Toto...We're Not In Kansas

I've lived in Florida, Illinois, Texas and California so I'm used to natural disasters.  I've weathered several back-to-back hurricanes in Central Florida and luckily never experienced anything more than a slight tremor in Cali but in Texas we got tornadoes.  Big old scary ones that made me keep our storm closet empty.  And I'm a hoarder so that was a big challenge in itself.

The thing I don't like about them is they are random.  They are unpredictable and the early warning system is getting better all the time but there is still the fact that the tornado can destroy one house and leave the one right next to it perfectly in tact.

So when Eve Gaddy and I were trying to come up with a place to start our new novella WHERE THERE'S A WILL, I suggested with a tornado.  Because let's face it if I'm going to be staring down something scary like a big old twister, I'd want to be in the storm closet with a hot guy.

Wouldn't you??

Here's a teaser from Where There’s A Will.

            “Come over here,” he said. He held up one arm and gestured for her to move over next to him.

            There was so much strength in Ryder. She freely admitted that was one of the reasons she was attracted to him. That strength wasn’t just physical but also part of his core. He had a strong moral fibre that was hard to shake.

            “Why?” she asked.

            “I hate seeing you look as if you are trying to disappear into the wall,” he said.

            “I’m fine,” she said. She’d been weak earlier and look where it had gotten her.

            Where had it gotten her? More confused than ever. Afraid of Ryder?

            “Am I really scarier than the storm?” he asked. That whiskey smooth voice of his brushing over her senses and making her want to forget her gut instincts which said getting closer to him was a dumb idea.

            But she did it anyway. She’d grown up in the Barrels which, let’s face it, had seemed like one big dare to make it to adulthood. And she never backed down. Maybe she could just brazen her way through the next few minutes or hours until the storm abated and they got out of here.

            She tipped her head to the side to study him. His face was strong—there it was again—strength. It was hard to see him as the kind of man who wasn’t trustworthy. And she’d never really trusted anyone.

            But she’d kissed him twice. That had to mean something. She never let her guard down twice. And even allowing for the storm that still meant that he was different.

            “I’m not scared of you, Ryder.”

            “Really? Sure seems that way to me,” he said. “I offer you comfort and you stay huddled in the corner. Looks like you’re scared...maybe it’s not me you’re scared of but yourself. Your lack of willpower.”

            Damn he was good. Turning the tables back on her. “I was thinking of you.”

            “Do tell,” he said dryly.

            “Just trying to help keep you from giving in to temptation. You did seem pretty adamant about doing things right,” she said.

            She watched him carefully but he was too good a lawyer to give anything away. She knew that once they were out of this closet reality would intrude and she’d remember that she was leaving. And Ryder wasn’t going anywhere.

            And she wanted him.

            His kisses were hotter than most of the other embraces she’d experienced. He made her laugh with his dry wit, and he was smart. All the things she liked in a man.

            “What are you implying?”

            “That this closet and the storm are throwing you off your game.”

            “Off my game?” he asked, shifting around as if he were getting ready to move.

            She nodded her head and conjured up her most sympathetic look. “It could happen to any guy.”

            He stared at her a moment before laughing. “Nice try. I was being a gentleman, Addison,” he said. “You and I have been dancing around each other since Christmas. Hell, if we’re being honest, since the day you walked into my office answering my ad. And I thought it might be nice to do this thing properly. Dinner, dancing and then see where the night leads.”

            He stood and walked over to her then crouched down next to her in the closet. He was so close the scent of his aftershave wrapped around her and all she could hear was the soft inhalations of her own breath and the heavy beating of her heart.

            “But if you have a better idea, I’m all for it.”

What about you?  What are you most afraid of? 

I feel like I should confess I'm also terrified of snakes and when I'm home in Florida where there are tons of them, I often just call out "Dad's with me." Nothing bad can ever happen when my dad's with me!

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