JACKSON
by
Emily March
Synopsis:
From New
York Times bestselling author Emily March comes Jackson,
the newest novel in the critically acclaimed Eternity Springs series.
Sometimes it takes a new beginning
Caroline Carruthers thinks she buried her dreams along with the love of her life…until a stranger named Celeste dares her to chase a dream all on her own. Moving to Redemption, Texas, is chapter one in Caroline’s new life story. Opening a bookstore is the next. Finding love is the last thing on her mind as she settles into this new place called home. But when she meets a handsome, soulful man who’s also starting over, all bets are off.
to reach a happily-ever-after
Jackson McBride came to Redemption looking only to find himself, not someone to love. Ever since his marriage ended, he’s been bitter. Sure, he used to believe in love—he even has the old song lyrics to prove it—but the Jackson of today is all business. That is, until a beautiful young widow who’s moved to town inspires a change of heart. Could it be that the myth of Redemption’s healing magic is true…and Jackson and Caroline can find a second chance at a happy ending after all?
Chapter One Excerpt
Nashville, Tennessee
Bang. The
judge’s gavel fell and officially crushed Jackson McBride’s heart. He closed
his eyes. Bleak despair washed over him. Up until this very moment, he hadn’t believed
she’d take it this far.
He’d thought she’d come to her senses. He’d thought she would recognize
that this proposal was not only nonsense, but truly insane. He’d believed that
somewhere deep inside of her, she still had a spark of humanity. That she
wouldn’t do this to him. To them. He’d been wrong.
Damn her.
Damn her and the yes-men she surrounded herself with. Damn them all to hell and
back.
The enormity of what had just happened washed over him. Oh, God, how
will
I survive
this?
On the heels of his anguish came the rage. It erupted hot as lava, and it
fired his blood and blurred his vision with a red haze of fury. He’d never hit
a woman in his life. Never come close, despite plenty of provocation from her
direction. In that moment had she been within reach, he might have lived up her
accusations.
It scared the crap out of him. That’s what she’s brought me to.
Abruptly, he shoved back his chair so hard that it teetered, almost
falling over. He strode toward the courtroom exit. “Jackson? Jackson, wait!”
his attorney called, hurrying after him.
Jackson waved her off and didn’t stop. There was nothing left to be said.
Nothing left to be done. No place left to go.
No little girl waiting at home to hug and cuddle and kiss good night.
The tap on the toes of Jackson’s boots clacked against the tile floor of
the courthouse as his long-legged strides ate up the hallway. He shunned the
elevator for the stairs and descended three flights at a rapid pace, then
headed for the building’s exit. In a foolish bit of positive thinking, he’d
driven his SUV to the courthouse this morning. Now the sight of the safety
booster seat in the back seat made him want to kick a rock into next week.
He didn’t want to go home to a quiet, empty house. He shouldn’t go to a
bar. Alcohol on top of his current mood could be a dangerous combination.
Somebody probably would get hurt.
He got into the car and started the engine. For a long moment he sat
unmoving, staring blindly through the windshield, his hands squeezing the
steering wheel so hard that it should have cracked. When his phone rang, he
ignored it.
A couple of minutes later, it rang a second time. Again, he ignored it.
When it happened a third time, he finally glanced at the display to see who was
calling. His cousin. Okay, maybe he would answer it.
“Hello, Boone.”
“How did the hearing go?”
Jackson couldn’t speak past the lump in his throat, so he said nothing.
Following a moment’s silence, Boone got the message. He muttered a curse,
and then said, “I’m sorry, man. So damn sorry.”
“Well, it is what it is.”
“You can take another run at it.”
“Yeah.” In three years. Three years. Might as well be three decades. He
cleared his throat and changed the subject. “So, how are things in Eternity
Springs?”
“Good. They’re good. My friend Celeste Blessing visited my office a few
minutes ago and spoke of her granite-headed cousin. Naturally, I thought of
you.”
“Naturally,” Jackson dryly replied. But he felt a little less alone.
“Do you have plans this weekend? I could use your help with something.”
Pretty convenient timing. Knowing Boone, he had a spy in the courtroom.
But Jackson wasn’t in the position to ignore the bone he’d been thrown. “I’m
free. Whatcha got?”
“I’d like you to meet me at home.”
Jackson straightened in surprise. “You’re going back to the ranch?”
“No. Not there. I’m never going back there. However, I am talking about
Texas. The Hill Country in particular. A little town west of Austin called
Redemption.”
“Redemption, Texas?” Jackson repeated. For some weird reason, his heart
gave a little skip. “Why there?”
“It’s a long story. Too long for a phone call. I’ll give you the entire
skinny when I see you. When can you get there?”
After today’s debacle, Jackson had absolutely no reason to remain in
Nashville. “When do you want me there?”
“I’ll be in later today. I’m in Austin now. I’ve been helping a friend
with a project. I have a flight back to Colorado Sunday evening. The earlier you
can get here the better, but I’ll make anything work.”
Jackson figured the distance and the drive time. “I’ll meet you tomorrow
afternoon. Where?”
“Great. I’ll text you the info when we hang up. Bring camping gear.”
When a sound behind him had Jackson glancing up into the rearview mirror
and the booster seat caught his notice, he made an instant decision. “Can’t. I’ll
be on my bike.”
“You’re gonna ride your motorcycle all the way from Nashville?”
“Yes, I think I am.”
“Okay. I’ll bring stuff for both of us.” Boone hesitated a moment and
added, “Hang in there,
Jackson.
It’ll get better.”
No, I don’t think it will. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Jackson ended the call and finally put his SUV in gear and backed out of
the parking place. With the distraction of the call behind him, fury returned,
and by the time he reached home, he felt like a volcano about to explode.
He threw a handful of things into his tail bag, filled his wallet with
cash from his stash, and ten minutes after his arrival, he fired up his bike
and took his broken heart and headed out of Nashville. He left behind his home,
his work, and his one reason for living, his six-year-old daughter, Haley.
From Jackson. Copyright © 2019
by Emily March and reprinted with permission from St.
Martin’s Paperbacks.
Author Bio:
Emily March is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling
author of the heartwarming Eternity Springs series. A graduate of Texas A&M
University, Emily is an avid fan of Aggie sports and her recipe for jalapeño
relish has made her a tailgating legend.
Buy-Book Link:
Emily March Blogger Q&A JACKSON
1. You wrote a book! That’s
pretty awesome. Why don’t you tell us a bit about what inspired Jackson and the
rest of the books in the Eternity Springs world?
The saying “Write what you know” says it all in
my case. I’m a small-town girl and my family and friendships are center to my
world. I write about love and family and friendships. I have roots in both the
Colorado Rockies and the Texas Hill Country, so it was natural for me to set
Eternity Springs and Redemption there. The idea for JACKSON grew out of my
interest in the music currently being written and performed in Texas. I’ve
always thought singer/songwriters are romantic figures so I was excited to
create a hero with this background. Unfortunately, I’m not a musician and I’m
definitely not a singer, but I am creative so it was fun for me to explore that
aspect of a character.
2.
Introduce us to your main character!
Okay. Well, Americana singer/songwriter Jackson
McBride is a bit damaged when the book begins. His famous, talented and wealthy
ex has won a custody battle that severely limits his access to his six-year-old
daughter, so Jackson goes home to the Texas Hill Country to nurse his broken
heart. He finds solace in Enchanted Canyon hiking the trails with the dog he
rescues and working to bring a historic dance hall back to life. The last thing
he expects is to find love again with a woman whose heart is as battered as his
own.
3. Walk us
through a day in the life of Emily March.
Ready to be bored? Now that my daughter’s and
niece’s weddings are behind me—they consumed me for months—I’m boring and happy
about it. I split my time between Fort Worth where we have a condo downtown in
a 1930’s passenger train station and our lake house in the Texas Hill Country.
I recently gave up my office in town because I’m spending more and more time at
the lake. My husband also offices out of our condo, so on days when we are both
working in town, I’ve started riding the new TexRail train that runs from our
building to DFW airport. It’s quiet and comfortable and I don’t have Internet
to distract me. And at $5 a day, it’s much cheaper than office rent. :) When
I’m at the lake I’m either working or doing yard work. My new favorite toy is
my power washer.
4. Lots of aspiring authors out there. Any advice
for them?
I’ve always thought that one of the most
important things you can do for your writing is to read. And read. And read
some more. Read across genres. You absorb so much about pacing and plotting and
character development when you read. Plus, you get to READ! :)
5. How is the Jackson trilogy different than your
other series?
I don’t think it’s necessarily different from the
rest of the Eternity Springs series. I write about love and family and
friendship—that doesn’t change. Readers will still see old friends from
Eternity Springs and a few scenes in JACKSON are set in Colorado. What’s new is
we get to spend some time in the Texas Hill Country and meet a few new
characters—Celeste’s cousin, Angelica, for example.
6. I know
asking someone’s all-time favorite book is a loaded question so what’s your current
favorite read?
I’m a big fan of Patricia Brigg’s Mercy Thompson
series and I’m reading her latest right now, STORM CURSED.
7. Alright, the ultimate question: why should we
read your book?
My goals as a writer are to touch a reader’s
heart, to entertain her and make her laugh, to maybe cry a little and sigh with
satisfaction upon reaching the end. With JACKSON, I believe I’ve achieved those
goals.
8. Describe yourself in 3 words.
Family. Family. Family. :)
9. What is your most embarrassing memory?
Walking out of the junior high school cafeteria
in seventh grade, not realizing that my very short dress—it was the 70’s—had
gotten hung up in my underwear and I inadvertently flashed my rear end to the
entire cafeteria—including the tables where the football players sat. Thinking
about it even today gives me the hives.
10. Favorite quote or scene you wrote in JACKSON?
I love the ending. Jackson is a
songwriter who has lost his music and when he finds it again…the song he sings
to Caroline…just makes me melt.
11. What is one piece of advice you would tell everyone?
Call your mother.
12. What inspired you to become
a writer?
I’ve always loved to read, so that is part of it, but my father was my
primary inspiration. He was a fabulous storyteller. I grew up sitting at his
feet and listening to him tell stories about his youth and his experiences in
Europe during World War II. Listening to him tell his stories was my favorite
thing to do. I didn’t inherit his talent for verbal storytelling, but I think I
learned from him how to tell a good story on the page.
13. Do you have any interesting writing quirks or habits?
Like I mentioned before, I’m pretty boring. My perks and habits are
always evolving. The train writing thing is new for me. I usually write on a
laptop and edit on a desktop. I listen to movie soundtracks when I write and
always finish a book with The Last of the Mohicans.
14. What has been one of the most surprising things you’ve learned as
a published author
I’m always a little surprised and honored that
readers are excited to meet me. Like I said…I’m a boring person.
15. What is your favorite state to visit?
Colorado, of course, because I must keep returning to Eternity Springs. :)
16. What are hobbies or interests do you have?
We are lake people, so I love waterskiing and
boating and fishing. As I write this we’ve just finished Memorial Day weekend
at the lake, so I sort of feel like chief cook and sheet-and-towel washer, too.
I love, love, love hosting big holiday gatherings of family and friends at the
lake house, but I will admit I do tire of the mountain of laundry in the
aftermath.
17. Can you tell us about what’s coming up next
after this for you writing wise?
I’m writing Tucker’s story. Fun fact for this—as
part of my research I attended a survivalist training school for a weekend. I
searched long and hard to find one where I could return to town to spend the
night in a comfy hotel rather than sleep on the ground—I’m only willing to go
so far for my art. I did learn to start a friction fire, though, something I’me
VERY proud of. :)
18. How can readers connect with you online?
My website is www.emilymarch.com. I’m active on Facebook. My Facebook page is
www.facebook.com/emilymarchbooks. You can also reach me by email at
emily@emilymarch.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment