I don’t remember how long I stared at the dresser drawer that once held Kathleen’s lingerie. But it was a while.
Eventually, I left my bedroom to join my ex-wife and our daughter for dinner. I went through the motions of the mealtime ritual, but my thoughts and concerns about Kathleen distracted me. I hadn’t heard if she’d arrived in Denver and was aware of her absence.
Despite our strained relationship, it was comforting to know I could see her at the office. As painful as our growing separation was, I’d held out hope for us. Since returning to work, I’d planned to seize every opportunity to nurture our love and find a way back into her arms. But now that she had gone to Colorado, there was nothing to look forward to.
I left my untouched dinner on the plate. I offered Allison an expression of regret and packed up my uneaten food for lunch the following day. I helped with the dishes, and when there was nothing left to do, I stepped outside and took a seat on the swinging bench I’d once shared with Kathleen.
At the beginning of the summer, we’d sat in this spot together and talked about Allison. I remembered with heartache how Kathleen promised me she would never interfere with my family. She never wanted to cause trouble between Allison and me. As far as I was concerned, Kathleen had kept her promise. The reason I was sitting there alone was because I hadn’t followed her example.
I leaned forward, placing my elbows on my knees and resting my face in my palms. I missed Kathleen. I’d missed her for weeks, but with her away from Bend, I no longer felt whole. I worried she was gone for good. I hadn’t experienced fear like this since the day of Heide’s accident. I hadn’t grieved like this since my father died. I didn’t know how to win Kathleen back, but I didn’t want to live the rest of my life without her.
“Jack?” Allison’s soft voice at the same moment she rested a light hand on my shoulder startled me. Consumed in my own emotions, I hadn’t noticed her approach. I sat bolt upright and realized I was crying. It wasn’t something I was prone to, and I brushed a hand over my eyes to remove the evidence.
Allison sat next to me, angling her body toward mine. When I dropped my hand back to my lap, she cradled it in her own. It was a touch, a fit, I remembered well. It wasn’t the hand I was desperate to hold; nevertheless Allison’s offer of comfort was welcome.
We sat still, adjusting to the moment. I couldn’t make eye contact with her. Instead, I distracted myself by looking at the recognizable outline of the Big Dipper.
“What’s the matter?” she finally asked.
I hesitated to answer.
“Please,” she persisted. “Let me help. Don’t shut me out anymore.”
I blinked, thinking of my past actions and Kathleen’s need to secure a peaceful future.
“It’s Kathleen,” I confessed while continuing to watch the stars. “I’ll understand if she’s the last person you want to talk about.”
“Will things be all right between the two of you?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Last weekend was the first time I’d seen her since we were in Portland.”
I looked at Allison. “Where did you see her?”
“Here. She drove you to the house. You were drunk, so I asked her to take you to her place until you sobered up.”
“Oh? I don’t remember that.”
“You were passed out in her car, so that’s not surprising.” Allison’s grip on my hand tightened just a bit.
I waited to hear what she would reveal next.
“She asked me why I left you.”
“What did you tell her?”
“Nothing, because the question means one of two things. You either haven’t told her why, or she doesn’t trust the information you gave her. Knowing you the way I do, I’m certain it’s both.”
I thought long and hard about Allison’s conclusion. If there was anyone capable of understanding both my mind and Kathleen’s, it was my ex-wife. I looked at her and took the leap of faith.
“She thinks I want you back.”
Allison leaned back as confusion flashed across her face. “Who gave her that idea?”
“Me.”
Allison’s eyes grew wide. “You?”
Tag: novel
MERCY by @Debra_Anastasia New Release #Romance #Suspense
Flash Drive #Giveaway and April #KU Challenge: SPIKED
Lots of giveaways and news to share from Jennifer Lane Books!
I’m pairing with USB Memory Direct to offer a giveaway of three flash drives loaded with a Jennifer Lane ebook of your choice.
Enter on the Rafflecopter.
Also, SPIKED (Blocked #3) is part of the Love Kissed Books KU Challenge. We struggle to like each other in this heated political climate, and the NA Sports Romance Blocked series is about finding love despite our differences. Love across the aisle!
Have you participated in the Kindle Unlimited Challenge? You can win a Kindle and Amazon gift cards by reading awesome books.
Finally, are you a Prison Break fan? I’m a HUGE fanatic and writing fan fiction for the show is what started my crazy author adventure. I’m so psyched for the show’s return this April! If you haven’t seen it, check out season one on Netflix.
Prison Break inspired my debut novel WITH GOOD BEHAVIOR, which will be re-released soon after a fresh, new edit.
My work in progress is a romantic suspense novel: Twin Sacrifice. Stay tuned for excerpts from this psychological thriller.
#IWSG Finding Time to Write in a Busy Day
Welcome to September’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group. Join us at Alex Cavanaugh’s BLOG.
This month’s question…
How do you find time to write in your busy day?
My answer?
I don’t. I don’t write on the weekdays because my psychologist job takes too much out of me. Today I trained a new employee followed by seven straight psychotherapy clients, and combined with a workout, I barely have the energy to write a blog post, much less a book chapter!
But the weekends are another matter. I try to write a 4,000-word chapter each weekend. Therefore it takes me about 8 months to complete a novel. Some weekends I devote to other fun and enriching activities like travel.
Since I finished my latest novel SPIKED (Blocked #3) in late July, I’ve been chilling on the weekends. It’s been low-key but also a tad boring. I’m jonesing to start writing a new project soon.
If you’d like to share a release post for Spiked on 10-1-16, please email me at jenniferlanebooks at gmail and I’ll send you the html.
Happy writing! May we all eke out more time for our craft.
SUGARY SWEETS by @AMWillard1 #Romance #NewRelease
#IWSG This is the EXCITING Stuff! #BookSigning #CoverReveal
Happy October to All Writers.
Join us for the Insecure Writers Support Group, hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh HERE. We vent about our worries and support each other through the lonely journey.
After writing for nine months, I’m excited for the fun part: releasing a novel!
We are editing ACED (Blocked #2), a New Adult volleyball romance. We hope for a release date in November of 2015. The cover for Aced showcases hot Latino med student Alejandro Ramirez, and I’m eager to share it with the world.
Want to help me with the cover reveal on 10-21-15? Sign up HERE.
Over the weekend I attended the book signing, *Sassy in Savannah*. There was a huge turnout despite the rain plaguing South Carolina, and I had a blast meeting readers like Becca.
What’s your favorite book swag? I have bookmarks, of course, but I like to offer something more creative. I decided to buy volleyball key chains and print them myself, and they were a big hit.
After the book signing, we headed south for some sunshine in St. Augustine, Florida. It was beautiful visiting America’s oldest city. I am covered in mosquito bites. *itches*
Hope you have an opportune October!
Cover Reveal Sign Ups: ACED (Blocked #2) #NA #Sports #Romance
The challenge: Start with this book cover…
And create a cover for the sequel: ACED (Blocked #2). Book designer Coreen Montagna and I have one thing to say:
Check out whether we aced this challenge by joining us for the cover reveal for Aced. If you have a blog or Facebook page, you’re ready to post the cover, spread the word, and enter giveaways.
The cover reveal is WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2015.
To sign up, complete the form below or go HERE.
And please join Mitsy Princell and me for a Facebook Cover Reveal Party the day before on 10-20-15 HERE. Over 20 authors will give away stuff!
New Release VIBRIZZIO by @NickiElson3D #Naughty #Romance
Great news, ladies – VVVVVVIBRIZZIO by Nicki Elson is here! Guys, uhm, well…
Lyssa Bates doesn’t need a man. Not when the world is fully-stocked with double A batteries (long-lasting) and a wide array of options in Amazon’s health and sexual wellness category. Thank the gods of Internet ordering.
After yet another failed relationship, the twenty-six-year-old investment analyst is convinced that real guys aren’t ever going to live up to her expectations—so why should she bother with them when the only thing standing between her and her next mind-blowing O is the case in which she keeps Vibrizzio? Yep. She gave it a name. An Italian name!
She’s determined to keep her dating life purely electronic…though she occasionally fantasizes about Hayden King, the delicious new associate she just got partnered with at work.
As the two young professionals travel together around the country for business, their flirty working relationship develops into a close friendship that hurtles toward something more.
Between hot tub confessions in Baltimore, an accidental kiss in Dallas, and an all-nighter in Chicago, Hayden proves himself to be better than any fantasy, and Vibrizzio’s days may finally be numbered.
I’m so excited this book is out in the world–I LOVED it. Come back May 5th for my review and giveaway on the blog tour!
Release Day Launch: It’s a Date by J. Epps & S. Brümmer
Title: It’s A Date
Authors: J. Epps & S. Brümmer
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Cover Designer: Judi Perkins
Release Date: January 15th 2015
Worlds are realigned on one winter’s night.
“The thunderous storm that he is intensifies and I’m about to beg him for this.”
The BallerinaI’ve had plenty of practice being graceful, but he has my heart tripping over my pointe shoes. I’ve conditioned myself to rely on nobody else and I won’t start now. I’ll push back as hard as I can. However, he seems to be determined on pulling down the wall I use to separate myself from others. Removing myself from his vise grip just became excruciatingly difficult. The storm that follows this man—no, the storm that is this man—has given me more than what I’ve bargained for.
The StormThe primal need I have for her is deeper than any I’ve experienced before. My world has shifted in more ways than one, and I’m not going to stand around and be held hostage where I don’t belong. The next move I make won’t be for anyone else but myself, and if it happens to bring my world to a screeching halt, then I’m not going to fight it. I’m determined. I want her.
AmazonUS | AmazonUK | AmazonAU | AmazonCAJess & Sasha –JSAuthors. The co-authors come as a package deal with extravagant ribbons laced on top. Their combined enthusiasm is seen as a pink sunrise, uniquely captivating. They share a love for writing, fictional romance, passion-fruit tea lemonade, sweetened and shaken on ice, as well as the color pink. Their combined efforts to share their internal monologues, since they share a brain, can be found in The Date Series.
J. Epps
Jess is a registered dental hygienist by day and a contemporary romance author by night. She currently resides in the Greater St. Louis area with her husband of over a year. When Jess isn’t writing (meaning her characters aren’t demanding her undivided attention), she enjoys reading books, scouring Pinterest, collecting fountain pens, and traveling with her husband.
S. Brümmer
A self-published author by night and all around busybody by day, Sasha is an international baby, born in gorgeous South Africa. Her cultured lifestyle is one that many don’t get to experience. Four countries, and a co-author later, she has published her first book of The Date Series. When she’s not preoccupied with her imposing owl fixation, she’s hashing out new ways to translate a titillating and libidinous scene onto a page.
Facebook | Twitter | TSU | Website GoodreadsJESS | GoodreadsSASHA | Newsletter
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The Jeweler by @BeckAndersonID : #Review and #Interview
Today I have the pleasure of hosting excellent author BECK ANDERSON! Her new release The Jeweler is zipping up the charts just as good things are happening for her debut novel Fix You.
I’ll share my review of The Jeweler, followed by an interview with Beck. But first I want to alert you to a super generous giveaway Beck is hosting: win a Kindle Fire!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Beck is also giving away an ebook of The Jeweler to one lucky commenter for this blog post. Please leave your email address in your comment.
The Jeweler by Beck Anderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Intriguing Plot, Quirky Characters
I loved Beck Anderson’s debut novel Fix You, so I jumped at the chance to read an ARC of her second novel, The Jeweler. When I heard about the clever plot, I was even more excited.
Fender Barnes is a cynical jeweler who regards his eager, love-struck, engagement-ring-buying customer Brad with disdain. Love isn’t real, right? But then Brad dies in a car accident right outside the jewelry shop, and Fender knows he needs to get the ring to its intended recipient: Ginger Stevens. But Fender never does anything right or easily, and when he sees the grieving woman at Brad’s funeral, things go pear-shaped.
Ginger is a ski instructor who’s stunned by her boyfriend’s death. She’s “love, light, green eyes, and freckles.” Just like in Fix You, the author’s portrayal of grief is authentic and eloquent:
The house was filled with his things, their things together. What upset her was looking at all the mundane stuff. Toothbrush. Who cared about his toothbrush? How could she get rid of it, though? A person accumulated stuff, never figuring he wouldn’t be around to tie up the loose ends. Brad had arrogant, unfinished stuff, like half-drunk Gatorade bottles in the fridge.
In Fix You, the heroine’s husband died. In The Jeweler, the heroine’s almost-fiance kicks the bucket. Which begs the question: is Beck Anderson’s husband worried at all? 😉 I hope he’s exercising and taking his fish oil.
There’s a host of wacky side characters, including Fender’s dad “Pop”, a man with some romantic tricks up his sleeve, and his bff Sam, a slovenly guy who shows his affection the best way a male buddy can: by insulting the hell out of Fender.
As per usual, Pop focused on the woman in the conversation. “Fender went after a girl? Really? Does this mean little Sandy didn’t make you swear off women forever?”
Sam brightened. “I’d almost forgotten about Sandy. Isn’t she the one that wrote I HATE YOU with weed killer on your front lawn?”
I love the understated humor.
Jewelry customers Jimmy the mobster and his bling-seeking girlfriend Naomi provide some color as well. Naomi has a heart-to-heart with Fender:
“That’s what my therapist says. She says no woman should be bought for a shiny piece of glass.”
Fender realized he was in the wrong profession, obviously. He should be blowing smoke up somebody’s ass for a hundred bucks an hour.
Hey! Therapists make way more than $100 an hour now, hehe.
This is a sweet and subtle love story, and I encourage you to give it a try!
View all my reviews
And now an interview with author Beck Anderson: