Blackthorne by Lexxie Couper

 

Title: Blackthorne

Author: Lexxie Couper

Date of Publication: October 28th 2014

  About Blackthorne: Rhythm is in his genes. She is in his heart. Heart of Fame, Book 8 Caitlin Reynolds doesn’t care if the rock star lookalike trying to get into her bar is who he says he is. Sticking to the rules is a big reason the Chaos Room is the hottest velvet rope in Sydney. Okay, so he’s freaking hot, but she’s been ignoring her hormones since her fiancé left her to go be a doctor in Somalia and then went missing. After a shattered knee ended his promising soccer career, it seemed only natural for Josh Blackthorne to follow in his father’s rock-god footsteps. Now he’s a megastar, lusted after by women—and men—the world over. But he’s been in lust with Caitlin since he saw her picture years ago. When Caitlin realizes Josh is who he says he is, she’s the first to make it right. But no matter how badly his seduction makes her want to melt into his arms, there’s a ghost hanging over their heads. A ghost who turns out to be not so legally dead after all… Warning: Contains a rock star who’s livin’ the dream and livin’ it large, a self-made businesswoman with a weakness for a cheeky smile, and a red-hot battle of tormented wills. May stimulate a desire to throw your panties onto the nearest stage.  

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  Excerpt: “Are you really Josh Blackthorne?” one of them shouted over the pounding music, damn near quivering. “We saw you outside. I said you were. Izzy said you couldn’t be.” Josh slid his gaze to the blonde beside her, unable to miss the awed hunger in her stare. “You Izzy?” he shouted, maneuvering out of the way of more groping hands. It had been a while since he’d ventured out in public without his bodyguard in tow. He’d forgotten how quickly people ditched the concept of personal space and boundaries when a celebrity was concerned. The blonde nodded with such gusto and enthusiasm, Josh’s neck ached on her behalf. “Yes!” she squealed, jiggling about with excitement. If she weren’t careful, she’d fall out of the plunging neckline of her skin-tight top. Inching back a step, he flashed her a broad smile. “You were right. I’m not. Just look like him.” As one, the women all let out disappointed groans, loud enough he could hear them over the thumping hip-hop the DJ was playing. Speaking of DJs, Josh wondered when the guy was going to cue up something decent. He dropped another wink at the devastated women. “Have fun.” Returning to his search for Caitlin, he noted all the predatory inspections directed his way. He wouldn’t be able to use the I-just-look-like-Blackthorne ruse for much longer. Hopefully, he would find his prey and have her out the back in some quiet room before the Chaos Room’s patrons realized who he was. Maybe with his hips pinning her to the wall, his lips traveling over her neck as he held her wrists above her head with one hand and slowly inched the hemline of that Iron Man shirt of hers up her ribcage with the other, seeking breasts he knew would be full and round and glorious in his hands. His cock throbbed, thoroughly okay with that scenario. A few more interruptions of his search, a few more gropey fans and a few more denials of who he was later, he saw her. She was standing by the DJ’s station, arms crossed over her amazing breasts, jaw set, gaze taking in everything around her. “Booyah,” he murmured, echoing his bass player’s exclamation for when things were going exactly as they should. He weaved his way through the crowd, doing his best not to limp, coming at her from the side. He didn’t want to risk scaring her off before he had a chance to make his first move. If he didn’t count showing her up outside with the phone call to her uncle as his first move. It hadn’t exactly been a move, but it had been lots of fun. Drawing to a halt on her right, he lowered his head to hers and brushed his lips against her ears. “Hey.” She let out a yelp, spun to face him and punched something hard up into his solar plexus. “Fuck!” he choked out, staggering back a step. Pain lanced through his body. His breath squeezed from him in a wheezy gasp. Whoa, she’d hit him. “What the hell are you doing?” Incredulous anger shone in her eyes. Visible tension claimed her shoulders. Josh pressed his palm to his chest and gave the point of unexpectedly violent contact a rub. “Trying to get your attention?” Damn, he could hardly breathe. “What did you hit me with? A sledgehammer?” She narrowed her stare at him. “Yeah, I keep a sledgehammer on me at all times in case arrogant rock stars try to hit on me.” He let out a wheezy chuckle, rubbing at his solar plexus again. “Damn, you’re a prickly one, aren’t you? And who says I’m trying to hit on you? Can’t a guy just say hello? Given that he knows your uncle?” Uncertainty flickered over her face. Cautious doubt swam in her eyes. Her eyebrows, straight and dark and oh, so serious, dipped. The tension in her body remained. A tickle of intrigue stirred in Josh’s gut. In all the photos he’d seen of her in her uncle’s LA home, she’d been laughing and smiling. There’d been a cheeky mischief about her. A relaxed playfulness. Where was that Caitlin? She caught her bottom lip with her teeth for a second before frowning deeper. “You weren’t trying to hit on me?” “Actually, I was,” he answered with a smirk, determined to make her laugh. He’d spent more than one extended length of time in the shower thinking of her laughing image in those photos, his hand taking care of the steel in his groin as he did so. “But I was going to do it with charm and subtle grace.”  

The Heart of Fame Series

Love's Rhythm (Heart of Fame, #1) Muscle For Hire (Heart of Fame, #2) Guarded Desires (Heart of Fame, #3) Steady Beat (Heart of Fame, #4) Lead Me On (Heart of Fame, #5) Blame it on the Bass (Heart of Fame, #6) Getting Played (Heart of Fame, #7)

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  About the Author: Lexxie Couper started writing when she was six and hasn’t stopped since. She’s not a deviant, but she does have a deviant’s imagination and a desire to entertain readers with her words. Add the two together and you get erotic romances that can make you laugh, cry, shake with fear or tremble with desire. Sometimes all at once. When she’s not submerged in the worlds she creates, Lexxie’s life revolves around her family, a husband who thinks she’s insane, a indoor cat who likes to stalk shadows, and her daughters, who both utterly captured her heart and changed her life forever. Having no idea how old she really is, Lexxie decided to go with 27 and has been that age for quite some time now. It’s the best of both worlds – old enough to act mature, young enough to be silly. Lexxie lives by two simple rules – measure your success not by how much money you have, but by how often you laugh, and always try everything at least once. As a consequence, she’s laughed her way through many an eyebrow raising adventure.

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