Inarticulate
By Eden Summers
Release Date September 12, 2016
Could you handle his silence?
The next novel from bestselling author, Eden Summers, is set to catch your breath. Inarticulate is a contemporary, standalone romance novel and a read you won’t want to miss.
Question from Eden Summers
Synopsis
He’s silent––but his touch speaks louder than words.
At first sight, Savannah is drawn to the harsh appeal of a man who refuses to talk to her. Keenan’s hard stare is arrogant and unapologetic. The quirk of his sensuous lips is cocky and in control.
But there’s more. There’s something deeper he’s trying to hide behind those steely grey eyes––a slight hint of vulnerability which captures her intrigue.
She’d been warned, told that his silence hides a myriad of lies capable of affecting her career and relationships with loved ones. Only she can't help herself. Testing Keenan's defenses is an addiction she can't deny.
Falling in lust is easy. Learning his secrets comes with a price. The cost? Her broken heart.
Cover
Excerpt
This is an
excerpt from Inarticulate (a standalone contemporary romance) when the two
protagonists first meet.
She swung around
to the house to hide her smile and bounced up the three stairs toward the front
door. Movement nudged her periphery and she slowed, taking in the sight of a
man standing in the shadows at the far end of the porch. His hip was cocked
against the bannister, his eyes hooded.
Her
concentration latched on to him, unmoving as the world around her dulled to a
faint hum in her mind. She wasn’t sure what intrigued her. It could be his
narrowed stare, the way he didn’t greet her with warmth or kindness. Only
sterile appraisal. Or maybe it was the package his arrogance came in—the tense
expression, stubbled jaw, and lush lips pressed in a tight line.
Her tongue
tingled. Mouth salivated. She would’ve liked to think it was due to the
heavenly aroma of her aunt’s cooking drifting in the air. Would’ve liked to…but
that was a load of bull.
“Hi.” She gave
him a friendly finger wave as Dominic came up behind her.
The man
continued to stare, his face still unwelcoming in the shadows.
“Keenan, don’t
be a prick.” Dominic tugged on her arm, stealing her attention. “Come on. I’ll
introduce you later.”
She kept her
focus on the stranger, their gazes entwined, hers soft and inquisitive, his
harsh and fierce, as her cousin dragged her inside, the door slamming shut behind
them. “Who was—”
“Oh, my sweet
Savannah!” Aunt Michelle hustled up the hall, wiping her hands on an old apron
tied around her waist. “It’s so good to see you.”
The familiar
face held more wrinkles than Savannah remembered, her aunt’s long blonde hair now
gray and thinning. But the beautiful blue eyes were still the same—loving and
gentle.
“It’s good to
see you, too.” She ignored the strangers poking their heads into the hall from
different doorways and fell into a comforting embrace. “Thank you for the dinner
invitation.”
“Oh, please,”
her aunt chastised. “You don’t need an invitation. Come around any time.”
There was a
whirlwind of introductions. Her aunt took position on her right, gushing with
affection and compliments, while Dominic remained on her left, muttering snide
comments that threatened to make her laugh.
A timer dinged
from the kitchen, a welcome reprieve as her aunt excused herself and left
Savannah to take a breath. There had to be twenty people crammed into the small
house. All of them smiling and friendly, unlike the man outside who still
lingered in her thoughts.
“You want a
drink?” Dominic nudged her elbow.
Hell yes. “Please.”
She followed him to the back of the house, into the laundry, and toward a
fridge stocked full of beer, wine, and pre-mixed drinks.
“Help yourself.”
He held the door
open while she grabbed a small bottle of something red and no doubt
comatosingly sweet. “Thanks.”
“I’m gonna hit
the bathroom.” He closed the fridge door and looked at her in concern. “Can you
survive for a few minutes without me?”
“I guess I’ll
have to. I’m not going to follow you to the toilet.”
“Obviously,” he
drawled. “You gave up that opportunity when we were eight.”
“Twelve.”
“Ten.” He
chuckled and walked from the room, leaving her alone with the hovering threat
of chatter from the other end of the house.
It was time to
go incognito. She didn’t have the energy to smile at strangers. Alcohol would
help, but for now, she needed cool fresh air…and maybe another glimpse at the
menacing eyes of the man she’d met on the porch.
She shoved the
bottle into her coat pocket and sauntered down the hall, measuring her steps to
lessen the clap of her heels. She reached the front door without notice and
pulled it open, slipping into the darkness of twilight without a word.
The man was still
at the end of the porch, a beer bottle now visible in his hand as he leaned
over, resting his elbows on the bannister. He didn’t acknowledge her presence.
She supposed a man with arrogance ebbing off him in waves didn’t have to. His
dismissal gave her the opportunity to appreciate his ass stretched in well-worn
jeans and the perfection of how his black jacket rested at his hips to give her
an unhindered view.
“Hi,” she
offered for a second time.
He didn’t move,
didn’t even spare her a glance as she approached the bannister. He continued
staring straight ahead as he lifted the beer bottle to his lips and took a long
pull.
“It’s a lovely
night for a family dinner.” Was he a distant relative? God, she hoped not,
otherwise Dominic’s inbred tendencies were rubbing off on her.
He replied with
a jut of his chin. A jut of his God. Damn. Chin.
What an asshole.
And wasn’t she just the stupidest set of ovaries to walk the earth, because it
only made her itch to push his blatant need for solitude, to poke at him with
questions until he acknowledged her with the respect she deserved. The respect any human
deserved.
“So… you like
beer…” she drawled, glib as hell.
The corner of
his mouth twitched as he continued to focus on the street. But still, no
answer.
She could smell
him, could practically taste his delicious aftershave on her tongue with each
inhalation. He was a taunt to all her senses…well, except her ears because the
pretentious ass wouldn’t say a word.
He took another
swig from his bottle and straightened to face her. She could see his eyes now,
the steely silver, almost blue, that made her shiver with their ferocity. He
was tall, too. At least an inch above her even with her heels.
She pulled the
pre-mix bottle from her jacket pocket and twisted the lid to keep her hands
busy. She could see two outcomes eventuating. Either he would smile, knocking
her off her feet with the brilliance of his appeal. Or he was going to pull a
gun from the inside of his jacket and blow her brains out.
Player or
gangster. He could totally pull off both.
“I’m usually a
wine drinker myself.” She raised the bottle of bubbly red liquid in her hand,
slowly tilting it to her mouth. She took a sip, licked the alcohol from her
lips in a deliberately seductive provocation, then lowered the bottle again.
Still, he gave
her nothing. Noth-ing. He was the most accomplished jerk she’d ever come
across, and yet she still couldn’t ditch the intrigue and walk away. Without a
word, he had her tied around his little finger, begging for attention.
“I like your
jeans.” She ogled his crotch, wanting to return the discomfort of how
humiliating this one-sided conversation was becoming. “They’re snug.”
His lips
quirked, giving her a glimpse of straight white teeth. Asshole. Asshole.
Ass-hole! He was gorgeous, the faintest hint of humor turning his
dangerous eyes playful. She lifted the bottle to her mouth again, this time
ignoring any pretense of seduction as she gulped at the liquid.
“Are you always
this charm—”
The front door
creaked open and she turned to find Dominic eying them both skeptically.
“What’s going on?”
She smiled, the
biggest, fakest smile she had in her arsenal. “I’m having an in-depth
conversation with this lovely gentleman.”
“Really?”
Dominic frowned, his brows pulling deeper with every passing second.
“Yep.” There was
gushing amounts of sarcasm in her tone. “First we conversed about our drinking
habits, then fashion. I was about to bring up the topic of politics and world
peace when you rudely interrupted.”
She glanced at
the man in the corner, an arrogant smirk now curving those sensuous lips. He
wasn’t the only one capable of being a jerk.
“Well, that’s
strange…” Dominic came closer. “Because Keenan doesn’t talk."
Giveaway
Meet the Author
Eden Summers is a bestselling author of contemporary romance with a side of sizzle and sarcasm.
She lives in Australia with a young family who are well aware she's circling the drain of insanity. Eden can't resist alpha dominance, dark features and sarcasm in her fictional heroes and loves a strong heroine who knows when to bite her tongue but also serves retribution with a feminine smile on her face.
Connect with Eden
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