@AuthorCFeehan @penguinrandom #RedonTheRiver
#1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan goes all in with this sexy romantic thriller set among the dangers—both man-made and natural—of Nevada’s breathtaking landscape.
Vienna Mortenson isn’t your typical gambler. She prefers to stay under the radar, using her poker winnings to support her family and her community, including the local search and rescue team, which she heads up. Out in the backcountry there’s no time for hesitation when lives are on the line. Vienna prides herself on being tough and decisive. She’s not the sort to make a fool of herself over a guy, especially one who left her high and dry without a backward glance. Zale Vizzini’s job constantly puts him in harm’s way. Working undercover and disappearing for months at a time isn’t exactly a recipe for a stable relationship. Despite the challenges and the risks, Zale wants something real with Vienna. He just needed time to figure out how to be in her life without putting her in danger. Now, he’s determined to win her back, and he’s ready to lay all his cards on the table. As their friends’ wedding approaches, Zale takes advantage of the festivities to make a play for Vienna’s heart. But there are more deadly forces waiting to strike in the rugged terrain of Nevada and the western Sierras. Soon both of their lives are threatened, and the odds are stacked against them....
Christine Feehan is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of many novels, including the Carpathian series, the GhostWalker series, the Leopard series, the Torpedo Ink series, and the Shadow Riders series. Learn more online at christinefeehan.com.
EXCERPT
RED ON THE RIVER—Non-Exclusive Excerpt
“I want a relationship, Vienna.” His voice was quiet. “I want you to give us a chance. Tell me what to do so you know I’m serious.”
“How long would you stay working, Zale, if we did start a relationship? Your work seems dangerous and it’s obvious you could disappear for months and I wouldn’t know if you were alive or dead. That doesn’t seem like a good fit with me. I’m a worrier.”
“We’re a good fit.”
He just stated it, as if it were a fact. His gaze never left hers. He acted so certain.
“You make no sense, Zale. You’re a highly intelligent man. Other than that, I don’t know the first thing about you and you don’t know the first thing about me. You’re talking as if that month and a half we had together is the same as the two years Sam and Stella had. It isn’t. They had time to get to know one another. A lot of time. We spent most of our time having sex.”
“I made love to you. I might not have known that was what I was doing every single time, but that was it. I knew it was different and you had to have known it as well. Every time I touched you, it felt different. Sometimes, Vienna, I couldn’t sleep. I would just lie awake and watch you sleep, breathing you in, terrified of what I was feeling for you.”
“And yet you left without a single word.”
He nodded slowly, thoughtfully, his expression never changing. But his eyes did. She was watching closely, and the color deepened, turned a dark chocolate, almost a velvet. She pressed a hand to her stomach to keep the sensation of rolling away. The roller coaster again. She couldn’t afford to live her life on a ride at a theme park.
“I didn’t know how to protect you. Or give you a promise. I had to think things through. I had to know for certain that I wasn’t going to ruin your life if I inserted myself into it permanently. Men like me don’t do that easily, Vienna. We have to know we can protect the people we choose to have in our world. I had to know if I could even be in a relationship and make it work. I wasn’t going to insist I could and then back out later.”
“You can’t know that about yourself.”
“I’m good at looking at my weaknesses and strengths. In my line of work, I have to be. The one thing I don’t ever do is bullshit myself. I can make a life with you. I’m loyal, Vienna. That’s one trait I have. And I’m capable of loving the right person. That’s you. Stop shaking your head.”
She might consider keeping him just for his foot massages. The entire time he’d been presenting his case, he’d never stopped rubbing her feet and calves. That felt so good. She should have been tense, but his hands kept her relaxed and mellow.
“Snowflake, you didn’t date anyone else. According to Sam, you didn’t look at anyone else. It wasn’t like you haven’t had chances. I didn’t look at anyone else. We fit.”
“Do you have any idea how annoying you are?”
Excerpted from Red on the River by Christine Feehan Copyright © 2022 by Christine Feehan. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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