Blog Tour/Review - Skin Deep by T.G. Ayer

ABOUT THE NOVEL:

 

Title: SKIN DEEP

Series: The Darkworld Series

Volume: 1

Genre: Urban Fantasy - NA

Publication Date: 30th APRIL 2013

Format E-Book: B00CKGOKY4 http://amzn.to/Yi5rg4

Format Paperback : ISBN-13: 978-1484836705 http://amzn.to/18sBHPs

Publisher: Infinite Ink

Pages: 390

Add on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13604857-skin-deep

 

 

EXCERPT:

"The cold cocking of guns set my body on fire.

It also did something worse. With mortal fear gripping me, my imminent Change wasn't taking second place anymore. My body churned the fear and my Panther grasped at the visceral power of the adrenalin in my veins.

I ran.

A gunshot echoed around the garden, the sound ping-ponging off the aging brick walls of the surrounding apartment buildings.

I gasped as a blast of searing pain slammed into me.

As a bullet buried itself deep within my shoulder."

 

DESCRIPTION:

 

Panther Shape-shifter Kailin Odel just wants to be normal. Leaving her clan, and her Alpha responsibilities, to live with her grandmother in Chicago had been the best thing for her. Only then did she discover her ability to track and kill the soul sucking undead creatures called Wraiths. Now she protected the humans, and had something to be proud of.

But, when she discovers the body of a murdered shape shifter, Kailin has to come to terms with the reality that her own kind are just as vulnerable as the humans.

The closer Kailin gets to the killer the more she has to face the intricacies of her people. When the time comes can she accept who and what her real purpose is?

 

***

Review of Skin Deep by T.G. Ayer

Reviewer - Fiona Wilson

4.5 Stars

Kailin Odel is a shape-shifter, a skin walker, a panther. After difficulties at home she leaves her clan, her family, and moves in with her grandmother. She discovers she has a talent as a Wraith hunter, and pursues that, as well as holding down a job in a rehab centre, which she also loves.

On returning from a hunt Kailin finds her inner panther trying to get out, so she rushes towards the rehab centre, where she has the perfect hiding place.

However as she approaches the centre she witnesses a body being thrown from a car. She soon discovers this is not just an ordinary body, it is the skinned body of another shape shifter.

Logan Westin, and his partner Jess, are part of Omega, a special team within the police force who police the non-human community. They are called in to investigate the murder, and come into contact with Kailin at the same time.

As Kailin becomes more embroiled in the chaos, Logan is drawn to her, and they combine their skills to try and solve the mystery of who exactly is targeting the skin-walkers, and why. Kailin and Logan begin to develop feelings towards each other, but can they act on it, or will the investigation get in the way?

Kailin approaches various skin-walker clans, desperate to try and find out the identity of the body. These clans include her own, and her brother Iain. There she discovers he hasn't heard from her sister, Greer, but this doesn't bother them, for now.

What follows is a story of confusion, lies, betrayal and more missing skin-walkers. Can Kailin find out who is responsible before anyone else is hurt? Can she and Logan discover why this is happening? Can Kailin escape unscathed or will she find herself drawn even further in?

Kailin eventually has to call on all of her skills, and bravery, to achieve what she needs to. Along the way she uncovers deeply hidden family secrets, but also a few truths. She also manages to repair a few broken links where family are concerned.

Kailin goes through a lot within the pages of this story, but due to her ability to heal faster than a human, she eventually gets through each injury. But the author puts her through so much during the course of the story. If she were a less strong person I doubt Kailin would be the person she is by the end. She is such a strong female character and I love her for that strength.

This story drew me in, it is totally different to anything I have read before which made its appeal even greater. I have not read any of this authors other books, but I'm looking forward to reading more from this series, and I can't wait to see where the author takes Kailin, Logan and everyone else.

This is a series I am definitely going to follow. Bring it on!

 

Excerpt 1

 

Icy pain sliced through my bones, the muscles of my arms, and the flesh of my back. My spine and thighs rippled, shifted. Changing.

Damn. Too fast.

I spared a rueful glance at my new leather pants. And ran faster.

Had to make it to the Rehab Center a few blocks away. I ran, my speed super-human, my need super-charged, covering ground fast enough to make it to safety before my Panther took over.

I took the corner of the street behind the Center at breakneck speed, and headed for the nearest of the gaping holes pockmarking the rusted fence.

The wind changed before I stepped off the curb. My ears peaked and I skidded to a halt, panting slightly, my backpack thumping against my side. The scream of tires on blacktop echoed on the night air, shattering the silence as it grew ever louder.

Closer.

Followed in tandem by the whining wail of sirens. A battered sedan scorched down the street, suspended on the turn on only two wheels. The angry whip of charred rubber spiked the air. Horizontal again, the car jumped the curb and skidded sideways, avoiding a collision with the fence by mere inches.

I shrank into the shadows at my back, expelling a long, stale breath. My Panther, still confined within my body, bucked and jerked, craving release.

I let her surface.

A little.

For now, super-sight would be welcome. Unlike the ability to run like the wind while still in my Human skin, tapping into my Panther's sight required a partial transformation—a risk I needed to take as my gut screamed danger.

Adrenalin surged, different again from the calm fervor of my wraith hunts. I blinked. Heat nipped at my corneas as I released my Panther sight—enough to give my eyes feline vision.

Sight, which sliced deep into the black nothing hugging the sidewalk, transformed my eyes into a solid Panther emerald. For the moment, plain old Kailin Odel was back to being Kailin of the Clan Panthera.

My cat sight adjusted, focused. The blackness surrounding the darkened vehicle changed depth and color, became lighter, clearer.

Someone shoved the rear door open, and I cringed as it creaked and complained. The occupants remained shrouded in the shadows of the vehicle's interior. Something large, long and heavy hit the ground with a dull thunk. Then the sedan revved as unseen sirens drew closer, louder, and it spun around and skidded off the curb.

The battered car roared off, a police cruiser close on its tail with sirens screaming blue murder. It didn't take a genius to figure out the parcel had to be awfully incriminating, for them to chuck it into the garden in such a flaming hurry.

My nostrils twitched at the stench of exhaust smoke, and my heart thumped as I waited to cross the street. I flicked a furtive glance at the dull red glow of taillights disappearing into the darkness. A breeze skimmed the sidewalk, ruffling my hair, and I hurried across the street as the sounds of sirens faded in the distance. I paused a few meters from the bundle, released my Panther's nose and sniffed. Whatever I'd expected to scent on the air, it wasn't the tang of copper drifting toward me—strong, rich and intoxicating.

Blood. Fresh blood. A luscious odor, laced with tendrils of the familiar.

I moved closer, my mind warring with my emotions. This was no bundle of rags, or some stolen junk those thugs had thrown away, but a living being. The blood surely meant the person now lying on the sidewalk needed medical attention.

I stood over the bundle, the cloying odor of the blood filling my nostrils, and hesitated in a moment of doubt and fear.

Now or never.

I took a deep breath and crouched beside the silent form. My hand quivered as I reached out and touched the scratchy, ragged fabric covering the shoulder of the silent figure. At first it resisted my tug, stiff against my touch, but one more gentle urging turned him toward me.

I gasped, my throat closing on the sound. My heel caught as I pulled away, and I staggered backward as hot horror burned through my veins. The face glistened, bloody and mangled. Raw muscles and ligaments lay exposed, bare. A low moan of horror echoed around me. Chills streaked up my spine when I realized the stricken sound had originated from my own throat. The familiar richness of him clouded my mind, clogging my throat and drugging my senses.

A Skinwalker.

My throat spasmed, silencing a shriek as he stared at me. His breath whispered—shallow, irregular, the sound ragged as he labored in his final moments. He gripped with desperation to the disappearing threads which held him to this mortal earth.

His face held my gaze, and somewhere behind ribs of ice my heart clenched, threatening to implode. My own face stared back at me, reflected from within eyes as blue as oceans. Eyes filled with excruciating pain and desperate fear. He didn't speak, just studied me for a few moments with those glorious eyes.

Recognition. Gratitude. Relief.

Then... release.

Life flickered and sputtered out of his beautiful eyes—eyes unable to close even after his soul departed his mortal body. Eyes stark and ghastly within a face flayed of every inch of its skin.

Mere seconds had passed, although I would have sworn it had been hours. Screeching tires again interrupted my horror, and the sedan skidded beside me before I could do much more than scramble away from the body. The killers had managed to lose the cops, and now they'd returned to retrieve the body.

They hadn't bargained on having a witness.

The cold-cocking of guns set my body on fire.

It also did something worse. With mortal fear gripping me, my imminent Change refused to take second place anymore. My body churned the fear and my Panther grasped at the visceral power of the adrenalin in my veins.

I ran.

A gunshot echoed around the garden, the sound ping-ponging off the aging brick walls of the surrounding apartment buildings.

I gasped as a blast of searing pain slammed into me, as a bullet buried itself deep within my shoulder.

 

ADDITIONAL EXCERPTS

 

"These last few minutes had felt like days of agony and fear. My breath still came in little hysterical hiccups. Where had the cool, calm wraith hunter gone?

Things changed when hunter became prey."

***

 

"What have you gotten yourself into this time?" (asked Anjelo)

"Wasn't my fault...." Hard to bristle with indignation while I lay sprawled and bleeding at the feet of my scolder. I'd be wasting my breath. We'd argue again later, as I was way too tired to make the effort now.

"When is it ever? Always said one day you'll get yourself hurt. And wasn't I right?" He waved his hands at both my torn body and shredded clothes, sighing as if he were the one shot and bleeding out pints.

Oh, the drama.

***

 

"Clutching the phone, I whispered Anjelo's name into the device. The darned thing promptly advised me to speak more clearly, its tone annoyingly authoritative, seeming to laugh at me.

Damned machine.

Clearing my throat, I spoke his name again, this time restraining the urge to shout at the piece-of-crap phone.

Dial tone. Thank Ailuros.

"Kailin? What time is it?" Anjelo grumbled, his voice thick with sleep, grumpy and perplexed. He loved sleep, even more than his widely known love affair with Italian pasta. Nothing the school cafeteria supplied would ever tempt his taste buds. Anjelo had gourmet taste.

All he would've heard was my grunt of pain as I slid further to the floor, the phone suddenly too heavy to hold to my ear.

"Kailin, you okay?" His voice gurgled as if I were underwater—hollow, strange.

I took a deep breath and gripped the phone, pulling on every last dreg of energy, and said, "Sure. Shot. Bleeding. But okay."

My voice cracked on each syllable, and I barely heard his urgent request for my location. I scowled at the phone, again so heavy it began to pull my hand to the floor, inch by inch.

Why was he shouting at me? I could hear him perfectly.

I spoke with a false calm. "I'm at the center." Then I let the phone fall, unable to bear its incredible weight.

Scrambling. The knocking sounds of someone bumping into things in the dark. Muffled oaths, and then a slamming door.

Good. Anjelo's coming."

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

I have been a writer from the time I was old enough to recognise that reading was a doorway into my imagination. Poetry was my first foray into the art of the written word. Books were my best friends, my escape, my haven. I am essentially a recluse but this part of my personality is impossible to practise given I have two teenage daughters, who are actually my friends, my tea-makers, my confidantes… I am blessed with a husband who has left me for golf. It’s a fair trade as I have left him for writing. We are both passionate supporters of each other's loves – it works wonderfully…

 

My heart is currently broken in two. One half resides in South Africa where my old roots still remain, and my heart still longs for the endless beaches and the smell of moist soil after a summer downpour. My love for Ma Afrika will never fade. The other half of me has been transplanted to the Land of the Long White Cloud. The land of the Taniwha, beautiful Maraes, and volcanoes. The land of green, pure beauty that truly inspires. And because I am so torn between these two lands – I shall forever remain cross-eyed.

 

 

CONTACT DETAILS:

 

Website : http://www.tgayer.com

 

Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/TGAyerAuthor

 

Twitter : http://www.twitter.com/#!/TGAyerAuthor

 

Blog : http://www.tgayer.wordpress.com

 

Email : tgayer@xtra.co.nz

 

Goodreads : http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5726831.T_G_Ayer

 

Amazon : http://amzn.to/QECLcY

 

Shelfari : http://www.shelfari.com/tgayerauthor

 

Blog Tour/Review - Keeping Secrets 2 by Kitten K. Jackson

Keeping Secrets

http://www.amazon.com/Keeping-Secrets-ebook/dp/B00AQ6Z6KC/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_t_1_CTSW

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/260639

 

Keeping Secrets II: No More Skeletons

http://www.amazon.com/Keeping-Secrets-II-Skeletons-ebook/dp/B00CPR09WU/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_t_1_R2XT

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/313425

Link to THE TRAILER!http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=HHfvTHaCHTI

Author information:Kitten K. Jackson​

Why the middle initial? Well, with a name like “Kitten,” I was hoping the middle initial would give it a more serious, “grown-up” sound. And no, I was never a stripper, contrary to what the name might convey! LOL! My dad started calling me Kitten when I was only days old, so there was no pole dancer connotation intended there!​I wrote both Keeping Secrets and Keeping Secrets II in 2012. I then went back and edited and published the first book in December, ‘12. Then I edited and published the sequel on Smashwords on May 5th and on Amazon on May 8th of this year.

​I’m from Muscle Shoals, Alabama (Roll Tide!). I’m in Wilmington, North Carolina now, homesick for my daughter, the rest of my family, and sweet home Alabama. For those of you who don’t know, Muscle Shoals was “The Hit Recording Capital of the World” back in the late 60s, through the 70s. Everyone from The Rolling Stones to Aretha Franklin, and lots in between came to that tiny town on the Tennessee River to record hits such as Wild Horses, Brown Sugar, Mustang Sally, When a Man Loves a Woman, and many more. And I went to school with the sons (great guys) of the man who started it all at FAME Recording Studios—Rick Hall.​My best friend is my little black and tan doxie, Peej. “Peej?” you might ask. Peej is short for PJ. PJ is short for Precious Jackson. Peej was my dad’s baby. When he died in 2009, she became mine. When I would tell people her name was PJ, they would say, “He’s so cute.” So I started calling her Peej, which just confuses everyone, but it’s okay. It fits her.

Excerpts from Keeping Secrets

​“And now you found her on Facebook.”​“It was easy. She spells her name with an ‘ie’, instead of a ‘y’. Abbie Rae Kolbeck. I searched it, and there she was.”​“Dude, how is it that she doesn’t know it’s you? You don’t have any photos on?”​“No, I have photos. Like I said, she knows me as Johnny Moretti. And when she knew me, I was this skinny little geek with big, wavy hair, bad teeth, zits, green eyes and big-ass glasses. Now, I’m four inches taller, about 50 pounds heavier, my hair is short, and I have the mustache and goatee. Oh, and I got my nose fixed. And I have brown contacts. And I had braces.”​“You got a nose job?”​“Yeah. Before I met you.”​“Yeah. You didn’t look like that when I met you.”​“That was the idea.”​“Hmm. So why did you send her the friend request?”​“I want to see her.”​“You what?”​“I want to see her.”​“Greg, you’re drunk. Let’s talk about this when—”​“No! I haven’t been drunk for the past 15 years! I’ve never stopped loving her, and I’ve never stopped wanting her.”​“But Greg. You said you’ve done something that could get you’re a*s thrown in prison. What’s the statute of limitations for rape down there?”​“In Florida, there isn’t one.”​“What? You mean, for the rest of your life, you have to worry about going to prison?”​“I guess. I’m not sure the law’s reto…retroactive, but that’s Johnny Moretti. I’m not Johnny Moretti.”​“Greg, do you hear yourself? You need to go home and sleep this off, and in the morning, you’ll see how crazy this is.”​“I didn’t come up with this tonight, Mark. I’ve been thinking a lot about it on and off for the past few years.”​“Mostly off, I hope.”​“No, mostly on. And I think I can pull it off.”​“Look, going to a new place and starting over as someone else is one thing. But going back to where people knew you before and pretending to be someone else is a different thing entirely.”​“I’m not pretending. I am someone else.”Greg reached into his back pocket. He pulled out his wallet and started going through it. There in the back, under some business cards, was a picture of an unattractive, skinny boy with shoulder-length, big hair, a huge nose, bad teeth, and big, ugly glasses. He showed Mark the picture.​“Does that look like me?”Mark studied the picture, then looked at Greg. “No. Not at all. Damn!”​“See what I mean?”​“Okay, but what about your voice? Surely, your voice isn’t different from when you were in college.”​“That’s the only thing I’m a little bit concerned about. But back then, I was a southern boy. Now, I’m a full-on New Yorka. Fuhgetaboutit! Ya know? I’m a completely different guy, other than maybe my voice sounds a little like someone she used to know.”​“Yeah, someone who raped her! If you weren’t drunk, you’d realize how ridiculous that sounds.”​“Hey, I’ve thought this through when I was sober, and I know it’s a big chance, but I think it’s something I have to do. It’s a chance I have to take, Mark. She’s the reason I can’t, and don’t even want, to get close to anyone else. I still love her!”

​***

​Abbie took out her phone and called Angela.​“Hey, woman. What’s up?”​“Ang, I need to ask you something.”​“Somethin’ wrong?”​“No. I, um…you remember that guy I told you about? The Facebook guy from New York?”​“Yeah. Are you still hearin’ from him?”​“I took him to the airport this morning.”​“What?”​“He came down, and we went out a couple of times. Then he had to leave for a business thing, but he came back. Then he heard that his best friend had been murdered, so he left to go back to New York for the funeral.”​“Murdered?”​“Yeah. He’s pretty torn up.”​“I’m sure. That’s horrible.”​“Well, the thing is, remember I told you he said he met me a couple of years ago?”​“I guess.”​“When I asked him about it, he said that I was out with some girls, and we were at a restaurant, and we were sitting at the bar, and I was seriously impaired.”​“We never sit at the bar.”​“I told him that.”​“And you always drive, so you never get drunk.”​“I told him that, too. He said that maybe we weren’t actually at the bar—that maybe we were sitting at a table close to the bar. Oh, and he mentioned something about margaritas, and when I told him I hadn’t been a margarita girl since college, he said it was a figure of speech, or something like that.”​“Sounds like a crock o’ s**t to me.”​“So you don’t remember meeting him?”​“Well, I don’t know, but what you told me doesn’t add up. You know that.”​“I know. But I really like him, and I don’t want to think that he’s lying to me.”​“Girl, you don’t have to think he’s lyin’ to you. You know he’s lyin’ to you.”​“But everybody lies, right? I mean, I’ve even heard Dr. Phil say that, I think. God knows, I’ve lied. I don’t make a habit of it, but I’ve done it. And so what, if he lied to get me to meet him, right?”​“You’re makin’ excuses for him. How did he even find you on Facebook?”​“He said he remembered my name from meeting me at that restaurant, and searched me on there.”​“Well, you know that’s a lie.”​“If you’re curious, you can see him on my page. His name is Greg Parker.”​“Oh, I saw him in your friends list when you mentioned him that night we went out. I went on there to see what he looked like, and he is pretty cute. But there’s somethin’ about him that looks familiar.”​“Really? I can’t think of anyone he looks like, but he does seem really familiar.”​“His story is very fishy. I don’t buy it for a second. But I do think I’ve seen him before. Doesn’t all this worry you?”​“A little, I guess. That’s why I wanted to ask you about it. I mean, it’s weird. I feel like I know him, ya know? He feels familiar to me, so it makes sense that I would’ve met him before. Know what I mean?”​“I don’t know what to tell you. Maybe you met him before, but you know it’s not the way he said, and that makes me wonder why he lied about it. Have you confronted him on it?”​“No. And since he literally lost his best friend, I don’t think this would be a good time to accuse him of lying to me. I don’t want to do anything to make him feel uncomfortable because he’s such a sweet, caring guy.”​“How do you know he’s a sweet, caring guy? He could be a child molester!”​“Well, he stayed at my house last night, and I got drunk and threw myself at him, and he put me to bed and didn’t screw me because, and I quote, I didn’t want you to do something you might regret. I think that gets him ‘sweet, caring guy’ points, don’t you?”​“Awesome! Way to go, Abs! I’m sure he wants you to be the mother of his children now!”​“No. It’s not like that at all. He says he really cares about me, and that’s why he didn’t want me to do something I might regret. I believe him, Ang, and you would, too, if you knew him.”​“Abbie, you don’t know him!”​“I know, but I feel like I do. And I feel like I have to follow my heart. Aren’t you always saying you have to follow your heart?”​“Yeah, but you shouldn’t follow it off a freakin’ cliff! You know what they say. ‘If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.’”​“First of all, who is ‘they’?”​“Oh, shut up.”​“I know you’re right, and if the tables were turned, and it were you telling me all this, I’d be saying exactly the same things you’re saying. But Ang, he’s so sweet. He’s kind and considerate, he’s sexy, he’s good looking, and he’s got a body that…oh, my God!”​“And don’t forget that he’s a liar, he makes up stories about how he met you, he’s comin’ down here from New York to see someone he doesn’t even know, and coincidentally, his best friend gets murdered at the same time…”​“Angela! Okay, so he lied about meeting me. But now, you think he killed his best friend? Come on!”​“I didn’t say that. I’m just sayin’…it’s weird, ya know?”​“Yeah, I guess it is kinda weird. But you know how co-dependent I am. I’ll find a way to justify it all.”

Excerpts from Keeping Secrets II

Abbie went to The Coffee Break for a while, and then met Angela at the restaurant. When they met, they hugged as if they hadn’t seen each other in years.“Are you okay?” Angela whispered, her pretty, grey eyes looking down into Abbie’s.“Yeah. I’ll be so happy to get this stupid brace off my arm. It gets on my last nerve.”“When can you take it off?”“I can take it off any time I want, but I have to keep it on for another few weeks, if I want the bone to heal the right way.”“Well, leave it on and deal with it. What I meant was last night.”“Oh! He held my neighbors prisoner last night, watching my house.”“Nuh-uh.”“Yuh-huh. When I got home, I noticed a black Suburban in their driveway, and my neighbors don’t ever have company at night, so it worried me. So I called over there, and Martha answered and sounded really weird. When I asked her if she had company, she said it was her daughter, and she doesn’t have a daughter.”“Good thinkin’.”“Right. Thank God, I knew that! But I didn’t know what to do, so after we hung up, I went and looked out the window. I saw him leave, so I went over there.”“Abbie!”“It’s a good thing, I did! They were taped up with duct tape in their closet! If I hadn’t gone over there, they would’ve probably died ‘cause they don’t have any children, and they hardly ever have any company.”“And it was him.”“Oh, I forgot to tell you!”Abbie reached into her purse, pulled out the note, and handed it to Angela, saying, “Check this out.”Angela opened it up, read it, and gasped.“It was him!”“Yep. The Townsends were talking about how polite he was. Ang, he even made sandwiches for ‘em and let ‘em eat! And look at that note. He was concerned about me—protecting me!”“He made sandwiches for his kidnappin’ victims? Oh, how precious! You’ve got to get back together with him!” Angela said, eyes wide, shaking her head.“Stoooop,” Abbie whined. “You know how hard this is for me. I love this guy.”“Abbie, you were only with him, what? Three or four weeks?”“Not even.”“So how are you so in love with him?”“I don’t know how to explain it, Ang. It’s like we’ve always been together—like we’re made for each other. We just fit together so perfectly. Seriously, I’ve never felt this way before. And I’ve never had anybody really love me before. You’ve gotta agree with that.”“Oh, I definitely agree with that. As gorgeous as you are, you could have any man you want, and you attract a******s like flies on s**t.”“Ew! That’s just gross, Angela! And we’re about to eat!”“Abbie, you need some serious help.” Then whispering, leaning across the tiny table, Angela said, “The guy is a f****n’ murderer! He killed his parents! Does that mean nothin’ to you?”“Of course, it means something to me. I guess I can’t wrap my head around it. It’s like, I can’t put together the sweet guy I know him to be, with the kind of person who could murder somebody.”“I’m really worried about you, Abbie. You wouldn’t be with him again, would you?”“Of course, not. I know what he’s done. It’s hard to believe, but I do know it.”Angela said, “Oh, I went to see Phillip this mornin’, and he’s gonna find me a .38.”“So he’s one of your friends in low places?”“Right.”“I didn’t know you had friends in low places.”“I didn’t know you liked to date murderers.”Abbie was shocked. Eyes wide, she said, “Witch!”Angela sighed and hung her head. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m PMSin’. Abbie, promise me you won’t take up with that guy again.”“Hell, Ang, how can I? He’s on the freaking lam!” Abbie said, arms flailing.Simultaneously, they burst into laughter, cackling loudly. Everyone seated near them turned and looked at them. In their own little world, where friends in low places get guns for normally law-abiding citizens and murdering ex-boyfriends are on the lam, they didn’t notice anyone else around them. In that moment, it was all good.When the laughter subsided, and Abbie and Angela noticed several of the people near them still looking, they both blushed and said sheepishly, “Sorry.”“Where do you think he is?”“I have no idea.”“Well, at least, you don’t have to worry about the sandwiches,” Angela said, grinning.Abbie bit her lip to keep from laughing. “You’re bad.”“I know. But this is all so insane, you have to laugh at it.”“Yeah. It feels a heck of a lot better than crying. I’m so sick of crying, I could puke.”“Does he know about Taylor?”“Yeah.”“Abbie!”“No, it’s okay. He won’t hurt Taylor. And anyway, he already figured it out before I told him.”“How do you know he won’t hurt her?”“I just know. He won’t hurt her.”“You’re puttin’ way too much trust in this guy. I mean, if he can kill his own mother, and you’re afraid he could kill us…”“Adoptive mother, who got drunk and read romances while he was being raped by his father in the next room…a woman he hated with every fiber of his being…”“Yeah, but—”“But nothing. Taylor’s fine. But I’ll call her, and you’ll see.”Abbie called her, and a minute or so into the call, Abbie found that Taylor had seen Greg at the mall the day before.Abbie ended the call, looking at Angela. “Did you get that?”“Yeah, I got it. He’s stalkin’ your daughter.”“She said she saw him at the mall, and he waved and smiled at her, and when she spoke to him, he said ‘hi’, and then he walked away.”“You don’t really think that’s coincidence, do ya?”“No, but I think it’s proof that he’s not gonna hurt her.”“How the h**l is it proof he’s not gonna hurt her?”“Because he walked away from her.”“Abbie, lean over here, so I can slap the s**t out o’ you!”“What?”“He’s not gonna do anything to her in public, where there’s security! Abbie, this is your daughter we’re talkin’ about here!”“And his! And he knows it! I’m telling you, Ang, he won’t hurt her. He kept trying to talk me into telling her we were her parents. He wanted her to know that, and for us to be able to see her.”“Abbie, you’re not seein’ this the way I am. To me, that sounds like all the more reason he would try to take her. Maybe not to hurt her, but to have her with him.”“I told him that as long as he stayed away from Taylor, me, and my family, I wouldn’t tell the police anything about him killing his father.”“Yeah, and that’s obviously workin’ out real well for ya! He’s stalkin’ you and Taylor!”“Ang, I know it sounds crazy, and maybe it is, but I don’t think he would hurt either of us—especially Taylor. That’s his flesh and blood.”“You need to be committed. I’m callin’ your mom right now.”“Shut up.”“I mean it, Abbie. Again, we’re talkin’ about a guy who killed his parents!” Angela whispered.“Okay, call the crazy hospital and have ‘em pick me up.”“You think I’m jokin’. I really think you’re losin’ your grip on reality, Abbie. There is nobody in the world that would see this the way you do.”“Apparently, that psychologist thinks so, too. Hell, maybe I am crazy! How would I know?”“Really. You’re not thinkin’ rationally. Last night when you were at my house, you were makin’ a lot more sense than you are now, and you thought you were bein’ crazy then. So did I. But the more I hear about this guy, the more I think he’s capable of almost anything.”“When is that guy getting you the gun?”“I’m not sure. It’s not like he’s goin’ to a gun shop. He knows a pawn shop owner that said he could get him one under the table, but I don’t know when.”“Well, getting it for a Christmas present might be a little late. Time is of the essence, ya know?”“What do you want me to do? Tell the guy who’s doin’ me a huge favor he’d better hurry his a*s up?”“Do you have the .357 with you?”“No. That thing weighs a ton. If I put it in my purse, it would probably break my shoulder.”“Don’t be a puss.”“Now I’m a puss for not carrying a .357 Magnum in my purse? What am I, Dirty Harry?”“Dirty Angie,” Abbie said, giggling.“Yeah, that’s me.”“I want you to be safe.”“Okay. Now you’re makin’ some sense. Thank you.”“You’re welcome.”

​***

“Don’t you think we need to get another car?” Abbie asked.“Steal a car?”“Yeah. I mean, we might get caught because of being in a stolen car, but a stolen car is not gonna get national media attention. Every cop in the country is looking for this thing.”“I was thinking that, too. We do need to lose the Suburban, but I don’t want to get into a shootout with one of these good ol’ boys, you know?”“Uh-huh.”“I mean, I have guns, but I don’t want to have to use them. I don’t want you and Taylor to be exposed to anything like that. I want you guys to be safe.”“Well, it’s getting kind of late. Maybe we could take one from a house where the people are asleep.”“And what if they aren’t asleep? Then we get shot at.”“Okay, for the record…not everybody in the south has a gun. That’s a stereotype. We wear shoes, and we don’t all live on farms. In fact, most of us don’t live on farms. I’ve never even been on a farm! We don’t wear straw hats and overalls unless we’re going on a hay ride. We have colleges, and some of us actually attend those colleges. We don’t marry our brothers and sisters, or cousins, any more than you guys in New York do.”“Calm down, Abbie!”“No. Somehow, when a tornado hits, every redneck in the state migrates to the cameras, so I can see how the stereotype is perpetuated, but it really p****s me off. We aren’t all Forest Gump, okay? And being from Pensacola, you should know this.”“Well, I’ve been gone for a long time. And the reality shows about the south don’t help, either. You know?”“I know. It drives me crazy! Honey freaking Tutu! Makes me sick to my stomach.”Greg laughed. “Is that the name of a reality show?”“I don’t know. Something like that.”

​***

“Please don’t make me go back!”“You have to, babe,” Greg said.“Dad, I’m never gonna see you again, am I?”“Baby, I don’t know. I sure hope so. I’m so glad we got to spend some time together, and—”“This is not fair!” Taylor screamed, tears pouring.“Baby, life is not fair. Nothing is fair,” Greg said.Taylor sobbed, leaning into Abbie’s shoulder, her young heart breaking at the thought of never seeing either of her newly-found parents again. She tried, every few seconds, to suck air in through her nose, making a gurgling sound, as the mucus was sucked in with the air. Abbie looked around and found a sock in a bag, and told Taylor to blow her nose on it. Taylor blew, but didn’t stop crying.Abbie searched for words to comfort Taylor, but none would come. Abbie felt her own pain, but that was nothing, compared to the pain she felt for Taylor. Her eyes, throat, and chest ached as she tried to hold back the sobs that were trying desperately to escape. She wished she could take Taylor’s and Greg’s pain all on herself, but she had more than she could handle already.Taylor’ll never make it through this if I fall apart. God, please help me hold myself together until we get our baby to safety.Greg looked at them in the rear view mirror. His eye lids stung as tears came forth, but he wiped them away before they showed. He couldn’t understand how he could feel so much for a girl he had only met a short time ago. He hoped his eyes and his hair were the only things she inherited from him.“Greg, I’m not gonna leave her somewhere in the middle of the night.”“It’s safer this way. In the morning, people will be more likely to recognize us.”“My own family wouldn’t recognize me right now!”“I need to get some razors, and shave my head. I’m sure that chick at the convenience store back there has told them about my yellow hair, so I need to lose it.”“Maybe you should lose the piercings, too,” Abbie said.“I’m all for that!”“Maybe you should take yours out, too, Taylor,” Abbie said.“No,” she said, pulling away from Abbie, trying to regain her composure. She wiped her eyes and nose on the sock, still sucking in and swallowing large wads of mucus.Abbie took the studs and loops out of the new holes in her own face. She unbuckled her seatbelt, reached up front, and grabbed her purse. She buckled up again, took a tissue out, and tried to rub the black and purple makeup off her eyes. The color didn’t budge, so she took out some hand lotion, and put it around her eyes. She rubbed off the lotion, and the makeup came off with it. She removed the rubber bands, and whined as they ripped out strands of hair.“Oh, man, my scalp is sore!” She looked up at Greg. “Do you want me to take your earrings out, Greg?”“Do you think you can?”“Yeah. Well, I can get most of ‘em. Not sure about the nose, but I’ll try.”Abbie reached around the seat, and removed the loops from Greg’s ears. One by one, she removed the loops and studs from his face as he continued to drive.“F**k!” he yelled as Abbie tugged at the ring in his nose.Abbie and Taylor giggled. “Sorry. Ya want me to stop?”“Yeah. I’ll get that one. D**n, that’s sore!”“Crybaby,” Taylor teased.Greg looked at her in the mirror and winked. He wondered how many more times he would get to look at Abbie’s and Taylor’s beautiful faces. A feeling of foreboding was getting stronger as the miles crawled under the Jeep.By the time the sun began to creep out from behind the trees, becoming visible to Greg in the rear view mirror, they were somewhere between Brookhaven and Meadville, Mississippi. Abbie and Taylor were asleep in the back seat, Taylor leaning against the window, and Abbie leaning on Taylor.“Hey, girls. Wake up.”“What’s wrong?” Taylor asked.“Chill out. It’s okay,” Greg said.“Where are we?” Abbie asked.“Mississippi. Not sure exactly where.”Greg pulled in to a convenience store with gas pumps, and looked around. He only saw one car, which he figured belonged to the clerk. Abbie and Taylor sat in the back seat, silently looking around. The tension was palpable.

Keeping Secrets II: No More Skeletons by Kitten Jackson

Reviewer - Mary Beth Witkop

4 stars

What would you do if a sociopath with a horribly troubled past that you have a history with was obsessed with you?

Greg is completely obsessed with Abbie and not in a good way. He will do anything he has to do to be with her, even if it means kidnapping her and their daughter and going on a killing spree. This book is the journey not only into Greg's dark past of abuse and neglect, but also his chance to connect with the family he just found out he had.

Abuse is not something to joke with in any way shape or form, we are shown how it can effect someone so drastically that they are not in touch with reality and can cause some serious damage not only to themselves but those around them. The best way that I can describe Greg is as being a serial killer with a heart of gold. He uses his looks, (which he points out multiple times) and his ability to manipulate and personality to help him get away with murder.

A word to the wise you can read this book by itself but a much clearer picture is set when you read the first one in the series. I did it out of order so I am speaking from experience. "Sorry Ms. Jackson." But I have read the first one and reread the second and what can I say. Well obviously I said a bunch just look above. This is a story unlike one I have read before and though it was a dark, sexual and somewhat disturbing story, it still had a great story line and one that had you waiting to see what was going to happen next.

 

Cover/Release Date Reveal - Her Master's Kiss V by Vivien Sparx

I am delighted to be part of the cover reveal for one of my favourite author's, Vivien Sparx. Her writing is hot, steamy, erotic and has gained her much acclaim from the BDSM community. Her Master's Kiss is a series of short stories revolving around the same 2 characters, Renee and Stefan. I absolutely love this author and cannot recommend her highly enough to those who enjoy erotica with a decent storyline!And one last thing - I absolutely LOVE this cover!

RELEASE DATE - 31st May! Not long to wait!



Excerpt from Her Master's Kiss V..

"At the first opening on the left, Renee paused in the doorway and watched three young women arranged on their knees around a tall man who was standing in the middle of the room. The man was naked, his body darkly tanned. There were whorls of thick grey curly hair across his chest. The three women were all young and all wearing collars. They were arranged around him and taking turns to pleasure him with their mouths. As each girl took her turn, the other two kissed each other and their hands roamed freely across one another’s naked bodies. Renee leaned against the wall and watched with dark fascination. One of the women caught a glimpse of her and turned, smiling. Renee waved uncertainly. The submissive girl winked to her and then turned back to the glistening hard shaft that was before her. She seemed to make a great display of her talented mouth, knowing Renee was watching in the background.Beyond the final door on the right side of the corridor was a room with three wide wooden benches. They were made of rough unfinished timber, each one painted black and each one a squat, solid piece. Renee lingered in the doorway long enough to see that there was a woman on her hands and knees, chained on top of one of the benches."

Author Links

Amazon Author Page:
http://www.amazon.com/Vivien-Sparx/e/B008D0E92Y/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/vivien.sparx

Release Event/Giveaway - Luck of Love by Tiffany Aleman and Ashley Poch

Luck of Love by Tiffany Aleman and Ashley Poch
Release Event hosted by The Boyfriend Bookmark

Synopsis

Blake Riley thought she could leave her traumatic past behind when she left for college. Starting a new life and moving forward never sounded so good. Living carefree with her best friend in Ocean City New Jersey gave her the freedom she had always hoped for.

But sometimes life isn’t so carefree.

When Blake finds herself torn between the affections of two men, emotions that have been buried for years will be exposed. Derrick, a powerful CEO of a popular casino resort, instantly captivates her.

Being drawn into his domineering passion, she bares herself to him in a way she least expected. With Landon, a successful attorney, she can be someone new; someone free from her haunting past. Each man evokes a different side of Blake. As both relationships grow stronger, walls will slowly begin to crack.

What will happen when the past slowly creeps its way into the present?

With two worlds filled with secrets and lies, it’s only a matter of time before they crash and truths are revealed.

Excerpt

Standing on the landing in front of Blake’s door knocking, my cell phone vibrates. Reaching in and pulling it out of my pocket, I open a text from Blake.

Blake: It’s open. Come in and find me ;)

With a smile spreading across my face, I open the door walking in. Closing it behind me, I walk past the couch, tossing my bag on it.

Searching for Blake, I go to the last room I haven’t looked in yet. Opening her door I’m frozen in place when I see a very sexy Blake standing in front of me, wearing a pair of black stilettos, black stockings with garter belts attached to a pair of lacy boy shorts, and a black bra that has me salivating at the sight of her. My dick jumps to attention, as a white satin tie hangs around her neck and over her breasts, the tip skims above her belly button. Her wavy hair hangs freely down her back. A pair of scarlet red square framed glasses rests on her face completing her look. Spinning around slowly letting me take in the full effect of this vixen who is Blake Riley, I say huskily, “Well this is a nice surprise.”
Sauntering towards me, swaying her hips back and forth, I clear my throat when she reaches me.

Tracing her finger along my collarbone and up my neck, she leans into me and whispers seductively, “Well hello Mr. James. I see you got my text. I seem to be in need of some assistance tonight.” Tracing the shell of my ear with the tip of her tongue, my body stiffens, as the bulge in my pants grows harder.

Grabbing my hand, Blake guides me towards a chair that sits in the middle of her room surrounded by the soft glow of candles placed sporadically throughout. Sitting down, I rest my arms on the armrests of the chair. With hooded eyes, I ask Blake, “Are you sure you want to play this game with me?”

Her eyebrow lifts as she answers, “This is my game Mr. James and you have to follow the rules, or else you don’t get to play.” She leaves me sitting in the chair as she walks across the room. With her back to me, she says, “There are two rules, and if you break either of them there will be consequences. I’ll tell you when the rules no longer apply, then and only then are you allowed to do what you want to me. Rule number one: Do not touch me at all; if you do, I’ll restrain you. Rule number two: Don’t speak. If you say one word, well, you’ll miss one hell of a show.” Fiddling with her iPod, Beyonce’s “Dance for You,” comes over the speakers.

Walking back to me and standing within my reach, she leans down so that we’re eye to eye, asking, “Do you understand my rules?”

About the Authors

About Tiffany

I am 27 years old, with a wonderful family. My husband is in the Army, and we have two wonderful children. Ashley and I have been best of friends since we were 13. I recently graduated from South University with my Associate's Degree as a Paralegal. I enjoy listening to music, playing with my kids, and going to the beach, and anything that has to do with the outdoors pretty much.I’ve always liked to write, but never really had an interest in reading until the summer of 2012. I am so excited to be taking my writing journey with Ashley, and we cannot wait for everyone to get their hands on Luck of Love, which is the first installment in the Luck Series. I have many authors that I consider my favorite so I’ll just name a few: E.L. James, SC Stephens, Molly McAdams, Rebecca Donovan, K.A Linde, Marie Coulson, and S.H. Kolee.

About Ashley

Ashley grew up in Texas but now has joined her husband to reside in North Dakota. She is a military wife and mother to two adorable children. She’s always wanted to travel having grown up in a small town. Her interest in reading sparked last summer and now she’s a lost cause without her e-reader. Since she loves to travel, the places she gets to go in her fictional books are what any girl could ask for.When Ashley isn’t glued to her computer you can find her outdoors either playing with her children or relaxing and enjoying the sun reading a good romance novel.

Links

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17190700-luck-of-love
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/tiffanyandashley
Website - http://www.authorstiffanyandashley.com

Buy Links

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Luck-Love-Series-ebook/dp/B00CX7O3AG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369168422&sr=8-1&keywords=tiffany+aleman

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/luck-of-love-tiffany-aleman/1115382203?ean=2940016528076

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/318466

 

Giveaway

2 eBooks of Luck of Love plus signed swag!Rafflecopter - a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Blog Tour/Guest Post - Riverbend Trilogy by Andrea Goodson

Thank you for visiting The Riverbend Trilogy's Blog Tour! Here you will find an interesting article about Bookish Boyfriends and learn a bit about the author, Andrea Goodson! Don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end of the post and see where you can visit Andrea tomorrow!

Bookish Boyfriends: From Edward & Jacob to Mr. Darcy to Gilbert Blythe, how soft is too soft?

 

We’ve all been there, lost in reading our latest favorite novel while quickly and uncontrollably falling in love with a fictional character. If you’re an avid reader I assume you must have a top, all-time novel crush. Someone who exists in the world of literary imagination who has managed to win over your heart for good.

 

 

For me, this elusive character has always been Mr. Darcy. Despite the number of contemporary works of romance that I have read, I can never seem to find someone who quite compares to him. And it isn’t because he is so ooey gooey or soft-hearted either. There is something about the mysterious, confusing, and awkward nature of his emotions that had me swooning all over the place for the pretend perfect man.

 

 

Now, I’m truly not trying to leave out the marvelous heroines who capture our hearts as well, but today I want to focus on the male aspect of fiction. Especially male characters written from a woman’s perspective.Do women tend to write men as they wish them to be?

Do women writers and novelists envision this perfect, ideal man and then let his character bleed out onto the pages?I would think so, but I am not so sure.

Since I have entered the world of novel writing I have found, even in my own writing, that if this “perfect man” character was real, I might not actually like him very much.

Sure, in the story all’s well that ends well and this elusive Mr. Wonderful can be everything that we want him to be, but would that actually work in real life?

If we compare the way that most men are in real life as opposed to the way most women are (not nearly as whiney and indecisive as they tend to be in fiction) do we find that if we mismatched one real life person with one of our fictional characters that we would end up with the same happily ever after result?

Would most women really want a man who is constantly after them? Always trying to win them over? Compliantly dealing with ever-varying moods and change of mind without the slightest break in his stride?Or, might that become a bit boring after a while? A bit too monotonous and predictable?

This brings me back to why I love Mr. Darcy so much. Yes, he is lovable. Yes, he is appealing. But, plainly put, he is not a door mat.

How many male characters are out there who allow themselves to be trampled on by women in some fantasy game of “You chase me. But I keep running.”?

This happens a bit in my own books. I found myself having the lead man in my latest novels, The Riverbend Trilogy, bending over backwards for a girl who can’t make up her mind if her life depended on it!

A thought struck me as I diligently worked on the third and final installment, Waking Tide.Just how long is poor Will Sundback going to take this crap?

Sure, Lena has her reasons and they are legitimate. She has some deep-seated issues and is under a tremendous amount of stress, worry, and grief. But still, how long, in the real world, would a young, handsome, and confident man allow this to go on before just simply walking away?

So, I guess my question for all my readers is: How soft is too soft?

Does it majorly turn you off of a book (especially romance or romantic suspense) if the lead male is too forgiving, too easy, and doesn’t present much of a challenge?

Don’t get me wrong, a devilishly handsome man who is agreeable to strange mood swings and willing to ride out an emotional roller coaster is quite appealing.

And Will in The Riverbend Trilogy is definitely not a push over. He states his mind often enough and lets Lena know where she stands.

He never sugar coats the truth for her and is consistently dependable with both his opinion and his availability all the while remaining strong and attractive.

Still, I can’t help but wonder that in real life, a woman might get bored with all that love fairly quickly. Not that it would go unappreciated, but it might just be a little too dependable.

Then we have characters like Edward and Jacob from The Twilight Saga who, again, display these same traits.

Always chasing Bella while she remains indecisive and unsure of herself throughout most of the story.

Granted, they are both pretty smoking hot which serves as quite a redeeming quality for them both, but still, perhaps they are a little too understanding, too clingy, too dependable, and just too soft.

 

 

 

 

Yes, there is a such thing as too soft. However, this softness doesn’t change how much I still adore their characters!

I would have to say that aside from my all time favorite, Mr. Darcy, the closest male character I can imagine as a runner-up is good old Gilbert Blythe.

Gilbert is chummy, fun, dependable, and a bit of a pain. He makes us love him for the same reasons as the above examples.

His all-time dependability, his good-natured heart, and his unrelenting chase of Anne Shirley.

 

 

But Gilbert has a quality that isn’t always found in novels. His arrogance when he is young and his bullying of Anne in the schoolhouse when they were children make him real. He has flaws, just as Mr. Darcy does. This makes him all the more appealing because it makes it more likely that he could exist in the real world. Anne of Green Gables has to be one of my all-time favorite books. It is a lovely story of a girl who could be real, who went through many emotions, fears, failures, and successes that we all do and managed to stay true to herself. When Anne and Gilbert finally end up together in Anne of Avonlea, well, I don’t think I’ve ever had a book give me greater joy than that!

 

 

So, ladies, is this what we all want, a man who would chase us to the ends of the earth and back no matter how many times we may have rejected him, pushed him away, or told him we were “just friends”?

As one of my favorite bands, Mumford & Sons put’s it, do we “desire [my] attention but deny [my] affections”?Or do we appreciate the above qualities in a character more if they can manage to maintain an element of realism? If they still possess basic human flaws?What’s your opinion on this?

Is there a such thing as too soft?I don’t feel there is any right or wrong answer to this, we are talking about fictional characters here. I do, however, think this is a noteworthy discussion. If we look at all of the most popular “Bookish Boyfriends”, we find these traits rampant, I’d like to know why.Just a thought.

By Author Andrea Goodson

 

 

Author Bio

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Andrea Goodson was born in 1982 and had a love of and fascination with writing since she was very young. Always imagining ways in which the world could be different, she began to write short stories when she was very young. It wasn't until many years later that she put pen to paper and began to work on what has become her first novel, Riverbend, part one in a trilogy. Upon completion of that work she found that writing was something she felt meant to do and would never be able to give up. Using her own experiences with hardship and tragedy Andrea uses her writing to reach others in an effort to show the world that we need not be victims of circumstance. Her main characters endure many conflicts yet find the courage and strength to better themselves.

Click here to follow Andrea on Facebook and Twitter!

You can view the first book in Andrea's series, Riverbend, here on Kindle

All books are also available on Amazon as Paperbacks and ebooks on Nook, iBooks, and Smashwords!

For a complete listing of all books and venues, CLICK HERE!

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/NjczOTBiODQyMTI0YzkyNWZiZjgxNjc4ZjQzMzM4OjU=/

Thank you for visiting! You can see Andrea again tomorrow on the blog of Sophie Davis - www.sophiedavisbooks.com

Andrea Goodson - www.andreagoodson.wordpress.com

andrea_goodson@live.com

Book Blog Tour - Changing Fate by Amy Cox - Released May 14th

Changing Fate has been released early!!

--->  Amazon link

Amy Cox is a twenty nine year old wife and mother of three. She was born and raised just outside St. Louis Missouri in Granite City, Illinois. After finding her own love story in real life; she lives happily married living in the beautiful mountains of Virginia. Having wrote stories and poetry all her life Amy was inspired to write of life and love; which lead to taking the leap of faith into self-publishing her work on Amazon.
Her first book, a novella called ‘Out of the Wreckage, was released in late February of 2013 and has sold well over a thousand copies and growing quickly. Changing Fate is her first full length novel and the first of the series. The second book of the series, Rekindled Fire, will be out late Fall 2013.“There is something about love, the true kind of love that puts off such heat and emotion. It makes your stomach roll and your heart clench. It completely knocks your feet out from under you. That feeling where you don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or throw something. That is what I want to write about, what I want to capture; that is life. It is real.”

Author Website - http://booksbyamycox.com/

Goodreads link - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17792592-changing-fate

EXCERPT
After I finish my coffee, I rinse our mugs and put them in the dishwasher. Silently scolding myself over letting Tim control my thoughts again; it happens less and less but it still happens. I sigh as I clean off the counter and the door swings open. I laugh, “Ray we have wasted enough time last night and this morning…you are late now you know?” I tease and turn around to meet four wide amused eyes…Kate and Zack.
“Babe it is only a waste of time if you aren’t doing it right.” Kate teases.

Zack laughs and sits at the table. “Oh they are doing it right Sweetheart. Sit down ladies I have a story.”
What was that Zack?

I look at Kate, “Where is Lys?”

“Asleep in the portable in the living room.” She replies as we sit.

Zack hands out the donuts and lattes then smiles at us, “Ok… So, once upon a time there was this fabulously, sexy, amazing…”

“Zack!” We both yell frustrated with his vanity. I swear and he says women are bad!
He chuckles, “OK, OK…Anyway, I pull up outside my cousin’s condo late one night. He is not home. Just as I am about to leave, his car pulls in the driveway.” Zack says watching me. Oh No! Kate glances from Zack to me beyond intrigued. “Just as I start to walk up, the doors swing open and my cousin and his girl run up to the door.”

Kate’s eyes go wide and I blush. Oh no! Oh my…No!

“I start walking up worried something is wrong, I mean I see no baby girl, and they are running full on sprinting. Then my cousin shoves girl up against the door and she wraps around him like a damn pretzel as he jams the key in the lock.”
Oh my God as if I haven’t been thoroughly embarrassed enough since I have been home!

I bang my head against the table, “Oh Rach tell me you did it right there on the steps, that is so hot! Oh the slamming and forceful make-out sessions…so yum!” She squeals clapping her hands.

Zack waits until my eyes meet his again, “No. Ray got them inside.” Kate frowns and I relax a bit. “But…” Zack says raising his hand. “I figured that I could sneak to my room once they were in his to get my backpack and sneak right back out. Hey, they’d never see me right?” I cover my burning face in my hands as Zack brings it on home. “Well I step up on the porch and not two feet from the door I see his backside and her legs…still wrapped around him her clothes all over the floor behind him. I mean not much of a view unless you like male jean clad ass.” He shrugs, “But the noises…those were porno worthy!” He tosses his head back and mocks me with a high-pitched yelp as I peak through my fingers. “’Oh Ray!’.... and then a very demanding ‘Rip them already!’”

Kate roars with laughter and fans herself with her napkin, “Damn that’s hot.” She says nudging me with her elbow. “I told you two before that you were hotter than my books! Damn!”
Pulling my hands back from my eyes I glare at Zack. “Love that shade of red, on you Rachel. Almost the same shade of pissed of lobster Ray will be!” He teases as I slap him on the back of the head. “Ouch…hey!” He yelps.
“I’ll give you a piece of advice Zack, don’t mention it to Ray.” I snap pointing my finger at him.
He shrugs, “Why you think he will be all pissy like you, Babe?”
“I don’t want to find out.” I say standing up, “I have to go open the spare room, Ray has people coming soon.” I toss over my shoulder and walk in to find my princess sleeping soundly in her play pen. I kiss her forehead and walk down the hall and open the door to the spare room.

GIVEAWAY

Three random winners will be chosen to receive a free ecopy of Changing Fate. All you have to do is like the Out of the Wreckage Facebook page Winners will be announced on May 13th.