Forsaken by PJ O'Dwyer
Forsaken the final book in the Fallon Sisters Trilogy and Giveaway by P. J. O’Dwyer
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“Forsaken is a striking end to P.J. O’Dwyer’s Fallon Sisters Trilogy, a provocative, well-crafted romantic suspense series that’s dark, dangerous, and addictive.”—USA Today
A trifecta of trouble for one man, and a horse race meant to be won . . . by one woman.
On her own since the age of sixteen, after the death of her dear ma, Irish barmaid and racetrack groom Dani Flynn works three jobs to stay afloat. Only it’s the third one—the one along the docks after midnight—that just might find her at the bottom of the Irish Sea. Running for her life with a thumb drive that could bring down all of Parliament, Dani does the sensible thing. She hops a freighter, destination unknown, and spends a week on the high seas.
Curse or Divine intervention, Dani can’t decide which when she finds herself docked in the U.S. penniless, illegal, and within two hundred miles of a farm called Grace. Swallowing her pride and twenty-six years of resentment, she makes her way to the one man she swore she’d never have anything to do with—her da.
Handcuffed, frisked, and charged with assaulting a police officer isn’t casting her in a warm glow of endearment nor keeping her illegal status under wraps. But when a little scrap of paper called a birth certificate proves her claim, she’s met with open arms and even finds a home away from home at a Thoroughbred training center. Except it’s not her family’s blessing she needs. Nor a maddening attraction to the one hell-bent on sending her home—the cop she sunk her teeth into while trying to escape. The sparkling shores of freedom may not be enough to keep her past from catching up with her. Especially since blending in and keeping a low profile proves difficult when Mr. Law and Order, in the form of a gorgeous American sheriff, is doing his best to unearth her past.
Kevin Bendix never came out on top as a kid against the Fallon sisters. As the Sheriff of Washington County, it’s not as simple as taking his licks and calling it a day, especially now that there are three. Win or lose, he’ll uphold the law and defer to his training. He knows a liar when he sees one. Only Dani Flynn isn’t your average lawbreaker. She’s female and all of about five-foot-two with a face of an angel and a body of a sinner.
He’ll get to the truth. It’s his job. But in the end, he could lose more than his quiet way of life. It’s not only his heart she’ll steal. Loving this woman could cost them both their lives.
“1,000% recommended. Touching and true, this novel [Forsaken] will stay with me for a long time. Don’t miss it. It deserves to be at the very top of the bestseller charts.”—Laurence O’Bryan, bestselling Harper Collins author of The Manhattan Puzzle, translated into ten languages
“Money, privilege, horses, and the luck of the Irish are all bound up in a saga of high stakes in Forsaken.” —Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Reviews
EXCERPT FROM FORSAKEN
Dani stepped from the bathroom and stopped short. Wobbling, she tried to stay upright.
Kevin grabbed her by her upper arms. “Not used to heels.”
If it was a smirk she’d witnessed, it had disappeared from his face. But his inference still lingered like stale tobacco. Dani shook his hands off her. “It’s no wonder. You walked straight into me.” Dani glanced around. Most were on the dance floor or sitting at tables. And the entrance to the gentlemen’s room was on the opposite side of the dance floor. “You were following me,” she whispered with heat, trying her best to keep the dwindling mint between her cheek and gums.
“On the contrary, Miss Flynn, I was leaving.” He pointed to the double swinging doors. “I’m headed out the kitchen way.” His eyes lingered on her face and then took a southerly track before they reconnected where they should have been all along.
“What are you doing?” Dani checked herself to be sure she hadn’t stained Chipper’s dress, although she had a fair idea what his eyes were seeing.
“You clean up nice.”
Clean up? Of all the . . . Dani clenched her fingers and twisted in his grasp.
He let her go. “Wait. That came out wrong.”
“Do you have a point to all this? Because if not—”
“I ran into Daniel and my father earlier.”
He wasn’t telling her anything she didn’t already know. “Yes, they were in front of Blake’s car when we came in. We walked through the parking lot together.” She gave him an odd look. “You were there.”
A pained expression came over him. “Yeah, the parking lot.”
Dani wanted to laugh at his discomfort. She didn’t know much about American law enforcement, but it didn’t seem at all normal that the sheriff would be parking cars.
“Kevin, is there a purpose here?”
“Ah, congratulations on your new job,” he blurted out and then grimaced. “I should have told you earlier.”
Only he’d been preoccupied with the bank manager. “Not to worry.”
He nodded and attempted a smile. “I meant what I said earlier. You look very pretty.”
She wanted to believe in his sincerity. Perhaps he did find her attractive. But there had to be more than a physical attraction, she was learning. She wanted Kevin’s respect, and it wasn’t a case of being a law-abiding citizen. He knew why she hadn’t been, knew she was making strides to become one. It wasn’t that. He was ashamed of her and her position in life.
Dani caught Blake standing with his group, holding up the promised glass of champagne. “I have to go.”
Kevin followed her line of sight and scowled. “How’s he treating you?”
“Like a gentleman. Why?”
“He’s not.”
“And I suppose you are the authority.”
He looked down his nose at her, like she had to be out of her head to question his knowledge of Blake Lansing.
Dani only stared back.
“Look,” he said, his expression softening. “I’m not here to slander the guy’s reputation. Just be careful. That’s all I’m saying.”
Dani considered his words. She’d gotten to America, hadn’t she? Had he not meddled in her life—had she not met him—she would have figured things out on her own. “I’ll keep an eye out, then.” Dani walked away, sure that Kevin was burning a hole in her back as she met Blake across the dance floor.
He handed her a glass of champagne. “You all right?”
She downed it, the slight burn of alcohol welcome as it slid down her throat. “I am now.”
He took her glass. “Let’s take a walk.”
“That would be grand.” Dani gave Blake her hand, and he led her out onto a back patio with fruit trees, fragrant flowers, and tiny Christmas lights strung all around. “It’s lovely.”
“No. You’re lovely.” He placed his hand on her lower back and drew her close.
Dani’s hands automatically went to his chest and the expensive cut of his tux. “I’ve not had a more special night.”
A faint smile touched his lips. “It doesn’t have to end, Dani.” His words were as smooth as spun glass.
Dani ignored her good senses and let her hands travel over his wide shoulders. Blake was accomplished, attractive, and, it would seem, attracted to her. “What did you have in mind?”
He cupped the nape of her neck and gently angled her face to his. His eyes were warm, attentive, and smoldering with desire. “I know a place.” He dipped his head and Dani closed her eyes.
The wail of a siren shattered the air around them, and Dani jumped, the top of her head knocking into Blake’s chin. Her eyes sprung open, an odd purple glow pulsating around them outside in the garden. “Oh, my.”
Blake cursed and grabbed his chin.
“I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you?” Dani’s hands came up to examine his face.
“It’s fine.” He jerked away from her and scowled at the club’s parking lot just beyond the fruit trees of the patio. “He for real?”
Directly behind them, through the tree limbs, Dani could just make out the white markings of Kevin’s patrol car with its red and blue lights swirling. Dani clenched her hands at her side.
I’ll murder him.
*****
J. O’Dwyer donates ten percent of all book and jewelry sales to horse rescue to help in their mission of rescue, rehabilitation, and education.
Handmade by P. J. O’Dwyer
Author Bio –
J. O’Dwyer is an award-winning author of young adult and romantic suspense. She’s an active member of Romance Writers of America. When asked where she gets her story ideas, she laughs ruefully and says, “It helps being married to a cop.” She lives in Maryland with her family.
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