Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A bolo tie
Goat cheese
Sky diving

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A snow globe
A sand dollar
A football field

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Lace
A sledgehammer
A lighthouse

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Turquiose
A SCUBA diver
A moonbeam

Meet Jan Elder and Peridot Keaton-Jones

Today we welcome Jan Elder, author of one of our 2015 Christmas Extravaganza titles. It's great to get to know Jan, but today we have a special treat. Peridot Keaton-Jones is with us--our heroine from A Semi-Precious Christmas



What is your writing schedule like?

I have a full time job and I'm a night person so most of my writing is done on the weekends or sometime in the wee, small hours of the night.

How did you come up with your title? 

There was a jewelry store robbery right up the street from us. It's family owned and upscale but small-town. As to the Semi-Precious part, my own birthstone is a Peridot so the name of my heroine, Peri, fit right in.

What's your next project?

I'm writing a book about a chocolate shop, tentatively title A Semi-Sweet Christmas. Can you imagine the yummy research I get to do?

How can readers reach you?

I LOVE to hear from readers. My website address is JanElderAuthor.com



 And now a word from Peridot 


Hi Peridot. Please introduce yourself and tell us about you!

Hi and thank you for having me. My name is Peridot Keaton-Jones. I've been a jewelry store manager for several years, and I love my job.

Tell us about where you live and why you choose to live there?

I live in a little town in central Maryland. I guess I live here because it's always been home. Why leave a place that makes you happy?

What's a quirk of your personality that most people wouldn't know?

I've always wanted to write a book, but then, doesn't everyone? Maybe someday...

Who chronicled your story and why do you think she chose you?

The author of my story is a customer of mine and we've been friends for quite awhile. She has the best husband ever who pays attention to her likes and dislikes. Do you know he's already bought her a  necklace for Christmas? I think he's a lot like my Chris. Thoughtful.

What obstacles did you have to overcome in order to reach your happily-ever-after?

After my husband died suddenly, I sort of closed in on myself. The years immediately after were pretty foggy, and I'm still healing, but I'm ready now to move on and date again.

Tell us about your knight in shining armour. What makes him so special?

Ah. See this big grin on my face? That's because of Chris. He was right there when I needed him and he didn't pull back even when I didn't completely trust him. I praise God that he appeared in my life at just the right time.

The first time you saw him, did you like him immediately or did he have to grow on you?

The first time I saw him, I feared for his life since there was a robber with a gun in  my store. I was afraid the thug was going to turn the weapon on Chris. Hard not to like a guy who stares down a gun barrel and stays when he could have run hard in the other direction, right? 

----------------------------------
A special thanks to Jan Elder for today's special interviews.
http://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=68_41&products_id=707

On a bright, crisp December morning, jewelry store manager, Peridot Keaton-Jones, arrives at work expecting to find her beloved uncle, Marty. Instead, she’s greeted by the muzzle of a gun pressed to her temple. When thugs assault her, threaten her life, and steal thousands of dollars worth of jewelry, Peri can only pray her uncle is late to work for the first time in his life. 

Christopher Lane is a TV news cameraman in the right place at the right time. He witnesses the heist, calls the police, and offers help when Peri needs it most. She can't deny her attraction, but is he really her hero, or is he just after a story? And with Christmas right around the corner, can Peri and Chris avert a holiday disaster? 

BUY NOW

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A delivery truck
An elephant
A dog sled

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

A jewelry box
A golf ball
A buffalo 

One Minute Editor: Four Things Every Writer Should Know about Track Changes

These days, much editing is done using Microsoft Word’s Track Changes feature. It’s a great tool, and I’d like to share with you four things every writer should know about Track Changes.

**Note** This One Minute EditorTM runs about four minutes!



  1. Change your view. Sometimes, the multiple changes made to a
    document can seem overwhelming. Don’t be afraid to change the way the document looks on the screen. To do this, navigate to the Track Changes option and change the “view” from Final: Show Markup to Final. This will show you a clean document as it will be once all the changes are accepted. Then, edit at will. Your changes are still tracked, just temporarily hidden from view.

    (Note that changing the view to Final, will also hide comments.)



    If you’d rather see all the tracked changes, but are distracted by the different colours imposed by multiple editors, try changing the Track Changes Markup options so that the insertions and deletions are noted in the specific colour of your choice (choose from the drop-down) rather than “by author.

  2. Accept or Reject more than one change at a time. Sometimes, you’ll
    see several edits in a row that you would like to accept or reject, but you don’t necessarily want to accept or reject all changes in the document. You may have even highlighted several changes and then tried right-clicking to accept/reject them, but to no avail. There is a way to do this, however.

    First, highlight all the changes you’d like to accept or reject. (i.e. click and drag your mouse over the changes.) Once you have the changes highlighted, click the little down arrow under the accept/reject option and choose Accept and Move to next (or Reject and Move to next, if you are rejecting the changes.) This will accept/reject those highlighted changes and then move your curser to the next change in the document.

  3. Accept or Reject the changes of one editor. Sometimes, when multiple editors have made changes to a document, you’ll want to accept all
    changes made by one or more of the editors, while leaving other editors’ changes in play. This is accomplished with a two-step process. First, in the Show Markup/Reviewers options, check/uncheck editor names until the only editors checked are the editors of the changes you want to ACCEPT. All other editors’ changes will then be hidden from view.

    Now you’ve done that, click the little down arrow under the Accept option and then choose Accept all changes shown.


    To reject changes made by one or more of the editors, while leaving the other editors’ changes in play, in the Show Markup/Reviewers options, check/uncheck editor names until the only editors checked are the editors of the changes you want to REJECT. All other editors’ changes will then be hidden from view. Now you’ve done that, click the little down arrow under the Reject option and then choose Reject all changes shown.

  4. Blow up or deflate your balloons. Sometimes it’s better to have your
    changes shown inline in the document, and sometimes it’s cleaner to have all edits show up in the balloon to the right of the document. Choose the option which best fits your mood: 
    • NEVER means your changes will be shown inline and your comments will be noted as a footnote where inserted.
    • ALWAYS means all insertions, deletions, formatting changes and comments will appear in balloons, and
    • ONLY FOR COMMENTS/FORMATTING
    • means the insertions and deletions will be shown inline and formatting changes and comments will appear in balloons in the markup area.
I'm Nicola Martinez, and that's your One Minute EditorTM tip for today.


Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A red-tailed hawk
Cow tipping
A shooting star

One Minute Editor: The Preposition Proposition

Hi! Nicola Martinez, editor-in-chief for Pelican Book Group. Here with today’s One Minute Editor tip.

Tighten those sentences!
 

A quick and easy way to tighten sentences is to eliminate instances of the “double preposition.” (If you don’t know all the prepositions, I encourage you to learn them—or keep a list you can easily reference.)  As a quick mnemonic reminder on what a preposition is think of the lion and the bridge. A preposition is anything the lion can do to the bridge*: He can stand behind it, walk on it, swim under it, go around it, over it—even through it, if he’s a magical lion. :) Behind, on, under, around, over, through… these are all prepositions. There are
150 or so in total.

Now run a search for prepositions. In any sentence where there are two prepositions in a row, eliminate one of them wherever possible. For example: John sat down on the couch. The prepositions in this sentence are DOWN** and ON. Cut one of them: John sat on the couch. Another example: She stepped out onto the balcony. The prepositions are OUT and ONTO. Cut one of them: She stepped onto the balcony.

This may seem like a little thing because it doesn’t really change the meaning of the sentence, but eliminating all unnecessary words in each sentence will definitely tighten your manuscript and make it stronger.

I’m Nicola Martinez and this has been your One Minute Editor tip.

*This mnemonic is supplied as an elementary aid to spur the memory. The “what the lion can do to the bridge” theory will not support every preposition. 
**some prepositions may be used in other parts of speech. For example, DOWN may be an adverb, adjective, etc. It is used in this example because it directly precedes the preposition ON, and can therefore be cut.

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A bookshelf
A mullet 
A fur coat

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A baseball bat
A wedding dress
A mailbox

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Cat treats
A window
A jellyfish

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A cotton ball
A radial arm saw
Green tea

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A text message
A tractor
The Amazon rain forest

Guest Post: Daily Bread. . .Chilean-style By Niki Turner



What a trip to the supermarket in Chile taught me about spiritual food


One of my favorite memories from my trips to Chile is a visit to the supermarket. I think it was a Jumbo, or maybe a Lider. Besides the amazing variety of probiotic and yogurt drinks (think Yakult times ten), I was blown away by the bread selection.

I’ve never seen so many varieties of rolls, even in our largest American bakeries. This isn’t a selection of pastries and cakes and donuts and loaves of bread and rolls, this is JUST rolls. Rolls in every possible variety. Bread for every meal. Daily bread for Chileno families.

All those varieties of daily bread became a lesson in faith for me, one that hit home again when I started my first round of edits for SANTIAGO SOL.

Daily bread comes in all shapes, sizes, flavors, and varieties. Our spiritual “daily bread” is similar, but we aren’t always aware of that.

When I went to Chile I was caught in a spiritual mindset that said “my way or the highway.” I’d been indoctrinated into a specific style of worship and spiritual study. Any other shape, size, or flavor seemed wrong. To bring it back to the bread analogy, I approved of one shape, one size, one flavor of spiritual bread, and that was all.

After I came home, that mental image of all those varieties of bread stuck with me as I returned to my life. As things do, my life changed. My perceptions, my understanding, my relationship with God evolved.

http://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_46&products_id=692My daily bread changed. The ways I encountered Jesus changed. The ways I interacted with God changed. But it was still my daily bread, my spiritual sustenance.

I wrote SANTIAGO SOL in response to Pelican Book Group’s call for submissions to the Passport to RomanceTM collection. When SANTIAGO SOL was accepted for
publication and I received my first round of edits, my amazing, awesome editors pointed out my “bread prejudice” and asked me to clear it up in my story. They were right. I’d written the story before I learned my bread lesson. I was happy to make the requested changes, and in so doing, to acknowledge and recognize the changes that had taken place in my heart.

The takeaway? Bread, in and of itself, is really quite simple. Yeast, flour, water. Maybe a little milk, or some sugar, or salt. What you do with the resultant combo is what makes it different, but the basic ingredients, the foundation of the bread, if you will, remain the same. So it is with our Christian traditions and cultures. One group might prefer their daily bread in a simple, plain round loaf. Another might like their daily bread in an intricate braided knot sprinkled with sesame seeds. But when it comes right down to it, if it includes the basic ingredients, it’s still spiritual food.
___________________________
Niki Turner is a novelist, journalist, and blogger. Her first completed manuscript earned second place in the Touched By Love 2009 contemporary category romance contest. She has written for local newspapers, and won second place for best agriculture story at the 2013 Colorado Press Association annual convention. Currently, she is the production manager for the Rio Blanco Herald Times (theheraldtimes.com). She also blogs at In Truer Ink (nikiturner.net) and is a co-blogger at Inkwell Inspirations (inkwellinspirations.com). Niki is the Colorado Area Coordinator for ACFW and is president of the ACFW Colorado Western Slope chapter.

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Navajo pottery
A zucchini squash
Blue eye shadow

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

Motor oil
A bow tie
Potsticker pork dumplings 

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Cinnamon
Iceland
A locked safe

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

Caramel
A monkey
A stapler

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A blue shirt
Dental floss
A dragon

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

A palm tree
Mail
Cough syrup

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A rocking chair
A strawberry
A moving box

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A picket fence
A garbage truck
Sugar cookies

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

An alarm clock
A duck egg
A glovebox

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A cowboy
A geisha doll
A candycane

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

Bunny slippers
A wok
A wishing well 

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A paintbrush
A flowerpot
A porcupine

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

A pineapple
Snow
A candlestick 

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

French toast
A lake house
A samurai sword

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A lost wallet
A notebook
A big tree

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A pocket
A grandfather clock
A chestnut

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view. 

A hat
A cave
A quilt

Make-A-Story™ Monday - This Week's Writing Prompt Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term. It means writing what the publisher wants. Can you do it? In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements. The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.

A feather
An outhouse
Lip gloss 

Byte Sized Bible Devotionals: Old & New

This year, I made a plan to explore more of my relationship with God, comment with occasional posts, make quilts, and continue to edit so many of our wonderful authors. I thought I might ask some of those authors−and you−to add something of their journey here, too. If we spend time communing with our Creator and sharing His Word, we are not only edifying ourselves, but helping others to learn about our Awesome God. So I went back to an old devotional I posted in my journal and decided to share it with our readers.

****

Technically, this is not the first quilt of the new year. But in keeping with the out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new mentality, I suppose it’s a fitting metaphor for my past year's struggles and the hope that a new year always brings.

[BillsQuilt.JPG]



I make these utilitarian quilts from old jeans, chinos and khakis. I take something old and make it new and useful again. This quilt went to a neighbor who travels a lot. I told him he could use the quilt to keep warm if he gets stranded, for traction if he gets stuck, and to give away on the road if he comes across someone who needs it more than he does. The gift is meant to exceed its usefulness and comes with no strings attached.

And you, when you were dead in your offenses, and sins, Wherein in time past you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of this air, of the spirit that now worketh on the children of unbelief: In which also we all conversed in time past, in the desires of our flesh, fulfilling the will of the flesh and of our thoughts, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest: But God, (who is rich in mercy,) for his exceeding charity wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together in Christ, (by whose grace you are saved,) ~ Ephesians 2:1-5

God does the same thing with us, His children. He takes our old, tired, worn out spirits and He allows us to be born again as a new, useful member of His Kingdom. We can use the gift of our redemption to help ourselves to grow in faith if we get stuck, or we can pass it on by example and testimony to someone who needs it. It is a gift that we simply ask for and we will receive, no strings attached, and a gift that is everlasting.

Please share your faith testimony in the comments. I'm looking forward to growing with you in His grace.

Characters of Interest: Interview with Graham Decker

Meet Graham Decker from Dora Hiers's latest release, Rori's Healing:



“Graham Decker. Great to finally meet you.” I try hard not to blink at the strong odor, a mixture of cleanser, steel and rubber, as we shake hands, his grip firm and confident.

The man lapped a track at almost two hundred miles per hour. His grip should be firm, and with the number of wins and top five finishes he’d accumulated, he’d earned the right to be confident.

“Come in. Please.” With his trademark smile, Graham gestures for me to enter his office and sit. “Is this your first time visiting Graham Decker Racing?”

“Yes. What gave it away?”

He chuckles, the sound genuine and down-to-earth, as he settles way back in a leather chair. “Might’ve been the wrinkled nose. If you’d like, my assistant can give you a tour after we’re done.”

“That’d be great. So tell me a little about yourself, Graham. Besides the fact that you’re a highly competitive racecar driver. Everybody knows that.” I push the record button on my phone and set it on the desk.

“Let’s see. I just got married.” Graham’s face lights up and he leans forward abruptly. As if he couldn’t wait to ditch me and head home.

I couldn’t blame the guy. I’d seen pictures of his wife. “Rori, right?”

He nods.

“Wasn’t her father the—”

“Yes.” The warm welcome slips away. His jaw snaps closed tight as a jail cell.

Hmm. Interesting, but I better switch tracks. “So do you still live in Charlotte?”

“No. In Harrison at the Forever Family Animal Sanctuary. Rori’s like a llama whisperer. She works wonders with the animals that come to live with us.” Pride laces his tone. “Actually, that’s how we met.”

“Through your non-profit?”

“Yes. My sister does a fabulous job running the Foundation, but she was on bed rest because of complications with her pregnancy. She asked me to make a site visit since Rori had applied for a time-sensitive grant.”

“Not the typical way to pick up a woman.”

He smiles, wistful like, as if he remembers something special. “Rori’s anything but typical. And so was our meeting.”

“Care to elaborate?”

His mouth stretches to a grin. “Nah. She values her privacy and might not appreciate me sharing all the details. Let’s just say it involved mistaken identity and a llama delivery and leave it at that.”

He was going to leave me hanging with that juicy tidbit? I make a mental note to redirect later. “Ohhhkay. So how did you know Rori was the one? After all, you’ve been married before, right?”

“Yeah. That didn’t turn out so well, but it was my fault. God wasn’t at the center of that relationship. Unlike with Rori.” He scrubs a hand across his whiskered jaws, his expression lightening as if the sun just came out. “And Rori didn’t recognize me.”

Really? How was that possible? I have no words.

He steals a glance at the clock and drums a pencil against the desk.

I’m losing him. “So was it love at first sight?”

“Definitely on my part, but not so much hers. We had some issues to work through before she’d commit.”

“Like what?”

“For starters, I had to prove that I wasn’t going anywhere. That I could be there for her—” His cell phone buzzes, and he checks the number. “Excuse me.”

I can’t help but eavesdrop. I lean forward slightly, refusing to miss any opportunity for a scoop. Besides, I’m sitting close enough that I can almost hear her voice. At the very least, my recorder might be picking up their conversation.

“Jumbo did what?” He launches from the chair, banging my phone off the desk.

So much for that. I bend over, retrieve the recorder, and hit the off button. It didn’t take a doctorate degree to know that this interview was over.

“No problem, sweetheart. I’m just finishing up here. Be there soon. Love you.” He disconnects, mashes a cap on his head. “It’s been a pleasure, but—”

“I understand.” I do. Really. The guy’s practically still on his honeymoon. No wonder that fat grin is plastered across his face. Jealousy sprouts and curls up my spine like a weed. “Hey, does Rori have any unattached sisters?”

On his way to the exit, Graham angles over a shoulder. “Sorry. Just twin brothers, Beck and Burk.”

He dives into a sports car and cranks the engine, those high-performance tires squealing out of the parking lot. Nope. He doesn’t look the slightest bit sorry to be going home.
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Learn more about the racing phenom, Graham Decker in Rori's Healing. . .and don't miss Beck's and Burk's stories, coming soon.

Still stinging from the publicity surrounding her father's death, social phobic Rori Harmon prefers the solitude of her animal sanctuary, accepting that marriage isn’t in her future. Racecar Driver Graham Decker refuses to be wrangled into a relationship by another money-hungry female. On a philanthropy mission, he arrives just in time to assist Rori with a llama birthing, but his appearance thrusts her into the media spotlight again. Has Graham found a woman who doesn't care how deep his wallet extends? Has Rori finally met a man who will stick around when times get tough? Is healing for a hurting heart finally within Rori's reach?

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