Title: Aimee’s Locket
Author: P.L. Parker
Genre: Western/time travel romance
Book Blurb:
An antique ivory locket catapults Aimee Reynolds back to the year 1847. Alone in St. Louis, Missouri, she has to find a way to get home to present day Seattle. She needs a suitable male willing to marry her or be left behind when the emigrant train departs for the Oregon Territory.
Jake Marshall, scout for the Markham Party, is the perfect, if unwilling choice. Undaunted by his overt rudeness, Aimee entices Jake to the alter, promising her diamond earrings as payment for a marriage of convenience. Properly wed, she secures passage on the wagon train, and discovers her future may be in the past.
Excerpt:
“Jake!” she blurted. “Take me with you!”
He stopped, his gut clenching. He hadn't seen that coming!
He waited for her next move, staring at her face, flushed beet red, amber eyes begging.
“Please," she whispered.
The walls closed in, smothering him. He didn't want to hear what he knew she was going to say. He didn't need that kind of complication.
"I have nowhere to go. I don’t know anyone, and if you leave, I’ll lose the only person who has treated me with kindness since I’ve been here.”
She reached up and took off her diamond earrings. “My parents paid three thousand for these as a graduation present. I’ll give you one now and the other when we arrive in Seattle.”
He rubbed a hand over his face, giving himself time to think. She was so beautiful, standing there, looking lost and sad. Damn it!
He checked the hallway and then pushed her back, stepping into the room. “Even if I wanted to, which I don’t know that I do, I can’t.”
“Why?” Her lips trembled. Tears filled her pleading eyes.
His stomach plummeted. He hated tears! He didn't know how to deal with them.
“Because this group of emigrants are pretty religious. They wouldn’t take kindly to an unchaperoned female traveling with me.”
“Even if I’m paying you – like a business deal?” She took his hand and placed one of the studs on his palm. His fist closed instinctively around the gemstone. Holding the gem to eye level, he scrutinized it. Why was he even considering it? But damn it! He was tempted!
“Pretty rock.” He handed it back and looked away, feeling guilty. He wasn't good at these kinds of things. Taking care of another person didn't fit in his plans. She didn't fit in his plans. He liked being alone.
“They’re perfect – my parents made sure of that.” She repeated her offer. “One stone now and the other when we reach Oregon.”
“And I repeat – these people won't allow you to go with me.”
“What would it take to get you to take me?” Tears spilled down her silken cheeks. "I'll do anything."
Instinct caused his hand to reach up and cup her face. The texture of her skin felt like satin, soft and smooth. His heart beat sped. She got to him in ways he didn't understand. His thumb stroked the soft contours. “If it was up to me, I’d let you go,” he conceded. “But they pay for my services. Maybe if you found a man to marry you, we could figure out something.”
“Get married! To just anyone?” Shocked, her eyes glimmered in the lamplight.
His hand dropped. “Best I can come up with. If you’re married, they might let you go.” The thought of her with another man tore at his gut! He wanted to kill the bastard! He gritted his teeth. She belonged to him! No other man had the right to touch her!
She drew in a deep breath, blurting out. “Jake, listen to me. I know this is sudden but I don't have any other option. I don’t know any other men. Will you marry me – in name only? Once we’re in Oregon, I’ll give you a divorce, and it’ll be like it never happened. You can go on with your life, and you’ll have my diamonds to help buy that property you mentioned.”
Jake shook his head, heat boiling his guts. “You want me to marry you just so you can get to Oregon?” He didn’t know why, but her suggestion sickened him. He'd let her get to him with her tears and her sadness. She'd almost convinced him she was special, but she wasn't. She was just a whore, an expensive one, but a whore.
“I don’t have any other choice. I have to get to there and this is my best chance.”
“So – you are willing to sell yourself - for the right price,” he growled, irritated that it bothered him so much.
Her eyes shot amber sparks. “Not selling myself – I’m buying you. There’s a difference.”
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
The Wild Rose Press: https://catalog.wildrosepress.com/searchresults.php?searchtext=Aimee%27s+Locket&Submit2=Search+Titles%2C+Authors%2C+ISBNs
What makes your featured book a must-read?
Cowboys, Indians, wagon trains, the Wild West, and time travel romances, these are all parts of Aimee’s Locket. If you like all of these combined into one novel, Aimee’s Locket is sure to please. A modern young woman falls through a portal and ends up in 1847 St. Louis and the start of the Oregon Trail.
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card:
Open Internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US or Amazon Canada account to win. Runs April 25 – May 2, 2023. Winner will be drawn on May 3, 2023.
Author Biography:
P.L. Parker was born and raised in Idaho where she lives with her three sons, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren. She is an amateur Squatcher and can be found at times in the wilds of Idaho with her oldest son looking for the elusive creature.
Ms. Parker writes stories with alpha males and strong, determined women. Science fiction and time travel are her genres of choice but she has tried her hands at paranormal. Besides her stand-alone novels, she has three series: The Chimeras and The Star Brides, science fiction romances, and Time Warriors, time travel romances.
Social Media Links:
Website: https://www.plparker.net/
Blogspot: http://plparker.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PLParker