Spotlight: Beyond Power by Connie Mann

Publication Date: 9/1/2020

If you dare venture beyond Disney’s magic and Miami’s high-rises, you’ll find yourself in Florida’s untamed wilderness…

When your heart’s involved…

A bush pilot and officer for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Josh Tanner is one of the tough cops needed to manage the rugged areas of Florida. And the minute he finds Delilah Atwood deep in the woods without a good explanation, he knows something is very wrong…

All the stakes are raised…

Delilah barely escaped her ultra-fundamental militia family years ago. Now she’s back to save her sixteen-year-old sister, and no government man is going to stop her. Josh isn’t going to stand by and watch Delilah risk her life, but unless he can get her to trust him, she may end up being the militia’s next victim.

Excerpt

I think I’m nearby. Shine a flashlight, call my name, I’ll find you.

Josh’s text sent a surge of relief through Delilah, and she sagged against the tree, eyes closed. “Oh thank God.” Seconds later, panic hit. Worried he would give up and leave before he found her, she scrambled to her feet, wincing as she accidentally put weight on her left foot. One hand braced against the tree trunk, she shouted his name, waving her flashlight over her head like a shipwreck survivor who’d finally spotted a Coast Guard vessel.

When he raced into the clearing, Delilah launched herself into his arms. He stumbled back a few steps before he caught his balance, wrapping her tightly in his arms, murmuring, “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”

She pulled back to see his face, and suddenly, her lips met his—or his met hers, she couldn’t tell which—and they were kissing with the kind of desperation reserved for real shipwreck survivors. The kiss went on and on, sensations rushing over her faster than she could sort them out. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer still, nuzzling his neck, sighing as he murmured in her hair and placed soft kisses along her jaw. His grip shifted, and she realized her legs were wrapped around his waist after she’d climbed him like a tree. His hands cupped her bottom, and when she crossed her ankles to get closer still, she winced in pain.

The moment shattered, and he slowly pulled back. She blinked, dazed and not at all sure she wanted the kiss to end. His eyes said he felt the same, but even so, reason had reasserted itself. He brushed her lips once more, then steadied her as she unwrapped her legs and lowered them to the ground. She winced again when her injured ankle touched down. His grip on her waist tightened. “Easy. Go slow.”

With infinite care, he maneuvered her down against the tree, then crouched beside her. He ran his flashlight over her with crisp efficiency before he set it off to the side so it wouldn’t blind them. His touch was gentle as he tipped her head up so he could see her face. “Are you okay? Which ankle?”

She met his concerned gaze. “Left one. And I’m fine. Nothing much injured except my pride.” She couldn’t believe she’d launched herself at him. “Sorry I, ah, overreacted.”

One side of his mouth curved upward. “The forest can be unsettling at night.” Then his grin widened. “But feel free to overreact anytime you want.”

They grinned at each other like idiots for a minute before she remembered she had to keep her distance. But dang, the man could kiss. He removed her boot, and the sharp pain jerked her back to the present. He ran his big hands from her calf all the way to her toes, then carefully rotated her ankle, and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. When he was done, he gently slid her foot back into the boot, tucking the laces inside rather than tying them, since it was already starting to swell.

“The good news is I don’t think it’s broken.” He sent her the lopsided smile that turned her insides to mush. “The bad news is that I don’t think you’re going to be able to walk on it.”

“How far away is your truck?” she asked.

“Not too far if you have two good legs.” He stood and held out his hands to help her to her feet. The moment she was upright, he pulled her into his arms and wrapped her securely against his hard chest again. “I’m so glad you weren’t hurt worse.”

He kissed her again, gently this time, and Delilah slid into the kiss like a warm bath. She absorbed the strength of his arms around her and the beat of his heart thundering against her chest, feeling cherished and protected in a way she never had before. Slowly, reluctantly, she pulled back, and their eyes met and held, awareness buzzing between them like an electrical current. The heat in his eyes sent a low hum through her body. It buzzed through her a split second before he slapped at a mosquito on her cheek. She yelped in surprise, and he grinned. “Sorry. Bloodthirsty little buggers. Let’s get out of here.”

Keeping one of her hands in his, he turned his back and crouched. “Climb on. I’ll carry you back to my truck.”

Delilah was shaking her head no before he finished speaking. “You can’t carry me. I’m way too heavy.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Are you doubting my manly strength?”

The absurdity surprised a laugh out of her. “I would never doubt your manly strength, Officer Tanner.”

“Then climb on, and let’s get out of here already.” He crouched lower. “And stop calling me Officer Tanner.”

Since she didn’t have much choice at this point, Delilah gingerly climbed on. He scooped her up, piggyback style, and set off into the forest. He spun her around a few times as he walked, singing an off-key version of the seven dwarves song. “Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it’s through the woods we go,” then he whistled the rest, making up words here and there.

Delilah laughed and attempted, badly, to sing along, appreciating his attempt to distract her from her throbbing ankle. She took her cue from him and decided to enjoy the ride, the feel of her arms wrapped around his neck, his rock-hard arms supporting her as he strolled through the forest as though she weighed nothing. She was used to thinking her way through life, but with Josh, she was learning to simply enjoy the moment.

***

Excerpted from Beyond Power by Connie Mann. © 2020 by Connie Mann. Used with permission of the publisher, Sourcebooks Casablanca, an imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. All rights reserved.

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About the Author

CONNIE MANN is a licensed boat captain. When she’s not dreaming up plotlines, you’ll find “Captain Connie” on the waterways, introducing boatloads of schoolchildren to their first alligator. She and her husband live in central Florida just a stone’s throw from Ocala National Forest.

Author Website: https://www.conniemann.com/

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Spotlight: A Tail for Two by Mara Wells

Publication Date: 9/29/2020

All paws on deck!

Carrie Burns has a successful business, a young son, Oliver, and an energetic Jack Russell terrier. She doesn’t have time in her busy schedule for her ex-husband and his talk of working together again. But when she runs into Lance in the dog park, their lives are turned upside down.

Lance Donovan wants to promote his fledgling construction company by helping his brother Caleb with a big condo conversion. Lance even knows the perfect interior designer to make this project a success—his ex-wife, Carrie. But after a fateful meeting at the dog park, Lance finds himself not only petsitting both his brother’s dog and the beloved Jack Russell terrier he had to leave behind in the divorce, but babysitting a young son he never knew he had while his ex-wife tries to get back into dating. How did life get this crazy?

Excerpt

Carrie called the elevator, nerves stretched so tight she thought she could hear them twang as she walked. That had been close, too close, and now here she was owing Lance for saving the day, for charming Kristin into extra time, for getting her business back on track. She felt unsettled by the whole thing, from her panicked call to him to his casual acceptance of the job. The Lance she knew wouldn’t have been so calm, would’ve argued about Kristin’s timeline and threatened her with all the things that could go wrong if the job was rushed. When had he learned to schmooze a client like that? When had he traded his anger for charm? For all that she’d lived with the man for five years, she found herself staring at him like she’d never seen him before.

“Come by the Dorothy tomorrow.” Lance followed her into the elevator, unaware she was silently freaking out. “You could bring Oliver.”

That snapped her right back into the moment. “To an active construction site?”

“Right, bad idea. I heard it as soon as it left my mouth.” He smiled ruefully, a familiar expression that made him her Lance again.

“You take lunch breaks?”

He leaned broad shoulders against the back wall. “Yeah, most days.”

“You can have lunch with us.” She busied herself looking for something in her purse. Keys? Sure, it didn’t matter. She just couldn’t look at him. “If you want.”

Lance waited until she looked up, and his eyes locked with hers. “Oh, I want.”

Carrie stilled. Caught. Because she wanted, too. She watched him watch her, sure that want on his face was reflected on hers. He’d always read her so easily. It was one of the things she loved about being with him, how completely she felt seen. Understood. Only now she wished he wasn’t quite so perceptive.

He took a step toward her. She took a step back and another until she was pressed against the elevator doors. He followed, stopping when he was close enough that the heat of his body radiated through the thin T-shirt, warming her. Melting her resistance, one particle at a time. She grasped the strap of her bag tightly with both hands. She would not reach for him.

“You want me, too.” It wasn’t a question, but her head bobbed in agreement. His eyes flared at the movement, pupils darkening, widening. He leaned toward her. She wobbled on her heels, knees suddenly too weak to support her. Lance shot out a hand and steadied her, using his grip to pull her closer.

He lowered his head. He was going to kiss her. She knew it, knew she should do something to stop it. Nothing good could come of kissing Lance. But he’d come and helped when she called, hadn’t stayed angry at her about Oliver. And he smelled so good, a citrusy soap and that something in the air that was simply Lance. Her Lance.

“Yes,” she said even though he hadn’t asked a question, and his lips crashed down on hers.

It was fierce, their first kiss since Oliver was conceived, like the years apart had left them both starving. She was starving. She let go of her bag’s strap and fisted handfuls of T-shirt, hauling him closer until her breasts pressed into his chest. She moaned at the pressure. He changed the angle of their kiss, going deeper, harder. She couldn’t breathe and didn’t care. He was all the air she needed. God, she’d missed him. Missed this, the very us of them together.

The door dinged and opened, bringing fresh air against her back. She gasped and pulled away, stepping backward and over the threshold, wiping her palms down the front of her chocolate skirt. What a mistake. What a colossal mistake. She should say that out loud, tell him to forget it happened. She opened her mouth, but one look from his smoldering eyes silenced her. Instead, she turned and fled. She was pretty sure he’d get the message. Lance Donovan was not something she could have, and her raging hormones would simply have to calm down and get over it.

He followed her to her Blazer and leaned in the window once she’d pulled on her seat belt. “See you tomorrow?”

Oh God, tomorrow. She swallowed. “Yeah.”

He tapped the top of her car. “Sleep well.”

“I always do,” she lied. Then she lied to herself all the way home about how letting Lance back into her life was only for Oliver’s sake. And Beckham, of course. Yeah, it was all for them. She would put the kiss out of her mind. Old habits and all that. She was sure it meant as little to Lance as it had to her. If she never mentioned the kiss again, she doubted he’d even bring it up. It was better this way, really. She repeated that in her head until it started to sound true.

***

Excerpted from A Tail for Two by Mara Wells. © 2020 by Mara Wells. Used with permission of the publisher, Sourcebooks Casablanca, an imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. All rights reserved.

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About the Author

Mara Wells loves stories, but especially stories with kissing. She works in academe, and lives with her family and two rescue dogs—a poodle-mix named Houdini Beauregarde and Sheba Reba Rita Peanut, a chihuahua-mix in Hollywood, Florida.

Author Website: https://www.marawellsauthor.com/

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Cover Reveal: We Don't Talk Anymore by Julie Johnson

Publication date: October 27th 2020
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

For as long as I can remember, Archer Reyes has been by my side. My closest confidant. My truest ally. My best friend. 

That is, until the summer we turned seventeen, when I started picturing him as something else entirely. 

The love of my life. 
I knew confessing my feelings wasn’t going to be easy; I had no idea he’d reject me so cruelly… or that he was only breaking my heart to save my life.  

It’s been 365 days since I told my best friend I loved him.
365 days since he didn’t say it back.
365 days since he lied straight to my face. 

WE DON’T TALK ANYMORE is a standalone new adult romance about first love, second chances, and the lengths we go to hold onto each other when everything falls apart… 

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About the Author

JULIE JOHNSON (born July 3, 1991) is a twenty-something Boston native and USA Today bestselling author of more than a dozen contemporary romance novels. When she's not writing, Julie can most often be found adding stamps to her passport, drinking too much coffee, striving to conquer her Netflix queue, and Instagramming pictures of her dog. (Follow her: @author_julie)

She published her debut novel LIKE GRAVITY in August 2013, just before her senior year of college, and she's never looked back. Since, she has published more than a dozen other novels, including the bestselling BOSTON LOVE STORY series and THE GIRL DUET. Her books have appeared on Kindle and iTunes Bestseller lists around the world, as well as in AdWeek, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today.

Be on the lookout for her new series, THE FORBIDDEN ROYALS TRILOGY, now available at all e-retailers!

You can find Julie on Facebook or contact her on her website www.juliejohnsonbooks.com. Sometimes, when she can figure out how Twitter works, she tweets from @AuthorJulie. For major book news and updates, subscribe to Julie's newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bnWtHH

Connect:

https://www.juliejohnsonbooks.com/

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https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7236797.Julie_Johnson

Spotlight: Sugar by Lydia Michaels

Avery Johansson is borrowing against her youth and beauty to afford a better future by working as a sugar baby. Men think she’s everything they desire, soft, delicate, and able to stroke their fragile egos with a mere sweep of her lashes. The more they pay, the sweeter she becomes. If only they knew the woman behind the façade. Oh, she could bring them to their knees, make them beg, and unburden their minds to a point of ecstasy. The true Avery doesn’t care for roses. She prefers the thorns. Because behind her beautiful exterior, she’s more leather than lace, and beneath the sugar there’s nothing but spice. The only thing missing is a strong and submissive man to make everything nice.

Noah Wolfe is used to getting exactly what he wants when he wants, and as he sets his sights on Avery Johansson, nothing will stop him short of having her. He’s determined to bury himself in her mind and body, and plans to unravel every dark secret she hides. 

As two dominant hearts collide in an explosion of sin and secrets, boundaries come tumbling down. But their future lies in someone’s surrender, a sacrifice neither is prepared to make—and everything their happiness depends on.

Exclusive Excerpt

I could feel his stare weighing on me, heavy and warm like a blanket I didn’t ask for but appreciated all the same. He watched from across the hall, watched me like a man who saw something he fantasized about possessing. A beautiful car, a valuable company, a woman, either way, I was only an object to him. That was fine. Impersonal, the way I preferred my relationship with neighbors.

My hand trembled as I slid my gold key into the slot of the deadbolt, securely locking my door. The ornate moldings throughout the building imposed a sense of security as well as a sense of lavish luxury, so my sudden unsteadiness wasn’t due to fear, but rather the result of my hot neighbor’s nearness in our shared, narrow hall. 

This man should not stir the feelings he roused inside of me.

Don’t look… 

Sliding the ornate key into the narrow pocket of my Dior clutch, I tried to hide my body’s response to his attention. He pretended to sort a handful of mail outside of his apartment door, his tailored, bespoke clothing the usual high-end office attire, but he didn’t strike me as a self-important snob. Just a result of good circumstances.

Regardless of his background, he got up and went to work every weekday and sometimes on weekends. The golden stubble covering his jaw was proof of yet another long day’s work.

Snapping my clutch shut, I pretended not to notice him, and fought the urge to dissect him with my eyes.

No one read their mail in the hall. They grabbed it from the lobby and dumped it on their counter when they walked through the door. Yet he eye fucked each envelope with the same intensity one reviewed a life or death contract. I doubted he read a single word. 

Bingo. With a flick of his thick lashes, blond enough to give his blue eyes a dramatic gilded fringe, his gaze left the mail and landed on me. I looked away because there wasn’t time to play the demure flirt, and the last thing I needed was another man in my life.

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About Lydia Michaels

Lydia Michaels is the author of over thirty-five novels and the consecutive winner of the 2018 & 2019 Author of the Year Award from Happenings Media, as well as the recipient of the 2014 Best Author Award from the Courier Times. She has been featured in USA Today, Romantic Times Magazine, Love & Lace, and more. As the host and founder of the East Coast Author Convention, the Behind the Keys Author Retreat, and Read Between the Wines, she continues to celebrate her growing love for readers and romance novels around the world.

Lydia is happily married to her childhood sweetheart. Some of her favorite things include the scent of paperback books, listening to her husband play piano, escaping to her coastal home at the Jersey Shore, cheap wine, 80’s pop culture, coffee, and kilts. She hopes to meet you soon at one of her many upcoming events. You can follow Lydia at www.Facebook.com/LydiaMichaels

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Audio Spotlight: When We Were Brave by Karla M Jay

Genre: Historical Fiction

Release date: Aug. 24, 2020

Synopsis: In WHEN WE WERE BRAVE, we find a conflicted SS officer, Wilhelm Falk, who risks everything to escape the Wehrmacht and get out the message about the death camps. Izaak is a young Jewish boy whose positive outlook is challenged daily as each new perilous situation comes along. American citizens, Herbert Müller, and his family, are sent back to the hellish landscape of Germany because of the DNA coursing through their veins. In the panorama of World War II, these are the high-stakes plots and endearing characters whose braided fates we pray will work out in the end.

Listen to an excerpt

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About the Author: Karla M. Jay

Karla M. Jay wanted to write books since she was seven. Working as a speech pathologist since 1982, she writes in her spare time and has won many awards over the years.  When she is not home in Utah gardening or writing, she is traveling, trying to see as many countries as possible--in particular, those with good coffee, ancient history, and great beaches.

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About the Narrator: Gary Bennett

Gary Bennett is a SAG-AFTRA audiobook narrator with a passion for truly giving the listener a front-row seat to the story. He’s narrated over 60 audiobooks (so far!) for publishers including Harper Audio, Hachette Audio, Tantor, Dreamscape, and others, as well as for multiple independent authors. Born and raised in California and then in Bozeman, Montana, Gary now calls the greater Seattle area his home. He’s an avid outdoor enthusiast and relishes taking advantage of living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. When he’s not in the booth, you might find Gary flying over the Puget Sound (he’s a Private Pilot) or finding inspiration as an aspiring musician.

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Spotlight: The Duplicate Bride by Ginny Baird

Saying “I do” has never been this much fun in this charming new romance from New York Times bestselling author Ginny Baird.

Hope Webb can’t believe her twin sister, Jackie, is begging her to swap places and play fiancée at Jackie’s pre-wedding festivities. Sure, it’s only a business-deal sort of marriage, but Hope is a carb-loving teacher who enjoys curling up with a good book. Jackie is a workaholic whose idea of a good time is a brisk five-mile run at the crack of dawn. The two sisters couldn’t be more opposite.

Now Hope is stuck in the middle of a warm, tight-knit family she can’t help but adore and a groom who turns out to be entirely wonderful...for her.

Hotel magnate Brent Albright knows something is off about his fiancée, but he doesn’t care. Gone is the driven woman with similar career goals, and in her place is someone warm and funny who not only charms his family but him as well. She’s doing everything she can to avoid him, but that’s probably just nerves. Two people about to wed couldn’t know each other less.

Now Brent is determined to woo his fiancée, for real this time, because the more he gets to know her, the more his sweet fiancée turns out to be entirely wonderful...for him.

And that’s when things start to get really complicated...

Exclusive Excerpt

Elsa gave a short laugh, trying to downplay the situation. “Believe it or not, Margaret here thought you’d prioritize that wedding over this one.” She rolled her eyes like the idea was absurd, and Hope wanted to melt through the floor. 

Jackie needed to show up and fix this. 

“Now we know that’s not true, hmm?” Elsa grinned at Hope. “Here you are!” 

“There she is.” A dark-haired guy in a black polo shirt and khakis ambled down the drive. 

Hope nearly swallowed her tongue. Brent Albright was gorgeous as a teen, but as a man? She couldn’t breathe. In addition to the rugged-yet-refined-man thing he now had going, he walked with an easy stride that implied he was in command of his completely flawless body. 

His smile, though...that’s what stole her breath away. 

“Hello, sweetheart,” he said, gently nudging past Grandmother Margaret. 

Hope’s breath hitched when she saw his unbelievably hot mouth dropping down toward hers. Wait. Was he going to kiss her? 

“Brent!” she gasped, abruptly turning away. She could not kiss her sister’s fiancé. 

No matter how exciting that had momentarily seemed. 

He stumbled forward, his lips landing awkwardly on her cheek while his hands grasped her shoulders. Hope’s world turned upside down, and her heart thundered as the pressure of his kiss lingered, his scent washing over her. He smelled like sand and sea and pine...and she had to resist wrapping her arms around his neck and yanking him into the car. She broke into a sweat. This is not happening. I am not attracted to Jackie’s future husband! This was so incredibly twisted.

Not as twisted as Brent thinking she was Jackie, though. Shouldn’t he have some gut-level instinct about the woman he loved and was about to marry? “Sorry about the display.” His whisper tickled her ear, and tingles raced down her spine. 

Not good. Not good at all. 

He shot a glance over his shoulder, meant for only her, and Hope got his meaning. They were playing the loving couple for his grandmother’s benefit. But why was it an act anyway? 

She had to tell them she wasn’t Jackie now. Now, before it was too late. Her sister must not have gotten in touch with Brent, but Hope could explain things. 

“In truth, I’m...er, not...” She tried to speak, but she got caught up in Brent’s heady stare. He had very dark eyes, maybe the darkest she’d ever seen. And, ooh, how they sparkled in the sunshine. “What I mean is...” 

Desperate to regain her footing, she wrenched herself free of Brent’s gaze and turned to Elsa, who sat beside her in the passenger seat. 

Brent’s mom’s immediate acceptance of her—no, Jackie—made her heart pound harder. 

Elsa was trying so hard to be warm and welcoming, despite that fact that Hope had nearly flattened her in the driveway like a blueberry pancake. 

Hope was at a total loss over what to do.

She’d told Jackie that this was impossible.

That she would no way in a million years impersonate her.

It was unethical and wrong.

And yet, she’d been helplessly cornered and suddenly had nowhere to turn…

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About Ginny Baird 

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Ginny Baird writes sweet contemporary romance with a dash of humor and a whole lot of heart. She's published more than twenty-five novels and novellas, both with traditional presses and independently, and has several exciting projects in the works. When she’s not writing, Ginny enjoys cooking, walking, and spending time with her family.

Connect Ginny Baird:  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bookbub | Amazon