His ex-girlfriend just
knocked on his front door, but that's not the worst part—she's dead.
Grayson Stark is a gifted
artist, painting oils that bring high prices. No one knows just how gifted—he
paints from his dreams. Until someone trashes his studio with a violence that
shocks even North Idaho law officers.
Now he's lying low in the
last place anyone would look for him ... a little town called Magic, New
Mexico.
But if he thought his new
neighbors were weird, he's in for an even bigger shock the night he answers the
door and finds his ex-girlfriend standing on his front steps. His very, very
dead ex-girlfriend.
She was just gorgeous and
annoying when she was alive—now she's scary.
E'ea, a new Galactic
Guardian, is pleased with her infiltration of Gray's life. She's brought back
his true love from the dead for him. She'll use Brynne's body to keep him safe
from the assassins who want to stop his painting before he reveals any more of
the future, and then leave the couple together on their backward little planet.
There's just one problem—neither of them seem to appreciate her efforts.
Now she must keep them both
alive and show them their importance as a couple in the future of the galaxy.
Brynne Polson remembers dying
all too well, the night her car crashed into the deepest part of Lake Coeur
d'Alene. She can't believe she's back, and that she has another chance with her
hot, brooding boyfriend ... except Gray doesn't seem all that thrilled to have
her back, they're far from home, and she has a strange female voice in her
head.
And just how does a woman
gain ten pounds while she's dead, anyway?
Can an alien dedicated to
peace give a feuding couple a second chance at life and love?
Find out—read Guarding
Grayson today!
* * *
Exclusive Excerpt ...
'Gray stopped on the sidewalk outside the Magic Cafe as the door snicked shut behind him and one by one the lights inside went off. Shaking his head, he strode off along the street. Weird, but par for the course in this burg. Magic seemed to attract eccentrics like a vacuum. His neighbor ... and the twins across the street ... and others. Lots of others.
The Kokopelli Brewpub and Bar was still busy, light spill-ing out the open doors along with voices and music. But other than that, the streets of Magic were, as his dad would say, 'rolled up at sundown'. That was all right with him. In general, he liked small town life.
In north Idaho, if he wanted night life he could drive to Spokane just across the state line, or down into Coeur d'Alene itself, which was growing quickly, adding new brewpubs and such. Maybe by the time he got back home to Coeur d'Alene, he'd be ready to take advantage of the opportunities. He was just stressed right now, that was all. He didn't have some 'male dysfunction' or anything like that. Darn Brynne.
As he walked, he swore he could feel her ghost, hanging onto his arm and looking up into his face as they walked, her blue eyes wide as if trying to parse what he wanted, and do that, be that before he could even form the thought. A Stepford Girlfriend, that had been Brynne. Slender, blonde, gorgeous and hot—and suffocating as a down comforter on a summer night.
At first she'd been the perfect woman, a little shy in bed but ready to try anything he wanted, a good cook, always dressed to the nines in sexy outfits with her long blonde hair as perfect as if she'd just walked out of a salon, with sexy eyeshadow and 'do-me-big-boy' cherry gloss on her soft lips ... and she meant that part too.
Turning the corner to his Gran's street, Gray realized with a groan that he was becoming aroused just thinking about her. He had a woody for a dead woman—how twisted was that?
And dear God, why now, on top of all his other problems? A few months ago he'd been fine—okay, he'd been full of guilt and regret over her death, but at least that was within the bounds of normal—but now his life had morphed into an episode of Brynne's favorite TV show, about the pair of brothers who hunted destructive demons and the like.
Her favorite as in she really liked that show—the only time she ever got pissed at Gray and showed it was when he'd called one of the heroes stupid for walking into a dark alley when the guy knew bad shit was about to go down. Brynne had given Gray a glare like he'd stepped on her puppy, and shushed him. Gray had kept his mouth shut for the rest of the program, which was actually enjoy-able, although he hadn't admitted that to her.
Maybe he should've watched every episode with her, and run his mouth the whole time. Maybe that would've bro-ken through to her, shown her he was just a selfish a-hole, not someone for whom she should bother to try and be so ... perfect.
He'd never been able to convince her that she was her prettiest first thing in the morning, when she woke up be-side him with her face free of makeup and her hair all mussed, wearing nothing but one of his too-big tees.
Or that conversely, he’d hated it when she sat beside him in public like a beautiful doll and agreed with everything he said. That had embarrassed the hell out of him, like he was the kind of stuffed shirt who needed a 'Yes, Daddy' kind of woman to feel like a real man.
Or that the night of their final fight, when she screamed at him that she hated him, that she'd done everything for him and it still wasn't enough, and she was done trying—that had been the truest emotion he'd ever seen from her.
For the first time, he'd respected her, for standing up to him and showing a backbone.
And then she'd gone and died … and now he had to live the rest of his life knowing it was his fault.
By the time he carried the bag of supper up onto Gran's porch, Gray had lost his appetite. He walked into the house, not bothering to turn the lights on, shoved the bag and containers into the fridge, and grabbed another beer. He had the cap twisted off and the first mouthful down before he realized maybe this wasn't his best idea, drink-ing more on an empty stomach. He hesitated, and then took another swig. The hell with it.
He'd drained half the bottle when a knock sounded on his front door.
He stood there in the little kitchen. The lights inside the house were off, so maybe whoever it was would go away. He was not in the mood for the neighbors, nice as they were.
The knock sounded again, this time hard enough to rattle the door. With a muttered curse, Gray strode back through the living room, hitting the wall switch for the porch light as he got there.
He yanked the front door open, ready to get rid of whoever it was.'
* * *
Heh-heh! We know who's standing there, don't we? But wait until you see what poor Gray is put through by the incarnation of not just one, but two females into his bachelor life!
Like they say, 'Welcome to Magic, Where the Abnormal IS Normal.'
And here's the link to the OTHER 8 Stellar Stories available in this Kindle World.
best,
Cathryn Cade
Red Hot Sci Fi/Contemporary/Paranormal
Romance
RT 4.5 Stars and Night Owl Reviews TOP
PICK
