“The Hardest Play is everything I love about sports romance. A.S. Teague once again masterfully delivers a book full of heart that will surely stay with you long after the last page.”- L.K. Farlow, bestselling author
The Hardest Play, an all-new emotional new-adult standalone from A.S. Teague is available now!
It’s easy to convince the world that you have it all.
I’m Quinn Miller––record breaking running back, professional football’s favorite rags-to-riches story, all-around good guy.
What’s not so easy? Repairing your reputation after mistakes both on and off the field leave you labeled as a disgrace to the league.
With only one team willing to give me a chance, I have no time for a relationship.
But after one night with Georgia Reed, the hopeless romantic with fiery red hair and an attitude to match, I’m hooked.
With Georgia cheering me on, it doesn’t feel like the world is against me anymore.
That is, until her father steps into the locker room as my new head coach.
Finding the woman of my dreams was the easy part; it’s keeping her that will be the hardest play of all.
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Excerpt
“Quinn Miller? Is that really you?”
I turned, and my eyes landed on a face that I hadn’t forgotten. “Georgia Reed.”
Her lips parted in a smile that lit up her entire face, and she jumped from the stool she’d been perched on next to where my sister had been sitting and threw her arms around my shoulders. “I thought I saw you walk in earlier!”
I wrapped my arms around her waist and gave a quick squeeze before pulling back and looking her up and down.
I’d met Georgia last year at my best friend, Aiden’s, Christmas party. Her brother was a famous orthopedic surgeon who’d saved Aiden’s knee after a devastating hit. The two of them had forged a friendship, and Dr. Hampton Reed had brought his sister along when he’d been invited to the famous Shaw Christmas Party.
I’d seen her from across the room that night, unable to miss the gorgeous auburn hair that she’d let flow down her back. I’d walked over to introduce myself, but her green eyes had sparkled when she informed me that she already knew exactly who I was.
I wasn’t sure what I’d said after that, probably something ridiculous and cheesy, but we’d spent the rest of the evening chatting.
“How ya been?” I asked.
She stuck the straw that was floating in a pink drink between her pink lips and lifted a shoulder. After a quick sip of a fruity cocktail she said, “Same old. What about you? I heard you’d been traded and was hoping I’d run in to you sometime.”
I’d completely forgotten that the Reeds lived in Atlanta, where my new team was, but suddenly, that shitty trade that I was forced to accept didn’t seem so bad after all.
“Hey.” I glanced over to where my sister was eyeing us, her lips pressed together to conceal what had to have been the biggest shit-eating grin ever and squinted at her before turning and looking back to where Georgia was still sipping her drink. “You know, I don’t know much about this town. You’re a local, right?”
“That I am. Born and bred in the great state of Georgia. You know, my parents, they probably could have been a little more original when they named me.”
“Any chance you’re free this weekend to play tour guide?” I asked, hoping that I sounded fun and flirty and not like the pathetic loser that I felt like.
Jamie choked on a laugh and tried to cover it with a cough. I swung my head in her direction just as she covered her mouth and quickly looked away from my death glare. God, my kid sister was an asshole.
I felt fingertips on my bicep, forgetting my stupid sister immediately when I glanced down to see the perfectly manicured yellow fingernails that were resting on my arm. “Let me make sure I am clear on what you’re askin’.” Georgia’s eyes were gleaming, and she stepped closer to me. “Now, am I going to show you the popular clubs and bars, the parks to take your dog, and the restaurants that cater to locals, and then you’ll thank me and we’ll go about our ways? Or is this tour going to consist of me taking you back to my place, and before I know it, your lips are on my neck and my dress is around my waist?”
My mouth fell open and I sputtered. “I, uh, I, what?”
“Well, you know at Aiden’s Christmas party, after you kissed me––”
“Woah!” I stepped back, her arm falling to her side. “What are you talking about?”
Her head shook back and forth. “I’m not sure if I should be insulted or not that you are this clueless. We had a drink outside around the fire pit, and then you leaned in and kissed me, remember?”
“That is not at all what happened!” I fired back incredulously. I’d had a couple of beers that night, but I never let myself get so drunk that I would completely forget kissing the gorgeous woman standing before me.
She frowned, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from watching the way she worked it. No, I would most definitely remember if my lips had tasted hers. “It’s not? Are you sure?”
My eyes bugged out of my head. “I’m pretty sure we didn’t kiss. Think I would have remembered that.”
“Oh.” She frowned. “Maybe that’s just what I hoped would happen.”
About A.S. Teague
A.S. Teague enjoys the warmth of South Carolina with her husband and two daughters. The stereotypes about peach cobbler and sweet tea are not overstated. After years in the medical field, she is now enjoying every minute of being a stay-at-home mom. She loves wine, the beach, wine on the beach, and crying at Disney movies. When she doesn’t have a book in her hand, she can be found pestering her husband with pictures of animals she wants to rescue, as well as debating whether to exercise or take a nap.
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Review
Quinn is a professional football player who finds himself struggling both personally and professionally. He has overcome his past and is a caring brother who would do anything for his sister. There is no doubting his athletic talent however the distractions of his personal life have affected his professional life at times which is how he finds himself traded to a new team looking for a fresh start.
Georgie and Quinn had met previously through friends but when fate brings them together the chemistry and connection between them is stronger than ever. She is a vibrant force of nature who always sees the good not only in others but also in life and when she loves she loves deeply.
Quinn is used to facing obstacles in his life but between finding out that Georgie’s father is the new coach who doesn’t approve of him and the complications of his personal life he isn’t sure where to turn. He is a private man who doesn’t let many people close, but Georgie is not about to let him push her away and is determined to show him that they are so much stronger together than apart.
The characters are compelling, the banter is humorous, but it is the relationships not only between Georgie and Quinn but with their family and friends that stand out.
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