The Tortured Hero
by Beth Ciotta
In real life, I’m attracted to men who make me laugh. A keen sense of humor is incredibly sexy. My husband, in addition to being handsome and kind-hearted, is incredibly funny. 
Clever funny. I love that. As far as being in a committed relationship, I can’t see myself with a deep, dark, complicated guy. Odd that I’m attracted to them in fiction and film. Or maybe not.
When we need a break from reality, we often escape by losing ourselves in a movie or book. It’s our chance to live vicariously through another person, a fictional character. A time and place to live out our fantasies. Although I wouldn’t want to share my real life with a man as tortured and complicated as Daniel Craig’s version of James Bond, I wouldn’t mind losing myself to him for a few hours in fantasy land. His personal intensity, the constant brushes with danger, and the underlying sense of a good heart intrigue and seduce. I think that’s what drew me so strongly to Jayce Bello, the hero of my second novel in the Cupcake Lovers series—THE TROUBLE WITH LOVE.
Born and raised in Sugar Creek, Vermont, Jayce was a bit of a hometown “golden boy”. A popular high school jock who went out of his way to champion and protect the underdog. Folks weren’t surprised when he grew up and joined the police force, although his move to New York City was unexpected. Everyone figured he’d stay in Sugar Creek. He was, after all, practically joined at the hip of his best friend, Devlin Monroe, and was indeed favored by the entire Monroe clan—Sugar Creek mainstays.
The thing is . . . Jayce has secrets. One of them having to do with his best friend’s sister Rocky Monroe. Others having to do with his parents. Those secrets aren’t pretty. In fact, they’re downright ugly. I knew the details of Jayce’s dark past when I first wrote him into the debut Cupcake Lover’s novel—FOOL FOR LOVE. But when I got to his featured story in THE TROUBLE WITH LOVE, I wasn’t sure how deep I wanted to go, how much to share with the reader. In the first draft I didn’t share enough. My editor wanted more. And so, along with Rocky’s help, I unburied the sordid memories Jayce had locked deep inside. I think it’s about as close as I ever want to get to a truly tormented man. That said, I love Jayce Bello. In fantasy land, I’d duke it out with Rocky to win his affections. Although that would never happen.
A) Rocky would beat the tar out of me.
B) There’s only one woman for Jayce. Guess who?
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The Trouble with Love
Cupcake Lovers #2
BETH CIOTTA Rocky Monroe’s bad luck is legendary. So it stands to reason that during a quick trip to New York on behalf of the Cupcake Lovers’ forthcoming book, she winds up in the arms of the one man she never wants to see again. So what if he’s also the man she can’t stop dreaming about? Mouth-watering Jayce Bello has always been Rocky’s biggest mistake, and she’s not going to let history repeat itself … unless she gets a new taste of his delicious kisses.When Jayce Bello left Sugar Creek ten years ago, it was the right thing to do—for him and for Rocky, his best friend’s little sister. But one passionate night with gorgeous, reckless Rocky is enough to prove that she’s the missing ingredient in his happiness. Now, with scandalous secrets souring the sweetness of the Cupcake Lovers’ club, Jayce needs to convince Rocky that their love is something to savor
An Excerpt from The Trouble With Love
Jayce’s homecoming had been a dismal affair. Rolling into Sugar Creek just prior to midnight, he’d parked in front of the chalet he’d grown up in, staring into the darkened overgrown lawn twenty minutes before having the balls to cross over the threshold. Crossing that threshold represented the meshing of his past, present, and future. It meant dealing with some shitty-ass memories instead of locking them behind a mental armored door. Purchasing another property would’ve have been easier, but would’ve entailed admitting defeat.
Screw that.
Because of his time on the force and his years as a private investigator, Jayce had witnessed people battling demons far greater than his own. Yet whenever he visited Sugar Creek, in particular this house, the past seemed insurmountable. How could a grown man feel like a vulnerable kid? Why couldn’t he believe what Dev and Dev’s dad had told him that one terrible night—that it wasn’t his fault? Normally he kept the painful memories at bay, but by God they thrived inside the four walls of 241 Lark Lane. He hated the power this house had over him. That his parents had over him—even after death.
Time to come to terms.
Jayce had spent the night bunking on a bare mattress in his old bedroom, alternating between nightmares and insomnia.
This morning, he stood in the shower—hands braced on the tile, head lowered—trying to snap out of a bad mood while the pulsating water pounded his tense shoulders and back.
He was wiped.
Not so much from the long drive or the restless night of sleep but because he was being haunted by a whole new set of memories. Twenty-four hours chock full of Rocky. Rocky at the hospital—mugged, rattled, and bloodied. Rocky striding into a publishing house with kick-ass confidence and curves. Rocky eating hot dogs in Central Park and bemoaning the treatment of carriage horses. The list went on. He couldn’t purge the sound of her laughter or the smell of her shampoo or the sight of her naked luscious body. He couldn’t shake off the memory of her writhing beneath him in bed, begging for more, screaming his name. His name. He kept reliving one moment after another, knowing they were meant to be together.
If they could just get past the bullshit.
Jayce gave up on the shower, slaking water from his body and stepping out onto a folded towel. Somewhere, in the dozens of boxes stacked in the living room, dining room, and kitchen was a bathmat. The house was in chaos. Dev had gone above and beyond, meeting the moving van and getting all of Jayce’s furnishings and belongings inside. Mostly everything was crammed into the three larger rooms of the fairly small house. Which was fine. Jayce had had the walls repainted and the hardwood floors refurbished, but there were still a lot of details left undone. He wasn’t quite ready to set up house. Not that he was stalling.
Jayce stepped into a pair of jeans, eyeing his cell when it rang. Dev. “Mornin’.”
“You up?”
“You coming over?”
“Just pulled into your driveway.”
Beautiful.
Dev hadn’t been happy when Jayce had called from New York with the news that he and Rocky had quarreled and that she’d be returning to Sugar Creek on her own. The man was fed up with the bad blood between his sister and friend and their constant reluctance to fill him in on the crux of their hostility. Jayce fully expected Dev to call him on the mat today. He just wished they could’ve duked it out somewhere else. Just what this house needed—another ugly scene.
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