A man trying to find HEA finds himself having to visit the ghosts of his past when the past comes back to harm his future in this sexy and suspenseful tale. Keep reading to get a tempting taste of Runaround by Jay Crownover, along with my impressions of this enticing older woman/younger man romance, then add this fourth installment in the Getaway series to your bookshelf too!
Can two people perpetually moving in opposite directions ever end up in the same place? Or will love just keep giving them the runaround?
Webb Bryant is intimately acquainted with every type of trouble there is. Trouble is all he’s ever known and the only constant in his life.
Webb’s a man constantly on the move. He’s a drifter. A wanderer. He bolts from one bad choice to the next, never able to put enough distance between himself and the ghosts from his past. He lives hard and fast, until everything comes to a screeching halt the moment he lays eyes on Tennyson McKenna. The stunning woman appeared out of nowhere to save the day, and Webb’s been unable to forget her. The leggy, blonde forest ranger might very well be the one person in the world important enough to finally keep him in one place. Only, Ten isn’t impressed by Webb’s knack for finding trouble. And no matter how hard he tries to shake it, he can’t escape his bad habit of falling into the deep end of questionable decisions. When his newest brush with trouble gets Webb in way over his head, Ten jumps after him into the dangerous waters. It’s possible they’re going to sink so fast they both might drown.
Tennyson McKenna makes it a point to be diligently cautious in all aspects of her life. She learned the hard way that leading with your heart instead of your head gets you nowhere.
Ten’s a woman stuck in a frustrating rut. After a string of failed relationships lands her back home, a pit stop to mend her broken heart becomes a hole she’s lost the will to dig herself out of. Coasting through her days was easy until Webb Bryant crash-landed in her path, complete with bullets, blood, and a grin far too charming for his own good. Webb is anything but safe and predictable. He’s everything Ten swore she would never gamble on again, but it’s impossible to ignore the way trouble follows him around like a shadow. And every single time Ten pushes Webb away, she finds herself chasing after him before he’s gone for good. When Webb’s past finally catches up to him, Ten has to decide if she’s brave enough to put her heart on the line for a man who might be gone tomorrow.
EXCERPT:
The first time I laid eyes on Webb Bryant he was frighteningly pale from blood loss and nearly delirious from a raging fever. He’d been sporting a hole in his shoulder from a bullet wound and was terrified his brother was dead somewhere in the vast Wyoming wilderness. It was my job to protect and patrol, one I focused on diligently, but Webb was admittedly distracting. I thought he was going to pass out at my feet, a city boy in way over his head. He didn’t. He never wavered or stumbled in the unfamiliar terrain and unknown situation…not once. He’d impressed me with his resilience and his determination to find out what had happened to his older brother. He’d also caught my attention with those burning blue eyes and shock of blond hair, which gave the misleading impression that the man had a single angelic quality about him. Every long, lean line of Webb Bryant oozed playful mischief and bled the promise of wicked things done in the dark…or during the bright light of day. He didn’t seem like the shy type. Even injured and out of his mind with frantic worry for his older sibling, he was the most charming, most flirtatious man I’d ever met. He sent every defense mechanism I had into overdrive, and there wasn’t a second that slid by where I didn’t remind myself he was not my type in the slightest. Besides, once the Warners and I had both the Bryant brothers straightened out, I figured I wouldn’t have to dodge Webb’s advances ever again. He would ramble on to his next adventure and be out of sight and mind.
I breathed a sigh of relief when he went away. He was too tempting. It was too enticing to give in to every single promise made by his easy smile and glinting eyes. Webb was several years younger than me, a man who was obviously lost and still trying to figure out who he wanted to be when he finally grew up. I was a woman who knew exactly who she was and who she could never be. I was never the type to chase after the bad boys, the wanderers, the reckless. No, I fell for the steadfast, the sturdy, and the solid. I gave my heart to the kind of men who held the world up and buffered everyone around them from the raging storm.
I handed my heart to the oldest Warner brother, Cyrus, when we were just kids. Coming to terms with the fact the stoic and serious cowboy would never feel about me the way I felt about him had been one of the hardest things I’d ever had to do. We shared similar dreams, knowing our lives were so much bigger than the ranches that had our family’s bloodlines entrenched in the soil. We both wanted more than Wyoming, and for a long time, I honestly believed we were on the road out of our tiny town together. It didn’t happen that way. Sure, we both got out in our own time and in our own way, but we both ended up back where we started. Cy was taking his return home in stride. He was far less resentful about his homecoming than I was. In fact, the wedding Webb was dragged out of two short days ago was Cy’s.
I thought it was going to be hard, damn near impossible, to watch the man I’d openly loved from afar for most of my life promise his forever to someone else. It wasn’t nearly as bad as I envisioned. Mostly because Cy was stupid happy with his fiery city girl. He’d never been that happy with me, before we left or when we both admitted defeat and came back home. He’d never loved anyone like he loved his Leo, so the sting of watching him put a ring on someone else’s finger was minimal.
I would gouge my eyes out with a rusty spoon before admitting to anyone, especially myself, that since the start of the wedding most of my attention had been on Webb instead of the happy couple. To my surprise, my heart didn’t feel nearly as trampled as I thought it would. It was too busy stupidly racing over the man I believed I wouldn’t see again and knew I should keep my distance from.
The blond man with a penchant for trouble hadn’t stayed gone like I predicted. Nope. He’d shown up right when Cy needed help on the ranch and offered to stick around. Webb claimed he wanted to learn a new skill, seemed he’d taken a shine to the rough way of life in the Wyoming backcountry and wanted to play cowboy for a while. Cy couldn’t say no, and as badly as I wanted to, I couldn’t stay away. I was caught in an endless game of cat and mouse, and some days I wasn’t sure if I was the predator or the prey. I tracked Webb out of the corner of my eye for months. I expected him to up his game and try to lure me to bed, knowing the wedding was going to lower my defenses. Never in a million years would I have predicted he was going to be led away from the festivities in handcuffs.
MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:
After the jaw-dropping conclusion to the previous book in this series, a conclusion that saw Webb Bryant taken away in handcuffs, I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what the outcome of that moment would be. I didn’t have to wait long as from the very first page of this fourth installment readers are dropped right into the middle of Webb’s latest case of bad luck. There’s an individual going around the country robbing banks...and he looks exactly like Webb. It’s a shocking reveal that takes Webb, and readers, on a journey back into Webb’s childhood of struggle and strife. It’s a heartbreaking journey that gave him insight into his mother’s even more uncaring nature, the identity of his father, as well as the discovery of a long lost brother. The reveal endeared Webb to me even more for all he survived and his ability to still become the kind and caring man he is today. The journey Webb undertakes is one full of twists and turns that brings him even closer to the one woman to capture his attention and it had me rooting for them every step of the way.
Webb Bryant grew up with very little. It was just him and his older brother Wyatt against the world which had them forming an unbreakable bond still there today, a bond that has them very protective of each other. With their mother turning her back on parenting, the two of them did whatever necessary to survive. For Webb especially his choices usually ended up with him in trouble. His charm though often got him through any trouble, particularly when it came to women, and it’s left a long line of women in his past. His mother’s uncaring attitude left him leery of love and HEA, but the moment he stepped foot in a small town it quickly started feeling like home and gave him hope as he saw those around him find their own HEAs. The moment he laid eyes on Tennyson he saw his future, he saw someone challenging him to be a better man, and their interactions warmed my heart as he deserved to finally find someone loving him for himself. Webb’s a sweet and sexy man who’s overcome a lot in his life. He makes no excuses for his past as those choices made him who he is today. Behind a snarky and flirty facade is a caring and kind-hearted man who says and does just what you want your book boyfriend to say and I found him to be delicious.
Tennyson McKenna’s always been a bit restless, not only when it comes to her career but also when it comes to her love life. She’s been unlucky in love needless to say as her first love saw her mostly as a friend, while her last love wanted only to change her. Meeting Webb sets her mind and body aflutter, confusing her with the emotions he incites within her. She makes assumptions about him early on, due to his lengthy rap sheet and to his being younger than her, but the more time they spend together the more she discovers about him that has her falling for him. Ten’s a strong-willed heroine, methodical when it comes to investigations and quick to protect those she cares about. She doesn’t take kindly to being coddled, and has a tough time accepting help and affection, but I enjoyed seeing her softer side when Webb shows he cares. When dealing with her ex-boyfriend, the FBI agent looking to send Webb to jail, I especially enjoyed her fiery defense of Webb that put her ex in his place. Though she sometimes had trouble expressing her feelings for Webb, it’s moments like this that spoke louder than words and had me cheering them on throughout their journey into his past.
Ms. Crownover has crafted yet another delightful read that beautifully balanced romance and suspense in an older woman/younger man romance full of heartache and joy. Webb and Ten are an immensely appealing couple, stronger together than apart as their love empowered both of them. Their connection is a crackling one full of sexual tension and scorching encounters that built through the previous books in this series to culminate here in richly rewarding scenes full of heart and soul. Surrounding this unforgettable main couple were glimpses of equally intriguing secondary characters. The characters that stood out the most were the long lost brother whose anger creates all sorts of new chaos, Webb’s supportive and protective brother Wyatt, as well as a sexy small town sheriff still looking for his own HEA. Wyatt especially has me longing to know more about him. His mother’s rage over his homosexuality caused heartbreak for him when he was young and has him leery of love now too. He’s a workaholic who deserves a HEA and I hope Ms. Crownover lets him take center stage soon. From the first page to the last this is a story that grabs you and doesn’t let go and it’s one I recommend wholeheartedly!
My rating for this is an A.
*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for my honest opinion.
BUY LINKS FOR THE PREVIOUS BOOKS IN THE GETAWAY SERIES... RETREAT (Book #1) | SHELTER (Book #2) | ESCAPE (Book #3)
Jay Crownover is the international and multiple New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men Series, The Saints of Denver Series, the Point Series, the Breaking Point Series, and the Getaway Series. Her books can be found translated in many different languages all around the world. She is a tattooed, crazy haired Colorado native who lives at the base of the Rockies with her awesome dogs. This is where she can frequently be found enjoying a cold beer and Taco Tuesdays. Jay is a self-declared music snob and outspoken book lover who is always looking for her next adventure, between the pages and on the road.
