Archive | September 2016

Cougar’s Mate, Available for 99 cents for a Limited Time!

https://www.bookbub.com/books/cougar-s-mate-by-terry-spear?email=other_retailers&mid=1-11394-2297197-41776&ebook_deal

 

COUGAR’S MATE–99 cents for limited time!!!

Cougars Mate FINAL 11292013 copy

Cougar’s Mate: Instinct told her to run…

Shannon Rafferty learns that hanging out with the bad boys could be a dangerous business, but hooking up with a cop is even worse. Now she’s on the run, trying to avoid being murdered by his cougar shifter brothers and uncle. If that isn’t bad enough, a deputy sheriff hunts her down while she’s running as a cougar and trying to survive in the Colorado wilderness. He vows to protect her no matter what she’s done. With three dead boyfriends to her name, she’s sure she will be the death of Chase Buchanan before either of them can prevent it. No matter how much she knows she has to run again, he soon holds her heart hostage. But will that be enough to keep them both alive?

Chase Buchanan—as wilderness cabin resort owner, former US Army Special Forces, and part time deputy of the small town of Yuma, Colorado that boasts a love of cougars—is tasked to track down a cougar reported to be hunting human prey. Chase soon learns she’s a shifter, not a full-time cougar, and she’s on the run. When he takes her in, he vows to protect her. After losing his wife and baby to the human kind of predator years earlier, he’s not letting Shannon’s hunters kill her, too. But how is he going to hold onto the wild-cat woman, who is unpredictable at every turn, without losing his heart to her, and then losing her as well?

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

iBooks

Kobo

Google Play

ARe Books

Smashwords

Audible!

Back to work for me!! I’m working on Double Cougar Trouble right now, turned in a USA Today’s HEA interview, and am ready to party for A Very Jaguar Christmas! It’s coming on Tuesday! Are you ready to read yours?

jaguar-comfortable-640x427

Have a great day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Trailer for Covert Cougar Christmas! Neighbor’s Halloween! & Red Dragonfly!

Covert Cougar Christmas

https://s3.amazonaws.com/embed.animoto.com/play.html?w=swf/production/vp1&e=1475147428&f=INpwKBNlXD197C865dQPpw&d=0&m=p&r=360p&volume=100&start_res=360p&i=m&asset_domain=s3-p.animoto.com&animoto_domain=animoto.com&options=
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019KFDU2U

Barnes and Noble:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/covert-cougar-christmas-terry-spear/1123151535?ean=2940157676162

Kobo:https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/covert-cougar-christmas

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/601631

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Terry_Spear_Covert_Cougar_Christmas?id=12knDAAAQBAJ

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/covert-cougar-christmas/id1113811076?mt=11

Can you tell I’m in the mood for cooler weather? Well, making these brought it on! Really!

I actually have had cooler weather!

Excerpt from Covert Cougar Christmas!

PUBLISHED BY:

Terry Spear

 

 

 

Covert Cougar Christmas

Copyright © 2015 by Terry Spear

 

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

 

Discover more about Terry Spear at:

http://www.terryspear.com/

Chapter 1

 

 

Snowflakes and ice drizzled down his windshield as Travis MacKay hoped the winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories for later this week weren’t wrong and the storm was coming in earlier than expected. His Dodge Durango slipped on another patch of ice, and he tightened his hands on the leather-covered steering wheel. He was in a real time crunch already if he was going to pack and move his household goods from Cheyenne, Wyoming to Yuma Town, Colorado before the weather worsened and before New Year’s Day at the latest, when the new owners moved in.

It was nearly two in the morning when he reached the outskirts of town and realized he needed groceries and packing boxes. He was certain some grocery store would be open this late and drove into town, but found that none of them were. Then he spied several bundles of great, clean boxes folded and tied up next to a Dumpster behind a Christmas pop-up store, set up for business only during the holidays. Packing boxes had been another of his pressing priorities to get first thing in the morning and he was delighted to check one thing off his list. He pulled into the alley behind the building and parked.

He got out of the car, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of something move. He spun around to see if it truly was what he thought he saw. A golden cougar! Beautiful. The cougar raced past the entrance to the alley. A female, or younger male, not as big as an adult male.

A shifter like him? He couldn’t imagine it was a full cougar. Not in town like this. Yet he had never run across a shifter in Cheyenne before. Because of his cat’s curious nature, it made him want to chase after the cougar and learn the truth.

But he was now working out of Yuma Town as a field agent of the Cougar Special Forces Division, CSFD that took down rogue cougars.

Still, Travis took another long look in the direction the cougar had run, and hoped the cat would return so he could get another look at it when he knew it wouldn’t come back. The cat would think Travis was human and a real danger because he might call the sighting into animal control and someone would come out and shoot the cougar.

Then he saw the Christmas shop’s back door propped open. He was going to holler out that he wanted to use the boxes for moving if that was all right with the shop owner, but heard a heated argument inside, and paused. He listened in case he needed to stop a fight. Being a Ranger with the army and well trained in tactical maneuvers in his current job, Travis was well qualified to intervene and break up a fight, when he heard one of the men arguing say, “What do you mean that bastard wants more money?”

“He said if we don’t pay up, he’ll shut us down permanently. And I don’t mean that we’ll have a chance to pull up stakes and start up our operations someplace else in the States either.”

“Then we need to take him out.”

“Yeah, right. The two of us against—“ The man abruptly quit talking.

His heart thundering in his ears, Travis backed toward his car as quietly as he could, but his boot crunched on frozen snow. He pulled out his Glock, ready in case anyone came out of the building with a gun trained on him.

“So how much did we make on sales today?” the one man asked as if there was nothing the matter.

“Fourteen hundred and some pocket change. So not too bad. The angels are really going over big this year. And the naughty elf wooden ornaments from Denmark too.”

The other man chuckled. “Our Christmas trees are making the real money. Can you give me a hand with setting up another couple of trees where sales have left some bare spots?”

“Yeah sure.”

Travis hesitated. His kind didn’t take down human criminals, unless a situation presented itself and he couldn’t avoid it. If the men were cougars, different story. It sounded like the men were up to no good, but without some kind of evidence to go by, he couldn’t alert the police. And he couldn’t go in to check and see if they were cougars either. First thing in the morning when the shop was open, he could sniff around. Or later, when the men went home, he could check out the boxes and see if they smelled like cougars had touched them.

He eyed the pristine boxes one last time, wishing that everything had been on the up and up, and he could have just gotten the boxes and been done with it.

Then Travis saw movement out of his peripheral vision. Instinctively, he lunged to the right, hoping he was overreacting, but if not, that his car would give him cover, hating that it could be shot up though.

A blond-haired man was armed with a rifle and fired a shot. Travis’s quick reaction hadn’t been fast enough. The shooter had been just as quick, like a highly-trained sniper.

Travis heard the shot fired, felt the stick of a dart when it hit his shoulder, and he yanked it out. By the time he fired his own gun at the shooter, Travis was sinking to the asphalt, cursing himself all the way down. His vision blurring, he hoped to hell his shot had impacted on the guy’s body somewhere that it would make a difference. His mind drifting, Travis reminded himself there were two men, not just the one. And then his world faded from gray to black.

***

I had never seen a red dragonfly in person before, so when I saw one land on one of my little wrought iron trellises, I was excited! I wanted to get a picture of him while outside though, and using the tripod. I managed a few shots inside, just in case I couldn’t get him outside–as in he flew away. Which he did.

But then he came back and I was prepared. I moved around him, he fluttered off a few times, but I caught a few neat shots. Isn’t he beautiful? And magical?

red-dragonlfy-outside-on-tripodThen I came home after seeing my daughter last night and my neighbors go whole hog on Halloween.

So this was what I came home to. I’m not very good at nighttime photography. So I quickly looked up settings one photographer used, then sent my camera and went back out to take the shots, hoping they’d turn out. And they did!

night-neighbor-halloween-900-165Okay, I’m off to work on Double Cougar Trouble. 63,000 words to go!

Have a great one!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

A New Fae Story for Next Year? Excerpt Wednesday: The Deadly Fae

I turned in SEAL Wolf Undercover and Vexing the Highlander and played with creating some video trailers.

Not sure what I’m going to do yet with this fae, but, it’ll come next year. Here is the excerpt for:

The Deadly Fae

The World of Fae

Book 2

Terry Spear

The Deadly Fae

Copyright © 2011 by Terry Spear

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

 

 

The Deadly Fae:

 

Lady Sessily is a dark fae, an assassin, and she intends to retire and take up some other occupation so she can have a normal life. Get a boyfriend. Visit the human world to hassle humans like many of her kind do. Attend fae kingdom parties, not as the mystery woman who is scoping out her next intended victim, but just to have fun. Until tall, dark, handsome, and deadly interrupts her plans.

 

Lady Sessily is on a mission to assassinate a fae lord who is the most evil kind of fae. But when she is thwarted, not once, but twice by another fae lord, she is ready to strangle him. And she’ll do it for free.

 

Tall, dark, handsome and deadly Lord Fairhaven insists she do a job for him. Which she refuses. But the lord is not one to take no for an answer.

 

The crown prince of the cobra fae doesn’t know what to think when he hires a master assassin who turns out to be a woman–not her father like he’d been led to believe. But can she eliminate one of the most powerful queens of any of the fae kingdoms without getting herself killed?

 

He soon rethinks his plan as he gets to know the woman he begins to think of as his angel assassin.

CHAPTER 1

 

 

Wearing male fae clothes, breeches and a tunic, all black that would blend in with the dark alleys or the woods on a moonless night like a master thief on a mission, Lady Sessily stalked her target. Her dark curly brown hair was wound in braids and secured to the back of her head, then she’d covered it with a wide-brimmed ebony hat pulled low over her eyes that shadowed her face in the low light of the alley. The hat had been her father’s when he went on a mission like this, and now she proudly wore it, the black plumed feather waving like an invisible flag in the light breeze.

She peered out beyond the ancient stone building and watched the man she was hired to assassinate, swaggering with his arrogant pride as he headed toward the gaming house.

Lord Davenport loved collecting new brides and their dowries and eliminating them as soon as possible so that he could court another fae heiress. But only in another fae kingdom so that no one knew what he’d done in the last one.

Some fae wouldn’t have cared. One less fae of another kingdom, no problem. Not until they learned that it didn’t matter which kind he murdered. Any would do as long as she was available and wealthy.

But this time, he had married the wrong woman. As soon as Lord Davenport had targeted Lady Marguerite, her brother had tried to learn everything he could about the fae. By the time he had discovered Lord Davenport had a string of former wives, all dead of mysterious causes, his sister had already married the fae and was too in love to see anything but good in her new husband. Her brother could think of only one way to get rid of the lord before he murdered his sister. He contacted the Denkar fae assassin guild to end the lord’s life, not that the brother knew who he was really hiring.

Sessily was certain Lady Marguerite’s brother would have said no to the deal.

Sessily had watched Lord Davenport’s movements for a day and a half, learning his routine, but not wanting to delay his demise. She wished she had longer to observe him, as she was most methodical in researching the behavior of her intended victims. Any mistake and she could be dead instead of her target. And if she died, the poor wife of the lord would be next.

Sessily stayed to the alleyways, watching his progress as he stalked along the dim-lighted street to the gambling house where he would spend another of his brides’ dowries. He was handsome, as men go, a blond fae, dressed in the finest of clothes, his bearing noble, and a real charmer with the ladies. But he was the worst of beasts, if one could discern the true man beneath the clothes and his bearing. He was the devil himself with only one thought in mind—which fae heiress would he claim next for his own?

Sessily almost wanted him to attempt to ply his charms on her. She was an heiress also. But in his case, she’d like to see how he tried to woo her before she put him out of his misery.

She’d never had a man show any interest in her. Not that she wasn’t attractive, or appealing, or smart, but making friends was an occupational hazard. How could she tell a guy she was truly interested in that she had to assassinate someone tonight? Could they get together later?

Fae women just didn’t serve as assassins, not in the assassin-guild sense. So keeping her secret was extremely important.

Normally, she would have just stalked the murderous lord, poisoned him, and collected her gold. She would have felt good that she’d saved his current bride from an early death and rid the world of one really bad fae.

But tonight, Sessily was feeling out of sorts. She was tired of hiding what she was, of never getting out and being with her kind, of living in seclusion at her castle. She glanced down at her dark clothes. She wasn’t dressed as a lady, either. She couldn’t garner any man’s attention in these clothes, except to suffer his ridicule. And maybe she’d even get herself arrested. She looked like she was ready to steal the silver and jewels from an estate, not like she was a fae heiress.

She was moving like a shadow, getting ready to blow a poisoned dart at Lord Davenport, not making a sound when she heard someone behind her. He moved almost as soundless as she did. But not quite. His footstep was heavy, and he shuffled just a bit. She whipped around to see a huge bear of a man swinging a cudgel at her head. She ducked, thanking the goddess for her agility.

“You’ll not be taking the money from him, you thief. He’s mine,” the man growled under his breath, his dark beard and hair long, and shaggy. His clothes were unwashed and if the breeze had been blowing in the right direction, she would have smelled his approach long before he had reached her.

She narrowed her eyes at him. This man intended to rob her target?

Maybe that could be a good thing. He could rob Lord Davenport, then she’d poison the lord, and the fae who investigated crimes in this kingdom would think the lord had been robbed and murdered by the same man.

But the thief swung the cudgel at her head again, the ring of gold around his pupils glowing brightly, revealing just how pissed off the fae was at her that she would target the man he intended to rob. And he didn’t intend to just knock her out with a feather-light touch either. His cudgel and hefty swing could kill a man.

She dove out of the way, felt the cudgel sweeping the air past her head, just missing her. Her heart raced as she tried to come up with another plan, slipping further into the dark alleyway. If she used her poison dart on the thief, she wouldn’t have it to use on the lord. She slid it back into her pocket.

In exasperation, she let out her breath in a rush. Most cities were too dangerous to live in. She much preferred her country estate.

Conjuring up a spell, she summoned fae dust and tossed a handful at his eyes. The gold shimmering particles like fine sand pelted his eyes and face, forcing him to shut his eyes. He cursed out loud, swiping at his eyes with a meaty, filthy hand.

He would scare Lord Davenport off with all his shouting, she feared. She headed for the exit to the alley, but the thief managed to grab her arm with a bruising grip and raised his stick again to strike her.

She was in the process of pulling a pin out of her hat with her free hand when a stranger said, “Whoa.” He immediately poked a gun at the thief’s ribs. “Let the boy go.”

She jerked her head up to see a man covered in a hooded cloak, looking down at her, a faint curve to his lips. His blue eyes were dark and shadowed, and he was dangerously handsome, she thought. He looked to be around her age, or maybe he was a little older. It was hard to tell from the grim look on his face.

Then she recalled what he’d called her.

Boy? The stranger thought she was a boy? Certainly she was dressed as one, but still, she hadn’t thought she looked like a boy. A ruffian girl, yes.

She really had to do some serious thinking about her role in life. She wanted a boyfriend. It wasn’t that she minded ridding the world of people like Davenport. But there had to be more to life than earning a living and keeping her castle and people safe.

Again, she jerked her arm to free herself from the thief, but the smelly bear that held onto her tightened his hold and yanked her closer.

Nothing had gone as planned. She couldn’t kill Lord Davenport in front of the thief and now whoever this man was. Master assassins never had an audience. And she couldn’t use her fae magic to do serious bodily harm to the thief either because she was careful to keep her abilities secret from other fae. What they didn’t know could hurt them. In her business, that was the only way to live.

“Release the boy,” her rescuer said, his voice frigid and dangerous.

The thief let go of Sessily and swung the cudgel at the stranger. The man leapt back and fired one shot. Like a massive tree trunk, the thief fell backward and landed with a thud on the stone path. One bullet in the temple, and the man was dead.

Lord Davenport glanced back at the sound of the shooting in the alley, but continued on his way to the gambling house, his pace quickened. The stranger looked from the dead man to Sessily, a chilly smile on his face. “Come with me, boy. You’re safe now.”

She closed her gaping mouth. Great. One dead body, wrong man, and it wasn’t even her doing. And if he called her boy in that irksome manner one more time…

Amazon

iBooks

Google Books

I’ll share another book trailer tomorrow!

Have a super day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Cute Koalas

koala-bear-looking-this-way-800x533koala-800x533These were at the San Diego Zoo. We didn’t have any at the zoos I’ve been too. They’re so cute.

Finished edits for SEAL Wolf Undercover. 🙂

Off to read Vexing the Highlander for a final time! 🙂

Have a great day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Catching the Shot!

max-showing-off-teeth-900I was testing out a 50mm that reviewers said did well in low light. I didn’t mess with settings, so you get what you ask for. But…I didn’t exactly expect to get this shot!

Wouldn’t it make for a great story? QUIT taking pictures of me! Or else! And: my bite is much worse than my bite!

Okay, I’ve been working on edits, so back to work on SEAL Wolf Undercover! 🙂  Need to read Vexing the Highlander over one last time also.

Have a super day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Some Days Are Meant to Be Purple

Purple Bubblegum Bear

Purple Bubblegum Bear

bridge and purple flowers 600x400orange flowers, pink purple 008 (800x533) (2)Purple Magic Crepe Myrtle 002 (640x427)macro shot of pale purple flower (640x427)iris with purple mist (640x626)bubblegum and sherbet bear 005 airy light, honeysuckle, purple haze (900x729)close up purple and white flowers (640x427)purple-sun-ray-at-sunset-kaleidoscope-640x427-wolf-caught-up-in-the-rainbow-of-lgihtcardinals on the wagon 088 purple 600storm-clouds-sunset-purple-sky-900-020Back to edits on SEAL Wolf Undercover! 🙂 <3

Have a super day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

One Blue Eye, One Brown

This is my neighbor’s dog, Maya. She’s hyperactive and the sweetest, but trying to get her to sit still for a brow- eyed, blue-eyed picture is a challenge.  She’s so full of expression.

neighors-dog-maya-blue-eye-brown-eye-900-015

neighor-016-maya-neighbors-dog-900

Pets can make you happy!

Have a super day!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Messing Around with Macro

macro-garlic-grass-seedsThis is a little seed pod on thin strands of garlic chives. I found some tips on working with macro, so played around with it a bit.

jennifer-week-12-and-macro-900-009Close up of sparkly fall decorations with overhead light on.

macro-coneflower-900-001Macro coneflower.

macro-coneflower-900-003Macro coneflower emphasis on yellow buds on this one.  I still want the center buds. I have to hand hold the camera to get this close though and for the best shots for macro, you’re supposed to put it on a tripod.

Getting Started Guide to Macro or Close-Up Photography

So I’m rethinking Double Cougar Trouble and put it on hold because I want to get it right and not have to rewrite major portions of it because I changed my mind. And I just got edits on SEAL Wolf Undercover, so need to begin work on that. And I shipped off the last bear order, which I finished up yesterday. And I finished up two more bears to display for Halloween.

So it’s back to the books for me. 🙂

Have a great day!!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

Done!! & Excerpt Wednesday! The Highlander!

Horde of arctic wolves in a zoo

Okay, White Wolf Christmas is not up for preorder yet, but will soon be. I’ll post when it is. Between a Rock and a Hard Place is available for preorder. They’re working on the cover now.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place
April 2017
Kobo: Coming
iBooks: Coming

wildflowers-shadows-of-clouds-on-hills-and-river-640x360A picture I took of Scotland and all the beautiful flowers in bloom.

 

Excerpt from The Highlander, copyrighted by Terry Spear

His side and the back of his head throbbed with pain and the sound of flowing water filled Niall MacNeill’s ears. Where in God’s wounds was he and what had happened to him? He opened his eyes to low morning light—made grayer by a thick mist. His mind, cloaked in a hazy fuzz, finally cleared enough for him to realize he was on his belly beside a river. He groaned, his head pounding, and he recalled the Murray clansman striking the blow that had knocked him out.

But Niall wondered where in the world he was.

He stared at the river, his thoughts so groggy, he couldn’t think straight. The… the Scottish Lowlands. He must have been left for dead.

The back of his head and his side burned.

Gunnolf.

He twisted too quickly to see if his Viking friend, raised as a brother, was nearby. Pain jabbed Niall where he’d been injured—a glancing sword wound in his side, and his head felt like it would split open if he moved again. He moaned a curse.

“Gunnolf,” he called out low, trying not to call attention to himself if any of the Murray clansmen were still about.

Gurgling water slipped over the stones near his head, the rushing sound of the river in the deeper part, but he heard no voices. No sounds of human movement. Just the river’s flow and birds twittering in a nearby tree.

He prayed Gunnolf was well and not worse off than Niall was. Or worse… dead.

His head throbbed with a perpetual dull ache now. Reaching up, Niall felt the back of his skull. A sticky wetness covered his fingers. Blood. His blood. His thoughts jumbled, he could barely remember how he came to be here.

Ambushed! The brigands had struck right after he and Gunnolf had washed in the river, dressed in fresh clothes, and intended to sleep the night. The Clan Murray, he thought coldly, after they’d run into them earlier in the day and asked one of the men if he knew anything about a Frenchwoman living in the region.

Another ragged jab of pain radiated through the wound in his side, and he reached out to scoop up some water in his hands and splashed it on his face, the cold river jarring him from his stupor. Devil take the bastard who’d cut him and struck such a blow to his skull that the man had knocked him out. The man most likely believed him dead.

But where was Gunnolf? Niall had to find him as soon as he was able.

He thought he heard the bleating of sheep off in the distance in the glen and roused himself to a sitting position. Pain in his skull and side stabbed him so sharply, he fought drifting into a cave of blackness again. The groan he heard, he belatedly realized, was his own. Somehow, he managed to conquer the dizziness and focus again on his surroundings.

Woods, green hills, jagged gray stone topping taller mountains in the distance, and the blue river behind him filled his view.

Sheep meant a sheepherder would be nearby, and he could seek his help. As long as the man wasn’t one of Cian Murray’s men. Though, he didn’t think it could be as the Murray Clan had settled farther west, mostly living in the Highlands.

Niall surveyed the brush and trees along the river, his gaze fixing on his sword half hidden in the long grasses and heather. He smiled darkly. He could lose most anything else, but he couldn’t live without his sword. Although not having his horse provided more of a challenge also. He needed him back just as much.

Niall attempted to stand, and every move filled him with excruciating pain. He fought an overwhelming lightheadedness and the blackness that threatened to overcome him. After finally standing, listing to the side a little, he retrieved his sword and sheathed it. Then he began the slow walk in the direction of the sheep’s calls, remembering the task his cousin, Laird James MacNeill, had put before him. He and Gunnolf were to accompany the Chattan brothers and their kin on the way to see their McEwan cousin and his ward. During the journey, Niall and Gunnolf were to split off from them and continue on their way to the Lowlands, to the area around Banbh. There, they were to locate a French lady whose father had once saved James’s life in combat during the Crusades and now needed the MacNeill’s protection—without alerting anyone as to their business.

She was here, somewhere in the region, if Niall could discover her location. As soon as he had her in hand, he and Gunnolf would return her to James’s safekeeping. But he had to find his friend first. Once they accomplished the task, he and Gunnolf would find some other worthy cause to champion.

For now, Niall concentrated on putting one foot before the other and not collapsing in a bloody heap in the tall green grasses again, worried about Gunnolf, their horses, and another encounter with Cian and his men.

***

An impenetrable mist cloaked the lands in a chilly grayness late that morn, and the area appeared dark and more formidable, Anora thought as she returned home after selling several of her sheep at market in Banbh. A strange red glow in the sky to the north of her stone cottage caught her attention. A campfire? She studied the sight as she latched the gate to the pen.

Her dog suddenly growled a low warning, and she turned to watch him, trying to discern what the matter was. His rusty brown and white fur stood on end, his long flappy brown ears perked up, listening to only sounds he could hear. He sniffed at the air, his white fringed tail stiffening. Then he sniffed at the ground.

“What is wrong, Charlie?” Anora whispered.

He looked up at her and wagged his tail, then turned his attention to the cottage again.

Not taking any chances, Anora grabbed a pitchfork from the haystack. She had her sgian dubh tucked in its sheath at her waist, but she was afraid someone still might get the best of her if she used the shorter knife.

Curses on anyone who might have slipped inside her home to steal from her, again. Just because she lived alone, did not mean she was without resources.

Barely breathing, she crept toward the cottage. The tiny stones along the path crunched with every step she took, setting her nerves on edge. With the prongs of the fork, she pushed the door aside. The rusted hinges creaked, and the noise made her stop dead. Her heart thundered so out of control, she could scarcely hear anything else.

The flap of sheepskin over the window on the north side of her house fluttered with the breeze, drawing her attention as Anora peered into the dim light. Not seeing anyone inside, she took a step into the main room. The door to her sleeping room rested slightly ajar, catching her gaze next. Her mind raced as she tried to remember how she’d left it that morning. Closed, she thought. Emitting a low growl, her dog still stood at the front door, and Anora frowned.

“Some guard dog you are,” she whispered.

Bringing her pitchfork back to the ready, she steeled herself and angled the weapon up. Holding her breath, she gingerly walked across the stone floor. Charlie ran into the middle of the main room growling more loudly this time, but remaining behind her—her rearguard.

“Shh, you are scaring me more than anyone else, Charlie,” Anora whispered, holding her finger to her lips, fearing he would alert whoever might be in her cottage that she had arrived. Not that the creaking door wouldn’t have already done so. Though if the intruder was still here, he was being very quiet.

Panting, Charlie settled his rump on the floor and waited for her next command. Her hands clammy as she gripped the pitchfork tightly in her clenched fists, Anora inched forward.

When she reached the simple slat door, she pushed at it with the sharp prongs of her pitchfork, but finding the door resisted her efforts, she paused, trying to figure out what could be blocking it.

Hand on the door, she pushed again and found a chair held it partly jammed in place. She knew she should leave. Someone was still in the room. But it was her cottage. Well, she rented it from the local laird, but still, she had nearly always lived here and it felt as though it was hers. She had nowhere else to go and no one else who could take care of this for her. She wasn’t going to allow it.

Steeling her back, she again tightened her grip on the pitchfork. If she sucked in her breath, she could slip in through the sliver of the makeshift entrance.

Heart thudding and holding her breath, Anora inched her way through the doorway, careful not to make a sound on the cobblestone floor in here. The windowless room was fairly dark, the scant bit of light filtering in from the main room, allowing her to see the closest objects, the bed and the small table next to it. Everything else faded into the darkness.

Once inside, she saw a large lump of a figure sleeping in her bed, half-buried in sheepskin covers. Her breath escaped in a whoosh. She clasped her hand to her mouth to muffle her gasp. Even though she knew someone had to be in her sleeping chamber, she still couldn’t contain her surprise. Not when that someone was a large man—half naked!—and sleeping in her bed.

The Highlander, Book 5

Anna, the shepherdess, finds a half-naked man in her bed, so what’s a woman living alone in a cottage in the Lowlands of Scotland supposed to do? Prod him with her pitchfork to chase him off! Only the man is not just a traveler seeking her bed for a rest—but a wounded Highlander, who fights back, swinging his sword!

Niall MacNeill is searching for a Frenchwoman of nobility to escort to his brother’s castle for safekeeping, when he and his friend, Gunnolf, are attacked by another Highland clan, seeking the same woman. The other Highlanders wish to sell her to the highest bidder—English or French—it does not matter.

Niall takes refuge in a sheepherder’s cottage to heal up from his wounds and discovers the shepherdess taking care of him may very well be the woman he seeks. He has no intention of doing anything but what his brother requests of him—ensure her safety on their way to Craigly Castle—but when the lass so bravely wields her pitchfork at him, he is thinking of other, more interesting possibilities.

Kobo

Smashwords

Amazon

B&N
IBook

Google Play

ENCHANTING THE HIGHLANDER for pre-order!!! 99 Cents!

Enchanting the Highlander

5 new Scottish romance novellas by 5 bestselling authors!  BRAND NEW stories!

PROTECTED BY THE LAIRD by Eliza Knight — When she needed a champion, he raised his sword…

VEXING THE HIGHLANDER by Terry Spear — Saving the king’s life has unforeseen consequences for one Highlander and a lady, the king’s ward…

DEFENDED BY A HIGHLAND RENEGADE by Vonda Sinclair — A bride on the run doesn’t expect a kilted outlaw to come to her rescue…

TARTANS AND TRYSTS by Victoria Roberts — This Highland warrior is about to lose the battle to a lass who’s already won his heart…

HIS HIGHLAND ROSE by Willa Blair — He is the one man who can see her soul and show her who she truly is—his only love…

Order now! Available November 1!
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IYO64OE
ITunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1136905927
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1124144233
Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/…/ebo…/enchanting-the-highlander

Okay, I’ll be getting edits soon on another book, need to finish Vexing the Highlander’s edits, and off to work on Double Cougar Trouble!

Have a great one!!!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear

1947 Police Car–With and Without Texture Overlay

police-car-1947-aad-conference-2013-savannah-147-800x561police-car-1947-karen-alsops-texture-difference-43-percent-exposing-shiny-parts-savannah-147-800x561police-car-1947-karen-alsops-texture-difference-43-percent-exposing-some-shiny-parts-savannah-147-800x561-1The picture was shot of a 1947 police car at the police station in Savannah, Georgia. Isn’t it beautiful? Love the old brick building too. I have another I shot of the black car I’ll show off later.

The next was with a texture overlay and sun’s rays, and the 3rd, using a Difference mode on the texture overlay that made it look like a comic strip. 🙂

Okay, got to get back to work! My teeth and head are killing me–sinuses, so took some allergy medicine and hope it helps quickly!!!

Have 600 words to go and 7 chapters to go on White Wolf Christmas and am dogsitting tonight and tomorrow night, sooooooo, I need to get this done before that happens! Off to take some tylenol!

Have a super great day!!!

Terry Spear

“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”

Connect with Terry Spear:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerrySpear