Chill Out by @JanaRichards_ is a Love and Romance Festival pick #99c #romance #valentines #giveaway
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  • N. N. Light
    • Feb 6, 2023
    • 5 min read

Chill Out by @JanaRichards_ is a Love and Romance Festival pick #99c #romance #valentines #giveaway



Title: Chill Out


Author: Jana Richards


Genre: Contemporary romance, holiday romance


Book Blurb:


Renata Cabral needs to hide for the weekend. Her cousin’s Valentine’s Day wedding means she’ll face embarrassing questions from her large, extended family. Questions like “Why aren’t you married yet?” Since the breakup of her last relationship, she’s not ready to answer that question. She invents a work-related excuse and escapes to a friend’s lakeside cottage.


Noah Brownlee has been hiding for two years. But now he’s ready to come home and mend his broken relationship with his brother. When a friend offers the use of his lakeside cottage, Noah arrives in the middle of a blizzard with his English Mastiff, only to find the place is already occupied. With her big brown eyes and quirky sense of humor, Renata stirs feelings he thought long dead.


As the blizzard rages, the candy hearts predict love. Can Valentine’s Day work its magic between them?


Excerpt:


Renata drained her glass and then reached for the wine bottle. “Just enough left for one of us. I think I should have it since I brought the wine.”


“Wait a minute. As your guest, I believe I should have it.”


She pretended to think it over. “Technically, we’re both guests here. I think I deserve the last of the wine, considering I’m the pathetic one who lied to her mother so I wouldn’t have to go to my second cousin’s stupid Valentine wedding.”


“If pathetic is the criteria for winning the last drink, then it should go to me. Remember my sister-in-law, the one who’s having a baby in a couple of weeks?”


“Yeah?”


“Two years ago she was my fiancée. Until she ran off with my brother and married him.”


Renata stared open-mouthed, her heart breaking for him. How painful for him to lose the woman he loved, and his brother, in one fell swoop. She couldn’t imagine how deeply he’d been hurt. The betrayal boggled her mind.


She poured the wine into his glass. “You win.”


He lifted his glass and saluted her with it. “Told ya.”


“I’m sorry, Noah.”


He drained the glass. “Don’t worry about it. It was a long time ago.”


“Not that long ago. Just two years.”


“Enough time to think about my part in all this. I was so focused on my career that I didn’t think about all the time I was spending away from Kendall. I didn’t realize how unhappy she was in our relationship.”


“You’re being very understanding. I’m not sure I’d be as generous.”


He twisted the stem of his empty wine glass between his thumb and forefinger. “Believe me, I wasn’t very generous at the time. I called both of them a lot of names, and then I took off. I couldn’t stand to be in the same country, let alone the same city.”


He stared at the glass, as if lost in memories. “Kendall and I had been together all through university, and I know now I took her for granted. I could have accepted her breaking up with me, even taking up with another man. But my brother? That’s what really hurt.”


Renata grasped his hand. “You’re back now. That took courage.”


“You give me too much credit. Tyler told me about the baby, said he thought I should know. He and Caroline keep in touch with my brother.” Noah squeezed her hand and looked into her eyes, and she saw the pain there. “Dylan wasn’t just my brother, he was my best friend, and in some ways, he was like a father. When our mother died, he petitioned the court to make him my legal guardian so I wouldn’t have to go into care. He made sure I studied, pushed me to apply to med school, helped me with expenses.”


“He sounds like a wonderful big brother.”


His lips curved in a sad smile and Renata’s heart ached for him. “He was, and I know he’s going to be an amazing father. I want this animosity between us to end. I want my brother back.” His voice cracked. “But I’m not sure he feels the same way. I said some ugly things…”


“Perhaps, with the baby coming, he wants to mend the rift between you as much as you do.” She hoped she was right.


“Maybe. I’ll find out tomorrow. I’m going to phone Dylan and try to arrange a meeting.”


“It’ll work out. You’ll see.”


He leaned toward her, the corners of his eyes wrinkling with his smile. “I appreciate the pep rally.”


“Well, I was a cheerleader in high school. Rah, Rah.”


He laughed softly, then cupped her face with his hand, his thumb idly stroking her cheek. Her breath hitched at his tender touch. “Thank you for making this easier for me, Renata.”


He leaned in and her heart pounded in anticipation of his kiss. When his lips touched hers, a firestorm of longing ignited inside her. She strained toward him, needing his kiss, needing to heal his pain. His lips parted against hers, and she opened her mouth eagerly, reveling in his taste as his tongue danced with hers. The world faded away, and nothing existed for her except this man and all the tenderness she felt for him. It felt so right to kiss him, so perfectly, completely right.


Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):


CHILL OUT is on sale at Amazon for .99 cents from February 3-17, 2023.













What’s your favorite part about being a romance author?


In the real world, things don’t always make sense. Bad things happen to good people for no reason, and sometimes people never find true love. But as a writer, I can change all that. I get to mete out justice and make sure that bad people get what they deserve. And my favorite thing? Making people fall in love and giving them a happily ever after.


Here’s my tip to add romance to your love life:


Find out what your partner’s love language is. Everyone has certain ways they want to be shown love. Ask your partner what gestures make them feel special – such as physical touches, gifts, time together or perhaps words of love. And then make sure to lavish your partner with what makes them feel loved so they always know how you feel about them.


Giveaway –


One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon US or Canada gift card.



Open internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US or Amazon CA account to win.


Runs February 1 – 28, 2023.


Drawing will be held on March 1, 2023.



Author Biography:



When not writing up a storm or dealing with dust bunnies, Jana can be found pursuing hobbies such as golf (which she plays very badly) or reading (which she does much better).


Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren and two senior cats named Layla and Leelou. You can reach her through her website at http://www.janarichards.com


Social Media Links:


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