by Raine Thomas
“What in the world are you doing?” Lily asked, hurrying over to them. “You’re late. Christopher is going to kill you.”
“I know. I’m going.”
He stood up and reached down to help Rosemary to her feet. When she placed her hand in his, she felt the tingle of it all the way along her arm. It had her breath tangling in her throat.
He pulled her up so easily that she stumbled into him. Her free hand instinctively went up to brace herself against his chest. She almost licked her lips when she felt the hard muscles beneath the shirt and vest he was wearing. Her eyes once again met his and stayed there for a long, palpable beat.
“Let’s go, Strickland,” came a low male drawl. “You’ve got a crowd waitin’ for you.”
Rosemary glanced over as a dark-haired, blue-eyed guy in a suit approached. She thought he looked like a federal agent or something. It was enough to have her stepping back.
“You’ve got to go, Sage,” Lily urged, giving him a light shove.
“I know,” he said again, still looking at Rosemary. “Sorry again. Really.”
“It’s fine,” Rosemary assured him. “Break a leg.”
He smiled. The sight of it had her heart dancing around in her chest. The other guy took him by the arm and started walking, dragging him along. Rosemary watched them both until they disappeared around the corner.
“I’m so glad you’re finally here, Rosie,” Lily said, walking up to her and drawing her into a hug. “It sounds like you’ve had the day from hell. Judging by your position on the floor a minute ago, it hasn’t gotten any better.”
Rosemary found herself smiling as she returned her sister’s hug. Thinking of a pair of warm golden eyes and a charming smile, she replied, “I’m glad I’m finally here too, Lil. And you know what?
“It’s been a damn good day.”
Acknowledgements
Readers, thank you so much for your support of the House of Archer series. I greatly enjoyed writing Keith and Sydney’s story! I’m excited about how things are shaping up for the band in book three.
As always, I owe huge thanks to my wonderful alpha and beta readers, Debbie Prins, Diane Kaye, Savanah Lappin of RED Mark Proofreading, Jessica Wentz, Carol Kunz (aka author Amanda Jason), author Bethany Lopez, and author Marilyn Almodóvar. Thank you for helping me craft Unsteady Rhythm into the story I wanted it to be.
Thank you, as well, to my amazing husband, Kevin, and daughter, Faith, for all of your support. Regardless of the chaos happening in our lives, you both support my writing career every way possible. I can’t fully express how much that means to me!