Ignited by Suzannah
Daniels
(Whiskey Nights #2)
Publication date: December
30th 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New
Adult, Romance
Synopsis:
James
“Hawk” Hawkins always knew he’d be a firefighter. At
twenty-four years of age, he’s dedicated his entire adulthood to
the perilous job of saving lives and extinguishing flames. After a
chance encounter, he carries a young woman to safety, but it’s
unlike any rescue he’s ever performed. She touches something deep
inside of him, not because he finds her attractive, which he does,
but because she doesn’t want to be saved. For the first time in his
life, he doesn’t need to put out a fire…he needs to start one.
Twenty-year-old
Amber Lawson escaped to the small town of Creekview, Tennessee. She
was running…fleeing from a tragedy that left her heartbroken and
shrouded in despair. Struggling with the desolation that has engulfed
her, she tries to start anew, hoping that if she evades the reminders
of her past, she can slowly begin to heal.
Hawk
is determined to rekindle her passion for life. Along the way, he
realizes that’s not the only passion he wants to ignite. With his
heart on the line, it could be his most hazardous rescue yet.
Plus,
a bonus scene from Mason and Lexi of WASTED.
IGNITED
is the second book in the WHISKEY NIGHTS series. Since each book
focuses on a different couple, they can be read as stand-alones, but
many readers may prefer to read them in order for maximum enjoyment.
WHISKEY
NIGHTS SERIES ORDER
Wasted #1
Ignited #2 (coming December
30, 2014)
Deceived #3 (coming 2015)
AUTHOR
BIO:
Suzannah
Daniels has had an affinity for words for as long as she can
remember. She grew up in North Georgia with four brothers, so she
learned at an early age to admire snakes and motorcycles. When she
wasn't pestering her brothers, she could usually be found reading or
writing.
She
has an Associates Degree in Electrical Engineering, but her passion
is writing.
She is
the author of Viking's Embrace, a historical romance, and Ghostly
Encounter, Book One of her Ghostly series (young adult paranormal
romance).
Currently,
she lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee with her husband and her teenage
daughter. Her son lives nearby. The family pets include a Lab mix, a
Basset Hound, a Shih Tzu, and a sweet, little kitty.
Author
links:
EXCERPT:
Chapter 1
Extrication
Hawk
I released the string, and
the arrow whooshed through the air, sinking into the center of the
bull’s-eye with a thud. Turning toward Cade Mayfield, who’d been
a lifelong friend, I pointed at him and said, “You owe me a beer.”
“Man!” He shook his
head in disbelief, running a hand through his dark hair. “I didn’t
think there’s any way you could sink five in a row.”
“You were wrong, as
usual.”
“Just for that….” A
loud noise exploded in the air, squealing brakes, scraping metal,
shattering glass.
Cade whipped his head in
my direction. “What the hell?”
Being a firefighter, my
instincts kicked in, and I scrambled up the steep embankment that
would lead us out of the ravine that had provided a safe and secluded
spot for target practice.
“Damn,” I muttered as
the acrid smell of burning rubber assaulted my nostrils. I paused for
a moment as I heard a noise with which I was all too familiar.
Flames.
Scurrying into action,
Cade and I rushed up the last bit of ridge that led to the rural road
that connected downtown Creekview, Tennessee with the agricultural
areas.
A huge black plume of
smoke came into view, spiraling into the orange glow of the sky as
the sun began drifting below the horizon, and as we pushed ourselves
up on the pavement, we could see the mangled SUV lying on its side.
An outer layer of bark had been peeled off a tall pine tree, exposing
the raw wood. A quick assessment told me that the SUV had sideswiped
it, and I assumed the driver had overcorrected, toppling the SUV in
the process.
A woman’s frantic scream
pierced the air as thick flames in varying hues of orange engulfed
the rear of the vehicle.
“Shit, she’s trapped,”
I yelled to Cade. “You got something we can bust out the window
with?” I pointed at his truck, parked a few feet behind us.
“Yeah.” He turned and
ran to retrieve it.
Rushing to the SUV, I saw
a woman beating her fist against the windshield. “Help!” she
screamed above the crackling fire. The urgency in her voice reminded
me of the nightmares that plagued me, and a shudder crept down my
spine as I raced toward the vehicle.
“Get back!” I yelled.
“Help!” she screamed,
her fists thumping repeatedly on the windshield. “Help me!”
“Get back!”
Frantically, she continued
to beat against the glass that held her captive in the burning
automobile.
“Back up!” I yelled
one more time as I started kicking the glass. When I could tell she
had backed away, I delivered more powerful kicks. The glass cracked,
sending spidery veins shooting along the surface. Sweat beaded on my
forehead from the blistering heat of the flames. I kicked again.
And again.
And again.
Finally, I knocked a
small hole in the glass.
Cade ran up beside me with
a crowbar. “Move!”
Backing up, I swiped my
palm across my forehead to keep the sweat from dripping in my eyes.
He swung the crowbar, widening the hole as smoke and flames continued
to billow out from the rear of the vehicle. Then he hooked the glass
and yanked, a large circle of the safety glass peeling back.
“Hold up!” I yelled,
stooping down as the woman began emerging from the hole. She
frantically wriggled through the broken glass.
“Flanagan!” Cade
yelled as he pulled her away from the burning vehicle.
Recognizing her last name,
I realized that the woman who had just crawled from the wreckage was
Seren Flanagan, a girl who’d been a couple of years behind Cade and
me in high school.
“Is anyone else in the
car?” I asked her.
“Yes!” she screeched,
her hair tumbling around her shoulders. “Amber. Amber’s in the
car.”
“Amber!” I yelled, my
blood pumping furiously through my body as I watched the flames creep
closer toward the front of the SUV.
Seren screamed as she
began crying. “Get her out!”
Kicking the window, I
widened the hole, giving me plenty of room to crawl into the car.
Amber, still securely
fastened in the passenger seat by her seatbelt, dangled limply in the
air. I tried to focus on her, well aware that the flames were gaining
ground. “Release your seatbelt.”
“Just leave me,” she
half-coughed, half-yelled.
Flames licked along her
door.
“Release your seatbelt,”
I repeated, feeling the pressure to get her out immediately.
She didn’t respond.
Crawling farther into the car, I maneuvered until I could reach the
release button. After a couple of tries, I finally managed to press
it long enough to free her. Her weight landed on my shoulder, her
body limp, and I reached out in an effort to steady myself. Shit, I
didn’t know what I had grabbed but it was hot, and I jerked my hand
away, losing my balance under her weight. Managing to roll her over
in my arms, I positioned her feet at the hole in the windshield and
supported her body as Cade reached down and helped extricate her.
Once she was clear, I concentrated on getting myself out.
Amber lay on the ground,
her eyes closed, her red-gold hair fanned out around her. I motioned
for Cade to back up. “Get the hell away from here and call 911.”
Scooping her into my arms,
I followed Cade far away from the burning vehicle, joining Seren who
was still crying hysterically. I knew it was unlikely that the
vehicle would blow, but I wasn’t going to take any chances.
Glancing back at the SUV, I realized the flames had now engulfed the
entire cab.
“Is she dead?” Seren
screeched.
“She’s alive, but I’m
not sure of the extent of her injuries.” I laid her on the ground,
immediately feeling for a pulse in her neck. She was definitely
alive. “Amber!”
Cade was on the phone with
the dispatcher while I assessed the woman’s condition.
“Amber. Come on, Amber.
Answer me,” I quietly urged her.
“She’s been drinking,”
Seren informed me. “We were at a party, and she needed a ride home.
I don’t even know her. All I know is that her name’s Amber, and
she lives in a duplex close to my house. A deer ran out in front of
me, and I swerved.” Her words tumbled from her mouth, a spurt of
unorganized thoughts that served as her attempt to explain the
situation as quickly as possible.
Her sobs stopped further
conversation.
“It’s okay, Seren,”
I said calmly. “Amber’s going to be fine. I want you to go over
by Cade and wait with him for the emergency vehicles.”
She nodded and immediately
obeyed. Hopefully, Cade could calm her down.
I closed my eyes, hoping
that Seren would be okay. Blinking a few times to clear some of the
irritation from the smoke, I focused on Amber. I could tell that she
had minor burns on her right arm and hand, but it was the huge knot
on her forehead that worried me.
“Cade,” I yelled. “Do
you have any liquid?”
He turned and focused on
me while he held the phone away from his ear.
“Do you have any
liquid?” I repeated.
“I might have a couple
of bottled waters.”
“Get them.” I turned
my attention back to the girl. “Amber.”
Her eyes fluttered open,
and as she focused on me, I noticed that her irises were a deep mossy
green. I tried to assess her pupils, but something about her gaze
drew me in and distracted me. Forcing myself to ignore the strange
pull she seemed to have on me, I focused on the urgency of the
moment.
Seren ran over with two
bottled waters. I quickly opened them and poured them on Amber’s
burns in an attempt to cool the skin. “You’re safe now.”
Her eyes closed and slowly
reopened. “And what if I didn’t want to be saved?”
Now that we were away from
the smoke, I could smell the alcohol on her breath. I’d helped
plenty of people in emergency situations, and no one had ever asked
me that. Was she suffering from a concussion or just drunk?
“Whatever it is, it
can’t be so bad that you’d prefer a burning car.”
“At least then it’d be
over.” Her eyes drifted closed again.
Leaning back on my heels
with my hands resting on my thighs as I knelt beside her, I waited to
see if she would open her eyes. She was underweight, her thin body
lending an air of fragility. Something about her hopelessness called
to my innate need to rescue.
I smoothed errant strands
of red-gold hair away from her face, trying to decide the reason for
her unresponsiveness.
“Can you tell me your
name?” I asked loudly.
Her eyelids opened again.
“Amber Lawson.” The fact that she answered coherently made me
feel better.
“How old are you,
Amber?”
“Twenty.”
“Where do you live?”
She looked at me and
blinked.
“Do you know your
address?”
The wail of sirens became
louder as the first responders reached us. A police car pulled over
to the side of the road, the ambulance not far behind him.
Turning over her care to
the EMTs, I watched as the fire continued to burn, glowing brighter
as the day darkened.
“Hawk,” the police
officer said, walking up beside me. “Were you the first one on the
scene?”
I didn’t have to look at
him to know who it was. I’d been listening to that voice for most
of my life. “Yeah, Cade and I just happened to be nearby doing a
little target practice when we heard the wreck.”
Jace Hawkins, a rookie on
the police squad who happened to be my little brother, let out a
whistle. “Lucky for them, y’all were here.”
“Yeah,” I said,
nodding. “I guess so.”
I briefly explained to him
what happened, and he slapped me on the back. “Good job. Guess I
better go talk to the passengers.”
“Seren Flanagan was
driving.”
“Really?” Jace peered
around me, glancing in her direction. “I graduated high school with
her.”
He walked away to discuss
the accident with Amber and Seren.
Glancing at the EMTs, I
noticed Amber was still lying on the ground in front of them. Jace
spoke to her briefly and then approached Seren. I walked back over to
see what was happening with Amber.
“She okay?”
I knew both the EMTs,
although I only knew their last names. Hoffman, the more experienced
of the two replied, “Possible concussion. I’d say the hospital
will keep her overnight at the very least.” He nodded toward Seren.
“She said she’s fine. She signed an AMA.”
I wasn’t surprised that
Seren had signed the Against Medical Advice form, refusing treatment.
Other than a few cuts and scrapes, she seemed to have escaped injury.
As Hoffman and his partner
began loading Amber onto the stretcher, she began to get distraught.
“Who’s going to take
care of Gracie?” Amber asked frantically.
The EMTs fastened her in
and raised the stretcher.
“I don’t have anyone
here who can take care of her.”
I could hear the panic in
her voice, and I laid my hand on her arm to reassure her. “Who’s
Gracie? Is that your daughter?”
She shook her head. “My
cat.”
“You don’t have anyone
who can take care of her? A friend? A neighbor?”
Her lower lip quivered,
and the forlorn look in her eyes haunted me.
“No one?” I asked,
unable to mask the surprise in my voice.
She pursed her lips and
shook her head.
“You’ll probably be
back home tomorrow,” I assured her.
Tears filled her eyes. “I
woke up late this morning, and I didn’t have time to feed her. I
promised her I would be back after work. But then I got invited to
the party….”
“How about a co-worker?”
Her face scrunched up, and
I assumed the alcohol that she had consumed was making her more
emotional than normal. “I just started two days ago. I don’t know
any of their numbers.”
I knew she needed someone,
but me taking care of a cat? I was highly allergic to them, and just
thinking about the pet dander made my eyes water. “You want me to
check on her?”
The look of relief on her
face was instant. “Would you?”
“Sure.”
“Her food is in the
lower cabinet beside the refrigerator. She’ll probably go sit
beside it when you go in because she’ll be expecting someone to
feed her.”
Her slender fingers slid
into her front pocket, and she pulled out a single key and handed it
to me. After we exchanged information and she gave me her address,
Hoffman loaded her into the ambulance, the red lights twirling
through the increasing darkness.
I stared at the key in my
hand, hoping that Gracie was one of those cats who would hide under
the table when she saw a stranger. Sliding it into my front pocket as
the ambulance drove away, I joined Cade and Seren who were talking to
one of the firefighters.
The flames had finally
been doused on the SUV, and it was a charred, wet, smoky mess.
“Guess I’m in the
market for an automobile,” Seren said, a look of despair on her
face as she stared at the card that Jace had given her with the
police report information. She turned to us. “Thank you guys so
much for getting us out of there. I’ve never been so scared in my
entire life.”
Cade gave her a quick hug.
“We’re just glad everything turned out okay. You need a ride
home?”
“I would really
appreciate it,” Seren said. “I guess we can go whenever you’re
ready.”
“I’m ready. How about
you, Hawk?”
“Yeah. I’ll be there
in just a minute.”
Cade led Seren to the
truck, and I turned back to the firefighter. His name was Bruno
Wilkes, but his nickname was Mercury.
“Good job, man.” I
slapped him on the back.
Mercury removed his mask.
He motioned to our captain, who was standing by the pump panel on the
fire engine having a discussion with the engineer. The emergency
lights flickered over the scene. “Cap says you saved those two
girls.”
“All in a day’s work,
I guess. And Cade did just as much as I did.”
Mercury fist-bumped me.
“That’s what it’s all about.”
I nodded. “Well, I’m
going to head out. I just wanted to holler at you a minute.”
“All right, Hawk. See ya
later.”
“Hold down the fort.
Maybe we can grab a beer one night.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
I walked back to Cade’s
truck and opened the door. Seren scooted to the middle of the bench
seat, and I climbed in, sandwiching her between Cade and me.
“You okay?” I asked
her.
She exhaled loudly. “I
think so. It just scared me—badly.” She reached up and turned on
the cab light while she held her hand in the air, her fingers
trembling violently. “I’m still shaking.”
Cade put his arm around
her and gave her a squeeze. “Just take deep breaths. You’re okay.
Amber’s going to be okay. That’s all that matters.”
She leaned into Cade, and
he held her a moment.
I knew how she felt. As
many times as I’d responded to scenes like that, I never got used
to it. Adrenaline flowed through my body like a raging river. My
heart raced. The panic of the moment spurred me to action, but I
always felt a certain amount of terror—not for my own safety. For
me, it was a job. It’s what I did. No, for me, the terror was the
fear of not getting to someone who needed my help in time.
I thought about Amber. I
thought about her words. And what if I didn’t want to be
saved?
For someone who made it
his personal mission to save every person who needed help, her words
haunted me.
I wondered what had
happened to her, what had made her so sad that she could even say
those words out loud.
What could make someone
not want to be saved?
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Thank you, Krystle, for blitzing IGNITED! <3
ReplyDeleteWoooo!!! You're welcome :) Glad it finally went LIVE for ya !
DeleteHappy New Year Suzannah! xoxo