Illustrious Illusions: Guest Post & #Giveaway ~*~ More Than a Rancher by Claire McEwen

Thank you so much for inviting me to visit today!

Do you believe that things are meant to be? That the events in your life happen for a reason? The heroine of my new book, More Than a Rancher, does. And that belief system works out pretty well for her until the hero shows up and life starts to get very complicated!

Jenna Stevens is a ballroom dancer from San Francisco who is visiting a friend in the rural Eastern Sierras. When she meets a teenaged boy in a remote sheep pasture and learns that he dreams of becoming a dancer, she offers to teach him. Because of course their meeting is a sign… why else would this strange coincidence occur?

Enter the boy’s older brother. Tall, dark and brooding, Sandro Salazar does not want his little brother, Paul, to pursue his dream of becoming a ballroom dancer. Sandro is trying to protect his brother from ridicule - in their ranching family dreams like Paul’s are not welcomed. So with Sandro thwarting her attempts to help Paul, Jenna has to question whether she is still meant to be the boy’s teacher. Was their meeting a sign after all?

And what about her attraction to Sandro? Is that a sign? Or the way he helps her out of a sticky situation at her ballroom, or runs to her rescue when she gets hurt? Do those actions mean anything deeper? The more she interacts with Paul’s gorgeous and complicated older brother, the harder it is for Jenna to figure out what is actually meant to be!

I hope you’ll go with Jenna on her journey. And I’ll leave you with a little snippet of a discussion she has with Sandro along the way. To set the scene - they’re on Sandro’s family ranch, where Jenna is carrying an enormous pile of saddlebags to the barn. When Sandro tries to help her, they fall over, hitting heads in the process. So when they have this conversation, they are lying on the ground, covered in saddlebags, and they’ve just finished laughing hysterically…

Jenna realized that despite her pounding forehead and filthy clothes, she was happy just lying in the sun next to Sandro. His hand found hers and held on and this time she didn’t pull away. It felt too good.

“Maybe we can agree that not everything is a sign?” he asked softly.

“Maybe.” Jenna smiled.

“Or maybe we can agree that we get to pick and choose which life events count as signs. For example, can the way your hand feels in mine right now be counted as a sign? Because if it is, I’m pretty sure I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

“I guess we could consider it a sign,” Jenna conceded. She tried to keep her voice casual but his words felt warmer inside of her than the sunshine did on her skin.

Sandro leaned on his elbow, so he was looking down at her, his handsome features framed against the bright sky. He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her softly, so gently it was a feather’s touch, but enough to have Jenna’s breath catch. “That feeling between us. Is that a sign?”

“I’m not sure,” she whispered. That feeling was making her tremble.

“Let’s try to make you sure.”

More Than A Rancher

By: Claire McEwen

Releasing September 2^nd, 2014

Harlequin: Superromance

Blurb

Does he dare follow her lead?

Ballroom dancer Jenna Stevens is done with all things romance. It’s so much more satisfying to focus on her career. That is, until she meets Sandro Salazar – a handsome, brooding small-town chef and sometimes rancher. Jenna is drawn to him immediately, but there’s no way Sandro could fit into her fast-paced, urban life.

Still, as she gets to know this reformed bad boy, she begins to wonder if maybe their two worlds can merge. One thing’s for certain – Jenna will have to take the lead if she has any hope of Sandro seeing what’s possible for the two of them… together.

Link to Follow Tour: http://www.tastybooktours.com/2014/07/more-than-rancher-by-claire-mcewen_25.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21489545-more-than-a-rancher?from_search=true

Buy Links

Amazon ~ B&N ~ Kobo ~ iTunes ~ Publisher

Author Info

Claire McEwen lives by the ocean in Northern California with her husband, son and a scruffy, mischievous terrier. When not dreaming up new stories, she can be found digging in her garden with a lot of enthusiasm but, unfortunately, no green thumb. She loves discovering flea-market treasures, walking on the beach, dancing, traveling and reading, of course!

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