Jackson's
Trust
Fourth Down #1
Fourth Down #1
By: Violet Duke
Releasing
March 8th, 2016
Loveswept
Loveswept
Blurb
New
York Times bestselling
author Violet Duke kicks off her fun and sexy new Fourth Down series with a
heartwarming friends-to-lovers romance between a no-strings-attached sports
analyst and the hottest damn tomboy he’s ever met.
It’s no secret that sports analyst Jackson Gray doesn’t do relationships. What is a secret, however, is the reason why. Jackson’s life is . . . complicated. And it doesn’t help that his current hands-off “friendship” is with the cute-as-hell new sideline reporter he’s assigned to train. Turns out, not only is the woman damn sweet, she also knows as much about football as he does. Like it or not though, Jackson has to remind himself that sex is the only thing he has to offer . . . until now.
Leila Hart’s fast-growing friendship with Jackson is something she’d never risk, no matter how unbelievably seductive the reward. Becoming an NFL sportscaster has always been the goal, and thanks to Jackson’s fierce support and mentoring, it all finally seems within reach. Problem is, a girl can only take so much of that sexy-as-sin voice whispering dirty, filthy football stats in her ear before she loses all self-control. A workplace romance with Jackson is a disaster waiting to happen, especially for someone with big dreams . . . and secrets of her own.
It’s no secret that sports analyst Jackson Gray doesn’t do relationships. What is a secret, however, is the reason why. Jackson’s life is . . . complicated. And it doesn’t help that his current hands-off “friendship” is with the cute-as-hell new sideline reporter he’s assigned to train. Turns out, not only is the woman damn sweet, she also knows as much about football as he does. Like it or not though, Jackson has to remind himself that sex is the only thing he has to offer . . . until now.
Leila Hart’s fast-growing friendship with Jackson is something she’d never risk, no matter how unbelievably seductive the reward. Becoming an NFL sportscaster has always been the goal, and thanks to Jackson’s fierce support and mentoring, it all finally seems within reach. Problem is, a girl can only take so much of that sexy-as-sin voice whispering dirty, filthy football stats in her ear before she loses all self-control. A workplace romance with Jackson is a disaster waiting to happen, especially for someone with big dreams . . . and secrets of her own.
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Links:
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Advance praise for Jackson’s Trust
"Violet
Duke's writing jumps off the page and grabs you from the first sentence!" -- New York Times bestselling author BELLA ANDRE, #1 bestselling author of
The Sullivans series
"Hot,
sweet, and filled with tender moments, Violet Duke writes heroes that make me
swoon!" – New York Times bestselling author KENDALL
RYAN
"A
delightfully fresh read...Violet Duke delivers it all!" -- New York Times bestselling author JEN
MCLAUGHLIN
“Emotional,
heart-wrenching, and oh-so-sweet...Violet Duke has me hooked.” -- New York Times bestselling author L.P.
DOVER
"Well-written
kindred souls...Jackson and Leila are a couple you don’t want to miss! --New
York Times bestselling author HEIDI MCLAUGHLIN
“I
love this hotter side of Violet Duke…still sweet & emotional, but with a
bit of extra sizzle.Jackson’s Trust is a must-read.” -- New
York Times bestselling author Sawyer Bennett
“My life
is . . . complicated.” Jackson broke his gaze away from her. “A relationship
would be doomed to fail from the start.”
He
sounded genuinely disappointed. Almost wistful. The way her grandmother had
sounded years ago when her doctors told her she had to change her diet to cut
out sweets, her favorite thing ever.
His eyes
found hers again. “Funny thing is that I used to be one of those guys who
figured he’d have a kid or two by now. Cute hell raisers who’d help me spoil
their mom on Sunday mornings, that sort of thing.” Doting affection filtered
into his tone. “And vice versa. A partner in crime who’d help me plan surprises
for the kids that would be so stinkin’ adorable that I’d max out the memory on
my phone taking photo after photo.”
Good
grief, she was pretty sure one of her ovaries just fainted.
Leila had
the sneaking suspicion that she was going to fall for this man. Hard. “So
because of your secretly complicated life, you only date women who want . . .”
“Sex.”
His eyes stayed glued to hers as he dropped the one word like a bomb. “Just
sex. At their place, not mine.
Occasionally, with lunch or dinner as well, but never breakfast.”
Wow. That was the very definition of just sex, alright.
“That
honest enough for you?”
Yep. That
worked. Did it settle her curiosity at the moment? Unquestionably. Did it get
her to want to widen the number of spaces between them on the game board?
Not so
much.
She
watched him watch her reaction to his answer, and gave him the smile she knew
he wasn’t expecting. Along with the follow-up she knew he really wasn’t expecting. “So you flirting with me earlier was you
picking up on some sex-only, no-breakfast-in-bed vibe I have going on?” she
teased.
“That’s a pretty powerfully accurate gift you got there, Skippy.”
“That’s a pretty powerfully accurate gift you got there, Skippy.”
Aaand
they were back to standing on the same square on the game board.
“Sunshine,
why do I get the feeling you don’t really have a boyfriend?”
* * * * *
Jackson
found his palms flat against the wall on either side of her shoulders before he
could stop himself. And yet he did nothing to remedy what was surely a bad
decision on his part, work-wise. Instead, he just watched her, and waited for
an answer.
Leila’s
gaze pulled away from his a moment later, and dropped down to his tie. While
her teeth sank into that lush lower lip he’d been fascinated with since
yesterday, she reached out her free hand to straighten and smooth out his tie.
Oddly,
the unbidden action was a penetrating fist to his chest. He hadn’t been lying
about having had more than a few passing thoughts of a wife and kids to spoil. And
this tie-straightening? It belonged right there in the vault with all the other
untouchable daydreams for his life.
When her
lips parted then, instead of an answer, he got another question. “Why do you
insist on calling me sunshine?”
“You
don’t like it?”
“I’d
rather you call me by my name.”
Exhaling
slowly, he admitted, “Me too. Which is why I’m sticking to sunshine.”
Eyes
still glued to his tie, she resumed her distracting lip biting, looking as
reflective as she did amused. “So does that mean I shouldn’t call you Jackson?”
Holy
shit, he liked the
sound of his name on her lips. Too damn much. “Call me Jackson.” It wasn’t a
reply to her inquiry. It wasn’t even a request. It had edged over to a demand…
"The woman was positively the most interesting person he'd come across in a long while, and definitely the sexiest one he'd ever had working under him."
Oh my!
Just when I thought I couldn't love Violet Duke more, she goes and writes another perfect romance book! This time it includes football. Be still me heart!
Jackson Gray and Leila Hart are two peas in a NFL loving pod. Right from the start you can tell this story would be interesting because they both were so similar in so many ways, and yet they complemented each other in their differences.
"Why do you insist on calling me Sunshine?"
"You don't like it?"
"I'd rather you call me by my name."
"Me too. Which is why I'm sticking to Sunshine."
I'm going to be honest...Every time he called her Sunshine, I could hear him saying it. Is that weird?! Like I could hear his sexy voice in my ears, making me swoon all over. Darn him! ;)
This story had many layers to it, as well. It wasn't just about unexpected love or lust. There were two individuals that wanted much more for their lives. They wanted to make names of themselves without the pain of their pasts (or families) getting in the way.
In true Violet Duke form, she has this way of weaving a story to compliment each character and highlight pivotal parts that keep the story flowing effortlessly. It was pefection in my book!
*See what I did there;)
"Sunshine, you make me want things I shouldn't hope for, shouldn't even imagine I can keep."
"Like what?"
"You."
I honestly loved every single thing about this book!
I loved that when I thought the story was going one way, in a sudden moment, it completely went the other! That's the kind of book you want to read! The one that keeps you on your toes and wanting more-wanting answers.
Jackson and Leila weren't just a whilwind romance. Their stories each had depth that intertwined into one another. Falling for each other wasn't an accident-it was meant to happen.
"You wouldn't be messing up my life, Leila. You'd be adding to it, just like you've been doing since we met...Because I trust you, Leila. Completely...You wanted my trust and control. Well, you have both. But I'm afraid it comes with a package deal with my heart. Sweetheart, tell me I have the package deal with you as well."
"My control? I have no doubt. You've been driving me crazy with lust since the day I laid eyes on you. And judging by the way I can't control my heartbeat right now, I think it's safe to say you've gone and stolen that from me as well."
Good gravy! That's some good writing right there!!
Leila and Jackson have an amazing tale to tell. And I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I did!
I honestly can not wait for the next book in this series!!! Just reading Jackson and Leila's story has me itching for more! Especially when it comes to Jackson best friends, Bennett and Donovan;)
Great job, Violet Duke!!!
"You're choosing life."
"I am. I'm choosing to believe that the new dreams worthy of that life I want to lead are out there for me to find. And that's all because of you, Jackson. You taught me how to believe big."
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Author Info
NEW YORK
TIMES & USA TODAY bestselling author Violet Duke is a
former professor of English Education ecstatic to now be on the other side of
the page writing wickedly fun contemporary romances filled with strong, unique
heroines and memorably romantic heroes. With just under a million books sold to
date, since becoming an author in 2013, Violet has appeared on the USA Today
bestseller list thirteen times and the NYT bestseller list three times, with
the additional honor of charting in the Top 10 across the major eretailers both
in the U.S. and internationally.
When she's not feeding her book-a-day reading addiction, Violet enjoys tackling
reno projects with her power tools, trying pretty much anything without reading
the directions first, and cooking impossible-to-be-duplicated 'special edition'
dishes that laugh in the face of recipes. A born and raised island girl, she
spends her days in Hawai'i chasing after her two cute kids (daughter Violet
& son Duke) and similarly adorable husband (their ringleader).
Website: http://www.violetduke.com/
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/violetdukebooks
GoodReads:
http://www.goodreads.com/violetdukebooks
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