“My father.” She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek to keep from screaming. Good God, the man’s skull was thick. At this rate she’d be lucky to get out of here before dawn! “Now will you please unlock the door?”
In one long stride, he closed the distance between them. Hope stiffened, refusing to be intimidated by that bullying glare, even when his fingers bit painfully into her shoulders.
“That does it,” he barked angrily. “I want the truth and I want it now or so help me I’ll—”
“Do what?” she taunted, lifting her chin with a courage she did not feel. “Take me over your knee? I’m a little too big for that, don’t you think?”
“No, I don’t!”
The loudness of his voice echoing in her hears did nothing to alleviate the throbbing that was quickly returning to her temples. It did, however, intricately combine with the strength in his fingers and the anger shimmering in his eyes to effectively bring home the vulnerability of her position here. The man was quickly losing what little restraint he had. If he kept goading her, and she kept responding, God only knew what would happen.
I have to get out of here, she thought wildly, and I have to get out of here quick! Desperation made her act impulsively, in the only way Hope knew how. The man held her shoulders, but not her arms. Her lips curled into a cold smile as she did something she’d been longing to do since she had first opened her eyes. She didn’t just slap that arrogant face, she balled up her fist, pooled all of her anger into her hand, and punched him as hard as she possible could. The force of the blow made his head snap back. His hands instantly released her shoulders.
Skillfully, she lifted the key from the man’s pocket before he could utter his first grunt of pain. By the time he had reached out a hand to steady his balance against the wall, shaking his head to clear it, she had the door unlocked.
Throwing it wide, she allowed herself a small, heady giggle of triumph. Her giggle turned into a full-fledged laugh when she saw the towering form of her brother standing with his hand poised mid-knock.
If Luke Bennett had been a smaller man, he might have been sent tumbling backward at the force of his sister flinging herself into his arms. But he wasn’t, and Luke didn’t so much stagger as he accepted her weight and wrapped a large arm around her shoulder. Confused, he looked down at the top of his sister’s head as it nestled into his shoulder, then let his gaze scan the room as he stroked the silky mane of chestnut hair.
The sight of the ugly bruise quickly beginning to swell on the blond man’s jaw told Luke all he needed to know. His own deep, rumbling chuckle joined his sister’s as he asked, “I guess he said no, huh?”
Meet Rebecca Sinclair
Murphy's Law, Rebecca Sinclair's first short contemporary romance, was a finalist for the EPPIE Award, an award given for excellence in electronically-published fiction. Perfect Strangers and Montana Wildfire, two of her earlier books, are now being made available for the Kindle, Nook, Sony, PDF...and just about any other e-reading device there is. Reb is working on getting the rest of her back-list out in e-book format (keep checking her website www.rebeccasinclair.com for details).
In case you're wondering why her name sounds familiar but you can't quite place it, now would be a good time to mention that Reb is just coming off of a ten year, self-imposed sabbatical. She's back to writing now, however. Currently, she has three new projects in the works: one a sexy time-travel historical romance and two long Young Adult novels. (The latter genre is a departure for her, yet it's one she's having great fun with!)
While no one who knows her would make the mistake of calling her shy, Reb really doesn't like to talk about herself. Don't expect blog posts to be churned out every day...or week...or month even! She doesn't care to detail the mundane details of her life, not when there are so many books floating around in her head yet to write. Nor will she chew your ear off about the specifics of her current project(s)… that's so not Reb's style!
All that said, for those who are curious, here are the basics about Rebecca Sinclair:
Reb has lived on the rocky southeastern coast of New England all her life; first in Maine, where she was born, then in Massachusetts, where she grew up, and finally settling in the biggest little state of the union: Rhode Island. For the last 15 years she's lived in a big, turn-of-the-century (the last century—circa 1865!) house … that came complete with a widow's walk, a Table-of-Death and, of course, its own ghosts!
Reb enjoys spending time with her family, reading (a lot!) and listening to a wide variety of music. Her favorite time to write is in the wee, wee hours of the morning, when all the sane people are asleep; then, her creativity flows like a river. She is the owner and primary webmaster for the popular website Eclectics (eclectics.com), which she founded in 1993). Eclectics is Internet home to a variety of authors, literary agents, writing articles, and more.
Would you like to contact Reb? Here are several easy ways to do it:
Visit her website @ rebeccasinclair.com
Drop her an email @ [email protected]
“Friend” her on Facebook @ facebook.com/rebecca.sinclair1
“Friend” her on Goodreads (a fav of hers) @ goodreads.com/author/show/90768.Rebecca_Sinclair
Write to her @ her postal address:
Rebecca Sinclair
PO Box 15385
East Providence, RI 02915
After swearing you to secrecy, Reb might admit you can find her on Twitter (@Rebecca_S) early, early in the morning; it's her favorite time of the day––when the house is quiet and everyone is sleeping––to relax with a cup of hot blueberry coffee, sit back and spin her stories without interruption.
However you choose to get in touch, Reb will cherish hearing from you! Please don't tell her that we told you this, but if you write to her postal address and include a SASE (Self Addressed Stamped Envelope), she just might send you back a tiny surprise with her reply… if she's so inclined. ;)
Last but by no means least, Reb hopes you enjoyed reading this book as much as she enjoyed writing it, and she looks forward to entertaining you again in the future!
Table of Contents
Cover
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Excerpt – PERFFECT STRANGERS by Rebecca Sinclair
Excerpt – CALIFORNIA CARESS by Rebecca Sinclair
Meet Rebecca Sinclair
Table of Contents
Cover
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Excerpt – PERFFECT STRANGERS by Rebecca Sinclair
Excerpt – CALIFORNIA CARESS by Rebecca Sinclair
Meet Rebecca Sinclair
Montana Wildfire Page 43