So, yesterday, my Valentine’s Day Novella 3 WISHES was released, and today, I’m running my sales stats and checking all my social sites to see if there’s any buzz about it.
Yeah, it’s just something writers have to do, lIke actors check their acting reviews, writers do the same with the added check of social media and book sales.
For social stuff, one of my favorite Instagram Influencers, The Sebrero Sisters, added me to their daily shoutout of new releases – which, believe me , is HUGE!
This is free advertising at its finest, and these influencers are top-notch!
As for sales, well in the new releases category over on Amazon, this morning I am # 17 in sales in kindle romance>medical books..
and # 70 in the category Short reads (90mins-2 hrs) because it’s a novella…
To rank so high in both of these categories is, to use the same words again, HUGE!
No, by the time you read this post, those numbers may have changed because Amazon updates sales hourly. But right now, at 330 a.m. on Saturday, 2.15.25, these are accurate.
Have you gotten your copy yet? 3 WISHES is only 99cents on kindle and 5.99 in print.
Happy reading, kids. Hope your Valentine’s day was filled with love, laughter, and a good book! ( preferably mine! LOL)
I lovedlovedloved writing Anton and Portia’s rocky road to love and I hope you enjoy reading it, too!
Successful Chef Anton Saparosa had the perfect life. Great marriage; beautiful and adoring wife; trendy SoCal restaurant frequented by celebrities – many of them his friends.
Then Covid hit.
Anton’s perfect life dissolved before his eyes. With nothing left to keep him in California, he starts an itinerant cross-country journey, searching for something to give his life meaning again.
Happenstance lands him in the tiny town of Dickens just as Dorrit’s Diner is thrown into chaos.
Literary Agent Portia Avon needs a rest. A messy divorce has her craving quiet and the company of her friend and client A.B. Cards, nee Abra Bree. She comes from the western heat of California to the eastern cold of Dickens and plans to do nothing but rest, relax, and read during her holiday stay.
When Portia spots a familiar face in Dorrit’s, she’s confused. Why is Anton Saparosa, one of the most recognizable chefs in California, working as a fry cook in Abra’s mom’s diner, and going by the name Tony Smith?
A question Portia wants an answer to, but one Tony isn’t willing to share, especially with a woman he can’t stop thinking about.
Welcome to the Wonderful World of Dickens … the Dickens kitchens that is!
The authors of the Dickens Holiday Romance Series are baking up a storm to make your holiday perfect. Look for some very special recipes this year, including: French Martina Cookies, Insomnia Sugar Cookies, Krinkle Cut Outs and Chocolate Crinkles. Also, Hanukkah Latkes, Jennie’s Friendship Tarts, Peanut Butter Magic (for you and your four-legged friends), and Aunt Sharon’s Cherry Blossoms. Plus, many, many more.
The series authors wish you and your loved one a joyous holiday season!
My Insomnia cookies are included in the book. Here’s what they look like ( to whet your appetite!!)
A CHEF’S KISS CHRISTMAS is available in Kindlecopy or Print. The kindle copy is FREE!!!!
If you’re looking for a feel-good, redemption, finding love again story about 2 people who needed to feel loved and wanted again, set in the small town of DICKENS. This book is for you. If you’re looking for a freinds2lovers, over40 h/h, grumpy sunshine book, This book is for you.
And if you simply love a good holiday romance, well, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU, LOL!!!
Happy reading, kids. Can you tell I’m giddy it’s release day??!!
Just a last-minute reminder that LOVE MATCH releases tomorrow.
Running away from a public scandal may be cowardly, but to Layla Warton, it’s her best option.
After her politically connected fiancé is indicted for a laundry list of crimes, Layla wants to put the public ridicule and shame of her guilty-by-association status behind her. Not easy to do when all her supposed friends and supporters lose her number and the taint of scandal-adjacent destroys the successful design business and life she’s built for herself.
Happy childhood memories and the blessing of a local friend push her toward the tiny New England town of Heaven where she spent summers with her loving grandparents. Hiding out in the town until the scandal dies down is the perfect plan.
With the paparazzi hot on her tail, an ancient family home she needs to get livable, and a contractor too hot for her sanity, Layla worries she’ll never be able to get her old life back.
Book launches either sneak up on me or they drag out forever, just waiting for release day.
With Retribution, it felt like it was going to take forever, and now, tomorrow is book release day and I can’t believe i haven’t done more to promote the launch.
Some day, I will have a PR team to help with all this.
Some day, I will have the time to do an effective launch, one that truly sells more than 5 or ten books.
Some day, the 1000 book preorder goal I keep setting myself up for ( and failing, horribly!! lol) will actually manifest.
Doesn’t look like tomorrow is any of those above days, but it is release day, and that just never gets old in my book!
Since Dylan just released on Monday, I’m choosing him.
“She’s a sweetie,” his soon-to-be-sister-in-law whispered in his ear. “But fragile. Take care with her.”
Dylan nodded again.
As soon as the door closed behind them, he turned back around to Harper. Her color was still off, and she looked like she hadn’t slept for a week. A defeated stance embraced her body in the stooped shoulders and chest-hugging head. He wanted to gather her up in his arms and love away all the horror she’d endured for the past day. Hell, the past thirty-plus years.
Before he did, he had to make sure she’d freely receive it. The way she’d so easily walked away from him in the bedroom had been a hit to his ego, and he didn’t want a repeat of that feeling.
He wanted Harper. Had since the moment he’d bumped into her and she’d tossed him a pissed-off glare. And what the hell did that say about him, he wondered, that he found snarky and annoyed so alluring?
“Your younger brother is very…”
“Annoying? Obnoxious? A pain in the ass?”
He grew pleased when a small smile bloomed on her face at his joking, since that had been his intention.
“I was going to say knowledgeable about being poisoned. I don’t want to be nosy, but has he been?”
“No. Not like you were. Aiden had a brain tumor as a kid. Spent a great deal of time in the hospital having all sorts of meds shot into his system. He got pretty smart about how to ward off any side effects like dehydration, nausea. Vomiting.”
“Oh, dear Lord, I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”
He shrugged. His brother’s diagnosis had hit the family hard when it came. But his mother was a natural warrior and vowed nothing, not even a pesky tumor, was going to take one of her children away from her.
“He’s fine now. As soon as the tumor was removed and he got on a good medical regimen, he was basically cured. Every now and then, though, he’s hit with a killer migraine, especially if he doesn’t drink a good amount of water every day. So he’s being truthful when he says you should drink and flush your system. Bronte is his service dog, by the way. She can detect a migraine aura starting before Aiden can and allow him to treat it before it gets incapacitating.”
She nodded, said, “Wow,” and then took a large gulp of the water.
“I don’t know about you, but even though it’s almost one in the morning, I could eat something.” He turned away so she wouldn’t see him smile. “It’s been a long time since my last meal. You hungry?”
Well, you all knew this day (and blog post) was coming. If you’ve been following me for the past few weeks, I’ve been writing up a storm about my newest New York Socialites book, INFLUENCE.
This story was so much fun to write and research. I had to delve deeply into the influencing sphere and it was eye opening, I have to tell ya. For all the time we as writers have to spend on social media hawking our books, influencers and brand ambassadors have to be on 24/7. That’s exhausting just thinking about. And not everyone can make the kind of money Lizzy Cray makes as an influencer, either. The top tier is small and anyone can be pitched off their perch when a newer, better brand ambassador comes around. Too stressful for me, LOL!
Brand influencer, Lizzy Cray, is killing it.
She’s got a list of high profile clients who pay her handsomely to help their products explode on social media. Everything from cameras to cashmere, shoes to smoothies. One picture of her with a product and the money practically prints itself.
Why does this trust fund-baby need to work so hard to rake in the cash? That’s a question journalist Dominick Templeton wants an answer to, because Lizzy Cray used to be known in the gossip pages as socialite and wild-child Mackenzie Craymore.
Mackenzie disappeared from the public’s eye twelve years ago, right after her fiancé, hotel-heir, Lucky Blumenthal, died in a fiery car crash rumored to be fueled by drugs and alcohol. But now she’s back, still hauntingly beautiful, rebranded, and from everything Dominick’s researched about her, a much different person. When she ignores all his attempts at an interview, Dominick tries a different tactic and soon becomes embroiled in a world he never imagined…with a woman he’s rapidly falling for.
I spotted a lone guy in a tux at one end, leaning an elbow on the counter and facing the room, a tumbler in his hand. I couldn’t make out his face clearly from this distance but he was tall, trim, had a mass of wavy dark hair and a neatly trimmed goatee.
And he was staring straight at me while he lifted his glass to his lips and drank.
His attention never wavered from me while he sipped. There was something so…erotic about that. For a moment I didn’t think he was looking at me, but maybe lost in thought, you know? Looking toward me but not really seeing me? When his lids dropped down to half-mast and he stopped sipping, he held the glass up in a subtle salute aimed right at me, and one side of his mouth lifted.
Every nerve ending in my spine fired and I shuddered like I’d stepped into an ice-cold bath.
But I wasn’t. Cold, that is. Nope, I was about as far from cold as a person could get on a temperature scale.
Hot didn’t even come close to what my insides were experiencing. If you happened to step into a roaring volcano and come in contact with all that molten lava spewing from it, then maybe – maybe – you’d know how I felt with this guy’s piercing gaze glued to mine.
Mesmerized, I couldn’t pull away from it.
You ever have the notion your life is about to change, something big is about to happen, and you can’t figure out what it is but you’re powerless to alter the course? That’s what it felt like with this guy’s focus zeroed in on me.
I’ve said this so many times and I love saying it again and again: I LOVELOVELOVE when one of my Wild Rose Press sistahs comes for a visit, especially when they tell me about one of their new books. Today I have sistah RACHEL BRIMBLE here for the very first time. YAY! She was kind enough to answer all my interview questions then give me a little peek into her newest WRP book VICTORIA AND VIOLET (THE ROYAL MAIDS BOOK 1) available now.
Victoria…the floor is yours!
Rachel, theAuthor:
What drives you to write?
Because I love it so much! I have wanted to write since I was very young and once I started writing toward publication in 2015, it became a huge part of my life. These days, if I go more than three days without writing, I become a very difficult person to live with, haha! It’s a compulsion…
What genre(s) of Romance do your write, and why?
I have been concentrating on historical romance for the last four years or so, but I also have contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels published with Harlequin and the Wild Rose Press. Writing historical romance gives me a wonderful outlet for my history obsession and an excuse to read lots and lots of non-fiction books and watching numerous documentaries! However, I definitely write romance because I love LOVE!
What genre(s) of Romance do you read, and why?
I read historical, contemporary, and romantic suspense – I think if I had to choose one as a favorite, I would have to say historical 😊
What’s your writing schedule? Do you write every day?
I am lucky enough to be able to write full-time so I tend to write from 8.30am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday with a lunch break and dog walk in between as well as a couple of hours on Saturday. I try to take Sunday off completely!
Give us a glimpse of the surroundings where you write. Separate room? In the kitchen? At the dining room table?
I started on the kitchen table, but for the last four years, I have written from my home office which is the spare bedroom of my house. This room is my haven and I appreciate the space so much. I have a beautiful white desk with my planning boards in front of me, a window looking out onto our back garden and two walls with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves containing research books and novels.
Are you the kind of writer who needs total quiet to compose, or are you able to filter out the typical sounds of the day and use your tunnel vision?
I need total quiet to write but can edit and do my admin and/or social media content work with background noise. I need the silence to actually create.
7. Do you listen to music while you write, and if so, what kind? If not, why not?
No – I have just never felt the need. Lots of my writer friends have playlists for their different books, but it has never been a thing for me.
How did you come up with the plotline/idea for your current WIP?
My current work in progress is the second book in my Royal Maids series and is set in the court of the Prince and Princess of Wales who go on to become King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The idea for the plotline came to me when I read about Alexandra’s love of clothes and how she had been admired for her looks and style in the early 20th century the same way Princess Diana was admired in the late 20th century.
Which comes first for you – character or plot? And why?
It’s usually plot – I am often inspired by a historical building or a period drama I have seen on TV that I would have written differently. A plot will slowly form in my mind and then I have to wait for the characters to come forward and claim their spots in the book! I really enjoy getting to know my characters, but it isn’t until about a third way, or even halfway, through the first draft that I feel I know them well.
What 3 words describe you, the writer?
Hardworking, passionate, ambitious (Peggy here: I LOVELOVLOVE those descriptions!!!)
Rachel,The Person:
Tell us one unusual thing about yourself – not related to writing!
I have naturally curly hair and have not had my hair professionally cut since my wedding day in 1998 – my daughters or husband give it a quick trim whenever needed!
Who was your first love and what age were you?
Apart from childhood crushes, I would have to say my husband! We started dating when we were 18 😊
If you could relive one day, which one would it be? Think GROUNDHOG DAY, the movie for this one – you’ll have to live it over and over and….
Ooh, I have been blessed with many fabulous days in my life, but one that I will never forget and treasure forever was when my husband surprised me with a flight to Ireland and a two-night stay at Ashford Castle where romance writer Nora Roberts was hosting an afternoon tea and book signing.
I ADORE her books and it was a dream come true to talk to her and have her say hello again to me in the evening at the castle where she was staying, too.
What’s one thing you love about your significant other?
His generosity – he is such a generous person in every way and would help anyone who needed it. He has a very good heart.
If you had to give up one necessary-can’t-live-without-it item, what would it be?
My laptop, of course! 😊
What three words describe you, the person?
Funny (I hope!), kind, conscientious (AWWW!)
If you could sing a song with Jimmy Fallon, what would it be?
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
If you could hang out with any literary character from any book penned at any timeline, who would it be, why, and what would you do together?
The Artful Dodger from Oliver Twist – he would take me around all the dark, seedier places of Victorian London and teach me the art of survival. I love his character so much. He has always been an example of resilience to me rather than a petty criminal!
Bonus round
I love the Actor’s Studio show on Bravo, so this is my version of it:
Favorite sound : A running bath!
Least favorite sound: My children crying
Best song ever written :I Have Nothing (Whitney Houston)
Worst song ever written: Mr Blobby by Mr Blobby
Favorite actor and actress: Tom Hanks
Who would you want to be for 1 day and why? ( It can be anyone living or dead) Oprah Winfrey – I follow her on Instagram and her ranch looks amazing. I’d love to sit on her porch for breakfast and then contemplate my day/friends/family etc and then choose which famous person I’m going to call up to come over for dinner…
What turns you on? Books!
What turns you off? Housework…
Give me the worst 5 words ever heard on a first date ( here’s mine: “Is that your real hair?”)
Can I have 6? “How much do you love football?” hahah – yes, you can!!!!
What’s your version of a perfect day?
Writing in the morning, a long dog walk in the English countryside followed by dinner in an old pub, preferably Tudor.
It should be a dream come true to serve the Queen of England…
When Violet Parker is told she will be Queen Victoria’s personal housemaid, she cannot believe her good fortune. She finally has the chance to escape her overbearing mother, a servant to the Duchess of Kent.
Violet hopes to explore who she is and what the world has to offer without her mother’s schemes overshadowing her every thought and action.
Then she meets James Greene, assistant to the queen’s chief political adviser, Lord Melbourne. From entirely different backgrounds and social class, Violet and James should have neither need nor desire to speak to one another, yet through their service, their paths cross and their lives merge—as do their feelings.
Only Victoria’s court is not always the place for romance, but rather secrets, scandals, and conspiracies…
Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association as well as the Historical Novel Society and has thousands of social media followers all over the world.
Peggy here – I can’t thank you, Rachel, enough for coming to visit me today. I loved your interview and I’ve got my own pic of me with Nora, as well!!!! It was a top 5 day in my life when I met her and got to speak with her privately!!!! Good luck with Victoria and Violet – it sounds fabulous!!!)
I am just thrilled to be able to present to you -once again on her release day! – one of my favorite authors, Louise Stevens, and her newest Port Sunset Mystery, SUNSHINE, SELFIES, & SMUGGLERS!
It’s a tradition around here that Louise and her doppelganger, Donna Simonetta, visit me on their books’ release day and it’s always a supreme pleasure for me.
So, let’s get to it….. here’s Louise and the Port Sunset gang!
Smuggling, social media sensations, and shootings…just another summer in Port Sunset
Solving mysteries with my fun-loving grandmother Lulu, her friends, and Spud the corgi is my side hustle. By day I’m Millie Wentworth the assistant general manager of the swanky Gulf Palms Resort, so you wouldn’t think sleuthing would be in my skill set. But lately it has been, and since summer is our busy season in Port Sunset I’d hoped it would be murder-free. Is that too much to ask?
Apparently so, because when social influencer Merry Marissa’s yacht cruises into town, we’re suddenly up to our necks in smuggling, stalkers, and slaughter. I have more suspects than the Tipsy Turtle has mai tais. And I’m without my sleuthing team, because Lulu’s Crew are busy going viral to raise money for animal charities.
Can I unravel the mystery and find the killer before Lulu’s Crew and I become the next victims?
“I’m no expert, but I don’t think that’s how you do downward dog. What the
ever-loving fudge is she doing?” I watched a woman in a bikini roughly the size of four microchips strung together with dental floss as she posed on all fours on the beach.
“In all fairness it is a doggy position. Just not the yoga one,” Lulu said.
I swatted my grandmother’s arm. “Not helping, Lulu.”
“She’s been doing this the whole time, and whatever it is, it is not yoga.” My BFF Nell was attempting to lead a yoga practice for guests of the Gulf Palms Resort and Spa on the gorgeous Gulf Coast of Florida. “I’m not even sure she’s a hotel guest. She’s being very disruptive. I had to stop the class because people were getting so upset. Can you get her to stop sometime before my morning yoga practice is over?”
Nell was right, as the Assistant General Manager of the hotel, it was on me to put an end to this woman’s shenanigans. I pasted on my best professional smile and walked across the powdery white sand. “Excuse me––”
The woman looked directly at the smartphone she had positioned on a tripod with a professional-looking light ring to film whatever the heck it was she was doing. She beamed at the camera and said, “Sorry Merry Maniacs, but my public is interrupting. I’ll be right back to you, my lovelies.” She flashed a peace sign at the camera with a roguish wink and then crawled over to turn off the video recording. She stood up, flicked her long, expertly waved brown hair over her shoulder, put her hands on her hips, and glared at me. “Just who the f–––”
“Hello,” I interrupted before she could utter a very un-yoga-friendly word. Internally my professional smile might’ve wavered, but I kept it on my face as I stepped toward her with my hand extended. She scowled at my hand as if I were offering her rotten fish. I lowered my hand but responded pleasantly. “I’m Millie Wentworth, the Assistant General Manager of the Gulf Palms Resort and Spa. And you are?”
Her big brown eyes widened and I noticed even on the beach she had full make-up on and false eyelashes luxuriant enough that a breeze might’ve wafted by my face as she blinked at me. “Don’t you know who I am? I’m Merry Marissa.”
The name Merry Marissa meant nothing to me, in spite of her pronouncement of it as if she were telling me she was the Queen of England. “Ms. Marissa––”
“Not Ms. Marissa,” she snapped. “My name is Marrisa Merriweather. Merry Marissa is my social media handle. My brand. M-E-R-R-Y. Because I’m so fun-loving.”
At the moment, she didn’t seem fun-loving so much as cheesed off, but I let it slide.
Lulu cocked her head and looked at the woman. “I’ve seen Merry Marissa online before. I didn’t recognize you.” She turned to me and added, “She’s a big-time social influencer. Merry Marissa nodded. “The old lady is right. I am big time.” She looked my grandmother up and down and her jaw dropped when she got to Lulu’s white bobbed hair, currently streaked with a lovely shade of aqua. “You are obviously one well-informed person. And I love the hair! Don’t tell me you got it done in this podunk town.”
“I did.” Lulu jerked her thumb over her should at the historic pink resort where I worked. “At the Tranquility Spa and Salon in the hotel.”
“I’ll have to check it out. Keeping up my appearance is very important to my brand.”
Nell cleared her throat, and I jolted as I realized how off track our conversation had gotten. “I’m sorry, Ms. Merriweather, but Nell is leading a yoga practice for guests of the hotel, so I’m going to have to ask you to film elsewhere.”
She shook her head and snapped. “No way.”
“I’m sorry, what?” I asked.
“I’m trying to film myself attending the yoga class for my followers. Show them how ‘spiritual’ I can be.” Marissa made air quotes around the word spiritual and then snorted while she rolled her eyes.
“Yes, but these people are paying guests at our resort and actually participating in the practice, not just posing for pictures. And you are recording our guests for public display without their permission. I’m afraid I must insist you delete the video and move on, Ms. Merriweather.”
And if you prefer print copies, click this link: PRINT
Louise Stevens is the author of the Port Sunset Mysteries series. A lover of mysteries since her discovery of Nancy Drew many years ago, she is thrilled to be writing cozy mysteries now. She lives in Maryland with her husband, who also loves a good mystery, in a house packed with books.
Louise Stevens is the pen name of contemporary romance author Donna Simonetta
When the obnoxious guest in the penthouse is poisoned beside his private pool, my daily planner is turned upside down. I’m Millie Wentworth, Assistant General Manager of the swanky Gulf Palms Resort and Spa and solving the murder shouldn’t be my job, but the only food found near the body is a charcuterie board sent to the victim by yours truly.
The Port Sunset Police are looking my way until a shocking revelation shifts their attention to a friend. Suddenly, cracking the case moves to the top of my to-do list and it’s up to me to find the real killer and clear my friend’s name.
Uncovering the truth should be a breeze with me, my pink-haired grandmother, her rescue corgi, and her crew of fun-loving septuagenarian beach bunnies on the case. What could possibly go wrong?
****COZY MYSTERY OF THE YEAR FINALIST, N.N. Light’s Annual Book Awards****
“Get ready to curl up with your next favorite book!” USA Today Best-selling Author Claire Marti
“…one of the best cozy mysteries I’ve ever read.” N.N. Light’s Book Heaven
“…you won’t want this rollicking romp to end.” 5-Star Amazon Review
I’m Millie Wentworth and I never thought I’d be involved in another murder, but here I am smack dab in the middle of a crime wave at the swanky resort where I’m Assistant General Manager. It started with a major diamond heist and ended with a dead body on the beach.
When one of my grandmother Lulu’s group of fun-loving septuagenarian friends is a prime suspect it’s time for Lulu’s Crew, Spud the corgi, and me, to get sleuthing and uncover the real criminals.
And because dodging mobsters, international jewel thieves, and solving crimes isn’t stressful enough, my hypercritical parents are in town too. My mother doesn’t approve of Lulu and me in the best of times, and these are decidedly not the best of times. Plus she’s already planning my imaginary wedding to my kinda-sorta boyfriend Scott.
All I need to do is catch a murderer plus a jewel thief and survive my parents’ visit. No problem, right?
My good friend – and fellow Rone Nominee, Claire Marti, has the third book in her California Suits series, MONTEREY KING releasing today to the book-reading world. When I found out she had a new addition to the series, I just knew I had to spotlight it — and her!
MONTEREY KING
About the book…..
When former Army Major Cameron Taylor comes home a hero from his deployment in the Middle East his scars run deep – both physically and emotionally. But he’s starting over, running a luxury hotel with his best friends. And Lucy Goodwin, apparently…his high school sweetheart who he’s never quite managed to forget.
There’s only one reason Lucy’s been engaged – and walked away – three times and now he’s standing right in front of her. Cameron Taylor is the man she’s never stopped loving, even when he left her “for her own good” all those years ago. There was nothing good about it, that’s for sure. Just like there’d be nothing good about trying to break down Cameron’s walls now. But that doesn’t mean she’s not tempted to try…
***Monterey King is the third book in award-winning and USA Today bestselling author Claire Marti’s spin-off contemporary romance series, California Suits. The series follows the adventures of five best friends who are opening a string of luxury boutique hotels from La Jolla to Monterey to Beverly Hills as each one finds true love…usually where he least expects it. Each book is a standalone.
Excerpt….
But sharing the conference table with the hotel’s Managing Director, Cameron Taylor, who she hadn’t set eyes on since he’d dumped her thirteen years ago? Yeah, that explained why her pulse pounded in her temples like the massive surf crashing on the nearby Monterey shore. She paused in front of the closed conference room door, taking a moment to gather her composure.
“The door isn’t locked.” An unmistakable voice rasped from beside her.
She spun around and her throat tightened the moment her eyes locked with Cameron Taylor’s arctic blue gaze.
How could someone look so familiar yet like a stranger? Lucy studied his lean, angular face. His strong, slightly crooked nose was the same, as was the determined squareness of his jawline. Small lines fanned out from his arresting eyes and grooves bracketed his chiseled mouth, which was pressed into a firm line. His posture was ramrod straight––even more rigid after a dozen years serving overseas in the Army.
“Cam.” How many times had she imagined what she’d say if she ever saw him again? How many impassioned speeches had she rehearsed before moving on with her life?
He inclined his head. “Hi, Lucy.” His crisp tone was as remote as his stony expression. The voice of an acquaintance––not the man she’d shared the love of a lifetime with until he’d broken her heart.
Through impeccable self-control, if she did say so herself, she forced her lips to curve upward. “So… how are you?” Awkward, but it was the best she had to offer. She hadn’t expected to encounter him one-on-one, at least not yet.
“Fine, but we should go in. Ryan and Charlie are waiting.” Cam reached for the mahogany wooden door’s carved brass handle at the same time she did.
His long, blunt fingers brushed hers. A flash of heat sparked up her arm and she snatched her hand back. Muscle memory? Of course, Mr. Poker Face didn’t flinch as he pushed the large door open.
Bright light flooded the conference room and bathed the expansive space in a golden glow. Lucy blinked. January on the Monterey coastline wasn’t celebrated for clear blue skies, but the cloudy gray morning had cleared, and rays of sunshine exposed the rugged Pacific coastline beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Claire Marti is an award winning and USA Today Bestselling author of swoonworthy Contemporary Romance novels set in Southern California, including the Pacific Vista Ranch series and the California Suits series. She lives in San Diego with her husband, silly dog and three clever cats.
Claire started writing stories as soon as she was old enough to pick up pencil and paper. After graduating from the University of Virginia with a BA in English Literature, Claire was sidetracked by other careers, including practicing law, selling software for legal publishers, and managing a non-profit animal rescue for a Hollywood actress.
Finally, Claire followed her heart and now focuses on two of her true passions: writing romance and teaching yoga.
One of my Romance Gems sistahs, prolific and talented writer KARA O’NEAL, has a new book out, titled FELICITY’S FORTUNE for Magnolia Blossom Publishing and I asked her to give me a little info on it so I could share it with all of you. Here’s Kara….
I could hardly wait for the second book in my Gamblers and Gunslingers series – FELICITY’S FORTUNE – to release!
When we visited St. Joseph, Missouri, we had to stop at Jesse James’ house. While I was walking through those rooms, I wondered about his wife.
She’d set up a house, cooked meals, raised children…and her husband was an outlaw. She knew what he was, and that surprised me. Of course, who knew how she felt about his choices, and I’m sure it was hard to leave him since she loved him.
But I thought…what if she hadn’t known? What if a woman had married a man who was an outlaw, and she discovered it…
I had to give her a mighty hero, and so Butch Wilder grew in my mind’s eye. And he’s a good one. He had to be a little sinful, though, but he’s got a big, big, big heart!
I loved writing this story. Felicity’s daughters are the cutest little things.
I also enjoyed sending Felicity to Hell’s Half Acre, because God bless Texas, but that place was scary. It belonged in a book.
You know, that’s the best thing about being an author. You get to put cool places, events and people in your books.
I hope y’all enjoy Felicity and Butch’s story as much as I did! Happy reading!
ABOUT THE BOOK….
Felicity Capwell Archer had no idea she’d married a thief and a killer. And even though she’s the one who turns him in, people still think she helped her former husband steal and is now hiding the money. To protect herself from the repercussions and attacks, she hires Butch Wilder. Gambler. Gunslinger. And a giant who hides a heart of gold.
Butch Wilder grew up on the streets of New Orleans, learning how to fight, how to gamble and how to use a Colt .45 with deadly precision. When Felicity begs him to protect her family, she’s too damned pretty and too intriguing to turn down. Determined to avoid any emotional attachments and to keep it purely professional, Butch takes the job. But he finds himself sitting down to nice meals, walking her children to school and being part of a family for the first time.
Only by finding and returning the stolen loot can Felicity and her daughters ever truly be safe. Following clues she deciphers from her former husband’s letters, Felicity and Butch travel to the outlaw-infested Hell’s Half Acre. It’s madness, but Butch will do anything to protect Felicity. Even if it means his life.
A LITTLE EXCERPT…
When Butch reached Rickman’s office, he tried to see through the windows to the inside, but the grimy panes allowed for nothing. Cautious but unafraid, he walked in without hesitation.
But when he found who had come calling, he about swallowed his tongue. He stopped short, his hand on the knob, his mind devoid of all thought.
“Are you Mr. Wilder?”
Her honey voice poured through him, grabbing hold of his senses.
She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry to interrupt your work, sir, but I’m looking for Mr. Butch Wilder. Are you he?”
Snap out of it, man! Butch blinked then cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah. Yes. I’m Butch Wilder.” He shut the door.
She looked him over.
He steeled himself against the fear he might see in her eyes due to his size, but when her gaze touched his face, what he found was desperation. Confused and a little nervous, he wrapped his thumbs around his suspenders.
“Do you know who I am?”
Would it upset her if he did? But he couldn’t lie to her. Somehow she’d know if he did. “Yes.”
She twitched her lips as if frustrated by her infamy. He couldn’t blame her.
After letting out a slow exhale, she said, “My home, and by that I really refer to my children, my housekeeper and myself, has been under attack since my former husband was arrested and tried.”
So…she had gotten divorced. Or was it an annulment? He stayed quiet, not knowing what she wanted or if he was allowed to respond.
“We need constant protection until this is settled.” She waved a hand in the air. “Until either the…the hanging or…” She paused, and her gaze went distant.
He narrowed his eyes slightly. What bothered her? The event she hadn’t mentioned or the hanging?
She shook her head. “I apologize. The last weeks have been rather harrowing.”
He could imagine. From the arrest, to the trial, to now…
A portion of what she’d said registered in his mind. “I’m sorry, ma’am. But why are you here? You mentioned…protection?” Hell. Was she going to ask him to…
“Yes. The sheriff’s office can’t provide anyone, so he suggested I hire you.”
Butch’s mind whirled with the implications.
“I will pay you well, plus meals, because I would prefer it if you moved into my home. People come at all times of the day and night. I’m fearful of what has occurred in my absence for the last few hours.” She pressed two fingers to her temple and rubbed. “Not that I can do anything about it,” she muttered. She let out a weary exhale.
While she struggled with exhaustion, he tried to make sense of what she was offering. It was ridiculous. Him? Butch Wilder? Protect her? And her family?
Award-winning author, Kara O’Neal is a teacher and lives in Texas with her husband and three children She writes stories with strong family ties, lots of romance, and guaranteed happy endings! Please visit her at www.karaoneal.com.
Peggy Jaeger, Author 