Category Archives: Blurb

PROMO BLITZ ~ It Ain’t Me Babe by Tillie Cole

 

On sale for a limited time for only 99c

 

Sinning never felt so good…
A fortuitous encounter.
A meeting that should never have happened.

Many years ago, two children from completely different worlds forged a connection, a fateful connection, an unbreakable bond that would change their lives forever…

Salome knows only one way to live—under Prophet David’s rule. In the commune she calls home, Salome knows nothing of life beyond her strict faith, nor of life beyond the Fence—the fence that cages her, keeps her trapped in an endless cycle of misery. A life she believes she is destined to always lead, until a horrific event sets her free.

Fleeing the absolute safety of all she has ever known, Salome is thrust into the world outside, a frightening world full of uncertainty and sin; into the protective arms of a person she believed she would never see again.

River ‘Styx’ Nash knows one thing for certain in life—he was born and bred to wear a cut. Raised in a turbulent world of sex, Harleys, and drugs, Styx, unexpectedly has the heavy burden of the Hades Hangmen gavel thrust upon him, and all at the ripe old age of twenty-six—much to his rivals’ delight.

Haunted by a crushing speech impediment, Styx quickly learns to deal with his haters. Powerful fists, an iron jaw and the skillful use of his treasured German blade has earned him a fearsome reputation as a man not to be messed with in the shadowy world of outlaw MC’s. A reputation that successfully keeps most people far, far away.

Styx has one rule in life—never let anyone get too close. It’s a plan that he has stuck to for years, that is, until a young woman is found injured on his lot… a woman who looks uncannily familiar, a woman who clearly does not belong in his world, yet a woman he feels reluctant to let go…

** A Dark Contemporary MC Romance/New Adult Novel. Contains sexual situations, violence, sensitive and taboo subjects, offensive language and mature topics. Recommended for age 18 years and up**

 



 


Tillie Cole hails from a small town in the North-East of England. She grew up on a farm with her English mother, Scottish father and older sister and a multitude of rescue animals. As soon as she could, Tillie left her rural roots for the bright lights of the big city.

After graduating from Newcastle University with a BA Hons in Religious Studies, Tillie followed her Professional Rugby player husband around the world for a decade, becoming a teacher in between and thoroughly enjoyed teaching High School students Social Studies before putting pen to paper, and finishing her first novel.

Tillie has now settled in Austin, Texas, where she is finally able to sit down and write, throwing herself into fantasy worlds and the fabulous minds of her characters.

Tillie is both an independent and traditionally published author, and writes many genres including: Contemporary Romance, Dark Romance, Young Adult and New Adult novels.

When she is not writing, Tillie enjoys nothing more than curling up on her couch watching movies, drinking far too much coffee, while convincing herself that she really doesn’t need that extra square of chocolate.

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BLOG TOUR ~ A Flaw so Beautiful by Alora Kate

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Title: A Flaw so Beautiful
Author: Alora Kate

Genre: Contemporary New Adult

Blog Tour: January 24th-February 7th

 

Buy Links:

 

Amazon US: 

GIVEAWAY!

 



Check out what reviewers are saying about this amazing new release!

 

“Alora Kate has a very talented writing style, that is not only emotionally captivating, but highly realistic with a dark edge. I couldn’t turn the pages quickly enough trying to find out Ashton’s haunting story.” ~ Jennifer, The Power of Three Readers

 

“Absolutely hands down the best book I’ve read in a long time. Alora Kate blew me away with this heartfelt story of survival.” ~ Marnie Warren

 

“When I was done reading it, I sat and cried my eyes out. It hit home on many levels for me. The first book that made me feel like this was Danielle Steele’s Malice. Both have incredible characters who show you their inner workings and how to grow and change the course of your life for the better. This is a truly incredible book, and Alora’s best book to date.” ~ Shani, The Chronicles of an Abibliophobiac

 



Synopsis:

 

Lincoln:

Catching sight of my neighbor’s ass in the hallway the day I moved in more than piqued my interest. It’s not just the body that has my attention. She’s mysterious, hiding behind sunglasses that cover most of her face. I ask her name and try to get her to talk on the rare occasions I see her in the hallway, but every time she ignores me and turns away. I need to know more about this woman, I can’t get her out of my head. Do I keep trying? Do I keep asking her name?


Ashton:

I’m barely holding on. I’m always on the edge, even after all these years. I live every day the same and I can’t change who I am no matter how much I try. My new neighbor won’t give up asking my name and trying to make conversation with me. If he knew me he wouldn’t keep trying. I’m a lost cause.



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Excerpt:

I sucked in a breath. “Are you trying to kill me?”
“A little dramatic don’t you think, Ashton.” She stood up and smoothed out her clothes.
Suzanne was tall, skinny, and blonde and sometimes she wore glasses. Other than that, I don’t pay attention to people or the unique details they all have. They all blend into categories, and I can’t see past that. They are short or tall, fat or skinny, and the only other thing I notice is usually their hair color. And I guess glasses. Sometimes those stick out to me.
My world is boring.
Bland.
Dull and lifeless.   
Sometimes the beating of my heart is the only thing that reminds me that I’m alive.
“I’m scared, Suzanne.”
I’m always so fucking scared.
“Anxiety can do that to you.”



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About The Author:

 

Alora Kate is a multi-genre author who likes to be bold and original; stepping outside of the box and bringing her readers fresh characters from all parts of life. She’s a mother, college student, photographer, and graphic designer. She resides in northern MN with her son, where she plans to stay for a long time despite the cold winters.

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PROMO ~ Texas Two Step (Texas Montgomery Mavericks, #1 ) by Cynthia D’Alba

 

Texas Two Step;
Texas Montgomery Mavericks, Book 1
by Cynthia D’Alba

Date of Publication: February 28, 2012


Blurb

Their love never died, but her secrets could break his trust beyond repair.

After six years and too much self-recrimination, rancher Mitch Landry is ready to admit he was wrong. He’d loved Olivia Montgomery but commitment wasn’t high on his list back then. That was his first mistake. He’s just divorced his second, and he’s set to do whatever it takes to convince Olivia to give him another try.

Through hard work, determination and more than a few tears, Olivia survived the break-up with Mitch. She’s rebuilt her life around her business and the son she loves more than life itself. She’s not proud of the mistakes she’s made—particularly the secrets she’s kept—but when life hands you manure, you use it to make something better of yourself…lest you get stuck in it.

At a hot, muggy Dallas wedding, they reconnect. Olivia’s first instinct is to play it cool, but after one devastating kiss things flare real out of control, real fast. Maybe a quick roll in the hay will get him out of her system once and for all. Funny thing about hay though, once it’s tangled in your hair, getting it out risks revealing things that were never meant to see the light of day.

Warning: Contains hot sex, a vindictive ex-wife, and hot chocolate chip cookies.

Available From

 

About the Author

I was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas and lived there until I went off to college at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville (Go Razorbacks!). I’ve lived in Little Rock, Memphis, back to Little Rock, and finally back home to Hot Springs, where my husband and I live on a lake.

I spent seventeen years in the healthcare field. I worked as an RN, taught Obstetrics in an RN program, coordinated a prenatal screening program and then was Medical Services Director at the University of Tennessee, Memphis and ended my medical career as an Administrator for a private group medical practice. I missed academic and left medicine to return to the University of Memphis as Director of Graduate Programs at the Fogelman College of Business. I grabbed the opportunity to return to Arkansas by taking a position as Assistant Dean for Executive Programs in the College of Business at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. It was there that I finished my education by earning a doctorate in Higher Education Administration. In 2002, I retired and took up the pastime that had consumed all my spare time my entire life –reading, a new book every day. I’ve been a reader as far back as I can remember – including forging letters from my mother when I was in grade school so I could stay in from recess and read! I cut my teeth on Nancy Drew, Trixie Beldon, and The Hardy Boys.

When I decided to try my hand at writing, I did what any academic would do; I decided to get as much information about the craft as I could. I traveled a great deal in 2006, meeting people and learning about writing as an art.

Since my husband retired in 2003, we’ve split our time between home in Arkansas and home in our RV on the road somewhere. But we don’t travel alone. We have Maggie (Border Collie), Jill (Flat Coated Retriever) and Panama (Spoiled Parrot).

So, that’s my story. I travel. I read. I write. I erase what I wrote. And FINALLY…I can say…I SOLD!

Look for me on the road! You never know when we might meet!

Find Cynthia D’Alba Online

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PROMO ~ Taming Sugar by Rebecca Grace Allen

 

Taming Sugar
by Rebecca Grace Allen

Date of Publication: January 19, 2017


Blurb

A modern day, BDSM, Taming of the Shrew.

After being dropped from the best role she’d ever gotten, actress Roxy Cavanaugh is on a week’s vacation to work on her patience. Being holed up in a little cabin isn’t doing much to help her, and neither is meeting sexy property manager Hunter Finn. Unfazed by her willful determination, Finn might be the first man strong enough to take her…if they don’t kill each other first.

Available From

 

About Rebecca Grace Allen

Rebecca Grace Allen writes kinky new adult and hot contemporary BDSM romance. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English with a double concentration in Creative Writing and Literary Comparison, as well as a Master of Science in Elementary Education, both of which seemed like good ideas at the time. After stumbling through careers in entertainment, publishing, law and teaching, she’s returned to her first love: writing. A self-admitted caffeine addict and gym rat, she currently lives in upstate New York with her husband, two parakeets, and a cat with a very unusual foot fetish. – See more at: http://www.rebeccagraceallen.com/about

Find Rebecca Grace Allen Online

 

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COVER REVEAL ~ IF YOU WERE MINE by Melanie Harlow

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If You Were Mine, an all-new sexy and emotional standalone from
USA Today Bestselling author Melanie Harlow is coming February 28th!

If You Were Mine
by Melanie Harlow

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Release Date: February 28th, 2017
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Photographer: Lauren Watson Perry, Perrywinkle Photography
Cover Designer: Letitia Hasser, RBA Designs

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Theo MacLeod wasn’t supposed to be the one.

Tall, dark and handsome suits me just fine, but the cocky grin, know-it-all attitude, and mammoth ego?
No thanks. I only hired him so I wouldn’t have to sit at the singles table again. It was just pretend.

He wasn’t supposed to kiss me.

My heart wasn’t supposed to pound.

We weren’t supposed to spend the night together — the hottest night of my life.

One night turns into a snowed-in weekend away, and even the blizzard of the century can’t cool the fire between us. I can’t get enough— of his smile, of his body, of the way he makes me feel.

We’re nothing alike. He’s a daredevil, and I’m a nervous Nellie. He’s a drifter, and I want to put down roots.
He’s an opportunist with a checkered past, and I’m a Girl Scout volunteer.

But none of it matters when I’m in his arms.

I know he’s made mistakes. I know his wounds are deep, and he doesn’t trust easily.
I know he doesn’t believe he could ever be enough to make me happy, but he could.

All he has to do is stay.


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Preorder Today!

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Amazon UK: 
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Add to Goodreads: 


About the Author:melanieharlowauthorpic

Melanie Harlow likes her martinis dry, her heels high, and her history with the naughty bits left in. When she’s not writing or reading, she gets her kicks from TV series like VEEP, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, and Homeland. She occasionally runs three miles, but only so she can have more gin and steak.

Melanie is the author of the HAPPY CRAZY LOVE series, the FRENCHED series, and the sexy historical SPEAK EASY duet, set in the 1920s. She lifts her glass to romance readers and writers from her home near Detroit, MI, where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and pet rabbit.

Connect with Melanie:

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Website: 
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RELEASE BLITZ ~ Little Black Dress – Charity Anthology

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Little Black Dress – Anthology

All net proceeds donated to Gilda’s Club – Rochester charity

Only 99 cents and available on Kindle Unlimited!!

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There’s something about the little black dress. The go-to wisp of material that’s perfect for any occasion. The quintessential LBD hugs, stretches, and moves with the female form. Every woman needs one at some point, and sometimes that means borrowing from a friend.

Starting with Abby, this lucky LBD makes its way into the stories of Lucy, Katie, and Winnie right when they need it most.
Four women, four stories, and four happily ever afters…
And it all started with one little black dress.

Warning: Keep your hands off our Little Black Dress if you’re not 18.


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All net proceeds will be donated to Gilda’s Club, Rochester. With over 1,200 FREE programs offered to men, women, teens, and children, they offer much-needed social and emotional support to those living with cancer, their friends, and family.


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Buy Little Black Dress on Amazon.com for only 99 cents or read for free on Kindle Unlimited!

Buy Little Black Dress on Amazon.co.uk

Buy Little Black Dress on Amazon.ca

Buy Little Black Dress on Amazon.com.au


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Sarah O’Rourke: 

Brynne Asher: 

Layla Frost: 

Sarah Curtis: 


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RELEASE DAY BLITZ ~ Everything I Left Behind by Christina Emery

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MwB_1_EILB_Cover_Amz_FinalSome people never grow up, and there are some people you never grow out of no matter how hard you try.

She’s irrational. He’s crass. She wanted out of South Boston. He never wanted to leave. She keeps him at a distance. He refuses to leave her side. Together, Colleen Frasier and Bradley Patrick are ridiculous and juvenile. Apart, they’re just plain miserable.

While Colleen has been off chasing her dreams, Brad has been idly waiting for her to realize what she means to him. A birthday trip to Vegas and a night of drinking has Brad proposing to Colleen. One night. One birthday wish. And tomorrow everything goes back to normal. Or does it?

Everything I Left Behind (originally titled Marital Bitch) is the first book in the Men with Badges series about sweet and sexy alphas who know what they want and go after it.

ADD TO GOODREADS

 


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Brave heroes. Bold heroines. Extraordinary loves.

Christina Emery is the real-life alter-ego of dark contemporary romance author, JC Emery. While JC geeks out researching blood splatter patterns and assault rifles, Christina is a die-heard romantic who gets choked up while watching commercials, but sshhh– that’s a secret. Still searching for her very own hero, Christina spends her time creating men she wishes were real and heroines she envies. A Northern California native, Christina has an impressive collection of flip flops, but shelves them in the winter so she can build as many snowmen as possible from her home in Southwestern Illinois. Christina is the author of the Men with Badges series– standalone contemporary romances about sexy lawmen who know what they want and go after it.

FACEBOOK FAN GROUP | Website | Facebook | Twitter

 


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RELEASE BLITZ ~ Embody (Full Circle Series) by SE Hall

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Title: Embody
Full Circle Series

Author: S.E. Hall

Genre: New Adult Romance

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My world changed when I met Bellamy Morgan.
Just one problem — she’s my little sister’s best friend.

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I’m not “damaged.” No horrible childhood or demons in my past I’m trying to outrun. In fact, my family is ideal — funny, supportive and filled with couples that all follow “our” golden rule:

Find her. Protect her. Love only her, with everything you are, every day, for the rest of your life.

So why is it the mere thought of a monogamous relationship, more than one night with the same woman, sends me bolting in the other direction?

Because I hadn’t met Bellamy Morgan yet.

When I do cross paths with her, everything starts to slowly make sense. Why men change overnight — suddenly blind to all women but her, happy to hold her purse and watch corny movies.

Just one problem — she’s my little sister’s best friend.

 

Embody is a spin-off, STANDALONE novel from the bestselling Evolve Series.

 

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Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon AU
iBooks | B&N


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S.E. Hall

S.E. Hall, lover of all things anticipation and romance, is the author of The Evolve Series: Emerge, Embrace, Entangled, Entice, Endure and companion novellas Baby Mama Drama and Guide for Tools Looking to Date My Daughter by character Sawyer Beckett. S.E. also wrote the standalone, Finally Found novels Pretty Instinct and Pretty Remedy and her latest release, standalone, contemporary romance Unstable.

Her co-written works include The Provocative Professions Collection: Stirred Up, Packaged and Handled 1&2, One Naughty Night and full-length, standalone novels Matched and Filthy Foreign Exchange with Angela Graham as well as Conspire, a romantic suspense, written with Erin Noelle.

S.E. resides in Arkansas with her husband of 20 years and 3 daughters of the home. When not writing or reading, she can be found “enthusiastically cheering” on one of her girls’ softball games.

 

Facebook | Twitter |Website | Amazon | Goodreads | Instagram | Newsletter | SE Hall’s Crew



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Enter to win a $20 Amazon Gift Card!

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BLOG TOUR ~ Fifteen Nights by Zoe Lee

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Fifteen Nights
by Zoe Lee

Publication Date: January 26th, 2017

Genre: Contemporary Romance

An all new STANDALONE novel from Zoe Lee is now LIVE!!

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The deeper they look, the harder they fall.

Jamie Houston was supposed to just be Leda Riveau’s Thursday night (and maybe Friday morning) fun.

Leda has awesome brothers, friends who are as allergic to emotions as she is, and a great job. She’s back in her hometown, Maybelle County, after a romantic and professional disaster three years ago in Nashville. It might not be what she planned when she was a teenager, but it’s perfect.

Or, well, it’s almost perfect. Because Leda is still angry and bitter about Nashville, and everyone knows it. She hates romance and doesn’t do relationships, and her younger brother’s trying to get her to be nicer. But she’s not nice. She even has her own hashtag: #ledagoesnuclear.

Then she sees Jamie again, when he’s between serious girlfriends, and discovers that the chemistry she’s always suspected is right there, ready to explode if she lets it.

Jamie is a serial monogamist who’s always liked Leda, but the timing’s never been right. After he sees her while they’re both single for the first time since high school, he knows he wants to be with her. Everybody knows she doesn’t date and doesn’t get serious, but he’s always serious, especially because he has a three-year-old son and a three-hour commute to get from work to Leda.

What starts out as a casual Thursday night arrangement gets messy when Leda and Jamie also have interfering friends, sad brothers, a pushy mom, an amazing son, and chemistry so intense it’s scary.

How does a man who needs forever win a woman who hates romance?

Add to Goodreads: 


Read Today!

(now free in KU)

Amazon US

Amazon UK


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Excerpt:

I stalk-strolled towards her, my patience stretched paper-thin by desire.

I crowded close, so tall and wide that she couldn’t see anything else but me, and my hand cupped her waist. She stumbled against the wall, her feet wide apart to keep her balanced.

“You’re so damn tall,”I murmured. Still a few inches shorter than I was in her heels, she angled her head back, her hair scraping the textured wallpaper, to meet my eyes again. My thumb stroked in arcs over her hips and I saw her try to suppress a shiver. “You must be six-three in those heels. Usually I can’t look a woman in the eye unless we’re lying down.

”Her eyes flashed fire and she asked belligerently, “Are you going to keep me here till midnight?”

I ran my fingertips down her earlobes and chandelier earrings, not bothering to confirm what was obvious. I knew she didn’t want to go anywhere either. If Leda Riveau didn’t want to be somewhere, she sure as hell would’ve told me so and moved.

When the crowd screamed and chorused “Happy New Year,”I half-smiled.

My face dipped until the tips of our noses grazed together, testing the boundaries, and when she only parted her red lips, I laid mine against them for the first time.

Light flickered behind my closed eyelids as her mouth softened a fraction.

But I didn’t want her soft, I wanted her fierce and dynamic, so I caught her around the waist. My voice dropped in volume and register while I demanded, “Kiss me harder, Leda.”

Her arms wound around me and her nails dug into my neck, scratching hard as she swooped in and bit at my bottom lip before her nimble tongue pushed into my mouth.

I couldn’t have stopped the heartfelt moan that escaped into the air between our open lips.

But at the noise, she pulled back sharply and looked at me, brows creasing. I didn’t know what had made Dunk say what he had, but I knew plenty of gossip about everyone in Maybelle, and I’d never heard so much as a word about her sleeping around.

I wanted to reassure her, but I knew that the usual platitudes about how she was beautiful and Dunk was a fucking idiot wouldn’t work because they’d make her feel too vulnerable. My best shot was probably self-deprecation, to shift the attention to my shit and away from her.

So I hooked her hair behind her ears, smoothing the disarray I’d caused.

“Do you know how many women run from this?”I pointed at my eyes. “I always have to hide it. I haven’t been able to do that with you tonight, and all you’ve done is stare right back.”

“I, uh, like it. It makes me feel special,”she practically stammered. “And that’s incredibly…”She swallowed, her eyes dipping down to my mouth again. “…tempting.”

My gaze sharpened with desire. “I would like to make love with you.”

She jabbed a finger in my chest. “You cannot call it that,”she ordered. “No bullshit about how you were moon-eyed over me half our lives ago when we didn’t know shit about shit.”

I grabbed her finger and reeled her in.

“You can stare at me all you want,”she half-babbled, “but this is just good chemistry.”


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About the Author:zoeleeauthorpic

Zoe has been writing since she was a little girl, growing up north of Chicago. Since then, she’s lived in Ohio and San Francisco, and now lives near Boulder. She has a job that she loves, but it doesn’t sound exciting to anyone else. She does yoga and takes dance classes when she can. She has a husband, who reads her romances, and an amazing little girl, who is way too young to read what Zoe writes (yet). She’s inspired by her family and friends, books and art, and all of the places she’s traveled.

 

Connect with the Author:

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Amazon Author Page: 

Website: 


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RELEASE BLITZ ~ Pieces of Heaven by Natasha MAdison

 

 

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I didn’t want this life.

But sometimes you’re forced to make the best of the crappy hand you’ve been dealt. I wanted to teach my daughter that. No matter what happens you face your problems head-on.

Never cower. Never give up.

Then someone took her and I had to put my faith in a system that had failed me, and my hope in a man I didn’t know.

Serve. Honor. Protect, are the only things I’ve ever cared about until her case was dropped on my desk. As we searched for her missing daughter, the last woman I thought I’d fall in love with became my reason for living.

Then the world came crashing down around us.

One secret would change everything, but I had one more hand to be dealt. And if I played my cards right, maybe, just maybe we’d get our piece of heaven.

 

Chapter Eleven

Marissa

The bells over the door ring every single time someone walks in. I’ve been on edge ever since I got in this morning. Lucky for me it’s been non-stop people coming in, so my mind hasn’t been able to wander to Lori.

Now that it has been quiet and I’m filling the salt and pepper shakers, my mind wanders. It wanders to my baby girl, who is somewhere out there begging to come home. The sound of her voice plays in my head on repeat. My hands start to shake, so I close my eyes and sit down on a chair before my knees buckle.

I blink away the tears threatening to fall over, my heart starting to beat so fast I hear the echoes in my ears. A plate of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and gravy is shoved in front of me. Phyllis’s eyes greet me when I look up.

“Eat that and then go home. You are done for the day. You’ve been here for fourteen hours.”
I look over at the clock hanging behind the counter that reads 8 p.m., realizing she’s right.

“I’m just going to finish filling the shakers then I’ll take off.” I know she’s about to argue with me when the bell over the door rings again, making us both look up.

His eyes find me right away. My heart that was starting to calm down is now speeding up. I focus on my meal, cutting a piece of meatloaf and dipping it in the gravy before popping it into my mouth. I try to ignore the heat of his stare, try to think of anything but him and that naked woman from last night. His girlfriend. I was so stupid to think that he would actually want me. I’m a used up stripper whose daughter ran away from home. I’m the opposite of what he wants or needs.

The chair in front of me is filled with his big frame. The scent of his aftershave, of cologne lingers around us. Musky, rich, and woodsy. It’s the smell that has seeped its way into my memory along with the way his lips felt on mine. The way that I just fit, like I was made for him. I blink away the memory, looking up at him.

 

“All the seats in this place are open and you sit in front of me?” I ask him before scooping up more food. I didn’t notice how hungry I was till I started eating.

“You didn’t text me back.” His voice is hard, his muscles tight, his jaw ticking.

I take out my phone. “Oh, I put the do not disturb on under your name. Maybe that’s why.”

My phone is snapped out of my hand in a blink of an eye. “What the fuck?” I see him touching the screen angrily and turning it off.

“You know you’re doing that for nothing since I can turn it on again?” I finish off my whole plate, making my stomach hurt since it’s the first thing I’ve eaten since last night.

“What if I had information on Lori?” Bulls-eye, hit straight through my heart. He must see the color drain from my face as I realize that I fucked up. I’m not going to admit it to him, though.

“I don’t have Jackson’s number blocked, and he would have called me.” I shrug my shoulders, picking up my plate to bring it to the gray bussing bin.

Walking over, I wipe down the table right when Phyllis comes out from the kitchen.
“There you are! I have your order ready. It’s being boxed up. Did you want dessert with that?”

His eyes never leave mine. “No, that’s okay. Thanks, Phyllis.”

I grab my phone from him, putting it in the front pocket of my waitress pouch. “I’m taking off. My feet are killing me. See you tomorrow, Phyllis.”

I don’t wait for her to say anything to me before I walk out the door to my car. Turning it on, I drive home, determined not to give Mick another minute of my thoughts. Just one problem with that plan, though. No one mentioned to my head that I wasn’t thinking about him because his eyes flash in my mind, the hard lines around them. The sorrow that is buried there, the sadness that he thinks no one sees but is there, if you look long enough.

 

I make my way into my apartment, taking my shoes off my throbbing feet at the door.

Walking into the kitchen, I take out the tips from my pocket and count them out. Three hundred and seventeen dollars. Two hundred of that is going to that damn debt that I’m still paying off. I can’t fucking wait till it’s over. I walk over to Lori’s room like I do every single night, turning on the light to see if maybe something has been misplaced or moved.

I’ve put scotch tape on the drawers to alert me if they’ve been opened, but it’s still intact. I’ve labeled her clothes hanging in the closet by number, and I count them, seeing that none have been taken either.

The bed is exactly how she left it. I crawl into her bed and grab her pillow, breathing in her scent. Tears run down my face, seeping into the pillow. This has become my nightly routine. I sleep here so I’m closer to her. I lie in this bed, talking to her. Telling her about my day, praying that she calls me again. I tell her stories about when she was small, about the day they placed her in my arms. The tears never stop. It’s like an endless river.

The soft knock at the door has me raising my head. Walking slowly to the door, I look through the peephole and see that Mick is in the hallway. His hands are braced against the doorframe, his head hanging down.

I place my forehead on the door, take a deep breath in, and open the door. His eyes land right on mine. The tears continue to roll down my cheeks, right off my chin on their way to the floor. He brings his thumb up to my chin, catching them.
“Marissa,” he whispers, and it’s all I can do before I collapse into his arms, sobbing. Begging. Pleading with him to bring her back to me.

He picks me up and carries me inside. Sitting on the couch with me curled into a ball in his lap, my tears soak his shirt. I’m so exhausted from the fear, stress, and worry. I’m just too tired to move.

 

“I’m a good mom,” I whisper to him. “I was tough on her only because I wanted better for her. Wanted her out of this life. Wanted her to be something.” My hand lies on his chest, the beat of his heart pounding against my palm.

“I know, baby, I know.”
I don’t say anything more. I just continue to soak up the feeling of his heart beating as it calms me. My eyes droop, and the exhaustion drags me under.

I don’t move from this position all night. I wake the next morning with the same heart beating against my hand.

 



 

 


When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…

 

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