Title: ASA
Author: Jay Crownover
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: 4/21/2015
Synopsis:
Jay Crownover’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling Marked Men series continues with the much anticipated story of southern charmer and certified criminal Asa Cross.
Starting over in Denver with a whole new circle of friends and family, Asa Cross struggles with being the man he knows everyone wants him to be and the man he knows he really is. A leopard doesn’t it change its spots and Asa has always been a predator. He doesn’t want to hurt those who love and rely on him, especially one luscious arresting cop who suddenly seems to be interested in him for far more than his penchant for breaking the law. But letting go of old habits is hard, and it’s easy to hit bottom when it’s the place you know best.
Royal Hastings is quickly learning what the bottom looks like after a tragic situation at work threatens not only her career but her partner’s life. As a woman who has only ever had a few real friends she’s trying to muddle through her confusion and devastation all alone. Except she can’t stop thinking about the sexy southern bartender she locked up. Crushing on Asa is the last thing she needs but his allure is too strong to resist. His long criminal record can only hurt her already shaky career and chasing after a guy who has no respect for the law or himself can only end in heartbreak.
A longtime criminal and a cop together just seems so wrong . . . but for Asa and Royal, being wrong together is the only right choice to make.
Starting over in Denver with a whole new circle of friends and family, Asa Cross struggles with being the man he knows everyone wants him to be and the man he knows he really is. A leopard doesn’t it change its spots and Asa has always been a predator. He doesn’t want to hurt those who love and rely on him, especially one luscious arresting cop who suddenly seems to be interested in him for far more than his penchant for breaking the law. But letting go of old habits is hard, and it’s easy to hit bottom when it’s the place you know best.
Royal Hastings is quickly learning what the bottom looks like after a tragic situation at work threatens not only her career but her partner’s life. As a woman who has only ever had a few real friends she’s trying to muddle through her confusion and devastation all alone. Except she can’t stop thinking about the sexy southern bartender she locked up. Crushing on Asa is the last thing she needs but his allure is too strong to resist. His long criminal record can only hurt her already shaky career and chasing after a guy who has no respect for the law or himself can only end in heartbreak.
A longtime criminal and a cop together just seems so wrong . . . but for Asa and Royal, being wrong together is the only right choice to make.
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About Jay Crownover:
Jay Crownover is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men series. She also introduced the dark and sexy world of The Point that started with BETTER WHEN HE's BAD and is currently working on her newest series The Saints of Denver. Like her characters, she is a big fan of tattoos. She loves music and wishes she could be a rock star, but since she has no aptitude for singing or instrument playing, she'll settle for writing stories with interesting characters that make the reader feel something. She lives in Colorado with her three dogs.
Links:
And don’t miss the previous books in The Marked Men Series!
RULE
JET
ROME
NASH
ROWDY
I gulped and fully expected Royal to stop what she was doing but she didn’t, and she didn’t bother to look up as I strangled out that we were fine and just needed the bill. The girl gave me a look full of knowing and, if I wasn’t mistaken, approval before she walked off. I curled my fingers at the back of Royal’s head until they were hopelessly tangled in her hair, and lifted her head off of my shoulder enough that I could kiss her. Her hand dipped even lower in my pants and I groaned against her tongue.
“You need to stop.” I rasped the words out because I really didn’t want to say them. We were in a public place, and while she might have a wild side, I doubted she would let me throw her on the cocktail table and fuck her like everything inside me was screaming to do.
She sank her teeth into my bottom lip hard enough, and when she coupled that with her soft hand squeezing the base of my dick, I was ready to come on the spot. “You need to stop, too.”
Her message was clear. She was all for games as long as they were fun and sexy, but she wasn’t going to be a pawn, and if I wanted to enjoy her while I had her, I better get my shit together real quick. She withdrew her hand, skating up under the hem of my shirt and letting her fingers run over the ridges of my abs. The scrape of her nails across my skin had me ready to go off like a rocket, so I threw enough money on the table to cover our bill and probably the table next to ours and dragged her out of the warehouse like it was on fire.
She laughed and it did something to the inside of my chest. I had put tears in her eyes first, but somehow she was amazing enough to understand the stuff I did better than I did myself, and now she was laughing about the disaster of it all. It was like the sun coming through the clouds on a stormy day. She was everything bright the darkness tried to swallow and I wanted inside of her so bad that I couldn’t see straight.
I pushed her up against the side of the battered car and closed my mouth over hers. I tunneled my fingers through the hair at her temples and kissed her with every bit of urgency I had. The funny thing was, I had to let go of some of the other stuff I was always holding on to in order to get the message across to her, and with the press of her mouth against mine, the brush of her tongue across my own, I couldn’t explain it but I suddenly felt lighter.
“I want to take you home and take you to bed.” I sounded rough. There was no smoothness in my typically practiced twang. I sounded impatient and needy, two things I don’t think I had ever been before this girl.
From the moment I 'met' Asa Cross way back in Jet's book, I have been dying to get inside his head. He is just so laid back and calm. I wanted to know if there was anything out there that got him worked up. As it turns out, there is. Royal Hastings.
Royal is a tough as nails cop on an administrative leave from the Denver PD after an incident which nearly claimed her partner's life. Looking for trouble, Royal finds herself in Asa's bar time and time again, hoping to catch the attention of the smooth southerner. Asa keeps telling her that he isn't interested and that they can never be together, but Royal knows deep down that Asa is right for her.
Asa is continuing to build his life in Denver after the heaping pile of crap he created back home. He can't help but feel that his sister and her friends, his new friends, will never quite trust him, and he doesn't blame them at all. For now he is content to just wake up every morning and make it through each day.
Royal and Asa eventually give in to the temptation the other offers. While neither is completely sure they will make it out in one piece, neither one is willing to give up. Asa makes Royal feel things did never knew existed and she helps heal the scarred pieces of Asa's life and gives him hope for a future that he never thought possible.
Royal is a tough as nails cop on an administrative leave from the Denver PD after an incident which nearly claimed her partner's life. Looking for trouble, Royal finds herself in Asa's bar time and time again, hoping to catch the attention of the smooth southerner. Asa keeps telling her that he isn't interested and that they can never be together, but Royal knows deep down that Asa is right for her.
Asa is continuing to build his life in Denver after the heaping pile of crap he created back home. He can't help but feel that his sister and her friends, his new friends, will never quite trust him, and he doesn't blame them at all. For now he is content to just wake up every morning and make it through each day.
Royal and Asa eventually give in to the temptation the other offers. While neither is completely sure they will make it out in one piece, neither one is willing to give up. Asa makes Royal feel things did never knew existed and she helps heal the scarred pieces of Asa's life and gives him hope for a future that he never thought possible.
Jay's writing just keeps getting better. And I really didn't think it was possible to improve on what she had already put out. Each book in The Marked Men series, while including some of the same characters and settings, is completely unique. Each couple faces their own set of trials and hardships. Each character reacts in his or her own particular way. No two books are alike in their story lines and arcs. I positively love that about the series.
I am devastated that this is the end of the series because I feel like I could continue to read about this group and their friends forever. However, I know that Jay has more goodness up her tattooed sleeves and I look forward to jumping in to a new world soon.
5 out of 5 stars
This song seemed like the perfect choice for Royal, especially at the beginning of the story.
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I can't wait to find out what's in Asa's head either. 😊
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