Book Title: A Face in the Crowd
Author: Christina Kirby
Genre: Contemporary
Release Date: July 20, 2016
Hosted by: Book Enthusiast Promotions
Oliver Honeycutt has it all, success, fame, admirers, but when his family is faced with the unthinkable, none of it matters. Stranded in Atlanta, he meets Alexis who’s unlike any woman he’s known before. As his attraction grows, plans for the future change which leaves someone desperate to keep them apart. But Oliver won’t be easily discouraged. To have a future with Alexis he’ll do whatever it takes to make her see the man behind the image.
Lexie’s scream mixed with the other fan’s and echoed throughout the room as Oliver sang the band’s first number one. As he moved from one side of the stage to the other, Lexie danced, arms over her head, as she let go. In the chaos of the noise, the heat of the bodies moving as one, and the music, she didn’t have to think or feel. She could just be.
A hand reached out for her and Simone hit her arm, mouth open in shock. Lexie blinked once and raised her eyes to meet those of Oliver. Up close, he was even better looking than in the magazines. Her heart stopped or maybe it leaped from her chest. She wasn’t sure. As if controlled by a stranger she reached for his hand and allowed him, with the help of two security guards, to pull her up onto the stage.
With her stomach in her throat, she stood awkwardly while Oliver sang to her. This wasn’t happening. It couldn’t be. Survival never pulled people up onto the stage. At least, they never had. But, there he was, positioned behind her, with his stomach pressed to her back. The heat of his skin and hers, melded together, so hot she feared their clothes would ignite.
Her eyes found Simone’s, who peeked out from behind her cell phone where she was recording what promised to be the best moment of Lexie’s life.
She dared a glance over her shoulder and feared she would faint when Oliver offered her a grin from behind the mike. Dear God he was hot. He pressed into her closer and placed a hand on her hip. Red, hot heat surged into her face. The move was definitely one she wouldn’t want her dad to see, but she was glad it was happening. As the song wound down, Oliver moved to stand beside her. Over his shoulder she saw his brother, Bailey, wailing on his blue Fender. The entire experience was surreal. His brother looked up and smiled, but something was wrong with his face.
She narrowed her eyes to get a better look, sure the lights were playing tricks on her. At the same time, he swiped a hand over his face and when he pulled it away, blood was smeared across his upper lip. He went back to playing, but his nose continued to bleed.
Her gaze refocused on Oliver. “Your brother,” she tried to explain over the music.
When he didn’t register what she was trying to say, she pointed.
Oliver’s head whipped around. For a brief moment, his eyes widened and then, as quickly as she’d seen it, the look was gone. Oliver finished the song and led her back to the edge of the stage where she was lowered back into the crowd. When she looked up, he met her gaze. The moment was brief, but she felt it. A moment of recognition between them. One that said he was sad it had to end. She wanted to reach for him, but she couldn’t. Instead, she stood frozen as fans around her pushed in and slapped her on the back. Oliver waved to his admirers and rushed off toward his brother.
Other Books By This Author:
The Warm Springs Trilogy: Safe at Home, Running Home, and Protecting Home
Novella – Frozen in Time – part of A Winter Romance Anthology
The Reaper's Sacrifice
by Abigail Baker
Series: Deathmark, #2
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Entangled Otherworld Select
Publisher: Entangled Otherworld Select
Release Date: June 27, 2016
It’s been two years since I tried to overthrow Death...
Now, all I have to show for it is a life in exile without my lover and personal Grim Reaper, Brent Hume. He bargained his soul for my safety. If I could get him back, I would, but I don't don't have the first idea how. So I live for the night when Reaper’s bring nightmares to the living—and Brent visits me in mine. Doesn’t make for a good night’s sleep, but I’ll take what little of him I can get.
When Death comes calling, sending me into an old foe’s camp as a spy, my inner rebel awakens once more. If I play my cards right, I might improve upon my growing Master Scrivener powers and finally free Brent so that we can be together for good. I know he’ll do anything to keep me safe—even if it means I’ll never see him again. And that scares the Hell out of me.
I started to drift off, and then I felt him watching me. Ollie, he said in that old world Kentucky drawl. Ollie, hear me?
“Brent?” Within this dream, I sat rail straight in the plastic lawn chair as crickets chirped nearby. He’d never been able to speak directly to me in the dreams before. My eyes welled with tears on hearing him again. But the dark presence I had come to know as Brent was nowhere. He had never failed to show himself in my dreams since we’d parted. And I was still asleep, right? From one side of the yard to the other, I searched. Nothing. “Brent, where are you?”
Ollie… His voice was closer, but he wasn’t there. I miss you. His voice broke.
My eyes watered. Immediately tears poured rivers down my cheeks. It didn’t take much to make me cry these days. But this…his voice, the anguish in just three little words, was enough to crack me wide open. “I miss you, too. Where are you? Are you here? In Montana?” Please, please, be here, Brent.
He grew silent, but was near. I waited for the entire world to grow still in anticipation of his reply.
What do you miss most? he asked.
Somehow I laughed at the question, which felt too common and boring for this method of interaction. I rubbed my eyes in the vain hope he’d appear before me as the Kentuckian backwoods lumberjack that I loved. “I miss the way you feel against me. I haven’t forgotten.”
How could I forget? Electricity had buzzed between us. Little sparks jumped from my body to his when we were close. That was not a feeling that could ever be forgotten. And it was one of the rare things that kept me going. I had to believe I would feel this again one day, and I would lose myself in it for eternity.
“What do you miss about me?” I asked.
If I listed everything, then you’d laugh at me. If I told you I missed everything, darlin’, right down to those freckles on your cheeks, would that be enough? Too much? Invisible fingers, icy, as death should be, fluttered across my forehead. There was nothing there for me to see. Brent was so close but still millions of light years away.
I’m trying to bring change, he said, moving from anguish to business. But it’s not happening fast enough. I’ll need your help soon. Are you ready?
“Just tell me what you need.”
Soon. His presence, usually dark and ominous, grew faint. He didn’t feel as powerful as he once had, and that terrified me. Nonetheless, I’d rather have him near, even if for only this moment. I wanted to grab ahold of him, dig my fingers into the flesh around his wrists, and pull him straight through the dream wall between us. I wanted to but…I Couldn’t.
“Will I ever get to see you again?” I had to know the answer, and I held onto the question and my hope like a vise, like I was holding onto him alone.
You’re being set up. Don’t trust them…
“Brent, what do you—”
Don’t trust them, Ollie.
“Who?!”
Coldness trickled like rainwater down my shoulders and spine.
They’re coming for you. They’re here.
Book One: The Reaper's Kiss
Abigail won first place in the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer’s 2010 Colorado Gold Writing Contest for Romance for THE BLOODSUCKER and first place in RWA’s Golden Network’s 2011 Golden Pen in Paranormal Romance for TATTOO OF YOUR NAME ACROSS MY SOUL (now THE REAPER’S KISS, Deathmark Book One). She regularly blogs about life observances, lives at the base of the Rocky Mountains, and can be easily found hiking any of Colorado’s best trails.
Book Title: On a Knife's Edge
Author: Lynda Bailey
Genre: Erotic Romance Suspense
Release Date: July 5, 2016
Hosted by: Book Enthusiast Promotions
She was once his sweet salvation…
Lynch Callan has been a dead man walking most of his life—nothing out of the ordinary for a member of the 5th Street biker gang. There was a brief period, though, when she made him believe he could be more. That he could be worthy of her, and her love. To protect her, and keep their relationship from being discovered, he went to prison. Except now the Streeters are in danger. But in order to save his crew, he must first betray them. If caught, he’ll end up dead for sure. It’ll be the mother of all balancing acts—especially with her in the picture. But Lynch will do whatever is necessary to protect the people he loves.
He was once her deepest desire…
Shasta Albright doesn’t break the rules. Not anymore. As an unruly teenager, she defied her family at every turn…even secretly befriending, then dating, then falling in love with a bad boy Streeter. Finally her recklessness caught up with her—with lasting and even dire consequences. Now she leads a pristine existence, always staying within the lines and keeping her secrets hidden. That is until he gets released from prison. Can Shasta hold her perfect world together, or will everything get hurled into chaos?
With young girls going missing, the sleepy town of Stardust, Nevada becomes an unlikely epicenter for an illicit slave trade—with Shasta and Lynch caught in the middle. Amidst the rising body count, they fight to keep their loved ones—and each other—safe. A single slipup could have deadly repercussions. It’s an untenable and treacherous position. Much like walking On a Knife’s Edge…
A loud thump from the bedrooms jolted Shasta’s heart. She hastened to her feet. Adjusting her sweaty hold on Newman’s gun, she tiptoed toward the unlit hallway. Slow, steady footsteps approached.
“Agent Newman?”
No answer. But the footfalls grew nearer.
She retreated as an indistinguishable figure gradually walked forward. She knew it was a man, but she also realized it wasn’t Agent Newman. This man was taller and not as broad in the shoulders.
The first thing she saw were his shoes. Even in the weak illumination, she could tell they were expensive, with a polished shine. Next came slacks with crisp, tight creases. Newman wore a disheveled suit.
“Agent…Newman?” She hated that her voice quaked.
“No…not Agent Newman.”
Shasta recoiled at the familiar baritone voice.
“Agent Newman?”
No answer. But the footfalls grew nearer.
She retreated as an indistinguishable figure gradually walked forward. She knew it was a man, but she also realized it wasn’t Agent Newman. This man was taller and not as broad in the shoulders.
The first thing she saw were his shoes. Even in the weak illumination, she could tell they were expensive, with a polished shine. Next came slacks with crisp, tight creases. Newman wore a disheveled suit.
“Agent…Newman?” She hated that her voice quaked.
“No…not Agent Newman.”
Shasta recoiled at the familiar baritone voice.
I remember telling my first “story” in kindergarten. I informed my teacher, Mrs. Downing, that my mom had just had a baby boy. She hadn’t, of course, and while I got thoroughly admonished for my “storytelling,” I wasn’t deterred from what would become a lifelong passion.
From making up tales as a kid that centered around my favorite TV shows to today, I love telling stories! Stories with handsome guys and spunky gals, that always…always end with a happily-ever-after.
My romances are full of passion, with heat levels that range from hot to sizzling! I've been a finalist in numerous writing contests, including RWA’s® prestigious Golden Heart® in 2010. Please join me for laughter, love and that all important HEA.
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