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http://mfrwbookhooks.blogspot.com for some great excerpts Mine is my latest release and Book 5 of the Moonchild series.
Blurb:
Chad Morgan is tired of his Hollywood life and his rome as action hero Storm. He's ignoring the contracts for two more movies in the franchise. He wants to take a different direction and make a movie of his friend's book. He has bought the rights. But his agent and the studio want more Storm. His personal life is also bouncing from one woman to another. His thoughts have turned to Emma Grassi, the woman he left behind in his quest for fame. He decides to return to Fern Lake and speak to his friend and renew his friendship with Emma.
Emma is now a nurse practitioner sharing an office with her doctor friend. She has waited for Chad to return and has decided this isn't going to happen. She's decided to confront him and put an end to the dream she has remembered and he has forgotten. Life takes a twist when Chad's auto accident on the outskirts of Fern Lake bring them together. She wants out. He wants in.
Excerpt:
Chad Morgan leaned against the wall near the French doors
leading to the garden of the ball room. The scent of June roses drifted on the
breeze. A distant hum of traffic rumbled beneath the pop songs played by the
band. Dark clouds played tag across the moon carrying the promise of a coming
storm. His thoughts approached another kind of storm, one burning in his gut.
Tonight was his to savor but the taste was sour. The
celebration of his latest flick bored him. His body ached from the day’s six
hour workout to keep his body fit for another action adventure as the
unbeatable Storm. The fourth of the franchise his agent and the studio hoped
would never end had been released today.
Music blared the latest tunes along with the series’ theme
song. Couples gyrated to the pounding beat. Women wearing glittering gowns and
men in dark tuxes turned like fragments of glass in a kaleidoscope. He released
a breath. Just another Hollywood party.
In a silent salute, Chad raised his glass and sipped.
He welcomed the burn of rum and cola. His drink and Storm’s favorite. Nothing
effete about the kick ass hero, his way with women and his ability to hold his
alcohol. What no one knew produced a chuckle. Unlike his on screen persona, the
glass he held contained the first and last of the night.
He watched a curvaceous blonde weave her way among the
dancers headed in his direction. She paused to lift a glass of champagne from a
strolling waiter. Her top shimmered beneath the lights. The low swoop of the
neckline barely covered her nipples.
Chad
sipped again. He should know her…Her name was Mindy, Mandy, Bimbo. Just one of
the latest crop of aspiring starring ladies who managed to attend every
important party. She glided closer.
“Hiding in plain sight?” Her husky whisper left him cold.
“Observing,” he said.
His laughter raised a groan. “What do you see?”
He could answer with the truth but he wouldn’t. Truth
wasn’t needed tonight. What he saw was false laughter, pretense and boring
people. He looked past her. “The same thing I see at similar affairs. What’s
your pleasure?” He had an idea but he wanted to hear her ploy.
Her smile held a promise he didn’t want. She ran her hand
along his arm. “I’m tired of secondary roles.” She sucked in a deep breath and
nearly exposed her nipples. “I hear there’s another Storm movie being cast.”
Her fingers reached his shoulder. “You could let people see the chemistry
between us. That’s how your last leading lady did.” She touched his lips. “I’m
available.”
“Did Cindy really do that? I never guessed.” He fought the
urge to laugh. Cindy’s agent and his had orchestrated the romance that had only
been in the papers not in life.
He spotted the man he’s avoided all evening. Though he
didn’t want to speak to Gregson, the man’s presence would chase this opportunistic
female away. He stepped away. “Speak to your agent. Perhaps he can arrange a
reading. Mine is on the way. He wants to talk.”
She pulled a card from her cleavage. “Give me a call. I
promise you won’t be sorry.”
Gregson arched an eyebrow. “A new conquest? Time for some
promo ops and rumors.”
Chad
shook his head. “She wants to star in my next movie. Not happening.”
His slender, blond agent smiled. “Shame. You tempted?”
“Not interested. What’s on your mind?”
“You need to sign the contracts for Storm five and six.
They want to start filming in September.”
Chad
released the breath he held. “I need a break. I’m tired of being typecast.”
Before the four Storm films, there had been spots in three other action films.
He pointed to a trio of babes headed in their direction. “I’m also tired of
being a chick magnet.”
Gregson scowled. “Goes with the territory. Think photo
op.”
“Not the kind of life I want anymore.”
“What you want and what the studio demands shows you’re
not reading the right script. Do number five and six and they might give you a
chance to do something else. It’s the money, my friend. You opened in the top
spot world wide this weekend. You need to keep doing what you do best.”
Anger bubbled closer to the surface. Chad feared erupting like Old
Faithful. “I’m sick of Storm. I’m tired of kicking ass. I’m fed up
doing the same scene with slight variations again and again. I want to do Rob’s
book. You said the script was great.”
Gregson’s hand landed on Chad’s shoulder. “Not your style.
I’ve shopped the idea. Had some interest but not with you in the lead role. Two
more Storms and you’ll be on your way to the bank with millions. In two years
we’ll ask again.”
In one long swallow, Chad finished the drink. He slapped
the glass into Gregson’s hand. “In two years I’ll be dead from boredom.” He
stepped out into the dark night.
“Let me know when you’re ready to toe the line,” Gregson
called. “You know you will.”
Chad
strode to his car. He wasn’t toeing any line, not as Storm. Hollywood no longer held the glamour he’d
embraced ten years ago when he’d arrived. He could have chosen a different
road. His athletic abilities could have earned him a college scholarship but
the acting virus had invaded his life. Four years of drama in high school and
multiple roles in the local theater group had brought him here.
He’d followed that dream but there had been other dreams.
Could he find them again? Smiling chocolate eyes in a lovely face surrounded by
dark curls flashed in his thoughts. Had she found a dream different from the
one they’d shared and he’d forgotten? He slid behind the wheel and drove to his
large and lonely home behind stone walls. There were decisions to be made but
not tonight. He would remember her…Emma.
In an unusual move, the moment he reached the house, he
mixed a second rum and cola.
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