Selena Robins, Author

Please join me in welcoming, Jake Becker, the hero in Emma Chase’s, SUSTAINED (The Legal Briefs #2) and  SIDEBARRED (The Legal Briefs #3.5).

If  you haven’t read THE LEGAL BRIEF Series, I highly recommend it.

I have mad love for all of Emma’s books and was thrilled when I heard she had written a new series after TANGLED. Drew Evans makes a guest appearance in OVERRULED (Book #1), and as always he does not disappoint.

However,  there’s a new favorite-of-mine-hero in town, and his name is Jake Becker. 🙂

 

If like me, you can’t get enough of Emma’s hero’s, and enjoy reading their thoughts, then I know you’ll get a kick out of my chat with Jake:

Selena: Jake, if by some miracle you had one free day to yourself with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

JAKE: I would hang out with my wife – that would be the most enjoyable thing I can think of – no matter what we were doing. Having a beach nearby would be a plus – because then I’d get to look at her in a bikini. And although I’m not really a “lay around” kind of guy, spending the day in bed with Chelsea – with no interruptions, except for when we’d have to come up for air to eat – would be awesome too.

Selena: What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they’ve known you for a while?

JAKE: People are usually quiet – intimidated – when they first meet me. Unless they’re assholes or stupid. But normal people (read “not my clients”), tend to be naturally intimidated around me because of my size and generally non-friendly demeanor. After they’ve known me for a while, it’s different. They get that I’m not trying to be a dick – I just don’t see the point of inane conversation. And they understand that I would never use my size to hurt anyone – unless they tried to hurt someone I care about first.

Selena: Before meeting Chelsea, what was your idea of a great relationship?

JAKE: My idea of a great relationship was an interaction – usually a hook-up – that required zero thought, commitment, conversation or energy afterward. If a woman was on the same page with that, I’d gladly see her again. But the only relationship I was interested in was with my career – that’s where my focus was – where I invested my time. I was kind of an idiot before Chelsea.

Selena: What three pieces of advice would you give to a man entering a ready-made family? I would imagine with 6 little ones in the house, would you advise the bonus dad not to sleep in the nude?

JAKE: Yeah, sadly, going to bed bare-ass is not an option. Somebody’s bound to have a nightmare, feel sick, need water – there’s a thousand opportunities for awkwardness or scarring someone for life. But the most important advice I could give is this: you have to want it. You have to want to be a part of that family’s life – whether it’s as a father or a friend. You have to be, not just willing, but eager to put them and their well-being before your own. For some guys, that’s hard – maybe even impossible.

But kids know when they’re not wanted, you can’t bullshit it.

And if you don’t want that responsibility, if you can’t handle it – it’s fine – but you have to be honest with yourself and the woman you’re into. If all you’re interested in is the woman – then you have to be man enough to walk away.

Selena: Let’s get a bit more personal, create a bumper stick that best describes your sex life?

JAKE: “Get it when you can – but know when you’re getting it. Planned is never fucking boring.”

Selena: Did you get any new tattoos?

JAKE: I did. On my forearm. It’s a C superimposed over an R – making a cool kind of symbol. There are vines entwining the letters together and the vines are made up of each of the kid’s and Chelsea’s names. The day I got it done, Chelsea was so excited – and grateful – she practically made my head explode in bed that night.

Selena: Thank you, Jake, it was so much fun chatting with you. Hope to see you in another book sometime in the future.

***

Hey, Emma, I really liked that you brought Jake with you to this chat. SIDEBARRED was a great ending to this fabulous series, and I look forward to  more. Which brings me to a question for you, can you tell us what you’re working on next?

EMMA CHASE: Thanks for having me, this was a lot of fun! I’m actually going to announce what I have in store next on May 1st – the week after SIDEBARRED comes out.

What I can say now is I’m SO EXCITED about what I’m working on!! There are some projects that you hope readers will enjoy – and some that you absolutely can’t wait to share because you KNOW they’re going to have fun and love it just as much as you do. This project is one of those. Stay tuned… – xoxo

Selena: I am SO looking forward to hearing more!

 

There was a time when Jake Becker had it all together. He was controlled, driven, ruthless—in and out of the courtroom.

Then, six irresistible orphans and their heartbreakingly beautiful aunt crashed into his perfectly ordered life. They changed everything. They changed him. Now he’s a husband, an upstanding member of society, a father figure—a family man.
And he’s pretty damn good at it.

Sure, he has to referee sibling smackdowns, re-learn algebra, ensure his clients stay of jail, and keep his wife happy—but it finally feels like he’s got it together again….
So, of course something has to screw it all up.

It’s huge. Life-changing. Kind of terrifying.

And it will be the most amazing, perfect thing he’ll ever do.

 

ABOUT EMMA:

Emma Chase lives in New Jersey with her husband, two children and two misbehaving (but really cute) dogs. She has a long-standing love/hate relationship with caffeine.

Emma is an avid reader. Before her children were born she was known to consume whole books in a single day. Writing has also always been a passion and with the 2013 release of her debut romantic comedy, Tangled, the ability to now call herself an author is nothing less than a dream come true.

***

Selena’s Review & Favorite Quotes from SIDEBARRED:

5 STARS!

I had a smile the whole time while reading SIEDBARRED.

Emma Chase is an auto-buy author for me, and I don’t have to read the blurb or see a cover to know I’m going to enjoy the story and the characters Emma creates.

SIDEBARRED is dedicated to the readers, especially those who enjoyed the LEGAL BRIEF SERIES (if you have not read this series, I highly recommend you do) and for those who can’t get enough of the McQuaid kids, and especially Jake and Chelsea. Although short, this story is a great way to end a series. It takes the reader into that place we often go after we finish a book—how is the couple—and in SIDEBARRED case—the whole brood faring after the epilog of the last book?

You will find out once you read SIDEBARRED and keep wanting more, which is why I hope Emma keeps on with this series with a spin-off featuring new characters.

The story is witty, fun, sexy and sweet. Although it’s fiction, the struggles, challenges, triumphs and everyday life of careers, and everyday living are relatable.

With thanks to Emma Chase and the publisher for providing the ARC

SELENA’S FAVORITE QUOTES:

Chelsea’s arms flail out to her sides and she yells, “Who are you?”

“I’m your husband.”

“Really? I don’t remember exchanging rings with a fucking caveman!”

I lean down over her, almost nose to nose. “Then you weren’t paying close enough attention.”

Brent would say this is healthy – getting it all out in the open. That theory can go suck a dick.”

**

“Sometimes I look around and wonder, how the hell did I get here? How is this my life? It all changed so fast. But then I stop wondering. Because how this life became mine doesn’t really fucking matter. I’m just crazy-happy that it is.”

**

“Okay, here’s the deal – your aunt and I have noticed that you and Peter seem…pretty serious. And…we want to make sure you’re being safe.”

The last word hangs heavy in the air. Like one of Cousin It’s rancid dog farts.
Riley’s face turns a startling shade of fire-engine red. “Oh my God. Is this really happening?”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I know, I know, it’s fucking awful.”

**

“There’s no way the person who made these lists actually has kids. They should be shot. And at this moment, I would defend the person who shoots them, pro bono. Just saying.”