Cul-de-Sac
On the Edge Series
Book One
M.E. Yildirim
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Date of Publication: September 25th 2015
ASIN: B01490125I
Number of pages: 310
Word Count: 131533
Cover Artist: Gözdem Perrichet
Book Description:
Sometimes feelings turn out to be the most lethal of adversaries.
He is known as Xan–an unapologetic king of an underground fighting arena who doesn't step out of the ring until a fight is over and won. Nothing matters to him as much as adding another victory to the tally. But who is Alexander Thorpe, the man behind the fierce stance, and what is he really fighting for? Brutal childhood and the rough reality of living on the streets create the perfect background for a relentless and merciless warrior, but is that really all there is to the man himself? Even winning can lose its appeal if a man doesn't know what is he really fighting for... or with whom?
“Perfect” is the word often used when it comes to Catalina Bennett, “privileged” is another. An entitled upbringing, private schools and extracurricular activities make for a flawless résumé, but they don't paint the whole picture of a person. As a photographer, she chooses to stand behind the camera, which is a perfect way of getting to know the world... without letting the world know her. Fostered by her grandmother after the loss of both parents at the tender age of ten, she is expected to bring nothing but honor to her family's name. Be nothing else than prim and proper, with no space left for her wants or needs.
But nothing can be denied forever.
Two completely different worlds of two individuals collide during an accidental event. But does coincidence really exist or do things happen for a reason? Life is made of seemingly unrelated moments, fragmented memories and betrayals influencing the reality, no matter the class a person is from.
Sooner or later, suppressed emotions and desires demand their due…
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/7cpc-dGHeYI
Available at Amazon
CHAPTER 15
There weren’t
plenty of situations in life when Xan found himself taken aback by people or
circumstances. Surprising him wasn’t easy, and the fact Catalina managed to do
that from their first meeting might have been one of reasons why he wanted to
see her again.
Yet it paled
in comparison to his current bewilderment.
He knew he was
in a less-than-social mood, still pondering the fight from the previous night,
still feeling some pain, and he knew that a logical thing would be to take a
breather before his next fight until he was one hundred percent back to
himself.
But he was
used to people who didn’t really give a rat’s ass about how he felt or what he
thought, trying to get his attention no matter what.
Women had
always flocked to him from an early age without any encouragement on his part.
When they asked him questions, it wasn’t about where he was from and what his
real name was. They wanted to know how many opponents he defeated and the
severity of injuries he caused and suffered himself. They saw him as nothing
more than a fighter.
Apparently
Catalina wasn’t like most of those women.
Xan knew he
deserved to be walked out on; what he didn’t anticipate was that Cat’s cool and
polite exterior could slip so unexpectedly and reveal quite a temper hidden
underneath.
He provoked it
once already but thought it to be one-time performance. Now he started to
believe there was much more to her than he gave her credit for and his interest
spiked.
He tossed a
few bills on the table and ran after her, not deluding himself in believing she
waited for him outside of the restaurant. That would require some dose of
manipulation and Xan didn’t think that was what Catalina was after.
She was pissed
at him and playing the situation in her favor didn’t seem like the approach she
would choose. As far as he knew, she could be already hailing a cab, he
thought, and was relieved to discover she was walking down the street instead.
“Catalina!” He called out and he knew there was no way she hadn’t heard him.
“Catalina!” He called out and he knew there was no way she hadn’t heard him.
Yet she didn’t
turn around, didn’t stop.
If anything,
her pace quickened and his lips quirked at the corners. Oh yeah, she was pissed
alright.
He jogged,
closing the small distance between them to grip her wrist.
“Wait,” he said.
“Wait,” he said.
Catalina’s
cheeks were flushed and she felt heat spreading within where there was nothing
but coolness residing so far. She heard him calling out her name and it only
strengthened her resolve.
Of course he
would use her name now of all times. Typical, she thought.
She felt at a
loss with her own behavior, so at odds with what she knew about herself till
this very point.
Then he
stopped her when she didn’t want to be stopped at all.
She swiveled
on her feet, facing him, feeling more than a little embarrassed for causing a
scene.
“Why?” She asked.
“Why?” She asked.
Cat couldn’t
remember the last time she was so angry, ashamed and frustrated at once. And
probably the only reason no memory was emerging was due to the fact it had
never happened before, she thought.
She didn’t
know what it was about him that kept provoking her inner calm, her very sanity,
and made her act so out of character.
She didn’t
know and really didn’t care at this moment at all because of all emotions
warring inside of her, shame had finally won over, overshadowing every other
sensation.
“I have no idea why you asked me out in the first place. It is painfully obvious we have nothing in common. You couldn’t make yourself clearer about having zero interest in a small talk. So what exactly do you want from me?” She looked at him, all but daring him to ignore and dismiss her yet again.
“I have no idea why you asked me out in the first place. It is painfully obvious we have nothing in common. You couldn’t make yourself clearer about having zero interest in a small talk. So what exactly do you want from me?” She looked at him, all but daring him to ignore and dismiss her yet again.
She regretted
her outburst and words as soon as they left her lips, even though they were
nothing but the truth. Which probably was making it so much worse, she decided,
unveiling her sense of being at an utter loss and disadvantage with him. She
tried to reason out something that was devoid of any logic whatsoever.
She regretted
the words, but was unable to stop them from pouring out of her mouth. And he
just stood there, looking steadily at her with sparks of amusement glinting in
his eyes.
Which of
course didn’t fail to increase her ire and abashment both.
“What do I want?” He looked at her flushed cheeks, sparks of temper in the blue depths of her gaze and the tempting line of her lips.
“What do I want?” He looked at her flushed cheeks, sparks of temper in the blue depths of her gaze and the tempting line of her lips.
He wanted to
absorb her fire, turn it into passion and let it consume them both. But Xan
didn’t think she was ready to hear any of it.
“This,” he said simply and bent his head to tempt her lips until they would go soft and pliant under his.
“This,” he said simply and bent his head to tempt her lips until they would go soft and pliant under his.
She was
expecting some kind of a strong emotion from him; maybe slivers of his anger,
since his temper seemed always at the ready.
But it didn’t
happen.
No, his
reaction when it finally came was nothing she could have anticipated, she
decided.
One moment she
was riding the high of her own agitation and the next his lips were fused to
her own. But he didn’t touch her other than that.
She placed her
hands on his chest, wanting to push him away but the idea was soon forgotten
just like the sense of their surroundings. Her hands fisted in his shirt
instead, the warmth of his body covered by the thin fabric made her feel weak
and utterly feminine for some reason.
She gasped
into his mouth, feeling his hand moving to cup her cheek. The calloused skin of
his fingers connected with her face, the tip of his tongue glided lightly along
her bottom lip.
Before she
could decide how to respond to it, he backed away, peering down at her as if to
assess her reaction.
The problem
was she had no idea what kind of reaction she should give him.
He wanted
this? What kind of an answer was that? She wondered.
A moment
passed, measured by their mingled breaths before she finally realized they were
standing in front of the restaurant.
In the open as
in public.
For everyone
to see them.
Her hands,
still placed on his chest, trembled slightly and she couldn’t decide if she
should push him already or hide her flushed cheeks in his shirt. Not that she
felt he could actually shield her from people and her own embarrassment.
No, he was the
type to flaunt it instead.
About the Author:
M.E. Yildirim is a Public Relations specialist from Poland who is confident Satan himself created math and that the world needs more bookworms to balance the evil out. Her mother is the one who had inculcated in her respect and love for written stories and taught her not to judge a book by its cover. She lives with head full of voices which won't be silenced until she lets them out to live and spin their tales on paper. That's right-their tales, since they seem to have a mind and will of their own.
Walking through life to the beat of her own drum, she has worked in a PR Agency, small companies, a big consortium and even in the Military. But none of it could ever compare to the adventures of creating and building up her characters and stories. M.E. believes that books are for smoothing out everyone's feathers and reminding people all the things they've already forgotten. She is happily married, oftentimes engaging her husband in her writing, with or without his consent. Tenacious as much as the characters she creates, she loves challenges, letting her own creations to take advantage of that fact.
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2 comments:
Thank you for hosting me! :)
A great read through thank you.
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