Hard Stick by LP Dover Release and Review

He carries a big stick. And he’s not afraid to use it.

On the ice, I’m Kellan Carter, powerhouse enforcer for the Charlotte Strikers.

Off the ice, I’m just a regular guy. The last thing I want is to get mobbed by

a bunch of groupies who are only after me for my fame and money. My ideal woman

knows how to enjoy a little good, clean fun—and maybe some not-so-clean fun

too. That’s the kind of girl I’d never let go.

When Kristen Robinson, the gorgeous, down-to-earth bartender I’ve been crushing

on, agrees to let me take her out, I’m thrilled. We have an amazing night

together, culminating in the most electrifying kiss of my life—and that’s it.

Kristen tells me we can’t see each other again, but I know that kiss meant as

much to her as it did to me. What I don’t know is that Kristen

has a dangerous secret. . . .

I’ve proved to Kristen that she can trust me with her body and her heart. But

when her past comes back to haunt her, I need to prove that she can trust me

with her life. And I might have to get my hands dirty after all. 

** Hard Stick is an action-packed romantic suspense. Just

to warn you, the story line does NOT center around hockey. The main character

plays but a lot of the book is set outside of the rink. **

“So what happened to Maddox? I couldn’t help but notice his

face.”

Dallas and Braeden glanced at each other and chuckled.

“Kellan fucked him up in practice,” Dallas replied.

I gasped. “Why?”

He finished off his beer, and I could tell he was feeling it

by the lazy smile. “It’s what he does. Maddox was being a dick and Kellan put a

stop to it. It’s why he’s our captain.”

“Wow, that’s craziness.”

I ran his card and held it out to him, but he grabbed on to

my hand. “You haven’t agreed to go out with him, have you?”

“Who? Kellan?” I asked. The girls gawked at me and snorted.

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“No, why?”

“Just asking,” he said with a shrug. He put his arm around

the blonde and they started for the door. “It’d be nice to get the five hundred

dollars.” They stopped and he smiled at me over his shoulder.

“What are you talking about?” I demanded.

Braeden sighed and smacked Dallas on the back of the head.

“Stop fucking with the girl.” Then he turned to me. “It was just a stupid bet.”

“Stupid?” Dallas laughed. “You put three hundred on it, so I

don’t want hear that shit.” In a drunken haze, he smiled over at me. “Just do

us a favor and don’t go out with him until after the weekend. We made a bet

that he couldn’t get you by the end of the week.”

Braeden hit him again. “What the fuck? Shut the hell up.” He

pushed Dallas out the door and they all followed him. So Kellan agreed to the

bet? That was mighty bold of him.

I could hear steps on the hardwood floor behind me. “You all

right?” Chris asked.

Turning on my heel, I smiled. “Yep.” If Kellan was trying to

win the bet, he wasn’t trying very hard. But then again, maybe five hundred

dollars was nothing compared to the money he earned. I used to make a good

living, but at least I was able to retrieve the money I had in the bank before

my supposed death. Having that money helped, especially since I didn’t make

nearly as much working at the pub. Hopefully soon I’d be back to doing what I

loved.

“Why don’t you go home? I can finish up here,” Chris

offered.

“You sure? I don’t mind staying.”

He shook his head. “Go. You do enough here as it is.”

I hurried behind the bar and grabbed my purse. “Thanks,

Chris. After all the training Aylee puts me through, I’m exhausted by nine

o’clock.”

“I can imagine.” He laughed. “I know not to mess with you

now.”

Aylee taught me many self-defense techniques and how to

fight. Before, I had no clue what to do if someone attacked me. After

everything that happened with Mitchell and Cole, I had to make sure I was ready

for anything. At least now, I wouldn’t have to worry about it anymore.

I waved goodbye to Chris and then walked out the door. The

night was cool and I breathed in the clean air; the smell of rain was near. We

needed it after the long, dry summer we had. Looking over at my car, I didn’t

realize there was a truck parked next to me with someone leaning against it. It

wasn’t just any someone, either.

“Where were you tonight?” I asked, looking straight at

Kellan’s smiling face. He had on a pair of jeans that hung low on his hips with

a snug green T-shirt that showed off his perfectly sculpted arms. Why did he have

to be so sexy? Not to mention, he had perfectly straight, white teeth, which I

thought would be a rarity among hockey players.

“So you missed me, huh?”

His smile was infectious and I caught myself smiling back.

“I wouldn’t say missed, but I was curious where you were. I saw what you did to

Maddox.”

He shrugged. “It had to be done. Maddox has a large fucking

head and needed to be brought down.”

I held up my hands. “You don’t have to explain. I, of all,

people know what kind of head he has.” It was the size of the entire country.

Chuckling, he stepped forward, his gaze roaming over my

body. “You seem different tonight. It’s not very often you smile.”

I hadn’t had a reason to, but I couldn’t tell him that.

“Maybe it’s because I know something you don’t.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“Uh, I don’t know, perhaps something about a bet?”

New York Times and USA Today bestselling

author L. P. Dover is a southern belle living in North Carolina with

her husband and two beautiful girls. Before she began her literary journey she

worked in periodontics, enjoying the wonderment of dental surgeries.

She loves to write, but she also loves to play tennis, go on

mountain hikes and white water rafting, and has a passion for singing. Her two

youngest fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime, usually

Christmas carols.

Dover has written countless novels, including her Forever

Fae series, the Second Chances series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed &

Dangerous series, the Royal Shifters series, the Society X series, the Circle

of Justice series, and her standalone novel Love, Lies, and Deception. Her

favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense, but if she got to choose

a setting in which to live, it would be with her faeries in the Land of the

Fae.

L.P. Dover is represented by Marisa Corvisiero of

Corvisiero Literary Agency and Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo

Helin & Fountain Literary Management for dramatic rights.