Title – Just a Fling
Author – Katherine Grace
Genre – Contemporary Romance
Publisher – The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb –
Law student Dawn Mathison’s steamy summer romance with solar developer Callan Marlowe is just a fling…until it isn’t. Swept off her feet–and into lots of different positions–by the sexy Brit, Dawn believes Callan is The One...right until he dumps her.
But that was last summer. Now, Dawn is living her dream with a kick-ass job in New York City and couldn't care less about Callan. Not one bit. Truly.
Callan left Dawn broken-hearted, confused, and pissed off. But, dammit, he doesn't do serious relationships. Not after his past. It doesn't matter anyway because he'll never see Dawn again. Which is for the best. Really.
When a twist of fate brings Callan back into Dawn’s life–and into her office–their sizzling attraction reignites. Maybe this time around, they won't get too serious. But fate has a sense of humor. Because Callan thinks Dawn is The One who can help him. And maybe turn their hot affair into something more?
Excerpt –
Dawn shoved the document into a manila folder and hurried toward Mr. White’s office. Happy hour wouldn’t be in her future if she couldn’t get through the mountain of work on her plate. She scanned the cubicles grouped along the long hallway to Mr. White’s corner office. Kurt may be coasting through life, but the other five associates in her first-year class looked as freaked as she felt.
Their group sat in what the other firm lawyers and staff called the “kindercubes,” a block of cubicles spaced in two neat rows surrounded by the windowed offices of more seasoned attorneys. They were zoo animals on display. Fish in a fishbowl. Prey to any partner or senior associate who walked by.
They’d started together at the firm a month ago in July after taking the New York Bar Exam. Their entire careers hung in the balance while they waited for the results to be released in October, which was absolutely nerve-racking since the New York Bar was a notorious bitch to pass. As Mr. White liked to remind them, they were not real lawyers until they passed the bar, and they would never be lawyers at White & Halston if they had to retake the bar exam.
Waiting for the results was taking its toll on the kindercubers. And it was only August.
Dawn rounded the corner and passed the cubes where anxiety hung like a thick, dark cloud. Matt, hyped up on coffee, gave her a quick nod and zoomed past. Hannah scowled and banged on her keyboard; she still hadn’t recovered from Mr. White accusing her of “lazy” research. Olivia mumbled into her headset, her face shuttering in sheer panic. Abbey stared off into space, semi-catatonic. And poor Natalie. She chewed on her hands so much they'd be down to stumps by Halloween.
This might not be Dawn’s dream job—not even close—but Mr. White would not crack her.
“He’s in the main conference room,” Debbie, Mr. White’s assistant, said. Dawn thanked her and turned on her black pumps to speed-walk down another hallway. She halted in front of the large conference room reserved for important client meetings.
Dawn grabbed the mahogany door’s heavy brass handle. A round of masculine laughter erupted from inside the conference room. Ugh. Her clammy hands fluttered to straighten the collar of her white blouse. Come on, grow a vagina and get in there.
She pushed the door open. Seven men, all in gray suits, sat around the large conference table. They stopped talking and stared when she entered the room. Mr. White beckoned her forward.
“Here’s the contract.” She handed Mr. White the folder and turned to leave.
He raised his hand, stopping her. “One moment, I need seven copies of this contract. And make sure you copy every page. Some of these are double-sided. And keep them in the right order.”
She pursed her lips and waited. Being treated like an imbecile in front of Mr. White’s clients was not the most ignominious thing to ever happen to her, and it probably wouldn’t be the last.
She pasted a polite smile on her lips and surveyed the men around the table. One of them was Mr. White’s father, Bill White Sr., the firm’s founding partner. Well into his eighties and hunched with age, Bill White Sr. still came to work every day for a few key clients. How a man as lovely as Bill White Sr. had produced such a jerk for a son, she’d never understand. She gave him a big smile, which he returned through his oversized dentures.
She scanned the faces of the other men in the room but didn’t recognize them.
Until her gaze landed on a pair of beautiful hazel eyes.
Shock zipped down Dawn’s spine. A high-pitched sound rang in her ears, muffling Mr. White’s blathering. She reached out to grip onto something, anything, but there was nothing to steady her, so she clasped her hands together instead. She swiveled back to Mr. White, who held the papers out to her with an expectant glare. A creeping heat suffused her neck and climbed up her cheeks. She had to get out of there. Now.
Why is he here?
“Here you go.” Mr. White’s annoyance prompted Dawn into action. She grabbed the papers like a lifeline. Like they were the only thing keeping her grounded in reality. She raced from the room, her stomach flip-flopping. The heavy door closed behind her with a thud. She drew a long, shaky breath.
What. The. Fuck?
The trip to the copy machine was an out-of-body experience; she barely registered walking. In front of the copy machine, Dawn punched the numbers by rote.
He’s not here. He’s not here.
Oh, God. Ice shot down her extremities and the hairs on her arms stood on end. The copy machine sputtered out the final page, but she didn’t move. She stood frozen like a rabbit caught in a snare.
She couldn’t face him again. No freaking way. Maybe Debbie could deliver the copies. But then Debbie would want to know why, and it would turn into a whole thing. Besides, Mr. White was waiting for her. Waiting with him. Oh, God.
Was passing out a viable option?
Oh, God. She had to do it quick. Get it over with. In and out. Ignore him.
Dawn threw her shoulders back and returned to the conference room. She opened the door and walked with purpose toward Mr. White, head held high.
Inside she was a freaking wreck.
Do. Not. Look.
But her heart and her brain weren’t on the same page. She had no control. Against her will, her gaze slid to the right of Mr. White, and their eyes locked.
His stare was an atomic blast, and her legs wobbled from the impact.
Callan...
Those hazel eyes burned her.
“Your copies,” Dawn muttered. She thrust the papers into Mr. White’s hand and ran like holy hell from the room.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub) –
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3RaRcXu
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/just-a-fling-katherine-grace/1142971844?ean=2940186721420
Author Biography –
Katherine Grace began reading her sisters' Mills & Boon and Harlequin books while still reading The Baby-Sitters Club. By her senior year in high school, she was voted Most Likely to Run a Harlequin Bookstore. Throughout college, law school, career changes, and motherhood, she never lost her love for reading and writing romance. HEAs and true love are her obsession.
Katherine writes modern sexy romances set in the real world with characters who face real issues with resilience, humor, and all the feels. Just a Fling is her debut romance.
Katherine lives in Georgia with her husband, two children, and a cockapoo.
For more information, please visit www.authorkatherinegrace.com
To contact Katherine, please email authorkatherinegrace@gmail.com
Social Media Links –