The Crush

From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward, comes a new standalone, second-chance story of forbidden love... It's natural to want the one you can't have. And for as long as I could remember, I'd secretly wanted my brother's best friend, Jace. He was six years older and always treated me like the sister he never had. Fast forward a decade. We were all in our twenties now. Jace had moved in with my brother, Nathan, and me to help us make ends meet after our parents died. It was just the three of us-an odd family dynamic. Living under our roof, Jace was as bossy and protective as ever. But he certainly didn't look at me like a sister anymore. That was what made things so complicated. I was pretty much hot and bothered twenty-four-seven. And he was torn. The signs were subtle, at first. Like on movie night, I'd casually rest my leg against his, and he wouldn't exactly shift away. Still, I assumed he would never...go there. Nathan would kill us. The knowledge of that wasn't enough to stop the inevitable, though. Eventually our slow burn exploded. But more than the physical attraction, we'd developed a strong connection. We just couldn't get caught, right? That sounded simple. Until it wasn't. This is a story of forbidden love, broken trust, and an unexpected second chance.

From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward, comes a new standalone, second-chance story of forbidden love... It's natural to want the one you can't have. And for as long as I could remember, I'd secretly wanted my brother's best friend, Jace. He was six years older and always treated me like the sister he never had. Fast forward a decade. We were all in our twenties now. Jace had moved in with my brother, Nathan, and me to help us make ends meet after our parents died. It was just the three of us-an odd family dynamic. Living under our roof, Jace was as bossy and protective as ever. But he certainly didn't look at me like a sister anymore. That was what made things so complicated. I was pretty much hot and bothered twenty-four-seven. And he was torn. The signs were subtle, at first. Like on movie night, I'd casually rest my leg against his, and he wouldn't exactly shift away. Still, I assumed he would never...go there. Nathan would kill us. The knowledge of that wasn't enough to stop the inevitable, though. Eventually our slow burn exploded. But more than the physical attraction, we'd developed a strong connection. We just couldn't get caught, right? That sounded simple. Until it wasn't. This is a story of forbidden love, broken trust, and an unexpected second chance.

Set in a small town in Texas, The Crush is a star-crossed lovers romance, laced with steamy spice and 90's nostalgia. It follows Isabel who returns from college to her conservative family to find that Daniel, the much older son of her parents' best friends and the subject of her lifelong crush, has also returned from eight years spent with the DEA. "Off-limits" doesn't come close to cutting it... and yet the two of them can't seem to stay apart. What if he's always it for me, and I'm never it for him? For as long as I can remember, I have been completely infatuated with Daniel R?os. A shame, because not only is he twelve years older and painfully indifferent to my existence, but Daniel also left eight years ago, signing up to join the DEA while I was still signing out of homeroom. Now, I'm just back from college, right back under my family's supervision, and more than a little surprised to find I'm not the only one back home. This time, is it too much to hope that he might see me, too? Just another reason to stay away. Trying to move on from my past while simultaneously trying to fit back into the life I left behind, the one thing I could really use is a distraction. Unless that distraction's name is Isabel Rivera. The youngest daughter of my parents' best friends, off limits doesn't even begin to describe what Isabel should be for me. However, the closer I get to her, the harder I find it to let her walk away. No matter how much I know I should.

Set in a small town in Texas, The Crush is a star-crossed lovers romance, laced with steamy spice and 90's nostalgia. It follows Isabel who returns from college to her conservative family to find that Daniel, the much older son of her parents' best friends and the subject of her lifelong crush, has also returned from eight years spent with the DEA. "Off-limits" doesn't come close to cutting it... and yet the two of them can't seem to stay apart. What if he's always it for me, and I'm never it for him? For as long as I can remember, I have been completely infatuated with Daniel R?os. A shame, because not only is he twelve years older and painfully indifferent to my existence, but Daniel also left eight years ago, signing up to join the DEA while I was still signing out of homeroom. Now, I'm just back from college, right back under my family's supervision, and more than a little surprised to find I'm not the only one back home. This time, is it too much to hope that he might see me, too? Just another reason to stay away. Trying to move on from my past while simultaneously trying to fit back into the life I left behind, the one thing I could really use is a distraction. Unless that distraction's name is Isabel Rivera. The youngest daughter of my parents' best friends, off limits doesn't even begin to describe what Isabel should be for me. However, the closer I get to her, the harder I find it to let her walk away. No matter how much I know I should.