Pretty Sassy Cool All Things Pretty, Sassy, and Cool.
We love all of Crista McHugh’s soldiers, so we jumped at the chance to join the blog tour for In the Red Zone, the sixth book in her crazyhot Kelly Brothers Series. We’ve got an awesome giveaway to share with you today, as well as our thoughts on the book and an excerpt. First, here’s the 411 on In the Red Zone by Crista McHugh:
In the Red Zone by Crista McHugh Series: Kelly Brothers #6
Published by Self-Published on March 25, 2015
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 212
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All-Star linebacker Frank Kelly is as well-known for his off-the-field hits as he is for his on-field ones. When a dance club brawl ends with him in handcuffs again, he’s rescued by a well-connected woman who can get the charges dropped in exchange for a small favor. If he’ll agree to play the part of a doting boyfriend for two months, she’ll keep him out of the slammer and help restore his reputation.
Kiana Dyer may be the daughter of a Hall of Fame football player, but the charity organization she took over when he died isn’t getting the media attention she’d hoped for. A staged romance with Frank Kelly is just the ticket she needs to get in the spotlight. As the lines between fake and real start to blur, she begins to wonder if bailing him out was the best call she’s ever made. Just when everything seems to be falling perfectly in place, scandal surrounds her charity, and she’s the one left scrambling to clear her name.
Erin: In The Red Zone is the first book by Crista McHugh that I’ve read, but it won’t be the last. It’s book 6 of the Kelly Brothers series, but I had absolutely no trouble figuring out who was who and didn’t feel at all like I was missing anything by not having read the preceding books (though, I’ll definitely be checking out books 1-5 and be anxiously awaiting book 7!) I loved the premise of the charismatic, flirty, rough and tumble football player ginger-haired (Yes!) Frank having to work to get the sweet and sassy Kiana.
There was a lot to enjoy in this book. Frank is utterly charming and endearing and I enjoyed the fact that though he’s used to having his way with women, he took having to work to gain Kiana’s trust with a smile and a challenge rather than making it a game. I liked that Kiana stood up for herself, though at times her back and forth in regards to her feelings for Frank almost gave me whiplash. I liked their flirting.
His grin widened as he joined them. “You ladies look lovely this evening,” he said even though his gaze never strayed from Kiana.
“You look very nice, too.”
“Of course I do. Just because I’m a dumb jock doesn’t mean I can’t pull off the James Bond look from time to time.” He smoothed down the satin lapels of his jacket and straightened his bow tie. “But I’ll look even better with a lovely lady like yourself at my side.”
He offered her his arm, and Kiana took it with a roll of her eyes. “Do you ever stop?”
“Is there a reason why I should?” He lowered his mouth to her ear. “You look as delicious as lemon meringue pie. Sweet, but tempting me to taste you.”
I really liked how close Frank seems to be to his family, especially his big brother, Adam (whom I would be very interested in reading more about). I loved the mixed racial aspect of their relationship a lot. McHugh’s writing is engaging and not full of overly used phrases and metaphors and that is really refreshing.
That being said, there are a few things that bothered me. I wish there had been more background on both the ex-boyfriend Marcus and especially Kiana’s relationship with her step-brother Tre. I feel like there was definitely something missing there and I feel like if that would have been fleshed out better, I would have been much more invested. While Frank and Kiana were cute together and I can totally get behind them being together, I would have loved more depth to both of them.
All in all though, this was a fun, light, easy read and I will definitely be checking out the others in the series and highly recommend you do, too.
She's a Texan, though she drinks her tea plain and NOT sweet. She loves cheesecake, strawberry limeade's from Sonic and her favorite color is purple. In her books, she loves an HEA, but she never minds if the road is rough to get there, as long as the reward is worth the struggle.
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***EXCERPT***
The playful banter continued throughout the meal as he shared stories about his childhood. After they ordered dessert, he grew silent and studied her with his head tilted slightly. “Forgive me if I’m treading on something you don’t want to talk about, but what’s the story with you and Tre?”
Her back tightened. He’d been so open and cheerful about his family that she envied him. Her family was filled with enough drama and secrets to warrant a reality TV show. “What do you mean?”
“Well, for starters, he never mentioned you before Saturday night.”
“I told you. Our father had some trouble keeping his zipper up. He had a fling with my mom while he was married to Tre’s mom.”
Frank nodded, the light in his eyes telling her he was grasping far more than he dared to say. Her mixed race was something she’d dealt with her whole life. Her mom had been blond and blue eyed, so as soon as people saw Kiana, they knew her father was black. Her mother’s backwoods Georgia family shunned her for her black blood, just like Tre and some members of her father’s family had shunned her for her white blood. She’d grown up caught in the middle of two worlds, never really accepted by either.
But the man staring back at her didn’t seem to curl his lip in disgust or crack a joke about her nappy hair. To him, it seemed she was more than just her race. He looked at her as though he saw beauty and nothing more.
“So did you grow up between households?” he asked, making it sound like her parents had been divorced and sharing custody.
If only it had been as simple as that. Her father spent years denying she was his, only to rescue her when she needed him the most. “No. I lived with my mother’s family until I was eight. Then Dad took me in.”
“And his wife was cool with that?”
She nodded, the corners of her mouth rising up into a smile. She’d much rather talk about her relationship with her stepmother than her half-brother. “Denise has a big heart and raised me like I was her own daughter. She told me that she’d forgiven him and wouldn’t hold his mistake against me.”
“Sounds like a good woman.”
“She is. She’s as much my mom as she is Tre’s.”
“Is she active with the foundation?”
Kiana nodded. “As much as she can be. I think she’s still grieving over Dad, and anything associated with it seems to dredge up old memories.”
“I can see that.” The serious Frank resurfaced for a moment. “My mom went through something similar after my dad passed away, but it gets better with time. I think keeping busy with her church and bridge club helped.”
“Not to mention keeping seven boys out of trouble.”
He laughed and covered her hand with his own. “Are you saying I’m trouble?”
“Most definitely.” She found herself leaning closer and closer to him until their lips were inches apart.
“But only the best kind, right?”
He had no idea how correct he was. She knew the danger of giving into temptation, and yet her lips longed to touch his. Her mind cautioned that one kiss would be the beginning of a slippery slope, but her body decided it would be worth the risk. She closed her eyes and closed the gap between them.
Frank’s lips were firm and demanding from the start, moving against hers with subtle variances of pressure that heated her blood and sent a thrill coursing through her veins. He kept the kiss in check, though, and that helped to rein in her own desires. They were in a public place, after all, and she needed to maintain her respectable image.
But damn, if they were behind closed doors, she definitely would’ve indulged in what he had to offer.
She caught the flash of a camera when she opened her eyes. The jolt chased away the warm, fuzzy feelings elicited by the kiss and left a chill of fear in its wake.
Frank laced his fingers through the hand he’d been holding and cupped her cheek with his other one. “Relax,” he said in a soft, soothing voice.
“But someone just took a picture of us kissing.”
“Um-hmm.” He placed another of those feather-light kisses on her forehead. “Let them. Remember your plan.”
Part of her wanted to pull away, but she feared what the repercussions might be if she did. “Did you just stage that kiss?”
“Nope.” But the mischievous twinkle in his eyes told her he might have had something to do with the photographer.
“Frank Kelly, you are something else.”
“You don’t know the half of it.”
***About Crista McHugh***
Crista McHugh is an award-winning author of fantasy and romance who writes heroines who are smart, sexy and anything but ordinary. She currently lives in the Audi-filled suburbs of Seattle with her husband and two children, maintaining her alter ego of mild-mannered physician by day while she continues to pursue writing on nights and weekends.
She is an active member of the Romance Writers of America (including the Greater Seattle Chapter and the Seattle Eastside Chapters), and Romance Divas.
Just for laughs, here are some of the jobs she’s had in the past to pay the bills: barista, bartender, sommelier, stagehand, actress, morgue attendant, and autopsy assistant.
And she’s also a recovering LARPer. (She blames it on her crazy college days)
***GIVEAWAY***
Good luck and be sure to check out the other stops on the tour for In the Red Zone by Crista McHugh!
Thank you for hosting IN THE RED ZONE!
Thanks for adding us to the tour, Lisa 🙂