Plastic Hearts Excerpt #1
I felt a finger under my chin, lifting my gaze back up to his eyes. “Hi,” he said. I couldn’t quite hear his voice, but I could read his amazing lips under the strobe lights. God, he was beautiful, the type of beautiful that renders me temporarily speechless. I wasn’t sure how long I stood there searching for something to say, but it was long enough for me to completely forget my own name.
“I’m here with my boyfriend,” I finally blurted. It came out so quickly I wasn’t even sure he understood a word I said. Why did I always turn into a blabbering mess when I was nervous? Did I mention that when he smiled, two magnificent dimples appeared? Dammit.
I watched him look around and then he smiled. “I don’t see a boyfriend. Sorry, you’re going to have to come up with something a little better than that. Try again.” Who did this guy think he was?
I pressed my lips into a tight line. “No, I’m really here with my boyfriend. Right, Jade?” I turned around to pull her into the conversation, but she was gone. This was not going well. This mystery man had unnerved me by putting his hands on my body and flashing those incredible dimples and there was no one around to save me. I was stuck on the dance floor with a sexy stranger while my boyfriend and best friend were nowhere to be found. Ryan was probably sitting at the bar, slowly nursing his first beer, while Jade was doing God knows what with a guy whose name she would never know.
I hesitantly turned back toward him until our eyes met again. He seemed amused as he continued to smile down at me. “So do you want to keep dancing? Or can I buy you a drink?” He shouted over the music.
Plastic Hearts by Lisa De Jong
Series: Hearts, #1
Publication date: February 27th 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Synopsis:
My life has always been safe. I like it that way. I grew up in a fake society where plastic hearts rule. If our hearts are made of plastic, they can never be broken. My parents have expectations and I do everything I can to meet them, even if it means giving up on my own dreams.
Now, all I want is to be free to make my own choices.
Dane Wright is everything I have been warned to stay away from. We met one night while I was with my perfect, parent-approved boyfriend and I haven’t stopped thinking about him. I don’t want to like him. I am doing everything I can to ignore his pull, but my heart seems to want what it cannot have, what it has never had.
Can he measure up? He may think I am too good for him, but maybe he is too good for me.
Life is a series of choices and I have never been able to make my own. Until one day, when my heart decides to make a choice for me.
Recommended for mature readers due to sexual content and language
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Plastic Hearts Excerpt #2
"Do you want some company?" My skin tingled when I heard his voice. He had to be stalking me; there was no other explanation for this much coincidence.
I pinched my eyebrows together as I looked back at him. "I doubt you have any reason to walk to the Med Center."
"I do if that’s where you are heading to,” he shrugged with his hands in his pockets. He was looking at me with those eyes again and I felt myself melting under them.
"Don’t you have anyone else to stalk?” I asked, letting out an exasperated sigh. I was beginning to think I would never get away from Dane. He was popping up everywhere in my life and it was wearing on me. He was disrupting my quiet existence and I was fighting between annoyance and excitement.
"You’re the only one I want to stalk,” he said, grinning from ear to ear and leaving me lightheaded. Okay, so maybe a small part of me enjoyed the attention he was giving me.
“So, I’m your victim of the month?” I asked.
“No, you’re actually my first victim. I usually don’t have to try so hard,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.
“Yeah? Well, you can try all you want; this is all you’re getting,” I said, picking up the pace. A part of me wanted him to try harder and another part was telling me to run. Right now the later was winning, but if he kept this up it might not stay that way.
“Hey, Alex?” “Yeah.”
“I won’t have to try for long. I guarantee it.” He looked at me with fire in his eyes and emphasized the last three words by letting them roll off his tongue slowly. I felt warmth spread through my entire body. This guy was really something else.
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Plastic Hearts Excerpt #3
“Does my work live up to your expectations?” he asked, startling me. He stood so close to me that I could feel his breath on the back of my neck. I smelled his cologne and it intoxicated me.
I turned around, leaving us separated by only inches. “They’re beautiful,” I whispered.
“Really?” His voice was controlled, but there was a hint of sarcasm. I didn’t say anything; I deserved his tone.
“Really.” I took a deep breath and said what I had come to say. “Look, Dane, I’m really sorry for what happened the other night. I had a great time with you and I let my head get in the way.”
He moved his head a little closer to mine. The way he looked at me, I was sure he was going to tell me to go away. And then, before I could process what happened, his lips were on mine. At first, I didn’t react, but then my body took over as I wrapped one hand behind his neck, tasting the mint on his lips and savoring the soft feel of his mouth. The connection made me pull him closer until there was absolutely no space between us. As his tongue begged for entrance, I granted it. We stood there for what seemed like forever, like there was no one else in the room. His kiss was soft, yet passionate, and at that very moment I knew it was the first meaningful kiss I had ever experienced. I needed him and I was his if he’d have me.
He broke away, putting his forehead to mine. His eyes were hooded and I wanted nothing more than to have those lips back on mine. I felt naked and vulnerable as I waited for him to say something. “We can’t be friends,” he finally said as he closed his eyes. I nodded my head and began to turn around, feeling defeated and rejected, before he caught my arm. “Where are you going?” His eyebrows were drawn as he searched my eyes.
“I came to apologize, but obviously it wasn’t enough, Dane,” I said, my voice shaking.
AUTHOR BIO
Lisa De Jong is a wife, mother and full-time number cruncher who lives in the Midwest. Her writing journey involved insane amounts of coffee and many nights of very little sleep but she wouldn't change a thing. She also enjoys reading, football and music.
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Plastic Hearts Excerpt #4
Something about the way he looked at me paired with his proximity to my body sent heat through me. For the first time ever, I felt desire to be close to a man, desire to fall and let him catch me. It was a dangerous game I was playing and one I wasn’t sure I could win.
Dane and I talked while I got ready for class. I still needed to put my clothes on, but that wasn’t going to happen while he was still in my room. “I need to get dressed,” I said, as I pulled clothes out of my closet and placed them on the bed.
“I’ll turn around, no peeking I swear.” His mouth turned up at one side as he looked at me with mischief in his eyes. While I trusted him, he was still a guy and they couldn’t be trusted under these circumstances. I stared at him for a moment, silently pleading before he spoke again. “I’ll step out in the hall if you do one thing for me first.”
I eyed him suspiciously, “And what’s that?” His eyes lowered, “Kiss me,”
My stomach fluttered as I stood on my tippy toes to kiss his cheek, but before I could react he cupped my face in his hands and locked his lips on mine. His mouth was warm and soft as he massaged my lips with passion and desire. He worshipped my tongue with his own as his fingers coiled in my hair, sending a tingle through my body. I’d never done anything crazy like bungee jumping or skydiving, but I imagined this was what falling must feel like; the euphoria and bliss mixed with a little bit of danger. Just as I reached behind his back to bring his body closer to mine he pulled away, looking at me through dark, hooded eyes. I could feel his warm breath on my face, but my body felt cold and my knees were weak. I needed the connection back.
I wanted to kiss him again, but he stopped me by placing his finger on my lips. “You better get dressed,” he whispered, rubbing his thumb over my lips. He kissed me softly one more time before he left my room without saying another word.
I stood there motionless for several minutes, rubbing my fingers over my lips. Every time he kissed me it was better than the last. Was it possible for every kiss to be the best kiss?
