A little lighthearted suspense...

Sometimes you have to color outside the lines to stay fresh in your writing. Last year, I had a field day with that box of crayons and the end result was, STAY CLOSE, NOVAC! I normally write romance with a splash of humor. With Novac, I added a dash of suspense. (I can hear the Oooo's and Ahhh's) Truthfully, it was a challenge and I am in awe of those authors who write in that genre.

I wanted to share the blurb and a new excerpt with you!

Blurb:

Jessi Novac leads the quiet life of a romance author until someone leaves a series of explicit notes under her windshield wipers and heavy breathing on her answering machine.

Until NYPD can track down the culprit who's trying to scare the bejesus out of her, Jessi hides out at her grandmother's beach house in Myrtle Beach where she hopes to get her bearings. Her life takes an even bigger tilt toward crazy when she meets her clumsy neighbor, Ian Alexander. She's suspicious of Ian and attracted to him at the same time. Strange things start happening at the beach house and Jessi clings to Ian for protection. She soon discovers her heart may be in more danger than her life.

* A note about the cover:  Jessi had a beloved Chihuahua, Gordon, who died of old age. In the lefthand corner of all her books, she puts his picture.

Excerpt:

          Jessi pulled her arm loose. The second she was inside, she realized the error of coming there. If Ian was the crazed person she'd been trying to shake, she just made things easy for him. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. In her romance novels she was careful not to write ditzy heroines. Obviously, in real life she was one. Her gaze zipped around the small living room. Wicker furniture with navy and white striped cushions filled most of the space. A large conch shell decorated the middle of the glass-top coffee table, while a small TV and an array of silk plants took up the rest of the room. Nothing screamed stalker. Then again, it wasn't his place.

          Ian was dilly-dallying, and Jessi was getting irritable. "Is that French vanilla I smell?" It was a ridiculous question since there wasn't a trace of French vanilla anywhere.

          "No. Just plain old coffee." Finally, he led the way to the kitchen.

          Jessi's mouth instantly filled with saliva. If she didn't get a sip of coffee soon, she would need a bib.

          Ian pulled two coffee cups from a mug-tree on the counter. He filled one and grinned.

          Slow torture. She wouldn't have to fall asleep for him to kill her. All he had to do was withhold coffee. Before he filled the second cup, his cell phone rang. Ian wrinkled his nose and walked into a room off the kitchen. Jessi assumed it was the bedroom because their places appeared to have the same layout. Ian's conversation was somewhat muffled, but she could still hear most of the words.

          "Yeah, I know. I have it under control." Ian dropped a handful of cuss words including the f-bomb.

          What did he have under control? Jessi tossed the question around while diving at the cup of coffee still setting on the counter. She took a test sip. Mmm. Some of the tightness in her shoulders let loose. She slurped another sip. Coffee was heaven. The ultimate. Way better than everything, including sex. Jessi snickered. According to the love scenes she wrote, sex was a girl's best friend. Another sip of coffee said that was rubbish.

          Some garbled rambling met her ears, but suddenly Ian's words burst loud and succint in her brain. "I'm going to take her by the throat and choke the life out of her."

          The sip of hot coffee in Jessi's mouth sprayed across the plastic table cloth decorated with starfish.


I hope you enjoyed the blurb and excerpt. If you'd like to read more of Stay Close, Novac! click this link: Amazon link