Hello all!
Thank you for stopping in today to help me celebrate the release of Karma in Blue Jeans (Immortal Siblings 1). I finally finished this one in time to have signed copies available for Passport to Romance 2019 in Bellevue, WA on October 19th. If you ever have a chance to attend this reader event, please stop in to say hello. It’s one my husband and I plan on attending every year. It’s free and a wonderful way to meet your favorite and new to you authors. We call it a Booktail party for a reason! *wink wink* It’s put on by Greater Seattle Romance Writers of America chapter (GSRWA). Mark you calendars for next year!
So far, KIBJ has been accepted by my regular readers and new fans alike. All looking to learn more about the Immortals I introduced in my Now and Forever series, The Courtship of the Vampyre, and the Kayne Legacy series. I have to say, I’m quite fond of these Gods and Goddesses myself. I hope you enjoy their stories as much as I have had telling them. I should say transcribing them as we all know it’s the characters who pester us to put their tales down on paper.
Karma in Blue Jeans is available on all major outlets as an ebook and print at the following links. The first link is for Books2Read. It has all the ebook outlets on one page. Just choose your preferred vendor and it will take you directly to that site.
Back of the book blurb:
What would you do if Karma called upon you?
As Goddess of Blessings and Punishments, Karma excelled in her duties concerning her mortal charges. Her decision to reward or punish had never been done on a whim. After the God of Trials and Tribulations decides to follow his heart and step down from his position as one of The Three, Karma is asked to be His replacement. She agrees, but with one condition—
She wishes to experience life on earth as a human while completing her final assignments with her demigod lover, Justice. In her mind, this is the only way she can understand how and why the humans act as they do.
Her final assignments turn out to be her most rewarding yet:
- Two lost and lonely souls are brought together for a second chance at love
- An author who chooses to lie, cheat and steal her way to the top of the charts
- A veteran left reeling after a betrayal by his boss
- An immortal who had once betrayed The Three is offered a chance at redemption
Follow Karma and Justice as they soon learn having limited access to her magical powers makes it even harder to answer the prayers of those in need, and punish those hell bent on destroying everything they touch.
The first couple chapters (unedited) were released as a free read on this blog. For this post, I wanted to share a new excerpt with you that showcases new beginnings for two who thought their lives were over, and one determined to destroy her future.
Story Excerpt (PG-13)
Joe struggled to keep his emotions in check as Charlotte opened up about her life since losing Darrin. How could this wonderful woman ever feel she would be a burden on her friends and family? Why hadn’t anyone checked up on her? He held her hand as it rested on his thigh.
Just like he had always done with Carrie.
“Living out of the van hasn’t been all that bad. I showered here or at one of the truck stops just out of town. I didn’t want to spend too much time at the shelter when so many others needed the bed more than I did. I spent most of my time here at the hospital, so no one thought anything about me eating all of my meals in the cafeteria.”
“Your librarian salary wasn’t enough to keep your house?”
She shook her head. “Darrin’s medical bills took all of our savings and maxed out our insurance policies. We had to take out a second mortgage to cover his funeral expenses. He thought of everything and did what he could to take care of me right up until the day he passed.”
Joe had heard enough. An overwhelming wave of guilt washed over him. Darrin had fought hard to stay with his wife, just like Carrie had to stay with him. He didn’t understand how it was possible that their lives could be entwined this way. The only explanation had to be divine intervention. He intended to take the blessing and run with it.
“You’ve spent your last day without a home.”
Charlotte turned in the booth to face him, still holding his hand. “What are you saying?”
“I won’t allow you to face your cancer battle without a roof over your head. My home is now your home.”
She blinked rapidly and opened her mouth as if to protest. Instead, she laughed.
And laughed.
She laughed until tears rolled down her face and she gasped for air.
“I don’t know why you find moving in with me so funny. There’s more than enough space for the two of us. You’ll have your own room and bathroom of course.”
She wiped her eyes and kissed his cheek. The touch of her lips sent ripples through his body he never thought he would feel again. He knew in that instant Charlotte was his past, present and future.
“I’m not laughing at you or your wonderful offer. I’ve had another flash of déjà vu. You were booted out of your frat house…”
“Oh, holy hell! I’d forgotten about that.” He chuckled as he recalled punching a senior at a party for making lude comments about Carrie. The foul-mouthed creep happened to be a legacy and had thrown a fit, demanding Joe be booted out of the fraternity. Instead, their chapter leader kicked him out for the night with instructions to sleep it off at the nearest hotel. He had ended up standing under Carrie’s window at two in the morning, drunkenly proclaiming his undying love for her.
“You defended my virtue then and here you are protecting me all over again. Darrin had done something similar. Both of you were drunk off your asses thanks to tequila shots.”
He brushed her hair from her cheek and ran his thumb over her bottom lip. “I can say for all certainty it wasn’t the tequila that caused me to open my heart to you. Please say yes, Charlie. Take the leap with me.”
She nodded and molded her body into his as their lips found each other again.
I want to live! I want to live and love this man here, now and always. If this is a dream, I don’t ever want to wake up.
He tasted of berries and cola, of sunshine and promises. He was her Darrin, and yet not. She knew in her heart her prayers had been answered in the hospital cafeteria of all places. She clung to him and promised to never let go again.
“Are you sure about this, Joe?”
“Never surer about anything in my life.”
She smiled and slid out of the booth. She tugged on his hand still clutching hers. “I have one stop to make before we head home.”
That sounds so good to my ears. Home to start living again.
Justice tapped out Karma’s dictation with lightning speed. Once she had the remote in her hand, she figured out the features with only a few instructions from him. She’d made all of the screens combine into one to focus on Joe and Charlotte. He’d laughed with the couple as they recalled the memories of proclaiming their love for each other the first time around.
But that kiss stopped his heart.
As soon as their lips came together, their auras changed, signaling their path had finalized.
“Where did she have to go?”
“With Joe beside her to boost her courage, she made the decision to tell her doctors then and there she would go through cancer treatment as soon as they could set it all up.”
He pumped his fists in the air. “Yes!”
Karma tapped the remote and shrunk the screen to the upper left corner. “The two of them can take it from here for the rest of the night. Brighton is settled in with her brother and niece. Let’s see what Evil Evie is up to now.”
“Evil Evie? Is she really that far gone or are you giving your charges nicknames just for fun?”
She snickered. “The name fits don’t you think?”
His eyes took in the scene in front of him. Evangeline struggled to communicate using the tablet Dallas provided for her that morning. It pained him to watch as she awkwardly gripped a stylus and tapped out words one letter at a time. Even in her debilitated state, she treated her nurses as her personal punching bags. She kicked, thrashed and attempted to bite one who simply tried to adjust her pillows.
“Why is she so combative?” His experience working in the hospital had shown him humans usually allowed the staff to see to their needs without throwing a fit each time. Evangeline faced months of rehab to get back to where she was functioning before her stroke. If she alienated her caregivers, her recovery would be harder if not damn near impossible.
“She wants to push them away to be alone. She’s about to get her wish. Watch what she does.” Karma expanded Evangeline’s screen to quadruple the size.
Within moments of tossing her water bottle at the back of the nurse escaping through the door, Evangeline tapped her stylus on the tablet to bring up a chat window. Her speed increased as she spelled out each word.
“Did you get the books uploaded?”
“Yes, and you won’t believe the number of downloads we’ve had in the last hour.”
“Good 2 hear. Be ready for the take down notices to hit within the next couple days.”
“You don’t need to remind me. I know what to do.”
“Humor me.”
“Deny, deny, deny then shut down the site.”
“Then?”
“Start all over again. You need to trust me, Evie.”
“I trust you to keep this up and keep hidden. With my competition freaking out about pirates, my books will keep beating them on the charts.”
“They’re not for sale any longer, sweetheart.”
“Temporary setback. I have my people setting up an alternative sales channel…”
Anger flowed through him. He had been taken in by Evangeline and had felt pity for her. Even now she kept trudging down her dark path. “Yeshua is right to cut this one off. She’ll never learn.”
“Brighton will see her tomorrow along with others who Evangeline has wronged in the past. These women will be her final test. As always, the choice will be hers. This time will truly be her last.”
“Why does she spend so much time on schemes like this? She has the talent. She’s more than capable of making it all on her own.”
“Self-doubt crept in after the release of her first book. Rhiannon told me Evangeline thought it was a fluke, one shot and done. She feared the words wouldn’t come fast enough on their own. She found a way to keep up the insane pace and put her books and her name at the top of the charts. The awards and acclaim had been too enticing. She wanted it all then and even more so now.”
He recorded everything into the file open on the laptop and turned his eyes back to the footage playing out in front of them. The camera angles shifted to showcase Evangeline’s tablet as she struggled with the stylus. She sighed with relief as the folder opened to display no less than two dozen files for books yet to be published.
“I’m almost afraid to ask where those came from.”
“Angela wasn’t the only ghostwriter on Evangeline’s payroll, Justice. Each and every single one of those files is a book stuffed with combinations of their stories. Her plan had been to publish these books under new pen names and cash in on book subscription services that pay out by pages read as well as sales of the books. She set up the new account using an LLC she’s kept secret from everyone including her husband.”
He groaned. The biggest online book retailer in the world just cleaned house and deleted the accounts of the people pulling off the very same scam Evangeline planned to launch. “Come on, Evie. Don’t dig yourself a bigger hole.”
Karma rolled her eyes. “Babe, we are witnessing a woman too desperate to care. She won’t put the books out today, but I’m betting within the week.”
“You can’t see her future yet?” Having Karma more human than goddess was going to take time to get used to for both of them. Her frustration came off her in waves and set his nerves on edge.
“I see all of her possible futures. She hasn’t made her choice known. Once she does, there will be no turning back.”
Happy Reading!
Tammy
Behind Closed Doors 