Two brothers. One family obligation neither could run from.
THE WALLS DUET
Jude Cavenaugh has everything. Until a fatal night changes him forever. Walking away from his family, he pays penitence to the woman he loves by taking a job at the hospital she died in.
It's the end for him. Or so he believes...
Lailah Buchanan has spent her entire life within the walls of a hospital room. Born with a rare heart condition, she suffers more than most, but never lets it define her. .
Two broken hearts, one moment of connection. That's all it takes to change their lives forever. BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Roman Cavenaugh has it all. After successfully taking over his family's company, he's ready to take on the world.
That is, until his new assistant catches his eye. She's young, naïve and a little quirky. But in the blink of an eye, she becomes his new obsession.
And he'll stop at nothing to win her over. After all, all is far in love and war.
WHAT LOVE BUILT - Bonus Short story
The Cavenaugh family comes together, after nearly three decades of immense highs and devastating lows to celebrate life, loss and happily ever afters.
Please Note: This boxed set includes adult themes and language. For ages 18 and up.
About J.L. Berg
J.L. Berg is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series, The Walls Duet, and the Lost & Found Duet. She is a California native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
~ I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review ~
Book Description:
Head down.Don’t look up. Never make eye contact.
Those were the words I lived by growing up, the words that protected me in an unsafe home. But words are only letters and eventually even they couldn’t keep his hands off me.
Hoping to leave behind the shattered life of my past, I find myself in a boring, small town, with an aunt I’ve never met and at a school I loathe.
But soon I learn, not everything in this world is as black and white as I’ve determined. Sometimes those we are so quick to judge often need a second, third or even fourth time to make a first impression.
And often, there are friendships and even love waiting just around the corner, if we are brave enough to take the first step.
Am I brave? Or will I hide behind these tattered gloves of mine forever?
My Review:
I feel like trying to tell you how much I loved The Tattered Gloves is simply going to fall flat in comparison to how I truly feel about it. I am certain even at this early date that this will be one of my favorite reads of the year, something that will be a challenge for me the rest of the year considering what other books will have to live up to. Also, can we just talk a little bit about how beautiful this cover is, simple and yet powerful so like the words that you will read inside the cover.
I don't read quite as much YA Lit as I likely should, but I love J.L. Berg's Contemporary Romances and after I got a glimpse of the cover and read the synopsis I knew that this would be one I had to have in my hands.
Willow Fairchild's life has been nothing if not tragic. Raised poor in Washington DC by a mother who, for lack of better words had no time or true love for her daughter she learned early (a lesson that her mother taught her for her own survival, perhaps the only act of love her mother did for her despite what the act was) to hide herself away from her mothers sordid world. One horrible night, one horrific event changes everything and all because poor Willow was starving.
Shipped off to live with her mother's twin sister, an aunt she never knew existed until she's given a a bus ticket, a phone number, and a name Willow shows in a rural Virginia town broken and virtually destroyed inside. Her aunt knows virtually nothing about her except the obvious fact that this young woman has been hurt so deeply that she may never escape the walls she has built around herself. The community sees a strange girl that both intrigues them and confuses them. Willow, a girl who has spent her life hiding and knows now more than ever that her {mental} survival depends on her ability to stay separated from everyone. Except, her aunt, a handsome young man named Sam, and a vibrant girl named Allison refuse to let her hide.
I adored all the relationships in this book, the quiet yet powerful relationship between Willow and her Aunt Addy. The friendship between Allison and Willow is one of my favorite female teen friendships ever. I was so worried through most of the book that something would come between them as often seems to be the case with teen girls. I was waiting for that moment that Allison was cruel to Willow, where she shoves her aside because she feels Willow took something of hers or because Allison's 'old' friends made her feel bad for liking Willow, that moment when Allison becomes a bully. I was beyond happy to find that was never the case. The friendship between Willow and Allison is based in true friendship and just the desire to be good to one another. Then there is the relationship between Willow and Sam. A relationship that I can admit had it's emo moments, but that never made me want to roll my eyes at their antics and feelings. I am so in love with this couple that I want to stay with them for years, I want to watch them go off to college (if that's where their path leads them), I want to see them get married and have a family, I want to watch them into old age loving one another on a level that escapes so many. This isn't a relationship filled with drama, though it has it's ups and downs; it is a relationship built on their need to understand one another and to simply give each other support and happiness. It feels so advanced for two 16 year old teenagers but at the same time it is perfect. I never doubt Willow and Sam's feelings for one another or that they can stand the test of time with each other.
The story of The Tattered Gloves is a story of survival, redemption, acceptance, love, friendship, and understanding. The story of The Tattered Gloves is not an easy read. There are a lot of difficult moments, it is emotional and moving. If you have triggers to abuse and rape I recommend you taking a moment before you start this book. I would never say don't read it because of the triggers, this book is too beautiful to pass up, but before you begin know that it could be too much for you. You will find yourself completely immersed in the story and before you know it you will be closing the back cover, sighing to yourself and wishing that it hadn't ended. This book makes you want to look at it and say "You complete me", while goofily signing a little heart at it. You will finish this book wanting more but feeling completely fulfilled and so happy that you picked it up. This is a book you will want on your shelf so you can pull it off every now and again and just sigh at it, petting it's cover, opening the pages and loosing yourself again and again in a story of beauty, heartache, friendship, and love.
J.L. Berg is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series, The Walls Duet, and the Lost & Found Duet. She is a California native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
Those were the words I lived by growing up, the words that protected me in an unsafe home. But words are only letters and eventually even they couldn’t keep his hands off me.
Hoping to leave behind the shattered life of my past, I find myself in a boring, small town, with an aunt I’ve never met and at a school I loathe.
But soon I learn, not everything in this world is as black and white as I’ve determined. Sometimes those we are so quick to judge often need a second, third or even fourth time to make a first impression.
And often, there are friendships and even love waiting just around the corner, if we are brave enough to take the first step. Am I brave? Or will I hide behind these tattered gloves of mine forever?
Excerpt:
Prologue
Head down.
Don’t look up.
Never make eye contact.
These were the rules I’d learned to live by while growing up in a house where men frequented but did not stay. When I was very little, I’d always assumed my mother had a lot of friends. Big, strong, manly friends who protected us since I didn’t have a daddy.
How naive I had been.
The men who had visited only wanted one thing, and my mother was happy to give it — for a price.
She’d never made any desperate attempts to shadow this particular part of her life or protect me from it.
The most I’d gotten was a flippant warning when I started showing signs of puberty.
“Willow, you might want to keep out of sight more now,” she’d said.
Thanks, Mom.
And then, when I’d garnered more than a glance or two, she’d say, “Stay in your room at night. Don’t come out.”
But, even with all the rules and warnings, I couldn’t keep them all away.
I couldn’t keep him away.
He’d managed to snuff out every bit of me in a matter of minutes.
Whatever remnants of innocence I’d had from my childhood was gone like a puff of smoke.
But, in our darkest hours, sometimes, even the weak could find the light.
J.L. Berg is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series, The Walls Duet, and the Lost & Found Duet. She is a California native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
My name is Roman Cavenaugh and I’m kind of an asshole.
Running a company isn't easy, especially when everyone expects you to fail, so being a jerk? It comes with the territory.
I don't have time to mess around, and I sure as hell didn’t see her coming.
Cara Hamilton—she was supposed to be off limits…a temporary employee brought in during my assistant’s maternity leave.
But, in the blink of an eye, she became so much more.
An obsession I couldn’t shake.
So yeah, I may be an asshole, but now, I finally had a purpose, and soon, she would be mine.
All’s fair in love and war…
Read a sneak peek of BEHIND CLOSED DOORS:
"Can I ask you something?" she said, drawing my attention away from the monotony on my computer screen. I looked up to find her eyes dead set on mine. It was unnerving.
She usually tried to avoid direct eye contact with me. Maybe I intimidated her. Perhaps she found me attractive and the idea of lusting after her boss bothered her.
Believe me, it bothered me too.
In a very physical way.
“Go ahead,” I answered, unwilling to break the intimate connection she'd started.
"When you saw me… at the club that night," she said, her eyes wavering just slightly. "What was it you saw in me? I mean, was it just the clothes?"
My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Even though I'd said we'd never speak of what happened that drunken night two weeks ago, I saw something in her eyes that needed an answer.
That needed something more.
"Why are you asking?"
"It's nothing, sorry. I'm being stupid," she backpedaled, as she began fiddling with the hem of her skirt.
Looking back at our few interactions, I suddenly noticed the difference in how she'd acted today. Her normal never-ending stream of word vomit was there, but behind it, there was an internal struggle going on. The hemline wasn't the first thing she'd fidgeted with. I'd watched as she'd pulled at the collar of her shirt and then, as if she'd realized what she had done was wrong, quickly lay it flat again.
"Does this have something to do with the way you're dressed today?"
Pink tinged her cheeks once again.
"You noticed?"
I simply nodded, not trusting myself with words in that moment.
Because I’d more than noticed. It’d been damn hard not to think about anything but.
"A gift from my boyfriend," she replied. "He said my old clothes didn't fit in with our new life style. It was a very generous gift," she added, never forgetting that politeness she'd no doubt been taught since birth.
"But?" I questioned, waiting for her to continue.
"But… I don't feel like me anymore," she finally admitted.
"And I'm guessing the night in the club was another gift of his as well?"
It was her turn to nod.
I could see the indecision and worry gnawing at her. Someone like her, sweet, honest and good… she was meant for better things than a life with a man who didn't appreciate her.
Leaning forward, I made sure she saw the sincerity burning in my eyes as I spoke. "That night in the club, I'll admit, I noticed the dress first."
She opened her lips to speak but I held up my hand to stop her, wanting to make my point.
"And today, when you walked in, I couldn't help but give a second… or third glance at the way that new skirt hugged your ass."
Her eyes widened at my blatant honesty.
"So yes, the clothes may grab my attention for a moment or two, but the fact that I'm still interested, two weeks later? That's you, Cara. That’s all you.”
And just like that, I'd crossed the line.
I’d hit on an employee.
And there was no going back from that.
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About J.L. Berg
J.L. Berg is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series, The Walls Duet, and the Lost & Found Duet. She is a California native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
USA Today bestselling author J.L Berg’s FORGETTING AUGUST, in which a woman, who started over, never expected her world to suddenly be turned upside down by the reawakening of the one man who could destroy it all, releases as an e-book in December 2015. More information coming soon!
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J.L. Berg is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series. She is a California native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
