A former
marketing executive and primary teacher, Anna lives in Cambridge, England, with
her husband and two bossy black cats. Learn more about Anna, her heart-warming
romances and her shoes at www.annasugden.com . You can also follow her on
Facebook (www.facebook.com/annasugden.romanceauthor), Twitter
(www.twitter.com/annasugden) Pinterest (www.pinterest.com/annasugden) and on
the Romance Bandits blog (www.romancebandits.com)
Blurb:
He's
the perfect catch…for now!
When
it comes to romance, Tracy Hayden is not looking for a rematch. She's had epic
passion—and problems!—with professional hockey player Ike Jelinek. Brilliant on
skates and magic in bed, his too-traditional-for-her views were like a bucket
of ice water on their affair.
Then
an injury takes Ike out of the game, and everything changes. Suddenly he needs
her services-providing business—even though he once claimed it was their
biggest problem. Tracy's determined to be professional, despite the sizzling
attraction between them that won't go away. Maybe they need a second fling to
fix that!
Excerpt:
“Why does it take so long to have a baby?”
At her niece’s question, Tracy Hayden looked up from the
stack of invoices she was logging into her business’s accounting system.
She smiled at Emily, who was playing a game on the other
home-office computer. “They don’t have bar codes on their bums, so you can’t
just pick them up at a grocery store.”
Tracy’s sister, Maggie, had gone to the hospital early that
morning, when her water had broken. The latest update from Maggie’s anxious
husband, Jake, at 5:00 p.m., had been that all was progressing well, if a bit
slowly.
Now, at seven-thirty, ten-year-old Emily’s excitement was
stretched thin by the lack of action.
“Hmm.” Tracy pretended to consider the question seriously.
“I have a feeling the sproglet is a boy.”
Her niece leaned forward eagerly. “Why?”
Tracy lowered her voice conspiratorially. “Your mum put
sugar in her cup of tea yesterday. They say you need extra sweetness if you’re
having a boy.”
Emily’s eyes widened. “She also ate a whole bar of Cadbury’s
chocolate from her stash.”
“Aha.” Tracy snapped her fingers. “That settles it.”
“A baby brother would be okay,” Emily mused. “He wouldn’t
want any of my things. Plus he’ll like sports. I could teach him to skate and
play hockey.”
Tracy clipped the invoices together, then slipped them into
a folder marked November Bills. She’d allocate them to the appropriate accounts
tomorrow. “That would be nice.”
“Maybe he’ll even get to play on the Ice Cats like Daddy
Jake.”
Jake “Bad Boy” Badoletti was a star defenseman for the local
professional hockey team, the New Jersey Ice Cats. He and Maggie had gotten
together after his transfer from Chicago a few years ago, when Maggie had
helped him find a place to live. Though she’d been wary of falling for another
pro athlete after escaping an abusive marriage to Emily’s father—an English
Premier League soccer player—Jake had eventually won the hearts of both mother
and daughter. As well as being an avid fan of her stepfather’s team, Emily had
also become a good mites’ hockey player.
The child pouted. “It’s not fair that girls can’t play for
the Ice Cats.”
“You never know. Maybe you’ll be the second woman to play in
the NHL.”
“But Manon Rhéaume was a goaltender.” Em wrinkled her nose.
“I want to be a forward and score lots of goals.”
Naturally. Her niece was all about action.
The phone rang, startling them both.
Tracy’s heart leaped into her throat as she saw Jake’s
number. She snatched up the receiver. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah.” He sounded a little befuddled. “We have a boy. Eight
pounds, six ounces. Mom and son both doing well. Dad’s not sure he ever wants
to go through that again.”
“Isn’t that supposed to be Maggie’s line?” Tracy said drily.
“She had an epidural. I did the whole thing without
anesthetic.”
She laughed. “A tough guy like you can’t handle childbirth.
I’m shocked.”
“I can’t believe, having survived it once with Emily, she’d
be willing to do it again.” He paused and Tracy could almost feel his shudder
down the phone. “Maggie’s one tough cookie.”
“She certainly is.”
Despite what she’d been through, Maggie had not only managed
to make a fresh start in the US, but she’d also embraced marriage again.
Something Tracy couldn’t do after her own disastrous
experience. That mess wasn’t something she wanted to think about. Not when
there was a new life to celebrate. “So, are you up for visitors?”
“Sure. Whenever you can get here. I’ll call my parents next
and get them to pass the news to everyone else.”
After she’d hung up, Tracy turned to Emily. “A boy,” she
said smugly.
“You rock, Auntie Tracy.” Emily reached across the
back-to-back desks to fist-bump her. “When can we go to see him?”
“Right now.” Tracy saved her files, then switched off her
computer and stood. “Get your coat and we’ll head over.”
Em dashed out of the office. A moment later, she stuck her
head back around the door. “Don’t forget the teddy bear.”
“I won’t. He’s already in the gift bag by the front door.”
The drive to the hospital passed quickly, with Emily
chattering like a magpie about her new sibling. As they walked across the
parking lot toward the hospital entrance, Emily squealed and darted toward a
tall dark-haired man getting out of a black Mercedes SUV.
“Uncle Ike!”
Tracy’s pulse hitched at the familiar figure of Ice Cats
goaltender Eisenhower “Ike” Jelinek.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Harlequin
Anna will award a $15 Amazon GC to one randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter, as well as 4 signed copies of A Perfect Catch AND 4 exclusive A Perfect Catch notebooks during the tour. (international giveaway)
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for hosting me today! <3
ReplyDeleteHey everyone - tell me, do you have a favourite sporting hunk?
ReplyDeleteMany thanks to everyone who stopped by today especially all of you who joined in the fun on Twitter and again to Kristabel for hosting me today!
ReplyDelete