SAFEGUARD BY STEPHANIE ROSE
Release Date: September 2, 2021
Amazon: https://geni.us/AmazonSafeguard
Audio → https://geni.us/AudibleSafeguard
Add to Goodreads → http://bit.ly/3oEp7rw
Series Page → https://hearteyespress.com/wotn#/speakeasy-taproom/
Cover Design: Elle Maxwell Designs
About the Book
The worst kind of heartache is the kind you can’t walk away from.
Jilted. Living in a glorified closet. The world’s worst bar waitress. I just need to keep a roof over my head and make tuition payments until I can finish graduate school. Then my real life will start. But right now, long nights at the Speakeasy have me burning the candle at both ends and the wax melting all over my fingers.
When a bar manager offers me a job taking care of his adorable five-year-old daughter, it seems like the perfect solution. I get a quiet place to study. Matteo gets a reliable sitter.
There should be no complications. Except that I like my new boss a little too much. His gorgeous dark eyes humble me, and the long talks we share fill me up inside. I can’t possibly fall for him.
But the undeniable pull between us leads to a scorching kiss I can’t ignore or forget, and suddenly I’ve fallen for them both, father and daughter.
And now three hearts are at stake.
Excerpt
Release Date: September 2, 2021
Amazon: https://geni.us/AmazonSafeguard
Audio → https://geni.us/AudibleSafeguard
Add to Goodreads → http://bit.ly/3oEp7rw
Series Page → https://hearteyespress.com/wotn#/speakeasy-taproom/
Cover Design: Elle Maxwell Designs
About the Book
The worst kind of heartache is the kind you can’t walk away from.
Jilted. Living in a glorified closet. The world’s worst bar waitress. I just need to keep a roof over my head and make tuition payments until I can finish graduate school. Then my real life will start. But right now, long nights at the Speakeasy have me burning the candle at both ends and the wax melting all over my fingers.
When a bar manager offers me a job taking care of his adorable five-year-old daughter, it seems like the perfect solution. I get a quiet place to study. Matteo gets a reliable sitter.
There should be no complications. Except that I like my new boss a little too much. His gorgeous dark eyes humble me, and the long talks we share fill me up inside. I can’t possibly fall for him.
But the undeniable pull between us leads to a scorching kiss I can’t ignore or forget, and suddenly I’ve fallen for them both, father and daughter.
And now three hearts are at stake.
Excerpt
“This was great. Thank you for dinner and for ice cream.” Melanie’s mouth stretched into a tight smile as she reached for her bag.
“You don’t have to go. Stay. I’ll switch the movie to something we both haven’t seen a hundred times.”
“Yes, I do.” Her arms dropped to her sides. “If I stay—” she trailed off when I framed her face.
“If you stay, what are you afraid of?” I ran my thumbs back and forth over her cheekbones. Her full bottom lip quivered as she took in a shaky breath.
“Everything.” She clenched her eyes shut and grabbed my wrists.
“This is probably a bad idea,” I confessed, so close to her lips I could almost taste her.
“The worst,” she agreed with a breathless whisper.
I wasn’t sure who went in first, but before I knew it, my mouth was slanted over hers. I ran my tongue along the seam of her lips, pushing inside her mouth when it opened on a whimper. She looped her arms around my neck, my body shaking against hers as I forced myself to go slow. She felt too good, tasted too good. With Melanie in my arms, all of my control and reason evaporated.
She broke the kiss, both of us panting as I kept my hands on her waist. I studied her face for a reaction. I wanted her so much that my vision was hazy, but I was letting her take the lead.
Melanie pressed her hands against my chest, drifting them down my torso until she hooked her fingers into the belt loops at my waist.
“What do you want, Melanie? Tell me.”
She straightened, flicking her eyes to mine before grabbing the back of my head and pulling me in for a sloppy, mindless kiss. I kept my lips on hers as I backed her against the wall, dragging my lips down her neck and running my tongue along her throat. I sifted my fingers into her hair, weaving them around a fistful to tilt her head back.
“Look at me,” I whispered.
She met my gaze with hooded eyes and swollen lips, and she never looked more beautiful.
“What I want is you, and I’m sick of denying it.”
“You don’t have to go. Stay. I’ll switch the movie to something we both haven’t seen a hundred times.”
“Yes, I do.” Her arms dropped to her sides. “If I stay—” she trailed off when I framed her face.
“If you stay, what are you afraid of?” I ran my thumbs back and forth over her cheekbones. Her full bottom lip quivered as she took in a shaky breath.
“Everything.” She clenched her eyes shut and grabbed my wrists.
“This is probably a bad idea,” I confessed, so close to her lips I could almost taste her.
“The worst,” she agreed with a breathless whisper.
I wasn’t sure who went in first, but before I knew it, my mouth was slanted over hers. I ran my tongue along the seam of her lips, pushing inside her mouth when it opened on a whimper. She looped her arms around my neck, my body shaking against hers as I forced myself to go slow. She felt too good, tasted too good. With Melanie in my arms, all of my control and reason evaporated.
She broke the kiss, both of us panting as I kept my hands on her waist. I studied her face for a reaction. I wanted her so much that my vision was hazy, but I was letting her take the lead.
Melanie pressed her hands against my chest, drifting them down my torso until she hooked her fingers into the belt loops at my waist.
“What do you want, Melanie? Tell me.”
She straightened, flicking her eyes to mine before grabbing the back of my head and pulling me in for a sloppy, mindless kiss. I kept my lips on hers as I backed her against the wall, dragging my lips down her neck and running my tongue along her throat. I sifted my fingers into her hair, weaving them around a fistful to tilt her head back.
“Look at me,” I whispered.
She met my gaze with hooded eyes and swollen lips, and she never looked more beautiful.
“What I want is you, and I’m sick of denying it.”
MY REVIEW
Melanie really needs a job to help her get through school when she meets a gorgeous man (her new boss) and his adorable daughter, Lauren. It soon becomes clear she's not really fit for the job of waitress, but she is more than fit for the job of nanny to Lauren. There's an obvious attraction between them, but more importantly, a connection is forged. For the first time in a long time, Matteo's letting a woman into his life and heart. But what will Melanie (and Matteo) do when his past comes back to haunt him, the past he hasn't really dealt with?
I loved Safeguard. It's low on drama, and high on heart. Matteo is so sweet, such a devoted dad, which that alone made him downright swoony. Melanie is equally sweet, and perfect for Matteo and Lauren, who is the big scene stealer, stole the whole show actually. Their emotional and physical connections are intense, and I couldn't help but fall in love with M & M and their most adorable little girl.
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