Today we have the release week blitz for Jennifer Bernard’s The Rock! Check it out and be sure to grab your copy today!
Title: The Rock
Author: Jennifer Bernard
Genre: Contemporary Romance
About The Rock:
As the owner of Rocky Peak’s favorite bar, easygoing Jake Rockwell is everyone’s rock and best friend. But now he needs serious help from the gorgeous and fierce investigator Olivia James—and it’s going to kill him to keep things strictly professional between them.It’s been a long, hard-fought battle to go from naïve ex-trophy wife to respected private investigator, but Olivia has done it. She now offers her services only to women in need…but she’s made an exception for a friend. Which might possibly be the biggest mistake of her life, since Jake is as maddening as he is charming…and thoughtful…and insanely hot.
The closer they work together and the more Rockwell family secrets they expose, the harder it is for Olivia and Jake to resist their sizzling connection. But their burning almost-romance is about to go up in flames as they uncover the final revelation that could blow Jake’s world apart—forever.
EXCERPT:
“We’re going to need some ground rules.”
Along with that statement, Olivia James fixed him with the no-nonsense look he’d learned to expect from her. “No-nonsense” didn’t quite describe it, actually. Maybe “you’ve already taken up too much of my time so let’s get on with it” was more accurate.
Of all the private investigators in Los Angeles, why did Jake have to hire the one who was not only stunning, but completely oblivious to his charm? Women usually found him delightful and entertaining—or so he’d been told.
Maybe they should tell that to the all-business Olivia James.
“I broke my own rule by taking your case before. I did it as a favor for Lyle, but you should know that I normally only work for women. Cheating husbands, stalkers, harassment cases, that sort of thing.”
He hadn’t known that, and would very much like to know why. But from the look on her face, she wasn’t about to explain. “If it helps, this is about my mother. And also my little sister, and her biological mother. It’s not about me at all.”
“I understand that, and Ethan already said yes, so I guess I’m stuck with you.” Her wry smile took some of the sting away from her words. “Hence, the ground rules.”
He cocked his head at her. “Your standard agreement should do, right? You’ve already worked with me. I’m back because you did such an excellent job.”
“It’s because I’ve worked with you that I need some rules.”
“Ah. I take it I already broke a few?”
She studied him with eyes of a blue found only in stained-glass windows deep in a hushed cathedral. Her perfectly oval face had an old-school beauty completely at odds with the way she dressed, which was pure functionality. In the few times he’d seen her, she’d always worn simple blazers over a t-shirt, jeans and boots.
“You kept forgetting that you hired me for my professional skills, which you, an amateur, do not possess.”
“For which I apologized, remember?”
“I do. It was a very satisfying moment. One for the archives.” Another faint smile flitted across her lips. He liked seeing that, since she usually took things much too seriously, in his opinion.
“Is that the first ground rule?”
“Yes. I need to know you’re taking it seriously. Taking me seriously.”
He looked around at the office interior, which was just as generic as the strip mall where it was located. It held a large, utilitarian steel-sided desk and two unbelievably uncomfortable metal folding chairs. The walls were blank except for a framed copy of Olivia’s private investigator license.
“Your prison warden-slash-headmistress decor will definitely help with that.”
“Second ground rule. Do not mock James Investigations.” Olivia bounced the tip of a Bic pen against the surface of the desk. “Is everything always a joke to you?”
He winced, not sure how to answer that. He wasn’t always so flippant—though he did love to joke around—but Olivia brought out the irreverent in him. It wasn’t her business-only approach. He appreciated that quality. Her slightly scornful attitude toward him was what made him want to tease her. Clearly she didn’t think much of him.
“Sorry,” he finally said. “I do like to joke around. I find it lightens up most situations and puts people at ease. That’s my job, providing a relaxing environment for my customers. But this is different. I take it very seriously. This is about my mother.”
Looks and sounds great!
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