Release Day & Giveaway: Ghosts of Christmas Past by Jessica Aspen
Ghosts
of Christmas Past Haunted
Holidays # 1
By:
Jessica Aspen
Released
August 6th,
2014
Self-Published
Blurb
Jen
MacNamara flees the Christmas wedding of her best friend and cheating
fiancé and runs to the country to spend the holiday alone. It's the
perfect plan, until her unexpectedly sexy neighbor and landlord, Nate
Pierce, insists on bringing the holiday to her—complete with a
Christmas tree, hot chocolate, and an unexpected kiss.
And
that’s not Jen’s only problem.
The
cozy country farmhouse is already occupied by something evil. Now
Jen’s nights are spent wrapped in sensual dreams of a past life,
and her days growing closer to Nate as they solve the mystery of the
malevolent ghost that haunts not only the house, but also wants Jen
dead.
Dare
to discover Jessica Aspen’s sexy, new adult, contemporary, Gothic
romance, today.
Buy
Links
Excerpt
Jen
turned, gazing over the bare winter fields to the tangle of trees. No
explanations, no obligations, no complications. For two whole weeks
she could just hide here, and write.
The
first genuine smile she could remember since April spread her face
wide.
Then
the pickup arrived.
Black,
large, and full of male attitude it parked right next to her vacation
house, dwarfing her small car and taking up the entire drive.
“Oh,
there’s Nate now.” Mrs. Castlebury waved at the man pushing an
eager black Labrador back into the cab while trying to exit the
vehicle.
He got
the door shut, faced them, and grinned. Dressed in New England casual
of laced-up work boots, jeans, and plaid shirt under a denim jacket,
Nate Pierce, striding across the snow, hand out in welcome, was a
commercial for settling down. Tall. Good-looking in a rugged,
works-for-a-living kind of way. And he had a dog. A big, sloppy,
super-cute dog, wagging its tail and drooling on the driver’s side
window.
For
one impulsive moment Jen wished this was her life. She loved big
dogs, the country, and secretly, men in plaid shirts, but she hadn’t
had the opportunity for any of it since her dad’s death. Their
daddy-daughter fishing trips, where he’d gotten to get out of his
suit and she’d gotten to be free of her school uniform, had stopped
cold the year she’d turned twelve.
This
was the first time since then she’d ventured outside of somewhere
hot and warm with a very clean, very controlled hotel. Her mom’s
idea of a vacation. Of course, neither her mom nor her ex, Jason,
tolerated dogs of any size. And as for living outside of the Boston
city limits?
Neither
of them would consider the horror.
She
squashed the sudden surge of loneliness and desire for something
she’d probably never have, and pasted on a smile.
Mr.
Good-Looking Country Boy tramped through the snow to the porch,
pushed his overlong forelock of sandy brown hair off his face, and
held out a hand. “Hi, I’m Nate Pierce, your landlord.”
“My
what?” She shot a quick look at Mrs. Castlebury.
“Your
landlord, dear. I’m just the listing agent. Nate owns the house and
he’ll see to any upkeep you need.”
“In
fact, I’ll be back in an hour or so after you’ve gotten settled
and bring the Christmas tree.”
“The
Christmas tree?” She’d forgotten. She’d purchased the Christmas
in New England package because it had been cheaper than renting by
the day. “That’s not necessary,” she said, her voice chillier
than she’d intended.
“I’ve
already cut the tree down.” Nate’s friendly grin wavered as did
his hand hovering in the air between them. “It would be a shame to
waste.”
She
didn’t want to be friendly with the neighbors. She wanted to hide
out and recuperate. Make up her mind as to what in the world she was
going to do next. But good manners won out.
Jen
repressed a sigh, reached out, and slid her bare hand into his. As it
disappeared into his tan callused grip, her hand seemed slim and
small. He squeezed gently and a tingling warmth spread across her
skin.
Hot
caramel sensation slid from the connection between them, up her palm,
along her arm, and through her entire body. Her hand tightened
automatically, and a responding spark lit in his eyes.
Jen
swallowed. Shoot! She wasn’t ready for this. She was here to lick
her wounds, not some guy’s abs. And given the strength in his hand
and his wide shoulders, she’d bet he had some killer abs.
She
gazed up into Nate’s warm chocolate brown eyes and his face
blurred. For a moment she saw another face superimposed over his.
Same brown eyes, same tanned, rugged New England skin, but more
boyish, broad-boned and black haired.
Every
hair on her scalp tried to climb out of its slicked back, ponytailed
restriction.
Then
her new neighbor’s sharper, more intense features came into focus.
Jen panicked and jerked her hand away. Wiping her buzzing palm on her
long red wool coat she backed up, nearly running into Mrs.
Castlebury.
“Oh,
I’m sorry. Pardon me.” She circled around, putting the older
woman between herself and Nate Pierce.
What
the hell just happened?
Jen
tucked her hands into the safety of her coat pockets, surreptitiously
rubbing her tingling right palm along the silk inside her pocket.
Trying to get rid of the strange feeling spreading along her skin and
telling her pounding heart that everything was fine. That something
bizarre hadn’t just happened to her. And that life was safe and
normal.
Author
Info
Jessica
Aspen has always wanted to be spirited away to a world inhabited by
elves, were-wolves and sexy men who walk on the dark side of the
knife. Luckily, she’s able to explore her fantasy side and delve
into new worlds by writing paranormal romance. She loves indulging in
dark chocolate, reading eclectic novels, and dreaming of ocean
vacations, but instead spends most of her time, writing, walking the
dog, and hiking in the Colorado Rockies. You can find out more
information and read about Jessica’s paranormal romances at her
website.
Author
Links
Giveaway a Rafflecopter giveaway
Comments
Post a Comment