Named Best Book of the Month by Amazon and iBooks
READY TO RUN
I Do, I Don't #1
Lauren Layne
Releasing Aug 22, 2017
Loveswept
The Bachelor meets The Runaway Bride in this addictive romance novel about a reality TV producer falling for her would-be star: a Montana heartthrob who wants nothing to do with the show.
Jordan Carpenter thinks she’s finally found the perfect candidate for Jilted, a new dating show about runaway grooms: Luke Elliott, a playboy firefighter who’s left not one but three brides at the altar. The only problem? Luke refuses to answer Jordan’s emails or return her calls. Which is how she ends up on a flight to Montana to recruit him in person. It’s not Manhattan but at least the locals in Lucky Hollow seem friendly . . . except for Luke, who’s more intense—and way hotter—than the slick womanizer Jordan expected.
Eager to put the past behind him, Luke has zero intention of following this gorgeous, fast-talking city girl back to New York. But before he can send her packing, Jordan’s everywhere: at his favorite bar, the county fair, even his exes’ book club. Annoyingly, everyone in Lucky Hollow seems to like her—and deep down, she’s starting to grow on him too. But the more he fights her constant pestering, the more Luke finds himself wishing that Jordan would kick off her high heels and make herself comfortable in his arms.
I always look forward to anything written by Lauren Layne. And who doesn't love a story starring a sexy firefighter? READY TO RUN is a complex story that has a lot of fun moments, but also some emotional moments that may push some buttons.
The story starts off with Jordan Carpenter coming to Montana to get the sexy firefighter Luke Elliott to appear on a reality show called Jilted where a runaway groom meets The Bachelor. Now when I first started reading the story, I had a hard time getting into it. Jordan was working for a producer from NYC and she came off as pushy to me. Reality television can be entertaining, but too many shows bring out the worst in people and some are just mean spirited. Jordan wouldn't take no for an answer after calling and e-mailing Luke. When she came to town, he didn't want anything to do with her, but his friends kept egging him on. Neither character really called to me at first. She was pushy and he was grumpy and mean.
At first.
Then the layers were added and the story started to grab me. There was a lot of fun with Jordan's friend Simon. Then the town and Luke's friends welcomed Jordan as they got to know her. Jordan and Luke started to sizzle. He couldn't avoid her anywhere in town because of his friends. Then the two started talking to each other. Secrets became uncovered slowly as they began to know each other. Luke had been holding back from life the last three years after his last broken engagement, but Jordan started breaking thru the walls he built around himself. Walls even his friends couldn't reach.
The road to their HEA was a roller coaster. When they clicked, it was fun and so was their banter. But life is full of mistakes and misunderstandings which makes Jordan and Luke so human. Luke may have been a grumpy old bear, but he was loyal to his friends and kept their confidences, even when it was hardest on him. I enjoyed seeing the changes in both characters as they figured things out about what's really important in life. The cover for the READY TO RUN may look lighthearted and fluffy, but there is also a lot of depth of character between the first chapter until the last page. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the I DO, I DON'T series.
Luke
started to load up the gear and, realizing he was doing it alone,
glanced over his shoulder to see where the hell his partner was.
Unsurprisingly,
his friend was chatting up City Girl. Neither Charlie nor Ryan seemed
to mind in the least that these two fancy pants had swooped into
their town to capitalize on Luke’s past.
What
was more surprising was that Jordan Carpenter was chatting right
back, her smile seemingly genuine, her laugh real.
Luke
ground his teeth.
He
couldn’t say he’d put much thought into the woman behind the name
as he’d been unceremoniously deleting her emails and voice
messages, but if forced to assume, he’d have guessed aggressive
shrew.
He
suspected he was wrong there. Because while there was no mistaking
the ambition in the woman, it wasn’t the cutthroat, ball-busting
kind.
Her
lean body might be all angles and long lines, but there was a
softness to her as well. The way her hair did its own thing. The
easiness of her smile, the quick laugh. The small but pert breasts.
Damn.
He was staring.
He
slammed the door shut. “Bander,”
he shouted at Charlie across the lawn. “Let’s clear out.”
Charlie
leaned into Jordan, whispering something in her ear that made her
laugh, before walking away with a last wink.
Luke
rolled his eyes. Really? This was happening?
“Hey,
Elliott,” Ryan called. “You want to come over for a barbecue
tonight?”
Luke
crossed his arms and studied his friend suspiciously, waiting for the
catch. “Who’s on the guest list?”
He
saw Jordan and her purple-shirt friend exchange a look. Well, that
answered that question.
Damn.
Ryan never had been able to resist the urge to stir up trouble.
“It’s
no problem if you don’t want to join us,” Jordan called out,
lifting her hand to shield the afternoon sun from her eyes. “I’m
sure your friends here can fill me in on everything there is to know
about Luke Elliott.”
All
about Luke Elliott’s romantic history was more like it. City Girl
wasn’t even pretending to be coy about the reason she was here.
All
former positive thoughts about her evaporated. Only the worst sort of
human would use another’s failed relationships to advance her own
career—for entertainment.
Luke
turned away without another word, hauling himself into the driver’s
seat of the truck as he waited impatiently for Charlie to get done
shouting goodbye to every single person within earshot.
He
drummed his thumbs against the steering wheel, refusing to even think
about going to the BBQ tonight. If his friends wanted to stir up
trouble, they could do so without his cooperation.
As
for the two New Yorkers, they’d flame out all on their own. Weren’t
East Coasters known for being impatient and fast moving?
Surely
they’d be off to find some other glory-seeking asshole if he
ignored them. One of the other guys could play the role for all he
cared.
As
Charlie hauled his ass up, Luke started the truck, his eye catching
on Jordan Carpenter, who was watching him with a stubborn, determined
look on her pretty face.
Damn
it. She’d stir up all sorts of trouble unless he ran interference.
Luke
pulled out his phone to text Ryan.
I’ll
be there. Have beer.
Charlie
leaned over, unabashedly reading Luke’s
iPhone screen. “Ha.
Knew it.”
“What?”
Luke glared at his friend.
Charlie
grinned wider, gesturing over his shoulder. “You’ve got a boner
for the hot blonde.”
“Are
you kidding me with this? She wants me to be the next bachelor.”
How
were Ryan and Charlie not getting the absurdity of this?
Charlie
shrugged. “So? Maybe it’d be good for you.”
Luke
stared at his friend for a moment longer before putting the truck in
drive. “The only thing that would be good for me is to push you out
of this truck.”
Charlie
was waving goodbye to Jordan and Simon. “See you tonight!”
Luke
ground his teeth harder. He was already dreading the BBQ, but not
going would only make matters worse. Clearly he needed to have a very
blunt conversation with Jordan Carpenter.
NOW AVAILABLE!
Lauren
Layne is the New York Times bestselling author of romantic comedies.
She lives in New York City with her husband.
A former
e-commerce and web marketing manager from Seattle, Lauren relocated to New York
City in 2011 to pursue a full-time writing career. She signed with her agent in
2012, and her first book was published in summer of 2013. Since then, she's
written over two dozen books, hitting the USA TODAY, New York
Times, iBooks, and Amazon bestseller lists.
I'm glad you liked this one! Nice review!
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