Ain’t Love Grand?
By
Dana Taylor
$2.99 Amazon & Smashwords
Winner Best First Book RWA Golden Quill Awards
Description: The Healer vs. the Lawyer. Energy healer, Persephone Jones, has a new neighbor in Peeler, Oklahoma—hot shot lawyer, Jason Brooks. She’s a vegan; he likes his steaks rare. She’s about saving Mother Earth while he protects the interests of Big Business. Their attraction is mutual, but disturbing. And life gets even more complicated when the whole town is caught in a conflict that pits these two on opposite sides of a political fence.
The Set Up: Peeler, Oklahoma Thanksgiving day. Perse and Jason have been avoiding each other since a big brouhaha at the city council meeting.
When I pulled into the driveway about four o’clock, the late afternoon sun had taken the chill out of the air, but choppy winds brought up swirls of leaves from the ground. The sight and sound of Jason’s biplane buzzing over my house grabbed my attention and jangled my nerves.
I sat momentarily in the my truck Lizzie contemplating my next move. The hum of the plane sang like a siren’s call. My fingers drummed the steering wheel as common sense warred with emotion. Despite my earlier resolution to give up all thoughts of Jason Brooks, I yearned to simply see him from afar.
Common sense told me there were things I needed to do. My cat, Orion, was probably starving, if he hadn’t indulged in too many mice. He’d love the dark turkey meat I’d brought home for him. It would be a good time to run the vacuum and do some much needed dusting. Maybe even clean out the refrigerator.
I never made it into the house. The buzz of the biplane’s engine drew me like a fly to honey.
It was stupid, stupid to be crossing the field, hopping the creek and heading over the rise. I just wanted a peek. See him in that flight jacket bringing down the plane. Just see him…
What an idiot. What a dope. What a sucker.
I trotted toward the sound, breaking into a run until I was standing at the border to his property, gasping for breath. The plane made a beautiful landing, the wheels kicking up dirt as it taxied to a stop. I waited at the edge of the field, hands in my coat pockets, drawn by a force I couldn’t resist.
He jumped out of the cockpit, tossed his goggles and helmet inside, and strode straight for me. He’d seen me drive Lizzie onto my property, probably spied my progress running across the fields. His masculine gait made my head rush. The leather jacket gave him the look of a dashing World War II flyer. Steely purpose bore down on me and I’m sure I stopped breathing. He didn’t halt until his hand had palmed the back of my head, his other arm firmly latched around my waist. His mouth hovered within an inch of mine.
“Happy Thanksgiving, Miss Jones,” he said in a low guttural tone.
Then, thank God, he kissed me. I moaned and flung my arms around him, my hands digging into the leather of his jacket. I drank in his kisses as if I’d been lost in a desert and just found an oasis.
He pulled me tighter to him, frustrated by the bulk of our winter coverings. He kissed my cheeks, my eyes, and finally the top of my head, where he rested his chin. We stood wrapped in each other’s arms, gulping deep breaths.
My ear felt the rumble of his chest as he spoke. “This business of not seeing each other isn’t working.”
My eyes teared up and my voice squeaked. “I know.”
He dropped his arms and took my hand. “Let’s walk.”
End of Excerpt
