With Christmas just having passed, I thought I’d share a photo of our first Christmas with a new baby! It was such an exciting time since we’d also just finished a major home renovation the day before the baby was born. Lots of fun. Not! LOL. Hope you all have a fabulous New Year’s Eve and wishing you all the best for 2021.
#WriteWed – COLD CASE REOPENED Excerpt
If you’re like me and love unsolved mysteries and cold case files, I think you’ll love COLD CASE REOPENED, my March 2021 release for Harlequin Intrigue. It was so much fun to write the story about Rhea Reilly who believes that her twin sister is still alive and sexy Detective Jackson Whitaker who is risking his career to re-open the closed case. For now, here’s a teaser and free read for you!
Teaser
They are on a cold trail
And running out of time.
Rhea Reilly is certain her twin sister’s sudden disappearance six months ago wasn’t a suicide, no matter what Colorado authorities think. She can’t afford to trust police detective Jackson Whitaker—even if he’s risking his career to uncover the truth. But a lethal trail of lies is drawing them together…and into an inescapable trap.
Excerpt
Rhea had barely finished unpacking her things when the knock came at the door.
She hurried there and threw it open, expecting to find room service with the extra blanket she’d requested. That earlier chill hadn’t left her, not that a blanket would end it, but it had been worth a try.
It wasn’t room service. It was six-plus feet of lethal male, dressed in police blues, with a white Stetson held in hands that he shifted uneasily on the brim. He had shortly cropped sandy-brown hair that screamed former military and eyes the gray of lake waters on a dreary day. He clenched and unclenched his chiseled jaw as he stood there, obviously hesitant, before he finally said, “You should be more careful and check to see who it is before you open the door.”
Anger ignited instantly at his chastisement. “I was expecting room service. Not the police.”
He tipped his head, seemingly sorry, but he didn’t strike her as the type to apologize. Not willingly anyway. And it occurred to her then that he was the officer she’d run into outside the police station. The one who’d helped her pick up her papers and whom she hadn’t thanked.
“Rhea Reilly,” she said and held out her hand. “I’m sorry I was so rude before. I was upset.”
“I understand. Detective Jackson Whitaker. Jax to my friends.” A ghost of a smile danced across full lips, and he enveloped her hand with his big calloused one.
His touch roused a mix of emotions. Surprising comfort. Unwelcome electricity and heat.
“We’re not friends…yet,” she said as he continued holding her hand, longer than expected. Longer than necessary.
She withdrew her hand from his and wrapped her arms around herself. “And I doubt that you can possibly understand.”
That slight dip of his head came again, as if accepting her statement, and he motioned inside her room with his Stetson. “Do you mind if I come in?”
She both did and didn’t mind. Something about his presence was unnerving, but if he was here, maybe it meant that the chief had reconsidered her request.
“Please,” she said and waved him in.
He entered and, as he did so, his gaze swept the room, assessing. Observant. A cop’s eyes taking in the scene and immediately focusing on the thick folder sitting on a small bistro table beside French doors to a balcony facing the lake. The lake was a constant reminder of why she was here.
“May I?” he said and pointed toward the folder.
“Is that why you’re here? Did Chief Robinson change his mind?”
Order
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/3iGCbKr
Paperback: https://amzn.to/3kAloKb
Amazon Kindle Box Set: https://amzn.to/2PSVRyn
Apple Books: https://bit.ly/coldcasereopened
Apple Box Set: https://bit.ly/applecoldcaseboxset
B&N: https://bit.ly/BNColdCase
B&N Box Set: https://bit.ly/BNColdCaseBoxset
Harlequin: https://bit.ly/HarlequinColdCase
Harlequin Box Set: https://bit.ly/HarlequinColdCaseBoxset
Kobo: https://bit.ly/KoboColdCase
Kobo Box Set: https://bit.ly/KoboColdCaseBoxSet
#ManCandyMonday – Martin Henderson from Virgin River
Good morning and Happy Monday! I hope you all had wonderful holidays! Today I’m sharing my choice for Detective Jackson Whitaker, the hero in my upcoming March release, COLD CASE REOPENED: Martin Henderson from Virgin River.
New Zealand native Martin has actually been working as an actor since he was a young teen and has appeared in a number of movies and television shows, including LITTLE FISH, OFF THE MAP, GREY’S ANATOMY, and even a Britney Spears video!
I think Martin is such a hottie and would be as perfect as Detective Jackson Whitaker as he is as Jack on the series. To find out more about Jackson and COLD CASE REOPENED, please visit https://bit.ly/ColdCaseReopened.
Photo Credit (original image has been cropped): Martinnnhen, CC BY-SA 4.0
#TuesdayTip – Cuban-Style Roast Pork
In our home, Christmas Eve is a mix of Italian, Cuban and American foods, but the signature dish has to be the Cuban-style citrus-marinated roast pork.
Normally I’m feeding anywhere from 15 to 25 people on Christmas Eve, but with us downsizing and the pandemic, we’re having a much smaller gathering. I normally get a pork leg that weighs around 25 pounds, but will be adjusting this recipe to deal with a smaller piece of pork.
In SOUTH BEACH LOVE, my May 2021 release from Hallmark, the two dueling chefs are both working on roast pork recipes for their big events. Tony Sanchez, the hero, is using the Cuban spices on Italian-style porchetta while the heroine, Sara Kelly, is learning the traditional recipe from her Cuban sister-in-law. who do you think will win that challenge? You can find out more about SOUTH BEACH LOVE at http://bit.ly/SouthBeachLove.
Ingredients:
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10-15 navel oranges
10 lemons
10 limes
6-8 Seville (aka Sour) Oranges
6 pink grapefruit
10-20 gloves of finely chopped garlic
Ground cumin
bay leaves
Pork leg/shoulder/picnic ham
Directions:
Juice all the above citrus into a large pot. We use one of those large buckets in which your grocery store deli gets its potato salad, etc. Drop by and ask them for one! Ours is only used for the Christmas Eve pork.
The citrus mix should be sour, but with a strong hit of sweet (the navel oranges and grapefruit really help with that). You should have enough citrus juice to fully cover your piece of pork. Once you’ve tasted the sweet/sour mix, then add 3 to 4 bay leaves, about a half cup of garlic (less for a smaller piece of pork) and about 1/4 cup of cumin. Mix this all up.
Take your piece of pork and make multiple slits in it so that the marinade can penetrate into the meat. Place the pork leg in the citrus juice, cover, and refrigerate. You’re probably wondering how I keep that big a bucket cold? Put the bucket in one of those big party tubs or a cooler, place it in your garage (which should be slightly colder anyway) and fill the tub with ice. It should be icy cold in the morning unless you are in a really hot environment in which case you will need to keep on adding ice to keep the meat cold.
In the morning (around 6 a.m. or so) pre-heat the oven to 425. Remove the pork from the citrus and place it in a large roasting dish. Keep some of the citrus juice, bay leaves and garlic for use as a marinade. Discard the rest. Ladle about 1 to 2 cups over the pork and then stick the pork into the oven for one hour at 425. For a small piece of pork, cut down this initial high temp roast accordingly. For ten pounds make it around 30 minutes, anything smaller than that no more than about 15 minutes.
Do not baste the pork during this high heat roast.
When the high heat roast time is up, baste the pork and lower the oven temp to 325. Then cook until the meat pulls away from the bone in the leg and is starting to fall off. Marinate every half an hour during the cooking process. For a 25-pound pork leg, I will cook it for about 8 to 9 hours. The pork will turn a beautiful mahogany brown and just melt in your mouth.
For smaller pieces of pork, adjust the cooking times. A 10-pound picnic ham may take only about 4 or so hours. The key is to keep on basting and cooking at a low temp to keep the meat juicy.
If the pork begins to brown too much, just cover with aluminum and keep on cooking until the meat is fork-tender.
A Visit with Santa – #ThrowbackThursday
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas so a visit to Santa would be the norm. Sadly, when I had to go to the mall for a trip to the eye doctor, there were no kids lined up to see Santa. So I decided I’d share an early Santa photo with you today!
#WriteWed – Cold Case Reopened Giveaway
I’m so excited to be taking part in a 12 Days of Christmas giveaway over at Wild for Westerns! Now, I don’t normally do westerns, but my March release from Harlequin Intrigue is set in Colorado. It was so much fun to write a book in such a different setting and who doesn’t like a cold case story? To enter the giveaway, please visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/290667098916318/permalink/399782728004754/.
#TeaserTuesday – Love & South Beach & Glorious Food
South Beach, two chefs falling in love, and an unexpected competition to be THE CHEF featured in a local magazine! What could go wrong? Did I mention two teen nieces who each want to have the best Sweet 15 party ever? If you love sweet romances filled with flavorful food, humor, emotion, and romance, you’ll love SOUTH BEACH LOVE, coming from Hallmark in May 2021. It’s my pleasure to share a teaser from SOUTH BEACH LOVE!
Excerpt
“Chef, there’s someone out there who says he’s an old friend.”
Sara peered over the half wall that separated her restaurant’s open kitchen from the dining area. As her hostess jerked her head in the direction of the front door, Sara craned her neck to see an older, but unquestionably memorable face, at the hostess podium. A face she had dreamed about more than once as a teen.
“OMG,” she heard from beside her. “Is that Tony Sanchez? The Tony Sanchez?” said Jeri, her business partner, fellow chef, and long-time best friend. Inches shorter than Sara, Jeri had to rise on tiptoes to peer over the half-wall.
“None other,” Sara said as she grabbed a towel to dry her hands and shot a quick look at a starstruck Jeri. Her aqua blue eyes were wide with surprise in a face of flawless café con leche skin. “Can you handle things for a few minutes?”
At Jeri’s nod, Sara rushed out to greet Tony. She told herself not to make too much of how his smile widened when he spotted her, or how his eyes, those melty chocolate-colored eyes, warmed as he settled his gaze on her. But it was impossible to stop how her heartbeat picked up speed that he was here and seemingly happy to see her.
Hugs had always been freely given by the Sanchez family, but she held her hands out to him to avoid a hug, uncertain of how she’d react to the embrace. “It’s been way too long, Tony.” Nine years and eight months, give or take. Not that she was counting.
Liar, the little voice in her head chastised. Even though Tony had left Miami behind, she’d eagerly followed all his accomplishments. Even dared to wonder if he’d ever make Miami his home again.
Tony took both her hands in his and playfully wagged them. “You’ve grown up, chiquitica.”
She laughed and tried to ignore the tingle building where her hands rested in his. Slowly she eased her hands free. “I couldn’t stay ten forever. You look good,” she said and prayed it didn’t sound too much like flirting. To cover for it, she blurted out, “What brings you to Miami?”
“Family,” he said and glanced around the restaurant. “I ran into Rick the other day and he mentioned you had a place, so I decided to come by and say ‘Hello.’”
“Well, hello,” she said, feeling more and more like a tongue-tied fool with every passing second. “Monica will get you a table.” She waved at the hostess and when the young woman came by, she said, “Please seat Tony as soon as you can.”
He raised his hand in a ‘stop’ motion. “Por favor, no special treatment.”
Sara peered around the dining room. Every table was full inside and a quick look through the windows confirmed the outdoor seats were all taken. Plus there were quite a number of people milling around outside waiting to be seated.
“It may be a while,” she said with an apologetic grimace.
Tony mimicked her action, scrutinizing the restaurant and outdoor area. “I can wait. I’ve got all night. And if I’m still here when the rush is over, maybe we can grab a coffee later?”
Coffee? With Tony? Butterflies erupted in her stomach, but she somehow got the word out. “S-s-s-ure,” she stammered and without waiting for his reply, she rushed back to the kitchen before she embarrassed herself even more.
“You’re blushing. I’ve never seen you blush before,” Jeri kidded as Sara resumed the final plating of the nearly complete orders.
“It’s the heat in the kitchen,” she said, although her partner probably knew it was a lie.
“Sure, Sara. The heat and not…” Her friend paused and looked over the wall to where Tony waited outside, just beyond the entrance to the restaurant. “That hot guy you obviously have a crush on.”
“Not a crush,” she said and jerked tickets off the board to place them and the finished plates on the counter. Like clockwork her servers came over to pick up the meals and take them to their respective tables.
“Sure thing, Sara. Whatever you say,” Jeri teased as she finished up an order of sliders by topping them with slices of perfectly grilled foie gras. When she was done, she passed the plates to Sara for the final touch of caramelized onion compote before a toasted brioche bun top completed the slider and the order went up on the counter.
“Please, Jeri, leave it alone,” she pleaded and with a reluctant nod, her partner returned her focus to the new orders while Sara prayed that she wouldn’t make a fool of herself with Tony when it came time to chat with him.
She’d tried to keep her crush a secret from him and if he’d ever noticed it, he’d been gentleman enough not to mention it.
She wanted to keep it that way.
He had his restaurant and life in New York and she was here in Miami and never the twain would meet.
But in the back of her mind, she wondered, “What if?”
Order
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Ky0OwQ
Apple Books: https://amzn.to/37mQbpX
B&N: http://bit.ly/BNSouthBeachLove
Google: http://bit.ly/GoogleSouthBeachLove
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/south-beach-love
Additional Retailers: https://books2read.com/SouthBeachLoveHallmark
