My Tangled Skeins Book Reviews: Book Blitz: Gauge by Cara Nelson

Gauge

Release Date: November 2014

New Adult/ 17+

Summary fron Goodreads:

Gauge Bronson has a simple rule: never mix business with pleasure. As the lead singer and guitarist of Provocative, he has his fair share of girls throwing themselves at him, but he refuses to get involved with clingy groupies or women he works with. When beautiful, beguiling Brynn joins the tour, though, he can’t deny there’s something about her he finds irresistible. It’s been a long time since a woman didn’t fawn over him. He’ll have to keep his appetite in check and keep her at a distance if he’s going to remember that she’s off limits.

Aspiring journalist Brynn Morgan has been given the chance of a lifetime to interview a rock band for a new magazine and launch her career. When she learns her assignment is the band Provocative, whose music she’s never liked, any disappointment is overshadowed by her excitement and determination to write a killer story. Plus, the fact that she’s not a fan will make it that much easier to keep things professional. One look at Gauge, though, and she feels an instant attraction to the cocky, tattooed rocker. But despite the sparks flying between them, she’s got a job to do.

As Brynn heads out on a world tour with the band and tries to get them to spill their secrets, the sizzling chemistry between her and Gauge becomes harder and harder to ignore…

Buy Links:
Amazon│Amazon UK

Excerpt (Beach scene, Erotic content):

“Holy shit, man, that’s Gauge Bronson,” one of the guys said. The two girls screeched and leaned together, looking and whispering. Gauge, that turkey, didn’t turn around to acknowledge them, leaving me to stare at them alone.

I waved, and they looked at me. Gauge stared at me with his lips halfcocked into a grin. “Aren’t you going to at least turn around?” He shook his head no and continued to get ready.

We put lotion on and I turned around for Gauge to put it on my back. One of the girls watching gave a loud whisper, “She’s so lucky. OMG! I want him to do that to me.”

The one guy that was with her, her boyfriend maybe, wasn’t a fan. He snapped, “Let’s get going so we don’t miss the best tide.” They slid on their wet suits, one guy took down the surfboards from their roof rack, and they were off.

I turned to Gauge. “You enjoyed that entirely too much.”

“It’s what most of them expect.”

“Still.”

“Surely you have to be getting used to that kind of thing by now,” Gauge said.

I smiled. We were together enough that speculation was out there about us. The emails, texts, and calls were coming to me from all angles, including the managers at The Rift, who had given cautious reminders of my professional role this summer. I’d blown it off for the most part, focusing on the fact that we had no discussion about our future as anything up to this point.

“What’s wrong?” Gauge leaned in and looked at me. His face was so serious. He had slight crinkles around the corners of his eyes, making him look more wise and insightful than I wanted him to be at that moment.

“Oh, nothing. Just got lost in a thought,” I said. I smiled and leaned down to take my sandals off, giving me a moment to recapture the moment I was in. That’s all that matters right now, I reminded myself. I refused to give an invitation to my pain in the ass subconscious to ruin my moment—my amazing adventure.

I got back up and rebounded masterfully, if I say so myself. “Give me some guidance and advice on the way down to the water.”

“First, don’t swallow the salt water. It doesn’t taste good.”

“Oh my gosh, you’re brilliant…it’s truly mind-blowing.”

“Now who’s the smart ass?”

“You taught me,” I replied playfully. I loved our banter, that feeling that there was no one else in the world that mattered to us. We just wanted a great day and to experience something pretty cool. So ideal.

We walked into the water. The fins suited my clumsiness rather well. I tripped about two times until I got into deep enough water where I could try and swim like a fish, using the snorkel as my gills. The massive goggles revealed all the ocean had to offer.

At first, it was hard to see, and I was wondering what the fun could possibly be in snorkeling. It was disappointing.

“I can’t see anything,” I said to Gauge when we popped our heads up from the ocean.

“Give it time. We’re going that way, and you’ll get to see plenty, Brynn.”

We made our way over to where he pointed. It immediately felt like an entirely different world. A barrier reef made the water calmer. There was no silt swirling through the waves, making it look cloudy brown. It was crystal clear, blue water.

Moving around, we stayed close to each other and began to look at what life was like under the sea. I saw yellow fish with blue stripes darting around. There were spotted puffy fish down by the ocean’s floor, blowing little jets of water out, too. I laughed—they were adorable. What wasn’t funny was when I accidentally took in a big mouthful of that salty water.

I lifted my head up and began to cough and sputter, my eyes watering as I treaded.

“You okay?” Gauge asked, rubbing my back. The gesture was so sweet to me, reminding me of what my mom used to do when I had a bad cough. She’d rub my back over and over, calming me down until I fell asleep. The sweet memory brought a smile to my face. I loved that it was associated with Gauge now, too.

“I’m fine. I should have taken your advice about now swallowing the water,” I said. I looked at him, leaned in, and tried to give him a kiss. Our goggles collided and I started laughing.

“Why don’t we go over there?” Gauge asked, pointing to a small set of rocks and a flat plane of sand.

We swam over and climbed up on the rocks. I breathed in, surprised at how much physical work snorkeling could be. Gauge reached over and lifted my goggles off my face, sliding them up to my head. Then he did the same. I smiled. “Let’s try this again,” I said. I leaned in and kissed him, a bit surprised by the saltiness of his lips.

His hands wrapped around my waist. I felt a soft tickle on my back as the ties that held my top on were slowly released, leaving my swimsuit top to fall down to my waist. He grabbed it and set it to the side carefully, making sure it was on a higher rock. He whispered in my ear, “While I’d enjoy it, I am guessing you don’t want the current to take your top.”

He was guessing right. Slowly leaning me back, the sandbar shifted comfortably under us. Gauge’s lips started to travel my body, kissing me slowly and methodically, playing my body like it was an acoustic ballad on his guitar. His lips, along with the breeze and the chilly splashes of bits of ocean water, thrilled and overwhelmed me. It was a perfect symphony of sensations.

From there, I continued to enjoy Gauge’s touch. My response to it was so different out there in the ocean. It was a sanctuary and I was free to enjoy every bit of him, knowing that no one could interrupt us. There were no phones, no civilization. There was only us. I felt like a wild thing, and I wanted to thrash against him, but the rocks and sand jabbed me, reminding me not to get too carried away. The waves lapping against them whispered, “Move slowly and enjoy the moment.”

And so Gauge and I did, repeatedly. Finally, we lay exhausted, naked as could be, touching each other and talking softly. I didn’t want the moment to end and I sensed he felt the same way.

About the Author

Cara Nelson is the author of the bestselling 'Men of the Capital' series. Her books hit the Amazon store in the summer of 2014 and have since been enjoyed by over 50,000 readers! She is known for her bold characters, hilariously witty dialogue and touching romances.

Interested in a fun, light and breezy read? Her readers recommend you start with 'The Billionaire's Hotline'.