Can Luke make it to Winter before the enemy finds her or is it already too late?
Winter Cloud is a paramedic by day and a horse rescuer by night. Her past is a secret that may come back to haunt her. Even though she is quiet and stays to herself, her friends notice when she disappears along with her beloved horses. Also, to their surprise, they find a threat written in blood. The race is on to find her.
Luke Owens is a retired Navy seal. He took over the family ranch once his dad died. He did everything he could to change the hell the ranch once was to a haven. A haven for his team as they retire and a haven for abused horses. He never counted on a quiet woman bringing her horses to him and then getting stranded by a winter storm. Stuck in a house with this gorgeous woman, he can’t help but fall for her. He can sense Winter is in trouble, but he has to get her to trust him before it’s too late.
Can Winter let go and trust Luke before her past catches up to her or will she flee into the cold and dangerous night?
Joy Wild lives in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. She is a former paramedic in Louisiana has always been an avid reader. After an accident ended her paramedic career, she decided to pursue her lifelong dream of writing. She uses her past experiences to create exciting and romantic stories. Married with three children, Joy spends her days in accounting and her evenings writing stories she hopes will help readers escape from reality and get lost in the happy ever after.
Joy loves to connect with her readers, so be sure to follow her on Facebook and Instagram!
It’s something I’m not accustomed to, not anymore. Not since my father took me from the slums and brought me to his billionaire mansion. He told me it was all mine and that I needed to buck up and be the son I was destined to be.
He might have lost a son, but he didn’t gain one back.
The car slows as I approach Woodview Estate. It gives me the fucking shivers. I’m not afraid; it’s more of an old memory, like a fire burning in my mind. One I extinguish as I park my new BMW along the curb. The grass is dead, the orange earth is dry, and the pitiful shrubbery is wilted. This place is devoid of life. Like nothing is worth growing here. This is Ireland, so it rains all the time, but this place is forsaken. Even the rain doesn’t bother to piss on the landscape. As I stare around me and study a little closer, I start to notice signs of life.
In front of me is a large row of houses, and at the corner of the end house, shadows of movement catch my eye. Behind drawn curtains, light seeps through the small cracks. I’m sure some watch me from the windows. My presence here has not gone unnoticed. get out of the car and lock the doors. Shadows creep closer. Most of the men have their faces camouflaged inside hoodies. Three houses are in front of me, and I wander toward number six. I’m apprehensive of the guys at my back, circling closer to my car. The moment I push open the gate to number six, they murmur.
Their whispers reach my ears. “He’s with Chester. We’d better scram.”
Like rats, they scurry. Chester must be the man I’m seeking. Warren only gave me an address, no name. I knock on the door three times before someone answers. The guy who opens it isn’t looking at me, so I’m faced with his profile. Tribal tats rise from the collar of his jersey and wrap around his neck.
He draws a drag of a cigarette, side-eyeing me. His hands are coated in tattoos too.
“What do you want?”
“I’m looking for Chester.”
This fucker is a wolf, but I’m no lamb. He faces me, flings the cigarette past my shoulder, and grins. “What for?”
“Can I come in?” I ask, and I take a step closer to him.
His grin transforms into a sneer, but he steps back. “Sure.”
I don’t like that he’s at my back, but I continue to keep a relaxed posture as I walk into the dingy entrance. The smell of smoke and something stronger clings to everything.
“I didn’t pick up what you wanted.” He passes me while lighting up another cigarette. He shoulders a door to our left open, and we step into a sitting room that’s full of guys who are sporting tats just like his. I unquestionably have the right house. He plops down between two other men on the couch. All eyes are on me.
“I didn’t say what I wanted.” I point at the empty armchair to my left. The guy, who I assume is Chester, nods, and I sit down, opening my jacket.
R&B music plays in the background. A fog of smoke floats close to the ceiling.
A guy close to me offers me a rolled-up cigarette. It doesn’t smell like smoke, and I decline before facing Chester. “Could we talk somewhere private?”
He glances at the other men, who laugh, before he faces me. “No. If you have something to say, say it.”
I‘m not telling him shit in front of everyone. They all move when I reach into my pocket. I raise one hand as I slowly withdraw the envelope of cash with the other. “Three grand for a word in private, Chester.”
He jerks his chin, and I toss the envelope to him. He catches the cash, shreds it open, and starts counting. Once he’s satisfied, he passes the stash of cash to the guy beside him before standing.
“You’ve bought yourself five minutes.”
My five minutes are in the entrance hall. I assumed it would be someplace more private, but I take the time I’m offered.
“I need a gun.”
“What makes you think I can get you one?”
“Warren O’Reagan gave me your address,” I explain. Something shifts in Chester’s stance. “You don’t look like a friend of Warren’s.”
I smirk. “Neither do you.”
Chester jerks his chin again. “It will cost you.”
“Name your price.”
He thinks about it. “Ten grand.”
For a fucking gun? “I want it wiped.”
“It will be untraceable. But it will take time.”
“How long?”
He takes a drag of his cigarette before stepping to the front door. Opening it, he flicks the cigarette outside. He pauses before looking back at me. “Is that your car?”
“Yeah.” I stride toward him.
He lets out a whistle. “Touch it and you die.” He issues the warning to the group outside and closes the door. “I should have asked for more money since you’re driving a car like that.” He grins.
I don’t smile. “I’ll give you five grand tomorrow and the other five grand when I have the gun.”
He nods, and I hold out my hand. Chester hesitates before he grips my fingers. “We have a deal.”
I’m ready to go when he asks a question he shouldn’t. “What do you want it for?”
I glare at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Just asking, brother. You know it won’t end all your problems.” He holds up his thumb and forefinger, mimicking a gun. “It might end one,” I say before I take off. My car is still unscathed. Driving out of the estate doesn’t make the memories evaporate; instead, I’m yanked right back to my childhood. The very reason I want a gun.
Everything comes full circle. My father once said, “What’s meant for you won’t go by you. Justice will be served in this life or another.”
I say, fuck that. If Justice isn’t served the way it should be, then I’ll take matters into my own hands and deliver my kind of justice.
Once I do this, my life will be my own again. I’ll finally be able to live.
When Vi Carter isn’t writing dark romance books, that feature the mafia, are filled with suspense, and take you on a fast paced ride, you can find her reading her favorite authors, baking, taking photos or watching Netflix.
Married with three children, Vi divides her time between motherhood and all the other hats she wears as an Author.
She has declared herself a coffee & chocolate addict! Do not judge.
USA Today bestselling author Michelle McLean turns the Duke trope on its head with a witty, laugh-out-loud Regency perfect for fans of Eloisa James and Sarah MacLean.
Michelle McLean is a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl who is addicted to chocolate and Goldfish crackers and spent most of her formative years with her nose in a book. She has degrees in history and English and is thrilled that she sort of gets to use them. Her novel Truly, Madly, Sweetly, written as Kira Archer, was adapted as a Hallmark Original movie in 2018.
When Michelle’s not working, reading, or chasing her kids around, she can usually be found baking, diamond painting, or trying to find free wall space upon which to hang her diamond paintings. She resides in PA with her husband and two teens, the world’s most spoiled dog, and a cat who absolutely rules the house. She also writes contemporary romance as USA Today bestselling author Kira Archer.
For more info on Michelle and her work, please visit her website at michellemcleanbooks.com.
Blerdy (Black + nerdy) fangirl Layla Bennett is excited to meet her favorite comic book writer. She’s looking forward to getting his autograph, shaking his hand, and getting a photo with him while dressed in cosplay. At least that’s how she felt before meeting him and turning to mush under the gaze of his sexy blue eyes. Comic book writer and New York Times best selling author Vic Williams is as sexy as the superheroes he writes about. His affable charm has Layla under his spell, at least until the end of the weekend.
After their convention meet cute Layla goes home with a fun story about meeting her idol, knowing nothing will come from her fangirl blubbering. When Vic connects with Layla online, their friendship quickly evolves into a long distance relationship, complete with anime, ramen, and with comic book store trips with a comic book writer.
Layla is smitten with her real life superhero, but much like comic book lore things aren’t always what they seem. Under the bright lights of the comic con floor hidden truths come to the surface. Through the harsh reality of the fandom world can Layla and Vic find their way back together?
“Putting you out of your misery and replying to the man… anddd done!” she shoved my phone back into my hand.
I stared down at the screen and sure enough she had replied.
Layla: I’d really like that. When are you coming into town?
My breath caught in my throat. Before I could recover my equilibrium, my phone buzzed.
Vic: In about 2 weeks. I’ve got a business meeting. I’ll send you my travel plans, and we can set up a time to meet.
My heart fluttered in my chest. It was happening. I was seeing him again.
“Did he respond?” Alex asked.
“…He said he’ll send me his travel plans and we’ll decide when to meet up.”
“See! Easy peasy.”
I shrugged, “I guess.”
“Oh my god! That’s why you made such a big deal about this! You like him!” Alex pointed a spatula at me.
“No, I don’t!” I shouted, the heat in my cheeks betrayed me.
“Yes, you do! Your voice does this weird ass high pitch wail when you lie. It just did it. You like him! You like him!” she sang.
“Okay, okay… You’re right I like him. I mean but it’s wrong. I shouldn’t like him. I’m a fangirl nothing more.”
“You’re saying fangirl like it’s a damn swear word. What’s wrong with being a fangirl?”
“It’s a geek thing.”
“So normal people like me wouldn’t understand is what you’re saying?” Alex huffed.
“No! That’s not what I meant!”
She rolled her eyes, “What do you mean?”
“I mean like it makes me a total creep. Like what happened with one of my online friends she liked this TV writer she met at a con. They fooled around a few times then word got out and everyone was calling her a star fucker.”
“I hardly call a TV writer a star,” Alex raised an eyebrow.
I shrugged, “A star in the world of conventions.”
“For such outcasts you nerds always be shittin’ on each other.”
Quiana Glide considers herself a Jill of all nerdy trades but master of none. Pro wrestling, cartoons, books, and 80s music are her jams. Quiana has had a lifelong love of writing and has been a featured writer in HuffPost and CafeMom. She lives in Southwest Michigan with her charmingly goofy husband and her chaotic toddler daughter.
Enter to win one of two ebook copies of Cosplay Worthy or a mailed prize pack including a signed book, art print of my characters, and a copy of one of my favorite comic books!
Deke Murphy and Maddie Hall should never have worked as a couple in high school. She was the class valedictorian and he the jock who took nothing seriously…except her. Together they formed an amazing team, and young love blossomed into something that strengthened them both. Until tragedy struck and Deke made a sacrifice that split them up forever.
An unexpected reunion
Seventeen years later, Maddie is living her dream working for a brilliant tech guru in the beauty of Southern California. She’s made a life for herself and it’s first class all the way. She rarely thinks of the jock who dumped her all those years ago. But when Maddie realizes her boss might be part of an international conspiracy, she can’t deny Deke might be her best bet to solve the mystery. Her one-time sweetheart works for one of the world’s premiere security and investigative firms. She’ll hire him and prove to herself their relationship could never have worked.
A dangerous future
As Maddie and Deke begin to uncover her boss’s secrets, they can’t deny the chemistry that has reignited. But before they can explore the connection growing between them, they must survive the deadly forces hunting them down.
New York Times bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband and three kids. Since starting her publishing journey in 2010, she’s sold over three million copies of her books. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance that she found success. She likes to find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings.
Opposites clash in this wild, unpredictable rom com, where two strangers team up to stop a wedding at all costs.
Nathaniel Barry is monochromatic, meticulous, and uptight. Izzy Harris is wild, unpredictable, and free-spirited. Nathaniel has a trendy apartment, a successful career, and a girlfriend he’s about to propose to. Izzy has no home, no career, and nobody special to hold her down.
They’re polar-opposites in every way.
So when they sit next to each other on the train to Romeo, New York they clash from the very start. Naturally, Nathaniel decides he wants nothing to do with Izzy. And Izzy…well, she has a different opinion.
No matter how much Nathaniel protests, Izzy knows it was fate that brought them together. Nathaniel’s girlfriend just ran off to marry another man, and Izzy swears she’ll help Nathaniel win her back. They have three days to stop the ill-advised wedding. It should be easy. It should be simple. But when two polar opposites team-up to stop a wedding, there’s only one guarantee – that nothing will go as planned.
The man next to me gives the snack cart vendor a distracted look and then a sharp nod. He holds up his finger to indicate he’d like one large coffee.
Well. He’s not very friendly, is he?
But he is getting coffee…
My stomach gives a tight hungry clench. I make my decision, because honestly, hunger is a great motivator. Plus, it’s fate.
“Devon, anything else?” I ask. I’ve decided that the man next to me is named Devon. He looks like a Devon.
Clearly, he doesn’t answer, because he’s on the phone, ignoring everyone but the crazy-in-love lady on the other end.
I turn back to the snack cart man and smile apologetically. “He’s on the phone with his sister, she’s causing him all sorts of trouble. You see, my husband and I are on our honeymoon and all we wanted was a little time to ourselves. But family…” I shrug. “You know how it is.”
“What does he want then?” asks the man impatiently. There are gobs of people waiting for snacks in the rows ahead of us.
I tilt my head and study the menu pasted to the side of the cart. I lick my lips. “He’ll have that coffee with cream and sugar. A ham and cheese croissant. A chocolate chip muffin. And, hmmm a bag of salt and vinegar chips.”
The snack vendor grunts and starts pulling out the food. I horde it, gathering it on my lap.
“Anything for you?”
I nod, my eyes going glassy from the food smells wafting up to me. “I’ll have a blueberry muffin. An apple. Another ham and cheese croissant. And a large coffee, no cream, but lots of sugar.”
My stomach twists again and I lick my lips.
I set the food in my lap, and then pull out the tray to put the coffee on. It’s steaming and smells so good that I almost start crying again.
The vendor uses an old blocky calculator to ring up the total.
“Twenty-six dollars,” he says.
I look at the vendor, then I look at Devon, then back at the vendor and shrug.
“Please. You can’t possibly get married Sunday. Fine. Bye. I’ll see you—” Devon sighs and clutches his head for a second then he turns to the vendor. It looks like his phone conversation is done. “How much?” he asks.
“Twenty-six dollars.”
Devon’s eyebrows scrunch down and he scowls at the vendor. “For a large? How much do you charge for a small?”
The large-nosed vendor rolls his eyes. “The coffees are four dollars. The croissants ten. The muffins, eight. The apple-”
“I don’t want all that, I just want coffee.”
“Your wife ordered for you,” the vendor says.
“What wife? I don’t have a wife.” Devon looks a little confused and a whole lot offended.
I give the vendor a sweet smile. “It’s a game we play. Being newlyweds. Devon thinks it’s funny.”
Devon gives me an appalled look, and I think he’s only just realized that I’m in the seat next to him. “Excuse me? We’re not married.”
I look back at the vendor. “See?” I open my eyes wide and flutter my lashes. “Come on Devon, don’t be that way.”
I didn’t think it was possible, but Devon becomes even more stiff-backed and starched looking. Want more? Continue reading here >>>>> https://bit.ly/3Ht3Fiq
Author Sarah Ready writes contemporary romance and romantic comedy. Her books have been described as “euphoric”, “heartwarming” and “laugh out loud”. Her debut novel The Fall in Love Checklist was hailed as “the unicorn read of 2020”. She loves to write fast-paced, emotionally compelling romances about quirky, smart women and the men who love them.
Before writing romance full-time Sarah had lots of fun teaching at an Ivy League. Then she realized she could have even more fun writing romance. Her favorite things after writing are adventuring and travel. You’ll frequently find her using her degree at a dino dig site, crawling into a cave, snorkeling, or on horseback riding through the jungle – all fodder for her next book. She’s lived in Scotland, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland and NYC. She currently lives in the Caribbean with her water-obsessed pup and her awesome family.
From the moment I was born, I was destined to be a Death Hound. Tragedy tore me from my family at an early age and cast me into a reality so dark, I contemplated ending it all. But my club brought me back from the edge, fostering my dreams and giving me a new lease on life. Years later, with secrets from my tormented time threatening to pull me back into the abyss, the innocence of a child kept me hanging on.
In finding her family, I discovered a beautiful woman who understood that in darkness, light could be found. She understood me like no one else had, but her life was complicated, full of despair and loneliness on a level I couldn’t comprehend. Every day, she fought her own demons.
When the nightmares returned, pulling her into a world of depravity and pain, I found a part of myself that I didn’t know existed. I never asked to be a protector, but no one deserved to live in fear. So, I would walk through hell to save her.
H.J. Marshall began her love of reading and writing at an early age and has always dreamed of being a writer full-time. A nomadic youth exposed her to different perspectives of life, community, and culture, resulting in a lifelong love of food, music, and history. When she is not writing, she enjoys the music of all generations and genres, writing full-time, and living in her quiet cabin in the woods. Currently landlocked, H.J. dreams of her beach house, salty air, and a life filled with laughter.
A truce has brought the Grove peace—but things are not as they appear.
Deep within a secret rainforest, live the keepers of unknown spells—a lost Landaffen colony with the power to keep Laura from fulfilling her fate by setting a trap and using Prince Brell as bait.
But Laura has become more Landaffen than human, her abilities sharpening as she infiltrates the forgotten and unforgiving Grove. She must learn to control the colony’s magic before their powers are at their peak.
If she fails, Prince Brell will die, and the joining of both worlds will be incomplete. It is Laura’s duty. Her calling. Faith must be restored, and the enemy defeated.
With a broken treaty and imminent conflict bringing death and war, Laura must build trust and bring order . . . before the PERILUNE!
I twisted, turning my head, and shifting my shoulders. Snow and more snow. I stretched my arm downward, clawing it with my fingers.
Where was he? My whole body numb, I lost my sense of direction. Was I facing up or down?Was my body vertical or parallel to the ground?
Weightless, I reached down again for my protector, my hand digging and finding nothing other than compacted snow.
I inhaled, each breath a fight for air as the snow rested compactly and heavily against my chest. I sucked a breath between tight lips and couldn’t feel anything.
“Dassh,” I tried to shout, my lips too numb to move. With a last effort, I punched through the snow layer below me, trying to feel for him. Snow and more snow. I dug with gloved hands, clawing against snow-compacted ice.
I gasped for air. My mouth filled with snow, and I coughed and choked, my body wrenching. Dizzy and without my sense of direction, I closed my eyes, punching the snow beneath me, trying to break the layer of ice separating me from Dassh.
I’m coming, Dassh!
My body spasmed, and I shook uncontrollably against the tight casket of snow and ice.
No! No! Stay calm! Stay calm! Don’t give up!
I counted to ten, the words in my head muffled and strained. Giving into each twinge, I forcefully relaxed my muscles in a futile attempt to regain my strength and fill my lungs with air.
The shaking stopped. I pushed through the ice below me, reaching to feel for him again. Sinking deeper and deeper, suffocating, my lungs empty, gulping and taking in nothing but snow, I continued, swinging my elbows inch by inch, hoping to create a pocket of snow at my nose.
As if pushed by a plow, snow tumbled against the sides of my face, rolling in balls, pushing, and compacting under my nose and mouth.
I gasped, swallowing more snow, and gagged, my numb tongue unable to move. My lungs tight and heavy, I inhaled a tiny breath that immediately shot from my lungs with the weight of snow on my back.
I opened my mouth, trying to take another breath. Snow caked at my nostrils and filled my mouth. My head and body became weightless. Balloon like, my arms and legs lifted, floating as though I was still trapped and smashed and hadn’t moved.
Making one last attempt to recover Dassh, I used my last strength to wriggle my fingers, loosening the snow just enough to jab them downward. Nothing! Nothing but more snow. My jaw tightened. I could no longer move.
Karri Thompson, a native of San Diego, attended San Diego State University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English and master’s degree in education. When she’s not writing novels and teaching high school English, she can be found nerding out at San Diego Comic-Con and cooking delicious meals for her family. Karri is the recipient of the San Diego Book Awards Best Published Young Adult Novel for 2014.
Being a running back for the Charleston Pirates and a single father doesn’t allow for much free time. But an invite to spend the Fourth of July weekend in the Hamptons with friends is an offer too good to refuse.
While there, the opportunity for a no-strings hookup with a stunning brunette presents itself and I jump at the chance. At the end of the weekend Leah will return to Boston and we’ll never see each other again.
Now, with the pre-season about to begin, a shoulder injury has me sidelined. I’m sent to work with the team’s new athletic trainer and come face to face with Leah, my Hamptons hookup—and our chemistry is as explosive as ever.
The no-fraternization clause in our contracts should keep us from acting on our mutual attraction, but the close proximity my rehab requires makes her damn near impossible to resist.
My five-year-old son is my priority and I can’t risk losing my job. No matter what, this baller won’t give in to temptation.
People think I’m crazy…especially my ex-boyfriends. I prefer the term misunderstood. Still, there’s no denying I have a stunning ability to make bad decisions…like seducing the lead actor of the theater company where I just accepted a job.
An HR job.
In my defense, Damien Mitchell is the most gorgeous man alive, and worse, he’s interesting. Besides, I’m ninety percent sure my new boss up to something shady. Why should I behave if she won’t? I fully intend to find out what she’s doing, but in the meantime I’m reeled in by Damien’s charm, his secrets, and also his problems. Because he isn’t just a fantastic actor at a crappy theater, and—
Well, it’s his secret. But I’m going to help him with it and with saving the theater. Whether he wants me to or not.
***
Damien
I’m the only child of two rich narcissists. I’m used to being alone. I like it.
But Nicole’s not the kind of woman who can be kept at a distance. Worse, I don’t want to stay away. She sets my blood on fire and pisses me off…and makes me feel alive in a way I’d only experienced onstage.
I tell her my secrets. I show her my scars. I let her in.
We’re both screwed up, so there’s every chance we’ll destroy each other, but she’s not the only one who’s prone to bad decisions. A full-length standalone prequel to the Bad Luck Club series!
A.R. CASELLA is a freelance developmental editor by day, writer by night. She lives in Asheville, NC with her husband, daughter, two dogs, and a variable number of fish. Her pastimes include chasing around her toddler, baking delicious treats, and occasional bouts of crocheting. Any Luck at All, co-written with New York Times bestselling author Denise Grover Swank, is her first book.
