The Melody in My Head
Love and Music in Texas, Book 2
Coming July 2013
Blurb:
Welcome back to Harmony's Echo, Texas.....
Melody Roland is on the run from the one person she trusted completely. One who
hid a dark past she could never have imagined. When a pregnant woman on the bus
she's fleeing on goes into labor, Melody rushes to her aide. Now she finds
herself stranded in a tiny remote town just off the highway, with no way to her
original destination.
She's alone, on edge, and unsure who to trust. Her instincts scream to get far
away and fast. But how and where?
Jameson Grant struggles through the roughest year of his life. Suffering from
the loss of his father, one grief stricken night, he made a mistake. One which
cost him the only woman he's ever loved. Each lonely day he's faced with the
constant reminders of how quick things can change. Throwing himself into the
one thing he has left, his music, helps dull the pain he fights to keep hidden.
His last salvation begins to crumble as things spiral out of control and he has
no choice but to face the 'music' of his past.
The last thing he needs or wants in his life is a woman with more trouble on
her heels than the best of country music lyrics. But Melody sings a sirens call
within him that can't be ignored.
Jameson and Melody bond in ways stronger than either could have imagined, but
one dangerous person from her past may threaten it all...
If she doesn't flee before he can convince her to stay, and that some love
songs last an eternity.
Excerpt:
Carefully holding the guitar case,
Jameson climbed the ladder resting on the side of the house. He should take it
down, but until now, he'd forgotten about it. He set the guitar case at the
edge of the roof, then glanced down at Melody. “Okay, hand me the blankets
and the light.” He called to her. Stepping down a few rungs, he reached for the
requested items. Once on the roof, he peered back at her again. “Come on up!”
“Jameson, what are we doing?” But
she was laughing. When her head appeared at the top, he held out a hand to her,
helping to ease her up onto the roof. He'd already set one blanket down for
them to sit on. The other he brought for her in case she got cold
“Getting a great view of the
stars.” Jameson pointed. One of the things he loved about living in a small
town was being able to see the sky at night. One of the best views ever. Melody
settled next to him on the blanket, staring at the same direction.
“It's beautiful. I can't remember
the last time I just stared at the stars.”
It had been awhile for him, too.
But he knew when the last time he'd been up here.
Jameson set the lantern at the edge of the blanket and turned on the light. It
was bright enough for them to see, but not too bright to ruin the view of the
stars. “Are you cold? If you are, I have an extra blanket.” He pointed to it,
next to the guitar case. “The only thing I forgot to grab was something to
drink.”
Melody laughed. “I'll forgive you, you thought of everything else.”
He enjoyed the sound of her laugh.
Jameson shook that thought away and reached for his guitar.
“Do you do this often? Come up on the roof late at night with your guitar?”
“Not in some time.” Jameson held
the guitar, pulling a pick out of the case and strummed a few chords. “Sometimes,
I need a different environment other than the garage, you know? Nice thing is,
there aren't a lot of neighbors nearby, so I'm not disturbing anyone. “
“It is nice.” Melody mused, lying on her back. She crossed her arms behind her
head.
Jameson started to play the chorus to a popular Taylor Swift song. He even sang
along, raising his voice a few octaves to mimic the sound. Melody turned her
head and laughed.
“I'm not sure that song fits your voice,” she teased. She rested her head on
her elbow, now interested in watching him.
Jameson stopped mid-play. “No? Damn. Here I thought I was being all cool.”
That got another giggle out of her. “You are cool! Just...sing a different
song.”
“All right, all right. I'll find
another song, since my Taylor impersonation isn't appreciated.” Jameson
pretended to pout, which made Melody laugh again. He was on a roll, and his
plan worked. The mood had been lightened. “Okay, how about this?” He started to
play and sing an older Shania Twain song.
Melody sat up, covering her mouth
with her hand. He could see her body shaking as she tried to hold in her
laughter. “You know, Jameson, that don't impress me much, either.”
Pretending to be hurt, he put the
guitar down. “What am I doing wrong? Is my singing that bad? That's a first.
Usually, I won them all with these songs.”
“Oh Jameson. You're so funny.”
“Okay, one last time, and
hopefully third time will be the charm. Are you ready?”
Reaching for his guitar
again, Jameson watched her as he started a new tune. This time, he played the
tune to the song he'd been working on with her a few days ago. Even in the dim
light, he noticed her face light up as he sang the first few lines from her
song.
“You win, the third time is the
charm. Now that fits your voice. Brava!” She clapped her hands.
“How about you sing it with me?”
“Oh, no. I don't think so.”
“Oh come on. Let's serenade the
stars. Maybe we'll catch one falling.” He pleaded. “It's your lyrics. I'd love
to hear from coming from your lips.” As he started over on the guitar, he shot
her what he hoped was his best pout.
“You're relentless!” Melody
exclaimed, raising her hands in defeat. She still smiled, though.
When Jameson got to the chorus, Melody chimed in. He had to force himself to
keep going as he listened to her voice. She was pretty good! She had this soft,
gentle ease about her voice. It didn't ring out with a lot of power backing her
up, but she had a sweet sound that radiated into his mind. He lowered his voice
a little bit to let her shine. He couldn't keep his eyes off her as he watched
her lips move, and heard the words.
When they stopped, it was his turn
to applaud. “You have a great voice. You sounded really good, Melody.”
He wasn't sure, but he thought she
was blushing. Melody turned away from him for a second.
“Thank you, Jameson. I'm not one for the spot light, but that was really neat
to sing my own lyrics.”
“You know, we're still looking for a song or two to add to our demo. I like
this one a lot, even though it's not finished. What would you think about
finishing it and playing it for the band?” As shy as she was about these
things, would she even go for that? The words really were great, and he liked
the melody he'd put to her words.
“I- are you serious?” She sounded
caught off guard.
Jameson nodded, setting his guitar
down once again. “I am. I like the way it's progressing. And when you sang with
me just now, I liked the idea of having a back up on it. It would be a great
addition.”
“Only if you sing it. I think this
song fits your voice, I've already told you that.” She smiled again. “I don't
want to step on any toes or anything...”
You can meet Jameson
Grant in Baby Stetson, the first book in the Love and Music in Texas book.
Baby Stetson
Love and Music in
Texas, Book One
Blurb:
In
small Texas towns, strangers come and go...
Left in a Stetson hat, on the steps of the local bed and breakfast, Avery
Callimer came into the world on a wing and a prayer. Raised by loving adoptive
parents, she's never lacked for love...only the knowledge of her past.
By day she works the Inn, but by night...Avery comes alive as lead singer in a
band. Life was good...stable, until new guests blew into town.
Some strangers come with secrets and lies.
Lucas Bennett is one such stranger. Drifting from one mess to another has left
him jaded. Doesn't matter the dramas are never his doing. Giving it one last
shot to make a fresh start lands him Harmony's Echo, Texas and smack dab in front
of the tantalizing Avery.
Despite his best efforts to ignore the burn Avery's ignited within, he's intent
to keep his distance. Secrets have followed him. Secrets he doesn't want Avery
to know.
Each time they're near the other things heat up like a brushfire on a dry Texas
prairie.
But maybe, after the dust settles and the smoke clears, love can bloom with a
fresh start.
Buy Links
Amazon │ Barnes and Noble │ Kobo
ABOUT THE
AUTHOR:
Nikki
Lynn Barrett lives in Arizona with her husband and son. She's an avid reader, a
dreamer, and loves everything about books. She runs a book blog, an online used
bookstore, and writes various genres of romance. Nikki can also be found
outside with her camera when a storm is near, snapping photo after photo.
Her
dreams of becoming a writer started when she was young, when she started
writing books in one subject notebooks by the fifth grade. The Secret Santa
Wishing Well is her debut book. You can visit Nikki's site at:
www.nikkilynnbarrett.blogspot.com for more information. She is working on her
next book. Nikki would love to hear from readers.
Email her at
nikkilynnbarrett@yahoo.com
https://www.facebook.com/NikkiLynnBarrettauthor
@Stormgoddess925
on Twitter
