Title: Waiting for Wyatt
Author: SD Hendrickson
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: January 12, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance
More Info: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon US
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Purchase: Amazon UK
Purchase: iTunes
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“The dogs that deserved a chance, the guy who needed a second, and the girl determined to save him.”

My name is Emma Sawyer.

I met Charlie and Wyatt on the same sultry, summer day. It was unexpected, leaving a feeling in the pit of my stomach like the time I drove too fast over Beckett Hill. The moment happened out of nowhere, all fast and quick and a little strange. Or maybe that was just Wyatt’s personality.

It was Charlie that brought us together. Little Charlie with those ridiculous ears. I found the dog, waiting in a pool of his own blood. Waiting for someone. Waiting for me.

Now Wyatt, he wasn’t waiting for anyone. At least that’s what he said, except I saw something different in the broken guy all alone out in the woods. I knew he needed me before he knew it himself.

Wyatt with his hidden dimples. Wyatt with his warnings to stay away. He was a hard lump of coal, ready to burn everything around him. The more he burned, the more it pulled me into the pain I saw etched on his troubled face.

I wanted to help Wyatt. I wanted to save him like he had saved all the Charlies in the world. He told me not to fall for him, but I did anyway. I fell hard and fast and deeply in love with Wyatt Caulfield.

But that was before I knew his secret.

Author Note: Waiting for Wyatt is the love story of Wyatt Caulfield and Emma Sawyer, which also features rescue animals. It’s a 112,000 word standalone, Contemporary Romance Novel.

Title: Waiting for Wyatt

Author: SD Hendrickson

Genre: Contemporary NA Romance

Cover Design: NajlaQamber Design

Photographer: Lindee Robinson Photography

Cover Models: Chad Feyrer & Denise Emilia

Release Date: January 12, 2016

Excerpt

He rested his hands on my shoulders, fiddling with my scarf. I knew he was sad that I was leaving and he was worried about me driving in the middle of the night. I wished that I could say, I’ll text you when I get home. But that’s not how things worked between us.

“I’ll be okay,” I whispered.

“I know. I just . . . I know.” He let out a deep breath, pulling me to his chest. His mouth found my lips, tugging possessively until they were slightly sore from his kiss. And then he abruptly released me. Backing away a few steps, Wyatt let his eyes wander over me as he slipped away into some hazy stare in the moonlit shadows.

“What?”

“I’m just trying to remember you like this.” His low voice hung on each word. “With your hair falling down around your shoulders and that sleepy look in your eyes. And your lips all red from me kissing you. That’s what I want to remember. When I’m out here alone and I feel like I’m losing my mind. I want to picture you like this.”

I stared back at him, feeling my heart beat wildly in my chest. After a few moments, I climbed inside my car and drove away as my insides turned into complete mush. That might be the sweetest and most heart-wrenching thing Wyatt had ever said to me.

My Review

While this was a slow building book, it was done with a perfection you don’t often find. I say slow building because you don’t really see where it’s going for quite a while, even though all the clues are there. But there wasn’t one moment I skimmed, which you would have thought went hand in hand with slow. That just wasn’t the case with this magnificent story. I was pulled in from the beginning; the characters already having a tight hold on my heart even though I didn’t know much about them. There was just something I couldn’t put my finger on that endeared them towards me. And while Emma and Wyatt were the main characters, the animals played just as big of a part of this story, if not more. I dare you to read this book and not have your heartstrings tugged at. It was like one long drawn out Sarah McLachlan song, but for once I didn’t run from the room screaming.

I don’t think there are words to describe just how pure and large Emma’s heart was. Some may call her naive, in fact many did in this story, but I choose to believe she just saw the good in everyone, no matter what they circumstance may lead to believe. There was an innocence, hope, and light that surrounded her aura that shone so brightly you couldn’t even begin to try and ignore it. Even the blackest of hearts were drawn towards her. I like that no matter what life had and continued to throw at her, she never let it damper her spirit. She fought for others, whether they be young or old, human or animal, and just let someone try to stand in her way. I’m not saying she was perfect, because no one is, but she held an optimism that was refreshing in this day and age of doom and gloom.

While this book was angsty like I love them, it wasn’t to the point where you lost all hope. Even when it got close to that point, I could still see the light at the end of the tunnel. And his name was Wyatt. Living in solitude, buried under a mountain of self inflicted grief and despair, he was truly the opposite of everything Emma personified, or was he? Because he was one of those people that if you just took them on face value, you would run the other way in fear. But if you actually took the time, looked beyond what was presented to you, then you would see a man that just needed forgiveness. Forgiveness from others, but most of all, forgiveness from himself that he didn’t think he deserved. And when you find out why, you may be conflicted. It isn’t exactly black and white, but littered with shades of gray. But you know what? That’s how life is. The things and people most worthy of fighting for will always be gray. Because you should question and look beyond the surface to find the shiny penny. Chances are you’re going to find something your heart never knew it could desire. You’ll find something so much more.

I love that Emma didn’t let Wyatt run her off, and I loved how she fought against him FOR him. For every growl and snarky comment he threw her way, she just came back that much harder. She wa sa force he couldn’t hope to keep away, even though deep down he didn’t really want to. They fit together so seamlessly; one beginning where the other ended. Even though it was utterly painful to hear the stories of how the dogs came to the kennel, it warmed my heart to no end to read the love and progress they were now receiving. When I say they were important characters in this story, what I really mean is they were the heart and soul of it. I’ve always been more of a cat person myself, but they won me over here.

There wasn’t one thing I didn’t like about this story. It was my kind of perfection from start to finish, and while it ends with a HEA, I can’t help but hope we might be getting a story for her sister Blaire. A girl can hope right?

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