Blog Tour: To Know Her by Renee Burke
To Know Her
by Renee Burke
Sara Hudson doesn't remember her own name – or anything else about her
life. When Derek Clayton rescues her from a deserted highway, Sara
finds she can’t say no to the sexy stranger. Lost from all she knows,
Sara becomes the submissive to Derek’s dominance. Although she doesn’t
understand why she yields to his demands, she can’t deny the blazing
passion for the man who seems to know exactly how to satisfy her needs.
The only thing Derek Clayton has more of than secrets is money.
He offers Sara help with one goal in mind – to keep her in the dark
until he can work out the events that left her stranded without a
memory. Can they give up the constraints of the past to find their
happy ending or will his secrets and past love threaten their future?
Excerpt
“Tell me what?” Sara’s
question wasn’t loud, but the tableau before her seemed to freeze.
Derek turned to look in her direction. “What am I not ready
to hear?”
Derek
stalked over, crowding her into the wall, hiding the scene behind him
as he cupped Sara’s face in both hands. “There are things
you don’t know. The doctor agreed with me that it was too
soon to tell you everything. You need to be given time to
remember things on your own.”
She
stilled and tried to swallow down the ache in her throat.
“So you know who I am?”
He
kissed her cheek softly. His hands grounded her with their
constant stroking. “I told you today, didn’t I? I
know you, inside and out.”
She
nodded and grasped his wrist. “But you knew me – before?”
She lifted her confused eyes to his. They felt wet, and her
breath came faster. Had he let her wander through the last few
days, so confused, able to offer reassurance but refusing to give it?
His
small nod told her that was exactly what had happened.
“And
we were together. We did this together?” She nodded
toward the room before looking back for his answer.
He
gave that terse nod again, his eyes boring into hers, waiting for a
response. “Do you remember?”
She
closed her eyes, images of the last few days flashed past, but
nothing was there before. Nothing but blackness. She
seemed to remember being in the dark, which didn’t make sense
because sconces lit the walls on all sides. Somehow the
place was familiar. And it felt incredibly lonely.
She
shook her head. “Darkness.” She felt the first tear
fall as she glanced around the room. Her heart was heavy, and a
wave of fear washed over her. She dropped her eyes and more tears
fell. “I remember darkness.” The floor, a dark wood,
came into focus.
Someone
spoke. “It could be the hood, Derek.”
Sara
lifted her face to the wall where several styles of hoods hung on
hooks. A hood. Her stomach rolled, and her hand shot to
her mouth. She suddenly felt smaller, inconsequential.
She lurched forward, toward the stairs and through the front door.
It was raining now, but that didn’t stop her. She wanted
distance, lots of distance, between her and that room.
My Review
I love the story of this book. You will never be bored in Derek and Sara's story. The length even though it's short, the story (drama and all) is all in the book.
About the story, even though it started with Sara not remembering who she was, the concept of the story was good and I love how the story flows. The characters, I love how the characters were made and they are easy to like. I love Derek's personality and of course his character, sexy and hot!! I love how the story ended, from the start to the last everything is great.
Ms. Renee did a really great job in making this book captivating and interesting that you will leave you wanting for more!
Scene with Alternate POV
Derek
jumped in the car and threw it into gear. Gravel flew as he hurried
onto the highway, probably chipping the smooth black paint of the
Porsche. Fitting. He had screwed up. Everything was a mess because
of his words a few minutes ago. The crushed expression on Sara’s
face haunted him. He had broken their fragile alliance with cruel
words. He needed to find her and fix it.
His
car ate up the miles as he sped toward her house. He knew where she
lived though he’d never taken the time to go inside. He’d never
had to because Sara came to him willingly, openly, never demanding
anything. Until tonight. In the past she’d always given and never
asked for anything from him. He tried to get his words in order as
he drove. Straightening this out wouldn’t be easy. He had a
feeling once she got her back up, it wouldn’t be easy to get back
on her good side. And she had separated herself from him as fast as
humanly possible when he’d spoken the cruel words.
A
flash of skin from the shoulder of the highway caught Derek’s eye,
and he hit the brake. He glanced back to see Sara standing still,
looking vulnerable and alone. He slid the car into reverse and
approached her.
She
wrapped her arms around herself. He narrowed his eyes. He was no
threat.
As
he got closer, he saw blood ooze from her forehead. Her skin was
pale and shocky. Her expression was shattered. His arm shot out to
grasp her when she stepped too close to the drop off on the edge of
the pavement. All she needed was another injury.
Not
on his watch.
Her
reaction was less than comfortable, more confused than angry at him.
“Trouble?”
He pulled her toward the road and glanced around. Where was her car?
Had she run it into the ditch? He didn’t see it along the stretch
of darkness. Maybe this was the chance to talk to her than he
needed. At least she would have to sit with him for the ride home.
He
brushed her hair back and waited for her to answer. He was so damn
sorry, yet he wasn’t sure what to say. She was vital to him, but
that’s not what he’d said. He’d made her feel second rate.
How could he make it up to her on this abandoned stretch of highway?
“I
seem to be lost.” Her voice held no attitude. She did
look lost, and he
hated it. He wanted her back to normal, full of professional
smoothness until he got her alone when she showed her feisty
attitude.
“You
seem to be hurt.” He winced as he touched the cut. Not deep
enough for stitches.
“I’m
not sure how that happened. I can’t seem to remember...
much.” She pulled herself away, and he gritted his teeth as
he let her go. For now. But he didn’t like it.
Was
she saying she didn’t remember their conversation? Didn’t
remember him telling her he could never make her more than a causal
fuck? He couldn’t be that lucky.
He
ushered her into the car and climbed into the driver’s seat before
asking her plans. Could he take her back to his place and redo this
night from the beginning? Instead of harsh words and cutting
remarks, he would give her the warmth and care she deserved.
“I’m
not entirely sure. I guess to a store. Maybe a gas
station?”
He
frowned at her response. No way in hell was she wanting to shop now.
She
glanced at him with a puckered brow. “I don’t know.” He
couldn’t look away when she began biting her lip. He leaned
closer, intent on a kiss. “I don’t remember why I’m here or
who to call.”
He
froze. She hadn’t just forgotten the conversation then. “What
do you remember?”
“Nothing.
I don’t remember anything.”
He
leaned back in his seat and considered his options. Take her to her
house, take her to the hospital, or take her back to his place. No
question.
He
would take care of her. In every way. And he would make sure she
knew how much she meant to him before any memories threatened their
relationship again. He reached for her hand and gave a gentle
squeeze.
“It
will be okay. I’ll take you somewhere safe.” Home,
where he could watch her closely and steal her heart once and for
all.
Renee
Burke has sampled life in Louisiana and the East Coast before finally
settling down in the Midwest where she met her husband. She was
destined to be a teacher and loves instilling a love of reading in
her students and trying to draw out their inner writers.
Renee
has enjoyed romance since she was old enough to buy her own books,
but her writing developed slowly as she balanced life with her family
and a desire to “do it right.” Her husband gave her the push she
needed with a writing course several years ago, and she was off! She
has finally learned that romance should be felt rather than
overanalyzed. She loves reading and writing romance with a wide
range of emotion and humor. Her close friends all enjoy swapping
author and book suggestions and looking for the next hot, sweet love
story.
Renee
claims her phone e-reader app allows her more reading time than ever
before. “People think I’m busy with important emails and let me
read uninterrupted!” Besides writing, Renee is crazy about
spending time with her two handsome sons and amazingly devoted
husband.
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/reneeburkewriting
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/flashywrite
Email:
reneeburkewriting@gmail.com
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BI4IY3M
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/318050
Barnes
and Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/to-know-her-renee-burke/1115540607?ean=2940044560291
Kobo.com:
http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/to-know-her
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