Excerpt Reveal: Reprise by Lisa Swallow
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About the Book
Drummer Nate Campbell is a 'Ruby Riot twin' - and that's all he wants anybody to know. The only person allowed close is his brother, Will, and even that's not working out these days. For Nate, girls are a dispensable distraction and the rock star life suits his needs. Nobody will expect him to hand his heart over if he pretends he doesn't have a one.
Falling for Nate Campbell was the second biggest mistake of Riley Sawyer's life. Working as a junior PR girl on the Blue Phoenix European and Ruby Riot tour, she earned a reputation as unapproachable and unable to switch off from work. With a side to her life Riley keeps hidden, she was happy to maintain her distance. But after an encounter with Nate, and several difficult weeks, Riley left the circuit and vowed never to tour with bands again.
Two years later Riley achieves her ambition and is a PR manager and Ruby Riot are headlining stadiums. She meets Nate again for the first time in two years and nothing has changed. The animosity stands and so does the attraction. Neither sees this as a problem because they can avoid each other for the two days until Riley leaves.
What they don't count on is that Nate's bloody-mindedness and an unfortunate set of circumstances leads to the pair snowed-in at a pub on the Yorkshire Moors for several days. Forced to spend time together, Riley and Nate are pushed into discussing what happened on tour and find themselves in a situation neither of them expected.
When the snow retreats and they return to London, Nate discovers Riley has her own secret and it's one deeply connected to his past. Nate backs away, unsure if he can continue a relationship with the girl who's more like himself than he realised.
Nate won't have long to decide because Riley isn't prepared to let a damaged commitmentphobe into her life. And she has zero interest in fixing a man who refuses to fix himself.
Reprise is the third standalone book in the Ruby Riot series.
Excerpt
RILEY
Short of time, I devour the chocolate cake, happy the coffee is half-decent. A text arrives, asking why I'm late, and I wipe my fingers before answering.
Each minute that passes, I'm putting off the inevitable.
And as I head towards the lobby, the inevitable appears.
I didn't mean to but, unprepared, I stop in my tracks. Nate Campbell strides across the tiled floor in my direction. Dressed in dark denim and Converse, greying T-shirt stretched across his chest, he hasn't changed. The twins are different these days; bass player Will wears his hair longer so there's no doubt this twin with short, spiked hair is Nate.
I'm convinced Nate's about to blank me and walk past but he stops too. His green eyes fix on mine with disinterest. I'm wrong; he has changed. His eyes are creased by tiredness, his skin paler, but this doesn't detract from the deceptive attractiveness of his perfect features. I cannot believe I kissed that mouth; allowed those hands on my body. But there's nothing attractive behind his lucky genetics, unless Nate's changed on the inside too. From what I've heard, he hasn't.
“Riley,” he says in greeting.
“Hello, Nate.”
“I heard you were coming. How long you staying?”
“A couple of days.”
“Not long, then.”
“Too long.”
Nate stares at my mouth, then flicks his gaze back to my eyes. His mouth tips at one corner and I hold my breath. It may be two years since, but I've seen that look on Nate's face before. Amusement.
“You haven't changed,” he says.
“Neither have you, much.”
“Yeah?”
I wave a hand at him. “You look the same.”
“That isn't what I meant. Your attitude.” Nate crosses his arms. “But yeah, you're skinnier and your hair's blonder. I preferred it brown.”
I bristle at the fact he checked me out. “Your attitude remains the same too, then.”
I swore I'd avoid this, but already the animosity slips in.
“Still get your knickers in a twist over everything?”
“What?”
“Just a question. I heard you lost your shit with Melissa a couple of hours ago.” He smirks. “Smiley Riley's back in town.”
“Jesus, Nate. Two minutes and you've already started this. Don't you think we should forget what happened and be professional?”
Two years.
Two years to say the words that needed saying back then. How we should've left things. Professional.
“About what happened? You still dwelling on that?” Nate shakes his head. “Ancient history, Riley.”
“Okay.” I put my phone in my bag. “Call this the line in the sand. I'll ignore what happened in the past if you do. A couple of days here and I'm gone, and we don’t have to see each other again. We can be civil for that long.”
Nate rubs his index finger along his lips, staring at my mouth again. “How about we just keep out of each other's way?”
“Sounds like a great idea.”
“If you can, of course.”
I laugh, a short derisive sound. “Seriously?”
Nate steps closer and that tiny change in proximity floods back the frustrating physical effect the man I hate has on me. I tuck my hands beneath my arms, goose bumps rising along my neck. Has the absence made this worse? Sometimes I have stupid dreams about Nate that involve far too much intimacy and wake up disgusted with myself. Why the hell can't I control my subconscious?
Nate raises a hand to my face and I'm too stunned to react before he touches the corner of my mouth. “Riley,” he whispers, moving his face closer to mine. “There's something you need to know.”
I blink as the sensation of his fingertip sends a tiny shock across my mouth and I part my lips. “What?”
Instead of darkened eyes to match my thumping heart, the amusement remains on his face. Nate holds his index finger up. “You have chocolate around your mouth.”
I step back and narrow my eyes at him.
He grins and wipes his hand on his jeans. “Gotcha.”
“Asshole!”
“You're not over me, are you?”
Before I get a chance to tell Nate exactly what I think of him, he moves past me. “Two years, Riley!” Nate calls as he walks away. “Get a grip!”
I glance around, relieved nobody saw our encounter, then rush to the nearest ladies’ room. Fury is replaced by horror. Chocolate is smeared around the edges of my mouth, in a way any five-year-old would be proud of. My professional image ruined by a slice of bloody cake. With shaking hands, I wipe the mess away with a paper towel.
Damn you, Nate Campbell.
About the Author
Lisa is an Amazon bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. She is originally from the UK and moved to Australia in 2001. She now lives in Perth, Western Australia with her husband, three children, and Weimaraner, Tilly, who often makes appearances on Lisa’s social media.
Lisa’s first publication was a moving poem about the rain, followed by a suspenseful story about shoes. Following these successes at nine years old there was a long gap in her writing career, until she published her first book in 2013.
In the past, Lisa worked as an English teacher in France, as an advertising copywriter in England, and ran her own business in Australia. Now she spends her days with imaginary rock stars.
She lived in Europe as a child and also travelled when she left university. This has given Lisa stories which would sound far-fetched if she wrote them down, and maybe one day she will. These days, Lisa is happy in her writing cave, under Tilly’s supervision.
