Thursday, February 27, 2014

Release day of my 15th Contemporary Romance, HOME RUN!

It's here and it has already gone bestseller in US and UK on iTunes and Amazon. I'm thrilled!!!

HOME RUN is the 7th book in the Keller Family Series which follows the Keller siblings and their children. Only 3 more Keller books to go!

HOME RUN is the story of Christian Keller, the son of Carlos and Madeline whom we met in A SECOND CHANCE.

Available from 5 Prince Publishing www.5princebooks.com  books@5princebooks.com
Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary
Release Date: February 27, 2014
Digital ISBN 10: 1631120077 ISBN-13: 978-1-63112-007-7
Print ISBN 10: 1631120085 ISBN-13: 978-1-63112-008-4

In one moment Christian Keller’s life was changed. Now as he picks up the pieces he wonders if he can possibly recoup what he lost. 

Victoria Lincoln had a promising future with Christian until an accident took the life of her sister and left her as guardian to her two small children. 

Their lives have gone in different directions, but Christian and Victoria’s paths will cross again. It will take a lot of change to pick up where they left off—if either of them can 



Enjoy an excerpt from the Bestselling 7th book of the Keller Family Series, HOME RUN.

Excerpt of Home Run:
There was a pure energy in the car as they drove away from the arena. Christian Keller had it all, just when he thought he’d lost it.
His career ending injuries were just the start to finding out he could keep going and that’s what he was doing.
He’d just watched his sister perform with her husband, on stage at the Bridgestone Arena right there in Nashville. Hometown kids making it big time.
As his best friend Dave pulled out of the parking lot the number one country song came on the radio, and wouldn’t you know it, it was Clara and Warner Wright, his sister and her husband.
Christian’s fiancée Victoria hugged his arm and slid across the back seat as close as she could to him. “That was the best concert ever. Your sister and Warner were phenomenal. The Broke Tourists are one of my favorite bands. And that Savannah and her hair!”
Ashley, Victoria’s sister, turned in her seat and looked at her. “I know, right? Do you think we could buy hair like that?”
They both laughed, but Christian just took in the ambiance.
His career as a baseball player was over. He had come to grips with that. It had caused him a lot of emotional and physical pain, over the past year, but now he had new things to look forward too.
They were already talking about him coming into the organization as management. The woman of his dreams had accepted his marriage proposal and wore his ring. And tonight he’d take her home, to the home he had built—for them. It was a surprise and he had something very special planned.
“You know,” Victoria continued. “Ali would love a Savannah wig. We should think about marketing them.”
“My kids and their tastes,” Ashley added.
Laughter filled the car and then a scream pierced the air.
A blinding white light forced him to cover his eyes.

Christian sat up in bed. His heart was racing. His face and hair were wet. And he was alone.
He threw his head back against his pillow.
Of course he was alone. He’d been alone for almost a year and the replay of that night wouldn’t give him any peace.
Christian rolled to his side and he looked at his phone on the night stand. It was five-thirty in the morning. He let out a grunt and rolled out of bed.
It took a minute for his knee to be stable under him. His shoulder ached, as it had since the surgery on it after the accident.
He flipped on the light in the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. The jagged scar on his forehead was beginning to fade, but it would always remind him that on that night he’d lost everything. His career. His best friend. And even if her life wasn’t taken—he’d lost his fiancée.
Well that was life now. She had a lot to deal with too.
Christian splashed his face with cold water.
Victoria’s life had changed drastically when that drunk driver crossed the median. She’d lost her sister in that moment. Her leg was shattered. And she was the next of kin to her niece and nephew, whom she was now raising.
A single woman trying to advance her career and plan a wedding was now guardian to a two year old and a four year old—and he was no help.
Christian turned on the shower and let it warm.
He’d been so overwhelmed with losing his best friend he’d nearly lost his mind. And it wasn’t losing him it was watching him die and not being able to get free from the accident to help him.
Just the thought of it made his heart kick start again.
He slipped off his boxers and climbed into the shower. But no matter how hot the water was, it would never wash away the pain that day still caused.
By six thirty he was dressed and sitting in his quiet kitchen having a cup of coffee. The dress shirt and tie made him uncomfortable, but it was the way he had to dress for work now. He supposed he owed it to his brother and uncle for stepping in and giving him a job, though he didn’t care much about construction.
His entire family had stepped in when he needed them. There was no way to repay them. His sister Clara and cousin Avery were at his house daily to make sure he ate. His mother stopped and cleaned the house. His future sister-in-law Darcy made him freezer dinners and stocked them for him.
It had been like this for a year.
When would it all ease so he could get on with his life?

Before lunch the door to his office creaked open and Darcy stuck her head in.
“I’m going to lunch with my bridesmaids. Ed is free for Chinese food. He said to send you his way when you’re done.”
Christian nodded. “I’ll be done in a few.”
Darcy shut the door and Christian was alone, again. It was funny, he thought, for being so alone all the time there were always people around him. That was what came with a big family.
A new Chinese restaurant had opened just down the street and Ed had been dying to try it. Christian figured it would be good for leftovers and that would warm up for dinner. It was just one less thing to think about.
“So did you look over that proposal I sent you?” Ed asked as he adjusted the place setting in front of him.
“Yeah. I don’t know if I understand any of it. Could you work in some baseball terms?”
Ed laughed. “It’s a baseball stadium. I thought you’d want to be part of that.”
Christian put down his menu. “You’d think huh?”
He lazily looked around the restaurant and that was when a set of dark eyes caught his.
Victoria waved and was already walking toward them.
It had been nearly eight months since he’d seen her—since he’d told her that he wasn’t someone who could just take on someone else’s children and start from there. That was the day she walked out of his life. God, he was an idiot.
She looked different. Her hair was shorter and there were dark circles under her eyes, as if she hadn’t slept in eight months. He probably looked like that too. He never got a good night’s sleep.
“Hello, Chris.” She smiled down at him and then turned her smile to Ed. “Hi, Ed.”
“Tori!” Ed crawled out of the booth and gave her a hug. “How are you?”
“I’m good.” Christian wondered if she noticed her voice quivered.
“How are the kids?”
Christian watched as her jaw tightened and she kept her eyes on Ed. “Sam just turned three last weekend. He’s into everything. Ali just started kindergarten.”
“Wow.” Ed looked at Christian. “Kids get big fast, eh, Chris?”
Christian narrowed his stare on his brother.
“You’ll be at the wedding right?” Ed was touching her arm. “I thought Darcy said you’d RSVP’d.”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Ali can’t stop talking about it.”
“I look forward to it.” Ed smiled and then both of them looked at Christian still seated in the booth.
“Guess we’ll see you then,” he croaked out.
Victoria nodded and forced a smile. As she walked past him, limping just as he did now too, she put her hand on his shoulder. “It was good to see you, Chris.”
Then she was gone.
Ed sat back down and shook his head. “You’re pathetic.”
“Me? Why?”
“She’s still in love with you.”
“She is not. She dumped me.”
“Because she had to.”
“Had to?” He picked up his hot tea and burned the pads of his fingers and then his throat. But it was worth it.
Ed opened the package of chop sticks by his plate and tore the two wooden pieces apart. “She lost a lot that night. Her sister died. Her brother-in-law died. She got two kids to raise and has no parents to help her. She’s all alone and all you could tell her was you weren’t ready for a fully formed family. I didn’t realize you were an asshole, until that day.”
If Christian was the man he used to be, he’d be up from that table and have pulled his brother out of that side of the booth by his shirt collar. But as if to remind him that he wasn’t an athlete any more, his knee throbbed and the pain shot up through his body.
“She didn’t need me around when she was trying to get things taken care of.”
“You’re right. Six surgeries on your leg and two toddlers at home is a piece of cake. Why have the man you love getting in the way?”
Christian swallowed hard. He didn’t need his brother poking at him. It had been a year and he felt bad enough.
Luckily the food arrived just in time for his brother to shove some in his mouth and shut up. Christian, on the other hand had lost his appetite.
He had become a pathetic loser and he’d lost the only thing that he’d ever cared about—Victoria.
He took another long, scalding sip of his tea. Maybe Ed’s wedding would be the perfect place to apologize for being an ass.
It wasn’t in him to be a father right now, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t be a friend. She looked as though she certainly could use one. And they’d been friends too—hadn’t they?
Christian tore open his chop sticks and broke them apart. As he picked up a pot sticker he thought about his parents.
They’d been divorced when his mother was diagnosed with cancer and her husband had walked out on her to marry another woman and have a baby. She was alone with three kids.
He tugged at his collar because it was getting hot.
His own father, who was at the time engaged to Kathy, still stepped up and took care of his mother. Damn, he’d even shaved his head for her.
That was love. That was commitment.
It was right too. His father’s marriage to Kathy lasted less than a day and he was back with Christian’s mom and had been married, again, ever since.
What had Christian done when the woman he loved needed him? He backed away.
He put down the pot sticker. Again, he wasn’t hungry.
They’d both lost a lot that night when that drunk driver hit that car. Lives changed in a flash—a bright white flash.
Ed was right. He was pathetic.
But he was done being pathetic. It was time Christian Keller took his life back—and the woman.

About Bernadette Marie:
Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for building families readers want to be part of. Her series The Keller Family has graced bestseller charts since its release in 2011, along with her other series and single title books. The married mother of five sons promises Happily Ever After always…and says she can write it, because she lives it.

When not writing, Bernadette Marie is shuffling her sons to their many events—mostly hockey—and enjoying the beautiful views of the Colorado Rocky Mountains from her front step. She is also an accomplished martial artist with a second degree black belt in Tang Soo Do.



A chronic entrepreneur, Bernadette Marie opened her own publishing house in 2011, 5 Prince Publishing, so that she could publish the books she liked to write and help make the dreams of other aspiring authors come true too.




Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Tomorrow launches my 15th Contemporary Romance!!!

Can you say I'm blessed? Oh yeah! Not only have I been very happily married to the man of my dreams for nearly 21 years (this March), but we have, what I consider, 5 of the most perfect sons to walk this planet. Yeah, I get to say that...I'm their mommy! :)  Not only do I have this great home life, but I'm a writer who is in charge of my own destiny and that's because I own the publishing house I write for. I tell you...everyday is a check off my bucket list!

Now, it isn't all easy. Oh, I'd be lying through my teeth if I told you that it was. This week has been Hell! And that much is true. BUT, still, this grand life gets better everyday and if you don't stop and cry about it once in awhile you won't appreciate how really good it is.

So, that leads up to how stressed I've been getting to Launch Day for the 7th book in the Keller Family Series, HOME RUN. I'm not worried about the book, which is already a bestseller in the UK, but just getting all the I's dotted and the T's crossed! But at 5 Prince Publishing I have the best team! They won't let me down!

I have also been blessed to team with another creative front in BOOK CANDY STUDIOS! They produced my book trailers and tomorrow, during my all day launch party, they will host my Live Event!  Here are the details and I hope you can come!!!

Join me tomorrow for my LIVE event during my ALL DAY LAUNCH PARTY!!! (Head over early to make sure you have the viewer downloaded!!!  We are going to have a great time) Want to know all the stops along the way tomorrow? Join the event on Facebook

###

Live On BOOK CANDY TV: Bernadette Marie

Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for writing about families
readers want to be part of, and contemporary romances and that always
promise a memorable "Happily Ever After". Her series The Keller Family has
graced bestseller charts on iTunes and Amazon since its release in 2011.

Join her for a live video chat as she shares behind the scenes looks at her
characters and discusses the release of the latest Keller Family story "Home
Run".

We'll open the chat lines for Q&A's, and a chance for readers to win free
books and a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

DATE: February 27, 2014
TIME: 7:00PM Eastern / 4:00PM Pacific

How to join:
- click link below
- use the guest tab (not registered users tab)
- enter your name in the guest field
- click enter button to join

*BCTV Direct Room Link
http://tinyurl.com/lawo5gc
(i.e., this will take you directly to the BCTV login page)

###

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Release Day for 5 Prince Publishing author Amy L. Gale



Available from 5 Prince Publishing www.5princebooks.com  books@5princebooks.com
Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, New Adult Romance
Release Date: February 20, 2014
Digital ISBN -10: 1631120050 ISBN-13: 978-1-63112-005-3
Print ISBN 10: 1631120069 ISBN-13: 978-1-63112-006-0
Purchase link : http://www.5princebooks.com/buy-links.html

Blissful Tragedy:
Sometimes love is more than tragedy or bliss.

Ambitious 22-year-old Lexie Waters is intent on taking the advertising world by storm.  When she’s offered the soon to be open position she’s been vying for at a swanky advertising agency, there’s only one last summer separating her from dreams of corporate success.  Still bitter from catching her boyfriend cheating, she heads out for a night of fun to see her favorite band, Devil’s Garden, but fun turns into utter embarrassment when she insults the enticingly confident lead singer, Van Sinclair.  Van is intrigued by Lexie’s ability to resist his charm and secretly obtains her cell number.  Shocked but eager to get to know this captivating rocker, Lexie accepts Van’s invitation to see his next show, which requires an overnight stay.  The overwhelming feelings that follow take them both by surprise, and with two months left before starting her sought after new position, Lexie joins the tour. As she’s catapulted into the world of groupies and wild parties, she questions Van’s commitment to her. So what happens at summer’s end when time runs out?


About Amy L Gale:
Romance author by night, pharmacist by day, Amy Gale loves rock music and the feel of sand between her toes.  She attended Wilkes University where she graduated with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. In addition to writing, she enjoys baking, scary movies, rock concerts, and reading books at the beach.  She lives in the lush forest of Northeastern Pennsylvania with her husband, six cats, and golden retriever.


How to contact Amy L Gale:
Amzie13793@aol.com




Excerpt of Blissful Tragedy:

CHAPTER 1—THE CONCERT


An eerie silence takes over the dark night sky. I stare straight ahead and breathe slowly, trying to ignore the pounding of my heart. The crisp, cool, spring air caresses my body and heightens my senses. I shiver slightly. The bone-rattling drum beat pulsates through my chest. I jump up from my seat as the guitar screams its heavy ear-splitting shriek, like a choir of electric angels. A frenzy of loud cheers emerges, piercing through the calmness as hundreds of fans leap to their feet. The bright lights focus on center stage. I take a deep breath and stare at the silhouette slowly being illuminated.
Van Sinclair stands so close that if I lunged forward, I’d crash into six feet of pure muscle. My eyes fixate on his light-brown, shoulder length, perfectly messy hair that frames his chiseled face. Then, they travel down to the tight black T-shirt that clings to every sculpted muscle of his torso, flaunting them in just the right way. My lips part and chills flood my body causing the hair on the back of my neck to stand on end. I hold in a deep breath and slowly exhale as he grips the microphone stand, pulling it close to his body. He closes his eyes and begins to belt out the lyrics. His raw powerful tones, both decades old and brand new at the same time, resonate through the night sky. Hot lights shining down on the stage highlight a bead of sweat that runs down his arm, over the impeccably detailed dragon tattooed on his left bicep. He lifts his head and looks into the crowd. My heart races as I stare into his exquisite emerald green eyes, mesmerized.
“Oh my God, he’s so hot!” Brooke yells into my ear, breaking my trance. “His picture doesn’t do him justice.”
“You can say that again,” Sydney agrees.
Breathless, all I can do is nod.
Devil’s Garden is promoting their best album yet. Even though the two-thousand-seat amphitheater is not the largest of venues, it’s sold out tonight. A wall of bodies closes in, pushing us toward the stage. The hard wood against my palms keeps the crowd at bay. Can it keep me from being crushed for the whole two hour set? My skin glistens as the three of us sway, moving to the music. Wait, is Van Sinclair watching meYeah right, like that would happen.



Friday, February 14, 2014

A snowstorm and a hamburger...a love story


Happy Valentine's Day! This has to be my favorite version of the love story I share with my husband. Posted in 2012 I am reposting it today...because I'm still lucky enough to be Living Happily Ever After...always

I wrote this blog a long time ago, but it never gets old...never! If you have met me and my husband you probably know we love each other quite a bit.  It's not the five kids following us, but you'd know because we just love each other that much--it's completely obvious.  

All of my books are dedicated to this man who makes Happily Ever After my reality. Even on nights, such as last night, when I was snippy and in a bad mood I know without a doubt that man still loves me, even if I made myself take a timeout from family time and disappear in my bedroom (how trained am I?)

I hope my children find such happiness in their lives when they find their soul mate. That one person who can meld into your family, who you will share life and death with, who will stand by your side when it is easy and when it is hard.  The one who smiles when you wake up and your eyes are swollen shut and your hair tousled into a nest you can't comb out and says "You're beautiful." Okay... I know I have 5 boys... I'm raising them the be the man that sees that beauty :) I know my part.  I'm raising husbands, so they will be sweet and sensitive, just as their father is.

Don't get me wrong... I'm all woman and he's all man. That's oil and water in my book.  But even when the snipping and the grunts of missed communication happen, there is love.  And I'm living my happily ever after and have been since I was eighteen.  So below... is how it came to be.

A Snowstorm and a Hamburger…

I could say that on November 2, 1990 I was smitten.  I’d met a boy, we’d become the best of friends, and we’d shared many special moments.  However, I still told my family, “He’s not my boyfriend, just a friend.”  But on this fateful night, when I chose to stay at school and not go home and on a pending “date” with someone else, I realized I’d fallen in love with this friend and that was why going home didn’t seem so important.

Earlier in the day we had gone to get him groceries for the weekend.  He had made a sandwich and was settling in to play rounds of Mario on the Nintendo.  I was fighting a battle with my heart.  Go home to someone I didn’t care about, who made me miserable, or stay at school and start a new journey.  To my surprise, my mother, who always wanted me home, said she’d stay and have sandwiches.

Needless to say that was the defining moment in my life.  I called him and was crying.  He threw his sandwich at his roommate and ran to my room.  Looking back now, it was just like the movies. 

We ended up, broke, but together, at a Hardee’s down the street.  We had enough money for one hamburger and one shake.  Together we sat in the booth, his arm around my shoulders as I cried away one part of my life, not because I was sad, but because I knew he was exactly who I wanted by my side forever. 

The snow had begun to fall outside the restaurant and we sat together over that shared hamburger and shake and watched the sparkling white snow illuminate in the street lights.  It was like a magic dust.  Taking away the old and bringing in the new.

When we are back in our college town we drive by that old restaurant and reach for each other’s hands.  I still am with that man who now makes hamburgers for me and our five children. 
The best decision I ever made was to stay at school that weekend.  A decision I will never, ever regret.

So I dedicate this life of perfection (or as perfect as it can get) to Stan! How could I write a real love story without you?  I love you!

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Candy Kisses is a sweet treat from #Bestselling author Bernadette Marie

Candy Kisses is the right book to give you a Valentine's Day feel good moment! 
And the giveaway at the bottom makes it twice as sweet!


Tabitha Knight is one of the most sought after chocolatiers in Cherry Creek, Colorado. The owner of the exclusive, upscale candy store Tabitha Chocolates, Tabitha cleans up on profits during Valentine’s week; however, she hates Valentine’s Day and everything it stands for.

The only daughter of a mother who enjoys marrying men, often, Tabitha doesn’t believe in love at first sight, falling head over heels in love, or marriages planned on a whim. But when Preston Banks, the son of her best client, happens into her life she’s finds out that not only will too much chocolate make your head spin, but so will the right man saying the right things at the right time.


Enjoy an excerpt from Candy Kisses

CHAPTER ONE


Three hundred more truffles needed to be rolled and Tabitha’s hands had long gone numb. On any other day she’d take the time to stretch her fingers or even run them under warm water to relieve the cramping. But it was February and that meant no stopping until the fifteenth. It was also spontaneous wedding season where people jumped at the thought of marriage and that always made for a lot more work.
She blew a loose strand of hair from her eyes and kept making perfectly round balls from the batter before setting them on the lined tray to her side. She couldn’t remember a year when she’d had as many wedding chocolates to make. Her biggest client Claire Banks, an esteemed wedding planner, must have booked every day in February with a wedding or party. And she had chosen Tabitha Chocolates to tempt the guests at every table.
It was work that Tabitha lived for, but added to her already heavy workload before Valentine’s Day, she was feeling a bit pinched for time and her mood was sinking fast.
“Okay, it’s done.” Brie darted into the prep area of Tabitha’s small Cherry Creek store, waving a work order. “We just picked up the Johnson-Carr wedding.”
Tabitha squished the dough ball in her hand. “How are we going to get this all done? We might need to start saying no,” she grumbled as she rolled yet another truffle through the cocoa and then set it on the tray to dry.
“Hey listen, Ms. Valentine and Wedding-Scrooge, I’ve been planning a tropical vacation with grass huts and fruity drinks with umbrellas. We need all the weddings we can get so I can make the big bucks and get out of this icebox for a while.” Brie hung the order on a clipboard on the order wall.
Tabitha scowled as she scooped out a dozen more truffles to be rolled through the coating and set them on the tray. “Scrooge, huh?”
“You work too hard. You forget what it’s like to have men fall at your feet at least one day a year.”
“Yet you and my mother seem to think it should happen all the time. I mean, how many times can the woman get engaged and married on Valentine’s Day? Doesn’t it take away the special meaning?”
“Maybe she does it just to piss you off.” Brie grinned, and Tabitha wondered if her and her mother didn’t just plan to make her crazy on purpose.
Tabitha shook her head as Brie went back to answering the phone at the front counter. Sometimes your best friends shouldn’t be the people you hire.
She blew out a breath and thought of the upcoming holiday. She couldn’t help but be cynical in February. People turned starry-eyed and lovesick all because of a greeting card holiday. She, for one, knew better than to believe in such fanciful dreams.
Her own mother had fallen head over heels in love on Valentine’s Day. Who thinks that meeting the man of your dreams is possible when selling flowers on the street corner? And how asinine is it to run off with a man whose tongue dripped satin words? Marriage after four days of shacking up in a hotel room did not make for a lifetime of happy memories, Tabitha thought as she dusted her hands off on her apron. She hopped down from the stool, on which she’d been perched for hours, and sought out a cup of coffee.
As she washed the cocoa from her hands, she gave thought to the phrase “love at first sight.” The idea was ridiculous, but people fell for it all the time. And there she was, making money off of their sentimental dreams.
She opened the cupboard and pulled down her favorite, green, oversized mug. She poured strong, black coffee inside and rested against the counter. She wasn’t sure why she was worried about who fell in love. It paid her bills, and it appeared that love would soon send Brie on a tropical vacation.
By late afternoon, Tabitha had rolled thousands of truffles. She had rolled some in cocoa and others in milk chocolate. Another batch was set aside for a variety of white and dark chocolate. Prepping strawberries for tomorrow’s dipping would keep her busy for the rest of the night.
Brie poked her head into the workroom. “I locked up and am going to head out. I have a date.” She wiggled her eyebrows and Tabitha shook her head. When did the girl not have a date? “Would you mind cleaning out the display?”
“Of course.” Tabitha laid a long stem strawberry out on a tray to dry.
“I closed out the register.” Brie pulled her coat from the rack and slipped it on.
“Who are you going out with?”
“Video store guy. He is so fine that I think I’ve fallen in love.”
Tabitha shook her head. Did this new love know Brie had fallen in love already three other times since New Year’s Eve?
With Brie gone, Tabitha turned on the radio to fill the silence. She’d laid out the strawberries and set them on the rack, then pushed it into the cooler.
The storefront was dark and the sign had been turned to closed. Tabitha began the process of removing the few unsold chocolates from the display and boxing them to sell on the shelves the next day. It was rare that she discarded any chocolate. Her business had been voted one of the best stores in both Cherry Creek and Denver, and her chocolate was ordered online all over the world. She laughed to herself when she thought about how sweet business had been for her.
Tabitha bent over and pulled a tray from the case. When she stood, she saw the face of a man, his gloved hands cupped around his eyes, looking into the store. She nearly dropped the tray of petit fours to the ground. When he’d seen her, he’d stepped back and waved.
Her heart beat at an uncomfortable pace. This was one of those times she wished she’d taken her mother’s advice and planted a gun under the counter. The idea was as stupid as the grin on the man’s lips that told her he wasn’t dangerous. Or, at least, she hoped so.
She set down the tray and walked to the door, her hands shaking from the startle he’d given her. The man stepped back, still grinning widely as Tabitha pointed to the CLOSED sign.
“Please.” She could hear him plead through the door.
It wasn’t like her to open the door to a stranger, but this one had a familiar look to him, though she was sure she’d never seen him before. She looked around the streets and people still walked between the stores. If she had to scream, someone would likely hear her.
She unlocked the door and opened it slightly, keeping her foot blocked behind it. “We’re closed.”
“I know. I’m so sorry. I just flew in from a convention in New York, my flight was late, and the bus to the parking lot was—”
“Sir,” she cut him off, holding her hand up. “You’ll have to come back tomorrow.”
“Listen, I’ll pay double if you’ll help me out. It’s my mother’s birthday and I’ve already missed the party. If I don’t walk through the door with a box of Tabitha Chocolates and bat my big, brown eyes at her, she’ll have my head.”
She considered him for a moment. “Batting your eyes won’t work on its own?” The trick seemed to be working on her.
“I don’t think so. Not this time.”
His short, brown hair had tunnels where his fingers must have raked through dozens of times. Dark circles shadowed under his eyes, which when fully alert she assumed would burn into a woman with their dark brown warmth. The collar of his shirt was open and his tie hung loosely around his neck. The long, wool coat, which should have kept him nice and warm in the bitter cold of Denver’s winter, gaped open across his chest.
Against her better judgment, Tabitha moved her foot from behind the door and let him into the store.
She walked around the counter quickly to put space between them. “I’m afraid I don’t have much of a selection. A week before Valentine’s Day we’re usually sold out of the favorites.”
The man stopped and looked at the bare shelves in the display as he pulled his hands from his gloves. “You probably know my mother. She comes in often enough. Maybe you could help me throw together something.”
“Who is your mother?”
“Claire Banks.”
“Your mother is Claire Banks?” The image of his mother crossed her mind. Looking at the handsome man across from her, she found it hard to believe that Claire’s son was such a head turner.
“You do know her.”
“Of course I know her.” Half of her order board had the woman’s name on it, thankfully. “I mean no disrespect, but really, do you think a box of chocolates is what she needs for her birthday?” She hated how it sounded the moment it came out. But when the corners of his mouth turned up into a smile, which sent an alarming sizzle through her, she realized she hadn’t offended him.
He leaned his arms on the top of the case. “My father tried to buy her flowers once. She said she didn’t get any joy out of looking at pretty things. She’d rather eat pretty things. I prefer to appease her and think of her health later.”
A giggle grew in her chest and she kept it forced down. This man was keeping her at work even later than she’d anticipated. She just wanted his money and wanted him out. “She enjoys the petit fours quite a bit. I could probably spare some of the truffles I dipped a few hours ago, but I won’t have the strawberries until the morning.”
“Dear Lord, how much time does she spend in here?”
“Client confidentiality.” She smiled and it almost hurt, which made her realize she’d been doing her fair share of scowling lately. Februarys were usually for profit and hard work, not for smiling at handsome men.
“You have the most beautiful eyes.”
The comment had her swallowing back the smile. Her spine stiffened. “I beg your pardon.”
“Really. They’re the color of milk chocolate with swirls of caramel. It’s no wonder you’re so good at being a chocolatier. It must run through your blood.”
“This isn’t going to get you a price discount or strawberries in that box.”
That smile crossed his lips again. “Oh, I didn’t mean any disrespect.” Humor filled his voice. “I appreciate fine art the way my mother appreciates fine chocolates. Your eyes, like your chocolates, are beautiful. I’m sorry that you mind that I told you that.”
“I don’t mind.” She turned and pulled a white pastry box from the shelf behind her. Inside it, she adjusted the paper doily. “I’m just not comfortable with strangers looking at me the way you do.”
“Well then, I suppose we should fix that.” He reached his hand over the counter. “Preston Banks. Son of Claire Banks, the distinguished wedding planner.”
Hesitantly, she shook his hand. “Tabitha Knight, the wedding planner’s choice for her chocolates. Privately and professionally.”
His eyes widened. “You’re Tabitha? As in Tabitha Chocolates? As in owner of the store?”
She pulled her hand from his, uncomfortable with his reaction. “You seem surprised.”
“Well, I wouldn’t have pictured you as the entrepreneur type.”
“You wouldn’t?”
“I mean …” He raked his fingers through his hair, deepening the channels where his fingers had traveled before. “What I meant to say was that I expected the name to only be a name. How many young and attractive women have their handmade products in some of the most exclusive shops and on the trays at the most elegant weddings?”
She swallowed back the urge to gasp at the attractive comment. She was out of her element. These were the kind of comments Brie usually received. “You seem to know my work well.”
“Claire Banks is my mother, remember?”
Tabitha gave into her smile again. “She has been a substantial help to my business. I do tend to be on her list of people to call when she’s planning a wedding.”
“Then with Valentine’s Day around the corner you must be extremely busy.”
“You have no idea.” And, she thought, if he’d only finish his purchase she could get back to work on those orders his mother had placed for clients.
“That’s why I cut my trip short and I’m headed to her place. Not only is it her birthday, but this year it seems she’s bitten off more than she can chew. She’s booked one too many weddings this year, and now the entire family is in charge of seeing they all go off without a hitch.”
“Awfully nice that you could help her out.”
Tabitha began filling the box with items she knew Claire Banks would enjoy.
Preston looked around. “How did you get into this?”
“Chocolate?” He let out an agreeable hum and she shrugged. “It was something I always loved. I fell in love with my Tabitha Hobby Oven and making those little cakes.”
“Were you one of those girls who wouldn’t share? My sisters never would share Easy-Bake cakes with me.”
Tabitha added a few more candies to the box. “I made one of my mother’s first wedding cakes in my oven. Soon it turned into cookies and decorating the tops. Then I learned the fine art of a double boiler and a chocolatier was born.” She counted out the items in the box silently. “And with my mother’s affection for getting married every few years, it seemed like a good hobby to acquire.”
“And how many times has she been married?” The humor in his eyes raked on her nerves when he asked.
“On Valentine’s Day, it will be her fifth.”
“Fifth?” His voice rose in pitch.
Tabitha hated reactions like that, but that’s what she got for opening her big mouth. She shook her head in disgust as she added a few more truffles to the box. He was irritating her, and he was going to pay for it as the box was getting heavier.
He shook his head. “All I can say is wow. Is she using my mother to plan her wedding?”
“If I were only that lucky. No, as if I weren’t busy enough, she’s somehow designated me as her bridal planner.” Tabitha added the last petit fours from the tray she’d taken from the display and closed the box.
“Where do you find time if this is your busy season?”
“A question I’ve asked myself.” She laid the box atop the display. “This is sixty dollars’ worth of Tabitha Chocolates. Do you want me to dig up more, or do you think she’ll be fine with this?”
“I think she’ll be delighted.” He handed her a fifty and a twenty, not once blinking at the price. Perhaps she should have added quite a bit more.
“I’ll be back. I’ve closed the drawer so I have to get you change.” She turned to walk to her office.
“No,” he said, and she stopped. “Consider it my thank you for opening the door.”
“I appreciate it, but that’s not necessary.”
“I insist.”
At that, she turned and pulled a ribbon from a spool that hung on the wall. Carefully she lifted the box and tied the ribbon around it.
Preston watched her intently and lifted his eyes to hers when she finished with the bow. “Are you busy tomorrow night?”
“I’m sorry. What?” Her tone carried her impatience. She just wanted to get back to work so she could finally get home.
“I’d love to take you to dinner.”
She adjusted the bow atop the box and added a gold foiled sticker with the name of the bakery. “Mr. Banks, thank you, but …”
“Preston,” he reminded her with a smile. It did its job in calming her, but she wasn’t comfortable with a stranger asking her out. She was in unfamiliar territory.
“Preston. I don’t go out with men I’ve only just met.”
“Why?”
“Why? It’s that simple. I don’t know you.”
“No, but you could if you have dinner with me. Unless you’re married.” His brows drew together and the creases around his lips deepened. “I didn’t think about that.” 
“I’m not married.”
“Great,” he said. “I’ll stop by here after you close. If you’re not done, I’d be happy to help you.”
“You talk fast.” She held her hands up as if to stop him. “Do you sell used cars?”
“No, only the finest BMWs and Jags.” He smiled when she scowled. “I don’t really have to do a lot of talking. The cars sell themselves. But if I keep talking the buyer can’t walk away from the sale.”
“I’m walking away.”
“No, you’re not. You’re going to let me take you to dinner tomorrow because now you’re intrigued. And because my mother is not only one of your biggest customers with her business, she’s a great fan of yours as well.” He reached over the counter and grabbed her hand. He lifted it to his lips and brushed her knuckles with a kiss. “Tabitha, it certainly was my pleasure to meet you. Thank you for helping me out. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He picked up his box and walked out the door.
Tabitha stood still, rendered speechless by the man who had waltzed in and out of her store. Apparently she was having dinner with the man. Had she said yes?
She wouldn’t go. No one talked her into things like that. The last thing she needed in February was some man taking her to dinner. She was much too busy.
As she folded the money he’d handed her and shoved it into her pocket, she thought of Preston Banks and his playful smile. He was right. She was definitely intrigued.


Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for building families readers want to be part of. Her series The Keller Family has graced bestseller charts since its release in 2011, along with her other series and single title books. The married mother of five sons promises Happily Ever After always...and says she can write it, because she lives it.

When not writing, Bernadette Marie is shuffling her sons to their many events--mostly hockey--and enjoying the beautiful views of the Colorado Rocky Mountains from her front step. She is also an accomplished martial artist with a second degree black belt in Tang Soo Do.

A chronic entrepreneur, Bernadette Marie opened her own publishing house in 2011, 5 Prince Publishing, so that she could publish the books she liked to write and help make the dreams of other aspiring authors come true too.


To connect with Bernadette Marie
www.bernadettemarie.com
www.5princebooks.com/bernadettemarie.html
www.facebook.com/authorbernadettemarie
Twitter @writesromance

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Release day for 5 Prince Publishing author Lindsay Harper



Available from 5 Prince Publishing www.5princebooks.com  books@5princebooks.com
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Contemporary
Release Date: February 13, 2014
Digital ISBN 13: 1-939217-99-8  ISBN 10: 1-1939217-99-7
Print ISBN-10:1-63112-002-6 ISBN-13:978-1-63112-002-2



How to have an Affair
Have you ever been attracted to someone you shouldn’t?

Were you prepared to risk everything?

Robyn Fisher is a frustrated, busy, working mum and wife who feels that life is passing her by – that is until she meets charismatic psychologist, Jay Trethedick, at a weekend seminar.

Despite the instant attraction, Robyn resists Jay’s advances only to surrender to temptation a week later and they begin an intense and passionate love affair. But when the lovers start taking increasingly dangerous risks, Robyn’s husband discovers the truth and walks out, destroying Robyn’s world.

But the grass isn’t always greener. After an attempt to start a new life with Jay, Robyn realises she has to take the biggest risk of all; choosing who to love and who to let go. As sexual desire battles with real life and family, can she make the right choice?

Just how far is she willing to go?


About Lindsay Harper:
Lindsay lives in Yorkshire, England with wonderful husband, Paul. She has two grown up children, three young grandchildren, and four springer spaniels!  She gave up working full time in 2010 to write and has self-published three metaphysical romances to sell at Mind, Body and Spirit fairs. After having fantastic reviews she decided to embark on her passion - contemporary women’s fiction and now wants to reach a wider audience – hence 5 Prince. When she’s not writing, she’s a homeopath, a dog walker and a DIY enthusiast.  For fun she loves Ashtanga yoga, Ascension meditation and the sea - and one day would love to live by it.


How to contact the author:
@harperpublishin (Twitter)



Excerpt of How to Have an Affair:
‘Where on earth is your bloody father?’ Robyn muttered as she stood with her hands on her hips looking out of the lounge window.
Molly tutted. ‘Daddy says you shouldn’t say bloody.’
‘I’m sorry, sweetheart, but Mummy has a train to catch and Daddy’s late again.’
‘We could go to Grandma’s,’ suggested Molly.
‘That’s a really good idea, sweet-pea, but I haven’t time to take you. I’ll just try Daddy again.’
Robyn delved in her handbag for her mobile. Bloody typical, I arrange one weekend away and the sodding man can’t even make an effort to come home on time.
‘He’s here,’ Molly shouted as she saw her Daddy quickly get out of his car and run up the drive.
‘About bloody time. Oops! Sorry Molly.’
Dave burst into the lounge, ‘Sorry I’m late. I had some letters to sign that needed to be off today.’
‘Oh, that’s alright then. Far more important than my plans,’ Robyn answered, glaring at her husband. ‘And that took you two hours? You were supposed to be home at one.’
‘Look, I’ve said I’m sorry. I’m here now.’ Dave rolled his eyes.
‘But I’m sick of it. Last week you left me sitting here all dressed up and you didn’t even bother to ring.’
‘Why are you bringing that up again? I told you I had an important meeting that ran over.’
‘It’s always something with you.’
‘Hadn’t you better get off? You’ve got a train to catch.’
‘Oh really! You noticed.’
God that man! One day he’ll put me and the children before his bloody work.
‘Dinner’s in the oven, all you need to do is turn it on,’ she reminded him as she picked up her bags from the hallway. ‘If you can remember how,’ she added under her breath. ‘And don’t forget it’s bath-time tonight, and Jake needs his medicine.’
‘I thought you said you’d leave me a list.’
‘I have, but you’ll probably be too busy to read it … Jake, come and give Mummy a kiss,’ she said to her two and a half year old son, who was sitting on the sofa watching Fireman Sam.
‘Where are you going, Mummy?’ asked Jake as he ran to give her a hug.
‘I’ve already told you, pumpkin, I’m going on a course.’
‘Can I come?’
‘No sweetie, we’ve talked about this, remember? Daddy and Grandma are looking after you until Mummy comes back.’
Jake’s bottom lip started to quiver and tears welled up in his eyes.
‘Don’t cry, darling. I’ll see you soon.’ She hugged him close. ‘I’m sure Daddy’s going to do some fun things tomorrow.’ She looked at Dave. ‘Come and take care of your son. I’ve got to go.’
Robyn bent down and kissed Molly. ‘Take care of Jakey for me.’ Molly, at six, loved the responsibility of looking after her younger brother.
‘I will, Mummy, I promise.’
‘Don’t I get a kiss?’ Dave asked.
‘No. I’m still mad. I’ll ring you later.’


She hadn’t meant to leave it on a sour note, but he was so frustrating!