Counterpoint and Harmony (Songs and Sonatas Book 5)

by Jerica MacMillan

  A knock on the door stops Gabby and Charlie’s conversation and pulls me out of my dreary thoughts. Grateful for the distraction, I stand. “I’ll get it.”

  But when I pull the door open, the person standing there is the last person I expect to see. As though my thoughts conjured him, drawing him here. Though if that were possible, he should’ve been here a million times between Christmas break and now.

  “Who is it?” Gabby’s voice calls from the other side of the door.

  When I answer, my voice is only a rough whisper. “Brendan.”

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you so much for joining Charlie and Damian on their journey! I hope you enjoyed the ride.

  And now you’re going to be wondering when you can read Lauren’s story. I know. People started asking before this book was even finished.

  She’s next. I promise.

  But … she’s getting three books. And it takes time to write three books. Tentatively I’m looking at the first quarter of 2019 for her books to release.

  In the meantime, I’m starting a spin-off series of standalone rockstar romances with the guys from Cataclysm, a band that shows up in Recapitulation. It’s going to be lots of fun.

  I’m also going to put out a Christmas special in the Players of Marycliff University series. So look for that in early December. And check out that series if you haven’t yet. I hear they’re good. ;-)

  If you want to stay up to date on all those releases, be sure to join my Book Club. You get a free book just for signing up!

  As always, there are many people to thank in the creation of a book.

  To my editing team, Deb and Leslie, you guys make my books better than I could ever hope to on my own.

  To my ARC team, thank you for taking the time to read and review my books. You guys are awesome!

  To my Book Junkies. I hope you enjoy my randomness as much as I enjoy sharing it with you. Thanks for your enthusiasm and helping spread the word about my books.

  And to you, my reader. Thank you for letting me tell you all these crazy things I come up with in my head. I hope you have fun reading them.

  After the Storm by Mumford and Sons

  Fight Song by Rachel Platten

  Roar by Katy Perry

  Payphone by Maroon 5

  I Know Places by Taylor Swift

  Maps by Maroon 5

  Airplanes by B.o.B.

  Style by Taylor Swift

  Red by Taylor Swift

  La Despedida by Daddy Yankee

  Échame la Culpa by Luis Fonsi and Demi Lovato

  Join My Book Club!

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  Sign up at www.jericamacmillan.com/book-club

  I love hearing from readers. Here are the best places to keep up with me and what’s new:

  http://www.bookbub.com/authors/jerica-macmillan

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  http://www.facebook.com/jericamacmillan

  http://www.amazon.com/author/jericamacmillan

  You’re also invited to join my closed reader group on Facebook, Jerica MacMillan’s Book Junkies.

  Or, if you want to speak to me directly, feel free to email me at contact@jericamacmillan.com.

  Did you enjoy this story? Please leave a review at your favorite ebook retailer!

  Jerica MacMillan is a lifelong reader and lover of romance. Nothing beats escaping into a book and watching people fall in love, overcome obstacles, and find their happily ever after. She was recently named a semi finalist in Harlequin’s So You Think You Can Write 2015 contest.

  Jerica is living her happily ever after in North Idaho with her husband and two children. She spends her days building with blocks, admiring preschooler artwork, and writing while her baby naps in the sling. Sign up to receive updates on her reading and writing life at www.JericaMacMillan.com.

  Songs and Sonatas Series

  Double Exposition, Book 1

  I never expected that day to change everything ...

  The day I met the girl of my dreams in the campus coffee shop.

  She schooled me about music, saying my popstar background didn’t teach me what I really needed to know.

  She became my muse, my inspiration, and my cowriter. Polishing my songs and making them shine.

  And when a video of me playing one of my new songs goes viral, my life explodes in a second chance at the dream I thought was over six years ago.

  But if I take this opportunity, will our relationship survive?

  You’ll love this sweet and sexy story that’s part rockstar romance, part coming of age story, because who hasn’t fantasized about meeting their first celebrity crush and falling in love?

  Start this epic series now!

  Development, Book 2

  Summertime … and the living is easy.

  Unless you’re dating the next big pop star, and your meddling parents are holding you hostage more than a thousand miles away.

  Okay, so maybe that’s a tad dramatic, but after spending all the time I want with Jonathan during the school year—playing music and helping him fill out the rest of his album—being separated is harder than I expected.

  We manage to convince my parents to let me visit him in California for two weeks. But they have stipulations. My older sister has to come with me as a chaperone, and if we’re staying in Jonathan’s apartment, then he has to stay at his parents’ house.

  Two weeks isn’t nearly long enough when I’d been pushing for the whole summer, but I’ll take what I can get.

  Jonathan’s dad is friendly and welcoming, his brothers are warming up to me, but his mom … Well, let’s just say that I thought Dallas was the home of sugar-coated venom. I guess we don’t have a monopoly on that after all.

  Despite parental interference on both sides, our time together is almost everything I hoped it would be. Unexpected opportunities come my way that make it impossible for my parents to drag me back home, extending my stay and forging valuable contacts in the music industry.

  But all the good doesn’t cover over the fact that Jonathan’s mom and manager both think I’m a distraction. Their thinly veiled barbs make the city of angels feel more like the city of vipers.

  Once our summer together ends, I’ll head back to Marycliff University while Jonathan goes on a North American tour to promote his new album. How am I going to handle it when we spend more time apart than we do together?

  Picking up Jonathan and Gabby’s story, Development is the second installment in the Songs and Sonatas series. If you love coming of age stories about finding yourself and standing for what you want in the face of opposition, don’t miss this hot new take on the rockstar romance genre!

  Recapitulation, Book 3

  Jonathan:

  Exhilaration. Elation. Triumph.

  Launching my North American tour is everything I ever dreamed it would be.

  Except …

  I only see Gabby in weekends shoehorned around shows. Stolen moments where she can come to me or I can take a break to visit her. Holed up together in a hotel.

  It’s better than nothing, but it’s a far cry from my ideal. Without her none of this would be happening. It seems wrong that she’s not with me.

  Gabby:

  Depressing. Stressful. Lonely.

  Returning to school without Jonathan is everything I feared it would be. Even surrounded by friends, there’s no one who understands the difficulties of juggling all the demands on my time.

  I want to quit and join Jonathan, but how can I give up on my own dreams? I know I wouldn’t be happy just as a rockstar's girlfriend.

  But my punishing schedule, jet lag, and distance all strain our relationship and communication. And I’m afraid that if we continue like this, something will eventually break.

  Part rockstar romance, part coming of age story, Recapitulation brings us full circle, back to Marycliff University, but w
ith a twist. It’s a story of staying true to yourself and following your dreams in the face of pressure on all sides. The stunning conclusion to Jonathan and Gabby’s tale gives you everything you want in a romance novel—sizzling heat, heartfelt emotion, and most importantly, the happily ever after. One click now!

  Broken Chords, Book 4

  “Pop Princess Disappears!”

  “Is C-James in Rehab?”

  “The C-James Vanishing Act Continues!"

  Since I left the public eye weeks ago, I’ve been headline news on all the gossip sites. If only they knew the truth.

  Sorry. Let me back up and introduce myself.

  I’m Charlotte James. That’s right. International pop royalty, megastar, and now, freshman piano performance major at Marycliff University.

  After having every move recorded for nearly a decade, I need a break. From my mom micromanaging my entire life. From being “on" all the time. From the constant touring, performing, and manufacturing hits one after the other.

  So I enlisted the help of my friend Jonny B and his new fiancée Gabby to help me nail my audition for the music department. With a new look and my real name, no one has a clue who I am.

  Not even the guy I'm dating.

  I want to tell him, but as long as he’s in the dark, I get to be just plain Charlie. It’s too much of a risk to tell him the truth.

  Because how will I survive if my two worlds collide?

  Calling all lovers of rockstar romance, beta-alphas, and hidden identities! This is the book for you. Grab the next installment in the epic Songs and Sonatas series now!

  Counterpoint and Harmony, Book 5

  I’m a nerdy cellist.

  She’s a superstar.

  We live on different planets with incompatible atmospheres.

  There’s no way our relationship can work. I know this. And I’ve already screwed everything up by pushing her away.

  But when I get a second chance, I can’t resist taking it. Even though I know it’ll end in disaster.

  Because we all know what happens when you fly too close to the sun.

  The spellbinding conclusion to Charlie and Damian’s story, you’ll find out what happens when there’s no longer anywhere to hide and how much it takes to make love work. Emotional, exquisite, and unputdownable, grab Counterpoint and Harmony today!

  Players of Marycliff University

  Summer Fling, Book 1

  Lance never chased girls …

  As one of the stars of the football team, he didn’t have to.

  Until convincing Abby to spend time with him became the highlight of his summer.

  Sassy mouthed and impervious to his usual charm, she presented a challenge. A distraction. Because once the summer ends, he'll be long gone, back to Texas to work with his dad, the price of his parents paying for college.

  But when she finally gave in, he wasn’t prepared to fall for her.

  With August looming, how will he survive leaving her?

  You’ll love this opposites attract romance that has readers swooning. Grab the start of this must-read series now!

  Convenient Fall, Book 2

  Look up the definition of manwhore ...

  And you’ll find a picture of Chris Watkins.

  While she's always up for a good time, Megan tends to avoid the hit it and quit it types. So even though she thought he was hot when they met this summer—and who wouldn’t with all those muscles honed from years of football practice?—she didn’t engage in more than a little harmless flirting.

  Scrambling for a place to live a week before fall semester starts, she ends up becoming Chris’s third roommate. Forced into close proximity, their attraction is undeniable.

  One fateful night at a party, one scorching kiss, and the chemistry simmering between them ignites in a fireball that seems doomed to burn hot and bright and fast. They make a deal to keep it fun and friendly, but soon Megan knows she’s getting in too deep.

  The only question is where she’ll end up once Chris is ready to move on. Tigers don’t change their stripes, and relationships with manwhores don’t turn into happily ever afters.

  Will they manage to keep it civil when it’s all over, or will everything turn to ash in the wake of their inferno?

  Whether you’re looking for a sweet story to brighten your day or Kindle-melting steam, this book will give you what you need. Described by readers as fun, smooth, and unputdownable, one-click Convenient Fall now!

  Opening Hearts, A Players of Marycliff University Novella

  Hannah Glover spends the summer before her senior year of high school with her best friend’s family in Westport, Washington. One fateful day on the beach, she meets Matt Schwartz, a sexy surf instructor who catches her eye and sends electricity zinging through her body.

  The prequel to Matt and Hannah’s story in Managed Hearts, this sweet and sexy story of firsts originally appeared in the anthology Because Beards. Now available as a standalone novella, read the full story of Matt and Hannah’s first summer together.

  Managed Hearts, Book 3

  Do you choose your dream job—or the guy you’ve always wanted?

  Three years ago Hannah met a sexy surfer while on vacation in Westport, WA. After a whirlwind summer romance, he ghosts. She’s tried to move on, but no other guy has ever measured up. And now she comes face to face with him on the first day of her new internship. To make matters worse, he’s one of her managers, and he has no idea who she is.

  Matt graduated in December after his final football season, and is now working a desk job. Having spent his whole life as an athlete, the day to day grind chafes at him. All his friends are moving on with relationships and pursuing their goals while he’s left as the third wheel. And despite his reputation as a player, he’s the only one who ever wanted a girlfriend.

  And then Hannah Glover shows back up in his life—the girl who simultaneously made him want a relationship and ruined him for anyone else without him even realizing it. He wants her now more than ever, but she doesn’t trust him after the way he ended things before. Which should be fine since he’s her manager at his first job out of college, and their company has a strict no fraternization policy. But Matt just can’t seem to help himself where she’s concerned. And she won’t be an intern forever, right?

  Will he be able to convince Hannah to give them another shot? Or will their past and their present conspire to keep them apart?

  If you love steamy new adult romance featuring hot college athletes with a hidden dominant side, heroines who stand up for themselves, and a hard-won happily ever after, check out the third installment in the Players of Marycliff University series now!

  Unsaid Things, Book 4

  Christmas. An engagement ring. An unexpected reappearance.

  After a romantic six months, Lance and Abby's relationship feels solid, and he's excited to have her spend Christmas with his family in Texas. She doesn't know he has a diamond ring stashed in his suitcase, along with a plan to propose to her on Christmas morning.

  He's forced to scrap the proposal, however, when Abby’s dead-beat brother shows up at her mom's house two days before Christmas. Abby, worried about her brother's sudden reappearance after more than a year of silence, insists on going home.

  Just when Lance thought he'd broken through Abby's defenses, she puts up another one in his path. Pushing him away, she insists on dealing with her family herself, a bad idea in his mind. Will proposing reassure her that he’s in it for the long haul? Or just make everything exponentially worse?