Let Love Shine (10 page)

There are so many people who have been an integral part of
helping me get this series off and running. My family and friends, the indie
author community, countless blogs and promoters, but there would be no point to
writing these stories if I didn’t have the most amazing readers out there. With
that in mind, I’m dedicating this book to you – my fans. You have been so
amazingly supportive reaching out to me with messages and leaving reviews. I am
in awe of your love for Maddy and Reid and all of my other characters. You
bring these characters to life and I am more thankful than I can express for
wanting more of them.

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Turn the page for 7 bonus scenes from Let Love In and Let
Love Stay

Alternate POV from Let Love In

“Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen.”

I heft the one-hundred-and-seventy-five-pound weight above
my head for one last bench press.  My chest burns and I’m going to be fucking
sore tomorrow, but I don’t mind the after effects. Jake, my spotter and gym
buddy, helps me place the bar in its holder and I slide from under it and off
the bench.

“Thanks, man,” I say to him as I wipe the sweat from my face
with a small towel. “I think I’m done for the night.” My words are winded from
the exertion.

“Yeah, I’m good too.” Jake rubs his biceps, which have to be
sore after two hours of arm and upper body workouts.

As we clean up our workout area and head over to the locker
room, Jake asks, “So what are your plans tonight? Got anything going on?” He
swipes his towel over his short-cropped brown hair.

Twisting the dial on the combination lock on my locker, I
say, “There’s a party at the house, again. So I’ll probably find
something
to do.” I think the smirk on my face conveys exactly what I mean.

“And by
something
you mean
someone
, right?” Jake
laughs and punches me in the arm.

Jake and I have been friends since freshman year and we go
to the gym pretty regularly. He usually makes an appearance at my parties and
he also finds
something
, and yes by that, I mean
someone,
to
occupy his time, but his most recent hook-up turned into a pretty steady thing.
 

“Oh, cut the shit. You were all about the newest
someone
until
Jocelyn came along. Now you’re all wifed-up. So if anything,
I
should be
giving
you
shit!” I push him knocking him slightly off balance and he
almost falls off the bench that runs between the two rows of lockers.

Recovering his balance and pulling his hoodie out from his
locker, he turns to me. “Whatever, man.  At least I know I’ll be getting some
tonight and I don’t have to waste my energy playing some chick just so I can
get laid!” he scoffs as he slides his gym bag over his shoulder.

I get the last of my things out of my locker and pull my bag
across my chest. Jake’s words echo in my thoughts. I’ll never admit it to him
aloud, but he’s partially right. Three years of playing the game—being all
douchey and aloof, being in permanent “I don’t care” mode—is exhausting. I’m
still shocked that so many girls are attracted to it.

Can someone say Daddy issues?

As Jake and I walk across the quad to the parking lot, he
continues his ribbing. “Seriously, dude. You can fuck around with me all you
want about being with Jocelyn, but at least I know who I’m waking up with.”

I roll my eyes and slap him on his back. “That is where
you’re wrong, my friend. I know exactly who I’ll be waking up with.” He eyes me
suspiciously like I’ve just confessed a huge secret. “Chill the fuck out. I
just meant that I’ll be waking up alone. You know I never let the ‘One
Nighters’ stay over.” How could he forget my number one rule!

He shakes his head in disgust. “Whatever. Maybe I’ll catch
you later.”

“Sure thing.” We do the whole fist-bump-and-slap-on-the-back
dude handshake thing and he stalks off to his car.

Never in a million years did I ever envision Jake being the
one to give me relationship advice, or whatever the hell that just was. Jake
was an even bigger player than me in his prime. Then Jocelyn came into his life
and it was like a complete turnaround. In all of my disillusioned wisdom, the
only reason I can muster up is that she must be fucking amazing in bed.

As I approach my car, I see someone leaning up against it. It’s
Jessa. Thoughts of Jake and his pussy-whipped mentality vanish immediately. The
only thing I can think of in this moment is Jessa bent over the side of my bed
as I drill into her from behind. That’s how we spent last weekend, anyway.

Even though I can’t stand her, I can’t deny that she looks
fucking smoking hot. She’s a pain in the ass, clingy as fuck and all that, but
she’s a good lay.  As I get closer to her, I take in her long, skinny legs,
which are barely covered in the too-short-to-be-worn-in-public mini skirt. The
skirt, along with her extremely miniscule top, makes her look more like a
prostitute than a college student. She must be on the prowl.

“Hey sexy,” she purrs as I approach her. Sometimes I just
wish she would cut the shit and just get to the point.

I nod my head curtly in her direction. “Hey yourself. What
are you doing here?” She’s clingy and I hate it, but I tone down my words. I
could use a good lay.  

She moves away from the car and straightens her skirt. Even
straightened, it still doesn’t cover much.

Probably won’t even have to take it off. Slide that right
up over her ass, move the thong to the side, fuck her and send her on her way. Won’t
even have to wait for her to get dressed again.

My dick throbs at the thought.

“I was hoping we could get together later.” She’s trying to
be coy. Like her fucking outfit and body language aren’t already screaming “I
want to fuck!”.

“Sure. Whatever. Stop by the house later. There’s a party.” She
leans into me seductively, like my words were just some kind of magical
foreplay or something like that. See what I mean, be a dick and they come
flocking.

She runs her hands over my chest and reaches up on her toes.
Pressing her lips against my neck, she whispers, “You got it, babe. I’ll see
you for more of this,” she traces her tongue along my neck and nibbles on my
earlobe indicating what she means by
this
, “later.”

She struts off in front of me purposefully swaying her ass
and hips. I have to laugh at her over-the-top behavior. If she only knew that I
don’t really care how the hell she acts, as long as she spreads her legs, which
she never seems to have a problem doing, then I’m fine.

It’s a shame none of these girls realize that sex is all I’m
after with them. No one is getting close
ever
. That’s how it’s been for
the last four years, and as long as I have any control over it, that’s how it
will remain for the foreseeable future.  

When I pull up to the house ten minutes later, the party is
already in full swing. Either these things are starting earlier or I’m staying
at the gym later. I park my car far enough from the chaos that is our driveway.
I don’t want anyone to fuck up my car.

Walking through the living room and into the kitchen, I
don’t see Jack anywhere. He must be out back. I think I remember him saying
something about Cammie and her new roommates coming over tonight. I’m going to
have to avoid them at all costs. Clingy freshmen who make it their life’s
mission to get to know everything about everyone they meet is the most fucking
annoying thing ever. I like not knowing anything about anyone. I’m even happier
to know that no one knows anything about me.  

As I walk into the kitchen, I notice a few guys from Jack’s
PT program doing shots along the counter and I nod a “hey” in their direction. They
don’t hold my attention for long, though. As my gaze falls to the ass that’s bopping
up and down from behind the refrigerator door, the rest of the room fades away.

That’s one seriously fine ass
.
Now, I’ve got my
back-up if things fall through with Jessa tonight.

I slide in behind her and notice that her tight ass is
attached to tiny waist. Her legs are to die for and I can’t help but think
about them wrapped around my hips or up around my ears—either will work for me.

When she turns around and crashes into my chest, the scent
of her hair invades my nose and scatters my brain. Light and citrusy, she
literally smells like a breath of fresh air. I just shake it off. I mean what
guy doesn’t love the smell of a gorgeous woman.

Hmmm, I wonder what the rest of her smells like.

“Hand me one?” My voice catches a little in my throat as I try
to take in her face. She’s fucking beautiful. Bright green eyes, a perfect
little nose, but what’s most disarming is the look of shock as I catch her
off-guard. If I’m not mistaken, she might have actually blushed when I spoke. Do
girls actually blush? Most of the girls I’ve known aren’t embarrassed by much of
anything—blushing and embarrassment aren’t part of their behavior.

“Here you go.” Her voice is soft and sweet. It quivers with
uncertainty and it does some serious damage to my game. Not knowing exactly how
to react to this sweet creature in front of me, I chug down my bottle of water
to avoid having to say anything. I swipe my arm across my mouth to wipe away
the water that’s dripping down my chin.

It’s water. Not drool.

Her eyes rake ravenously over my body. She likes what she
sees, most of them do.

“Thanks…” My sentence ends abruptly. I don’t know her name. Waiting
for her to fill in the blank, I eye her up and down. She’s beautiful, perfect
really. I quirk my eyebrow up at her prompting her to tell me her name.

She finally catches onto my unasked question. “Maddy. Sorry,
my name is Maddy.” I can’t suppress the lopsided grin which curls up the corner
of my lips. Her voice is so shaky and unsure. It’s been so long since a girl
has been caught off-guard with me, since someone has been real around me, that
I almost don’t know what to do with it.

She continues talking to me and I have a hard time focusing
on her words. All I see are her soft, full lips moving quickly, trying to
explain her presence. “My suite mate, Cammie, is dating one of the guys who
live here,” she says.

Hmmm. So maybe hanging around with Jack and Cammie tonight
might actually pay off.

I realize I still haven’t said anything to her earlier
statement. I’m still lost in the thought of what her lips taste like, what her
creamy skin would look like if I could make her blush all over.

“I’m not that much of a drinker so I hope you don’t mind if
I steal one of these from you?” She’s so freaking adorable. Wait. Did I just
think that a girl was adorable? What the fuck?

Returning to my standard dickishness, I say, “Help yourself.
It’s just water. I’m going to go grab a shower. Maybe I’ll see you later,
Maddy.” Effectively putting an end to the conversation, I walk away from her
and head upstairs to my room. She might be downstairs, but thoughts of her
sweet mouth will definitely be accompanying me as I shower.

When I come back downstairs a while later—the shower took a
little longer than planned—I see her moving and swaying on the dance floor. Our
eyes meet and I’m mesmerized by her body flowing in rhythm to the music. The
girl can move. In that moment, I need to feel her body up against mine. I need
to know if the real thing lives up to the fantasy I just created in the shower.

Slinking up behind her, I glide my hands over her waist and
pull her close to me. Leaning into her hair, I inhale deeply. I can’t deny it. I
want her.

Leaning in so my lips are no more than a centimeter away
from her ear, I say, “I think you owe me a dance.”

She turns around sharply, caught off guard by my flirting. “Owe
you? For what?” There’s so much innocence in her voice that I’m thrown a bit. “For
the water of course,” I say sweetly.

I register the shock and apology that spreads across her
beautiful face, “Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize…” I have to laugh. Does she
really think I’m pissed about a bottle of water?  My God, how fucking cute is
that? Okay, something is definitely wrong with me tonight. I’ve just thought of
the words “cute” and “adorable” to describe a girl. I need to walk away now
before I’m completely and totally knocked off my game.

I want to walk away, but I can’t. I’m drawn to her and this
playful banter is kind of fun. I laugh at both her embarrassment and my
extremely abnormal behavior.

She looks wounded as I laugh. Before I can even get the
words together to explain myself, she places her hands on my chest and leans up
on her toes. Close to my ear, so close in fact that chills course through my
body, she pitches her voice low and says, “I could pay you back with more than
a dance, Reid.”