Inhale, Exhale
by Sarah M. Ross
Publication Date: May 7th, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Synopsis:Without further ado....please enjoy this EXCLUSIVE deleted scene and get to know Grant a little better with this peek into his past!
Jillian had a plan: celebrate the end of her first year of college with an amazing summer full of beaches, barbeques, and bonfires. When her mom insists she needs a summer job, and her boyfriend spends more time with his band than with her, Jillian’s plans go down the drain.
Grant had a plan: finish his Masters, get a great job at Google, and get the hell out of Georgia. He might be giving up some of the fun of his youth, but he knows his all work and no play method would be worth it when his dreams came true.
But things never go according to plan.
When temptation brings them together and tragedy tears them apart, Jillian and Grant will be forced to choose: fight for their dreams, or fight for each other.
Deleted Scene: Grant in High School
“Excuse me, Mrs. Aberdeen? May I have a library pass for lunch today?”
“Again, Mr. Hardwick? You’ve already gone three times this week? You’re a growing boy! You should be eating everything in sight, not playing on those computers every day at lunch.”
I smiled, playing it off as no big deal while I prayed my rumbling stomach didn’t choose now to act up. Mrs. Aberdeen meant well, but I just couldn’t afford for her to start poking her nose into my home life.
“I’m just working on a big extra credit project for Mr. Matthews’ class. Trust me, I’ll have a double dinner when I get home tonight.”
The older woman smiled at me while considering whether or not to buy the bullshit I was selling. I couldn’t afford lunch. She knew it and I knew it. But I needed her to go along, so I tried once more. I leaned in close and whispered in her ear. “And don’t tell that stick-in-the-mud librarian, but I’ve got a couple of protein bars I plan on scarfing down while I’m in there too!”
I pulled back and winked at her, handing her my pass to sign. My smile was confident, but on the inside I was anything but. I needed to get to those computers and make some money, or they’d turn off the power again. I could live without the hot water and having our phone shut off, but without electricity I couldn’t keep the dollar pizzas and burritos frozen and doing homework by candle light was a fire hazard waiting to happen. Besides, dealing with dad when he couldn’t watch the game on TV or if he was out of beer.
I entered the library and immediately headed for the back corner. Over the past six months, word had spread about my…services, and this corner had sort of become my office. I hated doing this shit, but desperate circumstances gave way to immoral actions. I had one year left, and as soon as I graduated, I vowed I’d never do this again. That vow allowed me to push the guilt down, at least for a little while.
I slid into the hard plastic chair and booted up the old computer that no one ever used in the back of the library. It was a piece of crap, but I’d spent hours reprogramming the computer until only an expert hacker could unravel that tangled web I weaved.
While I was booting up and logging in to my secure and encrypted server, I could hear footsteps approaching me from behind. I didn’t keep appointments, but people always knew how to find me. I didn’t draw attention in case it was a teacher rather than a client, but it was unlikely way back in the encyclopedia section that hadn’t been updated since the 70’s. Kids weren’t going to spend time looking up information when Wikipedia was so much more convenient.
The next thing I knew, long tan legs were straddling either side of my chair. Summer Greenly popped up on the desk in front of me, smiling slyly and brushing her long, blonde hair over her shoulder.
Well this was an interesting change of pace. Summer was one of the most popular girls in school, head cheerleader, and was an honor roll student. She was not my usual clientele, so why was she here?
“Hey, Grant. I was hoping I’d find you here.”
“Oh yeah? Why’s that, Summer?” I scooted back, forcing her to drop her legs off of my chair. I wasn’t going to allow her to use her killer good looks to sway me. Yeah, she was sexy as hell, but I needed money, not a girlfriend.
“Well, I was hoping you could help me out with something.” She leaned forward, pushing her ample breasts together toward me. “You can help out with grades, right? Like, if someone needed a…boost?”
I licked my lips, imagining what else I could be licking as she spoke. No, I need to stay focused. I crossed my arms over my chest and forced my gaze away from those great tits. “How big of a boost are we talking about? I thought you were on the honor roll.”
Summer sighed, playing with her hair nervously. “It’s not for me, it’s for my sister. She’s in ninth grade and not doing well in Algebra II. She has a C- average, and if she doesn’t get at least a B+, my dad will kill her.” She paused, blinking rapidly. Was she going to cry? ”She’s trying her best, but she’s just not good at math. She got a tutor and has done extra credit, but it’s not helping much. My dad accepts nothing less than a B, or the consequences…” She shivered, and I wondered just how bad it was at her house. Would her dad hit them? Or maybe I was reading too much into the now hollow look in her eyes. As much as I wanted to be sympathetic and cut her a break, I had my own worries.
“I have two options for you. Option one is a straight up grade change. It’s seventy-five dollars and won’t take effect until the final report card three weeks from now. Option two is a little more pricy, but it’s more comprehensive, and can take effect immediately.”
“What does the second one involve?”
“I go in to the teacher’s online gradebook and boost specific grades: homework grades, quiz grades, etc. If she got a sixty percent on a quiz, I’ll change it to a seventy-five percent. A missing homework? I’ll make it look like she did it and aced it. Just a few of each, but enough to raise the average. I’ll do one a day for several days, until the final. The teacher won’t even notice.”
Summer jumped down and wrapped her arms around my neck. “That’s perfect. I’ll take it!”
“I haven’t even told you the price yet.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll have the cash to you by tomorrow.” She jumped up and grabbed her backpack. “I’ll text you later! I can’t thank you enough, Grant! Seriously, you’re the best!”
And now for my review:
*Spoiler-Free* REVIEW: Inhale, Exhale by Sarah M. Ross
Publication Date: May 7th, 2013
*DISCLOSURE: ARC was provided in exchange for a fair and honest review
My Thoughts:
Inhale, Exhale is a sweet quick read about stepping out of your comfort zone, taking risks, and following your gut instincts. Jillian is a pretty innocent, normal girl dating a guy that she's been with forever. Grant is the smart, driven coworker that has a plan that doesn't involve any distractions. When they meet and with every subsequent interaction filled with flirtatiousness and sexual tension, they are met with an incredible temptation to throw away what they've always known.
While this story technically has the "love triangle" aspect, in many ways, it doesn't. Jillian's boyfriend, Christian, frankly, just doesn't stand a chance against the pretty perfect Grant. I have to say that he really stole the show for me and I was very moved by his story and all that he has had to go through. He's different from the common domineering alpha male I have read in many New Adult books lately. He's not hiding some deep dark secret. He's just a genuine, smart, funny, straight forward, always sexy guy. And I liked that.
I especially liked that the novel was written in a dual POV because I just loved getting into Grant's head:
In the last week, it was like my body and mind were on two separate planets. Neither was working with each other anymore. Not since Jillian. My head knew--this girl will mess up everything and suck away everything I worked so heard for with a single bat of her lush eyelashes.
My body, however, could give two shits. All it wanted was to be near her. To touch her. To think about her. My ridiculously stupid hormone-driven body craved her like a drowning man craved air.
I was screwed.
The Final Verdict:
Sarah M. Ross has created a sweet and lovely novel centering around good people that bad things happen to. With two incredibly likable main characters who interact with an explosive level of chemistry, Inhale, Exhale was an enjoyable read that left me oh, so satisfied with their well-earned Happily Ever After.
Rating:
About the Author:
Sarah Ross started her obsession with reading at an early age, getting in trouble for sneaking BabySitter Club and Nancy Drew books into math class in elementary school. She would read any fiction book she could get her hands on. Sarah knew it was an addiction when instead of grounding her from TV or music, her mom would take away her books as punishment (The Horror!). Her love of all things paranormal was inspired by her good friend Laurie, who convinced Sarah that books with vampires, witches, and all things shifter were amazing. After a little reluctance, she gave it a shot with the Sookie Stackhouse books, realized she was right, and the rest was history.
Sarah grew up in Pittsburgh, graduated from The University of Pittsburgh with a degree in English, and taught 8th graders to love reading as much as she does for several years. She will always be a proud member of the Steelers Nation, but couldn’t take the cold and moved her frozen tush to Florida where she now lives with her family and two cats. You will find Sarah now with her trusty Kindle in hand and toes in the sand!
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all the best, dear readers!
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