BACKASH, Excerpt 3#

Backlash by Karyn Good

Published by The Wild Rose Press

One of the themes that runs through BACKLASH, is forgiveness. I seem drawn to that theme. I guess it’s because it sounds easy enough. Forgive and forget, right? But it’s an incredibly complicated and emotional process. The deeper the wounds the harder it is. And forgiving yourself? That even more difficult, at least I think so. In my story the protagonists have a history together. One that ended badly and caused a great deal of hurt.

Which also leads to trust issues. Because what happens when the person you love the most (even if you don’t realize it at the time) no longer trusts you? You want that trust back. And the one thing we know about heroes and heroines? While their intentions are good, they don’t always make the right moves. So, it’s also becomes about trusting yourself to make solid decisions in moving forward.

This is a reunion story. Chase has returned to Aspen Lake after a 10 year absence. Lily is trying to figure out a way to rational his reappearance and is coming up with nothing good. Chase is trying to figure out a way to avoid further contact with Lily. They're both putting in a lot of effort to forget they ever had a past. 

Excerpt #3

“What are you doing here?” Her fingers tightened around her cup, and the resulting pop from the pressure filled the small space. She glanced back at the door, all confusion, and he knew she was hoping for some kind of intervention. For someone else to join them, anyone else.

He stalled and took a second to settle his arms on the tabletop. He pushed at the file and offered her an anemic look of confusion. “Here?”

“Yes. Here. In this room. In Aspen Lake. In the parking lot of my school.” She spread her hands out and motioned around her. “Here!” She averted her gaze and inhaled a deep breath before spotlighting him, apprehension darkening her eyes, deepening the blue color.

“My job.” To him, it was that simple.

“Your job?”

“I’ve been transferred to the Aspen Lake detachment.”

“You’re a cop?” Her look of skepticism said it all. The air of disbelief pricked at his ego. He shifted in his chair. Like all the times in fifth grade when his teacher, Miss Carlisle, had asked him why he had no lunch. Had asked questions about his father.

“Is that so hard to believe?” He had worked his ass off to get where he was, and he was a damned good cop. The work he did with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, and his reputation, proved his dedication to his job. None of which she’d be aware of, or care about if she did. When he burnt a bridge, the only thing he left behind was ash.

BACKLASH

What he’s sworn to protect, she’s willing to sacrifice to save those she loves...

When dedicated teacher Lily Wheeler interrupts a vicious gang attack on one of her students, she vows it won’t happen again. But her rash interference puts her in the path of a cold-blooded killer and the constable tracking him—a man she has little reason to trust, but can never forget.

Constable Chase Porter returned to Aspen Lake to see justice done, not renew old acquaintances. But when he rescues the woman he once loved from a volatile situation, he realizes his feelings for Lily haven’t lessened over the years.

Now, the dangerous killer Chase has sworn to capture has Lily in his sights. Can Chase and Lilly learn to trust each other again before it’s too late—or will old insecurities jeopardize their future?