Page 264 of The Temporary Boyfriend
I smile sweetly. “Your ego will recover.”
He looks directly at you. “They were impressive.”
“Anyway,” he continues, “this is Emma’s first rom-com.”
I press a hand to my chest. “Her first. She came in hot.”
“And now,” he says, looking at you again, “she needs one thing.”
“If our book entertained you,” I say, “an honest five-star review would help immensely.”
“It tells Emma,” he adds, “that we handled the launch successfully.”
“It also helps other readers find Cedar Falls.” I pause. “And the Cedar Falls Rookies.”
I gesture between us. “We’re the spin-off. Which means there’s a whole roster coming.”
“An entire AHL team,” West confirms. “And I’m coaching all of them.”
“Heaven help those men.”
“Heaven help me.”
“And more importantly,” I add, “it tells her to keep writing rom-coms.”
His hand slides over mine.
“If the lobsters made you laugh,” I continue, “orthe laundromat made you fan yourself in public, or the Olympic confession made you stare at a wall for a minute…”
West nods once. “Say that.”
“And by the way — some of those Olympic details were very real.”
I glance at him, then at you. “We do real-time research.”
He coughs into his hand. “That’s why this book was late.”
I stick my tongue out at him. “Men’s gold-medal-level research.”
He grins. “Back to business. Ten seconds to tap those stars. Maybe a minute if you feel like telling people what you just witnessed. Or just brag about your excellent taste.”
I smack his arm. He catches my hand. Keeps it.
“Thank you,” I say, softer now. “For spending nine days in Anguilla with us. And for coming home to Cedar Falls.”
West looks at me, not at you this time.
“Worth it,” he says.
I smile — the real one.
“Yeah,” I agree.
Then I look back at you.
“Worth it.”
“And if you want more chaos, more heat, more Cedar Falls romances… or the entire Billionaire Protectors series, Emma Bloom’s full catalog lives right here.”
West’s arms come around me, steady and sure. “Or you can jump straight into the Cedar Falls Rookies series.”
I turn back to you.
“Thank you so much for being here. We’ll see you again in those stories.”
West presses a kiss to my temple.
We don't look back at you after that.
We're a little busy.
