| Wednesday, February 27, 2008 |
| CONTEST DAY 3 |
Well, I have my desk top back but my arm still hurts. Thanks for all the notes of concern. I appreciate it. I know I have to rest, but its so hard to do that when I have a 104k manuscript to edit.
Anyway, onto the important stuff. Got lots of responses over the past two days for the questions. It's fabulous! Thanks all! I hope you're enjoying the excerpts!
Today's excerpt is from my third book Where One Road Leads which is currently available in e-book format from Samhain Publishing. It'll be available in print in late May (and we'll have another contest then :D).
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He pulled his cruiser into the short dirt drive at the Fayes’ white farmhouse and got out. For a moment he took it in, the overgrown lawn and hedges that hadn’t been trimmed in ages, probably since before Mrs. Faye had begun to lose her battle with cancer. The place looked nearly lifeless.
A Jeep Wrangler was parked next to the garage. The vehicle was scarred and dented. A haze of dust and a spattering of dry mud diminished its silver-blue paint. Its abused exterior made him wonder where life had taken Krista after that fateful night. She’d done a stint in the Women’s State Prison, but after that, he had no clue. He’d never cared. But now he wanted to know. The wanting pressed at his head like a nagging ache. Once satisfied, he planned on going back to not caring.
More important than finding out where she’d been for the past fifteen years, though, he wanted to know when she was leaving.
A big dog trotted out from behind the house, his thick black and tan tail whipping back and forth and his tongue lopping out of the corner of his mouth. Matt could’ve sworn the dog was grinning. The animal gave a throaty, deep woof that wasn’t one bit threatening.
"Gus, get back here. I’m sorry, I know he should be on a tie-out but—"
The woman stopped short, her mouth open as the rest of her sentence remained unsaid.
It was as if the whole world had fallen silent. Matt glared at Krista as she struggled to regain her composure, shutting her mouth tightly so it formed a thin line.
He looked her up and down, assessing her physical condition. She looked healthy anyway. Most of her figure was lost in the baggy green T-shirt that fell down to her hips. The lower portion of her body was clothed in faded blue jeans. She wore her baseball hat backwards, giving him a clear view of her face. No make-up, just a fair complexion with a smattering of light freckles across her nose. Her eyes were bluer than he’d remembered, but then he hadn’t been the one gazing into them fifteen years ago.
The only thing that marred her pretty face was the scar that ran up from the left corner of her lip to her cheekbone before arcing down toward her ear and the other one that began directly between her dark golden blonde brows and disappeared into her hairline. These weren’t thin lines. No, the accident had taken its toll on her as well.
But it had left her alive. He wished he could say the same about Eddie or Liz or the out-of-towner from Rhode Island who was an unfortunate passenger in the second car.
"Matt," she acknowledged through a tense jaw.
"Krista." He was going to say she looked well, but he didn’t want to start making polite small talk with her. Best to get right to the heart of the matter. "How long are you here for?"
Krista laughed shortly and shook her head. "Well, if I was expecting a warm welcome in this town, I guess I would’ve been disappointed. Glad I’m more of a realist." There was a smile on her face but it was as frigid as her tone of voice.
"Small towns remember things for a long time. Some things we never forget," he replied as coldly.
The trace of a cynical smile on her lips disappeared. "Neither do I," she replied evenly. "Sorry to disappoint you, Matt, but I’ll be here for a while. I’ll try to stay out of your way while I’m around."
With a grip on her dog’s collar, Krista turned and walked toward the back of the house without so much as a goodbye.
For a long moment, Matt stayed put, staring in the direction they’d gone, not sure if he was more angry at the confrontation or puzzled. He settled for both.
The last time he and Krista had words, she’d been in tears, begging for him to believe her, that it wasn’t just her fault. She’d been a scared, hurt girl, the damage to her body fresh, and he hadn’t cared a bit for her because she had been the one behind the wheel. She had taken away three lives, one of which was his own flesh and blood.
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QUESTION: How long has Krista been gone?
Email your answers to cerihebert@comcast.net for your chance to win a free signed copy of Sweet Forever which is NOW AVAILABLE from Samhain Publishing!
Thanks! Tomorrow will be another excerpt from Sweet Forever and another chance to win! Labels: Contests, Sweet Forever, Where One Road Leads |
posted by Ceri Hebert @ 1:25 AM  |
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| 4 Comments: |
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Glad to hear you have your computer back but sorry your arm is still hurting.
What a powerful excerpt - I definitely what to know about the three lives Krista took.
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Very good excerpt. Really makes you want to know what happened and what is going to happen.
Good luck with your pain!
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I've been reading all I found on the excerpts of this book and have been so touched by so much I read and looking forward to reading more.
Do take care of you!
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Hope you feel better and are able to get your words done without too much pain.
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Glad to hear you have your computer back but sorry your arm is still hurting.
What a powerful excerpt - I definitely what to know about the three lives Krista took.