Spotlight & Giveaway: Falling For Her by Monica Murphy

Posted June 4th, 2020 by Sara @HarlequinJunkie in Blog, Spotlight / 35 comments

Today, HJ is pleased to share with you Monica Murphy’s new release: Falling For Her

From New York Times bestselling author Monica Murphy comes an angsty new adult standalone romance about the popular quarterback and the smart girl who brings him to his knees.

Jake Callahan. Prince of the popular crowd.

My mortal enemy.

Gorgeous. All the girls want him.

Quarterback. All the boys want to be his friend. He’s the most popular boy in the senior class.

And he hates me.

Or so I thought.

What I mistook for hatred turns out to be…interest. There’s that thin line, right? It makes me crazy. I can’t stand it. Attraction, chemistry, whatever it is, I also can’t resist it.

And neither can he.

Together, we make no sense. The odds are against us. His friends definitely don’t approve. I’m not a part of their crowd. Not one of the cool kids. I don’t fit in, or so they say.

But that doesn’t stop him from falling for me.

And it won’t stop me from fighting for him.

Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from Falling For Her

It’s past nine-thirty and I’m sitting at our kitchen table, still working on the history project that won’t die when there’s a sharp knock on our front door.
I go completely still, glancing around the mostly dark apartment. There’s a dim lamp on the end table next to the couch. Maxine is curled up on a blanket on the couch, and she lifts her head at the sound of the knock as well, then ducks back down and closes her eyes.
Must be nice, to be a cat with no major worries.
Maybe if I’m really quiet, they’ll go away. Someone probably has the wrong address. Or it’s our neighbor. She’s a nice lady, but she drinks a lot and sometimes she gets so drunk, she comes over to our place so she can cry over her problems with Mom. My mother is always sympathetic to other people’s plights. She’s very soft hearted.
Sometimes I think I’m too soft hearted. Just like her.
My phone dings with a Snapchat notification, and it’s so loud I jump in my seat. Heart racing, I see it’s a message from…
Jake.
I’m at your front door.
Wait, what?
I slide the chair back and rise to my feet, glancing down at myself. I took a shower earlier and I’m wearing a pair of shorts I used to wear for P.E. when I had to take it and a T-shirt with One Direction on the front. Someone left it behind in one of the hotel rooms a few years ago, the tags still on it, and Mom gave it to me. I’ve always had a minor crush on Harry Styles, so of course I kept it. I have no makeup on and my hair is still wet. I must look—
“Hannah. Open up,” Jake says from outside.
I rush toward the door and turn the deadbolt, then undo the chain before I open the door. “What are you doing here?”
Jaw tight, eyes dark, I can only describe his expression as determined. “Let me in.”
I could tell him to go. He has no business being at my home this late at night. But having him this close, my entire body goes haywire. It’s like I can’t resist him.
“Come in, but give me a minute,” I tell him before I take off for my bedroom.
My heart hammering in my throat, I close my bedroom door and lean against it, trying to calm down. Jake Callahan is in my apartment. On a Monday night. Why?
Why, why, why?
Hurriedly, I clean up the clothes I’ve left discarded on my bedroom floor, tossing everything into the hamper I keep in my tiny closet. My bed is unmade but it’s not like he’s going to see it. In fact, I should keep the door closed and then he’ll never see it.
Good idea. Best idea ever.
I grab a scrunchie and pull my hair into messy bun, then pluck a hoodie that’s draped across the foot of my bed, sniff it to make sure it’s clean before I yank it on. It’s still kind of warm—it’s late August, and while the nights are sometimes cool, it’s not necessarily cool enough for a hoodie yet. But this will have to do. I don’t have a bra on and I don’t feel like digging one up either. A hoodie will hide that fact.
Hopefully.
I exit my bedroom to find the front door is closed and locked. Jake is sitting on the couch, Maxine in his lap as he rubs her behind her ears with those long fingers of his. Her eyes are closed and she’s leaning into his hand, like she’s never felt anything better in her life, and I’m actually envious of my cat.
Girl, I feel you. I want what you’re getting.
“Maxine likes you,” I say, and he glances up, his gaze meeting mine before he returns his attention to my cat.
“Maxine is pretty sweet,” he says. “She’s cute.”
At those words, she resettles herself in his lap, curling into a ball and closing her eyes as if she’s down for the night.
Traitor.
“Why are you here?” I ask him.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he admits, his voice low.
My heart stops.
“All alone at night with no one else around,” he continues, scratching my cat beneath her chin. “I was worried about you.”
“My mom has worked this shift for the past year and a half.” And slowly but surely, I’ve gotten used to it. Mostly. “I appreciate your concern, but really, I’m okay.”
He doesn’t respond to me. Just keeps scratching my cat and sending her straight into heaven until he finally asks, “You got anything to drink?”

Giveaway: One signed paperback copy of Falling For Her by Monica Murphy

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Meet the Author:

Monica Murphy is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling romance author. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and have sold over two million copies worldwide. Both a traditionally published and independently published author, she writes young adult, new adult and contemporary romance. She’s also known as USA Today bestselling author Karen Erickson.

A native Californian, she lives on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere with her husband, two kids, one dog, and four cats. When she’s not writing, she’s an assistant coach for her daughter’s high school cheer team, which is a two season sport. Meaning, she’s at practice with a bunch of teenage girls all the time. Or she’s at a football game. Or a basketball game. Maybe someday, she’ll even write about this experience.

Connect with Monica:
Facebook: http://bit.ly/MonicaMurphyFB
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/MonicaMurphyGR
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1YUl0Vm
Twitter: http://bit.ly/MonicaMurphyTW
Website: http://monicamurphyauthor.com
Newsletter: https://www.monicamurphyauthor.com/newsletter
Bookbub: http://bit.ly/2ZAthV1
Instagram: http://bit.ly/MonicaMurphyIG
Twitter: http://bit.ly/MonicaMurphyTW

Download today!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3f9g3XX
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/FallingForHerMM
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3bFa4rb