Dare to Seduce (Dare to Love Book #8)
by Carly Phillips
Date of Publication: November 17, 2015
Blurb
This book can be read as a standalone!
Max Savage has had a thing for Lucy Dare for as long as he can remember but he values his long standing friendship with her brothers too much to cross the line. When Lucy shows up at an engagement party on the arm of another man, Max doesn't like the changes he sees in her.
It's now or never. Max can think of one way to convince Lucy she's with the wrong guy. He'll dare to seduce her...
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Excerpt
Max Savage glanced across the lush green
lawn of Gabriel and Isabelle Dare’s Bedford, New York, home, his gaze focused
on the sexy brunette he couldn’t get out of his head. Lucy Dare, dressed in a
conservative pants suit, her luxurious dark hair pulled into a bun, stood
beside her date, a Hollywood director who was a douchebag of the first order.
The
last time Max had seen Lucy, she’d been her wild and free self. Then she’d
hooked up with that guy and she’d changed. And not in a good way. He wanted
fun, sexy Lucy back.
“How
badly do you want to punch that guy’s teeth in?”
“So
badly,” Max muttered, then glanced over, realizing the question came from
Lucy’s brother, Decklan Dare.
Max
shook his head and changed his answer, because it would do no good to let his
best friend know he was obsessing over the guy’s little sister. He’d kept it to
himself for years, partially as an excuse to deny what he really wanted, but
regardless, this wasn’t the right time to bring up the issue.
“Who
do you mean?” Max asked.
Decklan
rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. I know you hate that Spielberg wannabe as much
as we do.”
“Can’t
say he’d be my first choice for your sister.”
“That’s
rich considering it’s your fault she’s with him to begin with.” Decklan eyed
Max with distinct annoyance in his gaze.
“How
the hell do you figure that?” Max asked.
Decklan’s
older brother, Gabe, joined them, and from the look on his face, he’d clearly
caught the tail end of the conversation.
“Face
it, Savage. We know you have a thing for Lucy,” Gabe said.
Just
how the brothers had gleaned that bit of knowledge was beyond Max. Nobody had a
better poker face than him.
Decklan merely nodded in agreement.
“You didn’t take your chance last time she was in town, and now she’s with that asshole,” Gabe added, angling his head toward where his sister stood with Lucas Kellan.
“Well, fuck.” Max wasn’t about to deny what had clearly been more obvious than he’d intended.
Both
Dare brothers narrowed their gazes on him, waiting for an explanation.
“What? I didn’t think you’d approve, and I wasn’t about to mess up years’ worth of friendship if you didn’t.” He was sticking to the tried-and-true excuse he’d told himself for years. In reality, Max had his reasons for staying away from
Lucy for so long and for fucking up more than just his life in the process. But they were his, and he wouldn’t be sharing them.
“The only way you’d compromise friendships would be if you used or hurt my sister. If your intentions are honorable, I have no issue,” said Gabe, the man who’d raised Lucy after their parents died in a car accident.
Max glanced at Decklan. They both knew Max’s recent past. He’d married young, lost his wife, Cindy, in a car accident, and had a subsequent lack of serious relationships since. What Decklan didn’t know was the guilt Max harbored over the emotions he hadn’t been able to give his wife, due to the feelings he’d always had for Lucy. Hell, he’d married Cindy because he didn’t have those intense feelings, and everyone had paid a price.
Max shifted uncomfortably and cleared his throat and glanced at Decklan, who, like Gabe, was extremely protective of his sister. “You too? You’re okay with this?” he asked.
His best friend shrugged. “Well, you’re an asshole but you’re our asshole.” He slapped Max on the back, his expression sobering. “Look, Cindy died four years ago, and you haven’t been with anyone seriously since.”
Neither one of them mentioned Max’s penchant for sex clubs on the weekends. It had been a way to fill the emptiness inside him, nothing more.
“But Gabe is right,” Decklan said. “I see how you look at Lucy. You should do something about it if your intentions are solid.”
They finally were. For years Max had denied his need for Lucy and the emotional bond he knew they would share if they took things to the next level. Fear had driven him. Now Max was finally ready to go after the woman he’d always wanted.
“Just don’t blow it or we will have an issue,” Decklan cheerfully added.
Max didn’t need to be told twice. He made his way across the lawn and veered between guests, coming up to where Lucy and her date stood by the bar.
About The Dare to Love Series
Dare to Love
(Dare to Love #1)
New York
Times Bestselling Author Carly Phillips turns up the heat in her newest sexy
contemporary romance series, and introduces you to the Dare family… siblings
shaped by a father’s secrets and betrayal.
Since
finding out his father had another family on the side, Ian Dare swore to be the
upstanding, responsible man his cheating parent had never been. When it comes
to his relatives, he gives his all but in relationships he offers the bare
minimum. But one glimpse of sensual Riley Taylor arouses his dominant and
protective instincts and Ian is entranced. He will do anything to possess her …
and does. But any future with Riley must include him extending an olive branch
to the half-brother who is a constant reminder of the pain he’d rather forget.
Independent
and always in control, Riley Taylor makes no apologies for choosing men
carefully. Relationships have never been a priority and she believes herself
hardened to domineering men – until she meets charismatic Ian Dare. He manages
to turn a simple kiss into an all out assault on her senses and when he takes
control in the bedroom, she’s stunned to discover she likes it. As their affair
heats up, they soon realize they complete each other in ways neither imagined.
But Riley’s past is closer than she cares to remember, and her struggles with
Ian’s dominance might just cost her everything.
Buy Links
Dare to Desire
(Dare to Love Book
#2)
Quarterback Alex
Dare, had it all -- an all-star football career with the Tampa Breakers and his
choice of willing women -- until a severe injury forces him into early
retirement. When he is offered a ground-breaking position with a rival team,
he’s intrigued, but there’s a catch. He’ll be working alongside the same woman
he hasn’t been able to get out of his head for too long.
Social
worker Madison Evans grew up in foster homes and knows first hand what it means
to have-not. She isn't impressed by Alex Dare’s wealth or charm. Not since she
fell hard for him once before, only to discover she was just one of his
too-easy conquests. This time around Madison refuses to succumb to Alex so
easily.
But Alex
wants Madison. And if there is one thing Alex does well, it’s to get what he
wants. The playboy athlete must prove he’s got game in more places than on the
field. He means to prove that he’s a changed man but no sooner does he begin to
break through Madison’s defenses when a new opportunity comes knocking and
threatens her new-found trust. Can he make Madison take a risk and dare to
love?
Add to Goodreads
Buy Links
Dare to Surrender
(Dare to Love #3)
After
ending a relationship to a cheating, domineering man, Isabelle Masters takes
off in her leased Mercedes, only to be arrested for grand theft auto and hauled
to a local police station. To her surprise, she is rescued by the most unlikely
person possible, Gabriel Dare, a man she's been attracted to for far too long.
Gabe offers Isabelle freedom along with an invitation to Eden, an exclusive
island resort where everything and anything is possible.
Although
Gabe yearns to possess Isabelle, he knows all too well he must fight his
primitive need to bind her to him, and instead help bring out the independent
woman she yearns to become - or risk losing her for good.
A woman
who needs to run her own life. An Alpha man who needs to exert control. Can she
surrender to his demands without losing her sense of self once more?
*Part of
Invitation to Eden Multi Author Series (stands alone for reading enjoyment)
Add to Goodreads
Buy Links
Dare to Submit
(Dare to Love #4)
Decklan
Dare knows about the unexpected loss of loved ones and for this reason, he
values control in all areas of his life. Amanda Collins enjoys the freedom she
finds in casual encounters without the emotional connection a relationship
brings. They meet and their physical attraction is mutual but both experience
feelings that could run deeper – if they drop their guard and let each other
in. Decklan is first to trust, but when he discovers the secret Amanda’s been
hiding, will he forgive? Or will he rebuild every wall before she has a chance
to explain?
Buy Links
Dare to Touch
(Dare to Love #5)
Olivia
Dare, executive director of the Miami Thunder, and team travel director Dylan
Rhodes share more than just a passion for football. Their chemistry is
explosive--their feelings for each other intense. Yet Olivia has ended things
for reasons he still can’t fathom and she won’t explain.
Unwilling
to let something special go so easily, Dylan has been pursuing Olivia ever
since. When the Pro-Bowl takes them to the tropical paradise of Hawaii, Dylan
is determined to make sure their time together isn’t all business. What happens
in paradise is life altering but once Olivia admits her deepest secret and
fear, will Dylan still want the forever he’s been pushing for?
Buy Links
Dare to Hold
(Dare to Love #6)
Some women
always get it right. Kindergarten teacher, Meg Thompson, on the other hand,
consistently makes the wrong decisions — and she is currently single, pregnant
and alone. Meg is determined to make changes in her life, to be a better mother
than her own had been. No revolving door of men. No man, period. Just a
single-minded focus on her baby. Her resolution would be easier to keep if not
for hot cop, Scott Dare. He insinuates himself in her life, making Meg want to
believe in happily ever after, even if history has taught her to know better.
When
Scott Dare hears Meg’s friends are determined she have a night of hot sex,
before her life changes forever, he decides that man must be him. Their one
night is mind blowing and life altering. And Scott, a man already burned by his
ex-wife, finds himself all in anyway. While protecting Meg from her violent ex
and becoming part of her increasingly complicated life, he’s falling hard and
he can’t seem to find distance. Not when their bodies respond to each other
with such heated intensity and he’s drawn to her unique combination of strength
and vulnerability.
But Meg’s
future is one Scott has accepted he’ll never have, even if his growing feelings
say otherwise …
Buy Links
Dare to Rock
(Dare to Love #7)
Avery Dare
lives a quiet life in Miami as an online fashion/makeup video blogger. She has
good friends, a close, large family and if her love life is lacking, she likes
it that way. But when she receives an invitation to one of her ex's concerts
along with an invitation to meet him back stage, she decides to take the risk…
and comes face to face with the reality of his rock star lifestyle - the press,
the crowds, and the half naked groupies.
At
eighteen, Grey Kingston left everything he knew and loved behind to seek fame
and fortune as a rock star, and he found it as the lead guitarist and singer
for the band, Tangled Royal. Fans adore him, women throw themselves at him, and
he can afford everything he couldn’t growing up. Yet at the height of his
career, he’s ready to walk away and return home to a simpler life… and the
woman he left behind, if he can convince her to give him another chance.
Except
moving on isn’t as easy as Grey would like. When Avery is threatened by a
stalker, it becomes evident Grey’s fans not only don’t want him to retire, they
don’t want Avery in his life either. And Avery isn’t sure she wants the
pressures that are part of Grey’s life… but she doesn’t want to lose him again,
either. Can their recently renewed love survive the fallout?
Buy Links:
Review
Having not read any other Dare to Love series books, I was confident that I would still be able to follow along with this story. And after reading this book, I will be going to back to read the previous books.
Max Savage has loved one lady, but life has kept the two apart. But times are a'changing and with the brothers' approval, he decides it's time to go after the one that holds his heart.
Lucy Dare has been living with walls built around her to keep her heart safe. After the sudden death of her parents and the heartache of unrequited love, She's comfortable in her life and being close to Max again isn't helping her keep her walls up.
Max can see what Lucy is doing and he doesn't take no for answer. While Lucy's mouth says no, her body says yes. Max will take that and work every angle he can to make her see that they belong together. She can fight all she wants, but he's not going to let her go.
I enjoyed this book and Max's persistence in pursuing Lucy. Learning how much they have in common is thrilling and a bit heart wrenching. They both have issues that they must work through and I love that they are there for each other. I can relate to Lucy's reluctance, but there were times I wanted to shake her to see what was right in front of her. All in all, I really liked this couple, enjoyed their journey and wish them all the best.
About Carly Phillips
After a successful fifteen year career with various New York publishing houses, and over 40 sexy contemporary romance novels published, N.Y. Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Carly Phillips is now an Indie author who writes to her own expectations and that of her readers. She continues the tradition of hot men and strong women and plans to publish many more sizzling stories. Carly lives in Purchase, NY with her family, two nearly adult daughters and two crazy dogs who star on her Facebook Fan Page and website. She's a writer, a knitter of sorts, a wife, and a mom. In addition, she's a Twitter and Internet junkie and is always around to interact with her readers. You can find out more about Carly at www.carlyphillips.com.
Find Carly Phillips Online
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