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    Buzz Books 2017: Romance: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming romance titles by Tessa Dare, Alexandra Ivy, Eloisa James, Gena Showalter, Joanna Shupe, Meredith Wild and many more
    Buzz Books 2017: Romance: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming romance titles by Tessa Dare, Alexandra Ivy, Eloisa James, Gena Showalter, Joanna Shupe, Meredith Wild and many more
    Buzz Books 2017: Romance: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming romance titles by Tessa Dare, Alexandra Ivy, Eloisa James, Gena Showalter, Joanna Shupe, Meredith Wild and many more
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    Buzz Books 2017: Romance: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming romance titles by Tessa Dare, Alexandra Ivy, Eloisa James, Gena Showalter, Joanna Shupe, Meredith Wild and many more

    By Publishers Lunch

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    About this ebook

    This second edition of Buzz Books: Romance provides substantial pre-publication excerpts from forthcoming romance titles. Enjoy access to the best romance voices the publishing industry is broadcasting for the upcoming season as you discover new series, catch up with the latest installments from beloved series, and find great standalone titles from top romance authors.

    From power players such as Tessa Dare, Eloisa James, and Meredith Wild to fan favorites Betina Krahn, Shelly Laurenston, and Gena Showalter, these authors are bestselling, award-winning, and irresistible.

    The titles collected here are a great representation of the best of romance. Authors renowned for one genre are stepping into another genre. There’s a lot of romantic suspense—contemporary, contemporary Western and inspirational. You’ll find historical romance in a variety of time frames, including some new directions from beloved authors, plus one with a touch of suspense.

    Beyond genre and subgenre, romance aficionados will find favorite themes, too—second chance at love; Beauty and the Beast; enemies to lovers; unrequited love. This sampler has nearly every subgenre, too—historical romances set in different eras and some with a touch of paranormal.

    Bobbi Dumas, an expert in all things romance, offers a useful, even essential roundup of additional, noteworthy summer/fall/winter romance books to have on your radar.

    Start enjoying books right now that are sure to show up on your personal “must read” lists. Then invite your reading friends and book groups to download their own free copy of Buzz Books 2017: Romance, the ebook, from any major ebookstore or at buzz.publishersmarketplace.com.

    For the best in soon-to-be-published other fiction genres, plus nonfiction, and children’s literature, be sure to read Buzz Books 2017: Fall/Winter or Buzz Books 2017: Young Adult Fall/Winter, available now. Then be on the lookout for the next two editions of Buzz Books covering the spring/summer 2018 publishing season for both adults and young adults, available in January.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPublishers Lunch
    Release dateJul 12, 2017
    ISBN9780998664279
    Buzz Books 2017: Romance: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming romance titles by Tessa Dare, Alexandra Ivy, Eloisa James, Gena Showalter, Joanna Shupe, Meredith Wild and many more

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      Book preview

      Buzz Books 2017 - Publishers Lunch

      cover.jpg

      Buzz Books 2017

      Romance

      Exclusive Excerpts from Top New Romance Titles

      Credits

      Publishers Lunch has been the daily essential read for the book publishing business for sixteen years, and is the largest-circulation news communication in the world for publishing professionals. Publishers Marketplace is the web site associated with Publishers Lunch, providing round-the-clock news and analysis, deal reports, job listings, and many unique databases and tools that help publishing professionals find critical information, connect with each other, and do business better electronically.

      Bookateria, is a giant online book discovery store driven by an industry insider’s view. Our focus is books making news and building buzz, as we tap into our comprehensive coverage of the books and authors that booksellers, editors, agents, rights-buyers, reviewers and others are talking about. Our own staff catalogs buzz books that the industry is touting as new discoveries of note, and some of the other featured Bookateria lists draw on recommendations from a variety of booksellers and bellwether award nominations to connect avid readers everywhere to great reads.

      Publishers Lunch

      2 Park Place, #4

      Bronxville, NY 10708

      Information@publishersmarketplace.com

      www.publishersmarketplace.com

      Michael Cader, Founder

      Robin Dellabough, Projects Director

      Michael Macrone, Chief Technology Officer

      Sarah Weinman, Senior Editor

      Kathy Smith, Editor

      Bobbi Dumas, Romance Consultant

      Distribution and printing by Ingram

      Typesetting by Julie Ink

      Ebook development by Brady Type

      Buzz.publishersmarketplace.com

      Thanks to our publishing partner:

      Ingram Content Group is the world’s largest and most trusted distributor of physical and digital content. Our mission is helping content reach its destination. Thousands of publishers, retailers, libraries, and educators worldwide use our products and services to realize the full business potential of books, regardless of format. Ingram has earned its lead position and reputation by offering excellent service and building innovative, integrated print and digital distribution solutions. Our customers have access to best-of-class digital, audio, print, print on demand, inventory management, wholesale and full-service distribution programs.

      Contents

      Credits

      Introduction

      The 2017 Romance Publishing Preview

      Buzz Books Authors Appearing at Romance Writers of America

      Colleen Coble

      The View From Rainshadow Bay (Thomas Nelson)

      B.J. Daniels

      Cowboy’s Legacy (HQN)

      Tessa Dare

      The Duchess Deal (Avon)

      Cynthia Eden

      Into the Night (HQN)

      Nicole Helm

      Mess With Me (Zebra)

      Hannah Howell

      The Scotsman Who Saved Me (Zebra)

      Denise Hunter

      Blue Ridge Sunrise (Thomas Nelson)

      Alexandra Ivy

      Pretend You’re Safe (Zebra)

      Eloisa James

      Wilde in Love (Avon)

      Betina Krahn

      A Good Day to Marry a Duke (Zebra)

      Shelly Laurenston

      Hot and Badgered (Kensington Books)

      Roni Loren

      The Ones Who Got Away (Sourcebooks Casablanca)

      Monica McCarty

      Going Dark (Berkley Jove)

      Katherine Reay

      The Austen Escape (Thomas Nelson)

      Karen Rose

      Monster in the Closet (Berkley)

      Gena Showalter

      Can’t Hardly Breathe (HQN)

      Joanna Shupe

      A Daring Arrangement (Avon)

      Meredith Wild and Chelle Bliss

      Misadventures of a City Girl (Waterhouse Press)

      Copyright

      Introduction

      Welcome to Buzz Books 2017: Romance, which includes some of the most highly anticipated upcoming titles releasing from late summer 2017 to early 2018. Dig in to exclusive excerpts from some beloved authors across the vast romance landscape.

      I’ve been reading romance for over thirty years, and I know that romance fans are some of the smartest, most intellectually curious, most eclectic readers in the world. Not to mention the most avid.

      Most readers I meet and talk to are all about the romantic high, and though they may have their favorite subgenres, they tend to read across many of them. That’s one of many wonderful things the romance marketplace has to offer: variety, variety, variety, and even a lot of mashed up variety.

      The titles collected here are a great representation of the best of romance. Authors renowned for one genre are stepping into another genre. There’s a lot of romantic suspense—contemporary, contemporary Western and inspirational. You’ll find historical romance in a variety of time frames, including some new directions from beloved authors, plus one with a touch of suspense.

      Beyond genre and subgenre, romance aficionados will find favorite themes, too—second chance at love; Beauty and the Beast; enemies to lovers; unrequited love. In these authors and titles, they’ll also recognize the romance novel’s capacity to adhere to the genre’s expectations—the HEA, positive change, characters meeting and vanquishing challenges—while exploring new ways to push the tried and true boundaries of world-building and storytelling.

      Readers have long understood that romance represents creativity, enterprise, inspiration and empowerment. We know that romance bolsters the broader publishing industry, and that our passion and investment as consumers have created a huge market, and an ever-growing audience, as more and more readers find this heart-warming, emotionally satisfying literary form. These books make people happy, respect women and champion the most powerful emotion on earth: Love.

      If you’re new to romance and are here to see what all the buzz is about, then welcome! I hope you’ll give the genre a chance: these are terrific gateway titles to this fantastic, fan-centric, addictive genre. So dive in! We hope you find something to delight, entertain, thrill, intrigue, uplift, captivate, charm, beguile, provoke thought in you. We expect you will, but we’d love to hear from you about it. Share your thoughts—and the links!—on social media. And tag us! (#BuzzBooksRomance

      ). Visit buzz.publishersmarketplace.com

      for complete download links and be sure to check out our other Buzz Books while you’re there.

      Bobbi Dumas

      July 2017

      Bobbi Dumas reads, reviews, blogs and advocates for romance and women’s fiction in a variety of places, mainly NPR, Barnes & Noble, Kirkus and her own pro-Romance event, ReadARomanceMonth.com.

      The 2017 Romance Publishing Preview

      We’ve selected the most noteworthy romance titles to be published in the season ahead to help you narrow down your reading lists. You may discover books here that make you excited, curious, and eager for more. Best of all, you can sample many of the highlighted titles right now in Buzz Books Romance; they are noted in boldface.

      Please note that this preview is prepared months in advance, so titles, content, and publication dates may have changed.

      Historical

      There’s so much to love in historical romance these days. What I love about these spotlight titles is that while almost all the names are familiar, each of them is doing something a little different!

      Eloisa James, possibly the greatest ambassador for romance, begins a new series, the Wildes of Lindlow Castle, with Wilde in Love (Avon, October), in which she engagingly explores celebrity culture in a Georgian setting. When adventurer Alaric Wilde returns to England, he is disconcerted by throngs of admiring (female) fans. Escaping to his family’s estate, he is enchanted by Miss Willa Ffynche—who wants nothing to do with him. Willa treasures her privacy and has a few secrets of her own, so the last thing she wants is to become involved with Britain’s most pursued bachelor, whose every move is tracked by a relentless press. Alaric is determined to have the witty, enigmatic Willa, but first he’ll have to convince her that the man behind the legend is a true prize.

      Hannah Howell is famous for Highlanders, but in her new series, Seven Brides for Seven Scotsmen, she’s transplanting the MacEnroy brothers to pre-Civil War America. In Book 1, The Scotsman Who Saved Me, (Kensington, September), Iain MacEnroy discovers wounded Emily Stanton, whose high born British accent reminds him of the bitter class divide he left behind in Scotland. But it’s a new world. In caring for the English beauty, can he find a love he never thought possible?

      Historical favorite Tessa Dare also begins a new series, Girl Meets Duke, with The Duchess Deal (Avon, August). Vicar’s daughter-turned-seamstress Emma inadvertently garners a marriage proposal when she turns up in a duke’s library wearing a wedding dress. The Duke of Ashbury needs an heir, so he picks the first woman to come along, inappropriate though she may be, never expecting that she’ll be the perfect balm to his war-wounded body and soul.

      Beloved Betina Krahn is back with A Good Day to Marry A Duke (Kensington, November), the first book in the series Sin & Sensibility. American Daisy Bumgarten is at home on her Nevada range, not in Victorian London, but she’s in search of a husband and will try to repress her bolder impulses. So why must she be attracted to the completely unsuitable Lord Ashton Graham, who seems determined to undermine her best attempts to be a proper lady?

      Finally, Joanna Shupe is launching a new Gilded Age series, The Four Hundred. The first title, A Daring Arrangement (Avon, October), is a delicious, witty mix of masks, cons and mystery, as Nora, an English beauty, enlists the aid of a wealthy outcast to play her fiancé, hoping her father will be so appalled he’ll let her marry her beloved artist. Instead, Julius bewitches everyone, including Nora. That’s not his only secret plan, however. Nor his only dark secret.

      Some more anticipated historical titles this fall include:

      Joanna Bourne fans will be delighted to learn she has a new Spymaster title, Beauty Like the Night (Berkley, August). Grace Burrowes releases Ethan: Lord of Scandals (Sourcebooks Casablanca), Mary Jo Putney continues her Rogues Redeemed series with Once A Rebel (Zebra, August). I’m intrigued by London Skye’s The Prodigy Slave (Waldorf Publishing, August), the first in her Journey to Winter Garden series. If you missed Lisa Berne’s terrific debut, You May Kiss the Bride, be sure to read it before the second Penhallow Dynasty title, The Laird Takes a Bride (Avon, August). This fall will see Alyssa Cole’s second Loyal League title released, A Hope Divided (Kensington, November), after the highly acclaimed An Extraordinary Union. Don’t miss Juliana Gray’s A Strange Scottish Shore (Berkley, September), Katharine Ashe’s The Duke (Avon, September), Karen Hawkins’ Caught by the Scot (Pocket, September), Kerrigan Byrne’s The Scot Beds His Wife (St. Martin’s, October), Valerie Bowman’s The Right Kind of Rogue (St. Martin’s, October) or the final installment of Elizabeth Hoyt’s wildly popular Maiden Lane series, Duke of Desire (Grand Central, October). Finally, the inimitable Beverly Jenkins releases her next Western-set historical, Tempest (Avon, January).

      Romantic Suspense

      Romantic suspense has exploded in the past few years, with heroines and heroes—not to mention anti-heroes/heroines galore. There are SEALs, motorcycle clubs, FBI profilers, detectives, computer geeks and investigators, amateur and professional, of every stripe.

      Paranormal favorite Alexandra Ivy takes a stab at pure romantic suspense with a serial killer-focused thriller, Pretend You’re Safe (Zebra, August). Ten years ago, sixteen-year-old Jaci thought a serial killer was leaving her gifts with each murder, but no one believed her. Now bodies have turned up, Jaci has moved home, and the officer who scoffed at her then has to catch the killer—or lose Jaci forever.

      Speaking of authors going in new directions, popular historical author Monica McCarty is launching a contemporary suspense series, The Lost Platoon, in which the members of a top secret SEAL Team go on a covert mission and, realizing they’ve been betrayed, disappear and scatter. Going Dark (Berkley, September) introduces us to secretive Dan Warren, who risks everything to protect passionate marine ecologist Annie, who realizes she’s in over her head after she heads to Scotland to protest an offshore drill, but discovers something far more sinister.

      Don’t miss Into the Night (HQN, December), the third title in Cynthia Eden’s sexy, suspenseful Killer Instinct series. Years ago, Macy survived an attack from a serial killer, and today she’s part of an FBI unit that hunts down serial predators, partnered with sexy Bowen Murphy. But when the two become targets, attraction explodes as they race the clock to track down their would-be killer, before they become his prey.

      Suspense queen Karen Rose returns to her Baltimore series with Monster in the Closet (Berkley, August). After PI Clay Maynard reconnects with his adult daughter Taylor—whom his ex-wife stole as a child—and she settles in Baltimore to work as an equine therapist, he may have to use every investigative skill he possesses to keep her safe from an unseen but deadly enemy.

      Contemporary Western romantic suspense bestseller B.J. Daniels returns to the Cahill Ranch with Cowboy’s Legacy (HQN, November). On the day they’d planned to start their lives together, Sheriff Flint Cahill’s true love, Maggie, disappears—and he blames his ex-wife. Can love conquer vengeance, winter storms and the ticking clock?

      Colleen Coble’s The View from Rainshadow Bay (Thomas Nelson, January) is a wholesome romantic suspense title with a light Christian message set in the lavender fields of Washington. When widowed photographer Shauna uncovers a potential environmental scandal and her business partner is murdered, she turns to her husband’s best friend—whom she blames for his accidental death—to help her and protect her son. But as they work through guilt, forgiveness and attraction, an even darker danger is on the rise.

      Additional suspense titles this season include Seeing Red by Sandra Brown (Grand Central, August); The Woman Left Behind by Linda Howard (William Morrow, November); The Woman Who Couldn’t Scream by Christina Dodd, the fourth Virtue Falls title (St. Martin’s, September); and Sherry Thomas’ second Lady Sherlock historical romantic suspense, A Conspiracy in Belgravia, (Berkley, September). Nicola Cornick jumps into romantic women’s fiction with her historical timeslip mystery, House of Shadows (Harlequin MIRA, October). J.D. Robb publishes Secrets In Death, the 45th Eva Dallas/In Death title (St. Martin’s, September). Tracy Wolff mixes royal romance with an abduction storyline in Royal Pain: A His Royal Hotness Novel (Loveswept/Random House, September). And finally, Jayne Ann Krentz brings us Promise Not to Tell Hardcover (Berkley, January).

      Contemporary

      Contemporary romance is going in so many great directions, it’s hard to know where to start. While the needle, overall, has definitely moved toward a sexier baseline, there’s certainly a place for all heat levels, and, especially given pressure from non-traditional platforms, this may be the subgenre that has changed the most in some ways. Contemporary storylines are edgier, more emotionally and sexually intense, but what has played out is mostly the welcome message that there’s space for everything.

      Misadventures of a City Girl by Meredith Wild and Chelle Bliss (Waterhouse Press, September) is definitely on the very sexy end of the spectrum. Fresh off a divorce from a Hollywood hotshot, Madison Atwood needs an escape. With the paparazzi fresh on her heels and her love life splashed on every tabloid, she runs away to a swanky retreat, where she runs into Luke Dawson, who lives off the grid. Madison captures his attention, but she’s just a city girl—can Luke say goodbye to the only woman who’s made him feeling anything in years, and can Madison leave behind the man who brought her back to life?

      Katherine Reay has practically created a niche contemporary Austen brand, and The Austen Escape (Thomas Nelson, November) should only strengthen it. When Mary travels to England with her best friend, she hopes to shake up her life a little. But when Isabel loses her memory and believes she’s living in Regency England, Mary is sent on an unexpected journey that will uncover surprising secrets—and pave the way for a rewarding future.

      Roni Loren has generated tons of buzz the last couple years, and her new series will probably create more. The Ones Who Got Away (Sourcebooks Casablanca, January) is the name of the series, which revolves around the few surviving members of a high school senior class tragedy from twelve years ago, as well as the first book. As the survivors gather for a documentary, Liv plans to confront her old, estranged flame, Finn, and move on. But things don’t go as planned, and it’s clear what they have to confront are unresolved feelings.

      Denise Hunter’s Blue Ridge Sunrise (Thomas Nelson, November) also offers a second-chance-at-love story. When Zoe’s beloved grandma dies and leaves her the family peach orchard in Copper Creek, she’s torn between her legacy and her new life, as well as the man she lives with and the one who broke her heart.

      Mess With Me (Zebra, September) is the second in Nicole Helm’s Mile High Romance series, featuring the owners of a Rocky Mountain outdoor guide company, a refreshing alternative to the ever-present billionaires. Backpacking guide Sam has been hiding from life for years, but when he’s tasked with training Haley, his best friends’ sister, as a guide, she may force him to let go of the past in order to take a chance on the future.

      Gena Showalter’s Can’t Hardly Breathe (HQN, August) pairs two wounded souls, Dorothea and her long-time crush Daniel, an ex-Ranger who’s back in town to care for his ailing dad. When he uses her inn for some extracurricular activities, she’s tempted to join in. She can’t believe he’s interested, he can’t believe how much he wants her—can they find a way to trust in each other and find forever love?

      For more great contemporary titles, be sure to check out the following.

      Susan Mallery launches her new series, Happily Inc., with You Say It First (HQN, August) and Susan Wiggs releases Map of the Heart, a romantic women’s fiction title that traces a family legacy from France in World War II (William Morrow, August). If you haven’t read Santino Hassell’s excellent M/M romance (the author also co-writes with Megan Erickson), you should pick him/them up. Illegal Contact (Penguin/Intermix, August) launches The Barons, a football/sports romance series that’s getting even more fantastic buzz. K.M. Jackson’s next charming Unconventional Brides title is The Betting Vow (Kensington/ Dafina, August). October is the month of Christmas releases, and for those of you who need some holiday romance, be sure to pick up Debbie Macomber’s Merry and Bright (Ballantine, October) and Hope at Christmas by Nancy Naigle (St. Martin’s Griffin, October). Wickedly funny Molly Harper launches a new Southern contemporary series, Southern Eclectic, with Sweet Tea and Sympathy (Gallery, November). And to end the year, Brenda Jackson expands her wildly popular Westmoreland franchise with His Secret Son (Harlequin Desire, December).

      Paranormal Romance

      The main spotlight in paranormal goes to Shelly Laurenston, and a book her fans have been clamoring for for years. Finally, finally…Hot And Badgered (Kensington, April). In this first book of The Honey Badgers series, three honey-badger shape-shifting sisters known for their snark, survival skills and bad-assery have to fight for their lives (again), but this time, Charlie’s attracted a suitor who wants to help. She wants to believe Berg’s just in the way, but the grizzly shifter’s proving surprisingly useful—and much more attractive than she wants to admit.

      For more paranormal, try Wicked Deeds from Krewe of Hunters, with a psychic visit from Edgar Allen Poe, courtesy of Heather Graham’s imagination (Harlequin/MIRA, September); Christine Feehan Leopard’s Blood, a Leopard Novel (Berkley, October); The Trouble with Twelfth Grave, Darynda Jones’ Charley Davidson series (St.Martin’s, October); The Brightest Embers from the Broken Destiny series by Jeaniene Frost (HQN, November); Unleash the Night, a Dark-Hunter Novels from Sherrilyn Kenyon (St. Martin’s, November); and Blood Fury: Black Dagger Legacy series J.R. Ward (Ballantine, November). Finally, Amanda Bouchet finishes her Kingmaker Chronicles with Heart on Fire (Sourcebooks Casablanca, January), so you still have time to read the first two before it comes out.

      Buzz Books Authors Appearing at Romance Writers of America

      B.J. Daniels

      Tessa Dare

      Cynthia Eden

      Nicole Helm

      Betina Krahn

      Monica McCarty

      Karen Rose

      Joanna Shupe

      SUMMARY

      From USA Today bestselling author Colleen Coble comes a news series set amid the gorgeous lavender fields of Washington state—but the beauty masks deadly secrets. Shauna McDade is single mom to a five-year-old son after her husband was killed in a climbing accident. Her aerial photography business is on the verge of bankruptcy after a string of mechanical failures that don’t seem coincidental. She recently took pictures for an environmental study and noticed a dark spot in the Juan de Fuca Strait. Her pictures created a furor when it was discovered that the runoff is coming from one of the largest lavender growers in the valley, a family business inherited by Shauna’s estranged cousin. When her mentor and business partner is murdered, Shauna realizes that she’s in danger too. Fearing for her son, she turns to the only ally she has. Nate Bannister was her husband’s best friend—and is the person she blames for his death. Nate is only too happy to try to assuage his own guilt over Jack’s death by helping her in any way he can. But the lavender fields are a shroud for something much darker, and these are secrets that someone will do anything to keep buried.

      EXCERPT

      Prologue

      The wind blew her long black hair across her face and obscured her vision as she ran through the lavender fields, the sweet aroma mixing with her perspiration. Panic threatened to overtake her, but she had to push it back, push on. He would catch her if she wasn’t smart and focused.

      The shrubs of lavender caught at her feet, and she nearly tumbled to the dirt but managed to right herself in time to rush on. Her breath came hard, and her lungs burned.

      The crash of Puget Sound waves pounding the rocks in the distance grounded her. If she headed for the water, she’d find people. He wouldn’t dare kill her in front of witnesses.

      All she’d wanted was justice, but she’d been stupid to think she could outsmart him. And what about her parents? Would they be his next target? She’d thought she could stop his evil plan that put so many people in jeopardy, but she was wrong, so wrong. She should have gone to the police at once, but she’d thought she needed more proof. Now she shuddered to think of how many people might die because of her obstinacy.

      She had to get away, had to find help to make sure he was stopped before he hurt anyone else. It all depended on her.

      She reversed her direction and ran toward the roar of a boat engine. A helicopter passed overhead, and she waved her hands at it, motioning for it to land, but the chopper continued on its path. The pilot hadn’t seen her. She was on her own.

      The air squeezed from her lungs. She’d never make it. Even now she could hear his feet pounding behind her, could almost feel his hot breath on her neck. A house loomed in the distance, and she ran that way, rushing as fast as she could. If someone was home, she could find an ally.

      Night would be here soon. Already the sky threw out bright golds and oranges as the sun began to sink. The darkness might hide her or it could be her undoing if she stumbled and fell.

      She managed an extra burst of speed, but it was too late. He shoved against her back, and she tumbled face-first into the lavender. Inhaling the sweet aroma, she turned her head and looked up into her attacker’s face and the upraised needle in his grip.

      Please don’t. The whimper that escaped shamed her, and she struggled to roll onto her back. You won’t get away with this.

      A hard hand held her in place on her shoulder. Yes, I will.

      The slight prick of a needle into her back was followed by a flood of warmth. She closed her eyes and let the darkness take her.

      Chapter One

      One Year Later

      She never got tired of this panoramic view. Shauna McDade dipped her helicopter, a six-passenger Airbus, low over the tops of the trees lining Puget Sound and saluted The Mountain that stood sentinel over Seattle, Mount Rainier. The glorious October color juxtaposition against the sky and sea made her reach for her camera. A ferry loaded with cars and passengers chugged through the waves toward Whidbey Island, and she snapped pictures of that too. With any luck, she could sell them as postcards.

      She headed her chopper back toward Lavender Tides. The small town of four thousand residents that looked like it had been plucked from a Thomas Kinkade painting. Most of the Victorian buildings and storefronts had been constructed in the 1880s, and the town often drew in tourists searching for a short stopover on a trip from Port Townsend to Sequim.

      Many aging hippies had found its charm irresistible enough that they’d moved in and opened everything from coffee shops to pottery studios. In the golden glow of the later-afternoon sun, the town looked magical with its bustling pier stretching out into the blue water. The last of the Dungeness crab vendor trucks were closing and heading home for the night, leaving the pier to lovebirds and tourists.

      She took a few more pictures, then flew her bird toward the municipal airport. After landing, Shauna stepped out onto the helipad and squared her shoulders. The piece of mail in the pocket of her denim jacket reminded her of the battle ahead. She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. She’d deal with that once she got through the next half hour.

      The small airport office was a simple metal Quonset hut that was beginning to rust. Through the window she saw Zach Bannister staring at his computer. The thought of asking him for help made her cringe, but she had no choice.

      The wooden door boasted a new coat of blue paint, and the doorknob turned easily in her hand. Zach believed in keeping everything in tiptop shape. After he had gotten out of the Coast Guard, he took some Apple stock he’d inherited from his dad and built Hurricane Roost Airport. Though small, Hurricane Roost boasted a nice, flat runway and several helipads. It was a busy airport since Zach operated an emergency plane transport business out of here.

      He stood when she entered, and surprise lit his deep-blue eyes. Shauna, is something wrong? He wore jeans and a flannel shirt that hugged his six-one, muscular frame. His hiking boots left flecks of mud on the concrete floor when he came around the desk toward her. A scabbed-over cut decorated his forehead, probably from his latest daredevil escapade. The last adventure she’d heard about had been BASE jumping off a bridge.

      A flood of conflicting emotions swamped her just like always. They’d been friends once, but all she felt now was distrust and hatred. He’d ruined her life.

      Her face burned, and she squirmed inside at what she had to say. For the past year she’d gone out of her way to make sure she didn’t run into him. I need to talk to you.

      Sure, have a seat. He indicated the chair across the desk as he retreated to the other side and regained his seat.

      She forced herself to perch on the edge of the chair. It’s about Alex. Her five-year-old son was

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