Jack Tucker’s life as a morning radio host is uncomplicated, attachment free, and without regret.
Brought together by a mutual friend, the pair are at odds from the moment they meet. She finds his confident swagger arrogant and beyond reproach, while he in turn sees her as a self-righteous controlling dictator.
As Kate struggles with her confidence, Jack begins to realize his life without strings is missing something, or someone. Adversity quickly becomes attraction. Jack and Kate find themselves flirting with the flames of unexpected desire.
As emotions rise, scars are revealed and secrets are uncovered. Will the reality of their very different worlds bring them together or rip them apart?
Excerpt
She popped the trunk,
lifted the carpet, and yanked on the trap door. She pulled, revealing a long
flat plastic suitcase. Her five foot six inch muscular frame lifted it out and
balanced it in her hand before she closed the trunk lid.
Suitcase in hand, she made a steady stride to the stairs. Her
heels echoed off the concrete walls of the parking garage. Two flights later,
she exited the stairs and picked her vantage point. Scanning the immediate area
for civilians, she found few cars and no people.
Her Bluetooth beeped. She made her way across the upper level of
the garage.
“Parker.”
“Are you in?”
“Almost.”
“You're going to miss your window.”
“Have I ever missed my window?”
“That’s not the point.”
“Gotta go. I’ll check back once I’m set.” She reached her
destination.
She looked at her watch. It would take three minutes for her to
set up, and she would have two and a half to spare.
Set and ready to go three minutes later, she scanned the area,
twisting her mid-length chocolate hair into a pony tail. Laid out below, an
overflowing fountain, concrete benches, and various idle suits walking around, oblivious
to the world beyond their iPhone. Her Bluetooth beeped and she opened the line.
“Impatient much?”
“Usually,” the familiar voice replied. “Are we on target?”
“Probably,” she replied, her phone in hand. The GPS tracker she’d
attached to her victim was beeping steadily
.
“Probably isn’t good enough, Kate.”
“Pipe down, Warren.” Pocketing her phone before checking the scope, she listened to Warren huffing on the end of the line. Her target came into view.
“You’re getting to be a nag.”
“Can you give me a count?”
“Zero.”
“Parker.”
She disconnected the call. “Bye, bye.”
She used her scope to focus on the sidewalk below. She moved the
scope to follow a well-dressed, manicured blonde. The woman stopped next to the
fountain, and waited. Her target was in place.
Kate pushed the air from her lungs. Her hand moved behind her ear, and she
heard a low tone in the bottom of her ear.
“Ember Rose,
eight six five.”
“Copy eight
six five.”
“Mark is set.”
“Copy.”
Her focus remained on the blonde just below.
Forty-five seconds.
Kate pushed out another breath. Her finger slid toward the
trigger. She watched and waited. Without warning, the blonde turned, and fell
into the fountain. A stain of blood leaked into the water, confirming Kate’s fear.
Shit…
She lunged forward, searching the area. Above her came the
scraping of concrete. She saw movement, and ran to the stairs. She leapt two at a time, and turned
the corner to see a well-dressed man, black suitcase in hand.
He saw her, dropped the case, and ran. She took off after him. He
led her down the first ramp. She gained some ground, but then he turned the
corner. She rounded it a moment later. An arm swung. She ducked, responding
with a spin kick to the lower back. He caught her leg and twisted. She turned
into it. Her hands braced her torso. She hit concrete. Raising the opposite
leg, she connected with his chin. He released her leg. She twisted her torso
using the momentum to stand upright. He lunged. She turned her back into his
chest rolling him over her shoulder. She moved with him, the heat of a second
party at her back. She turned. Metal met with her temple and the explosion sent
her reeling into blackness.
*
* *
Starting on April 18th I will be touring the virtual universe to talk about the Dead Air Chronicles. This is an Excerpt from Book 1 - Shockwave! Stay tuned for more details.
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