the Last Call Series. She will be releasing her third book in the Cold Fury Hockey Series with Random House Loveswept, June 2015.
Author Links: Website | FacebookΒ |Β TwitterΒ Β |Β GoodReads
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Giveaway:
Enter to win Loveswept & FLIRT Mugs and Select Ebook Bundle
https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/235babe7228/
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Zack
Romantic Reads and Such 