Spotlight & Giveaway: The Fastest Way to Fall by Denise Williams

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Denise Williams to HJ!

Hi Denise and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL!

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

This slow burn contemporary romantic comedy is a story about being strong and finding the person who makes you feel even stronger.

Britta has been looking for an opportunity to shine at the magazine where she’s worked for a few years, and then the opportunity to review a body positive fitness app from a fat woman’s perspective comes up, she jumps at the chance. Wes used to be a personal trainer, but created the FitMi Fitness app along with a friend. It’s been a tremendous success, but he misses training and decides to take on a client to train through the app. Wes and Britta’s conversations quickly grow from talk of exercise, wellness, and nutrition to budding crushes from both. When an emergency brings them together physically, their relationship grows and running side by side begins to feel like they’re sprinting to something big; however, Britta’s career as a journalist would be sunk if she began a relationship with her trainer and Wes’s personal and professional ethics stop him from pushing for more with a client while questioning if he can break his own rules to be with Britta. From a sweet Whitney Houston workout playlist to running in the rain and finding themselves with only one bed, Britta and Wes face personal and professional challenges to be together and to find themselves.
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

I hustled down the hall late and waterlogged. It would rain today of all days.
With a graceless slip on the slick tile of the conference room, I hit the floor with a surprised cry, and my umbrella sprayed water into the air. My skirt rode up my thighs as the box of donuts I’d carried slid across the polished wood floor, coming to rest by my boss’s Loubuotins.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• The working title for the book was 10,000 Steps and I still catch myself referring to it as 10K.
• After I first had the idea for the book, I heard “It’s Your Life” by Francesca Battistelli that I ended up listening to on repeat during much of the writing of the book. It’s still the first song I play when I work on anything for the book.
• There is a scene where the hero tricks the heroine into doing the Chicken dance in public and it’s one of my favorite moments in the book, despite the fact that I hate the Chicken Dance and will leave the dance floor when it comes on at a wedding.

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

.Britta is bubbly, positive, confident, and vulnerable. An aspiring journalist, she’s eager to make her mark professionally. When I started writing this character, I thought she’d have body issues to overcome, that being comfortable in her size would be a hurdle but once I got into the book and began talking to others, I realized that wasn’t this character. Her size and weight is never a hurdle for her to overcome. It’s the new challenges of pushing herself physically and emotionally that are the hurdles, and even when she’s confronted with fatphobia, it’s her emotions she works to overcome versus internalizing those hurtful messages. I love Britta and, even though I wrote her, I aspire to her level of self-confidence.

Wes is an ooey, gooey, lovedrunk cinnamon roll. After growing up in a house with addiction and navigating complicated family dynamics, Wes spent a lot of years thinking he had to be the strong one. While Britta is discovering her strength, Wes is finding the opportunity to let his guard down and lean on someone else a little. When he talks to or spends time with Britta, he finds some of the light in life he thought was blocked out. I want to give Wes a hug for most of the book and when Britta finally get to hug him, it makes me smile every time.

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

There is a scene where Britta and Wes are visiting her parents and to avoid a run-in with Britta’s ex boyfriend, Wes lets him believe the two are a couple. Later that night, Britta and Wes are getting ready for bed and share this exchange. I’d want this as an audition scene because it captures the humor, tension drops of emotion that are embedded in the book. Here is a sneak peek:

“Thank you for doing this, for putting up with the entire Colby crew.”
“It’s been fun. Your family is awesome.” He propped his head on his elbow, body angled toward me. “And, besides, you’re an easy fake girlfriend to love.”
My breath stuttered at his words. “Whoa, cowboy. Love? You’re moving a little fast, aren’t you? We’ve been fake dating for less than six hours.”
“When you pretend to know, you know.” His low chuckle shook the mattress enough to put my body on a delicious edge. “And after defeating your aunt, I’m feeling confident.”
“Fair. And, I’ll admit, the pretend sex is good—”
“Good? C’mon, girl. I rock your imaginary world.”
I nodded, warmth curling in me at the thought. “Fake nirvana and waking the invisible neighbors, every night.” The trees swaying in the breeze and the gentle chirping of crickets outside offered background noise as we lay together in a brief silence. “I don’t want to be that girl who needs to ask, but it’s not just physical, is it? I mean, you have real fake feelings for me, too?”
His gaze met mine, and he adopted a gravelly, sexy rumble that left a very real ache between my thighs. “Oh, baby,” he groaned, inching closer to stroke the side of my face. “I don’t know what to do with all the real fake feelings I have for you.” His thumb grazed under my lip, and he looked at my mouth for a split second. “It’s all I think about.”

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

I hope people walk away from this book with a smile and that delightful sigh of a happily ever after. Between Wes’s struggles to deal with family dynamics and Britta’s resilience in the face of new exercise adventures, I hope someone takes away from this book a sense of feeling strong.

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

I’m currently working on a series of novellas that all take place in and around airports and will be out next May, June, and July. The Love Connection follows an airport dog groomer and her frequent flying crush, The Missed Connection introduces you to two strangers who share a festive New Year’s Eve kiss while stuck in an airport only to learn they are professional rivals, and The Sweetest Connection introduces you to best friends who work in the airport and find a discarded love letter than turns them both into amateur sleuths.
My next novel, Do You Take This Man, will be out next fall. RJ is a divorce attorney who ends up going viral as a wedding officiant after an unplanned run in with a newly engaged couple. Lear is a charming former pro-football event planning who is now planning weddings. The two butt heads constantly but can’t ignore their attraction. In this high heat novel, Enemies with benefits is the start of their romance, but surrounded by love at very turn, that’s not the end of their story.
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: (1) One copy of THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL by Denise Williams to a reader with a valid US shipping address.

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: I’m hosting a series of IG Live conversations where I ask guests to tell me about a time they felt strong. What’s a time you felt strong (physically, emotionally, socially, professionally, etc.)?

 
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Excerpt from The Fastest Way to Fall:

A haze hung over the park, and the slick grass shifted from the dingy brown of winter. I’d arrived early, wanting to give myself extra time to stretch, make sure my laces were tied well. I’d lived here for years but never paid close attention to the runners in the park.
I was so focused on observing the other people, the familiar voice saying “Good morning!” made me jump, much to his amusement.
I clutched at my chest. “Where did you come from?”
“You weren’t paying attention. Too busy checking out those guys?” Wes pointed to two men in their seventies wearing velour tracksuits and bucket hats power walking the perimeter of the park.
I swatted at him, the back of my hand making contact with his chiseled midsection. “Shut up. I wanted to learn the rules.”
He feigned injury, clutching his stomach, and backed away. “Rules?”
“You know. How everything works. I don’t want to look like a doofus.” I was planning a before-and-after post for my first run, and I’d taken the before video earlier in the day, already nervous about what I was getting into.
He stretched while giving me a crooked smile. “You think I’d let you look like a doofus?”
I loved that smile, kind of silly and sexy at the same time. It was also evidence that he wasn’t perfect, a reminder I sometimes needed.
“I’ll show you the ropes,” he said, patting my shoulder and scanning the park. The warmth of his hand lingered, even though he’d only given me a reassuring pat. “Ready?”
I nodded. I was up to running for nine minutes at a time on the treadmill, which I was proud of. Wes said running outside was different, and it might be easier for me, because I got so focused on the digital readout. We started off at a slow jog, and I sucked in the fresh air. It was different to move forward—to make progress. Wes set his watch for eleven minutes, and it felt doable.
“Don’t forget to keep breathing,” he reminded me. We weren’t going fast, but I didn’t want to jinx myself by using up any breath to respond.
Wes shot me a suggestive look when we passed the velour tracksuit pair. Despite my plan to not use breath for anything but running, I let out a bark of laughter at his playful expression.
My coach wore a long-sleeve shirt that hugged his body. It was bright blue, which looked great against his skin and hugged his well-developed chest. Since we’d been meeting in person, I’d started writing less and less about FitMi and more about my personal experiences. Claire had, too, and no one seemed to mind. I figured I’d be writing about that whether or not my coaching was in person. Another glance at Wes, where I saw the hazy sunlight was making his skin appear even warmer, made me question if that was true.
Each time we passed someone, I tensed. The gym was a safe place—they knew us there. Out in the park, though, what would people think? Are they laughing at my slow pace or wondering what this hot guy is doing with me? I glanced from left to right, hating that insecurity trickled in even when, logically, I knew better. There was something about being out in the open, being vulnerable to criticism, that still distracted me.
“Try to look ahead instead of at other people,” he instructed, interrupting my thoughts, as we neared minute ten.
“Thirty more seconds?” I huffed, pumping my arms and looking down at my watch.
“Let’s go a little longer.”
“What?” I panted, giving him an incredulous stare. “I can’t.”
“You can. You’re overthinking it,” he said, not at all winded from our little jaunt. “Even with a hundred other runners, this is just you. Focus on how your feet hit the pavement.” His voice lowered, like what he was telling me was a special secret. “Look straight ahead and focus. No one else matters.”
“I don’t think—” Despite his instruction, I glanced his way, and my words paused when I saw him.
“You trust me, right?” He motioned ahead. “I’ll tell you when we can slow to a walk.”
“You’re going to”—I sucked in a quick breath—“kill me!”
“C’mon. You got this.”
When we’d started out on this run, I’d been a compact race car with careful movements and precise German engineering. After the interminable minutes of running by his side, I felt like an aged dump truck lumbering along the interstate. Sweat ran down my back, between my breasts, and in sheets across my forehead.
“Almost?” I huffed. I had no sense of how much time had passed, and it killed me to not glance at my watch. I tried to count the trees we passed, but it was no use. Had I run for another ten minutes or had it only been thirty seconds?
“Just a little farther. You feel like you can’t, but you’re strong. You can.” Wes’s playful voice was gone. He was in coaching mode, using his encouraging, take-charge tone, the one that made me follow his direction in the gym and that filled many fantasies when I was alone in bed. “One more minute, okay, Britta?”
“I hate you,” I panted, willing my tired legs forward.
He pushed the sleeves of his shirt up, revealing his forearms. I wasn’t too focused on the run to pay attention to the smattering of hair or how his tan skin showcased the outline of veins visible on the firm muscle. “Dig deep.”
The trees in the distance felt like goalposts, and my shoes hit the pavement with heavy, desperate steps.
“Thirty more seconds, c’mon, Britta. Let’s finish strong.” He sped up, and I groaned, trying to keep up. “Ten seconds.” We weren’t jogging anymore, we were running, the score in my head swelling to a dramatic crescendo.
When he said “time” and we slowed to a walk, I bent in half to press my hands to my thighs, gulping air. “How . . . long?”
He didn’t answer, so I looked up, curious about his smug grin. “What? Twelve? Fifteen?”
“Twenty-one.”
“Seriously?” I wheezed. “Really?”
He nodded, the smug grin giving way to a real smile, the one that revealed his dimple.
I ran for over twenty minutes. I couldn’t believe it, and my exhaustion immediately morphed into feeling like I’d grown ten feet taller. “I used to get winded walking up three flights of stairs!” I wanted to post about it on Instagram and call my dad and email the high school gym teacher who gave me a D. Instead, I lunged at Wes, wrapping my arms tight around his neck. My limbs were extensions of this coiled energy.
It took a second—a long second where I wished I could rewind time—but just as I was about to step back, his defined arms fell around me. His low rumbling voice made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. “I knew you could do it.” His lips were close to my ear. “I’m proud of you.”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Britta Colby works for a lifestyle website, and when tasked to write about her experience with a hot new body-positive fitness app that includes personal coaching, she knows it’s a major opportunity to prove she should write for the site full-time.

As CEO of the FitMi Fitness app, Wes Lawson finally has the financial security he grew up without, but despite his success, his floundering love life and complicated family situation leaves him feeling isolated and unfulfilled. He decides to get back to what he loves—coaching. Britta’s his first new client and they click immediately.

As weeks pass, she’s surprised at how much she enjoys experimenting with her exercise routine. He’s surprised at how much he looks forward to talking to her every day. They convince themselves their attraction is harmless, but when they start working out in person, Wes and Britta find it increasingly challenging to deny their chemistry and maintain a professional distance.

Wes isn’t supposed to be training clients, much less meeting with them, and Britta’s credibility will be sunk if the lifestyle site finds out she’s practically dating the fitness coach she’s reviewing. Walking away from each other is the smartest thing to do, but running side by side feels like the start of something big.
 
 

Meet the Author:

Denise Williams wrote her first book in the second grade. I Hate You and its sequel, I Still Hate You, featured a tough, funny heroine, a quirky hero, witty banter, and a dragon. Minus the dragons, these are still the books she likes to write. After penning those early works, she finished second grade and eventually earned a Ph.D. in education, going on to work in higher education. After growing up a military brat around the world and across the country, Denise now lives in Des Moines, Iowa, with her husband, son, and two ornery shih tzus who think they own the house