Blog Tour Excerpt & Giveaway: Asking for Trouble by Anna J. Stewart

A themed tour through Prism Book Tours.

Asking for Trouble

(Tremayne Family #1)

Anna J. Stewart

Adult Contemporary Romance

February 17th 2015 by Berkley InterMix

Summary

The Tremaynes are one of the most prosperous families in Lantano Valley, California. But money can’t buy everything—especially when it comes to love…

Morgan Tramayne has a heart of gold, but to keep her children’s charity afloat she’s had to resort to some less than legal means: donations from a notorious cat burglar who targets the wealthy. It’s only a matter of time before Morgan’s criminal connection blows up in her face—especially since her undeniable attraction to the man heading the investigation keeps putting her in tricky situations.

Former police detective-turned-investigator Gage Juliano has two goals: salvaging his career and nabbing Lantano Valley’s present-day Robin Hood. But when he meets a beautiful, curvaceous woman who’s more interested in helping others than amassing a fortune like the rest of the town’s residents, Gage finds his desires pulled in an unexpected direction…

Note: This novel contains some mature content.

   

Excerpt

Evening gowns and battle armor weren’t sold in the same department, but as far as Morgan was concerned, they provided the same protection.

The confidence that descended the second she’d draped the formfitting, strapless peacock blue fabric over her ample figure could only be described as exhilarating. This time last year, she might have resented her mother’s extravagant purchase. Morgan could have paid three months’ worth of electricity bills with what the gown had cost.

A shadow cut across the late spring sun and she jumped, pulling her feet in as the shadow transformed into a man who leaned down and scooped up her shoe.

Her lungs emptied as if her dress had transformed into an overeager python. The way this man wore a tux made George Clooney look like a grunge rocker. Oh, and that hair. Jet black strands so dark it seemed almost blue. Morgan swallowed as summer sky blue eyes pinned her in place. Her sandal sparkled in his grasp as if each stone had been imbued with the sunset-emblazoned sea.

Hot embarrassment flooded her cheeks as she tried to reclaim her confidence along with her shoes. Morgan slid her foot into what she considered modern-day torture devices. How did her sister walk in these things every day? Morgan placed her hand in his outstretched one, allowed him to pull her from the car. “Thank you, Mr. . . . ?” She arched a brow in invitation for an introduction, glancing down to straighten the cameo pendant her mother had given her for Christmas over a decade ago.

“Juliano. But please, it’s Gage. Morgan, isn’t it? You’ve recently taken over as CEO of the Tremayne Foundation.”

Morgan forced a smile. “Yes.” The job was both a badge of honor and a source of grief. She shouldn’t have inherited the position for years, and wouldn’t have except for the accident that took her mother’s life. Which made potential failure all the more petrifying.

“Congratulations on the progress of the Pediatric Treatment Center. A little over six months until opening?”

“If all goes according to plan.” Morgan’s sadness was swallowed by the queasiness that descended whenever she thought about the balloon payment due on the center’s property in a little over a month. All the more reason to get her butt inside and start raising cash.

The subtle strings and flutes of Bach drifted from across the street, drawing her into the cool embrace of the house where she’d grown up yet never felt comfortable. The wealth, the opulence—none of it had ever sat well with her. She’d take a broken garbage disposal any day.

Gage reached again for her hand. “May I?”

“Oh, well, I guess.” He tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. “I’m supposed to meet someone inside.”

“My loss,” he said with what appeared to be a genuine flash of regret.

Morgan didn’t often find herself at a loss for words. After all, she spent hours every day conversing with people in all kinds of environments about an array of topics. But when it came to upscale events like tonight’s fund-raiser, or more personal interactions, her brain and tongue took great pleasure in fighting each other. Add a man like Gage—handsome, charming, confident—and the Morgan Tremayne who’d spent the morning fixing garbage disposals and replacing porch rails may as well have been drowning in the middle of the dating pool without a life jacket.  

There wasn’t room for her insecurities to loom tonight though. Instead, Morgan focused on donning the mask of her professional self: the woman who didn’t care that men skimmed their uninterested eyes over her size fourteen figure before moving on to whatever svelte, posh, polished socialite stood nearby. She was Morgan Tremayne and she needed to raise a truckload of cash or risk a financial scandal that could destroy her family.

When she noticed Gage had shortened his stride to match her unsteady one, Morgan wished she could have pulled off tennis shoes under the gown. If she had, she’d be able to zip around the party like the Road Runner on speed. Instead she’d spend the night hoping she didn’t topple into the salmon mousse.

“Would you mind joining me for a drink while you wait for your date?” Gage asked.

“Oh, it’s not a date.” Morgan tried to remember the last time she’d even had a date. “Just a favor for my father.” Of course her father had no way of knowing how dangerous his request that she escort the District Attorney this evening was. Putting Morgan in the vicinity of law enforcement was akin to planting a time bomb at the base of the family tree.

     “Then it’s his loss.” Gage smiled, displaying a set of straight, white teeth behind full, quirked lips. It was then that she noticed the crooked slope to his nose, as if it had been broken more than once. She’d bet there was a story or two there. “If you’ll excuse me for a moment, I need to check in with my donation. Don’t go too far, okay?”

About the Author

You’ve met Anna J. Stewart (or someone like her) before. She was the girl who spun in circles on the playground hoping her Wonder Woman costume would magically appear before playing cops and robbers a la Charlie’s Angels–as Sabrina (she was the smart one). Anna was the girl in the back of the class with a paperback romance hidden in her algebra book (and yes, she failed algebra).
Growing up in the 70′s and 80′s meant there weren’t a lot of YA books, so she ventured early into mainstream fiction and read Stephen King’s CARRIE at the age of 8. Discovering Nora Roberts and romance novels early in high school opened her eyes to the wonders of storytelling and the beauty of a happily ever after.

So here she is, many years later with an English degree from CSU Sacramento, an RWA Golden Heart nomination behind her, countless stories in her head, and a serious addiction to STAR TREK, SUPERNATURAL, and SHERLOCK. She recently wrapped up a nearly 8-year stint working as assistant to NYTimes bestselling author Brenda Novak where she helped run Brenda's annual online auction for diabetes research. When she's not writing or reading (which she never has enough time for!), she's working on dollhouse miniatures and tolerating her overly-affectionate cat named Snickers (or perhaps it's Snickers who tolerates her).

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2/16 - Launch

2/17 - Kelly P's Blog

2/18 - Mythical Books & Book N Blog

2/19 - My Life Loves and Passion

2/20 - Southern Chelle & Mary Terrani

2/22 - Babs Book Bistro & Colorimetry

2/23 - Beck Valley Books

2/24 - Mommabears Book Blog

2/25 - underneath the covers & Wishful Endings

2/26 - The Written Adventure & deal sharing aunt

2/27 - Harlie's Books

3/1 - Grand Finale