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WRAPPED IN YOU
The Monroe's #1
Jules Bennett
Released March 29th, 2016
Kensington: Zebra
Zach Monroe has made mistakes—big ones. The worst left the girl he loved injured, and his own brother barely speaking to him. It was a night Zach won’t let himself forget, even when the girl in question—perfect, polished Sophie Allen—walks back into his life. A realtor, Sophie’s brought an offer for their sister’s dilapidated Civil War era property. But Zach’s determined to renovate the rambling old place himself—though he longs to rebuild Sophie’s trust in him…
A business deal isn’t how Sophie wanted to approach Zach after all this time, but he won’t let anyone get personal. She can’t deny that the accident changed her life in irreparable ways. But watching gruff, quiet Zach beat himself up year after year hurts too. The wounded boy she once adored needed love, and the man is no different. Now Sophie will need every bit of her resolve to convince Zach to let love heal them both…
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EXCERPT
CAT'S REVIEW
★★★★
EXCERPT
While
Sophie had been raised to worry what others thought, Zach didn’t give a damn.
As a teen, she’d wondered how well that would go over with her proper parents,
if she just threw caution to the wind and worried about what made her happy and
not the rest of the world. Chelsea had hinted more than once that Zach would be
good for Sophie, and vice versa.
Nearly
a decade had passed since she and Zach had finally stopped dancing around each
other. They were heading toward something that could’ve been remarkable, when
all of their lives changed in an instant. Since then, Zach Monroe treated her
as if she had the plague, as if he couldn’t stand to be in the same room with
her. He’d pushed most people away and nearly worked himself to death . . . and
all of that was after he’d gotten out of jail.
Swearing
off bad boys, silent seducers, and that pull toward the mysterious, no matter
how heavy the temptation, Sophie had opted to move on. For a while she’d been
afraid to date, afraid for a man to see the scars she had hidden beneath her
clothes. Eventually she realized the scars weren’t going away and she needed a
social life. She’d been dating Martin for six months, and they were quite
compatible when they could squeeze in dates between their busy schedules. Well,
they weren’t so much compatible as they shared similar backgrounds and Sophie’s
parents loved him.
But
lately she’d been wondering if there should be more to a relationship.
Shouldn’t there be sparks or . . . something? Flynn jumped onto the sofa and
curled up next to Sophie.
“Great,
I’m the cat lady,” she muttered against the next bite of ice cream. “I’ll die
old and alone. You’ll probably outlive me.”
She
sighed as she dug in for another spoonful. She needed to call Martin and let
him know the guys were going to think about the offer. With the way Zach had
left abruptly, and Liam still dead set on selling, she truly had no idea which
way this decision would go.
Sophie’s
cell chimed from her purse she’d left in the kitchen. Normally she’d ignore it,
but she had several new listings and she was known for being prompt and
professional.
Eyeing
the carton of ice cream, she silently promised to return soon. Running as quick
as she could allow herself, she pulled the phone from her purse and smiled at
the name lighting up her screen.
“Hey,
Braxton,” she answered.
“Hey,
Sophie. Are you busy?”
His
rich tone flooded the line. Of all the Monroe boys, Braxton was the peacemaker,
the comforter, the “brainy” one. Braxton and Liam had always been like brothers
to Sophie. They’d always treated her as family, and their friendship ran deeper
than any bond she’d ever had with her own family.
Then
there was Zach. Regardless of the anger she held toward him, there was always
some nugget of attraction. After all this time, she figured it was just
something she’d have to live with.
And
her anger didn’t stem from the accident. Her years of rage stemmed from him
blocking out those who cared for him, those who needed to get through the
emotional mess with him. Did he even wonder how she was doing, after all that
happened? Did he even care that she’d cried and cursed and broken things when
he wouldn’t see her?
Gripping
the phone, she focused on Braxton and pushed his frustrating brother to the
back of her mind.
“Just
digging into a dinner of chocolate-chunk ice cream.” She made her way back to
the couch.
“I’m good at
multitasking, though.”
“I
cannot figure out how you live on junk and don’t weigh—”
“I’d watch what I said about a woman’s
weight,” she warned with a laugh. “I assume you didn’t call to discuss my
pounds or my warped version of dinner.”
“Yeah.”
Braxton’s sigh came through loud and clear. “I wanted to apologize for
everything earlier. I know you’re just trying to help.”
Propping
her feet on the low coffee table, Sophie settled deeper into the corner of her
couch. “You may be the most considerate man I know. I put you in an awkward
position and you’re calling to apologize to me?”
“You
were just giving us all the information so we could do what we wanted,” he told
her. “I actually appreciate that you didn’t dance around whatever I would be
feeling. It’s Zach and Liam’s behavior that I’m apologizing for, though.”
“I
know what I’m getting into with you guys. Liam already texted me and said he
was sorry.”
“And
Zach?”
Sophie
laughed. “I think you know the answer to that.”
Even
though she hadn’t expected anything from Zach, his dismissal of her still
stung. Did he honestly think he was the only one grieving? Not just Chelsea but
years of emotions he held on to were surely going to break him at some point.
Not
her problem. She’d moved on.
“I’ve
backed out of playing the middleman with those two,” Braxton went on. “They’ll
have to actually discuss this if they want to come to an agreement.”
Sophie
cringed. “Without you between them as referee, how will they have a
conversation without shouting and one of them storming off ?”
“They’re
adults. They’ll figure it out.”
“As
long as I can tell Martin something by next week, that’s fine.”
“You’ll
have an answer,” he promised. “One way or another. I need to get to class, so
I’ll talk to you later. Just wanted to apologize for my asshole brother.”
“Can
I ask what you’re leaning toward?” Silence answered her question, followed by a
sigh. “It’s okay. Just think about it. I’m not judging you guys either way. I
know this is hard for everybody.”
“Yeah,
it is. That still doesn’t give my brothers the right to go at it in your
office. It also doesn’t give Zach the right to be a jerk just because he can’t
get a grip on his emotions.”
Sophie
dropped her spoon into the carton and set it on the table. “No worries. The
animosity with Zach isn’t new.”
“Soph—”
“No.”
She came to her feet, sending Flynn to the floor. “It’s fine. I mean, it’s not
fine, but it is what it is. Zach has problems he needs to work out on his own.
Apparently he’s perfectly content to live inside that shell.”
“I
wish someone would knock some sense into him,” Braxton muttered. “I’ll call you
in a couple days. Gotta run.”
Placing
her cell on the arm of the couch, Sophie couldn’t help but wonder what it would
take to get Zach to see that life hadn’t ended that night. Yes, mistakes were
made, lives were altered. Why did he feel it was okay to hate the world, to
push away those who only wanted to help him?
She
had hoped the one silver lining to come from Chelsea’s death would be Zach
waking up and seeing that life was fleeting and he still had people here who
cared what happened to him.
Chelsea
passed away four months ago, and the man was just as introverted and closed up
as ever. How long could one person keep so much locked inside? Not to mention
his past, before he ever came to live with the Monroes. Zach was a walking
bundle of angst when he’d arrived in Haven, Georgia. Then life happened and
added even more.
One
of these days his emotions were going to explode. Sophie found herself
wondering who would be there to catch him when he broke.
CAT'S REVIEW
"Wrapped in You" by Jules Bennett. This is book one of a new series by Ms. Bennett - The Monroes. It follows the lives of three brothers. In "Wrapped In You", it's the story of Sophia and Zach. Both characters have some really deep scars, both physically and emotionally. Sophia works hard to move on and live with those scars. I liked her. She's stronger than given credit for and, when she realizes what she truly wants in life, will work for it. On top of that, she's a tough cookie and, even though she is super sweet, doesn't take much crap from others. Zach is the ultimate grumpy Hero. I like my heroes grumpy but at times, even he was a bit too thick headed for me. However, despite his being so closed off, he shined when he would show his true self. The story is a good one - friends to lovers with lots of baggage in between. I liked the dynamic between the brothers - true family with all its ups and downs and personality conflicts. The beginning dragged slightly for me - at times a bit repetitive I thought. The author, it seems, works hard to make sure the reader understands the hard feelings between the two main characters - while important, I found it a bit too much. However, I stuck with it and I was happily surprised as the story progressed and the characters and plot grew. The story is filled with warmth, a tough of angst, some pain and heartache and the love only family can provide. Ms. Bennett has grabbed my attention with this one and I look forward to reading Liam and Braxton's story in the future. (received copy from NetGalley for honest review)
★★★★
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National
bestselling author Jules Bennett is a former salon owner
turned full time author. Considering she met her husband at the age of fourteen
and they’ve been together since, Jules knows a thing or two about romance and
happily ever after. She and her husband live in the Midwest with their two
young children. When Jules isn’t creating emotional, witty stories, she’s
spending time with her family, working out or procrastinating on social media.
She loves to hear from readers. You can connect with her through Facebook, Twitter, or her Website.
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