**Cristin will be awarding a $25 GC to Victoria’s
Secret, and gifted e-copies of the five titles in the series (starting with WINTER’S
HEAT. Three novels and two novellas) to one randomly drawn commenter during
this tour Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your
chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
Winter’s Heat
by Cristin
Harber
WINTER'S HEAT Blurb:
After putting her life on the line to protect classified
intelligence, military psychologist Mia Kensington is on a cross-country road
trip from hell with an intrusive save-the-day hero. Uninterested in his white
knight act, she’d rather take her chances without the ruggedly handsome,
cold-blooded operative who boasts an alpha complex and too many guns.
Colby Winters, an elite member of The Titan Group, has a single
objective on his black ops mission: recover a document important to national
security. It was supposed to be an easy in-and-out operation. But now, by any
means necessary becomes a survival mantra when he faces off with a stunning
woman he can’t leave behind.
When Titan’s safe houses are compromised, Colby stashes Mia at his
home, exposing his secret—he’s the adoptive father of an orphaned baby girl.
Too soon, danger arrives and Mia lands in the hands of a sadistic cartel king
with a taste for torture. As hours bleed into fear-drenched days, Colby races
across the globe and through a firestorm of bullets to save the woman he can’t
live without.
Excerpt from WINTER’S HEAT:
Setup- Colby Winters is running out
of a cartel kingpin’s mansion during a gunfight to a waiting Titan team member.
Mia is behind him.
Gunfire surrounded her. Coming for
them, shooting away from them. They fired. He fired back. The burnt gunpowder
floated behind him, blazing into her nose and eyes. Still, she pushed, moving
as he moved, tracing his cross-hatched steps, ducking when he ducked. A shadow
behind the man.
She heard a thump. He growled and
missed a step but didn’t stop moving. Brilliant red blood sprayed onto her. He
didn’t slow. Her legs burned keeping the pace.
They rounded the corner, and he
pressed her against the stucco wall. His blood stained her. It painted the wall
and covered his hands. Vehicles came their way. Armed men poured from a hole in
the perimeter fence like ants from an anthill. Fireballs from the jungle hit
the vehicles. Violent explosions sent deadly fireworks into the sky. Rubber and
diesel burned hot. Black smoke billowed around the armed men running toward
them.
The heat, humidity, and smoke would
have slowed a lesser man. So would a gunshot wound. He scanned the vast lawn.
“We have to make it past that hole
in the fence. There’s a vehicle waiting for us. We’ve got a sniper in the trees,
and two more men on the ground. When you see someone dressed like me, you run
like hell toward him. Got it?”
“You’re hurt.” She wanted to run her
hands across his skin and stop the bleeding.
He ignored her. “Say it, Mia. Can
you do this?”
“I can.” She gave him a strong nod,
exacerbating her headache. She didn’t care. Colby was here, and she’d do
whatever he needed her to do.
“You got this. Let’s go.”
He gave her a small push in the
right direction. Bullets sounded around her. Men ran toward them, guns pointed
their way. The shots hit the grass, spitting up dirt, and slapping her face.
She tasted blood and grit, and felt the filth in her mouth, which caked her
lips and teeth.
White-hot pain rocketed through her.
A dizzying flash made her stumble. He grabbed her upright.
“Flesh wound. Keep going,” he
shouted above the noise. His teeth were gritted together. He huddled beside
her, pulling her. “There’s Jared. Run!”
Another thump. He was hit again, as
he shielded her from the rain of artillery. One by one, men advanced toward
them and were dropped by a sniper. But as one went down, another appeared.
She heard another bullet hit.
Winters dropped to his knee, pulled Mia under him, and cursed violent threats.
His sweat and blood coated her. She felt it through the layers of clothing and
vests. He scooped her with one arm and crawled behind a statue.
“How bad are you hurt, Colby?”
“Doesn’t matter.” His labored
breaths worsened with each passing moment.
“How bad, damn it?”
Winters stopped laboring and laughed.
“You’re unreal, you know that?”
Mia glared at him.
“Bad. But I think Kevlar got most of
it. Everything heals. I’m not worried. Jared’s twenty yards ahead, picking them
off. We have to go for it right now. Or we don’t have a chance. You got it, babe?”
“I can do this.”
“I know you can. Run, baby, run.” He
took off at a limped sprint, acting as a barrier from the fire again.
His leg went out from under him. The
whiz of bullets went to slow motion, the sound ceased. Mia dropped on bent
knees, watching him on the ground.
“Run, goddamn it,” he shouted. His
veins popped out of his neck as he fired into the distance.
The world came back, loud and
furious. Her legs moved, even though her mind was numb. Jared appeared out of
nowhere. He jumped from his perch and snared her with an arm, dragging her into
the vehicle.
“Wait. Colby.”
Jared threw the vehicle into gear
and spun tires as he tore down the makeshift road. Branches and jungle leaves
scratched at the windshield.
Mia launched at Jared, hitting his
shoulder.
“Colby’s hurt.” Tears and terror
filled her throat. The very depths of her soul ached. Her screech turned to a
pleading whisper. “Please. Help him.”
“They were right on your tail.
They’ve got him by now.”
Dread ricocheted through her head. All
the pain and loss pressed onto her. Suffocating despair ripped her apart. Tears
streamed down. Rapid breaths came fast. Too fast. She tried to cut them off but
failed. All went black.
Amazon: http://amzn.to/18mlNVe
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1ful6Rf
iTunes: http://bit.ly/19KIAdD
All
Romance: http://bit.ly/155v3On
About the Author
Cristin Harber Romantic Suspense Author Higher Stakes. Hotter Action |
MOM.
WIFE. AUTHOR.
Lover
of all things sexy and happily ever after.
I
live outside Washington, DC with my family: my husband (who doesn’t mind my
collection of book boyfriends), an independent toddler, and an English bulldog
named Britta who loves to be a conversation piece. Oh, we have a baby on the
way—arriving about the same time as WINTERS HEAT debuts!
I
love southern food, listen to country music, am always too hot or too cold, and
spend hours reading and writing. I cheer on my University of Louisville
Cardinals-GO CARDS! When I’m not pregnant (or nursing), I like a little bourbon
or sweet wine. Pregnant or not, I love a lot of chocolate.
I
can’t save the world, so instead, I write about those that do. There’s a
special place in my heart for those who keep us safe. My Titan series debuts
this fall with five titles available in 2013: WINTERS HEAT, GARRISON’S CREED,
WESTIN’S CHASE, CHASED, and GAMBLED.
Links:
NEWSLETTER
signup for series info: http://bit.ly/11aWFzM
WEBSITE:
http://cristinharber.com
TWITTER:
https://twitter.com/CristinHarber
Thanks for stopping by!
13 comments:
Thank you for hosting
That's a SUPER smokin cover! Did you have any say on the cover and the creative process?
andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com
Hi Andra,
My cover designer (the great Kim Killion and Hot Damn Design crew) had great ideas to work with after I gave them an idea of what I liked and the cover model style I was interested in. It's an AMAZING first cover. Pretty sure I jumped up and down, even after looking at the first draft.
Thanks for sharing the great excerpt and the giveaway. Sounds like a great book. evamillien at gmail dot com
Colby sounds like one great hero! AFischer48@mail.com
What a great exert, I'm going to buy the book now.
Geri
Thanks everyone for the interest in Colby and Mia's story!
Hi Cristin
I am ashamed to say I had not heard of you and your books until Caroline spread the word about this post. Your book sounds great and will be going onto my TBR list on my Kindle right away. Loved the excerpt and want more. Good luck with the birth of your new baby and I wish you all the very best with your books.
Susan, I'm a new kid on the block! Thanks for the well wishes, and I appreciate the add to your TBR list. Take care!
I had to buy the book and have started it. Hard to put down. Best wishes for success.
This sounds like a very intense book. And that excerpt! Wow! I will definitely be snatching this one up. I have to know what happens. Thanks for sharing!
Rhonda D
slinkydennis@yahoo.com
I want to win. Pick me, pick me! Your books look like they are right up my alley.
Sounds like a great, action packed read! Loved your blog. karrenlucas@hotmail.com
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