Blog Tour and Review: Intercepted by Emma Hart

Finding naked pictures of her best friend on her boyfriend’s phone wasn’t in Everleigh White’s five year plan. Neither was moving back to Los Angeles, the city of dreams that never managed to make hers come true. There’s only so many years you can be in love with your best friend before you realize he’s never going to love you back, after all. If only her ex would stop showing up at the gym where she works, she’d be much happier.

Being a father at nineteen wasn’t how Reid North, the Vipers’ wide receiver, imagined his life going, but when his ex-girlfriend tricked him into parenthood, he accepted it. Eventually. Now, with his ex on the verge of being released from prison, he’s holding onto full custody of his seven year old son, Leo. Football and Leo have left Reid no time for dating… Until Everleigh comes back.

His best friend his whole life, Everleigh never knew Reid loved her. She left before he could tell her. Now she’s back in front of him, and he’s not letting go. Even if all he gets is her friendship again. But in a city like L.A., dreams come true when you’re least expecting it.

So do nightmares.

With their exes beating down their doors with demands and explanations, their hesitant and building relationship is threatened at every corner. They’re at serious risk of being intercepted by the past, and that’s a ball Reid is determined to catch.
Except desperation can lead to stupidity—and Reid soon realizes he can’t catch every ball, no matter how perfectly it’s thrown to him. This time a fumble could cost more than a few points.

It could cost him everything.

(INTERCEPTED is the third and final book in the By His Game series and can be read as a standalone, although it is advised to read BLINDSIDED and SIDELINED before, in this order.)

ADD TO GOODREADS

My Review

Intercepted follows the story of Ever and Reid. Ever and Reid have been best friends for as long as they can remember. Over time, their feelings for one another progressed, but neither one of them acted on their feelings because of their age difference. One of Ever’s biggest regrets was leaving town without saying goodbye to Reid. Now, four years later, Ever is coming home.

Reid’s life hasn’t gone as planned. He should be out living the high life, enjoying being famous and young, but life had other plans for him. Tricked into parenthood by his ex, Reid is now a single father. He’s trying to do the best he can, but parenting isn’t easy. The last thing he expected was to run into Ever.

Now that they’ve been reunited, their attraction is even stronger. It feels as though no time has passed. But will feelings and misunderstandings cause them to miss out on what’s always been in front of them? What will happen when their ex’s won’t go away? Will Reid and Ever get the HEA that they’ve always dreamed of?

I really enjoyed Intercepted. I love, love the friends to more story-line and this one really knocked it out of the park. I felt the connection between Reid and Ever immediately and was so sad that they lost out on so much time together. Their emotion

s and attraction were so palpable. I just couldn’t wait to read more. I did find myself frustrated at Ever sometimes, because she was just so stubborn, but Reid being a total alpha male, did an excellent job of pushing past her stubbornness and not letting her go.

And I just adored Leo. Such a sweet, loving boy, but also a total smarty pants. I found myself laughing so many times when kept asking if Reid and Ever were giving each other cooties!! Kids have no filter sometimes! I love it. I would definitely be into seeing Leo get his own story down the road. Just putting that out there 😉

Intercepted is a great friends to lovers/second chance romance. From the moment I read the first page, I knew this was a story I was going to get lost in. I fell for the characters instantly, even the side characters. Intercepted gave me everything I was looking for and more. I loved the angst, drama, romance, steam and suspense. The story also had some really great twists and turns. I was so intrigued with the story-line and was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. This book can be read as a stand-alone, however I do recommend that you do read Blindsided and Sidetracked first.

* I was provided an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest  review*

 EXCERPT

He feels… rawer. Realer. Rougher.

And I’m terrified.

He was always the one person I struggled to say no to. It was his eyes, and his smile, and the fact that I was crazy fucking in love with him. I’m afraid that now, although four years have passed, that I won’t be able to say no, either

That much is obvious by the fact I’m standing outside a sandwich shop I’ve never seen in my life.

“Trust me,” Reid says, smiling as he pushes the door open.

I stare at him flatly. Still, I follow him in like a little puppy because I’m always game for a good sandwich.

“Two meatball subs,” Reid orders. “Both toasted with cheese, but one with extra cheese. No salad or sauces on either.” Order done, he looks back at me and winks.

God. He even remembers the sandwich.

“This isn’t good for my diet,” I mutter, following him along the counter to the register.

“Or mine.” He smirks, glancing at me and running his eyes over my body. “And for what it’s worth, you could probably have another cheat day without it making a difference.”

I hit his arm again. “Shut up. You can’t perve on me. It’s wrong.”
“That’s what you think.” He hands over twenty bucks and raise his eyebrow at me. Then, leaning in, he whispers, “My cock thinks different, Ever.”

I swallow. Well, shit. How am I supposed to respond to that?

I’m not. That’s right. I’m not.

I take my warm sandwich from the counter and grip it tightly, heading toward a table in the corner. I slide into the seat against the wall and unwrap my sandwich at a snail’s pace. Each crinkle of the paper surrounding it seems ten times louder than normal as I studiously ignore Reid’s bulky, muscular form sitting opposite me.

Dammit. I shouldn’t be attracted to him. I shouldn’t consider being attracted to him.

Sure, I was before. In the ‘you’re handsome, be my Prince Charming’ kinda way. Now, though? Now it’s a, ‘holy crap, rip off my clothes and ravish me on your backseat!’ kinda attracted.

I’m not saying either way is bad. I’m just saying that I would prefer for the first type of attracted.

I bite into the sandwich so I don’t have to talk to him. But, apparently, he doesn’t get the message.

“I didn’t know you worked at the gym.”

I swallow. “You say it like it’s the only gym in Los Angeles.”

“It’s just… the gym.” He smirks. He studies me for a second before the curve turns downward. “Why’d you leave, Ev?”
“You knew I was going.”

“Sure I did. I just didn’t know you were going Casper on my ass and fucking off without a word.”

My eyes fall and I focus on my sandwich. Carelessly, I pick at the top of the bread. “I had my reasons, okay? It was easier for me if the media didn’t follow me so intently. You know they thought I was going to star on Broadway instead of college.”

“God, you’re a damn shit liar, Everleigh White.”

“It’s the truth, Reid, okay? They were all up in Dad’s business because of the Hartman movie, and when those Broadway rumors started it was bullshit. I ran without anyone knowing so they wouldn’t follow me. It lasted a week, but I didn’t have them timing my pees on the plane so there we go.” I glance up. “Believe me, okay? I’m not lying.” Not entirely, anyway.

“Whenever you’ve told me you’re not lying, you’ve been lying.” The force of his gaze makes me look up. “I still fucking know you, Ever. You haven’t changed a single damn bit.”

“And you still can’t control your f-bomb,” I shoot back.

“Says the girl who drops it like she drops the word ‘hi’ at a high school reunion.”

“Kiss my ass.”

“You offerin’, firecracker?”

“You taking me up on it?”
“I could flip you over this table in a second and you know it.”

I narrow my eyes and grab my half-eaten sandwich. Standing, I reach toward the trashcan and slam the screwed-up package into it, leaving the lid to slam down as I turn on my heel and head for the door.

Reid says nothing. But he follows me. I hear his footsteps against the tiled floor of the sandwich place, and he grabs the door the second I let it go, stopping it from slamming.

My feet pound against the sidewalk. Jesus, I don’t remember him being this so fucking infuriating before. Was he this demanding? Or frustrating? Or goddamned annoying?

Hell to it all. Was he this fucking sexy?

No, siree. No, he was not.

And that’s the frickin’ problem.

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