Don’t miss my special contest for early readers! Simply buy a copy of Stockholm Syndrome (or read it in Kindle Unlimited for free) by November 15, 2017, find the contest link at the end of the book, and enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card AND an autographed paperback copy of Stockholm Syndrome.
My latest book defies a simple description. It’s a romance and a thriller, with comedy and a dash of political intrigue. The story centers around a case of mistaken identity when Leigh, a real-life spy, accidentally enlists the help of Amanda, a savvy office temp who answers a wrong number and ends up on the adventure of her life.
Want a sneak peek at one of my favorite scenes from the book? Here it is:
Caution yielding to panic, Leigh rushed in, grabbing the back of the chair and spinning it so she could get a closer look. Relief swept over her. She’d gotten there in time. “Amanda, what happened?”
Amanda’s eyebrows twitched as she bit her lip, looking undecided how to answer. “I won’t tell you!” she declared, her voice strong. “Not even if you torture me.”
Leigh swayed between bafflement and alarm. “I don’t understand.” Her nerve endings tingled as all at once a horrifying possibility presented itself, the only one that made sense. Betrayal. Amanda wasn’t the victim after all, but a traitor. “Is this about the Berlin Syndicate?” Leigh whispered, already dreading the answer.
“Yes!” Amanda’s face lit up enthusiastically. “Oh, that’s a good one! Yes, exactly. The Berlin Syndicate.”
“My god. You’re working with them, aren’t you?” Leigh let go of the chair and stumbled backward, feeling gutted. She stared as she reached for her phone, uncertain how any woman could be so calculating and cold. But far from revealing fear or anger, Amanda looked…perplexed. And slightly miffed.
“What are you doing?” Amanda inquired, her voice shockingly calm for a woman whose evil plan had just been blown out of the water. “What do you think I’m doing? I’m calling it in.”
“Calling it…But…” Amanda’s brows drew closer together, her face a study of consternation. “Aren’t you even going to try to get the information out of me first? It’s just,” she said in a strange sort of stage whisper, “there’s a whole drawer of lovely interrogation tools, right over there.” Her head simultaneously bobbed in the direction of the dresser that stood against one wall, as if providing Leigh with a useful hint.
Approaching the dresser while still keeping watch on her prisoner, Leigh glanced inside the open center drawer. Time stood suspended as she struggled to make sense of what it contained. “This is a drawer of sex toys,” Leigh said, her tone flat. She squinted, taking a really good look at Amanda, who was nodding slowly and giving her the indulgent look usually reserved for a village idiot who finally got an answer right. “A lot of them.”
“There was a sale.”
Perplexed, Leigh circled Amanda’s chair, stopping in her tracks as she got an unobstructed look at the back. “Do those handcuffs have pink fur on them?”
“Well, er…”
“They’re not even attached to the chair! If somebody tied you to the chair, they sure did a crap job of it. Why are you still sitting there?”
“You’re kind of ruining the atmosphere, here.” Amanda’s face was wrinkled, and she was clearly put-out. “I mean, it started out okay with that Berlin thing, but this isn’t exactly how it was supposed to go.”
Leigh gaped. “How it’s supposed to go? How exactly is being tied up supposed to—oh…” The truth struck her between the eyes. I’m such an idiot. “This is some sort of a role play thing, isn’t it?”
