Happy Monday, folks. Excitement levels are high in my house today, because our eldest is coming back from Uni for the Christmas break and I'll have all of my brood under one roof!
YEY!
I'm also thrilled to have April Zyon on my blog today with her new release,
His Undercover Lover.
Blurb:
Working undercover either has its perks,
or it has serious downfalls. For Megan Jenkins, working as a stripper to
uncover the illegal activities happening in Massey, TX, was definitely not her
idea of fun. If she’d wanted men to leer at her half naked self, she was pretty
sure she could have come up with something a lot more entertaining. For herself
at least.
She’s been driving him more than a little
crazy since he came to town. Simon Markham isn’t the sort of man to give up
though. As a Marine he understands the need for stealth, and is more than
willing to let things play out but only to a point. When Megan’s
case begins to show promise, and not the good kind, he isn’t willing to stand
idly by any longer. Whether she likes it or not he plans on watching over her,
each and every single inch if he has his way.
Things begin to unravel for the Mayor of
Massey when Megan and Simon stumble onto new information. The man becomes so
desperate he actually kidnaps her to ensure she can never speak of anything
she’s learned. But Megan knows that Simon isn’t about to let the man get away
with it. Her Marine will come for her, and God help anyone in his way.
Time is ticking, the noose is tightening,
and the bad guys think they are free and clear. They didn’t count on the DEA,
and one very determined Marine to put a serious dent in their plans.
Rescuing Megan hadn’t been in his grand
plan to woo her, but Simon isn’t about to let anything get between him and the
woman he loves. Come hell, or high water, he fully intends on marrying his
undercover lover.
Excerpt
for His Undercover Lover by April Zyon
Holding his cup up, he tipped his head to Mercy when she
refilled his coffee. “Thank you,” he said. When she patted him on his head, he
rolled his eyes.
Brant Carver, Mercy’s husband, was laughing into his own cup
of coffee. His expression changed to something softer when Mercy moved closer
to him. Lowering the cup, he let her fill it, tipping his face up for the kiss
she dropped on his lips.
Unable to help himself, Simon rolled his eyes again. This
time, he knew no one saw him do it. They were too into one another. Taking a
drink of his coffee, he set the cup down, and then began to drum his fingers on
the table top. As the kissing continued, he progressively got louder, and
louder.
Finally, Brant pulled away and turned a glower on him. “Is there
a problem?”
“Was trying to determine if I should go to another room or
not.”
“Why would you?”
“Well, given past experiences, I figured you were about ten
seconds from tossing her onto the table and stripping her naked. Or maybe
stripping her naked, and then throwing her on the table. Little unsure on that
part. But I knew the end result would be something seared into my memories for
the rest of time.”
Simon shot Mercy a grin as she turned pink. Brant was a
rather interesting shade of red as well, likely more pissed than embarrassed,
though. “Just saying it like it is. We all know how you two are, and you asked
me over here for a reason, so spill it so I can get back to helping Vic with
whatever insane project he’s dreamed up today.”
Brant really didn’t look amused, but he did seem to agree
getting down to business was best since he let Mercy go and faced Simon across
the table. “I need a favor,” he said.
“Gee, like I didn’t guess that from the phone call I got.”
“Are you always this much of a smart ass? Rhys never once
mentioned you were a smart ass.”
“Rhys doesn’t know everything about me, or any of the guys
really. But he does know I have a tendency to be a smart ass when people behave
like I’m an idiot that needs to be led around by the nose. Spit it out already,
Brant, or I’m heading out and you can talk someone else into being the sucker
to watch over Megan.”
Snorting at the stunned look he got from Mercy, and the
barely there flinch from Brant, Simon sat back in his chair. “Really, you two?
Anyone that’s been in this town for more than an hour, and pays even the
slightest bit of attention, knows that something’s going down. The fact that I
happen to know several people out in this neck of the woods has allowed me to
draw my own conclusions.”
“Like what?” Brant asked suspiciously.
“Well,” he drawled slowly. “Like the fact she’s not actually
a stripper. She’s an undercover DEA agent working on a case that happens to
have deep roots in Massey. I know she’s been digging around looking at the
mayor. She’s also looking to see what she can find in regards to drugs being
funneled into and through Massey. She’s close, but she’s missing something.
Otherwise, she’d already be out and on vacation instead of going into the club
every single night to shake her nearly naked ass for singles.” Simon shot Mercy
a quick look before focusing on Brant again. “I know you’re DEA, you’re also
the agent in charge down here since being reassigned so you could be closer to
Mercy. You have a number of big busts under your belt, several commendations,
and narrowly avoided getting stuck on the hook from another bust when some
wanker took a case from you and fucked it up royally. Got his dad, your boss at
the time, fired as I recall.”
“Close enough,” Brant muttered.
“You can’t go in to keep an eye on her since everyone in
town knows your face. That and the fact you’re married to her twin sister.
Might raise more than a few brows, and it’s not something you want getting
around. Plus, given the smarts of the folks in Massey, they’d soon clue into
the fact that you weren’t there to watch the girls but because of your job.
Questions would then be raised, and if spoken of in the wrong place, the whole
operation would go tits up, as it were.”
Brant grunted at him, and crossed his arms over his chest.
Taking it as a sign to continue, Simon took a sip of his
coffee. “Good brew, by the way, Mercy,” he said. “So you want me, a single guy,
new to town, to go in and keep an eye on her. It won’t seem too strange if I’m
hanging around, especially given the fact that Crank’s out of town visiting
relatives, and Vic’s making kissy faces at his bride. I’m odd man out, and need
to find something to fill my time with at night. How am I doing now?”
“Rhys never mentioned you were practically a mind reader
either.”
“I’m not, but I know people. I’ve also taken a few
behavioral courses from the Feds over the years. I also have degree in
psychology. Never put it to any use, but I figured I could always use it if the
military didn’t work out, or if I needed a career when I got out. I watch
people, take note of what they say, and what they don’t say. Then I start
adding it all together.”
“Well, you’re right on pretty much everything,” Brant told
him.
“So what am I wrong on?” Simon asked.
“Not much, except the premise I’m asking you to take on.
Given you are new to town, and have been seen with Megan a couple of times, I
want you to go in as her new boyfriend. Unhappy with her working the club, but
since she’s bringing in the big bucks and enjoys the money, you’re there to
keep an eye on her while she does work.”
“Uh-huh,” Simon said. “And you’ve cleared this with Megan,
right?”
The look on Brant’s face said it all. “Not yet,” Brant told
him. “Wanted to see if you were up for the task first.”
Snorting, Simon shook his head, and closed his eyes to rub
at his lids. “She’s going to shoot you, you do realize that, right?”
“Probably,” Brant said. Oddly, the man seemed pretty happy
about the thought. Idiot.
To Find
April
