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Jan 11, 20196 min read

Meet Ridge Romano, hero and leading man in When the Right One Comes Along by @LiviaQuinn #free #Free


Good morning. Our interview today is with Ridge Romano. He’s one of the most humble people I’ve ever met and so handsome with that black hair and muscular build. Let me give you some background. Ridge was recruited by the Army Rangers when he graduated from MIT at seventeen to work in bionics. He has a PhD and is CEO of MedBionics. He’s here in DC meeting with the Congressional committee about the bill for veterans’ care.

Please, tell us about your project, Ridge.

I’ve pulled together some of the top health organizations in the US. We care committed to taking over the care of our veterans, to make sure no man or woman is left behind after they return from their service to our country. It’s been a goal of mine ever since I lost my brother to war related injuries.

As Abraham Lincoln said, “The mission for government is to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.’ I can’t say it any better than that.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

(Ridge frowns and rubs his chin thoughtfully as if he didn’t anticipate this question.)

Happy, hmm. I don’t think about it. I have more important things, more important priorities than what makes me happy. Okay, if you want to know what would make me happy, it would be seeing the men and women I represent who stood for this country, many of whom are suffering… seeing them happy, healthy and living a full meaningful life again. All my energy is focused on this mission for veterans. Failure is not an option.

Which living person do you most despise?

I don’t waste energy on that kind of negative emotion. It’s unproductive. When I come up against someone whose goals or opinions don’t match my own, I just figure out a way to move around them, not let them affect my forward momentum.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

I admire a strong woman, one who knows what she wants and goes after it. I don’t have time for a partner who, well, I don’t have time for a relationship but if I did, she would have to be someone who was comfortable with who she was and didn’t need me to “complete” her. That’s the stuff of romance novels, not reality.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

(Ridge chuckles.)

Once again, I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about this, but I guess… I can be excessively focused, even anal, when my goal is in sight. I’ve been told I should learn to lighten up. Honestly, I wouldn’t know how.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

If, and it’s a big if, I can pull off this contract with the government to care for veterans along with my consortium partners, I’ll never ask for another thing.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

(He answers quickly, no need for thought.)

Losing someone you love and living with the fact that you couldn’t do anything to stop it. It’s my greatest regret and my greatest motivation.

Thank you, Ridge, for taking the time to speak with me. To find our more about Ridge, check out When the Right One Comes Along, book 1 (Free at all stores).

Title When the Right One Comes Along, Calloways of Rainbow Bayou, #1

Author Livia Quinn

Genre Small Town Military Romance

Publisher Campbell Hill Publishing

Blurb:

Love happens when you least expect it, even when it's the last thing you're looking for.

Former Army Ranger, Ridge Romano lost his brother John to the war, but not the battlefield. After returning home with PTSD he committed suicide leaving behind a grieving wife and baby. Now the CEO of MedBionics, Ridge is on a mission to ensure John’s death is not in vain. He’s in DC meeting with Congress about an ambitious veterans’ project that could change the lives of his fellow soldiers and their families. But an impulsive act and one night with one very special woman - complete with photographs – will put the contract and his dreams at risk.

Famous model and photographer, Buffy Calloway, is at the romance convention to find the “Face” of her studio and casting agency. This tall, intense man is everything she’s looking for and she’s sure he’s "the one" but there seems no way to find middle ground.

Can two people with very different goals find a way to have it all?

Excerpt:

He was drawn to one poster in particular, the likeness of the lovely redhead he’d followed from the elevator. A Scottish castle stood on an isle with a lush green pasture in the background. Dressed in a frilly green gown, the woman was draped over the arm of a seriously muscled dude in a kilt, who looked like he was about to carry her off across the water to his castle. A tempting fantasy for sure.

Ridge furtively made his way toward a room with double doors behind which he could make out clapping and laughter. Then a woman with a deep smoky voice called out, “Her Lady Rogue by Claranne Braxton.”

He heard two or three feminine voices shout, “I’ve got it,” and the discouraged grumble of another, “Shoot, I got all losers.”

The smoky voice again called out, “Billionaire Sex Toy". Ridge’s eyebrows rose as three voices sang out, “Got him,” then one cried, “Bingo!”

Ridge walked up behind two women hanging on the open door watching the action. He was taller than anyone there and when he turned his head toward the stage, he relied solely on experience and training to keep from gawking.

The two men he’d shared the workout room with that morning stood on the stage, neither of them fully dressed. One was in bare feet but still had his slacks and belt on along with a white tank and dress shirt.

“Eric,” said Smoky Voice whom Ridge could see was a lushly built young woman in a black dress. She sat at a table near the stage, held up a chip and read, “Please remove your tie.” Eric muffed for the crowd, twisting back and forth and undoing the tie like one of the Chipper…Chip. . . whatever those male strippers were called. Eric dragged is movements out eliciting more catcalls from the women in the crowd. Moving the tie back and forth, he thrust his hips, teasing them. Pulling the strip of silk out of his shirt collar, he swung it twice around his head like a lasso and let it fly out over the heads of the women seated in front of him.

The tie dropped into a crowd of upraised hands. After a short tug of war and a lot of laughter and bawdy good-natured cheering, the victor squealed. With a satisfied grin, she looped it around her neck and raised her thumb up above her head. Good natured laughter followed from her envious compadres.

The M.C. on stage said, “All right, get your cards ready! The first one is for my book, Seal Team Alpha.” Several minutes and six titles later another scream went up, “Bingo!”

After the prize, apparently a signed paperback was retrieved, and the announcer sighed. “Ladies, since we’re short a cover model, we’ll have to do things a little different. Hugh…”

“Wait! Sally!”

One of the women at the entrance pointed at Ridge. “He’s here.” She took Ridge’s arm and propelled him forward. “Go on, you have some catching up to do.” He frowned and before he could figure out what they were about, they shoved him toward the stage.

“You’ve got the wrong guy. I’m not—” but they couldn’t hear him over the screaming.

“Alex, Alex, Alex,” the chant began. He shook his head smiling. Who knew what these rabid spectators might do if he tried to escape. Looking back, he knew he hadn’t really tried to resist. The women had been having a blast and up to that point, it seemed like good, clean fun, nothing he’d get arrested for.

The delight on the faces of the women made his pulse jump. Fun. God, when was the last time he’d done something just for the fun of doing it? For the kick.

One corner of his mouth turned up in a smile without his permission and the more they hooted and called to him, the wider it got until he figured, why the hel—heck not? No one knew him here. It was just harmless entertainment. A hundred women calling his name—or the AWOL Alex's name—and begging him to strip.

He reached down, unbuckled his belt and very slowly… slid it out of the loops.

The first book in this series, When the Right One Comes Along is free on all stores.

Author Biography

Livia moved from D.C. to Louisiana where the weather and culture of the region inspired her writing, including her storm faerie, Tempest, and her contemporary romance series, The Calloways of Rainbow Bayou. She’s stored up fodder from her jobs as mail lady, salesperson, plant manager, business owner and professional singer to share with readers. Think of her as her characters’ biographer! On the bayou, she is protected from the alligators and bears by her husband and feisty Pomeranian, Dusty.

Social Media Links

Livia Quinn Readers Group http://bit.ly/2gBFQ12

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