BOOK INFORMATION
Title: Meant For You
Author: Samantha Chase
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Contemporary Romance
BOOK SUMMARY
She dares to dream...
Summer Montgomery wants to be taken seriously almost as much as she wants her brother's best friend, Ethan. But with a long resume of seemingly random career choices and a protective brother on watch, those things are nothing more than pipe dreams...
Does he dare to try?
Ethan Reed would like nothing more than to live by his own rules. Not wanting to disappoint his best friend Zach, or any of the Montgomerys, Ethan's had to push his long-denied feelings for Summer aside. But it only takes one night away from watchful eyes to make impossible dreams come true...
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EXCERPT
“This trail is a little bit boring, don’t you think?” Summer asked several hours later as they made their way down a marked path.
“I hadn’t really thought of it that way. There’s so much to see—different kinds of birds and plants… The weather is just fantastic—perfect for hiking.” He reached out and took one of Summer’s hands in his. “And the company is perfect.”
“Aw, aren’t you sweet,” she cooed and pulled him close for a kiss and sighed. “It is a beautiful day and everything is really pretty to look at… I was just hoping to see a little something more.”
“More? Like what?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Deer. Bears. A moose. You know, wildlife.”
Beside her, Ethan chuckled. “Summer, trust me when I say that you do not want to have an up-close encounter with any of those animals.”
“I just was expecting something a little more exciting. The only wildlife I have seen is a squirrel. And he wasn’t even doing anything entertaining.”
“What were you expecting? For it to be juggling or something?” he teased.
“No,” she said with a pout. “Maybe. I don’t know."
Ethan pulled Summer into his embrace and took a moment to enjoy the feel of her in his arms. “What’s going on?” he asked softly.
“I don’t know… I feel like you’re always off doing these really cool, crazy things and that this seems a little tame for you.” She shrugged. “I’m not big on dangerous stuff, but I wanted us to have our own little adventure. Just the two of us.”
“Sweetheart, we’ve been having our own adventures for days,” he said and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “I don’t need an adventure. I just want to spend time with you.”
Summer looked up at him and smiled. “Really?”
He nodded. “Absolutely. I’m thankful that we have this time, without any prying eyes, just to get to know one another.”
“Ethan, we’ve known each other for years,” she said with a chuckle.
He shook his head. “No. The Summer Montgomery I knew was a girl. When you showed up at the office for the first time? I thought I was going to have a heart attack.”
“Really?” she purred and snuggled closer. “Do tell.”
“You’ve blossomed into this amazingly beautiful woman,” he said and kissed her temple. “I mean, you were always beautiful, but when you walked into my office that day, it was like you’d transformed. Gone was the young girl I always pictured when I thought of you and in her place was…” He pulled back and looked into her face. “You.” He sighed. “I look at you sometimes and it’s like I can’t breathe. And even standing here right now with you in my arms I can’t believe it’s real.”
“I feel that way, too,” she said quietly. “I’d had a crush on you for so long and you never noticed me and…”
“Wait, wait, wait… You had a crush on me?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, Ethan. You can’t tell me you didn’t know!” she said with a laugh. “Everyone knew! Hell, my brothers used to throw things at me to stop me from staring at you!”
Ethan stopped and thought about that for a moment and then started to laugh. “Seriously? That’s what that was about?”
“What?”
“I remember your brothers always throwing stuff at you…popcorn, socks… I think I remember James throwing a basketball at you once and I thought it was odd.”
“They told me I was being a nuisance.”
Shaking his head, Ethan continued to laugh. “Not to me, because clearly I didn’t even notice.”
“Thanks a lot!” she cried and went to pull away, but Ethan pulled her in close.
“Don’t take it like that,” he said and wrapped his arms around her. “I just meant that I never knew. I always thought you were beautiful and sometimes I had to wonder if your brothers ever caught me staring at you.”
“I don’t know. Did they ever throw anything at your face for no reason?” she asked with a smirk.
“Not that I can remember. But it doesn’t matter. All I know is that you’re here now and I’m seeing you, Summer. Really seeing you.”
Her eyes went wide at his words and the sincerity behind them. “What do you see?”
“I see a woman I want to get to know better. A woman who is sexy and intelligent and just…everything.”
CAT'S REVIEW
So, "Meant For You" is a wonderful, light and fun story. There's laughter, romance and some serious moments as well. Summer and Ethan sizzle together! Ethan is an adrenaline junkie so he's willing take the risk of Summer. Summer, being seen by her family as fragile, longs to be Ethan's. Ethan and Summer burn for each other, but believe it's a forbidden romance and need to keep it hidden from her family - in which he is like an adoptive part of. Watching them come together and truly develop their feelings for each other made me swoon. When a family tragedy happens, it was uplifting to see how close the family is and how they come together to support each other. So often, in stories, there is no family or there not supportive so it was pleasant to read of the closeness of this one. Ms. Chase has done a fantastic job of keeping this one real yet also as a fantasy come to life. The plot was good, the writing style enjoyable and the characters funny and true. I look forward to reading more of Ms. Chase's works in the future! (received copy from NetGalley for honest review)
★★★★★
New York Times and USA Today Bestseller/contemporary romance writer Samantha Chase released her debut novel, Jordan's Return, in November 2011. Although she waited until she was in her 40's to publish for the first time, writing has been a lifelong passion. Her motivation to take that step was her students: teaching creative writing to elementary age students all the way up through high school and encouraging those students to follow their writing dreams gave Samantha the confidence to take that step as well.
When she's not working on a new story, she spends her time reading contemporary romances, playing way too many games of Scrabble or Solitaire on Facebook and spending time with her husband of 25 years and their two sons in North Carolina.
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Your review totally made my day! Thank you for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for writing this - it was such a joy to read!
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ReplyDeletethank you!!! I love this, is so sweet!
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