Bound
Jennifer Dean
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
ISBN: 9781300196211
Number of pages: 254
Word Count: 89,600
Guest Post
Hello all! First off, I want to say thanks to Intoxicated by Books for hosting me today.
Well, seeing as this is the first stop on my month long tour, I would love to start off by talking about someone quite important to me. Someone who is quite…imaginary. My main character, Emma. I thought what better way to kick off this tour, then with the whole reason I am even talking to you. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to…
Name: Emma Rose Morgan
Nicknames: Em, Little Morgan, Sean’s little sister
Born: January 3, 1994
Age: 17
Physical Appearance: Long chocolate brown hair with hazel eyes. 5’4” and 120 pounds. Skin is always a consistent color, despite the turning seasons, not tan but far from fair.
Hometown: Washington, North Carolina
Parents: Paul and Angelia Morgan. Though they remain married, they fell out of love a long time ago. An issue that affects Emma into believing that real love is nothing but a myth.
Siblings: She has one older brother, Sean Morgan, who is a year older than her. He is the one person she trusts most in the world. When she was 14, her father’s new job forced the family to move to Dallas, Texas but Sean refused to go, staying behind to live with Emma’s Uncle Greg. A very decision that sealed the already strained relationship of Sean and their father. Luckily, before the second semester of junior year starts, Paul’s job relocates back to Washington, letting Emma happily reunite with Sean. She considers the reunion with Sean, the best day of her life.
Moves back to Washington: January 1, 2011
Friends: Once moving back, Emma is happy to see her childhood friendships with: Lauren Stevens, Pamela Mercer, Rebecca Davis, and Erika Reynolds have remained intact, despite her failing to keep in touch the three years she was in Dallas. Even family friend, Michael Harris is excited to see her back.
Favorite food: Italian
School: Junior at Washington High School
Grades: 3.8 G.P.A. but still considers herself average compared to her brother’s 4.0
Car: 2001 Black Volkswagen Jetta
Favorite pastime: Loves to read a lot of classic and modern novels but holds a special relationship with A Wrinkle In Time. It was the first book she was ever given by her brother, as a goodbye present the day she left Washington.
Sports: She used to compete in volleyball but gave it up after the move to Dallas, and loss interest completely by the time she moved back to Washington. She likes to go for runs to clear her mind.
Personality: Considers herself the plain Morgan. Not ugly, but definitely not noticeable compared to her popular, handsome older brother. At times she can be stubborn, but all in all Emma is very down to earth, sweet, and considerate of others, always putting Sean before herself.
Book Description:
17-year-old Emma Morgan believes she finally has the chance at happiness again when she relocates back to her hometown of Washington, North Carolina and reunites with her older brother, Sean.
But after three years apart, their unique bond is tested when Sean protests her meeting of the oddly charming and bright-eyed, Liam Alexander. A boy who holds a very deep secret from the rest of the residents in Washington.
A secret that will change Emma’s life forever and lead her to discovering the beginning of something she never believed could exist...true love.
Excerpt
This is the end of chapter five, after a very intense scene.
Once I shut the door behind me, I felt as if the imaginary director had yelled “cut”, letting me finally involuntarily collapse to my knees. I closed my eyes, sitting on my heels with my hands resting on my thighs, slowly filtering in a shaky breath. What the hell just happened? I wanted to hear Sean’s voice to soothe me, but I didn’t have the strength to grab my phone from inside my purse, which I had thrown to the bed a moment before my collapse.
Suddenly I heard a knock at my door. Damn. I opened my eyes before my hands helped lift me back to my feet. I knew my mom would definitely question me if she found me on the floor like that. I breathed out two deep sighs in order to calm my expression before I was ready. Action, I thought.
“Come in,” I said.
The door opened, but it wasn’t my mother. It was Sean that peeked his head through the frame gap, before stepping inside my room and shutting the door behind him. I didn’t waste the time to rush him. I wrapped my arms underneath his as I laid my head to his chest. The instant warmth of his presence lifted me to a better place.
“I thought you had to work late,” I said.
“I just got back and felt like I should stop by and see you.” I felt him gently pat the back of my hair comfortingly. “Is everything all right?”
“I don’t know how you do it,” I said.
“Do what?”
“Make yourself appear right when I need you. But I’m glad that you do.”
“It’s a gift. Now are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”
I finally stepped back to look up at him. But now in the moment of truth, I knew that I couldn’t say anything. I couldn’t be the reason that Sean lost his friends. But I also knew that was what Ross and Nick were hoping on, and I wasn’t keeping quiet for their sake. I have to tell him. I opened my mouth, but still nothing came out. I curled my fingers into fists, looking for the courage to speak.
“I got . . . ” This was my chance as my tongue lingered with the words. Say it. “Freaked out earlier.”
Sean narrowed his gaze with a prepared anger. “Freaked out by what?”
I gulped, not quite sure why this was so hard to say. I hadn’t even begun to wrap my head around Liam Alexander. “I forgot my purse, and when I went back for it the janitor was really creepy.” I rolled my eyes for dramatics with a small shrug. “But you know how my imagination can be.”
I sighed with the guilt weighing me down like lead. I’ll admit the janitor wasn’t going to be my friend but he didn’t deserve the persona I was building of him. I expected a lecture of any kind for being stupid enough to not bring a friend with me. I even welcomed it in order to serve as punishment for lying.
Instead Sean merely pulled his neck back to gaze at me with his brow lifted. “Are you sure that’s all?”
I nodded, maybe a little too much. It wasn’t as if he knew I was lying but more that I wasn’t telling the truth. Luckily he was choosing to ignore it, and I was grateful.
My eyes shifted to the floor with guilt.
“I know it sounds a bit childish, but would you stay until I fall asleep?”
“Sure,” he said.
I wasn’t sure how long it would take me to fall asleep, but I was glad Sean had stayed to do what he had always done best, protect me. Lucky for him, I would have no problem staying away from Liam Alexander now. I wasn’t even sure where to begin with Liam. My mind could barely decipher the idea of what I had seen, let alone how to articulate it into words.
There must be an explanation for it all, but for now I laid under the covers, moving to curl into Sean, with my head rested on the warmth of his chest. It was like sunshine that radiated around my body. The warmth on my skin was like that sensation of hot water from the shower on a cold day. Just being near him made me feel better.
“Sean,” I said.
“Yeah, Em?”
“I’ll stay away from Liam.”
There was a few seconds of silence where I felt like I could almost see his eyes shift away with a smile of accomplishment.
“Why now? Did something happen with him tonight?”
I shook my head, while my mind knew the opposite. “No, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that I believe you. There is something strange about him.” I paused to exhale at the memory of tonight. “So, you don’t have to worry about him anymore.”
I thought of how different things would be if Sean had seen what I did. He would surely be even more protective of me. But if he had known, then it would be something he would have already told me. Even if I knew how hypocritical I seemed by withholding what I had seen tonight.
I felt Sean’s light, comforting kiss on my scalp before he laid his head on top of my own. “Promise?”
I sighed into the warm silence crawling around the two of us.
“I promise.”
About the Author:
Jennifer lives in Dallas, Texas with her family. When not immersed in her writing, she is either engaged in a book or one of her favorite television shows.
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1 comment:
Thanks for having me!
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