The Hit & Miss Groom
by Nana Malone & Misty Evans
Series: Hit Wedding, #2
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February, 2, 2015
**The second book in a New Adult contemporary romance series!
**This contemporary New Adult romance is intended for readers 17+. Contains adult content, language, and situations.
Fasten your seatbelt…
Marketing Program Manager, Vanessa Rodriquez, is driven to succeed and keeps the finish line in sight at all times…until one unexpected pit stop at her best friend’s wedding sends her skidding off course. Sleeping with Alex McIntyre wasn't supposed to make her feel this way—scattered, unfocused, and in need of another sexual tune-up. If only he didn’t make her feel so alive.
Yield to oncoming desire…
Alex can’t resist the beautiful Vanessa any more than he can resist his need for speed as an amateur race car driver. Even though she claims to hate him, she keeps coming back for lap after lap in his bed. When he ends up moving in next door to her, their sexual chemistry turns to deep desire. Ready to go full throttle, he convinces her to be his grid girl on—and off—the track. Van, however, puts on the brakes.
Race against love…
If Van can just course correct, it’ll be smooth sailing toward her goals. Or will it? Alex is smart, sexy, and way too much of a distraction, but maybe she needs to shake up her world and do the one thing she swore she’d never do…follow her heart. Will she risk it all to cross the finish line? Or will she and Alex crash and burn before they have a chance at love?
“You know, it’s not too late for us to gas up the limo and ride off into the sunset.” Vanessa Rodriquez said as she attached the specially made orchid clip to her best friend’s hair.
Becca grinned up at her. “Okay, Louise. But I think I’m good. I’m getting married today.”
The two of them met when Becca started working at the same sports marketing firm. They’d been pretty much inseparable ever since. “Why do you always get to be Thelma?”
“Because, I think Louise was the sane one. Or am I remembering that wrong?”
“You probably are, but it’s okay.” Van stepped back to admire her handy work. “You look gorgeous, Becca. Liam is going to lose his mind.”
“That’s if he hasn’t had Alex gas up the limo so the two of them can run off to enjoy the honeymoon without me.”
Van ran a thumb over Becca’s furrowed brow. “Stop with the frowning. No wrinkles on this makeup job, you hear me? And you’re forgetting two key facts.”
“What’s that?”
“Liam is nuts about you. Honestly, the man might be certifiable. He kept trying to move up your wedding date. And second, Boy Scout isn’t the type to steal the limo, unless, of course, it’s filled with bimbos.”
Becca giggled. “Yeah, good point. The Boy Scout has a dark side, but only when it comes to women.”
Van doubted Alex had ever done anything daring in his life. He was fine, but that pretty packaging was missing a serious swagger gene. Total white bread. Nothing interesting about him.
Except the way she caught him looking at her sometimes. But then, he looked at every pretty girl around, and most of them looked back. “Nope. You know how much I love Liam, and coming from me, that’s a lot. I barely like anybody but you. But if you said let’s go, I’d bust out the cat burglar chic and we’d be out.”
“I know, sweetie. I’m not going anywhere. I’m doing this.”
Van breathed a sigh of relief. She really did like Liam and he and Becca were perfect together. “That’s what I want to hear.”
“It’s funny, I’m not nervous about the whole being married thing. If my mother would have allowed it, I’d have run off to the courthouse and done this months ago.”
“Then what is it?” Van couldn’t even imagine getting this far. Her longest relationship was with a guy she hadn't even known she was officially dating until he wanted her to meet his parents. And even that had been three months. This kind of commitment to anything other than her job was foreign to her, but it looked good on Becca. She’d never seen her friend smile so much.
“It’s more about the day I guess. I want it to go right. To be special like I planned. I feel like for years, I pictured the perfect wedding, then I got the perfect guy and none of the other stuff mattered. Now that I’m here, in this dress, I’m a little nervous it won’t go off like I planned.”
“That’s just the obsessive compulsive part of you talking.” Luckily Van had practice at calming Becca down. “First thing’s first, take a deep breath and repeat after me. Van will not let anything go wrong.”
Becca grinned showing off even, white teeth. “Van will not let anything go wrong.”
“And if something does go wrong, she will slaughter the causer of said shenanigans.”
Becca repeated, then she exhaled. “Tell me what’s up with you while we wait, otherwise I’ll start climbing the walls.”
Van stood, lifting her dress so as to not step on it. Like Becca’s dress, hers was Monique Lullier. And like Becca’s it was a mermaid style, but hers was a deep red and had a slit so high, it would make her mother blush. Good thing her parents weren’t there. Becca had invited them as a nod to her, but the Major had been too busy and her mother never went anywhere without her father. As she slipped on her Louboutins, she said, “Not much really. Erin Lassiter is leaving in three months for good so her Director of Projects position is open. They’ve been interviewing to fill it.”
“Tell me they’re smart enough to interview you for it.”
They had damn well better be. It was the next logical step towards her goal of one day being CEO of her own company. She’d worked her butt off since starting at DIVE two years ago, most of the time doing the job of three. But it would be worth it in the end. This was her first job out of school and she was soaking up the experiences. She’d be running her own place one day and the tools she gained here were going to help her do that. “They are. I just have to kill my next few presentations. I’ve proved myself. I hope.”
“Of course you have. And unlike the fact they hated me, they love you there.”
Becca had had a difficult time fitting in at DIVE. Her retail experience had been lost on the yoga pants-obsessed employees. But her bestie was a marketing genius and had landed an even better gig running her own marketing department for a former Olympic swimmer. “It’s not about love, it’s about respect, and Erin’s job will get me one step closer to management.”
From childhood, her parents, and particularly her father, had drummed the idea of success into her. He was career military, a major. He hadn't wanted the military path for her, but he pushed her to excel so one day she would call the shots in her own right. Sometimes Van wondered who’d be happier about her promotion, her or him. She wanted him to be proud of her, but he had no idea how hard it was for her. It wasn’t a natural fit.
“You are amazing when it comes to goals. I know you can do it. And if they don’t give it to you, you tell me and I’ll kick some ass.”
“Done.” Van checked the clock. Five minutes past two. Someone should have come to get them by now.
Becca kept talking, and Van half listened as she typed out a message to Alex. Liam would be at the altar hopefully, so he wouldn’t have his phone.
Dude, what’s going on out there? You know how Becca is all about time.
She waited a minute, but there was no response. In the distance, she heard sirens and her heart rate ticked up. Becca heard them too, and stood. “Oh, God, I hope it’s not Liam’s mom.”
“Oh, no you don’t.” The last thing she needed was Becca running out there. Liam’s mom had been doing fine after her last round of chemo and her doctor had cleared her for travel. “You, sit, I’ll go check what’s up.”
Her friend chewed her lip, “But they’ll see you and that will ruin the effect of the dress.”
Van suppressed a smile. “Nothing will ruin the effect of this dress. It’ll be hot no matter if they see me before the ceremony or walking down the aisle.” Besides the damn thing pushed her boobs up under her chin. No one would be looking at the dress. “Stay put. I mean it, Becca.”
Her friend nodded, and sat back down on the settee. A pang of emotion speared her. Becca really was beautiful. A faint longing she never addressed planted an unwanted seed. Will that ever be me?
USA Today Bestselling Author Nana Malone’s love of all things romance and adventure started with a tattered romantic suspense she borrowed from her cousin on a sultry summer afternoon in Ghana at a precocious thirteen. She’s been in love with kick butt heroines ever since.
With her overactive imagination, and channeling her inner Buffy, it was only a matter a time before she started creating her own characters. Waiting for her chance at a job as a ninja assassin, Nana meantime works out her drama, passion, and sass with fictional characters every bit as sassy and kick butt as she thinks she is.
Nana is the author of twenty novels. And the books in her series have been on multiple Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble bestseller lists as well as the iTunes Breakout Books list and most notably the USA Today Bestseller list.
USA TODAY Bestselling Author Misty Evans has published over twenty novels and writes romantic suspense, urban fantasy, and paranormal romance. As a writing coach, she helps other authors bring their books – and their dreams of being published – to life.
The books in her Super Agent series have won a CataNetwork Reviewers’ Choice Award, CAPA nominations, the New England Reader’s Choice Bean Pot Award for Best Romantic Suspense in 2010 and the ACRA Heart of Excellence Reader’s Choice Award for Best Romantic Suspense in 2011.
Her Witches Anonymous series was dubbed a Fallen Angel Reviews Recommended Read. The Super Agent Series, Witches Anonymous Series, and the Kali Sweet Series have been on multiple Amazon Kindle bestsellers lists. Her culinary romantic mystery, THE SECRET INGREDIENT, and the first book in her Deadly series, DEADLY PURSUIT, are both USA TODAY bestsellers.
Misty likes her coffee black, her conspiracy stories juicy, and her wicked characters dressed in couture. When not reading or writing, she enjoys music, movies, and hanging out with her husband, twin sons, and two spoiled puppies.
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February 2, 2015 – Excerpt 1
February 3, 2015 – Excerpt 2
February 4, 2015 – Excerpt 3
February 5, 2015 – Excerpt 4
February 6, 2015 – Exerpt 5
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