"Merry Christmas, Jake. I'm going to love you forever."
"I'm counting on that."
# # #
What to read next…
I hope you enjoyed Hannah and Jake’s love story. Please click here if you’d like to leave a review for Just One Kiss!
The next Whisper Lake novel, IF WE NEVER MET will be released June 29, 2021.
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Are you up to date on the Whisper Lake Novels?
Whisper Lake Series
Always With Me (#1)
My Wildest Dream (#2)
Can't Fight The Moonlight (#3)
Just One Kiss (#4)
Want more contemporary romance while you’re waiting for the next Whisper Lake book?
Continue reading for an excerpt from Kiss Me Forever, the first book in the Bachelors & Bridesmaids Series!
Excerpt - KISS ME FOREVER
"You're done, Andrea," Roger Thornton said.
The editor-in-chief of World News Today had always been blunt, but his statement seemed a little harsh even for him. Andrea Blain sat up straighter as she faced her boss across the massive desk in his office. "Done as in fired?" she asked warily.
"You're not fired, but you're close. Do you know how much money we've spent the last six weeks helping you chase a story that turned out to be nothing?"
"It's not nothing. I just need more time to gather evidence."
"You don't need time. You need to refocus. You had a hunch; it didn't pay off."
"My source got scared off. I'll find someone else."
"It took you weeks to find him. Cut your losses."
She could not believe Roger was going to pull her off the story she'd been working on the past two months. She'd been talking to a potential whistleblower at a company that made car seats for children. There had been two fatal accidents involving the car seats in the last year. "If my hunch is right, my story could save lives."
"You'll have to work on it on your own time. If you had some real evidence, maybe I could give you another week, but all you have is a disgruntled employee and a lawsuit that was thrown out of court for lack of evidence."
"I also have two injured children," she reminded him.
"There's no concrete evidence the car seats were to blame."
"Not yet. But I think I can get it."
He frowned. "I'm sorry Andrea. You're out of time. I can't carry reporters on my staff who aren't actually reporting."
"Some stories take time to develop," she argued. "You know that."
Roger took off his glasses and rubbed a hand across his weary eyes. He was a big bear of a man, well over six feet tall and at least two hundred and fifty pounds. At age fifty-six, he'd been in the news business longer than she'd been alive, and she had a great deal of respect for him.
"I do know that, Andrea, and ten years ago I would have let you have that time. But we now operate on a 24-hour news cycle. If we don't have new content, we don't have readers. More importantly we don't have advertisers. We're struggling to stay alive in a world where most people get their news off of social media. I can't have reporters working on stories for weeks at a time. It's not cost effective."
"I understand the challenges—" she began.
He quickly cut her off. "It doesn't matter what you understand. We're moving on. I have a new story for you, one that will give you an opportunity to show the owners of this magazine that you actually work here, and that they have a reason to pay you a salary."
"What's the story?" she asked with a sigh, knowing that if the orders came from the top floor, there was no point in arguing any further.
Roger picked up a manila folder and pushed it across the desk to her. "Alexander Donovan."
"Who?" she asked, not sure she had heard him correctly.
"You know who he is. Alexander Donovan will be the magazine's Man of the Year, and you're going to write the cover story."
"Alexander Donovan is going to be our Man of the Year?" she echoed in disbelief. "Why? He makes computer games. He's a rich playboy. We should have someone serious on the cover, someone who is making a difference in the world. This is not my style." Andrea tossed the folder down on the desk and got to her feet.
Restlessness propelled her to the window. Ten floors below lay the busy streets of San Francisco, the city where she had come to find her dreams. World News Today was one of the top news magazines in the country, focusing on serious issues, politics, foreign policy and the global economy. The cover story was usually a plum job, one she would have loved to have if it had been anyone else, but Roger's choice of Man of the Year made the assignment seem like a joke. She turned back to face him. "Why are you doing this? Is the magazine changing focus?"
"Not at all. Alexander Donovan does more than make games. He's a philanthropist. He donates millions of dollars to schools and charity organizations. He runs camps for underprivileged children. He sends medical supplies to Africa. In a time when the world has become increasingly cynical, Alexander Donovan is the embodiment of generosity and hope."
"In other words, he's a master of public relations," she said cynically.
"He is a master, but don't close your eyes to the possibilities. I know this isn't your style. To be frank, it's not mine, either, but our publisher is convinced that Donovan will sell a lot more copies than some over-photographed politician. The cover will bring in readers that don't normally pick up the magazine. Your job is to keep them reading."
"How on earth will I do that?"
"Do what you do well, Andrea—find an angle."
"And if I can't?"
"Then you may want to start looking for another job."
She blew out a quick breath at his blunt statement. "It's that serious?"
"It is."
"So Alexander Donovan is my get-out-of-the-doghouse card?"
"Exactly."
Andrea sat back down in her chair and picked up Donovan's folder. "I don't know what you think I'm going
