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Title: Running From Forever
Author: Ashley Wilcox
Release: September 22, 2013
Rating: 4.5 Stars ****1/2
Blurb:
Recent college graduate, Kayla Reynolds was ready to leave the university, sorority life behind. Leaving her boyfriend of over three years, she packed her bags and moved four hours south to the big city…New York City. Bright lights, streets that never sleep, and a business lifestyle that she yearned to have were all at her fingertips.
Kayla Reynolds was chasing her dream.
Determined and eager to make it in the corporate world, Kayla changed everything- her image, lifestyle, and outlook on life, putting her career first and her personal life second. That was until her first day, the first time she got a glimpse of Miles Blackwell. Corporate CEO and part owner of ETV, and not to mention, incredibly handsome, Miles Blackwell took Kayla by surprise, stealing her heart as he did.
But nothing had ever come that easy for Kayla. Life had always seemed to have a personal vendetta against her, stepping in when everything seemed too good to be true, reminding herself of whom she really was. It wasn’t until she met Merrick Drake that she realized when to stop; when running was no longer an option. For the first time in her life she had someone she could relate to; someone who wouldn’t judge- who saw the person she was inside. She and Merrick connected…on more levels than one.
When life was too much to handle, they ran.
But there was only one person that could make Kayla stop for good. Only one man that made her want to stay.
Would Kayla finally stop running or would it all be too much to handle?
Review:
Kayla Reynolds was a runner. When she felt trapped she ran. After a marriage proposal and a job offer at ETV, the largest broadcasting company in NYC, she ran. Always wanting to be a journalism broadcaster she took the assistant job and packed up all her belongings, wrote her boyfriend, Trevor, a note telling him no to the proposal and ran like hell.
Trevor was her stability after a bad childhood. He was her boyfriend of three years and had just asked her to marry him the night before she left. Kayla thought he was the perfect boyfriend but just couldn’t see herself living a happily ever after with him.
Miles Blackwell, CEO of ETV, extremely handsome, wealthy, and at first I thought he was going to be a major Alpha but he’s more of a closet romantic. His world is about to change completely. Living the high life, sleeping with women, living in the fast lane. That all comes to an end when he takes the elevator on a Monday morning and meets the breath taking beauty Kayla.
Merrick Drake, owner of McShane’s Irish Pub and a dirt bike racer. Tattooed and muscled he’s pretty sexy himself and his life changes on a Tuesday night when the “commoners” from ETV come for their Tipsy Tuesday. There he meets Kayla whom he’s drawn to and doesn’t yet know why.
So while trying to change her life for the better and stay true to the “new” Kayla; she has sworn off any type of relationship. Work is her priority if she wants to move on to actual broadcasting. She doesn’t want to take a chance on something coming in between her and her dream. But how often does that happen? How about next to never?
Both of these gorgeous guys play an important role in her new life. She grows to love both of them and needs both of them in her life. Thanks to a crazy twist the author throws at us (I never seen it coming) we get to find out if Kayla is still running or has she decided to stop? Will she look for that happy ever after? Will she realize that running really never gets you anywhere?
So can I just say that Merrick stole the show in this book? He was, by far, my favorite character in this book! He’s adorable, funny, smart, and doesn’t treat Kayla like she’ll break.
This was an awesome quick read; the first of Ashley’s I’ve read. I think I’m going to have to check out the other books in this series. The 4.5 stars – is because it all moved a little too quick for me. I would have rather it gone a little slower but it was a very good read.
~ Shannon D
Favorite Quotes:
Kayla’s conversation with Leah after her first day on the job: “I met a gorgeous guy in the elevator.” “How cliché.” “What do you mean?” “First day on the job in a big city, in a fancy building to boot, and you meet a hot guy in an elevator. He was probably all decked out in an expensive suit his hair slicked back, too, right?”….”Uh yeah” HOW THE HELL DID SHE KNOW THAT? “God, K! Stay away from him.” What? Why? He was gorgeous and so GQ…” “I know you’re trying to up your standards and find someone who’s wealthy and well off and professional, but just watch out for him. Authors write romance novels about those types of people.” Kindle location 272
Kayla’s afterthought on conversation: “authors write romance novels about those people, my ass”. Kindle location 286
Miles – “He was her escape, but I was her home.” Kindle location 2309
“I wasn’t one for happy endings or for fighting for what I believed in. I wasn’t a believer in love, in fate, or spending the remainder of my days with only one person. Until I met you.” Kindle location 2387
Teaser:
She let out an exasperated breath. “No. No, I gotta figure this out.” She turned to face me, legs crossed, intertwined. “I don’t know what to do, Merrick.”
I felt it in my chest. She was lost, pleading for help. I didn’t know if I was the best person to help her. I’d lived just as fucked up a life myself. From the age I could run, I did, staying at friend’s houses almost every day of the week, stopping home quick after school just to make sure my mom hadn’t overdosed and was dead on the floor. I did this almost my whole life…up until I ran here.“I can’t really help you, babe, if I don’t know what happened,” I told her as sympathetically as I could, looking into her sad eyes. Even if I wasn’t the most qualified person to give advice, I wanted to help, but I also needed to know what happened first.
Kayla rubbed her face with her hands, keeping them over her eyes for a minute longer. She was thinking; questioning if she was ready to spill. I didn’t want to force her to do it, so I sat there quietly. I wish I could just sweep her up and run far, far away; take her away from all the bad in her life permanently, but that would mean I had to run again, and I was done running. I couldn’t do it anymore.
“I loved him.” Her voice was a whisper. She removed her hands from her face but only to look down to her crisscrossed feet. She couldn’t look at me while she told me, and I was okay with that. “I let my guard down when I knew I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help it.”
About the Author:
Some may consider me a jack of all trades, but I consider myself well rounded.
I’ve waitressed, styled hair, answered phones and, most recently, worked full time as mom to my two beautiful little boys.
Then there was this book… Everyone and their brother started talking about this book series titled Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James. I didn’t really pay attention to the craze at first, since I wasn’t a big reader- okay, I didn’t read at all. But curiosity got the best of me, so I downloaded it to my kindle.
I was immediately hooked. I read the whole series in three days. Yes, three books in three days.
I kept finding all these great books that I HAD to read (just ask my credit card!).
Then I started hearing voices. Voices that turned into stories; stories that were begging to get out of my head.
I started writing them down on scraps of paper. Then I transferred them to my computer. Before I knew it, Planning on Forever was born.
The voices in my head are still talking, so I’m still writing.
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