What Happens When Things Change? Featuring Guest Diane Burton

Please welcome my fabulous author friend from Paranormal Romantics, Diane Burton as she shares the inspiring story of how her new release NUMBERS NEVER LIE, came about from persistence and never forgetting that long-lost story. (And don’t forget to enter Diane’s giveaway!) Take it away, Diane!

Everything can be happiness and rainbows, then—WHAM—Life knocks you down and your life changes.

Change is a fact of life. I had a calendar with inspirational sayings across the bottom of each page. My favorite was, still is, that change happens. It’s how we deal with change that counts. My life changed several times because of Hubs’ job. Being an at-will employee, his job could change at any moment. Promotion, demotion, let go. Then, we’d move. My reaction varied from rah-rah cheerleader (when we had kids at home) to tears and words that shouldn’t be repeated. LOL The only constant was our love for each other and the strength of our marriage.

Writing can be done anywhere.

Have laptop, will travel. During one of those downtimes, I was well into a new story. Since I knew the drill, I signed on with a temp agency for secretarial work. Because I have a long-time friend who gets up at 5 am to write each morning then goes to her day job, I followed her example and continued with the story. Then, my mother’s Alzheimer’s got worse, and my sister, her caregiver, needed breaks. Living one and a half hours away meant I could help on weekends. And then, Hubs’ mother’s health went downhill, and she went into a nursing home. Same hour and a half away. Hubs’ was working full time then, so we added visits to his mom on the weekends—along with running errands for his elderly aunt.

By then, I needed sleep more than writing, stress rose, and my creative muse departed for parts unknown. The story was set aside. That was about fifteen years ago. More changes. We lost all three “moms” and gained five grandchildren. Life is like that. My muse returned, I retired and had more time to write (10 novels and several short stories).

This winter, I found that long-lost story.

It became NUMBERS NEVER LIE, a romantic suspense.

Maggie Sinclair’s life was going along marvelously.

Until her brother’s fatal car crash. Her life changed dramatically.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

A Romantic Suspense

By Diane Burton

Release Date:  July 9, 2018

Length: approx. 80,000 words

Available at Amazon http://a.co/gUmO9wZ

Free with Kindle Unlimited

Blurb for NUMBERS NEVER LIE:

A shocking secret brings danger to Jack Sinclair and his sister Maggie.

As kids, they were the fearless threesome. As adults, Jack’s an accountant; Drew, a lawyer; Maggie, a teacher and camping troop leader. Upon returning from a weekend camping trip, Maggie receives horrifying news. She refuses to believe her brother Jack’s fatal car crash was an accident. If the police won’t investigate, she’ll do it herself. Convincing Drew Campbell to help is her only recourse.

Drew Campbell was too busy to return his best friend’s phone call. Too busy to attend a camping meeting important to his teen daughter. Too busy to stay in touch with Jack. Logic and reason indicate Jack’s accident was just that–an accident caused by fatigue and fog. Prodded by guilt, he’ll help Maggie even if he thinks she’s wrong.

A break-in at Jack’s condo convinces Maggie she’s right. Then her home is searched. What did Jack dothat puts Maggie in danger?

Numbers Never Lie Excerpt:

Maggie Sinclair wondered for the tenth time that morning why she hadn’t had her head examined before agreeing to Ellen’s offer. The week before, Maggie called off the trip when not one parent volunteered to chaperone. She hated disappointing the girls who had been crushed when their leader moved away. For the past two months, they talked about camping again. But week after week they returned with the same news. Their mothers refused, and their dads were too busy.

So when Ellen said her dad would help, the girls went wild. And Maggie, who should’ve known better, believed Ellen who swore she’d asked and her father agreed. Maggie should have followed up with a phone call, but years of avoiding Drew Campbell prevailed. Years of unreciprocated longing—from when her heart first took notice, through the years when he was single, then when he was married. Except for that one time, she never let him know. Avoidance was best.

Now here she was needing his help with the girls.

Preparing them for a week-long camping trip to Isle Royale had been Trish Morrow’s goal when she started the group four years ago. The girls loved roughing it. They just needed more hiking and camping experience before tackling the primitive island in Lake Superior.

Though they’d gotten a late start this morning because of the fog, Maggie noticed the girls’ energy start to flag after the fifth mile of the hike. That was when she put Drew Campbell at the front of the line. From the rear, she watched him trying to set a faster pace—especially after Gretchen’s assurance that they could keep up. The man was in a world of hurt even if he was making a concerted effort not to show it. He looked so trim, so athletic, Maggie had assumed he was in good shape.

Typical desk jockey. He probably got his exercise in a climate-controlled gym. No, wait. In a health club.

For better or worse—and she was afraid worsewas the operative word—she was stuck with him for the next thirty hours.

Are we having fun yet?  

She mocked herself as she tromped through the woods with eight tough little girls on the brink of womanhood and her brother’s best friend. From the back of the line, Maggie watched his long-legged stride and the way his navy golf shirt revealed his strong shoulders andthe way his obviously new jeans conformed to his butt. She lifted the tail of the bandanna knotted around her neck and wiped the sweat from her upper lip. She couldn’t blame the sun for the heat coursing through her.

Okay, Sinclair, she told herself, keep your mind on the matter at hand. And not how good Campbell’s butt looked in tight new jeans.

Good Lord, she felt fifteen again—instead of thirty-four. Her stomach in knots, her skin on fire. Lusting after the man who said she kissed like a guppy.

Numbers Never Lie is available at Amazon.

About the Author:

Diane Burton combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing romantic fiction. Besides writing science fiction romance, she writes romantic suspense, and cozy mysteries. Diane and her husband live in West Michigan. They have two children and five grandchildren.

For more info and excerpts from her books, visit Diane’s website: http://www.dianeburton.com

Connect with Diane Burton online

Blog:  http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/dmburton72

Facebook:  http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor

Goodreads: Diane Burton Author

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72/

Sign up for Diane’s new release alert: http://eepurl.com/bdHtYf

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