Title: Tainted (Wyatt #1)
Author: Amanda Cowen
Publication date: June 22nd 2018
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
About the Book:
Rhys Wyatt is as arrogant as he is beautiful, and Ivy Bishop has been infatuated with him forever. The night Ivy makes her move, it ends horribly, leaving her utterly heartbroken.
Three years later, Ivy is dating Blaine Wyatt; Rhys’s loving and tender younger brother. With Rhys and their past somewhat out of her mind, everything about her relationship with Blaine seems perfect. But when Blaine leaves Ivy alone all summer; neither of them anticipated Rhys to return, or him and Ivy to be stuck living under the same roof…
Rhys never believed Ivy would be all grown up and everything he’s ever wanted – gorgeous, perfectly alluring, and an infuriatingly tempting beauty he has to keep his hands off of. But the more they try to resist each other, the more intense their urges become, until one night changes everything, and Wyatt brothers will never be the same.
Excerpt
IVY
I pushed open
the front door, tossed my keys onto the entryway table and flicked on a light
switch.
“Where were
you?”
I let out a
shrill scream and whipped around, even though I immediately recognized his
smooth deep voice. Rhys sat on a bench along the opposite wall leaning back,
legs apart and spread, with his muscular arms crossed in front of his chest. My
green eyes locked with his blue ones, but his bare chest had my gaze slowly
creeping below his neckline. My eyes travelled downwards to see tattooed
forearms, a pair of gray sweat pants hanging loosely around his hips, and
finally his bare feet.
I pressed my
palms down on the table behind me to keep from melting to the floor. “What the
hell are you still doing here?” I sputtered.
An amused grin
curled on his lips, but he didn’t budge as if he were inviting me to straddle
his open legs. “Where were you?” he repeated.
“Why are you
sitting here in the dark?” I shot back, even though my voice was shaky.
“Do you always
answer a question with a question?” He stroked the five o’clock shadow grown in
around his lips with his thumb and index finger. He slouched down further
on the bench like he was getting comfy.
“No, not
always.” I said, finally able to gain my composure.
“Come on Ivy,
don’t make me ask you again.” His smug smile made want to whip off one of
Missy’s cowboy boots I was wearing and chuck it at him.
He slowly
uncrossed his arms and pressed his palms flat against the bench beneath him on
either side of long muscular legs. He leaned forward and tilted his head to the
side with a cocky grin. “Your shift must have ended at least three hours ago.”
I just stood
still welling up with irritation. What the hell was he still doing here? He bit
down on his bottom lip and tucked his shoulder length hair behind his ears.
Even though he looked scruffy and older, he still had the same boyish good
looks I remembered falling in love with. His new appearance suited him better
than his once clean-shaven face hidden under a baseball cap.
“It’s none of
your business.” I pulled off my boots in case I really did need them for ammo.
“When my
brother’s girlfriend gets dropped off by Charlie three hours after her shift
ended, I think it’s more than my business. Especially when she stumbles in
wearing the world’s shortest skirt.” Rhys’s gaze trailed up my legs as he rose
to his feet. He was much taller than I remembered, and I had to tilt my chin
upwards to meet his stare.
“I was at an
employee bonfire behind the bunkhouse. I wanted to leave, so Charlie offered to
drive me to the ranch. If I would’ve known you were still here, I would’ve rather
slept in a dumpster than be graced with your presence.” I spun around to
separate myself from his intense stare and headed off in the direction of the
guest bedroom.
Who the hell
did Rhys Wyatt think he was talking to me like that?
Rhys’s hand
closed around my elbow, and my body trembled at his touch. I wasn’t expecting
every tiny hair to stand on edge when his warm fingers melted into my skin but
they did.
“No one knows
I’m back in Moose Creek, and I’d like to keep it that way… for now.” Rhys’s
voice lowered to a murmur. He gently tugged my backside against his hard groin
and whispered in my ear. “Trust me. I don’t want to be here anymore than I want
your little body floating around and bumping into me every which way I turn.
When you walked in on me last night -” He stopped from continuing his sentence
and paused. He let out a warm tense breath and growled against my ear. “This
situation isn’t ideal for either of us. So keep your distance and don’t you
dare tell anyone I’m back.”
I sucked a
sharp breath. It felt like my knees were about to buckle. How could I let my
body react to him like this?
“What are you
hiding from?” I asked through clenched teeth.
Rhys released
my elbow from his death grip. “I’m not hiding.”
I slowly
turned around and watched his smooth muscular back arch as he ran both his
hands through his brown hair. His chest was so defined that I wanted to reach
out and trace my fingers around his prefect pecks. His eyes fell closed and he
let out an angry noise from his throat.
“I’m not
leaving, Ivy. I’m staying in Moose Creek for the summer and I’m living at the
ranch. I’d really appreciate you keeping my presence to yourself right now.
That means not telling Blaine either. I don’t need anyone asking questions,
especially not Blaine.” When his eyes finally opened they softened. Rhys
slowly moved his bare feet across the hardwood floors and I stood frozen in
place, mesmerized by his tight body stalking in my direction. He stopped inches
in front of me and ran a hand through his thick dark hair. “Do you understand?”
he asked.
I nodded.
“Understood.”
“Thank you.”
I stood
speechless for a moment until he lifted his eyes to meet mine. I expected them
to be filled with a proud and pompous smile, but there was something vulnerable
in them that I had never seen in him before. His chest rose up and down and his
lips stayed slightly parted.
“Goodnight Ivy,” he whispered and disappeared
down the hallway.
Purchase:
Will be found here on release day: https://amzn.to/2so4y8m
About the Author:
Amanda Cowen can be found eating cupcakes, singing off-key, or watching a good RomCom when she isn't trapped on her computer writing stories. She is an "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" fanatic, a hater of roller-coasters and a country music junkie. She lives in Thunder Bay, ON where the summers are short and the winters are long.
Amanda would love to hear from her readers. Become a fan on Facebook, follow her on Instagram @authoramandacowen, or follow her on Goodreads.
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