A sneak peek đź«Ł at False Evidence & more
Evidence Series Sale Ends SaturdaySale ends Saturday, 11/23➢ Concrete Evidence (Book 1): FREE ➢ Body of Evidence (Book 2): 0.99 ➢ Withholding Evidence (Book 3): 0.99 ➢ Incriminating Evidence (Book 4): 1.99 ➢ Covert Evidence (Book 5): 2.99 ➢ Cold Evidence (Book 6): 1.99 (Apple Books only) ➢ False Evidence (Book 12): special pre-order price Binge the series & get ready for FALSE EVIDENCE*special pre-order price*Here's a sneak peek in which JT has to face his worst nightmare and take care of a toddler all by himself: After more than two hours of driving—that included a lengthy surveillance detection route as insisted upon by the CEO of Raptor—a loud shriek from the backseat made JT jump and nearly swerve on the dark highway.
The screaming continued, making JT wonder how such a small child had the lung capacity and decibel range.
“Hey there. Uh. Gemma…I’m…Uncle JT.” Should he call himself uncle? That was what Grace called him, but he actually was her uncle. Sort of.
The screaming continued, only pausing when she drew air into what must be magic lungs. Between screams, she hiccuped and cried, “Mommy! Mommy!”
“I’m your mommy’s friend.” Not really, but once upon a time, they’d been the center of each other’s world.
“Remember when Auntie Erica told you about me?”
Of course she didn’t. She’d been half-asleep. And she was only what…a year old? Wait, he knew her birthdate. He’d needed it for the trust. She was born in September of last year, making her a year and three months old now.
Was she still a baby or was that a toddler? He’d forgotten to ask Erica if she could walk. Felt like something he ought to know.
He tried to remember the soft tone Lee used with Grace. Was that how he should talk to Gemma?
Did he even know how to make his voice sound like that?
“So…ugh…” He pitched his voice higher. “Sweetie. You need to stop crying.”
The sound she made… Were his ears bleeding?
He debated pulling over, but a car pulled over on the side of the highway at nearly five in the morning…it would get attention sooner rather than later.
He steeled himself against the onslaught to his ears and took the next exit. He followed the signs to the nearest gas station, then pulled up to a pump.
He didn’t need gas, but he didn’t want to look suspicious. He twisted in his seat and faced the child who was strapped in the middle of the backseat.
“Hey, kid,” he said softly. “You’re okay. I’m going to take care of you for a few days.”
Tears dripped down pudgy baby cheeks. He’d thought she was cute when she was sleeping. His heart had done a weird kind of twist when he saw her hair was blonde like her mom’s.
This was Alexandra’s baby daughter.
He thought of the woman who would always have his heart and took a deep breath. He thought of the quiet moments when they’d snuggled on the couch and he’d held her and known paradise. With thoughts of Lex in his mind, he found a softer register and said, “Hey, cutie pie. I’m sorry your mommy isn’t here, but Uncle JT is going to take good care of you.”
She paused in her shrieking, but her chin still quivered. “Mommy?”
“She’s going to come home as soon as she can. Promise, honey.”
“Panny?”
JT scanned the backseat and didn’t see the stuffed bear. He unbuckled his seat belt, climbed from the SUV, and opened the rear door.
Panny had escaped to the floor. He scooped up the bear and handed it to her. She sniffled as she held it to her chest and…nibbled on an ear, which might have made him shudder a bit.
His car was clean, but what if she dropped the toy on the Metro? Or in on a station platform?
Gross.
How had humans survived as a species?
“Hungy,” she said.
He had baby food, but he couldn’t exactly sit in the gas station parking lot and feed the kid orange goo. This was a Lexus with leather seats. But more important, he supposed, was the fact that someone might spot them. Thanks to the surveillance detection route, they were still more than an hour from the gate to the Catoctin cabin.
It was still dark. Surely, Alexandra didn’t feed the girl at five in the morning. She drank milk, not formula… That meant she’d been weaned, right?
He paused, wondering if Lex had nursed her daughter. Erica had nursed Grace, but Mara hadn’t been able to nurse her son, if he remembered correctly. He’d tried to avoid those conversations, but once two couples in a friend circle had kids, it was baby, baby, baby all the time.
Now Isabel was pregnant, he’d lose Alec to the proud-dad club in the spring. He gave thanks that Keith and Trina had no plans to procreate.
They were his people.
Available December 19th!Holidays can be deadly. Alexandra Vargas hasn’t spoken to JT Talon in seven years. She’s moved on from the heartbreak, and now has the baby—and life—she always wanted. But everything changes on a cold December evening when a traffic stop goes horribly wrong, and Alexandra finds herself on the run with only one possible place to hide: JT’s remote mountain cabin, the same place where, eleven years ago, she broke their engagement a week before the wedding. JT must face his worst nightmare when he learns that not only is the love of his life a fugitive from the police, but also he must now step up and smuggle the child he never wanted to safety. Past and present collide as JT and Alexandra struggle to find their way back to each other and heal the rift that has long separated them. But their past still threatens their future, and no one is safe until the truth behind every deception is revealed. ❄️ Holiday Postcard Sign Up ❄️❄️ Last Chance - List closes on Thanksgiving ❄️Would you like to receive a holiday postcard from me with original artwork by my incredibly talented daughter? All you have to do is fill out a Google Form. The first 500 people to sign up will get a card. Available to everyone with a snail mail address, including readers outside the US.
Featured New ReleaseTHE WHITE PICKET FENCE by Karen RoseSketch artist Tino Ciccotelli is passionately dedicated to helping victims of violent crime. For years he's translated their descriptions of attackers into "WANTED" posters. While listening to the victims' pain is emotionally draining, Tino accepts this as part of the job--until he discovers that he and his newest client have a personal connection. He is devastated to see Dorothy's injuries and determined to help the police catch her attacker, but he must also deal with the return of her niece, his first love who left him when their lives were just beginning.
Happy reading! |
Author Rachel Grant
USA Today bestselling romantic thriller author and former archaeologist.
HAPPY NEW YEAR I've teased that I have big news for the last month but have only shared publicly in my chat with Jayne Ann Krentz last month because I've been waiting for the official final confirmation with dates attached, but we're close enough to that point now that I'm going to share anyway. 2025 is going to be VERY different for me because... I'm moving to Okinawa, Japan! Longtime readers know my husband is an archaeologist for the US Navy - his work has inspired several of my books,...
My release day chat with Jayne Ann Krentz was so much fun. I share a bit about my process for writing FALSE EVIDENCE and spill the beans on a secret I've been keeping for months. You can watch the full chat by clicking on the image. All the holiday feels--with a side of murder... Suspected of killing a cop, Alexandra flees to a cabin owned by her ex-fiancé. When JT learns the love of his life’s daughter could be used as a pawn by those hunting her, he whisks the child to safety—which just so...
Today is Stuff Your eReader Day! Today you can download over 2,200 FREE Romance Novels at Romancebookworms.com! ROMANCEBOOKWORMS.COM My book in the promotion is WITHHOLDING EVIDENCE Some secrets are worth dying for…Military historian Trina Sorensen has a nearly impossible task before her: get recalcitrant but tempting former Navy SEAL Keith Hatcher to reveal what happened during a top secret Somalia op five years ago. Recent history isn’t usually her forte, but the navy wants an historian’s...