Excerpt and Giveaway Reckless Endangerment by Amber Lea Easton

Description:

Heroes come in many forms--soldiers who fall and rise, ordinary people doing extraordinary things, women who battle for their marriage, reporters who fight for truth and justice, and men who put it all on the line for the women they love.

Sometimes heroes fall.

Colonel Michael Cedars is a decorated war hero returning home from Afghanistan. Wounded, unsure if he’ll walk again, he’s not sure how he fits in civilian life, and he definitely questions if he wants to remain married to the feisty redhead, Hope Shane.

Hope’s never been one to play it safe. She met the Colonel while working as a war correspondent, fell in love with the man in uniform, watched him get blown up, and isn’t willing to give up on him now.

Back in Denver, Colorado, she’s working as an investigative reporter who becomes entangled in a human trafficking story. As the danger of her story intensifies, Hope and Michael are tested more than they ever imagined. Will Michael be able to see beyond what he’s lost to embrace what remains? Is he still the man she married or has he become a liability that could get her killed? Is he still the hero she claims him to be? Will her reckless pursuit of justice endanger the life they’ve pieced together.

EXCERPT:
 

“I can’t do this on my own,” she said so quietly he wondered if she’d actually spoken.  She sat on the edge of the bed, her face pale and eyes full of unshed tears.  “I’m faking it every day.  Please, Michael, I don’t know whether I should smack you, scream at you or kiss you to bring you back.”

“Don’t cry for me.” Seeing her like this threw him off.  He preferred the irreverent spitfire who would go toe-to-toe with him any day.  He’d wanted to spare her pain, but it was obvious he had inflicted more. 

 “It was never hard for us, not even in a war zone.  We met and—wham—that was that. We made it work.”

He leaned back in his chair and stared at her.  She wore a black dress that rose up on her thigh when she crossed her legs.  Black leather boots went to her knees.  Hair cascaded around her shoulders, lush lips frowned and eyes glistened.

“You’re not okay, are you?” he asked. “Despite your badass looks, you haven’t healed, have you?  Have you talked to anyone or just stayed in perpetual motion?”


“What do you think?”  Her lips twisted in a self-deprecating grin.

“I think we’re too much alike.”  He grinned despite the circumstances. 

“I wouldn’t presume to feel the same as you do.” She dragged the back of her hand across her cheek without meeting his gaze.  “Things happened that you don’t know about...and now isn’t the right time...but you’re right that I understand you.”

He nodded slowly, not taking his gaze from her face.  Anger long gone, heartache remained.  All words sounded inadequate in his brain.  He wondered what had happened that she hadn’t written about, wondered if he would ever know.  Sorrow clung to her.  He had not only failed as a husband, but also as a friend. 

They had once been the best of friends.

“What do we know about being married?” she asked, her gaze focused on a distant spot on the tiled floor.  “Maybe you’re right.  I’m a mess.  You’re a disaster.  Neither one of us is being honest.”  She met his gaze.  “We’re just a couple of liars who enjoyed the danger of sneaking around in a war zone.  We’re the good story without a happy ending that we’ll think about when we’re old and alone.”

He winced.  He deserved that. Hell, he’d been singing the same song.  It felt like a boulder crushed his chest as he waited for the final blow.

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About the author:

Amber Lea Easton is a multi-published cross genre author of romantic suspense, action adventure, mystery thrillers and new adult (coming in summer 2013). Her current releases cross all boundaries and appeal to a wide audience. If you love a clever plot, action that will leave you breathless, riveting characters and sexy love scenes, her books will appeal to you. "Smart is sexy," Easton says, which is why she focuses on smart heroines who always have a lot to lose yet find the courage to face their fears to overcome adversity. She's an avid reader of all genres or "whatever turns her on in the moment".

Easton grew up in Hartford, South Dakota, where she spent her time daydreaming of big adventures over the horizon under a giant blue South Dakota sky. Now living in Colorado, she's an avid traveler who incorporates her real life travels into her novels as much as possible (minus the illegal activities her characters become immersed in--she swears). To her, setting is another character in the novel and often serves as an inspiration. Love is her motivation for all things--whether it be writing, traveling, playing with her dogs or hanging with her two teenagers--if it's not done with love, then what's the point?

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