Twenty-eight year old Coco Thomas knows
the recipe for disaster:
1) Agree to plan last-minute engagement blowout for spoiled Mafia princess before you realize her choice of caterer is Nick Lupo, a despicably gorgeous young chef with a hot new restaurant in town, a reality TV show victory, and a romantic past with you—one that did not end well.
2) Strike a deal with Nick in which you agree to spend a weekend with him in exchange for his services, under the strict conditions there will be no talking about the past, no second chances, and definitely no sex.
3) Violate all three conditions within 24 hours and spend two glorious days remembering what made you fall for the sexy, egotistical bastard in the first place, and why it hurt so much when he broke your heart.
Add one road trip, plenty of good scotch, and endless spoonfuls of chocolate cake batter drizzled over your body and licked off inch by oh-my-God-yes-right-there inch, then just admit it.
You’re totally FORKED.
1) Agree to plan last-minute engagement blowout for spoiled Mafia princess before you realize her choice of caterer is Nick Lupo, a despicably gorgeous young chef with a hot new restaurant in town, a reality TV show victory, and a romantic past with you—one that did not end well.
2) Strike a deal with Nick in which you agree to spend a weekend with him in exchange for his services, under the strict conditions there will be no talking about the past, no second chances, and definitely no sex.
3) Violate all three conditions within 24 hours and spend two glorious days remembering what made you fall for the sexy, egotistical bastard in the first place, and why it hurt so much when he broke your heart.
Add one road trip, plenty of good scotch, and endless spoonfuls of chocolate cake batter drizzled over your body and licked off inch by oh-my-God-yes-right-there inch, then just admit it.
You’re totally FORKED.
He
smiled. “You totally want me to kiss you right now.”
Shrinking
back, I slapped him on the shoulder. “I do not!”
“You
did, you so did,” he said, laughing as he stood up. He tossed the iPad onto his
bed. “You licked your lips.”
Steaming
mad, I clenched my fists at my sides and trailed him down the steps and back
into the kitchen. He was so fucking infuriating! “That doesn’t
mean I wanted you to kiss me. Because I didn’t. I don’t.”
“Oh
no?” He whirled around and grabbed me hard by the shoulders. His lips hovered
over mine. “Then tell me not to kiss you,” he said, his breath warm and soft on
my mouth. “Say it’s
against the rules. Say you don’t want it.”
Oh
God, oh God, oh God. Why did he have to play these kinds of games? I knew what
he was doing—he wanted me as badly as I wanted him, but he wanted it to be my
idea so he wouldn’t
look like the asshole. So he could say that I was the one who broke the rules.
That I was the one who wanted him more.
No
way.
He
was either going to take me the way I wanted to be taken or not at all. I wasn’t
going to offer him a fucking invitation, not after what he’d done.
“I don’t want it.” The lie slid out through clenched
teeth.
He
paused before letting go of me. “Good. Because I don’t
want it either.”
Before
I could stop myself, my hand shot out and grabbed his crotch. Beneath his
jeans, his cock was thick and hard and totally erect.
I
smiled wickedly. “Liar.”
Satisfied
with his awestruck expression, I removed my hand and turned to the ingredients
lined up on the island. “Well, don’t
just stand there. We’ve got a cake
to bake, remember?”
“Coco.” He said my name with enough force to make me
wonder if he was angry at what I’d done. I
faced him again and saw his hands fisted at his sides. And there was something
other than shock in his eyes. They were darker than they’d
been a moment ago, making my nether regions tingle. And was it the oven making
it so hot in here?
I
felt for the counter behind me. “Yes, friend?”
Rushing
toward me, he wrapped his hands tightly around my head. “Don’t.”
Then he crushed his mouth against mine, igniting a fire within me that consumed
any lingering doubts or desire to play the coquette. I threw my arms around him
and molded my lips and body to his. Later we’d
probably argue over who started this, but right now all I could think about was
getting closer to him.
We
kissed like it was the first time, like we were back in his truck and we couldn’t
believe we’d
just met, like we’d
better get our fill of each other because such insane chemistry couldn’t
possibly last—surely it would burn out as quickly as it sparked.
But
God, God, it felt good.
“Nick,”
I whispered as his mouth, that incredible, luscious mouth that had taught me so
much about pleasure, moved down my throat. He closed his fingers in my hair,
sending needles prickling across my scalp and down my spine. I tugged at the
blue shirt, impatient to feel his skin against mine, to wrap myself around him,
to get him inside me.
He
dropped his arms and I shoved the shirt from his shoulders, but as it dropped
to the floor, he did too, sinking to his knees in front of me. Breathing hard,
I watched him slide his hands up the outsides of my thighs, pushing the dress
to my hips. “Christ, this body,” he whispered, resting his forehead against my
white lace panties. His hands flexed on my hips. “I’ve
dreamed about this.”
“You
have?” My fingers threaded through his thick dark hair.
“Yes.
And this.” He kissed me through the lace. “And this.” He dragged the panties
down to my knees. “And especially this.” He slid his tongue between my legs,
which nearly buckled at the first firm, wet stroke.
At
the second stroke, they began to tremble.
By
the third, I wasn’t
even sure I had legs.
“It
feels so good, Nick,” I whimpered. “I don’t think I can
stand.”
“Fuck standing.” He yanked my underwear all the way
down and I stepped out of them, holding onto his shoulders for balance. As he
stood, he reached behind me and hitched my legs up around his hips, my dress
riding all the way up to my waist. Our mouths and tongues collided, and I
locked my ankles behind him.
God,
I’d
missed this. I’d
missed everything about him.
**Note: You
do not have to read Frenched or Yanked in order to read Forked. However, I do highly recommend it due to
the character and plot overlaps. Also, this is one of my favorite series ever,
so there is also that**
To be honest, I’m not one for second chance
romances. But, I decided to read this anyway because I will read anything by
Melanie Harlow ever since I read Speak
Easy, oh so long ago. And, I’m in love with Forked. There are just too many things about Harlow’s writing that
I love. I didn’t stand a chance against Coco and Nick’s love story. I thought I
was enraptured by Mia and Lucas’ story, but hell if I didn’t love Coco and Nick
just as much, if not more.
“But what if it went deeper than that? What if we were supposed to be together? What if all this party nonsense with Angelina was just a great big ruse the universe had arranged to put us back in each other’s orbits? What if I’d never gotten over Nick because no matter what I did or who I dated or where I went in the world, every possible avenue just led me right back here to him?”
First of all, I love how ridiculously relatable
Coco and all the other characters from the Frenched
series are. The story is told solely from Coco’s POV and although she is a
bit older than me, I found her character refreshing and personable. Her inner monologue
was witty and unique. She is so very different from Mia’s character—the other half
to her, so to speak—and I find myself to be a combination of the two of them.
Coco’s thoughts reflect my own and a lot of her reflections on her life
hauntingly echo mine. She’s unapologetic in her actions and her bluntness
cracks me up. Her feisty banter with Nick makes me smile.
“When we’re out here in the country, and I’m
looking up at that sky full of stars, somehow I just know that you and me and
time and everything in the universe goes on forever. So don’t try to tell me
different because I won’t listen.” Every cell in my body had vibrated with life
and feeling as I looked up at him. He said forever. He said forever. “Forever,
huh?” He rubbed his whiskey-flavored lips on mine. “Forever.”
Second of all, this book is HOT. It needs to come
with a warning. It might have in the synopsis, but Harlow is one of those
authors that I just read without looking at what the story is about. Coco and
Nick’s chemistry is off the charts in the bedroom and in the kitchen and in the
field and well, you get the picture. But, their connection is more than just sexual
chemistry. They wouldn’t be what they were without that love. That love that
struck them at 19-years old and never left. The love they tried so hard to
deny, but years later it is still very prominent. Every exchange between them
is teeming with the love that never went away, and no matter how much they
tried to ignore it or deny it, I could feel it as soon as they reunited.
“Coco. I have to tell you something.”
I sat up and smiled at him, squeezed his
cock with my core muscles.
“Let me guess. Your dick is really fucking
happy right now.”
“No.” He shook his head, his expression
serious. “I just realized something.”
“What?”
“I’m still in love with you.”
Lastly, I just love the unique plot and overall
writing of the story. The pacing was perfect and I didn’t want to strangle
anyone for their irrational thoughts or any unnecessary angst. I could see the
thought that was put into every word, every scene, every exchange. The story
was carefully crafted, but effortlessly executed. I think Harlow is actually
getting even better and better with her writing, which says a lot because I’ve
loved her ever since Speak Easy. By
the way, there are Speak Easy references
in Forked that made me squeal with
delight. How cute that she was able to incorporate the 20s story into this! Oh,
I also lovedddd seeing Mia and Lucas! And I can’t wait for Erin’s story, of
course. I have so many highlights and notes in this book because I’m seriously
in love with it. I’m addicted to this world and the good feelings I get every
time I get to visit these characters. Don’t miss out on this sexy, feel-good
second chance romance.
“I love you. And I want you. But I don’t
want to live this way— being called a liar and an asshole for the rest of my
life because of something stupid I did when I was twenty- two. I don’t want
every argument we ever have to circle back to it. I’m not that guy anymore,
Coco. I’m not perfect, but given the chance, I know I could make you happy.
Tell me what to do to get that chance.”
“I wish I could, Nick. The truth is, I just
don’t know.”
Go back to where it all started with the limited time Frenched series bundle! Includes Frenched, Yanked, and Forked! Read my REVIEW for Frenched and Yanked.
She never planned on meeting Lucas Fournier.
The easygoing bartender’s scruffy good looks and less-than-sympathetic ear annoy her at first, but when she takes him up on his offer to show her around the city, she discovers that the romance of Paris isn’t just a myth.
Nor is the simultaneous O.
The last thing Mia needs is another doomed love affair, but since she only has a week, she figures she might as well enjoy la vie en O with Lucas while she can. But each day—and night—with Lucas is better than the last, and suddenly her heart is telling her this is more than a rebound fling.
Is it just the seduction of Paris…or could this be the real thing?
Mia Devine fell hard for Lucas Fournier after their magical week in Paris. But eight months later, the free-spirited half-French musician still hasn't made any promises about their future. And as magnifique as long-distance phone sex is, nothing compares to the real thing.
Fed up with stolen weekends and lonely nights, Mia flies to New York armed with a list of reasons why they should take the next step, but an unexpected guest in Lucas's apartment derails her plans. He’s been keeping secrets--worse, he claims he's happy with the way things are.
Without the magic of Paris, can their mismatched love survive?
Up next... Floored (Frenched #3)!
Erin Upton is too embarrassed to tell the cops what she
was really doing while her townhouse was burglarized, especially since the
first officer on the scene is former nuisance next door Charlie Dwyer. Where’s
the justice in the world when a neighborhood know-it-all grows up to be
six-foot-three inches of solid muscle with gorgeous green eyes and a slow, sexy
please-arrest-me-now-officer smile? It’s bad enough she’s wearing her robe and
slippers—did he have to notice her fuzzy hand cuffs on the bathroom sink?
He’s arrogant as he ever was, which is fine by her—she’s
too busy with her dance studio’s grand opening to make time for a man. But they
keep crossing paths, and
when Charlie offers to help her put in new flooring at the
studio one night, things go from hammering nails to hammering each other in a
hurry. And about those hand cuffs…
They
agree it’s a one-time thing. But when that becomes a two-time thing, then a
three-time thing, Erin starts to wonder if maybe she and Charlie could be a
life-time thing. Her best friends Mia and Coco found love in unexpected places.
Is it finally her turn?
Melanie Harlow likes her martinis dry, her lipstick red, and her history with the naughty bits left in. She's a 20th century fanatic and gets her kicks from historical fiction and TV series like Boardwalk Empire, Magic City, Deadwood, Mad Men, and Downtown Abbey (although she wishes it were more HBO and less PBS).
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My favorite thing to bake for the one i love.. Cupcakes:)
ReplyDeleteI dont know how to cook! lol
ReplyDeletecookies
ReplyDeleteChocolate chip cookies. HUbs things mine are the best. lol
ReplyDeleteCupcakes
ReplyDeleteCheesecakes!
ReplyDeleteChocolate cake.
ReplyDeleteCake pops :)
ReplyDelete