** Blog Tour / Book Review / Giveaway ** A BETTER MAN by Candis Terry

5 STARS!

I adored meeting the Kincade family in Book 1 of the Sunshine Creek Vineyard series and can’t wait to see what more they have in store for us when the next sibling’s book comes out!  They are a family filled with love that has had some sadness, regret and secrets mixed in along the years that are coming to the surface now.

Jordan Kincade has been living the high life in the NHL since he was drafted right out of high school 15 years ago.  It takes the tragedy of his parents death to bring him running home to Sunshine Valley, Washington to face his grief along with his 4 brothers and little sister.  He never realized how much he pushed family aside and no longer fit into the pack until he walks through the door and feels like a virtual stranger.

He’s determined to make it up to his siblings for not being there, and starts out by handling their little sister who is bordering on flunking her senior year in high school because of a sudden attitude she has going on.  When he goes to meet with one of her teachers, he finds out it’s Lucy Diamond who he had a little thing with in high school.  He can’t resist flirting with her, but she’s intent on not forgiving him for the past.  Will he be able to change her mind?

** Received free in exchange for an honest review  **

 

A Better Man
Sunshine Creek Vineyard #1
|By: Candis Terry

Releasing March 29, 2016
Avon

BLURB:

In Candis Terry’s first novel in her Sunshine Creek Vineyard series, the handsome Kincade brothers convene to rescue their legacy-but the last thing they expect to find is love….

Sooner or later…

Hockey star Jordan Kincade wasted no time ditching Sunshine Creek for the NHL, but his sports career has overshadowed everything else-a truth Jordan confronts when his parents’ deaths bring him home. Now his little sister Nicki is flunking out of school, and only one teacher can help Jordan save her-the shy but incredibly sexy Lucy Diamond, the same girl whose heart he broke years ago. But he’s determined not to make the same mistake twice. If only Lucy would give him the time of day.

Love has a way of catching up with you.

Lucy has no intention of drowning in Jordan’s deep blue gaze again, even if he seems to have turned over a new leaf. Still, his devotion to his sister is impossible to ignore. As they team up to salvage Nicki’s future, Lucy soon discovers that Jordan’s sweet caresses and lingering kisses might just be everything she needs.

 

Link to Follow Tour:  http://www.tastybooktours.com/2016/02/a-better-man-sunshine-creek-vineyard-1.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25858362-a-better-man

Goodreads Series Link: https://www.goodreads.com/series/157808-sunshine-creek-vineyard

 

Buy Links:  Amazon | B & N | Google Play | iTunes | Kobo

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0062351176/

B&N:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-better-man-candis-terry/1122340977

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Candis_Terry_
A_Better_Man?id=GqkaCgAAQBAJ

iTunes:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/a-better-man/id1016473337?mt=11

Kobo:  https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/a-better-man-11

EXCERPT:

Today, she was a different person. Stronger because of the things she’d lived through. Smarter because she’d found a way to survive and come out the other side in a happy place. She knew exactly where she belonged, and that was teaching and helping students like Nicki. Which was why, right now, she was going to pull on her big girl panties and face the boy who had disappointed her head on.

Lucy managed to pull herself together as Jordan removed his sunglasses and slid them to the top of his head. His smile lifted a masculine pair of lips that somehow managed to look cruel and sexy at the same time.

The boy had turned into a man times ten.

Tall and broad shouldered, his chest looked a mile wide. Judging by the smooth ripples beneath his snug shirt he was packing muscle, not pounds. Jeans, worn and frayed at the stress points, accented his long muscular legs and trim waist. His longish nearly black hair gleamed beneath the overhead lights. And his sharp blue eyes focused intently on her.

It was all she could do to keep her heart at a normal pace and her legs solidly beneath her. If ever a man could be described as delicious, Jordan Kincade would be a menu’s specialty of the day.

Too bad he was such a jerk.

“Ms. Diamond?” He came forward and stretched out his very large hand. “Jordan Kincade.”

And clearly he didn’t remember her.

Lucy smiled as a funny little tickle moved through her chest. Maybe this was going to be fun after all. Rarely was she ever given the upper hand or the opportunity to have even the slightest edge.

When he moved closer his warm palm engulfed hers and her triumph died with a sizzle.

Close up she got a better look. She inhaled his sexy scent of worn leather and warm man. Every square inch of her female DNA perked up like it was party time. She hated to disappoint the little darlings but today was all about helping someone else.

“Please.” She kept the handshake brief and formal before she disengaged and motioned toward the chair in front of her desk. “Have a seat.”

He glanced at the standard school chair with a you’ve got to be kidding me lift of his brows. When he sat down, the orange plastic chair creaked and seemed ridiculously small beneath the scope of his height and muscles.

Lucy took her own seat and noticed that the difference in chairs made her tower over him and seemingly give her another advantage. But when he leaned back and crossed an ankle over a knee, he appeared completely comfortable.

So much for one-upmanship.

“I apologize if I seemed taken aback just now.” She opened the folder and pulled out Nicole’s progress report as well as several exams and the few assignments Nicole had actually turned in. Late, of course, but complete nonetheless. “I expected your brother Ryan.”

“He had business at the vineyard and sends his regrets.”

She couldn’t help notice how very deep and smooth his voice had become. Like hot buttered rum on a cold winter night. He had the kind of voice a woman could imagine whispering sweet nothings in her ear while he caressed her in places that tingled beneath his touch.

“I understand.” Snapping out of the fantasy, she imagined the enormous scope of duties Ryan Kincade must need to tend to after the death of their parents. Her heart sank a little further for the family. Especially for Nicole, who was so young and really needed the love and guidance of her mom and dad. “I hope you’ll accept my condolences. And I sincerely apologize for having you come down at this sorrowful time to deal with what might seem insignificant but—”

“Anything regarding my sister is important, Ms. Diamond. Now more than ever.” His brows dipped in a no nonsense fashion. “So don’t judge me when you don’t even know me.”

Oh, she knew him.

Knew he was the type who’d make a promise then shatter it without ever looking back.

But that was then, and this was now.

“My apologies, Mr. Kincade. That was certainly not my intent.”

His piercing eyes perused her face for a long, uncomfortable moment and she had to admit that the look did something funny to the beat of her heart.

Especially when with a slight tilt of his head he asked, “Why do you look so familiar?”

“Do I?” That erratic heartbeat kicked up another notch as she let go a chuckle to cover up what was really going on inside. “People say that all the time. I guess I just have one of those faces.”

She pushed Nicole’s schoolwork in his direction. “If you’ll take a look at these projects, you’ll see that even though she didn’t complete the assignment exactly as it was defined, Nicole has an enormous gift.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s a lie.”

“Excuse me?” Irritated, Lucy’s gaze shot up to the slight smile curling his lips. “How can you say that without even reading anything? I guarantee your sister has a multitude of talent.”

“I’m not talking about my sister’s work. I’m talking about you just having one of those faces.” He uncrossed his long, muscular legs and leaned forward without even looking at the papers she’d put in front of him. “So now I’m wondering why you sidestepped my question.”

Good God the man was intense. There was something in the combination of that nearly black hair that fell over his ears and his nape in perfect waves and those deep blue eyes that seemed almost otherworldly. She could imagine how he’d intimidate an opponent on the ice.

And it had nothing to do with his size.

But as far as admitting who she really was? Not going to happen. No need to dredge up a bad memory when all she really wanted was to help his sister.

“I apologize.” Her heart beat erratically as she avoided the intensity of his gaze. “But I would like to stick to the subject of your sister’s grades—or lack thereof—that may prevent her from graduating with the rest of her class. I genuinely care about her which is why I noticed a problem way before the loss of your parents.”

“And now you won’t even look at me,” he said. “Why is that?”

As he leaned in, his intoxicating scent came with him. Normally such things didn’t affect her. Well, at least not with her colleagues who tended to wear either too much aftershave or worse, too much body odor. Jordan wore his masculine scent like a sexual promise and Lucy swore he should come with a warning label.

 

AUTHOR INFO:

Candis Terry was born and raised near the sunny beaches of Southern California and now makes her home on an Idaho farm. She’s experienced life in such diverse ways as working in a Hollywood recording studio to chasing down wayward steers. Only one thing has remained the same: her passion for writing stories about relationships, the push and pull in the search for love, and the security one finds in their own happily ever after.
Author Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

Website:  http://www.candisterry.com/

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/CandisTerry

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/CandisTerry

GoodReads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4935263.Candis_Terry

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