Meet Beverley Oakley and Keeping Faith

Debutantes, widows and the occasional courtesan test society’s boundaries in Beverley Oakley’s wicked, passionate historical romances dripping with scandal, intrigue, and suspense.

Her Fair Cyprians of London series is about a group of determined and clever courtesans at a high-class Soho brothel who use their wit and beauty to avenge past betrayals - and who find lasting love along the way.
How can there be a happily ever after? is a question many a reviewer has asked before admitting to being delighted and satisfied by the unexpected plot twists and surprise endings – just like in Beverley’s own life. You can read more on her website.

Interview with Faith Montague, the heroine of Keeping Faith

Beverley: What’s your name?
Faith: Faith Montague
Beverley: Where did you grow up?
Faith: I was second eldest daughter of ten and I grew up in a damp, leaky farm tenant’s cottage in Wiltshire, England. My mother was too busy to spend time with me and my father was drunk much of the time. I couldn’t wait to go into service at the Big House when I was thirteen because, although I worked my fingers to the bone, I learned that if I could behave the way my betters behaved, it could be an avenue out of poverty for me.
Beverley: During what time period does your story take place?
Faith: 1878. (A great time in fashion when the bustle was at its sexiest.) Also, women were starting to have opportunities for work other than being just a servant, governess…or a prostitute like the girls I lived with after I was falsely accused of stealing and sent to live in a brothel.
Beverley: What’s your story/back story? Why would someone come up with a story about you?
Faith: I was born in poverty but an American heiress plucked me out of obscurity to train me how to behave like a lady. Her intention for me was to seduce and ruin a young man whom she believed had ruined her daughter’s life.
Beverley: What’s your goal in this story?
Faith: I just want my freedom. Initially, I thought I’d get my freedom by carrying out my benefactress’s evil plan but after I fell in love with the kind, sensitive, gorgeous young painter (who was about to become a diplomat) whom I was supposed to destroy, freedom meant finding a future with him.
Beverley: What conflicts are you facing?
Faith: Conflicts? Happiness should have been impossible. The social mores of the day would not have tolerated my being with my true love, Crispin, even if I did take London by storm as his artist’s muse. Yes, we both became celebrities overnight. One might have thought that such public adoration would have meant I would be accepted by society. But that’s when the real conflict began.
There was my past. No one would condone a young diplomat in line for a title taking up with a girl who’d been brought up in a brothel. It might have happened in the romantic novels that are so popular today but not in real life. Not in my life.
Beverley: Do you have a plan for resolving them?
Faith: I’m a survivor. And sometimes the unexpected happens. Sometimes, when everything is against you: family opposition, society’s attitudes, the vengeance of the people you thought you could trust…sometimes a rabbit just gets pulled out of a hat and the happy ever after shimmers tantalisingly in front of you. Maybe, just maybe, you’ll be allowed to taste real happiness.
Beverley: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?
Faith: Just that I’m not unlike so many of what that journalist Henry Mayhew called “London’s lowlife” when he wrote his famous book, London’s Underworld. A fallen woman was reviled and usually her dire circumstances were not of her making. My friends were all decent women who just wanted to be happy. They didn’t choose to live in a brothel but there are precious few opportunities when one is poor and without education.
So, spare a thought for them. I’m making sure their stories are recorded in the other books in the Fair Cyprians of London series.
Thank you for listening to mine.

Blurb for Keeping Faith

Four years ago, Faith’s mysterious benefactress falsely accused her of stealing and deposited her in Madame Chambon’s exclusive brothel.

There, Faith was to learn how to entrance London’s noble gentlemen with her learning in philosophy, politics and art.

Her body was to be saved for the greatest enticement of all: revenge.

Faith doesn’t care what she has to do. She lives only to fulfil a bargain that will set her free.

But when Faith is recruited as the muse of a talented, sensitive painter whose victory in a prestigious art competition turns them both into celebrities overnight, she discovers the reasons behind her mission are very different from what she'd been led to believe.

Now she is complicit in something dark and dangerous while riches, adulation and freedom are hers for the taking.

But what value are these if her heart has become a slave to the man she is required to destroy?

Excerpt: from Keeping Faith

“What did you learn last night?”

“A gentleman must always believe he knows best.”

Confident that her answer was pleasing, Faith reached across the table to help herself to a macaroon but a sharp slap across the back of the hand stopped her progress by the silver teapot.

Her smile of feigned contrition was rewarded with a raised eyebrow from Madame Chambon. Not an invitation to partake of a macaroon, unfortunately. The table laden with eclairs and petit fours in Madame’s private sitting room was merely for show.

“Greedy girl, Faith! You can eat at the Dorchester tomorrow and I daresay you won’t even spare a thought for the other girls who are justified in being somewhat jealous of your cossetted life.” Madame sniffed as she patted one of the grizzled, orange curls of her elaborate coiffure. Faith suspected a squirrel’s pelt had made its contribution. “I’m sure they wonder every day why you never have to stir yourself – or anyone else, for that matter – to get your fine clothes or a roof over your head.” Madame Chambon piled three macaroons onto her already laden plate before making a sweeping gesture that encompassed the furnishings of her surprisingly decorous private sitting room with its gold tasseled green velvet curtains and flock wallpaper. “What have you told them, Faith? About why you are here, I mean?”

Faith’s stomach rumbled as she gazed from the prints of the famous artists that lined the walls to the fine fare in front of her, ordered from Fortnum and Mason. These monthly sessions in table manners were supposed to give Faith the practice she needed to deport herself like a lady when eating in public. However, under Madame’s guardianship, Faith never actually got to try the specialties.

“Answer me, Faith. In all the three years that you’ve been here, you’ve had to do precisely nothing to justify your existence. Surely the girls have questioned you? I have my own version of the truth for them, as you know, but I’d be interested to hear what you have to say.”

Faith didn’t answer. She already knew how lucky she was, but Madame was not ready to drop the subject, despite having just crammed an entire chocolate éclair into her mouth. Faith just managed to make out the muffled words, “Every night you lie peacefully in your bed while the other girls have to earn their livings.”

Lying peacefully in her bed was not how Faith would describe the restfulness of her slumber. She was kept awake every night by the grunts and cries of ecstasy that penetrated the thin walls of her attic chamber.

Still, she’d finally learned when it was wise to respond meekly, so she bowed her head and stared at her neat kid gloves while dreaming of the delicacies Mrs. Gedge would order for them when Faith really was dining with her at the Dorchester Hotel the following afternoon. The Sacher Torte Mrs. Gedge had ummed and aahed over before finally choosing the baked Alaska from the sweets trolley last month still haunted her. However, since part of Faith’s tutoring included how to win over reluctant gentleman ‘and make them wild with wanting’ which is how Madame phrased it, then surely Faith could persuade her American benefactress to order the Austrian chocolate specialty?

She was so busy rehearsing her words for tomorrow that she almost missed Madame’s prophetic and appalling statement.

“Well, Faith, the time has come for you to start earning your way, now.”

Buy Links for Keeping Faith:

https://www.books2read.com/u/bP5pGY
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2Dg70UP

Beverley's Social Links:

Website: http://www.beverleyoakley.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBeverleyOakley/
Pinterest: https://au.pinterest.com/beverleyeikli/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeverleyOakley
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/5989577.Beverley_Oakley

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Moonlight and Moet and Madison Michael

Madison Michael is an indie publisher, blogger and the author of the Beguiling Bachelor Series as well as the novella Desire & Dessert, from her sizzling B&B Billionaire Bachelor series.

A Chicago native and hopeless romantic, Maddy was raised on Chicago culture, fairy tales, great literature and swashbuckling movies. Maddy employs that history, writing steamy contemporary romance novels set against the sumptuous backdrop of Chicago’s elite society.

After receiving a BA in Journalism from the University of Illinois and an MBA from Loyola University of Chicago, Madison abandoned her writing to find her way in the corporate business world. Daughter of a librarian, it was inevitable that she would return to the world of books.

Maddy writes from high above Chicago where she can stare at its gorgeous skyline or the shores of Lake Michigan surrounded by feline assistants. When she is not writing,, Maddy can be found lost in a book, fighting for the rights of the mentally iil or dining on Chicago’s famous cuisine. Hot dogs and pizza, anyone?

Meet Leigh Dobbs

Beverley: What’s your name?
Leigh: My name is Leigh Dobbs. It used to be Leigh Winters but I recently survived a rather nasty divorce and reverted to my maiden name.
Beverley: Where did you grow up?
Leigh: I grew up in the small town of Asheford, a suburb of Boston.
Beverley: During what time period does your story take place?
Leigh: Moonlight & Moet takes place now, yesterday or tomorrow. It is pretty timeless.
Beverley: What’s your story/back story? Why would someone come up with a story about you?
Leigh: I grew up sheltered, studious and quiet, but somehow I caught the eye of the prince of Asheford, Joe Winters when I was fresh out of college. To be honest, he swept me off my feet. But marriage to Joe was lonely. He was an ambitious lawyer often working late nights.
I supported his efforts to make partner, getting involved in the community, in local charities. Then, after five years of marriage, he admitted he was cheating on me when his girlfriend, and paralegal found out she was pregnant. I recovered from the devastation of the divorce, but the scandal, fuelled by Joe’s lies, was more than I could manage.
Now I am picking up the pieces of my life and starting over in the small North Carolina town of Saylesville.  I have purchased a B&B here in the mountains of Western Carolina and am settling into a new life here.
Beverley: What’s your goal in this story?
Leigh: I want to expand the B&B to include additional guestrooms, and a dining room that serves the public. This will provide me the income I need to thrive. I want to become part of the town life, make friends, settle down.
Beverley: What conflicts are you facing?
Leigh: It seems the McEwan family wields the power and influence in Saylesville. I am running up against Caleb McEwan. He is fighting my expansion plans and support from his company is critical to the success of my B&B. I guess I should also mention that he makes my heart thunder and my panties damp.
Caleb is the man of my dreams, except for fighting my dreams and doing this constant disappearing act.
Beverley: Do you have a plan for resolving them?
Leigh: Caleb is a mystery – and the source of all my pain and pleasure. I must either grow numb to his effect on me, learn not to care when he is gone without a word only hours after bedding me, or I have to win his heart.
Can you figure out which I prefer?
Beverley: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?
Leigh: Oh, did I mention the dreamy and talented French chef I just hired to help me at the B&B? I wonder if he can help me forget Caleb. Come along into the sumptuous, romantic world of Moonlight & Moet to find out.

Blurb for Moonlight and Moet- B&B Billionaire Romance Series (Bk 2)

When her husband publicly cheats on her, Leigh Dobbs trades her humiliating reputation as an ice queen and a hometown that shuns her for the unknown of rural North Carolina. Taking over a small bed and breakfast, Leigh sets out to restore it, her dignity and her life. Excited at the prospect of adding more rooms and a full-service restaurant, Leigh’s big plans encounter the brick wall that is Caleb Rausch. Sparks fly even as Caleb votes no on the planning commission, crushing Leigh’s dreams.

Handsome powerhouse Caleb Rausch is a man on a mission, expanding his huge corporation without encroaching on the small town where it resides. His commitment to his products, employees and historic preservation are unwavering. What’s lacking is his commitment to one woman. Caleb is the most eligible bachelor in three states, dating celebrities and models, but never settling down. Until now.

Even as Caleb forces Leigh’s expansion plans on hold, the couple moves full-steam-ahead on their relationship, unable to resist the mutual attraction. So why, after a steamy night together, does Caleb disappear for weeks? Has Leigh put her heart out there again, just to be played?

Will the magic of a moonlit night be enough to kindle their love or will Caleb’s constant disappearing act prevent him from melting this ice queen’s heart?

Excerpt From Moonlight and Moet

Exhausted and anxious to return home, Leigh wasn’t paying attention as she stepped out the door of the small law office at the end of the row of storefronts. Leigh went down hard on the cement, her skirt flying up, her brochures flying. A shook-up Leigh assessed the damage and caught her breath. Her dignity was beyond repair.

Leigh was brushing the dirt from her palms, scraped from trying to break her fall when a shadow blocked the sun, and a large, dirty hand, attached to a long, strong arm reached down to assist her. Leigh’s gaze followed the flannel covered forearm up over a muscled bicep and continued until her scrutiny was arrested by a pair of coffee-colored eyes surrounded by the deep laugh lines of an outdoorsman. He was staring vast expanse of creamy thigh and more than a hint of her magenta panties. His expression told Leigh that he liked what he saw.

Leigh clumsily scrambled to lower her dress, gather the brochures fluttering in the breeze, and take the proffered hand all at once. Several pamphlets escaped down the sidewalk, but she quickly forgot them as she was lifted like a feather against her mountain’s chest and too swiftly placed gently on her feet. She winced when the blisters made contact with the hard surface beneath them and the lumberjack buried behind a grizzly bear beard reacted.
“Injured, little lady?” he asked with concern. “Let me help you get you to urgent care.
"That won't be necessary," Leigh responded, smoothing her dress to cover her embarrassment and interest.
"Then at least let me help you to your destination.”
“I was just heading to my car, down the ways,” Leigh tried to gesture with the arm the man still held. “But, I’m fine. Really. I can take it from here.”
“Fine, indeed,” Grizzly Adams replied in a sarcastic, deep baritone.
He was tall, covered in a subtle sheen of dirt and sweat, but Leigh quickly realized the shirt under her fingertips was the finest wool and his boots, caked in an inch of dried mud, were Scarpa Phantom 8000's. He was a very wealthy Grizzly Adams, and a dedicated hiker too. Those boots were featured in the mountaineering store up the road for over $1000, way too rich for Leigh’s blood.
He stood still, his smile twitching as caught Leigh checking him out. Then, without warning, he swept her into his arms, carefully adjusted her dress to modestly cover her behind while managing to slide his hand all along them. The man was a pro. Leigh couldn't fault his effort, even as she realized he was copping a feel.  Carrying her easily, he began taking long strides in the direction she had pointed.
“This is completely unnecessary,” Leigh repeated more than once, interspersed with “put me down, please” and “Really I can walk.” He ignored them all, speaking right over her repeated and flustered objections.
“You took a nasty fall there. People are always missing that last step." His face was too close and too handsome. He smelled of the outdoors - pine, sweat and sunshine. It was intoxicating.
 “Are you sure you wouldn’t prefer I took you over to the doc’s office or the urgent care?”
“Just to my car, thanks,” Leigh requested, done trying to argue with the hard-muscled man. Who was she kidding? It felt incredible to rest against his broad chest, his arms holding her securely and his minty breath blowing on her face. He may have been filthy, a bearded mountain man who was certainly not her type, but he was sexy as hell. Leigh wished her car was miles away.
“Will you be ok to drive, Miss…”
“Leigh.”
“Miss Leigh,” he repeated, caressing her name. “Are you sure you’ll be alright to drive?”
Leigh bobbed her head in the affirmative. She loved resting her head against the power of this man’s chest, secure in his firm grip. Leigh looked up at him from under her eyelashes, admiring what she saw. She could tell that under the caked on mud and scruff, he was handsome, with a cocky smile and those laughing eyes. She wished she could see more.
“This is my car,” she finally motioned. “Thank you, Mr…”
“You’re certain you can drive?” he asked in his slow, smooth drawl, ignoring her question.
“I’m not going far,” Leigh reassured him. “I’ll be fine.”
The mountain man placed Leigh on her feet, holding her by the waist as if waiting for reassurance that she was solidly standing. Leigh looked down as if to assure herself both feet were there and with a deep breath made eye contact. The man was a head taller, broad and powerful, and staring at her as if he wanted to devour her. A hot flush filled Leigh's cheeks, and she extended a hand to shake his.
“Well, thank you again. You certainly turned out to be my knight in shining armor today,” she jested.
“Well, Miss Leigh, then I guess I get my knight’s favor,” the man responded with a devilish grin. Leigh was still registering his warning when he lowered his head to hers and placed his warm lips upon her cooler ones. 

Buy Links for Moonlight and Moet:

https://amzn.to/2DDXQm9

Social Links for Madison:

Website: madisonmichael.net
Madison's Blog: madisonmichael.net/category/maddys-blog
Maddy's Romance Madness: madisonmichael.net/category/mrm/
Maddy's Tours and Treats: madisonmichael.net/category/tours-and-treats/
Facebook: facebook.com/madisonmichaelromance
Twitter: twitter.com/madisonmichael_
Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/Madison-Michael/e/B01EVUGG6G/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Madison has put together some really awesome Prize Packages to giveaway during the tour. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember you may enter every day for your chance to win one of the prize packages. You may find the tour locations here (https://goo.gl/ESBmdA).

 

Blog - Authors Struggle to Make Ends Meet

I was scanning news headlines the other morning and saw this headline.

Well established but not well-off: Canada's authors struggle to make ends meet, says study

Article by Deana Sumanac-Johnson in the CBC News

Now this is a Canadian article about Canadian authors, but I found it interesting and thought I’d share some of the points. I don’t know if it’s the same in the US but I’m thinking there might be similarities.

Writers' Union of Canada survey says its members' incomes down by 27% from just 3 years ago

When the Writers' Union of Canada recently surveyed its members about their incomes, the results were sobering: an average writer made $9,380 a year from his or her writing. That's 27 per cent less than what writers made three years ago, and a whopping 78 per cent less than they made in 1998. 

Last year's Giller winner Michael Redhill famously shared what was left in his bank account before he deposited the $100,000 cheque: it was $411.

Reasons for decline

The Writers Union of Canada attributes the decline in authors' incomes to a combination of factors. John Degen, the organization's executive director, attributes the particularly steep drop-off in the last few years to the rise of free photocopying of written material by educational institutions.

Before the Copyright Modernization Act of 2012, educators had to a pay a fee for all the photocopying they would do in a year, a fee that was redistributed as royalties to authors whose work students were reading. But once the Act deemed educational copying as fair dealing, that income for writers was gone.

Additionally, the publishing industry has contracted in recent years, with some houses folding and others, like Penguin and Random House, conglomerating into one. That means fewer venues for writers to publish their work.

Reference: You can read the whole article at https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/canada-authors-poorer-than-ever-says-study-1.4908086?cmp=rss

I'd love to hear your comments about this article and the wealth of authors.

The Rewards and Costs of Writing

I love our group blogs. Rhobin always comes up with great topics and usually I find them thought provoking, things I may never have considered. This month it’s “How has writing rewarded you? What has it cost you?”

How has writing rewarded me? Where do I start? One of the great things about writing is the writing community, whether it be online, at workshops or conferences. Writers are usually the most supportive group of people. And at a conference, the energy from other writers is amazing. I’ve made some wonderful friends through writing.  And volunteering for some of the writing organizations allows me to also give back to the writing community.

It’s also allowed me to see many sides of writing. The writing process, the agent and editor hunts, the publishing houses and their changes, small press, print books and eBook, indie publishing with cover artists, editors, formatters and publishing with eBook publishers. I’ve seen many changes in the profession of writing. And marketing of course. It continues to be a learning process. And learning keeps you young and the mind active, which is another reward. And there's the joy of writing The End to a story you've enjoyed writing.

Writing is something I’ve always done, and I can’t imagine not writing. It allows me to express myself and talk to all those people who hang out in my head. I guess it allows me to hear voices and people don’t think I’m crazy – just a crazy writer. 

What has it cost me? If you’re an indie pub there could be a cost for covers, editing etc. So, there is a financial cost. Other than that, I don’t know that it’s cost me anything. It takes time and that time could be spent on other things, but I’d rather spend it writing. Sometimes on a gorgeous day, if I’m writing an important scene, I wish I could be outside. But most of the time I can manage to take some time to enjoy the day or the season. I try to balance family and friends. They’re used to me now, even if they don’t completely understand that it’s not a hobby. So, I don’t know that it’s really cost me anything. I’m interested in what other writers have to say.  And I’ll be checking them out.

Please check out the rest of the group to see their thoughts.

Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
Judith Copek http://lynx-sis.blogspot.com/
A.J. Maguire  http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Fiona McGier http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Dr. Bob Rich https://wp.me/p3Xihq-1qD
Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Victoria Chatham http://www.victoriachatham.com
Rhobin L Courtright http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com  

Christmas Shopping, Music and Decorating

Thanksgiving is a week away.

The stores have been carrying Christmas stuff for sale since Halloween.
Many stores have their Christmas decorations up out front and inside the store.
Lots of places are playing Christmas carols.
What about you?

Have you got your Christmas shopping done? Gifts wrapped?

I guess I’m getting old because it’s too early for me. I mean really, Christmas

stuff for sale before Halloween?
I like to shop in December when it feels more like Christmas – and I enjoy the
Christmas music the stores play then. It has a Christmas feel.

I don’t play Christmas music until December 1^st.     

I didn’t used to put the tree up until two weeks before Christmas. It was a real fir tree and the scent permeated through the house. Now it’s artificial and I put it up earlier.

People decorate their houses in November. Now some places with really cold weather I get this, but otherwise…

What about you? When do you decorate and start playing Christmas music? Is your shopping already done?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Am I the only Grinch out there?

Gratitude

Gratitude

I noticed a lot of people are talking about Gratitude on their blogs.

I’ve been thinking about it and decided a I’d thought like to talk about it like to talk about it, too.

For Americans, it’s Thanksgiving this month, a good time to be thankful. Canadians have Thanksgiving in October so that would be a good month to be thankful, too.

For those that have a thanksgiving dinner, whatever their beliefs I’m sure they will say thanks for the food, or the company. But there is so much we have t be thankful, and maybe we need to stop a little more often to be grateful. I try to say thanks at the end of the day. I’m grateful I made it through the day. Nothing terrible happened. I’m grateful for my health. After two bouts with cancer and one with a pre-cancerous polyp you don’t take that for granted. You say thanks - often.
I might be grateful for the weather, or that I had clothes to stay warm in the cold. I might be grateful for clean air with out pollution or that the pollution was less that day. You could be grateful for good food, or adequate food, a roof over your head, family, friends, your church, your religion, transportation or the girl who smiled at you when you bought groceries. Please feel free to add to this list.  I’d love to hear what you’re grateful for.

Someone mention a Gratitude diary in their blog and I thought that was a nice idea. Write down five things you’re grateful for every day, or maybe even one thing. I’m not sure I’d remember to write it down every night but think about it and say a silent thank you. If everyone thought about it there might be less anger and hostility – maybe. Your thoughts? What are you grateful for?   

Check out Katy Eeten and Blast From Her Past

Katy Eeten is the wife of a youth pastor and mother of two school-age boys. She works full time in the business world, but her true passion is writing. Contemporary Christian Romance Blast From Her Past, published by Anaiah Press, is her first published book. Her novella Christmas in Meadow Creek is due to release later this month, and has another Christian romance coming out next spring. When she’s not working or writing, she can be found taking walks, baking goodies, dining out, playing the piano, or spending time with her family.

Character Interview

 Beverley: What’s your name?

Sydney: Sydney Hampson
Beverley: Where did you grow up?
Sydney: Apricot Grove—a suburb of Bismarck, ND
Beverley: During what time period does your story take place?
Sydney: The present, with several flashbacks to high school about fourteen years ago.
Beverley: What’s your story/back story? Why would someone come up with a story about you?
Sydney: I grew up loving God and my small but tightknit group of friends. We weren’t very popular, but we loved life. Then, when my dad left, my mom died, and my fiancé cheated on me with my best friend, I became a different person. Very closed off. I focused all my attention on my career and left my faith in the past—after all, God was obviously not on my side anymore. And to add insult to injury, a former high school bully, Grant Williams, got hired by my company.
Beverley: What’s your goal in this story?
Sydney: My goal is to not let Grant get past the walls I’ve built up. I just want to succeed in my career and continue my pursuit of emotional isolation. I don’t need to let anyone in to be happy.
Beverley: What conflicts are you facing?
Sydney: Realizing just how lost I really am without God or godly relationships in my life. And People. People are always my conflict. As much as I don’t want to admit it, Grant’s changed since high school. He has this contagious enthusiasm, innocence, joy. It’s like he took on the faith from my teenage years while I somehow grew cold and bitter. And it doesn’t help that my co-worker Wendy has it in for me, trying to sabotage my every move.
Beverley: Do you have a plan for resolving them?
Sydney: Yes—avoid them both at all costs. The thing is, Grant is relentless. And my boss is sending us on a business trip in the company car together. During a snowstorm. Kind of hard to avoid someone when you’re trapped together! Hard not to let a caring soul chip away at your tough exterior…
Beverley: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?
Sydney: I have a wonderful younger sister, Kate. She’s happily married with two little kids—everything I ever wanted—and gives great advice. I’m also a huge fan of chocolate chip cookies, a fact Grant uses to his advantage.

Blurb for Blast From Her Past:

After a disastrous failed engagement, Sydney Hampson is leaving her past—and her faith—behind to focus on her career instead. However, following through with her new, albeit misguided, resolution proves easier said than done when former classmate, and reformed bully, Grant Williams signs on with her company, and they must work closely together.
Grant Williams gave up his teenage antics years ago, and now he’s looking forward to a future that includes a strong relationship with God. When he realizes he’ll be working with none other than Sydney Hampson—the girl he had a secret crush on throughout high school—he couldn’t be more thrilled. Until he discovers she’s not the same caring, compassionate woman she used to be.
When a business trip gone awry leaves the pair stranded in the middle of a snowstorm, Grant sees his chance to make things right and put their past wrongs behind them…if only Sydney can get over her distrust of men. And with a conniving co-worker working to destroy Sydney’s happiness, no matter the cost, can she put her faith back in God and learn to trust in Grant before she loses her chance at happiness?

Excerpt for Blast From Her Past:

Sydney swallowed hard, her face growing red. She had no idea how to respond to this news. Sure, it had been fourteen years ago, but was Grant basically admitting that he’d had a crush on her? “But what… I mean… why?”

It was Grant’s turn to look embarrassed. “I really admired you.”

“You did not,” Sydney said, brushing off his compliment. “You’re just saying that now because we’re about to freeze to death.”

Grant laughed at her exaggeration. “No, I’m serious. I really did. I thought you had it all together, and I liked how you didn’t seem to care what people said about you. You were really nice and really smart. What was there not to like?”

Sydney let his comments soak in. “You liked me so much so that you never told me, huh?” she asked, her tone a mixture of sarcasm and melancholy.

“I know, Sydney. I was a coward back then. I cared more about my friends than about most things. Definitely more than your feelings or even my own desires. … I know it’s stupid, but, I told you, I’m a different person now.”

She glanced at him with an almost regretful expression. “Yeah, so am I.”

“I bet you could still channel your inner high school self,” Grant said teasingly.

His tone was all congeniality, but Sydney could hear the truth there too. She stared off into the distance, a twinge of sadness in her eyes. “Maybe.”

Buy Links for Blast From Her Past :

Available on Amazon for Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and paperback https://www.amazon.com/Blast-Her-Past-Katy-Eeten-ebook/dp/B0793MFT91/ref

You can find Katy at:

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