NEED YOU NOW
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: M. O’Keefe
Release Date: September 12, 2019
MARCO
I have loved Rosa since I met her in high school English, even though the odds have always been stacked against us. She is the child of criminals, resigned to a bleak future. I’m the heir to a successful construction company and am not afraid to go after what I want.
And I want Rosa. Always and forever.
ROSA
I broke the law to make sure Marco got custody of our daughter, and I paid the price. But now that I’m out of jail, I’m terrified my ugly past might bleed into our daughter’s future.
The only way to ensure that doesn’t happen is staying far away from both of them.
But Marco isn’t letting me run from him. Not again.
A stand-alone, contemporary romance.
He looked at me across the room and slowly shook his head. “I don’t want to love you,” he said.“I know.”
“Half the time I hate you.”
“I know.”
He looked away from me, his hands in fists, and I could feel the tension across the room, the fragile control he had on himself. How he was barely holding on. And I knew that he would never hurt me. The thing he was trying to stop himself from doing was touch me.
“I’m leaving,” he said and crossed the room in three angry steps. Everything in me told me to get out of the way. To let him go. But I didn’t. I stood right in front of the door in my gold vest and hot pants.
His face was flushed. “Get out of my way,” he said, and my mouth was full, my throat closed, and I shook my head. “Don’t make me,” he said. “Don’t make me touch you.”
It was exactly what I was doing, because I would take his touch any way I could get it.
“Fuck, Rosa,” he groaned. “Fuck you.”
And he put his hands around my arms and pulled me up and into his body so my breasts touched his chest, and between my legs I felt the hard pressure of him. I gasped and he turned. I expected him to let me go. I expected him to shove me away but he didn’t. Oh god, he didn’t. He lifted me off my feet and took two steps forward, pushing me against the wall. Not gently. But not rough. And then he leaned against me, his entire body against mine. And I was electrified. Every inch of my skin burned where it touched his.
I burned so hot I burned right through all the years. All the pain fell away and it was just us. Marco and me and the desire so pure it kept changing the course of both our lives.
He held himself so still, so carefully, and he was going to walk away. I knew he was. He would walk away and this moment would never happen again.
“Please,” I begged, because it was all I had left. No more pride. No more distance. I was only need.
What do you want?” she asked, like she honestly didn’t know.
“What I’ve always wanted. What I’ll want for the rest of my life,” I told her with the same intensity I’d used to say my vows four years ago. “You.”
Man, but Molly O’Keefe know how to serve up some feels. This was another heartfelt standalone in the same world as The Debt series If you’ve read and remember the pregnant teenager that the group met in their foster home, than you’re already familiar with the heroine. And if you haven’t read that series yet (I highly recommend it), no worries, because this is definitely written as a standalone. But if you’re like me and binge read that series and salivating for more Bates, this will definitely deliver. Because OMG Bates!!! But I digress. Let’s focus on the story here.
Marco and Rosa’s story is certainly a tearjerker. My heart broke for Rosa and everything that she goes through. This woman is a survivor and I loved her endearing combination of strength and vulnerability. Rosa made the necessary sacrifice to protect the love of her life and future baby by risking everything and going to jail. This is a woman that has always had all the odds stacked against her. A violent neo-nazi father and brother that threaten everything she loves and forcing her into a life of petty crime that she can’t escape. Pregnant at 16 and living in foster care with a terrible man and his wife. Rosa makes the choice to sacrifice her freedom in order for Marco to get custody of their baby and after serving a four year sentence the only thing cemented in her mind is that she doesn’t deserve anything good in life, especially not Marco and their beautiful daughter. Not when her family still threaten everything.
Marco is so angry with Rosa at first. He doesn’t understand why she stayed away all this time since getting out. But soon the resentment turns into determination and he wants nothing more than his wife back.
I loved the angsty and highly emotional thread between these two. I liked the the story is clearly broken up in past and present and doesn’t have the usual flashback song and dance. It was more impactful this way. I also loved Marco’s quiet intensity and the way he fights for Rosa and her self-sacrificing.
This was such a satisfying romance with plenty of feels and a dash of sizzle. Of course I was salving for more Bates and I’m damn near ravenous after the additional peek we get of him here. If I don’t get his book next, I’m pretty sure I’ll be shaking in a dark corner somewhere.
Molly O’Keefe is the USA Today Bestselling author of over 50 contemporary romances. She lives in Toronto Ontario with her husband, two kids and rescue dog.
Sign up for her newsletter to get release day news, exclusive excerpts, sale announcements and in-depth author interviews!
Connect with Molly:
Website | Amazon | Goodreads | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Bookbub
Stay up to date with Molly by joining her mailing list:
http://www.molly-okeefe.com/subscribe/
Speak Your Mind