Ice And Secrets: Steamy romantic suspense in Alaska.

by Cherime MacFarlane, C. MacFarlane

Genres: Erotic & Steamy Romance; Romantic Suspense

Synopsis

A melting glacier, a wild river, gold, and a killer on the prowl... again.
Lying on the tundra, the churning blades of the helicopter above her, Lane can't believe her best friend wants her dead. She planned to share the gold. They think they have the proper coordinates... they don't. She's injured but not bleeding. Blood would bring bears. When she tries to rise and walk out, the wolves gallop toward her. No one is getting the gold.
Micha saw them push the woman from the hovering chopper. Out hunting with his wolf-hybrids, this is an unexpected complication in his life. He stays as far from civilization as he can get. His dogs are illegal. If caught, the state will euthanize the dogs and he'll be in trouble. Still, he can't leave her here for bear bait.

Release date: October 28, 2020

Publisher: Paper Gold Publishing

Print pages: 227

Content advisory: steamy romance

Sample

 

They pushed her out of the helicopter. Her shoulder didn’t pulse with the searing ache of a fracture, a plus. No backpack, cell phone, water, or wallet. She struggled to her knees. The phone didn’t matter out here. No towers existed for miles. She still had the hoodie tied around her waist and wore a long-sleeved shirt. Getting the sweatshirt on over her head hurt like hell. The drawstring of the hood pulled tight, all she had to protect were her hands and face. Blood-sucking mosquitoes would swarm her soon. 

With no need to ask why they tossed her out, she tried to get a handle on exactly where she might be. Could she walk out? A dismal prospect. Between her and any hint of civilization lay a vast stretch of tundra, swamp, and lakes. 

Their plan was for her to die out here in the back country. She understood the moment they made a ninety-degree turn off the flight plan. Several hundred feet in the air, if she jumped, she died. Without bothering to ask, she waited for their next move. It came fast enough when they dropped her in the bush, miles to the east of the Parks Highway, south of Denali. Somewhere between Wasilla and Fairbanks, Alaska, the highway lay to the east. 

It wouldn’t do any good to tell her know-it-all partner she’d held information back. He thought it was in the bag. Her grandfather’s stash spent in his mind. Intuition told her not to trust him, but she didn’t fly and needed a pilot. Why did Abby and Duke go along with it? She planned to share the gold.

Lane doubted she’d get the chance to ask. One of the apex predators would sniff her out. Near the middle of August, bears would take advantage of an easy meal. 

She reached a knoll and spotted Denali off to the left. She turned and began walking, keeping the mountain off her left shoulder. If she didn’t need to veer off course to get past a bog or deep stream. She might make the highway. Maybe, if the bears didn’t get her first, or she didn’t go insane from the mosquitoes. 

Making it out alive probably wouldn’t happen. She intended to try anyway. 

Not sure how long she’d been slapping away the bugs as she trudged toward the trees on the lower slopes, she heard the unmistakable sound of the helicopter. Matthew! Was he coming back to make sure she died? 

With nowhere to hide, she did all she could. Lane dropped to the ground and tucked her arms under her, trying to make as small a target as possible. The chopper got closer and the noise almost deafened her. Rotor wash flattened the grass and buffeted her body. 

Then came the growls. When she turned her head to the side, the unmistakable long nose and yellow eyes of a wolf stared at her. Lane’s fear hit overload, and she passed out.