Camy Tang's Blog, page 105

Guest blog - Sandra Orchard

Today my guest is romantic suspense author Sandra Orchard!

About Sandra

Sandra Orchard writes inspirational romantic suspense set in the heart of the Niagara region, Canada, where she lives with her husband of more than twenty-four years, two college-aged children and a husky pup with a fetish for rubber boots and remote controls. A former home educator, she received word of her first contract on her youngest daughter's first day of college. Sandra has an Honors Arts & Science degree with a major in math, and she attributes her delight in devising plots that keep her readers guessing to her affinity with mathematical problems.

The 2009 winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in unpublished Mystery/Suspense, Sandra was delighted to see her first novel, Deep Cover, released in September 2011 with Love Inspired Suspense. She's since contracted two more novels in her series Undercover Cops: Fighting for justice puts their lives—and hearts—on the line. Shades of Truth will be released in March 2012 and a third book will be released in the last quarter of 2012.

Sandra has always loved trying new things. Over the years, she's dabbled in a variety of arts and crafts. She's taken on a variety of construction projects from building a run-in for her daughter's horse to re-siding their first house, renovating bathrooms and installing trim and flooring. However, a back injury sidelined many of those hobbies, so now, when not writing, she enjoys hanging out with family—especially her new grandbaby—brainstorming new stories with fellow writers, and hiking or kayaking in God's beautiful creation. She loves to connect with her readers and can be found online at her website.

And now, here’s Sandra!


From the moment I saw this 1913 Cadillac convertible pull into our church parking lot, I knew I wanted to use it in a book. So I decided the heroine of Fatal Inheritance, Becki Graw, should inherit, along with her grandparents’ old farmhouse.

Of course, to write authentically about how riding in one feels, I had to ask the owners for a ride!


And since I write romantic suspense, my sweetheart needed to join me.

But let’s not forget the suspense! I grilled the owners on how my diabolical villain might sabotage their horseless carriage. I’ve got to tell you, it’s scary how easy it would be, if he were actually to do it, which, of course, I can’t tell you.

I learned that Horseless Carriage Clubs plan fabulous tours for their members to take in sights, from the comfort of their antique vehicles.


The quaint area depicted above is only ten minutes from where I grew up, yet I’d never seen it before our adventure!

My plan was to include quite a bit about such an excursion-turned-scary in the novel, but you’ll have to read the book to find out if the story went according to plan.

Thankfully, nothing scary happened while we were out for our excursion!


Not like these ghostly cars—one of which did make it into my book. Ah, research is so inspiring!

If you’d like to check out other intriguing pics and bonus features for Fatal Inheritance, visit: http://sandraorchard.com/extras/bonus...

Camy: Thanks for being here, Sandra!

Fatal Inheritance
by Sandra Orchard

"YOU DON'T BELONG HERE." Someone wants to stop Becki Graw from claiming her inheritance. Police officer Joshua Rayne is just as determined to keep his beautiful neighbor safe. She may not be the tomboy Josh remembers, but she's just as stubborn. Becki is intent on keeping her grandparents' remote farmhouse—no matter the danger. Becki's feelings for her childhood crush may be rekindled, but she's seen too much to risk opening her heart. As the threats against Becki escalate, the list of suspects grows longer. Josh must convince Becki to trust him with her heart—and her life—before a madman ends their chance at happiness…permanently.

Winner and excerpt - Shock Wave by Dana Mentink

The winner of
Shock Wave
by Dana Mentink
Is
Andrea W.

Congratulations! (I've emailed you. Please email me at camy {at] camytang[dot}com if you didn’t get the email message.)

I know the rest of you are crying into your tea and scones that you didn’t win. Cheer up! Order the book!

TRAPPED…WITH A KILLER? When an earthquake rips through San Francisco, the last person journalist Sage Harrington expects to run into is ex-soldier Trey Black. After what they survived in Afghanistan, she doesn't know if she can face him again. But now they're trapped in the bowels of a ramshackle opera house on a mission to find Sage's missing cousin. And they may not be the only ones. Someone is desperate to keep them from discovering the truth. With time running out and devastation and danger all around, Sage and Trey must put their trust in each other to make it out alive. Stormswept: Finding true love in the midst of nature's fury
Excerpt of chapter one:

The floor lurched under Trey Black's feet. Wooden planks, crippled by age and neglect, groaned like arthritic joints forced into movement. He waited one second, two.

Another quick jolt and the old Imperial Opera House stilled again.

The second jerk took him momentarily back to another place, to Afghanistan, to the smell of sun-scorched earth and gun oil, sweat and the tangible scent of fear.

He stood motionless between a row of chairs looking toward the stage, eyes scanning the ghostly fly tower with its combination of counterweights and pulleys, the rusty overhead lighting, the dusty floorboards, worn and marred. It hadn't been his imagination—a few of the fly tower ropes still quivered from the sudden movement.

His mind knew he was not in Afghanistan anymore, but his body had not learned the lesson. He rubbed the back of his neck and ran a palm over his hair, the wild thatch of it still an odd contrast to the buzz cut he'd had until he'd left the army behind a month ago.

It was not enemy fire.

Not the impact from a mortar volley.

The truth materialized.

Earthquake.

Small, probably not more than a 2.5, one of a number of quakes that had rumbled through the city in the past twenty-four hours. He'd heard some scientist on a morning talk show explaining that the miniquakes were the earth's way of releasing tension gradually as the tectonic plates ground together. Yet another scientist suggested the shakers could be warnings that the "big one" was coming.

Earthquakes were like people, he figured. Sometimes you couldn't tell if they were friendlies or enemies until it was too late. He shook away the thoughts and called softly into the darkness.

"Wally?" His voice echoed, bouncing in and out of the dark stalls, the mazelike warren of dressing rooms, rehearsal areas and the cavernous empty stage. It was a terrible place for a dog, but Trey had agreed to come check on the little critter when he was done for the evening as a favor to the caretaker. "Wally?" he said again, louder.

He caught the faintest sound, the barest squeak of a floorboard from the royal box, the ornate enclosure at the middle of the lowest tier of seating and the spot with the best sight lines to the stage. Long ago it would have been the place reserved for royalty or VIPs out for a night at the Imperial. Now, on a Sunday night, decades after the theater offered up its last real opera, it was tomblike.

He listened, body taut. The sound didn't come from the rascally dog. He wasn't sure how he knew, but he did.

Nor did he understand why he took cover behind the proscenium and began a surreptitious creep toward the noise.

No reason to suspect it was anything dangerous.

This was San Francisco, not a war zone, and he was in an empty opera house. More likely his unease was paranoia borne of long months dodging sniper bullets or worrying that a careless moment on his part would result in death.

Like the journalist embedded with their unit.

The memory bit at him before he could steel his mind against it.

He recalled the look on Sage Harrington's face when she saw her colleague hit by sniper fire. Her camera fell to the ground and those eyes, those ice-blue eyes, locked on his, soldering the two of them together in her white-hot grief. She blamed him, it was clearly written on her face.

Blamed him, when they never should have been there in the first place. He felt the burn of anger at Sage for her reckless behavior, and himself, for the stubborn way his heart still kicked up at the thought of her.

Snap out of it, Trey. Sage has to live with her decisions and you've got to live with yours.

His mind circled the facts again.

Empty opera house, closed to the public for decades.

Whoever it was making the noise was a trespasser.

Find Wally.

Get out of the Imperial and go home.

He shouldered his backpack, heavy with the tools he'd been using to try to repair and replace the rotting wood of the lobby floor. A whisper echoed over to him, a hushed voice belonging to someone who shouldn't be there. A vagrant maybe, who had forced their way through the boarded-up windows perhaps, looking to escape the clinging October chill. He could still call it quits, look for Wally on his way out. It wasn't his problem. Not his responsibility. No reason to feel like he had to protect Mr. Long's investment from intruders. No reason to stay.

He took a deep breath and crept farther into the darkness, heading for the stairs that would take him to the royal box.

The chilled air of the opera house made Sage Harrington's skin prickle all over. Her own hands looked pale and ghostly in the meager light from her lantern, shaking slightly from the temblor she'd just felt and the oppressive blackness. It was ridiculous, really. Stupid certainly, to follow Antonia inside. Not the first time she'd behaved stupidly.

Something about Antonia Verde pricked Sage's instincts. The woman knew the truth about Sage's cousin Barbara, she was sure, something Barbara's husband, Derick, wasn't telling. Then again the whole situation might just be the product of Sage's overactive imagination. Barbara might very well be in Santa Fe like her husband claimed.

In Santa Fe.

Not answering the phone.

Not returning emails.

Nearly at full-term for her pregnancy.

Without sending so much as a postcard to check on the renovations to her beloved opera house. Sage had seen Antonia do something inexplicable—pick up a picture of Barbara from the glass side table and hide it under her shirt before sneaking out of the Longs' house.

The cold feeling deep in her stomach returned. Something had happened to Barbara, and Antonia had some information that would help Sage find the truth. She'd grudgingly agreed to meet Sage at the Imperial and talk. Why in the world had they agreed to meet here?

Toughen up, Sage. She would complete her mission, as a man from her past would say, and she found she could not hold back the feelings.

How many times had she thought about Trey Black? Wondered how things would have been different if they'd gotten to know each other somewhere else instead of the hills of northeastern Afghanistan? It seemed surreal, now, that only a year ago she was snapping pictures for a top-selling news magazine, simultaneously afraid for her life and struggling against a powerful attraction toward the captain.

She flashed back to Luis, his body falling at her feet, gone, at Trey's horrified eyes in his dust-stained face. Trey's shock remained only for the barest of moments. Then he was the hardened soldier again, barking orders, shouting into a radio, his attention turned back to the task, the mission, while the medic tried frantically to save Luis's life. Trey Black, a living reminder of the worst moment in her life, simply refused to get out of her head.

Sage shook herself and tried to offer up another prayer for Barbara. No words would come. Only the same impenetrable silence, the same darkness that had cloaked her since her return.

The sound of a stair creaking stirred her senses. Though the stairs to the box were still more or less covered in tattered carpet, the old wood complained under the weight of someone's approach.

Someone? She mentally chided herself. It was Antonia, of course, passing the time while waiting for Sage. Who else would be interested in this old relic? She wished she could shine her lantern into the stairwell, but she resisted the urge. Instead she drew back into the farthest corner of the box and held the light down behind the seat. If she'd learned anything being in a war zone it was that being cautious could save your life. Unfortunately, her caution seemed to have slid into the realm of paranoia. She'd wait to be sure it was Antonia.

A vibration started under her feet, rattling harder and harder until the building seemed to come alive around her. Earthquake—and this time, much more powerful. She held on to the arm of the seat. A rending of wood sounded above her head. It must be the overhead balcony, tearing away from its moorings.

Panic swelled through her as she fought to stand against the bucking floor.

She yanked herself upright and tried to get to the exit, but she went down on one knee again, something sharp cutting through her jeans.

A roar from above made her throw her hands over her head as a section of the ceiling gave way. Fragments of plaster and wood rained down, swallowing up her scream. Dust coated her mouth as she gasped for air, panic bringing her back to the war zone, filling her gut with black despair. There was a heavy pressure and then silence.

Sage was not sure in that moment if she was alive or dead. Her own rasping breath confirmed that she was indeed living and conscious. Though the box was bathed in darkness, a weak light came from the gaping hole in the ceiling where the balcony above had come crashing through. A thick layer of dust drifted downward.

Just breathe, take it slow.

She coughed out a mouthful of plaster dust and took stock. Aside from general aches, she did not feel any lancing pain. Gingerly, she wiggled her legs and arms, turning her neck slowly to one side. She struggled to sit up but something heavy lay across her shoulders, pressing her down. She quelled the panic.

A few more deep breaths and she worked again on wriggling her legs, propelling herself forward since she had no hope of lifting the thick beam. Fortunately, it had fallen across the span of two seats, leaving a small spot of clearance. Sage scooted forward again, her feet scrabbling for purchase.

Maybe it was a whisper of movement, or the slow exhalation of breath, but in a sudden wash of fear, Sage knew she was not alone.

"Antonia?" she whispered.

No one answered. Perhaps she had imagined the presence. Her doctor would say it was a symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder. She caught sight of the lantern, which had tumbled down the aisle and now lay a few feet away.

She pulled herself forward, her efforts only netting her a few inches before she had to stop for breath, face bathed in a combination of sweat and grime.

The sound of quietly placed footsteps caused her to freeze. They were made by someone heavy and solid, not by the willowy Antonia.

"Who is it?" she hissed. Whoever it was came closer, but try as she might, she could not twist herself into a position to look up. Some part of her, the deep-down place where instinct lay, told her whoever was in that box had not come to help.

"People know I'm here," she said quickly. "People are coming."

The feet moved closer. Sage could feel the boards shifting and bending under the stranger's weight.

She could see only the shadow in her peripheral vision, someone watching, thinking. The gloom that settled over her pressed fear deep into her pores. She was immobilized, trapped and in darkness as this person closed the gap between them.

Her blood pounded in her veins. She would yell, but who would hear her?

In a scrabble of noise, something hurtled into the box, knocking over the lantern.

She screamed as the thing streaked at her, eyes glowing.

Then a wet tongue swabbed her face. She batted at the creature, which her brain finally identified as a dog. The exuberant tongue was attached to a wiry animal with a head that seemed too small for its lanky body.

Shoving him away, she tried to get a glimpse of the stranger.

She realized she was alone again. Whoever had left her trapped there was gone.

Relief made her shiver, and she reached out to finger the dog's velvety ears, which started out erect and then flopped over at the tips.

"Where did you come from?" she managed. He licked her again and sniffed her hair. The dog stopped midsniff, cocked his small wedge of a head.

"Hear something, boy?" she whispered, skin prickling. Was the stranger coming back?

After another moment of listening, the dog took off through the doorway.

She wanted to call after him, to bring the friendly, warm animal back. Instead she applied every ounce of her strength into freeing herself from her entrapment. Inch by painful inch she yanked herself out, scraping her legs in the process. Anger rippled through her like a shock wave. The stranger hadn't gotten far and Sage was going to find out who it was.

She heard the rumble as she ran, the faraway sound of a door being slammed, or a heavy box being dropped onto a cement floor. She reached the bottom stairs and collided with a man heading up. He was big, over six feet and solidly muscled, and her five-foot-four-inch frame bounced off his chest like a tennis ball hitting a racket.

The man's flashlight tumbled down and landed at his feet with a soft thunk.

He picked it up, holding it with one hand, the other hand readied in a fist in front of him as if he was expecting an attack.

Sage shielded her face from the light. "Who are you?"

There was a moment of hesitation. "You want my rank and serial number, or will the name suffice?"

Shock settled over her in a numbing blanket. She didn't need him to repeat the question. The Southern lilt of his voice, the smile she heard hidden in the words. There was no one else it could possibly be. He looked odd in civilian clothes, and the flicker of uncertainty on his face was definitely out of place.

She took the hand he offered and got to her feet, legs gone suddenly shaky. He pulled her up and close to him, one hand grasping hers tightly and the other cradling her shoulder with the gentlest of touches. For a moment she could not summon the strength to balance on her own and she pressed close, her heart swimming with a tide of memory that threatened to drown her. "Thank you."

Something in her voice must have sounded familiar enough. He lowered the light to play it across her face, and in doing so illuminated his own, the planes of his cheeks and forehead and the look of complete shock that materialized on his face. "It can't be," he whispered.

She heaved in a breath and stood up as straight as she could manage. "Do you want my rank and serial number? Or will the name suffice?"

Trey was not a man comfortable with conversation, and in that moment, words failed him utterly. He stared at Sage in disbelief. Her heart-shaped face, dusty though it was, those blue eyes, were unmistakable. He felt like turning on his heel and marching away to give himself time to think. Instead he forced out a glib remark. "Well, ma'am, this is better than the last place we met."

It was the wrong thing to say. Her expression grew distant and shuttered. He stumbled on. "Are you hurt? I heard a crash."

She waved a hand. "Part of the balcony fell. I'm not hurt. Just dirty."

"Why are you here in this old relic?"
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You can also purchase this book from any of the stores found at CBA Storefinder.

Also, don’t forget that it’s Free Book Friday over at Harlequin.com--if you order two or more books, you’ll get their weekly featured book for free!

This week, the featured book is: Once a Champion by Jeannie Watt (SuperRomance)

Guest and giveaway - SHOCK WAVE by Dana Mentink

Today my guest is Love Inspired Suspense author Dana Mentink!

About Dana

Dana Mentink lives in California, where the weather is golden and the cheese is divine. Her family includes two girls (affectionately nicknamed Yogi and Boo Boo.) Papa Bear works for the fire department and he met Dana doing a dinner theater production of The Velveteen Rabbit. Ironically, their parts were husband and wife.

Dana is a 2009 American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year finalist for romantic suspense and an award winner in the Pacific Northwest Writers Literary Contest. Her novel Betrayal in the Badlands won a 2010 RT Book Reviews Reviewer's Choice Award. She has enjoyed writing a mystery series for Barbour Books and more than ten novels to date for Love Inspired Suspense.

She spent her college years competing in speech and debate tournaments all around the country. Besides writing, she busies herself teaching elementary school and reviewing books for her blog. Mostly, she loves to be home with her family, a dog with social anxiety problems, a chubby box turtle and a quirky parakeet.

Dana loves to hear from her readers via her website or her Facebook reader page.

And now, here's Dana!

1) How did you get the idea for the story premise of SHOCK WAVE?

Living in California, it’s not hard to imagine “the Big One.” We’re constantly reminded by little shakers that our state is riddled with fault lines. I have vivid memories of the Loma Prieta quake which happened during the third game of the world series between the Oakland A’s and the San Francisco Giants. My mother and I ran out in the front yard and the street was rolling and undulating like ocean waves. I’ll never forget it. One of the worst moments of that whole disaster was the collapse of the Cypress Street Viaduct which sent an upper deck of the freeway collapsing onto the lower. The incident killed 42 people and many were trapped for a long time until the rescuers could free them. For a long time, I broke out into a cold sweat whenever I had to stop under an overpass while driving. Writing a story about a mega earthquake has been tossing around in my mind since ’89, you might say.

2) What's your heroine's favorite sports team and why?

Sage is a big Dodgers fan since she grew up in Southern, California. This is ironic, of course, as the Mentinks are Giants fans all the way (even when they have a difficult season.)

3) What was your favorite scene to write in SHOCK WAVE and why?

I’m partial to the scene that takes place deep under the ruined opera house. It’s partially flooded, filled with relics from the performances that have taken place there since the 1920’s. Did you hear a moan? Feel a chilling breeze on the back of your neck? See a skeletal hand rising from the rubble? No, I’m sure it was your imagination. Thanks very much for having me, Camy! :)

Camy: Thanks for being here, Dana!

Dana's also giving away a copy of her latest release!

Shock Wave
by Dana Mentink

TRAPPED…WITH A KILLER? When an earthquake rips through San Francisco, the last person journalist Sage Harrington expects to run into is ex-soldier Trey Black. After what they survived in Afghanistan, she doesn't know if she can face him again. But now they're trapped in the bowels of a ramshackle opera house on a mission to find Sage's missing cousin. And they may not be the only ones. Someone is desperate to keep them from discovering the truth. With time running out and devastation and danger all around, Sage and Trey must put their trust in each other to make it out alive. Stormswept: Finding true love in the midst of nature's fury
To enter:

You must join my email newsletter to be eligible for this contest. Fill out the form below. Be sure to read the rules.

Extra Twitter entries: Get one extra entry per day if you tweet about this giveaway:
Christian romantic suspense giveaway @camytang Dana Mentink’s Love Inspired Suspense SHOCK WAVE! http://is.gd/Sej7Ef
(Be sure to include @camytang so I can see your tweet and give you your extra entry.)

Extra Facebook entries: Get one extra entry per day if you share this Facebook post on your own Facebook profile and/or page: https://www.facebook.com/CamyTangAuthor/posts/10151595826382620
(Be sure you share the post at the link above--go to the link and then click "share". Make sure you set the privacy of your share to “public” so I can see that you shared it and give you your extra entry even if I’m not on your friends list.)

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Winner and excerpt - Riptide by Elizabeth Goddard

The winner of
Riptide
by
Elizabeth Goddard
Is
Amanda C.

Congratulations! (I've emailed you. Please email me at camy {at] camytang[dot}com if you didn’t get the email message.)

I know the rest of you are crying in your peach iced tea that you didn’t win. Cheer up! Order the book!

Back cover:

Treasure Hunt

Two surprises await high-stakes repo man Jake Jacobson on his latest job. First, old flame Kelsey Chambers. Second, gunfire! Seizing the luxury yacht should have been easy, but he hadn't planned on Kelsey's appearance. Or that smugglers would hijack the vessel to find an antique map hidden on board. The map is Jake and Kelsey's only leverage…but it carries a price. Without it, they're as good as dead. With it, they're the target of a relentless hunt. Their failed relationship has Kelsey afraid to rely on Jake again. Can she count on him with their lives on the line?

Excerpt of chapter one:

What would it feel like to send high-voltage electrical currents through an intruder?

I hope I don't have to find out.

Kelsey Chambers wrapped her fingers around the elec-troshock device Captain Neely had left with her. Someone had boarded her boss's boat and started the engine. She'd spent enough time on The Buccaneer while working on her travel writing assignment to feel the subtle shift, recognize the rhythmic hum of the motor. It wouldn't be Captain Neely and his wife since they were on the island to celebrate their anniversary.

Sitting in the galley of the small but luxurious yacht, Kelsey left her laptop and the images she'd taken of the San Juan Islands and bounded up the steps.

Gripping the weapon, she stepped above deck into a dreary Pacific Northwest day. Angry voices shouted from the end of the secluded pier. Men ran toward The Buccaneer.

A bullet ricocheted too close for comfort.

"Get down!" a man yelled from behind.

Before she had a chance to face him, he shoved Kelsey to the ground at the same moment she fired the weapon, sending the charged projectiles into the air to connect with nothing. She cried out as her torso slammed against the deck, her knees taking the brunt of it. Where had he come from?

"Good thing you can't aim, lady, I'm trying to protect you!"

Kelsey made to push up.

"Stay down," he hissed, and held her in place.

Another bullet flew by. Covering her head with her arms, she decided to take his advice. "What's going on?" she asked.

Ignoring her question, he held her down as if hoping the danger might pass if they waited long enough. Kelsey wasn't so sure. Peeking through the protection of her arms, she caught a glimpse of his Dodgers' baseball cap, sunglasses and then… Recognition squeezed her, crushing her breathless.

No… It couldn't be.

"Jake?" Confusion hit her like a squall. Jake Jacobson was the man she'd fallen hard for before they had ended their relationship a year ago. "What are you doing on The Buccaneer??"

From his awkward position next to her, Jake stared back in stunned silence, but then shouts from the pier grew louder and his expression turned dark.

"We have to hurry. Can you make it to the cockpit?"

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" Had she really just said that? This hardly seemed like the time to let their past stand in the way.

Hurt flickered across his gaze before it turned cold. "You will if you want to live."

Under the circumstances what choice did she have? Face the men shooting at them—might as well have been a firing squad—or leave with Jake. For a half second, she almost weighed the choices.

He nudged her toward the bow. On trembling knees she crawled forward, up the three steps and hunkered behind a captain's chair in the cockpit. All the while, more gunfire rang in her ears.

Who were these men, and why were they shooting at Jake? At her by default?

His back to her, he took the helm, steering The Buccaneer away from the dock. How had he managed the mooring single-handedly? He needed a code to activate the keyless ignition. Where did he get that? Too many questions bombarded her as everything happened within a fifteen-second span of time. Her mind finally wrapped around the fact that Jake was leaving the dock and taking her with him.

She was being swept right along with the boat.

Lord, how do I get out of this?

Still, to flee the boat while several men shot at them wasn't an option. They had to get away from the gunfire, and she wouldn't stand in Jake's way as he ferried them to safety.

Or was she making a huge assumption here thinking the men at the pier were the threat to her safety rather than Jake?

Escape now. Ask questions later.

A window in the cockpit shattered. A scream tore from Kelsey's throat, as if her voice had a life of its own, and she hunkered even lower, wrapping her arms tightly around her head.

The Buccaneer accelerated, transporting Jake and Kelsey away from the dock and the marina.

"We're out of range now," Jake said. "You can get up."

Slowly unfolding from her position, she stood to face him. "What…what are you doing here? What's this all about?" she demanded. The more she thought about it, though, it seemed apparent Jake was on the run and had stolen The Buccaneer as his means of escape, Kelsey his accidental passenger.

Or was she? He'd seemed surprised to see her on deck, but he could have been faking. Was abducting her part of his plan all along?

He pulled his sunglasses off and glanced her way. Wow. She'd forgotten how he could overwhelm her with those blue eyes. Right now they were the same brooding color of a stormy Pacific Ocean. But he looked different somehow.

"Kelsey?" Jake squeezed his eyes shut and opened them like he'd gotten something in them. "I thought I was seeing things before."

Right. Always the kidder.

That's all he could say after a year? He could put on a good act, or he no longer cared about her. Either way, he had some explaining to do.

Another boater laid on his horn in warning, and Jake returned his attention to maneuvering The Buccaneer completely out to sea.

Kelsey eyed the marina growing distant behind them, confused about what had just happened. "I asked you a question. What are you doing?"

"I'm taking this boat, what does it look like?"

"But why? You want to tell me why someone was shooting at you? At us? Why you're stealing this boat?" His explanation had better be good.

Jake cut her a quick glance then focused on the open waters of the Salish Sea between Washington and Canada. Storm clouds brewed in the distance and the wind picked up, the boat shifting as the water swelled with whitecapped waves.

She'd spent the last good-weathered weekend in the San Juan Islands, finishing out this assignment, and up until ten minutes ago, it looked like she had timed things just right. But how could she have planned for this? She arched a brow, waiting for Jake's response.

"Yeah, about that. I'm sorry," he offered. "I'm not stealing the boat. Just returning it to its rightful owner. I'd planned to make sure no one else was on board when out of nowhere those men started shooting, and then you showed up. I didn't wait around to ask them why, and I couldn't exactly shove you off board into a gunfight, could I? So you're along for the ride. At least for the moment."

He tossed her a half grin, but she could tell he wasn't any happier with the situation than she was.

More likely, though, his reaction had everything to do with being shot at and nothing at all to do with her. A guy like him? He must have moved on already.

An old, familiar ache traced across her heart. She shook off the unwanted melancholy and focused her attention back on the present.

Jake must be in some kind of trouble. That scared her, but she'd picked up the pieces of her heart long ago and couldn't afford to get involved now. Could she? No. Definitely not. In fact, if he was getting shot at, that meant she'd made the right decision when she'd ended their relationship.

"What's going on here, Jake? Really. And I want a straight answer."

He drew in a breath. "Three months ago I boarded this same cruiser yacht in order to reclaim it for the bank. It carries a hefty price tag so it's worth my time."

"Doesn't the boat belong to Hidden Passage Travel Magazine? "

"No. It used to belong to the magazine's owner, Davis Burroughs, but he defaulted on his loan."

Kelsey found it hard to believe that her new boss's boat was being repossessed. Was Davis in some sort of financial trouble? The magazine was thriving, wasn't it? And the last she knew of Jake, he still worked as a commercial pilot for Journey Airlines. Now he was some kind of repo man? None of this made any sense. "So, why didn't you take it then?"

"I tried to play nice, that's why, and explained why I was taking the boat. I faced off with an older couple and a few of their friends and ended up thrown into the warm water off the coast of Baja. Now that I finally located her again, I wasn't about to risk getting tossed this time and planned to take her when she was empty." Jake shut off the engine and allowed the boat to drift. "That part of my plan didn't work so well, considering you were on board."

"You might have looked first, ya know?"

"I already told you, I didn't get the chance." After scrambling around in a few compartments, he found binoculars, then peered through them, searching the water, the swells growing with the approaching storm.

Kelsey hoped they were heading back to land soon.

A hint of nausea swam in her stomach. She hadn't faced much of that on this assignment because she'd only traveled within the Inside Passage—the waterway that weaved in and out of islands, protecting travelers from the harsh waters of the open Pacific all the way to Alaska.

"Are you looking for those men who were shooting? You still haven't explained about that." Kelsey wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer, but she had to ask.

"I can't explain what I don't know. I've never seen those men before today. I can only guess that Burroughs must have hired them to keep anyone from trying to repossess the boat."

He lowered the binoculars and looked at her. Really looked at her this time. He acted like he was drinking her in after he hadn't seen her in months. That was the reaction she'd expected and maybe even wanted, but then again, maybe his first reaction was better, considering they were no longer a couple. His gaze drifted over her face, lingered on her lips a few seconds too long and then locked with her eyes.

Her pulse went haywire.

No. Definitely Not. You are not getting involved with him again. Forget that there hadn't been a day since they'd parted ways that she hadn't thought about him. And why, now that she thought she'd found a way to move on, he had suddenly showed up.

A familiar tangle of hot emotion twisted in her throat.

She needed to get off this boat and away from him and whatever he was involved in. And what if Jake wasn't telling her the truth? What if he really was stealing the boat? Would Davis hold her responsible for letting Jake take it?

The electroshock weapon Captain Neely had left with her made more sense in this context.

"Now you can answer a few of my questions," he said.

"What are you doing here anyway? Did you know you're with someone who has gone to a lot of trouble to hide this yacht for months now? Someone who's apparently willing to kill to keep her from being taken away? Being with someone like that puts you in danger." Jake crossed his arms and peered at her from under his cap. "Tell me what you know."

Her in danger? Davis authorizing the use of deadly force? Something wasn't adding up. Jake was trying to turn things around on her. He had some nerve.

Kelsey took a few lengthy breaths, battling her erratic heartbeat. "I don't know anything. It has to be some sort of mistake."

On your part, no doubt.

She left Jake's side to look for the shock device she'd dropped. Davis had sent her on this trip, knowing that someone wanted to reclaim the yacht. That was a big disappointment in itself. Kelsey sighed. Travel writing was supposed to help her fulfill her dream of seeing the world, and she had hoped it would help her forget about Jake, too.

If only she hadn't ignored the niggling thoughts that told her this job was too good to be true. More than anything, she'd wanted it to be true. After all, chances like this only came along once in a lifetime. Yeah. That's exactly what she'd thought when she'd fallen in love with the man of her dreams—the man right in front of her.

And the job of her dreams had led her right back into his path. Not only that, but apparently the moment she'd climbed aboard The Buccaneer, she'd stepped into danger.

Jake's mind reeled at seeing Kelsey again. His heart, too. But he couldn't let her know that. So he tried to act indifferent while he figured things out.

Even though he'd seen the two-person crew leaving the boat earlier in the day, Jake knew to check all the compartments before departing the marina. After flying off with an unwanted passenger the first time he'd participated in a repo, he'd had all the experience he ever wanted with that. But here he was again. And had Jake put her in danger today? Or was she already in danger and he'd come along at just the right time, saving her from harm?

All questions remaining to be answered.

The Buccaneer was beginning to look like more trouble than she was worth. The highend repossession gig was an adrenaline rush, but the edge of danger in this case had gone too far. And for once, the job was doing nothing to help him with his other goal—keeping his mind off things he wanted to forget. Make that people he wanted to forget.

Or better…the one person he had wanted to forget, and the fact she had broken his heart. That's what he got for letting himself fall for her. Love and commitment. It was all overrated. The pain that came with a breakup canceled out anything positive. And even when you tried to forget someone, they managed to turn up in your life again and wash away the progress you had made on trying to forget.

He certainly hadn't planned on seeing Kelsey Chambers again, especially on board The Buccaneer. He had thought he'd left her behind for good. Seeing her now reminded him of all his failures, and yet—looking at her stirred up memories of so much more.

She stood before him now, graceful as the day he'd first seen her on that beach in Hawaii. Ash-blond hair perfectly framed her pretty face. Her striking hazel eyes with their exotic slant pinned him in place. She was the only woman he'd ever fallen for. Yet this time, she wore a guarded expression.

Jake took a weighty step back. A knot grew in his throat. Why did his pulse have to race at the sight of her?

"Who are you to Burroughs anyway?" he asked. "His girlfriend?"

Brilliant. His tone was anything but friendly and that made it sound like he still cared.

"What?" Her arms stiffened at her sides. "Davis is my boss, as if it's any of your business."

"You're right. I'm surprised to see you, that's all. I thought you worked for an airline magazine."

"I took a travel writing job a few weeks ago. I was just about to finish off an assignment exploring the Inside Passage. It was supposed to end in Puget Sound. Obviously, your appearance changes that."

The way she dragged out that last line, and the accompanying negative tone, begged for an apology from him, and without thinking, he gave one. "I'm sorry."

And those two little words echoed what he'd told her the day she'd broken things off with him. How many ways would she make him apologize this time? His gut felt like a storm anchor had lodged there. He wasn't sure he could be in the same room with her without going through the pain all over again.
Order:
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Harlequin.com (Large Print)
Harlequin.com (ebook)

Barnes and Noble
Barnes and Noble (Large Print)
Nookbook

Amazon.com
Amazon.com (Large Print)
Kindle

Christianbook.com

Booksamillion.com
Booksamillion.com (Large Print)
Booksamillion.com (ebook)

Kobobooks.com (ebook)

iTunes (ebook)

You can also purchase this book from any of the stores found at CBA Storefinder.

Love Inspired chat right now!

From 8-10pm EST. I hope you’ll join us!

http://community.harlequin.com/123flashchat/client/

Interview and giveaway - RIPTIDE by Elizabeth Goddard

Today I’m interviewing Love Inspired Suspense author Elizabeth Goddard!

About Elizabeth:

Elizabeth Goddard is an award-winning author with well over a dozen romance and romantic suspense novels, including the romantic mystery, The Camera Never Lies—winner of the prestigious Carol Award in 2011. After acquiring her computer science degree, she worked at a software firm before eventually retiring to raise her four children and become a professional writer. A member of several writing organizations, she judges numerous contests and mentors new writers. In addition to writing, she home schools her children and serves with her husband as he pastors a church in Louisiana.
http://elizabethgoddard.com

And now, here’s me and Elizabeth!

1) What inspired the storyline of RIPTIDE?

Riptide is the second book in a series about high-stakes repo men. I read an article about a man labeled the Learjet repo man, and he often goes into high-risk situations to retrieve big ticket items from people like drug lords and other unscrupulous individuals. My understanding is he is wanted dead or alive in one third world country where he took the president’s jumbo jet. :) But I thought it would be exciting to write a series about that. In Treacherous Skies, they were after a Learjet belonging to a drug lord. In Riptide, my hero is retrieving a small yacht when trouble ensues.
 
2) If your heroine were a pie, what would she be?

Great question—I’ve never heard this one before! Hmmm. I’d have to say huckleberry pie and that because my hero talks about how his grandmother used to make them and how much he loves them.
 
3) Does your hero have a pet? If he doesn't, what would it be like?

Though my hero’s pet isn’t mentioned in the story he has an African grey parrot. He can travel and leave the bird for a few days at a time if he needs to. And then when he walks into his empty apartment, Charlie says hello and fills his home with all sorts of chatter, considering that Charlie’s vocabulary includes a thousand words.
 
4) What was your favorite/funnest scene in writing RIPTIDE?

Riptide is pretty intense and when I read this question, a scene came to mind, but I wouldn’t say it is a “fun” scene, but an emotionally intense scene, if that’s okay. My hero is hanging from cliff, and holding onto a man to keep him from falling—holding onto a man who moments before tried to kill him. I don’t want to give too much away, but so much of the story comes together through this scene and really clicks. My editor commented on the scene as well, how emotionally powerful it was.

Camy: Thanks so much for being here today, Elizabeth!

Elizabeth is also doing a giveaway for a copy of RIPTIDE!

Riptide
by
Elizabeth Goddard

Treasure Hunt

Two surprises await high-stakes repo man Jake Jacobson on his latest job. First, old flame Kelsey Chambers. Second, gunfire! Seizing the luxury yacht should have been easy, but he hadn't planned on Kelsey's appearance. Or that smugglers would hijack the vessel to find an antique map hidden on board. The map is Jake and Kelsey's only leverage…but it carries a price. Without it, they're as good as dead. With it, they're the target of a relentless hunt. Their failed relationship has Kelsey afraid to rely on Jake again. Can she count on him with their lives on the line?

To enter:

You must join my email newsletter to be eligible for this contest. Fill out the form below. Be sure to read the rules.

Extra Twitter entries: Get one extra entry per day if you tweet about this giveaway:
Christian romantic suspense giveaway @camytang! Elizabeth Goddard’s RIPTIDE http://is.gd/RtE6Pf
(Be sure to include @camytang so I can see your tweet and give you your extra entry.)

Extra Facebook entries: Get one extra entry per day if you share this Facebook post on your own Facebook profile and/or page: https://www.facebook.com/CamyTangAuthor/posts/10151584709142620
(Be sure you share the post at the link above--go to the link and then click "share". Make sure you set the privacy of your share to “public” so I can see that you shared it and give you your extra entry even if I’m not on your friends list.)

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Self-Editing tips on eHarlequin and Synopsis writing class in August!

Self-Editing tips at eHarlequin

I forgot to post this earlier, but I'm posting Deep Editing tips over at the eHarlequin forum boards. I'm going over 5 of the points that are in my Self-Editing worksheet and giving some feedback. I'm only online there until the end of Saturday (sorry for the late notice) if you'd like feedback. Since I'm doing 5 of the points in my worksheet, this will give you a chance to see a sample of my worksheet in case you're still on the fence about buying it.

Here's the direct link to the forum: http://community.harlequin.com/showthread.php/1441-Camp-Gonnabe-Self-Editing-with-Camy-Tang

Register for my next Synopsis writing class in August

I'm not doing as many online classes these days, but for those of you interested, now's the time to register for a Synopsis writing class I'm giving through the Oklahoma Christian Fiction Writers group:

Synopsis writing online class ($20 (OKC member) or $25 (non OKC member)) August 5 - 16

For 12 days, I’ll be working with you to write a synopsis for your manuscript during the class. By the end of the class, you will have:

1) a one sentence hook for your manuscript proposal
2) a five sentence pitch, which you can also use in a query letter
3) a comprehensive 2-page single spaced synopsis for use in a proposal or submission
4) a character synopsis to include with your 2-page synopsis or in place of it
5) if your manuscript is completed, a full chapter by chapter synopsis (usually anywhere from 4-10 pages) for if an editor asks for a more complete story synopsis, OR at the very least, the means to write one if your manuscript is not yet completed.

Cost is $20 (OKC member) or $25 (non OKC member). If you're interested, register here:
http://okcchristianfictionwriters.blogspot.com/p/online-classes_19.html (scroll down the page a bit to see my class)

Winner and excerpt - Lifeline by Christy Barritt

The winner of
Lifeline
by
Christy Barritt
Is
Kathy E.
Congratulations! (I've emailed you. Please email me at camy {at] camytang[dot}com if you didn’t get the email message.)

I know the rest of you are crying in your French onion soup that you didn’t win. Cheer up! Order the book!

Back cover:

"I did it for you."

The chilling words in the text message have Julianne Grace fearing for her life. She's sure that her abusive ex-fiancé has killed two people—and that she's the next target. But will anyone believe that her presumed dead ex is really alive? The only man who can help Julianne is cool, aloof security specialist Bradley Stone. Not only does she need his protection, but he's also the link to finding answers about her ex-fiancé's death. And the closer Bradley and Julianne get to the truth—and to each other—the angrier the madman after Julianne becomes. One wrong move and they could both fall prey to the killer's deadly scheme.

Excerpt of chapter one:

Julianne Grace bristled, pausing mid-step as she journeyed down the lonely road. She froze as her eyes scanned the area in front of her. Woods and swampland surrounded her, but nothing else.

There was the sound again. A stick cracking. Her pulse pounded in her ears as she turned her head. Fear pricked her skin. What had caused the noise?

All she saw was a desolate stretch of highway and looming oak trees enveloped by dark, murky water.

She ran a shaky hand through her mane of hair. She'd heard something. She knew she had. Was someone watching her from the woods?

Could it be Darrell Lewis?

The thought made her blood go cold—cold enough to rival the frigid wind that swept across the deceitfully sunny landscape. She should have worn a coat, but she'd left her apartment too quickly. She hadn't had time to think—just to drive. Now the scar across her collarbone pulled tight in the twenty-degree briskness.

The injury was a daily reminder of how ugly love could turn. A daily reminder of how relationships weren't worth it. Not then. Not now. Not ever.

She took a few more tentative steps. The feeling of unseen eyes caused her pace to quicken until she burst into a jog and then an all-out run. Though she saw nothing and no one, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being chased.

Finally, a gate appeared in the distance. Could it be the entrance to Iron, Incorporated? Was help in sight?

She could make it that far. She'd ask to see Bradley Stone and then tell him the truth about why she'd come. She'd ask the burning questions that consumed her and hopefully get some answers.

She had to get what she'd come for. She had no other options, not if she wanted to live to see tomorrow.

Her legs felt like jelly when she reached the guardhouse. Her quick breaths came out in icy clouds, and she shivered again. What a mess. Everything was a mess.

A fresh-faced man in uniform stared at her. She could tell by the way his eyes wavered from side to side for just a split second that her presence baffled him. Certainly people didn't tread up to the gate every day, not when you considered there were miles of empty road before reaching the compound.

"Can I help you?" The guard was short, blond and had a gun at his waist. His gaze roamed behind her, as if her appearance were some kind of guerrilla-war tactic.

"I need to see Bradley Stone." The words were labored, partially from her jog and partially from fear. "It's important. Very important."

The man blinked, and his face remained devoid of expression. "Bradley Stone? Your name?"

"Julianne Grace." Her breathing still hadn't normalized. Her shivers reached her vocal cords, causing her voice to crack.

"Do you have an appointment?"

She shook her head, the reality that she may not be able to see him sinking in. But she couldn't retreat now. "No, I don't. But I need to talk to him. Please. I've come four hours to get here, all the way from D.C."

His lips pulled into a tight line. "One moment."

He stepped into the small brick booth and picked up a phone. Julianne rubbed her palms on her jeans. Despite the chill, she'd still managed to break a sweat.

She turned, glanced behind her. Nothing. What did she think she would see? Darrell hiding behind a tree? The thought was ridiculous.

But she'd heard a branch break. Had an animal made the sound? Or was it the man bent on tormenting her?

She rubbed her clammy hands against her jeans. She couldn't dislodge the thoughts from her mind. Thoughts of pain and death at the hands of a man who liked to see others suffer. Was there any other reason Darrell had thrown acid on her, hoping to hit her face and disfigure her so that no other man would want her?

The guard approached her, that inscrutable expression still across his face. "I'm sorry, but Mr. Stone can't speak with you now. He told me to give you the number of his secretary so that you could schedule an appointment."

Tears sprung to her eyes. She tried to hold them off, but it did no good. Her gaze met the guard's. The last thing she wanted was to manipulate the situation, but she had to make her desperation clear. "My life depends on it."

"I'm sorry, ma'am." The man handed her a card. A moment of sympathy glimmered in his eyes. "Here's the number for his secretary."

She took the paper from him and crumbled it. She used her sleeve to wipe away her tears as she turned on her heel. What would she do now? Hike back to a gasless car located miles from nothing?

She had to see Bradley Stone. But how?

What were her options? She could scale the fence surrounding the headquarters and make a run for it. Then she remembered the barbed wire atop the iron prongs. Probably not the best idea….

Could she somehow make it past the guard? If she could slip by him and make it to the building in the background maybe Bradley would have no choice but to speak with her.

Right now, she had nothing to lose. Two people were already dead. She'd be next if she didn't get some answers. Either way she looked at it, her life was on the line.

Julianne swallowed so hard that it hurt. She was a peace-loving woman who hated making scenes or adding drama to life. But desperate times called for desperate measures, as the saying went.

She paused and turned toward the guard. "Excuse me, sir. Do you think I could use your phone? Please? I need to call a tow truck. My car ran out of gas and the nearest gas station has to be miles from here."

The guard shifted, his hesitation evident. Her cell phone was tucked into her back pocket, out of sight. She'd never said she didn't have a phone. Still, guilt pressed in on her.

Finally, the young guard nodded and motioned for her to go into the booth. "Just one call."

She nodded, relief washing through her, but quickly replaced as anxiety crowded it out. Did she really think this would work? Regardless, she had to give it a shot.

Lord, protect me, even if I'm being foolish.

She stepped into the booth and picked up the receiver.

Before the guard realized what was happening, she darted through the opposite door and onto the grounds of the Eyes headquarters.

She ran as if her life depended on it.

Because her life did depend on it.



Bradley Stone hung up the phone and leaned back in his desk chair. Julianne Grace. It had been a long time since he'd heard that name. Honestly, he thought he'd never hear it again. Why should he? His military career had ended, Darrell Lewis had died…and his life had begun the proverbial next chapter.

He stood and plucked open two slats from the window blinds. From his office, he could see the front gate.

Why had he sent the woman away? He should feel obligated to speak with her. After all, her fiance had died on his watch. Most people in his position would bend over backward in this situation.

But Darrell Lewis had had an edge to him, and his death still haunted him to this day. Bradley had tried desperately to put that part of his life behind him. Probably because it included mourning the death of his own fiancée who'd been murdered not even a year after Darrell died.

He knew how it felt to lose someone you loved. He knew what it was like for someone to be snatched away from life before their time.

He didn't want to see Julianne and be reminded again.

He narrowed his eyes as she took a step away from the guard station. Where was her car? Had the woman walked here? Why had she wanted to see him of all people?

He watched as she turned and approached the guardhouse again. She talked to the guard a moment and he pointed toward the gate. Then Julianne walked into the station. What was she doing?

The next instant, she darted across the lawn toward the main building. Bradley straightened as he watched her run as if the ground itself was on fire. The woman was going to get herself killed.

He sprinted from his office. After taking the stairs by two, he rounded the corner and opened the door at the front entrance. He stepped outside just in time to see Juli-anne fall to the ground. Had she been shot? Terror raced through him.

Eric, the guard, stood with his gun drawn by the gate. Bradley cupped his hands around his mouth. "Hold your fire!"

Had the woman gone mad? He rushed toward her and knelt on the lawn at her side. She pushed herself up on her elbows, blood trickling from her forehead. She must have hit it on the edge of the pavement.

Her panic-stricken eyes met his. "I need your help."

"You're going to need a lawyer's help also, pulling a stunt like that." He gently gripped her arms as he helped her back to her feet.

"Th-thank you," she stuttered. She brushed a hair behind her ear, as if trying to compose herself. It didn't work. The woman was a wild mess, her limbs like jelly. Her legs gave out, and she started sinking to the ground again when he caught her. Tantalizing eyes met his. "Do you remember me?"

He straightened. "Of course I do. Darrell Lewis's fiancée. What were you thinking charging through the front gate like that?"

Her breath came in deep gasps and her hands trembled. Her long brown hair, streaked with gold, fell into her perfectly proportioned face. But her stunning beauty took a backseat to the fear and desperation that seemed to emanate from her. "Please. I only need a few minutes."

Would she accuse him of her fiance's death? Maybe. Could he deny he was at fault? No. The responsibility fell on his shoulders alone.

Would she make further inquiries about his death? Possibly. She'd never asked many questions in the first place except, "Are you sure he's dead?"

An odd question, really. Most want to know how their loved one died, or if they'd experienced any pain or what their last moments had been like.

But she'd asked, "Are you sure?"

He shook the thoughts from his head and glanced at Julianne again. Something about the woman and her wide, luminous eyes tugged at his heart—and he felt himself softening toward her.

He glanced at his watch. His meeting started in five minutes.

Five minutes.

He could give the woman that much.

Most likely, he'd regret it if he didn't. His mind would be flooded with questions about why she had come. The easiest solution to that was to simply talk to her, find out what she wanted, and send her on her way.

"Let's get you out of the cold." He led her inside the large, lodgelike building. Flames blazed from the massive fireplace that stretched upward two stories, giving the lobby a warm, cozy feel. His fingers grazed her hands and he felt the frigidness of her skin. She trembled uncontrollably. Where was her coat?

He kept a hand on her elbow until she reached a leather chair situated by the roaring fireplace. "Why don't you have a seat? Can I get you some coffee? Anything?"

She lowered herself into the seat, her hands quivering against her legs. "Yes, please. If you don't mind. I—I wasn't prepared to be here. This wasn't exactly on my schedule for today."

Just what had brought her here, then? What had caused her to risk her life to speak with him? "Sit tight. Warm up. I'll be right back with that coffee and some first aid for that cut."

He took a step away when Julianne's soft voice cut through the air.

"Actually, I just need to ask you one question. It can't wait."

Bradley pivoted and saw her sitting on the edge of her seat, looking as if she might break at any moment. "One question? Okay, shoot."

She swallowed, stark fear straining her features. "Are you sure Darrell Lewis died during that training exercise?"

Julianne watched Bradley's expression—stone cold, as usual. She'd always thought the name was appropriate for someone who kept such a tight reign on his emotions. He was like an exquisitely carved statue from Roman times. All hard lines and stiff features and breathtaking good looks.

No hint of softness to him.

Bradley Stone was the only person she could think of who might have some answers. He was Darrell's former commanding officer and SEAL platoon OIC—officer-in-charge. He was the one who'd come to her with the news of Darrell's death.

She remembered when he'd shown up at her doorstep, a sympathetic look in his eyes as he held his hat in hand. On either side of him were a chaplain and the CACO—the Casualty Assistance Calls Officer. As soon as she'd seen Bradley, she'd known what was coming. She'd known also that he didn't have to be there, that he could have easily sent the other two men to notify her of what had happened.

She'd met the man twice before that day. He was the strong, silent type with striking blue eyes that showed a perceptive intelligence. Julianne would bet that he didn't miss much. He had a no-nonsense haircut, a tall, broad build that tapered to narrow hips, and a chiseled, smooth face.

His voice had been kind when he'd told her the news about Darrell. As she'd listened, shock had washed over her, shock followed by relief. Tears had rushed to her eyes, and she'd hoped they'd looked like tears of sorrow. But the moisture along her eyelids was because she realized she didn't have to live in fear anymore.

Yet here she was, two years later, living in absolute fear again.

Snapping back to the present, she tried unsuccessfully to read Bradley's expression. All she could see were his eyes, ever perceptive, soaking her in. Finally, after a moment of contemplation, he stepped forward and lowered himself into the chair across from her, the fireplace softening his features.

"Am I sure that your fiance is dead?" he repeated, his voice even. The man thought she was losing her mind. That was all there was to it. She might think the same thing if she didn't know what she did, if she hadn't seen the things she'd seen.

She nodded, her throat scratchy, and the tremors that had begun in her hands migrating until her entire body shook. "That's right."

He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and sucked in a deep breath. He was trying to be diplomatic, trying to measure his response. All professional, she thought with a silent, bitter laugh. Concealing how he really felt in an effort to placate her.

Another round of tears washed through her eyes. She had to get a grip. She was usually so careful to control her emotions, to not appear weak in front of others. They'd only take advantage of you if you did.

But how could she get a grip right now? She couldn't, not until she had some answers. Ignoring her achy head and growling stomach, she directed a steady gaze toward Bradley to let him know she was serious.

His jaw flexed, and he shifted his weight before answering. "I saw your fiance during explosives training. I saw him go up in flames. I saw his body, half of his bones broken and skin burned to a crisp."

That was the story she'd heard also. But was there room for error there? Was there any possibility of a cover-up? "There was unaccounted-for time. From the moment you realized there was an emergency until the moment you reached him, the bodies could have been switched."
Order:
Harlequin.com
Harlequin.com (Large Print)
Harlequin.com (ebook)

Barnes and Noble
Barnes and Noble (Large Print)
Nookbook

Amazon.com
Amazon.com (Large Print)
Kindle

Christianbook.com

Booksamillion.com
Booksamillion.com (Large Print)
Booksamillion.com (ebook)

Kobobooks.com (ebook)

iTunes (ebook)

You can also purchase this book from any of the stores found at CBA Storefinder.

Also, don’t forget that it’s Free Book Friday over at Harlequin.com--if you order two or more books, you’ll get their weekly featured book for free!

This week, the featured book is: In This Town by Beth Andrews (Harlequin SuperRomance)

Guest blog and giveaway - Lifeline by Christy Barritt

Today I have Love Inspired Suspense author Christy Barritt guest blogging!

About Christy:

Christy Barritt has two new romantic suspense novels coming out in 2011: Keeping Guard and The Last Target. She's also the author of the Squeaky Clean Mystery series, which follows the adventures of crime-scene cleaner Gabby St. Claire. When Christy's not working on her books, she writes articles for various publications and leads worship at her church. She lives in Virginia with her husband, two young sons and a houseplant named Martha. When Christy has some free time, she enjoys… Who's she kidding? She never has free time! And she wouldn't have it any other way. Visit her website at www.christybarritt.com.

And now, here’s Christy!

Hello, Everyone!

Thanks for inviting me to share a little bit about Lifeline, my July release from Love Inspired Suspense.

I love the various aspects of writing novels. One thing I’ve started to do in the past couple of years is, before I start writing a new book, I find actors who look like my characters. I’m a visual person, so this aspect of brainstorming is a lot of fun for me. I put a lot of thought into my characters and their personalities, and I try to find actors who reflect my story people.

When I finally decide who would best play the role of my characters, I print pictures of the actors and post them on my bulletin board. I keep the photos there until the book is finished with edits. This helps to keep the characters fresh in my mind.

Bradley Stone is the hero in Lifeline. He’s strong, quiet, slightly intimidating, and tough. He works for a para-military organization called Eyes, which helps to train soldiers and law enforcement personnel. I cast Mark Valley as Bradley Stone. He actually fit the image of this character perfectly.


The heroine in my book is Julianne Grace. Julianne is breathtakingly beautiful, as well as sweet and caring. She’s come from an abusive relationship and fears her ex-boyfriend, who supposedly died in a Navy SEALs training accident, is actually alive and trying to kill her. I cast Minka Kelly. Minka fit this role really well also.

Thanks for letting me share, and I hope you’ll check out Lifeline!

Camy: Thanks for guest blogging today, Christy!

Christy’s giving away a copy of her Love Inspired Suspense, Lifeline.

Lifeline
by
Christy Barritt

"I did it for you."

The chilling words in the text message have Julianne Grace fearing for her life. She's sure that her abusive ex-fiancé has killed two people—and that she's the next target. But will anyone believe that her presumed dead ex is really alive? The only man who can help Julianne is cool, aloof security specialist Bradley Stone. Not only does she need his protection, but he's also the link to finding answers about her ex-fiancé's death. And the closer Bradley and Julianne get to the truth—and to each other—the angrier the madman after Julianne becomes. One wrong move and they could both fall prey to the killer's deadly scheme.

To enter:

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@camytang is giving away Christian romantic suspense Christy Barritt’s Love Inspired Suspense LIFELINE! http://is.gd/XEHjnt
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Extra Facebook entries: Get one extra entry per day if you share this Facebook post on your own Facebook profile and/or page: https://www.facebook.com/CamyTangAuthor/posts/10151568488272620
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Excerpt - Royal Heist by Rachelle McCalla

Royal Heist
by
Rachelle McCalla

A Royal Wedding—and a Shocking Crime

After rescuing jewelry designer Ruby Tate from an attacker, Lydian royal guard Galen Harris suspects the crime wasn't a random incident. Jewelry thieves have set their sights on Lydia's royal family, and they won't let anyone stand in their way—including Ruby, who's in town to help the princess with her wedding jewels. The closer Ruby and Galen get to uncovering the mystery, the harder it is to deny their feelings. But with a deadly gang of criminals after them, will they live to see their own happily ever after?

Excerpt of chapter one:

Ruby Tate looked over her shoulder at the sound of footsteps behind her.

A hulking figure, more shadow than man, slipped behind the nearest building.

Ruby blinked. Was someone there, or were her eyes playing tricks on her in the dimness of dusk? Unsure of how to react, Ruby walked faster. At the end of the block she turned the corner. The road bent uphill toward the Lydian royal palace. She would soon put the empty street behind her.

Footfalls echoed behind her again—moving faster now.

Ruby increased her pace to a trot. She had two blocks left to reach the door to her apartment building, built into the rear wall of the palace grounds.

The looming sounds behind her picked up their pace, as well. Was it her imagination, or was he gaining on her?

Ruby ran. She gripped her purse with one hand to keep it from thumping against her hip as she accelerated to a sprint. She could still hear the resounding proof—louder and faster—that she was not alone.

Risking another backward glance, Ruby saw nothing.

No one.

She slowed, looking back again, this time scanning the street for the source of the noise she was nearly certain she still heard.

Where had the man gone? Ruby panted, catching her breath, thinking quickly. Was someone actually chasing her? In all the times she'd visited the Mediterranean kingdom of Lydia with Princess Stasi years before, while the two of them were roommates studying gemology in the United States, Ruby had never heard of any violent crimes in the Christian monarchy. She and Stasi had been out late and walked the city streets, without incident, far more times than she could count.

The memories stilled her fear. In those days, Princess Stasi had a bodyguard named Galen, a youngish guard with a lopsided smile, who'd acted as much as an accomplice as a guard, helping them sneak back inside the palace when Stasi had missed her curfew, keeping Stasi's identity under wraps so they could mingle anonymously with the locals.

But everything had changed in the last year. In June, a fiery ambush against the royal family had shattered the peace of the tiny kingdom. And Ruby hadn't spoken to Galen since their painful parting the previous summer.

A noise startled her.

Were those footsteps again?

Ruby wasn't about to stick around to find out. She sprinted toward the safety of the palace, her ballet flats slamming against the cobblestones as she glanced between buildings, looking for the source of the sounds. Between her rushed breathing and the distant traffic noise from a busy thoroughfare several blocks away, Ruby couldn't be sure what she heard.

But it sounded like the footsteps were drawing nearer again.

With one long block to go, Ruby passed the break of a side street, glancing down the branching road in time to see a large man tearing toward her from the shadows. Something covered his face—a sheer mesh, like nylon stockings, distorting his features into those of a hideous monster.

The man had her cut off. If she ran straight for her apartment door, she'd run right into his path. He'd be on her in seconds.

Ruby nearly stumbled as she changed direction, taking the other branch of the cross street at a dead sprint, the heavy footsteps closing in.

She cut down an alley. She'd taken this path with Stasi years before. There was a pedestrian gate just ahead that led through the palace wall, with a gatehouse manned by royal guards.

Royal guards meant safety—if she could stay ahead of her pursuer long enough to reach them.

Thick boots hammered the cobblestones directly behind her. He was close, far too close. She could hear each rasping breath as the man panted in her wake. The palace wall was near but still too far away.

Something tugged at her hair. Fingers swiped her arm, grasping at her shirt.

She was never going to make it. The pedestrian gate lay a full twenty yards ahead, already within view, but rough hands closed over her arms, breaking her flight and tugging her backward.

Ruby let out a panicked scream a split second before a hand slipped over her mouth.

"What was that?" Galen Harris asked.

"Eh?" Elias, whose guard shift had ended half an hour before, lingered in the pedestrian gate guardhouse, chatting as he so often did.

"It sounded like a scream."

Ever since Princess Anastasia had called ten minutes before, asking him to watch for her assistant Ruby's return, Galen had kept his attention on the security screen, which he'd switched to show the area outside Ruby's apartment door. There'd been no sign of the princess's friend.

Not out back, anyway. The scream had come from down the block, beyond the scope of the security camera. Galen peered out the rear window and caught sight of two figures struggling in the distant darkness.

"Watch the guardhouse!" Galen punched the button that unlocked the door. He burst out as the woman screamed again, the sound muffled. The evening's dying light glinted off her red hair.

Ruby.

Galen bounded through the door. He'd heard she was in town, and wondered if Ruby would let him see her again after the way her visit had ended the previous summer. Certain his company wasn't welcome, he'd purposely avoided her.

But he couldn't stay away now.

"Halt!" he shouted. "Royal guard!"

The attacker glanced up, his features marred by nylon netting. He moved his hand from Ruby's mouth only to grab her by the arms.

Galen tore toward them. The masked man tugged at Ruby's purse strap, shoving against her shoulder with his other hand as he wrenched at the bag.

With a leap, Galen threw himself at the hefty brute, slamming his arm down on the hand that gripped Ruby's purse strap.

The man's grasp broke as he stumbled backward, still standing, even with Galen half on top of him.

"Run to the gate!" Galen shouted to Ruby as he attempted to restrain her attacker. The thug spun on his heels to run, but Galen didn't want the mugger running free on the streets of Sardis, Lydia's capital city. He grabbed the man by the arm, pulling him back.

Behind them, he heard the faint buzz that meant Elias had deactivated the electronic lock on the door so that Ruby could get inside. Relieved that she was safe, Galen turned all his attention to the angry man in front of him.

Tugging hard on his arm, Galen tried to bring him down, but his massive opponent spun his arm toward Galen's neck.

Galen saw the blow coming a split-second before it hit him and ducked to take the blow with his hard forehead instead of his neck.

The man grunted as his fingers crunched against Galen's skull.

Taking advantage of the man's momentary weakness, Galen threw his weight against him, heaving downward on his arm. But in spite of his strength and skill as a fighter, Galen was outweighed by Ruby's attacker who resisted his downward pull.

Changing tactics, Galen jabbed one heavy boot toward the middle of the man's legs, hoping to knock his knees out from under him. The thug pulled away, clear of Galen's kicks.

Galen lunged onto the man's back, determined to bring him down. The attacker sagged, but snapped one arm over his shoulder toward Galen's face. This time his opponent angled his fist deeper and caught Galen full on the nose, snapping his head backward and sending tears to his eyes, momentarily stunning him.

Before Galen could pull him in again, the assailant dived toward the alleyway and fled into the night.

A gush of blood flooded from Galen's throbbing nostrils. He squinted after the man, but his vision was blurred with tears and he could hardly see where the attacker had gone.

"Galen?" A female gasped behind him.

"Get inside." He gestured to Ruby, who'd stepped back outside and now hovered anxiously near the gate.

She ducked back into the guard booth. As Galen staggered back to the brightly lit doorway, she reappeared with a towel in her hands. "Here." She reached toward his bleeding nose.

"I've got it." Galen accepted the towel but insisted on holding it himself, gingerly prodding the bridge of his nose; at least the thug hadn't broken it.

"Sit down." Ruby led him toward the chair where he'd been sitting until he'd heard her scream.

"Who was that guy?" Galen tried to look Ruby in the eye, but the fat towel clamped over his nose blocked most of his vision.

"I don't know. Did you recognize him?"

"No. Where'd he come from?"

"The streets. He followed me, I think from as far as Stasi's studio."

"Followed you?" The words hit him harder than the blow to his nose. It was one thing to have Ruby attacked by a vicious purse-snatcher. It was far worse to think the man had tailed her, targeting her specifically. "How do you know he followed you?"

"I heard footsteps." Ruby's voice broke.

Galen angled his head and adjusted the towel so that he could see her face. He might not stanch the flow of blood as quickly with his head down instead of up, but he needed to see her. He needed to know whether she was okay.

Jade-green eyes blinked at him with fear in their depths.

Galen felt his heart twist. Part of him had been eager to see Ruby ever since he'd heard she'd stepped in to fill the role of Anastasia's assistant, as the talented princess designed all the jewelry for the upcoming royal weddings. An equal part of him had been wary of a potentially awkward reunion. But awkwardness had become the least of his concerns.

"Are you okay?" He spotted the red marks along her neck where the strap of her bag had cut against her. "Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine, I think." She touched her neck. "Just sore."

Elias, who'd been hovering silently, his attention divided between the two of them and the security screens, reached for the small fridge where the gateway guards kept their lunches and beverages. "Put something cold on that," the older guard suggested, placing a chilled soda in her hands.

Ruby held the bottle like an ice pack against her neck. "Thank you. That helps."

Relieved that she wasn't seriously injured, Galen went back to wondering why the young American had been followed. "He wanted your purse?"

"Did he?" Ruby gingerly touched the red mark left behind when her attacker had tugged on her purse. "I didn't think I made an obvious target, but I guess by walking home alone…" Her words broke off again, and she took a couple slow breaths, meeting his eyes over the towel he held clenched to his nose.

"You weren't an obvious target," Galen reassured her, trying not to think about the way her shining eyes made his heart leap or how much he'd missed seeing her since the last time she'd visited Lydia. Ruby was heir to an American jewelry chain. He was a humble sentinel with the Lydian royal guard. Their lives were worlds apart. She'd pushed him away when he'd tried to overlook their differences before. He ignored the way he felt sitting close to her, and focused on the attack. "If that man wanted to snatch a random bag, he could have gone downtown. Plenty of women don't guard their purses very well when they go out on the town."

Ruby's freckles scrunched slightly as she wrinkled her nose, visibly fighting back her emotions in order to speak. "But why would he want my bag?" She broke his gaze and turned her head away.

"Are you carrying many valuables?"

"Hardly. Not much cash, a debit card, but my bank account is nearly empty already." She opened her purse and took a quick inventory, rifling through papers and receipts. "Lip balm, keys, cheap sunglasses—which are now broken." Ruby's voice faltered as she pulled out the ruined eyewear. The shades had snapped along one rim. A lens fell out as she lifted them.

Galen reached for the fallen lens, then quickly pulled his hand back as Ruby bent to pick it up, as well.

Best to give the pretty redhead her space. That's what she'd asked him for the year before, and he wasn't about to push the issue. He had things to do—like reporting the incident to royal guard headquarters, and making sure Ruby really was all right.

And figuring out who her attacker was, and what he was after. And then, making sure the man never hurt Ruby again.



Ruby nearly dropped the broken sunglasses before she got them back into her purse. Maybe she could fix them.

Just like all the other things in her life that needed fixing right now. She'd come to Lydia at Princess Anastasia's invitation. Her best friend from gemology school had set the ambitious goal of designing unique jewelry for the many upcoming Lydian royal weddings, starting with the marriage of Princess Isabelle and Levi Grenaldo in just over a week.

Those pieces were ready to go, but Stasi and Ruby still worked long hours trying to meet the deadlines that lay ahead, which was why Ruby hadn't left the studio until twilight. Ruby was thrilled to help the princess. More than that, she felt honored that Stasi had given her family's line of jewelry stores, Tate Jewelry, exclusive reproduction rights to all the designs.

Given the level of public interest in the royal weddings, the Tate Jewelry reproductions should sell well. Maybe even well enough to save the family business. But Ruby had a lot of work ahead of her if that was going to happen. She didn't need the interference of an attacker to set her even further behind. If Galen hadn't come to her aid, she might be as broken as the sunglasses in her purse.

Horrified that Galen had been hurt while helping her, Ruby turned away from the sight of the injured guard. It was hard enough for her to be near him at all. Seeing him hurt, remembering how much she cared for him…it was too much to think about, especially in the wake of what happened.

Ruby stared through the street-side window at the crime site, a mere dozen yards away, where she'd struggled against the masked man. Galen's blood had splashed on the cobblestones, marking the spot. Her heart pinched at the sight.

Galen Harris.

She'd purposely avoided him since she'd been back in Lydia because of her embarrassing last encounter with him the previous summer and her feelings toward him that had made their final parting so awkward. She'd made up her mind that she needed to keep her distance from him, but telling him so had proven catastrophic.

It wasn't that she didn't enjoy his company. It was precisely the opposite. The man could distract her from anything, even her goal of saving her parents' business, which she must do to earn back their trust after her accidental betrayal years before.

If she revived her friendship with Galen, she didn't know if she could leave Lydia again. The tiny Christian kingdom was her favorite place in the world, not just because of the friendly people and perfect climate, but because of the fascinating history of the place. The kingdom of Lydia could trace its history all the way back to the days of the Bible. The kingdom was named after the woman whose house church had grown into a small, independent nation. Princess Stasi and the rest of the Lydian royal family could trace their lineage all the way back to Lydia, the dealer in purple cloth who appeared in Acts 16: 14 & 40.

Ruby wasn't sure which was more difficult—leaving Lydia or leaving Galen. One glance at the guard stirred her dormant feelings back to life. His ready smile was irresistible. His dark hair, now cropped to military shortness, curled as it grew out, ready to burst forth like his fun-loving nature the moment it escaped the rigid parameters around him. But given the way she'd left things with him the year before, she doubted he'd want to be friends anymore, anyway.
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