by Jennifer Dean
Publication Date: December 1st 2017
Genres: Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
Synopsis:
Max: The new girl, the sarcastic asshole, the one who avoids getting attached to anyone.
Emily: The golden girl, the rule-abiding rebel, the one who unknowingly craves something more.
When fate brings the two girls together, life seemed to fall into place. Until their future plans are shattered the moment someone leaves drugs inside Max’s school locker.
While Max inevitably loses hope of escaping her new grim reality, Emily struggles to move on without the one she loves most. Especially when she’s the only one determined to find answers. But the closer Emily gets to discovering the truth, the harder it will be to stop her pursuit, even when it leads to dangerous consequences.
Author Bio:Jennifer was studying History and English at the University of North Texas when she discovered a hidden passion for writing. She has since written two other Young Adult novels, Bound and Blinded. She lives in Seattle Washington.
GIVEAWAY!
Excerpt:
JUNE
20, 2015
Emily’s slender finger drew
invisible letters onto the table, nodding along with my voice but unaware of
her distracted mind. I sighed, my words fading with unimportance as I tilted my
head and narrowed my eyes with a new focus.
“What’s
wrong?”
“What
do you mean,” Emily said, slightly confused as her eyes shifted up but her
finger continued with the absentminded activity.
I
stared back with a knowing look that caused her to shrug.
“I’m
not perfect, you know. I’m allowed to have bad days. You’re in prison after
all.”
“True,”
I said with a nod. “But something tells me there’s a reason for this one.”
“Well,”
Emily said, curling her finger into her palm as if it had been beckoned back by
her hand to create a frustrated fist. “Since you know so much, maybe you can
tell what my problem is.”
Her
irritated tone was guarded by impatience, but the only thing that caught my
attention was the sadness lingering within her eyes.
“Ems,”
I said with a soft plea.
Emily
dropped her shoulders in surrender as she closed her eyes for a few brief
seconds as if it were a message for the anger to stand down. Once she had
blinked them back open, it was clear the space of her former irritation had
been replaced with sadness that had now just doubled its territory. “I’m sorry,
I didn’t mean to snap.” Emily shook her head, speaking with a regretful tone.
“Really. It’s nothing.”
My
own irritation rose as my need to wrap my arms around her was prevented by the
restrictions of the environment surrounding us.
“I
know it’s not nothing,” I said, conveying with my stare that I would sit here,
waiting for the rest of the visit, if I had to, until she told me what was
bothering her.
Emily
relented with a heavy sigh, causing me to lift the left side of my mouth into a
victoriously crooked smirk.
“My
roommate assignment came in the mail this morning.”
Her
voice was low and filled with disappointment as her shoulders rose and dropped
with another exaggerated sigh. Unable to resist any longer, I quickly looked
over my shoulder, happy to see the officer in charge distracted by another
inmate interaction, before I took the opportunity and reached across the table
to place my hand over Emily’s.
“You
knew that was inevitable,” I said while my thumb soothed the back of her hand
with gentle strokes.
“I
know,” Emily said pausing so that she could turn her hand over and grasp my
fingers longingly with her own. “It’s just that the reality of it all is still
hitting me in pieces. And seeing that this morning just—” Emily shook her head,
looking down at our linked hands as if they could give her the strength she
needed while she attempted to hold back the crack seeping into her voice. “It
just reminded me of what we had lost.”
“I’m
sorry,” I said feeling the uselessness of my words as soon as they left my
lips.
I
pulled my hand back, ignoring the way my fingers twitched—screaming in protest
at the parting from one they were always meant to hold. Emily’s disappointment
tightened my chest, leaving me desperate to take away the remainder of her
pain, if only for a few minutes.
“What?”
Emily said with a confused stare as she took in the false amusement now lifting
my cheeks.
“Looks
like you’ll be using a bra on the door after all,” I said.
Thanks for sharing, Nina! :)
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