Home to Stay
by Jane Leopold Quinn
Nickie Grace moved to Parkersburg to rehab an old house and
forget a disastrous marriage, but a prowler threatens her newfound peace. The
vandalism gets more personal and creepier with every instance. It's a small
town, and the investigating deputy, Hank Crossman, is everywhere. Nickie's not
ready to get involved but she can't resist the hunk's seductive moves -- or the
adorable stray dog he adopted. A summer affair might be fun, not to mention
that with a sheriff's deputy guarding her body, how much safer could she be?
Deputy Hank Crossman loves to play the field. He's a
commitment-phobe, who keeps everyone at arm's length, including his alcoholic
father and the stray he's named simply 'Dog.' Now, he's determined to seduce
Nickie Grace. Fortunately for Parkersburg, he takes his job much more seriously
than he does his affairs. His frustration at not being able to solve the
perverted and dangerous crimes against Nickie grows along with his attraction
to her, and despite the dangers they become immersed in an intense lust-affair.
Then Nickie almost loses her life, and Hank discovers that
everything that's been happening is because of his past. He wants to bolt, get
out of her life, but this time he just might come home to stay.
This book was previously published
EXCERPT PG-rated
Through a tragic accident, Hank Crossman
lost almost every person he ever loved -
by the time he was 18.
Excerpt:
During
the funeral, he sat in the woods outside the church leaning against a tree
trunk, grinding his back over the rough bark like some sort of medieval
flagellation. It was his fault. Ricky would have known better than to dive in
if he’d been there. He was probably showing off. He choked back the agony of
imagining Ricky inside the coffin. They’d never go tramping through the woods,
never play dumb video games in Ricky’s basement. He’d never see his floppy
blond hair and happy blue eyes, never have a friend again. That was for sure.
He’d never get that close to anyone again.
And he never intended to come
back to Parkersburg after college, but got sucked in when a judge refused to
release his good-for-nothing father from rehab unless a family member vouched
for him.
His grief and guilt lead him to the Marines where he
lost his heart to the innocent victims of war. He thought he'd left
his hometown forever, but his conscience forced him to return to take
care of his alcoholic father. If he had to be home, at least he was
safely ensconced in his career as a lawman. For a long time, he was able
to do his job and still cut himself off from any personal relationships.
Nickie Grace changed all that.
Excerpt:
Hands shaking and in a rush, she hooked
the snap between her breasts, jiggling a little to settle herself in the cups.
She rubbed at the burning prickles on the back of her neck. Crossman. It was
Crossman. She knew it was him before she turned around.
He stared at her from the
darkened hallway, his rapt gaze heating her skin. She crossed her arms over her
breasts. To give the devil his due, he drew his gaze up to her face. She
wondered if he was married, because the way he looked at her made her hope he
wasn’t.
Nickie Grace’s ex was the
quintessential cheating bastard. Rehabbing her great-aunt’s house in
Parkersburg, Iowa would be her refuge from her feeling of failure. Until someone started playing “pranks” on
her, and Hank, the cop, started wanting to protect her.
Excerpt:
“Could
your ex be behind the pranks?” Hank asked quietly, his voice breaking the
silence.
Her
gaze jerked back to him. “No, it’s not his style. And besides, why would he? He
doesn’t care.”
“Are
you sure? Some men don’t like to lose what they consider their property. What
does he do?”
“No,
it’s not him. I’m sure of it. He’s glad to be rid of me.” It was hard to
sniffle back tears quietly so he wouldn’t hear.
“What’s
his name, Nickie?”
“Why?
It doesn’t matter. It’s not him.”
“You
don’t know that for sure.”
Oh,
God. Why would Rod do this? He wouldn’t. What would be the point? He’s proud
and arrogant but not possessive. She was sure it wasn’t him, but Hank had put
doubts in her mind.
“Okay, I’ll find out who’s
doing this, though.” He pushed off the railing and strode toward her.
She intends to keep Hank at a
distance until one night they dance and being in his arms felt soooo good.
Bio
Sensual fantasies were locked in my mind for years until a
friend said, "Why don't you write them down?" Why not, indeed? One
spiral notebook, a pen and the unleashing of my imagination later, and here I
am with more than a dozen books published. The craft of writing erotic romance
has become my passion and my niche in life. I love every part of the creative
process — developing characters, designing the plot, even drawing the layout of
physical spaces from my stories. My careers have been varied — third grade
school teacher, bookkeeper, secretary — none of which gave me a bit of
inspiration. But now I'm lucky enough to write romance full time — the best job
in the universe!
My Books
Ellora's Cave
Lost and Found
Indie
Valentine's Day
His Hers & His
The Keeper
Soldier, Come Home
Winning Violetta
A Promise at Dawn
Jake and Ivy
Wooing the Librarian
Home to Stay
The Long Road to You (coming
soon)
Siren
Undercover Lover
Mercenary Desires
I'll Be Your Last
Jane
Leopold Quinn
My
Romance: Love With a Scorching Sensuality
