Author: Jennifer Gracen
Release Date: November 28, 2017
Publisher: Kensington Publishing/Penguin
Random House
As
the only daughter of the wealthy Harrison clan, Tess Harrison has
everything—except the baby she longs for. With no husband in sight, she escapes
to her family’s retreat in Aspen, Colorado, visions of sperm donors dancing in
her head. Instead, she finds Logan Carter. When the ruggedly handsome manager
of the Harrison ski house offers to be her baby daddy in exchange for her
playing his girlfriend, Tess is breathless to begin the charade. After all, the
brokenhearted heiress knows better than to fall in love . . .
She
would be Logan’s dream girl, if his dark past had left him with any dreams. Now
the brooding bachelor’s only hope is to satisfy his mother’s dying wish to see
him happily paired off—and give lovely Tess the baby she longs for. But when he
and Tess opt to make a baby the old- fashioned way, he’s fighting hard against
the longing to hold on to the elusive Harrison beauty forever . . .
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My thoughts:
Between You and Me is the fourth book in the Harrison Family series. It's the first one I have read. This is Tess's story. For the most part, it held up well as a stand alone. The story mainly involves Tess and Logan, so I didn't really feel lost on the family dynamics. The author did a good job of cluing me into who was who and why they did or didn't get along. In the story, Tess is fast approaching forty and has decided to have a baby on her own. She retreats to her family home in Aspen to prepare. All she needs is a suitable sperm donor.
I had a little bit of trouble loving this one in the beginning. It did initially drag a bit for me. I wasn't sold on the attraction between Logan and Tess at first. It felt a bit forced. I also had issues with Tess asking Logan to agree to be her baby daddy and then getting upset when he is shocked and reacts badly. I personally thought his reaction was spot on. What did she expect? As the story kept going, I grew to really love this couple and their friendship. So much that I really bought their HEA in the end.
I am intrigued enough by Tess's brothers to go back and check out their stories. If you haven't' read any of the series, Between You and Me is a good one to start.
An excerpt from BETWEEN YOU AND ME
Copyright © Jennifer Gracen 2017
By
the time Logan pulled up in front of Tess’s house, she was warm, full, tired,
and happy. “I had a great time today.”
“I
did too,” he said with a smile. “Thanks again for inviting me.”
“Any
chance you’d like to do it again sometime soon?”she asked. “You’re a worthy ski
partner, and I had fun with you.”
“Yeah,
I’d like that,” he said. “But next time, I pay for my lift ticket.”
“Deal.
Sometime next week?”
“Sure.
Give me a call, we’ll work out a time.”
“Well,
you have a job with a real
schedule. Right now, I don’t. I’m free as a bird. So you give me a call.”
His
eyes held hers as he said, “Okay. I’ll do that. You’re on. Got yourself a ski
buddy.”
God,
she wanted to kiss him. Sitting so close in the warmth of his truck, he smelled
good and his eyes were intense and his mouth was inviting and she wanted to
kiss him so bad. But this new friendship—all the things they’d revealed to each
other that day—she didn’t want to cross any lines or mess it up. For now, she’d
hold back.
But
still couldn’t resist flirting a little bit. “So,” she said boldly. “Are you
coming in to soak in my tub or what? The offer stands.”
His
gaze turned hot, a full-out smolder that made her belly do a wobbly flip. “The
offer is more tempting than you know.” His voice had dropped low and dead sexy,
making her shiver. “But I think I’d better head home for tonight.”
They
stared at each other for a moment, pure electricity crackling between them. She
could feel her blood in her veins, racing now, hot and needing, as his eyes
lowered to her mouth for a few seconds before lifting to meet her gaze again.
“You sure?” she asked. Her heart thumped in heavy beats.
“Only
so much temptation a man can take,” he murmured. “And you’re testing my limits
as it is, Tess. You have to know that.”
“I
didn’t know that.”
She
leaned in, her face so close to his that she could feel his hot breath feather
against her lips.
“Tess.”
He whispered it as a protest, but his eyes gave him away. He wanted her too,
she could see it all over his face.
She
closed the distance between them, pressing her mouth to his. It was a brush of
her lips against his, just the slightest touch. But his hand lifted to cup the
back of her neck and hold her there. He took control of the kiss, gently but
surely, slanting his mouth over hers to take more of what he wanted. Her mouth
opened with a little sigh as their tongues met and swirled slowly. As they
leaned into each other, his fingers threaded through her hair and his other
hand came up, cradling her head in his hands as his mouth consumed hers.
Her
senses reeled. His full beard tickled her face, surprisingly soft against her
skin. The feel of his mouth on hers, his hands in her hair, his big, warm body
so close . . .her head swam with it all. He deepened the kiss and groaned
softly into her mouth, and she was lost. She surrendered willingly, kissing him
back with the same slow, sensual pace he’d set, her fingers clutched in his ski
jacket. She could have kissed him for days.
He
broke away slowly, leaning his forehead against hers, eyes still closed.
“Jesus,” he whispered. When his eyes opened to focus on her, they were heavy
lidded with lust. “You . . . you better go inside now.”
Still
catching her breath, she touched his cheek. “You sure you don’t want to come
in?”
“I
do want to,” he said, his voice thick. “Too much. So I’m not going to.”
She
pulled back, trying to hide her disappointment. “Okay.”
“Tess
. . .” He stared at her, his mouth opening and closing as he fought with what
he wanted to say. “You’re an amazing woman. I like that we’re . . . kind of
friends now. Let’s try to stick with that for now, okay?”
The
disappointment sharpened in her gut, but she pasted on a smile. “Fine.”
“Ah
crap. No, no, don’t say fine,” Logan demanded
gently. “When a woman says fine, it’s never fine. Even
a loner lumberjack like me knows that.”
She
couldn’t help but giggle.
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About
Jennifer Gracen
Jennifer Gracen hails from Long Island, New York, where
she lives with her two sons. After spending her youth writing in private and
singing in public, she now only sings in her car and is immersed in her passion
for writing. She loves to write contemporary romance for readers who look for
authentic characters and satisfying endings. When she isn’t with her kids,
doing freelance proofreading, or chatting on Twitter and Facebook, Jennifer
writes. She’s already hard at work on her next book.
Debbie Cassidy lives in England, Bedfordshire, with her three kids and very supportive husband. Coffee and chocolate biscuits are her writing fuels of choice, and she is still working on getting that perfect tower of solitude built in her back garden. Obsessed with building new worlds and reading about them, she spends her spare time daydreaming and conversing with the characters in her head – in a totally non psychotic way of course. She writes High Fantasy, Urban Fantasy and Science Fiction. Debbie also writes dark, diverse Urban Fantasy fiction, under the pen name Amos Cassidy, with her best friend Richard Amos.
