In 2003, my son-in-law was deployed overseas and my daughter was pregnant. One of my sons was also deployed overseas during that time, just winding down his year overseas. First my son shipped out. In March, as I packed and prepared to move to another state, my attention was glued to the television screen. I went three weeks without communication at a very trying time. It was only after the move that I received a call from my son to inform me that he was safe. The relief was immense. He couldn't say much but to hear his voice was the best sound in the world.
And then my son-in-law was deployed. My daughter was near term and so I flew to Ft. Bragg to be with her for the birth of my granddaughter. My sister, who lives in New York, put together a long-distance baby shower, gathering gifts from friends and relatives around the country. Everything packed into their SUV and the family drove down to North Carolina, surprising my daughter.
My other son flew in for a week's vacation. Now, how many babies do you know that are born on their due date? Would he be here for the arrival of his new niece? Well, you know how that goes. Except in this case the stars were aligned correctly, I guess.
Surprisingly, or maybe not so, knowing my granddaughter, but she was born right on her due date. Just seven days from my own birthday. What a birthday present! My son played chauffeur, and I was there for the birth of my granddaughter. It turned out to be a C-section delivery--my granddaughter apparently having second thoughts about whether she was quite ready to leave her mother's womb, but alas the Navy doctor thought otherwise. A week later, my son who was deployed, returned to the U.S. and he joined us as well. He was stationed in Georgia at the time.
Once my stay was over, my mother-in-law flew in for three weeks to stay with my daughter. Family and friends are so important at times like this.
I spent time prior to the birth with my daughter, doing errands, meeting her friends, attending one of the family update meetings, learning about the phone trees established for military families to communicate information, going to the Post Office in sweltering heat, standing in lines because the packages to her husband were prepared and sent often. The strength necessary to continue day-to-day, waiting for that phone call, watching for that communication that keeps one going each and every day, maybe a moment online. These are images and experiences and emotions that are indelibly branded into memory.
I didn't actually start to write Jebediah's Promise until about a year later, but the idea refused to fade.
This is where the glimmer of a story began to form in my mind. This was a story I had to write. It is dedicated to my daughter, her husband, and my son, as well as to all those family who sacrifice for our safety. To my father who served in the Korean Conflict, my uncle who served in World War II, my other uncle who served in the Vietnam War, to my husband's family who have served, as well as all those who have come before and those will continue to serve.
It is a story of love, commitment, and sacrifice, first and foremost, sensual and erotic in its telling.
I thought today might be an appropriate day on which to share an excerpt once more.
Jebediah’s Promise by Adrianna Dane
Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance
ISBN: 1-59279-473-4 (electronic)
Publisher: Amber Quill Press/Amber Heat
Also available in the Tapestry of Desire Paperback (a collection of erotic romance) available at Amazon.com.
Purchase Link: http://www.amberquill.com/AmberHeat/JebediahsPromise.html
Author Website: www.adriannadane.com
SYNOPSIS:
Captain Jebediah Holliday is a soldier who serves his country with pride and holds the heart of his wife Trudy, keeping him strong. Dedication to duty requires strength and commitment in separation for both Jeb and Trudy. Jeb’s pledge to do his duty and return to Trudy safely is jeopardized when he is taken hostage on a routine mission. Trudy has faith that Jeb will return home to her, keeping his promise. A hero’s face and courage comes in many guises.
EXCERPT:
"Hey soldier, how about buying a girl a drink?"
Jeb paused in the act of raising the glass to his lips and smiled to himself. He set the beer back on the bar and swiveled around on the stool, knowing exactly whom that sultry, sexy voice belonged to.
Schooling his expression so as not to reveal his anticipation, he surveyed the compact little strawberry blonde posed next to his stool. Mm-mm, damn fine looking woman. With cherry-lush lips curved into a seductive half smile, a slender golden brow arched upward, and the taunt-the-devil flash in her eyes, she presented the kill-me wallop of some of his grandpap’s finest homebrew. The now familiar burn flashed bright, tracking a path through his insides, heart to groin.
Drawing out the sizzle, he took his time in answering as he measured her with his eyes, drinking in the sensual image she presented. It was a vision he’d never grow tired of seeing. The loud country music blasting on the speakers faded away, his total concentration centered on the hot little package standing in front of him. He always had been a man who liked to take his time unwrapping presents slow and easy.
"Well, evenin’, good lookin’. What brings you into a place like this?" His body throbbed in response to the picture she presented in the tight black jeans hugging her rounded hips, and his gaze appreciated the full firm breasts his hands itched to hold.
The jade shirt she wore matched the color of her eyes, reminding him of springtime back home in the mountains of Tennessee. Lip smackin’ good as his grandpap would say.
Good thing he’d learned some gentlemanly manners over the years, or he’d be giving her the pinch test on that nice tight ass of hers, and probably warrant a slap in return.
She knew what he was thinking. He could tell by the twinkle of mischief in her eyes she knew exactly what was in his mind. And that pouty mouth dared him to try it. She stepped closer, reached out, and placed her palms against the tops of his black jean-clad thighs.
"Mmmm, nice. That’s what I like—a man with a fine pair of rock-hard legs." Her words curled around him like smoke from a campfire reaching for the sky, and she sure as hell was stoking a fire that was ready to break out into a pure red-hot blaze set to ravage his skin. She pressed her fingers against the dense fabric covering his thighs just enough, and he felt his cock respond. Oh, she had a nice grip—firm, yet gentle. Her long fingers released, tightened, repeated the action as she shifted closer to the throbbing dick waiting to be loosed.
"Mighty familiar there, don’t you think, ma’am?" He reached out and clasped her forearms before she got any farther, pulling her between the rock-hard thighs she seemed so fond of. She fit close and perfect against his aching crotch. "Damn that feels good. Too good for sitting in the middle of a goddamned bar. One drink and we’re out of here, Tru."
Her grin widened and he knew he was in for trouble. She lifted a leg and rested her boot-shod foot against the rung of the barstool. His eyes widened and he sucked air as he felt her knee graze against that sensitive stiff tool confined behind the zippered front of his pants. Slowly she rubbed in a circle. The paddle fans stirring the air from above did little to cool his mounting temperature.
"Miss me today?" she murmured, adding a mere hint more pressure.
Reviews
5 Angels!! Adrianna Dane accurately captures the essence of the military life and does so with skill. The sexual encounters are satisfying and show the connection between Trudy and Jeb. ... Adrianna Dane creates multifaceted, in depth characters the reader can identify with... --Tracey, Fallen Angel Reviews
5 Hearts!! Adrianna Dane creates a wonderful story of two people meeting for the very first time and it is love at first sight. I was deeply moved by reading this book and I found myself urging Trudy on as she struggled with day to day routines on an Army base and I cried with her as the Army Chaplain knocked on her door. The book is very realistic and a definite keeper! --Linda B., The Romance Studio
Read another excerpt: http://www.adriannadane.com/jebediahspromise.html
Happy Memorial Day.
Adrianna
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