Happy Friday, everyone!!! Today, we have a book spotlight.

Kim Carmichael has a new book out, CLOSURE, and she asked to share a blurb and excerpt with us. I’m always eager to hear about new books!

There’s always the one…


He’s one person throughout life you think about every so often, the one who leaves his unique indelible mark on you, the person with whom you need closure.


For Margaret Collins that person was Mike Taylor. After he broke her heart seventeen years ago, she left everything she knew and reinvented herself. With a new home, a new look and a new name, Riley Williams is now an up and coming journalist given the assignment to interview a Mike Taylor. She never suspected he would be her Mike Taylor.

With Mike having no hint of Riley’s true identity, she must decide if she will make him pay for sins he doesn’t remember committing, or if she can wipe away the past and be with the one man who she has always wanted?

 Can she finally have closure?

***

And here’s an excerpt from her story:

“Are you worried I’m going to get something wrong?” Without him knowing, they slipped back into their old banter. She reached into her bag, found a pad and pen and held them up. “Do you feel better now?”

“Yes, different.” He pressed his back against the chair. “A challenge.” His smile let the tooth peek out, while seventeen years caused the little wrinkle at corner of his eye to appear. “You know, I have some meetings here the rest of this week.”

“Should I be writing this down?” She clicked the pen twice, trying to stop herself from reading more into this.

“Not unless you’re writing down your address so I know where to pick you up for dinner tomorrow night.”

Everything stopped. Even if only in her mind, for that second the world froze. The constant clink of dishes ceased, the bustling wait staff stood motionless.

Back in the school hallway when he had invited her out, he used a similar assumptive close. He turned to her and asked what time he should get her Friday night.

Though the years had diminished the pain, to this day every now and again, she wondered what would have happened if took her out rather than succumbing to the pressure of his friends and parents. She’d been nothing but a project when she wanted to be a girl.

Here together, they repeated history, but not in his eyes. She couldn’t blame him for not knowing her. She’d changed her name, changed her looks, but never managed to change her heart.

She always wondered.

Maybe she always wished.

Was she handed another chance to get her heart ripped to shreds, or had she just received the ultimate do-over?

“Excuse me for a moment.” She pushed her chair back and walked away.

***

I hope that everyone has a fantastic Friday!! You can learn more about Kim on her website or on her Facebook page.

Wow. I am absolutely overwhelmed–MINE TO TAKE made both the New York Times best-seller list and the USA Today best-seller list.  I am stunned and thrilled and amazed–and most of all, I am grateful. I am grateful to the readers who put the story on those lists. Thank you so much for your support. Thank you for reading about Trace and Skye and for going on an adventure with them.

I’ve said it before, and I have to say it again–I truly think that I have the most amazing readers in the world. Thank you very, very much for all of your encouragement.

And, as part of my THANK YOU!!, I am going to be running a ton of giveaways on my Facebook page tomorrow (6/27). So if you get a chance, please do come by.  I think this good news deserves a celebration, don’t you? So let’s party and win prizes!!!

Once more–THANK YOU.

Update:  Thank you for all of the comments! Our two winners were randomly selected, and they are:

Digital Copy of Ignited – Robin The Book Nerd

Amazon $10 gift card – Sue Pearce

Congrats!!

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Happy Friday, everyone!!! I hope that you have an amazing weekend! And, hey, don’t forget, you still have time to enter my MINE TO TAKE contest (gift cards, books, ahoy!).

Today I am absolutely thrilled to have guest author Kaylea Cross at my blog.  Kaylea has a hot new romantic suspense book out–one that has been getting some great buzz–and I can’t wait to read IGNITED! Welcome to the blog, Kaylea!

Titanium Security Series is Here!

A big thank you to Cynthia for hosting me here again today! I’m thrilled to announce the launch of a new romantic suspense series with the release of book one, Ignited.

I’m often inspired by things I see on the news, and the start of my new Titanium Security Series was no different. You might remember hearing the story about a Pakistani girl named Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman for promoting girls’ education in the highly contested tribal region and the Swat Valley. Thankfully, she not only survived, but her story triggered immediate outrage around the globe. And, I’m happy to report that she’s publishing a book about her life later this year, reportedly for around three million dollars. I love the poetic justice of that, because her story lit a fire inside of me.

You see, in addition to being an author, I’m also a Board and Committee member of a scholarship program that provides undergraduate degrees for underprivileged high school graduates. Most of our students have endured terrible things in their lives and yet somehow found the strength to persevere and overcome any adversity thrown at them. Just like Malala. Her story touched me and I knew I had to write something about the issues at hand. Hence, Ignited and the rest of the series was born.

Blurb: When her father is murdered by a Taliban cell in the tribal regions of Pakistan, Khalia Patterson reluctantly steps into his shoes to carry on the legacy of Fair Start Foundation, a non-profit group dedicated to furthering the education of girls. There she meets Hunter Phillips, the ex-SEAL and head of her Titanium security team, and quickly learns that coming to Pakistan might prove to be a deadly decision.

Battling demons of his own, Hunter grudgingly leads Khalia’s protective detail  as a favor to his boss. From their first meeting it’s clear she’s going to be trouble, and that the cell that killed her father is hell bent on taking her out as well. Keeping her alive is one of the toughest assignments he’s ever faced, yet through one harrowing situation after another she continually impresses him with her strength and inner courage. Even though he fights his feelings for her, it’s a losing battle. And when the job is over, he doesn’t know how he’ll let her go.

 ***

It’s available now for $2.99 at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo.

I’m giving away a digital copy of Ignited (or winner’s choice of my backlist) to a commenter here on the blog, contest ending Saturday at 5 pm EST.

Any questions for me? Would love to chat with you about the new book and series.

Update: Do you know what’s better than one giveaway? How about two?  In addition to the digital copy of IGNITED, commenters are also going to be entered into a contest to win a $10 Amazon.com gift card. Good luck!!

Happy reading,

Kaylea Cross

Kaylea Cross writes edge-of-your-seat military romantic suspense. Her work has won many awards and has been nominated for both the Daphne du Maurier and the National Readers’ Choice Awards. A Registered Massage Therapist by trade, Kaylea is also an avid gardener, artist, Civil War buff, Special Ops aficionado, belly dance enthusiast and former nationally-carded softball pitcher. She lives in Vancouver, BC with her family. You can find Kaylea through her website, Twitter, Facebook, and her blog.

THANK YOU for helping me to spread the word! Thank you!!!! The winners were randomly selected, and those individuals are:

$50 gift card – Carly

$25 gift card – Valerie

5 early SHARPSHOOTER copies are going to: Texas Booklover, Jessica, Andrea F., Jackie W., and Gladys.

Congratulations! All winners will receive an email ASAP! 

*****Second update…Gladys, my email to you bounced back.  ;(  When you have a chance, please send me a note at cynthia@cynthiaeden.com to claim your prize. Thanks!

Lust. Love. Obsession.

How far would you go to possess the person you want the most?

There are just a few more days left in my .99 MINE TO TAKE sale.  Want to help me spread the word about this deal on my dark & sexy new romantic suspense?  There are prizes involved. 😉

What to do:

If you want to enter the giveaway, just share the news about MINE TO TAKE. You could put up a Facebook post about the book, you can share the cover, you can tweet about the book, you can blog about it, etc–whatever works for you!  (Please note: if you tweet about the book, use the #MineToTake hashtag so that I will see your entries. If you post on another venue–like Facebook or your blog–just leave me a note in the comments section to tell me about that post.)  Each time you post, that posting counts as one entry.  So multiple posts count as multiple entries. And, yes, you can post on multiple days.

The prizes:

Want to know about the prizes? Here we go…

$50 Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble gift card

$25 Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble gift card

5 early copies (as in, I’ll send them out next week and you don’t have to wait for the August release) of SHARPSHOOTER, my next Harlequin Intrigue

Contest-y Details:

The contest will run from now until midnight on Saturday (6/22).  Winners will all be contacted on Sunday, 6/23.

Thanks so much for helping me to spread my MINE TO TAKE sale news!

Wow! I’ve been getting such wonderful feedback about MINE TO TAKE! Thank you! I am thrilled that readers are enjoying the story!

And if you haven’t read MINE TO TAKE yet, don’t forget–my dark and sexy new romantic suspense is on sale for just .99 this week! Here’s a new excerpt, to get you in the MINE TO TAKE mood. 😉

“Ten years is a long time,” she said. She hated the softness of her voice. Why couldn’t she act as if the past didn’t matter to her?  “A lot can change over all those years.”

“And a lot can stay the same.” His fingers curled under her jaw. “I want you just as much now as I did then.  When I saw you in my office, the same need hit me.  Lust tore through me the way it always does when I’m near you.”

Her hands were trembling.  She lifted them and put her palms on his chest. Skye wasn’t sure if she wanted to pull him closer or shove him away.

“Lust was never a problem for us, though, was it?” Skye whispered.  His eyes were on her mouth.

Memories of their past flashed through her mind. She could almost taste him.

“I was your first.”

Heat flushed her cheeks.

“I thought about you over the years…”

His confession jolted her.

“I wondered what you were doing…who you were with…”

His gaze was still on her mouth. Still hot.  Her hyperawareness of him pushed the aches and pains from her mind. “You don’t get to wonder about that.” Not when he’d been the one to tell her to hit the curb. He didn’t have that right.

“There are some things you can’t control.”  His head bent toward her. “The way I feel about you is one of those things.”

She wanted his mouth. She wanted to run from him.  “Trace…”

His lips feathered over hers.  Not taking. Not demanding. Soft. Gentle.

“I can’t have what I want tonight, I know that,” his words were whispered against her lips.  “But you came back to me.  And you should know…that changes everything. I let you go once. You can’t expect me to do that again.”

***

MINE TO TAKE is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, All Romance Ebooks, and Smashwords.

Have a terrific Tuesday!!