Defending Hayden (Second Chances #7)(72)
She loves to write, but she also loves to play tennis and go on mountain hikes and white-water rafting, and she has a passion for singing. Her two youngest fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime, usually Christmas carols.
Dover has written more than twenty novels, including the Forever Fae series, the Second Chances series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed & Dangerous series, the Royal Shifters series, and her stand-alone novel, Love, Lies, and Deception. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense, but if she got to choose a setting in which to live, it would be with her faeries in the Land of the Fae.
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The Editor’s Corner
Looking for your next book boyfriend? I think I can help you out—check out these wonderful stories from Loveswept: Something brand-new from Loveswept debut author Lynda Aicher, The Harder He Falls. Author Ellie Cahill releases a sexy, witty new adult story called Just a Girl. The first in the Bayard Hockey series comes from Kelly Jamieson, with Shut Out. New York Times bestselling author Missy Johnson steams it up with The Proposition. The third story in Cassie Mae’s LOL All About Love romantic comedy series holds true to its name, Crazy About Love. Readers will fall fast and hard and clamor for the next in Tina Wainscott’s Florida-set Falling Fast series with Falling Free. Sharon Cullen’s Highland Pride series continues with MacLean’s Passion, as Scotland’s most reckless smuggler meets his match in a beautiful spitfire who arouses a renewed sense of duty, camaraderie, and passion in him. New York Times bestselling author L. P. Dover sets hearts on fire in Defending Hayden, where a damaged football star teams up with the only woman who can take away the pain. More from Lavinia Kent’s Bound and Determined series comes in the form of Angel in Scarlet. And I hope you’ll agree that there are never too many men in kilts: Ladies, meet the Wild Highland Guardians, new from Violetta Rand in Her Highland Rogue.
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Until next month ~Happy Romance!
Gina Wachtel
Associate Publisher
Read on for an excerpt from
Intended for Bristol
A Second Chances Novel
by L. P. Dover
Available from Loveswept
Chapter 1
Jaxon
“This is f*cked up,” Derek grumbled, sounding just as discouraged as we all felt.
“No shit,” I replied, adding my two cents.
We’d just gotten the news that our star quarterback, Cooper Davis, wasn’t going to be returning. During our game a couple weeks ago, he was sacked by a Denver cocksucker who felt the need to go at him full force, resulting in a broken tibia when he rammed into Cooper’s legs. A fight ensued on the field, and it turned into a huge clusterf*ck. If I’d been out on the field, I would’ve beaten the shit out of that bastard.
Unfortunately, no amount of fighting was going to help Cooper. After he fell to the ground, we all knew it was over for him. A hushed silence fell over the crowd because not only did we lose one of our most valuable players, our chance of getting to the Super Bowl again in a few months would be out of reach. Our season of undefeated wins had come to a close. Samson Allen, our backup quarterback, just wasn’t good enough to get us there. It f*cking sucked. I wished I could take the task myself, but I wasn’t a quarterback…I was a kicker. The best goddamn one in the league.
Joel Harris, our coach and Cooper’s uncle, stood by the locker room door, his expression glum. He was a middle-aged man with more gray in his dark hair than ever. I guess that was what dealing with us football players did to him. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily before lifting his gaze to ours. We all knew what he was about to say, especially after we’d just had our asses handed to us by New Orleans, a team we should’ve been able to beat with our eyes closed.
“Boys, I’m sure it comes as no shock to you, but Cooper won’t be returning…ever.”
All heads lifted and the room fell into complete silence. I’d had a feeling Cooper wasn’t coming back for the rest of the season, but I’d had no clue it was going to be indefinitely. Everyone stared at Joel as if he’d just spoken in a foreign language. No one wanted to believe this was it.
“So that’s it?” Blaine McCarthy hissed. “We’re stuck with this f*cktard who can’t even throw a ball straight?” He jabbed a finger in Samson’s direction, and all I could see was red.
“Why don’t you shut the hell up, McCarthy,” I spat. His fiery gaze turned to me, but Coach Joel stepped in his way, blocking him from view. I hated McCarthy. I used to be the most hated player on the team until that douchebag joined us. Samson’s jaw clenched and he averted his gaze, clearly not wanting the fight. That was why he wasn’t going to get us the wins; he wasn’t a fighter.
Joel glared between me and McCarthy. “Enough of that bullshit. We don’t have time for that. I’m here to update you on our next course of action.”
Derek slid closer to me. “And we all know what that means,” he whispered low. I didn’t even want to listen to what Joel had to say. The thought of not having Cooper put a sour taste in my mouth. I didn’t want to be remembered as being on a losing team, and that was exactly what was going to happen if a new quarterback was brought in.