Welcome to my blog, Sage. Thanks for chatting with me.
Author Interview
Who are some of your favorite authors?
Linda Lael Miller is so
prolific and versatile; I really admire her. More recently I discovered
Annabelle Costa; her books are in my niche.
What types of books do you enjoy in your downtime?
Downtime? What’s that?
Actually, I have squeezed in time for reading for pleasure, and I choose
romance, of course.
What sort of research did you do to write this book?
Oh boy, did I do research! I
wanted Cass and Bryan’s college experience to be authentic, so I researched
colleges and academic programs in their fields. I even crafted class schedules
for them! And, of course I did a lot of research into prosthetic limbs. I was
amazed at the level of technology available. I looked into the psychology of
PTSD and its treatment, and I researched mountain bikes.
What are you working on now?
Another New Adult romance,
although these characters have graduated from college. The heroine shies away
from relationships due to her father’s infidelity, and the hero thinks only
shallow women would be interested in him.
What is your favorite part of the writing and publishing process? Least
favorite?
My favorite part is the actual
writing. I love it when my muse talks to me and my fingers fly over the
keyboard. My least favorite part is marketing. I’m a big introvert, so it’s
hard for me to put myself under a spotlight.
Do you outline books ahead of time, or are you more of a
by-the-seat-of-your-pants writer?
I used to be a total pantser.
Through Fire was written with no outlining whatsoever. And I have the umpteen
versions and rewrites to prove it! Now I’m learning how to outline.
Blurb
All her life Cass has been the wallflower, quietly
content to make her mark from behind the scenes. As a cognitive psychologist in
the research field, she will use her intellect and tenacity to heal the
“broken” brain. Because she learned long ago she isn’t capable of fixing broken
minds; maybe not even broken hearts.
Bryan doesn’t want to even think about his present. To escape his past, he had always looked
to the future. As a materials engineer he will use his ingenuity and talent to
develop state-of-the-art products and devices. But now an accident has
drastically broad-sided his life – and the hits keep coming.
They give each other the motive to step beyond
self-consciousness – to reach outside themselves to touch the other. They
discover the courage to pull one another close. To love. To be loved. From one
another they draw the power and fortitude to move beyond mistakes.
Excerpt
“Cass! What are you doing
here?”
Her weak knees managed to
get her through the curtain and to Bryan’s side where he lay on a hospital
gurney. She took in his bent legs, arm draped across his abdomen, and pale face
sporting a sheen of sweat.
“I stopped by the
Biosystem Lab. While Jeff was failing miserably at making something up, Marcy
told me he had dragged you to the medical center.”
He looked back up at the
ceiling.
“Since apparently you
were ambulatory, I took a chance and came here to Urgent Care rather than
Emergency. What’s going on? Are you okay?” That was stupid. He plainly wasn’t,
but the question slipped out anyway.
Bryan winced and screwed
his eyes closed. “I’ll be fine. They’re just covering their butts.”
“Quit being such a guy.
What procedure are they performing in order to cover their butts?”
“How did you get in
here?”
“I lied. What’s wrong?!”
His eyebrows lifted.
“Lied about-“ His breath hitched and suffering washed across his face. “-what?”
Worry tightened her
chest. “Bryan, please!”
“I’ll call you la-“ His
words became a groan and he rolled away from her, curling into a fetal position
with his arm wrapped tightly across his abdomen, panting forcefully.
Cass turned to run to the
nurse’s station, almost colliding with a man in scrubs pushing a wheelchair
into the curtained area. Was it a good thing or a bad thing that he was the
same nurse who had been at the front desk handing over forms when she was plying
the receptionist?
“So sorry about the wait.
Let’s get you loaded up. But first, how about I give you a little something for
the pain?”
Bryan grunted out between
clenched jaws, “No, I’m fine.”
The nurse looked over to
her. “We men are too hard-headed for our own good.” Turning back to Bryan, he
admonished, “That’s what got you into this mess. Okay, sit up and step down.”
Bryan relinquished his grasp around his belly, then levered himself up and
reached down toward the floor with one foot. The nurse looked back at her. “You
can wait in the chairs just out there, Mrs. McCaffrey.”
Oh crap! Her stomach
leapt and her mouth dried instantly.
Bryan’s head whipped
around so fast his hand slipped off the gurney mattress when he was only
halfway off. Luckily the nurse was a large man and caught him easily, then
guided him to the wheelchair seat. “Careful, now.”
Bryan’s surprised gaze
was firmly pinned on Cass. She narrowed her eyes into a “Don’t you dare!” expression right as Bryan opened
his mouth, then another spasm of pain caused him to curl away as he was pushed
through the opening in the curtain.
#*#*#
“He’s right in here.” The
nurse indicated the room with a wave of his hand through the doorway, then went
on his way down the corridor.
Cass stepped in and,
heart in her throat, walked over to the side of the bed and sat in the chair.
“I’m sorry I told them we…that I was… But I figured they wouldn’t let me in to
see you otherwise. I just panicked. Please don’t be mad.”
The corner of Bryan’s
mouth tipped up. “Of course not.” He swallowed. “It’s good to see you again.”
She nodded and grasped
his hand in hers. Now, how should she present this? If she asked, he would say
no, he was fine, she didn’t need to do that, he could take care of himself. But
it wouldn’t be right to take charge and state her intent, as if he had no say
in the matter. Giving him back his service dog was a no-brainer, but how was
she going to weasel herself back in as well?
A midline approach seemed
best. “When you’re released, I’ll drop Iambe at your apartment. She can help
you out while you finish recuperating, so you don’t need to strain anything
while your incision heals. And I can stop by often -“ Her eyes slid away. “-
maybe even stay there for a bit to take care of her so you can rest and not have
to worry about taking her out for walks or bending over to feed her, that sort
of thing.” She lifted her gaze to assess his response.
There was a moderate
smile on his face. “That’s not necessary. The incision is quite small,
actually. They did their repair laparoscopically.” A teasing light came into
his eyes. “So you’ll need to come up with another excuse.”
Cass took a deep breath
and leaned closer, resting her chin on her crossed arms atop the side rail. Her
voice shook. “Can I come home?”
His smile slowly slid
away as he reached out, tucking a stray section of hair behind her ear. He ran
the backs of his fingers down her cheek and thumbed away the escaped tears.
Softly he pleaded, “Please come home.”
Buy Links
Amazon
(e-book)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NHNWLCX
Other
suppliers
Author Bio
Tucked away in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, Sage
divides her time among being a mother, a writer, and the program director for a
non-profit. Growing up, and for quite some time after, she was a reader and a dreamer,
but didn’t often put pen to paper. Then late one night, listening to music,
story ideas dancing through her head, she was overcome with an inescapable urge
to actually write. She is a nature-worshiper and spends a fair amount of time
hiking and camping, when she’s not playing Sudoku.
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