We are so thrilled to bring you the Release Day Launch for Marie Force's AND I LOVE HER!! AND I LOVE HER is a Contemporary Romance novel being published by Penguin’s Berkley imprint and is the fourth novel in Marie Force’s Green Mountain Series! We hope you're ready for Hunter and Megan's story! Grab your copy today, and don't forget to grab the first books in this fabulous series!!
Purchase And I Love Her, featuring Hunter and Megan's story NOW! Releases March 3:
Purchase And I Love Her in the US in print at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and IndieBound.
Purchase Book 4, And I Love You in the UK and Australia:
About AND I LOVE HER:
A Green Mountain Romance from
the New York Times bestselling author
of I Saw Her Standing There.
As the oldest of the ten Abbott siblings,
Hunter prides himself on his ability to solve other people’s problems, but now
he has a problem of his own—how to convince the woman of his dreams that his
love is for keeps.
As the chief financial officer, Hunter Abbott manages the
family’s various business interests while “fixing” things for the people he
loves. But the one thing he can’t fix is his undeniable attraction to
Megan Kane. Instead, Hunter is prepared to do whatever it takes to show Megan
that he’s the man for her.
Megan’s sister rocks her with the news that she and her
husband are moving overseas, leaving Megan truly alone. With her sister—and her
job at the diner—going away, Megan finds herself leaning on the sexy,
button-down accountant who isn’t afraid to lay it all on the line for her. But
Megan has watched too many people she loves leave her. Can she risk her heart
on Hunter?
Contains a bonus Green Mountain
short story!
Chapter One Excerpt:
Chapter 1
Business opportunities are like buses, there’s
always another one coming.
—Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group
When her sister and brother-in-law said they wanted to talk
to her at the diner Monday evening, Megan Kane assumed they were going to tell
her they were finally expecting the niece or nephew she’d wanted for as long as
they’d been married. But the words that came from Brett and Nina in stuttering,
halting sentences had nothing to do with babies.
“Moving overseas.”
“Selling the diner.”
“So sorry to do this to you.”
“It was an amazing opportunity.”
“We couldn’t say no.”
“You can come with us.” Nina seemed crushed to be delivering
this news to her “baby” sister, who was almost twenty-eight and hardly a baby
anymore. “I’d love that. We could run around and explore together while Brett
is at work. It would be so fun.”
Megan shook off the shock and found her voice. “No. You’ve
been taking care of me since you were twenty-two, Neen. It’s time to go live
your life. I’ll be fine.”
“We really do mean it when we say you should come with us,”
Brett said. He was always so kind to her, never once in all these years acting
as if her tight bond with his wife was a problem for him.
“I can’t do that. I can’t crash your party. I’ve been around
your necks long enough as it is.”
“You’re hardly around our necks, Megan,” Nina said. “We
could have so much fun! Would you think about it before you automatically say
no? Please?”
“Fine.” Megan said what her sister needed to hear. “I’ll
think about it.”
“Great!” Nina said, beaming with pleasure at the small
victory.
“If you decide to stay here, we’ll help you find another
job,” Brett said. “Maybe the new owners of the diner would want to keep you on.
They’d be crazy not to.”
He’d been a terrific brother-in-law to her since he married
her sister nine years ago. A teacher at a nearby boys’ prep school, he’d
apparently applied for overseas positions in the past but they’d never
materialized until now.
Work at Nina’s Diner without Nina? Unthinkable. “I’ll figure
something out. You guys don’t need to worry about me.”
“Of course we’ll worry about you, Meg.” Nina reached for her
sister’s hand across the table. “I don’t know
how not to worry about you.”
“It’s probably time I got a life of my own.” Megan tried to
stay calm even as she panicked on the inside. Not see Nina every day?
Unbearable. “Mom and Dad would be horrified if they knew I was still living in
the garage apartment.”
“They’d be proud of you.”
“No, they’d be proud of you, but
you deserve it. You’ve created such a wonderful business here, and now you have
this fantastic opportunity to travel. I’d never hold you guys back from doing
what you want.”
Brett’s relief was so visible he practically sagged under
the weight of it. Obviously, they’d worried about telling her their news. “You
really can come with us if you want to, Megan,” he said. “It would be great to
have you in France.”
“I’d love to come visit while you’re there, but this is
home.” In reality, Nina was home to her, not
Butler or the house where they’d once lived with their parents, but Megan kept
those thoughts to herself.
“You said you’d think about it!” Nina said.
“Neen, I can’t just go traipsing off to France, as fun as
that sounds. I need to figure out my life and what I’m going to do with it. I
can’t do that in France. I don’t want either of you to worry about me. I swear
I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?” Nina asked tearfully. “You’d tell me if you
didn’t mean that, wouldn’t you?”
“I’m very sure.” Megan kept her emotions out of it—for now
anyway. “This could turn out to be a good thing for me. It’ll give me the kick
in the butt I’ve needed to move on.” Megan had been marching in place for more
than ten years, since the snowy night they lost their parents in a car crash
during her senior year of high school.
Nina had been her rock ever since, acting as mother, father
and big sister all rolled into one. The sisters had held on to each other for
all these years, and the thought of everyday life without Nina was unfathomable
to Megan.
“If you agree, we’re going to rent the house,” Brett said,
“but the garage apartment is all yours for as long as you want or need it. We
told the rental agent the garage wasn’t part of the deal.”
“Of course I agree. No sense the house sitting vacant when
you could be making some money.” Her brother-in-law’s sweetness nearly broke
her emotional dam, but she refused to cry in front of them. Since there were
going to be tears—and lots of them—she had to get out of there immediately. No
way would she make them feel bad about something they were so excited about.
Knowing she was on borrowed time where the tears were concerned, Megan gathered
up her belongings and stood. “I’ll see you guys in the morning.”
“Let me drive you home,” Nina said.
“That’s okay. I could use the fresh air after being inside
all afternoon.” They’d used their afternoon and evening “off” to do their
monthly deep clean of the diner.
“You’re sure you’re all right?” Nina asked.
Megan bent to kiss her sister’s cheek. “I’m fine, and I’m
thrilled for both of you.”
Nina held her tight for a minute. “Love you, Meggie.”
Megan couldn’t remember the last time Nina had called her by
her childhood nickname. “Love you, too.”
Feeling as if she’d been set adrift, untethered from the one
sure thing in her life, Megan stepped out of the diner, taking a moment to
breathe in the fresh, clean early-autumn air. The tears she’d managed to
contain in front of Nina and Brett broke loose in sobs that had her looking for
a place to hide until the storm passed.
She crossed the street and ducked behind the Green Mountain
Country Store, planning to hide out until Brett and Nina left for home.
The last thing she wanted was for them to see her crying,
and nothing short of a miracle would help her keep it together tonight.
After another twelve-hour marathon in front of the computer,
Hunter Abbott stood and stretched out the kinks in his shoulders and back. As
the chief financial officer for the Green Mountain Country Store and other
Abbott family businesses, Hunter worked pretty much all the time. If it weren’t
for the pressing need for food that his body demanded every few hours, he’d
probably work around the clock.
It wasn’t like he had anything better to do. And wasn’t that
a sad, pathetic fact of his life?
His stomach let out an unholy growl that had him checking
the time on his computer. Nine ten. With the diner closed today, that left
pizza as his only option in town at this hour. He dialed the number to Kingdom
Pizza from memory and ordered a small veggie and a salad. If he was resorting
to eating junk, at least it was somewhat healthy. Before his twin sister,
Hannah, had remarried over the summer, Hunter might’ve headed for her house to
bum some dinner and conversation. But with Nolan now living with Hannah and the
two of them in starry-eyed newly wedded bliss, Hunter steered clear.
He turned off his computer and glanced at the stack of files
still awaiting his attention. Bring them home or leave them for tomorrow? After
a brief internal debate, he shut off the light and left them. His tank was
running on empty, and tomorrow would bring more of the same.
In the outer office, he was surprised to find the light
still on in his sister Ella’s office. He went over to knock on her door.
“You’re working late.”
“As are you.”
“Except I always do. What’s your excuse?”
“Getting some new products entered into the system, and
dealing with a pile of paperwork that never seems to get smaller no matter what
I do.”
“I hear you there. So much for being self-employed, huh?”
She smiled at him, but he noted a hint of sadness in her
eyes that caught him by surprise. Ella was one of the most joyful people he’d
ever known—always happy and upbeat.
“Everything okay?”
“Sure. Why do you ask?”
“You just seemed . . . I don’t
know . . . sad or something for a second there.”
“I’m fine. No need to worry.”
“Okay then.” Hunter took a step back, planning to leave, but
there it was again—the sadness he’d seen before. “You know if there’s anything
wrong, you can come to me, right? We may see each other a thousand times a day,
but I’m right over there if you need me. No matter what it is.”
“Thank you, Hunter. That’s very sweet of you. I know you
want to take care of everything for all of us, but some
things . . . Well, some things can’t be managed. They are what
they are.”
More confused than ever, Hunter wasn’t sure whether he
should stay and try to force the issue or give her some space to deal with
whatever was bothering her. “I’m here, El. I’m right here. Don’t suffer in
silence.”
Her smile softened her face. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Do you want me to wait for you so you’re not here alone?”
“No. I’ve got another hour or so, and I can lock up.”
“Give me a quick call to let me know you got home okay.”
“Hunter . . .”
“What? You’ll always be my little sister, so call me.”
“I’m only four years younger than you.”
“And I vividly remember the day you were born.”
“Freak.”
Hunter chuckled at the predictable comment. His family
teased him every day about his photographic memory and ability to recall facts
and figures from years ago that should’ve been impossible to remember.
Sometimes he wished he could forget some of the crap that rattled around in his
brain, but it was his lot in life to be a walking, talking data warehouse. “See
you in the morning.”
“Have a good night.”
“Call me.”
“Go!”
Hunter went down the stairs thinking about what Ella had
said about him wanting to take care of things for everyone. Perhaps it was also
his lot in life as the oldest of the ten Abbott siblings, but he wanted the
people he loved to be happy and their problems to be few, even if that meant
taking on more than his share of the load.
Hannah had been after him recently to work less and play
more. If only he could think of something he’d rather do than work.
Totally pathetic. He knew it, but damn if he could figure
out how to snap out of the rut he’d fallen into. When had he become an
all-work, no-play stick in the mud? If he were being honest with himself, he’d
been in the rut for a long time, probably since he graduated from college and
joined the family business full time. College had been the last time he’d been
truly free of responsibility and obligation.
Thinking about the blissful college days had him remembering
his late brother-in-law Caleb, Hannah’s first husband, who’d died in Iraq seven
years ago. If he came back to life and saw how ridiculously out of balance
Hunter’s life had become, he’d raise holy hell.
Raising holy hell was on Hunter’s mind as he stepped into
the cool darkness and waited for the motion-sensitive light to come on. Once it
did, he turned to lock the door behind him. Ella would see to setting the alarm
system. Leaving her alone at the store made him anxious, but he would check on
her if she didn’t remember to call him.
A sound to his left had him stopping to listen. Was that
sniffling? “Who’s there?”
“It’s me, Megan. I’m sorry to scare you.”
That voice . . . It cut through him like a
knife slicing butter. Every nerve ending in his body stood up to take note of
her nearness, which happened every damned time he came into any kind of contact
with her. “Megan,” he said in a voice that was barely a whisper. “What’re you
doing here in the dark?”
“Hiding out.”
“Why? Are you hurt? What’s wrong?” True to form, he wanted
to make things right for her, no matter what it took. His heart beat quickly,
as if he’d been running for miles, and his hands were suddenly sweaty and
clammy. He’d never understand why this particular woman provoked such a strong
reaction in him every time he laid eyes on her—or in this case, heard tears in
her voice as she spoke in the dark.
“Nothing’s wrong. I just needed a minute. Sorry to trespass
on your property. I’ll get out of your way.”
“Wait. Don’t go.” The words came out sounding far more
desperate than he’d intended. “At least let me drive you home.”
“That’s all right. I can walk.”
“I wouldn’t mind at all.”
She stepped into the light, and the sight of her
tear-ravaged face broke his heart. What could possibly be so wrong?
“It’s out of your way.”
“I’ve got nowhere to be.” He watched her expressive face as
she pondered his offer. Her lips pursed, which brought her cheekbones into
sharper relief against the pale skin on her face. Exquisite was
the word that came to mind whenever he looked at her, which was as often as he
could. Until recently she’d had a major crush on his brother Will, but that had
no bearing whatsoever on how he felt about her. He looked at her, and he
wanted. It was that simple.
Except she barely knew he was alive, which was a problem.
“If you’re sure you don’t mind,” she said after an
impossibly long pause.
“I really don’t.”
“Thank you.”
She walked with him to his silver Lincoln Navigator and
stood by his side as he held the passenger door and waited for her to get
settled.
As he got into the driver’s side, his growling stomach
reminded him of the take-out order. “Have you had dinner?” The words were out
before he could take the time to overanalyze the situation.
“Not yet.”
“I have a pizza and salad on order. I’d be happy to share.”
“I don’t know if I could eat.”
“Come along and keep me company?”
“Um, sure. Okay.” She reached into her purse, withdrew a
tissue and wiped her eyes.
“Are you going to tell me why you were crying?”
“Do I have to?”
“Of course not.” He was surprised that she would think he’d
try to force it out of her. “But I’m told I’m a good listener.”
She had no reply to that, so he turned the key to start the
engine, lowering the windows a bit to get some air.
“I probably stink from cleaning the diner,” she said.
“No, you don’t.” As he drove, he thought of a thousand
things he’d like to say to her, but none were the sort of things a guy blurted
out when he finally had a moment alone with the woman he desired.
How exactly did you tell a woman who barely knew you were
alive that you thought about her constantly? That seeing her upset killed you.
That wanting her kept you awake at night. How did you tell her it didn’t matter
if she had once been obsessed with your brother? That there was nothing you
wouldn’t do to see her smile, to see her pale blue eyes light up with joy?
How could he say any of that and not sound like a total
creep?
He couldn’t, so he kept his mouth shut and hoped he wouldn’t
do something embarrassing like hyperventilate from the overwhelming effort it
took not to say all of it.
Reading Order
About Marie Force:
With more than 3 million books
sold, Marie Force is the New
York Times, USA Today and
Wall Street Journal bestselling, award-winning author
of more than 30 contemporary romances. Her New York
Times bestselling self-published McCarthys of Gansett Island
Series has sold more than 1 million e-books since Maid for
Love was released in 2011. She is also the author of
the New York Times bestselling Fatal Series from
Harlequin’s Carina Press, as well as the Treading Water Series and numerous
stand-alone books. All You Need is Love, book 1 in
her new Green Mountain Series from Berkley Sensation, was a New
York Times and USA
Today bestseller in February. The second book, I
Want to Hold Your Hand, will be out in June, and the third book,
I Saw Her Standing There, is coming in November. In 2014,
Marie will have eight mass-market print releases—the first five Fatal Series
books from Harlequin and the first three Green Mountain Series books from
Berkley. While her husband was in the Navy, Marie lived in Spain, Maryland and
Florida, and she is now settled in her home state of Rhode Island. She is the
mother of two teenagers and two feisty dogs, Brandy and Louie.
No comments :
Post a Comment