Drawing Me In (A Small Town Secret Baby Romance): Stewart Island Book 7

Tracey Alvarez

May 2016 · Icon Publishing Limited

About this ebook

A nine-year-old secret he never saw coming…

Bree Findlow’s ordered life just got complicated. Harley, the man who once broke her heart has temporarily moved back to Stewart Island, and her mother intends to sell the art gallery Bree has worked so hard to establish. If that isn’t a streak of bad luck, Bree’s sister arrives on the scene with a secret in tow. One with Harley’s eyes and artistic talent.

Renowned artist Harley Komeke returns to his home town to rediscover his missing muse and instead, finds a new one - the woman whose spell he fell under years ago at art school. He can’t resist the red-hot heat generated between them, even after discovering she kept their son hidden from him. He should be furious, but he isn’t. Not when with his dark past, he never, ever wanted to risk having a family. So what’s a guy to do when life throws another curve ball and Bree won’t see reason? Fight hard, fight dirty. Fight to win.

DRAWING ME IN is the seventh story in Tracey Alvarez’s best-selling Stewart Island books set against the stunning backdrop of Aotearoa, New Zealand. If you like heart-warming, sexy & seductive small-town romances with a touch of humor, you’ll love sharing the journey with these authentic men and women struggling to find their special someone.

Download your copy of Drawing Me In and dive into the sensual Stewart Island world! 
Intended for mature 18+ aged readers who enjoy their romance on the steamier side. 


Praise for the Stewart Island series!

"It’s official…I’m hooked on this series! I want to jump on a plane and fly to this island, because apparently they grow them big and HOT in New Zealand…men that is!!!" ~ Swept Away By Romance 

"Perfection comes in many shapes and forms, and Ms Alvarez delivers in her contemporary voice and quirky character traits that make a distinctive difference between average and stellar storytelling." ~ InD’Tale Magazine

"Just as the must-read series of Donna Kauffman (The Bachelors of Blueberry Cove), Jill Shalvis (Lucky Harbor), Terri Osburn (Anchor Island), Marie Force (The McCarthys of Gansett Island), Sherryl Woods (Chesapeake Shores) have entranced me with their seaside settings and caring communities - so has Tracey Alvarez - and I'm adding her series to my must-read shelf too."~ Fab Fantasy Fiction


Don’t miss any of the Stewart Island books!
Book 1: In Too Deep. Featuring Piper and West.
Book 2: Melting Into You. Featuring Kezia and Ben. 
Book 3: Ready To Burn. Featuring Shaye and Del. 
Book 4: Christmas With You. Featuring Carly and Kip. 
Book 5: My Forever Valentine. Due South Short Stories. 
Book 6: Playing For Fun. Featuring Holly and Ford. 
Book 7: Drawing Me In. Featuring Bree and Harley.  
Book 7.5: Kissing The Bride. A Due South short story. 
Book 8: Saying I Do. Featuring MacKenna and Joe.
Book 9: Home For Christmas. 
Book 10: Bending The Rules. Featuring Tilly and Noah.

Keywords: series romance, small town romance, romance series, New Zealand romance, contemporary romance, sexy romance, interracial romance, Maori culture, surprise pregnancy, secret baby, second chance romance, beach romance, coastal romance, island romance, family saga, boy next door, friends to lovers, artist, adoption, heart-warming, sensual, rural romance, friends with benefits, escape down under, heartwarming romance, island romance series, family relationships, sweet and sexy romance, first loves, exotic foreign romance, vacation romance, beach reads, summer reads

Ratings and reviews

This was another moving, eye-opening and fun romance in the Due South series. I was really curious as to how the story with Harley Komeke would play out. He came across as an arrogant player (although dedicated brother) in Playing For Fun (Ford's story.) I wasn't worried, though, when left to the consistent hands of Tracey Alvarez. It didn't take much for me to love Harley's brooding artist persona. I won't say much of the story line, because there are some surprising twists that are best discovered as you read along. Let's just say there were some "What?!" and some "That's crazy!" moments and I enjoyed every minute. After a couple of big reveals and Harley's realization of love, some fun begins trying to convince Bree of his determined life long commitment. I truly enjoyed how the story played out. I was thoroughly surprised, excited and entertained. My only reason for not giving this book 5 stars is my connection to Bree. As much of a fan of Harley's I was, I was not won over by Bree. This is definitely a personal flaw of my own, because I never really like the uptight, overly organized character traits of which Bree is described. She has her "let loose" moments and I do appreciate her love and commitment to her family, as well as Harley. Although, Harley has to work hard to win her over. Overall, this was another win for Tracey Alvarez. Going in, you know you are going to get a developed and well thought out story that is interconnected to previous books in the series by the relationships with the friends on Oban. Also, Drawing Me In has one of the sweetest and most heartwarming epilogues. If you enjoyed the previous book, this one is a must, especially to get to know Harley. He's now one of my favorite book heroes. I was gifted an ARC from the author in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Another Due South book--yay! This time our hero is Harley Komeke, Ford's (Playing For Fun) can't-hold-me-down artist twin--back from NYC for their birth mother's funeral; hanging around for a while in the hopes his muse will show up long enough for him to create the pieces he needs for his next big city show. Only she's playing hard to get...and so is Bree Findlow, the woman he all but ran from back at art school. Or is she? Bree's been keeping a major, ten-year-old secret from Harley, and it's one that's going to change things forever. And speaking of life changes, there just might be yet another one in store for these two... I have to admit, it was hard to read Harley and Bree's story at times. They've both made some pretty significant mistakes, and they've both done things that have hurt the other. Harley's insistence that he can't do commitment, can't be someone's father got to be frustrating--even while the reasons behind the belief are heartbreaking. Bree's leaving him at about 3/4 of the way in? Devastating. Ms. Alvarez sure knows how to put her characters through the wringer, and us right along with them! Fortunately, she pulls us all through to the other side with skill and a feel-good HEA. I loved everything that Harley does to show Bree that he's changed in all the ways that matter, and I put the book down with a happy sigh and a big smile on my face. It was also fun to see the rest of the series characters continuing to be H in their EAs (especially Piper and West! Big things are happening for them :)) Drawing Me In would work okay as a standalone, though as some aspects of it deal quite a bit with Harley and Ford's past, it's probably a good idea (but not an absolute necessity) to read Ford's book first. Favorite line: Mundane tasks like work and earning a living were so much more fun after multiple orgasms. True that, Bree! ;) Rating: 4 stars / A- I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

Harley Komeke is the other Komeke twin, a famous artist who lives in the UK he reluctantly returned to New Zealand for the funeral of his birth mother a few months ago but now he's back in Oban, living with Piper and West, trying to find his muse. Bree Findlow runs the local art gallery. She and Harley went to art school together and had a thing until fame, and America, lured Harley away. Now she is desperately trying to buy the gallery from her mother who has calmly announced she is selling it in order to buy herself a gallery. Bree's mother has spent her life sponging off men while preaching to her daughters about the importance of independence. Bree's mother's advice is to borrow the money to buy the gallery from Harley - what else are rich men for? Just like his twin brother Ford, Harley was emotionally scarred by their childhood. While Ford can't sleep without a light on Harley desperately seeks physical contact, especially with his twin, when things go sideways. With a deadbeat Dad who couldn't hack two small babies and a drug-addict mother who alternately neglected and abused her little boys, Harley thinks his genes mean he should never have children so he is horrified to find out that Bree got pregnant and gave their son to her sister and her husband to bring up as their own. Of course Harley has barely been back in Oban five minutes when Bree's sister and her son come to visit and the proverbial cat is out the bag! But neither of them can deny their physical attraction, even if Bree desperately tries to avoid repeating the same mistake over and over again by falling for a man who has already loved and left her twice before. Harley is relentless in his pursuit of Bree, even offering to help her save the gallery by exhibiting a new picture there - IF she poses for his latest picture. This is another cracking book in a great series. Although it is rather implausible that such a small island should hold so many young people, all of whom have recently married/ got together and the number of single fathers appears disproportionately high that doesn't detract from the joyfulness of the series. Although this is the seventh book in the series it is easy to jump right in, you'll find out everything you need to know. By turns this book is funny, poignant, shocking and aw-shucks romantic. What I like about Tracey Alvarez's books is that they aren't just a straightforward romance, there are always additional twists and turns, new plot revelations and dramas. Oh, and the insights into small town life and New Zealand customs (don't forget the half-naked frolics in the woods, all in the name of Art of course). Yet another winner - the series shows no sign of slowing down, although Tracey might be running out of eligible people on such a small island! I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

About the author

Tracey Alvarez is a USA Today Bestselling Author living in the Coolest Little Capital in the World (a.k.a Wellington, New Zealand). Married to a wonderfully supportive IT guy, she has two teens who would love to be surgically linked to their electronic devices.

Fuelled by copious amounts of coffee, she’s the author of contemporary romantic fiction set predominantly in New Zealand. Small-towns, close communities, and families are a big part of the heart-warming stories she writes. Oh, and hot, down-to-earth heroes—Kiwi men, in other words.

When she’s not writing, thinking about writing, or procrastinating about writing, Tracey can be found with her nose in her e-reader, nibbling on smuggled chocolate bars, or bribing her kids to take over the housework.

Follow Tracey on Twitter as @TraceyAlvrezNZ or Facebook as http://www.facebook.com/TraceyAlvarezAuthor 

Her website is http://www.traceyalvarez.com and don't forget to sign up to her newsletter here: http://bit.ly/JR3Asu