Facebook Group

In recent years, Facebook has severely limited the amount of interaction authors can have with their readers. I maintain a profile page on Facebook as well as a "Business Page," which is my fan page. However, Facebook has severely limited my ability to reach and interact with my fans these days - those people who "Liked" the page, presumably to get updates from me, see what I post about, and interact with me -  unless I wish to pay to have the posts seen. Unless you click "like" on every post I post (and there's only a 1 in 10 chances you will), and interact with the post as soon as it hits your Facebook newsfeed, chances are very good you won't be seeing my next post, or the next. 

In order to get around this algorithm, many authors have started fan groups on Facebook. My Facebook group started when a reader made a comment to me over a year ago that she would love to discuss my books with other readers on my business page, but was afraid to make comments because of spoilers, and asked if there was a private place where she could openly talk about the books. So, that's how my group BETWEEN THE LINES WITH PEGGY L HENDERSON got started. It is a closed group, meaning that only members of the group can see and post to the group. 

I love my Facebook group! It's the place I go to every day to talk to my readers. We discuss anything from the weather, to places we've been and would like to visit, and everything in between. We try and keep it focused mainly on books, and my books in particular, since that's what the group was set up for in the first place. I share tidbits about what the characters I currently am writing about have been doing, my joys and frustrations with the characters, exclusive teasers and cover reveals, and lots of other things I don't talk about on my public page. 

We might delve into backstory that never makes it into any of my books, and a favorite topic is always the Book Boyfriends. Everyone has their favorite, and it can sometimes turn into a mud slinging contest (always in good fun and with humor).
I love this interaction, because, as a writer, my job is rather lonely. I live in my head each day, trying to bring these characters to life, and I'm humbled and honored that there are fans who treat these characters as "real people," just as I do. I can ask my readers for opinions, I do exclusive contests and giveaways, and am about to do my first "virtual book signing."

From my group, two books have been born - Yellowstone Promise (which started as an idea one of my beta readers had. She wanted to know what would happen if Daniel, Aimee, Chase and Sarah could go to the future together. I gave it some thought, tossed in Dan and Jana for good measure, and took it from there), and Yellowstone Homecoming. One fan asked me to please write a story about Matthew Osborne, whom we've met very briefly in Yellowstone Redemption, and also as a young boy in Yellowstone Christmas. If you'll recall, he was also the reason for the events that transpired in Yellowstone Deception. 

So, if you'd like to connect on a more active level than simply reading this blog, and have a Facebook account, consider joining my group. I have two administrators who approve each request to join. We don't want spammers or "fake accounts" in the group, and my admins do their best to make sure only "real" and legitimate people get approved. 

I hope to see you there!

To join, go here: Facebook Group 

New Release in the Blemished Brides Series

About two years ago, I had a fleeting idea for a book series.  We're all used to reading about the beautiful barbie doll heroine, and the dashing, gorgeous hero in our romance novels, right? We're supposed to feel as if we ARE that heroine wooed by that dashing hero, and who wants to read about someone who isn't so perfect? Well, what if we can have physical imperfections, or even handicaps and limitations, and still be the most beautiful and desirable thing in that hunky, gorgeous hero's eye?

I finally wrote the first of, what I am calling the Blemished Brides Series, at the end of last year, and it was published this past January. That book, IN HIS EYES, was followed two months later by IN HIS TOUCH, and I'm proud to announce that the third in the series, IN HIS ARMS, just released . 

This series is quite a departure from my Yellowstone and Teton novels, which are set among spectacular wilderness backdrops, packed with action, adventure, and survival (and of course, lots of romance as well), or my time travel westerns in the Second Chances books. The Blemished Brides are all about evoking emotions, and overcoming the challenges and prejudices for being handicapped or different. While I had thought that the books would focus mainly on the heroines and their handicaps and/or limitations when I started this series, it soon became obvious that the leading men were also overcoming their own personal challenges. The hero in each book needed the heroine as much as she needed him.
I'm having a blast writing this series, and one of the challenges has been researching and finding out about different handicaps, and how people in the nineteenth century were perceived and treated when they had physical limitations. 

I posted Chapter One of IN HIS ARMS last week. You can find it here

This is an excerpt from IN HIS EYES

“Before we go, there’s something you have to know about me, Trace.”

His palm left the small of her back, and his hand guided her arm through his, as if he were her beau and taking her for a Sunday stroll. 

“I already know you, Katie,” he said in a hushed tone, and led her down the steps.  

When she reached the gravel ground, her head shot up in the direction of his. She laughed scornfully. “You don’t know anything about me.”

Trace stopped. His body shifted slightly toward her.

“I know that your mother tried to mold you into someone you’re not all those years ago, and failed. I suspect that the folks at that school in New York tried to do the same thing. I’ll bet they failed, too, even though you’re pretending that you’ve conformed because you had no other choice.” He paused, and stepped closer, the heat of him seeping straight through her. Katherine held her breath. 

“I know that you missed this ranch, and the horses. And, I know without a doubt that you want to run through the fields, and get into trouble, like you used to.” 

Trace’s deep voice, soft and caressing against her cheek, left her speechless. Katherine continued to look up in the direction of Trace’s voice, her mouth open. He’d never paid her any attention when they were kids, how could he guess all these things about her so accurately? 

“As much as I want to, I can’t do any of those things anymore,” she stammered. “I can’t be the person I was back then.”

Trace laughed. He took a step back. “Why not? Because you’re all grown up and proper now? You might act all stiff and formal around Wilma Rodgers, because it’s what you were taught, but even the best trained horse will kick up its heels when given a chance at freedom.”

Katherine shook her head. “You don’t understand. I can’t see to do the things I used to.” 

She pulled her arm out from Trace’s. This was a mistake. As much as she wanted to go visit Goldfinder, she couldn’t go with Trace. He wouldn’t want to be burdened with a blind person. 

Before she had a chance to turn back toward the house, a warm hand clamped around her upper arm and stopped her. 

“I know that you can’t see, Katie. I don’t understand why that would keep you from doing the things you used to enjoy.”

Katherine stood, speechless. She shook her head. Had he even understood what she’d said? 

“I’m blind, Trace.”

“So, you’ve stopped living because you’ve lost your vision?” he challenged, his voice adamant. 

“I haven’t stopped living,” Katherine argued heatedly. Her voice rose in anger. “I’ve simply made a new life for myself. I’ve accepted my blindness, and I make do.”

“Make do?” Trace laughed. “I’ve seen the way that handler of yours leads you around like some dog on a leash. Is that what you call living?”

Katherine wheeled to face him. Her hand shot to her hip, and she leaned forward. She narrowed her eyes like a sighted person would do when riled, what she used to do as a child, and focused them on the shadow in front of her.

“Wilma has been my guardian and teacher since the day I arrived in New York. She taught me how to manage without my eyes, and she’s always had my best interest in mind.”

“That may very well be, Katie,” Trace replied calmly. “But I also think she’s holding you back. Maybe not intentionally, but holding you back, nevertheless.”

“How can you make such assumptions? You don’t even know her. And you certainly don’t know me.”

You can find IN HIS ARMS at all major ebook retailers here:

Amazon | B&N |iBooks | Kobo

                

IN HIS ARMS.... Chapter One

While we're waiting for the book to go live at Amazon, B&N, and Apple, here's the first chapter of IN HIS ARMS

Chapter One

Elk Lodge, Montana Territory 1888

The mule brayed and balked, its incessant calls mixing with the sounds of harnesses jingling and horses trotting down the busy main street of Elk Lodge. Levi Colter tugged on the lead rope and cursed the ornery critter he’d dragged behind him for the last ten miles since coming out of the mountains.

He nudged his horse forward, skirting around a buggy whose driver yelled at him to get out of the way. Levi gritted his teeth, ready to throw some colorful words at the man. He held back. His appearance in town was already drawing enough attention. He mumbled obscenities at his mule instead.

Reining his horse toward the mercantile, he dismounted in front of the hitching rail.

“Git up there,” he chastised his mule, giving it a slap on the rump, for all the good that would do. If the animal didn’t want to move, it wouldn’t. Thankfully, it complied, and Levi tied the critter next to his dependable horse.

“Time to trade you in for something more useful. If you hadn’t been Buck’s favorite, I’d have gotten rid of you a long time ago,” he grumbled under his breath.

Levi pulled his hat from his head, and raked his fingers through his overgrown hair. Perhaps he should visit the barber in town, but shook his head. He didn’t need a haircut. He preferred his hair long, and kept his face clean-shaven.

“Keeps the vermin away,” Buck had always said.

Levi glanced toward the store in front of him. It had been over a year since he’d last been in town. He’d come more often while Buck was still alive, but folks had looked down their noses at him even then.

A woman holding a screaming child’s hand headed toward him. She shot him a quick look of apprehension, then averted her gaze and walked a wide arc around him. Levi set his hat back on his head. Things hadn’t changed much. If he didn’t need to stock up on a few items, he wouldn’t have come out of the high country at all. He had most things he needed at his cabin. This was his first venture out of the mountains since Buck’s death, and a sudden wave of loneliness washed over him.

“Man’s gotta have coffee and biscuits every now and then,” Buck would say during their twice-a-year visit into town.

The old trapper had gone under more than a year ago, and the coffee had finally run out. Levi tossed a quick look over his shoulder toward the hitching rail. More than a year’s worth of furs were piled onto the mule’s back. Hopefully the owner of the mercantile would buy them, or trade for some supplies.

He headed for the store, when a woman emerged, and he nearly collided with her heavily pregnant belly.

“Beg your pardon, ma’am,” he stammered, and skirted around her.

“No harm done.” She smiled, and Levi’s brows rose. That wasn’t the reaction he usually received from folks.

He tipped his hat and nodded, offering a tentative smile of his own, then hurried into the store. Best to get his business over with so he could get out of town and back where he belonged. The longer he stayed in town, the more his skin crawled.

A heavy-set woman glanced up from the counter when he approached. She stood straighter, a disapproving, tight-lipped frown on her face. She took a step away from the counter and leaned back, craning her head into the stockroom off to her left. Levi approached, and pulled his hat from his head. The woman still looked as if she were praying someone else would show up and take her place so she wouldn’t have to talk to him. Luckily, there was no one else in the store.

Levi strode up to the counter, and waited. The woman ignored him, still craning her neck. She was probably hoping he’d go away if she didn’t pay him any attention. She huffed, and motioned with her hand to someone who was clearly in the other room, then turned to him. Her lips curved in a false smile, and she raised her chin. Her eyes darted from his face downward, the disapproval in her scrutinizing gaze gleaming stronger with each second.

“Can I help you?” she asked, clearing her throat.

“Yes, ma’am.” Levi nodded. He curled his toes in his leather moccasins to keep from walking out of the store.

“I got a year’s worth of pelts and hides I was hopin’ to trade for some coffee, beans, flour, and other necessities.”

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “We’re not a trading post,” she said, pursing her lips as if he’d said something insulting.

Levi nodded. “I know, ma’am. The closest trading post shut down about five years ago. The owner of this establishment used to trade with my… partner, and I was hopin’ to do the same.”

The woman looked at him with a critical eye. Her gaze narrowed. “You’re that young man who lives with old Buck Thornton up in the mountains, aren’t you?” Her question sounded more like an accusation. “Haven’t seen him in town in a long time. We figured he’d moved on.”

“Buck passed away last summer.” Levi held the woman’s stare.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Her eyes spoke that she wasn’t really sorry. “Never did think it was natural, a man living alone in the mountains, raising a boy. Never did see much of you when he came to town.”

“I ain’t much for meeting folks, ma’am. I came with Buck most of the time, but I stayed out of the way. I do need some supplies, though.”

“Was Buck your father?” she asked, a gleam in her eyes. She even smiled, and leaned forward over the counter.

Levi scrunched his eyebrows. The woman seemed to be all too eager to know. If he didn’t want to get her all riled, he’d better indulge her prying into his private business.

“He raised me like I was his, but he wasn’t my pa.”

A balding man, wearing spectacles, emerged from the storeroom. He stopped in mid-stride, and shot a curious look past the woman. This was the reason Levi didn’t come to town. People always stared. It had been the same in Deer Lodge, Anaconda, and every other town. That was one of the reasons he hated mingling with people. The only place where he and Buck had been accepted had been at the old Blackfoot trading post, but the Indian running it had moved on. No one there cared that they didn’t live on a farm or ranch, or some stuffy place in town, and that they kept to themselves in the mountains.

“Ya can’t hide from folks all yer life,” Buck had always told him. “It don’t matter what folks think. As long as yer happy livin’ in the mountains, it ain’t none a their business what ya do. We don’t look down our noses at folks who come into the mountains, yet they look at us as being loco fer livin’ the way we do. Don’t pay ‘em no mind. Some folk’s jest gotta think they’re better than others.”

Levi held the merchant’s inquisitive stare. The man stepped up beside the woman.

“The name’s Levi Colter, sir. I got some nice furs outside on my mule. I was hopin’ you’d trade for some supplies.”

The man studied him, then held out his hand. Levi reached for it, and shook it.

“How’s old Buck doing?” the balding man asked.

“He passed on,” Levi repeated for the second time in the span of a few minutes.

“Sorry to hear it.” At least he sounded a bit more sincere than the woman. “Let’s go and see what you’ve got. Buck’s furs always sold well in the store. I’m sure we can reach an agreement.”

Levi led the way out the door to where his horse and mule were tied to the hitching rail. The pregnant woman stood on the sidewalk, glancing up the street, as if she was waiting for someone. Her gaze followed three large freight wagons that moved down the street. Levi glanced at them, and stared. The backs of the wagons were filled with children of all ages. His heart rate increased. Wagons filled with orphans. He’d bet his entire cache of furs on it.

“These look like fine furs. Let’s go back inside, and I’m sure we can settle on a price.”

Levi nodded absently, his eyes still trailing the wagons. He met the young pregnant woman’s gaze, then quickly followed the merchant back into the store. Twenty minutes later, he piled the sacks of supplies he’d traded onto the mule’s back. His pocket jingled with some extra money, not that he had much use for it. Maybe the next time he came to town, he’d find something to buy.

He turned to his mule and checked to make sure all his supplies were tied down securely. If he rationed properly, he wouldn’t need to come into town for another year at least. He stared down the street again, toward the wagons with the children. Walking around the mule to his horse, he stuck his foot in the stirrup, when someone called his name.

“Levi Colter? Is that you?”

Levi’s hand went to his belt out of habit. One could never have quick enough reflexes in the mountains, but the dangers there usually didn’t call his name first. He turned to the man who’d yelled out to him. A familiar figure strode toward him, holding the pregnant woman’s hand. He tilted his head slightly to the side, and narrowed his eyes, trying to place the man.

“Cade?” he asked slowly. His hand remained on the hilt of his knife. The man he remembered from more than five years ago at the Blackfoot trading post had been a reformed hired gun. Talk back then had been that he’d killed the man who’d murdered his Injun wife, the trader’s daughter. Levi eyed the woman by his side.

The man nodded as he held out his hand, a friendly smile on his face. He didn’t wear a sidearm. Levi moved his hand away from his knife, and clasped the other man’s wrist.

“Been a long time.” Cade smiled. “How’s Buck?”

Levi shook his head. The man’s smile instantly faded.

“Sorry to hear,” he said sincerely. He turned to the woman. “This is my wife, Laura. Laura, this is Levi Colter. We knew each other at my former father-in-law’s trading post.”

“How do you do, Mr. Colter?”

The woman’s soft smile held him mesmerized. She held out her hand. Levi took it, giving it a quick shake, then dropped his arm. It had been a long time since he’d been in the company of a female who wasn’t an Indian. His chest tightened, and his jaw muscles twitched.

The last time a female smiled at him with such genuine warmth had been more than a decade ago, when he was a young boy. Hell. More like fifteen years. Visions of Maggie flashed before him. He cursed silently. Would the pain and memories ever go away? He shot another hasty glance up the street toward the church, where those freight wagons had stopped. People were starting to gather, and the children unloaded.

“Laura, Buck Thornton was one of the last true mountain men left in these parts,” Cade said, drawing Levi’s attention back to him. “He’s raised Levi since he was something like ten years old, wasn’t it?” He laughed, and their eyes met. “Buck used to tell us how he found you nearly starved and frozen to death.”

Levi nodded wordlessly. He glanced back toward the church. A young girl, with her brown hair in two braids, stood shyly off to the side of one of the wagons. She glanced around nervously. Maggie had worn her hair that way. She would have been about that girl’s age the last time he saw her. He clenched his jaw. That had been a long time ago.

“Ain’t that right, Levi?”

Levi turned to face the couple. “Sorry, what did you say?”

Cade smiled. “I said there isn’t anyone better in all of Montana Territory at tracking and wielding a knife than you.”

Levi frowned. Yeah. Some tracker he was. He hadn’t been able to track down the whereabouts of his own sister until it was too late. He lived with the guilt every day of his life.

“I’d best be on my way before I run out of daylight,” he said, and gave a polite nod.

“Next time you’re in town, or out of the mountains, come stop by for a visit. Our place is just five miles due east,” Cade offered.

Levi mounted his horse. “Next time I come to town, I will,” he said, to be polite. He had no plans to come back here again before next spring, at the earliest. He tipped his hat to the woman, and then reined his horse down the street. The mule brayed loudly behind him, and Levi tugged on the lead rope.

He could go the other way through town and avoid the church and the group of orphans. A man stood on the church steps, calling for people’s attention. Memories flooded back; memories of the humiliation of being paraded in front of strangers who had inspected him and his sister as if they were at a cattle auction. Maggie had finally been placed with a couple who wanted a daughter to help care for the woman, whose health had been failing. They didn’t have room for him. They’d only wanted a girl. The muscles along his jaw twitched.

He rode past the throng of people. A man and woman appeared to be interrogating the young girl who’d reminded him of his sister. She held her head low, and her hands clasped in front of her. The woman lifted the girl’s chin and fingered her hair.

Levi’s spine tensed, and he inhaled a deep breath to ease the tightness in his chest. Perhaps today would be her day, and she’d be going home to a new family. It didn’t appear as if she had siblings, which would spare her from being torn away from them. Unless, she’d already been separated from a brother or sister at a different time.

Levi nudged his mount on, and ignored the protesting mule. He looped the lead rope around his saddle horn, and cursed the stubborn animal. He glanced over his shoulder at the critter to make sure it still carried all of his supplies. His horse shied unexpectedly and jumped to the side. Levi tugged on the reins.

“What the hell?” He cursed under his breath, his head snapping forward. Someone gasped in surprise. Legs clad in tattered, brown britches flailed in front of him, and a body fell to the ground, inches from his horse’s hooves. Damn. He’d nearly trampled someone darting out in his path.

Levi jumped from the saddle.

“Are you all right? I didn’t see you.” He knelt to the ground, just as the person raised himself to a sitting position. His hat fell from his head. Levi’s eyes narrowed. A woman’s dark hair was tied in a tight knot at the back of her head, and her eyes widened.

“I’m fine. It’s my fault,” she said quickly. She reached for a wooden stick lying next to her, and pulled herself to her feet.

“Can I help you?” Levi stammered, which did little to conceal his surprise that he’d mistaken this young woman for a man.

He reached his hand out, unsure of where to put it to help the woman steady herself. All he needed was for her to cause a scene. She looked up at him, and their eyes connected. Levi quickly snapped his hand away from where he was about to touch her elbow. His heart sped up in the same way as it did whenever he felt the thrill of a successful hunt, or completing a difficult task. He shook off the odd sensation.

“I said I’m fine,” she snapped, and pulled her gaze from his. She grabbed for the hat on the ground, and plunked it back on her head, leaning heavily on the stick. “It wasn’t your fault. I tripped and fell.”

Before he had a chance to apologize again, she limped away, using the stick as a crutch. Levi cursed. She could have broken her ankle, and it would have been his fault. He stared after her until she disappeared behind the church. He mentally shook his head to rid himself of those haunting brown eyes that had held him mesmerized. He grabbed his horse’s reins, and pulled himself into the saddle.

He kneed his mount into a trot. It was high time he put as much distance between himself and this place as possible. Of all the days he’d picked to finally make the trip into town,
today had been the worst choice, for more reasons than one.

Cover, Blurb, and Release Date for IN HIS ARMS (Blemished Brides Book 3)

The third book in the Blemished Brides series, IN HIS ARMS, is finally ready! This book took me a lot longer to write than I had intended. Between family vacation in Yellowstone (which, for me, included on-sight research for Yellowstone Origins), to hiking the Colorado Rockies with my editor and friend, Barbara, then going on a girls-only road trip to Wyoming to see the Mountain Man Museum and a quick detour to Yellowstone to hike Mount Washburn (trip report coming up in a future blog post), this book got delayed by several weeks, but it's now ready, and I am happy to announce that the official release date is August 10, 2015.

In the meantime, I haven't posted the cover on the blog yet (my Facebook friends and those of you who are in my Facebook group have seen it, along with a bunch of teasers), and the blurb, so you get an idea of what the story is about. 

I have an ambitious writing schedule planned for the rest of the year, which includes releasing Yellowstone Origins, a collaboration project I'm not allowed to discuss yet that has a deadline looming, the fourth Blemished Brides, and a Christmas story with the Walkers from the Teton Series. No guarantees I'll get these all done by the end of the year, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

IN HIS ARMS

A woman unable to trust. A man consumed by guilt. Can two lonely souls find a common ground and pave a path to love?

Grace Jennings knows how to survive, but she’s learned long ago not to trust anyone, least of all a man. Sent west on an orphan train with her sister, Grace finds herself adopted into an unimaginable situation. She will stop at nothing to find and reunite with her sibling, and keep her safe from the man who is out to exploit homeless young girls.

Levi Colter is a loner by choice. Haunted by the guilt of his sister’s death, he escapes into the mountains with his grief. Living an isolated life protects him from the heartache of losing those closest to him. When a stubborn young woman and a couple of runaways seek shelter at his cabin, Levi's solitary existence is turned upside down.

Thrown together unexpectedly, Grace and Levi are forced to put old hurts aside and confront their deepest demons. Can two people with troubled pasts let go of their guilt and mistrust, and learn what it means to open their hearts?

COME HOME TO ME - LARAMIE AWARD WINNER!

I just returned from a week-long "working vacation" in Colorado and Wyoming. One of the first emails I saw when I checked my computer was an announcement that the Laramie Awards first place winners for their 2014 entries were announced. 

Talk about Deja Vu! 

Last month, I was on my return trip home from a family vacation (but my husband is resigned to the fact that any vacation to Yellowstone is also a information gathering and research trip...he's married to a writer. We never stop writing).

...anyways, we were on the drive home, and I received a message from a fellow writer that COME HOME TO ME was short listed for the Laramie Awards. 

My first reaction was "Huh?" The name of the awards sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. I was still on cloud nine for DIAMOND IN THE DUST being a finalist in the RONE awards (winners will be announced in September)

I couldn't remember exactly what the Laramie Awards are, and why COME HOME TO ME would even be in the running for this award. When I did some digging, I remembered that I had submitted the book for review nearly a year ago, so I forgot all about it! It all came back to me, though. 

I remember chatting with my editor about writing competitions and how I had entered YELLOWSTONE HEART SONG in a few before it was published, and how I was not a fan of these things. 
She casually suggested that I should try entering another competition, and the Laramie Awards came up in the discussion. I looked it up, and quickly dismissed the idea. The only book I had out at the time that could even remotely qualify as an entry was COME HOME TO ME (the first book in the Second Chances Time Travel Romance Series, set along the Oregon Trail). The deadline for submission was a few days away. She told me to enter.  She prodded me with "What do you have to lose?" and "It'll be good for you," along with "It's a great book, you really need to enter."
Yeah, but it's a time travel book! was my argument.
In her normal fashion, she argued back that it was more than a time travel book. It was a well-researched western historical. 
So, on the last day to enter, I sat at the computer, staring at the entry form late that night. It was shortly before midnight when I hit the "submit" button. 

Fast forward to today. The winners were announced, and I couldn't be more speechless that COME HOME TO ME won its category! WOW! What an absolute honor and humbling experience. I couldn't be more in shock when I saw my name and the title of my book as one of the winners. 

A huge congratulations to all the winners, a few of whom I know and consider my online writing friends. 

The LARAMIE AWARDS for WESTERN and CIVIL WAR FICTION Official First Place Category Winners

Chanticleer Book Reviews is honored to announce the First Place Category Winners for the LARAMIE AWARDS 2014 for Western, Prairie, and Civil War Fiction, a division of Chanticleer Blue Ribbon Writing Competitions.

The Laramie  Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Western fiction. The First Place Category Winners will be recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Gala held in late September 2015.

Chanticleer Reviews is proud to be a literary affiliate of the Historical Novel Society.

The LARAMIE FIRST PLACE 2014 Award Winners are:

• Historical: Rebecca Rockwell for The Last Desperado 
• Jacqui Nelson for Between Heaven and Hell 
• Contemporary Western: Jared McVay for Not on My Mountain
• Adventure: Lorrie Farrelly  for Terms of Surrender
• Classic: Ken Farmer and Buck Stienke for Nations
• Debut Novel: Juliette Douglas for Freckled Venom Copperhead
• Romance/Humorous: Jacqui Rogers for Much Ado About Miners
• Civil War: Christi Corbett for Along the Way Home
• Boys YA: Elizabeth Ward for Wolf Eye’s Silence
• Blended Genre: Peggy L. Henderson for Come Home to Me
• Drama: Michael J. Rouche for A River Divides: Book Two of Beyond the Wood
• Literary Western: Theo Czuk for Heart Scarred

Teaser Tuesday! First look at In His Arms

What am I thinking, trying to write two books at once?!? I tried that a couple of years ago when I started Ain't No Angel and Teton Sunset. After about five chapter into each book, I had to make a decision and choose to focus on one over the other. I chose to finish Ain't No Angel first.
I'm sort of in the same situation again. This time, I'm working on Yellowstone Origins (Book 6 in the Yellowstone Romance Series), and In His Arms (Book 3 in the Blemished Brides Series). The current score as of today is:

Yellowstone Origins: 7 chapters done
In His Arms: 10 chapters done

So, here's a first look at In His Arms, since I've posted a first snippet of Origins a couple of weeks ago. I will try and make this a weekly feature again. 

Levi pulled his hat from his head, and raked his fingers through his long hair. Perhaps he should visit the barber in town, but shook his head. He didn’t need a haircut. He preferred his hair long, and kept his face clean-shaven.
“Keeps the vermin away,” Buck had always said.
Levi glanced toward the store in front of him. It had been over a year since he’d last been in town. He’d come more often while Buck was still alive, but folks had looked down their noses at him even then.
A woman holding a screaming child’s hand rushed past him, walking faster and glancing at him with fear in her eyes. Levi shook his head. Things hadn’t changed much. If he didn’t need to stock up on a few items, he wouldn’t have come out of the high country at all. He had most things he needed at his cabin. This was his first venture out of the mountains since Buck’s death, and a sudden wave of loneliness washed over him.
“Man’s gotta have coffee and biscuits every now and then,” Buck would say during their twice-a-year visit into town.
The old trapper had gone under more than a year ago, and the coffee had finally run out. Levi tossed a quick look over his shoulder toward the hitching rail. More than a year’s worth of furs were piled onto the mule’s back. Hopefully the owner of the mercantile would buy them, or trade for some supplies.
He headed for the store, when a woman emerged, and he nearly collided with her heavily pregnant belly.
“Beg your pardon, ma’am,” he stammered, and skirted around her.
“No harm done.” She smiled, and Levi’s brows rose. That wasn’t the reaction he usually received from folks.