Wednesday, August 19, 2026

Lifecycle of Intelligence Book Blitz @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #LifecycleofIntelligence #SteveJones #Nonfiction




AI Governance, AI Charter, Artificial Power, AI Oligarchs, Democracy and the Future of Nations


Economic Policy, Leadership, Artificial Intelligence

Date Published: July 16, 2026



The Future Of AI Will Not Be Decided By Technology Alone—It Will Be Decided By Leadership

 
Artificial Intelligence is moving faster than any previous technological revolution. It promises extraordinary prosperity but also unprecedented risks. Will AI create a future of shared human flourishing or concentrate wealth, power and influence in the hands of a technological elite?
 
The Lifecycle of Intelligence is a groundbreaking guide for leaders, policymakers, business executives, educators and citizens who want to understand and shape the future of the Machine Age.
 
Written by economist and international analyst Steve Jones, this compelling book goes beyond the hype surrounding AI to explore the deeper economic, political and social forces redefining nations, democracy, labour markets and global power.
 
Rather than focusing solely on technology, this book asks the defining question of the 21st century:
 
How do we ensure Artificial Intelligence serves humanity, not the other way around?
 
Inside You'll Discover:
 
        • The Big Picture - Understand the economic, geopolitical and historical forces driving the AI revolution.
        • The Five-Stage AI Maturity Model - A practical framework that helps governments, organisations and nations understand where they are today and how to progress safe, responsible and human-centred AI governance.
        • The AI Charter - Inspired by the Atlantic Charter, this bold vision establishes guiding principles for freedom, democracy, accountability, fairness and shared prosperity in the Machine Age.
        • The Real Risks of AI - Explore the challenges of AI oligarchies, automation, job displacement, surveillance capitalism, misinformation, democratic erosion, systemic safety risks, environmental impacts and geopolitical competition.
        • A Practical Roadmap for Action - Discover concrete governance models, implementation frameworks and policy recommendations that help leaders move from awareness to action.
 
Exclusive Bonus Included - When you purchase this book, you'll also receive the companion AI Governance Manifesto, Playbook and Policy Framework, a practical blueprint for implementing responsible AI governance.
 
This powerful companion includes:
 
        • The AI Governance Manifesto
        • The Lifecycle of Nations Maturity Model
        • The Lifecycle of Intelligence Maturity Model
        • The AI Charter for the Machine Age
        • AI Governance Playbooks for governments, businesses and institutions
        • Regulatory architecture and implementation roadmaps
        • Board-level AI governance frameworks
        • Labour transition and economic renewal strategies
        • Metrics, checkpoints and governance tools
        • International cooperation and treaty pathways
 
Together, these frameworks provides comprehensive blueprints for governing AI responsibly while encouraging innovation, protecting democracy and promoting long-term prosperity.
 
This Book Is For:
 
        • Policymakers and Government
        • Business executives adn Boards
        • AI professionals, Technology Leaders
        • Economists and Strategists
        • Investors and Entrepreneurs
        • Educators and students
        • Anyone concerned about the future of democracy, work and human freedom in the age of AI
 
The Lifecycle of Intelligence explains how humanity must govern it.
It offers practical solutions—not fear.
It presents leadership—not ideology.
 
The Machine Age has begun.
The question is no longer whether AI will transform society.
 
The question is whether we will have the wisdom and the leadership to govern it.
Join the Movement for Just AI and Human Prosperity
 
Get your copy today to discover the roadmap for governing the Machine Age and help shape a future where AI works for humanity, not against it.

 


About the Author



Steve Jones is an economist, entrepreneur and international commentator on geopolitics, trade and global governance. He is the author of All to One: The Winning Model for Marketing in the Post-Internet Economy (McGraw Hill), and has advised governments, think tanks and global institutions. Steve has had a successful corporate career with British Airways, EDS, Avis and Accenture.
Steve’s Churchill World Order Series combines history, politics and global economics shaping today’s fragile world order. How Churchill’s fascination with America led to the strategic doctrine of the Atlantic Charter and to Bretton Woods, NATO, the IMF, the WTO and the UN. Trump’s Tariff Tsunami, covers the turbulent threat to rules-based world order today and is now followed by Lifecycle of Nations on how to fix and protect the future of world trade.
 
Contact Links
 
Purchase Link


RABT Book Tours & PR

Key 13: And Other Stories Book Blitz

 

Key 13: And other Stories
Rose Titus
Publication date: October 6th 2017
Genres: Adult, Dark Fantasy, Fantasy, Horror

Rose Titus, author of The Vampire Next Door Trilogy, now brings together a collection of her best short stories. Here in this book you will find tales of vampires, werewolves, witches, ghosts, space aliens, and even a few angels. These stories answer questions such as where do we go after we die? What is the future of this planet? And what is the future of humanity? There are also stories of young runaways, old hippies, worried mothers, troubled families, love gone horribly wrong, selfish billionaires, people who find themselves suddenly homeless, old men with their recollections of days gone by, and girls gone wild! There may even be a murder or two.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

EXCERPT:


Author Bio:

Rose Titus resides somewhere in cold, dreary New England with two manipulative cats and a very out of date computer with which she creates horror and fantasy fiction. She also has a restored classic Buick to ride around in while in search of adventure.

For travel she has stayed the night in an allegedly haunted castle, has taken a boat ride on Loch Ness, and has visited the Bermuda Triangle -- without getting lost.

Her work has previously appeared in Lost Worlds, Lynx Eye, Bog Gob, Mausoleum, Weird Terrain, Descend, The Dead River Review, and other literary magazines. She also writes regularly for Blood Moon Rising Magazine.

When she's not working or writing or messing with her old car, she waits by the mailbox for her Fortean Times to arrive.

Facebook / Goodreads / Amazon


GIVEAWAY!

Key 13: And other Stories Blitz


RELEASE BLITZ - Tailored for You

 



Title: Tailored for You
Series: Made Men #1
Author: B.A. Chayut
Genres: Romantic Suspense/Mafia Romance
Tropes: Protective Hero, Single Mom, Forced
Proximity, Touch Her and Die, Found Family
Release Date: August 19, 2026


BLURB

Surviving was easy. Trusting the man who's been watching over her all along — that's the hard part.

Serena has survived worse than bad men and broken promises. When danger comes for her and her daughter, survival is no longer something she can manage on her own.

Enzo Lombardi is a made man. Power, loyalty, and violence built his world, and once he decides Serena is worth protecting, there is no walking away. What begins as safety quickly turns into temptation neither of them can ignore, along with a connection Enzo has been quietly cultivating for far longer than she realizes.

In Enzo’s world, threats are answered with blood and loyalty is absolute. Loving him means stepping into the shadows and trusting that he will do whatever it takes to keep her safe.

Tailored for You is a romantic suspense, mafia romance, with an HEA.







PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Free in Kindle Unlimited






AUTHOR BIO

Hi! I'm Brittany and I love to write heart-pounding suspense with strong FMCs and swoony, possessive MMCs.

I started writing during Covid- when I had ideas and stories to tell and finally had the time to write them down.


AUTHOR LINKS




Everything That’s Left Behind Blitz @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #EverythingThatsLeftBehind #KellyLydick #SciFi





Fiction/Science Fiction

Date Published: June 28, 2026

Publisher: Sapphire Stories

 


When Nichola Rodale stumbles upon information suggesting her father—a renowned scientist and brilliant puzzle maker—may not have died during The Great Drought, she embarks on a perilous journey across the desolate American Southwest to discover the truth.

 


About the Author

 

 Kelly Lydick’s writing has appeared in Natural Awakenings, Co Yoga + Life, True Blue Spirit, American Art Collector, Western Art Collector, and many others. She has been featured on NPR’s The Writers’ Block and the Word podcast, and on iHeart radio. She is the author of the experimental Mastering the Dream, a contributing author to the anthology Dreams That Change Our Lives, and the author of Dream Incubation for Greater Self-Awareness: A Handbook. Everything That’s Left Behind is her first novel.


Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Goodreads

Instagram


Purchase Links

https://mybook.to/EverythingLeftBehind

Amazon

Barnes and Noble



RABT Book Tours & PR

Tuesday, August 18, 2026

A Strange & Terrible Wonder Book Blitz

 

A Strange & Terrible Wonder
Nichole Louise
Publication date: August 18th 2026
Genres: Adult, Historical

Eleanor Dare, daughter of Roanoke’s Governor John White, has no choice but to accompany her overly ambitious husband Ananias and her idealist, yet inexperienced father to England’s new colony. Manteo of Croatoan wants nothing more than to cast off his association with the English and return home. Haunted by memories of an unexplainable event, he sets out to find the truth about what was brought to Roanoke by the English two years before as a weapon against the Spanish.

Based on real people who vanished from history, Eleanor and Manteo form a taboo friendship as they work against unseen forces to end the violent and otherworldly attacks upon the settlement. In the midst of this survival scenario, both Eleanor and Manteo—once powerless and marginalized in England, emerge as unlikely leaders of the ravaged colony.

Blending 16th century science, occult, and the impacts of early colonialism, A Strange and Terrible Wonder reimagines what became of the Lost Colony.

Goodreads / Purchase


Prologue

“All down the church in midst of fire, the hellish monster flew, and passing onward to the quire, he many people slew.”

– Rev. Abraham Fleming, 1577

August 4, 1577
Bungay, England

At first, the congregants believe the slight rattling is only wind insisting upon the church door. A sudden summer tempest. Rain begins to patter above the nave, the sound not altogether unpleasant—soothing, even. A woman closes her eyes and exhales the stress of the morning as she focuses on the rhythm. Her peace is soon jilted by the growing tempest above, for the rain is now a wonderful force with no less violence than abundance. Her eyes snap open and roll to the vaulted ceiling. The great, forceful torrent empties above in what she imagines as glassy sheets pouring from the eaves. A low grumble of thunder. A child presses close to his mother. The two men kneeling at the altar do not flinch in their prayer; one for an abundant harvest season to pay his debts and another for a wife ailing in childbed.

Lightning flashes in brilliant brightness through the clouded, stretching windows. Silhouettes are carved out of the pews. A gust through the crack beneath the front door snuffs out the altar candles as if the tempest is compelling the congregants to sleep. They are all at once aware of the palpable darkness, so much so that one person cannot perceive another. The only light discerned by the congregants is not from the god hanging above them, but from the intermittent great flashing of fiery bolts.

The roar of the storm is so powerful now that the congregants shift with discomfort. A chill tightens the base of their spines as sweat springs on brows with each fearful heartbeat. The men kneeling in prayer do not relinquish their positions, though they see little, and their knees begin to ache against the flagstones. Instead, they press their eyes and hands tighter and pray now for the light to return. The only answer they receive is a terrible crack of thunder with such force and might that the congregants begin to believe doomsday has come.

The doors are thrown open as if by a blast of gunpowder. Lashing wind explodes down the nave, spraying hot rain onto the necks and backs of the congregants who dare not turn from the cross. The woman who had before held a moment of peace, presuming a gentle patter could not turn tempest, winces at the scalding sensation of boiling water against her bare skin. The church seems to quake and stagger as the scent of glowing iron, not unlike a blacksmith’s shop, permeates the darkened church.

The child clutches tightly to his mother when, amid twin lightning strikes, a great shape dashes down the nave toward the altar. The drops of rainwater on the flagstones sizzle as the thing passes in a hot rush of a blacksmith’s bellows. And with another flash of fire, the child sees it—they all see it: a great black dog with one ember glowing eye running with incredible haste. The woman muffles her scream as others bend beneath the flimsy pews as if a mere board of wood will save them from this devil.

The praying men feel great heat against their backs as if a bonfire has been lit before the altar. A sacrifice. Liquid fear runs down their legs, and still they dare not open their eyes nor pry their rigid hands apart. In another crack of thunder and lightning, the great black dog wrings both men’s necks backward in one clean instant. Its movement is so violent, so swift, that the dead men still kneel in prayer.

The child gasps when the lightning illuminates the whites of dead eyes in the heads bent unnaturally back. He buries his face in his mother’s skirts as her nails dig into his narrow shoulders. The beast turns on the congregation, its low growl indistinguishable from thunder, like a thousand carts moving across cobblestones. It stalks down the aisle, its bellows as hot as the summer sun’s rays. The congregants close their eyes against the darkness, press their slick palms together, and pray for their god to save them in his very house.

The beast chooses a man who dares glance up, for he believes he can slip out the door and escape this hell. Instead, the beast’s shining obsidian claws grip the man’s back in so forceful a manner that it is as if his entire body becomes drawn together and shrunk, as if it were a piece of leather scorched by hot fire. Wordless, he topples over with limbs trailing smoke.

The beast shifts into shadow, and the woman sitting next to the burned but still living man stumbles away from the charred flesh and wheezes for help. The rector, who has finally slid out of the shadows, catches her as she falls from the pew. He prays over her—whispering first, then increasing to test the roar around them. He exhorts the terrified congregants to prayer, and in their extreme distress, do so in darkness. The hot wind and scalding rain lash them, for the tempest has now fully invaded their sanctuary. Some congregants are frozen in terror, save their lips flapping desperate prayers, while others try in vain to crawl for the door.

In a flash, the beast materializes on the main beam above the congregants. Its searing talons set the old oak to smoldering as if coaxing a fire. Its ragged back chars the angel carved into the ceiling. The demon swings down through the church. Three lightning bolts follow the dog jumping from one man to another, then a lad, killing all three instantly. The dog dashes from the crumpled boy, and a deafening crack as if the earth has split in two cleaves the roof, and with it, the steeple. The cascade of stone rumbles down the side of the church, and for one striking moment of terror, a woman cries out that hell has opened to swallow the church whole.

The dog bounds for the next man. He dives away, yet not before his hand is burned by the scalding creature’s touch. In shock, the man lifts his charred hand to the burning sensation where his ear used to be. The creature blasts through the church doors, leaving a trail of scorch marks in the wood. The mischief thus wrought, the beast flies with wonderful force out of the churchyard in a hideous and hellish likeness.

Like a decimated forest in the aftermath of a windstorm, the congregants are left quivering. It’s clear to the man with the burned hand and missing ear that there are forces at work mightier than God, who could not protect his devout followers in His own house. Dazed, the man staggers out of the ruins with his compatriots. He looks to the rapidly clearing sky and resolves to find someone with knowledge of these unseen forces—and how to master them. A conjurer with the influence to pursue the arcane unhindered. What other reason could there be for such hell if not as a path to Providence for England? He will accept no other explanation.


Nichole Louise is a speculative historical fiction writer and book reviewer (NicholeLouise.com). Raven Rock (2023), a prequel to The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, was recognized by Writer’s Digest, the Historical Fiction Company, and the CIBAs. Her articles and book reviews have appeared in the Journal of the American Revolution. Her second title, A Strange and Terrible Wonder (2026) is a historical folk horror tale exploring the Lost Colony of Roanoke. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, gaming, and volunteering at Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society.

Website / Goodreads / Instagram










A Strange & Terrible Wonder Blitz


RELEASE BLITZ - The Fall Affair

 



Title: The Fall Affair
Author: Vi Keeland
Genre: Standalone Contemporary Romance
Tropes: Opposites Attract/Found Family
Release Date: August 18, 2026


BLURB

She’s counting down the days until she leaves Tuscany. He’s counting on making her stay.

Some people go to Tuscany to find themselves.
I went to escape—New York, my ex’s new relationship, and a career that derailed the moment I was passed over for partner.
My plan was simple: settle my eccentric Italian grandmother’s estate, sell whatever wasn’t nailed down, and return to the life I’d worked too hard to lose.
Instead, I walked into a mess—a crumbling antique shop, two hundred acres of leased vineyard land, and one infuriating clause in the will: Live and work in the shop for three months, or inherit nothing.
Then there’s the neighbor I clash with instantly. Matteo Lucchese is the infuriatingly handsome winemaker who leases my family’s land and refuses to be impressed by my credentials—or my attitude. He’s rugged and stubborn, stuck living in a time that has long passed us by, and the word rush isn’t part of his vocabulary. Basically, we’re exact opposites.
But as the days stretch into weeks, Tuscany chips away at the armor I didn’t realize I was wearing, and Matteo shows me the appeal of slowing down, of staying rooted, of wanting something other than climbing the corporate ladder.
I came to Tuscany to escape.
But now that the countdown to going home was on, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to leave. And the life I was falling for came with a looming expiration date.







WHAT TO EXPECT

Opposites Attract
Under the Tuscan Sun Vibes
Found Family
NYC Heroine x Italian Hero
Late-summer Magic






PURCHASE LINKS
eBook available in Kindle Unlimited



AUTHOR BIO


Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria, Israel, and Hungary. Three of her short stories have been turned into films, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.


AUTHOR LINKS


Dark Waters Series Blitz @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #DarkWatersSeries #NickHaskins #Suspense




Black & African American Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Fiction

Date Published: 06-06-2023

Publisher: KCIN Entertainment Group, LLC



Books 1 & 2 (Book 3 releases September 8, 2026.)


The Dark Waters series follows the rise and fall of one of Philadelphia's most powerful families.

Judge Keenan Waters and his family have spent decades building a legacy of power, influence, and respect. But behind the perfect public image lie buried secrets, betrayal, and deadly consequences that threaten to destroy everything they've built.

As loyalties are tested and relationships crumble, the Waters family is pushed closer to the edge of ruin. With shocking twists and intense family drama, the Dark Waters series keeps the readers turning pages until the very end.

Perfect for fans of Black & African American Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Fiction, the first two books are available now, with the shocking conclusion, Dark Waters 3, arriving September 8, 2026.

 

 About the Author

Nick Haskins is the author of the Dark Waters series, as well as novels She's Obsessed, Betrayed, My Husband's Wife, and On the Edge of Heat.

Known for his suspenseful storytelling and unforgettable characters, Haskins has spent more than a decade building a catalog of contemporary drama and suspense that has attracted readers across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

Born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, where he still resides, Haskins began his publishing career in 2011 and has remained committed to independently producing professional, reader-focused books. In addition to writing novels, he is creating film and visual media projects based on his work.

Haskins continues to connect with readers while developing new stories to expand his publishing catalog.


Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Goodreads

Instagram


Purchase Link

Amazon


RABT Book Tours & PR

Monday, August 17, 2026

LEOGOR Tropical Panda Wooden Puzzle

 

Welcome to the LEOGOR Giveaway

If your idea of "unwinding" involves 350 tiny wooden pieces and zero screens, this one's for you. We're giving away a LEOGOR Tropical Panda Paradise Wooden Puzzle to one lucky winner — and no, you don't need a beach vacation to feel like you're on one.

This isn't your average cardboard jigsaw. Laser-cut from 5mm premium wood, it features a laid-back panda lounging among tropical blooms and bamboo, with animal-shaped pieces — parrots, jungle cats, fish, flowers — hidden throughout for puzzlers who love a surprise. Whether you're the parent craving a quiet hour after bedtime, the gift-giver hunting for something more thoughtful than a gift card, or the puzzle lover who's already worked through everything on your shelf, this one was made for you.

This giveaway is part of our Back-to-School Gift Guide. Explore our full collection of must-have picks and giveaways to help you (and your favorite puzzle-obsessed family member) unwind this season — stop by now for your chance to win!

Every piece is a puzzle, but some pieces are a surprise — animal-shaped cutouts hidden throughout the tropical scene turn solving into discovering.

Win a LEOGOR Tropical Panda Puzzle, 350 pieces of tropical calm with a hidden twist. Laser-cut, animal-shaped pieces tucked into the artwork and satisfying enough for solo evenings, gift-giving, or rainy afternoons — because relaxing shouldn't mean staring at another screen.

Prizes

LEOGOR 350 Piece Tropical Panda Wooden Puzzle

Hosts

Co-Hosts

Deliciously Savvy & Versatileer

A Rain of ThoughtDeliciously SavvyGiveaway Gator, Golden Goose GiveawaysHome Jobs By Mom, Honey Can Do It, Freebies Deals & StealsMarksvilleandMeMy Silly Little GangPink Ninja Blog, Tales From A Southern MomThe Stuff of Success, The Frugal Grandmom, Versatileer, Contest Corner, Beautiful Touches

Sponsors

WEBSITE ~ YOUTUBE~ FACEBOOK ~ TIKTOK~ PINTEREST ~ X ~ INSTAGRAM ~ AMAZON


For a chance to win a LEOGOR puzzle, US residents aged 18 and over can enter the competition from 8/10 to 9/21/26. No purchase is necessary. Void where prohibited. This giveaway is not endorsed, affiliated, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media networking site. The chosen winner has only 48 hours to act on the notification email before their opportunity expires, and a new winner is selected. Don't miss out! Once the lucky winners are chosen and verified, we'll post their names on our giveaway form for all to see! The sponsor will be responsible for sending the winners their prizes.

Attention Bloggers: Looking to boost your exposure? It’s easy! Simply click here to have your link added to one of our giveaways—completely free. All we ask is that you share the giveaway post with your followers and let us know once you’ve done so!

Are you a brand or company interested in partnering with Home Jobs By Mom? I’d love to connect! Reach out anytime with your questions—I’m here to help. And if you want exclusive access to the latest giveaways and blogger opportunities, just click here! Don’t miss out on these fantastic chances—let’s work together!






His Beautiful Game Book Blitz

 

His Beautiful Game
Peyton Lux
(Lanark Soccer Club, #1)
Publication date: August 11th 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

My childhood crush is my injured captain… and I’m the physio secretly keeping him on the pitch.

Rafe Calder is everything I learned not to want: flashy, reckless, adored, and far too beautiful. He is also hurt, lying about it, and somehow mine to fix.

I catch the limp no one else sees, then make the dumbest deal of my life. Private rehab, locked rooms, my hands on him daily, and one rule I keep pretending still matters.

At first, he pushes because he hates being handled. Then he listens when pain scares him, lets me see the lonely man under the captain’s armband, and looks ready to break when Donovan Reid makes me smile.

Somewhere between treatment lights, late-night checkups, and one reckless after-hours mistake that turns into more, I fall. Not for the fantasy I used to worship, but for the man who finally stops performing.

Then his injury truth explodes, and protecting him could cost me everything.

Worst of all, loving him might end his career.

Tropes: Childhood crush, star player x physiotherapist, secret injury, forced proximity, forbidden workplace romance, jealousy triangle
Spice level: High / explicit

Goodreads / Amazon

EXCERPT:

Jealousy

I watch every second of that embrace. Her face when he lifts her off the ground, her laughter, the ease of it. Nothing between Tess and me has ever been easy.

He was a good player. I said that myself. But tonight he saved the game in my place, and thirty thousand people cheered him while I stood there feeling like a man who had started the match and somehow still lost it. Then I see him holding Tess, my Tess, and she’s smiling up at him like she doesn’t know exactly what that does to me.

I find her in the hallway outside the locker room. She doesn’t slow when I fall into step beside her, but I catch the way she worries at her lip.

“Great game,” she says.

“Is that what you said to Reid when he had his hands all over you?”

Her head jerks toward me. “I thanked him for the hug, yes.”

I stop her with a hand around her wrist. “I saw the way he looked at you.”

“He was thanking me. I cleared him to play on a calf knock.”

My throat tightens. “I saw the way you looked at him.”

Her expression hardens. “And what about you? What about the pictures of you with that woman? So it’s fine for you to do whatever you were doing, but I can’t accept a thank-you hug from a player I treated?”

“That was weeks ago,” I snap. “Before you and I—”

“I saw you at Halo.” Her voice goes cold. “The night after I came to your house.”

I stare at her. “I was with the lads. We go for beers all the time.”

“From where I was standing, you had a woman on your arm. Then you went off with her afterward. And you’ve got the gall to stand here and act jealous over three seconds in a football stadium?”

“Why were you watching me at Halo?” I demand.

“I was out with Donovan and Layla,” she says sharply. “I wasn’t stalking you.”

The room seems to tilt. “You were out with him?”

“With him and Layla. As friends.”

That lands like a punch. She steps closer and jabs a finger into my chest, and I let her. “Besides, you have no claim over me. You said mine into a mirror after a quick fuck in the gym and then showed up in the press with some other woman. And you know what? You’re right. We’re nothing, officially, so don’t stand here making me feel guilty for doing my job.”

“Don’t say nothing,” I say.

“What are we then?”

The anger in her face cracks for a second, and there’s fear underneath it. “I’ve been lying to my employer about you. I’ve filed false assessments. I’ve let you into places that were supposed to be professional, and you—”

“I haven’t touched anyone else,” I say. “Not since you.”

That stops her.

“The photos were nothing,” I tell her. “What you saw at Halo was nothing.”

Tears gather at the corners of her eyes. “You told me—”

“And I meant it.”

I cup her cheek. “You’re mine, Tess.”

She shudders when I kiss her. She lets me pull her against the wall, lets me kiss her hard enough to make the hallway disappear. But then she presses a hand to my chest and pushes back, just enough to stop me.

I break away, breathing hard. “I haven’t wanted anyone else. Not once.”

Her jaw tightens. “You’re injured, Rafe. Publicly now. I have to file a real assessment this week, and whatever this is, I can’t let it affect that report.”

“It doesn’t have to.”

“It already does,” she says quietly. “Every decision I make about your hip, your minutes, whether you play the Founders’ Cup or Donovan does—it’s all compromised because I have feelings. About both of you. And I can’t fix that, so I need you to give me some room.”

Room. For him, too.

I take a step back. Then another.

“Okay,” I say.

Her face flickers. “Rafe—”

“I heard you.” I keep backing away. “Do your job, Montgomery.”

She turns and walks off, leaving me standing in the corridor with the feeling that I’ve just done the right thing, and somehow lost anyway.

Author Bio:

Trading boardrooms for bedrooms (of the fictional kind!), Peyton Lux is now fully dedicated to writing steamy workplace romance that leaves readers utterly satisfied.

Her former life in marketing taught her how to craft compelling narratives – a skill she now devotes entirely to her steamy workplace romance novels.

Peyton lives and breathes romance, infusing her stories with undeniable heat and fiercely earned happily-ever-afters.

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His Beautiful Game Blitz