Excerpt: ‘The Rocky Shores Resort’ Series, Book One

Here’s one scene from my upcoming book, the first in The Rocky Shores Resort romance series. Originally, the title was going to be “Under the Influence,” but I discovered there are a lot of books with that title. So for now, the book is untitled… The following excerpt is a scene from chapter three.

The book is still a work in process, with only 17K words so far, and will undoubtedly go through some revisions once the beta readers and editors get a hold of it. But I thought you might like a glimpse into the next book…

They were on their third round of drinks, including the first round in the lounge downstairs. Suzanne was glad she was sticking with ginger ale. The girls, as she now thought of the bridesmaids, were having a good time, and there was a lot of laughter at their table. The room was fairly crowded and, between them, they’d all gotten a chance to dance a couple of times.

“Stud alert, Carla’s left,” Lola said. “And I think he’s headed to our table, ladies.” She spoke too loud, even though she probably thought she was whispering. The younger women giggled, Suzanne just smiled. The poor man had probably already turned away. She glanced in the direction Lola had indicated… then couldn’t look away.

He was tall with broad shoulders and slim hips, strong arms and a flat muscular stomach. His full dark hair was brushed away from his face, and long enough to brush his collar, had he been wearing a jacket. His eyes appeared black as coal in the dim light, and the hint of a mustache and beard gave him a devil-may-care look.

His knowing smile lit up his face and his eyes held her captive as Charlie walked up to Suzanne and held out his hand to take hers. “Dance?” he asked.

She couldn’t find her voice, so she just nodded as she put her hand in his. The fast music ended as they reached the dance floor, and a classic ballad from The Beatles, Let It Be, began to play. Charlie slipped his free arm around her waist and held her close while they danced.

Her heart beat hard and fast. Could he feel it? The room felt too warm and her head started spinning. She rested it against his chest. Maybe not the best idea… she could hear the drumming of his heartbeat and her nose was assaulted with a heady masculine scent. The hand on her back pulled her a little closer. Still neither one said a word.

Half-way through the song, the pressure on her back let up and he put a slight distance between them. She leaned back enough to look up, and his eyes locked on hers. A moment later, his lips brushed hers lightly then were gone. He moved his hand up her back and pulled her close again, guiding her head back to his chest. Then he rested his head on hers.

When the song ended, Charlie walked her back to her table without letting go of her hand. At the table, he held the chair out for her and she sat down, her hand still tingling from his touch.

“Suzanne… Ladies…” He nodded then turned away with a smile. A moment later he was gone.

“Oh. My. God. Suzanne, who was that?” Lola, of course, led the onslaught of questions she didn’t really want to answer.

“That was Charlie.”

“Charlie who?” asked Bobbie.

“Where did you find him?” asked Carla.

“Where did he go?” asked Lola “And why didn’t you introduce him?”

Suzanne held her hand up to stop the flow of questions. “I don’t know his last name. He works here at the resort. He’s probably working tonight. I met him on Saturday, but I don’t really know him. End of story.”

“Are you kidding me?” Lola asked. “End of story? There was so much electricity between the two of you, you could have powered Manhattan for a week!”