Bayou Book Junkie: Keep Me In Mind Tour: Too Good To Be True by Deanna Wadsworth (Excerpt, Author Interview + Giveaway)

Friday, June 24, 2016

Keep Me In Mind Tour: Too Good To Be True by Deanna Wadsworth (Excerpt, Author Interview + Giveaway)

Author Name: Deanna Wadsworth

Book Name: Too Good To Be True

Series: 1Night Stand

Book: This is Deanna’s 5th offering in this series. Characters from her previous stories have cameos, but book can be read as a standalone.

Release Date: June 17, 2016

Blurb:

Disgraced former FBI agent Tim Burkhart desperately wants to reclaim his life and find happiness. Relocating his fledgling private security company to Miami—where his ex-wife moved their two daughters—hopefully is a start. When he’s hired to provide protection for an antiques dealer on his way to Scotland to sell a priceless ancient dirk, Tim believes the break he’s been waiting for has finally arrived. Maybe now he can make enough money to hire a lawyer and get shared parenting of his little girls.

Elliot James runs the antique shop he inherited after his grandfather’s death. Lonely and swimming in debt, he longs for a way to turn his life around but keeps making one mistake after another. Then he finds the ancient dirk tucked away among junk as he’s cleaning out his grandfather’s home. Placing it up for sale, he is thrilled when an out of country buyer purchases the priceless antique. The buyer wants the dirk immediately and sends Tim to ensure Elliot safely delivers it on time.

The moment Tim and Elliot meet, however, everything falls apart. Between break-ins, shoot-outs, stalkers, totaled cars, and the cops, it seems Tim and Elliot will never get to Scotland by the deadline. Despite all the obstacles, an unexpected attraction pulls them together, offering each man a glimmer of hope. But if they don’t deliver the dirk on time, they won’t get paid and neither of them will be able to pick up the pieces of their lives.

Will they complete this job and find a happily ever after, or is all of this really too good to be true?

Pages or Words: 36,000 words

Categories: Light suspense, M/M Romance, Romance

Excerpt:

Staring down the sights of his Colt 1911 and into the panicked eyes of the young man, Tim said, “Keep your hands where I can see ’em. I want to know where Mr. James is and why you’re in his store.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Tim saw a flash of metal. Instinctively he dropped to the floor. The sharp crack of a bullet shot through the store, shattering something on his left.

The guy behind the counter made a run for the door.

Tim rolled behind the armoire, gritting his teeth when the door slammed shut and the first guy got away. Careful to stay out of sight, Tim assessed the shooter who’d come from the back room. He looked as young and inexperienced as the one who’d run. Tim recognized the weapon in his hand—a 9mm semi-automatic Beretta. Though Tim’s .45 could out-shoot the little pea-shooter at the range, he had no interest in finding out who was the better shot in real life.

“¿Adónde vas? ¡Esperame!” the shooter yelled to his retreating friend.

Wait for me. Tim knew enough Spanish. The guy planned to make a run for it, too. He clambered to his feet. Before he could tackle and subdue him, the kid aimed his Beretta in the general direction of the armoire and fired off a volley of shots.

“Shit!” Tim dove behind a stack of rugs to dodge the bullets.

The gun went silent.

Tim rolled fast onto his back, his 1911 aimed, only to watch the kid flying out the door behind his friend. The door bounced a few times until it closed, the bells clanging.

“Shit! Shit!”

The scraping sounds in the back room, louder than before, drew his attention once more.

As fast as he could, he crept around the counter, his heart pounding. Both hands on his gun, trigger finger resting on the frame and trigger guard, he took a quick peek into the room, ducking back before a possible third perp could make him.

In less than a heartbeat, his brain registered what he’d seen. He exhaled. Keeping his gun lowered but at-the-ready, he entered.

In the center of what looked like a storage room sat the man Tim had been hired to escort to Scotland. He’d been gagged and duct-taped to a chair.

Elliot James.

“Is anyone else here?” Tim murmured.

Mr. James shook his head wildly.

With a relieved sigh, he rushed over to the man and yanked the gag out. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” He gasped for air. “I’m fine.”

“Were there only two?” he clarified, eyes still peeled for danger.

“Yeah,” he managed, his face flushed and startling green eyes wide. Sandy-brown curls fell across the brow of a very frightened but very beautiful man. He took a few slow, ragged breaths, obviously trying to calm himself. “Just the two of them.”

Tim took a steadying breath of his own and slowly released the hammer on his Colt and flipped the safety up, never taking his gaze off Mr. James. “What happened?” He holstered the weapon then tore the duct tape from the man’s wrist.

“Aarrghh!” Mr. James jumped, the chair bouncing.

Tim winced when he noticed the arm hairs stuck to the tape in his hand. “Sorry ’bout that.” He paused over the other strip. “This one’s gonna hurt, too.”

Mr. James pursed his lips and nodded bravely. He let out a tiny hiss when Tim freed his second arm. That one didn’t take as much hair because a silver bracelet had protected most of the skin. Obviously, those punks had been amateurs in restraining.

“Sorry,” Tim said again.

Rubbing his wrists, he let out a breathy laugh. “It’s okay. Thank you for saving my life.”

“I believe that’s what I was paid for. I’m Tim Burkhart, your private security detail.”

Mr. James’s smile made his heart flutter. No, probably just the adrenaline. Tim didn’t get butterflies.

“Nice to finally meet you, Mr. Burkhart.”

“Call me Tim.” He stood and withdrew his phone. He gestured toward his bound legs. “You okay to get those? I gotta call the cops.”

“No!”

Tim almost dropped his phone when Mr. James shouted. He gaped at the man. “What do you mean no?”

Prying tape off of his khaki pants, the man paused. Those big green eyes grew even wider. “You can’t call the cops. My whole life depends on it!”

Buy the book:
http://decadentpublishing.com/coming-soon/
https://www.amazon.com/Too-Good-True-1Night-Stand-ebook/dp/B01GW718IM

https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-toogoodtobetrue1nightstand-2057745-340.html

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Deanna Wadsworth author of TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE A 1NightStand Story

Hi, Deanna, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

Why do you write?

LOL because the voices in my head tell me too!

Which of your books was the most difficult to write?

Probably the sequel to THE GRIM LIFE, a YA series I write for Harmony Ink Press under the penname KD Worth Facebook│Twitter. Max is a grim reaper working for an angel who answers to God. He is sent to reap a suicidal teen named Kody and they fall in love instead. Their sequel THE WOUNDED HEART (coming fall of 2017) was very emotionally draining to write. There will be a third book to complete the trilogy and honestly I have no idea what is going to happen! That’s pretty scary for a plotter like me!

THE GRIM LIFE

Amazon│Harmony Ink Press │Dreamspinner│All Romance │B & N

Give us an insight into your main character. What does he do that is so special?

Tim and Elliot are just a couple regular guys down on their luck. Tim suffered a horrible divorce, lost his job with the FBI and barely gets to see his daughters. Elliot inherited colossal debt after his grandfather’s death and though he knows he should sell their antique shop, it’s all he’s ever known. So when Elliot finds an antique Scottish dirk in his grandfather’s home he sells it, hoping to solve his financial issues. But the dirk’s buyer has something else in mind when Tim is hired as private security detail delivering the dirk to Scotland….

How much research do you do for your books?

However much is needed. Currently I am reading how-to tattoo books and reading everything I can get my hands on about tattooing to make my current WIP accurate. I even got a tattoo and took notes about the process to make the book more accurate.

I’d say that’s some serious research! LOL

Who designs your covers?

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE’s cover was designed by the lovely Fiona Jayde. She also designed four of my other covers. THE FROG PRINCE, THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW, SECRET SANTA, BEAR IT ALL

Meet the author:

Deanna Wadsworth might be a bestselling erotica author, but she leads a pretty vanilla life in Ohio with her wonderful husband and a couple adorable cocker spaniels. She has been spinning tales and penning stories since childhood, and her first erotic novella was published in 2010. She has served multiple board positions at her local RWA chapter and with Rainbow Romance Writers of America. When she isn’t writing books or brainstorming with friends, you can find her making people gorgeous in a beauty salon. She loves music and dancing, and can often be seen hanging out on the sandbar in the muddy Maumee River or chilling with her hubby and a cocktail in their basement bar. In between all that fun, Deanna cherishes the quiet times when she can let her wildly active imagination have the full run of her mind. Her fascination with people and the interworkings of their relationships have always inspired her to write romance with spice and love without boundaries.

Where to find the author: