Beyond the Book

Hi, my name is Peyton O'Malley, and I was Elaine's heroine in Rest Thy Head. I have to admit that my first meeting with Jake Douglas didn't go over too well. In fact, it was downright unpleasant. I'll share that excerpt with you, and then if you leave a comment telling me how you and your significant other met, I'll put your name in the pot to win a copy of Rest Thy Head. I'll give everyone a week to get their comments in, so next Tuesday I'll announce the winner. 

She entered the barn, a big white structure with a center aisle and stalls on either side. Just inside the door she saw a dark-­haired man dressed in jeans and a long-­sleeved, plaid shirt brushing a pretty chestnut mare.

“Hi,” she called.

The man half turned toward her; wow, he had blue eyes to die for. The blue was so intense that it reminded her of a blue diamond she’d seen at the jewelry store. Oh, and look at those shoulders. If there was one thing she loved, it was a pair of nice shoulders. Yummy. He was just yummy. “Yeah?” he asked, his voice abrupt and snappy.

“I’m Peyton O’Malley. I’m supposed to meet Patrick for a ride.”

“He isn’t here yet. You can sit on the bench under that tree outside and wait for him there.”

Instead of leaving the barn, Peyton stepped toward the man. “What a beautiful ... horse.”

The man quickly averted his face, but Peyton had seen the dreadful red scars that covered the entire left side of his face. They looked like burns. “I told you to wait outside,” he growled, scowling at her with the good side of his face. “Get moving.”

Peyton’s lips pressed together in a thin line. How dare he speak so rudely to her! Anyone would have looked twice when they first saw his scars. She stalked outside without another word.