Tag: New Release

New Release ~ Mission For Love ~ by ~ M.C. Cerny


Title: Mission for Love
Series: Love by Design
Author: M.C. Cerny
Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: August 25, 2020
Cover Design: Amy Queau from QDesigns

 

 

 

For Kiara Roberts, cancer was a b*tch. It took her teenage years, her shot at the Olympic team, and her leg. She was not letting it take her new job as the high school track coach and health educator. Sketchy test results put her patience on edge and made it a struggle to keep pushing forward. She needed a night of dancing, drinking, and fun with her friends to mark a new beginning, no matter what the future held. 
 
Coming home was supposed to be a relief for Army Specialist David Easton. He served his country and after months of rehab, the PTSD remained unbearable. Drinking wasn’t the answer, nor was co-owning the family bar with his brother. Getting the job at his old high school was manageable and put his family at ease giving the illusion that life was back to normal. It was anything but, and the moment he spotted Kiara across a crowded dance floor during the lowest point in his life everything changed.
 
Kiara wasn’t attracted to jarheads. She didn’t have room in her life for players no matter how sexy and sweet they seemed. So why was David Easton showing up everywhere? There was no escaping him, and her only option left might be surrender. 
 
Book six in the Love By Design series of contemporary romantic comedies. 
Mission For Love is written to be read as a standalone, but many readers prefer to read the series in order.
After rounds of amazing sex, we ended up doing shots of tequila for some ungodly reason playing twenty questions. None of which, I remembered. Definitely time to go.

I slipped out from under his arm listening to him snuffle in his sleep. Turning, I watched him for a full minute before delicately padding to the door backward in my booted feet. I didn’t see a pen or paper in his neat apartment, so I went without leaving a note. What would I have said anyway? I made it without having to take off my princess slippers and revealing my secret. It wasn’t about protecting David or my sensibilities, but because I needed something unspoiled about this special evening.

With my focus on my job and getting my girls cross country team to Sectionals, I couldn’t do more than this. A new school year was always insanely busy, and I was considered new faculty in my third year. Last night was wonderful, exactly as it was and while I might regret walking away someday, I needed this for now. Besides, I knew he lived here.

I slipped out the door feeling a little reckless and thief-like as I let the door lock in place behind me. I rested my head against the frame for a second and then pulled up a local car app on my phone the college kids frequented. Luckily, a driver was two minutes out and I would be on my way.

I was almost to the landing when a door opened and a tiny little redhead peeked out startling us both.

“Oh heavens!” She shouted and I shushed her as I looked back at David’s door.

“You lost, darling?” She asked with a faint southern accent and I grimaced a smile.

“No, just on my way to a ride.”

“You uh, entertaining with one of the Easton’s?” She eyed me up and down and I didn’t quite appreciate the early morning side eye. Sore muscles and little sleep on an empty stomach did not present the best version of me.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes. I’m leaving now.”

Her eyes narrowed and she huffed. “Don’t let the door split ya, where the good lord made ya.” She shut her door with a loud thump probably aimed at waking David. I didn’t stay to find out as my phone beeped signaling the driver was here and waiting.

What a bizarre morning in my sleepy little town.
 

 

M.C. Cerny is a USA Today Bestselling author of fresh sexy books. She experienced her first real ugly cry reading, Where The Red Fern Grows, and never looked back. She lives with a menagerie of human and feline fur-babies in rural NJ. When M.C. is not writing, you’ll find her lurking in Starbucks, running stupid marathons, and eating all the tacos.

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New Release ~ Who Wants to Marry A Doctor ~ by ~ Abigail Sharpe


THE DOCTOR IS IN!
Who Wants to Marry a Doctor by Abigail Sharpe is live!


Amazon — https://amzn.to/3gFRMt5
Universal — https://books2read.com/u/bWdWz7
B&N — https://bit.ly/2PBVrMw
Eden Books — https://bit.ly/3lgduGW
Kobo — https://bit.ly/31wlH0y

#nowavailable #release #releaseday #rerelease #contemporaryromance #romanticcomedy #romcom #doctorromance #romancenovels #romancebooks #bookbuzz

BLURB:

When her pediatric hospital faces a financial crisis, Dr. Sabrina Bankhead is willing to do anything to save it and the children it serves. Agreeing to be the bachelorette for a TV fundraiser seems like the best way to help, until the single mom discovers the host is far more appealing than any of the contestants. But falling for Quinn would ruin the competition and bankrupt the hospital. Plus, his restless nature sets off all of Sabrina’s warning bells, which makes him one big walking Off Limits sign with blue eyes and flashing lights.

While back in the States recovering from a bomb blast in a combat zone, investigative journalist Quinn Donnelly lets his sister talk him into hosting a charity dating show against his better judgment. As a lifelong nomad with a driving need to uncover the injustices in the world, Quinn isn’t looking to give up his work or settle down. Yet he’s blindsided by the irresistible Dr. Bankhead, and suddenly wondering if he could exchange the biggest story of his career for a chance at love and life in a small town.

ABOUT ABIGAIL:

Abigail is a Boston-bred Yankee now eating grits and saying “y’all” in North Central Florida. Content specialist by day, she doesn’t don a cape at night, but spends her time writing passionate and playful contemporary romance.

When she’s not writing, she can be found wearing a corset and singing bawdy songs with Just Desserts, an a cappella musical comedy act, at places that won’t throw them out. All hail low altos!

Abigail lives with her husband, two kids, and one crazy princess puppy. You can keep up with her at www.Facebook.com/AbigailSharpeBooks. She has a website, too, but it’s horribly outdated, and she’d rather write books than fix the HTML. Only go there if you want to sign up for her newsletter, which she publishes sporadically.

FIND ABIGAIL ONLINE:
Amazon — https://amzn.to/2B1gl49
BookBub — https://www.bookbub.com/authors/abigail-sharpe
Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/AbigailSharpeBooks
Goodreads — https://www.goodreads.com/abigailsharpe
Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/abigailsharpeauthor
Twitter — https://twitter.com/AbigailSharpe
Website — https://abigailsharpe.com

New Release ~ The Swallow ~ by ~ Marie Snow

 

Title: The Swallow
Author: Marie Snow
Genre: Psychological Thriller/Suspense
Release Date: August 25, 2020

 

Blurb
Sometimes you had to
embrace the darkness to find the light.
There was a time
when Michelle Landry thought she had the perfect life. Happiness, love, they
were all in her grasp. But then loss and despair had her waking up and
realizing the only thing she was guaranteed in life was a broken heart.
The city of
Stillwake was the chance for a new beginning. With her problems behind her and
a fresh start in front of her, Michelle felt like she had purpose again… like
she could be happy once more.
Like she could love.
But Stillwake had
its own evils lurking and it surrounded Michelle. With a string of serial
killings making headlines, Michelle felt her tentatively healed world crashing
around her.
She started to
wonder if maybe that darkness was coming back, threatening to pull her down
further. She either had to fight for the surface, or just accept her life and
let it take her under. 
Purchase Links
$3.99 for a limited time!
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AUOnly available at the following
retailers for a limited time

B&N / KOBO / APPLE BOOKS

 

 

Excerpt
It was this cold, suffocating feeling that washed over me,
this stillness that wasn’t calming but strangling me, wrapping its icy,
death-like fingers around my neck. I couldn’t breathe, lifting my hands to claw
at my throat. I needed oxygen. I needed air in my lungs.
I was in the center of a frozen ocean, drowning, shards of
ice stabbing into my fragile body and tearing me open. I was being pulled
deeper until blackness consumed me, washed over me… claimed every single inch
of my body until I was nothing more.
Bleakness.
Emptiness.
Nothing.
I opened my eyes, blinked once, twice, staring at the
ceiling, counting water stains above me. I tried to breathe, but I couldn’t,
that darkness still washing over me, still having that stranglehold around my
throat. It was a vice.
And then I gasped, as if my body realized I wasn’t dreaming
any longer, as if it realized I was in the here and now. I wasn’t back there; I
wasn’t with the darkness and emptiness that had been my companion for so long.
About Marie Snow
Marie Snow is the alter ego of USA Today Bestselling romance
authors Jenika Snow and Jordan Marie.
Check out Jenika here: http://www.jenikasnow.com
Check out Jordan here: https://www.jordanmarieromance.com
Author Links
Giveaway

New Release ~ Beneath The Broken ~ by ~ Elle Keating


Title: Beneath the Broken
Series: Dangerous Love Series
Author: Elle Keating
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: August 25, 2020
Cover Design:Arijana Karčič, Cover It! Designs

 
Gabe McGinnis loves his job as a commercial fisherman, his bayside cottage at the Jersey shore and his large Italian-Irish family. But there is something missing in his life, something that he both longs for and fears. Because of his past, Gabe has never been intimate with a woman.
 
Single mom Devan Murray is more than ready to ditch her business suits and hectic lifestyle in New York City and move to the calm beach town of Avalon with her son. They both are in need of a fresh start. But the moment she locks eyes with her sexy new next-door neighbor, she’s feeling anything but calm. Just the sight of him has her wanting things she hasn’t experienced in more years than she cares to admit.
 
But Gabe conjures up more than just butterflies in Devan’s stomach whenever they are together. She has questions, the kind you are afraid to ask…because the answers you may receive may be too horrific to hear.

 

Elle Keating is the author of romance novels with sexy heroes and fierce females. Her first book, Thrill of the Chase (Dangerous Love, #1), was published by Forever Romance’s digital imprint, Forever Yours, in 2015. She has since expanded the series and released the Dream Duet and the taboo romance, Keeping His Commandments. Elle is currently working on several projects including the sequel to her paranormal romance, Into Temptation, and a steamy forbidden romance that may raise some eyebrows.

 

When Elle isn’t torturing her heroes and heroines (don’t worry, there’s always a happily ever after), she is a public school administrator and enjoys spending time with her husband and 3 children in New Jersey. For more on Elle and her books, visit ellekeating.com.
 

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New Release ~ Painting The Lines ~ by ~ Ashley R. King

Today we have the release day blitz for Ashley R. King’s PAINTING THE LINES! Check it out and be sure to grab your copy today!

Title: Painting the Lines

Author: Ashley R. King

Genre: Sports Romance

About Painting the Lines:

Amalie Warner wants another shot to prove that she can be a successful writer. After hitting the bestseller’s list nine years ago, she’s lost her spark. Feeling pressure from her father to leave her writing behind and to work for her family’s lucrative hotel business, she’s desperate to find inspiration for her next big idea, something that challenges and excites her, something real.

 

Enter Julian Smoke, a failed tennis player making a dream run for the US Open. After a chance meeting at a bar, Amalie hates him instantly. He’s cocky and arrogant, but Amalie knows his story could be her big break. Could he be more?

 

Everyone knows that in tennis, love means zero, but these two are about to change that.

 

Perfect for fans of The Hating Game and Wimbledon.

Grab Your Copy Today:

Amazon | Apple iBooks | BN | Kobo

Exclusive Excerpt:

He dipped his head as he pocketed the undies. “I’m so sleepy.”

Amalie pinched her lips together at the sight of her bright red thong sticking out of his pocket. She made herself remember the reason for all of this, the reason she was even putting up with this mess. She knew Julian was drunk, but there was something she had to ask.

“Hey, how badly do you want to get to the US Open?” She edged closer to him, hands wringing.

He propped a hand on the back of the couch, his eyes even heavier lidded than before. “I…I want it more than anything, but it’s impossible,” he slurred.

“What if I can get you there? What if I can make it happen?” She cocked her head to the side, realizing she was quickly losing him. He was minutes from passing out. Again.

“You can’t. You live in this tiny, itsy bitsy,” he held his pointer finger and thumb together, “house or hotel or whatever this place is. Tennis is expensive, more than I can afford.” He shuffled to the front of the couch.

“But what if I could? What would you be willing to do for me?” She regretted the words instantly.

A sexy smirk tilted his lips and then his hands went to the button on his jeans, his thumb tracing that sexy trail of hair right above it. “Are you propositioning me?”

Amalie forced herself to look away.

“Oh, no you don’t,” she said while blindly smacking at his hand, ignoring that little bit of drool pooling at the corner of her mouth from his impromptu show. “You are not about to completely undress here.”

Suddenly her hand smacked at emptiness and she turned to see that Julian had fallen onto the couch haphazardly, one hand still on his fly. He was out cold. She growled in aggravation as she dug her underwear from his jeans, careful to keep her eyes averted even though those traitors wanted to look their fill.

After rearranging him as best she could, she looked down at his unconscious form, still feeling a little breathless. She’d found out what she needed to know. Julian could be bought.

“You don’t know it yet, “but you’re going to save me from a life I don’t want, Julian Smoke.”

She stepped out of the pool house into the cool night air and wasted no time seeking out her father.

 

Processed with VSCO with j1 preset

About the Author:

Ashley R. King is a middle school English teacher whose love of the written word began when her mom took her to the public library, letting her check out stacks of books taller than she was. She’s the least athletic person you’ll ever meet, but that doesn’t decrease her love for her favorite sport, tennis.

She loves swoony romances and is addicted to sweet tea. When she’s not teaching or writing happily ever afters, she can be found snuggled up with a book, travelling, or quoting obscure lines from her favorite movies and tv shows. She lives in a small town in Georgia with her favorite person in the world—her husband, and their sweet and chatty spoiled cat, Cleo.

 

Connect with Ashley:

Website | Email | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

 

New Release ~ Ancient Enemy ~ by ~ Katie Reus

USA Today bestselling author Katie Reus’s Ancients Rising series continues with the release of ANCIENT ENEMY. If you love all things paranormal romance, be sure to grab your copy today!

About ANCIENT ENEMY

She should be his mortal enemy.

Ancient dragon shifter Rhys awoke from his slumber hungry for revenge against the witch who killed his sister. When his hunt takes him to the rebuilding city of New Orleans, he finds a woman he can’t keep his eyes off—but she’s a witch. While Rhys wants to despise all of Dallas’s kind, even he can’t deny that she’s beautiful, kind and…adorable. And her pet baby dragon only increases his fascination with the sexy woman. Protective instincts he never knew he had take over him as they hunt powerful monsters. He’s forced to confront everything he thought he knew about witches as his life is turned upside down.

But he wants her anyway.

Dallas Kinley is used to being hated because of what she is. Witches have always been the pariahs of the supernatural community. Until now, when the world needs rebuilding. Even though she wants to keep her distance from Rhys, vampires and humans are dying in New Orleans, so she vows to help him hunt down those responsible. But finding the enemy comes at a heavy price, because Dallas is hiding a terrible secret. As they race against the clock to find the murderers, she can only hope his need for revenge won’t rip them apart. Especially when he finds out what she’s been hiding from him.

Add ANCIENT ENEMY to your TBR!

Get your copy of ANCIENT ENEMY!
Amazon | Apple | B&N | Kobo

 

 

About KATIE REUS

Katie Reus is the New York Times, USA Today, and IndieReader bestselling author of the Red Stone Security series, the Moon Shifter series and the Deadly Ops series. She fell in love with romance at a young age thanks to books she pilfered from her mom’s stash. Years later she loves reading romance almost as much as she loves writing it.

However, she didn’t always know she wanted to be a writer. After changing majors many times, she finally graduated summa cum laude with a degree in psychology. Not long after that she discovered a new love. Writing. She now spends her days writing dark paranormal romance and sexy romantic suspense. Her book Avenger’s Heat recently won the Georgia RWA Maggie Award for Excellence in the fantasy/paranormal category.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Blog

New Release ~ End Scene ~ by ~ Elise Faber

Love, Camera, Action!
End Scene by Elise Faber is available now!
Universal — getbook.at/EndSceneEF
First came the director yelling, “Action!
Next came the actual acting.
Last came . . . the end scene.Or at least, that was what I liked to call my job as a publicist to Hollywood’s elite. If my client hit it big, I was the one who’d made that possible. And while being on call twenty-four seven meant I was chronically single, I was fine with that. I’d been in a serious relationship once and had ultimately discovered that I wasn’t cut out for commitment or being tied down or living in a small town.I needed lights and excitement, paparazzi and enough traffic that the air always smelled faintly of exhaust.I definitely didn’t need one Aaron Weaver—my ex-boyfriend and current occupant of my former home and very, very small town in Utah—tying me down or making me feel like the world’s biggest jerk, just because I wanted my life to be something more than open fields and cow patties.

But then I had to leave L.A. and go home to my father, to my small town . . . to Aaron.

And I discovered there might be much more to him than I’d ever expected.

In fact, I discovered that I might have missed out on the best end scene of my life by letting him go at all.

About the Author:

USA Today bestselling author, Elise Faber, loves chocolate, Star Wars, Harry Potter, and hockey (the order depending on the day and how well her team — the Sharks! — are playing). She and her husband also play as much hockey as they can squeeze into their schedules, so much so that their typical date night is spent on the ice. Elise is the mom to two exuberant boys and lives in Northern California. Connect with her in her Facebook group, the Fabinators or find more information about her books at http://www.elisefaber.com.

Connect with Elise!

Website: https://www.elisefaber.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elisefaberauthor/
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/elisefaber
Twitter: https://twitter.com/faberelise
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bdnmEj
Bookbub: http://bit.ly/2Ilspyd

New Release ~ Blood Ties ~ by ~ B.C. Morin


Title: Blood Ties
Series: The Abiding Series Book 2
Author: B.C. Morin
Genre: Paranormal Romance Suspense
Release Date: August 21, 2020
Can you ever truly escape your past?
 
B.C. Morin returns to her world of vampires, werewolves, nephilim, and the carefully created hybrids who are now fighting to keep the crumbling peace between the species.
 
“The past cannot be changed, forgotten, edited, or erased. It can only be accepted.” ~Unknown
 
Especially if the past made you the rare immortal hybrid you are today.
Emeline Huntley is a survivor. A reluctant immortal who has lived through losing her family, being experimented on, wearing a clockwork collar that could behead her at any moment, and being under the control of one of the most ruthless men she has ever had the displeasure to know. Now, she and her lethal and intoxicating husband Alexander, also a hybrid have become peace-keepers. If you consider vigilante mercenaries for hire, peace-keepers, that is.
Emeline and Alexander have been thrust into the center of a surge of murders that threatens the already fragile state of affairs between vampires and werewolves. When a hooded figure targets them at home in the States and they run out of answers here, Emeline and Alexander have to go home to England. Fighting ghosts of the past as much as the enemies of the present, they find that this is far more than a species war. Someone is playing a deadly game and Emeline and Alexander are in their way.
Enemies are gaining ground as danger closes in on the couple and the past they have tried so hard to avoid rushes back. Calling on the very vampire and werewolf they were created from, Alexander and Emeline try to get to the bottom of it all and stop the mysterious figure before more lives are taken. But as the dead ends keep piling up, time is running out…


Originally from Miami, Florida, award winning author B.C. Morin now lives in Jacksonville, Florida with her husband, two children, and American Bullhuahua, Max.
 
When she’s not writing her next paranormal romance, adult contemporary, or epic fantasy, she enjoys spending time with her husband and kids, drinking wine and coffee (not together, ew), pinning things she may not make on pinterest, making clay creations, and not writing her bio in the third person.
Learn more about B.C. and her books on Instagram (bcmorinauthor), her facebook author page, or Twitter (@BCMorinauthor).

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New Release ~ Dress Rehearsal ~ by ~ Brianna Stark

Title: Dress Rehearsal

Series: A Driven Dance Theater Series Romance
Author: Brianna Stark
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Women’s Fiction
Release Date: August 12, 2020

 

I was deceived, then ruined.

 

 
Turns out Daniela Harrington—Principal Dancer at Driven Dance Theater, social media influencer, and NYC socialite—isn’t invincible.
My reputation is shot.
No fault of my own, of course.
Well, maybe a little bit.
 
The Stars Gala is my last chance to resurrect my career.
All I have to do is dance in a duet I despise.
For a live broadcast.
In ten days.
With the one person who haunts me most.
 
Jonas Knight is my childhood best friend, the gorgeous Ballet Royal lead who turned me down every time I threw myself at him.
 
He used to protect me.
We were inseparable.
Now he’s moved to London, and soared, leaving me behind.
 
I can’t bear the thought of him seeing me like this.
 
How deep can old feelings run?
Movement is transparent.
So how can I dance with the man I’ve been in love with forever—without the whole world calling me out?
  
Brianna Stark writes romance with an edge. She spends her summers with her BF in a log cabin in the Pacific Northwest, where she is happiest writing. In her spare time she practices yoga, craves coffee more than she would like, and goes for walks with her three-pound Pomchi, who stops to kiss everyone. She is the author of the Driven Dance Theater series.

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New Release ~ Finn ~ by ~ Kathryn Shay


Title: Finn
Series: The Casella Cousins Novella Series #3
Author: Kathryn Shay
Genre: Contemporary Romance Novella
Release Date: August 21, 2020

He prefers older, sophisticated women who know what they want. Or at least he did, until he begins to see his assistant in a different light.

But she’s done with her stupid crush on her boss. Done, done, done!

Finn Casella was always the shy, reticent one in the midst of the lively, outgoing Casella cousins. When he was young, he liked books and writing more than he liked people. Now a successful independent bookstore owner in the heart of New York City, he’s settling into his life and wants to get back to his unfinished novel.

Millie Morrison worked her way through a college degree in literature and a Masters’ Degree in business by supporting herself with her job in the bookstore. She’s generous and sensitive to her friends and customers. But each overture to her boss has been met with cool professionalism. Well, she’s overcome harder things in her life than unrequited love.

Can these two people, with more in common than they realize, forge something new out of his emotional baggage and her starry-eyed optimism? Some interesting plot twists will keep you guessing and rooting for them to make it—together.

Don’t miss all The Casella Cousins Books: Hayley, Seth, Finn, Alessia, Gideon and Ronan from the NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestselling author Kathryn Shay.
 
Finn Casella stood outside of Fitzgerald’s, located near the famous MacDougal/Bleeker Street where the likes of Jack Kerouac, W.H Auden, James Baldwin and Allen Ginsberg had once lived. The bookstore was his baby. His life for a long time. Maybe too long. Eight years ago, he’d rented a small storefront on the ground floor, then expanded when the store next to him became available. Now his business took up twice the space. He’d sunk a lot of his own cash and his inheritance into the store he now loved. 

He took the time to appreciate the newly refurbished red brick of the façade which rose to the four floors above him. He moved to the larger window, decorated by his manager, Millie Morrison. This week they were featuring mystery authors in preparation for a book signing coming up soon. But…what was that in the corner? Hell, what had she done?

He walked inside. Finn didn’t storm in anywhere, except maybe that time when he decked his estranged brother Ronan.

At the cashier’s desk, he asked Judy Shannon, “Who put the flyer in the window?”

Judy raised her gaze from the computer and watched him through reading glasses. “I didn’t see one, but I don’t check it out regularly. Erin’s the one being trained by Millie to assist her.”

“Where is Millie?”

“In the back, working on the rare book collection.” Which was one of her jobs as manager of the store and hugely lucrative. 

He found her at the computer. “Millie?”

She looked up, those pure chocolate eyes a bit annoyed. “Yes, Finn?”

“There’s a flyer in the front window, which I didn’t okay. I don’t want flyers in our displays.”

When she leaned back, her long braid fell across her shoulder. “You never okay the windows. But to answer the question, I put it there.”

“Why?”

“A new soup kitchen opened up on Broome Street and needs donations.”

“I can’t have you soliciting donations from our clientele.”

“Hungry people need help.”

“Not this way. Besides, the thing is so small, nobody will see it.”

“Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll make it more visible.”

She did this to him all the time. Misinterpreted what he said to get her own way. He pulled over a chair. “Millicent, what’s going on?”

“Uh-oh, the use of my real name.”

“I’m trying to have a serious conversation with you.”

An intense gaze narrowed on him. “It’s pretty serious that people on the streets of New York don’t have enough food to eat.”

“I know. And you know that we give sizable donations to food banks in the area every month.”

“Which I appreciate. However, hunger needs more attention to be eradicated.”

Much as he tried, he couldn’t figure this girl out. And she was a girl, even at twenty-six. “What brought this on?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why did you do this now?”

“I, um.” She glanced away. Her tell, when she didn’t want to answer a question. “I volunteered at the new soup kitchen.”

“You volunteer at one uptown, don’t you?”

“I’m surprised you remember.”

“Why another one?”

“None of your concern. In any case, the man heading the Broome Street one said we needed to get more monetary donations for the pantry.”

“You did this for a man?” If he sounded shocked, it was because she’d gone through men as disposable commodities in the eight years he’d known her.

Her laughter filled the office. Usually he liked the sweet sound of it. “Hardly. I did it for the hungry people in the Village.”

“Let’s compromise. Come up with a few other suggestions on how the store can help get more money for this new location. None should include the clientele coming into Fitzgerald’s.”

Her eyes ignited with anger. “God forbid somebody in need take precedence over sales.”

He pushed himself up out of the chair. “This conversation is over, Millie. I’m taking down the flyer.”

Quietly, she said, “So be it.” He knew that voice. It was the one she used whenever she was mad at him. Finn was an expert in reading women’s signals. He couldn’t have survived his upbringing with his mother, Bridget Sullivan, if he hadn’t.

#

“One, two, three, four, five…Shit.” Counting to ten wasn’t working this time. She was really pissed at him. 

Don’t let your feelings get in the way of helping people.

Her feelings for Finn had gotten in the way of everything up until eighteen months ago. But that was over now. Done! Done! Done!

Still, she had to give herself advice every day that she worked with him. Don’t piss him off. Don’t get too haughty. You need this job. And most important, do not let your attraction to him show. Men used that against you. But when she was with him in the office, his woodsy, outdoor scent filled the small space and he was hard to ignore.

Trying to let go of the issue until she calmed down, she went back to her favorite thing, the store’s rare book section, on the website. This was her creation when Finn decided she was old enough to take on a serious role here. 

She’d been eighteen when she started working at Fitzgerald’s. She’d been a cleaner, a stocker, anything so she could be around books and make some money. In college, she majored in literature, then took two years to get a business degree. All the while she worked here. Eventually, she hoped to open her own store, but now, she was still saving money for a down payment on it. And she was still learning the rare book trade. 

Two years ago, she’d applied for and gotten a grant given to women under forty to build up rare book collection. She’d poured cash and most of her time into Finn’s store.

At her bookstore flyers would be allowed in the windows.

Her phone buzzed. Glancing at where it lay on the desk, she didn’t recognize the number. “Millie Morrison.”

“Hi, Millie. This is Emerson Clark.” The manager of the soup kitchen she’d defended so vehemently to Finn. “I hope it’s okay to call you at work. I got your contact information from the volunteer sheet.”

“Sure. Is something wrong?”

“No, not at all. I was wondering if you could meet me for lunch somewhere between your work and the soup kitchen. I want to run some things by you. And, um, I’d like to get to know you better.” 

Hmm, was he asking for a date? 

“Sure. Where and when?” 

This was fortuitous. Maybe Emerson could help her come up with some options for getting more funding.

Back at the computer, she clicked into a website of an elderly man in Utah who had collected books all of his long life and was selling some titles now. She discovered he put up two anthologies of Victorian poets, in perfect condition and signed, books she knew a patron of Fitzgerald’s would be interested in. 

She phoned him and he gave her a definite yes. But since the books were over $5,000, she grabbed an authorization form from the drawer, scribbled down titles and added the seller’s information.

She went to the entry to the bookstore proper, and from the back, she surveyed the store. The interior of Fitzgerald’s was perfect. Since she’d worked here so long, she’d had a hand in its evolving décor. 

In the remodel, he’d wanted the traditional books on each of the side walls. Between them she’d wanted S-curved shelving which she’d seen online. He balked at the shape, but liked her idea of moveable interior. When she drew out the floor plan, he saw that the curved front windows and the rounded endcaps, which he’d also picked out, would echo the S shape. So, he relented. 

She remembered the two of them being here when they were installed and the fun they’d had over placement. Fun and some fights. Shaking off the reminiscence, she strode to the front and found Finn at a table in front of the right side of the store. 

With one of his women. One of his older women. She recognized Sabrina Knight as the author of a very popular mystery series. She was a looker, too, with long blond hair, blue eyes and a Texas drawl. Fitzgerald’s was sponsoring a book signing for her over the weekend.

Millie crossed to them. Finn frowned. His eyes were so green sometimes they startled her. “Millie, is something wrong?”

“No. I’m sorry to disturb you two, but I want to buy some books that are over my limit. I need your approval. This is time sensitive.”

“Let me see.” He read the form. “Do you think you can sell these?”

“I called a customer. He said he would, but he’d have to see them first.”

“Then, go ahead.”

She was about to apologize for interrupting them, but didn’t. If she said she was sorry every time she did something to displease him, she’d be hoarse by the end of the day. Instead, she strode back to the office, bid on the books and received an acceptance in a half-hour. Then she phoned the customer for an appointment to come to the store later in the week.

At 11:30, she stood and went into the bathroom off the office. She carried a case. Once she closed the door, she untucked the red blouse so it fell over her black skirt and appraised herself in the mirror. She opened one button on top. Then she unbraided her hair and shook it out. She fluffed the locks out with her hands and it rippled down her back. She thought a lot about cutting it now that she was older, but she never quite got there. She smoothed on lipstick, then a bit of blush and was ready to go.

She called the front desk. “Hey, Judy, I’m taking lunch a bit early. I have a…meeting.”

“With who?”

“The guy from the soup kitchen I told you about. I’ll fill you in when I get back.”

“I’ll mark it down. See you soon.”

Millie exited through the back door of the store. And inhaled the early October air. She could breathe better outside, because in the store, Finn Casella seemed to suck up all the oxygen.

A NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestselling author, Kathryn Shay has been a lifelong writer and teacher. She has written dozens of self-published original romance titles, print books with the Berkley Publishing Group and Harlequin Enterprises and mainstream women’s fiction with Bold Strokes Books. She has won many awards for her work: five RT Book Reviews awards, the Bookseller’s Best Award, Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year and several “Starred Reviews.” One of her firefighter books hit #20 on the NEW YORK TIMES list. Her novels have been serialized in COSMOPOLITAN magazine and featured in USA TODAY, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL and PEOPLE magazine. There are over ten million copies of her books in print and downloaded online. Reviewers have called her work “emotional and heart-wrenching.”
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