Today our guest is friend and fellow PBG author, Patty Froese with her newest release, Eye of the Beholder.
Forest ranger Jesse Reynolds recognizes Tricia the minute he sees her, but nothing flickers in her eyes. That’s fine by him. The same accident that stole her good looks killed his fiance, and he simply can’t bring himself to feel sorry for Tricia like everyone else in her life seems to do.
Thrown together in the autumn woods, they are faced with the past, an uncertain future, and a struggle to find out why God allows terrible things to happen.
Excerpt:
He turned abruptly back towards the door. “Take care. Winter comes early some years. Like I said, I’ll be around.”
Tricia nodded, attempting to appear more confident than she felt.
“Oh.” Jesse placed his hand on the door knob. “Your uncle keeps an ax behind the door.”
“I have wood.” She nodded towards the pile next to the hearth. It must have been left over from whoever used the cabin the month before, along with the half bag of plastic cups sitting on the kitchen counter.
Jesse laughed out loud and shook his head. “You’ll need more than you’ve got there. The wood pile is behind the cabin, but you’ll need to chop it into smaller pieces.”
“How much do I need, exactly?” She eyed the ax uncertainly. Wood didn’t burn that quickly, did it? The idea of chopping wood sounded tedious. She turned towards Jesse with a smile, letting her eyes linger on his a little longer than necessary. The movement was one of habit, a learned behavior that used to get her what she wanted. “You wouldn’t want to give a girl a hand, would you…” She allowed her smile to sparkle in her eyes. “Jesse, was it?”
“That’s right. Jesse.” His tone was dry, and then an amused smile tugged at the corners of his lips. He rubbed one hand over his chin, the sound of his stubble against his palm rasping softly. “If I were you, I’d start chopping, Ms. Hunter.” He gave her a grin and dropped his hat back onto his head. “You’ve got time before dark.”
She sent him a tight smile and he met her gaze, his expression unreadable.
“Take care, now.” He pulled open the door and disappeared into the chilly morning.
As his footsteps clomped down the front steps, she let out a frustrated sigh. Once upon a time, a man would have stumbled over himself in his eagerness to chop wood for her.
She shut the door and leaned against it. Obviously, those days were over. A brilliant smile bought her nothing. A flirtatious laugh held the promise of something no one wanted any longer. Instead, she was left with the reminder that she had two legs and a back strong enough to chop wood. Try as she might to be a bigger person, it was annoying. She was no longer the woman she used to be, and, frankly, she didn’t have to like it.
You can purchase Eye of the Beholder directly from Pelican Book Group or Amazon!
Patty started writing seriously when she graduated from her degree in English Lit. She horrified her parents by quitting her full time job for a part time position, moving into a tiny dive of an apartment and writing like mad every spare minute. It paid off, and she produced her first published novel. Ten years later, she's married, has a child and is still pounding out novel after novel. She no longer starves.
Well Friends, hope you enjoyed this spotlight! Check back next week for more Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and of course another Saturday Spotlight!
Take care & God Bless!
PamT
2 comments:
Patty, sometimes I wish life didn't interfere once I start a good book. I'm enthralled, and I have a feeling I will want more of Eye of the Beholder once I reach the last page!
Just bought a copy!
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