Jen posted: " Hello, all. It's been a while, as usual. I have been off wandering in the weeds again, trying to figure out how to organize all the new tools and features I've been picking up in building my little corner of the online world. I have progress to re" Jen Fries Arts
Hello, all. It's been a while, as usual. I have been off wandering in the weeds again, trying to figure out how to organize all the new tools and features I've been picking up in building my little corner of the online world. I have progress to report. Behold! It's an org chart. A Jen-style […]
Peggy Jaeger posted: " YOu get a two-fer today!! LOL Ready? Here's my cover to my next addition to the DICKENS HOLIDAY ROMANCE series, DON'T MESS WITH THE MISTLETOE.... It's the holiday season in the tiny town of Dickens and pilot Michael Charles is home for " Peggy Jaeger, Author
Ready? Here's my cover to my next addition to the DICKENS HOLIDAY ROMANCE series, DON'T MESS WITH THE MISTLETOE....
It's the holiday season in the tiny town of Dickens and pilot Michael Charles is home for his annual visit. His wanderlust has him itching to get back up in the skies as soon as possible, especially since he's got a full schedule of rich and famous clients waiting to be transported to warm, exotic locales for the winter.
When his heavily pregnant sisters present him with a plan to give their workaholic mother some time off from managing the family diner, he balks. But one look at how tired the woman who took him into her home and heart is, and Michael agrees to run Dorrit's Diner for a month so Amy Charles can get some well-deserved rest.
He'll be back in the skies by the New Year.
The diner staff functions like a well-oiled machine, most of them long-term employees. The exception is new waitress Julia Maryland. The beautiful blonde has a past filled with heartache, a charming six-year-old daughter, and a smile Michael could spend the day getting lost in. But starting a relationship with her wouldn't be wise because his visit is temporary and Julia seems like a permanent kind of girl.
When a family emergency requires him to rethink and reassess his life, Michael wonders if it's time he becomes a permanent kind of man.
"Blake asleep?" he asked, shucking his hands in his pockets while she went about preparing her tea.
"Finally. She conned me into reading three stories tonight instead of our typical two." Shaking her head, she placed the teakettle on the stove and turned on the burner. "She's always trying to go to sleep later than she should. If I allowed it every night, she'd be a bear the next day."
"I used to do that to Amy and Andy. One more story and I swear I'll go to sleep. Then, oh, but wait, how about a glass of water? Then the inevitable, now I've got to go to the bathroom move. All just so I wouldn't have to go to sleep before my sisters."
"I can see you were a little manipulator like Blake."
He shook his head. "I prefer to think of it as honing my negotiation skills at a young age."
His heart sure was getting a workout tonight because when she laughed, free and girlishly, his stuttered again.
"In reality it was because I was afraid I'd wake up the next morning and they'd be gone."
Why the hell had he told her that?
Michael had never shared with anyone, least of all his parents, how much going to sleep every night terrified him. Up until the time he'd overheard Andy tell Amy they'd caught the man who'd murdered his mother, he'd lived in fear the mean man would come after him and kill his adoptive parents, too.
Irrational? Of course it was. But to a small boy whose world had been changed forever in a second, it was all too real.
Julia's face softened as she stared across at him. Moisture formed in the outer corner of her eyes as she dropped her gaze.
"Don't do that," he said, pushing off the wall and coming to her. "I didn't say that to make you feel sorry for me or anything, I really didn't."
"Of course not," she said immediately. "I didn't think you had. And I can feel sorry for the little boy you were, you know. It's a natural reaction."
His sigh was long and tired. "Still. I don't know why I told you that." He raked his hands down his face. "Let's forget I did, okay? I just got off the phone with Sasha," he said, changing the subject and hoping she wouldn't press him. "They're coming back tomorrow, so I need to get going on the present shopping."
He held his breath, waiting for her reply. When she nodded, then poured the heated water into her mug, his anxiety eased.
Intrigued? You can preorder the ecopy here: AMAZON
ANNNNNNNNNNNNDDDD...... just because I can, I've put FIXING CHRISTMAS and SASHA'S SECRET SANTA on sale for 99cents in anticipation of DON'T MESS WITH THE MISTLETOE going live. SO if you haven't read those two yet ( you really should!!LOL), now is your chance because once DMWTM goes live, the price on these two goes back to normal.
Christmas has never filled writer Abra Charles with undiluted pleasure. If you'd been left on a doorstep on Christmas Eve morning, you might have a few issues with the holiday as well.
Abra's avoided her hometown of Dickens for the past twenty Christmas seasons, but now she's returned in an attempt to get her writing mojo back. Twice-divorced and with her third engagement ending in heartbreak, anger, and blackmail, Abra is now six months behind on submitting her current book. She hopes renting Copperfield House and immersing herself in solitude will cure her writer's block and get her life back on track. The house she rents isn't helping her achieve her goal, though, as one thing after another breaks, collapses, or floods.
Colton Bree, Dickens' very own Mr. FixIt, can't help but wonder if the new resident of Copperfield House is cursed. After being called to repair a broken window, he's then needed to fix an exploding coffeepot, an overrunning toilet, and a washing machine that has a mind of its own. Bree doesn't mind all the unexpected repair jobs, though, because the sexy renter is something to look at despite being a little neurotic and a whole lot of snarky.
Can Abra get her book done with all the distractions and craziness of her life, the biggest distraction being the flannelled hunk with the bedroom eyes and scowling yet oh-so-kissable mouth? Or will Dickens' Mr FixIt have to step in and save the day and in so doing, fix Christmas for Abra forever?
After a terrifying incident derails Sasha Charles' career and confidence, she moves back to her hometown of Dickens to heal, reorganize, and start over.
The only problem? The paralyzing panic attacks that plague her whenever she thinks about going back to nursing. Sasha is mentally, and emotionally stuck, and has no idea how to move forward.
Steve Caldwell is the new Director of Services at Dickens Memorial Hospital. After witnessing her save the life of a local resident in Dorrit's Diner, he knows Sasha would be perfect for the new trauma center he's planning. When she refuses his job offer outright, he sets out to change her mind.
But Sasha has thick, protective walls erected around her so Steve must first break through them. With patience and kindness, he does. As the two grow closer, each begin to have second thoughts on what their futures should look like, until idle, small town gossip threatens to derail their budding relationship.
With the imminent arrival of Christmas, will Steve be able to convince Sasha he has her best interests at heart?
