Cowboy Player
by Mia Hopkins
Series: Cowboy Cocktail, #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 28, 2016
For eight years, Melody Santos played the game of love and lost—big time. Now she’s back in her tiny hometown looking after her younger sister, making ends meet with an assortment of odd jobs. When her childhood best friend hires her to help him sell his family’s grass-fed beef, the last thing she anticipates is falling in lust with the legendary, brown-eyed player.
To put his family’s cattle ranch back in the black, Clark MacKinnon has his sights set on big contracts—gourmet chefs and restaurateurs. If that means long hours traveling from farmer’s market to farmer’s market, Clark doesn’t mind. Particularly since his new assistant is his childhood crush, all grown up and sexy as hell.
One night in bed leaves them breathless and hungry for more. But when his love-’em-and-leave-’em reputation collides with her trust issues, Clark and Melody must face the truth about what they’ve become: not friends, not lovers, but players in a game that’s impossible to win.
Warning: Contains filthy banter, raunchy sex, excessive Johnny Cash references, and hundreds of pounds of raw beef.
“I know you don’t do relationships,” Melody said softly.
“I would try it. For you.”
“You don’t want to get tangled up with me,” she said, shaking her head. “I have serious trust issues. I’m poison.”
“Jesus, stop it.”
Fear, real and cold, cut through the warmth swirling in her chest. She’d never asked a man to sleep with her before. “I don’t want to lose you as a friend,” she said slowly. “But tonight, I can’t help wanting…” She trailed off, unable to find the words.
They were quiet for a long time.
When he finally spoke, Clark’s voice was deep and steady. “I think I know what you want, because I want it too.” He stroked her hair and kissed her temple, the exact same place he’d kissed when he first invited her down this rabbit hole. “One last night together. Right?”
She gasped softly, relishing the sensation of his lips on her bare skin. Pleasure spiked in her brain like a drug.
“One last night together,” she repeated. “Then we leave this part of us behind. It stays here and we move on. What do you think?”
He was quiet for a moment. He stroked her lower back, edging lower and lower with each languid sweep. “If this is going to be the last time I’m going to make love to you,” he whispered against her neck, “I’m going to give you everything I’ve got. Are you ready for that?”
The sultry promise in his voice sharpened her senses. She was more than ready.
“Yes,” she whispered.
I always enjoy a good friends to lovers story and Cowboy Player had everything I look for – sizzling chemistry that makes you wonder why it has taken so long for the H/h to get together, a solid friendship that can withstand all the bumps that comes with a new relationship, and one seriously hot hero who knows how to take charge to get what he wants.
Melody and Clark have been friends forever and it was so much fun seeing these two interact as friends. They bantered, teased, and could be merciless with each other – so much fun! Clark is a player, Melody has been hurt deeply by a past relationship, so when these two finally do cross the line it’s no wonder that they think keeping things as friends is best. Of course their attraction is red hot and it doesn’t take long for just once to turn into once more. Throw in a bit of jealousy and a grand gesture and this was one novella that delivered a full sized story!
A great read that has me looking forward to more from this author!
Also in the Series
Book One: Cowboy Valentine
Book Two: Cowboy Resurrection
When she's not lost in a story, Mia spends her time cooking, gardening, traveling, volunteering and looking for her keys. In a past life, she was a classroom teacher and still has a pretty good "teacher voice" and "teacher stare."
She lives in the heart of Los Angeles with her roguish husband and two waggish dogs.
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