"4 Ribbons!...A heart-stopping suspense that will keep you guessing until the end. Tess Maynard did a great job of taking the reader into Rebecca's nightmare...A great romance that will take you to the edge of your seat..."—Dina, Romance Junkies
"4 Hearts! Tess Maynard gives you a true sense of the nightmarish life that Rebecca has endured. Jace and Rebecca's romance lights up the pages as you bite your nails from the suspense. The stalker, Oz, is creepy and disturbing....Truly a fascinating story."—Cassandra, The Romance Studio
"5 Cups!...A wonderful story of love saving the day, and one I loved."—Sheryl, Coffee Time Romance
"Recommended Read...5 Angels!...An exceptional blend of suspense and romance, with Ms. Maynard adding touches of humor and poignant moments that make this story come alive..."—Amanda, Fallen Angel Reviews
"Tess Maynard has woven a story of danger and intrigue. Her sensual scenes of two lovers warming to one another add a patina to her work. This is a page-turner, one hard to put down..."—Eileen, The Road to Romance
"4 Quills!...This story does a more than decent job of keeping you interested in the characters and on the edge of your seat with suspense from start to finish. What more can you ask for than that?"—Johnna, Novelspot
…He stalked into the room. "Why did you leave?"
Ellie knew he wasn't going to let her go without answers.
"Jace," she gave a false, high laugh. "Last night was very nice, but I need to get things done."
"Very nice," he ground out. "Are you saying it meant nothing to you?" His eyes were hard blue diamonds, cutting pieces of beautiful rock.
She tried to keep her expression blank. Unable to meet that hard look, she turned away.
"Jace, I told you. All along, I've said I didn't want a heavy relationship with you. It was nice. Can't we leave it at that?"
Her heart was breaking, fragmenting into a million pieces, the pain was intense. There was only one mantra she allowed to pass through her mind. Falter and Jace will die. It kept replaying until the terror of his death outweighed the need for his touch.
He reached for her, but she stepped away from him, opening the door. If he touched her, she'd shatter. She had to get him out of the house. Give in and Jace will die. The panic of those words kept her steady, numbed her in order to continue.
"I'm sorry if you expected more. I need my freedom, Jace. It was a very nice interlude, nothing more. I really need to get ready for work," she lied. "If you don't mind? If you want to talk, maybe we can do it later." She couldn't meet his eyes as she held open the door.
He hesitated, like he wanted to say more, but then moved to the door. Before walking out, he turned, his hard eyes searing, trying to penetrate to her soul. She could feel him trying to reach inside her for a truth she couldn't let him find. Again, she reached for that dark place inside her where feeling did not exist.
His next words were no more than she expected.
"Oh, no, Ellie, this isn't the end and you can bet I want to continue our conversation," his voice was the grinding of crushed rock, low and tight. "I won't let you walk away from what we have." With one last searching look, he turned and stalked out.
Ellie let out her breath as she closed the door and leaned against it for support. It was done. Tears seeped from beneath her lids. How did she go on from here? The emptiness was bad before, but now it would be devastating. She would be gone before morning and Jace would be safe then. What happened to her after that didn't matter. As long as Jace was out of danger and she drew away the Man in the Mask, nothing else mattered...