We all have those moments. Every writer (and I mean every writer) has them. The giant facepalm of doom when you realize that in spite of all your efforts to back up your work, you screw something up and days worth of work vanishes into the black hole of lost data. Yep. This weekend is one of them for me. 15,000 words lost in the abyss. 20+ hours gone, and my deadline is now toast. *sighs* This when I’m so slammed at the day job that I can’t hope to find time to make up for what I lost. Slap a little butter and jam on that toasted deadline. *double sigh*

So I figured instead of going on about what more you can do to protect your work (and put you all asleep), I’d share an exclusive excerpt from my WIP, Chasing the Story, the next book in my upcoming Coast Carolina series (first book released September 17th!). All of the series stories are set at the Carolina coast. Think water, sailing, sand, working men, sexy men in swimsuits….

Excerpt from Chapter One:

Zach Caldwell tugged at his collar and kicked himself for having tied the bowtie too tight. He’d spent nearly forty minutes getting the damn thing even and now he was going to suffocate. He’d always despised these award ceremonies, and for nearly four years now, he’d managed to avoid them.

“Mr. Caldwell?” A woman dressed in a glittery sequined gown offered him her hand. “Kelsey Mayfield. I’m a correspondent for CCBN News. It’s such an honor to finally meet you. I studied tape of you when I first got this job. I watched you when I was a kid. You were the best.”

Way to make a guy feel old. He forced a smile and shook her hand. “Good to meet you.” That she recognized him from his work in broadcast news rather than the reason he was here today wasn’t too surprising, but it rankled him. His New York career still dogged him, even though he’d spent the past four years making a name for himself in print.

“When I saw your name on the program,” she continued, her face flushed and eyes bright, “I wondered…. Well, I, it’s just that you seemed to… ah….”

Disappear? He wished he could right now. Instead, he plastered on the bullshit face, flashed his best bullshit smile and said, “Excuse me. I really should get back to my seat.” He glanced at his watch for effect, then turned on his heel and headed toward for the bar.

“Thank you.” The man standing in front of Zach on line shoved a five-dollar bill in the tip jar and took his drink from the bartender. Tall, blond, athletic build visible under his well-fitted tux, he smiled at Zach and the entire room seemed suddenly brighter.

Zach ignored the dazzle and walked up to the counter. There were plenty of handsome men in the news business and he wasn’t in the market. “Scotch. Neat. Whatever you’ve got it is fine. And make it a double.”

“Excuse me.” The pretty boy who’d been standing in front of him turned to face him.

Here we go again.

“Brandon. People call me Brand.” Brand offered his hand.

“Zach.” The bartender set the Scotch down. Zach fished in his pocket for a few dollars.

“Let me get that.” Brand offered Zach a second blinding smile and deposited another five in the tip jar. Even in a room filled with people, Brand seemed to glow. Blue eyes and perfect skin. Masculine but not overly so. Soft around the edges in that non-threatening boy-next-door way.

“Thanks.” Zach knew the type well. He’d been that guy, years ago. Up and coming like a rocket. Personality for days. A face the camera loved.

Zach waited for Brand to say something about having watched him years before, but Brand only said, “You’re welcome.”

Refreshing.

“Have we met before?” Brand asked.

“I don’t think so.” Zach snagged his Scotch and took a long sip, then moved away from the bar with Brand in tow. There was something vaguely familiar about Brand, as well, but he couldn’t place him. Either way, he was persistent.

Brand took a long swallow of his own drink—gin and tonic, maybe?—then leaned in and said in a conspiratorial whisper, “These things are the worst, aren’t they?”

“There are things I’d rather be doing.” Raking the leaves at his house. Changing the oil in his car. Root canal….

Brand grinned and for the first time, Zach noticed the tiny lines around his eyes. He’d taken him for a kid, right out of school, but he was probably late twenties. “Someone warned me about this, years ago,” Brand said. “Back then I thought it sounded fun.”

“Where’re you based?”

“Wilmington, North Carolina.”

“Nice town.” Of course it was. Zach had been living there for the past four years. Maybe that’s why the kid looked familiar. They’d probably passed each other on the street.

“You know Wilmington?” Brand asked.

“A little.” Zach had no reason to share more. Even if the guy was hitting on him, he wasn’t interested.

“Mr. Caldwell?” A woman wearing an organizer pin touched Zach’s forearm.

“That’s me.”

“I’m Katie West. I’m supposed to show you to your seat. We’re just about ready to begin.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Zach caught the look of surprise on Brand’s face, but it was gone when he turned back. Zach shrugged and gestured to the podium, then imitated the cadence of Jack Nicolson’s speech and said under his breath, “Heeeere’s Johnny.” Brand chuckled.

Okay, so other than being the best-looking man in the room, the guy deserves some credit for his taste in movies. Zach smirked and followed Katie onto the makeshift platform at the far end of the ballroom.

“Break a leg.” Brand winked.

Zach hadn’t expected to win the prize for best investigative series. He wasn’t unhappy he had, but as he clutched the acrylic award and shook yet another well-wisher’s hand, he realized the past four years of anonymity were probably toast.

“Congratulations.”

Zach hadn’t noticed Brand standing in front of him. “Thanks.”

“You didn’t tell me you were based in Wilmington.” Brand looked a little hurt.

“I’m sure we’d have bumped into each other eventually.”

“That position you posted for a beat reporter still open?”

So that was the angle. Brand needed a job. Zach noticed him hanging with an older woman during the ceremony. Probably her date. He didn’t blame the man for job hunting at an event—he’d have done the same when he was starting out in the business. “Sorry,” he said. “It’s been filled.”

“Do you have a card?” Brand smiled again.

Very persistent. Zach struggled to reach into his pants for his wallet and not drop the trophy.

“Here, let me hold that for you.” Brand gently took the award from Zach and their fingers brushed. Zach pretended he didn’t feel the slight buzz from the contact as he pulled a dog-eared business card out from his well-worn leather bifold.

“Trade you.” Brand held out the trophy and Zach handed him the card, making sure not to touch Brand again.

“I’d better get going.” Zach felt suddenly uncomfortable beneath Brand’s gaze.

“Listen, Zach, I—”

“Mr. Caldwell,” someone interrupted. “Congratulations. I read the story. It was brilliant.”

Zach mouthed the word “sorry” over his shoulder. Brand smiled once again—damn that stellar smile, it was like a supernova!—and disappeared a moment later into the crowd.

******

Hope you enjoyed the teaser! Here’s the link for preorders of the first series book, The First Step: https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-first-step-by-shira-anthony-10777-b You can read an excerpt from the upcoming book on the Dreamspinnner website.

Thanks for stopping by. If you hear someone screaming, I’m pretty sure that’d be me. Or facepalming. Again. -Shira