Jaxson’s Song
By Angie West
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Book Description
Some mistakes have far-reaching consequences, most secrets are better left untold, and bad neighbors can make your life hell.
If these walls could talk… When Kate inherits her aunt’s aging Florida home, financial woes and sheer desperation cause her to set aside a decade-old vow to never again set foot in the Sunshine State. But Kate will soon find that her new home is full of shadows and secrets.
Author Bio
I’ve been writing fiction for a few years now, mostly fantasy and romance. I rescue and raise mini-lop and lion-head rabbits and I love reading—anything and everything, particularly romance and new adult written by indie authors.
Excerpt
Lindsey,
Last night, I dreamed of her again. But this wasn’t like the other times at all. Last night, she looked—felt—so real. It wasn’t just some nightmare…I mean, it was, but it wasn’t like all of the other dreams, reliving that day and what ended up being her last moments. This was different, Linds. In this dream, one minute I was in the glass room, alone, and the next thing I knew, the lights began to flicker in the hallway, and she walked into the room and stood behind me. It felt like she was really there, and she was so angry…
A cold chill tracked across the back of her neck, and in the next instant, her cell phone started to ring. Kate set down the pen and shook her head when she saw who the caller was.
“Hey, Lindsey.” She cradled the phone between her neck and shoulder and recapped the pen.
“Well, it’s about time! I’ve been trying to call you since last night.” Lindsey huffed and puffed. “You almost had me worried.”
“Are you running?”
“Treadmill,” she exhaled, and Kate heard a series of beeps on the other end of the line. “Two miles. I’m done now. So, are you better today?”
“You mean besides the hangover?”
“Oh, well, yeah, I guess so. You really got wasted last night, huh?”
“Hmm.” Kate scooted her chair back and stretched, shivering again as another cold chill hit. It was hard to tell whether it was her hangover playing havoc with her body or just the house’s natural “cold-blooded temperature,” as she was beginning to refer to it. Aunt Viola must have shelled out a small fortune on insulation. “It was just me, Gollum, and a cheap bottle of wine.”
“Gollum?”
“Oh yeah—I almost forgot, we have a cat now.” Her lips curved against the phone and she blew steam off of her mug before she took a sip.
“Great. I always wanted a pet…I think,” Lindsey retorted dryly. “So…seriously? You’re okay? Besides the hangover?”
Kate stared for long moments at the letter she’d been composing before she sighed, crumpled the sheet of paper in hands, and got up to throw it in the trash can at the other end of the kitchen. “Yeah. I’m fine, really. I think I’m one step closer to accepting this thing with Lilly.”
“And Chad,” Lindsey reminded her, a scowl in her voice.
“Yes…Chad.” Kate’s own eyes narrowed dangerously and for several beats, both women were silent.
“Are you sure you’re holding your own?” Concern edged out the anger in Lindsey’s voice.
“Really and truly. Don’t worry. This is all going to work out. I can feel it.” What she felt was a surge of nausea as she passed by the kitchen window. Through the glass, a radio began to blare a heavy rock tune. Lindsey started to speak, but static filled Kate’s ear, obscuring most of her friend’s reply.
She stood on tip-toe, leaned over the sink, and craned her neck in order to get a better view of the driveway next door. Her mouth hung open as she watched Jaxson crank up a portable radio even louder, then prance down his porch steps toward his ancient car. A button-down crop top was open across his chest and tied in a knot several inches north of his navel. The fabric clung, wet and sheer, to his shoulders and arms. A pair of low-heeled silver pumps caught the sunlight and glistened as he turned to the side and bent down toward a red plastic bucket.
He was wearing a thong.
Somewhere down the street a car honked, a dog barked, and a man yelled what sounded suspiciously like “put some clothes on.”
“Kate?” The line crackled again.
“I’m fine, Lindsey, but I’m not getting any reception in here right now, for some reason. I’ll text you later.” She hung up and shoved the phone into the pocket of her jeans, all without taking her eyes off of the spectacle taking place in the driveway next door.
“What in God’s name…” She raised a hand to her temple as her head began to pound in time to the beat of the music.
