Jasmine and Jake Rock the Boat - Softcover

Lalli, Sonya

 
9780593440650: Jasmine and Jake Rock the Boat
Softcover
ISBN 10: 059344065X ISBN 13: 9780593440650
Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group, 2023

Inhaltsangabe

An impulsive decision to join an Alaskan cruise getaway brings the chance for an onboard romance in this new enemies-to-lovers romance from the author of A Holly Jolly Diwali.

Jasmine Randhawa likes everyone to think she has it all—great job, perfect Seattle apartment, and a handsome boyfriend. But she’s not as confident or successful as she seems, and her relationship is at a breaking point.  

When Jasmine finds herself single and tagging along on her parents’ vacation, she’s not sure her life can get any farther off course. It's a nightmare for someone who's been so fiercely independent to find herself on a cruise full of family friends who’ve judged her since childhood. Things only get worse once the ship leaves the harbor and she realizes that this is a seniors’ cruise, and the only other person under fifty on the entire boat is her childhood acquaintance, cocky and successful Jake Dhillon.

Jasmine and Jake clash right away, with Jasmine smarting over how their South Asian community puts him on a pedestal as the perfect Indian son, whereas her reputation as a troublemaker precedes her. Except they can’t avoid each other forever during the ten-day cruise, and they soon recognize a surprising number of similarities, especially in how many secrets they’re keeping hidden from their families. Their restlessness seems to disappear whenever they’re together, but is this relationship strong enough to last on land?

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Sonya Lalli is a romance and women’s fiction author of Punjabi and Bengali heritage. Her books have been featured in Entertainment Weekly, NPR, The Washington Post, Glamour, and more. She lives in Vancouver with her husband.

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Chapter 1

My eyes were playing tricks on me, because there was absolutely no way I actually saw what I just witnessed through the peephole.

I rested my back against the front door, steadying my breath. I must have been hallucinating. It was 6:19 in the morning and I hadn't had any coffee yet. It was a caffeine- and sleep-deprived dream. Yes. I still hadn't woken up.

I made a move for Amber's high-end DeLonghi espresso machine, but then stopped short when I heard murmurs in the hallway. My heartbeat quickened. Pressing my hand over my mouth, I shuffled backward and squinted through the peephole.

Oh god. I hadn't imagined it.

"You are amazing," a mystery woman murmured, as she made out with my ex-boyfriend, Brian, with the vigor of someone sending their man off to war. "I could go again, you know."

I dry heaved as he grunted a response and cupped her ass. I knew I should retreat, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from them. The door to his condo-which, until three weeks ago, had been our condo-was halfway open, and the way she was pushing him against the frame made me wonder if they were going to "go again" right there in the hall.

My mind started racing as I watched them smooch like their lives depended on it, a million conflicting emotions sucker punching me in the gut.

Is this just a hookup or a new girlfriend?

I don't care.

I obviously care.

He's such a douchebag for moving on so quickly.

But he was my douchebag.

I'm going to go out there and tell him off.

I am way too classy to go out there and tell him off-

"I better get ready for work," I heard Brian say, as he pulled away from Mystery Woman and cut off the chorus of voices in my head. She unlatched her lips from his, and for first time in three weeks, I looked at him. I'd had my fair share of post-breakup run-ins over the years, and awkward small talk with an ex in the produce section, or at a mutual friend's birthday party, always got easier. But the first time cut like a freshly sharpened knife.

Brian looked good, unfortunately, so the hex Amber and I had (jokingly?) cast on him last Friday had failed in its magic. His had blond hair, sharp features, and piercing blue eyes that could have claimed their own Instagram filter. He looked handsome in a suit, which he wore eighty-five percent of the time, and was even better looking in his natural element at home, when he dressed like a jock. Basketball shorts, baseball hats, football jerseys. This morning, he was sporting all three.

"Aw, really?" Mystery Woman, who was facing away from me, cocked her perfectly curvaceous hip to the side. "Isn't there an Eggscelent just around the corner? Should we grab an early breakfast?"

Excuse me? I cracked my neck and rolled out my shoulders, preparing myself to go out there if he said yes. Eggscelent was our brunch spot. Thank god Amber was well paid and chose me over Brian in the breakup. I might just need her to bail me out of jail.

"I think it opens at six thirty." She glanced at her watch. "Maybe-"

"Sorry," Brian said limply. "I should really get going . . ."

Mystery Woman pressed her hands into Brian's chest, sighing. "I suppose I gotta go get ready for work, too." She paused. "When will I see you again?"

Brian crossed his arms so Mystery Woman had to withdraw her hand, and a smirk crept onto my lips. Was he trying to blow her off? Brian had fixed his gaze on the floor, disinterest and exhaustion plain as day on his face. Mystery Woman and I bided our time through what was becoming a long, and painful, moment of silence.

"Of course," Brian mumbled eventually, although it wasn't an answer to her question. "Sure, sure. But I have this big project this week . . ."

"Oh yeah? Which one?"

"You don't know it." Brian glanced at the Apple Watch on his left wrist, and even though I was mad at him for moving on so quickly, I suddenly wanted to hit him. God, he could be such a douchebag. Mystery Woman clearly liked him, and he was emotionally kicking her to the curb.

"Then I'll see you around sometime?" she continued, achingly oblivious.

"Totally," Brian said listlessly. "I'll give you a call."

"Awesome." Mystery Woman flipped her hair and then gave him one more long, agonizing (for me) kiss. "Give Mango a hug goodbye for me, would you?"

Finally, the woman turned to leave and I saw her face. I sighed out in relief to see that she was at least in her late twenties, because even though Brian was a giant turd, at least he wasn't a mid-thirties creep who went after much younger women. Brian watched her saunter down the hall, and as soon as she pressed the elevator button, without another word, he went back inside.

To our former home.

To wake up our goldendoodle, Mango.

I was livid, and irritated, and caffeine deficient, and not in my right mind-not thinking at all, actually-because the moment Brian closed his door, I flung open the one in front of me and raced down the hall.

Mystery Woman, who was acting all cool and collected and very unlike me, gracefully held open the elevator door as I hurled my body through the closing doors. I nodded in thanks. She was pretty. Like, extremely pretty. With no makeup. Under fluorescent lighting!

"Morning," she greeted me, when she caught me staring. Her lips curled upward into a genuine smile.

Oh great. She made small talk with strangers. She was nice, too.

"Morning," I said breezily.

She blinked, studying my face. Did she recognize me? No. We'd never met before, and even if Mystery Woman knew about my existence and followed Brian on Instagram, there was no way for her to connect the dots. Brian only posted pictures of crowds of Seahawks fans at Lumen Field, dumbbells at the gym, or blurry shots of Mango at the dog park. He had the same affinity for social media as his seventy-year-old mother.

"You live in the building?" Mystery Woman asked perkily.

"Just across the hall from Brian," I said, which I probably shouldn't have, judging by the look of horror that flashed across her face. "Sorry." I grimaced. "I saw you two together in the hall."

She played nervously with her hands. "Oh. Shoot. Sorry about that."

"No worries." I hesitated. "Have you-uh-been together long?"

Mystery Woman studied me carefully, assessing my intentions, which was fair, because I wasn't sure if they were good or not. Her eyes tracked up and down, taking note of my monochromatic outfit composed of wide-legged Everlane trousers, a crop top and blazer from Reformation, and combat boots. My medium-length straight hair, the owl-rimmed glasses I only wore to work, and my "effortless" makeup, which actually took me a full twenty minutes and required nine of the fifteen Sephora products I had in rotation. I looked good. And until I caught Brian in the hall with another woman, I felt good.

Now, I was leaning hard into jealous ex-girlfriend stereotypes and trying to figure out if Brian had been a cheating douchebag.

Now, I felt about two inches tall.

"We're not together," she said quietly. "We're coworkers. Well, we work for the same company. He's downtown at HQ, and I'm at the customer service center out in the boonies."

"I see-"

"I met him at the Christmas party last year," she continued rambling. "And then yesterday there was this work drinks thing. I wasn't sure he'd be there, but I've been, well . . ."

She trailed off, embarrassed, and I wasn't sure how to feel. I was relieved that this was new and Brian hadn't cheated, but also angry that she'd just spent the night in the bedroom I decorated, on the memory foam mattress I picked out, with the man I had called my partner for over four years.

Curiously, I also felt bad for her.

"Anyway," she mumbled. "You're his...

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Verlag
Penguin Publishing Group
Erscheinungsdatum
2023
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
059344065X
ISBN 13 
9780593440650
Einband
Taschenbuch
Anzahl der Seiten
336
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
gpsr@libri.de
gpsr@libri.de

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