by: Susan Zoe Bella
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 30, 2023
Publisher: DenSue Publishing
It’s only rock and roll but I hate it. Groupies, parties, a cheating ex, and a dark night spawned a wake-up call. I’d shifted my focus to work and avoiding social media. Singing lead for a famous band had become nothing more than a steppingstone to my true dream of racing Pro Motocross. I hadn’t dated in years. Then ‘she’ showed up and everything in me longed to be with her. I was stoked she’d agreed to join me at High Point Raceway for the weekend, even if it meant putting up with Mack. Better still, Mia wasn’t a groupie, not even close. She wasn’t even a fan of our music. If love at first sight had a name, it would be Mia Fringe and I had to make her mine. ~ Jett
I’d seen him in passing over the years. He was the neighbor of my best friend. But we’d never officially been introduced until the night Mackie badgered me into meeting him after attending his band’s concert. I tried not to look awestruck, stunned that someone this gorgeous had been within my scope for years but had not caught my attention. He had success written all over him. Girls like me didn’t end up with guys like him. Recently unemployed, still living on the family farm, and recovering from a nervous breakdown, I was a mess. But Jett saw something in me that nobody else ever had…worth. ~ Mia
Action, drama, and chaos kick off right from the start at High Point Raceway when Mackie has second thoughts about playing matchmaker between Mia and Jett. However, when the week of bliss comes to an end, Mia is heartbroken and confused as to why Jett doesn’t keep his promise. She accepts a job as a reporter three thousand miles away to escape the pain. Ten years later, Mia and Jett cross paths in the most startling way. She’s about to discover the truth of what really happened so long ago. Will she be able to trust Jett again when he pleads for a second chance? Can love and forgiveness conquer a decade of hurt? It all goes down in the dirt during the last race of the season.
Age: Old
Physical Description: About 5 foot four inches, blue eyes, blondish grayish brownish very long hair, average build, kinda cute
Occupation: disabled, write books to stay sane
3 likes in no particular order: My dog, my fiancé, sleep.
3 dislikes in no particular order: Mean/rude people, bugs, fish
Drink of choice: water
Favorite food: chicken nuggets and ramen
Favorite dessert: anything with custard in it
Favorite song: Amazing Grace
Favorite color: pink
Choice of transportation: truck
Most prized possession: My giant stuffed white dog from American Girl she’s four feet long, two feet wide, and about three feet tall and has her own table.
Favorite way to unwind: writing
Favorite way to spend an evening: Cuddling or playing with my service dog.
Best friend: My fiancé Den
Best memory to date: Winning a handmade rocking horse at a Christmas party playing pirate bingo
If you could have a do-over, what would you do differently? Marry Den, never never have kids, and always have a dog or two or three
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? acting
What profession would you not like to do? nursing
Most romantic gesture: a kiss and a wink
Words to live by: Kindness is free, share some.
“Cozy,” I said. “Love the sound of rain. Not fond of storms so much, though.”
“I’ll protect you,” he proudly declared.
I giggled. “Like you did in the cave? Will you chase them away with a tiny twig?”
He tackled me to a nearby sofa and tickled me into fits of laughter. His reflexes were incredibly fast. I giggled and coiled against him and pretended I wanted him to stop.
Then he thoroughly kissed me, sweeping his tongue through my mouth. He tasted fresh as always and his kiss was laden with hot desire. I sighed and relaxed against him, relishing his touch, his scent, the sound of his breathing. Nothing else mattered right then except being with him.
His lips eased their way to my neck, leaving a trail of warmth in their wake as they drifted lower—and lower still. I wound my fingers into his soft, thick hair and took hold.
He slid the zipper of my top halfway down with one hand while keeping the fingers of his other laced with mine above my head. He caressed my midriff then inched higher. I curled around him, wanting him, basking in the closeness. He lifted his head, unlocked our fingers, and let his hand glide down the underside of my extended arm while simply gazing at me.
I wanted him so much it scared me.
“I’m falling for you, darlin,” he whispered soft and low. Emotion drenched his voice.
I stared up into his ‘make love to me’ eyes. And in that moment, I knew the truth must be told.
Tears stung my eyes. “We should have that talk now.”
“Now? I want you, baby. I’m on fire here. Can we do it later? Whatever is going on won’t change how I feel about you.”
Wow. He’d made up his mind. Fringe had won him over. There we lay, alone and tangled around each other. He was mine for the taking. Strikingly handsome Jett Castle, dream guy, falling for me.
I wrestled with my conscience. He was ready to take our relationship to the next level. Everything I wanted was right within my grasp.
“It’s the leather,” I refuted. “Your judgment is clouded.”
He smiled with a light scoff. “No, well maybe, but we came close earlier. Here we are back in each other’s arms fighting our feelings for one another again.” He lowered his head and resumed kissing a delectable trail down my neck.
“You’re right,” I said on an airy breath and wrapped myself around him as he lowered his hard body against my soft curves.
“Mia…” he purred out my name in that velvety smooth tone.
No, no, no. Not her. My thoughts scrambled. But it was too late. He was falling for Mia—honest, loyal, kindhearted Mia. He deserved to know who he was dealing with. I’d never forgive myself if I lost him by deception.
I flattened my palms against his chest and gently pushed him back. “We can’t. Not yet. I’m sorry.”
He stared at me with brows knitted in utter disappointment. “Having second thoughts?”
“Absolutely not. I want you more than anything.”
“But?” He tilted his head. “There is a but…right?”
“Kind of. I don’t want you to get blindsided. I don’t know where to begin.”
He sighed and dropped his head on my chest. “Let me guess, Kat?”
“You felt a wall between us. As much as I want this with you right now, I can’t until—” I stopped short when a sudden roar came from outside. “Tornado!” I’d recognize that sound anywhere, anytime.
His head jerked up. Our eyes met as we froze and listened.
“I’ll protect you,” he proudly declared.
I giggled. “Like you did in the cave? Will you chase them away with a tiny twig?”
He tackled me to a nearby sofa and tickled me into fits of laughter. His reflexes were incredibly fast. I giggled and coiled against him and pretended I wanted him to stop.
Then he thoroughly kissed me, sweeping his tongue through my mouth. He tasted fresh as always and his kiss was laden with hot desire. I sighed and relaxed against him, relishing his touch, his scent, the sound of his breathing. Nothing else mattered right then except being with him.
His lips eased their way to my neck, leaving a trail of warmth in their wake as they drifted lower—and lower still. I wound my fingers into his soft, thick hair and took hold.
He slid the zipper of my top halfway down with one hand while keeping the fingers of his other laced with mine above my head. He caressed my midriff then inched higher. I curled around him, wanting him, basking in the closeness. He lifted his head, unlocked our fingers, and let his hand glide down the underside of my extended arm while simply gazing at me.
I wanted him so much it scared me.
“I’m falling for you, darlin,” he whispered soft and low. Emotion drenched his voice.
I stared up into his ‘make love to me’ eyes. And in that moment, I knew the truth must be told.
Tears stung my eyes. “We should have that talk now.”
“Now? I want you, baby. I’m on fire here. Can we do it later? Whatever is going on won’t change how I feel about you.”
Wow. He’d made up his mind. Fringe had won him over. There we lay, alone and tangled around each other. He was mine for the taking. Strikingly handsome Jett Castle, dream guy, falling for me.
I wrestled with my conscience. He was ready to take our relationship to the next level. Everything I wanted was right within my grasp.
“It’s the leather,” I refuted. “Your judgment is clouded.”
He smiled with a light scoff. “No, well maybe, but we came close earlier. Here we are back in each other’s arms fighting our feelings for one another again.” He lowered his head and resumed kissing a delectable trail down my neck.
“You’re right,” I said on an airy breath and wrapped myself around him as he lowered his hard body against my soft curves.
“Mia…” he purred out my name in that velvety smooth tone.
No, no, no. Not her. My thoughts scrambled. But it was too late. He was falling for Mia—honest, loyal, kindhearted Mia. He deserved to know who he was dealing with. I’d never forgive myself if I lost him by deception.
I flattened my palms against his chest and gently pushed him back. “We can’t. Not yet. I’m sorry.”
He stared at me with brows knitted in utter disappointment. “Having second thoughts?”
“Absolutely not. I want you more than anything.”
“But?” He tilted his head. “There is a but…right?”
“Kind of. I don’t want you to get blindsided. I don’t know where to begin.”
He sighed and dropped his head on my chest. “Let me guess, Kat?”
“You felt a wall between us. As much as I want this with you right now, I can’t until—” I stopped short when a sudden roar came from outside. “Tornado!” I’d recognize that sound anywhere, anytime.
His head jerked up. Our eyes met as we froze and listened.
Purchase High Point from:
(Affiliate Links Used)
Susan Zoe enjoys creating contemporary, paranormal, fantasy and romantic suspense stories with a gritty flair. Her stories are her own, and she typically writes outside the box. She’s always been a leader not a follower. Writing is her mental filter and how she processes the world around her, a fictional place where she can control the outcome at her comfort level with justice and happy endings. Her imagination is her greatest strength as it carries her away from daily stress.
As a survivor of hardship and chronic disease, she takes one day at a time and treasures the simple things in life. Susan Zoe is a Christian, loves animals, and practices being kind and generous every day. When not immersed in new stories, she enjoys watching movies, Motocross and Supercross, playing Yahtzee with her fiancé, and hanging out with her loyal 24/7 companion and trained service dog. She’s not a fan of sitcoms as they don’t offer enough mental stimulation. Losing herself in an intense story gives her brain the workout it needs to manage OCD, anxiety, depression, and stress.
Her achievements thus far include The Golden Wings Award for her debut novel The Satellite, the UK Nobel Pin and Editor’s Choice Award for her poem The Lonely Man, numerous 5 Star Reviews from Fallen Angels Reviews, Coffee Time Romance, InD’tale Magazine, Goodreads and more for current and retired novels. She was also a RONE Awards Finalist in 2017.
She loves to hear from readers and chat!
In her words, “Writing is the only time I’m truly free.” She’s happiest when her intriguing characters come to life and steal her away into their worlds where anything is possible.
Places to find Susan Zoe Bella:
You can follow the High Point Blog Tour here.
Thank you for hosting today.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome.
DeleteThe cover is gorgeous. I enjoyed the excerpt. Sounds good.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your compliment on my cover!! (I made it) I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt. The entire book is really good and it's free during the tour only :)
DeleteWhat's your favorite place to go on vacation?
ReplyDeleteIf I could travel I'd go to California and maybe up to Oregon to see the ocean.
DeleteThank you for hosting my tour :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by.
DeleteThe book sounds very interesting.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I see on Goodreads that you're reading it, thanks so much! :)
DeleteEnjoyed reading the guest post and excerpt.
ReplyDeleteThank you, don't forget to pick up your free copy of High Point during the tour before the promo ends and I'd love to know what you think and how much you like it.
DeleteHi Sherry! Thank you. Have you picked up your free copy yet? :)
ReplyDeleteThis is a great romance book which I am looking forward to reading!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing it.
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did :) ~ Susan Zoe Bella
DeleteLove the cover!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so very much! I went out on a limb with the Motocross subject but I didn't want to mislead readers :)
DeleteWhere do you get your ideas for writing?
ReplyDeleteHi Barbara, thank you for visiting my tour stop. Ideas come from everything around me. Sometimes it may be something someone says or an experience I've had with a stranger. As for High Point, the inspiration is from my real-life experience in 1986 that began at High Point Raceway and went from there. I realize that everyone will not like this novel because the antagonist is a lesbian. But changing Mackie would've made the story weak. I scrapped this book at least three times before I just got real with it. I wanted very much to rewrite history and write this story the way it should've turned out. Reality bites. I took reality and added loads of fiction to create a fabulous adventure and heartwarming romance. It's not at all erotic, there's no harsh language, and no real violence, just a minor scuffle or two.
DeleteI want to clarify that there is NO LGBTQ romance in this book. Mackie's misplaced obsession with Mia is one-sided. Mia is straight but rumors fly, and Mackie is out to get Mia in any way she can. Her agenda is twisted and selfish. I didn't just choose a lesbian randomly, the "real Mackie" is accurately portrayed in this story. After all, I think we've all had toxic people in our lives at one point or another. It's how we handle those unfortunate situations that defines us :)
What I loved most about writing High Point was revisiting the young love with "Jett". Amidst all the trash that "Mackie and Kat" dished out, was a beautiful love that people tried to squash but they failed. It was very fun falling in love all over again!
Do people suggest topics for books?
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy! Thank you for visiting my tour. Which people do you mean? Publishers? Hugs, Susan Zoe Bella
DeleteJust anyone that you value their opinion.
DeleteMy fiancé sometimes suggests ideas. He's always been great at brainstorming with me :)
DeleteDo you have a favorite place to write
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy, I like corners. Everywhere I've lived, I set my desk up in a cozy corner with a few of my favorite things. Be sure to grab your free copy of High Point before November 30th!
DeleteDo you reward yourself with something special when finishing a book?
ReplyDeleteHi Barbara, no, I don't feel the need for a reward. Writing isn't a job or work or a task. Writing is something I've always thrived on so that in itself is reward enough. Be sure to grab your free copy of High Point before November 30th!
DeleteDo you have a favorite time to write
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy, thank you for the questions. My favorite time to write is late at night or the very early morning hours. My thoughts seem most alive at those times, which is probably why I can't sleep at night 😉
DeleteDid you get a lot of encouragement when you decided to become an author?
ReplyDeleteHi Barbara, unfortunately, no. Quite the opposite. My daughters were resentful, and my mom called my first novel "garbage" because it didn't appease her. Even my "nice" books didn't please her. She even disowned me for a while over one sentence in a book. I finally gave up trying to. Then my sister would track down my novels and tell my mom only the "bad" parts. She criticized me for violence in Forever in Darkness, yet she watched LOTR obsessively. They have aggressively attacked me over my writing, it's been difficult. Just recently, my mom told me straight out she doesn't care about my books, she's not interested in anything I write, and she never wants to hear about them again. Writing has been a painful journey and I'm not sure I'll write another novel. High Point is a story I really wanted to do, and I also just finished a sixteen-book series for a publisher under my other name Shiloh Love. Many of my eighty novels have received great reviews, four-star and better! Two even won awards. I just can't seem to write anything my family likes. My publisher loved my last series so much that she asked me to write a spinoff, but I declined. I'd like to write Awestruck someday. Thank you for the question :)
DeleteI am so sorry you did not have more support! And you still did it!
DeleteThank you, Barbara :) Yes, I did it. It's just something that's been in me all my life. I have a vivid imagination and the ability to escape, which is nice at times.
DeleteWhat do you do when you are not writing?
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy, thank you for visiting my tour post :) When not writing, I play with dolls, the kind that are fully articulated and have gorgeous unique faces. Not horror dolls. Mine are beautiful. I wasn't allowed to have dolls as a child nor when I was first married. But I snuck a few in during my marriage. It wasn't my husband who minded, it was my kids. They had every doll they wanted, they were spoiled, but they didn't want me to have the same thing they had so when they spotted an outfit, I had that they didn't have, they ran to my in-laws and cried that I was buying for myself and not for them. The in-laws rained hell on me. So I kept my dolls and outfits hidden. In 2014 the nest was finally empty, and we lost the house, both kids were out on their own with kids of their own. I discovered artist dolls and went crazy for them! After all those years I was finally able to play with dolls. You can see some of their photos on my Instagram. I even wrote a novel called Broken Dolls by Shiloh Love that was inspired. I'm eccentric. I color outside the lines and think outside the box. Broken Dolls is a psychological thriller :) I am happy to say the in-laws are no longer a part of my life but merely a distant memory of my horrific past.
DeleteHave you ever started a book that you decided not to finish?
ReplyDeleteHi Barbara, yes many, many times! I have at least a dozen started that may never get finished because the story hit a wall or went flat. I can't stay with a story if I'm not in love with it. If it starts to annoy or bore me then I can't expect readers to like it. I won't publish anything that doesn't meet my standards just for the sake of publishing. "To thine own self be true".
DeleteI like the cover
ReplyDeleteThank you so very much! I made this one! Yay! PS ~ I like it, too :)
DeleteWhat inspired you to write this book?
ReplyDeleteOoo, I love this question. My real-life experience 37 years ago, (38 years May 23, 2024). The first date I had with my fiancé was at High Point Raceway in Mount Morris PA. It was both thrilling and a disaster. I was fighting my way back from a nervous breakdown, suffering from agoraphobia, when "Jett" invited me to accompany him for the weekend. I was a bundle of nerves but later that night when he kissed me for the first time, all those chains of anxiety melted away in his arms and for the first time in my life I found freedom! I didn't want it to end...ever.
DeleteThen "Mackie" happened. She wanted to be my lover. But strangely, she and "Kat" are the ones who insisted I go out with "Jett". They had their own agendas, and I never did find out what their agendas were, so I made that part up in the book. But one thing became clear, neither wanted me and "Jett" together. They didn't expect us to actually fall in love. When we did, they tried to rip us apart and things got REALLY ugly!
Last year, I came upon a journal I had written back in 1986/1987 of my first year with "Jett". I fell in love with him all over again and wanted to relive that experience only this time, I wanted it to go my way, not theirs. Thus, High Point was born. It underwent several title changes and covers before I finally felt it was just right. I love this book. I will always love this book. It's what some might call my "Heart and Soul book". I've already received notice that one tour stop didn't like it and instead of posting their review simply posted the book. While I hope that readers love it as much as I do, their opinions won't affect how I feel about the book. High Point received 4 stars from InD'tale in the version before the final. And another tour stop gave it 4.5. Hey, I'm getting closer to that five LOL. It's fine. I love the book. I lived it in real life, and I lived it in fiction again 37 years later. My love for the real "Jett" inspired this book :) Thank you for asking!
How long do you write per day?
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy, that depends on my muse, how much sleep I've had, and what else is going on or how I'm feeling. I'm disabled with Meniere's Disease so some days I don't write at all. There have been countless nights when I wrote for hours. My most productive nights have been 9K word nights. Typically, I write 3 to 5 thousand words a night. A slow night is 1k words. At this time, I'm taking a break from writing. High Point is my longest novel at a solid 95K words. I spent all year working on it. I also released a fifteen-book series for a publisher recently, so I'm burned out. I can't force the words. I have several stories jotted down and some started but the words won't come. At this time I'm not writing anything. I'm just chillin with my service dog, fiancé and dolls :) Thank you for the question :)
DeleteWhere do you get your ideas for the cover?
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy, this cover took a few tries. Once I had a solid direction on the story, I decided to put a dirt bike in the background and I came upon that awesome image in licensed stock. I already had several models in my folder to choose from. I picked the one who looked most like Jett. I grayscaled the Motocross rider to make the model stand out. It took me a lot of tries to get it right but I'm really happy with the final result. I couldn't have achieved my vision had I hired someone. Artists don't like to make a lot of changes and they all have different stock they use. And some don't want to use the author's ideas. Every artist I've worked with does things their way and simply expects the author to be happy with it. This cover needed to capture Jett’s aura to my satisfaction so I tackled it myself :)
DeleteHave you started a book and not finished it?
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy thank you for the comment please scroll up as somebody asked me this exact same question Barbara and you will see my answer thank you again, hugs, Susan Zoe Bella
ReplyDeleteDo you have a favorite time to write
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the excerpt. Sounds like a good boo
ReplyDelete