Title: Knockout
Series: Whiskey Dolls
Author: Jessica Prince
Contemporary Romance; Small Town Romance
It wasnât fair that the man I hated with a passion was so freaking gorgeous.
Things in Layla Foxâs life were going great. She had a fantastic job, amazing friends, and a killer apartment. There was just one tiny glitch in all that perfect. Her upstairs neighbor was the very definition of tall, dark, and handsome . . . and she hated the man with every cell in her body.
Jude Kingsley was the most arrogant jerk sheâd ever met, making the fact that she was attracted to him more than a little inconvenient.
When the two of them are forced together by Judeâs meddling grandmother, the bitter rivalry between the two feuding neighbors suddenly turns into something very different. And a raw, intense chemistry like theirs is bound to explode if they arenât careful.
**Whiskey Dolls is a series of interconnected, standalone, small town romances.**
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The doors of the elevator slid open and the good mood Iâd been in all day evaporated like a single drop of water falling onto desert sand.
âOf freaking course,â I grumbled sullenly as Jude Kingsley stepped into the elevator.
He returned my glare before stopping beside me and turned to face the front. âAnd Iâd been having such a good day up to this point,â he muttered bitterly.
I let out a snort and fluttered my eyelashes. âWhat, did you pop a little kidâs balloon? Maybe cut in front of a pregnant lady in line at the coffee shop?â I snapped my fingers. âOh, I know! You kicked a poor, innocent puppy on the sidewalk. Thatâs what had you so chipper, isnât it?â
He gave me a smirk, and damn it, why did it have to look so good on him? The son of a bitch.
âI woke up happy,â he stated, and it would have been a lie if I claimed I didnât find that admission somewhat intriguing.
Turning to face me, he took a step toward me, closing some of the distance between us. The move was unexpected, and my heartrate spiked at his closeness. The small elevator car suddenly felt even tinier, like the walls were closing in. The air was filled with his scent. Something like cedar and sun mixed with a spicy musk that reminded me of the outdoors. My chest stuttered on a choppy inhale when I tilted my head back to look up at him. In all the months weâd been enemies, this had to be the first time weâd been so close to each other.
With hardly any space between us, I was able to see that those midnight blue eyes of his also held flecks of golden honey. He blinked slowly as he stared down at me, those long, sooty lashes lying across his sharp cheekbones before he opened them again.
âI had the best dream last night.â He stopped, waiting for me to ask what he dreamed about, like he knew that statement and his proximity had left me way off-kilter, my curiosity piqued.
Stupid intuitive jerk.
Unable to help myself, I arched a questioning brow. âOh?â
His voice dropped lower, taking on an almost velvety soft quality. âYeah. You were in it, princess.â
My skin felt tingly, my mouth was Sahara dry. I didnât feel like myself all of a sudden. It was almost as if heâd cast a spell, and I was just along for the ride, unableâor maybe unwilling at that pointâto take control back. It was those eyes, man. Those freaking dark, alluring, sexy bedroom eyes. There wasnât a woman in the world whoâd be able to resist their power up close. Not even me.
I tried to swallow past the cotton taking up residence in my throat and croaked, âWhatâwhat was your dream about?â
He started speaking in a tone that could only be described as intoxicating. âWell, you see, it was a beautiful, sunny day, and we were standing on the sidewalk outside the building. You were in these jeans that made your ass look incredible.â His tongue peeked out and swiped across his plump bottom lip. âI couldnât stop staring. Then . . . â
I was straight up enraptured at that moment.
Oh my God. What is happening right now? âThen what?â
âThen . . . you stepped off the curb and got hit by a bus.â It was like a bucket of ice water being dumped over my head. Whatever voodoo he was working broke right then, and I remembered instantly that I wanted this man to die by a thousand papercutsâpreferable by my hand.
Layla has fought for everything that she has achieved in her life which has only made her stronger and more resilient. She is a good friend who cares deeply for those she is close to those she cares about but she has also learnt not to back down from anyone or anything and that includes her annoying neighbor.
When it came to Layla Jude tended to act first and think second as she infuriates him like no other and he is more than happy to return the favor. It is only when they see who the other truly is that they realize they make much better lovers than adversaries as they give each other what they need most.
From their first meeting the sparks of animosity fly between Layla and Jude but there is so much more going on. I enjoyed seeing them open their hearts and finally realize what had been in front of them all along which was a love that both of them deserved.
Meet the Whiskey Dolls
a series of interconnected, standalone, small town romances
Read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited
Amazon US | Amazon Worldwide
Born and raised around Houston Texas, Jessica spent most of her life complaining about the heat, humidity, and all around pain in the ass weather. It was only as an adult that she quickly realized the cost of living in Houston made up for not being able to breathe when she stepped outside. Thatâs why God created central air, after all.
Jessica is the mother of a perfect little boyâshe refuses to accept that he inherited her attitude and sarcastic nature no matter what her husband says.
In addition to being a wife and mom, sheâs also a wino, a coffee addict, and an avid lover of all types of booksâromances still being her all time favs. Her husband likes to claim that reading is her obsession but she just says itâs a passionâŠthereâs a difference. Not that sheâd expect a boy to understand.
Jessica has been writing since she was a little girl, but thankfully grew out of drawing her own pictures for her stories before ever publishing her first book. Because an artist she is not.
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