Synopsis: The Broken Road
Megan Connors’s life is not going in the direction she thought it would. With her love life in the dumps, she doesn’t think it could get any worse until her long-time crush, Shane asks to move in. After all, he has no clue that she’s been in love with him for the past ten years. But fate has a way of turning things around.
As their relationship goes from “just friends” to lovers, life takes a turn for the unexpected. Shane isn’t the person that Megan once fell in love with all those years ago. Shane has a past; murder and drugs is a portion of what he’s been hiding and is only revealed once the FBI knocks on Megan’s door.
Secrets, tragedy, and deceit force Shane—and Megan—to make choices that will change their lives forever. Once Megan learns the truth, will she still want to be with Shane? Or will someone else be at the end of her broken road?
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Review: The Broken Road
I have to say, I love this book. The Broken Road is a story about friendships, love, lies, with a lot of good twist and turns. I love how Megan is an ordinary girl, might I add a size 12, who cannot seem to get over feelings for her best friend, Shane Turner. Shane goes and makes it even harder to get over him by asking Megan to be roommates. So now she has her sexy, brown haired, hazel eyed best friend walking around her apartment usually half naked most days of the week. Might I add, he drives a motorcycle, is very thoughtful and sweet, and he has a sexy tattoo spreading from his chiseled chest to his abs. Ugh! Every girls dream! I would have a hard time getting over my feelings for Shane too!
Megan tries the dating scene to help her move forward in the love department only to have it crash and burn. The nice thing is Shane is there to help her pick up the pieces and that’s where their love for each other finally surfaces. As Megan finally gets to love Shane and have some really awesome sex, she notices some odd behaviors happening around her but refusing to make a big deal of them. Then one day Megan’s life is completely turned upside down with guns, drugs, and betrayal. She is forced to go into hiding while carrying an extra surprise.
As Megan’s life goes back to some sort of normalcy and she is released from protective custody, she is left heartbroken and alone. She starts to move on with her life until three knocks on her door late one night. This leads us into the next book, Broken Promises. What a great story! I could not put my Kindle down. I really felt a part of the story and could relate with all the characters. I found myself rooting for Shane and Megan to hating Shane to feeling sad for Megan to “YES, he’s back!” Bring on Book 2! I gave Broken Road 5 stars!
Excerpt from Chapter 1 – The Broken Road.
The doorbell interrupted my train of thought and Penny started her happy wiggle. I quickly put her in the mudroom so she wouldn’t charge the delivery guy and grabbed some money from my purse. I opened the door and was startled. Standing on my front porch was Shane, holding my dinner.
“Hey, trying to steal my dinner? Don’t make me sic Penny on you!” I joked, letting him in. Shane is gorgeous. Dressed in his usual attire of baggy jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt, and motorcycle jacket, my heart hurled into my throat at the sight of him.
“Oh what? Death by pooch?” he shot back, following me into the kitchen. He shook his head when I offered him money for the dinner. His six-foot-three, two hundred thirty pound hockey player frame fills my small kitchen. Shane has this presence about him that always makes me feel safe and secure. That same presence makes me want to fold myself into his muscular arms. Shane gives fantastic hugs, I thought wistfully.
“I thought you were meeting Allison for dinner,” I asked, as I took the food out of the bag. Shane shrugged out of his leather jacket and hung it on the back of the chair, then opened the door for Penny.
“Yeah, we were supposed to meet her brother later on, but she said that she didn’t feel well.” He poked his head in my fridge. “What’s up with the rabbit food in here?” He asked, taking out a beer and sitting at the table.
I rolled my eyes at that comment. “You know my New Year’s resolution.” I smacked his hand as he inched toward my egg roll. “I'm trying to be healthier.”
Shane took a swig of beer and laughed. “Right. That’s why you have Chinese food for dinner, beer in your fridge, and a stash of candy up in the cabinet.”
“Whatever. That is my emergency stash. Every woman needs to have her emergency stash.” I said with an indigent huff. “Besides, you can't complain about the beer, especially since you drink it. Here. You might as well eat this since you can't find anything else.” I tried so hard to not act like a total idiot, but I couldn’t help the goofy smile on my face as I handed him a plate. Penny’s tail thumped on the wood floor as she looked expectantly at the food served.
We ate for a few minutes in silence. My heart raced a mile a minute; every time I looked up, his hazel eyes stared straight back at me. It was as if he could hear my heart skipping. “So what’s going on tonight?” I dumped my leftover rice into Penny’s bowl and put the plate in the sink. Shane tiredly rubbed his face and goatee. His brown hair looked like it had been weeks since he had last seen the barber. He stretched his long legs out in front him and yawned.
“I'm not sure. I’m beat. Adrian has had me working all night on this special project, and then I was running around all morning. I feel like I haven’t sat down all day.”
“That sucks. So then why you aren’t at home sleeping?” I replied, putting away the food.
Shane stood up and silently washed the dishes. Drying his hands on the dishtowel, Shane turned, looked at me. “Honestly, that’s the main reason I'm here. Well, to pick up the DVD, but something else, too. I need to ask you a favor. You remember Ben is getting married to Paige, right?" he asked. Ben is Shane’s roommate, who I’ve known for years. I nodded.
“Well, Ben has accepted a job in Baltimore, near Paige's condo. So he’s moving in with her next week. The lease on the apartment is up anyway and since I'm practically broke, I need a place to crash,” he said, his eyes boring holes into mine.
It took a beat before I fully grasped the question. Holy shit, he wants to move in with me! The romantic, wishful part of me started doing a happy dance in my head, until the smarter, more realistic side smacked the other one down and told it to shut up.
“So, you’re asking to move in.” I said cautiously, as I walked into the living room and sat on the couch. Shane sat down at the opposite end, facing me. So that’s why he is here. I should have known. I must have a big sucker stamped on my forehead. I could never say no to him and he knows that.
“It will only be for a little while, until I can get my own place. Please?” He gave me a pleading grin. I chuckled, and then became curious.
“What happened? How did things get so screwed up?” I asked casually.
“It’s been building for a while. I lost my job at the dealership two years ago. At that point, I couldn’t find anything substantive, except for side jobs working with Adrian. I couldn’t keep up with the rent at the old place, so I was evicted and moved in with Ben. Credit cards were maxed out and I depleted my savings. But things are looking up. I’m paying off my debt a little bit at a time and I managed to get a full time spot at the shop. I’m trying to clean up my act, but I really can’t get a place of my own quite yet.” he said quietly, almost like he was ashamed. I felt bad for him. While I was with Tommy, I didn’t keep up with my old friends as much as I should have. I had lost Shane for a while and never knew about these problems. My best friend Jen is practically his sister and told me a few times that he was having some issues and just being a regular pain in the ass, but she never went into detail. After three years, I’m still trying to catch up on his life. I felt a swell of pride for him; it took a lot for him to say that to me.
“I’m sorry to hear that. What about Allison? Why don't you move in with her?” I replied, playing with the string on my sock. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear the answer to the question.
Shane gave a dry chuckle. “Yeah, we’re not on that page yet. Plus, her two roommates don't really like me.”
I felt some relief. Then some slight apprehension. Could I block out these feelings? Yes, I resolved. I had to. Besides, he’s with someone else. We can be just friends... I hope.
“Yeah, sure, you can move your stuff in,” I said with a smile, “Only until you can find something on your own.” I pushed aside the doubt that had been looming. Shane and I are just friends, what could go wrong?
“Thanks Megs. You’re so great to me.” He surprised me by wrapping me up in a hug. I quietly inhaled his cologne and closed my eyes. This is going to be harder than I thought.
I let out a fake chuckle and pulled back. “So, when are you bringing over your stuff?” I asked. Hopefully, I had a few days to prepare. I had a comforter set in the laundry room that he could use for a while and would need to get more towels.
“Well, I figured you wouldn't leave me out in the cold, so I brought over what could fit in the truck.” He practically bounced off the couch and gave me a knowing smile.
I swatted him in the leg. “You arrogant jerk! What makes you think I would have said yes? I could have said no!”
“Aw, come on. You can never say no to me. Don’t try and lie,” he said, calling my bluff. Shane laughed as walked out the front door. I sat on the couch for a minute, shocked at what just happened. I think Shane pulled a fast one on me. He’s moving in and I don’t think I had the opportunity to say no. I had to chuckle, he hasn’t changed one bit. Still uses his charm and smile to get what he wants.
While Shane brought in his pillows and trash bags of clothes, I made up his bed in the guest room. He added his toiletries to the bathroom and I got a pang of nervousness. This is going to be interesting. I watched him as he came out of the yellow bathroom and into his new room. I only had one shower. The fantasies I used to have about the two of us in the shower came flooding back. I could feel my body blush and quickly turned my attention to an invisible speck on the comforter.
“So is Allison going to be okay with you living with me?” I spoke up, hoping my face was not as red as it felt.
He paused in hanging up a white polo shirt and winked. “She’s just someone I like to have fun with. We’re not serious, so she’s cool with it.”
“Ah…. Okay. Um. Good. I just wanted to make sure there weren’t going to be any issues,” I mumbled, as I headed back down the stairs. I had to get out and cool off. These feelings would need to be separated if this was going to work. I quickly pulled on my shoes and winter coat for Penny’s last walk of the night.
The temperature had dropped and the smell of snow lingered in the air. Penny and I quickly walked down the tree-lined street. I hoped she would hurry up and go already, but she took her sweet time. Twenty minutes later, we returned home to find Shane’s black Ford F150 gone and the lights off. I didn't want to think of where he had gone off to. It's none of my business. It's none of my concern. I have to remember that, I told myself.
I unclipped Penny, put the leash on the rack next to the door, and walked into the kitchen. Stuck to the usually blank fridge was a note in Shane’s chicken scratch.
“Went to get my bike from Ben’s.”
I shucked off my snow boots and coat, locked the doors, set the alarm, and headed upstairs with Penny in tow. After peeling off my clothes, I paused. I normally sleep in my underwear. That would have to change with Shane living here. It could be awkward if he peeked in and saw me in nothing but my Victoria Secret panties. I put on a tank top shirt and cotton boxers and climbed underneath the cloud-soft down comforter. Penny climbed onto her large dog bed and did her usual routine of turning around until she got comfortable. This had been one hell of a day and I was over-exhausted. The last thing I remember was hoping that Shane came home alone.
Synopsis: Broken Promises
The Sequel to the sexy, suspenseful novel, The Broken Road
“A day never went by when I didn’t dream about Shane, that one day he would come home to us. I imagined that our days would be filled with talking and reconnecting. Our nights would be full of hot, sweaty sex. However, things weren’t going the way I imagined. Baby steps, Megan. He just needs to adjust. I couldn’t change what happened and we would have to take things in stride. We can’t be the same couple we once were, not overnight. “
When Shane shows up at Megan Connors’s carport one rainy night, Megan thinks she was dreaming. The man who stole her heart, the father of her unborn child was the same man she feared dead from drug Cartel explosion. Elated and overjoyed, Megan believes they will finally get their happy ending.
But the happiness doesn’t last long. Shane’s long road home created demons, demons that Megan can’t fight. Past discretions come back to haunt them, and with that comes the paranoia and the distrust. And the trouble doesn’t stop there. Danger threatens their lives at every turn, and when the time comes, Megan must make the ultimate decision.
Will Shane and Megan have their happily ever after? Or will that be another Broken Promise?
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Review: Broken Promises
Book two, Broken Promises, starts off exactly where book one ends. I am not going to give a lot away in this review because I want you to read this series. Book two has all the same characters plus some new ones that were surprisingly all connected.
Tommy is very much in this story, Megan’s ex-fiancé. I thought he was being a sweet heart, but then things became odd, odd turned to inappropriate then to mouth dropping. You really have to read to get Tommy’s full story. You kind of figure it out, but then you get the big slap in the face at the very end.
I very much fell in love with Shane in book 1, but by the end of book 2, my admiration of Shane dwindled. Now I think they author was not trying to deescalate Shane’s appeal, but his personality was a bit too obsessive for my taste. He was consumed by taking down the Drug Cartel. His mission was to make life safe again for him and Megan so they could move on with their life. The problem for me is how disconnected he became throughout the story. The biggest problem for me was Megan put up with the shit.
Megan, she was a very trusting, forgiving, a watch and wait kind of girl. I was torn with her character. She was in love with Shane, she continued to fight and want Shane despite his absences. She forgave Shane for things that I felt were unforgivable. She not only forgave him, but she didn’t even put up a fight. It was sickening. You can make your own determination when you read the book.
Once we get close to the ending, everything makes sense and the truth starts to unfold and those unforgivable events were unavoidable. They were unavoidable because somebody else was pulling the strings the whole time. The only thing I really would change would be the conclusion to Megan and Shane’s story. I did not like it being told though another person’s eye. I would have liked to experience Megan or Shane’s emotion through their point of view. I wanted to feel their connection again, their fears, their wants as the ending unfolded. They really did suffer a hard road full of stress, fear, and broken promises all worthy of an emotional, passionate ending which they did not get in my opinion. I give Broken Promises 4 stars.
Excerpt from Chapter 1 – The Broken Promise.
I couldn’t get to you fast enough. Every way I turned led me farther and farther away. I don’t how I made it back. The only thing that kept me going was hoping that you were all right. I love you so much. You don’t know … you just don’t know how you kept you kept me going,” he whispered and lowered his head to mine.
The feel of his lips, the heat of his breath, pulsed through me like a shot of lightning. I shrugged off my towel and threw my arms around him, responding with everything I had. The pain of losing him, the overwhelming joy of seeing him, the desire that had been suppressed for so long, all these emotions washed over me like a waterfall. I held onto him as if he would disappear at any moment.
His tongue caressed mine like a familiar dance partner. Breathtaking and sensual, my pulse raced. My blood boiled. Muscular arms held me against his body, as close as we could with this basketball between us. I mentally groaned. It became difficult to keep him close, and the more I tried, the more awkward it felt. Despite our emotions running high, we could no longer ignore the elephant in the room.
Buy Links:
The Broken Road - Book 1 - http://www.amazon.com/The-Broken-Road-Series-ebook/dp/B005EDQHIM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1400709211&sr=8-2&keywords=The+Broken+Road+Series
About the Author
Melissa grew up in Maryland by the Chesapeake Bay, where her favorite memories took place near the water. Now she lives near Washington, D.C. with her family, dog, and a lot of fish. In between the chaos of laundry, chasing after her three children and trying not to burn dinner, Melissa continues to find her escape by feeding her addiction of reading and writing about love, suspense, and sarcasm.
Melissa loves to hear from readers! She can be contacted by:
Email – melissa@melissahuie.com
Website – www.melissahuie.com
Twitter – www.twitter.com/melissahuie
Goodreads – www.goodreads.com/melissa_huie
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