Shockwave
Dead
Air Series Book 1
by
Amy Romine
Genre:
Romantic Suspense
Special
Agent Kate Weiss is hiding from a kidnapping she doesn’t
remember.
Jack
Tucker’s life as a morning radio host is uncomplicated, attachment
free, and without regret.
Brought
together by a mutual friend, the pair are at odds from the moment
they meet. She finds his confident swagger arrogant and beyond
reproach, while he in turn sees her as a self-righteous controlling
dictator.
As
Kate struggles with her confidence, Jack begins to realize his life
without strings is missing something, or someone. Adversity quickly
becomes attraction. Jack and Kate find themselves flirting with the
flames of unexpected desire.
As
emotions rise, scars are revealed and secrets are uncovered. Will the
reality of their very different worlds bring them together or rip
them apart?
Heated bodies were pushed together like fish caught in a very expensive net. Jack maneuvered his way to the bar, and requested a whiskey sour. He stood waiting patiently, his eyes staring unfocused at the design etched into the marble top of the bar. He felt a heat on his back. He turned in curiosity when his shoulder smacked into something.
“Whoa,” he heard, and then saw Kate, her drink dripping from her hand.
“Sorry,” He found himself staring at her, a lump in his throat, his neck heated. “I didn’t see you.”
“It’s okay.” She moved to the spot next to him at the bar. She placed her drink on the bar and began to clean the alcohol from her hands and dress.
“You should know better than to try and navigate through a crowd with a full drink.”
“I’ll make a note for next time, thanks.” She tossed the used napkins on the bar and then looked back to him. “This is quite a place.”
“It stands out.” His focus went back to the crowd.
“Are you having a good time?”
“Can’t complain.”
“I haven’t seen Chris. Is he having a good time?”
“Wouldn’t know, he disappeared about an hour ago.” The bartender arrived with his drink. Jack laid some money on the bar before grabbing the glass.
“I’d better get back to Mike.” She excused herself stepping away from the bar.
“I’ll go with you.”
What are you doing?
They made it halfway across the floor, before engulfed in a deadlock of people. Jack instinctively grabbed Kate’s hand pushing a path through to the other side. Not realizing the warmth of her hand within his until they reached Mike, he quickly released and shoved his own in his pocket.
“Hey, Jack, I see you found her,” Mike said with a grin, scotch in his hand. “I thought you got lost.”
“Not exactly, just delayed.” Mike’s Blackberry lit up and he grabbed it and began to read.
“Crap,” Mike said, looking to Jack and Kate. “There’s a problem at the station. I have to go. Jack, will you do me a favor and take Kate home?”
“I can grab a cab, Mike. Jack doesn’t need to--”
“You’re not taking a cab, Kate,” Mike looked to Jack for support.
“It’s fine,” Kate’s expression crinkled in discomfort. “We have plenty of room.”
Kate finally nodded in agreement and Mike smiled.
“Great, you guys have fun and I’ll see you later.” He stepped forward squeezing Kate’s hand. Mike moved away from them and Jack looked to Kate, his heart pounding uncontrolled.
“We should probably get back to the VIP room.” The area around them began to fill with an overflow of people.
“Okay.” Jack led the way to where their party was congregating. Once again, they ran into traffic between point A and point B. Jack consciously kept his hand to himself, letting her push her way through behind him. The crowd swayed taking them with it and he found himself trapped against the far wall. He looked to his left and saw Kate in the same situation. She made her way along the wall toward him. A tornado of thrashing dancers erupted around them and Jack instinctively used his body to protect her. The crowd once again crashed like a wave against the wall. He felt the pressure lessen and he looked down meeting her emerald eyes. His body tingled, reacting to the softness against him. “They really need to do something about crowd control.”
“I’ll be sure to mention it in my review,” he said, her scent filling him.
Peaches
“Should we try and move?” She pushed her hair off her shoulder, revealing a gently curved neck begging to be nibbled.
“I don’t know.” Catching her eyes. “Usually, this where I get thanked for my selfless act of chivalry.”
“You’ve already gotten one blow-job this evening, Tucker,” she hit back. “I would have thought the Viagra would’ve worn off by now.”
Her eyes breathed fire. She shoved him away and dove into the crowd. Jack followed and arrived on the steps of the VIP area a few moments behind her arrival. He saw Melissa meet her with a wide smile.
“Kate!” Melissa cooed while embracing the woman. “I was looking for you, when did you get here? Where’s Mike?”
“He had to take off. Kate is going to hang out with us for the remainder of the evening. I offered to give her a lift home,” Jack said with a little too much enthusiasm. Like a dog that caught a rabbit and was proudly displaying it to his master.
“Awesome, this gives me a chance to introduce you to some of our friends!”
Melissa whisked Kate away to fashion and celebrity heaven.
Backlash
Dead
Air Series Book 2
This
book picks up where Shockwave left off…
They
were worlds apart, drawn together by an undeniable passion. Ripped
apart by fear, they ran from each other and now struggle to stand
alone. Tragedy descends and they are pulled together in search of a
killer.
Kate
returns to Dallas in search of Mike’s killer. Within hours of her
arrival, events quickly spin out of control. Jack struggles to keep
his distance, but when Kate becomes a suspect, his instincts take
over and he rushes to her defense. As danger looms, all of the
reasons they walked away from each other disappear, leaving the
passionate fire that brought them together.
Unknown
forces set their sights on Jack and Kate and the pair soon realizes
that their names are next in a long line of victims. In a desperate
search for the truth behind Mike’s murder, they fight their way
through the lies, discovering that not all is as it seems.
They were worlds apart, drawn together by an undeniable passion. Ripped apart by fear, they ran from each other and now struggle to stand alone. Tragedy descends, and they are pulled together in search of a killer.
Kate returns to Dallas in search of Mike’s killer. Within hours of her arrival, events quickly spin out of control. Jack struggles to keep his distance, but when Kate becomes a suspect, his instincts take over and he rushes to her defense. As danger looms, all of the reasons they walked away from each other disappear, leaving the passionate fire that brought them together.
Unknown forces set their sights on Jack and Kate, and the pair is forced to run or become the latest in a long line of victims. In a desperate search for the truth behind Mike’s murder, they fight their way through the lies, discovering that not all is as it seems. At the center of it all, are the plans for a weapon that could change the face of international defense forever.
Chapter One
Kate Weiss pushed her way through the doors. She just wanted to get this over with. After three weeks of being undercover, she’d gotten the collar and closed the case. Now all she wanted was a glass of wine and a nice long, hot, bath.
She would have to wait, paperwork first, always. She made it halfway through the bullpen when she heard her name. She turned seeing Andy waving her down.
The sight of him stabbed at her, the memory of her return from Dallas creeping from the back of her mind. She tried to push the memories of her time in the lone-star state out of her head. It was the whole reason she’d jumped back into work. Taking the first deep cover assignment she could get. It was ironic really she’d gone to Dallas to regain her memory. Not only did she fail at that attempt, but she also managed to mangle her own heart in the process.
Jack She pushed it away and made a u-turn toward Andy’s office. “What’s up?” “Come in and close the door.” “Is everything okay, you don’t look like the boss of someone who just broke a two year old case?”
“Kate, there is something I need to tell you.” His face was hard and set in a pained expression. Her stomach immediately dropped when he met her eyes, and she pushed the air from her lungs.
“What is it, what’s wrong?” “Kate...I...” “What is it, Andy? Spit it out!” “Mike’s dead.” Kate felt all of the blood draining from her face and her body became unbearably heavy. “How?”
“He was shot in the head, it looks like a hit.” She was speechless. She stared at him, feeling the walls closing in and sat in the chair behind her. Clasping her hands together, she tried to collect her thoughts and bring her buzzing mind under control. “There has to be some kind of mistake, Andy. There’s no way...”
“It’s been confirmed. They just finished the autopsy. We should have the ballistics in a few days.”
“What— wait, autopsy? When did this happen?” “Ah...we got the news last week.” “Last week, and you are telling me now?” “Kate, there was no way to get a message to you without compromising your cover.”
“God damn it, why didn’t you...” Her body began to shake but she reeled herself back in, not wanting to show the weakness in front of him. “So I assume Washington is handling the investigation?”
“No, the Dallas office is handling it,” he replied looking at her, somehow knowing she was going to object. “Don’t start, there is no way to transfer it here I have already asked.”
Kate decided to leave it. The less she involved him the better. “Do we know when the funeral will be?” “Not yet. I have a call into the AD in Dallas. A lot of it is going to depend on when they release the body.”
“Yeah.” She stood from the chair hiding the shaking of her limbs. “You okay?” “Yeah,” she said with a nod. She watched him move around the desk. He touched her arm before pulling her toward him.
Andy wrapped his arms around her, and she reluctantly let him. He was trying to comfort her, so she humored him, laying her head on his shoulder. They stood silent before she pulled back. “Thanks, Andy.”
“Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? Let it settle in,” he suggested and she nodded in agreement. “I’ll stop by later and see how you are doing, okay.”
“Call me if you hear anything else?” “Definitely.” Kate opened the door and exited the office. She moved through the bullpen, grabbed her things from her desk, and headed out of the building. Once she reached her car, she pulled out her cell and dialed.
“Jane. Hey, it’s Kate. Are you busy, I need a favor?” *** Jack’s cell rang and he answered seeing the number from the mortuary. “This is Jack Tucker,” he said into the phone as he cleaned out the coffee pot. “Yes. Yes, please that is fine. Thank you.”
The entire situation was frustrating, and he was glad it was almost over. Everything was put on indefinite hold until the FBI released Mike’s remains. Something they were told would take a few days had dragged on for over two weeks. He'd found his boss and friend dead in his own kitchen two weeks ago. He had dropped by to deliver his laptop as requested and that was when he found him. The memory chilled him to the bone, and everything since had been a dizzy haze. Mike had no immediate family, so Jack and his on-air radio co-host, Melissa, took it upon them-selves to make all of the funeral arrangements. This, if nothing else kept them both busy, stalling the impending shock of emotion going to rain down soon enough. His mind went to Kate. He'd attempted to call her several times with no response. He wasn't sure why he would have expected her to answer. He'd gone to California to apologize for the way he rejected her when he discovered she was an FBI Agent, but she shut him down and walked away. Telling him that she wasn't who he thought she was. Despite their recent history, he was sincerely worried about her. Jack knew how much she meant to Mike, he could only imagine that the feeling was reciprocated.
Jack shook himself out of his head and immediately got to work. His first order of business was to call Melissa, and let her know that they were a go. He started at the top of the list and worked his way down. He had accomplished half of it when his phone rang.
“This is Jack.” “Jack, it’s Elisa.” “Hey, what’s up?” “The FBI is here, and asking about Mike’s laptop. Do you still have it?” Her voice was strained and he could only imagine how she was handling things. She was, after all, Mike's assistant. All of this must have been horrible.
“Ah, yeah, do they want me to bring it there?” Jack heard her asking someone something in the background, and then she came back to the phone.
“They want you to bring it to the field office downtown.” “Yeah okay I can run by there. No problem.” “Okay, I’ll tell them, thanks.” He decided it was a good excuse to get out of the house, and he grabbed his keys. Half way to the federal offices, his phone rang again and he saw Melissa’s smiling face.
“Hey Miss, what’s up?” “Are you busy?” “Not really, I was just going to drop something off downtown. What do you need?”
“I am at the funeral home and I have no idea what I am doing,” she replied sounding frustrated and breathless. “Do you think you could come by and help me with all of this?”
“Sure, where are you?” Melissa gave him the address and he veered off course to the funeral home. When he arrived, she was shaking her head in indecision. He didn’t offer any suggestions just acted as a sounding board and support. This enabled her to make the necessary decisions.
Two hours later, he was able to walk out of the funeral home knowing that the arrangements were all made. Now it was his job to send everyone the information. He wanted to put together a respectful email so he decided to head to the federal office and then back home. Melissa wanted him to meet him for dinner later, so if he hauled ass he should have time to get everything done, and be able to clean up before dinner.
Jack pulled into the parking lot, grabbed the laptop off the back seat, and headed to the main doors of the federal office. As soon as he walked in, he saw a reception desk. He stood behind a man, and a woman, who were both waiting their turn while the receptionist talked on the phone.
A few minutes later, it was his turn and he looked to her with a smile. “Hi, my name is Jack Tucker. I was asked to bring this down,” he said, motioning to the laptop.
“Mr. Tucker,” she said scanning her computer screen. “There you are. They are expecting you. Just go through security and up to the fifth floor. Talk to the receptionist, and ask her to direct you to Agent Mitchell.”
“Great, thanks.” He turned and moved to the security station. Once through, he made his way to the fifth floor. “Hi I’m here to see Agent Mitchell, my name is Jack Tucker.”
“Mr. Tucker, if you can fill this out for me I can take the laptop for you.” The receptionist handed him a clipboard and a pen. He looked over the form and began to fill it out. Abruptly Jack heard the faint echo of shouting voices followed by the slamming of a door. Looking up, he watched a suited man cross the room of cubicles. The man, seemingly irate, stopped, yanking open the door of a glass walled office. “Get Andy Whitaker in Los Angeles on the phone now!”
Jack watched in curiosity while the surrounding agents scurried through the cubicles like frightened mice looking for a place to hide.
“All set, thanks for bringing this down, Mr. Tucker.” “Sure, no problem,” he replied with a nod before turning toward the elevator. “Carol, Nighton wants the files on Kate Weiss,” a man said as he leaned over the counter. A chill went up Jack’s spine, and he turned to get a look at the man. He was a bald middle age man, but he quickly disappeared into the maze of cubicles. Jack turned back to the elevator and stepped on just as an angry male voice bellowed through the office...
Fallout
Dead
Air Series Book 3
Jack
and Kate struggle to navigate through the web of lies surrounding
them. Chasing shadows, the truth is closer than they realize.
Isolated and hiding from unknown forces, can they uncover the buried
secrets that killed Mike and put a price of their heads? When Kate
makes a deal and leaves Jack behind, will she make it back, or will
one misstep destroy all of their hopes for the future?
Melissa and Dan said goodbye shortly thereafter, and Jack searched for Kate, finding her in the kitchen finishing the few dishes they had dirtied. He wrapped his arms around her waist nibbling on her neck.
“Someone is feeling better.” She giggled, and turned meeting his eyes. They were soft and adoring. He leaned down placing a gentle kiss on her pink lips. She teased his lips with her tongue. Jack pulled her against him, his hands entangled in her hair. Their lips parted and he gazed down into her eyes and she smiled. “Hey.”
“Hey.” He lowered his head and she met him half way, her arms wrapping around his neck. He lifted her off the ground sitting her on the counter. Exploring her mouth, his hands spread themselves beneath her shirt exposing her soft skin to the cool air. She shivered and he took to nibbling on her ear. His hands moved up her back, leaving a trailed kisses down her neck.
“You are supposed to be resting.” She tried to lean back and away from his mouth. His hands on her back prevented her from going far and he simply adjusted to the opposite side of her neck. “Jack.”
“I am resting.” He nipped at her earlobe, and his phone rang.
He growled, Kate smirked and he disappeared to get the phone. Hopping off the counter she started preparing the coffee maker for the next morning and when she was finished, she moved back into the living room.
She could hear him talking on the phone as she cleaned. Kate returned to the kitchen a few minutes later she found him waiting for her. “Who was on the phone?”
“You threatened Elisa?”
“What?”
“Why on earth would you…”
“I didn’t…well not exactly. It’s complicated.”
“How is it complicated, Kate? Either you threatened her or you didn’t. You’re a goddamn spy for Christ’s sake! I would think you would know the difference!”
His eyes were clouded and she immediately knew what was happening. “Jack, calm down.”
“I am not going to calm down until you tell me what the hell is going on!”
“Listen to me…”
“Where do you get off thinking that bullying my friends is okay? Especially, someone as small and fragile as Elisa, she couldn’t hurt a fly!”
“I know you think…”
“Think?” His face began to redden, his eyes dilated and his chest heaved. “Sorry I forgot I’m not supposed to think. Just sit back and blindly trust you again as you ruin my life!”
“Jack, please stop.” He backed her against the counter. Her heart pounding, she struggled with what to do. “There’s something wrong and you have to fight it.”
He grabbed her by the arms and squeezed. “Wait, maybe you are the problem. It seems to follow you around, all of the death and the pain. The destruction.”
“Jack let go.” She pushed against him. “This isn’t you talking, it’s the poison. You have to calm down.”
“Maybe if I cut you out of my life and walk away it will all disappear?”
“You’re right. I’m the problem. I am the one who brought you into this hell and I am the one keeping you here.”
A wave of confusion crashed over his face and she took a breath.
“She was so upset.” His eyes searched for something beyond her. “She was crying and she said it was your fault.”
“It was my fault and I am sorry,” Kate watched him begin to float back to the surface.
“She said you threatened her at the memorial and then again at the hospital. She said you saw us at the funeral and you were jealous…trying to keep me away from her.”
“Jack, I need you to look at me. “
“Kate…I…”
“Just take a deep breath.” His eyes widened and he burst out of his own mind realizing what was happening. He looked at her in confusion. He became conscious of his harsh grip on her arms and immediately released her. “It’s okay, just breathe.”
He stepped back, his face scrunching in pain. “No…what…”
“You’re okay. It is fine.”
“Get away from me, Kate!”
He fell back into the wall of cabinets behind him, his chest heaving. “Jack…breathe.”
“I can’t…I…” He met her eyes and she saw terror. “Kate…”
His legs quickly betrayed him and he slid down to the floor. Kate moved to him, grasping his hand “Jack, I’m here, you’re going to be okay.”
Amy
Romine has always wanted to be one of the good guys. From playing
Charlie's Angels in the backyard of her Macungie, PA home as a child
to the pages of her unending projects, Amy has always dreamed of
adventure and romance. Her need to make the characters truly deserve
their happiness takes us on many a twisted journey. From serial
killers to demons, Amy holds nothing back in the name of true
enduring love.
A mother of three, Amy has spent the past
sixteen years working in Operations for Ricoh America's Corporation.
She is an avid movie fan and enjoys books, television, theater, her
dog Pip and all things romance.
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