Ethan Cooke Security and their bodyguard team return to action in Deceiving Bella – book eleven in Cate
Beauman’s Bodyguards of L.A. County
series.
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reviews and a 4.4 rating for the entire series, see why the Bodyguards of L.A. County is a
multi-award winning series.
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series is a stand-alone title. Although reading the books in order is
preferred, it is not necessary. Each
title features brand new primary characters and limited overlapping secondary
characters. Don’t hesitate to jump right
in!
Isabella Colby has always yearned
for normalcy. Now that she’s settled in LA, she finally has it. Good friends, a
pretty home, and her thriving career as the Palisades’ top skincare specialist
are a dream come true. Bella is content until she meets her hunky new neighbor,
but her attraction to the blue-eyed cutie is the least of her worries when
contacting her long-lost father threatens to destroy her happy life.
Reed
McKinley is more than ready to forget the past. His seven-year stint as an NYPD
detective nearly got him killed. His wounds have healed and he’s starting over
as Ethan Cooke Security’s latest recruit. With sixty-hour workweeks and little
time to himself, the last thing on his mind is a relationship. Then he bumps
into the gorgeous woman next door.
Reed
and Bella become fast friends. Before long, Reed discovers that Bella is
keeping dangerous secrets. Bella may have the answers to decades-old questions
he’s been searching for. Reed will risk it all to uncover the truth, but he
soon realizes that the deeper he digs, the direr the consequences.
One Of Cate’s Favorite Fall
Desserts:
I don’t know about you but I love
the fall. The air turns crisp and the scenery beautiful, but I think what I
love most is the new variety of foods we often eat. We put away the grill for
the year (or use it less frequently) and utilize our stoves and ovens more.
Typically, I try to share healthier recipes but this is one of my favorite
sinful treats. Chocolate raspberry bars are pretty easy to make and they’re
great to bring to a potluck or tailgating. Whenever we share these, I go home
with an empty plate.
Chocolate
Raspberry Bars
·
1 cup of butter, softened (2 sticks)
·
½ cup packed brown sugar
·
2 cups flour
·
1 can sweetened condensed milk
·
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
·
Seedless raspberry preserves
Instructions:
1.
Preheat oven to 350-degrees and grease a 9x13
baking dish.
2.
Combine softened butter, brown sugar, and flour
to make coarse crumbs. Measure approximately 2 cups of the crumbs and press
evenly into the greased pan. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
3.
While the pressed crumbs are in the oven,
combine condensed milk and 1 cup of the chocolate chips in a saucepan and stir
together over low heat until chocolate chips are melted and the mixture is
combined.
4.
Pour chocolate/condensed milk mixture over hot
crust and spread with a spatula until all of the crust is covered.
5.
Sprinkle remaining crumbs over chocolate. Drop
jam by ½ teaspoons randomly over crumbs (less is more). Scatter remaining 1-cup
of chocolate chips over the entire dish and bake for 25 minutes.
6.
Cool and cut into bars.
Read an excerpt from Deceiving Bella:
Should we get started?” Bella gestured to the kitchen.
“After you.”
She walked in front of Reed, hurrying to the table to pull
out a chair. “Does this work?”
“Yeah, it’s fine.” He sat down.
She immediately draped him with the black cover, wanting to
get to his hair while it was still wet. “So, what are we doing here, exactly?”
“Just a cleanup, especially on my neck.”
“Sure.” She grabbed the sheers and took her place by his
side, sliding her fingers though his short hair and stopped. “Oops.”
His shoulders tensed. “What?”
“Just kidding. A little haircutting humor.”
He tilted his head up, meeting her eyes. “A comedian.”
She laughed as he smiled. “I haven’t even started cutting
yet.” She gave him a bump. “Try to relax. I promise you’re in good hands.”
“Chop away.”
“Thanks.” She combed her fingers through his hair once more,
using small snips to freshen up his look. Silent seconds ticked by as she
breathed in the masculine scent that was Reed. He didn’t seem to wear cologne
or use any fancy shampoos, but he smelled good just the same. “So, how was your
day?”
“Not too shabby.”
She worked her way around his head, finding his cut a breeze
to clean up. He easily could have gone another week without any problems. “What
did you do?”
“Worked a little. Boxed.”
“Fascinating.”
“I could make up something about stopping a bank robbery in
progress or rescuing a cat from a tree.”
She smiled. “The truth is fine, thanks.”
“What about you?”
“It was pretty much a normal day at the office—a
second-session tattoo removal, a microdermabrasion, two stretch mark
reductions, the usual stuff.”
“What’s the tattoo of? The one you’re taking off?”
“A woman’s name. Genevieve. The relationship didn’t work
out.”
He winced. “Ouch.”
“Triple ouch. Tattoo removal is not a pain-free procedure, nor is it cheap—and he went pretty
ornate with Genevieve. Hopefully next
time he’ll pick a woman with a shorter name or abstain from getting himself
tatted up altogether.”
He laughed.
She grinned, loving that sound. Did he have any idea how
gorgeous he was when he smiled like that? She picked up the clippers off the
table and let her knees rest against his as she leaned in and gently lifted his
chin, evening out his sideburns. She swallowed, feeling his breath on her skin
and his eyes studying her face. Licking her lips, she met his gaze. “You better
hope I get this part right, or you’ll have to tilt your head for the next four
days.”
He sent her another one of his pulse-pounding smiles.
“You’ll have to help me decide if I should lean more to the left or right.”
Oh, this cutie had the potential to be trouble. Her eyes
darted to his mouth mere inches from hers as his five o’clock shadow tormented
her sensitized fingers. She took a step back and a steadying breath. It was a
good thing they were just friends—currently the only relationship status she
was interested in.
Did you enjoy the excerpt? You
can read the first chapter on my website, www.catebeauman.com, or you can finish the whole book with the
links below!
About the author:
International bestselling author Cate Beauman is known for
her full-length, action-packed romantic suspense series, The Bodyguards of L.A. County. Her novels have been nominated for
the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, National Indie Excellence
Award, Golden Quill Award, Writers Touch Award, and have been named Readers
Favorite Five Star books. In 2015, JUSTICE FOR ABBY was selected as the
Readers' Favorite International Book Award Gold Medalist, while SAVING SOPHIE
took the Silver Medal. SAVING SOPHIE was also selected as the 2015 Readers
Crown Award winner for Romantic Suspense and FALLING FOR SARAH received the
silver medal for the 2014 Readers' Favorite Awards.
Cate makes
her home in North Carolina with her husband, two boys, and their St. Bernards,
Bear and Jack. Currently Cate is working on her twelfth full length romantic
suspense novel.
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