Spotlight & Giveaway: Keeping Score by Shannon Stults

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Shannon Stults to HJ!

Hi Shannon and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Keeping Score!

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Logan Kase and Cole Tucker were childhood rivals with seven years of pranks, bets, and complicated history between them until Logan left for school in Texas. Four years later she’s back in town with her straight-laced fiancé and she wants nothing to do with the wild, reckless version of herself she left behind. But Cole Tucker has other plans for her, creating a series of games and one final bet. If she wins, he’ll leave her alone for good. If she doesn’t, he’ll tell her fiancé the truth about who she really is and she’ll end up losing a whole lot more than just some silly bet.
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Cole watched the flames flutter in the pyre as they danced along to the music, surrounded by friends and classmates he’d graduated with almost three months ago. At least twenty trucks, cars, and SUVs were parked in a wide circle around the fire, creating a ring of tailgates and car hoods for available seating. Some, like Cole, sat in folding lawn chairs while nursing a Solo cup.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• The setting of this series, Willow Creek, Ga, is inspired by my small hometown of Social Circle. Willow Creek is smaller and a bit farther south in the state, but I really wanted it and its characters to embody that same close-knit community feel of growing up in Social Circle.
• The original draft had several scenes in Logan’s perspective showing the reader how her and Cole’s relationship changed through their childhood and teen years. When my editor suggested I rewrite them in Cole’s POV, I about had a heart attack. I’d never written in a guy’s perspective and I was so nervous I’d ruin him as a character. Looking back at those scenes now in the final draft, they are undoubtedly my favorite parts of the entire book.
• For those who meet Cole Tucker’s best friend, Cowboy, and can’t seem to get enough (and trust me, this is a very real possibility), his story is coming out this September.

Please tell us a little about the characters in your book. As you wrote your protagonist was there anything about them that surprised you?

Logan Kase is everything I wished I could have been growing up. She tends to be a bit reckless, and some might see that as a bad thing, but I envy her freedom and her ability to take risks. I started writing this book thinking she was fearless. But as I kept writing, I realized that’s actually not the case at all. Logan tries to hide it, but there are moments when her fear is almost overwhelming and it’s actually Cole Tucker who helps her push past those fears and overcome it, whether she realizes it or not. I loved how fearless she came across in my head originally, but I think I love her ability to push on and conquer despite those fears even more.

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would you use for the audition of the main characters and why?

There’s this fun scene where Logan and Cole take part in a game of paintball as part of their big bet they have going. Their conversation afterwards ranges from playful banter to heartfelt emotion to sexual tension and back again. You get to see the characters chemistry at every level, which I think you would need to see in order to cast them appropriately. This snippet from that conversation is just a taste of their usual back and forth.

“Word around town is that your boyfriend hasn’t been back to see you since he got called away to work. Got something special planned? Two weeks seems like a long time without any action.”
Logan shook her head. “Don’t see how that’s your business.”
“That’s a yes.” His steps fell behind. “Probably shouldn’t let it get too heated, though. I’d hate for him to see the giant bruise on your ass and get the wrong idea.”
“What bruise on my—” There was a loud pop, and Logan stopped in her tracks as a painful, stinging sensation started to spread across her right cheek.
Oh, he really was an asshole.

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

As far as a lesson or moral, be proud and true to who you are. Life’s a lot less fun when you waste it trying to be someone you’re not. Other than that, I just want them to come away with a great story they can’t wait to read again, characters they feel like they know and can’t get out of their heads. I want them to laugh and still ache when they remember that one line or scene days after finishing the book. And of course, I want them the turn the last page already jonesing for the next book in the Willow Creek Series.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

Right now I’m in the middle of writing the third book in this series. The second book, Daring to Fall, is set for release on September 9th of this year, and then the third book should be coming out on February 25th, 2020.
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: Free eBook copy of Keeping Score by Shannon Stults

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Excerpt from Keeping Score:

Half an hour after her phone call with Jacob, Logan was putting her now-clean clothes away when she finally heard her dad’s roaring truck pulling into the driveway.
She met him at the bottom of the stairs. Marshall Kase wore a pair of khaki slacks and a soft, red polo. His dark hair was graying and thinning out at the top, and beneath his shirt sat a moderate-sized gut.
He shook his head as soon as he saw her, wrapped strong arms around her, and muttered a short “good luck” in her ear. Then he kissed the top of her head, and then turned to go up the stairs she’d just come down. She had no idea what that was all about or why she needed luck and chalked it up to exhaustion after several hours of visiting with church members and his desire to get out of his Sunday clothes and into a comfortable pair of jeans.
Logan found her mom in the kitchen. Cindy’s hair was a thick, straight curtain of graying brown that fell just past her shoulders. She was a thin woman, had been all her life, despite her love of beer and having carried a child for nine months. She still wore her pale green dress while she put away groceries. No doubt she’d had to stop at the store after promising some people a few more of her famous apple pies.
She gave Logan a small smile.
“Hey, sweetie. You were up and out awfully early this morning. We missed you at church,” she said, not looking at Logan as she busily put the butter away in the fridge behind her.
Logan grabbed the flour and sugar from the counter and carried them into the pantry closet. “Yeah, Carly wanted me to check on some wedding stuff while she’s still out of town. So I decided to get an early start.” She kept herself from making eye contact. She couldn’t even count all the times she’d gotten away with stuff like this over the years, and she’d become quite good at it. Of course, this would be the last time she’d have to if she just told Cole where to stick his stupid bet.
“Oh, that’s nice. So then you weren’t out all night, God knows where, after getting drunk at Wade’s?”
And then sometimes it didn’t matter how good a liar she was. Logan turned around to see her mother practically seething. “That…may have happened also.”
Her mother slammed her hands down on the counter. “Logan Brynn! You can’t keep it together just one night?”
Logan’s tongue felt heavy as lead in her mouth. No wonder her daddy had escaped upstairs without so much as a word. After twenty-five years of marriage, he knew better than to hang around when her mother was on the warpath. “Momma, I can explain.”
“Oh, good!” her mother yelled. “I would love to hear your reasons for sneaking out and getting trashed your first night back in town. And with that boy no less!” she spat.
“How do you even know about that?”
“Well, apparently, Judy Carmichael saw you two there last night, thick as thieves, and told the entire Methodist church this morning at service. And you know how they like to gossip.” She huffed. “It wasn’t long before word spread to the Baptist and Presbyterian congregations, too. And now it’s all over the whole town.”
Logan fought to hold back her snort. Only Judy Carmichael would admit to being out at the town bar the night before worship service.
Her mother scowled. “I swear Pastor Joe was staring me down in service this morning.” She took the eggs in her hand and spun around, shoving them not so gently into the fridge. “I would say I’ve never been so humiliated in my life, but then hearing about your latest escapades from appalled church members was a regular occurrence before you left for school. I suppose I should be used to it by now.”
“Momma, it’s not that big of a deal. I just went to get one drink. I didn’t even know he would be there.” Momma’s lips parted, but Logan held her hand up. “Yes, admittedly, things did get out of hand. I shouldn’t have let him talk me into all those drinks. But, Momma, it was the last time, honest—”
Her mother’s hands clenched. “You say that every time, and I am tired of hearing it.” She laid her palms flat on the counter, her shoulders tense. “I thought you were done with Cole Tucker.”
“I am, Momma.”
“You know,” she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose between her fingers, “some mothers dread the day their little girl gets married. But I swear that day cannot get here fast enough. For whatever reason, Jacob makes you better, and that is exactly what you need to be. Maybe when you’re married to him you can finally get past all this nonsense and settle down. Be the girl you were supposed to be all these years.”
Without another word, Momma stormed out of the kitchen. Seconds later Logan heard feet stomping up the stairs and down the hall followed by a door slamming.
Her mom was furious, but Logan didn’t care. Instead, she made her own flaring exit as she forced her way across the kitchen and out the door to the garage. In only a minute, she was in her truck and barreling down the narrow gravel road. Already, the familiar roar of the engine was calming her anger.
Why did she even try to explain that she hadn’t meant for it to happen? It didn’t matter to her mother. Just like it didn’t matter how well Logan had done over the last couple years, how hard she’d been trying to be the lady her mom expected her to be. Why even bother? She would never be the daughter her mom wanted.
It was all Cole Tucker’s fault. It was like a superpower he had, convincing her to do stupid things. Like tossing back shot after shot as if they were old friends. So what if she’d told him she wasn’t that girl anymore? He wouldn’t take no for an answer, didn’t care that she was trying to do better. He didn’t care about anyone but himself.
She thought of the two of them laughing together at Wade’s that morning and the night before. For a little while there she’d forgotten how much she hated him, and while her guard was down he’d dragged her into yet another one of his stupid games. She wouldn’t make that mistake again.
She was going to remind him exactly who the hell he was dealing with.
Logan’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as she drove past a road sign informing drivers that Willow Creek Park was only a few miles away, the memory of her and a naked Cole Tucker flooding her mind as inspiration struck like lightning.
Before she even registered what she was doing, Logan had pulled her truck over on the side of the road and was sending Cole Tucker a text.
She knew exactly what their next challenge would be.

May—Freshman Year
Cole read the note one last time then folded it and shoved it back in the pocket of his swim trunks.
No more than half a mile off, he could hear his friends and classmates laughing and screaming at Willow Creek Park Beach. It was a small beach, even for the small town. But it was just big enough for his class to get together and celebrate another school year coming to an end.
Somewhere over there, Savannah Wainwright would be sneaking away from her friends and following the narrow trail that led to the dock.
He’d been talking to Savannah a lot the last few weeks. She was cute, sweet, maybe a little ditzy sometimes. Okay, so she wasn’t going to help break the dumb blonde stereotype anytime soon.
It was just some harmless flirting. He never thought it would amount to anything, certainly not a skinny dip in the lake. But hey, when opportunity knocked, who was he to deny it entry?
Even if the only reason he’d been flirting with Savannah in the first place was to get her off his mind.
Cole scanned the water by the dock, the gravel road that cut through the trees, and then the woods surrounding him. He stripped down to nothing, tossing his clothes beside the dock, and waded into the water.
His chest was hammering, not because of the cool water enveloping him or the fact that he was naked for anyone to stumble across, but because just thinking about Logan Kase made his heart race and his jaw clench at the same time. Everything she did irritated him, and yet he still woke up in the middle of the night dreaming about her. Her soft, golden skin, the way her nose crinkled when she laughed, and her eyes that had become his favorite shade of blue.
Christ, what the hell was happening to him?
Sometimes he just wanted to throttle her, like two months ago when she’d put something in his Coke that turned his teeth black. But then she’d looked at him with those same blue eyes and a victorious smirk, and all that anger had disintegrated. Well, almost all of it.
“I see you got my note.”
Every muscle in Cole’s body clenched, and his heart skipped a beat. He turned slowly toward the source of the voice.
Logan stood by the dock with his T-shirt and swimming trunks slung over her shoulder. Strands of dark hair framed her face where they’d fallen out of her short ponytail. She had one hand raised to her hip, and he could just make out her dark bikini through the thin tank top that hugged her every curve.
Cole’s hands jerked forward to cover himself below the water. Okay, so naked in the lake was not the best time to think about Lo’s body.
Wait a second. “Did you say your note?”
There it was, that smirk that made him want to choke her and pull her closer all at once. “Pretty good, huh? Let’s just say I’ve got a friend with a criminal talent for forging people’s handwriting.”
She could only mean Carly. As far as he knew, she’d never included anyone else in their pranks before.
The side of his mouth curved upward, and he forced away any trace of worry or discomfort. “If you wanted to see me naked, Lo, all you had to do was ask,” he crowed.
“Oh, I didn’t do this for me,” she said with an equal grin.
“What—?” Cole went silent. The sounds of screaming and voices he’d heard coming from the beach were growing louder.
“Yeah.” She glanced at her watch-less wrist. “I’d say they should be here anytime now.”
“Who?”
She shrugged. “No one special. Just our entire class.”
Cole moved forward, stopping when the water was only a few inches above where his hands still carefully covered his groin. The voices were coming closer. “All right, you had your fun. Got me real good. Now give me my clothes.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I’m warning you, Logan.” Just then a crowd of almost a hundred kids broke through the trees. Several pointed and laughed when they saw him standing alone in the water.
“I swear to God, Kase, you better give me my clothes back!” he yelled this time. Thank God the water was murky.
“Or you’ll do what?” she called back to him. Their entire class had to be standing behind her now.
“Or I’ll make everything I’ve done to you up to now look like a joke,” he growled.
Logan shook her head. “You’re going to have to do a lot better than that if you want these back.” She pulled his swim trunks and T-shirt off her shoulder and dangled them in front of her. “Maybe something like… ‘Logan is smarter and better than me in every possible way. She’s ten times more awesome than I’ll ever be.’”
He pulled his hands out of the water and crossed them over his chest. “Seeing as I’d hate to lie in front of all these people, I’m not gonna say that.”
“Then I guess you get to hide out in the water for a while.”
“That’s how you want to play this?” He glared at her, not waiting for an answer. His hands fell to his sides. “Fine.”
Whatever Logan had been expecting, he guessed from her wide eyes and gaping jaw it wasn’t him walking out of the lake buck naked in front of her and their entire class.
There was an uproar of catcalls and whistles as he strode out of the water and onto dry land. Cool air caressed his skin, and he felt all eyes on him, but he didn’t care. He had tunnel vision, blinded to everything around him except Logan’s face.
She was staring at him, her eyes roving down over his face and chest. When they drifted even lower, her lips parted and she sucked in a quick breath.
She didn’t fight him when he tore the clothes from her hands and started pulling them on. Her eyes had turned darker than he’d ever seen them.
He’d been wrong. This was his favorite shade of blue.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

With everything on the line, it’s game on

Logan Kase has reveled in being Willow Creek’s infamous wild child until one detrimental decision proved it was time for a change. Years later, Logan is back in her small hometown and ready to prove to everyone (especially herself) that she’s not that same girl anymore. But the new life she’s so carefully constructed starts to tear apart the second she runs into Cole Tucker.

Logan thought she’d put her childhood rival and their adolescent games behind her, but it takes her only one night before she’s forced into one final game, a series of hilariously immature challenges that has the whole town keeping score. A game that, should she lose, could destroy everything she’s built her new life around.

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Meet the Author:

A small-town Georgia girl, Shannon finds no greater joy than stepping into the lives and worlds created by the written word. Despite a severe aversion to reading as a child, Shannon has since found a passion for literature that she’s nurtured with incessant reading and a Bachelor’s degree in English. It’s this passion that lets her bring her own imagination to life. Living in Athens, Ga with her sister and their four-legged furry friends, she is almost always in the middle of a book, working on her own stories, or traveling to seek inspiration in the world around her.
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