Friday, March 1, 2024

Loving a Star

 A fake dating, movie star romance trilogy….

Loving a Star

When the Stars Align Book 1

by Emery Cruz

Genre: Contemporary Romance


 

Pretend to date the broody, ridiculously handsome movie star while writing the score for his film… It’s a great gig until we score in other ways.

In my teens, Ethan Stone was one of the biggest stars, and I had a huge crush on him. Until a decade later, while I’m standing next to him on a movie set and he opens his mouth. What a jerk!

Luckily, I’m here to write and perform the songs for the movie. So I don’t have to work with him at all.

That is until the director and Ethan’s agent ask me to fake date him to generate some tabloid gossip about the movie.

I’d rather shower naked with a hungry bear.

But I’ve made a promise to myself, so I need to see this project to the end. And if I play this right, I might just be able to do that and get the hell out of this selfish, backstabbing industry.

But Ethan has a secret, and I’ve just fallen in love…

EXCERPT

Mila

Outside, a car is waiting for me, and I climb in, feeling a little throb of excitement in my chest. I have no idea how tonight is going to go, but I’m sort of excited to find out. I know it’s going to be weird, playing up to the cameras and pretending like I actually enjoy Ethan’s company, but I can do it, right?

The future of my career—or rather, the lack of it—hinges on it.

I arrive outside the restaurant and sneak a look around to see if there are any photographers trying to snatch a picture. Nobody yet, at least that I can see. 

I brush down the dress and balance on my heels to make my way inside without falling flat on my face. The pointy black stilettos are precisely ten inches higher than anything I have ever worn before—at least, that’s how they feel—but I need to act as though it’s natural to me.

“Mila?”

I look up, and my body floods with relief when I lay eyes on Ethan. Damn, I never thought I would be happy to see him. 

He takes my arm and smiles at me. “You look great,” he murmurs, letting his eyes travel up and down my body slowly. 

I feel a little shiver. He looks really good, too. He’s in a sleek suit with a tie that matches his eyes, making them stand out even more than usual.

Ethan

I watch as the car pulls away and stare until it vanishes around the corner. Then I close my eyes for a moment and remind myself this is nothing more than another role for me. But damn, it’s been hard to make myself believe that tonight.

It started the moment I saw her at the door of the restaurant, dressed up in that sleek black number that showed off her curves, her long, slender legs. With her hair down around her shoulders, she seemed to be someone else entirely, ready for the red carpet instead of for an argument.

She seemed nervous at first, but I just sat there and took her in. She’s gorgeous in a way I never noticed before, and she didn’t walk in trying to pick a fight with me, so that’s a start.

I have to be careful here. I don’t want to let any attraction to her get in the way of what I’m here to do. I just … wanted to treat it like a real date, like this was a real chance for us to get to know each other, a real chance for me to see under her tough exterior and find out what drives that attitude of hers.

Mila

I sink my head onto the plush couch and close my eyes, just for a moment …

I’m distantly aware of him coming to sit opposite me, and I shift toward him without thinking, closing the distance between us. I feel his arms brush against me, and I press myself into him. I’m so tired I can hardly figure out why what I’m doing might be a problem, and I don’t give a damn. I just like the feeling of his closeness, the feeling of his strong body against mine.

I’m not sure how many hours have passed by the time I wake up, but when my eyes open again, I leap away from him. 

Holy hell, what am I doing? 

He lifts his head up like he has been dozing, too, and smiles at me.

“I should, uh … get back to my place,” I murmur as I get up off the couch and rush to gather my stuff. 

What the hell am I doing? What the hell have I been thinking? Sleeping on his couch like that, nestling into him like the two of us are meant to be together. No. I need to leave. I need to get the out of here before anything else can happen, because this? This is so far beyond the realms of what I know is appropriate.

As I pull on my shoes and throw on my coat, I feel a tingle in the base of my stomach. Because, even if it was wrong, there’s something about having his arms around me that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Something about being held by him that makes me feel safe and settled in this mess of an industry.

And I start to wonder, deep at the back of my mind, just how much I am really faking all of this.


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Book Links:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/8TkjY1Z

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/loving-a-star-a-fake-dating-movie-star-romance-when-the-stars-align-book-1-by-emery-cruz

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/203061378-loving-a-star

 

Unlucky in Love

When the Stars Align Book 2


Dating your childhood idol is never a good idea. That doesn’t mean I won’t do it.

When my client auditions for the role of a lifetime, I cross paths with the casting director—former teenage bad boy Joey Radnor all grown up and even more delicious than I remember. But he’s also broody, rude, and self-centered. I want to run when he asks me out, but I can’t tick off the guy in charge of hiring my client.

Our date is even worse than I expected, and once it’s over, I ignore him rather than admit I can’t stand the man I spent most of my teenage years drooling over. But when he cuts my client from the roster, my job and reputation are on the line. Meeting him face to face again is a bad idea. We’re oil and water. We don’t mix.

But when I look into those gorgeous eyes, I know we can beat the odds…if we don’t kill each other first.

 

Amazon * Bookbub * Goodreads

Book Links:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/d4XI20m

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/unlucky-in-love-when-the-stars-align-book-2-by-emery-cruz

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/205400865-unlucky-in-love

 

Love in the Spotlight

When the Stars Align Book 3


 

I didn’t start the conversation with Teddy, but now all I want is for it to continue.

Ready to leave modeling behind, I strut into an A-lister event to pitch my cosmetics line. Investors are swarming until a self-absorbed movie star barges in and asks me out. I’m dumbfounded when the investors scatter, but Teddy is good looking, famous, and most importantly, rich.

A few dates certainly couldn’t hurt.

Teddy’s agent thinks I’m bad news, but dating him is better publicity than modeling. When Teddy and I become closer, though, his agent makes him choose between me and his career. Hurt when he hesitates, I end it for him.

Depressed and alone, I cling to his fading spotlight and release my cosmetics line early. When sales explode, the press claims our relationship was a stunt to sell products, which was maybe true…at first.

When my personal life implodes, I realize the one solid thing in my life had been Teddy, and I’d let ambition ruin that.

He has no reason to take me back, but with the rest of my life in ruins, I have nothing left to lose.

 

Amazon * Bookbub * Goodreads

Book Links:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/6ndD3Qq

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/love-in-the-spotlight-when-the-stars-align-book-3-by-emery-cruz

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/205400498-love-in-the-spotlight

 

**On Sale - Get the box set for only .99 cents!! **

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About the Author


I'm Emery Cruz. I LOVE books! I love to read them, and I love to write them. My favorites are contemporary romance stories. I like to be hooked and twisted and left feeling exhausted and happy ;)

I am a newly published author. I plan to turn my passion into my full-time career. So, I will continue to write stories I hope you will love.

If you'd like to receive my newsletter or be a part of my ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) team, please join from my website: EmeryCruz.com

 

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Author Links

Website: https://emerycruz.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550125514892

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Emery-Cruz/author/B0C6DJVBHP

 Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/38058277.Emery_Cruz

 

Giveaway

$20 Amazon

Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!

https://bit.ly/WhenTheStarsAlignTour

 

2 comments:

  1. This looks like a great series. Thanks for hosting.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I would enjoy reading this series. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete

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