I know the feeling well. I'm the top draft prospect for the NFL, voted All-American last year, and a God at the University of Oregon. I didn't get here by fucking around or chasing fantasies—and I'll never forget where I came from. A guy like me only gets one chance to get out, to make something of himself. Passion. I thought football was my passion. But Teagan Fletcher, she's my obsession. My childhood friend is now a woman with curves for days and hair like fire. But she also hates me—and I don't blame her. I want her. But I can't have her. I need her. But I don't know how to let go. One way or another, I'll have it all: football … and Fletcher. ***KICKED is a standalone new adult sports romance with a happy ending and no cliffhanger. To celebrate the release of this bad boy, there are two free bonus books in the back: STEPBROTHER INKED and RAW AND DIRTY, both from C.M.'s pen name, Violet Blaze. All three are full-length novels, full of bad boys and tattoos, and loaded with hot, hot, hotness. Enjoy! EXCERPT FROM "KICKED": “What are we doing?” Teagan asked as I forced her to jog after me towards the tunnel. “Where are we going?” Her voice was breathy and patchy, and she panted as she ran after me, but she kept going, following me into the pitch blackness and down, down, down. At the halfway mark, I stopped, turned, shoved her back into the wall. “Tyce,” Teagan said, her voice high and reedy, like she was about to come in her panties just from looking at me. I reached up and tore my helmet from my head, tossing it aside and letting it bounce along the pavement beneath our feet. I was panting so goddamn hard in that moment, sucking in breath after anxious breath as my eyes flicked over her face, down her throat, across the full swell of her chest. I stepped forward and cupped the back of her head with a golden glove, leaned down and captured her mouth with mine. I kissed her hard and fast, frantic with time and need and desire. Less than five minutes. I bruised Teagan's mouth with my own, slid our tongues together, made her dizzy when I pulled back and looked her straight in the face. “We have five minutes,” I said and then we were working together to shove her pants down one leg, over her sneakers. Mine were next, pushed down halfway off my a**, my c*** springing free from my cup. I lifted Teagan up against that stone wall, slammed her back into the cool cement and let her curl her fingers in my sweaty hair. It was stuck to my forehead, probably a hot mess, but she looked at me like I was a god. I felt like a god there in that tunnel in the dark with thousands of fans screaming and pounding the pavement above our heads. In an instant, my coach or a security guard or one of the boys, they could come down here and find us screwing. I didn't care. Seriously. I didn't give a s***.

    Alpha male to the core, Blake’s idea of being a man leaves little room for emotional connection. He comes up with the perfect solution to the dreaded wedding: he’ll find a controllable date. He has everything planned to perfection. Samantha Jones agrees to spend the weekend with the hot boss. She’s attracted to him, but she’s sworn off men after her embarrassing recent break up. She’s determined to ignore the attraction and focus on business when he hands her an opportunity to be part of the biggest business pitch in Blake Genetics’ history. It could change everything. She’s not looking for love, she won’t jump off that cliff again. But she will take the chance to further her career. What neither of them expected was the weekend to take flight. Is this a risk they’re willing to see through to the end?

    A world where our characters learn, laugh, and love. Discover River's End Ranch, a gorgeous "destination ranch and resort" in Riston, Idaho, that is run by the six Weston siblings and their well-meaning, semi-retired parents. Kelsi Weston, the youngest of six siblings, loves life. She has a job she adores, is surrounded by people she loves, and gets to work with people she cares about. If only she could keep cooks in the café she manages, life would be perfect. When her long-time boyfriend announces he’s leaving town for a new job on the same day her cook leaves with no notice, she does what she always does. She handles it. Sheriff Shane Clapper has loved Kelsi for years, going to her café for lunch every day simply so he can see her. When he hears she’s broken up with her boyfriend, he immediately goes to the café to make his move. Why let grass grow under his feet? He knows what he wants, and he plans to get it! Will the sheriff be able to convince Kelsi she would be happier with him? Or will she give into her mother’s demands to date the man picked out for her?

    Calvin McKay can't understand his twin brother's rush toward the altar—until he lays eyes on the bride's younger sister. But she's far too innocent for him to pursue…and yet something about that little blonde tornado gets his blood pumping and his heart all twisted up. Kimi West is used to boys chasing after by her, but Cal McKay is a man—all man—and his hot kisses are like nothing she's ever experienced. But he's a rancher, tied to the land, and she can’t wait for the day she can escape from Wyoming and see the world. After a tragedy sends Kimi running from her family, Cal gives Kimi a place to stay—and oh so many tantalizing reasons to stay—while she sorts out her plans. Now she'll have to decide whether the adventure she wants is in a new frontier or right there by Cal's side.

    Who's getting married? Will we hear the patter of tiny feet? Are the sexytimes still awesome? This check-in focuses on everyone's favorite Hot in Chicago couple, Eli and Alexandra, but you can bet Gage steals the show!Forever in Fire contains spoilers for the entire Hot in Chicago series, so it’s best enjoyed after you’ve read the rest of those books and preferably, with a glass of wine!Previously published as a A Hot in Chicago Christmas Short.

    (Gabe’s Proposal)'Scrambled Eggs and Lemsip' can be found as a document link on the author's website. See URL field below.