Title: THE PAIRING
Author: KATIE ASHLEY
Published: Feb. 18, 2014
Author: KATIE ASHLEY
Published: Feb. 18, 2014
Synopsis:
A Companion Novel to The Proposition and The Proposal
After her former boyfriend left her pregnant and alone, Megan McKenzie swore off men. She spent the last eighteen months focused solely on her son, Mason, along with finishing nursing school at the top of her class. Although she’s not ready to complicate her life with a long-term relationship, a nice no-strings attached hook-up is just what she needs. At her godson, Noah’s, baptism, she finds the perfect candidate in the soft-spoken godfather, Pesh Nadeen. After all, the widower could use a good time too. But after drinking too much, the night doesn’t end the way she thought it would. Forced to leave Pesh’s house through a walk of shame, Megan hopes to never, ever see him again.
For Pesh Nadeen, the very sight of Megan sends him into an emotional tailspin. Since she reminds him too much of what he has lost, he wants to be out of her sight…at first. But the more he gets to know her, there's something about the diminutive blonde that causes his protective side to go into overdrive, and he finds himself wanting more. When Megan is assigned to work in his ER to complete her nursing clinicals, he sees it as fate, but she’s having no part of it. She only wants a physical relationship while he wants far more.
What happens next is a sexy game of cat and mouse to see who will break first or if both of them will eventually get more than they ever bargained for.
A Companion Novel to The Proposition and The Proposal
After her former boyfriend left her pregnant and alone, Megan McKenzie swore off men. She spent the last eighteen months focused solely on her son, Mason, along with finishing nursing school at the top of her class. Although she’s not ready to complicate her life with a long-term relationship, a nice no-strings attached hook-up is just what she needs. At her godson, Noah’s, baptism, she finds the perfect candidate in the soft-spoken godfather, Pesh Nadeen. After all, the widower could use a good time too. But after drinking too much, the night doesn’t end the way she thought it would. Forced to leave Pesh’s house through a walk of shame, Megan hopes to never, ever see him again.
For Pesh Nadeen, the very sight of Megan sends him into an emotional tailspin. Since she reminds him too much of what he has lost, he wants to be out of her sight…at first. But the more he gets to know her, there's something about the diminutive blonde that causes his protective side to go into overdrive, and he finds himself wanting more. When Megan is assigned to work in his ER to complete her nursing clinicals, he sees it as fate, but she’s having no part of it. She only wants a physical relationship while he wants far more.
What happens next is a sexy game of cat and mouse to see who will break first or if both of them will eventually get more than they ever bargained for.
Review:
Ahh, Katie Ashley does it again. She’s one of my go-to authors, and she didn’t let me down with this one. The Pairing is heartwarming, sexy, funny, and just classic Katie Ashley all rolled into one. I've been anxiously awaiting this book, and it was everything I had hoped for.
Pesh is…well, he’s Pesh. We all know him from The Proposal. Dr. McDreamy Bollywood – The deep, emotional, loving, GORGEOUS doctor who tried to sweep Emma off her feet in The Proposal. He’s not your normal playboy. He wants to be in love and everything that comes with that emotion. After losing his wife, he hasn’t been ready to try a relationship again. When he meets Megan, Aidan’s niece, that changes for him. He wants to get to know her, date her, just simply be with her.
Megan is amazing, funny, and witty. She’s a single mom and a nurse. After being emotionally hurt by her ex and left alone with her son, Mason, she has no intention of any serious relationships. Megan is obviously attracted to Pesh, but because of her past, she won’t let it be more. She wants sex with Pesh. Pesh wants to date and have something serious. Hmm…what to do.
Pesh decides to try his luck and maybe play into Megan’s idea of sex only. He plans on wooing her and hoping she’ll change her mind. Does his plan work though? It’s sure fun to read and find out.
You’ll be cheering for them from the first time they meet. You’ll get the warm fuzzies, the giggles, and the swoonworthy moments all in this book. Their chemistry is so hot. I love that Pesh is such a gentleman, yet can be so different in the bedroom. I enjoyed seeing their relationship grow and mature into what it is by the end. It’s also so nice when a book doesn’t HAVE to have the crazy amount of angst that some do. It’s okay to just have a love story, and Katie Ashley did that. Sure there’s some angst thrown into the mix, but it’s enough to make it interesting and not so much to be overwhelmingly dramatic. It was a perfect mix in my opinion.
And we get the Fitzgerald’s! Eeek. I’ve missed them! The interactions with Emma, Aidan, and the whole gang made me want to pick up The Proposition and start all over again. They’re so much fun in the previous books, and that’s true for The Pairing as well. It’s definitely Pesh and Megan’s story, but you see a lot of Emma & Aidan, and that couldn’t make me happier. I love them.
Overall, this book was a fantastic read. It was everything a Katie Ashley novel is known to be. A sweet, sexy, heartfelt tale with great writing and characters. I can’t suggest it enough, along with the other books in this series. Who am I kidding? Go one-click any Katie Ashley novel. You’ll love them all, especially The Pairing.
<3 Erin
Ahh, Katie Ashley does it again. She’s one of my go-to authors, and she didn’t let me down with this one. The Pairing is heartwarming, sexy, funny, and just classic Katie Ashley all rolled into one. I've been anxiously awaiting this book, and it was everything I had hoped for.
Pesh is…well, he’s Pesh. We all know him from The Proposal. Dr. McDreamy Bollywood – The deep, emotional, loving, GORGEOUS doctor who tried to sweep Emma off her feet in The Proposal. He’s not your normal playboy. He wants to be in love and everything that comes with that emotion. After losing his wife, he hasn’t been ready to try a relationship again. When he meets Megan, Aidan’s niece, that changes for him. He wants to get to know her, date her, just simply be with her.
Megan is amazing, funny, and witty. She’s a single mom and a nurse. After being emotionally hurt by her ex and left alone with her son, Mason, she has no intention of any serious relationships. Megan is obviously attracted to Pesh, but because of her past, she won’t let it be more. She wants sex with Pesh. Pesh wants to date and have something serious. Hmm…what to do.
Pesh decides to try his luck and maybe play into Megan’s idea of sex only. He plans on wooing her and hoping she’ll change her mind. Does his plan work though? It’s sure fun to read and find out.
You’ll be cheering for them from the first time they meet. You’ll get the warm fuzzies, the giggles, and the swoonworthy moments all in this book. Their chemistry is so hot. I love that Pesh is such a gentleman, yet can be so different in the bedroom. I enjoyed seeing their relationship grow and mature into what it is by the end. It’s also so nice when a book doesn’t HAVE to have the crazy amount of angst that some do. It’s okay to just have a love story, and Katie Ashley did that. Sure there’s some angst thrown into the mix, but it’s enough to make it interesting and not so much to be overwhelmingly dramatic. It was a perfect mix in my opinion.
And we get the Fitzgerald’s! Eeek. I’ve missed them! The interactions with Emma, Aidan, and the whole gang made me want to pick up The Proposition and start all over again. They’re so much fun in the previous books, and that’s true for The Pairing as well. It’s definitely Pesh and Megan’s story, but you see a lot of Emma & Aidan, and that couldn’t make me happier. I love them.
Overall, this book was a fantastic read. It was everything a Katie Ashley novel is known to be. A sweet, sexy, heartfelt tale with great writing and characters. I can’t suggest it enough, along with the other books in this series. Who am I kidding? Go one-click any Katie Ashley novel. You’ll love them all, especially The Pairing.
<3 Erin
Teaser:
After swiping his key card, he entered the room. When he closed the door behind him, Megan turned around, gazing expectantly at him. Now that he was in front of her, he didn’t know exactly what to say. He had been on an emotional overload on the roof, and things had escalated far too quickly. “Look, I just want to say how very sorry I am about kissing you.”
“Well I’m not,” she replied matter-of-factly.
Pesh’s neck snapped back in shock. Her response wasn’t what he was expecting at all. He had imagined she might be relieved or even embarrassed, but he hadn’t imagined that she would be unregretful. He cleared his throat. “Regardless, I shouldn’t have done it. I was in an emotionally vulnerable position, and you were merely trying to comfort me. Nothing more.” His words were more for his own good than hers.
She shook her head. “Just because I was comforting you, doesn’t mean I didn’t want you to kiss me. That I still don’t want to kiss you again.”
His brows furrowed in confusion. “But you—”
“Pesh, I’ve wanted you since the night of Noah’s baptism. But you shot me down then, and you still do.”
Although his heart wanted to soar at her admission of wanting him, the reality of her words caused his chest to clench instead. “Sexually. You only want me sexually.”
“Yes.”
He should have been flattered that a young, sexy woman like Megan desired him. But he wasn’t. Half of the women in the hospital would be willing for him to drag them to an empty patient’s room for a quick and dirty screw. But that’s not who he was. He had never been that way with women, and he didn’t see how it could be possible to change. All he wanted was for her to really see him and how good he could be for her. How good they would be for each other. He thought that was what she was feeling in the moments before and after he kissed her. But now it seemed it was once again only lust.
Although it was probably pointless, he couldn’t help putting everything out there once again. “But when we were up on the roof, there wasn’t a moment where you wanted more from me than just sex?” He licked his lips and took a step toward her. “Just a second where you could imagine your life with me in it?”
Megan stared at him, her expression contemplative. For a brief moment, Pesh thought by her hesitation that she had changed her mind about him. But then she shook her head. “How many times are you going to make me hurt you with this? You’re too good for me, Pesh. We both know that. I’ll remind you again of some of the reasons I’m not the one for you. I’m twenty-five, and you’re thirty-seven. You want a wife, and I’m not ready to be married.”
Her words cut into his chest the same as if she had taken a sharp blade to him. She may have had to repeat herself this time, but he realized the finality of her words. And then an idea hit him so hard that he shuddered—a true light bulb moment and epiphany. There was only one way he was going to get to have his sweet Megan, and that was if he gave in to her. He would have to become someone else for her, even if it was just for a little while. He could distract her with sex that she both desired and demanded, but at the same time, he would make her fall in love with him. It could work. It had to.
Cocking his head at her, he questioned, “So let me get this straight once and for all. You would let me…”
He paused, fighting the conflict within himself to say what he needed to. He drew in a ragged breath. “You would let me fuck you but not love you?”
Her eyes widened at his word choice. “What’s gotten into you?”
He shrugged nonchalantly, feeling slightly empowered in the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde moment. “I merely asked a simple question.”
She snorted exasperatedly. “Yeah, about…” She swallowed hard. “Fucking, of all things.”
“Yes.”
Megan shook her head wildly back and forth. “I can barely acknowledge hearing you say the word, least of all you doing that.”
“You can’t imagine me—”
She held up her hand. “You’re not the type of man to fuck,” she countered.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he countered, “Oh really? I’m too nice of a guy?”
“Something like that.”
“I am a man, Megan. We all have needs. Isn’t fucking one of them?”
Her body trembled slightly at his words. She licked her lips before replying, “S-Stop saying that word—it isn’t you.”
“So, fucking isn’t me? Don’t tell me you think I’m totally asexual—that you can’t imagine me fucking a woman…fucking you.” He eased in closer to her. “We both know for a fact that you wanted nothing more than to fuck me the night of Noah’s baptism. Given the chance right now, you’d let me strip off your scrubs and fuck you up against the medicine cabinet.”
As her chest heaved up and down, she took a step back from him, bumping against the counter. “But you don’t say things like that. You’re refined. You’re a gentleman,” she whispered.
“It may have been a while, but even a gentleman like me enjoys fucking.” He closed the gap between them.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“I’m giving you what you want.”
“You’re giving in?”
After swiping his key card, he entered the room. When he closed the door behind him, Megan turned around, gazing expectantly at him. Now that he was in front of her, he didn’t know exactly what to say. He had been on an emotional overload on the roof, and things had escalated far too quickly. “Look, I just want to say how very sorry I am about kissing you.”
“Well I’m not,” she replied matter-of-factly.
Pesh’s neck snapped back in shock. Her response wasn’t what he was expecting at all. He had imagined she might be relieved or even embarrassed, but he hadn’t imagined that she would be unregretful. He cleared his throat. “Regardless, I shouldn’t have done it. I was in an emotionally vulnerable position, and you were merely trying to comfort me. Nothing more.” His words were more for his own good than hers.
She shook her head. “Just because I was comforting you, doesn’t mean I didn’t want you to kiss me. That I still don’t want to kiss you again.”
His brows furrowed in confusion. “But you—”
“Pesh, I’ve wanted you since the night of Noah’s baptism. But you shot me down then, and you still do.”
Although his heart wanted to soar at her admission of wanting him, the reality of her words caused his chest to clench instead. “Sexually. You only want me sexually.”
“Yes.”
He should have been flattered that a young, sexy woman like Megan desired him. But he wasn’t. Half of the women in the hospital would be willing for him to drag them to an empty patient’s room for a quick and dirty screw. But that’s not who he was. He had never been that way with women, and he didn’t see how it could be possible to change. All he wanted was for her to really see him and how good he could be for her. How good they would be for each other. He thought that was what she was feeling in the moments before and after he kissed her. But now it seemed it was once again only lust.
Although it was probably pointless, he couldn’t help putting everything out there once again. “But when we were up on the roof, there wasn’t a moment where you wanted more from me than just sex?” He licked his lips and took a step toward her. “Just a second where you could imagine your life with me in it?”
Megan stared at him, her expression contemplative. For a brief moment, Pesh thought by her hesitation that she had changed her mind about him. But then she shook her head. “How many times are you going to make me hurt you with this? You’re too good for me, Pesh. We both know that. I’ll remind you again of some of the reasons I’m not the one for you. I’m twenty-five, and you’re thirty-seven. You want a wife, and I’m not ready to be married.”
Her words cut into his chest the same as if she had taken a sharp blade to him. She may have had to repeat herself this time, but he realized the finality of her words. And then an idea hit him so hard that he shuddered—a true light bulb moment and epiphany. There was only one way he was going to get to have his sweet Megan, and that was if he gave in to her. He would have to become someone else for her, even if it was just for a little while. He could distract her with sex that she both desired and demanded, but at the same time, he would make her fall in love with him. It could work. It had to.
Cocking his head at her, he questioned, “So let me get this straight once and for all. You would let me…”
He paused, fighting the conflict within himself to say what he needed to. He drew in a ragged breath. “You would let me fuck you but not love you?”
Her eyes widened at his word choice. “What’s gotten into you?”
He shrugged nonchalantly, feeling slightly empowered in the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde moment. “I merely asked a simple question.”
She snorted exasperatedly. “Yeah, about…” She swallowed hard. “Fucking, of all things.”
“Yes.”
Megan shook her head wildly back and forth. “I can barely acknowledge hearing you say the word, least of all you doing that.”
“You can’t imagine me—”
She held up her hand. “You’re not the type of man to fuck,” she countered.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he countered, “Oh really? I’m too nice of a guy?”
“Something like that.”
“I am a man, Megan. We all have needs. Isn’t fucking one of them?”
Her body trembled slightly at his words. She licked her lips before replying, “S-Stop saying that word—it isn’t you.”
“So, fucking isn’t me? Don’t tell me you think I’m totally asexual—that you can’t imagine me fucking a woman…fucking you.” He eased in closer to her. “We both know for a fact that you wanted nothing more than to fuck me the night of Noah’s baptism. Given the chance right now, you’d let me strip off your scrubs and fuck you up against the medicine cabinet.”
As her chest heaved up and down, she took a step back from him, bumping against the counter. “But you don’t say things like that. You’re refined. You’re a gentleman,” she whispered.
“It may have been a while, but even a gentleman like me enjoys fucking.” He closed the gap between them.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“I’m giving you what you want.”
“You’re giving in?”
OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:
AUTHOR BIO:
Katie Ashley is the New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Best-Selling author of The Proposition. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her two very spoiled dogs and one outnumbered cat. She has a slight obsession with Pinterest, The Golden Girls, Harry Potter, Shakespeare, Supernatural, Designing Women, and Scooby-Doo.
She spent 11 1/2 years educating the Youth of America aka teaching MS and HS English until she left to write full time in December 2012.
She also writes Young Adult fiction under the name Krista Ashe.
Find Katie on her Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads
Katie Ashley is the New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Best-Selling author of The Proposition. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her two very spoiled dogs and one outnumbered cat. She has a slight obsession with Pinterest, The Golden Girls, Harry Potter, Shakespeare, Supernatural, Designing Women, and Scooby-Doo.
She spent 11 1/2 years educating the Youth of America aka teaching MS and HS English until she left to write full time in December 2012.
She also writes Young Adult fiction under the name Krista Ashe.
Find Katie on her Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads