
Author: LP Dover
Series: Second Chances #7
Publisher: Loveswept
Release Date: June 28, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense, Sports
More Info: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon US
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The Carolina Cougars keep fighting for love as the Second Chances series from bestselling author L. P. Dover continues! In Defending Hayden, a damaged football star teams up with the only woman who can take the pain away.
No one’s tougher than Carolina Cougars linebacker Derek McLaughlin. But when a fatal car accident claims the life of his girlfriend, Derek finds himself caught in a destructive spiral of drugs, alcohol, and meaningless sex. But not even a string of one-night stands can ease the hurt. Football is all he has left. Then fate leads him back to the scene of the crash, and into the arms of a kind, gorgeous woman who sees past his façade to the man he once was . . . and can be again.
When a chance roadside encounter brings Derek into her life, veterinarian Hayden Hunter isn’t fooled by his bad attitude: All bark and no bite, he’s hiding a wounded heart beneath that gruff demeanor. And Hayden wants to be the one to kiss it all better. Soon they both find that a dose of passion is potent medicine. But when a hidden enemy lashes out at Hayden, Derek steps up to do what he does best: put his body on the line in the name of love.
Title: Defending Hayden
Series: Second Chances #7
Author: LP Dover
Publisher: Random House
Cover Design: Mae I Design and Photography
Release Date: June 28, 2016
Excerpt
Guilt plagued me and I felt sick. Getting out of bed, I paced the room, running my hands angrily through my hair. I didn’t want to hurt Hayden. Keeping her away would protect her from my life. She was bound to leave me anyway. I’d fuck up somehow and it would ruin her. What the hell was I talking about? I’d already fucked her up.
“Derek?” Her voice was like honey, silky and sweet. I’d imagined what it would be like to hear that voice screaming my name as I fucked her over and over. Last night had been the best night of my life, but it had scared the shit out of me. I couldn’t shake it. “Derek, are you okay?” she asked. Stopping midstep, I turned to face her, and her eyes widenened when she got a glimpse of my face. I could only imagine what she saw. So many emotions battled inside me. She held the blanket to her chest, and her lips trembled. “Please tell me this wasn’t just a game to you,” she whispered.
Swallowing hard, I sat down on the edge of the bed and reached for her. She recoiled from my touch. “None of this was a game, Hayden. Last night was fucking amazing.”
Her eyes glistened, but her jaw was firm. “Then why are you looking at me like that? Like you regret what we did.”
I wanted to touch her, but last night had been my only chance. She’d never let me close to her again. “I don’t regret it, but eventually you will. You’re not the only one who’s lost someone they cared about. I can’t go through it again. It’s best to stop this before it goes any further.”
“Any further?” she scoffed. She waved her arm around the room, her anger so thick I could cut it with a knife. “If you didn’t want it to go any further, then why did you bring me here? Why would you do that to me?”
“Because I care about you,” I said, knowing it made no sense to her.
“Then why are you pushing me away?” she cried.
Standing, I got up and walked over to the window. “You wouldn’t understand.”
Love’s Second Chance
(Second Chances #1)
Amazon US
Korinne Anders had it all. She had the perfect job, the perfect house, and the perfect husband. When tragedy strikes, her world takes a devastating turn. Six months after losing her husband to a car accident, Korinne vows it to herself never to love again. If she doesn’t allow another man in her heart, then there’s no reason for her to feel the pain of loss. This plan seems to work, but is put to the test when Korinne’s best friend can’t stand to see her suffering any longer.
Korinne’s long-time friend, Jenna Perry, has an idea and it involves helping her friend find the spark of life in her soul no matter what it takes. Korinne didn’t know that Jenna’s plan meant bringing back a past love, a second chance with the man that Korinne had to leave in college, but always kept a place for in her heart.
When Galen Matthews learns of Korinne’s loss and that she’s finally moved back home, he wants nothing more than to be there for her. The love he felt for Korinne years ago has never left him, and now he’s given a second chance to not only mend her heart of her loss, but to also continue the love they shared in the past. Will his love and determination make her strong enough to give fate a second chance, or will her fear of losing another love make her run away?
What will Korinne do when she’s faced with a love so powerful that no matter what she does there’s nowhere to run from it?
Trusting You
(Second Chances #2)
Amazon US
I trust you …
These are the three words that Melissa Ashford wishes she could say to someone; to the one person she can fully give herself to and not worry about being betrayed. Being twenty-eight years old and divorced from a cheating ex-husband, Melissa enjoys her freedom … until one night when she finds herself indulging in a one night stand that changes everything.
There’s something about the alluring Brett Walker that has Melissa feeling things she’s never had with any other man. These feelings not only scare her, but push her past her limits as well. Just when she begins to open her soul to this new love, their bond is put to the test by jealousies from the past trying to break them apart.
It’s not only Melissa’s trust that’s put on the line, but Brett’s as well. Will their love be strong enough to get them through the lies? Will Melissa finally be able to say those three words she’s been dying to say? I trust you …
Meant for Me
(Second Chances #3)
Amazon US
After a night of raw passion with the man Claire O’Briene had been secretly admiring for years, she thought their time together had come once and for all. Fate had finally brought them back to each other, but unfortunately nothing had changed. He was still the same man who ran away from relationships. Against his better judgment, Mason Bradley gave in to the temptation and allowed himself one night with the one woman he’d been too afraid to want … too afraid to need.
Six months after leaving Claire and regretting every minute of it, Mason gets called in for an undercover mission that’s not only dangerous, but brings back a past he spent years trying to forget. A past of fighting … of getting in the ring and using his fists to get what he wanted: money, women, and drugs. Now there are fighters turning up dead, and it’s Mason’s job to find out the truth.
Knowing he might not come out of the mission alive, Mason seeks out Claire to tell her how he truly feels, only to find another man competing for her love as well. Fighting is what he’s good at, and for once he will be fighting not only for justice … but for love.
Fighting for Love
(Second Chances #4)
Amazon US
Fighting for someone’s heart is more challenging than fighting for a title.
For a time, many years ago, love had grown, love was made, and in the end … love was lost. The decision to leave had been the worst mistake Shelby Dawson could have ever made. However, at the time—ten years ago—she felt her secret needed to stay hidden, even if it broke her heart and the heart of the man she loved. Back then, he was all hers and she was all his, but now things have changed and he isn’t the same guy she knew.
He happens to be the well-known MMA Heavyweight champion and famous bad boy, Matt ‘The Destroyer’ Reynolds, who once before struggled to help his family pay the bills. Now, he has money flowing with each undefeated win and an insurmountable number of women filling his bed. Everything is perfect for the illustrious fighter, until one day it all changes. In walks the girl from his past, the same girl who promised to stick by him but left and never looked back.
Their second chance to make things right will not come easy, for when one mistake is made an unwelcome consequence soon follows. Someone out there wants to rip them apart and they won’t stop until Matt and Shelby pay the ultimate price … their love.
Intercepting Love
(Second Chances #5)
Amazon US
A steamy, romantic suspense novel by USA TODAY Bestselling author, L.P. Dover. If you love strong and sexy football players that’ll make your panties drop and wildly hot motocross racers then this book is definitely for you!!
Both have what she wants … but only one has what she needs.
Working with professional athletes and helping them recover from their injuries has always been Kate Townsend’s dream, but after an accident left her scarred and heartbroken years ago she refuses to let what happened in her past happen again. Staying focused is the key, as well as not letting her feelings interfere with her job … no matter the circumstances. All of that is easier said than done when not only one, but two men crave her healing touch, igniting every single desire she’s denied herself for so long.
Cooper Davis, NFL’s star quarterback and most eligible bachelor, packs up and leaves his home to move across the states to the East Coast after an injury results in the embarrassing trade to another team. Bitter from the pain, he deals with his problems through drugs and alcohol—almost ruining his football career—until he meets the one woman who makes him want to feel; the same woman who refuses to give up on him no matter how many times he screws up. He has to have her, and he’s not going to stop until he makes her his. Especially, now that someone else threatens to take her away.
Motocross champion and local bad boy Luke Collins never takes no for an answer. For the past four months he’s used his charms to get what he wants, and now he’s so close to getting the girl of his dreams … if she’ll give in just once. One time is all he needs, and he’s never been known to fail, but he’s also never had to fight for a woman’s affections. Only one man will win their way into Kate’s heart, but which one will intercept the other and take what they want? Which one will she choose?
Catching Summer
(Second Chances #6)
Amazon US
Falling for someone can be dangerous, especially when someone wants to take them away from you. But what happens when fighting for the one you love could cost them their life?
For over two years, Summer Jacobs has tried to get her life back on track. A former nurse and now a prestigious restaurant owner, she’s living the dream just like her husband wanted. After watching him get killed in the MMA ring and almost losing her life herself, it left a scar on her soul. The thought of moving on scares her, but the local NFL star, Evan Townsend, is determined to catch her heart.
Forced to work with him and the football team, Summer succumbs to his relentless attempts at capturing her heart. He has the power to heal her, but there’s someone out there who wants to keep them apart. Even if it means getting rid of Evan permanently. Summer is being chased by hidden dangers and it’s up to Evan to catch her. The question is . . . will he get to her in time?
One Taste
(Second Chances #7.5)
Coming August 2016!
One night.
That’s all it takes for everything to change.
Lara Jacobs knows that getting involved with the motocross racing bad boy, Luke Collins, that she’ll regret it. She can’t resist him, but then she doesn’t want to.
All Luke craves is one night with the girl he wants, but doesn’t deserve.
When he finally gets her, one taste might not be enough.
Unfortunately, it’s all he’s going to get.
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