Hi, and welcome to At First Sight Saturday. Because my newest book, The Legend of Skinner Robelard debuts this coming Monday, Nov. 16, 2020, I want to give you a look at the first sight scenes. I’ll introduce you to hero, Boyd Alvarez and Heroine, Elise Van Demer aka ‘Skinner Robelard. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the scenes.
Excerpt: “I saw Skinner Robelard’s rig over to the stable,” said one of the yahoos at the bar, as Boyd Alvarez paused inside the front door of the saloon. He spotted his quarry at the far end of the bar then headed for an empty table near the man. He motioned to the barkeep, ordered one shot of Redeye neat, and settled with his back to the wall to watch Zachariah Jackson—the meanest, dirtiest claim jumper this side of the Snake River—whoop it up with some friends. Given some luck, Jackson would drink himself into a stupor, and Boyd could haul the man over to the sheriff’s office with little or no problem.
“Ain’t never see’d Robelard m’self,” Jackson said.
“Well y’can see ‘im now,” one of the friends remarked and tilted his head toward the door Boyd had passed through. “Just came in.”
Jackson stood on his toes and craned his neck to see over the crowd. “Where? Man with as big a legend as Robelard oughta be big enough to see easy.”
The friend grinned. “He’s standing smack in the middle of the doorway. Ain’t Skinner’s size what got ‘im ‘is reputation; it’s ‘is luck. Why I hear’d tell that he’s half rattler an’ half eagle. He’s faster’n lightning an’ never misses.”
“Afternoon, fellas.” The voice was rusty as barbed wire, surprisingly deep and musical–like church bells–but with the rhythm of a mama rocking a baby. The combination was oddly soothing.
Boyd supposed a man who coaxed critters to haul heavy loads over long distances would need such a voice.
Booted tread followed the greeting, and the crowd of men around the bar made room. Boyd watched a scruffy figure ease through. Something besides the skinner’s voice struck Boyd as odd. He couldn’t decide exactly what. As he considered, Robelard stepped into a spot at the bar beside Jackson, right between Boyd and the claim jumper.
“Whisky, neat,” said the barbed wire croon.
Boyd was still mentally cursing the luck that put an innocent between him and a one-hundred-dollar bounty when he finally figured out what bothered him. How in Hades have all these men failed to notice that Skinner isn’t a man.
Admittedly, dressed as she was, it was kinda hard to tell—so maybe it wasn’t so strange that most accepted her as a man—especially since Jackson’s friend called her one. But that walk was unmistakable. From whore to starched-up school marm, every woman known to man had that same hip-swaying, make a man’s cock ache, sashay. Some had it more’n others, but they all had it. Despite Boyd’s blue balls, that strut was a pure pleasure to watch. Purer than he’d seen in a long, long time.
This one had less sway than many. She had a stride that fit a man, aggressive and bold as brass, but she couldn’t completely hide that swing. Would’a been nice if she’d dressed like a woman ‘stead of a muleskinner. Would’a been even nicer if she’d cleaned up a bit and smelled like a woman. But she smelled the way she looked—trail-whacker through and through. Except for that sway. Trouble was certain, when one of the woman-starved men in this saloon finally noticed.
And a little bit later as Elise recalls the incident.
Elise Van Demer left the boardwalk fronting the saloon and dashed between buildings to the beaten path that ran behind the line of structures and separated Nowhere from the prairie. Keeping to the stingy shadows of early afternoon, she hurried to the stable—the last building on this end of town. She stopped to catch her breath at the rear door and listened. She heard nothing but the nicker of horses and the sigh of a breeze through prairie grass.
Boyd Alvarez was the last person she expected to see in that worn-down saloon. Yes, he hunts lawbreakers and goes where they are, but I don’t generally mix with them. Regardless of what brought him here, she’d had to work hard at not breaking into a smile at the sight of his long rangy form behind the idiot who tried to bully her. He was one of the few pleasant memories from the worst time in her life. He was always nice to me.
She frowned, She’d known him from the days when her father was jailed on her say so and she was cast off her own ranch to live or die alone. A time she chose to remember as motivation to keep her going through all the subsequent hard years. Years when she’d never seen Boyd, although she’d thought of him more often than she cared to admit. I didn’t miss him and don’t need him or any other man. In fact, his being here is a blamed nuisance. His experience as a Pinkerton makes him a trained observer and more likely than others to see through my disguise.
Blurb: Pampered and privileged then betrayed and disowned, Elise Van Demer hides in plain sight and plots her revenge on the men who destroyed her life. With her goal in sight, she encounters a lawman from her past. Boyd Alvarez could ruin everything, and the last thing she needs is wanting some man who only wants to protect her.
His family dead and without a home, Boyd Alvarez rides the range and hunts bounties for a living. When he stumbles on Elise Van Demer his only thought is to keep her safe. He can outgun just about every man, but can he protect her from her own plans of revenge? Can he teach her that loving a man is a better dream than destroying her enemies?
Available Now: as pre-order for only $0.99 (price goes up on Tuesday) Universal Buy Link
About Rue: Award winning author, Rue Allyn, learned story telling at her grandfather’s knee. (Well it was really more like on his knee—I was two.) She’s been weaving her own tales ever since. She has worked as an instructor, mother, sailor, clerk, sales associate, and painter, along with a variety of other types of employment. She has lived and traveled in places all over the globe from Keflavik Iceland (I did not care much for the long nights of winter.) and Fairbanks Alaska to Panama City and the streets of London England to a large number of places in between. Now that her two sons have left the nest, Rue and her husband of more than four decades (Try living with the same person for more than forty years—that’s a true adventure.) have retired and moved south. When not writing, enjoying the nearby beach or working jigsaw puzzles, Rue travels the world and surfs the internet in search of background material and inspiration for her next heart melting romance.. She loves to hear from readers, and you may contact her at Rue@RueAllyn.com. She can’t wait to hear from you.
Find Rue Online: Website Blog Twitter Facebook Pinterest Goodreads BookBub Amazon
Get to know Rue Allyn better by signing up for an email newsletter. Receive a free download when you click here to sign up.
Recent Comments