It all started in a small south Texas town – home to big hair, fast boats, lip-smackin’ barbecue and the world’s biggest pecan (don’t even ask). I was a sophomore in college when I discovered my “Prince Charming.” The first thing I noticed was his yummy smile and when he winked at me it was all over but the shoutin’!

Before long we embarked on our great adventure. With two kids and a menagerie of four-legged friends ranging from dogs, to cats, to horses we made a home in twenty-two houses located in eighteen towns, seven states and on two continents – all courtesy of the U.S. Air Force. Sometimes I barely got the pictures up before the moving van came back. But who can resist a fighter pilot – especially when he smiles.

It wasn’t all a piece of cake, au contraire – but I’ll admit I had a ball. Imagine living in an eight hundred square foot English gate keeper’s house with a coal stove as your only source of heat (have you ever dreamed about a thermostat or a dryer that would hold more than a towel and two pairs of socks?). Or how about this one – our beach home had a flying cockroach the size of a ’58 Buick with fins (they called it a Palmetto bug, but a cockroach by any other name is still a cockroach), and an army of sand fleas that marched in like the 4th ID into Baghdad (needless to say the exterminator and I were on a first name basis). Not to mention our place on the prairie where tornadoes danced across the plains and hail was described as being the size golf balls or soft balls.

Now I’m sharing my version of a tree house in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with my sweetie, Katie (my Golden Retriever), and one very spoiled cat. From my office I can see ducks on the pond, our resident owl and the graceful blue heron in the wetland. Does life get much better than that?

Oops – I’m about to wax rhapsodically (and BTW does anyone know what that means?) So to continue with my story, I spent an incredible amount of time in the hallowed halls of academia. In fact, I was well on my way to a third masters when I had the sudden epiphany that I probably needed therapy! So I ditched that endeavor and actually went to work as a certified land use planner – you know, one of those people at city hall who make you jump through hoops to get a permit. Now I spend my time writing, walking the dog, playing tennis and just generally having a good time. Instead of agonizing over staff reports I get to make up stuff – really good stuff!

For my stories I've dipped into my fourth generation Texas heritage and created the fictional town of Port Serenity. The city and characters are a product of my vivid imagination, but my childhood in a small southern town gave me a wealth of colorful and eccentric personalities to draw from. And my communities are chock full of wonderfully funny and warm citizens. After two books, they’ve become my good friends.

I hope you will join them in their little piece of paradise for a mini-vacation peppered with humor and sizzling with sassy, sexy situations

Happy Reading!