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FROM FAKE TO FOREVER
Jennifer Shirk
Released June 6th, 2016
Entangled Bliss
Sandra
Moyer’s preschool is struggling, so when her sister suggests allowing a
super-famous actor to research his latest role there, she reluctantly agrees.
Except the actor turns out to be Ben Capshaw—a playboy who’s never serious,
always joking around, and who knows zero about kids or being a parent. Case in
point: his involvement in the untimely death of the preschool’s class pet…
Ben is enjoying teaching more than
he thought he would, but that doesn’t mean he’s looking for a permanent
position. Sure, he’s ready for more serious movie roles and less goofing off,
but the buttoned-up, beautiful Sandra and her young daughter are more than he
bargained for. Plus, Sandra still won’t trust him—what if it’s all an act,
research for the role? As the lines between make-believe and reality blur, Ben
will have to decide if love is worth casting aside the role of his life for a
new role…that could last a lifetime.
Previously released as The Role of a
Lifetime - (May 2008) and has been enhanced with new material.
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Ben stood up and walked over to the windows, grabbing the attention of Missy and the rest of the class. His eyes swept around the floor a few seconds, and then he finally saw it. Holy crap, how could he not? That thing was huge.
“What’s the matter, Big Bens?” he heard Missy ask.
“Nothing.” Gargantuan spider, actually. But he didn’t want to announce that in case there were any squeamish kids in the room.
It was one mother of an ugly insect and—now that it began to move—remarkably fast for possessing those thick little legs. Being the he-man he was, he wasn’t about to let it get away so it could boast to all its hairy little friends. So he grabbed a heavy dictionary off the shelf, aimed, and then let the book drop. “Got it!” he called out.
The children shrieked. His head whipped up and around, trying to sort through the sudden mayhem. He’d had absolutely no idea ten little preschoolers had the ability to create enough noise to blow out an eardrum, but at that precise moment there was enough sound to fill a stadium. But even among the loud chatter, he heard some of the kids cry out, “Herbie!”
Herbie?
That thing had a name?
Ben’s eyes shot to Missy for an explanation, but she just stood there like a corpse with wide eyes bulging out and a hand raised to her mouth. Oh-kay. He obviously wasn’t going to get any support in that corner. He was officially on his own.
Great. Now what? He was going to make things much worse if he picked up the book and allowed the class to see the smeared-up guts of Herbie, so he simply froze, wishing for some big hook to come and yank him away.
Then his wish was granted.
Sandra, aka big hook, appeared at the door of the classroom with her no-nonsense line of attack that stomped out all the commotion around them. Oh, man. She was not looking happy with him, either—not that he’d seen her looking any other way. More bad timing on his part. She had a way of popping in on him when he wasn’t exactly his best. Too bad he couldn’t have screenwriters helping him out with choice lines in real life, because he could sure use a witty one now. Coming up with nothing on his own, he hiked his shoulders up at her, hoping she’d take it as a white flag being waved. However, Sandra didn’t seem ready to declare peace.
“Ah, Mr. Ben, a word, please?”
Uh-oh. This was bad. She was giving him an even more snotty tone than she had first used on him. He had to be more careful with what he wished for in the future. No more big hooks. Next time, he’d be much more specific and wish for a scantily clad woman with more than a significant amount of appreciation for movie stars. But one who still looked exactly like Sandra.
Where did that thought come from?
Sandra turned and disappeared, not waiting for his response. He supposed she thought it was automatic, a given that he’d ask how high when she said jump. But he followed her out anyway. Even the wrath of Miss Sandra was better than staring into the shocked little faces of those poor kids. He obviously needed more child training than he thought.
Once they were out in the hallway, he quickly tried to make amends. “Okay, maybe I didn’t use good judgment in that particular circumstance. But I—”
“Our theme this month is bugs,” Sandra informed him, pointing to the countless decorations of various bugs throughout the hall. “Are you blind or something?”
Ben took in his surroundings and blinked, strangely noticing them for the very first time. Hmm. Well, what do you know about that? “Uh...no, I saw your little bug things hanging around.”
“Right.” She shot him a withering glare before entering her of office.
He followed her in, running a hand over the top of his head. “Okay, I didn’t know. But I didn’t commit a felony, either. Like you never killed a bug before.”
“Never in front of the children.”
“What are you, some kind of tree hugger? Did you see that thing? It was a gross-looking spider.”
She whirled around to face him. “Yes, I know! Herbie, that gross-looking spider as you call it, is dead thanks to you.”
“Now, how was I supposed to know you had some kind of freaky school mascot?” he shot back. “What kind of place are you running here, anyway? Your daughter told me there was a bug. I saw it, the thing was scary and hairy, and I reacted. As an actor, I’m used to going with my emotions.”
Her arms folded tighter than a bed waiting for basic- training inspection. Her sleeveless cream-colored turtleneck accentuated her tanned, beautifully sculpted arms, and as she cocked her head, studying him—no, judging—with eyes like two deadly blue arrows, he’d never seen anyone look as captivating or as alluring in his life. And as a man—not an actor—he wanted to react to that as well.
Q & A with Jennifer Shirk
Hi, and thanks for your questions! I'm excited to be on your blog!
What books/authors have influenced your writing?
Oh, boy, so many. My first writing influence was Susan Elizabeth Phillips. She made me crack up laughing so hard that I knew I wanted to write funny too. I also was influenced by Meg Cabot, Tracey Bateman, and Lisa Kleypas.
Share a funny incident in your life.
Well, I'll share one. Although it wasn't funny at the time! At the rehearsal dinner of my wedding, our priest kept forgetting our names. So he kept just calling us "John" and "Martha". How hard is Jeff and Jennifer to remember?! I was like, "Um, can we REHEARSE with our actual names please?" Luckily, all went well the day of the wedding. Whew!
Who was your favorite hero/heroine your or another author
I have to say, I ADORE Jack and Sabrina in my book Fiancé by Fate. They were just so much fun to write and their chemistry sizzles on page as a result.
Have you ever had one character you wanted to go one way with but after the book was done the character was totally different.
Actually, YES! In my book, Sunny Days for Sam, my hero Sam was supposed to be a fun but overworked father. However, he turned kind of reserved and even began scaring me. LOL I tried to then make him quiet and serious but it turned out he was a little more "dark" and tortured. I had to tone him down a lot before publication. Funny how that happened.
What’s you next project?
Well, I'm currently writing my next Entangled Bliss book called Perfect on Paper. It is #3 and the last in the "Anyone but You" series. It's been interesting to write because it will take place at Christmas time so I've been trying to get into the holiday spirit. ☺
Your favorite book by you or another author
It's probably depends on what day it is when you ask me—it could change at anytime--but for now I would have to say Nobody's Baby but Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. It's just so fun and sweet at the same time and never fails to put a smile on my face.
Clean shaven, Scruff, beard, or mustache. Tattoos yea/nay
This really depends on the guy. But I would say more times than not, Clean Shaven--but I don't mind a little scruff if a guy can carry it. No tattoos—unless it happens to be MY name on his arm. LOL!
This was fun! Thanks again for having me!
Happy Reading,
Jennifer
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4 1/2 Stars
What a refreshing, fun, clean read From Fake to Forever was, it had me giggling through the whole book. I loved the banter between Ben & Sandra, you could just feel the attraction they were both fighting for each other, more with Sandra with her bad relationship with her ex, who was an actor, which left a bad taste in her mouth when it became to other gorgeous actors. I just fell in love with Sandra’s little girl Hannah, she was so adorable, any man could fall in love with this little girl, well all except her own father. If you are looking for a great beach read or vacation read I recommend you pick up a copy of From Fake to Forever & find out why Jennifer Shirk has gained a new reader. Thank you to Tasty Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to read & review From Fake to Forever.
Jennifer Shirk has a bachelor degree
in pharmacy-which has in NO WAY at all helped her with her writing career. But
she likes to point it out, since it shows romantic-at-hearts come in all
shapes, sizes, and mind-numbing educations.
She writes sweet (and sometimes even funny) romances for Samhain Publishing, Avalon Books/Montlake Romance and now Entangled Publishing. She won third place in the RWA 2006 NYC's Kathryn Hayes Love and Laughter Contest with her first book, THE ROLE OF A LIFETIME. Recently, her novel SUNNY DAYS FOR SAM won the 2013 Golden Quill Published Authors Contest for Best Traditional Romance.
Lately she's been on a serious exercise kick. But don't hold that against her.
She writes sweet (and sometimes even funny) romances for Samhain Publishing, Avalon Books/Montlake Romance and now Entangled Publishing. She won third place in the RWA 2006 NYC's Kathryn Hayes Love and Laughter Contest with her first book, THE ROLE OF A LIFETIME. Recently, her novel SUNNY DAYS FOR SAM won the 2013 Golden Quill Published Authors Contest for Best Traditional Romance.
Lately she's been on a serious exercise kick. But don't hold that against her.
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Thank you for featuring and reviewing, FROM FAKE TO FOREVER!!
ReplyDeleteI think it's unwise these days for an actor to commit to a long-term contract. But then again...
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for having me and for the review! <3
ReplyDelete