Today marks the release of the Mass Market Paperback edition of The Conspiracy by Kat Martin. The hardback copy of this first book in Martin's Maximum Security series, filled with high stakes suspense, intrigue, danger, and romance was released in January, 2019. Click here to read my review.
Harper Winston’s brother has disappeared. Pursuing his dream of sailing the Caribbean, Michael hasn’t responded to texts or emails in days. When even the Coast Guard can’t find him, Harper is forced to take desperate measures. Which means going to Chase Garrett, once her brother’s best friend, now the only man she can trust…or so she hopes.
As the successful owner of Maximum Security, Chase has learned to trust his gut. He knows Harper’s father is mixed up in a deadly business, and suspects there’s more to Michael’s disappearance than meets the eye. Getting involved again with the Winstons goes against everything he stands for, yet old loyalties die hard. As the case draws him closer to Harper and deeper into the Winstons’ snarled crime family, he is forced to put everything on the line to keep Harper safe…and both of them alive.
As the successful owner of Maximum Security, Chase has learned to trust his gut. He knows Harper’s father is mixed up in a deadly business, and suspects there’s more to Michael’s disappearance than meets the eye. Getting involved again with the Winstons goes against everything he stands for, yet old loyalties die hard. As the case draws him closer to Harper and deeper into the Winstons’ snarled crime family, he is forced to put everything on the line to keep Harper safe…and both of them alive.
The
Texas Mystique
Since my book, THE CONSPIRACY, Chase Garrett
and Harper Winston’s story, is set in Texas, I thought it might be fun to talk
about one of my favorite places.
There is something special about Texas. My husband and I lived in Houston for a
couple of months one summer and it was a wonderful experience. The people in Texas are extremely friendly, and
always seem to be in a good mood.
We stuffed ourselves on gourmet meals in some
of the country’s finest restaurants, ate a ton of delicious Tex Mex, enjoyed Asian,
Indian flatbread, and just about everything else. We visited art galleries, the beach, and drove
past some of the beautiful ranches in the area.
That was the good news. The bad news was Houston in August is
HOT. It’s also muggy and sticky and you
just can’t wait for October to arrive. Or maybe September.
Two years ago, we traveled to Lubbock for a
Western Writers of America conference. I
was reluctant to go in the summer, but it turned out to be a really great
trip--hot but dry. We visited the Museum
of Texas Tech and met some fun people, including old-time movie star, Barry
Corbin, who’s been in everything from Urban Cowboy to The Best Little Whore
House in Texas.
For the past few years, I’ve been setting my
stories in Dallas, one of my favorite cities. In THE CONSPIRACY Harper Winston’s brother
has disappeared. Desperate to find him,
Harper is forced turn to the wealthy owner of Maximum Security, private
detective, Chase Garrett, once her brother’s best friend.
But dealing with the Winston crime family won’t be easy. With time running out, Chase must find a way
to keep Harper safe...and both of them alive.
Texas is a place that captured my soul long
ago. If you don’t have time to visit, I
hope you look for Harper and Chase in THE CONSPIRACY, out in paperback July 30th,
and that you enjoy.
Till next time, all best and happy reading, Kat
New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara where she majored in Anthropology and also studied History. Currently residing in Missoula, Montana with her Western-author husband, L. J. Martin, Kat has written sixty-five Historical and Contemporary Romantic Suspense novels. More than sixteen million copies of her books are in print and she has been published in twenty foreign countries. Kat is currently at work on her next Romantic Suspense.
The
Conspiracy, by Kat Martin
EXCERPT 5 of 5
As the land
cruiser rolled along the highway, Harper tried to relax, but worry nagged
her. She didn't like the big,
dark-haired man with the obsidian eyes and scarred face. With his hard features and powerful, muscular
body, Killian Dawson made her more than a little uneasy.
Even his
name set her on edge. Killian. Kil, he called himself. She wondered if he spelled it with two LLs.
She couldn't
imagine how a man who hadn't cut his hair in months, hadn't shaved in days,
could possibly be handsome, but somehow he was.
She thought that a man who exuded that kind of masculinity wouldn't have
any trouble attracting women, though his crude brand of sexuality didn't appeal
to her and only made her dislike him more.
It didn't
matter what she thought of him. They
needed his help to find Michael, and Dawson clearly knew what he was
doing. She would follow his orders, do
whatever she had to.
Besides,
she was armed and so was Chase. In a
different but equally masculine way, Chase was Dawson's equal. He was smart, his body hard, all lean-muscled
power and strength. She could count on
Chase to protect her, believed that in every cell of her body.
Maybe it
was because she was Michael's sister, or that she was a woman, but she didn't
think so. Something was happening
between them. She had begun to see it in
Chase's eyes whenever he looked at her and thought she wouldn't see.
Something
hot and sexual was happening that neither of them wanted--Harper revised the
thought--or at least something Chase didn't want. Harper was growing more and more certain
having sex with Chase Garrett was exactly what she wanted.
Whatever
the truth, at least for now both of them were doing their best to ignore
it. They were there to save Michael and
Pia. That was all that mattered.
An hour and
a half after they left Santa Marta following the GPS coordinates Tabitha Love
had given to Chase, Kil Dawson pulled the Land Cruiser off the Mingueo-Santa
Marta highway onto a two-lane road headed directly toward the ocean. The road quickly narrowed to a single dirt
track, and a few miles later, the sea appeared in front of them, an endless
expanse of blue.
The road
turned slightly south and ran along the edge of a cove. A ways farther on, a few weary structures
appeared ahead of them, a gas station with only a single pump, and what passed
for a restaurant with rooms above. A
permanent VACANT sign swung in the breeze on a pole outside the entrance. Next to it, the door to the Las Palmaras
Cantina stood open.
The village
was mostly deserted, just a kid on a ratty, bicycle and a couple of older women
in ankle-length, gathered skirts walking along the dirt street. A mongrel black and white dogged sniffed a
trash can in the ally beside the restaurant looking for something to eat.
It was the
sleek white sailboat bobbing at a long wooden dock on the west side of the cove
that captured Harper's attention. Her
mouth went dry as she recognized her brother's beautiful yacht, BUZZ Word.
"There
it is!" She pointed excitedly over
Chase's shoulder. "Michael's
boat. That's it!"
Dawson
pulled the vehicle off the main road onto an even narrower dirt track that
wound into deep green foliage. Reaching
beneath his seat, he dragged out a pair of binoculars and began to scan the
dock, the village, and the area around it for what seemed the longest
time.
"Looks
deserted," he finally said. "No
way to know for sure till we check it out."
Harper's
gaze remained on the boat, her heart throbbing.
They'd found the yacht, but what had happened to Michael and Pia? She didn't see anyone aboard the vessel. Had they been murdered for the money the
valuable yacht would bring? She shoved
the grim thought out of her head. Her
brother was alive somewhere and being held for ransom. Chase had said it was still a
possibility.
Putting the
cruiser into four-wheel drive, Dawson drove farther down the muddy trail until
they were completely hidden from view.
The engine went dead and Dawson stepped out of the vehicle. At the same time, so did Chase.
Silently,
the men walked to the rear of the cruiser and opened the tailgate to the cargo
area. They both started unzipping gear
bags and pulling out clothes and equipment.
When the
men began to peel off their shirts and jeans, Harper looked away. By the time she looked back, both men were
dressed, both wearing camo pants and T-shirts.
The olive drab Tee that Chase had put on outlined the muscles across his
chest and abdomen and stretched around his amazing biceps. He'd strapped one of Dawson's long-bladed
knives to his thigh and a second pistol hung from a belt around his waist.
He looked
like a man she had never seen before.
Tall, hard-edged, hard-bodied, and determined. He hadn't shaved since they'd left Aruba and
the dark gold beard along his jaw now joined the rough stubble on his cheeks,
making him appear rugged and dangerous.
A looked like a man who could handle whatever he faced, exactly the
right man for the job ahead of him.
It was
exactly the wrong time for her to feel a shot of lust.
Kil Dawson
closed the back of the cruiser while Chase walked around and opened the rear
passenger door. "You need to stay
here," he said. "You've got a
gun. If you get in trouble, fire off a
shot. We won't be far away."
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