Picking Up The Spare by Heidi Champa

My family has owned bowling alleys for over 50 years. It may seem an unlikely place for romance, but my father met my mother while working there. She and my aunt were going to bowl one night but the place was jammed. My mom was going to leave, but my father had spied her from across the room and when he saw her heading for the door, he ran after her and asked her to stick around.

The rest, as they say, is history. So, never say never. Even to finding love at a bowling alley. That was the inspiration behind my novella, Picking Up The Spare. I hope you enjoy it.



Picking Up the Spare
Amber Allure
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-241-6
http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/PickingUpSpare.html


Blurb: Greg Winter was never supposed to work at his family’s bowling alley. His dream was law school and getting far away from his hometown. However, Winter Lanes is exactly where he ends up. Now his life is full of obligations and responsibility and lacks anything resembling fun. Until Chase McKay, a fondly remembered one-night stand, starts working along side him at the lanes and starts working his way into Greg’s heart. The attraction that brought them together that first night starts to bloom into something more, Greg’s regimented life is thrown into upheaval and his commitment to the family business is tested.

But, change is never easy. Will Greg finally put his own needs first and make room for Chase in his busy life? Or will his fear of disappointing those who rely on him keep him from opening up his heart?


Excerpt: From behind the office door, I could still hear the muffled crash and bang of the bowling balls against the pins. There really was a pile of invoices, but I couldn’t even think about them. Under the circumstances, hiding from whatever was going on out front seemed to be the best option. It was working great until there was a knock at the door. I didn’t want to talk to my dad or Pete, but I knew they wouldn’t leave me alone for long. With a sigh, I made myself look busy.

“Come in.”

The door swung open and Chase walked in. I sat up straighter and my eyes shifted from him to the wall and back again. He didn’t say a word, just walked around the desk and pulled me out of my chair.

“What are you doing, Chase?”

“Something I’ve been wanting to do since you ditched me that night. I never thought I’d have the chance. Small world, huh?”

I was in his arms, his mouth on mine before I could even think of an answer. My first instinct was to push him away, but as Chase shifted me back against the wall, his tongue deep in my mouth, I gave up and gave in. It felt so good, just like it did that night at the party. He took a nibble of my bottom lip and gave it a slight tug. It was just on the right side of painful, that tenuous place where just another bit of pressure would have made me cry out. It wasn’t the first time he’d done something like that to me, and just like that first time, I absolutely adored it. As Chase’s hands moved all the way down my back, the intercom buzzed, which I knew meant trouble with one of the lanes.

Chase pulled back and looked deep into my eyes. “What was that?”

“Lane trouble. I have to go take care of it.”
“Trying to escape again?”
“I really have to go.”

Chase didn’t let me move right away, and I made no move to let him go. I felt weak, the presence of his body holding me up. It had been so long since I’d had a proper kiss, had someone hold me. Brenton had given me release, but I hadn’t felt anything like this…well, since the first time I met Chase. He gave me another long, slow kiss, his pelvis pressing into mine as he squeezed me tight.

“That’s okay, Greg. We can finish catching up later.”

My breath caught in my throat as Chase ran his lips across my neck. He smelled so good, a mixture of cologne and fresh laundry. It was such a welcome change from the usual bowling alley scent of lane cleaner and stale smoke that I was stuck with every day.

“I really have to go now, Chase.”

His blue eyes were still locked on mine as he ran his thumb over my bottom lip, as if to soothe the place where he had just used his teeth. After what felt like a long time, he backed away, his hands leaving warm prints on my skin.

“See you later, Greg.”

I didn’t wait for him to say anything else as I exited the office as fast as I could and looked toward the counter. Pete signaled me to lane fifteen. I ran out back just in time to see the pins stacking up in the machine, the whole system out of whack. I shut the lane down and set myself to the task of fixing things as quickly as possible. It didn’t take long for order to be restored and I could flip the lane back to life. I climbed down from the machine and headed back to the front of the alley, where Chase was standing behind the counter again. He smiled at me as I headed back to the office for some peace and quiet. Instead, as I sat down behind the desk, my brain flashed back to that night, nearly three years ago, when I first met Chase.


Links:

White Out novella purchase link: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/WhiteOut.html

All Expenses Paid novella purchase link: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/AllExpensesPaid.html

The Right Wrong Turn novella purchase link: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/RightWrongTurn.html

Left of the Dial novella purchase link: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/LeftOfDial.html

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Facebook Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Heidi-Champa/151614298186577

Email: hlchampa@comcast.net

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/heidichampa

Blog: http://heidichampa.blogspot.com/