Title: The
Perception
Author: Adriana
Locke
Genre: Contemporary
Romance
Release Date: March
1st
Synopsis
There is no greater burden than a secret, and Kari Stanley has
been carrying one alone for a long time. But fate intervenes in the form of a
broken down car and the kind offer of assistance from a handsome stranger with
a sweet, southern drawl. In exchange, all she has to do is go to dinner with
him. Temptation was never so sweet.
Max Quinn has secrets of his own. His good deeds aren't just a
product of his southern upbringing; they're his atonement. As one dinner turns
into two, he realizes that Kari just might be his salvation.
As they struggle to find their path together, their secrets
weigh heavier on them. Will they be able to trust one another with the truth,
or will their secrets keep them apart forever?
Author Bio
Adriana Locke lives and breathes books. After years of slightly
obsessive relationships with the flawed bad boys created by other authors, she
has created her own.
The Exception was Adriana’s debut novel and released late last
year. The Perception is a stand-alone that follows two secondary characters
from The Exception. Her third novel, Sacrifice, will be released Summer 2015.
Adriana lives in the Midwest with her family. She spends copious
amounts of time playing with her kids, drinking coffee, and cooking. Her
favorite things include sunshine, candy, and random quotes.
She loves to hear from readers. You can find her:
Excerpt
Prologue
Max
Well,
well, well. What do we have here?
I
spotted a woman standing in front of her car a few spots from mine in the
parking lot. Her head in her hands, she stared at the front of her vehicle. I
just finished my meeting and really wanted to go back home, but I couldn’t
leave a woman stranded in the heat.
Not
with a clear conscience.
And
not with an ass like that.
“Somethin’
wrong?” I asked, shutting my truck door behind me and walking slowly towards
the brunette.
She
turned her head and a smile slowly spread across her pretty face. She stood,
wiping her hands down the sides of her green workout shorts. Her body was lean
and tight and I wanted to run my hands all over it.
She
was little as hell, probably a good foot shorter than my 6’2” frame. Her tight
white tank top showcased her breasts in the best way possible. Her hair was
piled on top of her head, strands sticking to the back of her neck.
Her
smile grew wider as I made my way across the parking lot. Sweat dotted her
smooth, tanned skin and she wiped her brow with the back of one hand.
The
beauty raised her eyebrows, her green eyes lighting up. “My car won’t start.” She ran her gaze down
my body, making little effort to conceal the fact that she liked what she saw.
That
makes two of us.
I
flashed her a smile and cleared my throat. I needed to focus, but that was
easier said than done. The last thing I wanted to do was come across like Cane,
my friend with no couth.
“What
seems to be the problem?” I unlatched the hood and raised it open.
“I
turned the key and got nothing but a buzzing sound,” she huffed, crossing her
arms in front of her.
I looked
up, the movement catching my attention, and my gaze landed right on her chest.
“What
are you looking at?” she asked cheekily.
“Nothin’
you shouldn’t be proud of.” I blew out a breath and laughed.
She
giggled and I immediately wanted to hear it again. I wanted to make her giggle,
to see that smile, over and over.
Trying
to put some distance between us, I made my way to the side of the car. I felt
her eyes on me, the smell of her coconut perfume messing with my mind. I needed
to focus on the task at hand and not on the thing I wanted to be handling.
Damn,
I’d love to handle that little body.
I
checked the battery and saw the problem right away. I tightened the loose cable
and checked the other before standing back up. I leaned against the car and
folded my hands in front of me. I had to figure out how to play this to my
advantage. My mind raced through possibilities and I shot her a serious look.
“This
is just my luck,” she said, reading way too much into my expression. “And I
thought this week couldn’t get any worse.”
“Wanna
talk about it?” I grinned, watching her cute-as-hell act. I didn’t know what
her week had been like, but I knew I was more than willing to take her mind off
of it for a couple of hours.
“So
you’re a mechanic and a counselor?”
“I can
be whatever you want me to be.”
Her
mouth twisted in amusement, her eyes lighting up. “Is that so? You’re a
jack-of-all trades then, Mr.—”
“I’m
Max Quinn, the man that can service any and all of your needs.”
She
laughed, her cheeks blushing. “Okay, Max. The first need I have is getting this
car running.”
“The
first need, huh? Does that imply that there may be more needs that require my
services?”
She
pressed her lips together, obviously enjoying the innuendos. “It’s a
possibility. You know how things go—you take care of one thing and then
suddenly something else, you know, pops up.”
“Pops
up? Interesting choice of words…”
She
laughed again, tossing her head back. Drops of sweat rolled down her neck and
it took everything I had to not leap across the car, throw her over my
shoulder, and into the back of my truck. I could imagine that little body
wrapped around mine, that giggle piercing the air as I had my way with her.
“If I
can get this car running, and that’s a big ‘if’, what do you think is a fair
price for my time and effort?”
I
figured I’d give her a chance to either play along or opt out. As much as I’d
like to get to know this little beauty, I wasn’t going to press myself. It
wasn’t my style.
“I’m
not sure,” she smiled. “What are you thinking?”
“Well,
I don’t really have anything else to do today. But it could take hours.”
“Really?”
She looked alarmed. “I don’t want you—”
“It
might take minutes,” I cut her off, shrugging.
She
tossed me a flirty smile, one hand on her narrow hip. “Are you sure you’re up
for the challenge?”
“Ah,
sweetheart. You have no idea.”
Biting
her bottom lip, her eyes sparkling, she ran a hand down the side of her neck.
She knew exactly what she was doing to me. “Fair enough. What’s it going to
cost me?”
“It’s
going to cost you two things.” I tapped my fingers against the hood of the car
and waited for her response.
“Two
things?” She sighed dramatically, rolling her eyes for effect. “Well, my
options seem pretty limited, so let’s hear it.”
“The
first thing is your name. Only seems fair that I know whose car I’m fixin’.”
The
gorgeous girl in front of me cocked her head to the side. She was smarter than
I gave her credit for. I knew she was attracted to me and I knew she’d give me
her name, but she was smart enough to consider it first.
“Kari
Stanley,” she said finally.
“Alright,
Kari Stanley. The second thing you need to do before I fix your car is say
yes.”
“Say
yes?”
“Say
yes to having dinner with me tonight. I think that’s totally fair. If I get
this fixed, the least you can do is share a meal with me.”
She
pretended to consider my proposal, her tongue darting out to lick her bottom
lip.
“How
do I know you’re not a serial killer?” she asked playfully.
I
grinned mischievously. “I never said I didn’t bite.”
Her
jaw dropped. She started to speak but nothing came out but another laugh.
“But I
promise you’d like it if I did.” I narrowed my eyes, fighting the grin on my
face, too.
She
looked shocked for a split second and then regained her composure, trying to
play it cool. “Okay. If you can get this started, I’ll go to dinner with you.
But I have to say—I’m a little disappointed in your creativity. For some
reason, I expected you to want more than a meal.”
I
tossed her the keys and a wink. “Don’t be. You don’t know what all dinner entails.”
She
caught her key ring with a grin. “Fair enough.”
“It’ll
be better than fair, I promise. Now quit wastin’ time and use those,” I said,
nodding to the keys in the palm of her hand.
“What
do you want me to do with them?”
“I
want you to start the car.”
She
stared at me blankly. “What part of ‘this car doesn’t start’ don’t you
understand?”
“What
part of ‘start the damn car’ don’t you understand?”
She
eyed me curiously before climbing into the driver’s seat. A look of disbelief
crossed her face as the engine roared to life. “What the...”
I shut
the hood of her car.
“Meet
me at Maisano’s on Scottsdale Road at six, sweetheart.”
“Wait.
How did you…”
I
laughed, starting towards my truck. “Maisano’s at six—be there.”
