Hot & Nerdy by Shannyn Schroeder Pages: 336
Genres: New Adult
Goodreads
With college graduation looming, three childhood friends vow to make spring break their last blast of pure fun in the sun. But some of their hottest life lessons are yet to come…
Her Best Shot
Layla Sharpe is definitely more math ninja than bikini babe. But she’s finally ready let loose over spring break—until her car breaks down, leaving her stranded in Georgia with a mouthwateringly hot pool shark. Layla knows enough about angles to learn the game, but when he offers her a place to stay, she wants him to appreciate her curves…
Her Perfect Game
Charlie Castle is an expert archer and a fierce warrior—in her favorite video game, anyway. Now she’s entering a “hackfest” over spring break, where she also hopes to meet the sweet gamer who’s been flirting with her online. Instead, she runs into Jonah, the hot guy who walked away years ago. Charlie can’t fight the desire that comes rushing back, and the feeling is more mutual than she suspects…
Her Winning Formula
Chemistry major Felicity Stone knows everything about how chemicals interact, but when it comes to social interaction, she needs schooling. Abandoned by her friends, Felicity is faced with spending spring break alone—unless she accepts a gorgeous stranger’s invitation to pose as his girlfriend at a family wedding. Not one to turn down a research opportunity, Felicity never expected such breathtaking results—ones that could last a lifetime…
Hot And Nerdy
Shannyn Schroeder
I read book 1 of this box set, Her Best Shot. Its a cute, short novella (just over 100 pages) about a brainy girl and a gypsy.Because the story is so short you don’t really feel like you get to know the characters super well; however, you do find out enough about them to make the story work. Overall, they are likable and relatable characters. I thought the gypsy aspect to Phin’s character was really interesting and not something I have read about in a male character before. I also love books where the girls are super brainy (she’s a math and computer sci major who wears math t shirts! Thats just cool!). If you are looking for a short, steamy read this is a great book to add to your TBR. Be warned, the story ends really abruptly and it is a bit off putting.
- POV: 3rd
- Tears: No
- Trope: Fish out of water, Second Chance
- Triggers: None
- Cliffhanger: No, but it sort of just ends abruptly…
- HEA: View Spoiler »
Shannon Stacey, Kristen Proby, Kate Aster…then you will probably like Hot and Nerdy!
Shannyn Schroeder is the author of the O’Leary series, contemporary romances centered around a large Irish-American family in Chicago and the new Hot & Nerdy series about 3 nerdy friends and their last spring break. When she’s not wrangling her three kids or writing, she watches a ton of TV and loves to bake cookies.
Author Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
From Hot and Nerdy: Her Best Shot:
So much for not knowing anxiety. Layla walked down the busy street in Atlanta looking for the nearest bar. She needed a drink.
After a leisurely drive through the mountains and taking time to enjoy the beauty of rural North Carolina, Layla had been feeling better. Then she had pulled into Atlanta and everything went to hell. Her car just stopped. She probably shouldn’t have ignored the clunking while she was in the mountains. She sat at the side of the road waiting for a tow truck for a couple of hours. Not that she didn’t have offers, from a variety of good old boys, to take her wherever she wanted to go.
Because it was Saturday afternoon, the mechanic had told her straight-out that nothing would be done on her car until Monday, but he’d promised to call her with a diagnosis before the end of the day. She had barely stopped herself from telling him to just fix it no matter what. Although she didn’t like being stranded in Georgia, she wasn’t going to pay an exorbitant amount of money for her hand-me-down car out of desperation.
Pulling her backpack higher on her shoulder, she stood still for a moment and allowed her eyes to adjust to the dim interior of the first bar she found. It was a dive, but there was a decent-sized crowd. Unfortunately, it wasn’t her kind of crowd. They were mostly men and mostly grubby-looking. Even the younger ones had a roughness about them.
Layla figured it was par for the course. All she wanted to do was drown her sorrows in some beer and then pass out until her car was fixed. Maybe she could salvage part of her break. She shot a text to Felicity to let her know about the car.
After ordering a light beer at the bar, Layla walked toward the back to drink alone. In the back, she found a few men playing pool at the two tables. She grabbed a chair and sat with her back to the wall so she could watch the players. No one seemed to take notice of her presence.
Within moments, one player easily stood out as the man to beat. He was tall, over six feet, with long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail. He wore a T-shirt that looked intentionally too tight, showing off defined muscles, as if to say, “Don’t fuck with me.” He didn’t chat with the other player. The only sounds he made were to call his shots. He was smooth and efficient, and fun to watch as he cleared the table.
Especially when he bent over in front of her. Maybe being stuck in Atlanta for the night wouldn’t be so bad if all the guys were this nice to look at. With the eight ball sunk, the man stood and collected the money sitting on the edge of the table. The loser walked away, and another guy took his place, putting his twenty on the edge.
This second player was better than the first, but Mr. Nice Ass stayed ahead. After a while, Layla began to wonder if he was just toying with his competition, like a cat playing with its prey. He let the other man sink a few balls and then returned to clear the table. Again, he sank the eight ball and swiped the cash.
The man was a pool hustler.
After the second loser left, the man looked around, his gaze landing on her. His eyes, a gray-green, weren’t pretty, but were mesmerizing. Something about the contrast against his olive skin.
He pointed his pool cue at her. “Are you going to sit there staring all night, or are you going to play?”
“Me? I’m not stupid enough to play pool with a hustler. My day’s been crappy enough. I don’t need to lose anything else.”
He stalked closer to her. “I’m not a hustler. Hustlers pretend to be bad and then show their true ability to win big. Make no mistake. I’m always good.”
“Thanks for the vocabulary lesson. I still have better things to do with twenty bucks than lose it to you, especially since I’ve only played pool a handful of times.”
He took another step closer. Close enough that she could touch him if she wanted, but he kept enough distance so she wasn’t crowded. “How about you buy me a beer, and I’ll give you a lesson?”
She had nothing else going on, and a game of pool with a sexy stranger might be fun. “You’re on. What’ll you have?”
He tilted his head toward her bottle. “Whatever you’re having is fine.”
She grabbed her backpack and went back to the bar to buy a couple more beers. When she returned, he had the balls racked and ready to go. She placed her backpack on her chair and grabbed a cue stick. Layla handed him a bottle and said, “I’m Layla.”
He took the bottle from her, allowing his thumb to brush over her fingers. “Thanks, Layla. I’m Phin.”
The simple touch sent a jolt of pleasure up her arm and down her center. He took a swig of beer, and she watched his throat work as he swallowed. She licked her lips, and when he reached past her to put his bottle on the table, her mouth went dry. This man was like a walking orgasm. He didn’t have to say anything, and she wanted to go for a test run.
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