Book Blitz: Exception by Patty Maximini - Excerpt. Guest Post & Giveaway

Exception

Patty Maximini

Contemporary Romance

Available at Amazon * B&N



When all hope for moving on from a life filled with pain and abuse was gone, Emily Watson closed herself off to the world, packed her bags, and moved across the country in search of a new life. What she found was a career she adored and friends she loved. It wasn’t a full and complete life, but it was definitely better than what she knew before.

 When all hope for being loved and accepted for who he was instead of what he had was gone, Taylor Carter decided that trusting people outside of his family wasn’t really smart and would only lead to disappointment. With his world turned upside down, his life became about his work, and every new relationship was meaningless and superficial. He was safe and definitely content but never truly happy.

 When all hope for staying awake during a long day was gone, Emily and Taylor found themselves at the same coffee cart. Little did they know then that the worst coffee they’d ever had would forever change their lives.

 When hopeless people are blinded by an endless pain, when contentment and safety feel like the best options, and when love seems impossible, they may just find an exception.

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Excerpt

Emily looked in his eyes and felt blood rush to her face once again. How could she tell him what had happened without making things weird? Telling him would ruin everything. She offered her most honest smile before speaking. “It’s nothing Tay, really. Just let it go. Please.”

At her words, he let go of her hand and stepped back. For the first time since they’d met, she was keeping something from him. For the first time, something serious enough to take her two best friends out of their beds had happened, yet she refused to tell him what. For the first time, she didn’t trust him enough to be open and honest, and he had no idea why.

The pain he felt was indescribable and it showed in his eyes. He cleared his throat before speaking again. “It is something. Something you chose to share with them and not with me.” He shook his head, slowly. “I thought our friendship was special. I thought I was special, Emily. I thought you and I kept no secrets.” Holding her gaze, he was silent and took a long breath. A small, sad smile tugged at his lips before he spoke again. “Guess I was wrong.”

Tears pooled in Emily’s eyes and she took a step towards him, but for the first time, he didn’t welcome the closeness between them and, lifting his hands, took a step back. She opened her mouth to speak, to try to explain what had happened, or at least to ask him to wait a little until she could tell him, but he shook his head and walked away before she ever had the chance.

She followed him with her eyes until his back passed through the door, and he slammed it closed behind him. Tears ran from her eyes to her cheeks, and she barely felt the set of hands that held her shoulders. For the first time in years she couldn’t care less if someone touched her. Nothing in the world could crush her any further.

When her eyes finally focused she saw her two best friends standing next to her. Zack wiped the tears from her face with the same loving and understanding expression he always had, while Jody muttered curses behind him.

“He hates me.”

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Guest Post by Patty Maximini

Meet the Characters

Taylor Carter could be described as the quintessential good guy with a temper. He’s caring, thoughtful, loyal and sweet to those allowed into his defenses. He’s the type of man that would go to the ends of the Earth and take extreme measures to protect those he loves. The problem is that he doesn’t allow himself to love very often. His past has shown him that people can’t be trusted, especially when you have what most people don’t. Therefore, he keeps mostly to himself.

Tay is 30 years-old, tall (6’2’’) and bulky, with chocolate brown hair and eyes. The strong, angular planes of his face are accentuated by a perfectly manicured stubble and a nice, big smile, one that grows whenever he’s looking at Emily. He’s a Canadian, but for the past decade he has alternated between living in the US and England. He has a PhD degree in fine arts with an emphasis on photography and modern art. Good coffee is at the very top of the list of things he can’t live without. His middle name is Ryan, but that’s something very few people know.

Emily Anne Watson is a woman with a broken past. Of all the things a person is exposed to in life, pain and heartache have been the ones she experienced the most. Those experiences have made her wary of people and scared of human contact in general. She hates being touched and having strange people surrounding her. Her safe haven is the tight nit group of friends that have become a family to her. They are the ones that can make her break out of her shell and show her true self. Despite all of that, she never allowed herself to become bitter and always strives to be a little sweeter than required.

Ems is 28 years-old, on the shorter side (5’2’’), petite, and has black hair and deep blue eyes. In all accounts, she’s beautiful. She grew up in California, but after some pretty traumatic experiences, she moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where she currently lives. She works as a book reviewer for a prominent lifestyle blog, and heads a study group and book club to some Yale students. Her favorite dessert is cheesecake, which was the inspiration to the nickname her two best friends gave her. She has a passion for all things Jane Austen and taught herself how to play the piano, something she doesn’t get to do much.

Zackary Clark is one of Emily’s best friends. He’s a single child of very traditional parents, who cut off all contact with him when he admitted to being gay at age 18. Since then he’s been on his own, counting only on his lifelong friend, Jody, and his aunt and uncle, May and Ben, who live in Vermont. He’s a pediatric surgeon and the heart of Emily’s group of friends.  He’s very protective of Emily and has taken upon himself the job of protecting her from those that mean her harm. He’s tall and thin, with coopery hair and green eyes.

Jody Francis O’Connell is Emily’s other best friend and easily the glue that keeps the group together. She has no filter, none whatsoever, which makes her such a genuine person and a lot of fun to hang out with. Her parents died in a car crash, leaving her the family restaurant, Old Joe’s, to take care of. She’s been engaged to Bradley for five years and living with him for one, but as of right now, they have no plans of getting married. In a perfect match to her outlandish personality, she’s got red hair, big boobs and all the right curves. 

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About the Author

Words have always been a passion of mine. I’ve always loved to read them, write them and learn them in other languages. Last year, I’ve decided to take that passion and turn it into a book, the result was Exception, my very first novel due this October.

Whenever I’m not sitting behind my computer, I’m either enjoying the company of my dear hubby, Alex, and our four four-legged babies or reading. I’m a firm believer in long hand written letters, love of any kind and good stories.

Author Links:

http://pattymaximini.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorPattyMaximini

https://twitter.com/pattymaximini

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7141876.Patty_Maximini

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