Guest Post~ Headfirst into Home by Jennifer Simpkins
Headfirst into Home
By: Jennifer Simpkins
Contemporary Romance
BLURB:
Coming off of a divorce, Rachel Young’s focus is on moving forward and making a life for her and her daughter. When ex-baseball hottie, Ty Robinson, waltzes back into her life, tempting her with his kisses, forming a bond with her daughter, and making promises for their future, she willingly gives him her heart.
Ty has harbored a deep desire for small town beauty, Rachel, for the past ten years. Fate dropped her in his path when they were teenagers, leading to one magical night. Following an injury, he has come home, determined to prove to Rachel he is home for good.
After a life changing phone call, Ty is faced with taking another opportunity at playing the game he’s always loved and the woman and child that have stolen his heart. In the end, is he capable of giving Rachel what she needs—a sense of home and most importantly, honesty?
EXCERPT:
With all the laughter and cracking of the billiard balls, Rachel was amazed she’d even heard the bell ding above the entrance door, either announcing or saying good-bye to a customer. People were coming in, while others were making it an early night and heading home. This was one of those rare nights where she didn’t have to be home at a certain time. Her mom responsibilities were put on hold for the next twelve hours. Her daughter was safe and happy, and Rachel was set on having a good time.
She saw him first.
If she was smart she would’ve sank down in the booth, trying to make herself unnoticeable or give him the hint she still wasn’t interested in talking. It was the same way she treated him after…well, after the night that changed her life. She was still on the fence as to if that change was a good thing…or a very bad thing.
Turns out she wasn’t smart. At least not when sinfully, sexy Ty Robinson stood just feet away from where she sat. Smart and Ty never had gone hand in hand with her. He clouded her judgment—always had. She sat up straight, almost announcing herself to him, begging him to waltz in her direction.
His warm gaze locked on her instantly. Was he surprised to see her? She couldn’t tell. But from what she could tell by his wide grin, flashing pearly whites, he didn’t look unpleasant at the sight of her. That was a good sign.
“Mmm…” God, did she just sigh out loud. No, it wasn’t fair he still could turn her brain to mush. How was that even possible?
“What’s that?” Morgan asked, her eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong with you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
No, it wasn’t a ghost, not by a long shot. She would have been a lot safer if the man standing just feet away from her, looking like the hottest thing ever to grace The Eight Ball, was paranormal. A fitted gray T-shirt stretched over a formed chest, revealing muscular—but not overwhelming—tanned arms. Was it possible he’d grown taller since the last time she’d seen him? He had to be at least six feet plus inches. Long legs filled the luckiest faded pair of blue jeans. And here she thought seeing him on television, under the blazing sun, perspiration forming above his brow, and with an intense expression as he sized up his opponent in the batter’s box was enough to get her juices flowing. Watching his baseball games were entertaining, but didn’t come close to seeing him up close.
Rachel couldn’t will herself to look away. “I can’t believe he’s back. Why is he here?” Ty’s sister, Stacey, one of her best friends, never said anything about her twin brother coming back to town. At least not to Rachel, she didn’t. Could it have been Stacey didn’t even know? “I wonder if Stacey has seen him yet.” Another thought came to mind. It was enough to turn her attention back on Morgan. “How do I look?”
“You look like you always do. Why is who back? And what does it have to do with Stacey? I’m sorry, Rach, but you’re not making a lick of sense.”
Rachel fiddled with the paper napkin under her glass of wine, too afraid to look up again. “Ty. Ty Robinson just walked in.”
Before Rachel could tell her friend not to make it obvious they were talking about him by whipping her head around, Morgan was already turned completely around in the booth, eyes fixated on Ty. “Oh. My. God. It’s really him, isn’t it?”
Isn’t that what she had just said? “Morgan,” Rachel said through clenched teeth. “He’s looking right at us. Can you please turn your ass back around? Geez!”
“What do you think this means?” Morgan asked, once again facing forward. “I think he retired the end of last season. I think I heard it was some kind of arm injury. Do you think he’s back for good?”
Opening Day, something she only knew because it was considered a holiday in Lincoln Springs, was a little over three weeks ago. And since he was in Lincoln Springs and not playing under the big lights, it was safe to say the rumors of Ty retiring after only playing six years in the Major Leagues was true.
“I’m not sure what it all means.”
“Well, it’s not like he hasn’t been back in the past ten years. He used to visit once a year.”
This time felt different. In the past ten years Rachel had only seen glimpses of Ty around town when he would come to visit his family. She had stayed away, never even offering a hello to him, because of her marriage to James. As far as she knew he hadn’t been in town in the last three years.
The already loud bar got even louder as everyone figured out the biggest thing to come out of Lincoln Springs had returned. A lot of hellos were given, a lot more slaps on the back…and of course women appeared out of every corner like cockroaches, swarming around him.
Rachel casually sipped her wine, peeking over the rim of the glass to catch another eyeful of an all grown-up Ty Robinson. In the past couple years she’d caught a few of his games. Because he played on the West Coast, the games were always on late. Sometimes after she’d put Brooklyn to bed and had a few minutes to sit back and relax, she would turn on a California Wolverines game. She wasn’t always sure what exactly was happening on the ball field, but…God, the things that man could do to her. She didn’t have to understand all the ins and outs of baseball to appreciate the sight of him in a pair of uniform pants.
Leisurely walking through the crowd of people, shaking hands with guys he’d grown up with, smiling at all the pretty girls who fluttered their eyelashes at him, Rachel watched him make his way toward the booth she and Morgan shared.
“Don’t look,” Rachel said. She felt it was important to remind Morgan of that right off the bat. What was up with her and baseball terms tonight? “He’s coming over here.”
* * * *
BUY LINKS:
AUTHOR BIO:
Jennifer has always been an avid reader, but it wasn’t until she became a stay-at-home mom did she start to read romance. Her passion of reading romance turned into another passion she had as a child—writing. One late night of writing about sexy heroes and strong-willed heroines turned into two nights, until seven months later she had written her first novel.
She lives in a small, North Carolina town with her supportive husband (whose dream is to be on the cover of one of her books), a beautiful daughter, and two dogs who can’t seem to get along. If she’s not writing you can find her reading, hanging out with her family, or cheering on the New York Yankees.
OTHER BOOKS BY JENNIFER:
Moving On
Trusting Patience (Patience #3)
Loving Patience (Patience #2)
Forgiving Patience (Patience #1)
Connect with Jennifer:
~H.A.B.