Excerpt from Voice Of An Angel

I attended my chapter's conference this weekend, part of which included a book signing. My most recent release came as a surprise to my chapter mates, since it appeared on Amazon with no fanfare. There was no ARC available for review a month in advance of the publication date, so not many people got to read it before it hit Amazon. Even the release date was a nebulous factor. One day, it magically appeared. It was definitely a soft launch.

What better time than the present to include an excerpt on my blog? Since the conference took up my weekend, and I had company in town for the conference, I didn't have my usual Saturday afternoon to stare at the wall, trying to come up with some blog content. My tablemate for the book signing told me she runs excerpts of her books on her blog all the time, which was a revelation to me. It takes me awhile, sometimes, to figure things out. So, without further fanfare, here's the blurb and excerpt for Voice Of An Angel:

Blurb:

Max Bainbridge is an ace newspaper reporter who gets all the biggest assignments, most recently covering the fighting in Afghanistan. When he is shot on the battlefields, he is operated on and then flown home. The nurse responsible for his subsequent care is Evelyn Hammer, a 35-year-old woman who ran for her life from the musical spotlight, when she was 17 and on the cusp of fame. Her new identity has been in place, and impenetrable, ever since. Over the years, she’s found singing is a more soothing way to wake people from surgery, and they are usually so foggy they don’t realize she’s been singing to them. Until Max, that is.

Evelyn knows she’s breaking one of the cardinal rules of nursing by dating a patient, but she can’t resist Max. What begins as an innocent affair with a definite expiration date when Max leaves for his next assignment becomes a real threat to unmasking Evelyn’s hidden identity. Max can’t control his journalism instincts as one clue after another emerges and he realizes he doesn’t know the person he’s fallen in love with.

Only by uncovering Evelyn’s secret past can they move forward with their future. But her past is still there, and threatening. Some secrets are better left alone.

Excerpt:

She stared at him. “You’re willing to go through this fiasco again?”

He leaned into her then, and kissed her lips, giving in to the urge he’d had all night. “For you, Nurse Evelyn, I’d walk through hot coals. A simple shattered coffee cup doesn’t faze me.”

She brushed her lips with her fingers.
 
“Okay.”
 
The simplicity of her statement, and its hidden meaning, was nearly his undoing. He didn’t try to touch her again, although his fingers itched to do so. She accompanied him to the door and they stood awkwardly in the foyer for a moment. He was surprised when she reached for his forearm, her touch light as a summer breeze.

“Thank you, Max—for everything.”

Even though he told himself not to touch her again after he noticed her slight recoil, he couldn’t help himself. His hand covered hers on his arm. He craved her touch and, unless his radar was way off, she needed to feel him, too. So, they’d take this a step at a time. He leaned in again for another serving of her tempting lips. Not the kiss he longed to give her, full of possession and potential, but a gentle, sweet caress of her mouth.

“Honey, the pleasure was all mine. I’ll call you tomorrow.”