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Guest Blogger: Anne Rainey
Wednesday, August 1st, 2012

Little Ideas

Writers find ideas everywhere. At the supermarket, while watching commercials, even when we’re doing laundry. It can be the littlest thing to spark off a plot for a book. Or even people in our life that we decide would make great characters in a book.

This time, I got an idea for a series while listening to my daughter tell me about some kids she knew at school. Katilyn, my oldest, came home one day talking about a couple of guys in her math class. As she started to explain about these five brothers that were all adopted, I couldn’t help but become intrigued. I had to wonder what sort of person or persons would take on five boys to raise. I mean, one boy is a lot to handle, much less five! I just knew that anyone with that much love to give would be someone very special. I needed to write about that, you know? That wonderful couple who would take five boys into their home and give them something they never knew before, unconditional love.

That was how the Blackwater series came about. The idea took root and I realized I had a rather emotional start to a series here. Thus, the Jennings brothers were created.

You have Sam, the oldest. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. He feels responsible for his brothers and an overwhelming protectiveness for Wanda, the woman who gave him his first taste of what it’s like to be a family.

Next up is Vance. He’s been burned by a woman once and swears to never get that close to anyone again. He’s tough on the outside, but all warm and gooey on the inside.

Brodix is the brainy one. He likes order and numbers. In his mind, every problem has a solution—you just need to crunch the right figures.

Reilly and River are the youngest, and twins. These two have had a bit more than their fair share of hard knocks and they have the emotional scars to prove it too.

Anyway, in Blackwater, Ohio, when the Jennings brothers come home for Thanksgiving to find the family business heading toward bankruptcy, they all step in to make things right. Along the way, their slightly meddlesome mom Wanda starts playing matchmaker. She wants to see her boys happy, and Wanda can be pretty fierce when she wants something! 🙂

As you can imagine with a family like the Jennings nothing is simple and things are definitely not perfect. They argue and fight, but that’s all part of the fun, right? I grew up with three brothers and we had our ups and downs, but I wouldn’t change a single second of it!

What about you? Do you have brothers and sisters? 

For a look at the first book in the series, Sam’s Promise, check out this page. And you can read more about Vance’s Rules, book two, here.

Now, onto the newest release in the series, Breaking Brodix. In this scene you get a taste of Wanda as she attempts to play matchmaker.

She wants to get all up in his business? She’ll have to get real personal.

Blackwater, Book 3

Brodix Jennings has a head for business, but his skills are put to the test when his brothers call on him to bring the family restaurant back into the black. With the grand reopening only days away, it’ll damn near take a miracle to keep the doors from closing for good.

Reporter Sarah Greer knows exactly what Brodix needs—free publicity on the front page of the town’s only newspaper. All she wants in exchange is the Jennings brothers’ rags-to-riches story. Except none of them are talking. And Brodix, who cuts a blazing path through her body with just a smile, is the most tight-lipped of the lot.

Brodix wouldn’t think twice about seducing prissy, buttoned-up Sarah into his bed, if her lousy profession didn’t leave him cold to the bone. A second look at the bar’s books, though, makes him think twice about saying no. But if he’s going to open the floodgates, it’ll be on his terms.

When Brodix asks her out, Sarah agrees, confident she can keep personal at arm’s length from professional. Until physical attraction melts their emotional barriers…and Sarah gets way more than she bargained for.

Product Warnings

Expect an annoying ex-husband, a slightly pushy reporter, a fiercely protective hero, and some meddling family members. Of course there’s also a whole lot of naughty sex, and in numerous positions too. Possible overheating of various electronic devices could occur.

“Look who I ran into at the supermarket!” his mother exclaimed. “Sarah Greer from the Gazette. Can you believe it?” The way his mom stared at Sarah, one would think they were in the presence of a celebrity.

It was Brodix’s bad luck that after spending the last several minutes convincing his brothers Sarah wouldn’t be a nuisance, the woman showed up carrying his mom’s groceries. Jesus H.

“I thought we agreed to meet at your place at seven, or was I mistaken?” he asked as he moved to take the bag from her. When he put it on the counter, he saw River moving closer to their mom. River took the grocery bag from her, but he never took his gaze from Sarah, as if she were a big bad wolf about to have lunch. Brodix wanted his brother to move past his reservations about reporters, to see that Sarah wasn’t cut from the same cloth as Larry. But wanting something didn’t necessarily mean it was going to happen. He was at least grateful that River hadn’t picked her up and tossed her out onto the front lawn. Judging by Reilly’s expression, the jury was still out on the possibility of that happening.

“Thank you,” Sarah replied when Brodix pulled a chair out for her at the table. As she looked up at him, her cheeks turned rosy. God, she was cute when she blushed. “I hope I’m not intruding. I told Wanda I didn’t really have to have a slice of her peach pie, but she insisted.”

“I did sort of twist her arm, Brodix,” his mom said, completely oblivious to the turmoil brewing in the room because of Sarah’s presence. “When I spied her checking out the frozen dinners, I couldn’t resist introducing myself.” His mom looked at Sarah, a sparkle in her eyes. “I’m such a fan of your news stories, it’s not even funny.”

Sarah waved the words away. “Oh, please. I’m a small-town reporter. Most of what I write gets buried so deep that you’d have to have a magnifying glass to find it.” She shrugged. “Every once in a while, I write something that people want to read.”

Brodix stayed standing, not sure if he should usher her out of the house, or wait and see what she was up to. When Vance propped an elbow on the table and smiled at Sarah, Brodix was shocked to see Sarah smiling right back. He decided to hang back and watch the show unfold. If she thought charming her way into their lives would work, then she definitely hadn’t done her research as thoroughly as she thought she had.

“I read your articles too,” Vance said. “I like them.”

“Thank you,” she replied as she cocked her head to the side. “You’re Vance, right?”

“Yep.”

“Oh lordy,” his mom muttered as she slapped a palm against her forehead. “I didn’t even think to introduce you. Where are my manners?” She pointed to Sammy first and smiled. “That’s Sam; he’s my oldest. He recently found the love of his life, Julie.” His mom winked at Sarah. “You’ll meet her at the grand opening. She’s a terrific woman. You two are going to get along great.” His mom’s words had Brodix smelling a setup. Was the woman attempting to play matchmaker with him and Sarah? Scary thought, considering how tenacious his mother could be when she set her sights on something. As she moved closer to Reilly and patted him on the shoulder, Brodix braced himself for battle. “As you can see, these are my twins. This is Reilly, and the quiet one there is River.”

“We’ve met,” Reilly bit out, clearly irritated.

“Yes, it’s nice to see you again, Reilly,” Sarah said, her smile a little stiffer than before. Brodix noticed the way she kept darting nervous glances at River, then back at Reilly. She definitely wasn’t feeling the love, Brodix thought. Hell, the tension in the room was thick enough to cut.

Brodix stiffened when he saw Sarah slowly get to her feet, then scoot her chair in. “I think I’ll take a rain check on the pie, Wanda.” She made a point to check her watch before adding, “I really do need to be getting home.”

That same protective instinct that he’d felt earlier came rushing to the surface again. Brodix moved up beside Sarah and smiled down at her. “You should stay for Mom’s peach pie.” He placed a hand at the small of her back and said, “You won’t regret it, I promise.” When he looked over her head, he noticed Reilly frowning at him. Brodix narrowed his eyes and kept his hand on Sarah. A silent battle ensued as they stared at each other, neither of them backing down. When Sarah took a step toward the doorway to leave, Brodix saw Reilly’s lips curve upward, clearly satisfied.

“Maybe you can bring me a slice when you pick me up tonight,” Sarah said, reminding him they’d be seeing each other in a few hours. His blood heated at the thought.

“Let me walk you out,” he said as he caught up to her. “I forgot to give you my cell phone number anyway.”

When they reached Sarah’s little silver coupe, Brodix flattened a hand against the door to prevent her from leaving. “Why’d you really come here, Sarah?”

She sighed. “Your mom wasn’t lying. She saw me at the supermarket and invited me over.” She flung her hands up in the air. “It’s honestly as simple as that.”

“So, you’re totally innocent?”

Sarah looked away.

12 comments to “Guest Blogger: Anne Rainey”

  1. Becky Ward
    Comment
    1
    · August 1st, 2012 at 9:04 am · Link

    Great post! Breaking Brodix sounds really good. I enjoyed reading the excerpt. I have 3 brother and 1 sister all older than me. I am the youngest. We to had our ups and downs and I wouldn’t change a single second of it either.



  2. Helen Seely
    Comment
    2
    · August 1st, 2012 at 9:32 am · Link

    Great post Anne. Love all of your books can’t wait for Breaking Brodix.



  3. Marika Weber
    Comment
    3
    · August 1st, 2012 at 9:38 am · Link

    Great excerpt Anne and congratulations on the release. 🙂

    I have a brother that is 18 months and 18 days younger than me. We grew up as best friends and didn’t have our first reall fight until we were in our 20’s. He can still be pain but I still love him.

    Marika
    maw1725@gmail.com



  4. Thiona Y.
    Comment
    4
    · August 1st, 2012 at 10:17 am · Link

    I loved the first 2 of blackwater series!! Excited to read the 3rd! Brodix will be such a hot/awesome read!!!!



  5. Jodi S.
    Comment
    5
    · August 1st, 2012 at 12:13 pm · Link

    I have 2 older sisters. We’re closer as adults then we were as kids. I just wish that we all lived close so we could spend holidays and family days together!
    I’m so far behind on reading, but I have a huge stack (or should I say bookcases) of books to read and even more on my wish list! This series is top on my list.



  6. Joanne B
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    6
    · August 1st, 2012 at 12:48 pm · Link

    Congrats on the new release. This book sounds fantastic. Can’t wait to read it. I have on sister who is four years older than me. She has MS and has trouble moving and walking so I moved from the East coast to the Midwest to help her. I would do anything for her.



  7. Nina T.
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    7
    · August 1st, 2012 at 12:53 pm · Link

    Well, I come from a BIG family. Let’s just say, it was kind of nice when we were kids cause you had more siblings to play with once you pissed off the other lol But as we’re grown now, we come to realize that family is EVERYTHING! Love my family & wouldn’t have it any other way 🙂

    Congrats on the new release & I wish you much success with it! Loved the excerpt by the way! Can’t wait to get my hands on this one.



  8. Nina T.
    Comment
    8
    · August 1st, 2012 at 12:54 pm · Link

    Well, I come from a BIG family. Let’s just say, it was kind of nice when we were kids cause you had more siblings to play with once you pissed off the other lol But as we’re grown now, we come to realize that family is EVERYTHING! Love my family & wouldn’t have it any other way 🙂

    Congrats on the new release & I wish you much success with it! Loved the excerpt by the way! Can’t wait to get my hands on this one.

    ETA: Oops. Forgot to add email: ninaXreader @ gmail dot com



  9. Crystal
    Comment
    9
    · August 1st, 2012 at 3:43 pm · Link

    Congrats!! This sounds like a great series! I haven’t had the chance to read them yet, but i’m adding it to my to-read pile.

    I have 1 older sister and 2 younger brothers. We’ve all had our ups and downs as well, but now we get along great!



  10. Jen B.
    Comment
    10
    · August 1st, 2012 at 8:44 pm · Link

    Yeah, I have a brother and a sister. I thank the heavens for them everyday. But, we don’t live in close proximity and our lives are totally intertwined!

    I really want to read Breaking Brodix! Your posts have worked their magic and I have added another book to my wish list!



  11. Anne Rainey
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    11
    · August 3rd, 2012 at 10:22 am · Link

    Thanks so much for visiting me here and commenting! The winner of the e-copy of Breaking Brodix is:

    Thiona Y

    Please email me at: annerainey11@gmail.com so I can get your ebook to you. 🙂

    Thank you all for the fun comments!



  12. Ann Q
    Comment
    12
    · August 21st, 2012 at 4:03 am · Link

    I have 5 sisters and 1 brother him being the youngest. With 7 women in the house dad said what chance did he have. As adults, we all get on great and love each other very much. I just love your books, and am always excited to see a new release. I do not think that you need a good luck with it, as, who would not like any of your books.



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