TBT Book Spotlight: Small-Town Guardians

Happy Thursday!

Today we’ve got two books for Throwback Thursday! Jennfier Pierce’s Hidden Danger and Expecting Danger. Read an excerpt for both of them and then add them to your TBR pile!

Happy Reading!

About Hidden Danger

All Maggie Jones wants to do is sell her late father’s property and get out of Whitehaven, Texas as fast as possible—before she runs into the one man she’s spent the past six years avoiding. Someone has other plans for her, though. Sinister plans. And when a seemingly harmless act of vandalism turns into a series of menacing threats, she has no choice but to turn to last person on earth she wants to see for help.

Sheriff Cody Smith never expected to see Maggie again, especially after he’d broken her heart all those years ago. Maybe this is the second chance he’s always wanted. But when he realizes Maggie’s in grave danger, he intends to keep her safe at all costs. With lines from an old nursery rhyme as their only clue, he needs to find out who’s behind this deadly game before the rhyme ends and Maggie’s time runs out. Can he protect her, catch the bad guy, and make amends for past wrongs? Or will old wounds get in the way?

Amazon | Goodreads

Excerpt

“Magpie? I know you’re in there. I can smell burnt cardboard. You’re sitting on the couch, reading a book, aren’t you?”

She settled herself back down on to the couch and forked in another mouthful of noodles. She was predictable. He knew it. She knew it. So, what? “What do you want?” she yelled around the food in her mouth.

“You didn’t answer the phone.”

“Sorry. I was cleaning upstairs.”

“Can I come in?” His question was slightly muffled by the big wooden door.

“No!” She reached for her book and flipped to the page that was marked with her favorite bookmark.

“Come on, Maggie. I want to talk.”

He wants to talk. What can he possibly want to talk about? She couldn’t stand the thought of listening to whatever he had to say.

“So, talk,” she said in the direction of the door.

“I am not going to talk to you through the door.”

“Well, I’m not letting you in, so we are at an impasse.”

“You have always been so stubborn.” His heavy footsteps descended the porch.

Finally. She smirked in victory, stuffed another bite into her mouth, and got lost in her book. A few minutes passed and movement across the room startled her. Gasping, she stood, knocking everything to the floor. Cody stepped into the room, cocking an eyebrow at the mess.

“What in the world are you doing?” she yelled at him while picking up the closest thing she could find to throw at him.

He smiled and caught the pillow before it could hit him in the face. “I came to check on you.” He threw the pillow back at her.

She knocked the pillow to the floor and stared at him. If looks could kill, he’d be a dead man.

“So, you decided that since I wouldn’t let you in you would break in? Newsflash Sheriff, that is illegal.”

“I wouldn’t classify it as breaking in really. I just used an alternative entrance.” He chuckled at his own joke.

About Expecting Danger

Kate has been on the run from the men who killed her husband and left her for dead—which isn’t easy considering she’s eight months pregnant—but now they’ve found her. Again. Still reeling from her late husband’s betrayal, the last thing Kate wants is the help of a handsome stranger.

Security expert, Jacob Jones, is still grieving the loss of his pregnant wife, and he’s not ready to move on. But when he thwarts an attempted abduction of the beautiful Kate, he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. Despite her reluctance, he’s determined to do whatever it takes to save her, including giving up his own life.

Kate’s only option is to take a leap of faith and allow Jacob to help her. But can she trust him to keep her and her unborn baby alive? Or will he fail her like everyone else in her life?

Amazon | Goodreads

Excerpt

The hair on the back of Kate’s neck stood on end, and the feeling of being watched crawled along her skin in goose bumps. She was supposed to be at home, savoring the last month of her pregnancy. Getting the nursery ready, stocking the closet with tiny outfits of pink or blue, sitting in the glider laughing at her husband struggling to put up the crib. Instead, her husband was buried in a cold, dark grave, and she was running for her life.

Months on the run taught her not to act hastily and always be aware of her surroundings. But now, stupidly, she’d let her guard down in this tiny shop, thinking of the life growing inside her and the things she still needed to collect. She kept looking at the little onesies hanging on tiny hangers.

At the next rack, she picked up a little pink dress, held it up, and pretended to admire the design. Her gaze roamed the store and fell on a man that stood out. He was tall, had to be in his early forties with salt-and-pepper hair. There were two more couples in the store shopping for baby clothes. Salt-and-Pepper seemed to be alone. He wasn’t looking at her, but she knew he was the one watching her.

About the Author

Jennifer currently lives in Arkansas with her husband and two children. Her debut novel, Hidden Danger, is a 2019 Selah Award winner, and her second novel, Expecting Danger is a 2019 Selah award finalist. Deadly Connection is her third novel. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and River Valley Writers.