Coming Feb 2, 2016
Valentine, Pets & Kisses Box Set
14 All-New Sweet Romance Novellas
EXCERPT – The Crazy Girl's Handbook by DelSheree Gladden
(Exclusive to the Valentine, Pets & Kisses Box Set)
We
looked both ways before crossing the street. Both boys held my hand and Thor
stayed right at my heel with the leash wrapped around my wrist. The second we
set foot on the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street, the boys took off
and Thor made a valiant attempt at following them. Problem was, his leash was
still looped around my wrist so I could hold the boys’ hands more easily. So
when he lunged forward to follow, I didn’t have any control of the leash to
stop him from taking me down.
Pain
blossomed in more than one spot as my elbows and palms hit the cement and my
head whacked into the decorative stone edging that lined the grass. Thor yelped
as my dead weight kept him from getting any farther, then doubled back to see
what was wrong and stomped all over me at least three times before settling on
my head. By the time my senses cleared, I was so tangled in leash and puppy I
couldn’t even figure out where to start. My head and arms throbbing didn’t help
at all.
“Thor,
get off,” a firm voice said.
I thought
I wanted to die when I got gum in my hair, or soda ice down my shirt, or an ice
cream pedicure. Those were nothing compared to having to be rescued from an
over-enthusiastic puppy by Roman Carpenter while covered in dirt, grass, and
blood. It was a miracle I didn’t give up right then and just start crying. I
loved my nephews, but I was never going to be able to show my face in this
neighborhood again.
The
heavy weight of the squirming—and rather large—puppy was finally removed from
my face. I heard Roman ask one of the boys to hold the leash, but I kept my
eyes closed out of pure shame. Not until a pair of hands pressed against my
face did I even dare to breathe. Even then, it was a gasp at the urgency behind
the touch.
“Greenly,
are you okay?” Roman demanded.
The
hint of worry in his voice forced me to peel my eyelids apart. I peeked up at
him through half-opened eyes and was startled not to find him laughing at me
again. There was real, honest fear in his expression and it left me speechless.
“Are
you okay?” he repeated.
Breathe, Greenly. “Yeah, uh huh. Yep.”
He
just stared at me for a moment. Probably because I sounded ridiculous. “Are you
sure?” he asked.
I
tried to sit up in order to prove I was just fine. The sting of putting my
hands on the ground made me hiss and I felt a little woozy when I tried to
move.
“Whoa,
whoa,” Roman said, which made me feel a little like a horse. “Don’t move. Let
me help you.”
Great,
just great. I tried again to sit up on my own. “Really, I’m fine.”
“No,
you’re not,” Roman said as his arms slid beneath my arms and legs.
I
experienced an irrational moment of panic, not because the idea of Roman
carrying me off somewhere was frightening, but because being this close to him
would expose everything about me I hadn’t already managed to bare. He lifted me
easily and my breath caught as he adjusted his arms and I felt momentarily
unsupported. Then his grip rolled me against his chest, to a place of absolute
security. I don’t think I took a single breath as he walked up to the house.
***
DelSheree Gladden is a USA Today bestselling
young adult and romance author, whose writing includes everything from
dystopian and Native American mythology to sweet and funny romances.
Amazon/Other Books: http://www.amazon.com/DelSheree-Gladden/e/B004G9V2C6/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1451698467&sr=8-2-ent
FB: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDelShereeGladden
Website/Blog: http://www.delshereegladden.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DelSheree
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/delsheree/
Podcast: http://writepublishrepeat.libsyn.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/delshereegladden/
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