Before You Love Me

Riley has officially hit emotional bedrock-fresh off the heels of a miserable breakup, and feeling the imposter syndrome tenfold with a debut novel that fell flatter than the mountain valley she's been itching to leave since childhood. Worse yet, her parents' endless crusade of unsolicited advice on living "a real life" has extinguished any hope of evolving past a dead-end day job. Devoid and destitute, her only refuge comes in the form of empty journal pages and the company of a hair brained betta fish.
That is, until she's introduced to local bad boy bartender, Jayson Phillips. Desperate for an escape, she finds instant remedy in his honeyed words, enigmatic nature and promising musical talent. But as suddenly as Jay's firebrand charisma reignites the passion and desire she thought would remain stagnant, Riley soon begins to lose sight of everything she's worked for. Now, she may come to realize too late that her new fervent romance, however tempting, could leave everything from dreams to hearts scorched in its wake.