California Man - The Author's Cut Edition (25 page)

Quinn laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing, I was just thinking that not too many months ago I felt the same way—and look at me."

"You trying to make a point?"

"Yeah. I am."

"Which is?"

"When the right woman comes along, the future is now."

Paul grinned. "Very profound."

At that moment, Emily came up behind Quinn, wrapped her arms around his waist, and nestled her head between his shoulder blades. She glanced up at Paul. "Can I steal my newly minted husband for a minute? I want him to meet someone special, do you mind?"

"Take him away. Officially, the man is all yours. Besides he's going all philosophical on me."

Lynn came up beside Emily. "Mrs. Duncan is leaving. She wants to say goodbye."

"That's who I want you to meet, Quinn," Emily said. "Will you look after Paul, Lynn?"

Lynn smiled in Paul's direction. "Give me an introduction and I'll be happy to."

Emily frowned. "Didn't you meet... at my play opening? Oh—that's right—you weren't there. I'm sorry. Lynn, this is Paul Severns, Quinn's friend from Los Angeles." With that, Emily led Quinn toward Mrs. Duncan.

Paul and Lynn smiled after them, then at each other.

"They're going to make it, aren't they?" Paul lifted his glass in the direction of the retreating couple. He looked deeply thoughtful, almost—wistful.

Their gazes locked briefly before Lynn followed his gesture.

Lynn got a little wistful herself when Quinn pulled Emily close and bent his head to speak in her ear. The gesture was intimate and loving. A breeze came up from the ocean carrying Emily's quiet laughter back to where Paul and Lynn stood on the deck.

A lump formed in Lynn's throat and her eyes misted as she contemplated the happy couple. "Oh, yes. They'll definitely make it," she whispered.

The End

Page forward to meet the inspiration for Bailey

Zuke, my Rhodesian Ridgeback, was the inspiration for Bailey in California Man—which I suspect he thinks is only natural, handsome devil that he is. That’s him on the cover, too.
 

Yes, I’m an unrepentant dog lover.:-). Zuke is convinced he is a person in dog's clothing.

Page forward for a note from EC Sheedy,

followed by an excerpt from
 

Love Letters, Inc.

Dear Reader,

Thank you for buying and reading this story. I loved writing about Quinn and Emily’s romance, and I love the island where most of their story takes place. Salt Spring is an amazingly beautiful island a one hour drive and a twenty minute ferry ride from where I live. In the summer the island is filled with tourists and good times. In the off season, you’ll find quiet fields and temperate weather. You might even find romance.

I sincerely hope you enjoyed
California Man
, and if you did, that you’ll watch for
Man For The Morning
, where the jaded and ambitious Paul Severns meets open-hearted, plain-speaking Lynn McDonald for a second time—in Paris. The way they see it, they’re definitely
not
meant for each other, but as is usual in the course of human events, fate has other ideas.

Also coming is
Love Letters, Inc
.

When tech writer Rosie O’Hanlon decides to earn a few extra dollars writing passionate prose for some lovelorn clients, her romantic nature gets the better of her. Not only are the letters on the steamy side, they go to the wrong guy. And when that wrong guy tracks her down, determined to put a stop to her imaginative purple prose, he brings some steam of his own.

Available now:

One Tough Cookie
, a contemporary romance set on Spain’s magical Costa del Sol and featuring Willow, a heroine resolutely determined to be financially, emotionally, and physically independent. She wants no man—until she meets Taylor Monroe.

Overkill
, a short romantic thriller, and the first in a series of novelettes featuring the covert Raven Force, a privately funded organization working internationally against the illegal arms/drug trade. Ravens cross borders to get the job done, when no one else can.

In
Overkill
Tanner Cross is called home from the Congo with orders to kill his boss. And as if those orders aren’t insane enough, that boss is the father of the woman Tanner has loved—on the QT—for a dozen years.

Thanks again for reading me! That you have taken the time to read my stories is appreciated more than I can say.

Happy Reading!

EC Sheedy

Website:
www.ecsheedy.com

Twitter:
@EC_Sheedy

email: [email protected]

Page forward for an excerpt from

Love Letters, Inc.

Excerpt from

Love Letters, Inc.

The Author's Cut Edition

by

EC Sheedy

writing as Carole Dean

Chapter 1

"Rosaleen Fiona O'Hanlon, you're certifiable."

Rosie grinned but didn't look away from her computer screen. "Must be bad if you're bringing the full weight of my Celtic heritage to bear, Jonesy. What's the problem?"

"You're broke. Flatter than a cheap perm."

"Uh-huh." Using her foot, Rosie rubbed the belly of the Irish wolfhound sprawled at her feet. He stretched and groaned his appreciation.

"You have the income of a poet and you're spending like a Hilton."

Rosie raised her eyebrows and scanned her modest home office, which she affectionately called Litter Hill. A Hilton wouldn't use it for shoe storage. Still, it was Rosie's and it was home. She loved it. And so did Font, the one hundred and twenty pound heap of canine currently taking up all unused floor space.

"Well, keep it to yourself, okay?" She squinted at the screen, for now jacked up on a plastic tomato crate, and pushed her glasses up her nose. "Wouldn't want it on my head if bank stocks plummet."