Congratulations to V.J. Allison on her latest release!

Blurb:

You can run from your past, but it will catch up to you eventually.

Alexis has that special something about her that Seth can’t fathom. His friend Mirabelle’s new employee is even prettier than the merchandise she sells. Too bad she’s distantly polite when he tries talking to her.

Alexis is attracted to Seth, but she’s in hiding from her past and her mistakes. Getting involved with the one person she's attracted to could blow her cover.

When they’re forced to work together, their libidos ignite. Alexis is terrified to open up and give in to her feelings for Seth. If he remembers that night five years ago, he’ll never speak to her again.

It becomes a question of whether Seth will expose her and force her to keep running, or if he'll help her face her past.

Excerpt:

Later that morning, he and Blaine arrived at the store early. Like Thursday, Alexis was sitting on a stool behind the counter with her drawing pad in front of her and a pencil in her hand. She glanced up with a smile and a nod in greeting and turned back to her work. Blaine went toward the back again, and Seth made sure he stayed away from the front part of the store.

Seth let his gaze wander over Alexis while he waited. Yesterday’s lavender blouse had looked amazing on her, but that soft blue t-shirt really caught his eye. One eyebrow went upwards in masculine appreciation as his gaze followed the line of her small breasts. The sudden twitch of admiration from other, sexual parts of his body came as a surprise. Hey! She’s not my type, don’t go there! Focus on your work, dumbass. Jesus.

Seth moved toward the side of the store that was cleared to let the men work as a way to keep his mind focused on his job. They were creating the archway halfway toward the back, on the opposite side from the checkout counter. It looks great. I didn’t realize they were clearing out the area while we were busy in the other part yesterday. Good. He examined the wall to be sure they had the correct measurements. Mirrie wants at least a foot between the top of the arch and the ceiling. We can do it. His gaze followed the lay of the ceiling, looking for any uneven areas. This old place was built in the 1950s, but it’s good and sturdy. I don’t see any flaws we have to watch out for. He reached into his pocket for the stud finder, and with an inward sigh, he realized Blaine had it. So much for getting that out of the way. He dug his drawing pad out of a pocket on his carpentry apron, so he could work on the trim design while he waited.

A whiff of the same flowery scent he remembered from Thursday hit his nostrils. He wasn’t expecting to talk to Alexis much that day due to the noise. Plus, he was expecting her to be busy with customers most of the day. “Morning, Alexis,” he said without looking up from his pad.

“Hi. I thought you two had the measurements for here already,” she replied.

He spared her a glance and shrugged. “We do, but Mirrie asked me if I could design some trim for the arch. I wanted to get a better look at it from this side. That way, I know what would look great and get a feel to make it look good for all parts of the store.” He peered at the wall for a moment, made an adjustment in the drawing and stared at the wall again. Something was missing. What was it?

Alexis was quiet, and he could feel her watching him. “May I take a peek? I know what she has in mind. If you get it right the first time, it’ll be less work for you.”

“I’m not done yet,” he replied and moved a foot away from her.

“Come on, don’t be chicken. I promise I won’t laugh.” There was a coaxing note in her soft voice. It sounded like honey to Seth’s ears.

Damn, I love her voice when she talks like that. But I can’t give in, not after the way she acted on Thursday. She wants to look? Fine with me. Game on, girl! He snapped the pad shut and grinned evilly and dangled the notepad above his head. “Come and get it.” He batted his eyelashes at her and backed up a step.

Her eyes narrowed, and there was a challenge in her dark irises. “Don’t even try it,” she muttered and tried to reach it.

He wanted to tease her a bit, to see if he could get her to open up more and to show her that messing with him wasn’t a great idea. He backed up a couple more steps toward the main door and dangled it in front of his face. “You’re not seeing it until I see what you were doing yesterday.” He added a taunting note to emphasize his point.

She smirked. “Don’t start something with me, Mitchell, because you won’t win.”

They stared at each other for several heartbeats, two opponents locked in mock combat. Alexis sprung at him again.

Seth barely had time to evade it. Her slim, firm body collided with his, and the image of the girl in his dream hit him, which made him a little woozy. She’s not the dream girl. Alexis is real. Focus on teasing her! The vision disappeared, and with it, the dizziness. He backed up another step and felt the door behind his back. “Come and get it,” he sneered jokingly and held it at arm’s length as he physically prepared for another dive.

She smiled slyly a split second before she jumped at it. He yanked it out of her reach with a snicker.

“Prick.” Behind the lenses of her glasses, her eyes twinkled with merriment.

“Be nice, or you won’t see it at all,” he said with a tone of mirth.

With a roll of her eyes, she shrugged, folded her arms across her chest, and turned away. “If that’s the way you’re going to be, fine. I can wait until it’s done.” She stuck her nose in the air and marched primly back to the counter.

Seth chuckled because he knew he had won that round.

“Show me yours, and I’ll show you mine.” She giggled and held up her closed notepad.

He sighed and grimaced. He was as curious about her drawing as she was of his, and he knew if he made a dive for her pad, she’d really let him have it.

They stared at each other across three feet of crowded space. She was grinning devilishly, her cheeks were flushed, and there was suppressed laughter in her stance, which made her more endearing. He tried to keep his mirth in check, but it was a losing battle. He could feel it in his chest, rising in his throat, about to explode.

At the same moment, their mutual amusement broke free in a joint round of laughter. Seth leaned back against the door and held his stomach as Alexis used the counter for support.

Her laugh was high-pitched, and it sounded sweet to his ears. “Stalemate?” she gasped after a minute between giggles.

“Stalemate,” he agreed with a snicker.

They exchanged a playful grin, and she flopped down on the stool behind the counter.

A moment later, Mirabelle and Blaine started walking toward the front of the store.

“See you two later,” Seth called on his way out with a wave, following the bear-like Blaine.

“Yeah, later, Seth.” Alexis still had a giggle in her voice.

Damn, what a great way to start off a day.

He exited, and with a mental snicker, he started wondering how much he could tease her before she really let him have it.

Buy Link:

https://www.extasybooks.com/v-j-allison/978-1-4874-2823-5-under-your-scars/