Title: Beautifully Undone
Series #: The Beaumont Brothers
Author: Susan Griscom
Genre: Contemporary, New Adult Coming of Age
He was broken.
Full of hate and sorrow.
Asher Beaumont never asked for much in life. All he wanted was to play his guitar, write music, and be recognized and loved by his father. Unfortunately, that last desire was never realized. The bastard died when Asher was just a kid. Then thirteen years later, his mother dies of a brain tumor, shattering him even more and leaving him hating everyone around him, except for his two best friends, Melody Stevens and her brother, Teddy.
Melody Stevens has crushed on her best friend, Asher Beaumont her entire life. But it’s always been a secret passion. Never something she’d act upon. But when she tells Asher she’s prepared—and determined—to lose her virginity to a guy he considers to be nothing more than a cad who sleeps with anything that wears a skirt, her best friend offers her a proposition she can’t really refuse.
When Asher stumbles across a letter left by his mother before her death, begging him to seek out his half-brothers, he and Melody begin a journey of discovery. Their travels lead them to the two brothers he has spent his life despising because they had the life he always wanted. While on their trip, they discover a miracle they never, ever considered.
A stand-alone, book 3 of The Beaumont Brothers Series with a HEA for Adults 18+
Melody
“I’ll let you buy me that Irish Coffee you promised me now. I think my fingers are about to fall off they’re so cold,” I said.
“If I remember correctly, and I think I do, it was you who offered to buy me the coffee.”
I shrugged. “Yeah, but you have more money than I do.”
The coffee house was jam-packed with wall-to-wall people. It was Friday night, and the city was already booming with weekend tourists. We made our way to the counter after standing in line for about ten minutes, and Ash ordered two Irish Coffees, one heavy on the whipped cream; that was his. The more whipped cream, the better as far as he was concerned.
“Mmmm…” I hummed as the smooth, sweet cream mixed with the coffee and whiskey goodness warmed my throat. Ash laughed, and I frowned when I looked up at him as his finger swiped across the tip of my nose. He held up his whipped-cream-covered fingertip before sticking it in his mouth, sucking it dry. My stomach jittered then knotted. Wow. He was so sexy. I’d always thought so, but now, in this light, his green eyes twinkled and his tanned face made him look just like one of the cover model guys I drooled over in my escape world of reading romance novels. My heart thumped and I had to look away, trying to focus on something less…Asher.
I needed to concentrate on something real. Not that Ash wasn’t real. But, I mean, a real, possible relationship. The only problem was, most guys I knew were friends with Ash and always treated me as if I were one of the guys, just like Ash did.
I once overheard Asher tell Brent that he’d pummel the life out of any guy who ever tried to get into my pants. Not that getting into my pants was ever going to happen with any of those runts, but he did manage to scare the crap out of all of them whenever the subject of me came up. It used to make me feel good and special that he cared about me and wanted to protect me, but now that we were both into our twenties, I just wished he’d let up a bit. How would I ever find a boyfriend with Asher’s daunting threats forever fresh on every male’s mind this side of the bay bridge? You’d almost think that Ash wanted me for himself, but I knew that would never happen. His feelings for me were strong, as strong as mine for him, but his were more of a sister/brother pull that kept us close, not the physical attraction mine were.
“Hi, Ash,” Lisa Stone sidled up against Ash’s arm. “So sorry about your mom. Let me know if I can do anything for you, okay?”
“Thanks,” Ash responded and eyed me over the edge of his cup as he took a sip.
“Hi, Mel. Heard you two playing in the courtyard earlier. You are so good,” she said, placing her hand upon Ash’s shoulder. “When are you performing again at the Tank?”
“Tomorrow night,” Ash supplied.
“I’ll be there. See you then.” She turned and headed toward a table in the back where a small group of men and women were gathered.
I turned in the other direction, not wanting to watch Ash’s gaze follow Lisa’s rear end.
“What?” he said when he finally glanced back at me.
“Nothing,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“Don’t give me that, ‘nothing,’ Mel. She’s nice.”
“Sure. Whatever you say.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing!”
“I know you better than you know yourself, Melody Grace Stevens, and when you say nothing and roll your eyes, there is definitely something.”
“Okay. It just seems like she’s throwing herself and her very large breasts at you all the time. It’s rather embarrassing how she comes across so needy.”
“Needy? I thought it was sexy.”
“You would. Look, I don’t care. It’s none of my business who with or where you get your jollies off.” If that’s the type of woman Ash was attracted to, no wonder he and I had never become anything more than friends.
I turned to see Alex walk through the door. Ash stiffened and sucked up the rest of his coffee. “Are you about finished?”
“No, what’s your hurry?” I asked, only halfway finished with my coffee.
I glanced back toward Alex. He wore a light grey denim shirt, the sleeves rolled up just below his elbows, showing off some cool tattoos on his forearms. The veins protruding as he reached up and swiped his hair off his forehead. He looked good. Really good. Almost as good as Ash. I quickly averted my eyes, not wanting him to know I’d been ogling him as he headed over toward us.
Ash knew Alex from way back in high school, but the few times I’d seen them both in the same room together, Ash always seemed a bit put off or uneasy.
“Hey, Melody. I’ve been looking for you,” Alex said, putting his arm around my shoulder when he reached us. Ash looked on, frowning.
“I’m right here,” I said with a slight giggle.
“I have two tickets to see Maroon Five at the Shoreline next Friday night. Wanna go?”
“Okay. Sure,” I said, sucking in my bottom lip, dying inside with excitement at the prospect of a real date with a real guy. I mean someone other than Asher Beaumont. Ash and I went everywhere together, so they never seemed like dates. And they weren’t, of course.
Susan Griscom writes paranormal and contemporary romance. She's hooked on gritty romances and is a huge fan of superheroes and bad boys confronted with extraordinary forces of nature, powers, and abilities beyond the norm mixed with steamy romance, of course.
She loves those days when she gets to sit around in her sweat pants, doing nothing but writing emotionally charged stories about love and violence, and drinking coffee.
Susan lives in Northern California with her romantic husband and together they have five great superhero kids and eight mini-superhero grand kids, so far.
Beautifully Wounded,
Beaumont Brothers Book 1
Beautifully Used
Beaumont Brothers Book 2
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