Snowed In

By Sarah Title

The Southern Comfort series serves up “a sweet and spicy hot romance to keep you warm at night. FUN AND SEXY!!” (Addicted to Romance)
 
There’s nothing like a hot kiss on a cold day . . . 

Librarian Maureen O’Connell might have predicted she’d find herself crying into the ice cream case at the supermarket after a bad breakup—but she definitely never imagined that a guy hot enough to melt the Rocky Road would flirt with her right there in the freezer aisle. Only Gavin Fraser isn’t a fantasy, he’s a mouth-watering new flavor . . . 

When a freak snowstorm strands Maureen at Gavin’s after just one date, it’s a perfect excuse for something a lot steamier than hot chocolate in front of the fire. It’s definitely lust. Can it also be love?
 
“Snow, banter, romance and side characters you will be dying to meet.”—Caffeinated Reviewer
 
Praise for Sarah Title’s Southern Comfort Romance series

“Wild, witty, and wonderful.”—Jo Goodman, New York Times bestselling author 
 
“Quite a sexy book.”—USAToday.com
 
“A really cute and fun story . . . It’s sexy and made me laugh!”—Smexy Books

“A fast-paced read that provided just as many smiles from the humor as it did sizzles from the romance.”—The Book Diva’s Reads

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lyrical Press
• Release date: Feb 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781601834539

Sarah Title

Sarah Title has worked as a barista, a secretary, a furniture painter, and once managed a team of giant walking beans. She currently leads a much more normal life as a librarian in West Virginia. She is the author of the novels Kentucky Home and Two Family Home. She comments irregularly and insightfully on her blog, Title, Author (www.sarahtitle.com).

Book preview

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Chapter 1

I don’t think this is working out.

It sure isn’t, Maureen thought as Dave climbed off her, tossing one leg to her side of the bed.

But he had never commented on it before.

I’m sorry. What? Maureen pushed her sweaty hair out of her eyes. Not her sweat, she thought with a little grimace. She never got around to working up a sweat with Dave.

Love daze, huh? I just said, I don’t think this is going to work out. This thing with us.

Maureen saw his thin lips forming the words, words that looked remarkably like the words she was hearing. She just wasn’t sure she believed her eyes—or her ears. This thing? Was he referring to their two years together, three months of which had been spent crammed into his studio apartment because he was too busy for them to look for a place together? Two years of her bringing him lunch when he ran out of cash, writing his résumé when he lost his job recently, and unreciprocated oral sex?

Are you dumping me? In bed? While we’re still naked?

Come on, you would have wanted one last hurrah, he said, slapping her affectionately on the ass. Anyway, don’t worry about it. I’ll give you plenty of time to find a new place. Now, hush, the weather’s on.

Still naked and sprawled on top of the covers, Dave flipped the TV on. The familiar, hair-gelled, goofy-tied Channel 11 weatherman told them about a cold front coming in. Duh, it was February.

Maureen just sat there, the minimal post-coital glow disappearing into waving blobs of blue and white over the mountains to the east. She was naked, dumped, and watching the weather.

She hated winter.

Chapter 2

By the time she got to the ice cream freezer, Maureen couldn’t hold it in any more. So she just let it go. Why not? It was a Friday night. Now that she was apparently single, why not let fat, ugly tears stain her oversized, hooded sweatshirt while she stood in the ice cream aisle of the grocery store?

There’s frozen yogurt, you know.

Maureen jumped and turned to see . . . well, a god. He was at least a head taller than she. His brown hair was a smidge too long and curled into the collar of his flannel shirt. His jaw was strong and sharp—a man face. His dark eyebrows emphasized deep blue eyes—eyes that were looking at her with curiosity, sympathy, and, if she wasn’t mistaken, a hint of mischief.

I’m sorry?

If you’re so upset about the calories, try frozen yogurt.

Oh, no, it’s not that, it’s just— Maureen was stammering. Stammering in front of a god.

Kidding.

Oh. Ha. Bad jokes. Okay, so he wasn’t perfect.

Sorry. I do my best work in produce.

Damn, that was cute. He’s definitely perfect, Maureen thought as she stood there dumbly, unable to process the perfection of his face (and those shoulders—even through his beat-up leather jacket she could see he had strong shoulders). Not to mention the fact that a god was making bad jokes at her while she stood crying with the freezer door open.

Can I just— He reached around her for a pint of mint chocolate chip.

Oh, my gosh, yes, sorry. Maureen completed that articulate thought by backing into her shopping cart.

Hey, easy now, the god said as he placed a steadying hand on her arm. Even through her sweatshirt she could feel his hand was warm and strong.

Listen, are you okay?

What? Yes! I’m fine.

It’s just that I don’t always see beautiful women crying in front of the ice cream.

Ha. Beautiful. Where do you usually see them crying?

He laughed. Nowhere, if I can help it.

Well, I don’t usually do this. I’m just a little . . . emotional, she sniffed, wiping her nose on her sleeve. Smooth, Maureen. Real smooth.

I can see that.

I didn’t mean to bother you.

The only thing that will bother me is if I leave this store without seeing you smile. I bet you have a great smile.

She raised an eyebrow. Was he flirting? He was pretty sure of himself. Probably came from being so perfect.

Ah, a look of disdain, he said. We’re getting somewhere. So, what’s it gonna take to make you smile?

Maybe I just don’t feel like smiling, okay? Maybe I have nothing to smile about.

Did your dog die?

What?

Is that why you’re crying? Your dog?

No, I don’t have a dog.

Did you lose your job?

No.

Inoperable cancer?

No! That’s not funny.

Well, what else is there to cry about?

My boyfriend, okay? My stupid boyfriend decided after two years that he’s ‘not feeling it’ so he dumped me.

Idiot.

And I was naked!

She caught him looking her up and down, no doubt taking in her spinster sweats and frazzled hair. Double idiot.

Yeah, right.

You know what you need?

A hit man?

He laughed again, quick and smooth. No. What you need is someone to take your mind off your boyfriend. Ex-boyfriend.

Are you propositioning me? In a grocery store?

He looked a little flustered, but soldiered on. I’ve seen it dozens of times. Beautiful, sharp women dropped by undeserving idiot men. And you’re going to go home and drown your sorrows in ice cream and wonder what you did wrong.

Are you suggesting I shouldn’t eat ice cream?

Hey, I’ve got no problem with ice cream, he said, indicating the pint melting in his cart. I have a problem with you feeling bad.

You don’t even know me.

I know you’re gorgeous.

Maureen snorted.

Okay, almost a smile. Have a drink with me? He took a step forward.

Maureen felt somewhere in the back of her mind that she should step back. But he smelled good, like that crisp Irish soap she loved, so she didn’t.

Instead, she matched his step forward.

Gorgeous, huh?

Absolutely. I love this hair. He fingered a blonde curl that had escaped her ponytail.

Reviews for Snowed In

[wjbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved the humor in this book, very entertaining. It was definitely a light, quick to the point book. The heroine getting bumped in the beginning was just some of the humor in the novella. I really enjoyed this book, especially getting to know Maureen. I never cried in the frozen section staring at Ice Cream, but I am sure some of us have. I also loved Pippa, she was full of spunk, and added a lot of giggles to the novella. She reminded me a lot of the elders in our lifetime. There is something about them that they give us these little quirky moments that we will eventually thank them later for. I also enjoyed the characters personalities, they each had their own. You got to know them, even with it being such a short story. I will be looking for more of Sarah, loved her writing, she caught my eye with just the cover, and my heart with her characters.

[fictionzeal · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

What do girls want after an extremely brutal breakup? Ice cream! Yes, Maureen O’Connell was dumped in the worse way by the guy she’d been seeing for over two years. Dave laid it out all too plainly — “… I don’t think this is going to work out. This thing with us.” He followed this goodie with “Now, hush, the weather’s on.” So, she’s in the ice cream aisle at the grocery store and breaks down crying. Along comes ‘a god’ – brown hair; strong jaw; dark eyebrows emphasizing deep blue eyes. Before she even knew his name (Gavin), they had tongue in each other’s mouths.Nope! Quite honestly, from the book cover (which is beautiful) and the blurb, I expected something more — even for a novella (70 pages). What I felt was disappointed. If giving up character development to get into making out less than five minutes after meeting is something you’re seeking, this may be for you. However for me, it was a big turn off. Some of the dialogue was original and humorous. Also, I really liked one of the sub-characters, Pippa, who was Gavin’s rather eccentric neighbor. There was some dependency upon coincidence as one of Gavin’s new employees turns out to be Dave. Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

[bette_hansen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a quick, fun, sexy read that was thoroughly entertaining. After a particularly bad break-up Maureen O'Connell does what any recently dumped woman does - heads to the ice cream aisle. Who would have thought she would find herself being flirted with by an extremely hot guy? One date and one snowstorm later things are getting pretty steamy, but could this lead to something more?? Amazing what you can find in the grocery store these days!

I really liked this novella and I highly recommend you give it a try.

[jetangen4571 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

romance, contemporary, novella Read on July 20, 2016Never read anything by this author before, but I will now. This is a nice getaway from the grumpies. There's even books in it! It is as comfortable as sitting in a cozy chair by the fire on a snowy day and ogling a hot guy. Leaves you with a smile on your face.