Title: Talon
Series: Ashes & Embers #4
Author: Carian Cole
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: November 24, 2015
Blurb
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER:
Caring. Hard-working. A devoted family man, loves kids.
Clean cut, funny, smart, quiet, but a good communicator.
~ Asia Jenson
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER:
Independent. Tall, blonde, sexy. Outgoing. Intelligent,
neat. Unslutty. Confident. Loves to travel. Committed.
~ Talon Valentine
A SOCIAL EXPERIMENT.
The concept was scary but exciting...
Marry a total stranger.
Live together for six months.
Journal everything. (Feelings. Fights. All of it.)
After six months, we each get $50K in trade for our journals, whether we stay married or not. But the goal is to commit to the experience and see if the relationship experts could put together the perfect matches.
I have never been lucky in love. This was my chance to find my soulmate.
I couldn’t wait to meet the man the experts felt was perfect for me.
My hopes were immediately dashed when I saw him at the altar.
Shit. I married my worst nightmare.
Right?!
Purchase Links
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1Icw8o5
Excerpt
At first she doesn't even know I'm there, and I have the pleasure of seeing her lying back, her eyes closed, one leg bent up and peeking out from the bubbles. And damn those fucking bubbles, they're covering everything else.
The universe is doing everything it can to prevent me from seeing my wife naked. I would laugh at that fact if it didn't bug me so damn much. I'm pretty sure karma is slapping me in the face for insulting her so many times, and karma is a bitch who has no fucks to give about my blue balls.
Her eyes suddenly snap open and she jumps when she sees me, water splashing around her.
"Tally, you scared the shit out of me. Why are you creeping around?" She crosses her arms over her chest and a few bubbles float up in the air. I love that my childhood nickname just slipped out of her mouth without her even realizing it. It sounded so intimate on her lips that I want to hear her say it again and again.
"I wasn't creeping; I just walked in. Should I wear a bell around my neck like the Princess?" I lean against the doorframe and gaze at her in the candlelight, her skin dewy from the moist heat, and I can't understand why she doesn't want me in that tub with her.
"What are you doing in here?"
I cross the room and kneel down next to the tub, taking in the way her eyes shift to my naked chest.
"I wanted to see your bath bomb in action." My eyes travel languidly down the length of her in the tub and catch glimpses of pink water under the bubbles.
"This one is actually a bubble bomb. See the bubbles?" She lifts her hand and blows the bubbles up over my head.
I grab her hand and bring it to my lips. "I see that. Pink water, too. Very pretty." I close my eyes as I kiss her hand, tasting the sweet water on her. "What flavor are you tonight? It's yummy."
She swallows and I can feel her hand trembling ever so slightly in mine. "It's cotton candy."
I nod my approval. "I like it. A lot."
She shifts in the water, lowering the leg that was up and raising the other, giving me a quick glimpse of her thigh as she does so.
"Do you think about me when you're in here?" I ask her, releasing her hand so I can dip my fingers into the warm water.
"I think about you all the time."
My heart does a funny lurch I'm pretty sure it ain't never done before. "Well, that's just about the best thing I've ever heard."
I let my hand slide farther into the water until it's gliding over her outer thigh under the bubbles. "The water feels slippery," I comment. "So does your skin."
"It's from the oils."
Stretching my other arm out along the edge of the tub, I lean toward her face. "I like how it feels. I should be in there with you, all slippery and wet."
"You're too big," she murmurs, locking her eyes on to mine.
Laughing, I kiss her vanilla flavored lips. "I'm gonna ignore that big comment, baby."
She smiles against my mouth. "You're so bad."
"I know… So, I'm going to have to do this the hard way, then. Since I can't get in there." I slide my hand farther down her leg, over her knee to her calf, squeezing gently.
"Do what?"
"Give you your first orgasm."
A small gasp of surprise comes out of her, and a seductive little grin graces her lips. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I've had orgasms before."
"Not from me." I rub my nose along hers, feeling her breath against my face. "And that's gonna change right now, Mrs. Valentine."
I cup the back of her head with one hand and press my mouth to hers, licking her lips while slowly dragging my other hand up the inside of her leg beneath the water to finally brush my fingers gently across her lower lips. I silently curse the water for not letting me feel her wetness.
Her mouth opens to mine and I delve my tongue inside, tasting the heat of her breath and catching the sweet moan she lets out when I push my finger into her warmth. Her thighs part and her hand comes up out of the water to caress my cheek as I let my hand own her, my thumb rubbing her pulsing clit while I slip my fingers in and out of her. My cock throbs like mad in my shorts, begging to get into her. Holy fuck, is she tight. Three years of no sex is very, very good.
Her thighs squeeze my hand and she grasps the side of my neck, her breath panting against my mouth, and I know she's there already. I really want to drag this out, tease her and make her crazy, but that seems cruel right now when she's writhing her hot little core all over my hand and devouring my lips. I like little horny Asia. A lot.
I want to pull her out of the tub and take her right here on the floor and put an end to this madness, but I'm hell-bent on sticking to my promise to her, even if my dick hates me.
Her walls clench and drench around my swirling fingers up inside her, while the rest of her body arches up, pressing against me, her muscles tightening and quivering. I kiss her softly as she recovers from the first of many sexual escapades I have planned for her now that the doors have been opened, so to speak.
"Who's my girl?" I whisper against her ear, moving my hand up to caress her stomach.
"Me," she answers breathlessly
"That's right."
The universe is doing everything it can to prevent me from seeing my wife naked. I would laugh at that fact if it didn't bug me so damn much. I'm pretty sure karma is slapping me in the face for insulting her so many times, and karma is a bitch who has no fucks to give about my blue balls.
Her eyes suddenly snap open and she jumps when she sees me, water splashing around her.
"Tally, you scared the shit out of me. Why are you creeping around?" She crosses her arms over her chest and a few bubbles float up in the air. I love that my childhood nickname just slipped out of her mouth without her even realizing it. It sounded so intimate on her lips that I want to hear her say it again and again.
"I wasn't creeping; I just walked in. Should I wear a bell around my neck like the Princess?" I lean against the doorframe and gaze at her in the candlelight, her skin dewy from the moist heat, and I can't understand why she doesn't want me in that tub with her.
"What are you doing in here?"
I cross the room and kneel down next to the tub, taking in the way her eyes shift to my naked chest.
"I wanted to see your bath bomb in action." My eyes travel languidly down the length of her in the tub and catch glimpses of pink water under the bubbles.
"This one is actually a bubble bomb. See the bubbles?" She lifts her hand and blows the bubbles up over my head.
I grab her hand and bring it to my lips. "I see that. Pink water, too. Very pretty." I close my eyes as I kiss her hand, tasting the sweet water on her. "What flavor are you tonight? It's yummy."
She swallows and I can feel her hand trembling ever so slightly in mine. "It's cotton candy."
I nod my approval. "I like it. A lot."
She shifts in the water, lowering the leg that was up and raising the other, giving me a quick glimpse of her thigh as she does so.
"Do you think about me when you're in here?" I ask her, releasing her hand so I can dip my fingers into the warm water.
"I think about you all the time."
My heart does a funny lurch I'm pretty sure it ain't never done before. "Well, that's just about the best thing I've ever heard."
I let my hand slide farther into the water until it's gliding over her outer thigh under the bubbles. "The water feels slippery," I comment. "So does your skin."
"It's from the oils."
Stretching my other arm out along the edge of the tub, I lean toward her face. "I like how it feels. I should be in there with you, all slippery and wet."
"You're too big," she murmurs, locking her eyes on to mine.
Laughing, I kiss her vanilla flavored lips. "I'm gonna ignore that big comment, baby."
She smiles against my mouth. "You're so bad."
"I know… So, I'm going to have to do this the hard way, then. Since I can't get in there." I slide my hand farther down her leg, over her knee to her calf, squeezing gently.
"Do what?"
"Give you your first orgasm."
A small gasp of surprise comes out of her, and a seductive little grin graces her lips. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I've had orgasms before."
"Not from me." I rub my nose along hers, feeling her breath against my face. "And that's gonna change right now, Mrs. Valentine."
I cup the back of her head with one hand and press my mouth to hers, licking her lips while slowly dragging my other hand up the inside of her leg beneath the water to finally brush my fingers gently across her lower lips. I silently curse the water for not letting me feel her wetness.
Her mouth opens to mine and I delve my tongue inside, tasting the heat of her breath and catching the sweet moan she lets out when I push my finger into her warmth. Her thighs part and her hand comes up out of the water to caress my cheek as I let my hand own her, my thumb rubbing her pulsing clit while I slip my fingers in and out of her. My cock throbs like mad in my shorts, begging to get into her. Holy fuck, is she tight. Three years of no sex is very, very good.
Her thighs squeeze my hand and she grasps the side of my neck, her breath panting against my mouth, and I know she's there already. I really want to drag this out, tease her and make her crazy, but that seems cruel right now when she's writhing her hot little core all over my hand and devouring my lips. I like little horny Asia. A lot.
I want to pull her out of the tub and take her right here on the floor and put an end to this madness, but I'm hell-bent on sticking to my promise to her, even if my dick hates me.
Her walls clench and drench around my swirling fingers up inside her, while the rest of her body arches up, pressing against me, her muscles tightening and quivering. I kiss her softly as she recovers from the first of many sexual escapades I have planned for her now that the doors have been opened, so to speak.
"Who's my girl?" I whisper against her ear, moving my hand up to caress her stomach.
"Me," she answers breathlessly
"That's right."
My girl. The last thing I thought I would ever want, and now, all I could ever want.
REVIEW
5 solid stars for book four in the Ashes & Embers series which features guitarist Talon Valentine. Talon decides after years of the random hook-ups and being used for his legendary man parts he is done with all the groupies/fan-girls. He signs himself up for a social experiment that will have him marrying a literal stranger for six months and journaling his experience. There is a team of ultra professional psychologists and matchmakers that have done extensive research and analysis about his preferences so Talon really isn't worried about them getting his perfect match wrong.
Asia Jenson has been dealt a crappy hand at life and abandoned more times than she can count. Regardless of how many times she has been knocked down this beautifully fierce and charismatic woman stands back up again to fight. Deciding enough of dating all the Mr. Wrongs she too signs up for the social experiment and can't understand how a team full of highly educated people would match her with a man who is the exact opposite to who/what she would want in every way. Maybe the paperwork is wrong? How could this man possibly be my match?
Talon Valentine wants a tall blonde with large breasts and he explains his new wife as a flat chested dwarf. The man doesn't have a smooth, sweet-talking bone in his body yet he is endearing in a odd way. So many contradictions in this rocker that claims he couldn't care less but does all the little things to make people feel special too. Asia was not the person he would choose as his perfect match but in so many ways she is quickly becoming one of the most important people in his life. Talon and Asia both are faced with things that even the strongest couples have trouble overcoming let alone two strangers thrown together for a social experiment.
Loved this edition to the series and it was by far my favorite yet!!! Can't wait to see what we get to read next from this very talented author and her family of hard rocking hotties :)
~ REVIEWED BY JILL ~
Also Available
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AMAZON US / UK
JILL'S REVIEW OF STORM
4 stars for book one in the Ashes & Embers series that features the band's lead guitarist Storm Valentine being in the right place at the right time to find the woman that will change his life forever. Evelyn is driving to a weekend conference for work relying heavily on a GPS unit to get her to a remote lodge during the middle of a blizzard when her car spins out of control into a ditch. Evelyn fears the worst when a very tall almost savage looking man knocks on her window claiming he wants to help her.
Evelyn is a complacent person in all that she does. There are no risks with her long-term boyfriend Michael therefore she stayed in a boring relationship for the last twelve years because she is comfortable. Evelyn works for a marketing company under a man she can't stand but it is a paycheck hence she doesn't branch out and find a job she loves. The condo she lives in is old and dated but she lets Michael assume responsibility for the finances all while she continues to bide her time hoping one day he will say they can move. Everything in her world was fine, why would she ever want more? Spending forty eight hours in a blizzard trapped in very close quarters with Storm Valentine causes Evie to question everything in her life and what exactly she wants may seemed to have changed.
Storm Valentine is the lead guitarist for his brother Asher's band but he also repairs motorcycles as much as he can. Needing to get away from it all Storm ventures out to his cabin but not before he is driving behind Evie during this crazy blizzard. While on the road to his cabin and just about a mile before he gets to his house the car in front of him goes into a spin. Storm can't believe that after he goes to help her from the crash she decides that she would rather wait it out on her own instead of going with him...does she have no idea who he is? After much convincing she finally comes with me and then out of no where a deer darts across the road and sends me...Storm Valentine into a crazy spin before we crash into the forest disabling the truck completely. Now I'm trapped in a truck until the snow stops with this uptight tart that isn't just afraid of me but my dog too. Thank god she is hot because that is the only thing making this situation any better right now.
This was a good start to a series for me and showed promise of whats to come. Evelyn is probably one of the most uptight heroines I have ever read about to date. While she means well in most things she comes across as sheltered and naive in almost every situation she is in. While Evie has good reasons to feel the way she does it left me frustrated with all the back and forth that was more than half of the book. The introduction of the other family members and band members gives a lot to look forward to in this series.
JILL'S REVIEW OF VANDAL
4.5 for book two in the Ashes & Embers series that features bass player Vandal Valentine. This story was an emotional roller coaster that contains triggers and bdsm but it was done beautifully. Heartache and loss lead to the utter devastation of both Vandal and the woman he ultimately falls in love with but how will he ever be able to tell her the truth about what exactly happened.
Tabitha is newly widowed after someone crashed into the car her husband was driving - killing him instantly and wounding her. The despair that she feels is bringing the once bright and bubbly woman to a place so dark that she doesn't even recognize the person she has become. Not a day goes by where Tabitha doesn't consider taking her own life since it would be easier not having to deal with the pain of her loss. While visiting her husband's grave she accepts the offer of a stranger and hopes maybe something he can give her will allow her to feel an emotion besides pain.
Vandal Valentine has hit rock bottom since his five year old daughter died. Katie was the only light in the otherwise miserable Vandal's life and now that she is gone he is determined to take enough pills and drink enough booze to never wake up again. The degree to which Vandal suffers is heartbreaking but he has been tossed away, beaten and/or maimed by everyone and everything since the day he was born. Such a strong man with a fragile soul that needs to learn there are others who love him regardless of who he is and what he has done hopefully before it is too late.
This story was so emotionally charged it cut you open, sewed you up and then repeated the process. Vandal and Tabitha are NOT conventional but they are definitely the picture of all consuming love and forgiveness. Absolutely loved this edition to the series and can't wait for the next with Lukas being the featured family member.
AMAZON US / UK
JILL'S REVIEW OF LUKAS
4.5 for book three in the Ashes & Embers series featuring the sometimes violinist Lukas Valentine. Twenty-four years old is relatively young to want to settle down and find "the one" but Lukas is tired of messing around with women just to find out after the fact that they have dated his brother or one of his cousins. All Lukas wants is to run the tattoo shop he co-owns with Vandal and find the love of a good woman. When a beautiful woman comes in for a first time tattoo and the chemistry is potent Lukas is actually throwing his "don't date the customers" rule out the window for a chance at finding happiness.
Ivy is a thirty-six year old mother of two that is recently separated pending divorce after eighteen years of marriage. Ivy never in a million years thought her husband would cheat on her let alone with a younger more beautiful woman than her. Now that she is single after so many years Ivy decides that she wants a tattoo and when she gets to the shop and meets the artist she is shocked by the instant attraction she feels to a man that is so much younger than her. Ivy feels she can't compete with girls his age so she turns down all his advances but he just won't give up until finally she decides what the heck and goes out to dinner with him...this won't go anywhere, right?
Lukas is tired of the revolving door of women and can't stand that Vandal has been "there first" so in his opinion why even bother dating. The rut he has been in with women seems to take a turn when his appointment shows up and Ivy is absolutely beautiful. Other women need make-up and clothes to make themselves presentable but Ivy needs nothing and she is so appealing it makes no sense. Lukas has never pursued someone so much older than him but he can't ignore the intense connection he feels when he is within a five foot radius of this beautiful woman. Finally after near constant begging she relents and agrees to a date which turns into the stuff that dreams are made of.
Another awesome addition to a strong series that hit on topics that you don't visit everyday. Talon is next and I have to be honest I really am wanting Asher's story too!
Author Bio
I have a passion for the bad boys, those covered in tattoos, sexy smirks, ripped jeans, fast cars, motorcycles and of course, the sweet girls that try to tame them and win their hearts. My debut series, Ashes & Embers, follows the lives of rock band members as they find, and sometimes lose, the loves of their lives.
Born and raised a Jersey girl, I now reside in beautiful New Hampshire with my husband and our multitude of furry pets and spend most of my time writing, reading, and vacuuming.
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