Perfectly Toxic
Author: Kristine Mason
GENRE: Romantic Suspense
Book Description:
What do you get when you mix a mad scientist, a psychopath, an ice cream lady and a repo man? Something perfectly toxic…
Melanie Scarlet is a knife-wielding badass who knows how to dispose of a body, and make evidence disappear. But Mel, a.k.a., the Ice Cream Lady, draws the line at one thing: she refuses to live with her husband, Cash Maddox, unless he quits the repo business that nearly got him killed—no matter how much she loves him.
To thaw Mel’s heart and convince her to leave the Everglades and move back home to Tallahassee, Cash is finally ready to retire from his adrenaline-fueled job…until homeless men begin vanishing. As Mel investigates the disappearances, Cash’s temper goes into overdrive when he realizes his wife has been keeping a dangerous secret from him. She’s been doing more than scooping ice cream—she’s a cleaner for the underground criminal investigation agency, Above the Law.
Mel isn’t the only one with a secret. A scientist has created a drug that will cure psychopaths by deadening the urge to dominate, hurt and murder. To prove his chemical combination works, he uses the homeless as test subjects. He breaks and scrambles their minds, turns them into killers, then tries to fix them. But what if the scientist creates a killer he can’t fix? A true psychopath he can’t control? As Cash joins Mel and the ATL crew, they learn firsthand, the results could be…toxic.
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Excerpt
When Melanie reached the front door, she touched the faded, sun-bleached wreath she’d made over two years ago. Nostalgia settled over her heart. Although Cash had still been recovering from his injuries, those days had been happy ones. He hadn’t been able to repo.
Betrayal and frustration gave nostalgia the boot. Dang it. They could have been good together. She knocked on the door. Instead, they were living separate lives because she wasn’t enough. Not enough excitement, not enough of a challenge. His accident had taught her that she didn’t need those things anymore. Then again, she had signed on to ATL and did still chop the occasional car or boat. Oh, God. There was also those bodies she’d disposed of in her daddy’s swamp.
The door opened and Cash’s large body filled the threshold. His t-shirt clung to his arms and chest, revealing the muscles she loved to hang onto when she rode him. Her heart beat hard as she shifted her gaze from his chest to his mouth. How she’d love to shove him against the door and kiss that arrogant, overconfident smile off his lips.
“How are ya’, babe?” Cash asked, his tone rough, sexy.
She met his gaze. His dark-brown eyes held hunger, lust and smugness. During their two-year separation, they’d found excuses to see each other. Then they’d have a long weekend of hot sex. Cash was in for a rude awakening. Just because he knew how to make her moan didn’t mean he’d be getting any action during this visit.
He took a step forward and crowded her space. She inhaled his cologne as he slid a finger along her jawline until he reached her chin. “I’ve missed you.” He leaned forward, brought their mouths so close together his warm breath brushed her lips.
God, how she ached for him. If only he loved her enough. The reminder stung and bolstered the promise she’d made to herself: no sex, discuss making their separation permanent.
“Don’t touch me,” she murmured. “I have my period.”
Betrayal and frustration gave nostalgia the boot. Dang it. They could have been good together. She knocked on the door. Instead, they were living separate lives because she wasn’t enough. Not enough excitement, not enough of a challenge. His accident had taught her that she didn’t need those things anymore. Then again, she had signed on to ATL and did still chop the occasional car or boat. Oh, God. There was also those bodies she’d disposed of in her daddy’s swamp.
The door opened and Cash’s large body filled the threshold. His t-shirt clung to his arms and chest, revealing the muscles she loved to hang onto when she rode him. Her heart beat hard as she shifted her gaze from his chest to his mouth. How she’d love to shove him against the door and kiss that arrogant, overconfident smile off his lips.
“How are ya’, babe?” Cash asked, his tone rough, sexy.
She met his gaze. His dark-brown eyes held hunger, lust and smugness. During their two-year separation, they’d found excuses to see each other. Then they’d have a long weekend of hot sex. Cash was in for a rude awakening. Just because he knew how to make her moan didn’t mean he’d be getting any action during this visit.
He took a step forward and crowded her space. She inhaled his cologne as he slid a finger along her jawline until he reached her chin. “I’ve missed you.” He leaned forward, brought their mouths so close together his warm breath brushed her lips.
God, how she ached for him. If only he loved her enough. The reminder stung and bolstered the promise she’d made to herself: no sex, discuss making their separation permanent.
“Don’t touch me,” she murmured. “I have my period.”
About the Author
Kristine Mason is the bestselling author of the popular romantic suspense trilogies, C.O.R.E. Shadow
Although Kristine has published a few contemporary romance novels, she focuses most of her energy on her romantic suspense stories, which she loves for their blend of dark mystery/suspense and sexy romance. She is fascinated with what makes people afraid, and is famous for her depraved villains whose crimes present massive obstacles for her heroes and heroines to overcome.
Kristine has a degree in journalism from Ohio State University and lives in Northeast Ohio with her husband, four kids, and two dogs. If she’s not writing, she’s chauffeuring kids, gardening, or collecting gnomes. Oh, and she makes a mean chocolate chip cookie!
Although Kristine has published a few contemporary romance novels, she focuses most of her energy on her romantic suspense stories, which she loves for their blend of dark mystery/suspense and sexy romance. She is fascinated with what makes people afraid, and is famous for her depraved villains whose crimes present massive obstacles for her heroes and heroines to overcome.
Kristine has a degree in journalism from Ohio State University and lives in Northeast Ohio with her husband, four kids, and two dogs. If she’s not writing, she’s chauffeuring kids, gardening, or collecting gnomes. Oh, and she makes a mean chocolate chip cookie!
and Ultimate C.O.R.E. She is currently working on her next trilogy, C.O.R.E. Above the Law, along with a series of Psychic C.O.R.E. novellas.
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***GIVEAWAY***
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ReplyDeleteWhat did you want to be when you were small?
ReplyDeleteHi Mai! A marine biologist. But I'm afraid to go in the water past my knees and I'm terrible at math and science. It was a short lived dream.
DeleteSounds like a great read.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rita!
DeleteThanks for the giveaway, looks like an interesting book.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Karen! I loved writing TOXIC. Mel and Cash were fun, characters and my bad guys are very bad ;-) Good luck with the giveaway!
DeleteThanks so much for featuring my book!
ReplyDeleteThat cover! Love it :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Judy!
DeleteThanks for the excerpt and giveaway!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Judy! Good luck!
DeleteWow! Perfectly Toxic sounds full of adventure! Would love to read this. Thank you
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliment, Linda! I had a blast writing Perfectly Toxic. :-)
DeleteWhat an exciting book! Great excerpt. I'd love to read more.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt! Thanks for checking out Perfectly Toxic!
DeleteThanks for the intro to a new author for myself!
ReplyDeleteAngie, I'm glad you were able to stop by and let me introduce myself :-)
DeleteThis sounds like a terrific book, Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Betty, Thanks for checking out Perfectly Toxic!
DeleteAn exciting book description.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mary!
DeleteI enjoyed reading the excerpt. This book sounds like such an interesting read. Looking forward to checking out this book!
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