I'm
a world famous tattoo artist with a six month waiting list. Everybody's
begging me to put my ink on them. I'm the hottest shit in L.A., and can
get any girl I want. So the last thing I expect is for Ash Carter to
walk into my shop and blow me off.
I've
spent the last seven years screwing half the women in the northern
hemisphere, but nobody could come close to the girl I left behind. Ash
was my world. But in order to protect her, I had to let her go. It was
the biggest mistake of my life. And now I'll do anything to get her
back.
It's
been seven years since we last spoke. Seven long years of trying to
ignore the memory of her skin, her eyes, her incredible confidence. She
is everything I remember. Still stubborn and feisty and sexy as hell.
They say you should forgive and forget. But Ash can never forget what I
did. And I can never forgive myself.
She's left a permanent mark on my heart.
But even if she takes me back, will we be able to overcome the past? Will we be able to move forward towards our future?
This isn't my first read from this author and it won't be my last. I'm a sucker for second chance romances so that alone sparked my interest in the blurb. Once I started reading I was definitely hooked and I enjoyed this story.
I liked Ash and Teo, I really did. I liked them individually and I really liked them together. I was rooting for them from the very start-because again, I'm a sucker for second chances. I wanted them to have that shot to make it work, to grow from their past into what they could have in the present and future. Overall, that happened for me.
The chemistry between these two is unmistakable. It pops off the pages and I was just dying for them to give in to it again. I liked the journey that these two took together and I thought it was believable.
I liked the secondary characters here. I thought they were fun but didn't overwhelm Ash and Teo at all. The secondary characters provided just the right amount of support.
I thought the writing here flowed incredibly well. The only thing is that I wish is that we figured out some things from the past sooner than we did. But that's just a personal thing. I enjoyed this story and look forward to what this author brings us next. I recommend this title.
This is an odd review to write. Was this my favorite of the titles I have read by J. D. Hawkins? No, it actually wasn't. I enjoyed it, and I liked Ash and Teo...but I never totally felt the connection to the characters that I wanted. I liked them, and I believed they felt the connection, but it never really was one that I felt.
That said, this is, from a writing standpoint, likely the best thing I have read by this author. The plotting was strong, the characters well-developed, the actual sentence structure and the mechanics of the writing were close to perfect.
Why I didn't connect totally with a well-written and well-plotted story? I thought on this. For a while actually. And, I think, for me, there was too much unknown as to the reason that Teo left, and for too long, for me to totally connect. Part of the romance, especially in a second chance romance, is the belief that the characters are able to move past, well, their past. In order for me to believe this is possible, I need to at least know that the characters know what happened and have moved beyond it. There are a lot of second chance where the characters know the details and the reader is let into them slowly, or the reader is told them through the thoughts of the characters. Those work for me, as I am able to decide on my own that I believe it is something I am able to see them getting past.
I get why Mr. Hawkins chose to wait to reveal the past until he did, and while I think it works for the story overall, it lessened my connection to the relationship.
There were some really amazing moments, Ash's thoughts upon waking up with him actually there, his defense of her when she is being treated badly, his encouragement of her to take the risks and meet the challenges she is facing head on. All of that was really good. I think, for me, I wanted it to have more foundation than it did when we reached those points in the narrative.
That said, I enjoyed this book. I liked the characters, I enjoyed the secondary characters and the glimpses into the lives that both Ash and Teo led.
I recommend this title.
“You want something to drink?” she calls from some other room.
“Sure. Something strong.”
I pace around the room a little, lust still pumping me full of adrenaline, taking in the details, stopping to study a Basquiat print above a bookcase. Flashbacks of conversations we had in her bed rushing through my mind, until she clinks some glasses behind me and I turn around.
“Here you go,” she says, handing me the glass.
I take it from her, sip slowly, but my eyes stay on hers—a living work of art even more captivating than what’s on the walls. The alcohol burns, hitting the spot, but I’m intoxicated enough by the room, by the smell, by her. She must sense it, because she breaks my gaze, eyelashes flickering away as she smiles down, but her coyness only ignites the fire building within me.
I put my drink down and throw her on the couch so I can gaze at those lush curves, trace my eyes down the length of that magnificent body.
I trace a finger around her ear, down her neck. She trembles like a leaf under my touch, skin cool with goosebumps. Her breath quickening, hot and heavy.
I climb on top of her and we devour each other’s mouths as I tug her pants off and she pulls her shirt over her head. We roll around on the couch, her hands squeezing my cock, my mouth sucking each nipple until her breath shudders, her fingers clawing down my back. I need to taste her.
I pull away, enjoying how she hisses with unresolved desire.
“Why are you stopping?” she asks, her voice tinged with desperation.
I growl, low and firm, “I’m not. I’m going to eat you.”
About the Author:
JD Hawkins writes erotic romance with modern-classic alpha males and strong, independent women. He currently lives with his wife in Los Angeles, CA. He loves to travel and has lived in many places, including New York City, India and Thailand. When he isn't writing, JD enjoys surfing, training in Mixed Martial Arts, reading and taking naps. He's always loved making up stories, especially ones inspired by real life.
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