The Blue Line Duet: The Upside Of Falling
By Meghan Quinn
Tucked away at the base of the Rocky Mountains lived a little boy with one singular dream: leave this broken and battered home and become someone.
Be somebody’s hero.
That boy was me—Colby Brooks.
Except I’m not that same little boy anymore.
My dreams might still be the same, but my reality isn’t.
I’m smarter. Stronger.
A man.
And I learned a long damn time ago, the only way to achieve my dreams was to avoid distractions—at any cost.
Focus.
Resolve.
Determination.
But all it took was one single night.
One night and my entire life…changed.
One night had me colliding head first with the biggest distraction of my life; Rory Oaks.
Smart. Charming. Beautiful.
Rory changed everything.
Quickly, my one-track mind started to bend.
Each kiss faded decade-long dreams.
And with one single incident, I fly off course.
Excerpt
Head turned down, pushing the sleeves of his white Henley up
his arms, he swaggers toward me. His jeans hang low on his hips, held up by the
same brown belt he wore the other night. His narrow waist directs my eyes to
the center of his jeans, and I can’t help wonder what might be behind the
crotch of his pants.
And then there is his chest. Barrel like, broad and
prominent. His thick biceps showcase his strength, and the fabric of his shirt
stretches over his shoulders and forearms. Having spent a lot of time at the
gym, I’ve seen every body type, but Colby’s is different. He’s strong, built,
but not like a body builder. His body seems to suggest the only kind of weight
he’s been lifting is his own body, pushup after pushup. I can’t imagine there
being barbells in his workouts, but I can imagine logs, cadets, and heavy
machinery. He has working muscles, the kind you earn from hard, dedicated work
on the field.
In a word? Impressive.
Walking up to Stryder, he grips his friend’s shoulder and
says something into his ear. A smirk crosses Stryder’s face before he moves over
to our side of the bowling alley and takes Colby’s place.
Is he leaving? Already?
Might as well at this point. It’s not like he’s going to
talk to me, not after my pathetic attempt at a bet. I should have known I was
going to hang out in the gutter all night. It’s where I usually am when I’m
bowling. I blame the ball. The thing has a vendetta against me.
Sighing, I prop my chin in my hand and watch Stryder
expertly toss his ball down the lane, getting a strike . . . once again. And
just like every other strike, he pumps his arm up in the air and celebrates.
We
get it, you’re good, no need to—
“Hey.”
That voice . . .
Stunned, eyes wide, not able to move, not wanting to scare
him away, I keep my eyes trained forward, soaking in that beautifully deep voice
of his for a brief moment before saying, “Hey.”
“Can I sit here?”
Still keeping my eyes trained forward, I say, “Sure.”
My body tingles with awareness of how close he is to me,
that fresh laundry scent invading my senses, prickling the little hairs on my
arm. My body leans toward his, wanting a little more, searching for anything
else he might give me. I don’t know why he’s choosing to engage me in
conversation, but I’m sure as hell not moving while he does.
“Sorry about tonight,” he says and he actually sounds
sincere.
“Why are you sorry?” I mumble.
Reaching around, he takes my cheek in his hand. The
callouses on his palm rubbing against my skin is a welcome sensation. As I’m
turned toward him, I steady my breathing. I’m having a hard time slowing my heart
rate because of his close proximity, and the unexpected touch shooting a wave
of heat through my veins.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to ask me any questions. I didn’t
think you were going to suck that bad.” A playful smile tugs at his lips, and
my heart sinks to the floor. Oh God, he’s so gorgeous, especially when he
smiles.
Matching his smirk, I say, “I didn’t think I was going to
suck that bad either.”
“I feel bad.”
“You should.” That garners a laugh, deep and throaty, the
sound cloaking me like a shield, protecting me from the outside world, bringing
me into a little bubble where we are the only two that exist.
“Ask me a question.”
Shocked, I swallow hard and say, “Really?”
He nods and holds up his fingers. “You get three.”
“Oh, three? Wow, I feel like you just gave me the key to
your soul.”
Rolling his eyes, he adjusts his stance on the barstool and
leans back, giving us some space, our knees still knocking into each other.
“Easy killer; it’s just three questions.”
“Yeah, three questions I didn’t have before.” Tapping my
chin, I try to think of good questions, but now that I have him willing and
waiting, nothing comes to mind. I wasn’t prepared for this, he caught me
off-guard, and now I feel I can’t be strategic about my probing. “Hmm . . .
what do you like to do on the weekends?”
“Jump,” he answers.
Searching his eyes, lips quirked, I say, “Uh, you’re going
to have to be more specific than that. What kind of jumping are we talking
here? Like jump roping? Because that seems kind of weird to do on the weekends,
and if you tell me you’re in some kind of jump-roping club at the academy, I’m
not going to believe you.”
His lips curve up as he scratches the side of his jaw. “Jump
out of airplanes.”
Oh.
Oh.
That’s . . .
Uh, that’s really hot.
“So you just casually jump out of airplanes?”
“I’m part of the Wings of Blue, the academy’s parachute
team. We jump every day, at least two to three times a day after class and
before dinner, depending on wind and ceiling limits. On the weekends, some of the
guys, including Stryder and me, go to Springs East Airport and do civilian
jumps. The more jumps we get in, the higher the chance we’ll be considered for
big demonstrations, like parachuting into football games and major sporting
events for the Rockies and Broncos.” Ummmm. Did anyone else just hear how many
words he gifted me? And seriously? Does the man have no clue how incredibly
sexy he is when he talks about something he loves? The expression on his face .
. .
“Wow, that’s . . . that’s really hot.” I chuckle. “Sorry, I
don’t mean to fangirl over your parachuting, but I guess I wasn’t expecting
that answer. You just jump out of planes?”
He slowly nods. “Every day.”
“Anything to get you up in the clouds, huh?”
“Yeah,” he answers shyly, rubbing his jaw. “Okay, next
question.”
My Readultery Life Review
I was recently introduced to Meghan Quinn’s stories by a friend
a couple of months ago and since then I have been hooked with her style of writing
and she is becoming a favourite off mine for romantic comedies.
The Upside of Falling is the first instalment in her ‘Blue
Line Duet’ and is a little different to her normal romantic comedies. While I found
this a little unnerving, having just fallen in love with her writing, I was
very surprised at how good she was able to deliver a fantastic book that left
me breathless, heartbroken and filled with questions that need answering. The
only saving grace to her awesome cliff hanger is the fact that the next instalment
is out in a couple of weeks. So not too long to wait for my answers.
As a sucker for all things military, I fell in love with
Colby Brooks from the very first chapter. His closed off, discouraging attitude
and determination to become the best fighter Pilot was just a few things that
helped me fall deep into love with this character. Colby has experienced a lot in
his short time on this earth, the abuse that he suffered by the hands of people
who are meant to love him the most was heart breaking to read. Even through
this he has the strength to use his experience and push himself to make his
life better than those who surround him, he just didn’t expect to attend a
party and meet a girl who throws him off his path and unnerves him.
Ah, Rory Oaks, a girl after my own heart and earning herself
a spot on my kickass women shelf. She is sweet, kind, funny and is extremely loyal
and protective off her family. When she meets Colby, there is something about
him that draws her to him, even though he appears to be a jerk, Rory knows that
there is goodness in him and gives him her attention and sweetness.
Over the next several months Colby and Rory fall deeper in
love with each other having thrown caution in the wind. But life soon brings
this soaring couple back down to the ground when they realise that Colby’s job
is one that will not be based in Colorado. How can they make it work when Rory
knows that her life is planted firmly in her hometown with a family that relies
on her?
Who will walk away? Is there relationship just a fleeting
romance? Will they have their HEA? Will they fly off into the sunset or make a
crash landing? These are just a few questions that I have swirling around in my
head, hoping that the next book will answer.
All I can say it that I can’t wait for the next book and if
you are looking for a romance novel that will leave you soaring in the sky,
then this is the novel for you. Just be prepared for hitting a bit of turbulence
and watch out for the cliff hanger.
***** 5 Stars
THE DOWNSIDE OF LOVE – July 5th
Meet the Author
Born in New York and raised in Southern California, Meghan has grown into a sassy, peanut butter eating, blonde haired swearing, animal hoarding lady. She is known to bust out and dance if “It’s Raining Men” starts beating through the air and heaven forbid you get a margarita in her, protect your legs because they may be humped.
Once she started commuting for an hour and twenty minutes every day to work for three years, she began to have conversations play in her head, real life, deep male voices and dainty lady coos kind of conversations. Perturbed and confused, she decided to either see a therapist about the hot and steamy voices running through her head or start writing them down. She decided to go with the cheaper option and started writing… enter her first novel, Caught Looking.
Now you can find the spicy, most definitely on the border of lunacy, kind of crazy lady residing in Colorado with the love of her life and her five, furry four legged children, hiking a trail or hiding behind shelves at grocery stores, wondering what kind of lube the nervous stranger will bring home to his wife. Oh and she loves a good boob squeeze!
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