Pat Cromwell
Spicy Romance to tease the soul ....
Flying now available at Amira Press in electronic format and print Plus (also at Amazon etc)
Vincent Rutland is complex. He is trying to come to grips with scars from his childhood, an over protective uncle, and to live up to his father's image of greatness. A turning point comes in his life when he initiates a meeting between himself and Eliot, a woman whom his father had a brief affair with, and is the mother of his half brother.
This meeting begins a chain of events that leads Vincent through a horrific journey that culminates with his acknowledging his demons and finally finding love and comfort in the arms of the one woman that he is able to find the unconditional love that he's craved all his life, Antoinette who is also Eliot's beloved friend and surrogate sister.
While Vincent shares a bond and familiarity with Eliot, it is Antoinette who ultimately captures his heart and his soul. But will the events of the night he shared with Eliot doom the relationship to fail? And will Vincent be able to accept, understand, and forgive the secret that Antoinette is hiding -- a secret directly related to that night as well?
Vincent Rutland is complex. He is trying to come to grips with scars from his childhood, an over protective uncle, and to live up to his father's image of greatness. A turning point comes in his life when he initiates a meeting between himself and Eliot, a woman whom his father had a brief affair with, and is the mother of his half brother.
This meeting begins a chain of events that leads Vincent through a horrific journey that culminates with his acknowledging his demons and finally finding love and comfort in the arms of the one woman that he is able to find the unconditional love that he's craved all his life, Antoinette who is also Eliot's beloved friend and surrogate sister.
While Vincent shares a bond and familiarity with Eliot, it is Antoinette who ultimately captures his heart and his soul. But will the events of the night he shared with Eliot doom the relationship to fail? And will Vincent be able to accept, understand, and forgive the secret that Antoinette is hiding -- a secret directly related to that night as well?
Excerpt
"Hello." Alex said into the phone.
"Alex Madison?"
"Yes. Who is this." Alex asked gruffly.
"Stephen Lays." He said coolly. Alex laid the pen he held down slowly onto his desk. He sat back in his chair. He knew this call was coming but had hoped that it would be later rather than sooner.
"How is Eliot?" He asked
"Alex, how do you think she is?"
"Look, Mr. Lays."
"Save it. Where's your nephew. I need to see him."
"Mr. Lays." Once more Stephen cut him off
"It's a simple question. Where is your nephew?”
"I have no ideal." Alex said.
"That's too bad. I was hoping you would save me the time and expense of tracking him down. He seems to have disappeared off the planet. But...I'll find him." Stephen said calmly.
"Mr. Lays, please, if we could meet. It's imperative that we take care of some legal issues pertaining to Damien and Eliot; if we could meet to clear everything up. I will make it as quick and convenient for you as I can. I’ll fly to
Everyone knew about Stephen’s reputation; He and his partner Michael O’Neal were legendary in the business community for there intuitiveness and their lack of ethics. But Alex respected their loyalty to family and the women they loved; that was paramount to those two bastards. Just as securing Vincent’s safety was paramount to Alex.
Over the years, despite Alex’s close proximity and business dealings with Eliot, he had managed to stay out of Stephen’s radar but now Alex knew it was unavoidable. This thing between Vincent and Eliot had escalated beyond belief. It was a catastrophe. The last man to cross Eliot was now in jail and it had taken Stephen years to have that bastard pay. He could only imagine what Stephen had in mind for his nephew.
Alex knew without a doubt that Stephen was going to try and go after Vincent, and that was unacceptable to Alex. So, he kissed ass hoping to save time; hoping that Alex could locate Vincent, protect Vincent before Stephen Lays had a chance to go after him.
"I’m more interested in the whereabouts of your nephew than my sister’s financial concerns. That’s secondary in light of her state of mind. Do you not agree? Is my sister’s sanity not as important as her funds?” Stephen asked.
“You miss understood. I didn’t mean to imply that I’m not concern about Eliot.” Alex answered, adding you dirty self righteous son of a bitch silently.
"Let’s cut through the bullshit Alex.”
“If you consider damn near $75 million dollars bullshit than by all means, forget I mentioned it. You’re Damien’s next of kin and with both Vincent and Eliot... unavailable, it is now your responsibility to handle things.” Alex regretted his outburst immediately and attempted to clean it up. “I totally empathize with your position, but Eliot loves her son. Eliot always put Damien first and the last thing she would want is for his financial future to be jeopardized.”
"I'll meet with you day after tomorrow at my office at O'Neal Enterprises in
"Thank you. I know you're a very busy man."
"Alex, don’t misunderstand me. I'd do anything for my sister and my nephew. Just as you would do anything for yours. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can protect Vincent from me. And don’t assume you know my motives for wanting him found. Do you remember the scene in the Godfather when Michael told his brother in law that he had to pay for Sonny? Well, that bullshit that Vincent pulled when he took his ass to my sister’s home will be addressed – in time. Don’t assume anything about me or what it is that I need from Vincent at this time. I intend to find him with or without your help."
“Are you threatening my nephew with bodily harm?” Alex asked hearing the question and knowing how stupid and weak it sounded. He quickly incorporated all he had learned in the Drama class he took at UCLA, and said with a smirk, “First of all you're confused and mistaken about my relationship with my nephew. He's a spoiled little fuck up. So no, family loyalty is not keeping me from telling you where the little shit is at. As a matter of fact I told him, practically begged him not to go to
"That's too bad." Stephen said
"Excuse me." Alex said surprised.
"My sympathies lie with both of them. Like I said Alex, you’re making needless assumptions about me based on locker room gossip. It amazes me the way intelligent people assume that I am the boogey man capable or cold blooded murder. I have no intention of hurting Vincent, but every intention of helping him. You have no ideal what my sister has done do you? You have no ideal what transpired between them do you? I have been in constant contact with both Rebecca and Antoinette. Vincent needs help and your sorry ass is so concerned with hiding him from me that you aren’t seeking him out for fear that I’m spying on you. Find your nephew. Help him. My sister needs him therefore I need Vincent." Stephen said.
“She’s need him?”
“I’m good Alex, but unfortunately not good enough to raise the dead and right now I’m afraid the only way my sister will come back to the land of the living is if a dead man tells her to.” Then, before giving Alex a chance to respond he hung up.
*****
Stephen looked up from his desk at Lynda. She stood before him, her arms crossed, her eyes beaming with the love that she had or him.
"Did he believe you?" She asked.
"Would you have believed me?"
"No." She said easing down slowly into the chair. She crossed her legs. A smile crept across his lips as he admired them. He thought how lucky he was to have her in his life and how much he loved her. He stood up and walked around to her. He knelt down and ran his leg along her thigh, paying close attention to her reaction.
"If I could find that little prick then I might be able to save my sister. I feel so powerless like I will not be able to keep her alive this time. Maybe, if he was together enough, he could talk to her and she would snap out of this depression. The fear I have of losing her permanently to this disease has never been this strong before. I feel powerless. I have never seen her so shattered mentally before. She doesn’t recognize me, her son, nothing, no one. She converses with spirits and she just sits and waits for Jonathan Rutland to walk through the door. Well, I can’t summon a ghost but I can try to find a duplicate.”
“Vincent Rutland.” Lynda said as she held her man closely.
“Yes. Vincent Rutland.”
“When you find him and I pray that you do baby, and he is the miracle to help her, once she’s better, what will you do?”
"I'm going to make him wish he had never ever step foot in Peel,
