Friday, February 17, 2012

Today's Special - - J.L. Saint

It's our pleasure to welcome J.L. Saint (who also writes as Jennifer St. Giles and Jennifer Saints) back to The Romance Dish.  Jennifer's next book, Tactical Deception, an ebook that will be released March 13th by Samhain Publishing,  is the second book in her terrific Silent Warrior military romantic suspense series. (Read PJ's review of the first book in the series, Collateral Damage here.)  When not busy writing new books, Jennifer's days - and nights - are filled with her responsibilities as a mother, nurse, event planner and vice-president of a charitable foundation that helps women's and children's causes.  One wonders when she sleeps!  







First let me thank the gracious ladies of the Romance Dish for inviting me back to share my upcoming book, Tactical Deception.  It is the second book in my Silent Warrior Series, and takes up just shortly after Collateral Damage left off.  The world is still reeling from recent events and the men from Delta are all fighting to pull their lives together after tragedy.  They are flawed and vulnerable and make mistakes, but my Silent Warriors have the courage to walk through fire when it comes to protecting their country and loved ones.   My inspiration for writing these books is the many men and women who have put their lives on the line for our country.  There aren’t enough thanks that can cover the debt, but I can share stories about heroes and heroines like them, so others may be inspired to express their thanks.

I also write romance because I believe that love is the greatest thing.  Love is the the greatest gift we can give to another and the greatest need every heart has.  So I invite you to read my stories about love and heroes and heroines who discover love as they put their life and hearts on the line.  From gothic historical to paranormal to contemporary romance to thrillers, you can catch excerpts of them all at Jenniferstgiles.com.


I'd love for you to share your story with me.  Who is the silent hero or heroine in your life?  I’d love to hear about them.

I will be giving away one ebook copy of Collateral Damage and one ebook copy of Tactical Deception to two lucky winners.
 




Tactical Deception, Silent Warrior Series, Book 2

One tormented soldier. One woman. Eight snipers. Someone’s going down…
The fallout from the team’s failed mission to Lebanon is still tearing Lt. Col. Roger Weston apart. God help them all if the media gets wind of the real story. Worse, guilt is eating him alive over a decision that left a fallen warrior’s wife without a husband…and exposed to danger from her radical family.

No matter what, Mari Dalton’s safety and wellbeing—and that of her unborn child—come first.

Mari is certain God is punishing her. She loved the man who rescued her from a windowless cell in Afghanistan, and never betrayed their marriage. But she has never been able to forget her body’s reaction to Roger. Now she is the target of terrorists bent on destroying the heart of America. As Roger lays his life on the line to protect her, they uncover a plot already in motion to assassinate the President. As the world teeters on the edge of chaos, any hope for a future rests in Roger’s already blood-stained hands…and the quietly faithful woman who holds his heart.


Excerpt from Tactical Deception.

Before the guilt of Neil’s death could get another strangling hold on him, Roger marched to his bedroom door. He couldn’t effectively take care of Mari if she hid herself from him. Something had to change. He knocked on the door.
No answer.
He knocked harder.
Still no answer. Worried now, he opened the door. “Mari?”
Light from the bathroom highlighted her figure at the window. She stood minus her
abaya and hijab—her black gown and head scarf. She wore a long tunic over slim pants, a vision of cream-colored silk and ebony hair that fell well below her waist. Gold leaves embroidered the collar, sleeves and hems of her outfit. The effect was delicate, exotic, almost ethereal.
Tears streamed down her cheeks and she had her hands pressed to her abdomen, to the child growing within her.
“Are you hurting? Is it the baby? Do you need to go to the hospital?”
“No. The baby is fine. No pain.”
Relief had his blood rushing with dizzying force, leaving him almost light-headed and his chest tightened into a knot. Emotion, pain, and desire sucker punched him in the gut and below. What kind of low-bellied dick was he?
The lowest he decided. He couldn’t stop his heated arousal in response to her beauty, but he damn well could ignore it and remember with every shred of decency he had in him that if it wasn’t for him, Neil would be with Mari right now and none of the shit that had happened to her lately would have occurred.
She stood frozen a moment then turned, reaching for her black gown.
“Don’t. Please don’t hide from me.” His voice escaped in a harsh rasp.
She paused, looking at him, her hand resting on her heavy gown. Her golden eyes were wide with…fear?
He covered the distance between them.
“Are you afraid of me?” Their gazes met and she lowered hers.
He knew before he slid his thumb under her chin how soft her skin was. Just weeks ago, he’d lost his restraint and kissed her tear-dampened cheeks after Dugar had taken a shot at her outside the hospital. That night he’d held her bandaged hand as she’d restlessly slept between nightmares. And until helping her up from the street today, it was the last time he’d touched her.
He clasped her hand resting on her gown and brought it to his chest, placing her palm firmly over his racing heart. Her gaze reconnected with his and he asked her again. “Are you afraid of me?”
“No,” she whispered before shutting her eyes and pulling her hand away.
She said no, but he swore he saw fear swirling in her conflicted expression.
“Why then? Why didn’t you tell me how bad things were for you? I could have helped or gotten you help. And why didn’t you tell me about the shooting lessons? I would have arranged for them. Made sure you were safe.”
“You would have?” She blinked at him with surprise. “But you were adamant about me not leaving the post for any reason. Not even to go with Holly to the store in Fayetteville.”
“Going to a shoe sale in a crowded mall is different than going to a gun range. Besides, learning to protect yourself is more important than buying shoes.” Roger raked his fingers through his hair. He remembered the conversation they’d had a few weeks back. And yeah, he’d been pretty strong in his objections about them going to the mall. But then, someone had been calling in bomb threats at that time too. It had been three weeks after Dugar’s attempts to kill her and Roger would have bet money Dugar was behind the threats. He hadn’t told Mari about any of it though. He hadn’t wanted her to worry. Only to heal.
She frowned at him as if he’d grown horns. “What?” he asked. Had he said something wrong?
“So what does that mean? I am not supposed to do something, but if it’s something you approve of then it is all right to do it?”
Hell. She made him sound as if he were a bipolar prison guard. He counted to ten, hoping to ease his frustration, but it didn’t work. “No. Well, sometimes, maybe, yes. I mean—” Tension knotted his brow. What did he mean? Couldn’t she see the difference between the two outings? “We can discuss the details later. I just need to know why you couldn’t tell me about the anxiety you’re having and that you wanted to learn self-defense.”
“I didn’t want you to worry.”
Roger opened his mouth then shut it. He’d kept things from her for the same reason, but this was different. She’d put herself in both physical and mental jeopardy. Then again, hadn’t he set himself as her prison guard as opposed to a bodyguard? Had he done anything personal to put her at ease enough to be able to share her anxiety with him? No, he’d let his guilt and his need to avoid his attraction to her keep her at a cold, formal distance. He had to change. “You can’t do that anymore. From now on, no matter what you want to do, just tell me and whether I like it or not, I will help you do it, okay? It is the only way I can assure your safety.”
“That’s it? If I want to go buy shoes then you’ll take me?”
He exhaled. “Yes. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to voice my opinion on whether it’s a smart thing to do or not. And if I really think something is too dangerous then I expect you to respect my serious concerns. This isn’t a forever state of affairs. It’s just until Dugar is caught, then you’ll be your own woman, okay?”
Her own woman? Did she even know who she was? Mari looked up at Roger, her heart racing so fast she could barely think.  A few moments ago, she’d been staring out at the purple-red sunset, wondering how she could face Roger.  She’d done exactly what he’d told her not to do and it had turned out so badly.  She’d been sickened over how miserably she’d failed in establishing any shred of independence.  Her worst fears about herself had come true. She’d had a total panicked meltdown. She’d been thrust back into the darkness of what had happened in Afghanistan. She’d hit the bottom and was surprised that she’d survived it all. Her pride was bruised, but she was okay.
Now she was not only facing Roger but… she stood alone with him, in his bedroom, wearing only her tunic and pants and she wasn’t embarrassed or shamed.  She wanted this familiarity between them.
He wasn’t as mad as she thought he would be either.
It wasn’t as if her choosing to leave the post didn’t matter. She could see that he was clearly upset and worried about her. But it wasn’t how she’d thought it would be. Her father would have—
Roger wasn’t her father. Never would be. But he wasn’t the easygoing teddy bear Neil had been either. In some ways Roger was like a fierce warrior. Dangerous and remote. She’d seen the deadly anger in his eyes when it came to Dugar. She had no doubt that Roger would kill Dugar with his bare hands if he had to. She’d also seen a haunted darkness in him too. Roger had deep secrets that she instinctively knew he’d never let another person near.
Neil had been different. There wasn’t a part of him he didn’t openly share with her. It wasn’t that he didn’t keep information from her. There were things about his job he couldn’t tell her and things she would never ask him. But his soul and heart had wrapped warmly around her as accepting and loving as a puppy. He’d never said anything to curtail what she did, but then, she’d never ventured beyond the strictures of her upbringing. It was two years before he could talk her into going to the store alone.
It wasn’t until she met Holly that Mari started thinking about doing things outside of the rules, about getting an education, a job, learning to shoot a gun, and yes, one of those things was standing without her abaya before a man who wasn’t her husband, her brother or her father. A man who said she could be her own woman? What did that mean?
“Okay?” Roger angled his head to look into her eyes as he set his hands on her shoulders.
She nodded. Her tongue was tied in the gratefulness clogging her throat and in the fire burning through her senses at his heated touch. He’d made this whole big problem and the fiasco of the day all so simple. So easy to let go of and move forward. At least she thought he had. Currently her mind reeled, making coherent thought debatable. His nearness and intensity had her blood racing places her mind couldn’t go yet.
He released her and stepped back. “Hungry?”
“Yes.” She drew in a much-needed breath of air. She thought about grabbing her abaya and putting it on now. Considering the way he made her feel, it would be safer.
“What do you want to eat for dinner?” He started walking out of the bedroom, but his gaze fell on the rumpled bed and she cringed. It looked as if a tornado had struck it; she’d tossed and turned so much.
She rushed over to straighten the bedcovers. “Whatever you want will be fine.”
She didn’t dare look at him. What he must think. He’d loaned her his bed and she couldn’t even leave it neat. Leaning forward with her knees against the mattress, she fixed the blanket and threw the pillows back up to the headboard. She stood back quickly and hit a hard, hot body—an unmistakably aroused, hard, hot, male body. His arm wrapped around her when she teetered with surprise and a visceral shock wave of want hit her hard.





12 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Flora, that's how I felt after reading the first book in this series. Can't wait to start Tactical Deception!

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  2. Hi Jenni! Welcome back to TRD! I've been waiting all year for this book. As you know, I devoured COLLATERAL DAMAGE like a bag of Peanut M&Ms (and that's pretty darn fast!). Can't wait to dive into the action of TACTICAL DECEPTION!

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  3. Wow...This sounds like a great book! Not sure exactly how I missed Collateral Damage either! Granted I'm typically hip deep in piles of historical romances but I thought I did a better job of keeping my eye on the other genres! I'm slipping I guess...
    My silent hero happens to be a military man and my husband. He is in the Army Guard and was part of a 22 month deployment from Sept 05 to July 07 in support of OIF. That deployment made up the bulk of our dating and engagement too (though we knew eachother as friends from work before our own relationship). He is currently deployed again, this time a MUCH shorter deployment because of laws sparked by the last one limiting the extensions they are able to place on deployed soldiers thankfully. He is so strong to be able to do the job that requires so much time away from his life here at home. His strength is what makes it easier to do my job as wife and mother on the home front. It is a blessing for sure to have found him at a time in my life where I was ready to handle the obstacles to get the man. <3

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  4. *waving madly* Hiya, Jenni! So glad you're with us today. :) Congrats on your newest release! It sounds awesome.

    I am so thankful for all of our military personnel who fight or have fought tirelessly for our freedoms. They should be heroes and heroines to all of us!

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  5. Hi, Jenni! I'm so happy you're here today. Sending you a virtual (((Hug))). *g*

    I agree with Andrea about our military. My hubby retired from the Navy after 21 years, and I have immense respect for all that these men and women do for us. They are true heroes, in every sense of the word.

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  6. Flora said it so well. Wow, indeed!

    I too honor our men and women in military service and am grateful for the sacrifice they and their families make.

    I have two nephews who are medical firefighters. I think they and their colleagues are silent heroes too.

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  7. Your characters are just how I like them: flawed and vulnerable. That definitely makes me want to root them on!

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  8. Jennifer. Thank you for sharing an excerpt from TACTICAL DECEPTION. Sounds good. I like good suspenseful reads. We were a military family for 24 years. The different branches and jobs have very different stress levels and dangers. No matter what the job, it is a close knit community unlike anything you will find in civilian life. When people complain about veteran's benefits, it is obvious they have no idea what the service member and their family goes through during those years of active duty.

    My hero is my husband. He was in the AF for 24 years. He is one of the most considerate and generous person I have met. It is little considerate things he does for people that he does without really thinking about it that impress me. When we are out, either at a store or visiting in a nursing home, if he sees an older person with a veteran's hat on, he will go over and spend time with them letting them talk about their experiences and thanks them for their service. He is constantly helping people out in little ways and big. People just forget to be considerate anymore and don't realize how much a little gesture can mean.

    I like the sound of TACTICAL DECEPTION and will have to look for COLLATERAL DAMAGE to catch up on the series. I hope the release does well for you.

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  9. Wow!!! Awesome covers! I'll be adding these to my Amazon wishlist, for sure!

    My "silent hero" is my Dad. My Dad's primary job was being in the Navy, and then on top of that he worked a second job on occasion so that he could support our family and provide not only the things we NEEDED but also if the money was available, the things we "wanted". Once my brother's and I finished school, HE went back to school and obtained his Bachelor's degree by going to night school after he'd worked all day for the military. He missed out on so much when we were growing up. It seems as if he was always "out to sea". I remember once at Christmas, my mom dressed us up in our Sunday finest and she had our neighbor come over and take our picture while we held up a handmade sign that said, "Merry Christmas, Daddy. We Love You!" My Dad is just AWESOME! Now of course, he isn't perfect, but in my eyes he's pretty darn close!

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  10. Okay technically challenged Have posted twice but somehow don't see that they've appeared in the responses. But then me and my I phone are still on a get to know each other basis eighteen months after the first date. LOL. I really appreciate the warm welcome and I am so glad each of you have enjoyed reading about Mari and Roger. More than that your stories of your heroes have touched my heart. Thank you for sharing them. More later, off to eat and shower after a busy day at work

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  11. Hey Jenni! So happy you are joining us today. This. book, and your whole series, sound fabulous Cant wait read them all.

    I agree with others in regards to the men and women in our armed forces. But in addition to them, a silent hero in my life has been my mom. She has taught me, through her words and life experience, to be strong, stay determined and to love fiercely.

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