Dare to Run (The Sons of Steel Row #1)
by Jen McLaughlin
Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages
Published February 2nd 2016 by Signet
ISBN 0451477596
The New York Times bestselling author of the Out of Line Novels takes readers to Boston, where one gang of criminals knows how being bad can be so good...
She knows what he’s like on Boston’s mean streets. Now she’s going to find out if he’s got some heart.
Lucas Donahue is not ashamed of his criminal past, but after a brief stint in prison, he’s ready to go legit and live a normal life. The problem is, no one leaves the gang without permission—even if he is one of the boss’s top men. Plus someone’s placed a hit on him. And then there’s that feisty little bartender who’s going to cause him even more trouble.
Heidi Greene knows to keep her distance from a ladies’ man like Lucas—even if she can’t keep her eyes off him. When he rescues her from an attack in the alley outside her bar, she’s forced to stay by his side for safety. But the longer she spends time with him, the greater her chances are for getting hurt in more ways than one.
I pushed the door open and walked in, forcing a grin to my face as I juggled the door and the bags. “Honey, I’m home.”
“Now who’s being domestic?”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, kicking the door shut behind me. “When in Rome . . .”
Laughing, she motioned me into the kitchen. Her resilience constantly amazed me. Minutes ago, she’d been attacked, and now she was singing, dancing, and cooking as if nothing had ever happened. She was so strong and fierce, and she needed to stay that way. If push came to shove, I’d do what I needed to do to keep her safe, whether she was willing or not.
I’d do what needed to be done, like I always did.
And she’d damn well take my escape plan and run.
“Did you get everything?” she asked, pulling the lasagna out and setting it on the waiting potholders she’d put out on the counter. “I know it was quite the extensive list.”
“Yeah. It was practically the whole store,” I said, nudging her with my elbow playfully. I loved how the top of her head came up only to the bottom of my shoulders. “Are we having a party I don’t know about? Or did our fake relationship drive you to drink already?”
Closing the oven with her hip, she took the mitts off and blew her hair out of her face. She wore a black tank top and a pair of yoga pants. She had little to no makeup on, and her blond hair fell in soft waves over her shoulders. If I wasn’t mistaken, she didn’t have a bra on underneath her shirt. She looked relaxed and at home. I’d never seen her look more gorgeous.
And I was dying to see if I was right about the no-bra situation.
“Neither option. I want to try to get more women into the bar, so I want to try out a few ‘Girls’ Night Out’ drinks to put on special a few nights a week.” With her forearm, she swept the lingering hair out of her face. “I’m going to make them tonight and see which ones are a hit.”
“So you’ll be shitfaced before nine.” I crossed my arms and gave her a once-over. A steaming mug of tea sat on the counter, half-empty already. I’d gone to three different stores before I found some tea that would fit in my Keurig, since she’d mentioned she liked to drink it when stressed. I’d have to dump it all in the garbage when she left, because I hated the shit. “Sounds like an excellent plan.”
She rolled her eyes and grabbed her wallet off the counter. “How much do I owe you for the booze and the tea?”
“Nothing.”
“Lucas—”
“I said nothing.” I pushed off the counter and took two plates out of the cabinet. “I’ll be drinking tonight, too, so it’s only fair I pay, since you’re making them for us.”
She blinked at me. “You want to drink cocktails? Call me crazy, but they don’t seem like they’re your thing. You’re more of a whiskey guy.”
“Yeah, but you can’t have a successful experiment without test subjects.” I pointed to my chest. “And I am your very willing subject.”
“Now who’s being domestic?”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, kicking the door shut behind me. “When in Rome . . .”
Laughing, she motioned me into the kitchen. Her resilience constantly amazed me. Minutes ago, she’d been attacked, and now she was singing, dancing, and cooking as if nothing had ever happened. She was so strong and fierce, and she needed to stay that way. If push came to shove, I’d do what I needed to do to keep her safe, whether she was willing or not.
I’d do what needed to be done, like I always did.
And she’d damn well take my escape plan and run.
“Did you get everything?” she asked, pulling the lasagna out and setting it on the waiting potholders she’d put out on the counter. “I know it was quite the extensive list.”
“Yeah. It was practically the whole store,” I said, nudging her with my elbow playfully. I loved how the top of her head came up only to the bottom of my shoulders. “Are we having a party I don’t know about? Or did our fake relationship drive you to drink already?”
Closing the oven with her hip, she took the mitts off and blew her hair out of her face. She wore a black tank top and a pair of yoga pants. She had little to no makeup on, and her blond hair fell in soft waves over her shoulders. If I wasn’t mistaken, she didn’t have a bra on underneath her shirt. She looked relaxed and at home. I’d never seen her look more gorgeous.
And I was dying to see if I was right about the no-bra situation.
“Neither option. I want to try to get more women into the bar, so I want to try out a few ‘Girls’ Night Out’ drinks to put on special a few nights a week.” With her forearm, she swept the lingering hair out of her face. “I’m going to make them tonight and see which ones are a hit.”
“So you’ll be shitfaced before nine.” I crossed my arms and gave her a once-over. A steaming mug of tea sat on the counter, half-empty already. I’d gone to three different stores before I found some tea that would fit in my Keurig, since she’d mentioned she liked to drink it when stressed. I’d have to dump it all in the garbage when she left, because I hated the shit. “Sounds like an excellent plan.”
She rolled her eyes and grabbed her wallet off the counter. “How much do I owe you for the booze and the tea?”
“Nothing.”
“Lucas—”
“I said nothing.” I pushed off the counter and took two plates out of the cabinet. “I’ll be drinking tonight, too, so it’s only fair I pay, since you’re making them for us.”
She blinked at me. “You want to drink cocktails? Call me crazy, but they don’t seem like they’re your thing. You’re more of a whiskey guy.”
“Yeah, but you can’t have a successful experiment without test subjects.” I pointed to my chest. “And I am your very willing subject.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Due to time constraints we may not be able to personally respond to every comment made, but we do read and appreciate them all. 📚❤️🙂
✋ RBtWBC has a zero-tolerance policy for review harassment and author bashing. Such comments will be deleted at the the blog's discretion.