Title:                           Love Reality
Series:                         The Donavans, #2
Author:                       Nana Malone
Release Date:             March 2, 2015
Genre:                         Contemporary Romance

Synopsis

A romantic who believes in love…

Walking love disaster, Mia Donovan, is a reality television production assistant by day, secret dating blogger, Lonely Girl, by night.  All she has to do to get the job of a lifetime is face her fears and step in front of the camera. Unfortunately that also means dating her nemesis, Single Guy, for the entire world to see.

A cynic giving love advice…

Reluctant, dating columnists, Ryan Matthews, otherwise known as Single Guy, thinks reality-dating shows are soul-sucking endeavors that have more to do with selling unrealistic expectations than love. But for a shot at writing serious stories, he’s willing to go undercover on Love Reality to do an exposé on the dating competition. What he doesn’t count on, is falling in love.

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Excerpt

His lips were soft at first, gliding over hers, and Mia drew in a shuddering breath.

Wow. As soon as she granted him entry, the kiss changed from teasing and testing to desperate and needy. Ryan slid his tongue over hers expertly, and she moaned at the contact.

One hand caressed her face while the other slid over her nape and into her hair. He tasted like mint and rum and sugar, and Mia couldn’t get enough. When she wound her hands around his neck, he growled low in his throat, shifting his hand from her face to the small of her back and pressing her closer.

Through his jeans, she could feel every throbbing pulse of his erection as it pressed into her. His fingers tightened in her hair, and heat pooled in her center. She wanted him. Needed his hands on her. Needed to be close to him.

In the distant recesses of her brain, she heard the clanging of warning bells. But she could ignore them. She would ignore them.

They were bumped by a passerby, and Ryan cradled her, steadying her on her feet. He drew back and dragged in a breath. “You pack a hell of a punch, Mia.”

“Says the guy who should probably make a career out of kissing girls.” She started to smile, but there was something so familiar about what he’d said before that had her frowning.

“Somehow, I don’t think frowning is what I was going for.”

Her eyes widened. “No. Oh God. You are good. At that. Great. Fantastic. You should be a professional kisser.” She nodded awkwardly. “I’m going to stop talk—” It finally occurred to her what was wrong. Right before he kissed her, he’d said something that sounded familiar. But no, it wasn’t just familiar. It was like she’d heard the exact phrasing before. Verbatim. “What did you say before you kissed me?”

He nuzzled her nose with his. “I was trying to get you to agree to see me again. Why?”

She shook her head. “No, uh, you said you couldn’t let the night end without kissing me.'”

“Something like that. Now, if you’d let me get a word in edgewise, I’ll do it again.”

Her memory jogged, something else came to mind. Right before they’d left Prohibition, he’d asked her to hold something then taken her hand. It was cute and funny, but that too was familiar. Too familiar. At the salsa club, he’d stayed close, had his hands all over her, introduced her to the owner, made it seem like the place was his second home. The mojitos had flowed and they’d left seemingly without paying. He would either settle up later or they had his credit card on file for things like that. As a dating tactic, it was killer. And just now what he’d said…

Matthew Rhode’s column. Ryan was a writer.

Oh hell.

She eyed him. “I just want to know how much of tonight was sincere and how much is for your column?”

He blinked twice, then his gaze cleared, and he slowly released her. “You read my column?”

Her stomach knotted. “Yeah, I do.” She nodded. “And I have had the distinct pleasure of more than one bad date quote your particular brand of bullshit to me.” She rubbed at her temples. “I should have known this was too perfect to be real.”

He shook his head. “Look. Yes, I do write the column, but I’m not faking this.”

He was good. His words carried a certain level of sincerity that made her want to believe him. “Okay. Then tell me, how many women have you taken to that salsa club? How many times have you used that hand-holding trick? Or just answer this, how many times have you used that exact line in the last month?”

“Shit, I’m not thinking about it. It sort of just fell off my tongue, I—”

She crossed her arms. “How many?” Her heart sank. Nothing about this was real. “Here’s a hint. Next time, try to be sincere. And I swear, if I see a hint of tonight anywhere in your column, just remember, I have six brothers.”

His mouth fell open, and he stuttered for words. When he reached for her, she backed up, turning to try to hail a cab.

“Mia. It’s not like that. Maybe I say those things in my column, but I’m not playing you. I was just having a good time.”

She whirled to face him, and her purse slipped off her shoulder, spilling all the contents. “Shit.”

He bent to help her, and she shooed away his hands. A huffy exit worked so much better when you actually had somewhere to go. Damn. How had this turned from the best date of her life to the worst in a matter of moments?

“Mia, listen to me, okay? I was having fun, and I think you were too. Just forget about the column for a minute. Do you feel this between us?”

Yes. “I don’t feel a thing. Not anymore.” Never mind that her lips still tingled. “You want me to forget about the column and the way you talk about women like we’re all desperate to lock-in a husband? For your information, you’re a sexist ass hat.”

His gaze narrowed. “Newsflash—it’s not sexist when it’s true. You want to pretend during our little date there you weren’t picturing me in a tux?”

“You are such a cocky—No, I wasn’t.” She’d been picturing him naked. But he didn’t need to know that. “You talk about dating like it’s a game and women are just elaborate pawn pieces.”

“Mia it is a game. Sometimes you get lucky and meet someone you really connect with. But mostly it’s a game.”

Glaring up at him, she felt around for the last items from her purse and shoved them inside before standing. “Spoken like a man who’s never actually been in love. You spout all this bullshit, but you don’t know what it’s like to actually care about someone. I can’t wait till it happens to you. I hope you choke on that crow.”

“And you want to tell me you’ve been in love before? Come on, it’s a load of crap.”

A flare of fury had her opening her mouth, then she snapped it shut. He’s not worth it, Mia. Keep your cool. Just get in a cab. You would not look good in prison orange. He couldn’t know about David or how he’d broken her heart. And she certainly wasn’t going to give this douche bag the satisfaction of telling him. “You don’t know anything about me.”

She whirled around and, lucky for her, a taxi was just letting someone out. She jogged up in her heels and slid in. She told herself not to do it, but she glared back at Ryan. Their eyes locked, and she ground her teeth as a hot spike of need rolled through her. This was just her stupid luck. All night she’d been on a date with her nemesis.

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About the Author

USA Today Bestselling Author Nana Malone’s love of all things romance and adventure started with a tattered romantic suspense she borrowed from her cousin on a sultry summer afternoon in Ghana at a precocious thirteen. She’s been in love with kick butt heroines ever since.

With her overactive imagination, and channeling her inner Buffy, it was only a matter a time before she started creating her own characters. Waiting for her chance at a job as a ninja assassin, Nana meantime works out her drama, passion, and sass with fictional characters every bit as sassy and kick butt as she thinks she is.

Nana is the author of twenty novels. And the books in her series have been on multiple Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble bestseller lists as well as the iTunes Breakout Books list and most notably the USA Today Bestseller list.

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Blog Stops

Each day a new excerpt will be featured on the blog tour, so you can follow along!

Monday, March 2, 2015 (Excerpt 1)

Ariesgrl Book Reviews * HEA Romances With A Little Kick * Peaces of Me

Tuesday, March 3, 2015 (Excerpt 2)

Becky on Books * Short and Sassy Book Blurbs * StoreyBook Reviews

Wednesday, March 4, 2015 (Excerpt 3)

Adventures in Writing * Cricket’s Chirps * Long and Short Reviews

Thursday, March 5, 2015 (Excerpt 4)

So Many Reads * The Book Review

Friday, March 6, 2015 (Excerpt 5)

ByoBook Club * Cafinated Reads * Em & M Books * Harlie’s Books

Giveaway

Nana will be giving away 15 digital copies of Come Home Again, the first book in her Donavans Series. Just fill out the Rafflecopter Giveaway to enter!
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