Gambling on a Heart
Book
Two: The Colton Gamblers
By:
Sara Walter Ellwood
Blurb
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She
once lost his heart on a bluff. Will she risk everything to win it
back?
Beautician
Tracy Quinn spends her days making the women of Colton, Texas
beautiful, while living down the nickname of Olive Oyl, given to her
by the only man she has ever loved—Zack Cartwright. She spends her
nights alone, despite what her ex husband wants their friends and
neighbors to think.
Ex-rodeo
cowboy. Ex-bad-boy. Ex-Marine. Widower and single dad Sheriff Zack
Cartwright can describe his life in exes. One ex in particular
reminds him of what’s missing in his workaholic life: Tracy Quinn.
For years since she broke his heart, he’s practically made avoiding
her a second job. He still wants her, but can never go after her.
When
cattle rustlers target her brother’s ranch, Tracy and Zack are
stuck working together. Her son could use a positive male role model,
and his daughter is wild for a chance at a “substitute” mom. But
Tracy’s ex threatens to sue if she lets Zack near her son, and the
Colton grapevine is abuzz with rumors about their past relationship.
Is it worth the gamble to see if what they have is more than lust?
CONTENT
WARNING: Spicy sex
Excerpt
“I
was hoping you could keep me company this afternoon.” He skimmed
his fingers over her cheek.
Her
insides, heating up like lava under the surface of the earth, pooled
in her low belly. Her lips parted.
Against
her lips, he whispered, “Tracy, I want you.”
She
had thought of little else since he’d left her standing on her
porch Friday night. He was asking her to enter into a sexual
relationship without any hope of a future--without love.
But
she was already in love with Zack.
Both
of their kids would benefit from them being together. Hadn’t that
been what she’d decided while she tossed and turned in her big,
empty bed?
With
her gaze locked on his, she murmured, “I want you, too, but I have
a stipulation.”
He
leaned back. “What is it?”
“I’m
no one’s bed-buddy, Zack. I know what my reputation is in this
town, but it’s all wrong.” She swallowed her rapidly thumping
heart back into place. “I’ll only go through with this, if you
promise to treat me as a serious girlfriend. That means we date, we
visit with our families and we share our kids.” When his expression
hardened, she quickly added, “Mandy likes me. And I adore her. I’d
like to bring her here, to the shop, for a few hours and play. And
take her shopping. I know your mom tries, but she’s busy with her
foundations and charities she does for the Junior League.”
The
breath she sucked in was full of Zack’s scent of sage and leather.
“Meanwhile, you can teach Bobby how to ride and maybe take him to
the sheriff’s department and show him around. Jake won’t like it,
but I’ll deal with him.” Having laid her demands out on the
proverbial table, she held her breath, waiting for him to tell her
what she could do with herself. After all, a man of Zack’s caliber
could have any damned woman he wanted. Tracy was just handy, and
according to the gossip of her ex-husband and mother-in-law, she was
easy.
He
studied her for a few moments. “That’s more than one
stipulation.”
“Take
it or leave it.”
“Tracy,
it won’t change what I told you Friday night. I’m never getting
married again.”
His
words stung as much now as they had the other night, but she didn’t
show him how much. She kept her face determined, as if she were
haggling over one of his horses, rather than her body and soul.
“Fine.
But I’m not a floozy. Yes, I’ve made mistakes. But I have my son
to consider. And I’d hope you’d feel the same about Mandy.
They’re bound to see us together. What do you plan on telling your
six-year-old daughter when she asks about me? That I’m your friend
with benefits? I know that isn’t what I want to be teaching my
son.” Moreover, she didn’t want to give credence to Jake’s
claim that she had no sexual morals.
“Okay,”
he said at last. “We’ll play the game your way.” He pressed her
against him. “Luck would have it I’m off this afternoon, too.
I’ve already put in sixteen hours.”
When
his lips captured hers, she knew she’d made a pact with the devil,
but she couldn’t stop the elation surging through her. There was
something he wanted from her. Sex was a big portion of it, but
something else kept Zack from walking away and hooking up with any
one of the many available women in town.
Review Rating: 4 LIGHTNING BOLTS
Review: Two emotionally wounded people with so much going against them just might find the love they deserve after all.
Those that have read Gambling on a Secret will remember Tracy and Zack. Well, they are back in their own story in Gambling on a Heart. Just like any other book written by Ms. Ellwood, this one is full of emotional conflict, drama and of course that well deserved happy ending. Our leading characters have a lot of emotional scars, some they keep within themselves, and some that can't be hidden. I love the chemistry between the pair. They've had a rocky road and it's not easy to deny the attraction. Two stubborn hearts will collide in this jam packed with sizzling tension and emotional contemporary romance.
I also loved being caught up on Dylan and Charli from the first book, and meeting other characters that make up this little town. Sara Walter Ellwood has me hooked, but that's okay because I know when I read one of her stories that I'm in for a treat.
Contemporary romance fans shouldn't miss this story, in fact, grab up book 1 while you're at it. Ms. Ellwood is an author on the rise!
Review Rating: 4 LIGHTNING BOLTS
Review: Two emotionally wounded people with so much going against them just might find the love they deserve after all.
Those that have read Gambling on a Secret will remember Tracy and Zack. Well, they are back in their own story in Gambling on a Heart. Just like any other book written by Ms. Ellwood, this one is full of emotional conflict, drama and of course that well deserved happy ending. Our leading characters have a lot of emotional scars, some they keep within themselves, and some that can't be hidden. I love the chemistry between the pair. They've had a rocky road and it's not easy to deny the attraction. Two stubborn hearts will collide in this jam packed with sizzling tension and emotional contemporary romance.
I also loved being caught up on Dylan and Charli from the first book, and meeting other characters that make up this little town. Sara Walter Ellwood has me hooked, but that's okay because I know when I read one of her stories that I'm in for a treat.
Contemporary romance fans shouldn't miss this story, in fact, grab up book 1 while you're at it. Ms. Ellwood is an author on the rise!
Buy
Links
Lyrical
Press: http://www.lyricalpress.com/gambling-on-a-heart/
Author
Info
Sara
Walter Ellwood is an award winning author whose novel Gambling On A
Secret was named by bestselling author Carolyn Brown in the Happy
Ever After Blog on USA Today as one of her favorite romances of
2012. Although Sara has long ago left the farm for the glamour of the
big town, she draws on her experiences growing up on a small hobby
farm in West Central Pennsylvania to write her stories. She’s been
married to her college sweetheart for nearly 20 years, and they have
two teenagers and one very spoiled rescue cat named Penny. She longs
to visit the places she writes about and jokes she’s a cowgirl at
heart stuck in Pennsylvania suburbia.
She
also writes paranormal romantic suspense under the pen name of Cera
duBois.
Author
Links
Website:
http://www.sarawalterellwood.com
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ReplyDeleteExcellent review. Congratulations, Sara!
ReplyDeleteNice Review. So this is what you do while your book hangs with me. Here I thought you'd be sleeping. (Books often keep us up.)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful cover and great excerpt.
ReplyDelete