The Countdown Is On!

It's almost time to go to New Jersey! I've had such a good time at this event every year I've been there, and I can't wait to go back again this year. Two days at a really lovely winery, 60 authors, and books for almost every reader! I've been working on my prep checklist, and my replenishment book order will be here this week, so I'll be all stocked up again. Then my prep list will mostly be getting everything together in the days leading up to the event so I can load up the car and go!

If you've been around a while, you've heard me talk about this one in previous years, about how great the winery is, how much fun I've had with the readers and other authors. Last year, one of my monthly writing group buddies was my hotel neighbor, and I'm thinking we might end up as neighbors there again. Haha! The genres represented at the event are a good variety. If you're a romance reader, you're going to find plenty of options, though there are many other types of books and authors who will be there as well. Fantasy? Kids'? Mystery? Yes! If you click on the graphic above, it will take you to the event website and you can find out more about this year's attending authors. There is a new addition to the proceedings this year: in addition to the goody bags for the first 100 attendees each day, the first 50 readers through the door each day will also get a very cool autograph book so they can get all the authors' signatures. I've seen the print proof, and it looks great!

Since it's Sunday, I'm still working on the weekend to-do list as well, so before I get back to that, I have a quick snippet for you this week from Light the Way Home.

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            Nate schooled his expression to neutrality before turning around. Hayden’s chin jutted stubbornly, and his blue eyes narrowed. “I’m saying Lucie might be busy right now,” Nate said evenly. “Maybe we’ll see her outside tomorrow.”

            “I can knock on the door.” His son crossed his arms on his chest, covering the spotted blue dog graphic. “She said we’d play later, and it’s later.”

            “We can check, but, buddy, you have to promise not to be upset if she’s busy. Plus it’ll be suppertime soon, so we’ll be busy here, too.”

            Hayden’s chin jutted out further.

            “Just don’t get your hopes up,” he said, trying to keep his tone from dropping in defeat.

            Hayden bolted for the back door.

            Nate followed more slowly, picking up his son’s jacket from the chair inside the door. By the time he reached the bottom step, he heard his son’s voice, then Lucie spoke in reply, though he couldn’t hear the words. When he cleared the lilac bushes, he expected to see Hayden’s shoulders droop.

            He was a little surprised to see the two of them walking into the middle of the neighboring yard while Lucie bounced the big yellow ball on one hand. Huh. He would’ve bet on her putting Hayden off. He paused at the open gate between the yards to watch them. They’d stopped, and she crouched in front of Hayden, who chattered a mile a minute. She nodded as she rose.

            Hayden jogged backward a few steps, grinning, then held out both hands.

            Lucie gave the ball another bounce before she tossed it to him.

            His son caught it, giggling. “Too easy,” he shouted. He jumped once, then moved a few more steps away from her. “Ready?”

            “Ready!” She leaned forward and held out her hands.

            Nate wished he could see her expression.

            Hayden lobbed the ball at her, and she caught it before it hit her in the face. He smiled and shook his head when his laughing son danced backward a couple more paces. “Throw it again!”

            “You sure you can catch it so far away?” The tease in her voice made Nate relax. Lucie Russo might be a nice woman. Mindi and Harry trusted her, which meant she was okay.

            But she seemed to be enjoying his son, genuinely enjoying him. Maybe she had nieces or nephews–she was comfortable, chatting with Hayden as they played catch.

            He leaned on the fence to watch.

            “Daddy, come play with us!”

            Lucie straightened and looked over her shoulder, eyes widening.

            Nate felt a little kick in his gut at the appealing image–pink cheeks, green eyes that tipped up at the outer corners, full lower lip dropping a tiny bit. Lucie Russo was pretty.

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Now I'm heading back to my weekend chores between refereeing the cats--we're still trying to get Pippi in the house, and Pretty Girl is not happy about it, but we'll keep working on it. I'm aiming to get a little reading time in later that doesn't include revisions.

What are you reading this week? I'd love to hear about it.

Until next week, happy reading!