Janet Maple’s stellar career ended with a layoff and her boyfriend of five years told her that he wants to be just friends. When she lands a job at one of New York’s premier boutique investment firms, Janet begins to hope that her luck is finally turning for the better. Not only is she happy with her new paycheck, but things also seem to be looking up on the personal front, as the company’s handsome attorney expresses keen interest in Janet. However, her euphoria is short-lived, as Janet soon discovers alarming facts about her new employer’s business tactics. When her boss dismisses her suspicions as groundless, Janet finds herself confiding to a cute IT engineer, Dean Snider. The closer she gets to Dean, the more Janet is tempted to break her rule of not dating co-workers, but what she doesn’t realize is that everything she knows about Dean, including his occupation and even his name, is a lie.
Dennis Walker is a top-notch white collar crime investigator who will stop at nothing to put culprits away. When an opportunity for an undercover assignment at one of New York’s premier boutique broker dealers comes up, Dennis jumps at the chance, adopting a persona of geeky IT engineer, Dean Snider. While he may be an ace at his job, years of experience fail him when Dennis meets Janet Maple and finds himself torn between his professional obligations and his personal desires. Will he have to choose between his feelings and duty, or will he find a way to satisfy both?
EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT
While on his way to Janet Maple’s office, Dennis Walker was thinking of a pretext for stopping by. He would start on a light note – something along the lines of Monday blues, and from there he would progress to having a drink after work. Ordinarily, he would have waited until the office party that was to take place on Thursday, but with the new condensed timeframe given to him by his boss, time was a luxury Dennis did not have.
He was just about to stroll into Janet’s office when he heard her voice coming through the doorway. She was on the phone. A little eavesdropping never hurt anybody. He pressed his back against the wall and strained his ear to hear Janet’s conversation. It would not do to get caught red-handed, so in case anyone were to pass by, he had a manila folder filled with important-looking office papers loosely positioned in his hand, ready to drop to the floor at any moment.
“Hey, Katie. Yes, it was pretty awful. Yes, Andrew was there – Lisa’s horny, geeky cousin. Yes, I’d love to have a drink after work – six o’clock sounds great.”
Where? Dennis thought desperately. Six o’clock where?
“Perfect. I’ll see you at the Blue Orchard at six-thirty.”
Dennis heard the sound of the telephone receiver being replaced and tiptoed down the hall. When it came to establishing contact, accidental encounters were so much better than arranged dates.
Dennis Walker arrived at the Blue Orchard at five-thirty. He figured that would give him enough time to get a spot by the bar and find a pretty girl to chat up. If his plan were to work, he had to look like he actually had a reason to be there other than stalking Janet. He loosened his tie and hung his shabby suit jacket over the back of his chair. This Dean Snider routine was getting tiresome. Well, at least he was wearing a decent shirt, and his natural charm would just have to compensate for the rest of his appearance. However, the fake glasses went into Dennis’s jacket pocket. Dean Snider’s drab persona had not gotten him very far, and since his boss had just upped the stakes, Dennis Walker was going to change the rules and infuse some much-needed swagger into Dean Snider.
Author Bio:
Marie Astor is the author of contemporary romance novels This Tangled Thing Called Love, Lucky Charm, On the Rim of Love, romantic suspense, To Catch a Bad Guy, and a short story collection, A Dress in a Window. Marie is also the author of young adult fantasy adventure novel, Over the Mountain and Back.
Other Books by Marie:
(Click on the title for the Amazon purchasing link)
This Tangled Thing Called Love – a contemporary romance about overcoming one’s inhibitions, learning to tango, and finding one’s true love match.Lucky Charm – a humorous contemporary romance about love, luck and friendship.
Smitten at First Sight – a contemporary romance about the unexpected power of love. (Previously titled On the Rim of Love.)
A Dress in a Window – a collection of short stories about love, coincidences, and fate.
Over the Mountain and Back – young adult fantasy adventure novel about a boy who takes his snowboard for a ride and finds himself in a magical, hidden world he never knew existed.
GIVEAWAY!!!!!
Marie will be awarding custom designed semiprecious jewelry pieces to five randomly drawn commenters during the tour. (Click HERE for additional tour stops. Be sure to leave comments to increase your chances of winning.) Don't forget to leave your email address.
Prize 1: Citrine quartz and prehnite sterling silver necklace
Prize 2: Red agate sterling silver necklace
Prize 3: Onyx sterling silver bracelet
Prize 4: Smoky quartz sterling silver earrings
Prize 5: Blue quartz sterling silver earrings
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ReplyDeleteLove this blurb! I've got this on my TBR list...thanks for sharing!
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Thanks for having Maire Astor's Book here
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