Shaken Synopsis

“After an earthquake wreaks havoc, the earth is left disturbed and altered. Whatever remains in ruin is left shaken and in need of rebuilding.”

Scarlett Brooks doesn't need love. The only men she can trust in her life are her twin brother and his two best friends, Logan and Caleb. Every other guy has only let her down, and she promises herself to never to experience heartbreak again.

Logan King can't stand back and watch his best friend's twin sister continue to spiral out of control. With random hookups, drunken nights, and reckless decisions, she is on the path to self-destruction. He sets out to slow her down and prove that she isn't happy with her one-night stands.

The two come dangerously close to crossing lines. Is Scarlett capable of trusting and opening up to love again? Will it ruin their friendship if Logan is the one to teach her how?

This is part of a series but can be read as a standalone. Characters are introduced in Jolted and Impacted.

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Excerpt

Scarlett's eyes went wide as she took in the sight of me in the entryway. She stumbled back in surprise before composing herself into a cool and neutral expression. I clenched my jaw and closed the short distance between us. Grabbing her upper arms, I quickly backed her into the door.

"Do they even make you come?" I growled at her, blood pumping in my ears from the shear anger I had for her.

"What? Back off, Logan," she bit out, pushing me away. I didn't budge.

"That was the worse fake orgasm I ever heard, love. Why do it then?"

"It was not fake. Now, leave me alone," she whined.

"Yes, it was. Are you even wet?" I asked. I had no clue what came over me, but I was furious with her.

"Oh my God. Don't be so crude. What is your problem tonight?" she asked with a red face. I knew I was right, and it was pissing her off, too.

"Aren't you a little too old to be still having sex in cars?"

"We didn't," she paused. "We didn't have sex."

"I didn't know it was possible to make Scarlett Brooks blush," I said, running a finger across the rosy tint on her cheeks.

I felt her shiver under my soft touch and I pressed closer to her. Her lips parted and I could smell her cherry chapstick. Her chest rose and fell, meeting mine with each deep inhale. I grew hard against her and pushed away, disgusted with the both of us. She was just fooling around with another guy, and here I was, turned on by the only girl I couldn't put my hands on.

"When will you learn?" I asked her, glaring.

"Learn what?"

"That you're miserable."

Her jaw dropped open as she stared at me. "I am not."

"No? You really like being used, taken for granted, and never having anything more?" I asked her in a low voice.

"I don't want more. I don't need it. I'm not one of those girls who's waiting for prince charming to come and take me off into the sunset," she insisted.

"Then why fall for Adam? Or Jacob. Whatever. You wanted to find something more than the no-strings-attached flings you are used to. That's why you let him in," I pointed out to her.

She needed to see that she was on a dead-end road. Scarlett deserved to be wanted, night after night, not just for one night. Deep down, it was something she wanted; she just didn't know it yet. Her father may have ruined her idea for love, but I think that made her want it even more. She was a different person when she thought she was in love with Adam. When he broke her heart, she retreated into someone different.

"I just want to have fun," she offered.

"Well, you're doing it wrong."

I stared at her as she panted up against my door. Her little fists were clenched at her sides, and her body was still trembling. Scarlett could actually throw a pretty mean punch for her size. I hoped she wasn't working one up for me. I just wanted her to see how unhappy she was so she could change it. An idea popped into my head and I grinned at her.

"Let's play a game," I suggested. She raised her eyebrow, and I knew I had her right where I wanted.

Scarlett always loved games and was loyal to the rules. As kids, whenever we argued over something, we made up tons of little games to determine who would win. Who would get the big four-wheeler? Who had to tell Mrs. Brooks we broke a window? Who got the last piece of bacon?

"What's the stakes?" she asked.

"If you win, I’ll leave you alone. I will never interfere with your life again," I offered.

"And if you win?"

"Then you do what I say. You follow my rules and I will teach you to open up."

"I don't want to open up, Logan," she whispered.

"And I don't believe you. Deal or no deal? You don't accept, I will be there every time you try to pick up a guy. I will cockblock you every step of the way," I warned.

"It should be something different if it's a girl," she joked. "Pussy Pass? Taco Blocko? Twat Swat!"

I buckled over laughing. This was the girl I knew and loved. She had no filter, no shame, and never tried to be something she wasn't. "Enough," I said, trying to curb the laughter.

"Fine. Deal," she announced. "But only because I would love for you leave me the hell alone, and I don't think that after your lessons that I will be changing. So, game on."

"Dice? Highest number wins?" I challenged.

She shrugged and walked past me to my kitchen, quickly finding the set of dice I had in a junk drawer. Scarlett held eye contact with me while she shook them in her palms before tossing them on the kitchen table. A four and a two.

Alyne Roberts Bio

Alyne lives in Ohio with her husband, dog and cat. Working full time in an office all day, she spends her nights reading, writing or watching an entire TV series in a night. She refuses to grow up, loves Disney movies and anything with owls. She couldn't live without her coffee or her furry "children".

Alyne is the author of "Light to the Darkness" and the "Conflicted Encounters" Series.

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