BLURB:
Heavyweight UFC fighter, Romeo Wellings comes from the hard streets of New York where his family ties to the mafia cause him nothing but pain. His life takes a surprising detour when he crosses paths with the twin sister of his long time enemy. After a steamy one-night stand, he faces the fight of his life, but it’s not in the cage. The secret relationship that blooms between Romeo and his real life Juliet has him battling his family and a dark past rather than let her go.
The only lawyer in her hometown of Garnet, Jules Conner is also a volunteer Sheriff’s deputy and co-owner of a successful MMA training center. Strong and dependable, Jules is always there for those who need her. Until one forbidden night in Las Vegas with Romeo leaves her feeling so alive she can’t stop reaching out to the sexy, bad boy of MMA, even knowing the forbidden love affair could jeopardize everything.
As the tide rises against them and the people they love work at keeping them apart, Romeo and Jules hold onto a dream for a better life together and vow to go down fighting rather than accept a tragic ending.
Excerpt:
Jules reached into her purse to pull out a business card and an expensive gold pen. She laughed to herself, shaking her head as she wrote on the back of the card. “If you would’ve told me yesterday I’d be buying Romeo Wellings dinner, I’d have called you crazy. Things change faster than I can keep up with sometimes.”
Romeo had to agree. The very last thing he expected to be doing on his remaining night in Las Vegas was having dinner with Wyatt Conner’s sister. He’d spent a good deal of time hating the bastard. The irony wasn’t lost on him, and his smile was wide as he took Jules’s card when she offered it. He stared at her cell number on the back.
“I’m not your enemy.” Romeo lifted his gaze to hers and studied her beautiful face under the bright Nevada sun. “Juliet.”
She gasped in surprise, her eyes growing wide. “I don’t—” She floundered. Her cheeks flushed pink as she narrowed icy eyes at him. “How?”
“That’s what Jules is short for, isn’t it?” he asked simply, refusing to look away. “Juliet.”
“I go by Jules,” she said rather than rise to the bait. For a brief moment it looked like she might reach over and snatch the card back. Her guard was obviously up, but instead of lashing out and rescinding the offer, she looked to his left hand that was wrapped in a white gauze bandage and sighed in defeat. “I’ll see ya at eight, Wellings.”
“I go by Romeo.”
“Fine.” Jules took a deep breath, her cheeks more flushed than ever. “Then eight o’clock, Romeo.”
He did it then, took one long, hard look of Jules Conner standing there in formfitting jeans that clung to her long legs like a second skin. It took everything he had not to adjust himself, because eyeing her made his jeans tighter than usual.
Romeo gave her a devious smile. With a voice low and husky with anticipation, he said, “I’ll look forward to it.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
About Kele:
A freckle-faced redhead born and raised in Hawaii, Kele Moon has always been a bit of a sore thumb and has come to enjoy the novelty of it. She thrives on pushing the envelope and finding ways to make the impossible work in her story telling. With a mad passion for romance, she adores the art of falling in love. The only rules she believes in is that, in love, there are no rules and true love knows no bounds.
So obsessed is she with the beauty of romance and the novelty of creating it, she’s lost in her own wonder world most of the time. Thankfully she married her own dark, handsome, brooding hero who has infinite patience for her airy ways and attempts to keep her grounded. When she leaves her keys in the refrigerator or her cell phone in the oven, he’s usually there to save her from herself. The two of them now reside in Florida with their three beautiful children, who make their lives both fun and challenging in equal parts—they wouldn’t have it any other way.
Email: kelemoon@me.com
Website: http://www.kelemoon.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kele_Moon
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kelemoon
I love it - Romeo & Juliet - STAR CROSSED lovers indeed.
ReplyDeletemarypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
Thank you for hosting Kele today! Remember, this is part of her Virtual Book Tour and a comment enters you to win a $25 amazon GC!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for having me at your blog today!!
ReplyDelete:D
Kele
Heehee! Romeo & Juliet street style. :P Incidentally, we're watching UFC on TV right now!! :)
ReplyDeleteUFC is popular right now, although I don't watch sports of any kind on TV...well, maybe Tigers BB or Pistons BB when they are in the finals! I'd even break down and watch Red Wings hockey if its a championship game!
ReplyDeleteOK, back to my point: Of all of the sports used in romance novels today, this is the first UFC themed book I've seen, so what made you choose UFC as a backdrop for this story?
kareninnc at gmail dot com
Great excerpt, thanks.
ReplyDeleteKit3247(at)aol(dot)com
Can't wait to read Star Crossed!
ReplyDeletejustforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
Thanks for stopping by today, Kele! I can't wait to read this. And I echo Karen's question: What made you use UFC as your backdrop? Course golf isn't exactly a street sport, but still. :)
ReplyDeleteKristabel and Karen--The first idea I had was of a down on her luck waitress buying a piece of pie for big, gruff guy who turned out to be famous. . . Shortly after I decided I wanted him to be a MMA fighter, 'cause I did want him to come off as unapproachable and sorta mean, but he's really just someone who's never been loved and he's drawn to this waitress all because of her simple act of kindness. . . Which if you read the first page of Defying the Odds (Book 1 in the Battered Hearts Series) you'll see that's exactly how it turned out. . .
ReplyDeleteFrom there I knew I wanted to create a small town where several other stories could bloom and the world of MMA gave me a whole playing field to build off of. . . Romeo was Clay's rival in the first book . . . So it worked out well!!
Plus, MMA fighters are so bad ass and such amazing athletes. . . They're so much fun to write falling in love!! I have such a blast with this series!!
:D
Kele
Leah, I like that idea . . . Romeo and Juliet street style!! :D
ReplyDeleteIngeborg--Glad you liked it!
Chelsea B.--Hope you enjoy it!
And good luck to everyone!!
:D
Kele
I do like "Romeo & Juliet" themed stories; however, this back drop of the fight/MMA scene sounds potentially violent. Is it very violent?
ReplyDeletecatherinelee100 at gmail dot com
This sounds good. :)
ReplyDeleteBecky01x(at)gmail(dot)com