by Bobbie Shafer
Historical
Romantic Suspense
Publisher: Dancing With Bear Publisher
Release
Date: July 9, 2013
Heat
Level: Sweet
Length: 243 pages
Available at:
Description:
Virginia Cash is a young mother
of two small children and lives in a small apartment
above a New York diner where she works as a waitress on the midnight shift.
Virginia has just been informed that her husband, Wylie, is missing in action
during a medical rescue north of the 38th parallel line in Korea.
When Clayton Wilkens and his wife
stop in for a burger during a traffic jam on their way to Puerto Rico where
they plan to retire, they realize that Virginia is the perfect candidate to
take over Eagle Creek Manor and raise her children.
Ginny, as she’s known to her
friends, asks Edna Taylor, her best friend and babysitter, to move with her to
the manor to help the relocation for her and the children, 6 year old Donny and
5 year old Anna Marie.
Once they arrive and are greeted
by Peter Clark, the local banker and member of Eagle Creek Management, unusual
events take place. Ginny is offered a job at the Chase Hotel by Michael Chase,
great grandson of Aimee McKay, builder of Eagle Creek Manor. When someone
breaks into Eagle Creek Manor, the family dog digs up a human bone and a young
girl goes missing in Sycamore Grove, Ginny begins to wonder if the move to
Eagle Creek was a smart one.
When Rosa, the housekeeper,
informs Ginny and Edna that young girls have disappeared from the area for
quite some time, the new occupants of Eagle Creek Manor, set out to solve the
mystery and bring peace of mind to the residents of Sycamore Grove and Eagle
Creek.
Ginny and her best friend
discover there are several popular residents with shady and questionable pasts.
When Edna and Ginny start putting the pieces of the puzzle together, they are
shocked at the results.
A demanding and obsessive mother
has warped her son’s mind and when his father commits suicide, the man tumbles
over the edge of sanity. Now Ginny and Edna are in his sights. The fear of
discovery snaps what’s left of his mind, and he sets out to remove those
responsible for his concern -- Virginia and Edna.
Can a New York waitress and young
mother, along with a middle-aged, retired librarian survive the madness of a
warped mind, or will the move to Eagle Creek destroy Ginny’s world and take
Edna’s life?
About the Author:
Bobbie
Shafer is the author of three adult novels and two YA novels, as well as having
over 300 articles published in various magazines. She is a member of the East
Texas Writers' Guild and The Writing Warriors critique group. Bobbie is also a
valued member of the Dancing With Bear Publishing team, where she is the
acquisitions editor, editor, and CEO.
Besides writing, Bobbie enjoys raising miniature horses,
donkeys, goats, rabbits, and chickens, and all the while keeping her house and
husband happy. She lives just outside of Troup, Texas, with her husband,
Gordon. She has four children, Connie Congleton, Kim Fields, Cary Waterhouse,
and Kelly Waterhouse. She also has three grandchildren, Kandice and Josh
Fields, and Nellie Waterhouse; and one great-granddaughter, Falon.
Connect with Bobbie Shafer
Excerpt #1
While
Clay and Barb were sixteen hundred miles away, the New York dawn brightened the city sky with the promise of a new beginning.
Virginia Cash didn’t recognize that promise as she stuck her timecard into the
clock slot and heard the loud click denoting 8:05, end of shift. Reaching up,
Ginny pulled off the stiff, red and white headpiece. She stuffed the cap in her
pocket, grabbed her purse from the metal locker, and headed for the front door.
In
her exhausted state, Virginia, or Ginny to her friends, had no plans for the
day, nevertheless, Anna and Donny would surely want to go to the park. Being
cramped up in the apartment all day brought out their wild side. The young
mother wanted them to work out their cabin fever in the fresh air before she
took them across the hall to Edna, the babysitter, so she could grab a nap
before returning to work.
Her
hand clamped on the chrome door bar, but before she could push it open, Tony
hollered at her. She paused, looked wearily over her shoulder, and dropped her
arm. Tony handed his spatula to Ernest, who was listening to Rocky’s chatter
about his baby. The new father hadn’t stop talking about his amazing, newborn
son since he came exploding in the front door at six a.m.
“Ginny,”
Tony said loudly, “don’t forget the jar. Don’t want that money sittin’ out in
plain sight all day. You never know how desperate some jokers are. It’s Friday,
ain’t it? I’m surprised some jerk didn’t steal it last night when Vera stepped
out back for a smoke. If I’m not mistaken, Edna told me today’s your birthday.
Let me get the donations out and you kin go buy yourself somethin’ nice. Okay?”
“Sure,
Tony, sure,” Ginny said wearily. Switching her purse to the opposite arm, she
walked to the end of the checkout counter.
Tony
ambled to the door and looked up and down the street, making sure no customers
were coming before unscrewing the lid from the pickle jar and dumping the
contents on the glass counter. His cousin, Vera, who worked the register during
the night shift, grabbed the bills and began arranging them by denominations,
facing the bills the same directions. Tony reached in his back pocket and
removed a small brown take-out bag and slid the change into the sack. Vera
folded the bills and slid them on top of the change. Picking up the large
envelope, he turned it backward and forward before handing it to Ginny.
“Don’t
know what this is, it might be a prank. Ya want me to check it out for ya?”
Ginny
craned her neck to read the writing on the front of the envelope and reached
for it. “It’s got my name on it. Who would play a joke on me? It’s probably a
coupon or letter of sympathy. Give it to me.”
Tony
handed it over to her along with the sack.
“Ya
got twelve dollars and some change this week, kiddo,” Vera said as she popped
her gum.
“It
won’t buy me a new car, but it will buy milk, cereal, bread, and some ground
meat,” Ginny said and stuffed the brown bag in her purse. “I’ll read this
upstairs.” She waved the manila envelope and shouldered her way out the door.
Upstairs
in her apartment, Ginny hurried to the bedroom, slipped her uniform over her
head, and examined it for grease spots or stains. Finding none, she hung the
dress on a wire hanger and tried to smooth out the deepest wrinkles. Untying
her black and white oxfords, Ginny slid them off and carried them to the
bathroom where she dampened a rag and scrubbed off any scuff marks and dirt
from the white areas of the shoes. After she was satisfied they were as clean
as she could get them, she went back into the bedroom, and placed them on a
chair in the corner. Peeling off her girdle, Ginny wiggled into one of the only
three dresses she owned, other than her two uniforms, and slipped her feet into
a pair of worn brown penny loafers before heading across the hall to bring her
two children home from Edna’s place.
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