On Sale: COLD SECRETS by Toni Anderson

Toni Anderson’s COLD SECRETS is on sale now for just .99c – but only for a limited time! Be sure to grab your copy today.

 

About COLD SECRETS

When an international ring of sex traffickers kidnaps an eight-year-old girl in Boston, FBI Agent Lucas Randall heads undercover. But his rescue operation goes disastrously wrong and Lucas barely escapes with his life. Now the ruthless traffickers are hunting him down, along with everyone else who threatens their operation.

Computer expert Ashley Chen joined the FBI to fight against evil in the world—evil she experienced firsthand. She has mad skills, and deadly secrets, and once she starts working with Lucas, she also has big trouble, because after years of pushing people away, she’s falling for the guy. The feeling is more than mutual, but as Ashley intensifies her online pursuit of the trafficking ring, her traumatic past collides with her present and suddenly Lucas can’t tell which side she’s on. And as the case escalates into a high-stakes game of cat and mouse, it turns out Ashley isn’t the only one with something to hide.

If neither can trust the other with their secrets, how can they trust each other with their hearts?

Get your hands on a copy of COLD SECRETS for .99c for a limited time:

AmazoniBooks | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Google Play

 

Read an excerpt from COLD SECRETS:

She walked toward him and he forced himself not to move. She was only a few inches shorter than he was which was a change from the women he usually dated. Her hands rested on his chest as she eased up to kiss him. Her mouth was soft and sweet, and tasted like bourbon.

He wanted to unwrap that shirt from her body and drag her off to bed. But it didn’t matter how long it had been, this was a really bad idea.

As she was about to pull away, he cupped her face and took the kiss deeper, feeling the surprise, followed by the searing heat of her response. Her breathing hitched as her tongue met his. He fitted her more closely against him, his calloused fingers rough against the slippery satin of her blouse. Her arms wound around his neck and her hands sank into the hair at his nape. She was hot—body, face, mouth. His body begged him not to pull away, not to stop, but he did it anyway, and stared down into her pretty eyes.

“What was that for?” he asked gruffly.

“Curiosity.” Her lips were reddened from their kiss. Her honey skin held a flush of scarlet. “I wanted to see if you tasted as good as you looked.”

His throat grew tight. “What’s the verdict?”

She pulled away and walked over to where she’d dumped her laptop and coat. Picked them up.

He made himself stand very still as she walked away. Made himself accept that the kiss had been enough.

She opened the door and looked over her shoulder. “Better.”

Then she closed the door, severing the connection. And he knew a kiss was never going to be enough.

 

cs-teaser2-v2

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

A PILGRIMAGE TO DEATH by Alexa Padgett – Excerpt Reveal

Today we have the excerpt reveal for Alexa Padgett’s A PILGRIMAGE TO DEATH! We’re so excited to share this upcoming thriller with you! Check it out and be sure to preorder today!

 

Title: A Pilgrimage to Death

Author: Alexa Padgett

Genre: Thriller

Release Date: August 14th

 

About A Pilgrimage to Death:

They murdered her sister. They threatened her church. Their day of reckoning is at hand.

Cici Gurule is a freewheeling, progressive reverend who’ll stop at nothing to protect her flock. When she finds the dead body of a parishioner in the nearby Santa Fe National Forest, she’s horrified to realize the victim bears the same stab wounds that ended her twin sister’s life one year earlier.

 

Together with her detective friend and loyal pair of Great Pyrenees, she vows to hunt down the killer before she’s forced to officiate another funeral. Soon, however, Cici discovers her sister was on the trail of a deep-rooted criminal operation… and her death was no random act of violence.

 

Now that the criminals are out for Cici’s blood, the pastor must catch the wolf by the tail before it goes in for the kill.

 

A Pilgrimage to Death is a high-octane mystery thriller. If you like motorcycling sleuths, fast-paced action, and a dash of humor, then you’ll love Alexa Padgett’s edge-of-your-seat novel.

 

Preorder Your Copy Today!

Amazon ~ Nook ~ iBooks  ~ Kobo ~ Google Play ~ Goodreads

 

Exclusive Excerpt:

Cecilia Gurule was a reverend for God’s sake. She dealt in souls—the broken, empty, seeking, and, yes, the dead.

Bodies? Not her wheelhouse.

At least they weren’t until that Tuesday afternoon when Domine Deusdecided to test both her faith and her life.

She came within a bullet of losing both.

***

Cecilia, who much preferred Cici, met Sam in the parking lot of the Aspen Vista Trail. She was late. Not really her fault, but typical, thanks to her parishioners’ unwillingness to accept Tuesdays as her one day per week away from the church.

Wide and rocky, the trail snaked over eleven miles up the side of the mountain following an old forest service road. While the incline was never scramble steep, it rose at a consistent pace, switching back with views toward the city or up to the ski basin. A few narrow runnels of water—not big enough to be considered creeks—dribbled from the remaining snowpack.

Cici suggested it last week because both she and Sam had the weekday off, meaning fewer hikers on the bottom part of the trail, and they could spend the three-plus hours needed to reach the summit.

Unfortunately, Cici suggested the trail before she made plans to breakfast with the widowed Mrs. Sanchez, whose son worked out at the state penitentiary on NM-14.

“I don’t understand these kids.” Mrs. Sanchez wiped her mouth with her napkin, leaving a smear of bright red on the paper. Her lips were the same light bronze as her craggy skin, hints of the crimson lipstick settled into the faint lines bisecting her lower lip.

“Juanito has one more year at that fancy private school. He has a pretty girlfriend. Yet he cannot be happy? He causes his father such heartache, Reverend.” She picked up her coffee mug and shoved it toward Cici. “You talk to the boy for his father. Set him straight.”

“I’ll do what I can, Mrs. Sanchez.”

“Humph.” The woman set her mug down with a crack, her dark, deep-set eyes glaring from between folds of skin. Without the bright lipstick, her mouth seemed hidden under the wrinkles.

“I’m old, Reverend. I cannot control the boy. His father, Miguel, spent most of the last year picking up extra shifts for the tuition at St. Michaels. Juanito needs to respect the rules we set for him.”

“Which are?” Cici asked.

Mrs. Sanchez tossed her napkin onto her plate with the half-finished breakfast burrito. Cici picked up her own warm tortilla and bit into the wrap, enjoying the spicy flavors of green chile and sausage. One thing about Mrs. Sanchez: she was a fine cook.

“No seeing that girl past ten p.m. Good grades—all A’s so that he’s ready to go to Tech in a year. That’s what he needs—a good education, more choices. Not this . . . this mess with girls.”

“He did receive all A’s last year, and it’s summer break now. Shouldn’t Juan have the chance to focus on his job or maybe even spend time with Jaycee?”

“No more time with the girlfriend,” Mrs. Sanchez said with a sharp motion of her hand. “That’s how I’ll end up a great-grandmother. The boy needs more school. He is not yet eighteen.” Her face crumpled. “He is the age we lost his brother, Marco, Reverend. You know this. Juan is all the family has left.”

***

“Who was it this time?” Sam Chastain, Cici’s friend and hiking partner, asked. He pulled on a tattered ball cap—probably the one Cici’s twin sister, Anna Carmen, gave him years ago—and pulled on his backpack, settling it comfortably over his gray Red River T-shirt.

His short, dark ponytail stuck through the hole in the back like a bristle-brush. He slid on a pair of Ray-Bans to protect his gunmetal-blue eyes.

“Mrs. Sanchez. I got a great breakfast out of the deal.”

“She want you to have the talk with Juan?” Sam asked.

Sam was a detective with the Santa Fe Police department and fellow search-and-rescue teammate. The two had known each other for decades. Cici grabbed her water bottle and checked her sneakers.

“Got a hat?” Sam asked. “You know you’re going to burn if you don’t wear one.”

Sam studied her features, his gaze resting on her high cheekbones that always burned thanks to the pale skin Cici and her sister inherited from their mother, along with the oval shape of her face and the long-lashed hazel eyes.

“Yep,” Cici said, settling the cap on her head and pulling her long, jet-black pony tail through the hole in the back.

Sam offered her a radio, which she took, clipping it to her thick, brown leather belt.

“Why are we carrying these?”

Sam shrugged. “Boss man wants everyone on the trails wearing ’em. Maybe because of the helicopter extraction earlier this year?”

They started up the trail, moving in tandem as if they’d been hiking together for years.

“She’s recovered,” Cici said. “I called the woman who fell off Big Tesuque and talked to her. Her ankle’s out of the cast.”

“Lot of ruckus for a broken ankle and some bruises,” Sam replied.

“She slid four hundred feet into that ravine, Sam. Cut the woman some slack.”

“Stupid to hike alone, and you know it. We wouldn’t have had to waste so many resources on her if she’d been smarter.”

Cici did, but her job was to see others’ points of view, to help them grow, both in their humanity and spirituality. Refusing to get pulled further into an argument with Sam, she continued to hike.

They matched pace for a while in companionable silence. Cici began to feel . . . not sad. She hadn’t been happy since Anna Carmen’s death. But in this moment, with the sun shining and the aspens whispering overhead, Cici’s lips lifted at the corners.

The call came over the radio clipped to her belt. The same message squawked from Sam’s radio. He stopped, his chest expanding with each hard breath. They’d hiked the steepest part of the Aspen Trail. Sam wiped the sweat off his brow and pulled in a deep breath. He unlatched his walkie-talkie and pressed the button on the side.

“Repeat that, please.”

“Missing hiker. Wife called it in when she got off the mountain.”

“She left him out here by himself?” Cici asked, already wrinkling her nose in disgust. People continued to disappoint her.

Sam shook his head. “Not now, Cici. What’s the trail?”

“Aspen Vista,” the voice said over the bits of static.

“We’re on it. Name, age, any other stats?”

“I know.” The voice crackled but the exasperation was clear even through the bad connection. “Donald . . . fifty . . . complain . . . heart.”

“Uh oh,” Cici murmured.

“Last known whereabouts?” Sam asked.

“The summit.”

“Why’d the wife leave him there?” Cici muttered. “If he was in distress when she left him, he might not have survived while she strolled down the mountain.”

“Later,” Sam replied. He pressed the “Talk” button. “We’re a quarter mile from that location. Cici and I will start the sweep.”

“Roger . . . full crew coming in.”

“Great. From what you said, we’ll probably need it. Over and out.” Sam clipped the thick black radio to his belt again. He turned back to look at Cici, who’d crossed her arms and scowled down into the valley below.

“None of that, Cee. Not all people are your parents.”

“No, shit, detective,” she grunted.

“Hey,” Sam said, bumping her shoulder with his in a gentle gesture she’d come to expect from him over the last few years.

While they’d spent time together before her twin’s death, Cici made a point to seek him out more often after Anna Carmen’s funeral—especially once she’d made the decision to quit as the associate reverend from the large, wealthy church outside Boston—and move back home. He’d reciprocated by always being available, even during the difficult transition when he left the promising position on a joint task force in Denver. He’d been so excited to participate in that work because only the best people from the region were chosen, and Sam was one of the youngest. But, after explaining the situation to his boss, Agent Klein helped Sam move back in the detective bureau in Santa Fe.

“Priests aren’t supposed to use that kind of language,” he said.

Cici bumped him back, harder. Five male cousins within three years of her own age taught her a few important details—like how to fight dirty. “I’m not a priest. And not just because of my reproductive organs. I’m a reverend.”

“With a predilection for curse words and a willingness to abuse your fellow man,” Sam said over his shoulder as he moved back into point position on the trail. He made a tsking sound. “C’mon, Rev. Let’s go rescue our guy. Maybe you’ll make the front page of the paper. Again.” He turned to wink, his lips lifting when Cici rolled his eyes.

“Ugh. One time, Sam.”

“That’s all it took for me to be able to tease you about it for the rest of your life.” He started to chuckle. “Whatever happened to the chicken?”

Cici glared while Sam struggled to keep a straight face.

“I don’t know.” She huffed. “Hopefully, it’s living a long, chicken-y life.”

She rolled her eyes again and began to climb; Sam fell into step to the left and a half-foot in front of her.

Sam’s foot shifted as loose slag slid out from under his thick-soled hiking boot. He slowed his pace, taking more care with where he stepped. No point in getting hurt on the way up—that would just make more work for the SAR crew already on its way.

“I can’t believe that little girl asked you to bless a chicken at the Pet Parade.”

“This is Santa Fe. Home of animal lovers and weirdness.”

And murder.

Even though the sun beat down in thick, hot rays, Cici shivered. Something about this entire situation felt . . . well, off. She picked up the thread of their conversation to give herself something to do besides watch where she placed her feet and worry about what they’d find.

“Anyway, Yale wasn’t big on the cussing. Manhattan and Boston are where I picked up some choice words.”

“You were supposed to show those sinners how to rise above coarse language, sin, and all that shit.”

Cici shrugged. Not new ground here. She and Sam had bickered for years. That wasn’t saying much, really. She’d known most of the people in Santa Fe for years.

The aspen leaves rippled in the wind—a soft, fluttering roll of vegetation that sounded like a gentle, low tide—a strange phenomenon common here, high up in the Santa Fe National Forest where blue sky and slender white tree trunks seemed to merge. Typically, the sound soothed her.

Not now that she’d thought about her sister. The ache left by Anna Carmen’s death seemed to grow and weep, just as it always did when thoughts of her twin blindsided her.

Cici lifted her leg high to take her up to the next rock as sweat trickled down the middle of her back and her thighs began to ache with the deliciousness of hard use.

Cici cleared her head and organized her thoughts on these weekly hikes. Spending time outdoors with Sam became a weekly ritual more than six months ago. She looked forward to these hours-long jaunts because they helped her prepare a better sermon.

They turned the last sharp curve and Sam’s feet planted firmly into the path, blocking her view. He cursed—worse than her words. Cici’s heart hammered and the dread in her stomach shifted, heaving, as Cici edged around him.

“Wait, Cee. You don’t want to see this.”

Too late—and not as if she would have listened. Her throat tightened as she stared into the sightless eyes of Donald Johnson, one of the founding members of the church she’d taken over earlier this year.

A gust of wind slammed against her overheated skin and the soft rustling of the aspens built into the crash of waves. Or maybe it was her ears, thrumming with the rush of blood to her head.

She barely heard Sam call in their location.

Rigor mortis had already come and left his body before she and Sam found him, toppled off the large boulder, his stainless-steel canteen overturned and empty at his feet. The water stained the ground and his right hiking boot, making the leather darker, near black. Near as black as the blood on the rock and stuck to his Lobos T-shirt, trailing down onto his designer jeans.

Sam’s hand came down on her shoulder and she flinched, hard, but she didn’t look away from Donald. Two narrow gashes showed pink and a trickle of blood. His hands—large and hairy—nicked from the blade. A longer, deeper gash split open the meaty part of his hand almost as if he’d grappled with the blade.

But Cici focused on the large wolf logo. The UNM mascot seemed to have opened its mouth right above a wound in his back, ready to devour him.

Or maybe Cici, with memories of another murder. That wound . . .

 

 

About Alexa Padgett:

With a degree in international marketing and a varied career path that includes content management for a web firm, marketing direction for a high-profile sports agency, and a two-year stint with a renowned literary agency, award-winning author Alexa Padgett has returned to her first love: writing fiction.
Alexa spent a good part of her youth traveling. From Budapest to Belize, Calgary to Coober Pedy, she soaked in the myriad smells, sounds, and feels of these gorgeous places, wishing she could live in them all—at least for a while. And she does in her books.

She lives in New Mexico with her husband, children, and Great Pyrenees pup, Ash. When not writing, schlepping, or volunteering, she can be found in her tiny kitchen, channeling her inner Barefoot Contessa.

Connect with Alexa:

Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram

Enter Alexa’s Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Available Now: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson is available now! Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you. Find out more about COLD BLOODED below, read an excerpt, and grab your copy now!

 

 

About COLD BLOODED

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

Get your hands on COLD BLOODED:

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

Read an excerpt of COLD BLOODED:

 

Pip climbed to her feet and Hunt watched her walk slowly back toward the cabin. Her eyes were red and swollen.

Not pretty, but there was no denying he was attracted to her. A gnawing hunger was starting to eat at him and it had Pip’s name all over it.

The light was fading fast. He headed back downstairs, went out onto the deck and opened his arms wide. She came to him and leaned against his chest and held on tight, but she didn’t cry. Something told him that despite the fact he’d seen her cry several times over her friend on that first day, Pip West rarely lost control of her emotions. He hugged her tight, enjoying the soft feel of her against him, her scent invading his senses—strawberries and sunshine mixed with a subtle hint of female.

“How’s it look in there?” Her voice was rusty and deep.

Sexy as hell.

He cleared his throat. “There’s fingerprint dust all over the walls. There are firms you can hire to clean it up…”

She shook her head. “I’ll do it myself next time I come up.”

Self-sufficient. Independent.

“You okay to drive back?” he asked.

She nodded and pulled out of his arms. “I’m sorry for falling apart. I guess I needed that. I’ll be fine driving though. Just give me a minute.” She looked up at him and her eyes were almost black in the twilight. His gaze dropped to her lips and the desire to kiss her hit him all over again.

Don’t be a fool.

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

Teaser #3: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson releases June 12th – we cannot wait! See a teaser and check out the awesome trailer below, then be sure to preorder your copy now.

Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you!

 

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

 

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

Excerpt Reveal: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson releases June 12th – but if you can’t wait, be sure to check out an excerpt below and then preorder your copy today!

Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you!

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

Read an excerpt of COLD BLOODED:

Hunt opened his wallet and pulled out enough bills to cover both meals.

She dug into her pocket for her wallet.

“I’ve got this,” he said.

She opened her mouth to argue.

“I’ve got this, Pip. Put your money away.”

She let him because it wasn’t worth fighting over. “I don’t like charity.”

“You can pay next time.”

It was a throwaway comment, a reflex on his part.

“Will there be a next time?” Hope, heat and vulnerability were naked in her voice, though she tried to disguise them. But she needed to know what this was between them.

He looked at her and something changed in his eyes, heated and softened. “What do you think?”

He took her hand and tugged her gently out of her seat and toward the door. Once on the sidewalk he turned to face her and brushed her hair to one side. Then he lowered his lips to hers and kissed her again. A jolt of heat shot along her nerves. Tangy and sizzling. Alive. She held onto his forearms as he tilted her chin and deepened the kiss.

His tongue touched hers and she moaned and felt him smile against her lips. She tangled her tongue with his. He tasted like beer and salt and hot alpha male. Her fingers traced the hard planes of his chest, the warm cotton of his t-shirt. The scent of his leather jacket mixed with the musky scent of his skin made her knees go a little weak.

He pulled back, still cupping her face. Before she could think or speak he kissed her again and a tremor of longing ran through her. She curled her fingers into his t-shirt and pulled him tighter against her.

When they broke away they were both breathing hard.

“Come on.” He took her hand and strode along the sidewalk, around the corner to their vehicles. He opened her door, boosting her into the seat, his hands lingering on her hips in a way that suggested he didn’t want to let go.

“Come home with me,” he said gruffly.

A wave of desire curled inside, tumbling her thoughts into a mass of confusion. She wanted him, but she’d always been lousy at casual sex. But goddamn it, she’d almost died today and this was something she’d been thinking about since he’d come to her room that morning. And that was before he’d thrown himself over her to save her from flying bullets.

They were only alive thanks to a fickle dose of good luck.

Live a little.

Cindy’s voice in her head dared her.

The dead woman was haunting her now.

His eyes were dark with night shadows. “I want to show you something.”

She snorted.

He grinned and took her hand, his fingers kneading the tension out of her joints. “That too, but if you’re not interested or you change your mind at any point, I will make sure you get home safely. There is something else I’d like to show you. Something important.”

She wasn’t one to trust easily, but what did she have to lose? This would be a way to forget the sadness from the last few days. Unlike drugs or alcohol, sex with Hunt Kincaid wouldn’t destroy her mind or body, though it might damage her heart.

But if she knew it was temporary going in, she could protect her heart. He’d be a distraction. Not an addiction.

She wanted this, she realized. She wanted him.

“Okay.”

 

 

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

Teaser #2: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson releases June 12th – we cannot wait! See a teaser and check out the awesome trailer below, then be sure to preorder your copy now.

Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you!

 

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

TUCK ME IN TIGHT by Jennifer Rebecca – Release Day Blitz

Today we have the release blitz for Tuck Me In Tight by Jennifer Rebecca! Check it out and be sure to grab your copy:

 

Title: Tuck Me In Tight  

Author: Jennifer Rebecca

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Cover by Alyssa Garcia at Uplifting Designs.

 

About Tuck Me In Tight

George Washington Township, New Jersey has been relatively quiet ever since it was turned upside down following a high profile kidnapping. During the lull in excitement Detective Claire Goodnite has enjoyed being in the love bubble with the sexy SAIC Wesley O’Connell.

 

Never fully believing that she was capable of a committed relationship—with Wes or with anyone—leaves Claire feeling undeserving of the elusive happily ever after. She has never let herself enjoy what was within her grasp . . .

 

Until a string of murdered women dressed and posed like sleeping dolls shakes the very foundation of everything Claire thought she knew. Particularly when the only connection to be found between the three victims is the man who finally stole her heart for keeps, Wes.

 

But it’s like she always said, she’s bad at love.

Get your copy today!

Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Kobo

Exclusive Excerpt:

This is how my heart breaks

What. The. Fuck.
I had sat down at my desk and opened a manila envelope that was left on top of my stack of mail. It had seemed harmless enough.
But it wasn’t.
I blink my eyes over and over trying to make my brain process what it’s seeing—but I can’t. I can’t unsee the images in the stack of pictures in my hand. Giant glossy eight by tens from different angles so there is absolutely no doubt that my heart is breaking.
And it is broken. It’s not just broken, it’s shattered.
“It’s not what it looks like,” I hear from behind me as he looks over my shoulder and I have to grit my teeth to keep from screaming.
I shuffle the pictures sliding the top one to the back of the stack so that I can see the next one. This one is zoomed in. His head is tipped back and his face is distorted with both lust and passion as she straddles his lap. Her hands hold his to her breasts and I can see the play of tendons flexing through them as he grips them tight. It was only two nights ago that his hands were on my own breasts in much the same way as I rode his cock on the sofa.
“Claire, did you hear me?” he asks but I shuffle the stack again.
In this picture, he has his arms wrapped around her back and he’s pulling her close, her breasts mashed up against his strong chest. Her hands with long, red painted talons press in on either side of his face and as they kiss hungrily, their mouths open as their tongues tangle.
“Goddamnit, Claire! Did you hear me?” My spine turns to steel.
“I did. I’m just choosing to ignore you,” I respond coolly.
“Don’t do this, baby,” he pleads.
“I’m not the one who did anything,” I snap.
“I can explain.” But I’m not interested in listening to him plead a case when he is more than guilty.
“I’m going to need you to leave, Wes.”
“No.”
“This changes everything,” I say so softly even I struggle to hear the words that are coming out of my mouth.
“This changes nothing! Fuck that, Claire,” he yells. “You want to run away. You have always wanted to run away. And here is your fucking reason to served up on a goddamn silver platter.” Everyone around us in the bullpen is doing everything they can to make it appear that they are not listening, not studying the tragic demise of Claire and Wes with rapt attention. But we all know that they are.
“No,” I shout back as I throw the stack of glossy betrayal down on top of my desk. I push my rolly chair back and stand. It slams into the desk behind mine. “You do not get to come in here, where I work, and tell me that I am to blame for your bullshit.”
“Okay,” he says quickly as he holds his hands up in surrender. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I can see you need time.”
“I need a lot of things. One of them is definitely distance.”
“I don’t know if I can give you that. I can’t lose you, baby.” His words burn hot behind my eyes and the last thing I want is for the guys in the bullpen to see me cry.
“You should have thought about that before you fooled around with that stripper.”
“Claire—” he starts but I don’t let him finish.
“You need to go now,” I say softly.
I stand with my feet apart, my hands on my hips, and my head bowed as if I’m waiting for a blow. But I see him clearly even if only in my peripheral. He looks at me and opens his mouth as if he’s going to try to explain again. Something in my stance must have told him it was a losing battle because he snaps his mouth closed before moving towards the exit.
Wes pauses just before opening the door to turn and look back at me, I see him in my peripheral, but I’m looking at his lies and deceit spread across my desk for all to see. He pulls open the door and slams it on his way out. I’m Detective Claire Goodnite and this is how my heart breaks.
 

 

Catch up on the series:

Amazon | iBooks | Kobo | Nook

 

About the Author:

Jennifer is a thirty something lover of words, all words: the written, the spoken, the sung (even poorly), the sweet, the funny, and even the four letter variety. She is a native of San Diego, California where she grew up reading the Brownings and Rebecca with her mother and Clifford and the Dog who Glowed in the Dark with her dad, much to her mother’s dismay.

Jennifer is a graduate of California State University San Marcos where she studied Criminology and Justice Studies. She is also an Alpha Xi Delta.

10 years ago, she was swept off her feet by her very own sailor. Today, they are happily married and the parents of a 8 year old and 6 year old twins. She can often be found in East Texas on the soccer fields, drawing with her children, or reading. Jennifer is convinced that if she puts her fitbit on one of the dogs, she might finally make her step goals. She loves a great romance, an alpha hero, and lots and lots of laughter.

Website | Email | Facebook  | Twitter | Instagram

 

Enter Jennifer’s Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway


 

Free: COLD IN THE SHADOWS by Toni Anderson

 

COLD IN THE SHADOWS by Toni Anderson is available now for free! Both incredibly sexy and suspenseful, this book is a must-read. Find out more about COLD IN THE SHADOWS below and grab your copy while it’s free!


ColdintheShadows_ToniAnderson_FINALAbout COLD IN THE SHADOWS

Spine-tingling suspense and dangerously seductive romance!!“- Ripe For Reader

Attacked and fleeing for her life, biologist Audrey Lockhart is forced to put her trust in an enigmatic stranger who saves her from certain death.

Working in the shadows, CIA Officer Patrick Killion needs to figure out if the feisty frog biologist is a deadly assassin or an innocent scapegoat. And the only way to do that, is to gain her trust.

Audrey discovers her rescue was actually an abduction and the man she thought was her savior is her captor. And in the world of covert ops she’s terrified she’s nothing more than a pawn in the game she doesn’t understand.

But Killion is falling hard and fast for his target and suddenly he has his hands full, dealing with a smart, beautiful woman who is furious at his deception. Betrayal is everywhere and Killion doesn’t know who to trust. The organization he works for? Or the woman he’s falling in love with?

Booksellers’ Best Awards Finalist in Romantic Suspense, 2016. COLD IN THE SHADOWS is a 100K-word Romantic Suspense that can be read as a STANDALONE novel. It is the fifth book in the award-winning and bestselling Cold Justice Series.

Add COLD IN THE SHADOWS to your Goodreads list here!

Get your hands on COLD IN THE SHADOWS:

Amazon | iBooks | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Google Play

 

Available for Preorder – COLD BLOODED

The next book in Toni Anderson’s COLD JUSTICE series releases June 12th – find out more about it below and preorder your copy now!

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

 

acdp-sale

Did you know the first book in the Cold Justice series is available for free? Get your hands on A COLD DARK PLACE!

Amazon | iBooks | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Google Play

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

Teaser #1: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson releases June 12th – we cannot wait! See a teaser and check out the awesome trailer below, then be sure to preorder your copy now.

Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you!

 

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 

 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest

Trailer Reveal: COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson

We’re a little under a month away from the release COLD BLOODED by Toni Anderson and we can’t wait! Check out the awesome trailer below and preorder your copy now. Romantic suspense lovers – this is the series for you!

 

About COLD BLOODED

Available June 12th

Searching for the truth…

Disgraced investigative journalist Pip West is devastated when she discovers her best friend’s body face-down in a tranquil lake. When cops and federal agents determine that her friend overdosed then drowned, Pip knows they’re mistaken and intends to prove it.

Special Agent Hunt Kincaid doesn’t trust journalists and has no patience for Pip’s delusions, especially since her meddling could reveal why the FBI is interested in her friend’s last days. The dead scientist worked at the cutting edge of vaccine research and might have a connection to a new, weaponized, vaccine-resistant anthrax strain that just hit the black market.

…just turned deadly.

Pip is thrown off her game by grief and her unexpected attraction to the handsome federal agent. Hunt battles the same unwelcome pull, determined to resist the heat that threatens to consume them both. But the more Pip digs, the closer she gets to both the sexy FBI agent, and to a bioweapons terrorist who’s more than capable of cold-bloodedly sacrificing anyone who gets in his way.

Add COLD BLOODED to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2IIJoYs

COLD BLOODED releases June 12th – preorder your copy of COLD BLOODED now!

✦Amazon https://amzn.to/2GSDoLZ
✦iBooks https://apple.co/2GNV6jL
✦Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2GTP2qg
✦Kobo http://bit.ly/2GPgN2Y
✦Google Play http://bit.ly/2IK5j1n

 

See the COLD BLOODED trailer now:

 


 

About Toni Anderson

New York Times and USA Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the weather.

Toni has no explanation for her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it. She’s addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.

If you want to know when Toni’s next book will be out, visit her website (http://www.toniandersonauthor.com) and sign up for her newsletter. If you want to read other fascinating stories about life in a city that, during winter, is sometimes colder than Mars, friend her on Facebook: (https://www.facebook.com/toniannanderson).

Website Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram | Pinterest