EXCERPT
She snatched up one of the beach-reads she’d brought from home. The well-worn paperback was one of her “comfort” books. Part of a Victorian era romance series featuring a group of wallflowers trying to find love. The familiar words kept swimming on the page, however, before Paige finally slammed it closed.
“There’s more to life than finding a man, sister,” Paige mumbled. Sighing heavily, she smacked her head against the pillows. “Yet another thing Jon ruined for me. Romance novels.”
She was about to reach for the TV remote when a sound from Whitney’s room caught her attention. Flipping back the covers, she listened intently for it to come again.
“It was probably something outside,” she told herself.
Except it wasn’t. Whitney was crying out in her sleep. And it sounded like she was calling for her mother. Paige raced through the bathroom and into the adjoining bedroom. Whitney was tossing and turning as sobs wracked her small body. As sweet as it was to finally hear the girl’s voice, Paige was devastated by her cries.
“Shh.” Paige crawled into the bed, gathering Whitney up beside her. “Shh,” she repeated. “Everything is going to be okay. You’re safe. I’m here.”
Whitney’s gulping sobs eventually subsided. She curled against Paige, remarkably, still fast asleep. Paige rubbed the girl’s back, softly whispering reassurances. She wiped Whitney’s tear-stained cheeks with the sheet. Within minutes, the child was sleeping peacefully.
A noise in the doorway alerted Paige they were not alone. She looked up to see a shadow of a man illuminated by the hallway lights. After resettling Gladys in Whitney’s arms, Paige replaced her own body with a pillow. She waited a moment to make sure Whitney was settled before slipping out into the hallway where Tanner waited.
A shirtless Tanner.
“She okay?” he whispered.
Paige picked a spot beyond his muscled shoulder where she could fix her gaze to avoid openly drooling at the man.
“Mmhmm,” she answered with a nod.
He took a step closer. “Are you okay?”
She wanted to be blasé and mature, but she wasn’t that skilled at playing it cool. The man’s chest was a freaking work of art. And who knew golfers had six-pack abs? Weren’t they supposed to be pot-bellied or some damn thing? It was the trail of dark hair disappearing beneath his flannel joggers that sent her over the edge.
“Could you—” She wiggled her fingers in the direction of his chest. “Could you cover that up, please?”
He looked at her as though she’d just asked him to shoot a hole-in-one on the moon. Then he chuckled sadistically before turning on his heel and padding down the long hallway leading to his bedroom.
“Water.” Paige fanned herself. “I need some water.”
Hurrying to the kitchen, she filled a glass using the dispenser on the refrigerator door. She was gulping down its contents when Tanner reappeared. Thankfully, he was wearing a T-shirt with what looked like German writing on it. A pair of sheepskin moccasins covered his feet.
“I’ve got something stronger in my study,” he said when he walked past, presumably on his way there.
A smarter woman would have returned to her bed and listened for signs Whitney might be having another nightmare.
About the Author—
Beautiful cover. Wish that my backyard view...sounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteA great tag line and so true.
ReplyDeleteI liked the excerpt.
ReplyDeleteThe book sounds great.
ReplyDeleteI just love your cover.
ReplyDeleteI need to read to see who Jon is that ruined everything.
ReplyDeleteThe unique backstories on the main characters were what drew me in! Really great read.
ReplyDelete