Spotlight & Giveaway: Riggs by Sawyer Bennett

Posted October 25th, 2021 by Sara @HarlequinJunkie in Blog, Spotlight / 33 comments

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Sawyer Bennett to HJ!

Hi Sawyer and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Riggs!

Hey, y’all!

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Riggs Nadeau is a loner, but he hasn’t always been that way. Riggs’s life took a turn after he was not only traded to the Arizona Vengeance, but also took custody of his 17 year old sister. He doesn’t want anyone to know about his personal business and has put a wall around him, but an unexpected stranger is about to change everything.

Please share your favorite line(s) or quote from this book:

“I wanted you to know, I’m grateful that you’re with me, not only because it removed you from a bad situation, but because you enrich and fulfill my life. You being here has made me happier than I could have possibly known.”

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

I dictated a lot of this book while chauffeuring my daughter around. Sitting in the car outside the horse stables while she rides, sitting in the parent pick up line at school, etc. It sometimes leads to interesting transcriptions!
Riggs was wholly unexpected. I mean, I knew going in that he’d have to break down his walls, but he ended up being so much better than I anticipated. I just want to hug the guy!

What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

The initial attraction between Riggs and Veronica was purely physical. They get off to the wrong foot immediately, and the first few interactions after that aren’t any better. The first time they kiss they still don’t really like one another, but the physical attraction is too strong to ignore.

Did any scene have you blushing, crying or laughing while writing it? And Why?

Well, Riggs can get a little dirty, as evidenced by their table shenanigans…

She clings to me tightly, tongue thrashing against mine. I move to the end of the dining table and kick the heavy chair out of the way before lowering her ass to the mahogany. I break the kiss, putting a palm to her chest and pushing her so her back hits the table. I divest her of her little panty shorts, and just like that, she’s splayed naked on the dining table.
She’s a fucking feast.
For a moment, I can tell she’s all in, then doubt crosses her face. I wait, and she tips her head back to the large pane of glass that overlooks the Phoenix skyline. “I don’t have blinds.”
“Don’t care,” I reply.
“Someone might see,” she points out.
“Also don’t care.”

Readers should read this book….

Riggs is an enemies to lovers story where they get off on the wrong foot for the wrong reasons. I think readers will enjoy seeing the shift in Riggs and Veronica’s relationship, but I think they will most love the growth that Riggs experiences throughout the story. He’s totally closed off at the beginning, but the Riggs we end up with is anything but. I just adore him.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have in the works?

I have something big coming! But….I can’t tell you *just* yet. I can tell you that you’ll get lots more from me in 2022–more hockey, more suspense, more paranormal. Stay tuned for details!

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: Signed paperback of Riggs (us only)

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Totally rhetorical…who doesn’t love a good enemies to lovers romp, am I right???

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Excerpt from Riggs:

I’ve never been to Veronica’s before, but I have her address along with all types of contact information she gave me when we agreed she’d keep Janelle at her place when I was gone. What I didn’t realize when I entered the lobby is that Veronica’s home takes up the entire top floor, as the building’s concierge advised me when he rang up to Veronica’s unit.
“There’s a Mr. Nadeau here to see you, Ms. Woodley,” he says into the phone.
Whatever Veronica says causes the man to flush. “Of course, Ms. Woodley.”
He hangs up the phone, swallows hard, and looks at me. “I’m sorry, sir, but Ms. Woodley won’t see you.”
“Is that what she said?” I ask dubiously.
“No, sir. She used a lot of curse words along with it, but it’s essentially the same message.”
Hmmm. She’s going to be difficult. I smile at the concierge before pulling out my phone. I shoot Veronica a quick text. Let me up or I’m leaving here and putting Janelle on a plane right back to West Virginia.
I hit send and start toward the lobby door. I make it no more than a few steps before the lobby phone rings and the concierge calls after me. “Mr. Nadeau, wait. Ms. Woodley has changed her mind and will see you now.”
I smile evilly but let it slide before I turn around. Tucking my phone away, I accept a card with a temporary passcode for the elevator that will take me to the top floor, directly into Veronica’s home.
When the elevator car stops and the doors slide open, Veronica stands there, arms crossed over her chest, and lights into me. “You have a lot of nerve coming here after—”
“That’s not going to work for me,” I say, cutting in over her tirade and striding right up to her. Her eyes flare for a second before they flutter closed because I’m kissing her.
Christ… it wasn’t my intention to do this, but now that my mouth is on hers, her hands have latched around my neck with one of her legs wrapped around mine, and yup, my hands are on her ass and I can’t remember why I came here to begin with.
Whatever it was, I don’t care right now. Her body feels too good pressed against me, and it’s time to admit that no matter how I might feel about this woman, I want her like no other.
My hands grip her ass to lift her up, and her legs easily wrap around my waist. I angle to the right—the nearest wall—and walk her into it. My pelvis presses against her, and I know she can feel exactly how much I want her.
Veronica gasps and wiggles her hips so she grinds against me. I kiss her harder, and she accepts it, gives it back in spades.
I manage to tear my mouth away, press my forehead against hers, and say through ragged breaths, “If we don’t stop now, I’m going to fuck you.”

Book Info:

Known as the team loner, Riggs Nadeau gives his all on the ice, but nothing extra off it. A beautiful stranger is about to cause chaos in his very structured world.

As a professional hockey player, people think I live a charmed life. On the surface, I do. But they don’t know the horrors of my childhood, or the real reason that I have custody of my seventeen-year-old sister, Janelle. And that’s exactly the way I like it. They may think I’m a prick because I don’t like to share, but that’s fine. They don’t know me, and they don’t need to.

In an effort to help Janelle get settled in Phoenix and stay out of trouble at school, I set her up with a job at Clarke’s Corner, the local bookstore owned by the girlfriend of a teammate. It’s there that she makes friends with Veronica Woodley, the extremely annoying, arrogant, money-hungry divorcee who I don’t want anywhere near my sister. Janelle insists I’m completely wrong about Veronica, but I refuse to accept that. I have to keep reminding myself that that the gorgeous blond with legs for days is off limits.

Through a series of events, I start to see Veronica for what she really is—an amazing woman who has survived her own hell to come out even stronger. I have to admit, we’re more alike than not and the attraction between us burns hot.

Meet the Author:

New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author Sawyer Bennett uses real life experience to create relatable stories that appeal to a wide array of readers. From contemporary romance, fantasy romance, and both women’s and general fiction, Sawyer writes something for just about everyone.

A former trial lawyer from North Carolina, when she is not bringing fiction to life, Sawyer is a chauffeur, stylist, chef, maid, and personal assistant to her very adorable daughter, as well as full-time servant to her wonderfully naughty dogs.