Any Erin McCarthy fans joining us today? I've been a fan ever since the release of her very first Fast Track novel titled Flat Out Sexy. Fast cars and alpha heroes...what could be better I ask you! I then found all her other series and well...that will be another post to share. Needless to say I am a big fan girl!
I recently picked up Jacked Up, the latest release in this series and I am dying to jump in. I just have to wrap up a few reviews before I do though. I know once I begin all other started books will be put on hold until I finish. Wouldn't be fair to all the fictional characters, right. ;)
I've picked out a snippet today from chapter so everyone can kick back a little this Thursday and enjoy some good reading.
Erin McCarthy
Back of the Book:
She’s holding tight. He’s hanging loose.Eve Monroe is a stock-car PR pro who puts her career first—until an on-track wardrobe malfunction reveals more than the sexy smile of jackman Nolan Ford. The video’s become an internet sensation, and it’s Eve’s job to calm the sponsors and put a spin on the unexpected exposure.And they both have the same drive.It may be a public relations job, but now that Eve’s seen what’s under Nolan’s crew suit, it’s gotten personal. After a few dates she has Nolan pretty revved up. If only she’d learn to relax and enjoy it. Nolan’s sure that the spontaneous birthday bash he’s throwing for Eve in Las Vegas should loosen her up. Somewhere between cocktails and a smoking-hot motel-room derby, it does more than that. Now Eve’s wrestling with feelings she never expected, as everything about her personal jackman gets harder than she ever imagined.
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EXTENDED EXCERPT
He’d distracted himself. That kiss had been off the charts. Eve had a volcano of passion inside her, and he didn’t think it would take much for it to erupt. He definitely wanted to be the one around when it did.
“It wasn’t easy. I almost forgot what I was doing when you started in with your tongue. We’ve got some chemistry between us, just like I suspected.”
“Maybe. But you don’t taste like fudge ripple.”
“No?” Nolan figured this was going to be good. “What do I taste like?”
“Jackass.”
Yep. That was good. He laughed. “I guess you’d know.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I’m about to delete these pictures.” He hit the picture icon on her phone to bring up the shots.
“You’re a sore loser.”
“How am I a loser? I have the phone and I’m about to go collect my barbeque gift certificate. That sounds like a winner to me.” He scrolled through the pictures. They weren’t that awful actually. He only deleted the one where he was clutching the kitten and his eyes were closed. That one was awkward.
“You’re no fun. I wasn’t going to post those online.”
“You swear to it?”
“Yes, I swear to it.”
He gave her the phone back. “I only deleted one. The rest you can keep for your personal amusement when you want a good laugh at my expense.”
Her jaw dropped. “You didn’t delete them all?” She took the phone and checked for herself.
“No. I can be a good sport, and you gave your word you won’t show them to anyone else.” He wasn’t uptight and he could take a joke.
“Oh. Wow.” She looked genuinely surprised, like she wasn’t used to people being reasonable. Which maybe she wasn’t. “You da man.”
Which made him laugh. “Yeah, I’m the man about to pick up my prize.”
They headed toward the booth the judge had directed him to. “So Eve, you know I can’t eat all that barbeque by myself. Would you care to join me for dinner sometime?” He liked spending time with her. She continued to intrigue him and he wanted to hang out with her.
“Are you asking me on a date?”
Apparently he needed to spell it out. “Yes.”
“Do you really think it’s a good idea for us to date? It’s basically a conflict of interest. We work for the same company.”
“I didn’t give it much thought.” He hadn’t. Sure, Rhett and Jim had said something to him, but he didn’t see why it mattered. They weren’t on the pit crew together. And he’d yet to end a relationship with a woman and been unable to remain civil to her after. “You’re frowning again. Stop worrying.”
She was. That line in the middle of her forehead had reappeared.
“I can’t help it. It would be a disaster if we were a disaster and it affected our work.”
“It’s one date for some ribs and maybe a pulled pork sandwich. Why would that be a disaster? And we are both mature adults who see each other at the track like once a month. I think we can handle it.” He did. Putting his hands on her shoulders, he rocked her back and forth a little. “It’s okay. Chill out. Have some fun. Hug a kitten.” He handed her the stuffed cat she’d won for him.
Eve rolled her eyes, but she did smile at the same time. “God, okay, fine, whatever. Let’s go out on a date. But if this goes horribly wrong I’m blaming it on you.”
He wasn’t about to point out that technically they were currently on a date. “I’ll be the fall guy. That’s fair. Not. But I’ll take the blame.”
“When are we doing this? I need to get it on my calendar.”
Nolan pulled a face. She had no idea how to have fun. He was catching glimpses like when she danced or wrestled with him, but man, she was wound tight. It felt like he’d been given a personal mission to loosen her up. Which gave him an idea.
“I hadn’t thought that far ahead,” he told her truthfully. “But this weekend I’m competing in the demolition derby. You should come with me, drive a car in it.”
Eve paused in the middle of pushing buttons on her phone, probably checking out her calendar. She gave him a look that showed precisely what she thought of that idea. “Now why would I do that? And how? I don’t have a car.”
So she was considering it. “You would do it because it’s fun. Because knocking around on the track banging into people is a great stress reliever. Think about it—you get to smash up a car and no one’s going to get pissed.”
She seemed to be debating the idea. But then she shook her head. “Again, I don’t have a car. And I don’t drive anymore. It’s a crazy idea.”
“You can use my car and I’ll drive Rhett’s. He hasn’t driven it in six months or more. And you drove for years, you can handle a derby. Come on, it’ll be a blast. Hell, you may even win.”
That got her. He could see the competitive fire spark to life in her eyes.
She snorted. “There’s no way I’d win. But yeah, it might be fun. I’ll think about it.”
“Think about it fast, that’s only three days from now.”
Staring hard at him, she jammed her phone into her purse, then pulled her sweatshirt back on over her head. It was a stall tactic that he recognized clearly. If she decided to drive, she’d need a practice session behind the wheel, just to get the feel of the car, and he wasn’t sure when they were going to squeeze that in if she didn’t make a decision tonight. But he wasn’t about to tell her that. If he put too much pressure on her, she’d just say no.
“Okay, fine, I’ll do it. Only to prove to you that it’s a bad idea.”
“Well, as long as you’re going in with the right attitude.” Nolan slung his arm over Eve’s shoulders and pulled her in close to him. “You want your own brat or do you just want a bite of mine?”
“What?” She looked up at him in confusion. “What the hell are you taking about?”
“I’m buying myself a bratwurst to eat. You want your own wiener or just a bite of mine?” He smiled at her. Two could play the double entendre game. It was only fair. He still hadn’t fully recovered from that pussy comment. It was a game she was good at.
“I’ll just take a big old bite out of yours, thanks.” She gave him a challenging smile.
Yeah, she was good at this game. Nolan felt a stirring down south. A call to arms. He wanted to kiss Eve again while imagining her biting him.
But when he leaned forward to do just that, she took a step back. “On second thought, I’ll take a rain check on the wiener. I’m going to head out for the night.”
It took him a second to process what she was saying. “No wiener?”
“No wiener.”
Disappointed, he tried to regroup. No wiener. That sucked. “That’s a shame, but alright. I’ll walk you to your car.”
“No, you go ahead and collect your prize and get your bratwurst. My car is only a few spots from the gate, I’ll be fine.”
With any other woman, he would insist on walking her out. But his gut told him if he insisted, it would just piss Eve off. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
She was already taking a few steps back. She was done and she was bolting. Best to let her go. “Alright, I’ll call you tomorrow about the derby.”
“Great. Enjoy your sauerkraut.”
“Thanks. Night, Eve.”
“Bye, strongman.”
As he watched her go, his eyes automatically dropping down to check out her stellar curves, Nolan had a feeling his car might not be the only things getting smashed up this weekend.
His ego and his libido might be taking a beating as well.
~*~
I hope you enjoyed today's pick and extended snippet reading.
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