BLOG TOUR REVIEW & EXCERPT: The Only One

Lauren Blakely hits another home run with THE ONLY ONE. Check out my review and a excerpt from this awesome novella.

The Only One, by Lauren Blakely
Publish Date: December 6, 2016
Publisher: Evil Eye Concepts
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author and Inkslinger PR
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) Let’s say there was this guy. And he gave you the most mind-blowing night of sex in your life. And you never saw him again.Until ten years later.

Now, it turns out he’s the ONLY ONE in all of Manhattan whose restaurant is available the night of my charity’s gala. 

The trouble is, he doesn’t recognize me.

***

This woman I’m working with is so damn alluring. The first time I set eyes on her, I’m captivated and I can’t get her out of my mind. Even if it’s risky to tango with someone I’m working with, she’s a risk I’m willing to take.

The trouble is, she won’t give me the time of day.

But I’m determined to change that.

The Only One is a fantastic quickie second-chance love story by the incredible Lauren Blakely featuring a hot shot chef and the girl who got away from him ten years earlier.

Gabriel and Penny had a romantic interlude in Spain ten years ago and agreed to meet up in New York a few days later. Except Gabriel never showed, never called, never e-mailed. So, Penny forced herself to forget about him. And life went on for both of them.

In present day, they're both living and working in the same city, and have no idea. Until Penny needs Gabriel's restaurant to cater a charity event and they run into one another. Penny's still harboring a major grudge over being stood up, but she's really mad when it appears that Gabriel doesn't recognize her. The only thing is, Gabriel has never forgotten about the woman he met in Spain, and he's hoping that maybe Penny might be her, which means he has a second chance to get thing right this time. 

We've met both Gabriel and Penny before. When Gabriel was introduced in The Sexy One, and he had dinner with Simon, their conversation hinted that Gabriel had loved and lost. It was great getting his story finally, and I was excited to see that his long lost love was none other than dog-lover Penny, who always has the shelter dogs that need walked in the park. 

The Only One is a novella, so it was a really quick read for me. Not only because it was short, but because it was fun and sexy and entertaining. It's a light story with not a lot of angst or drama. It's all about Gabriel and Penny rediscovering each other and figuring out whether they still have that spark, even though ten years of experiences and living have passed. I loved their adventure. 

I was taken with her the moment I sat down at the table next to hers at the café on a street corner in Barcelona. Her warm eyes met mine, and I wasn’t able to look away, so I didn’t. When her almond cake arrived, she arched an eyebrow, and said, “You’re admiring my dessert.”

I laughed. “I don’t think it’s the dessert I’m admiring. But I have been hoping you’d want company to help devour it. May I join you?”

She nodded and I moved to her table. She picked up her fork and said, “It’s made with caramel—my favorite. And it’s divine. By all means, let’s devour.”

“I’m a big believer in the consumption of sweets.”

“We have a saying in America. Eat dessert first,” she said.

I lifted my fork and took a bite of the Tarta de Santiago. “I like this saying. Can you appoint me a temporary American?”

She tapped my shoulder, something that shouldn’t have turned me on, but somehow it did.

“There. Done. By the power vested in me, I’ve declared you able to eat dessert first.”

“I must tell you a secret. I already possessed the ability,” I said, and she laughed, a pretty sound, like bells.

And I was halfway to hooked. Maybe it was her confidence. She seemed a few years younger than me, but there wasn’t a shred of shyness or insecurity about her. Her wit was intoxicating, and so was her beauty.

When we finished the almond cake with the caramel layer on the bottom, I was certain of two things—I didn’t want to let her get away, and I needed to see her again. “May I take you to dinner?” I asked.She said yes.

But we didn’t wait till dinner. We spent the afternoon together, wandering around the city, strolling through the side streets, ducking into the churches and buildings and seeing the sights she wanted to explore.

All the while, I learned more about her. That she’d studied European History in college, that she’d loved traveling across the continent these last few months, and that she was looking forward to her job on Wall Street at Smith and Holloway Bank when she returned to the United States.

Mostly, she added. She was mostly looking forward to it.

“This trip is my last hurrah before I enter the working world,” she told me.

Since self-publishing her debut romance novel CAUGHT UP IN US over three years ago, Lauren Blakely has sold more than 1.5 million books. She is known for her sexy contemporary romance style that's full of heat, heart and humor. A devout fan of cake and canines, Lauren has plotted entire novels while walking her four-legged friends. She lives in California with her family. With thirteen New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than seventy times. Her bestselling series include Sinful Nights, Seductive Nights, No Regrets, Caught Up in Love, and Fighting Fire as well as standalone hit romances like BIG ROCK, MISTER O, WELL HUNG, and THE SEXY ONE which were all instant New York Times Bestsellers. In January she'll release FULL PACKAGE, a standalone romantic comedy. To receive an email when Lauren releases a new book, sign up for her newsletter! laurenblakely.com/newsletter.

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