I am so excited to have Melinda Leigh here at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews with a Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway.
Thanks Melinda and Source Books for allowing me to join your Her Last Goodbye Blog Tour!
Please take it away, Melinda!
About the Book
Title: Her Last Goodbye
Author: Melinda Leigh
Release Date: September 26, 2017
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Summary
Young mother Chelsea Clark leaves the house for a girls’ night out…and vanishes. Her family knows she would never voluntarily leave her two small children. Her desperate husband — also the prime suspect — hires Morgan to find his wife and prove his innocence.
As a single mother, Morgan sympathizes with Chelsea’s family and is determined to find her. She teams up with private investigator Lance Kruger. But the deeper they dig, the deadlier their investigation gets. When Morgan is stalked by a violent predator, everything — and everyone — she holds dear is in grave danger.
Now, Morgan must track down a deranged criminal to protect her own family but she won’t need to leave home to find him. She’s his next target.
Excerpt
Morgan’s grandfather wiped his mouth with a napkin. A hint of white remained at the corner of his mouth. Morgan pointed to the corresponding spot on her own face, and Grandpa licked his lips.
“Grandpa!” Ava said in a stern voice. “That’s your third! You’re not s’posed to eat them all, Right, Mommy?”
“Right.” Morgan lifted an eyebrow at her grandfather.
Grandpa laughed. “Life is short. Eat dessert.”
All three girls looked at Morgan hopefully.
Shaking her head at her grandfather, she turned back to her girls and said, “One cupcake each.”
“You were s’posed to watch him,” Ava said to Stella.
Stella laughed. “He doesn’t listen to me.”
Before moving in with her boyfriend, Mac, over the summer, Stella had lived with Grandpa too. Come to think of it, had Grandpa ever had the house to himself? Morgan’s older brother, Ian, had been in college when their father had died. Ian had been grown, but Grandpa had helped raise his three younger granddaughters. The man was a saint.
Grandpa reached for another cupcake, his hand trembling.
Stella slid the plate out of his reach. “I doubt your cardiologist would approve.”
A saint with a stubborn streak.
“You’d think, at my age, I could do what I wanted,” Grandpa grumbled.
“Think again.” Morgan kissed him on the cheek. “We love you too much for that.”
The girls went back to smearing icing on cupcakes. Ava and Mia worked with slow and deliberate strokes, but Sophie’s cupcakes looked like they had been decorated with a fire extinguisher.
Morgan sniffed. The kitchen smelled of roasted meat and vegetables. She turned to Gianna. “That smells amazing. What was for dinner?”
“Pot roast.” Gianna dried the slow cooker crock and set it on the counter. “There are leftovers if you’re hungry.”
“We ate, but I will have a cupcake.” Morgan plucked one from the plate.
Though Gianna was still too slender, the dark-haired young woman had put on at least ten pounds and lost her death’s-door pallor since Morgan insisted she move in with them four months ago. She still needed kidney dialysis, but her health and quality of life had improved, so much so that she’d insisted on being Morgan’s live-in nanny.
Ava carefully smoothed the top of a cupcake and carried it to Lance. “This one’s for you.”
“Thanks. Vanilla is my favorite.” Lance took the cupcake and ate it in three bites. “I’d better go. I’ll pick you up at eight thirty?”
They were interviewing Chelsea’s boss at nine.
“That’s fine.” Morgan said, glad she’d kissed him goodbye in the Jeep.
“Where’s Mac?” Morgan asked Stella after Lance left. “At SAR training. Five days in the woods. He’s in heaven.” Stella often said Mac would never be fully tamed. Totally at home in the wilderness, he had joined the local search and rescue team.
“I’d better go.” Stella stood. “I have an early day tomorrow.”
“I’ll walk you out.” Morgan followed her sister to the front door.
“He’s really good with kids.” Stella donned her coat.
Morgan opened the door for her. “He seems to enjoy them.”
“You’re lucky to find a second good man.”
“I am.” Morgan pushed back at the sadness that crept up her throat at the reminder of her late husband. No more lamenting about her loss. It was time to look forward to the future. She followed her sister outside. “How was the cardiologist appointment today?”
“As far as I know, the doctor adjusted his medication. Grandpa wouldn’t let me go in with him.” Stella tugged her keys from her pocket.
“Why is he so stubborn?”
“Because he’s a Dane?” Stella paused to brush a hair off her face. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Thanks for taking him today.”
“Hey, he’s my grandpa too. Please don’t feel like you have to do it all. We’ll manage it together.” Stella got into her car and drove away.
Morgan watched her sister’s taillights disappear into the darkness. Stella was right. Morgan didn’t have to manage everything alone. Why did she always think she did? That whole bringing-home-the-bacon-and-frying-it-up-in-a-pan thing got old fast.
She turned back toward the house. The hairs on her nape rose. Was someone watching her?
She spun around, her eyes searching the darkness beyond the reach of the lights. There was no one in front of the house, and the street was empty in both directions. A gust of wind blew dead leaves along the gutter. Her imagination must be working overtime with Chelsea’s disappearance.
But her steps quickened as she hurried toward the front door. She went inside, locked the door, and set the alarm. Grandpa took home security seriously. He’d installed motion lights, surveillance cameras, and a solid alarm system.
Sophie waited in the hallway.
“If you pick a book, I’ll read to you,” Morgan said. Maybe cuddling with her girls would relax her. She obviously needed some downtime.
“Toy Story!” Sophie ran for the bedroom she shared with her sisters.
Morgan’s return to work had made them all a little clingy. Even with Gianna insisting on being her live-in nanny, Morgan preferred to handle bedtime. There was something special about putting her children to bed at night, seeing them safe and warm and content, before she settled herself for the evening.
She read a bedtime story, kissed each little girl, and tucked the covers around their tiny bodies. As always, her heart trembled when the children said good night to their daddy’s picture on the dresser in their room. But Morgan was getting better. No more tears. John had been clear about wanting her to move forward and enjoy life.
But damn, the juggling act that had become her life was hard. How would she ever make her relationship with Lance a priority?
Author Biography
Melinda Leigh abandoned her career in banking to raise her kids and never looked back. She started writing as a hobby and became addicted to creating characters and stories. Since then, she has won numerous writing awards for her paranormal romance and romantic-suspense fiction. Her debut novel, She Can Run, was a number one bestseller in Kindle Romantic Suspense, a 2011 Best Book Finalist (The Romance Reviews), and a nominee for the 2012 International Thriller Award for Best First Book. She is the author of the Midnight Novels, including Midnight Exposure (a finalist for the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense) and Midnight Sacrifice.
Social Networking Links
Website - http://melindaleigh.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/melindaleighauthorpage
Twitter - https://twitter.com/MelindaLeigh1
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5141609.Melinda_Leigh
Giveaway
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/07c2363f160/
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