Our marriage was only supposed to be a business transaction…
Until I went and fell for my wife.
Their marriage was nothing more than a business transaction.
Or at least that was what they told themselves.
Poppy Weston had been burned enough times by undeserving men
to know her heart was best left under lock and key. She was content with her
life, even with the lack of romance. Then Jase Hyland walked into Redbud Inn
and offered her something she couldn’t refuse. In return, all she had to do was
marry him.
Jase had seen firsthand the kind of damage relationships
caused, and he wanted nothing to do with it. He’d been taught from a young age
that the only things that should matter to a man were wealth and power.
However, all it took was a series of events to lead him down a path he never
expected to travel.
It was supposed to be simple. No feelings, no emotions, just
two friends entering into a mutually beneficial arrangement.
He thought he had it all figured out . . . until he went and
fell for his wife.
**The Redemption series is a series of interconnected,
standalone, small town romances.**
Johnaka's Review
“Marriage of convenience, 4 stars”
When Jase is given an ultimatum to get married or give up his position at his family’s company, he does what any logical guy would do. He turns to one of his sister’s best friends and asks her to marry him. He’s trusted Poppy since he met her. What he didn’t expect was to fall in love with her. But with danger lurking, can he put Poppy in harm’s way in the hopes of a happily ever after?
I enjoyed Poppy and Jase. Poppy may come off a little shy, but the girl is full of fire, and I love it. Jase is tightly bound and needs someone to remind him that there are kind people in the world. I love the Redemption world and I honestly think you will too. Add in the fact we get to see other Redemption residents, and I was sold. Oh, can’t forget that Prince gave us the perfect lead in for the next book and now I’m impatiently waiting. One thing is for sure, I think you will enjoy Crazy Beautiful.
Plot- 4/5 Characters-4/5 Heat-4/5 Writing style-4/5 Overall-4/5
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Quiet rained down on the dimly lit back porch, oppressive
and thick with the tension I’d unwittingly walked into.
I’d never done well with awkward silences. I had the nasty
habit of rambling in an effort to fill the void any time I found myself in that
situation. That compulsion came over me then, spurred on even more by the fact
that any time I was in Jase Hyland’s orbit, I turned into a flustered, bumbling
disaster.
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t lurking, I swear. I honestly didn’t
know you guys were out here. Then when I did, I wasn’t sure what to do. I kind
of froze.”
The sigh he released before bringing the tumbler in his
hands to his full, pouty lips and sucking back some of the amber liquid inside
sounded like it carried the weight of the world.
“It’s all right, sweetheart. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
I began to fidget in place, shifting from foot to foot and
wringing my fingers together in front of me as the full force of his attention
hit me like a wrecking ball.
My heart was at risk of doing a Kool-Aid Man impersonation
and busting through my chest at any second.
Even with half of his features still shrouded in darkness, I
knew exactly what he looked like. I’d spent enough time watching him during his
visits to see his sister that I’d managed to memorize every sinful inch of him.
And yes, I realized that made me sound like a psycho creeper. But I couldn’t
help myself.
His well-trimmed brown hair had just enough product in it to
keep it from flopping over his forehead but wasn’t overly styled. By this time
of night, there was bound to be a five-o’clock shadow dusted across a strong,
square jawline. The bridge of his nose had a tiny bump, making it slightly
imperfect, but still attractive on such a handsome face, and his sharp
cheekbones made him look almost regal. He was like a slightly scruffed-up Chris
Evans. In other words, gorgeous.
He wasn’t like any of the men I’d grown up around. Redemption,
Tennessee had its fair share of attractive guys, believe me. But this man was
different. Where the men in my town lived in T-shirts, jeans, and flannel, Jase
was well-groomed, usually in slacks and a button-down.
From my vantage point, I could see that his shirt was opened
casually at the collar, and the cuffs of his sleeves had been rolled up to
expose solid, veined forearms. Arm porn at its finest. The shirt was fine
quality, tailored to fit his broad shoulders and thick biceps perfectly.
As usual, his look screamed money, but not in a flashy way
that said he was trying to show off. It was how he carried himself. His calm,
cool confidence gave off that impression.
God, he’s gorgeous, I thought, as I continued staring,
unable to pull my attention away from his perfect, masculine features. I’d
never been so thankful for dim lighting. It was the only thing hiding the
insane blush that burned through my cheeks and chest—just one of the curses of
being a redhead. “I’ll just, uh . . .” I trailed off pathetically, hooking my
thumb over my shoulder and taking a step back.
“No, stay.”
Two little words from his gorgeous mouth, and I felt the
need to fan myself. Clenching my fists to keep from doing that, I took hesitant
steps in his direction, bracing my hands on the railing around the porch once I
finally reached his side.
I didn’t have the first clue what he and Bennett had been
arguing about, but I couldn’t stand to see the blank, stoic look on a face that
was normally so happy. I arched a playful brow and stated, “You look like
you’re about two seconds away from making a run for it.”
His head twisted toward me, one corner of his mouth kicking
up in a smirk that made my belly flutter like a million hummingbirds had taken
flight. Those golden-brown eyes, lined with long, dark lashes, danced with
humor in the pale glow of the porch light. “You wouldn’t be too far off the
mark, Flower.”
My heart did an Olympic gymnast-style flip at the name he’d
christened me with on his very first visit to Redemption. Said in that husky
voice of his, I nearly melted into a puddle of goo right then and there.
I twisted to face him full on and sucked in a dramatic gasp.
“And risk the wrath of Farah? She’d murder you so dead.”
His smile was still there, but for the first time that night,
I noticed just how tired he looked. There were faint purple smudges beneath his
eyes. The scruff on his jaw was longer than I’d expected it to be, his hair
unrulier.
Don’t get me wrong, he was still hotter than a damn forest
fire, but it was evident in the lines on his sexy face that something was
weighing on him.
“Hey,” I started, lowering my voice. “You all right?”
He downed more of his drink, bourbon, judging by the smell
of it, and used that time to school his features and paste a carefree
expression on before responding. “I’m good, Pop.”
With how often Jase had come to town to visit Bennett and
his sister, staying at the inn most of those times, I’d gotten to know him well
enough to consider us casual friends. More than acquaintances, but not besties
by any stretch of the imagination. Still, I cared that something was plaguing
him.
“You know, it’s none of my business if you don’t want to
talk, and I’m certainly not gonna push, but if you ever need someone to listen,
Jase, I’m never more than a phone call away.”
His glass came down on the iron banister with a clank. The
intensity in his gaze as he stared down at me—like he was seeing something deep
inside me at that very moment, something I didn’t understand— stole my breath
and caused my lungs to deflate.
“You’re something else, Poppy. You know that?”
My blush grew so furious I thought I might actually catch
fire at any second. “I’m just me,” I said quietly, looking up at him through
the fan of my lashes. “Nothing special.”
His voice took on an even huskier timbre as he said, “That’s
where you’re wrong, Flower. So very wrong.”
With that, he downed the last of his bourbon, placed the
glass on the railing, and shocked the hell out of me by leaning down and
placing a kiss on my forehead. “And I’ll keep your offer in mind.” Then he
turned and headed back into the house, leaving me reeling.
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Born and raised around Houston Texas, Jessica spent most of
her life complaining about the heat, humidity, and all around pain in the ass
weather. It was only as an adult that she quickly realized the cost of living
in Houston made up for not being able to breathe when she stepped outside.
That’s why God created central air, after all.
Jessica is the mother of a perfect little boy–she refuses to
accept that he inherited her attitude and sarcastic nature no matter what her
husband says.
In addition to being a wife and mom, she’s also a wino, a
coffee addict, and an avid lover of all types of books–romances still being her
all time favs. Her husband likes to claim that reading is her obsession but she
just says it’s a passion…there’s a difference. Not that she’d expect a boy to
understand.
Jessica has been writing since she was a little girl, but
thankfully grew out of drawing her own pictures for her stories before ever
publishing her first book. Because an artist she is not.
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