Christine Bell | FIX YOU ~ Free download of part 1

Thanks so much for having me here at Fresh Fiction to celebrate the release of FIX YOU, BASH AND OLIVIA, Book Two, and to share some cool news. Book #1 is FREE EVERYWHERE right now! *flails* And book two is only .99 for the next three days, AND I’m giving away three copies of book two today here at FF!

FIX YOU is a three-part,new adult serial chronicling the relationship between sexy boxer Bash McDaniels and college student Olivia Beckett. Book three will be out on May 20th. That will conclude Bash and Olivia’s story, but then, in June, I’ll introduce you to Matty McDaniels and his love interest. Each McDaniels brother has a set of three novellas, and each novella releases a month (or less) apart.

When the characters of Bash and Olivia first came to mind, I have to admit, I wasn’t sure what to do with them. I’d written a lot of adult contemporary romance, as well as YA romance, but this was my first foray into New Adult, and I wanted to make sure readers got exactly the book I wanted to write. But I was dying to write a serial, and in case you didn’t know, serials are a very polarizing, lol!

There is a faction of readers who are willing to give it a go, and enjoy some serials and not others, but then there are a slew of readers who either LOVE them, or HATE them with the fire of a thousand suns because they can’t stand the wait. I fall into the LOVE camp. I’m a huge fan of series like Game of Thrones and Orphan Black and Vikings, and I think a big reason is because there’s nothing I enjoy more than anticipating what’s going to happen next in a story. I kinda hate the wait, but I also LOVE to HATE the wait. I love to stew and think and guess, which draws me to serials as well. I’m a fast reader, and having something to chew on until the next installment makes the deliciousness of a two-hour read last until the next book comes out.

With that said, I do get that waiting can be hard, so I decided to release the books super close together. Books one and two released less than a month apart, and book three will be out on May 20th (or sooner, depending on edits). I also send out sneak peeks a week or so early to readers who sign up for my mailing list, and run contests for ARC’s and giveaways as well. I’d love it if you gave The McDaniels brothers a try!

Here’s the blurb from book one:

She’s worth the fight…

Olivia Beckett’s once-charmed life is falling apart. Her family is about to lose everything, and she has almost no chance of going back to college next semester. She can’t even seek solace from her high school sweetheart. He’s changed. She doesn’t recognize the boy she used to know–his violent behavior is escalating and it scares the hell out of her. Her whole world is crumbling, and she has no one to turn to…

Sebastian “Bash” McDaniels is an up and comer in the boxing world working nights at the local college bar until he can land the fight of his dreams that will get him the hell out of Boston and away from his family’s tragic past. He’s weeks from his goal when Olivia Beckett comes tumbling into his life in a flash of silky dark hair and haunted eyes. When he saves her from a potentially brutal beating, they begin to grow close, but Olivia’s ex isn’t ready to let her go so easily. Bash can’t bring himself to walk away, but fixing Olivia just might leave him broken…

And here is an exclusive excerpt from Book Two:

I stared out at the rapidly darkening sky through the window of Olivia’s silver Fiat convertible, the sleek little ride reminding me yet again of all the reasons we were terrible for each other. It smelled like lilac candles and new leather, and I smelled like jail.

I’d told her we could be friends, but that was bullshit. As pissed off as I was when I thought she’d blown me off altogether, nothing had changed for me as far as she was concerned, and friendship wasn’t an option. There was no way I could be around her for any stretch of time without picturing her naked body moving under mine. Remembering her legs wrapped around my neck, the soft skin of her thighs on my face. Replaying the way her voice caught on a gasp when she came.

I shifted in my seat, stretching my legs as far as I could, which wasn’t far enough.

How could I fit in her world? I barely fit in her fucking car.

“You can move the seat back if you want. It’s the little button on the door.”

She sounded cheerful, but it was a phony kind of cheer. The kind that reminded me of that cheap gold garland my mother used to wrap around the living room lamp the few times she’d remembered Christmas. And just like my mother, Olivia was putting up a front. That was okay. So was I. The McDaniels boys might not be good for much, but we were good at a few things. Fucking, fighting, and fronting, and Olivia had gotten to experience all three in the span of less than two weeks.

And look how well that’s turning out for everyone involved.

I leaned back and closed my eyes, hoping she wouldn’t keep trying to talk to me. I’d spent the better part of three days acting, and I didn’t know how much longer I could manage playing cool. She must have gotten the hint, because she turned on the radio, which made the rest of the ride bearable.

Five minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot of the gym and I straightened in my seat. Once I’d gotten over the shock of seeing her and moved past my own anger that she hadn’t come to visit me, I’d realized what an emotionally fragile state she was in. I couldn’t bring myself to walk away then, but I was only putting off the inevitable. We’d started off our relationship with a raft of shit between us, and it was piling higher with every passing day.

“I know what you’re thinking,” she whispered miserably, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the wheel tighter before letting it go and popping the car into park. “I can feel it…you pulling away.”

I shifted my gaze and focused on the dashboard, fighting the urge put my arms around her and comfort her. “Liv, I—”

“I don’t blame you. I’m not mad if you just want to be rid of me, I get that. But don’t pull away for my sake.” The seat squeaked as she unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to face me. “Everybody wants to protect me all the time. My parents are about to lose everything and they won’t tell me why or how. You just spent the last three days in jail and are facing hard time, but instead of letting me help you, you’re trying to shield me.”

She reached out and grabbed a handful of my T-shirt in her fist, yanking until I met her gaze. “If I’m wrong, I’m wrong. Say you don’t want me around and that it’s really because things are too complicated. Say you’ll be better off without me. But don’t lie to me. I don’t need you to be my hero this time, Bash. I’m not a kid. Maybe I was blind and maybe I was stupid before, but my eyes are wide-open now, and all I want to do is be there for you like you were for me when I needed you.”

Her words and the bare emotion on her face were enough to make my guts hurt. I circled her slim wrist in my fingers, feeling the strong, steady beat of her pulse. “You’re not getting it.” I wanted to be mad…to keep that buffer between us, but I couldn’t work up the steam. All I felt was sad. “We’re right back where we started, except now I have even less to offer you. The prospects I had before are shaky at best, and I could be a convicted felon this time next month.”

“That’s the thing.” She yanked her wrist away and glared at me, eyes blazing. “I don’t care. I don’t care about anything but making sure you’re okay right now. Stop protecting me. Forget about what you think everyone else needs, and take what you need for once, Bash.”

For half a minute the car was silent except for the sound of our shared harsh breathing. There was a war going on inside of me. A throw-down cage fight between the Bash I wanted to be—the one who was stronger than his weak-willed father, and more noble than his self-centered mother—and the Bash who was a product of rotten genes and one too many disappointments…a guy whose first instinct was to take because he knew that was the only way you got anything.

My brain, exhausted from all the racking, just cut out completely. Like a switch was flipped, and pure, uninhibited instinct roared to the surface, obliterating everything in its path. My snarled “fuck it” should have scared her, but she didn’t pull away when I reached for her and hauled her over the console separating us. Our knees banged together and I gripped her hips, lifting her until she straddled me. There wasn’t enough room for both of us, and I didn’t give a single shit.

There it is, a little of book two for you! If you’re into new adult sexy times and authors like Jen McLaughlin and Monica Murphy, check out the first installment for free. And if you’ve already read Book One, check out Book Two, which is .99 for the next three days!