Excerpt Tour + #Giveaway: Return to Wylder by Maria Imbalzano @MariaImbalzano @GoddessFish

Return to Wylder

by Maria Imbalzano

GENRE: Contemporary Romance

BLURB:

The untimely death of EJ Hampton’s father kills her dream of practicing law with him in her hometown of Wylder. Heartbroken, she now has two weeks to organize the practice for sale. When she meets her father’s millionaire client Dylan Addison, he is demanding and entitled—yet his charisma captivates her.

Dylan is under pressure to renovate the Wylder Hotel before his father pulls the plug on his project. He needs EJ’s expertise, but she is bent on returning to her life in San Francisco despite the fireworks between them.

EJ walks a tightrope trying to balance Dylan’s needs against her own, but doing so is far more complicated when emotions get in the way.

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Excerpt:

I slipped out the front door and breathed in the cool, spring, evening air. The town was quiet, with most businesses locking their doors at six during the week.

My father’s office was right next to the Wylder Hotel, a place I now knew intimately after reviewing the entire file including the architect’s rendering. I stood before the front door, which held a sign—Closed Temporarily for Renovations. A dim light shone through the empty lobby, its faded green-velvet couches and linoleum-tiled floor proving its age. This hotel had seen better days.

When I was a child, this was the place where all my relative’s weddings had been held. It’s where my parents had thrown my high school graduation party. Now it was a sad, empty relic. A relic that Dylan aspired to turn into a jewel.

I startled when the front door opened. Dylan emerged. “EJ, what are you doing here?”

“I was just leaving work. Heading back to my mom’s. But first I decided to take a stroll around town to get the kinks out. I’ve been cooped up in my office for hours.”

A look akin to sympathy played across his face. “Almost everything is closed.”

“Yes. A little different than San Francisco.” I took in the spiral notebook he was carrying with various papers hanging out at intervals. “Were you coming up with more legal work?”

He chuckled. “No. I got the impression this afternoon you’ve had it with me.”

Uh-oh. And here I’d thought my poker face had been on display. “No. That’s not true. I’m sorry if that’s the impression I gave. I’ve just been overwhelmed with everything there is to do.” I sighed. “For some reason, I thought it would be easier. You know, a small-town law practice should have small-town legal issues.”

“And it doesn’t.” His amused look at my erroneous theory struck a chord, and guilt over my prejudice swarmed through me.

“I’ve been biased living and working in San Francisco. Thinking that I’m counseling first-rate clients who have much more significant problems than those I’d experience if I came back to work with my dad. In the two days I’ve been here, I can see that the legal work, while on a smaller scale, is just as important.”

“Good to hear. I wouldn’t want you to minimize my needs.” A grin accompanied his words, softening the barb.

Not likely with your constant hovering.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Maria Imbalzano is an award-winning contemporary author who writes about strong, independent women and the men who fall in love with them. She recently retired from the practice of law, but legal issues have a way of showing up in many of her novels. When not writing, she loves to travel both abroad and in the states. Maria lives in central New Jersey with her husband--not far from her two daughters and granddaughters. For more information about her books, please visit her website at http://mariaimbalzano.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter.

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