Author Spotlight - Excerpt from: Gone To the Dogs

Janis and I hope you've enjoyed her week in the spotlight. Enjoy this excerpt from Gone to the Dogs.

Moderator Steph

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Adam was sitting on a bench by the door and rose at her entrance. They smiled at one another, each looking deep into the other's eyes. His hand tightened around her elbow as they followed the waiter to a reserved table against the back wall of windows -- their favorite seat.

Adam leaned forward, catching her hands in his. "Hello, Ms. Abigail Naycomb."

"Hello, Adam, the handsomest man in the world. Were you waiting for me long?"

They smiled at each other. She supposed they were in love. Well, he said it often enough, and she thought it all the time.

"Only about five minutes, but I think I was early. Have I told you that I love you?" He looked at her and she chuckled.

"I don't think you have. Would you like to tell me?"

He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed the center of her palm. She shivered with pleasure. Okay, she never said he was a slouch in the romance department, did she?

"I love you, Abby. I have loved you from the first moment I saw you crawling around on your stomach in that sand dune with your seat sticking up in the air, and the wind blowing your hair around."

She laughed at the word picture he drew and self-consciously tucked a curl behind her ear.

"No, don't. I love the way your curls surround your face. You remind me of a Renoir painting I once saw. Oh, but she was bathing in a stream. Do you suppose you could get naked so I could compare?"

Abby laughed out loud, attracting the attention of the waitress who came over to take their order. Adam, with a grin still on his face, ordered the house specialty for them both.

The restaurant was crowded with diners. Adam waved across the room at a couple who just came in. Abby waved as well. She couldn't remember their names, but she recognized their faces. She was feeling more and more confident as she grew accustomed to the small town and its inhabitants.

Out the window, the brown pelicans lined up on the deck railing, all facing outward for some show that only they could see. She and Adam both turned to enjoy the lakeside view while the wind whipped the water into white capped waves. Wheeling overhead, she could see two eagles slipping into circles around each other in some courting dance, she supposed. It was spring. There was a lot of that going on.

She turned her attention back to Adam, who was wearing a shirt in her favorite blue color. She loved the way his thick, straw-colored hair flopped onto his forehead. His eyes were striking in his deeply tanned face, and she felt she could sink into them. Gosh, I love you. He looked at her, smiling with a question on his face. She drew in a deep breath.