Two years ago, Gianna Rossi fell head-over-heels in love with Jackson "Jax" Rutledge. Gianna knew that she didn't fit into his world and that his rich, politically powerful family wouldn't approve of her. When Jax ended their relationship without a word, Gianna's heart was broken. Two years later, she has worked hard to get her career in the restaurant business off the ground. She is working with and being mentored by Lei Yeung, a power-player in the industry. When a deal that Lei and Gianna have been working on falls apart, they are stunned. Even more shocking, her boss's nemesis walks in with Jax by his side. Why would Jax be working with the famous restaurateur? Gianna quickly realizes that she is the only one who doesn't know the rules of this game, and the stakes are high for her career.

Gianna finds herself face-to-face with Jax at every turn. Their chemistry is still off the charts, and Jax wants her to give him another chance. Gianna doesn't know if she should trust him again, and Jax admits that their relationship can only be short-term. She seems unable to resist him and knows that letting herself trust him again will end with her heart broken.

AFTERBURN is a captivating story of second chances. Gianna is a smart, relatable heroine, but the true star of this novella is Jax. Fans of Sylvia Day's Gideon Cross will find Jax irresistible. Like Gideon, he is an incredibly sexy but flawed hero. He is magnetic, and, like Gianna, readers will be helpless to resist him. AFTERBURN is another winner by Sylvia Day. Jax and Gianna's story will be continued in Aftershock, a novella that will be published in November 2013.

AFTERBURN is the first entry in Harlequin's new Cosmo Red- Hot Reads series. With two entries per month, this e-book series is being billed as sexy, fun novellas about young women who know what they want in their lives and careers. If AFTERBURN is an example of what's to come, I can't wait for more!

Book Summary

#1 New York Times bestselling author Sylvia Day, America's premier author of provocative fiction, delivers the debut novel from Cosmo Red-Hot Reads from Harlequin.

The realization that Jax still affected me so strongly was a jagged pill to swallow. He'd only been part of my life for five short weeks two years ago. But now he was back. Walking into a deal I'd worked hard to close. And God, he was magnificent. His eyes were a brown so dark they were nearly black. Thickly lashed, they were relentless in their intensity. Had I really thought they were soft and warm? There was nothing soft about Jackson Rutledge. He was a hard and jaded man, cut from a ruthless cloth.

In that moment I understood how badly I wanted to unravel the mystery of Jax. Bad enough that I didn't mind how much it was going to cost me...