Survivor Lanae Petersen finds a moving love letter in an antique and seeks to discover the writer. Sage Diamond is holding on to the memory of his deceased wife. The last thing he needs is a tenacious woman who threatens to uncover his family secret.
While I was writing Moselle’s Insurance (the first novel in the Frivolities series), I determined that Moselle’s mother Geneva (Rainn on My Parade), and her aunt Lanae, deserved their own happily-ever-after. That idea was reinforced by writer friends who loved all three characters. The series is centered around Frivolities, a kooky shop in fictitious Platteville, Nebraska, created by Geneva and Lanae.
Blurb: Diagnosed with a chronic, debilitating illness, Lanae Petersen vows to pursue life to its fullest. When she discovers mysterious love letters hidden within an antique desk, she begins a quest to discover who the young lovers were. Little does she realize that in trying to bring closure to their lives, hers will be turned upside-down.
After the death of his wife, cowboy Sage Diamond wants to be left alone on his acreage in peace and anonymity. When Lanae approaches him with letters to a family member, she not only threatens to expose his family secrets, but also stirs something inside him that he neither expects, nor welcomes. Sage fights his attraction, determined not to fall for a woman whose health is so fragile. Can Sage trust God's guiding hand, or will his fear of losing another love crush his chance for a future with Lanae?
Excerpt: The sky was clear and enormous where it met the horizon. The whinny of horses carried up from a pasture on the other side of the barn. The acreage represented everything she loved about being outside the city limits. Expanse, horses, a sprinkling of trees in the distance…God’s country.
When she caught sight of the cowboy, the vision was complete.
She sighed. Home. How crazy. She felt like she’d come home.
The cowboy rounded the corner of the wood-sided barn that she guessed to be sixty feet long. He loped in the loose way of a man comfortable on the back of a horse.
And she enjoyed every step as he approached.
He even tipped the brim of his hat. “Mornin’. You Lanae?”
Wow was the only thing she could think to say. But she kept it to herself.
Her mouth went dry.
His nose was bent, just off to the right of center. He had a full bottom lip, thinner upper, all accented by what she supposed was a year-round tan. Myriad facial lines gave testimony to a life lived outdoors.
She cleared her throat, mustered up some moisture for her vocal chords in order to answer, “That I am.”
“Sage Diamond.”
When he drew close enough, Lanae was dumbfounded at the impact of his eyes. They were an unbelievable piercing blue with a hint of lavender.
“Did you have any trouble finding the place?” Sage spoke in an unhurried manner.
Lanae wondered if he felt rushed about anything. She started to open the door.
“You always leave your car running?” A hint of amusement tugged at his mouth.
Oops. She turned the key. Great first impression.
He held the door.
Still caught in the lavender blue of his eyes, shadowed now from his hat, Lanae swallowed what felt like the chaff of an August hayfield.
No more singles ads for me.
Frivolities #3, available 2-24-2012 at
http://www.pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/sage-and-sweetgrass
http://www.pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/sage-and-sweetgrass-softcover
