by: Christi Barth
Series: Bad Boys Gone Good
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 18, 2018
Publisher: Avon Impulse
Amazon | Paperback | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo | Goodreads
In USA Today bestseller Christi Barth’s last Bad Boys Gone Good novel, the brother who’s always followed the rules finally gets to be a little bad.
Kellan Maguire was a semester away from becoming a lawyer when his life imploded. Now he’s in Witness Protection, hiding from the mob and mad as hell that his brothers lied to him about, oh, everything. The only bright spot in his new life is their drop-dead-gorgeous U.S. Marshal handler. Yeah, he wants to handle her... a lot.
Federal Marshal Delaney Evans has protected her fair share of dangerous criminals. But Kellan is a whole different kind of dangerous—dangerously hot, to be specific. The charming, handsome, and utterly law-abiding Maguire brother got under her skin the moment they met and the more time she spends with him, the harder it is to deny their attraction. Delaney’s willing to give Kellan one night—to get him out of her system—and then it’s over.
Except one night isn’t enough and soon they’re breaking every rule of WITSEC to be together. Kellan’s got it bad for her, but Delaney’s career, her entire life, would fall apart if anyone found out. And then the biggest complication of all hits…
Let’s be clear: the Maguire brothers in my Bad Boys Gone Good series are all hot. Smoking hot. Muscled and manly in a Black Irish way. But I wanted Kellan to be a little bit different from his two older brothers. They were the mobsters, not him (not a spoiler—it’s on the back cover blurb, I promise, LOL!). Kellan’s more educated, more cultured. City-sexy. Suave, debonair. The kind of guy who dries Fifty Shades Freed. He’s confident, more than a little cocky (double entendre only slightly intended), and always up for fun. Law school couldn’t beat the optimism out of him, and it’s a rare day when there isn’t a twinkle in his eyes. Most importantly? He’s a consummate flirt. Even more important? His follow-through on said flirting is first-rate.out your mouth when he wears a suit, and weakens your knees when he reveals the muscles underneath it. So I chose Brent Daugherty as my inspiration for him. 6’1”, ripped, and oh, you might remember him from a little film called
And she’s fought with Kellan Maguire since the day she hauled him away from his life and into WITSEC. Fought against his non-stop, thoroughly inappropriate flirting…and fought even harder against how badly she’s tempted to respond in kind. I based her on Anna Chlumsky. Her character on Veep (sooo darned funny!) is not just the brains of the whole show, but probably the skeleton as well. She holds everything together. She’s stubborn and smart and driven. That’s exactly how Delaney approaches her career as a marshal…which makes dating Kellan completely out of the question. Impossible…or do I mean unavoidable?
If this intrigues you, I’ve got a Pinterest board https://www.pinterest.com/christibarth/got-it-bad/ for not just this book, but all my books. Fun photos of not just the people, but the places and wardrobe and settings. Because Bandon, OR—where this series is set—is real. As is the extremely quirky annual Cranberry Festival that is a thru-line in the series. Bandon, the Sea Lion Caves, the Heceta Lighthouse—they’re all absolutely stunning places. Go on, take a peek. And then see them the way I do, between the pages of Got It Bad.
Most of all, Delaney saw Kellan.
She saw the brightness of the early evening sun casting a halo behind his dark head. She saw the azure flecks that rimmed his pupils. The pale corona of blue that she could almost float in. That she wanted to stare at forever to see deep behind the quick smile and automatic friendliness to the intense soul of a man who struggled to balance the love in his heart with what his brain knew to be right and just and fair.
Delaney was hit with the certainty that she never wanted to look away. Never wanted to distance herself from the smart, complicated, thoughtful man he rarely showed in entirety to the rest of the world.
Kellan’s tongue danced along the inside of her mouth, his hips moving in a rhythmic echo. His hand caressed down her neck, down over her shoulder to graze the side of her breast. Instantly, Delaney arched into his palm, wanting him to press harder. To take more. But all she got was a small squeeze before his hand continued its slow slide down her body.
His thumb bumped along each rib, leaving goosebumps in its wake. Fingers spread wide, they dug in to the high curve of her ass where it hit the railing. His knee lifted, sweeping her legs across his. Effortlessly Kellan shifted them from standing to balancing Delaney across his lap as he sat on the built-in bench.
“Thank you,” he said hoarsely.
“You’re welcome? I mean, with that kind of thanks, you are really, seriously welcome.” His heartbeat thudded against her bare arm. “But for what? Because I want to do it again.”
Reaching up, he cradled her face in his palms. “Thank you for seeing my side of it. Thank you for seeing me as a man with choices that deserve to be respected. Thank you for understanding. Nobody else has. Nobody else has even come close. I didn’t even realize how much I needed that until you said the words.”
A warm rush of caring radiated from her heart. She couldn’t, wouldn’t hide it. Or worry about it. About how not-casual this all felt. About how right it had felt to share such a serious discussion. About how right being with Kellan felt.
“I meant them. I am on your side.”
“Team Kellan, huh?”
“I think not. That makes us sound like some horrible reality TV show love triangle.”
“You’re right. I can do better. Got a pen?”
Huh. Guess her purse had slid to the floor of the gazebo at some point, too. Delaney snagged it with her fingertips and handed him a deep green rollerball. Because even field notes deserved a little color.
Kellan leaned over to the bottom of the slats that encircled the gazebo. He drew a heart, and put D+K in the middle of it. And Delaney’s own heart melted.
“I’m not the focal point. We’re the team. Together. You and me, figuring out what matters, figuring out how to be with each other, how to be there for each other.”
“That is beyond romantic. It is ridiculously romantic.”
“Too much?” He hovered the pen right over their initials, as if willing to scratch them out.
Delaney snatched the pen. “Not at all. Just because I’m carrying two firearms doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good romantic gesture.”
“Then let’s go have dinner while we watch the sun set. Tell each other silly secrets. Laugh. Drink some wine.”
“You mean have the most perfect first date ever?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Then I’m going to tell you a secret right now.” Delaney put her lips right on his ear. Whispered, “Mission accomplished.”
She saw the brightness of the early evening sun casting a halo behind his dark head. She saw the azure flecks that rimmed his pupils. The pale corona of blue that she could almost float in. That she wanted to stare at forever to see deep behind the quick smile and automatic friendliness to the intense soul of a man who struggled to balance the love in his heart with what his brain knew to be right and just and fair.
Delaney was hit with the certainty that she never wanted to look away. Never wanted to distance herself from the smart, complicated, thoughtful man he rarely showed in entirety to the rest of the world.
Kellan’s tongue danced along the inside of her mouth, his hips moving in a rhythmic echo. His hand caressed down her neck, down over her shoulder to graze the side of her breast. Instantly, Delaney arched into his palm, wanting him to press harder. To take more. But all she got was a small squeeze before his hand continued its slow slide down her body.
His thumb bumped along each rib, leaving goosebumps in its wake. Fingers spread wide, they dug in to the high curve of her ass where it hit the railing. His knee lifted, sweeping her legs across his. Effortlessly Kellan shifted them from standing to balancing Delaney across his lap as he sat on the built-in bench.
“Thank you,” he said hoarsely.
“You’re welcome? I mean, with that kind of thanks, you are really, seriously welcome.” His heartbeat thudded against her bare arm. “But for what? Because I want to do it again.”
Reaching up, he cradled her face in his palms. “Thank you for seeing my side of it. Thank you for seeing me as a man with choices that deserve to be respected. Thank you for understanding. Nobody else has. Nobody else has even come close. I didn’t even realize how much I needed that until you said the words.”
A warm rush of caring radiated from her heart. She couldn’t, wouldn’t hide it. Or worry about it. About how not-casual this all felt. About how right it had felt to share such a serious discussion. About how right being with Kellan felt.
“I meant them. I am on your side.”
“Team Kellan, huh?”
“I think not. That makes us sound like some horrible reality TV show love triangle.”
“You’re right. I can do better. Got a pen?”
Huh. Guess her purse had slid to the floor of the gazebo at some point, too. Delaney snagged it with her fingertips and handed him a deep green rollerball. Because even field notes deserved a little color.
Kellan leaned over to the bottom of the slats that encircled the gazebo. He drew a heart, and put D+K in the middle of it. And Delaney’s own heart melted.
“I’m not the focal point. We’re the team. Together. You and me, figuring out what matters, figuring out how to be with each other, how to be there for each other.”
“That is beyond romantic. It is ridiculously romantic.”
“Too much?” He hovered the pen right over their initials, as if willing to scratch them out.
Delaney snatched the pen. “Not at all. Just because I’m carrying two firearms doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good romantic gesture.”
“Then let’s go have dinner while we watch the sun set. Tell each other silly secrets. Laugh. Drink some wine.”
“You mean have the most perfect first date ever?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Then I’m going to tell you a secret right now.” Delaney put her lips right on his ear. Whispered, “Mission accomplished.”
Purchase Got it Bad from:
The Bad Boys Gone Good Series:
Bad for Her ~ Review
Never Been Good ~ Review
You can read my 4.5 star review of Got it Bad here.
You can read about Christi’s research for Never Been Good here.
You can read about the Bad for Her and Never Been Good Dreamcast here.
USA TODAY bestselling author Christi Barth earned a Masters degree in vocal performance and embarked upon a career on the stage. A love of romance then drew her to wedding planning. Ultimately she succumbed to her lifelong love of books and now writes award-winning contemporary romance, including the Naked Men and Aisle Bound series.
Christi can always be found either whipping up gourmet meals (for fun, honest!) or with her nose in a book. She lives in Maryland with the best husband in the world.
Places to find Christi Barth:
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I just loved todays post and I would love to read your book.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Bridgett. The books in the series are all good. In fact, Christi is one of my favorite authors.
DeleteGreat cover, thanks for the chance!
ReplyDeleteOmg! 😍 its a boy who needs the damsel!
ReplyDeleteFlove it!💋
Hi Lilah.
DeleteThis is a really good series. Got it Bad didn't play out or end the way I thought it would, but I really liked it.