Sunday Snippet: The Sure, Why Not a Real Snippet Edition

It’s been a week, mes amies. One full of writing and family time and lake time and Liz time… a week where I wrote THE END on Jack and Maddie’s story and sent it off to my editor with my heart alternately in my throat and my socks, wondering what she will think of their story. Funnily enough, I wrote nearly the last four chapters at her house with her sitting across from me, writing herself. Don’t think that wasn’t a cool, but weird experience. Crit partners and betas have said good things about it… get ready for the title because I don’t think I’ve mentioned it here yet… Make You Mine. I wasn’t sure at first how I felt about doing a whole make/made thing with the titles of the Walkers of River’s Edge series, but I’m liking them. This one fits Jack and Maddie’s story.

In other news… it’s time to get deep into promotion for Meet Me in River’s Edge, which releases on August 17 and is currently available for pre-order. I have a book signing on August 30 at the winery up here at the lake and I’ll be doing some other promotional stuff, so stay tuned for some fun. As a matter of fact, how about we do a little giveaway here? Just a chance for one lucky reader to have an e-book ARC of Jo and Alex’s story, Meet Me in River’s Edge. This upcoming River’s Edge story is a summertime one and my little town on the Ohio River is hopping with summer visitors, Mac has his patio dining open, the regatta is coming up, and Aidan has the showboat on the river.

Giveaway: Tell me your favorite thing about summer in the comments below and on Tuesday, I’ll choose a winner at random and send that reader an e-book ARC of Meet Me in River’s Edge.

In the meantime, here’s the blurb and a little snippet to whet your appetite for Jo Weaver and Alex Brigg’s story.

Meet Me in River’s Edge

He ticks every one of her “never again” boxes…

Jo Weaver loves her job as a boat mechanic for her family’s marina in River’s Edge, Indiana. But when she’s pulled away from her high school reunion with her sisters to fix a stranded yacht, she can’t restrain her irritation. Jo doesn’t like wealthy men who think they can have whatever they want, and she has no intention of falling for rich and charming again.

Born into the international Briggs Hotels empire, Alex Briggs has never felt comfortable with his life of privilege. Abandoning his family’s business to pursue medical research, he’s far more at home in his lab. When the yacht he restored himself breaks down on the way to an important conference, Alex begrudgingly goes in search of a boat mechanic and falls, literally, into Jo Weaver’s arms. The fireworks he feels are impossible to ignore.

Jo does her best to keep Alex in the business zone, but he keeps slipping into something more. Can she trust her fragile heart, especially when Alex and his life-altering research are so far from River’s Edge?

Excerpt

Her brow furrowed and her lips tightened as she gazed up at him, and although he worried that he’d taken it a step too far, that she’d turn and run, she didn’t. Instead, she put her hands on his chest, rose on tiptoe, and kissed him full on the lips.

Too startled to even move for a moment, Alex dropped Boris’s leash and closed his eyes. Everything else—the river, the view, the milling walkers, even Boris—became background noise to the sensations rushing through him at the soft touch of her lips on his.

And oh, Ari, is it ever magic . . .

But then she broke away, stared deep into his eyes for a moment, and, suddenly, spun away from him and fled down the River Walk.

“What the hell—” He blinked. “Wait! Where are you going?”

She stopped in her tracks, then slowly walked back to where he stood, a panting Boris flopped down next to him.

“You kissed me!” He was too shocked to say much else.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she tapped her foot—it was a small foot, just like the rest of her—on the concrete and gazed at him. “I can’t believe you called me a snob.” The corners of her mouth turned up slightly, and she said slowly, “I am incredibly confused right now because I’m so damned attracted to you, I can’t even think straight when I’m around you. I kissed you to know if it was purely physical.”

His head was spinning, but his heart was singing. “Well . . . is it?” He grinned. “Because I’ll take that. It’s a start.”

She sighed. “I don’t know. You drive me crazy, Alex Briggs, and my sisters would tell you I don’t have all that far to go to get to completely crazy.”

She hadn’t moved away from him. They were still close enough that all he had to do was lean down . . . He did and touched his mouth to hers in a gentle exploratory kiss that sent that same shiver skating down his spine again. She unfolded her arms and snaked them around his neck, sliding her fingers into the hair at his nape. Lightly, he set his hands on her waist and tilted his head to deepen the kiss. She let him in, her tongue tracing the seam of his lips—

A bark and a scuffle of leather and steel chain on concrete pulled them apart as Boris took off down the River Walk, barking like crazy at a woman with a pair of tiny dogs on leashes.

“Oh, dammit! Boris! Get back here!” Alex released the delectable woman in his arms and hurried after the dog, pausing just long enough to glance over his shoulder to see Jo on the overlook doubled over with laughter.

Okay, there you go… intrigued? I sure hope so!

Gratitude for this week: I’ve been swimming in the lake two days so far and the water is just gorgeous; Time with Moe; I finished the first Walker Family book and it’s in my editor’s hands; Neighbor Mary is keeping watch over my flowers; Tule Author Retreat is just a week away!

Stay well, stay safe, be kind, and most of all, mes amies, continue to be grateful for all the wonder around us,