Cake: A Love Story by J. Bengtsson

| January 28, 2017 | 0 Comments

 

Jake McKallister might have been a rock star, but he was no ordinary one. Surviving an unspeakable crime as a young teen had shaped him into a guarded workaholic, and he now lived his life trying to forget. If it hadn’t been for music and the redemption he found through it, he might not have survived. Career success came easily for him. Personal connections did not.

When outspoken, vivacious college student Casey Caldwell was paired with the famously reserved rockstar for a friend’s wedding, she was prepared for the worst. What could they possibly have in common? She was a bubbly talker; he was a reclusive loner. His life was filled with music; she couldn’t carry a tune. She’d enjoyed a happy childhood; his was a well-publicized nightmare.

Yet despite their obvious differences, Jake and Casey found each other, and her light balanced out his darkness. Would their love be strong enough to survive the weight of his tragic past?

 

Excerpts

 

-Banter-

 

I nodded, then decided I should probably clarify my joke. “You know I was only kidding about the homeschooler stuff, right?”

Jake shook his head, his eyes shining bright. “No, you weren’t.”

“Yes, I was.” I demanded, and smiled up at him. “I’m sure there are plenty of perfectly normal homeschoolers.”

Jake laughed out loud. “See? Another off-handed insult.”

“Sorry,” I apologized. “I have a problem. I’ll try to control myself.”

“No, please don’t,” Jake replied. “Everyone is so careful around me all the time. It’s nice to hang out with someone who isn’t worried about offending me. I mean, like, you’ve pretty much insulted me in every conversation we’ve had. Well done, Casey.”

“Well, thank you. I really do try.”

“I can tell and I appreciate it.” Jake grinned.

 

-Banter-

I gave an apologetic look. “I know. Sorry. You intimidate me. I mean, it would take no effort on your part to get with pretty much any girl at this wedding.”

Jake didn’t refute my claim – probably because he knew it was true. In fact, he was actually giving what I said quite a bit of thought. What was I getting myself into?

Finally, he sighed, and said, “Sometimes having sex just isn’t worth the consequences.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that with sex comes expectations.”

I waited for him to explain his comment, and when he didn’t I said, “And?”

Jake exhaled dramatically, as if he were expected to explain himself to a child. “If I’m going to have meaningless sex with someone, I need a quick exit strategy; otherwise she’s going to want to follow me around – or worse, talk. In a setting like this, there’s no way to disappear after getting it on, so sex wouldn’t be worth the consequences… get it?”

“Wow, you’ve really given this a lot of thought.”

He nodded in agreement. “I’ve learned from experience.”

“I’m sure you have. So, then, I guess it’s a good thing we aren’t going to have meaningless sex tonight.” I laughed. “Because I would definitely be following you around trying to talk to you.”

“I know. You’d be the worst.”

 

-Casey-

We laughed easily together. Every light moment we shared drew me in deeper. This was definitely the type of guy I could fall head over heals for. In fact, I suspected I was only one mortifying stumble away from complete humiliation.

 

-Jake-

I was losing her. Day by day I could feel her slipping through my fingers. Soon she would be gone, and I would have no one but myself to blame. If I couldn’t make it work with Casey, I would never be able to make it work with anyone. The realization that I was doomed to a life of loneliness hurt more than I ever thought it would. Now that I’d had a taste of what love was, I knew how much I would miss it.

 

Amazon

Audible

 

Author

J. Bengtsson lives in Southern California with her husband and three children. Her favorite things to do are laugh, go for walks, and hang out with family. ‘Cake’ is her debut novel.

Twitter: @CakeALoveStory

Email: jbengtssonauthor@gmail.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jbengtssonauthor

 

 

Tags:

Category: Audiobook, Contemporary Fiction, New Adult, Romance

Leave a Reply

Find Weird and Wonderful Books at AbeBooks