After a long week, you deserve a break. For hubby and me, Friday nights are our night to relax by either ordering in or going out to support one of our local restaurants. Pizza is one of our go-to’s when ordering in, but occasionally we make the pizza ourselves. I can’t claim this recipe as my own since I saw it on America’s Test Kitchen, but I was a little dubious when I saw them make it and had to try it out myself. The one thing I didn’t like was the sauce. A lot of people don’t cook their sauce, but I found it needed a lot more flavor and using a thicker cooked sauce would have done it. If you try this recipe, please let me know how you liked it!
P.S. – If you like this recipe and want to check out others, you can download Recipes for the Romantic Soul for free on Kindle Unlimited at https://amzn.to/3H1XzWQ or in the Cook’s Treat section on the website.
The Mother I Never Really Knew
My mother Carmen was my mother, mentor, and best friend, but she was also distant. Much like Lara in The Family She Never Met, there were things my mother never shared with me about Cuba and her life there.
Carmen was always at the top of her class in school and was determined to become a lawyer. She was studying at the university in Havana when it was shut down because of the protests that were occurring because of the revolution.
It was my mother’s involvement in Cuban politics that resulted in my father and her having to flee Cuba. They had been advised by a friend with connections that Castro’s people were coming to jail them because they were trying to get Castro out of power.
Once they were in the U.S., it was my mother who was the force in making our American Dream come true. She worked long hours so that we would be able to purchase a home in Levittown and so that my sister and I would be able to go to college.
As I mentioned before, my mother rarely talked about Cuba. I found out a great deal about her life in Cuba after she had passed. The scenes in The Family She Never Met where Jessica sees her mother Lara watching TV and crying are my recollections of seeing my mother cry when she saw a television broadcast from Cuba. It was the first time in over a decade that she was seeing her beloved country.
The stories of how Carmen got together with fellow refugees to help others leave Cuba are also true. My mother and others from her old company in Cuba raised money to help other company employees escape and come to the U.S.
Chasing Away the Winter Blues
I have to confess that my least favorite season is winter. I am not a fan of the cold and snow can look beautiful, but unless there’s a nice sledding hill nearby, you can keep it.
I normally survive winter by thinking of warmer climes and my late winter trip to the flower show. Unfortunately, they’ve moved the flower show to mid-June. Ugh.
But I guess I can still imagine being somewhere not as chilly by slipping into the pages of a romance novel set somewhere tropical. If you feel the same way, why not check out South Beach Love or The Family She Never Met (available on February 1!) You’ll be able to enjoy the Miami heat and the warmth of strong stories about family, friends, and romance.
Tempting Teaser from Trapping a Terrorist
I hope the snow isn’t too bad by you! We only had rain during the storm, but last night had a few flurries as we went for our after dinner stroll along the boardwalk! To give you a little bit of heat, I’m sharing this teaser from Trapping a Terrorist. This is a story that has an exciting storyline about an FBI Agent fighting to stop a serial bomber in Seattle and a woman who may hold the key to his investigation. Not to mention that both the hero and heroine are battling the wounds of their pasts. The hero’s mother was an FBI Agent killed in the line of duty and the heroine’s father is a bomber in jail for eco-terrorism. I hope you enjoy this teaser!
Teaser
An FBI agent puts everything on the line…
To keep a deadly threat at bay.
When FBI agent Miguel Peters and his father land squarely in the crosshairs of a bomber terrorizing Seattle, the last thing Miguel wants is to also entangle a lovely stranger in a terrorist’s web. Yet while Maisy Oliver might look innocent, her father’s one of the most notorious men in Washington State. Miguel knows Maisy will do anything to help him and his team catch a killer. But does that include confronting a past she’s worked far too long to forget?
From Harlequin Intrigue: Seek thrills. Solve crimes. Justice served.
Discover more action-packed stories in the Behavioral Analysis Unit series. All books are stand-alone with uplifting endings but were published in the following order:
Book 1: Profiling a Killer by Nichole Severn
Book 2: Decoding a Criminal by Barb Han
Book 3: Tracing a Kidnapper by Juno Rushdan
Book 4: Trapping a Terrorist by Caridad Piñeiro
Excerpt
As soon as they were through the door, he released her hand and they stepped apart, gazing at each other, obviously uncomfortable. He broke the tension with a flip of his hand in the direction of the Murphy bed.
“I’m going to be working and you’re probably sore. Maybe you should take the bed tonight so you’re more comfortable.”
She opened her mouth, as if to object, but then just nodded. Clasping her hands before her, she said, “Thanks. But there’s room for you as well.”
And there was the eight-hundred-pound gorilla in the room again, and he might as well address it. Walking up to her, he cradled her cheek and stroked his thumb across her creamy skin. So smooth. So soft. His gut tightened at the thought of all that skin against his and she was more than he could resist.
Bending closer, he brought his lips to hers until only the space of a breath was between them. “This,” he said, whispered his lips across hers and shifted back barely an inch. “This is why that’s not a good idea.”
In answer, Maisy reached up and cupped the back of his head, keeping him close. “This,” she said, repeating his earlier action, her lips a butterfly kiss against his. “This is why we have to share that bed. Whatever happens, I don’t want to say that I ran from this. From us.”
A low groan escaped him, and he couldn’t fight it anymore. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close, her softness crushed to his hardness. Every inch of her fitting to him as if they were two pieces of a puzzle.
Over and over they kissed, until their breaths became one and almost ceased to exist as they strained toward each other.
But then something registered. Sound. Vibration.
“Damn,” he said and fumbled with the phone in his jacket pocket, dropping it with a thud.
That sound killed the desire as effectively as a cold bucket of water.
“SSA Peters,” he said, and mouthed an apology to her.
“We’ve broken through one of the shell companies and like you thought, it’s part of Rothwell Industries,” Dashiell advised.
“That’s great, Dash. We’re one step closer to Rothwell. I’m sure he’s the mastermind behind this,” Miguel said.
“I agree, Miguel. We’ll keep on working to break past the other shell. Hopefully it’ll lead to Rothwell also.”
“I don’t doubt that it will and if we can get Adams into custody, maybe he will flip on Rothwell. As for the licensed blaster, I think there’s one on our list that’s at Rothwell’s current construction site. If you can get an address for him, I’ll go with Madeline to interview him.”
“We’ll try to get it ASAP,” Dashiell said and ended the call.
Miguel tossed the phone onto a nearby tabletop and it clattered noisily, making Maisy jump and take a step away from him.
“You need to get to work,” she said and smoothed her hand across his chest.
“I do. Why don’t you—”
The phone rang and vibrated noisily on the tabletop.
“Again?” Miguel muttered in frustration, swept up the phone and answered, “SSA Peters.”
“We’ve got the address for the blaster from his license application and his photo from his driver’s license,” Madeline said.
“Great. Meet me in the lobby. We’ll speak to him and see what he has to say,” Miguel directed.
Facing Maisy, he said, “I have to go.”
“I understand. I’ll be waiting up for you.”
The last bit of emptiness inside him disappeared at the thought of Maisy waiting for him at home. A home and not just a place to lay his head between investigations.
“That’ll be nice. I’ll make sure an agent is at the door while I’m gone,” he stated and rushed to the door, Maisy following.
At the door he faced her, bent and kissed her, a long, slow kiss filled with promise.
Order Trapping a Terrorist
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/3stMJSx
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/3dmWs6L
Amazon Box Set: https://amzn.to/3lWYdvf
Apple: https://apple.co/3fp4NcL
Apple Box Set: Coming Soon!
BN E-book: http://bit.ly/BNTrap
BN Box Set: http://bit.ly/BNBoxSetTTrap
Kobo: http://bit.ly/KoboTrap
Kobo Box Set: http://bit.ly/KobpBoxSetTrap
Additional Retailers: https://books2read.com/TrappingATerrorist
Video
Congratulations to the Celebrate Romantic Suspense Winner
Wow, you guys were great during the Celebrate Romantic Suspense giveaway! We had nearly 1000 entries in the contest and thank you to all who participated. I’ve chosen a winner using random dot org and the winner is: Nicki O. Congratulations, Nicki!
For those of you who love Romantic Suspense, don’t forget to check out Decoy Training, my March Harlequin Intrigue release! It’s #1 in the K-9s on Patrol series and I think you’ll love this story, especially if you’re a dog lover! It was a lot of fun to learn all about dog training and incorporate that into a thrilling and romantic story.
Happy National Dress Up Your Pet Day
Our fur baby Slate is a very social and easy-going cat. Because of that, we’ve been able to dress him up on occasion. When my daughter was getting married, she had a Jane Austen meets the Golden Girls theme (two of her favorites) and her colors were rose gold and plum. Of course, Slate didn’t want to get left out of the wedding celebrations so we had to make sure he was properly dressed. Hubby found this great outfit for him, but sadly, Slate wasn’t able to attend the wedding due to a prior engagement: a nice nap in the sun. LOL! How about you? Do you ever dress up your fur babies? Also, don’t forget you’ve still got time to enter my Celebrate Romantic Suspense Contest at https://www.facebook.com/Caridad.Author/posts/10158391783370913.
P.S. – According to NationalDay.Com, National Dress Up Your Pet Day was started in 2009 by Colleen Paige, a pet lifestyle expert and animal behaviorist.
Remembering My Grandparents
This is a picture of my grandfather, grandmother, and mother. In The Family She Never Met there is mention of how Lara’s grandparents were the ones who watched the children when Carmen and her husband had to flee Cuba. It was my maternal grandparents who took care of my sister and me when my parents had to leave Cuba. It took nearly a year for us to be able to escape, but we weren’t able to come directly to the United States because of the immigration policies at that time. Because of that, we bounced around from Mexico to Nicaragua, where we had very distant family.
Unfortunately, our Nicaraguan family wasn’t able to keep us for long and we made a trek back to Mexico to wait for an opportunity to legally enter the U.S. Once we were in the U.S., my grandparents continued to live with us and take care of us since both my parents were working.
They were an amazing influence in my life, and I loved hearing stories of their lives in both Cuba and Spain, where they were born. It’s thanks to them, especially my grandmother, that some of our family’s stories about leaving Cuba were saved since my mother rarely talked about our time in Cuba.
