Tempted by Love: Jack "Jock" Steele

The Steeles at Silver Island, Book 1

By: Melissa Foster

Narrated by: Jennifer Mack, Brian Pallino

Length: 13 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

Enjoy heart-meltingly beautiful and toe-curlingly sexy romance in Tempted by Love, an emotionally riveting story about a man who has lost it all and carries a torturous secret, a divorced single mother who has everything to lose, and the little girl who helps them heal. Fall in love on the sandy shores of Silver Island, home to coffee shops, boat races, midnight rendezvous, and the sexy, sharp-witted Steeles.

In Tempted by Love:

Years ago, best-selling author Jack “Jock” Steele lost his girlfriend and baby in a horrific accident that drove a wedge between Jock and his family, keeping him from sharing a devastating secret. An aging philanthropist saved him from the brink of despair, and for a decade Jock cared for his ailing friend who became his family. Now his friend has passed away and left him a fortune - on the condition that he publishes another book. Jock is floundering, unsure how to rebuild the life he’d walked away from, much less find his muse, have another relationship with a woman, or even think about having a family of his own. But he can’t get his sweet, sexy new friend, single mother Daphne Zablonski out of his head, and her adorable toddler must know something he doesn’t, because she wraps her tiny fingers around his heart and won’t let go.

Daphne has been through the wringer with her ex-husband and doesn’t believe true love is in the cards for her. Friends she can handle, but letting a man see her mom bod naked? Especially someone as strikingly handsome and unbelievably sexy as Jock? No, thank you. Besides, she has a toddler to chase after and enough fictional boyfriends to fill her lonely nights. If only her book boyfriends could make her body tingle the way one look from her mysterious neighbor does.

As Jock and Daphne’s friendship turns to something too tempting to deny, their lives take an unexpected turn. Can a man who has lost everything find redemption with a woman who has everything to lose? And then there’s that secret....

©2020 Melissa Foster (P)2020 Melissa Foster

Feast of the heart.

Faces and names are easy to forget, but it's the emotions felt that tend to linger our whole lives through. Foster has the presence of mind to haunt readers with unforgettable. Jock, Hadley and Daphne are a beautiful heartache. Tempted By Love is a dance of broken hearts, second chances and healing spirits that embeds itself deep within your soul. Out of a tragedy comes a chance to hope and a reason to dream. Feast your heart on a banquet that will not be easy to forget.

Scorching HOT and beautiful!

The summer of 2020 will be remembered for many things - quarantine/pandemic, presidential race, struggles of a wide variety for many BUT, most of all 2020 is the summer I finally got to meet Hadley Zablonski in Tempted By Love!! (PS-she isn’t even the main heroine, her mama is) Hadley is the cutest almost 3 yr old fictional character I’ve ever met. This little girl will wrap you around her precious little fingers with just one little scowl (smiles are reserved for special people, aka Jock Steele). Hadley is the daughter of Daphne. Daphne is the manager/receptionist at Bayside Resort. Daphne has been through some tough times learning to be a single mom, getting divorced from a man who didn’t want to know or want to love a child. Jackson “Jock” Steele is a man still reeling from some horrible events 10 yrs in his past and most recently the death of the man he cared for, Harvey. Jock has a long road ahead of him to be able to put his demons in the past and forge a new path/reconnect with his family who live on Silver Island. Can Daphne and Hadley help Jock find that path? If I’m not careful with all I want to say about this newest love story by Melissa Foster I will be giving away the story and that is not happening. So, just know that you will need tissues for happy tears, OMG tears, you will find yourself in some pretty steamy between the sheets scenes, and completely falling in love with the newest world of Melissa Foster. Sooo many new characters to love and visits/connections with ones you already know and love. I found myself with tears, saying “Oh My Goodness”, and literally bouncing on my toes for this new world. If you love big families, alpha males who will love, protect, and fall hard when they meet the woman meant for them, then you will love this newest world of Melissa Foster, The Steeles of Silver Island. The first book in this new series is Tempted By Love (Jock and Daphne). Each book can be read as a stand alone but I highly recommend alI books from Melissa Foster. The Bayside Desires series is the most closely related series. For the audiobook, Brian Pallino’s performance is great, I love the deep baritone, especially for those oh-so-hot between-the-sheets scenes! Jennifer Mack does an equally outstanding performance as Daphne and Hadley. This beautiful love story is great even if you only read the words. But, listening to this story is brought beautifully to life by Brian and Jennifer is a whole new experience. I have come to learn that voice-narrators/actors are so talented because of all the voices they may have to create/perform in a story. Totally recommend this audio not just for the story or the voices but for the whole experience. I received an audio copy in exchange for an honest review. 5-stars easily!! *****

Good story!

This is a good start to this spin off series. Jock and Daphne are two people that are truly damaged. Jock with the tragic loss of his girlfriend and unborn child and Daphne with the abuse and rejection that she suffered from by her ex husband. The pair find healing from their pasts and love for their future with the assistance of Daphne's daughter Hadley. Also, in this book the characters from other series and books make an appearance so that everything is connected. This book was heart breaking at times but with a great ending. At risk of giving away too much, this was a great book that I enjoyed from the start just like all of the other books that Ms. Foster has written. I also enjoyed the narration performed by Jennifer Mack and Brian Pallino. This is the first time that I have listened to the pair and they did a great job bringing this story to life. I would recommend this book to others.

Entertaining

Love this book. I can't wait to hear Book 2!! Best part: my heart dropped as Dalphany was trying to save her daughter.

Archer Steele redeemed himself

Wow - Indi and Archer took me on a rollercoaster ride for sure! What started as a steamy physical attraction turned into a well-earned happily-ever after in this one, that's for sure. Emotional, full of tension, but such a satisfying journey.

Archer has everything stacked against him. He's broody. He's arrogant. He's closed off. But really, he just needed the right woman to open his heart to the love that he deserved. Luckily for him, Indi came along. Their love was thrown a few curve balls along the way, but this is a truly prime example of an emotional Melissa Foster book, and it's definitely worth the ride.

Narrated by Andi Arndt and Aiden Snow, the audiobook is really engaging, and keeps you listening.

Great love and adult stuff ♥️

I love a great love story with the sexy stuff too. Ready for the next one!

Tempted by Love

Oh man, did this book pull out every single emotion! I had annoyance, anger, sorrow, silliness, pain and the perfect happiness. There is so much to this story that keeps you hooked. I know this is a long book, but I listened to it all in one go because I just needed to see how it ended. Fabulous writing and just as fantastic narration! The little girl voice was perfect!

KEEP EM COMING!

I absolutely loved it! This book caught my attention from the very beginning and held it throughout the entire book. This book was full of drama, heartache and romance! The narration was outstanding! It will keep you entertained! The author did an amazing job with the character builds and plot! Melissa Foster will never lose my praises! She literally keeps her stories fresh and unforgettable. I look forward to reading more books by this author! I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Heartfelt!

Melissa has written the most heart touching story yet! It was spell bounding!
Jack "Jock" Steele was a writer and he had cared for an older man named Harvey until he passed away. He took a cottage at Silver Island and started a new life. Daphne worked at Bayside Resort and lived there with her little daughter Hadley. Hadley took a great liking to Jock and every time Hadley ran toward him crying out his name, Jock ran away from her as fast as he could go. Daphne couldn't understand why he was doing that to her sweet daughter. She didn't know that he had lost his girlfriend and son in a car accident. Jock couldn't get it out of his mind. Then things begin to happen.
Jennifer Mac and Brian Pallino brought this book to life and moved me with their narration. They will drag you right into the story and make you believe you are watching every scene.

Love Jock, Daphne and Hadley!

Jack “Jock” Steele is a best-selling author who suffered a tragedy. His guilt over loosing his girlfriend and baby, caused Jock to distance himself from his family. Harvey, the owner of a children’s theatre and the man Jock become a caretaker for in his aging years, became Jock’s lifeline. When Harvey passed away, he left Jock a large inheritance that he would receive once he wrote another book. For the past decade, Jock has been unable to write. Until a sweet little girl and her beautiful mother unexpected crashed into his life.

Daphne Zablonski is a single mother. After what her ex-husband put her through, she is cautious when it comes to love. Daphne was instantly attracted to Jock after meeting him at their friend’s wedding the year before; little did she know he felt the same. When he returns from his travels and stays in a cottage at the resort where Daphne works, it gets harder and harder for them to hide their attraction to another, that is until Hadley, Daphne’s toddler daughter, takes a liking to Jock.

This is a wonderful story about a friendship, love, forgiveness and a determined little girl to help a tortured soul find his way back his family and the man he was before; as well as show a single mother that happily every after really does exist. Great narration.