Thursday, February 26, 2015

Asking for Trouble: Book Excerpt


A themed tour through Prism Book Tours.


Asking for Trouble (Tremayne Family, #1)

 Asking for Trouble
(Tremayne Family #1)
Anna J. Stewart
Adult Contemporary Romance
February 17th 2015 by Berkley InterMix
Goodreads



The Tremaynes are one of the most prosperous families in Lantano Valley, California. But money can’t buy everything—especially when it comes to love…

Morgan Tramayne has a heart of gold, but to keep her children’s charity afloat she’s had to resort to some less than legal means: donations from a notorious cat burglar who targets the wealthy. It’s only a matter of time before Morgan’s criminal connection blows up in her face—especially since her undeniable attraction to the man heading the investigation keeps putting her in tricky situations.

Former police detective-turned-investigator Gage Juliano has two goals: salvaging his career and nabbing Lantano Valley’s present-day Robin Hood. But when he meets a beautiful, curvaceous woman who’s more interested in helping others than amassing a fortune like the rest of the town’s residents, Gage finds his desires pulled in an unexpected direction…

Note: This novel contains some mature content.





Here's an Excerpt:

Morgan watched Gage walk away before she blinked herself back to reality. A few moments around Gage had locked her in some sort of trance, one that broke as she caught sight of her father heading her way.

To anyone else, Jackson Tremayne was the picture-perfect host. Only those closest to him noticed the specter of grief hovering around him like a fog that might never lift.

For over a decade, Catherine Tremayne’s Annual Foundation Fund-raiser was the season’s biggest social event. Morgan couldn’t help but feel that tonight’s, the first since Catherine’s death, was decidedly somber despite the celebratory casino atmosphere.

“Hi, Dad.” Morgan heard the telltale twitter of her phone’s appointment alert chime from her purse. Her father smiled, shaking his head as Morgan plastered on her “everything is perfect” expression just in time.

“Right on time as always.” Jackson Tremayne wrapped his arms around her, the ice cubes in his Scotch glass clinking as he hugged her and kissed her cheek. “Does that thing ever let you relax?”

“Nope,” Morgan laughed. “How are you doing?” She knew she should have arrived sooner, come by more often, but there never seemed to be enough hours in the day. Thank goodness her sister Sheila had moved home after the accident so her father wouldn’t be left alone in the enormous house.

“I’m fine, Morgan. You worry too much.” He gave her another squeeze. “Everything good with you?”

Little did her father know those four words held the potential to open a floodgate of panic.

The exhausted part of her wanted to say, “I’ve siphoned off charitable funds and left almost a quarter-million-dollar hole in the foundation’s property purchasing account. I’ll be lucky to make the property taxes this year. Your mother’s old house needs a new water heater and copper pipes installed. By the way, I’ve accepted over one hundred thousand dollars from a thief stalking some of your biggest clients.”

But instead she said, “Everything’s great, Dad,” with nary a trace of anxiety.

“District Attorney Marshall sends his regrets.”

Morgan’s head snapped around as Gage joined them, pocketing his donation receipt and bidding marker.

“Inspector Gage Juliano, Mr. Tremayne.” He held out his hand. Jackson inclined his head as if trying to place him.

Inspector? Morgan’s throat slammed shut like a bear trap as blood pounded in her ears.

“Evan hired me to oversee his new Special Investigations Task Force,” Gage said. “I thought tonight was the perfect opportunity to introduce myself, touch base, and get your opinion on some of the cases we’ll be working on.”

Morgan rubbed her hands down her suddenly chilled arms. This distracting, disarming man was a cop? That hissing sound in her ears must be the burning fuse on a time bomb.

“Any case in particular?” Jackson asked, but Morgan already knew. Her skin went clammy. She felt her face grow cold as if every drop of blood had drained to her toes.

“The Nemesis burglaries,” Gage stated as he gestured to a passing waiter and ordered a whiskey, neat. “Now that I’ve caught up on the investigation, I believe everything I need to catch him can be found right here in this house.”








About the Author

You’ve met Anna J. Stewart (or someone like her) before. She was the girl who spun in circles on the playground hoping her Wonder Woman costume would magically appear before playing cops and robbers a la Charlie’s Angels–as Sabrina (she was the smart one). Anna was the girl in the back of the class with a paperback romance hidden in her algebra book (and yes, she failed algebra).

Growing up in the 70′s and 80′s meant there weren’t a lot of YA books, so she ventured early into mainstream fiction and read Stephen King’s CARRIE at the age of 8. Discovering Nora Roberts and romance novels early in high school opened her eyes to the wonders of storytelling and the beauty of a happily ever after.

So here she is, many years later with an English degree from CSU Sacramento, an RWA Golden Heart nomination behind her, countless stories in her head, and a serious addiction to STAR TREK, SUPERNATURAL, and SHERLOCK. She recently wrapped up a nearly 8-year stint working as assistant to NYTimes bestselling author Brenda Novak where she helped run Brenda's annual online auction for diabetes research. When she's not writing or reading (which she never has enough time for!), she's working on dollhouse miniatures and tolerating her overly-affectionate cat named Snickers (or perhaps it's Snickers who tolerates her).




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2 comments:

  1. KindlemomFebruary 26, 2015 at 7:36 AM

    This sounds like it will be a cute and fun little read. Thanks for sharing the excerpt with us!

    ReplyDelete
  2. brandileigh2003February 26, 2015 at 4:57 PM

    Morgan sounds like a character I could connect with

    ReplyDelete

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