KISS
YOUR SCARS
LOOSE ENDS SERIES, BOOK 3
AVRIL
ASHTON
RELEASE
DATE: 02.20.18
BLURB
Being the
king of Atlanta’s underworld used to have its perks, but lately all undercover
agent Renzo Vega has seen is the downside. Someone is auctioning off women in
his city, and he’s damn sure not about to let that offense stand. Just as he’s
set to make a move, Renzo’s club is ambushed and he’s shot. Unsure of who to
trust, he turns to the one man he definitely knows wants him dead.
Yanked
from his bed, blindfolded and spirited away in the middle of the night, Lowell
Scott is shocked to find the darkly gorgeous Renzo bleeding and in need of his
help. The very last thing he wants is to come to the aid of the man responsible
for his cousin’s death, but the knife at his throat doesn’t give Low much
options.
Close
proximity doesn’t temper the hatred Low harbors for Renzo, it only brings up
new problems. Like the vicious attraction Low struggles to control, and bullets
that won’t stop flying. It’s a tough sell to believe there’s anything good in a
man as unapologetically dangerous as Renzo. And even if Low could forgive the
unforgivable, Renzo is still shadowed in secrets. When they’re exposed, those
secrets will bring far-reaching consequences that could sever not just their
shaky bond, but Low’s family ties as well.
This
is book three in the Loose Ends series, but can be read as a standalone.
Warning:
Contains references to subjects that may be triggering. Please read with
caution.
REVIEW
Like many of you, I'm a pretty voracious reader, averaging probably 4-5 books a week when time allows. I read a lot of different types as well but comparatively speaking, my list of auto-buy authors is pretty small. Avril Ashton has been on that list ever since I read Brooklyn Sinner years ago and she hasn't once let me down. I will buy and devour whatever she writes, no questions asked. No blurb necessary, just one click and I'm there. There isn't another author in the romance genre quite like her. Avril's ability to capture intense emotion, face the down and dirty of life with an unflinching eye, and make even the most despicable characters somehow likeable AND empathetic (I'm looking at you, Stavros!) is a talent few others possess.
Her newest release, Kiss Your Scars, has been a long time coming. I wouldn't exactly say this book is a stand alone, even in the Loose End series. This is the third book in the series, but it's connected as far back to A Sinner Born, the third book of the Brooklyn Sinners series. For those of you who've read Avril's other series, you know Renzo Vega has been around for quite some time. We haven't gotten to know him very well--he's always been on the periphery--until now. And boy, was the wait ever worth it! He's just as complex, just as calculating, just as cunning as the leader of Atlanta's underworld needs to be. Except when it comes to Lowell Scott. As she always does, Avril makes these two men run the gamut of emotions, because well, she's mean. Haha. No, well she IS, but as she always does so brilliantly, she makes Renzo and Low work for their HEA. They must face their pasts, face their fears, and be brutally honest with one another and themselves.
It's an intense ride, watching these two come together. But it's so, so delicious. It's hot and steamy--there's no one who writes sex quite like Avril does--but it's also visceral and emotional. It's about connection and belonging and making yourself vulnerable to the person you want most in the world. And it's beautiful.
I could say a lot about the plot, but if you have never read a book of Avril's, some things might not make sense. If you're as big an Avril fangirl as me, then I don't want to spoil anything and you know what you're getting into. The Daddy kink though?? *fans self* yes please and thank you. The appearance of a certain white blond haired guy with violet eyes was just awesome, too. I love him, he's always been my favorite of Avril's characters and anytime Syren Rua shows up is an excellent thing in my book.
If you've never picked up a book of Avril Ashton's, I can't recommend them enough. Truly. Start at the beginning and read every single one and immerse yourself in this world of complex characters who you shouldn't like, but will love anyway. You won't be sorry if you do.
EXCERPT
Everything
about him was magnetic and dangerous, and he moved like a rogue wave on an
abandoned beach, wiping away your foundation before you had a chance to prepare
for the hit.
Right now
his gaze devoured Low, making it hard for him not to squirm.
“There is
something between us.” Renzo put his hands in his pockets. Low tried not to
notice the way that action tugged his pants waist lower and rucked up his
shirt. “You and I both know that.”
“No.” Low
held up a hand when Renzo took a step forward, but that didn’t stop him from
coming closer. “I have a boyfriend.” So yeah, he’d upgraded Chance. “I don’t
want you.”
“Yes.”
Renzo got in Low’s space, trapping Low between him and the locked door. “You
have a boyfriend but here you are, sneaking off to see me. Why are you at my
club? Are you here looking for love? Looking for a fuck?”
Low’s
eyes widened and Renzo touched him, a slide of his knuckles down his cheek.
That touch. He’d thought about. He’d fantasized about it. He’d grieved for the
loss of it.
“Doesn’t
matter which. I’m good for either one.”
Low
jerked his head up and slid closer. He couldn’t help it, couldn’t fight the
coil in his belly that pulled tighter with every word Renzo spoke, bringing
them together until their bodies made contact, front to front.
Step away. He should step back. But Renzo kept him right
there with his heat and the smell of him. Low leaned forward slowly, seeking
more of it.
The heat.
The
scent.
His lips
brushed Renzo’s neck.
Renzo
groaned. Low’s entire body clenched.
Have mercy. “Leave me the fuck alone,” Low whispered. But
there was no force beyond that plea. Just empty words mocking him, because the
truth was he wanted Renzo closer.
Renzo
grabbed him by the arm and pushed him up against the mirror overlooking the
main area of the club. They could see out, but no one could see them as they
stood, Renzo at Low’s back, humping him, sliding his hardness all over Low’s
ass. Slowly.
Fucking
painfully slow.
“Watch
him,” Renzo murmured at his ear. “Watch your boyfriend. Does he know he’s your
second choice, Low?”
He
shuddered, panting, but he still held his head high, squirming as he tried to
get away from Renzo’s hold. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Renzo
laughed. “You know.” His tongue slid over the shell of Low’s ear.
Low’s
breath hitched as he locked his knees to keep from falling. Renzo melted him.
He destroyed Low and he remained in that grip, loving their destruction.
“Where
does Chance think you are, Low? Men’s room? Outside getting some air? When you
leave here, will you tell him where you were, I wonder?” Renzo nipped at his
earlobe and Low gave him everything. Every shudder, every gasp. “You gonna tell
him you were rubbing your ass all over my cock, Low?”
“No.” He
moaned. God. Fuck. Low gave up his moans, too. “Please.”
“You
gonna tell him you can’t stay away from me? That you only brought him here to
make me jealous?”
“I don’t
want you.” His voice was an embarrassingly thin thread of sound that wavered
under the weight of Renzo’s touch, like a ribbon wrapped around a tree branch,
fighting against a heavy wind.
“Doesn’t
matter how much you tell yourself you hate me,” Renzo whispered. “You still
close your eyes when Chance touches you and pretend it’s me.”
The stark
truth in those words buried him. “No.”
Renzo
ignored his weak protest. “Does he know what you like, huh?” He touched Low,
one hand at his chest, lips at his ear. “Has he fucked you lately?”
“Renzo.”
“Yes.”
Renzo moaned, too, the sound hitting Low in the balls. “The way you say my
fucking name.” He pressed closer, rocking against Low. He clasped Low’s throat,
tilting his head against his shoulder. “Good?” he asked, voice turned husky.
“He fucks you good, Low? The way you want, the way you need?”
“I
don’t…” Low choked, but he was moving with Renzo, on him, sliding up and down,
riding the hard ridge of Renzo. Unable to stop. Just for a second. He’d forget
himself just for however long it took for this hunger to work its way through
him.
“Does he
eat you out? Lick it up?” The hand around Low’s throat tightened. “Does he tell
you you’re the best?”
Low
sobbed for him, trembling, fingers clinging to the hand Renzo had splayed over
his lower belly. Done, he was fucking done.
“You’re
the best I’ve ever had, Low, and I haven’t even fucked you yet. Let me get
that.” He touched lower, cupping Low’s erection through his jeans and
squeezing. “Let me tear it up while you call me Daddy. Let’s stay here, like
this, you riding me till we both come.”
“No!” Low
wrenched himself away, stumbling as he glared at Renzo as arousal crawled along
his spine. “You killed my cousin.”
Renzo
shrugged. “Did I?”
A
Caribbean transplant, Avril now lives in Stone Mountain, GA. with a tolerant
Spousal Equivalent. Together they raise an eccentric daughter who loves reading
and school (not so much school anymore). Avril's earliest memories of reading
revolve around discussing plot points of Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys with an
equally book-minded mother
Always in
love with the written word, Avril finally decided to do the writing in August
of '09 and never looked back. Spicy love scenes, delicious heroes, and wicked
women burn up the pages of Avril's stories, but there'll always be a happy
ending; Av remains a believer of love in all its forms.
A lover
of cake, the ID Channel and the UFC, Avril writes Erotic and GLBT Romance.
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