But I have to say something.
“You’re always welcome here,” I whisper, but it’s so little when my heart feels so much more.
She leans across the seat, taking my face in her hands. Her lips land softly on mine, her skin bidding farewell to mine. All too soon, she pulls away, and I think I might hear the sound of a muffled sob. But, by the time I open my eyes, the passenger door is slamming shut and she’s headed into the terminal without looking back.
And just like that…
…she’s gone.
** PLEASE TURN THE PAGE TO READ A LETTER FROM KATY REGNERY THAT EXPLAINS THE ABRUPT ENDING OF THIS STORY AND PLANS TO FINISH IT SOON! **
A Letter to My Readers
Dear readers:
I was not supposed to write this story.
If you follow me on social media, you know that I had originally intended to include a different book in this anthology. I had over 20,000 words of AT FIRST SIGHT written when I powered down my computer one afternoon in mid-July and lost the entire story. The whole thing. All of it. Gone. I tried working with computer experts and recovery programs, but the book had vanished. To this day, I have never been able to recover the manuscript.
I have it on good authority that this is every author’s worst nightmare. To lose all of that work? All of those words? It was heartbreaking. Not to mention, it put me in a serious bind.
With only 22 days before the story was due, I considered backing out of this collection entirely, but I really didn’t want to do that. Heidi McLaughlin, the editor of this collection, is one of my closest friends in this crazy industry, and not only did I feel terrible about letting her down, but I really like collaborating on projects with her. She’d drawn together a terrific group of authors to be included in this anthology. I wanted in.
Faced with only three weeks to deliver a complete novella, I dug back through my computer files, looking at unfinished manuscripts. That’s when I came across SINGLE IN SITKA, an idea I’d had back in 2017 for a book about a single dad in Sika, Alaska, who meets a newly-single journalist from Seattle. After re-reading the 7,000 words I had, I thought to myself: I can do this! I can make this story work! The one problem? SINGLE IN SITKA was planned as a 70,000-word novel, not a 20,000-word novella. Hmm. What to do…what to do…and then I remembered…
Back in 2015, after more than a hundred fans asked, I wrote MARRYING MR. ENGLISH, a pre-quel to my popular series, The English Brothers. I had planned it as a holiday novella. The problem was, once I got started writing, I realized that Tom and Eleanora’s story couldn’t be told in such a short book. It needed to be a full-length novel. Know what I did? I published the first half of MARRYING MR. ENGLISH in a Christmas collection, wrote the second half, then published the novel in its entirety a few weeks later.
And that’s exactly what I’m doing here, as well.
Included this collection, I hope you enjoy the first half of Amanda and Luke’s story. But if the story feels unfinished, that’s because it is. The entire novel, including the second part/conclusion to Amanda and Luke’s story, will be released on October 8, 2019.
An important note about pricing: Generally, I charge $3.99 per novel, but because you’ve already paid $3.99 for this anthology, I will be publishing the complete novel, SINGLE IN SITKA, at the reduced price of $0.99 so that you aren’t charged double.
Part of what I love best about being an indie author is the constant surprises in my work-life. A month ago, I would have bet that I’d be offering you another fairytale. Instead, you’ll be reading the fun and flirty story of an Alaskan state trooper and the Seattle city girl who steals his heart.
Promise me you’ll circle back in October to read the rest of the story, okay? And I have two more goodies coming out this fall to complete my Alaskan collection:
Coming in November 2019: NOME-O SEEKS JULIET, about a man and woman who go head-to-head in the Iditarod Dog Sled Race! The battle of the sexes has never been so sexy!
Coming in December 2019: A FAIRBANKS AFFAIR, about a 30-year-old virgin who heads to Alaska with the sole intent of turning in her v-card over one long, sexy New Year’s weekend!
With so much love to all of you!
Katy
xoxoxo
Also by Katy Regnery
a m o d e r n f a i r y t a l e
(A collection)
The Vixen and the Vet
Never Let You Go
Ginger’s Heart