by: Yahrah St. John
Series: Locketts of Tuxedo Park
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: May 24, 2022
Publisher: Harlequin Desire
Amazon | Paperback | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo | Goodreads
Will these former friends with benefits rekindle a flame…or settle scores? Find out in Yahrah St. John’s Locketts of Tuxedo Park series finale!
From lovers to friends to lovers again?
It’s complicated!
After losing his football career due to an injury, Xavier Lockett found solace in the arms of singer Porscha Childs…until a misunderstanding tore them apart. Now a sportscaster at a top Atlanta network, the former star quarterback craves another taste of the woman who helped him turn his life around.
But Porscha wants a hit record, not a second broken heart. Yet Xavier’s still irresistible. The sparks between them ignite an inferno that lands her in his bed, but can she trust that this time they’re both playing the same game?
From Harlequin Desire: A luxurious world of bold encounters and sizzling chemistry.
A Game Between Friends is the fourth and final book in your Locketts of Tuxedo Park series. It features mystery man Xavier, who in the first two books (Consequences of Passion and Blind Date with the Spare Heir) was eluded to, but never seen. He FINALLY appeared in the third book, Holiday Playbook. What can you tell readers about him?
Xavier is a real man’s man. He knows what it’s like to be at the top of his game as quarterback for the Atlanta Cougars and lose it all due to an injury. He learns therapy isn’t bad and that he can find new dreams and goals that he can be passionate about.
Xavier loves fiercely and is a protector for those he loves. He’s thoroughly attracted to Porscha the woman he hasn’t been able to forget.
So I got a little ahead of myself. 😊 What can readers expect from A Game Between Friends?
They can expect a high-stakes second-chance romance with a friends-to-lovers trope added in. Xavier and Porscha as they navigate the highs and lows of being in the spotlight and finding themselves. And of course, lots of steamy passionate scenes in between.
Tell me about Porscha Childs.
Porscha is a hugely successful pop star who’s lived in the public eye for so long that she has an image or persona, but no one knows the real her. Xavier knows the real Porscha. She’s not afraid to be who she is with him.
He gets her. Understand her.
She’s overcome body image and as far as her career is in the middle of a comeback story after the sophomore slump. She’s trying to find her place in the world and she stumbles along the way in the book, but eventually, she realizes that she has a gem in Xavier and fights for that love.
When you set down to write Xavier’s story, did you immediately know it was going to be Porscha?
Yes, I knew the heroine would be a singer. I’d watched a couple of movies like Beyond the Lights and Country Strong about how hard it is for singers in the spotlight and I knew I wanted them both to have gone through therapy. It just so happened they fell for each other there but were too scared to act on it.
Fast forward, years later and the chemistry between them is still there and just as strong as ever.
I haven’t read this story yet, but I know I’m going to love it. What was your favorite part of A Game Between Friends to write and why?
This is a fun question. I really liked the intro when Xavier saw Porscha singing the national anthem at a Cougars game and all those feelings came rushing back to the surface. Like a movie, I could literally see him rushing through the stadium trying to get to her before she leaves. And when he arrives, it appears she’s not eager to see him, but after that first explosive kiss. All bets are off.
I’ve previewed that scene. I LOVED it. I usually ask this question of cozy mystery writers, because they really put their characters through it. However, these two have been through a lot also. If I was to sit down and talk to Xavier and Porscha what do you think they would say about you?
About me? That’s an interesting question. I think they would say I’m fun, adventurous, and romantic. Oh, and I must be a drama queen given how much drama I make the two of them go through to find love.
What can readers expect next from you?
Readers can expect my first Texas Cattleman’s series. Vacation Crush is book five in the Ranchers and Rivals miniseries. There’s lots of secrets and mysteries to solve, but romance is at the center.
My characters Jonathon Lattimore and Natalie Hastings have an unforgettable start when Natalie accidentally goes live in front of the entire town and confesses her feelings for Jonathon. My favorite part of writing the book was watching Jonathon’s progression from a gun-shy cowboy with a fear of commitment to a man ready for love.
Oh. That sounds really good. Yahrah, it’s been great chatting with you. I’m just going to give you a heads up now, you’re probably going to get one of those squealing reader emails from me.
Porscha supposed she shouldn’t be surprised. She’d known she could run into Xavier, but she didn’t think he would seek her out because he hadn’t in three years. And despite the surge of anger that sprang up from his sudden appearance, she had butterflies fluttering around in her tummy.
How was it possible he could still affect her like this?
In defiance of that revelation, she went with contempt. “I’ll ask you again, what are you doing here?”
“I would think that’s obvious,” Xavier responded. “I came to see you.”
“Ha!” Porscha laughed without humor.
Her mother rose from the couch she’d been sitting on. Diane Childs. She was tall with a slim build. She preferred trousers to dresses because they suited her more. She wore her hair in a sophisticated bob and preferred a swipe of lipstick and mascara to wearing any real makeup over her smooth fawn complexion. “Xavier Lockett, I presume?” she asked sizing him up.
“One and the same, ma’am.”
“Then you know you shouldn’t be here. Porscha is on a tight schedule.”
“Perhaps, Porscha—” Xavier leaned sideways to glance behind Diane “—can speak for herself.”
“I’m her manager.”
“Mom, it’s okay, I’ve got this.” Porscha had a lot to say. Words she should have said three years ago.
Her mother turned to peer at her. “If you’re sure?”
Porscha nodded. Diane stared at her for several seconds before she exited the room, leaving her and Xavier alone.
“It’s good to see you. You look amazing,” Xavier said.
“Of course, you’d say that.” Porscha folded her arms across her bosom. “Because you were only interested in me for one thing.”
“C’mon, Porscha. You know that’s not true.”
“Do I, Xavier?” she asked from a safe distance on the other side of the room because she knew she couldn’t get any closer. Xavier had a way of pulling her in and she couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t that easy. Or at least that was what she told herself.
“Yes, you do,” he responded hotly. His eyes zeroed in on hers and Porscha found she couldn’t look away. “It wasn’t just physical. We helped get each other through a rough patch.”
“That’s not what you said back then.”
“Because I wasn’t about to put our business on blast to everyone in the clinic. It was private. Just between us.”
“And you really expect me to believe that?” Porscha asked. “It’s been three years, Xavier, and you’ve never tried to clear the air. So why now?”
“When I saw you upstairs on that television screen, I knew it wasn’t over between us, Porscha.” Xavier moved from the spot he’d been rooted to and strolled toward her. Porscha stepped backward until her hip hit the mirrored cabinet behind her. There was no place for her to run. “And seeing you up close and in person, I’m certain of it.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Maybe, but I don’t think so,” Xavier responded. “I haven’t seen you date often over the last three years.”
Porscha snorted. “Unlike you, who’s been seen with lots of women.”
Xavier smiled. “So you’ve been following me, huh?”
Porscha tossed her mane of jet-black curls over her shoulder. “Not really.”
“Liar.” He took a step toward her.
Porscha wanted to push him backward away from her, to batter his shoulders, but deep down she didn’t want to.
So when he reached out and tunneled his hand through her hair, bringing her closer, she let him. He lowered his head and when she was inches away from his face, he said, “Tell me you don’t want this.” His tone was deep, smoky and sexy, causing a shiver to course down her spine.
Within seconds, she reached up and pulled him down toward her. Their mouths came together in an explosive kiss that sent a shock wave of lust through her body.
They kissed and kissed and kissed. Porscha tried to stay in the present, but the past merged with the present, flooding her with memories of how insatiable she’d once been for this man.
She refused to moan at the bliss of his kiss, but he tasted divine. When he used his tongue to lick across the seam of her lips, she opened to the demanding thrust of his tongue, relishing the erotic play. Xavier’s lips were firm yet gentle, teasing hers until she gasped and whimpered, clinging to him. How was it that just one kiss from this man could make her frenzied with need? She could feel the place between her legs swell to life and moisten with excitement.
When Xavier pulled away, a craving for more built inside her. “Are we over, Porscha?” He looked down into her passion-glazed eyes and there was only one answer she could give.
No.
Excerpted from A Game Between Friends by Yahrah St. John. Copyright © 2022 by Yahrah Yisrael. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
How was it possible he could still affect her like this?
In defiance of that revelation, she went with contempt. “I’ll ask you again, what are you doing here?”
“I would think that’s obvious,” Xavier responded. “I came to see you.”
“Ha!” Porscha laughed without humor.
Her mother rose from the couch she’d been sitting on. Diane Childs. She was tall with a slim build. She preferred trousers to dresses because they suited her more. She wore her hair in a sophisticated bob and preferred a swipe of lipstick and mascara to wearing any real makeup over her smooth fawn complexion. “Xavier Lockett, I presume?” she asked sizing him up.
“One and the same, ma’am.”
“Then you know you shouldn’t be here. Porscha is on a tight schedule.”
“Perhaps, Porscha—” Xavier leaned sideways to glance behind Diane “—can speak for herself.”
“I’m her manager.”
“Mom, it’s okay, I’ve got this.” Porscha had a lot to say. Words she should have said three years ago.
Her mother turned to peer at her. “If you’re sure?”
Porscha nodded. Diane stared at her for several seconds before she exited the room, leaving her and Xavier alone.
“It’s good to see you. You look amazing,” Xavier said.
“Of course, you’d say that.” Porscha folded her arms across her bosom. “Because you were only interested in me for one thing.”
“C’mon, Porscha. You know that’s not true.”
“Do I, Xavier?” she asked from a safe distance on the other side of the room because she knew she couldn’t get any closer. Xavier had a way of pulling her in and she couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t that easy. Or at least that was what she told herself.
“Yes, you do,” he responded hotly. His eyes zeroed in on hers and Porscha found she couldn’t look away. “It wasn’t just physical. We helped get each other through a rough patch.”
“That’s not what you said back then.”
“Because I wasn’t about to put our business on blast to everyone in the clinic. It was private. Just between us.”
“And you really expect me to believe that?” Porscha asked. “It’s been three years, Xavier, and you’ve never tried to clear the air. So why now?”
“When I saw you upstairs on that television screen, I knew it wasn’t over between us, Porscha.” Xavier moved from the spot he’d been rooted to and strolled toward her. Porscha stepped backward until her hip hit the mirrored cabinet behind her. There was no place for her to run. “And seeing you up close and in person, I’m certain of it.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Maybe, but I don’t think so,” Xavier responded. “I haven’t seen you date often over the last three years.”
Porscha snorted. “Unlike you, who’s been seen with lots of women.”
Xavier smiled. “So you’ve been following me, huh?”
Porscha tossed her mane of jet-black curls over her shoulder. “Not really.”
“Liar.” He took a step toward her.
Porscha wanted to push him backward away from her, to batter his shoulders, but deep down she didn’t want to.
So when he reached out and tunneled his hand through her hair, bringing her closer, she let him. He lowered his head and when she was inches away from his face, he said, “Tell me you don’t want this.” His tone was deep, smoky and sexy, causing a shiver to course down her spine.
Within seconds, she reached up and pulled him down toward her. Their mouths came together in an explosive kiss that sent a shock wave of lust through her body.
They kissed and kissed and kissed. Porscha tried to stay in the present, but the past merged with the present, flooding her with memories of how insatiable she’d once been for this man.
She refused to moan at the bliss of his kiss, but he tasted divine. When he used his tongue to lick across the seam of her lips, she opened to the demanding thrust of his tongue, relishing the erotic play. Xavier’s lips were firm yet gentle, teasing hers until she gasped and whimpered, clinging to him. How was it that just one kiss from this man could make her frenzied with need? She could feel the place between her legs swell to life and moisten with excitement.
When Xavier pulled away, a craving for more built inside her. “Are we over, Porscha?” He looked down into her passion-glazed eyes and there was only one answer she could give.
No.
Excerpted from A Game Between Friends by Yahrah St. John. Copyright © 2022 by Yahrah Yisrael. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
Purchase A Game Between Friends from:
The Locketts of Tuxedo Park Series:
Consequences of Passion ~ Review
Blind Date with the Spare Heir ~ Review
Holiday Playbook ~ Review
Yahrah St. John became a writer at the age of twelve when she wrote her first novella after secretly reading a Harlequin romance. Throughout her teens, she penned a total of twenty novellas. Her love of the craft continued into adulthood. She’s the proud author of thirty-nine books with Arabesque, Kimani Romance and Harlequin Desire as well as her own indie works.
When she’s not at home crafting one of her spicy romances with compelling heroes and feisty heroines with a dash of family drama, she is gourmet cooking or traveling the globe seeking out her next adventure.
Places to find Yahrah St. John:
enjoyed the excerpt
ReplyDeleteIt is a good excerpt. I'm definitely looking forward to reading this book. Thank you for stopping by.
Delete