Graveyard Dog
(A Charley Davidson Novella)
by Darynda Jones
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Darynda Jones comes a new story in her Charley Davidson series…
Michael Cavalcante has one thing on his mind when he knocks on Izzabel Walsh’s door at two in the morning, half-dressed and a bit toasted: fix the woman’s heater and get back to bed. He vows never to cover for his maintenance tech again, especially after he gets tased and knocked out with a frying pan for his efforts.
Izzy thought she was safe. She’d dyed her hair, changed her name, and moved 1,500 miles away, and still they found her. When a member of her ex’s motorcycle club knocks on her door in the middle of the night, supposedly to fix a perfectly good heater, Izzy panics. Not only have they found her, but they would soon discover she has a daughter. Aka, a weakness. Aka, leverage. She needs time to think. To plan. To figure out how to keep the sexy neanderthal quiet. But she has no idea how to, short of murder. Can she win him over to her side? Or will he be just like all the others once he finds out what she is capable of?
Michael has one chance to convince Izzy he doesn’t want to harm her or her daughter, but more than that, he wants to know who does. And why. And where he can find them. After all, how else is he going to make sure the two sprites, who have wound their way into his heart, are safe?
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An Exclusive Interview with Darynda Jones
Can you tell us why or how you chose to write about this couple for your novella?
In two previous 1001 Dark Nights novellas, I wrote about two of the motorcycle club heroes who’d entered my Charley Davidson series early on. Michael Cavalcante is the third, and I think I saved the best for last. He is absolutely delicious, but I needed a heroine who would give him a run for his money. Literally. Enter Izzy Walsh. Izzy is on the run with her young daughter and when she mistakes Michael for an acquaintance of her ex, she tasers him and takes a frying pan to his skull. I figured she would do nicely to help bring this forever bachelor to his knees.
Can you give us a few lines from your work in progress?
This is a story from my Neverneath series. I don’t even have a title, but it’s one I’ve been writing on and off for years. Many, many years. I’m hoping to finish it soon and send it out into the world, at last:
Emery Moss stepped onto the tarmac armed with two things: a baby and a name. Exhaustion from both the long flight and the draining effects of a hot sun caused the ground to tilt beneath her feet. Worried she’d do something stupid like pass out with a baby in my arms, she pulled Aiden closer, dragged her immense load around the stairs, and grabbed the rail with one hand as the other passengers deboarded.
Some of them looked almost as tired as Emery felt, but most came alive the minute the wheels had touched down on the small island, like a switch had been flipped and the allure of sandy beaches, fruity drinks, and scantily-clad beachgoers had surged new life into the cells of their bodies.
She envied them. She longed for the days when it was just Emery and her sister against the world. When all she and Julia had to worry about was which trains to take to get to the beaches in Jersey and how to scrape enough money together to buy corndogs and a soft drink once there.
At the ripe old age of twenty-two, those days were definitely behind her. She was now running for her life, trying to stay ahead of the crime boss who wanted her dead. The one who would stop at nothing to ensure she could never testify against him. She’d fled a hotel room in New York with three bodies in it as proof.
What mythical creature do you wish actually existed?
Can you imagine living in a world with dragons? I’ve considered all the possibilities from the fun-loving sidekicks in How to Train Your Dragon to the world destroyers in Reign of Fire. (Say what you will about Matthew McConaughey, that boy can act.) I think they would be amazing to see.
What scene in this book was the toughest to write and why?
The sex scene! I couldn’t quite figure out the dynamics of it. It took me a while to realize Michael needed to be the aggressor (is that the right word?), but he’s such a gentleman, he needed a little encouragement from Izzy. Not much. Just enough to bring out his animal side.
If you could watch one scene from this book be played out like a movie, which one would it be and why?
Probably the opening when Michael, who is in pain after being tased and hit with a frying pan and is now tied to an oven door, is convinced Izzy is as unhinged as they come and becomes the unwilling participant in her five-year-old daughter’s tea party.
How did you come up with the title for this book?
Well, I knew Michael grew up tough and yet honorable to a fault. He was that kid in the neighborhood who wouldn’t put up with bullying. Not on his watch. His friends started calling him Graveyard Dog because he lived by a graveyard and once he bit down, he never let go.
Biography:
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier, and her books have been translated into 18 languages. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, and she is ever so grateful for the opportunity to carry on that legacy. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press: The Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys.
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