Annie Crow Knoll-Sunrise is the story of a place where people come to restore their spirits, heal their pain and reclaim their
lives.
Annie is a determined young woman who is left to run her family’s property after the death of her parents. Managing fourteen summer cottages with only the help of a family friend, she struggles to survive on her own. When she meets Drew, a young college professor, Annie thinks she’s finally found a love she can trust.
But years of conflict and pain destroy their bond and leave Annie alone again, unless she can find lasting peace and passion in the most unlikely arms.
In this family saga, love, loss and history twine together the people whose lives are changed by Annie’s determination and the magic of her knoll nestled along the head-waters of the Chesapeake Bay.
Read an excerpt:
The full moon provided more light than Annie expected at midnight. The idea of seeing Tommy’s private parts floating unencumbered in the water made her want to gag so she kept an inner tube floating between them. Because Tommy had nothing on, she finally felt obliged to slip off the bottom of her bathing suit.
“Come on, Annie, the top too.”
“That’s not fair. All you had to take off was the bottom.”
“That’s right. You get to see my sexy chest anytime. Now show me yours.”
“You’d better not tell anyone,” Annie warned knowing that this would make him
need to tell even more.
She tied the bottom of her suit to the inner tube, then reached around and
unsnapped the back of her top and let it float off her shoulders. Tommy stared longingly
over the inner tube at Annie’s breasts, shimmering just under the water.
“You’re beautiful, Annie.”
She hated herself for it, but she blushed.
“I’ll never forget this, Annie. Never.”
Tommy dove under the inner tube and circled her like a shark. The moonlight hit
his body beneath the surface. Annie hadn’t seen a man nude before. She was fascinated
as she watched him holding his breath for what seemed like forever as he admired her
from his underwater vantage. Then he stopped in front of her, his hair floating around his
face like a halo from a religious painting. He reached his hand out under the water, one
finger extended toward her belly. Annie held her breath, but he stopped less than an inch
away and broke the surface of the water with a wolf call.
“Shut up!” Annie whispered loudly.
He stood in the water with that silly grin of his. Their eyes were locked, and then
he looked down at himself, and she followed his gaze to below his waist.
“Holy cow!” Annie gasped.
Tommy laughed and swam to the dock where he’d left his suit. He didn’t bother
with the ladder but lifted his body right out of the water with his strong arms flipping
himself around to face her. Her effect on him was still apparent.
I caused that! Annie realized. The power of it flooded her senses. She tied the
top of her suit to the inner tube and swam away imagining herself a mermaid. She felt
the caress of the water all over her naked body, caresses of a lover.
When she looked back to the dock, Tommy and his suit were gone.
Silly boy, she thought. When the time came, he would never be her lover. He was beautiful, but not worthy. By morning his ego would have him bragging to everyone how he’d seen Miss Annie Crow naked. No, someone else would be her first lover, someone who deserved her.
Purchase – AMAZON/BN/SMASHWORDS
Gail Priest lives in New Jersey and summers in Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay with her husband and their cockatiel. In addition to writing novels, plays and screenplays, she teaches and directs in a high school performing arts program. She loves theatre, reading, birding and being out in nature
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Jen, Thanks for hosting Annie Crow Knoll: Sunrise and sharing an excerpt. Best, Gail