REVIEW TOUR - Your Pace or Mine by Kim Stephenson
True love is a marathon, not a sprint.
Length: 80,000 words
Series: Running for the Romance, Book 1 (can be standalone)
Prior Reading: n/a
Genre: contemporary, sports
Tropes: Fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, class difference, sports
Trigger/Content Warnings: Reference to coercive sex (not between MCs)
Designer: 100Covers
https://getbook.at/YourPaceOrMine-rev
Elite marathoner Darius Hewitt is the golden boy of British athletics until a media scandal brings his Olympic dreams crashing down. With his reputation in tatters, Darius reluctantly agrees to help out at a charity running clinic, hoping to regain favour with the Olympic selection committee.
Enter Jamie—a sharp-witted West End dancer, training for his first marathon. Jamie comes with a crumbling career of his own, outrageous fundraising target, and a whole different brand of publicity challenges.
In the lead up to the London Marathon, a fake relationship seems like the perfect solution for both their image problems, so Darius and Jamie strike a deal.
But the more time they spend together, the less pretend it starts to feel.
Can they stop running from their fears long enough to give love a shot?
Your Pace or Mine is a heartwarming contemporary MM sports romance packed with fake dating, sharp banter, and plenty of running
EXCERPT:
It wasn’t that Darius was in the closet, per se. Everyone in his life, everyone that mattered, knew. Which, fine, amounted to like three people he actually liked, and his father. He just firmly believed that his personal life shouldn’t have any bearing on his professional life, and he knew it would if he came out.
It was different for Darius, he didn’t just have the usual sporting press to deal with like his contemporaries. His title and the Ethiopian heritage he’d inherited from his grandmother had long made him the aristocracy’s favourite piece of diversity window dressing. Far more approachable than his father, he was easy to parade out when appearances demanded it, making his life fodder for the tabloids—and British tabloids could be fucking vicious. One minute they loved you, the next they would tear you apart for clicks. His family had learned a long time ago that keeping everything under wraps was essential to survival. It was safer for him to keep his private life, well, private.
Liking dick didn’t make him a better or worse runner, so why the fuck should it matter, anyway?
Jackson didn’t understand what it was like to be under the level of scrutiny Darius was under. To carry the weight of expectations Darius had on his shoulders.
Jackson rolled his eyes. “Oh no, someone might realise you’re not an aristocratic clone and have actual human feelings and desires.”
“You’re a terrible friend.”
“I’m a great friend,” Jackson replied. “Which is why I’m going to drag you kicking and screaming to that training clinic.”
“I don’t need to do it. I have the fastest times of anyone. I’m not going to be the one who gets cut. Anders could never justify it.”
Jackson’s grin fell. “Thanks for the reminder, mate.”
“Fuck. You know I didn’t mean to imply…”
“It is what it is. I know I’m at risk, right? Especially with Elliot Owens in contention,” Jackson shrugged.
Darius grimaced. “Yeah, but Owens is a dick.”
“A dick that’s been training with Anders for nearly three years now and can pretty much match me stride-for-stride,” Jackson replied. “I had that DNF too, in Boston,” Jackson reminded him glumly.
Darius winced. He wasn’t wrong. “A DNF just means you’re a smart runner—you know what they say DNF stands for…”
“Did Nothing Foolish,” Jackson finished the sentence in unison with Darius, reciting a line Ellison had drilled into their heads. “You’ve never had one, though,” Jackson groused. “Yes, but I’m a robot, remember?” Darius laughed. “Or sorry, an aristocratic clone.”
about the author:
Kim Stephenson is a UK based author with a love for running and romance.
When not writing you can find them hitting the local pavements and trails chasing PB's and HEA's.
@runningfortheromance (ig)
Kimstephensonauthor.com
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