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I was really an idiot.
\nHow I didn\u2019t see the signs is beyond me\u2026 but yet here I sit, holding a diamond ring I tried to place on my girlfriend\u2019s finger.
\nHopefully the whiskey will do its trick and help me forget the last few years ever happened.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m such an idiot. Really, I am.
\nI thought my boyfriend was going to propose tonight. Instead, I\u2019m sitting here chugging vodka cranberries like they\u2019re water. I just want to forget the last few years ever happened.<\/p>\n
\u2063One night.
\nThat\u2019s all I wanted.
\nTo forget for one night.
\nSo how did one night change my life forever?<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t mean to be so careless, but I refuse to let my past affect this baby.
\nNow we need to step up\u2026 Together.<\/p>\n
Together is a complete standalone romance that brings Jennifer\u2019s seasoned readers back to a hometown they know well.\u00a0 Together can be read entirely by itself.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add to Goodreads<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n 4 stars<\/b><\/p>\n Jennifer Van Wyk has delivered another delightful small-town-romance with a gorgeous hero, a sweet and sassy heroine, and a surprise pregnancy that is about to turn their worlds upside down.<\/p>\n Nik and Ashley meet in a bar one night where they are both drowning their sorrows in copious amounts of alcohol after getting dumped by their long-term partners. Neither of them saw it coming, and they aren\u2019t terribly distraught (on reflection, it\u2019s probably for the best), but in their efforts to forget, they commiserate together at the bar before heading home together for a weekend full of sex with a virtual stranger. They proceed to rock each other\u2019s worlds, and though they both want more, Ashley asks for time to get herself together before she embarks on a new relationship, so they agree to temporarily go their separate ways. Until they are brought back together by the life-changing news that Ashley is pregnant.<\/p>\n I love surprise pregnancy books, and this one is so much fun! Nik is surprisingly accepting of the whole thing, and he jumps on board full of excitement for all that is to come. It takes Ashley a little longer to adjust, but they both agree that they\u2019re in this together and they should get to know each other before they become parents, so we get this situation where they are friends\u2026 but more\u2026 but not officially\u2026 but still together sort of situation that is cute and playful and so much fun.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re being too perfect,\u201d I grumble. Oh, he\u2019s so swoony! Nik really is perfect, and I just adored him. He wants Ashley, but he respects her boundaries, so he\u2019s there for her in every way that he can be \u2013 supportive and protective, affectionate and flirtatious, and I just loved him. And Ashley is great. She\u2019s smart and sensible, and so relatable. I loved both of these characters, and together they are so much fun, and I loved the playful, yet intimate, dynamic between them.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that we need more time to get to know each other. We jumped way ahead of ourselves that night but I\u2019m not sorry. I also don\u2019t want to freak you out by telling you this, but even before I knew about the baby, I hadn\u2019t stopped thinking about you. If you\u2019re feeling it, I want to have a discussion about exploring what it is that\u2019s between us.\u201d The chemistry between these two is fantastic, and I could feel their attraction, but they have a lot to figure out before their baby arrives, and with their growing feelings for each other and their un-named relationship status, it\u2019s a fun journey watching it all unfold.<\/p>\n \u201cWe aren\u2019t doing this alone, Ashley. This is us together.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Nik and Ashely\u2019s families are a big part of the action. Nik\u2019 sister is a riot, Ashley\u2019s family not so much, but they all contribute to the story, and I loved their inclusion and the added emotion that they bring to the situation.<\/p>\n There is some drama, but very little angst, and I loved watching Nik and Ashley\u2019s romance unfold as the story builds to the big, exciting moment, and along the way these two absolutely stole my heart.<\/p>\n \u201cI fell in love with you when I wasn\u2019t even trying. It just happened. Because that\u2019s the way it\u2019s supposed to be, you know?\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Fans of Jennifer Van Wyk will recognise some of the side characters and locations as the book is set in the same small town as her first few books, so that was an unexpected treat. But this book is a complete standalone. Though I need to investigate Nik\u2019 sister and her husband some more, because this book reads like Josie and Dean\u2019s story has already been told, and if it has, I need to get my hands on it!<\/p>\n Sweet, fun and sexy with a gorgeous romance and an epilogue that finishes everything off beautifully, I loved this one!<\/p>\n 4 stars.<\/p>\n An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Together Playlist<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I wake up feeling like complete shit. My head hurts like I\u2019ve actually been hit by a truck, there\u2019s no way I\u00a0won\u2019t have the beer shits today, and there\u2019s gotta be cement blocks on my feet weighing me down. It was all fun\u00a0and games last night \u2014 literally \u2014 but this morning, I\u2019m having regrets.<\/p>\n But not about the girl.<\/p>\n That was fun.<\/p>\n Spending the evening with her, forgetting and laughing and drinking and eating. Drinking a little more. The\u00a0darts and singing and dancing. Drinking.<\/p>\n I groan.<\/p>\n Too.<\/p>\n Much.<\/p>\n Drinking.<\/p>\n Then a groan that matches mine but is far more feminine sounds next to me and I\u2026 oh, shit.<\/p>\n I\u2019m naked.<\/p>\n Birthday suit naked.<\/p>\n Surely we didn\u2019t\u2026<\/p>\n God, if there was ever a time to give me whiskey dick, please let it be last night.<\/em><\/p>\n I can\u2019t believe I just prayed for God to give me a malfunctioning dick\u2026 or that I said dick in my prayers. Or\u00a0that I\u2019m even praying about drunk sex. All so I didn\u2019t have drunk sex with her. Not that I wouldn\u2019t want to have\u00a0sex with her, but as drunk as we were? No. No way. I\u2019m better than that. Not that much of an asshole. Right?<\/p>\n Now I\u2019m lying here overthinking my prayer while naked in my bed with Sally \u2014 or Ashley, as it turns out\u00a0her name really is when we confessed to each other that we aren\u2019t Harry or Sally \u2014 who I hope we didn\u2019t have\u00a0sex with only because I\u2019m still drunk the next morning.<\/p>\n Fuck\u2026 I\u2019m a mess<\/em>.<\/p>\n Though, oddly enough, guilt isn\u2019t one of the feelings bubbling to the surface right now.<\/p>\n Regret that I don\u2019t remember much of it does, though. I just remember her falling asleep to the point where\u00a0neither Roy or I could wake her up when we arrived at my house and after a few moments of both of us freaking\u00a0out, I realized she was fine, just an incredibly sound sleeper. If the snoring was anything to go by, anyway.<\/p>\n Then she woke up abruptly when we got into the house, looked at me with wide eyes that could have only\u00a0meant one thing, and so I quickly directed her to the guest bathroom so she could throw up the plethora of\u00a0liquor she had consumed.<\/p>\n When she emerged she looked at me and said, \u201cI\u2019m sure this may come as a total shock, but my name is\u00a0Ashley, not Sally.\u201d<\/p>\n I mock gasped then grinned, told her my name is Nikolas but I go by Nik and she grinned back, then\u00a0groaned, then we sat on the couch.<\/p>\n And, apparently, ended up getting naked and into my bed at some point. That\u2019s where things get fuzzy.<\/p>\n \u201cDid we have sex?\u201d Ashley asks in a quiet voice next to me.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t even lift my head to look over at her when I respond, \u201cNo clue.\u201d<\/p>\n She shifts a little bit and winces. \u201cWe definitely had sex.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n From the Ground Up<\/em>\u00a0was Jennifer\u2019s first published novel and now that she was bitten by the writing bug, has no intention of ever stopping. Jennifer makes her home in small town Iowa with her high school sweetheart, three beautiful, hilarious and amazing kids, one crazy Jack Russell terrier. This is where her love for all things reading, baking, and cooking happen.\u00a0 Jennifer\u2019s family enjoys camping, boating, and spending time outside as much as possible. You\u2019ll be her best friend if you can make her laugh and follow up with asking her what to read next. When she\u2019s not writing, you can find her cheering the loudest at her kids\u2019 sporting events (read as: embarrassing them), sipping coffee or iced tea out of a mason jar with her Kindle in her lap or binging on Netflix.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Amazon\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Twitter\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Instagram\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Reader Group<\/a> Goodreads\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0BookBub\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Book + Main<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Together-Teaser-1.png?resize=480%2C480&ssl=1\")
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\nReview<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n\u201cWant me to act like an asshole?\u201d he jokes. \u201cI\u2019m not always perfect, Ashley. Far from it, actually. I have my moments like everyone else. But when it comes to this baby and what you need from me? I\u2019m there for you and that won\u2019t change.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nAshley\u2019s eyes dance when she says, \u201cSo you have a crush on me, huh?\u201d
\n\u201cFuckin\u2019 smart ass.\u201d I grin before crushing my lips to hers. <\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Together-Teaser-4.png?resize=480%2C480&ssl=1\")
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\nExcerpt<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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\nAbout the Author<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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